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Watch as a beekeeper is recruited in a Watch Dogs Legion recruitment mission

One of the main selling points about Watch Dogs Legion is that you can play as anyone in the near future London of Ubisoft's game. However, before you can actually select someone to play as they need to be recruited into DedSec, and the way that is done is through Recruitment missions. In the latest gameplay footage, Ubisoft show one of those recruitment missions where DedSec attempts to recruit a beekeeper. To do that you have to do them a favour, and in this case, the beekeeper needs some files deleted.

The footage starts with going to locate the beekeeper in Aldgate and talking to her. She mentions that Albion is using some of her research for military style purposes, and she wants it all gone. So, the recruiter heads to Lambeth where an Albion agent is located with the location of the research. In this footage, a stealth approach is chosen through hacking the camera which downloads the file location. That is in New Scotland Yard. So, you head over there and use a football hooligan to infiltrate and get to the files. The hooligan uses melee attacks and one of the details in Watch Dogs Legion is that enemies will not escalate to firearms unless you do.

Watch Dogs Legion will be out for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC on 29th October. The game will also be coming to PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, with Smart Delivery confirmed for the Xbox ecosystem.

Source: YouTube

Werewolf: The Apocalypse Earthblood's new trailer gives a background of main character Cahal

Cyanide and Nacon released a new trailer for Werewolf: The Apocalypse Earthblood and this one gives a small glimpse at why Cahal, the main character of the game, is very angry at the petroleum company Endron. The trailer shows Cahal and others, including his wife, protesting against Endron. That event quickly turns to bloodshed as Endron's private security force opens fire on the protestors. Cahal is not going to take this down, and the trailer shows him returning to the scene with revenge on his mind.

Based on the tabletop RPG Werewolf: The Apocalypse, a part of the World of Darkness universe that also contains Vampire: The Masquerade. The full story follows the Cahal, an eco-terrorist werewolf banished from his tribe, but deciding to fight against the corporations that have caused pollution across the American Northwest. The game will let you shapeshift between wolf, human and werewolf form, to explore, converse, and fight across this region.

The game is in development by Cyanide, best known for the Styx games and Call of Cthulhu. It's actually the Styx: Shards of Darkness team working on this, so there might be some elements that will carry across from that game's stealth action, though the snippets of gameplay shown above certainly lean on the heavy metal and action. In a quirk of licensing and the timing of game company acquisitions, the game isn't being published by Paradox Interactive, who hold the rights to the World of Darkness, but by Nacon. You might know Nacon better by their previous name Bigben Interactive, who recently decided to adopt the branding of their peripheral creating subsidiary.

Werewolf: The Apocalypse Earthblood will be released on February 4th for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC.

Source: Press Release

Sony will continue to explore bringing first party PlayStation games to PC

Sony has already started porting over some of its first party exclusives to PC. After all, Horizon Zero Dawn was recently released on PC and while not a first party title the PS4 console exclusive Death Stranding was also released on PC. According to a new report from Sony (courtesy of ResetEra), the publisher will not be letting up on bringing PlayStation titles to PC. The main motivation here is increased revenue which makes sense as the main driving factor, though the report does suggest Sony would like players to make PlayStation their first choice platform.

SIE aims to achieve robust revenue growth by accelerating the virtuous cycle that has been established for the PlayStation Platform. This entails increasing active users and play time, enhancing network services and reinforcing content IP so that consumers select PlayStation as their platform of choice. Targeted outcomes include growth in active users, stronger retention and a shorter cash conversion cycle, from which expanded cash flow can be expected. We will explore expanding our 1st party titles to the PC platform, in order to promote further growth in our profitability.

There are a number of recent first party titles that could make the jump to PC, if Sony would allow it. Naughty Dog's The Last of Us and Uncharted games would be a huge announcement for PC, as would Marvel's Spider-Man, and Ratchet & Clank. God of War would also be a big release on PC, along with Ghost of Tsushima. Perhaps even Days Gone could be made available on PC.  There have been rumours of Bloodborne being released for PC but that is more of a third party exclusive considering it was developed by FromSoftware.

Of course, how Sony approaches this and how it decides what to bring to PC is unknown. Though, with Horizon Zero Dawn already on PC it would not be a surprise to see Horizon Forbidden West appear on PC too.

Source: ResetEra

Cris Tales new trailer introduces two new characters

A new trailer for the JRPG Cris Tales has been released by Modus Games, showing the motivation behind why Crisbell is fighting across the past, present, and future. Crisbell can travel through different times to assist the inhabitants of Cris Tales, as well as use time to change how enemies fight in battles. The trailer also introduces two new members of Crisbell's party, and they are JKR-721 and Zas. It seems one of them is a bit of a speedster too.

The game is heavily inspired by Colombia – the demo's release is actually landed on Colombian Independence Day to celebrate the architecture, culture, and character design that they've infused the game with. As well as some of the main story, the new demo also features the Colosseum mode, where you take on eight waves of battles alongside Wilhelm, leading up to a mini-boss fight. The mode will be larger and more expansive in the full release.

Cris Tales will be released on November 17th for PS4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC. Cris Tales will also be released on PS5 and Xbox Series X.

Source: Press Release

Serious Sam 4 gameplay shows Sam taking out enemies in a Popemobile

When you imagine the Popemobile there is probably a specific vehicle that pops into your mind. So, you may be wondering how Sam is taking out enemies in Serious Sam 4 using such a mode of transport. Well, forget what you know about the Popemobile as Croteam has put its own twist on it. Think less car and more giant weaponised mech. This Popemobile has fully automatic heavy machine guns and rocket launchers, so the invaders will really have something to think about.

Croteam announced the game's key features including the Legion system that can generate thousands of enemies on the field. That's a lot of shooting to do. The key features are listed below.

  • HORDES OF INVADERS – The iconic cast of alien invaders returns with some new reinforcements! Fight your way through unbelievable numbers of Mental's minions, including the iconic Headless Kamikaze, Beheaded Rocketeer, Kleer, Scrapjack, Werebull, and Khnum! Square off against brand new enemies and towering monsters like the frantic Processed, repulsive Belcher, the hard-hitting Zealot, and more.
  • EXPLOSIVE ARSENAL – Armed with a slew of devastating weapons, pick your tool for any situation. Lay waste to Mental's Horde using the powerful double-barreled shotgun, the punishing minigun, the powerful chainsaw launcher, a brand new auto shotgun, and the iconic cannon. Upgrade your toys, and enjoy the violent beauty of the lock-on rocket launcher, and the mighty laser beam of death.
  • COOPERATIVE MAYHEM – Smash through the action-packed campaign with friends in 4-player online co-op mode! Tackle exciting primary missions and thrilling side quests in modified difficulties for an extra challenge.
  • LEGION SYSTEM – Serious Sam 4 unleashes some of the biggest moments in the series' history with the new Legion System and battlefields teeming with thousands of enemies!

Serious Sam 4 will be released for PC and Stadia on September 24th.

Source: Press Release

Blood Bowl 3 announced and it will be out early 2021

Cyanide and Nacon have confirmed a new instalment in the Blood Bowl franchise with the reveal of Blood Bowl 3. It is expected to launch in early 2021 with 12 playable races that come with their own cheerleaders and arenas. The game will feature both a campaign mode and multiplayer modes, though those are to be detailed. The playable races will include elves, humans, and orcs, and two of the new teams are Black Orcs and Imperial Nobility. Like the previous games this will be a turn based strategy title. You can watch the reveal trailer below.

As you give out instructions the team will attempt to get into the touchdown zone, and stop the opponents from doing the same. Injuries wil be a common feature and some players may be lost forever due to being fatally attacked on the field. Blood Bowl 3 will adopt the new edition rules to match the new board game edition coming out this year. Blood Bowl 2 released back in 2015, and in our review for that Dave wrote:

It's difficult to overlook a lot of the flaws with Blood Bowl 2, but at the same time if you have a group of likeminded people willing to create a league, then this is a great if somewhat limited option. It's everything you'd expect in a Blood Bowl game, with a great tutorial for newcomers and a coat of paint, looking as good as the Citadel Minatures you'd see in the window of a Games Workshop. While the core game has been sadly out of print at the store for some time, this is the most accessible way of getting your Blood Bowl fix.

You can read the full Blood Bowl 2 review here.  Blood Bowl 3 is set to be released for PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Xbox One, and Switch

Source: Press Release

Simmers need to stop losing their marbles over The Sims 4 Star Wars: Journey to Batuu

During GamesCom's Opening Night Live, a brand new Sims 4 DLC pack was announced. Star Wars: Journey to Batuu based on the attraction at Disneyland Anaheim, with all sorts of Star Wars related stuff that you can bring back to decorate your Sim's house with.

Judging by the likes and dislikes ratio for the official trailer, people (or Simmers as they tend to be known as) hate it, but should they be more forgiving?

 

Firstly though, a bit of context for the uninitiated in how The Sims 4's DLC works. Generally speaking, The Sims 4 has had three content updates each year. These come in the form of big Expansion Packs, smaller Game Packs, and even smaller Stuff Packs. The Sims 4 Star Wars: Journey to Batuu is a Game Pack, which is the regular size Sims meal. They generally cost around £17.99 and have a fair amount of stuff in them, but not as much as the full-blown expansion packs. A big reason that people are annoyed with the Journey to Batuu Game Pack is because it's not what they wanted. They didn't want Star Wars, they wanted to make hotels, hve more options for kids, or introduce new themes like farming or weddings.

Much of the vitriol seems to stem from Simmers that were jilted by the previous Stuff Pack, which was decided via a poll. On the surface, you would think that the community got what they asked for: an arts and crafts themed pack with the gameplay being all about knitting. However, the general consensus from the Simmers has been that the developers at Maxis haven't been listening to the fans, doing the minimum with what was apparently a barebones effort.

This kind of complaint, that Maxis just aren't listening, is not exactly a new point of contention either. After all it took five long years before Simmers got the Discover University expansion pack.

However, I think this tweet makes a fantastic point: some people may be interested in different things.

I own The Sims 4, but I'm not the primary person who plays the game – that would be my partner. Do we own all the Sims 4 DLC? Of course not! We're not made of money. Instead, we pick and choose the packs we're most interested in. My partner wants to spend lots of time raising dogs, looking after the planet, and having her Sims go to university, so naturally picked up those expansions while I just wanted to spend a few hours having my Sims go to Hogwarts and hunt aliens.

Both of these styles of play are valid and with a game like The Sims 4 there can absolutely be something for everyone. There are some who like their Sims experience grounded in reality, while others want a more fantasy-based vibe. Journey to Batuu has gotten me properly interested in The Sims for the first time since the Realms of Magic game pack, so I'm much more inclined to pick it up.

At the same time, I'd then be more than happy for the next Sims 4 expansion pack to feature something long-term fans want, and agree that Star Wars is definitely not in keeping with what a lot of Simmers have been expecting – it's not really a realistic DLC pack. But let's be honest, the Island Living expansion and its mermaids weren't exactly grounded in reality either.

The arguably bigger argument is that by using Star Wars instead of a generic space theme, this is shameless product placement and all about the money – a point that has been made many times in the comments of the official trailer uploaded to YouTube. I don't think this argument holds water. EA have exclusive rights to make games with Star Wars stuff in it, so it was really only a matter of time before it came to The Sims. They're simply taking advantage of a huge, multi-generation defining IP that they can already use without having to broker a deal first. I'd also argue that EA and Maxis have done much worse with The Sims and product placement over the years.

If we're talking about The Sims at its most shallow, let me introduce you to The Sims 2: H&M Fashion Stuff. It was literally an advertisement for the fashion retailer's current outfit range in 2007. Sure, you could design your own boutique, but it was mostly about the fashion.

It also generated this literary work of art:

But this is from over a decade ago. Surely Maxis learned their lesson? No, in fact I'd argue that The Sims 4: Moschino stuff pack from last year is far worse. This was yet another fashion-based DLC pack that not only acted as product placement, but locked away a career choice that some people might have wanted: the freelance fashion photographer. New careers are normally reserved for either Expansion or Game Packs, so locking it behind this is a big blow for those who wanted the career, but didn't want to support Moschino.

Thematically though, these do fit in better with how many play the Sims than Star Wars ever could. I get that. I also think people need to look at Journey to Batuu in a different way. If you're someone, like me, who just wants to hold a fancy dress party in their Sims 4 house (because we can't really hold real-life parties during a pandemic), then there literally isn't a better theme than a Star Wars Cantina.

Observer: System Redux confirmed for PC, demo out now

Bloober Team has confirmed that Observer: System Redux will be released on PC, having previously confirmed the game for PS5 and Xbox Series X. The PC version will have the same upgrades that have been confirmed for the PS5 and Xbox Series X versions, including the visual upgrades, including 4K support, and gameplay upgrades such as improved stealth and neuronal interrogation sequences. Observer: System Redux will also add three new missions called Errant Signal, Her Fearful Symmetry, and It Runs in the Family.

Players that already own Observer on PC will not get these upgrades for free. Instead, there will be a cost with the upgrade fee currently reduced by 80% and it will remain that way until September 15th.

Piotr Babieno, Bloober Team CEO, said:
"When we announced Observer: System Redux for next-gen consoles, we had a huge response from our PC fans asking if the remaster would be coming to their platform of choice. We originally only planned to bring the game to consoles, but seeing the feedback we've heard from the community, we're bringing the game to PC as well. As a way to thank our community, we're putting this upgrade plan in place and looking into options to do the same on console if possible."
There is a demo now available on Steam for Observer: System Redux, and you can download that from here. Observer follows Dan Lazarski, an Observer, who has been voiced by the late Rutger Hauer. In the game, Dan Lazarski is an investigator who can view the memories and thoughts of suspects. The setting is the year 2084 and it follows an incredibly dark period for humanity where thousands were killed by a virus brought on by human augmentation. As Observers have some augmentations they are not popular among the rest of the population.

 

In our review for Observer Tuffcub wrote:

If you don't like 'walking sims' then Observer isn't going to change your mind, even if it does include some rudimentary detective work. However, if you like to be swept away by a story and pulled in to a world where every door has a new experience behind it, then close the curtains, turn off the lights, crank up the surround sound and immerse yourself in this great cyberpunk horror tale.

You can read the full Observer review here.

Source: Press Release

Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart will have an optional 60fps mode

Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart will have an optional 60 frames per second (fps) mode, Insomniac Games has confirmed in an interview with Famitsu. However, the 60fps will not be playable in 4K resolution. If you want to play in 4K then you will have to settle for 30fps. Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart is taking advantage of the technology offered by the PS5. Loading times are all but gone allowing for rift jumping between stages to be very smooth. If you missed it earlier, you can catch the extended gameplay demo below.

Quite a lot of information has come out over the last couple of days for Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, and we have that list of information below.

  • The Rift Tether is the name for the ability for latch onto dimensional rifts and kind of pull them toward him.
  • There will be no load screens throughout the game.
  • You can feel the energy of a shatter bomb fade away through the haptic feedback of the DualSense
  • The adaptive trigger can be used to enable secondary fire with weapons. The Enforcer can fire one shot by half-pulling the trigger until you feel a bit of resistance, before then pulling it all the way to fire the second.
  • This is a canonical continuation of Ratchet & Clank: Into the Nexus, but can be treated as a standalone game.
  • There are more dimensional rift abilities that haven't been shown.
  • The fast-paced dimension hopping will be reserved for when you chase after Doctor Nefarious.
  • Though she will be playable, the mysterious female Lombax name was not revealed. It might not be Abby, though.
  • The game will be out in the PS5 "launch window", which means it likely won't be out on day one, but could be some time up to 6 months later, based on the broadest definition of the phrase. In other words, expect it in the first half of 2021.

The game is one of two that Insomniac have in the works for PS5, the other being Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales. That game is built on the foundations of the 2018 PS4 exclusive, looking to tell the story of the second person to don the Spider-Man costume, Miles Morales.

Source: Famitsu

War Mongrels is a WWII tactical title heading to PC and consoles

Destructive Creations has announced an isometric real time strategy game called War Mongrels, which will be heading to PC, current gen consoles, and next gen consoles. War Mongrels is set during the Eastern Front of the Second World War but it is not focused on the military. Instead, players will be controlling squads of guerrilla fighters. The story starts with two German soldiers disobeying orders and deserting the German side. The focus is on the Germans who opposed the Nazi regime, including people such as nurses and teachers who join the guerrilla fighters.

Martin Stanek, Business Development Manager at Destructive Creations, said:
"Many games take place in World War II, but there's hardly ever a spotlight on the Eastern Front. My grandfather told us tales of soldiers filled with regret, and we feel it is our duty to share those stories with War Mongrels."
In War Mongrels, players will control squads of four characters as they pick their way through battlefields, villages, towns, cities, and concentration camps. German, Polish, and Lithuanian soldiers will also join the guerrilla fighters, but there will be others from the enemy side you will have to take out. Players will be able to try and sneak around enemy encampments or go in with a frontal assault, picking up equipment from the battles. The levels will be quite large and sandbox so you can approach conflicts in a number of different ways. War Mongrels will feature co-op.
War Mongrels is expected to release in 2021.
Source: Press Release

PlayStation 5 already has a rap song dedicated to it

As the hype train for next gen continues to speed towards us other forms of media are joining in and we have discovered the first rap song dedicated to Sony's upcoming console. The track, 'PS5' by Lil Last Lil, is as slow jam with heavy basslines with Mr. Lil rapping about an unnamed lady "playing games on PS5."

Other lyrics explain how he also had a PS1 and PS2, and he's very annoyed with the woman as "she won't pre-order." The image for track, which is available on Spotify and Amazon Music, is of a small pill embossed with the PlayStation logo. Other tracks by Lil Last Lil also feature small pills of various colours, goodness knows what they are, I have no idea.

I should warn you that the track features some naughty words so don't listen to it if grandma is in the room.

If the lady in Mr. Lil's track changes her mind and would like to pre-order a PlayStation 5 then she will be pleased to know Sony have opened registration for pre-orders over in the United States.

You will need to give them your PSN ID to sign up, but this does not mean you're guaranteed a console.

There will be a limited quantity of PS5 consoles available for pre-order, so we will be inviting some of our existing consumers to be one of the first to pre-order one from PlayStation. Pre-order reservations will be taken on a first-come-first-serve basis, so once you get an invite via email, we encourage you to follow instructions and act fast.

If you do pre-register Sony will decide if you do get a pre-order invitation "based on previous interests and PlayStation activities," whatever that means, and you will be limited on how many consoles and accessories you can reserve.

Each invitation is open for a limited time and quantities are limited per PSN ID per transaction:
1 PS5 Console or 1 PS5 Digital Edition
2 DualSense wireless controllers
2 DualSense charging stations
2 Pulse 3D wireless headsets
2 Media remotes
2 HD Cameras

You can read the full FAQ here, and register your interest here.

Source: Spotify

Each post launch Marvel's Avengers character has a $10 "Hero Challenge Card" battle pass for cosmetics

Square Enix have give more details on cosmetic items in Marvel's Avengers and unlike other games where you get a battle pass per season, in Avengers you will buy a Hero Challenge Card for each character.

These cost 1,000 credits each and a 500 credit pack costs $5.00, but if you complete that card you will earn back the cost of the card in credits. It seems if you grind hard enough you will only ever need to buy one Hero Card at the start, grind that and get your money back, and then use that to buy the next Hero Card.

The six launch characters will all come with a Hero Challenge Card so you won't need to fork out an extra $60 on day one.

Here's more from Square Enix.

We've activated the premium Hero Challenge Card rewards for all 6 starting heroes at launch, so you can earn and enjoy all content across the 40 tiers for free. When we introduce new Hero Challenge Cards for post-launch heroes, the cost to activate the premium rewards will be 1,000 Credits.

We want to reward players for their time, so once you activate the premium rewards of a Hero Challenge Card for 1,000 Credits, you can earn everything on that card, including more Credits! If you complete all challenges on your Hero Challenge Card, not only will you earn back your 1,000 Credit activation cost, all the content you'll earn has a value of over 12,500 Credits. Remember, these rewards deliver fun in-game cosmetic enhancements and effects, but they do not provide a gameplay advantage.

Hero Challenge Cards do not rotate and won't be retired, so once you've activated premium rewards, there is no time limit or risk in spreading your focus between heroes. That being said, If you're in a hurry, you can buy "skips" to get through tiers faster.

The Hero Challenge Cards include 40 tiers of free and premium rewards such as:

  • Rare Resource Bundle: Nanotubes, Nanites, Plasma, Catalyst
  • Resource Bundle: Fragments & Upgrade Modules
  • Upgrade Module Bundles: Upgrade Modules
  • Exotic Resource Bundle: Polychoron & Uru
  • Units
  • Credits
  • Hero Nameplates
  • Team Nameplates
  • Emotes
  • Takedowns
  • Outfits

Source:Square Enix

Something for the Weekend – 29/08/20

We're right in the middle of the strangest Gamescom I can remember. The usual reason for 2020 has seen the show shift gears to be more about digital showcases and demo releases, and so far they've done a much better job at staying relevant than E3 did, but I can't say I don't miss heading over to Cologne and trekking into the convention halls for a string of appointments about all sorts of games.

In the News This Week

You can catch all the major news from Gamescom 2020 Opening Night Live here, but we've got some highlights from the show and elsewhere in video games.

And we got the announcement of our monthly free games:

Giveaways

We've teamed up with EPOS Sennheiser again to give away their GSP 601 Gaming Headset. We'll be running it through the weekend, with entries closing on Tuesday 1st September. Make sure you don't miss out!

Giveaway – Win an EPOS | SENNHEISER GSP 601 Gaming Headset

Games in Review

We had another stacked plate of reviews this week, from Dontnod's latest narrative adventure Tell Me Why, to The Last Campfire from Hello Games, Project CARS 3, Windbound and more!

And then we had two simply excellent bits of gaming kit for you to consider… if you can afford them.

Featured Articles

With all of that going on, it's understandable that features and previews took a bit of a back seat this week. Still, we dove into Scarlet Nexus' Brain Punk and unique monsters as Bandai Namco look to lead the action JRPG into the next generation, while Tom has been playing Wasteland 3 for a review in progress, and Jim went hands on with Amazon's MMO New World.

I spoke to Frontier as Jurassic World Evolution: Complete Edition was announced for Nintendo Switch, and Aran caught up with the minds behind Foreclosed, an RPG-shooter that came from the dehumanising bureaucracy of the real world.

What We Played rounded things out for the week, featuring Wasteland 3, Project CARS 3 & Fall Guys.

Trailer Park

Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War early campaign cutscene revealed

Star Wars Squadrons single player gameplay revealed

Unknown 9 is a paranormal adventure coming to PC and next-gen consoles

Respawn's VR Medal of Honor: Above and Beyond story trailer debuts at Gamescom – coming out later this year

LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga delayed to 2021 – check out the new gameplay trailer

Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time new Flashback Tapes levels revealed at Gamescom

Dirt 5's Playgrounds arena creator mode revealed in new trailer

Doom Eternal: The Ancient Gods Part One campaign DLC is coming out in October

Your Achievements

Here's what you in our community has been up to this week:

  • hornet1990 finished Battlefield 1's single player, letting him get half his hard drive space by by deleting it, Battlefield V and COD WW2! He's now started on Horizon Zero Dawn, and been trying to upgrade his PC for some Flight Simulator 2020.
  • Crazy_Del finally got the Transformers platinum, and then scooped up the 10 shortest and cheapest platinums he could find on PSN. His next target (and 450th platinum) is Batman: The Enemy Within.
  • It was the usual amount of Dreams for TSBonyman, who's been making some potentially seizure-inducing audio visualisers in the game.
  • And Andrewww fell in love with Erica, discovering it from his PlayStation Plus back catalogue and thoroughly enjoying its interactive movie vibes. Alongside that, he played Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime with his kids, another PS Plus game from all the way back in 2017!

I hope you have a good weekend and we'll see you on the other side!

Next Epic free game announced, get Hitman now

Epic Games have added yet another pair of video games to their growing catalogue. And guess what? They're on the house. You have from now until next Thursday to claim your free copy of Hitman (the complete first season) as well as The Shadowrun Collection.

In the meantime, Epic also confirmed that next week's free game is Into The Breach. Seriously, even if it doesn't look like your kind of game this one's an indie masterpiece everyone needs to try. Developer Subset Games take the turn-based strategy genre and turn it a superb tactical puzzler.

Into The Breach will be available to download and keep from September 3rd to September 10th. See the list below for every game Epic has given away, tagged with some our past reviews.

Into The Breach September 3-10, 2020
Hitman August 27-September 3, 2020
Shadowrun Collection August 27-September 3, 2020
God's Trigger August 20-27, 2020
Enter the Gungeon August 20-27, 2020
The Alto Collection August 13-20, 2020
Remnant: From the Ashes August 13-20, 2020
A Total War Saga: Troy August 13-14, 2020
Wilmot's Warehouse August 6-13, 2020
Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP July 30 – August 6, 2020
Barony July 30 – August 6, 2020
20XX July 30 – August 6, 2020
Next Up Hero July 23-30, 2020
Tacoma July 23-30, 2020
Torchlight II July 16-23, 2020
Lifeless Planet: Premier Edition July 9-16, 2020
The Escapists 2 July 9-16, 2020
Killing Floor 2 June 9-16, 2020
Hue July 2-9, 2020
Stranger Things 3 June 25-July 2, 2020
AER Memories of Old June 18-25, 2020
Ark: Survival Evolved June 11-18, 2020
Samurai Shodown NeoGeo Collection June 11-18, 2020
Overcooked June 4-11, 2020
Borderlands: The Handsome Collection May 28-June 4, 2020
Civilization VI May 21-28, 2020
Grand Theft Auto V May 14-21, 2020
Death Coming May 7-14, 2020
Crashlands April 30-May 7, 2020
Amnesia: The Dark Descent April 30-May 7, 2020
For the King April 23-30, 2020
Just Cause 4 April 16-23, 2020
Wheels of Aurelia April 16-23, 2020
Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments April 9-16, 2020
Close to the Sun April 9-16, 2020
Gone Home April 2-9, 2020
Drawful 2 April 2-9, 2020
Hob April 2-9, 2020
Totally Reliable Delivery Service April 1-8, 2020
World War Z March 26-April 2, 2020
Torment x Punisher March 26-April 2, 2020
Figment March 26-April 2, 2020
Watch Dogs March 19-26, 2020
The Stanley Parable March 19-26, 2020
A Short Hike March 12-19, 2020
Mutazione March 12-19, 2020
Anodyne 2 March 12-19, 2020
Gonner March 5-12, 2020
Offworld Trading Company March 5-12, 2020
Inner Space February 27-March 5, 2020
Faeria February 20-27, 2020
Assassin's Creed Syndicate February 20-27, 2020
Aztez February 13-20, 2020
Kingdom Come: Deliverance February 13-20, 2020
Ticket to Ride February 6-13, 2020
Carcassonne February 6-13, 2020
Farming Simulator 19 January 30-February 6, 2020
The Bridge January 23-30, 2020
Horace January 16-23, 2020
Sundered: Eldritch Edition January 9-16, 2020
Darksiders Warmastered Edition January 1-9, 2020
Darksiders 2 Dethinitive Edition January 1-9, 2020
Steep January 1-9, 2020
Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair December 31, 2019
Hello Neighbor December 30, 2019
The Talos Principle December 29, 2019
Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun December 28, 2019
Hyper Light Drifter December 27, 2019
FTL: Faster Than Light December 26, 2019
Totally Accurate Battle Simulator December 25, 2019
Celeste December 24, 2019
Ape Out December 23, 2019
Little Inferno December 22, 2019
Superhot December 21, 2019
Towerfall Ascension December 20, 2019
Into the Breach December 19, 2019
The Wolf Among Us December 12-19, 2019
The Escapists December 12-19, 2019
Jotun: Valhalla Edition December 6-12, 2019
Rayman Legends November 29-December 6, 2019
Bad North November 21-29, 2019
The Messenger November 14-21, 2019
Ruiner November 7-14, 2019
Nuclear Throne November 7-14, 2019
Costume Quest October 31-November 7, 2019
Soma October 31-November 7, 2019
Layers of Fear October 24-October 31, 2019
Q.U.B.E.2 October 24-October 31, 2019
Alan Wake: American Nightmare October 17-24, 2019
Observer October 17-24, 2019
Surviving Mars October 10-17, 2019
Minit October 3-10, 2019
Metro 2033 Redux September 26-October 3, 2019
Everything September 26-October 3, 2019
Lego Batman Trilogy September 19-26, 2019
Batman: Arkham Collection September 19-26, 2019
Conarium September 12-19, 2019
ABZU September 5-12, 2019
The End is Nigh September 5-12, 2019
Celeste August 29-September 5, 2019
Inside August 29-September 5, 2019
Fez August 22-29, 2019
Hyper Light Drifter August 15-22, 2019
Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden August 15-22, 2019
GNOG August 8-15, 2019
For Honor August 2-9, 2019
Alan Wake August 2-9, 2019
This War of Mine July 25-August 2, 2019
Moonlighter July 25-August 2, 2019
Limbo July 18-July 25, 2019
Torchlight July 11-18, 2019
Overcooked July 4-11, 2019
Last Day of June June 27-July 4, 2019
Rebel Galaxy June 20-27, 2019
Enter the Gungeon June 13-20, 2019
Kingdom: New Lands June 6-13, 2019
City of Brass May 30-6, 2019
Rime May 23-30, 2019
Stories Untold May 16-23, 2019
World of Goo May 2-16, 2019
Transistor April 18-May 2, 2019
The Witness April 4-18, 2019
Oxenfree March 21-April 4, 2019
Slime Rancher March 7-21, 2019
Thimbleweed Park February 21-March 7, 2019
Axiom Verge February 7-21, 2019
The Jackbox Party Pack January 24-February 7, 2019
What Remains of Edith Finch January 11-24, 2019
Super Meat Boy December 28, 2018-January 10, 2019
Subnautica December 12-27, 2018

The Epic Games Launcher also hosts to a variety of free-to-play games including Dauntless, SMITE, Magic The Gathering Arena, and of course, Fortnite.

Source: Epic Games

Assassin's Creed Valhalla mythical beasts gameplay and missions revealed

Ubisoft have peeled back a little more of the gameplay mysteries surrounding Assassin's Creed Valhalla, revealing some new gameplay surrounding the mythical beasts you can encounter in 9th century England.

The mythical elements include the Daughters of Lerion, the Black Shuck and the Lost Drengr of Ragnar Lodbrok. The video digs into each of these elements, exploring their origins and how you'll encounter them in the game. The Black Shuck, for example, combines all the possible meanings and interpretations to create a big black shaggy dog that is the Devil incarnate.

The Daughters of Lerion are then a bit of an East Anglian reference to Shakespeare and the legends that inspired him, and you'll deal with the Lost Drengr of Ragnar Lodbrok, a legendary viking who came to England about 10 years before the game, and got up to all sorts of trouble. His mischief was put to an end, leaving behind six Drengr who were his warriors. Now without purpose, you're going to help them meet a glorious end and secure their place in the actual Valhalla.

These stories are not part of the main story, but can be found simply while exploring the world.

AC Valhalla follows Eivor as they leave Norway and seek to found a new home in England. Eivor can be either male or female and is heavily customisable. A returning element will be creating a village settlement that acts as the hub for Eivor and their fellow Vikings, which you'll be looking to grow through your time with the game, with the story centered around this element (and potential romances as well). A raven is to be Eivor's animal companion to help explore the world, replacing the eagles from previous Assassin's Creed games.

Assassin's Creed Valhalla should include these 5 fun Viking facts

Assassin's Creed: Valhalla will be out on 17th November for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC and Google Stadia. It will also release on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. For the home consoles, there are free cross-gen upgrades, with one way using Smart Delivery on Xbox.

Deathground is a co-op survival game filled with hungry AI dinosaurs

A 'first playable' demo of Deathground was shown at Gamescom 2020 tonight, giving us a small teaser of the co-op survival horror that pits you and your friends against AI dinosaurs that think you look like a tasty snack.

The game is currently in development for PC by Jaw Drop Games – it can be wishlisted on Steam – the demo showing off just a snippet of what you can really expect in the eventual full release. The AI dinos are designed to be unpredictable, forcing you to work together, using Aliens-style motion trackers to keep tabs and avoid them while hacking PCs, flipping power switches and working your way through the environments.

It all feels a bit like the recent Predator: Hunting Grounds game, and all the asymmetrical multiplayer games that went before it… but without having a human player in control of the dinosaurs.

We look forward to seeing more of this particular dino crisis soon.

The Lord of the Rings: Gollum gameplay details revealed in new trailer – coming out in late 2021

More details have been revealed of the upcoming The Lord of the Rings: Gollum game, currently in development by Daedalic. The game is coming to both current and next gen systems, so PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and PC in late 2021

The trailer seems to be nigh on identical to the one that slipped out a few days ago, but Project Manager Daide Haberstroh from Daedalic Entertainment provided more context with some narration.

The game is an action adventure game, but has a big focus on storytelling and immersing players in the inner conflict within Gollum. The game will feature tactical stealth, environmental puzzles, climbing and fast-paced parkour – Gollum isn't really up for a fight, so you need to be cautious and pick the correct approach.

Dialogue will play a big role in the story, as you play out the inner conflict with a mini-game that presents to you the multiple sides of the character's current thoughts and you have to decide which ones are Gollum or Smeagol. Not only that, but the options will fly around on the screen, potentially landing you in a spot of bother with an ill-timed outburst.

The game will have both familiar locations from the fantasy world, such as the Barad-Dur outskirt where war preparations are going on.

The game was announced quite some time ago, in March 2019, and it was well over a year before we saw it return in May of this year. A teaser trailer also came out in just the last few days, but now the details of the game have been fleshed out quite significantly for what we can expect of the game. Hopefully we won't have to wait too long to see more, but with the game not coming out until late 2021, it might be a while before Daedalic decide to break cover again.

PlayStation exclusive Quantum Error gets a new 4K gameplay trailer

A fresh gameplay trailer for Quantum Error has emerged, the horror FPS coming exclusively to PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4

The game casts you as Captain Jacob Thomas, but you're not an army captain, you're a fire department captain, sent into the Monad Quantum Research Facility 30 miles off the shore of San Francisco, California.

Of course, quantum's gonna quantum, and as you get there, initially with the goal of saving as many lives as possible, it soon becomes clear that it's not fire you're going to be fighting. Luckily, Captain Thomas seems to be pretty good at fighting demonic cosmic horrors… while breaking his way through the world using an array of firefighter's tools.

A release date for Quantum Error is yet to be confirmed by Teamkill Media, but it's coming exclusively to PS5 and PS4.

Source: YouTube 

Monster Hunter World: Iceborne fifth title update will add Fatalis

Capcom has confirmed the main content that will be arriving as part of Monster Hunter World: Iceborne's fifth title update and one of the pieces is the return of a legendary monster. The dragon Fatalis leads the charge of the title update, and hunting parties will have a tough time of it considering how powerful Fatalis is. It also seems players will be travelling back to Fatalis' hunting ground of Castle Schrade, which is the only place Fatalis has been spotted so far.

Along with Fatalis the fifth title update will the Arch-Tempered Velkhana, new layered armour options, and the Fun Fright Fest. The update is expected to go live on October 1st, so you have about a month to prepare to face off against Fatalis. Since the inception of the Monster Hunter series worldwide sales have reached 61 million units. Monster Hunter: World is where Capcom finally struck gold with the game shipping over 15 million units since January 2018, and according to Capcom it is the first game in the company's history to hit that number. The expansion Monster Hunter World: Iceborne also pulled in impressive numbers with 4.1 million units shipped up until January and has no doubt sold many more since then.

Dom reviewed Monster Hunter World: Iceborne, and he wrote:

Monster Hunter: World is deservedly Capcom's most successful game to date, and the Iceborne expansion amplifies everything positive about it. More incredible monsters, new lands and a wealth of ways to upgrade your Hunter will have fans in rapture, while new players yet to experience the delights of monster hunting can rest assured that there's never been a better time to join the hunt.

You can read the full Monster Hunter World: Iceborne review here.

Source: Twitter

Quantum Error developer sets up GoFundMe, new teaser released

A brand new teaser for the horror FPS Quantum Error has been released by TeamKill Media, with this 92 second footage showing scenes from the story alongside moments of gameplay. In the footage you can see the main character shooting at monsters, watching as others run from them, and even witness one of the monsters get decapitated. Needless to say, this is not what you would call a family friendly teaser in the slightest.

It does not seems like we should expect Quantum Error soon though, even with a release target of 2021. TeamKill Media has set up a GoFundMe page with a target of $65,000 so mocap equipment can be bought, and voice actors can be hired. At the time of writing the GoFundMe has hit $1,325 from 8 donations in 23 hours. According to the GoFundMe, TeamKill Media has three installments planned for Quantum Error. The description of the fundraiser also says:

The first 50 donations of $500 or more will get you a spot as a NPC character in the game. And anyone donating $50 or more will get a copy of the game when it releases for either PS4 or PS5.

The story description is as follows:

When the Monad Quantum Research Facility – 30 miles off the shore of CA – is attacked by an unknown entity, engulfing the complex in flames and putting it into a full containment lock-down, a distress call is sent for mutual aid to the Garboa Fire Dept in San Francisco, CA. Fire Chief Sturgis answers the call and sends you – Capt. Jacob Thomas – your partner Shane Costa and a crew by helicopter to the Monad Facility. Your mission is simple: save as many lives from the burning complex as possible and get out.  However, what starts as a rescue mission quickly plummets into darkness, when you arrive and find that things are not as they appear.

Quantum Error has been confirmed for PS5 and PS4.

Source: YouTube/GoFundMe

Epic emails Fortnite players to blame Apple for Season 2 – Chapter 4 update unavailability

Epic Games have stepped up their fight in the courts of public opinion with Apple by directly emailing Fortnite players on iPhone, iPad and macOS to pin the blame on Apple for the lack of an update to Fortnite Season 2 – Chapter 4, which kicked off yesterday on most other platforms. It's the latest move in their battle with the tech giant, once again seeking to paint themselves is the most favourable light possible while their lawsuit goes through the US courts.

The email reads:

Apple is blocking Fortnite updates and new installs on the ‌App Store‌, and has said they will terminate our ability to develop Fortnite for Apple devices. As a result, the Chapter 2 – Season 4 update (v14.00), did not release on iOS and macOS on August 27. […]

Apple limits competition so they can collect 30% of consumer payments made in apps like Fortnite, raising the prices you pay. Epic lowered prices through a direct payment option, but Apple is blocking Fortnite in order to prevent Epic from passing on the savings from direct payments to players. Epic has taken legal action to end Apple's anti-competitive restrictions on mobile device marketplaces. Papers are available for our August 13, August 17, and August 23 filings. In retaliation for this action, Apple blocked your access to Fortnite updates and new installs on all iOS devices.

They also explain that players will be able to continue playing on the older version of the game, and direct those wanting a refund to contact Apple.

However, what this email fails to explain is that, in offering a direct payment option, Epic directly broke the terms of hosting their app on the iOS App Store. Whether they like or dislike Apple's policies, they broke the rules knowing that Apple would remove their game from the store.

That's exactly how the US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers viewed the situation when Epic sought injunctive relief to force Apple to restore the game to the App Store. Judge Rogers wrote:

Epic Games remains free to maintain its agreements with Apple in breach status as this litigation continues, but as the Seventh Circuit recognized in Second City Music, "[t]he sensible way to proceed is for [Epic to comply with the agreements and guidelines] and continue to operate while it builds a record." "Any injury that [Epic Games] incurs by following a different course is of its own choosing." Epic Games admits that the technology exists to "fix" the problem easily by deactivating the "hotfix." That Epic Games would prefer not to litigate in that context does not mean that "irreparable harm" exists.

The Court did, however, provide injunctive relief to prevent Apple from entirely cutting off Epic's developer access entirely and effectively ending support for Unreal Engine on their platforms.

At this point, the decision whether or not an update can be made is entirely in Epic's hands. The Court has determined that Epic knowingly breached an agreement they disagree with and have even acknowledged that it would be easy to revert the changes. Apple have also stated that they would be happy to restore Fortnite to the store so long as it removes the direct payment option.

However, it seems that Epic are going to stay the course, at least for a little while longer, and they are carrying out a well orchestrated PR campaign to try and get their young audience on side. This started on the day of the app's removal with the release of a poppy trailer that pastiched Apple's iconic 1984 advert, coming with the hashtag #FreeFortnite, and has now continued with emails to their players.

The next hearing will take place on 28th September, where Epic will again seek an injunction to get Fortnite back onto the App Store, but for a full trial, Epic have said they need at least four months to prepare, and Apple don't want to start for ten months. That in mind, and with the Court already having ruled that the game's availability is up to Epic, it's just a matter of how long they are going to cut themselves off from a substantial revenue source.

Meanwhile, here's what Apple's been up to:

Source: Mac Rumours, Grady Yann

Nour: Play With Your Food is heading to PS5 and PC

There are all sorts of games out there and some of them do revolve around food, though usually it is something like Overcooked or Fruit Ninja. Sole developer TJ Hughes, who has named their studio Terrifying Jellyfish, has announced a different take on food games with Nour: Play With Your Food. This experience has been confirmed for PS5, PC, and Mac though a release date is yet to be set. You can check out the first trailer for Nour: Play With Your Food below.

There are over 20 food varieties which you can play with however you wish. Nour: Play With Your Food is an experimental title to see if the allure of what you see on screen can make you feel hungry for it in reality. In Nour: Play With Your Food all sorts of combinations can be made, so if you want to smash food together you can. If you want to create an artistic masterpiece of food that is also an option, and you will be able to share that. TJ also mentions how the game makes use of the PS5's DualSense controller.

With 20+ food vignettes, and reactive musical compositions to accompany each, this is bound to be the tastiest multi-course meal to hit next-gen. We have major plans to take advantage of the new DualSense controller's features. Imagine the satisfaction of cutting a virtual peach with a knife, the resistance being reflected by the controller's adaptive triggers increasing in tension, and the glide of the knife being modeled through the controller's haptic feedback

Panic, the publisher behind Untitled Goose Game and Firewatch, will be publishing Nour: Play With Your Food.

Source: PS Blog/Steam

What We Played #465 – Wasteland 3, Project CARS 3 & Fall Guys

It's been a good week down at TSA Towers, helped by the sudden arrival of Gamescom that I had completely forgotten was going on. Despite not being able to travel for some serious gaming business in Cologne, there's been a bevy of game announcements and even more glimpses of next gen gameplay which is all shiny and new. I've been playing Madden 20 as I prepare to jump into 21 later today, as well as restarting Wind Waker HD, playing a bunch of space sims with the HOTAS Warthog after getting angry about Microsoft Flight Simulator's constant crashes, and indulging in a few nights of Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles with Tef.

Tuffcub has played "laughing as Tef gets increasingly annoyed with Geoff Keighley", which is the game that keeps on getting angrier, Destiny 2, and Trover Saves the Universe "which is very sweary". Aran meanwhile has played a bit of Civ VI and that is it, saying it's "quite a boring run, so I might start a new game."

Thomas Harrison-Lord played Project CARS 3 for review in amongst rounds of Fall Guys. Project CARS 3 is "a different direction for the series and one that hasn't quite paid off." He's also playing WRC 9 for review, which will be coming pretty soon.

Gareth has played Pathfinder Kingmaker, "which seems excellent but I'm only level 4 after playing as much as possible since Sunday, as it progresses at a glacial pace. Other than that I've played some Beat Saber, naturally, and a bit of Fall Guys."

Nick P played a bit of Ghost of Tsushima, saying "I'm on the final act, or at least where things are heating up! Definitely one of my favourite games of the year." Jason on the other hand has been playing Tales of Berseria, which is "the edgiest of the Tales games. I'm quite enjoying it, though I'm not 100% if I'll stick with it to the end just because it's probably 1,000,000 hours long. I've also been playing some more Heroes of Hammerwatch, which continues to impress me with every new level I try. Finally, I'm still playing Dreamscaper, which is a roguelike with Persona elements, and also Monster Train, which might be the best of the card-battling roguelikes."

Ade is on with Darkestville Castle for review, "which is your bog standard Sam and Max alike trying waaaaaay too hard to be funny. I'm also bloody tempted by Captain Tsubasa after @Mohranner's review, so might pick that up!" I have to admit I've been similarly skirting the Buy button on Tsubasa, but can't work out which format to go for, so instead I've gone with none.

Thomas Hughes has been playing a lot of Wasteland 3 for review "which is absolutely excellent". He's also been trying to sneak in some Final Fantasy XIV between bottle feeds and work, along with some Dark Souls 2.

Steve started Wolfenstein II, saying "I had somehow managed not to know anything about it so am massively enjoying the sheet WTF of it all. They certainly embraced the camper and sillier aspects. Had some time with the execrable Street Power Football for review and loved my time spent with Hello Games' The Last Campfire. Managed a few rounds of Overcooked with the kids and a spot of Wasteland 3 coop with Thomas. Finally I cleared the demos, freebies, and prologues from my Steam catalogue. Would recommend the cute Grimm's Hollow for a lovely take on loss and the sex-horror excesses of Lust Beyond Darkness: Prologue for a very eclectic evening's entertainment.

Finally, Tef has been plugging away at Crusader Kings 3 ahead of its release next week, and got progressively more annoyed at how often Geoff Keighley was reminding people that Fall Guys: Season 2 and Ratchet & Clank would be shown off later in the stream.

Now then, what have you been playing this week?

Genshin Impact PS4 release date has been confirmed

MiHoYo has confirmed the PS4 release date of Genshin Impact, and players will be able to go hands on with the game from September 28th. The free to play action RPG has also been confirmed for iOS, Android, and PC with the release date for those platforms being also being September 28th. However, PS4 players will be getting some exclusive content called the Sword of Descension and Wings of Descension. The Sword will help deal extra damage to enemies while the Wings is a glider that has an exclusive design style. In addition, there is a preorder bundle called the Adventurer's Starter Bundle which grants some extra resources.

We've loved what we've seen of the game so far. Miguel went hands on with the game's closed beta at the start of this July, coming away very impressed with what he saw. He said in our Genshin Impact preview:

"Genshin Impact is the kind of game I've been craving for a long time. I obsess over collecting the characters and upgrades in all sorts of free-to-play mobile games, but their insistence on repetitive short-form missions and minimal downtime always burns me out. Genshin Impact steps in a completely opposite direction, providing an immersive and zen world full of natural beauty to explore at your own pace, while also delivering a heaping helping of characters, skill points, missions, equipment and more that is sure to keep me glued to the full game for ages."

In Genshin Impact players take on the role of The Traveler who washes up on the shores of Teyvat. The main story will be about searching for the character's sibling but there will be plenty of other quests to experience. There will be over 30 companions to ally with to make up your party of four. Genshin Impact has been confirmed for Switch too but the release window for that is yet to be announced.

Source: PS Blog

Giveaway – Win an EPOS | SENNHEISER GSP 601 Gaming Headset

This bank holiday weekend, we have quite the giveaway lined up for our readers here at TheSixthAxis. If your headset is looking a little frayed around the earmuffs then you'll want to keep on reading.

We've partnered with the folks at EPOS yet again and will be hooking one of you up with their latest headset model – the EPOS | SENNHEISER GSP 601.

Announced earlier this week, the GSP 601 and 602 are both new models in the 600 series, inheriting the same top quality design and performance but with two colour schemes to pick from. Where the 601 rocks a super stylish white, black, and copper, the navy and tan 602 is equally as appealing. These headsets are ideal for PC, as well as PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.

As always, entering our competitions is simple – just complete the form below to enter in a variety of different ways, including via Twitter, YouTube and Facebook.

We'll be running the competition throughout the bank holiday weekend, with entries closing at 11.59PM UK time on Tuesday September 1st. The giveaway is open to residents of the UK only. Winners must respond within three working days of being contacted, and if they do not another winner will be drawn. Our usual terms and conditions apply, and decisions are final.

Win an EPOS | SENNHEISER GSP 601 Gaming Headset

Dom recently went hands ear on with the EPOS | SENNHEISER GSP 300, here are his closing thoughts:

The Sennheiser GSP 300 is a sensational wired gaming headset, with exceptional audio that's capable of keeping the most demanding audiophile utterly content.

For more EPOS | SENNHEISER gaming headphone reviewes, you can find them here:

Good luck!

Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning first gameplay trailer is all about finesse

THQ Nordic has released the first gameplay trailer for Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning with this one focusing on the Finesse skills which essentially leads to a stealth build character. The footage shows the Finesse character sneaking up to enemies and stabbing them from behind, or carrying out attacks from a distance. Of course, Finesse is just one way to play Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning so if you do not fancy going stealth, you can always run and swing at things with your sword.

It was in June when Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning was first announced. As a full remaster this contains all of the content from the original release, but THQ Nordic is going a step further. In 2021, a brand new expansion called Fatesworn will also be released though the content of that is yet to be announced. For fans wondering just how much space Re-Reckoning will eat up on their hard-drives, the official Xbox listing for the game may have the answer. According to the Microsoft store page, the approximate download file size is 29.97 GB.

Back in 2012 Jim reviewed Kingdoms of Amalur Reckoning and wrote:

38 Studios has made a triumphant debut with Reckoning, but there is a long way to go before the Amalur IP reaches its full potential. The combination of an MMO open-world structure with hack n' slash combat mechanics works well if a little patchy in places; weapons are in dire need of more combos, and the block/dodge system also lacks the finesse of its contemporaries.

These are issues that can easily be ironed out however, though the same can't be said about the game's underpinning lore. Sporadic in pace and quality of content, this is the area in which Reckoning borrows too heavily from its MMO ancestry and it really doesn't pay off.

You can read the original full review here. Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning will be released on September 8th for PS4, Xbox One, and PC.

Source: Press Release

 

Thrustmaster HOTAS Warthog Review

First impressions of the Thrustmaster HOTAS Warthog are impactful to say the least. You know a gaming peripheral means business when it features a big US military sticker on it, and that thought will be all the more cemented when you attempt to lift the incredibly heavy pair of boxes out of their outer packaging. Combining a flight stick and throttle, the Thrustmaster HOTAS Warthog, based on the real life controls found in a Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II, sets out to be the ultimate flight sim attachment, and resoundingly succeeds.

The Warthog is built to last, but please try not drop it anywhere near your feet or any other extremities. This thing is built from military-grade metal and feels as though Thrustmaster has undertaken a night-time raid of an air force base, ripped a few sticks out of unattended Warthogs, and stuck a USB cable into them. In the hand it feels immense; initially ice cold to your touch, warming as you spend longer playing, and it's utterly unlike any plastic gaming peripheral you've ever used.

The throttle is similarly serious, and once more has you wondering just where the discarded carcasses of airplanes are that lie in Thrustmaster's wake. A solid black rivetted metal case boasting a split thrust lever and an unbelievable array of inputs, it is amongst the most tactile gaming products I've ever come across, and when combined with the flight stick and sat next to your PC, or attached to your gaming chair, these must rank amongst the most empowering devices we've ever reviewed.

Let's talk inputs. The Thrustmaster Warthog flight stick plays host to an enviable 19 inputs plus an 8-way 'point of view' hat. If you're planning to play a flight sim – let's say the brand new, unequivocally life affirming Microsoft Flight Simulator – the Warthog is immediately going to set you on an entirely new path to realism. Whether indulging in wide ranging sims, flight trainers or space shooters, you're not going to find many peripherals that upgrade your experience in a similar one-shot manner.

Each of the inputs feels as well-made as the stick itself. The red metal trigger satisfyingly clicks with every pull, while the digital and analogue sticks and directional controls rest easily beneath your thumb. They're all suitably firm, with Thrustmaster boasting that the controls feature 'realistic' pressure. It feels like no expense has been spared on outfitting the Warthog with every mod-con, and every other HOTAS I've experienced previously feels like a toy in comparison.

Moving over to the thrust module, the numbers climb astronomically. The dual throttles themselves play host to 17 action buttons, plus a mouse hat with a push button, and another 8-way 'point of view' hat. Each of the throttle inputs sat naturally beneath my fingers, with the Slew mouse hat control perhaps the only one that didn't match the tactile and natural fit of the other controls. Both of the dual throttle controls meanwhile feel smooth and natural in the hand, and thanks to the base's 3kg weight, even the most frantic movement didn't unsettle the unit at all.

That base isn't just a dumb block of metal either, there's another 15 action buttons and a Trim wheel to tinker with here. This industrial-feeling engine and auto-pilot panel pulls yet more realism into your flight sim experiences, made up of green LED-lit controls and solid metal switches. Everything, barring the Trim wheel, and auto-pilot and landing gear push buttons, makes a satisfying, and eternally loud, clacking sound as you interact with it, and while I haven't sat in a Warthog's cockpit, I can now imagine at least some of the control's feel and the noises you might hear.

How does it all feel in use? Frankly, and without too much hyperbole, the Thrustmaster Warthog HOTAS makes you feel like you're flying a real plane, before you've even lifted off the runway. Once in the air, you can begin to appreciate not just the material feel of the stick itself and the inputs, but the accuracy with which it all operates. The Warthog is, like all modern Thrustmaster sticks, outfitted with Hall Effect 3D magnetic sensors, and every motion is instantly replicated on screen. Small motions, and incremental changes, are registered just as easily as heavy strafing movements, and though the stick's heft might put some players off, I never found it unwieldy.

Perhaps the biggest question mark with the Warthog lies with what you're planning to do with it. It's undeniably one of the finest pieces of gaming equipment I've ever come across, but it isn't always going to match the aesthetics of what you're doing. Playing War Thunder or heading off into the stars in Rebel Galaxy Outlaw looks and feels natural, the Warthog marrying with the fiction perfectly. Microsoft Flight Simulator however, despite the array of real-life aircraft, can feel a touch detached to have something so substantial if you're piloting something light, or alternately a heavy commercial aircraft.

That said, MFS has a perfect preset already in place for the Warthog, and given the quality and consistency of the experience of the stick in use, I'd weigh the standard of equipment over the aesthetics every day of the week. Alternatively, if you have a very clear picture of what you want to achieve in your mind, or you're really planning to live the sim life, the Thrustmaster TCA Sidestick Airbus Edition is potentially going to be a better fit.

The biggest question surrounding the Thrustmaster Warthog HOTAS really comes down to budget. If you want one of, if not the best HOTAS set-ups for your PC, you're going to have to pay for it. With an RRP of £450 you're definitely paying for it. There are considerably cheaper options out there, many of them from Thrustmaster themselves like the classic T.16000 M, but the Warthog is a thousand air miles above everything else out there.

Left 4 Dead 2 The Last Stand update announced

It has been nearly 11 years since Valve released Left 4 Dead 2 and ramped up the terror of the zombie survival shooter series. Since its release people have been wondering whether there will be a third instalment in the series. Well, that is to be confirmed as coming but there is some new content in the works. Left 4 Dead 2 is getting a new update called The Last Stand. This update has not been worked on by Valve directly but instead by members of the Left 4 Dead community. However, Valve has given the update its blessing and will be officially publishing The Last Stand.

There are not too many details about Left 4 Dead 2 The Last Stand bar the teaser trailer, and a brief description:

It has been many years since the infection first hit. Radio silence, no sign of life, nothing but lingering hopes… CEDA is not going to save us. But there is hope! A few brave souls have continued the fight against all odds, and soon we can all benefit from their resilience.

Valve had been working on new Left 4 Dead titles prior to the release of Half Life: Alyx, but these were cancelled. Left 4 Dead 3 was briefly in development, as an open world game set in Morocco, but deemed unworkable because of Source 2's slow development. Another Left 4 Dead project – codenamed Hot Dog – was also dropped. Whether Valve will revisit these in the future is unknown, but thanks to community and The Last Stand Left 4 Dead 2 has not quite been left for dead.

Source: YouTube

September's Games with Gold include an actual, this gen, AAA game!

After months of less than impressive titles Microsoft have pulled out the stops and are giving away an AAA game from this generation as part of September's Games with Gold. Woohoo! You lucky, lucky people are getting… Tom Clancy's The Division!

Wait.

The Division? Not The Division 2? Oh dear.

You are also getting "engaging point-and-click adventure" The Book of Unwritten Rules 2 on Xbox One (never heard of that one), and de Blob 2 (average)  and Armed and Dangerous (nope, no idea) on Xbox 360. Here's your full line up and when they are available.

You can get The Division 2 for under £9 on Amazon. Here's what Microsoft had to say about the games.

Tom Clancy's The Division

Take back New York City after it has fallen into chaos. This online shooter is a groundbreaking experience, combining robust RPG customization and tactical action combat. Play a massive co-op campaign, take on other agents, and earn cutting edge gear, as you fulfill your objective: protect what remains and restore hope.

The Book of Unwritten Tales 2

The legends have foretold it and prophecies predicted it: The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 is available in September's Games with Gold lineup. The continuation of the point-and-click adventure saga hilariously spoofs some of the most beloved and famous fantasy stories ever written. With over 20 hours of story, help the quirky cast of characters fulfill their destiny in the tricky world of Avantasia.

de Blob 2

Set off on an action-packed colorful adventure. The Inkies are back with a new plot to rid the world of color and it is up to Blob to stop them. Featuring a unique painting functionality as the main game mechanic, this platformer showcases 12 new single player levels, multiplayer support, and epic boss battles.

Armed and Dangerous

Capture victory in 12,000 bullets or less in this classic Xbox title. Meet the Lionhearts, a smack-talking band of rebels on an impossible mission to save the world – that is if they don't burn it down first. With a witty story that parodies popular media, wield outlandish weapons and shoot your way through 21 action-packed levels.

Source: Xbox.com

Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Storm Ground coming to PC & consoles in 2021

Yes, another Warhammer game. Today Focus Home Interactive unveiled their newest project in collaboration with Canadian developers, Gasket Games.

The popular Games Workshop license has seen an unending flow of video game adaptations over the past several years but clearly there's a rich vein still worth chipping away at.

Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Storm Ground will throw open its celestial gates in 2021, coming to PC and consoles including PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch. There's no word on whether we'll also see it on PS5 or Xbox Series X though it may follow in the footsteps of Focus Home's other recent Warhammer title, Chaosbane.

So, what's the deal with Storm Ground? Well, for a start, its set in the Age of Sigmar timeline. For those lapsed Warhammer fans scratching their heads, Games Workshop effectively scrapped their original Warhammer Fantasy tabletop game, rebooting it as Age of Sigmar.

Following a world-ending event in the Warhammer fiction, this gave GW a clean slate to work with and now we're starting to see more and more video games adapting this new setting and its stories of unending conflict between various realms.

Storm Ground is a turn-based skirmishing strategy game so should have a lot in common with its tabletop counterpart. There's no gameplay as of yet, so here's an official breakdown:

Become the commander of one of the extraordinary factions of Warhammer Age of Sigmar – a dark-fantasy universe where immortal knights ride heavenly stardrakes to eradicate Death across a multitude of realms. This is Storm Ground, a world of legends, heroes, hellish creatures and fearsome battles.
Lead your highly-customisable force in this dynamic and spectacular turn-based strategy game packed with fast-paced warfare. Victories allow you to collect and upgrade new types of units, powerful equipment, and unlock devastating skills. Explore all the routes in Storm Ground's non-linear campaign. During each new playthrough, overcome new odds to find unique units and gears. Build your legendary army and defy other players in epic online duels.
Aside from Chaosbane and the newly announced Storm Ground we've seen plenty of Warhammer titles surface including next month's Necromunda: Underhive Wars, Total War: Warhammer II, and Vermintide 2 just to name a few.
Source: Press Release