Outward - PS4 Review

Outward by Nine Dots Studios is an interesting attempt at something new with roleplaying games. In RPGs you will often find yourself as a slighted or disenfranchised young person who then needs to rise up to “the challenge” and eventually save the world by unlocking hidden talents. Eventually you will become an all-powerful being capable of smiting foes and gods left and right. Outward aims to be the opposite; you are insignificant, you are not some all-powerful being touched by some holy light, you are not some super-warrior that simply needs to find their fitting. You are nobody. A nothing; a random person that wakes up and has to survive.

Now the premise sounds absolutely fantastic to me; I mean, I love my JRPGs, which are often full of tired tropes where a young man or woman’s childhood home is ransacked by the big bad demon king, a parent is often killed (occasionally a childhood friend) and on goes the story that starts as revenge and turns into a tale of saving mankind for the greater good. Seriously, I can think of a few dozen JRPGs that start that way and while I love each one, the opportunity to get into something new is always exciting, which is why Outward appealed to me so much.

Now, after spending plenty of time in game, I think that the game had so much potential, and while I have my own critiques for it, does live up to much of that. Where I would have personally gone a different route, was in the fact that magic exists in this world. Granted, the magic is interesting, based on a rune-like method where you can combine various glyphs to make some pretty spectacular booms, but it tends to be the default process everyone (including myself) tend to roll with because it simply gives you that uber-powerful feeling. That very fact is, in my mind, counter to the very concept that the great folks at Nine Dots Studios were trying to push. Maybe it is just me, but I would have certainly left magic to the wind and went straight survival on the topic. The magic is fun, but neither adds nor detracts from the overall gameplay; it simply exists and I struggled with immersion in the survival-esque world of Outward because of it.

One thing that was certainly promised was that it would be difficult, and difficult Outward most certainly is. Monsters, though limited in variation, are all extraordinarily strong and in many cases, will simply 1-hit you. This happens. A lot. I found that, because I would often forget to remove my backpack so I could better manage my stamina, I would try to roll out of the way from hits, which would then leave me running back to my corpse. Now you might think that sounds familiar, very Dark Souls, and you would be right, to a point.

Where in Souls games you can sword-and-board tank, hiding behind a tower shield and dodge only when necessary, that is so incredibly far from the reality in Outward. Regardless of what you are wearing or whether you have some magical enchantment, you will be squishy. But hey, at least you can work your way up to a sweet house, because you will spend a lot of time there, crafting, managing your inventory, and simply resting to get away from the stress of cave diving and exploring the ruins found dotted throughout the land.

While each individual aspect of Outward sounds great, from the survival-esque features to the regular roleplay features, they tend to be both outshone and tarnished by the world with which Outward is built. Stunning vistas, brilliant scenes, interesting caves, and wonderful ruins are devastatingly devoid of anything more interesting than a spawn point. Sure, there are a few interesting things like the blade dancers in a subterranean factory of some sort, or an ice witch and some cronies in a mountaintop cave, but those are few and far between.

In truth, Outward is empty and devoid of any real life, all with little real explanation. Survival games like State of Decay 2 tend to have more personality throughout the game due to the pockets of survivors simply trying to get by in a world gone mad. It almost seems like Nine Dots Studio was trying to do something similar … but forgot to add in the personality. Still, there is plenty to do within Outward, even if it does feel a bit meandering at times. Given the attention to player feedback that Nine Dots has shown, perhaps, over time, these things will change and when it does, I will revisit the game and maybe put out a new article; until then, Outward remains firmly in the “Make sure you pick this one up while it’s on sale” category.

Outward is a fun, challenging, if empty and slightly misguided, open-world roleplaying game where death is not only common, but guaranteed (do not be like me and accidentally drink the salt water; you will die … fast). Beautiful but hollow, Outward is an absolute must for those looking for something different, but be warned, you might bite off more than you can choose.

Game Information

Platform:
Sony PlayStation 4
Developer(s):
Nine Dots Studio
Publisher(s):
Deep Silver
Genre(s):
Action
Adventure
Open World
RPG
Mode(s):
Single Player
Coop
Other Platform(s):
Microsoft Xbox One
PC

Source:
Provided by Publisher

Article by Robert

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New Overcooked! 2 DLC Night of the Hangry Horde

14th June 2019 – Team17, a global games label, creative partner and developer of independent, premium video games in partnership with multi-award-winning indie studio Ghost Town Games is thrilled to announce the release of a new DLC pack for Overcooked! 2 today. The Night of the Hangry Horde DLC is available digitally now for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo SwitchTM and PC both as a separate DLC pack and for any existing Season Pass owners.

As a thank you to everyone who has supported the game so far, Ghost Town Games and Team17 have also released a free piece of DLC for all Overcooked! 2 owners, the All at Sea Chef pack. This new pack includes five new chefs to cook up a storm as.

Night of the Hangry Horde DLC

The Onion Kingdom is under attack once again, but this time the enemy have brought friends. The unbread have risen again and have turned their appetites to the Onion King’s castle! Platers must tackle this returning threat using all of their cooking know how.

Night of the Hangry Horde includes new tasty recipes, four extra chefs, twelve creepy new kitchens and eight all new horde wave levels. Night of the Hangry Horde is included within the Season Pass, or available separately for £7.99/8,99€/$9.99.

Key features:

• Horde mode! Feed the enemies to keep them at bay and stop them from attacking the castle. These eight all new horde wave levels include the ability to repair the castle and unlock shortcut gates using the coins you earn. Watch out for the different enemy types: the unbread; the zombie apple, which is slow, causes huge damage and requires two meals to defeat; and the zombie chili pepper which has fast attacks and mobility!
• New recipes! Prepare guillotine chopped soup, fruit pies and roast dinners. Roast dinners can be cooked quicker by adding more coal to the furnace
• Four New chefs! New spooky chefs Ghost, Vampire and Werewolf plus Boxhead, a returning favourite from the original Overcooked!
• New levels! Nine creepy new kitchens and three new hidden Kevin Kitchens

Season Pass

The Overcooked! 2 Season Pass will satisfy the hungriest of customers, giving players a saving on three extra portions of content. This includes Campfire Cook Off, Night of the Hangry Horde and a further DLC pack. The season pass is available digitally now on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo SwitchTM and PC priced at £14.99/€16.99/$19.99.

All at Sea Chef Pack

It’s time for this ragtag group of salty sea chefs to join your crew! With this new team of savoury sailors on board, cooking in your kitchen will be plain sailing. Choose from the pirate chefs, mermaid chef, narwhale chef or shark chef.

About Ghost Town Games

Founded in 2015, Ghost Town Games is a BAFTA winning independent developer based in the UK, comprised of Phil Duncan, Oli De-Vine and Gemma Langford. For more information please visit:  www.ghosttowngames.com.

About Overcooked

Overcooked. Developed by Ghost Town Games Ltd © 2016. Published by Team17 Digital Ltd. Team17 is a trademarks or registered trademarks of Team17 Digital Limited. All other trademarks, copyrights and logos are property of their respective owners.  Accolades: “Debut Game” TIGA Awards 2016; “Family Game” BAFTA Game Awards 2017; “British Game” BAFTA Game Awards 2017; “Best Gameplay” BIG Festival Awards 2017; “Best Game” BIG Festival Awards 2017; "Best New Games IP" Develop Awards 2017. “Best Family/Social Game” Game Critics Awards ‘Best of E3 2018’. “Best Family Game” The Game Awards 2018.

About Team17 Digital Ltd

Founded in 1990, Team17 Group plc is a leading international video games label and creative partner for independent developers. The portfolio comprises over 100 games, including The Escapists, Overcooked, Yoku’s Island Express, Yooka-Laylee, the Worms franchise and many more from developers around the world. Visit www.team17.com for more info.



Article by Susan N.

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Golem Gates - Xbox One Review

Golem Gates is an interesting mix of strategy and chance, leveraging a collectible card game as its primary progression mechanic. The end result is a little uneven at times, but undeniably entertaining at the same time.

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BTS World Launches New Management Game

Los Angeles, CA (June 13, 2019) - Netmarble has announced “A Brand New Day,” the second song available from the BTS WORLD original soundtrack, will be released on June 14 at 2 am PDT/6 pm KST.

“A Brand New Day” is an electronic hip-hop song by j-hope and V, which features Zara Larsson, a next generation pop star from Sweden. The song was produced by British hip-hop electronic music producer and beat maker Mura Masa.

Mura Masa’s unique beat and sound of East Asian musical instrumentation offer a bold and harmonious feeling in the song. The Korean traditional musical instrument daegeum leads the song, highlighting the most Korean yet trendy sound, and the combination of Eastern and Western vocals create perfect harmony.

“Dream Glow,” released on June 7, and new song “A Brand New Day” are original songs created for BTS WORLD as fresh, new music to coincide with the game’s story of a parallel universe. BTS WORLD’s full, original soundtrack, including the third to be revealed on June 21, will be released on June 28.

With the new song, Netmarble opened BTS WORLD’s "Another Story," in which each member of BTS appears as the main character, through its official website. Two stories of RM and Jin were opened on June 10 and 12, and more stories of other members will come sequentially.

Netmarble is also revealing a preview of text messaging with BTS members, which is one of the main interactive content components of the game, through the BTS WORLD website. The reactions of BTS members vary by responses selected by the players, and their individual characteristics can be seen through how they react.

The game will be released worldwide (excluding some countries) for iOS and Android devices. For more information on BTS WORLD, please visit https://btsw.netmarble.com. The latest updates are also available by following BTS WORLD on Twitter and Instagram.

About Netmarble Corporation

Netmarble Corporation strives to entertain audiences of all ages around the world by providing great mobile gaming experiences. Established in Korea in 2000, Netmarble is one of the fastest-growing mobile game companies and consistently ranks as a top mobile developer and publisher worldwide. With more than 6,000 employees, Netmarble has been producing and servicing some of the most successful mobile games including Lineage 2: Revolution, Blade & Soul Revolution, MARVEL Future Fight, Everybody’s Marble, and Seven Knights. As a parent company to Kabam, a top mobile game developer in massively multiplayer free-to-play games, and the largest shareholder to Jam City, a leading casual social game developer, Netmarble has a strategic partnership with CJ ENM Corporation, Asia’s largest entertainment company, Tencent Holdings, Asia’s largest internet company, and NCsoft, a prominent MMORPG company. More information can be found at http://company.netmarble.com

About Big Hit Entertainment

Founded in February 2005 in South Korea by CEO and Producer Bang Si-Hyuk, Big Hit Entertainment's core business focuses on music production, artist management and publishing. Big Hit’s business ventures incorporate and develop a range of content produced from top-notch artists' IP, including global boy band BTS and its newest addition TOMORROW X TOGETHER. With its mission of 'Music & Artist for Healing', Big Hit strives to impart a positive influence through content while providing comfort and inspiration to music fans worldwide.

About Takeone Company

Takeone Company Corp. is an innovative content company that utilizes pop-culture within a gaming environment. Established in 2016, Takeone is leading the new genre of mobile games called 'Cinematic Games' that combines interactive game elements within a story concept based on both pop-culture and original IP's.  The games include full motion videos and various visual contents that push the boundaries of next-generation storytelling.  Years of experience and knowledge in both storytelling and game development have led to the creation of cinematic games such as Take Urban, BTS WORLD.  Takeone is currently developing a series of future cinematic games for their next up and coming titles.  For more information, please refer to www.takeonecompany.com.



Article by Susan N.

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Battle Worlds: Kronos - Switch Review

Like a lot of other titles having previously been released on the consoles, Battle Worlds: Kronos is the latest to be seeing its final port over to the “newest platform”, the Nintendo Switch. With the original release being not all that long ago, this battle for Kronos won't really be seeing new features short of being able to play it in a handheld mode.

Battle Worlds: Kronos is an interesting one. Using hex based movement, you’ll be battling it out for both survival and dominion on a planet named Kronos. Kronos is an “uninhabited” planet used as the field of battle for deciding the next Emperor in a war of succession. Being told that a part of your forces have been decimated by someone not in the running, you make your way planetside only to find out that the ones currently attacking you are the ones that sell you the weapons that you and your other opponents use to pummel one another into dust.

The premise to the overall is neat. While on one hand it could be viewed as, oh cool, they have war games to decide who’s going to be the next leader, on the other it’s a real war and whoever is taken out dies. A bit like the original Fire Emblems in that regard, you don’t just send in your troops as if you lose them, they are gone. This puts a bit more stress on doing it right… or doing it twice once you’ve re-loaded your game after being annihilated.

Battling for Kronos isn’t easy and you are told this from the very beginning. It’s hard. In some cases it may even be too hard. That disclaimer out of the way, the devs have also provided a slew of tutorials for how to survive and win this war if you are good enough. Even the learning curve is steep because after the first few steps you’re already in some heavy enough battles that could cost you even just the first mission.

With the tutorials there however, there’s a transition that may not have been the best for consoles. Often times I found myself wishing for a mouse in order to zoom in and out, pan to the left or the right, and even see which unit should be the one that I want to use in order to make an attack. There are a fair amount of models that look the same though their attack radius are quite different so if you make a move to attack and realize that it was the wrong one, you’ve just missed out on a whole turn.

On top of that, there’s also the issue where you think you’re about to click on another unit and instead move the one you thought you had unselected. I wish that I could say that happened once, but it happened a lot costing me a few units in the process as they were no longer in range for attack. So really, you have to fully move one unit, either twice or move and attack, and then go onto the next one. You can’t just line everything up where a unit could hit A or B and then let loose.

The turns themselves last as long or as short as you want them. Every unit has two moves but you don’t need to use them all. Of the two moves, there are two options. You can either move and then move again if you are either scouting the terrain or moving into position. Or, you can move and you can attack. I personally would have enjoyed being able to attack twice, but as you get to move all of your units before it’s the enemies turn, that would have been unfair even if the odds are stacked against you.

So while there’s nothing really wrong with Battle Worlds: Kronos, it's steep entry may be too high for some and the UI could use a bit of work. I loved the concepts behind it but I would have preferred something somewhere in the middle ground of it all.

Game Information

Platform:
Nintendo Switch
Developer(s):
KING Art Games
Publisher(s):
THQ Nordic
Genre(s):
Turned Based Strategy
Mode(s):
Single Player
Multiplayer
Other Platform(s):
Sony PlayStation 4
Microsoft Xbox One
PC

Source:
Provided by Publisher

Article by Pierre-Yves

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Jaggy's E3 Wrap Up Part 2

Part 2 Introduction

For the second E3 article, I cover the rest of the conferences from last weekend. This includes the Xbox conference, Nintendo, and Bethesda. So let's get right to it! And if you missed our first wrap up article, click here.

XBOX

I could really just stop on this first title, the one that everyone is waiting for, which is Cyberpunk 2077. Let's be real, I was am stoked for this title but it was made EVEN better when Keanu Reeves - John Wick himself - stepped on the stage. Of course what happened has now become a meme (NO YOU'RE BREATHTAKING!), but it was so worth it. And as most everyone knows, Cyberpunk is an open world RPG set in a megalopolis. Players get to run around with cyberware and use enhancements to take on a story of your own. It is being developed an published by CD Projekt Red and anything this studio touches often turns into gold. My body is ready!

For me, arguably the next most hyped game is something that the next generation of gamers will have to suffer through. And that game is called Battletoads! It is an old Nintendo game that drove my brother and I insane mainly because of those dumb slaloms. Anyways, now a new generation of players can suffer through this amazing game - depending on how the game is designed. Either way, I'm excited for it.

Another game that caught my eye is an indie game called 12 Minutes, an interactive thriller in top down view. It is being published by Annapurna Interactive for PC and Xbox One. You play a character that is told that you and your wife are having a child, though not long after cops burst into your house to arrest your wife. Luis Antonio, the developer of this game, has been credited for work done in The Witness - another puzzle game I absolutely loved that was created by Jonathan Blow. For me, this title is not one to miss out on. 

The next title that made me smile ridiculously is Lego Speed Champions: Forza Horizon 4. I mean, they had a McLaren assembled out of Lego - and the car looked like it was made to scale! Anyways, it has never been a secret that I love racing games but marrying racing with a Lego game makes any fan feel like a kid again. It may be silly but I love it!

Elden Ring is an action RPG releasing under FromSoftware. The critically acclaimed author George R. R. Martin collaborated with the Dark Souls creator Hidetaka Miyazaki to create this new souls-like game. It proves to be a dark and brutal game based on the history of these two masters at murdering viewers and players alike. Of course, I don't mean that literally. Anyways, the game looks like any Souls fans will enjoy this new title.

The seventeenth title under Bandai Namco's epic Tales series will release in 2020 and fans of the series are stoked. It is a JRPG that many gamers have heard of or played previously. This new title, Tales of Arise, aims to appeal to the western audience, even though it will not be an open world. The last game in this series was Tales of Berseria and it has been several years since it launched, so it stands to reason that many fans will grab this title when it launches. I mean, we are talking about Bandai Namco here.

Borderlands 3 has been talked about at length in the recent weeks. On September 13th, the Handsome Collection will launch and I know plenty of gamers that are excited for this title as well. It will feature a ton of guns, guns, and more guns. Oddly enough, I've never been big on the Borderlands games, however, it is well liked and I would be remiss if I didn't mention it in this list of games to be excited for.

This conference also announced some key bits of information like Double Fine Productions is now part of the Microsoft studio, the news of the Xbox GamePass, and Project Scarlett - Xbox's new console that will compete with the PlayStation 5. I've always been a #pcmasterrace kind of person so we'll see what happens with the new consoles.

Nintendo

Nintendo's conference had a couple of interesting titles. The Legend of Zelda: Links Awakening will release September 20th of this year. Trials of Mana will release on the Switch in 2020 and with that announcement came news that all three Mana games are available on the Switch.

A new titled called Astral Chain will release August 20th this year and I'm excited for this game. It is an action game developed by PlatinumGames and is directed by the lead game designer for Nier: Automata with assistance from Hideki Kamiya, the creator of Bayonetta. Players will be able to choose between two characters who will be responsible for saving their world. I want it. The game looks amazing from what has been shown thus far.

The next title in this list is also part of the Zelda series and it is called Cadence of Hyrule which calls back to the Zelda games of old as a top down 2D world. Players will explore randomly generated places and they will be able to either run around as Zelda or as Link. This game also merges some of the weapons and spells used in Crypt of the NecroDancer. There is also a music component to the game as well as having the ability to play with a friend, so it should be an interesting experience. 

During the Xbox conference the new Animal Crossing game, "New Horizons", was announced. It will be released on March 20th of next year and a lot of people are excited. Animal Crossing is a game where players build up a new life on a deserted island. Over time they can create a whole community of people and animals. Having never played an Animal Crossing game, I might check this one out, just because it would be a nice relaxing gameplay experience.

Now for a title that several members of Chalgyr's are excited about, which is The Sinking City - an open world action/adventure mystery game being developed and published by Frogwares. It is inspired by the works of H.P. Lovecraft and it is set in a fictional town of New England, Oakmont Massachusetts. Players follow a private investigator and a war veteran who try to figure out the source of awful horrific visions that seem to be causing floods. The game will release on June 27th of this year and we are excited for it!   

Many people are happy to see the joining of Super Smash Ultimate and Banjo Kazooie, which releases later this year. A huge teaser is the sequel to Breath of the Wild which simply stated that the game is in development. I have no idea how that will turn out but I love the idea of having another BoTW game.

Also mentioned was a Catan game that will launch on the Switch on June 20th. This is exciting for me because I love the boardgame Settler's of Catan. I'm not sure how it will play out as a mobile game, but I'm excited nonetheless.

Bethesda

I'll be honest, every single year the Bethesda conference is the most boring for me. I am not a fan of Fallout, and especially hate Fallout 76 because of how much of a let down it was to other people. I've simply watched the trainwreck happen from a distance. In the presentation, Bethesda talked about the new additions to the game like actual NPC's and a new battle royale mode called Nuclear Winter. I'm sure there are plenty of fans out there that will gobble up the new additions to the game, but it's not my kind of game so it's not that big of a deal to me.

Next on the list is Deathloop, created by the people responsible for Dishonored and Prey. Now, I do like the Dishonored series, so releasing a new IP as a first-person action game, seems like it would be interesting to me. I'm not yet sure if it will be my style of game yet but who knows?

Finally, Commander Keen is being revived as a free to play mobile game. It was a classic platformer that was inspired by Saturday morning cartoons in its original installment. I believe the game is being released as a 2D tactics game. It will feature a single-player story mode and a real time PVP combat. It was not a game that I played in the 90s but it looks like it would be really fun to try. I might give this title a shot.

Bethesda had a lot more to showcase like Wolfenstein, Elder Scroll, and Doom Eternal but again, just about everything in their lineup did not excite me at all. That's just me though.

Other Games

There were plenty of games I didn't get to so, here is a list of the rest of the games I didn't mention:

Xbox One

• Star Wars: Fallen Order
• Blair Witch
• Spiritfarer
• RPG Time: The Legend of Wright
• Star Renegades
• Totally Accurate Battle Simulator
• Crosscode
• Creatures in the Well
• Riverbond
• Unto the End
• Felix the Reaper
• Undermind
• Secret Neighbour
• Night Call
• Totem Teller
• Microsoft Flight Simulator
• Age of Empires III: The Definitive Edition
• Wasteland 3
• Psychonauts 2
• Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga
• DragonBall Game: Project Z
• Way to the Woods
• Gears 5: Bound by Blood 5, Escape, Terminator
• Dying Light 2
• Funko Pop Gears 5
• State of Decay 2: Heartland
• Phantasy Star Online 2

Nintendo

• Super Smash Ultimate + Dragon Quest XI
• Luigi's Mansion 3
• The Dark Crystal: Tactics
• Trials of Mana
• The Witcher III - for the Switch
• Fire Emblem: Three Houses
• No More Heroes III
• Contra Anniversary Collection
• Daemon vs Machina
• Panzer Dragoon
• Pokemon Sword / Shield
• Empire of Sin
• Ultimate Alliance 3
• Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games
• Spyro
• Hollow Knight: Silk Song
• Minecraft Dungeons
• My Friend Pedo
• Dead by Daylight IV
• Alien Isolation
• Just Dance 2020
• Super Lucky's Tale
• Super Mario Maker 2

Bethesda

• The Elder Scrolls: Blades
• Ghostwire Tokyo
• The Evil Within 3
• Doom Eternal
• Wolfenstein: Cyberpilot
• Wolfenstein: Youngblood
• Rage 2: Rise of the Ghosts

 

Final Wrap Up of E3

Obviously there are some amazing titles listed like Cyberpunk and Battletoads. Remember, this is a subjective list of things I'm excited about, but also, this is just my opinion.

Who's conference won E3 for you? I'm tied between the PC games list and Square Enix.



Article by Susan N.

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Jaggy's E3 Wrap Up Part 1

E3 Introductory Thoughts

This year's E3 had a lot of fun and interesting titles, facepalm moments, and it wouldn't be E3 without some technical issues. As with last year's E3 wrap up, I will split the conferences into two articles to get as many games listed as possible. In this first article I'm looking at games I'm excited for from the PC Gaming Show, Square Enix, Ubisoft, and Devolver Digital. I'm not going into detail about every title, just the ones I'm hyped for. The rest will be listed at the end of the article.

PC Gaming Show

As a PC player, this conference is often the most important one for me to watch. While there were a lot of games listed in their lineup, I'm excited for Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines 2 because, lets face it, people know I'm a fan of vampires. Next is a much anticipated new published game by Chucklefish called Starmancer and I definitely want it. This is a game where players can build up a colony in space and ConcernedApe's ability to do incredible pixel art has impressed me. I can see the drastic improvements from his work in Stardew Valley.

Now, I've always been a fan of games like Planet Coaster or some of the Tycoon games, so it should be no shock that I love the idea of Planet Zoo. Sometimes it's just fun to build up great spaces where nothing could possibly go wrong... Absolutely nothing... The animals won't try to eat each other or the patrons, will they?

Balders Gate had a relatively short trailer at E3 this year and it does not have a release date, but fans of the series are excited to get their hands on this title. We don't yet have much information about the style of gameplay since the previous two titles were top down 2D strategy games. It'll be fun to see what direction the newest installment will take.

Alright, now to talk briefly about a game that I most likely won't play, but I love the premise behind it. Midnight Ghost Hunt is a hide and seek multiplayer game where players are either ghosts or ghost hunters. The hunters have to find the ghosts before midnight. The ghosts can pose as any inanimate object in the place. There aren't many games where players get to be evil ghosts that try to murder others, so that is why I find it an intriguing premise, but that's just me.

Next on the list is Age of Wonders: Planetfall, a 4x game that releases in August of this year. It's no surprise that I love just about anything Paradox Interactive publishes, so to have this on my list of must have games should not shock anyone. It's a science-fiction strategy game that looks like a lot of fun by combining turn-based combat with the studio that brought us the Age of Wonders series. Yes. I need this in my life!

This year, fans of the Shenmue series will get the third installment in November. It is an open world action/adventure game where players take control of Ryo Hazuki, a martial artist who seeks revenge on his father's killer. I know plenty of people that I stoked for it, so keep an eye out for Shenmue!

Earlier this year I reviewed a game called Whispers of a Machine that was published by Raw Fury. E3 presented another game releasing by the same publisher called Per Aspera and I'm excited for it. This title is a simulation game taking place on Mars and it reminds me of the aesthetic of Surviving Mars. Per Aspera has more than just base building it seems, because it contains a single player story that we can experience - which is different from Surviving Mars which doesn't have a single player narrative.

Finally, the makers of Her Story have developed a new title called Telling Lies. Unlike Her Story where players watch small portions of an interrogation to determine what happened, this title features multiple characters who are lying. Your job is to learn the truth and I believe it will be an intriguing game to play. It's set to come out later this year and I need to get my hands on it.

Square Enix

I'm not going to lie, the Square Enix conference was one of the ones I was extremely excited about because of the Final Fantasy VII remake that is coming out March 3rd of next year. I want to see more about the game and I'm still excited for it to release, despite what others may say.

They announced Life is Strange 2's next episode, which is a series I've enjoyed ever since I played the first one. It's a series that has some very interesting themes and amazing music, so I look forward to going through more of the story in it.

Another title they announced for the summer of next year is called Outriders and it is a new co-op based shooter that will release on Xbox One, Playstation 4, and PC. The game seems post apocalyptic and brutal, so I'm intrigued. We aren't told much about the game but I have hopes for it. We will find out when more information is released.

Square Enix is also releasing a new Avengers game that is said to be different from the events of the movie. It is releasing on May 15th of next year and looks like a good time. Also, it helps that the trailer had some amusing comments like: "Did Thor just make a joke?" Another bonus is that Travis Willingham and Laura Bailey are the voices of Thor and Black Widow respectively. Since I'm a fan of Critical Role (a D&D show streamed on Twitch with a group of famous voice actors), it makes perfect sense that I'd be immediately interested in this title for multiple reasons.

Finally, the biggest shock for me was the announcement of Final Fantasy VIII's remake which comes out this year. WHAT?! SERIOUSLY?! I'm still in shock! For those of you that aren't aware, my introduction to the series was Final Fantasy VII. I went on to play Final Fantasy VIII after that and both of these games are significant to me for personal reasons that I won't elaborate on. Suffice it to yes, this is a title I'm also going to nab as fast as possible. I loved this game and have zero issues playing it again!

Ubisoft Conference

For me, Ubisoft didn't have a lot of titles I was super excited about, but the two that really peaked my interest are Watch Dogs: Legion which is set to release on March 6th of next year and Roller Champions. The second one surprised me because I grew up watching a television show called "Blade Warriors" where players had to traverse an obstacle course on rollerblades, very similar to the TV show called "America's Ninja Warriors". Seeing this game made me smile and remember the television series and I'm excited for the game, even if it's chessy as hell. I want it.

Of course, it wouldn't be Ubisoft if they didn't announce another Just Dance game (now with Kpop!) and the launch of Uplay Plus that allows subscribers to get early access to new games. It will be available on Stadia and only costs $14.99/month.

Devolver Digital

As per normal, Devolver Digital enters the ring with interesting games like Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout, Carrion - a reverse horror game where players are the evil creature chasing after those that imprisoned them, a new Enter the Gungeon DLC called House of the Gundead, and The Messenger's new DLC "Picnic Panic." While I always wonder about the legitimacy of the trailers they present, their conference is always just something to experience. Trust me.

Day 1 Final Thoughts

Now, there are a large number of titles that I didn't include in this list because there are a lot of games to cover. My objective was to simplify what E3 had to offer so here is the list of everything else for these four conferences:

PC

• Evil Geniuses 2
• Chivalry 2
• Mosaic
• Unexplored 2
• Mutant Year Zero: Seed of Evil
• Conan Unconquered
• Moons of Madness
• Conan Chop Chop
• Last Oasis
• Zombie Army Dead War 4
• Remnant: From the Ashes
• Griftlands
• Songs of Conquest
• Vermintide 2: Versus
• Cris Tales
• ValFaris
• Maneater
• Terraria: Journey's End
• Genesis Noir
• El Hijo
• Ancestors
• The Pathless
• Phantom Brigade
• Rune II
• What the Golf?
• The Sojourn

Square Enix

• Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles
• Octopath Traveler
• The Last Remnant Remastered
• Dragon Quest Builders 2
• DragonQuest XI
• Circuit Superstars
• Battallion 1944: Battlefront?
• Kingdom Hearts III: Re-mind
• Final Fantasy XIV: ShadowBringers
• Dying Light 2
• Romancing Salsa 3
• Final Fantasy Brave Exvius
• Final Fantasy Brave War of the Visions
• Oninaki

 Ubisoft

• Mythic Quest: Raven's Banquet
• Rainbow Six Siege: Operation Phantom Sight
• Adventure Time in Brawlhalla
• Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Breakpoint
• Ghost Recon: Delta Company
• Tom Clancy's Elite Squad
• For Honor: Shadows of the Hitokiri
• Rainbow Six Quarantine
• The Division 2: Episode 3
• The Division 2 - The Movie 
• Gods & Monsters

Stay tuned tomorrow when I cover the rest of the conferences from E3 2019. In the meantime, let us know what you are excited for in the comments below!

Until next time.


Article by Susan N.

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Remake of Destroy All Humans! Releasing in 2020

Vienna/Austria, Offenburg/Germany, June 7th, 2019 - "The first casualty of war is always truth". Or Bessie, the cow. And you KNEW it, didn’t you? They are real, they are evil and they are here to take over our planet. No, not cows, aliens. Yes, that's right, the invasion of Earth has already begun, the aliens are among us! Well, one alien to be precise: Crypto 137, Warrior of the Furon Empire, has arrived to save his people by ... uhm ... extracting DNA from brains. Yours for example. Naturally, one can’t properly subdue inferior life forms without the extensive use of the Zap-O-Matic, the Disintegrator Ray and the notorious Anal Probe Gun. And if that ain’t enough, Crypto can always level everything he sees with his UFO’s heavy loadout.

THQ Nordic High Command advises all citizens to stay calm and stop resisting - just watch the announcement trailer.

Destroy All Humans! is in development for PC, PlayStation®4 and Xbox One. It's a complete remake of the 2005 cult-classic, using the mighty Unreal Engine 4 to give new and old fans the best-looking invasion of Earth ever.

What are we keeping just the way it was and should be? The unique 50s alien invasion story and legendary dialogues full of quirky humor.

What are we carefully updating? Crypto is more agile than ever, his aerial combat skills improved, his psychic skills can now be used in glorious unison with his guns. And the new Psychokinesis… ever wondered what’d happen if a Jedi had a love child with the Goat Simulator? You’re welcome for that mental image.

Destroy All Humans! is developed by THQ Nordic's internal studio Black Forest Games in Germany and is scheduled to release in 2020, marking the 15th anniversary of the Destroy All Humans!-Series.

About Destroy All Humans!

The cult-classic returns! Terrorize the people of 1950s Earth in the role of the evil alien Crypto-137. Harvest DNA and bring down the US government in the remake of the legendary alien invasion action adventure. Annihilate puny humans using an assortment of alien weaponry and psychic abilities. Reduce their cities to rubble with your Flying Saucer! One giant step on mankind!

• Experience the evil side of a 50s alien invasion story
• (Re)Discover why this game is considered one of the funniest ever created
• Faithfully rebuilt from scratch in new galactic glory
• Enjoy Crypto's unique weaponry like the Anal Probe Gun
• Pose as pathetic humans to infiltrate their fragile democracy
• Use psychokinesis to send enemies flying or bombard them with random objects
• Freely traverse explorable cities from 50s America using your jetpack
• Obliterate humanity's primitive architecture with your flying saucer
• Includes the restored, much-rumored, never before seen: Lost Mission of Area 42!

Official Destroy All Humans! Website

About THQ Nordic

Based out of Vienna, Austrian publisher THQ has assets from JoWooD Entertainment, DreamCatcher Interactive, NovaLogic, and The Adventure Company. It has acquired nine subsidiary studios including, Black Forest Games, Bugbear Entertainment, HandyGames, and Piranha Bytes. Some of its titles include: Darksiders, This is the Police, The Raven Remastered, Spellforce 3, The Guild, and Delta Force. Check out the official website for more information about THQ Nordic.


Article by Susan N.

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Layers of Fear 2 - Xbox One Review

Bloober Team deserves a lot of credit for taking their surprise hit Layers of Fear and creating a sequel that manages to feel new and different, while still understanding what it takes to put a chill down a person's spine.

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Narrative Platformer Lost Words: Beyond the Page Launches Late 2019

Walnut Creek, CA – June 7, 2019 - Publisher Modus Games and developer Sketchbook Games announced today that the highly lauded upcoming Lost Words: Beyond the Page will include Nintendo Switch when it debuts this December on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Steam. A new trailer released today introduces a beautifully crafted tale set against a vibrant and rich visual backdrop telling the story of a young, aspiring writer and a fantasy world where words wield immense power.

Penned by renowned writer Rhianna Pratchett, Lost Words: Beyond the Page is a captivating adventure wrapped in an overarching and undeniably touching meta-narrative, exploring powerful themes of love, relationships, loss and grief. The title has already gained more than a dozen accolades and game awards throughout its time in development, including ‘Best Indie Game’ at Game Connection Paris, ‘Special Selection Indie Award’ at Reboot Develop and more.

Lost Words: Beyond the Page puts players in the role of a young girl and her adventures through the wondrous fantasy world of Estoria. Players interact with the words themselves to solve challenging puzzles and unique platforming segments to progress through an evolving and aesthetically wondrous landscape. Weaving together an incredible tapestry of game design, writing and music, Lost Words: Beyond the Page is poised to be one of 2019’s most moving and unforgettable titles.

Keep up with Lost Words: Beyond the Page at https://www.lostwordsgame.com and wishlist on Steam now. Find out what Modus is up to on the Official Website or on Twitter.

Lost Words: Beyond the Page is also supported by Creative England and Microsoft’s Greenshoots Programme, The Wellcome Trust, Games Co London and The UK Games Fund.

About Modus Games

Modus Games is the premier global publisher of video games across all major platforms and genres. The label prides itself on collaborating with talented developers around the world to bring innovative gameplay experiences to the masses. For more information, visit www.modusgames.com. 

About Sketchbook Games

Sketchbook Games is a multi-award-winning studio founded by game designer Mark Backler, who previously worked at companies such as EA, Lionhead, and Sony, on a variety of games including Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and the BAFTA award winning Fable 2. The company is based at the Colchester Games Hub and is developing Lost Words: Beyond the Page in collaboration with Fourth State.


Article by Susan N.

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PK: Out of the Shadows - Retro Reflection

Couldn't find a nice PS2 Cover for the article

When I was a kid I loved reading the adventures of quarrelsome Donald, his naughty nephews and greedy uncle Scrooge. They were funny and full of surprises and helped my mind travel away from my everyday life. Later I started reading Marvel stories but I always had fond memories of Disney’s comics. So, it was natural to buy a platformer that featured Donald Duck as its hero.

“Donald Duck PK” seems like a decent platform game at first. The hero becomes Phantom Duck and must stop an alien invasion, guided by a mysterious artificial intelligence and armed with a laser pistol and small jetpacks. The obstacles you face and your abilities are well balanced and the controls are responsive: “X” for jumping, “□” for shooting, R2 for locking onto a target. There are platforms that disappear after a while, anti-gravity fields that propel you upwards, moving giant machines, pools of toxic liquid, rotating electric beams and, of course, plenty of bottomless pits.

Upgrades include a grappling hook and a charged shot, for shattering enemy barriers. Aliens, who look like ducks, fire slow moving projectiles and you have to dodge their fire and shoot back. Donald hovers by tapping the jump button repeatedly and occasionally he encounters a sealed gate and needs to manoeuvre a tiny flying robot through a maze to open it.

Green spheres are scattered in each level and you must collect at least 15 to activate a checkpoint; thankfully, even if you miss a few you can still collect enough to activate all checkpoints, thus relieving you from the frustration of replaying large sections of the game. Moreover, every stage contains six captured scientists and you should save as many of them as possible to enter the alien mothership later. The fast action, colorful graphics (mainly purple and blue) and reasonable difficulty made the game fun to play until…

…I realized it had nothing to do with Donald Duck! There was not a single stage involving the places I knew and loved from the old comics, such as Donald’s house or Scrooge’s vault. As for Donald, his behavior and voice did not remind me of the comics or cartoons at all and his dialogues made me cringe. The action and level design also started to lose their initial entertainment value as the same obstacles and aliens were recycled. Thankfully, I completed the game soon (it took me about 4 hours in total).

“Donald Duck PK” showed to me that appearances alone do not make characters and high playability does not make a game exciting. You will find here many ingredients of good platform games but the lack of inspiration on behalf of the designers is disappointing. Even the hero is not called Phantom Duck, although he wears his distinctive black, red, yellow and blue uniform. It is as if the producers could not acquire a licence to use anything from the comics except for Donald’s appearance. And that’s what they did, they fooled their customers into thinking they were going to enter Donald’s magical world but offered them a generic, humorless platform game instead. “PK” is by no means bad, however, compared to platformers like “Ratchet and Clank” or “Kim Possible”, its lack of character is obvious.

Game Information

Platform:
Sony PlayStation 2
Developer(s):
Ubisoft Montreal
Publisher(s):
Ubisoft
Genre(s):
Adventure
Mode(s):
Single Player
Other Platform(s):
Nintendo GameCube

Source:
Purchased

Article by Dimitris

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Octopath Traveler Launches on Steam

LOS ANGELES (June 7, 2019) – Embark on a journey like no other today with the critically acclaimed and multi award-winning RPG OCTOPATH TRAVELER™, now available on PC (STEAM®).

OCTOPATH TRAVELER for PC brings to life the game’s unique HD-2D visuals, blending striking 2D character designs with a beautiful 3D world. Featuring eight distinct characters each with their own tales to enjoy ranging from journeys of self-discovery to quests for revenge, each traveler will start their journey in a different land within the enchanting yet perilous continent of Orsterra, allowing players to steer their own adventure depending on the hero they choose.

OCTOPATH TRAVELER is now available for PC (STEAM) with English and Japanese audio, and English, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Japanese, Traditional Chinese and Simplified Chinese text. For more information, visit: https://square-enix-games.com/en_US/games/octopath-traveler.

This game is rated T (Teen). Please visit the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) website at www.esrb.org for more information about ratings.

About Square Enix, Inc.

Square Enix, Inc. develops, publishes, distributes and licenses SQUARE ENIX®, EIDOS® and TAITO® branded entertainment content throughout the Americas as part of the Square Enix group of companies. Square Enix, Inc. is affiliated with a global network of leading development studios such as Crystal Dynamics® and Eidos Montréal™. The Square Enix group of companies boasts a valuable portfolio of intellectual property including: FINAL FANTASY®, which has sold over 144 million units worldwide; DRAGON QUEST®, which has sold over 78 million units worldwide; TOMB RAIDER®, which has sold over 74 million units worldwide; and the legendary SPACE INVADERS®. Square Enix, Inc. is a U.S.-based, wholly owned subsidiary of Square Enix Holdings Co., Ltd.

More information on Square Enix, Inc. can be found at https://square-enix-games.com.

Article by Susan N.

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Warhammer Chaosbane - PC Review

Having gone through several beta stages, Eko Software and Bigben Interactive’s Warhammer based Hack & Slash is finally out in the wild. With four characters that each act as their own class, you’ll be going through a mission based structure solo or with others to save the would be Human Emperor Magnus that that just recently beaten back the Chaos hordes when all hope seemed lost.

Chaosbane is fun. There’s no denying that fact. You run around different environments on a mission and you take out a colossal amount of enemies. Between each mission you head back to the hub to sell off unwanted gear or stash gear you want to keep around for later, and then head back out. It’s quick, there’s little to no downtime, and between the four characters there are enough skills with each to create your own forms of subclasses. But then what?

Unlike Diablo 3, Victor Vran, Torchlight or The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing, there’s no real “world” to explore. Sure you can leave on what are known as expeditions, but you can’t just head out of town in order to lay a smackdown on the forces of Chaos. Everything has to be selected as a mission so everything has a step-by-step structure making it feel less organic and more procedural. Having taken out the “middleman” works, but at the same time it makes things feel a bit lacking like Neocre’s Warhammer 40k Martyr: Inquisitor. There’s a charm that exists by letting you just run around hacking and slashing things as that is literally the purpose of the genre.

To head out onto these missions you’ll have four separate characters. There’s the Human Warrior, the Dwarven Berserker, the Elven Mage and Ranger. What is neat about these classes is that they all have their own uniqueness for how to approach a situation. Creating classes that are unique enough from one another but just as usable and enjoyable is no short task and I think the developers got it right. Having already experimented with the four in the previous beta, I went with the one that I felt most comfortable. The Elven Ranger of summoning death and destruction through hordes of Dryads! Ok maybe hordes is pushing it… but only slightly.

 Check out our second preview on YouTube for loads of details!

So treating the skill tree a bit like Diablo 3, you unlock new abilities as your level increases and then you can swap then in and out as you see fit. Unlock the previously mentioned however, the abilities that can be set all have point costs from a total pool in order to be used. Generating abilities to use the more powerful ones that have an energy cost start off as free but it doesn’t take long before you need to allocate points from your pool in order to make these skills worth it even in normal combat situations.

The balance of these is a bit touchy. The total amount of points in your pool goes up slowly yet the cost of the abilities is often higher than you can actually afford to have. Where things even out a bit is that you can equip low to mid end abilities in all of your slots or you can sacrifice one or two in order to have one or two high level skills alongside your energy generator. It all comes down to personal preference and how you like to approach the situations.

On that note, side to the skills that you unlock by leveling up, you’ll also have access to a God Tree that you can purchase nodes from in order to make yourself both more powerful and give you access to skills not gained by leveling up. Each node costs both one point gained from leveling up as well as gold and fragments acquired from hacking and slashing your way through hordes of enemies. This is where my horde of Dryads came in as while the Ranger can summon one permanently to the field, there’s a skill in the god tree that allows for four to be summoned, five later once upgraded, for a limited time in order to wreak havoc. Very useful to have around especially when there are tougher mobs on the field and you don’t seem to be making a dent.

All in all, Warhammer Chaosbane is a fun title that is both enjoyable to play alone or with a few friends. While it won’t be winning any awards for treading on unexplored ground, it’s both a solid experience and a tick in the right direction for the Warhammer series that seem to have one good title in every dozen. Well done!

Game Information

Platform:
PC
Developer(s):
Eko Software
Publisher(s):
Bigben Interactive
Genre(s):
Hack & Slash
Mode(s):
Single Player
Multiplayer
Other Platform(s):
Sony PlayStation 4
Microsoft Xbox One

Source:
Provided by Publisher

Article by Pierre-Yves

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