Spine is a team-based combat game that promises lots of action and even more cinematic style

So there was a multiplayer team-based title unveiled during this year's Gamescom. It's called Spine and, we're going to be perfectly honest, there is not a lot of information about this one except that it's a thing that is in development and it will be extremely cyberfuture and cinematic and ostentatious. At least if the […]

Realm of the Mad God releases its fully revamped Shatters dungeon

"After years of requests and months of development, the Shatters reconstruction is here at last," heralds the announcement from Realm of the Mad God, a reconstruction effort that readers will recall was hinted at in a roadmap announcement and then tied to the title's largest patch of the year. And now the all-new Shatters dungeon […]

Wolcen: Lords of Mayhem eyes mid-autumn for its next content update, seeks player input on playstyles

Last month, the devs of ARPG Wolcen: Lords of Mayhem laid out some endgame-focused content plans for the game's future while also not really committing to any hard release timing. As of this month's dev report, the folks at Wolcen Studio have begun to narrow down a launch window for the game's next content update. […]

Profane proudly showcases a suit of metal armor and beats the FFA PvP drum once more

Some people like cloth armor, some like leather armor, but some like the big, bulky, and (ideally) secure feeling of metal armor. Unsurprisingly, Profane will feature all of them, and in the game's latest Twitter thread it shows off the initial concept of one such heavy armor piece. The rest of the thread launches into […]

Pokemon Go subreddit goes dark to protest Reddit's stance on COVID disinfo

For once, the Pokemon Go community is protesting someone other than Niantic when it comes to COVID. Earlier this month, Reddit community leaders began agitating for the Reddit administration to tackle the serious and ongoing problem of COVID-related misinformation on the platform. Reddit apparently quarantined one sub, but it wiggled out of doing more with […]

Albion Online cracks down on PvP exploits and exploiters

Sandbox Interactive is cracking down on PvP exploiters in Albion Online, according to a thread on the official forums this morning. Specifically, it's an exploit that involves dueling. "During the duel, the exploiter will use mobility spells to run outside the dueling ring," the studio explains. "The exploiter will then re-enter the ring, but at […]

EVE London is returning with a physical viewing party of the Alliance Tournament on November 6

Fans of EVE Online in the UK or those who are able to travel to London have a little something to look forward to this coming Saturday, November 6th, as the fan-run EVE London event group has announced a return to live events, starting with an in-person viewing party of the the Alliance Tournament 10v10 […]

Director for Riot's Runeterra MMO hints at possible character models and world size on Twitter

Let the rampant speculation and assumption leaping begin: Mark Yetter, the game director for Riot Games' in-development Runeterra MMO, has put out a couple of intriguing bits on his Twitter account that have players and fans checking their chins in thought. We first look towards a tweet from yesterday that offered up an image of […]

Neverwinter answers questions about molding the D&D Bard class to fit its game

It's easy to assume that moving classes in Dungeons & Dragons over to a video game would be easy, but the Bard class is a bit more distinct and challenging. Factor in making that class suitable for an MMO and challenges likely double. Facing that challenge in Neverwinter was the focus of an interview with […]

Q2 2021: What the heck is going on at EG7 and Daybreak and who the heck owns Cold Iron

Last week, we covered the puzzling news that EG7's CEO Robin Flodin has been (at least temporarily?) replaced by Daybreak's Ji Ham, a move that concerned gamers who'd seen Flodin's candor since EG7 bought Daybreak last year as a huge boon for Daybreak and its MMOs. Ji Ham, of course, first surfaced in our reporting […]

Path of Exile addresses game balance, ailments, endgame changes, and more

Path of Exile producer Chris Wilson has been making the rounds on community podcasts, answering such a wide swath of questions that Grinding Gear thought it might be nice to gather up some of his answers and assemble them into their own summary post. That's mighty thoughtful of you, GGG! Thanks! Have a hearty pat […]

Wisdom of Nym: What will Final Fantasy XIV do for melee damage dealers in Endwalker?

This particular role is the easiest one to fill up whenever there's any column about the various roles getting stuff added in Final Fantasy XIV. With four jobs already occupying the melee role and another one slated to come along in Endwalker, there's just more to talk about than there are for other roles. Yes, I think […]

Not So Massively: Diablo II Resurrected is a lot of old school jank in a pretty wrapper

I admit I debated whether I should write this column at all: After all that's happened lately, giving coverage to Blizzard games doesn't feel quite right. But for better or for worse, it is still a big name, and its games are still big news. ARPGs are on of the chief genres covered by the […]

China now limits minors' gaming time to three hours a week, indicates anti-monopoly policies are forthcoming

The Chinese government is introducing a significant crackdown on gaming for minors as state media has reported that children will only be allowed to play games for three hours a week on most weeks; online gaming specifically will be allowed only between 8:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. on Fridays, weekends, and public holidays. The new […]

Indie MMO TitanReach has apparently suspended development as 'funds have dried up'

I have some bad news for fans of indie MMORPG TitanReach: The game has apparently suspended development thanks to a lack of funding. Australian studio Square Root Studios told players on Discord this morning that it had hoped to use the game's progress in 2021 to induce outside investment, but apparently over the last month, that […]

Fortnite had to disable nearly every emote in the Martin Luther King event area

Perhaps Epic Games assumed the weight and importance of its special area dedicated to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. would inspire Fortnite players to muster up a little bit of reverence and good behavior, but as it turns out this wasn't the case, as some players took the opportunity to use their selection of emotes […]

Fractured details equipment balance and progression systems coming to its September alpha test

Fractured is on its way to its next alpha testing this fall — sometime in late September, date TBD — and the devs at Dynamight Studios are seeking to touch on all of the many new things that are arriving in the latest build via a series of videos, the first of which narrowed in […]

Interview: Crowfall's Global Conquest update brings 'mega' changes to the world

Today we are being treated to the latest and greatest Crowfall has to offer with Update 7.100, better known as Global Conquest. We're expecting a slew of new features coming fresh out of the oven, including improved rewards, reduced downtime between fights, and even an expanded recruit-a-friend program. The tentpole feature this time around, though, […]

The Daily Grind: Are you partial to specific launch windows for MMOs?

Earlier in August, Nexon CEO Owen Mahoney dropped some cold truth during the company's quarterly investor call, arguing that the "charade of launch timing serves little purpose except this dance with equity analysts." Essentially, his point was that it doesn't matter when games come out because they will make money as long as they're good, […]

MMO Week in Review: WoW is a day late and a dollar short

I remember remarking a few years back during the Daybreak Columbus Nova fiasco that I was genuinely astonished to realize that MMO studio reps were scurrying around the internet scrubbing files that contradicted its ownership claims, but I suppose that was mere child's play compared to this week's revelation that state investigators have accused Activision-Blizzard […]

Sandbox MMO SEED talks cameras and previews its cinematic mode

The three week-long vacation from the dev blogging scene for colony building MMO SEED is at an end, and the game has come back with a surprising amount of dev blogs this time around: namely, just the one. For now. This dev blog is all about the game camera, which notes that the devs at […]

The MOP Up: Genshin Impact puts on a global concert

There's no doubt among fans that Genshin Impact has an amazing soundtrack, so there should be a whole lot of people happy to hear that Maestro Dirk Brossé and the Flanders Symphony Orchestra is putting on a global concert with the score on October 3rd. "The concert will feature Genshin Impact music originally composed and […]

Aura Kingdom's 80th patch introduces The Whipmaster

Gamigo's been busy this week, just not in the games our readers likely wish were getting love. Aura Kingdom has patched in with the studio is calling a "major update" as of yesterday, the game's 80th patch, which rolls out new dungeons, a new mode for Gaia Sanctuary, a touch-up for PvP, and a new […]

The Stream Team: Opening fire on facehuggers and zapping xenomorphs in Aliens Fireteam Elite

The time has come to join the fireteam and try to battle back the xenomorph menace as MOP's Chris heads into Aliens: Fireteam Elite to see what this multiplayer co-op shooter has to offer. The bug blasting starts today at 12:00 p.m. EDT! What: Aliens: Fireteam Elite Who: Chris Neal When: 12:00 p.m. EST on […]

Warframe's latest dev stream highlights the Ghoulsaw weapon, Nidus Prime, and update 30.7 features

Warframe has held yet another info-filled developer livestream that offers a number of interesting previews for fans of the multiplayer action title. Most of the stream focused on a variety of things coming in update 30.7, which will include the return of the Plague Star event that will let players put together the Ghoulsaw weapon, […]

One Shots: Fantasy updrafting

The way I see it, MMORPGs encourage us past our timidity and fear to be bold. So fight that dragon! Get a selfie with an angry skeleton! And jump off a cliff while putting full faith that your fantasy wings will compensate for that extra bagel you had for breakfast! Hikari is soaring above yet […]

The Daily Grind: What inspires you to try an MMO again?

Working around MMOs means that you have a certain amount of impetus and opportunity to try out games you played in the past, often including games that you thought were a bit lackluster before. My personal feelings toward The Elder Scrolls Online, for example, were changed from the game I'd played just before launch; when […]

Massively on the Go: Tricks abound in Pokemon Go for September and Season of Mischief

And you thought Christmas was bad! We're getting ready for Halloween already in Pokemon Go, and not just for the monthly events. The new season starts September 1st, and the Season of Mischief reveal, which was more visual than usual, laid out plans for Mischief Pokemon Hoopa to start off the three month season on […]

Halo Infinite's head of creative explains why gameplay previews weren't available at Gamescom

If you were following along on our Gamescom Opening Night coverage and are a fan or follower of the shooter Halo Infinite, you probably note that the game only had that cinematic introduction to its campaign but no actual gameplay. That's because the devs at 343 Industries are heads-down working to make the game's December […]

Lord of the Rings Online's super-speedy progression server moves into Moria on September 1

After just two months of blitzing through Shadows of Angmar content, Lord of the Rings Online's Shadowfax legendary server will unlock the Mines of Moria expansion on September 1st. Shadowfax was launched alongside its slower cousin Treebeard back on June 30th. The plan for this server was always to offer both faster leveling and expansion […]

New World tells of the sad history of its zombies and phantasms

"Not alive. Certainly not dead. Their existence is a constant agony." No, we're not talking about Waffle House employees here, but rather the Lost of New World. In a new lore video, Amazon explains how a magical fog that flows around the game's island has kept some people living long, long past their expiration date. […]

The Game Archaeologist: Jeff Butler on EverQuest, EverQuest Next, and Vanguard

As an MMO historian, I have to applaud the work of former SOE developer Shawn Lord in his huge interview series with the people who worked on these titles. A recent three-hour beast of a video caught our attention as Lord interviewed Jeff Butler on a wide range of MMOs, including EverQuest, Vanguard, and EverQuest […]

Guild Wars 2 teases next End of Dragons elite spec reveal, promises more info on skiffs

It's telling how hungry Guild Wars 2 fans are for more information about End of Dragons that a silhouette of a kneeling figure clutching a broadsword is sending them into a speculative frenzy. Apparently, this will be the next elite spec revealed for the expansion, and everyone's trying to figure out in advance what it […]

WRUP: Testing your HQ (ham quotient) edition

1. Do you like ham? a. Yes, I enjoy ham. b. I like ham more than the usual amount c. I like ham less than the usual amount. d. I do not like ham. e. Ham ham ham ham ham ham ham ham ham ham ham ham ham ham ham ham ham ham ham ham […]

The Daily Grind: What are your fall MMO plans?

After a brief August lull in the crazy launch cycle that's been 2021, we're looking to ramp back up again with a lot of fall releases. There's Elyon, New World, FFXIV: Endwalker, SWTOR: Legacy of the Sith, LOTRO: Gundabad, Book of Travels early access, and more. Personally, I feel overstimulated when I look at everything […]

Betawatch: Book of Travels postponed its early access yet again

Come on now, Book of Travels, we know you're shy but it's time to start putting yourself out there. The game has once again delayed its early access launch, this time opting not to give any date whatsoever but instead adopting a "when it's ready" approach to future dates. It's perhaps not surprising given prior delays, […]

Final Fantasy XI interviews Yosuke Saito and prepares an equipment boosting campaign

The features on Final Fantasy XI's wide-ranging anniversary site We Are Vana'diel have continued to show up in bits and pieces, and the latest installment is worth a gander for everyone. Producer Akihiko Matsui is joined by former Dragon Quest X producer Yosuke Saito, discussing the genesis of these online games, Saito's own experiences as a […]

War Thunder will add new vehicles, guided bombs, and fire control systems for ships in September

Maybe you're seeking some multiplayer vehicular combat alternatives in light of a certain developer's behavior. Perhaps, then, you should keep your eyes on Gaijin Entertainment's War Thunder, which is planning a new update in September that's bringing new vehicles and new gameplay mechanics. The Direct Hit update will introduce a number of new vehicles including […]

Atlas gets turtle dragon tank ships and buffed spider mounts

Turtle ships are a thing in Grapecard's early access someday-MMO Atlas as of this week. What's a turtle ship? One heck of a tanky boat. It's not really a turtle, unfortunately. "Not only is she a tank, fully decked out in armor and ready to take a beating, but she also offers some new utility […]

The Stream Team: Watch a bard beginning and win a Neverwinter mount and companion bundle

Music is one of the greatest things in the universe — so says Massively OP's MJ. So it is understandable that a new music-making class in Neverwinter would entice her! The new bard has lured MJ away from her beloved assassin, and she is eager to play it. Today her bard life begins, but she […]

World of Warcraft patch 9.1.5 removes conduit energy and finally makes covenants freely swappable

We have previously noted that the overall design philosophy for World of Warcraft patch 9.1.5 appears to be focused on things that players have been asking to receive for quite some time but that Blizzard has heretofore refused to deliver. But today's new developer update confirms that patch 9.1.5 will be going up on the PTR […]

5v5 point defense brawler Kingshunt is hosting an open beta demo this weekend

Here's one we haven't seen come up in a little while: the team-based 5v5 point defense game of Kingshunt, which we first caught wind of back in July. The game calls itself a "unique PvP title [that] blends components of tower defense, brutal melee combat, and real-time strategy" that shares some DNA with point defense […]

Dark Age of Camelot is running a third round of its fast-leveling catch-up event

Earlier this year, Broadsword's classic MMO Dark Age of Camelot struck gold with its Catch Up in Caledonia event, which essentially helped players level quickly through the game's PvE to get to its more popular three-way RvR endgame. This past spring, the studio said the event drew "thousands" of characters, enough to justify running the […]

Destiny 2 offers an overview of 'Void 3.0' subclass features arriving with The Witch Queen

The news continues to gush forth from Destiny 2 as the devs at Bungie talk up additional features coming with The Witch Queen expansion's launch. In the studio's weekly newsletter, fans get a look at what is being called "Void 3.0," which effectively does a lot of reworking to the Void subclasses for players. The […]

GDC 2021: War stories from World of Warcraft

Just before the news about the state litigation against Activision-Blizzard broke last month, Senior Software Engineer Joseph Cochron and Principal Software Engineer Kurtis McCathern gave a talk at GDC 2021 called War Stories from Azeroth, discussing some of the technical issues the team's struggled with from The Gates of Ahn'Qiraji event to Warlords of Draenor. While […]

Star Citizen casts a spotlight on CIG's video editor and showcases Nyx planetary features in latest video

If it's Friday, it's another episode of Star Citizen's weekly video digest! This episode, we start off with another Origin Story highlight from one of CIG's team members, which grants some screen time to video editor Justin Chambers, who discusses his love of editing and movies that all started with a video his parents bought […]

Shroud of the Avatar adds two new adventures for Episode 2 access holders in latest release

So a bit of good news: Shroud of the Avatar has added some new Adventure scenes with Release 93. The bad news: This content is only offered to those who bought early access to Episode 2 content once again, so unless you're among those invested in the game to the point that you're buying early […]

Fallout 76 project lead Jeff Gardiner has departed Bethesda

The launch of Fallout 76 was pretty rocky, but over time the title has managed to turn around its reputation and receive at least tacit approval from players along the way. So it is perhaps bittersweet to know that the project lead on the game, Jeff Gardiner, has left Bethesda (and concurrently his role on the […]

Vague Patch Notes: Why the depth of an MMORPG's world matters

The world doesn't need first impressions from me when it comes to Elyon. Why not? Well, for one thing, basically anything and everything I would have said about my impressions of the beta were already said quite directly by MOP's Chris. The game has some fun crunchy systems for customizing your skills and the game's mechanics; it […]

Recently downgraded DokeV shows off its open world gameplay

We won't lie: It was a bit of a bummer to report that Pearl Abyss reduced the scope of the fantastically cute DokeV from an MMO to some sort of open-world multiplayer title. That said, we still are interested to see how this game pans out, especially in light of its gameplay revelations from this […]

A LEGO Star Wars Game is Coming Exclusively to Apple Arcade

We're still waiting for LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, but a new LEGO Star Wars game is just around the corner.

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Rustler Review

Rustler takes the original Grand Theft Auto template and plops it within a medieval world. It nearly works, but there are issues. Our review.

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Islanders: Console Edition Review

A simple strategy game about placing buildings, Islanders is the perfect way to switch off and unwind from the stresses of real life.

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The Best Simulator Games on Xbox One

Prefer your games with a little more realism? Perhaps you need a simulation game.

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Tormented Souls Review

Fans of old-fashioned survival horror games are likely to love Tormented Souls. But others may be less impressed. Our review.

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Mickey Storm and the Cursed Mask is Good, Colourful Fun – And It's For Charity

A fun, colourful but often tough platformer, Mickey Storm and the Cursed Mask is worth playing - and it's also raising money for War Child.

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Watch the Complete Sonic Colors: Rise of the Wisps Short

Sega has uploaded the complete Sonic Colors: Rise of the Wisps short, just in time for Sonic Colors Ultimate's release.

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Bethesda Gives Us a Look at Three of Starfield's Locations

Bethesda Game Studios has published three videos, each revealing one of the locations Starfield will let you explore.

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Metroid Dread's Latest Gameplay Trailer is Here

Metroid Dread's new trailer shows off Samus's abilities, some offputtingly huge bosses and a member of an all-but-extinct race.

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Bloody Action-Adventure Blasphemous is Getting a Sequel and DLC

Blasphemous, a gory action adventure influenced by Catholicism's extremes, is getting new DLC and a sequel.

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Story-Based Fishing Sim Moonglow Bay Casts Off this October

Blocky slice-of-life fishing sim Moonglow Bay, announced for Xbox and PC in March, now has an October release date.

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King's Bounty II Has Teamed Up With a London Restaurant to Serve You a 1,000,000 Scoville Burger

We normally don't cover this sort of thing but this burger is too ridiculous to ignore.

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The Latest Sims 4 Patch Stops Sims Teleporting Up the Stairs

Seen your Sim teleporting from one floor to another instead of using the stairs? The latest patch for The Sims 4 should fix that.

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The Latest Saints Row Video Gives Us a Tour of Santo Ileso

Following on from its announcement earlier in the week, we've got a deeper look into the world of Saints Row.

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How to Create and Equip Death Glove Chips in No More Heroes 3

Playing No More Heroes 3 and wondering how you craft and equip chips for your Death Glove? Here's everything you need to know.

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How to Heal During Combat in No More Heroes 3

Playing through No More Heroes 3 and wondering if you can heal during combat? We've got all the info you need to know right here.

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How to Increase Your Stats in No More Heroes 3

Playing No More Heroes 3 and wondering how you increase your stats and learn new skills? We've got all the info you need right here.

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The Best Vampire Games You Can Play Right Now

Fancy playing a game in which you're a powerful creature of the night? Sink your teeth into these games that let you play as a vampire.

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Does No More Heroes 3 Have Co-op or Multiplayer Features?

Considering buying No More Heroes 3 and wondering if it has any co-op or competitive multiplayer features? We've got the answer.

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How Long Does it Take to Beat No More Heroes 3?

Thinking of picking up No More Heroes 3 and wondering how long it takes to beat it? We've got all you need to know right here.

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Diablo 2: Resurrected Trailer Highlights the Barbarian

Blizzard's Diablo 2: Resurrected, a remaster of the beloved 2000 action RPG, is out in September and serves to revive the old hack and slash looter formula with revamped visuals. One thing that hasn't change is the class selection – there are still seven to choose from and each retains their signature abilities. A new trailer focuses on the Barbarian, a class capable of dual wielding and tanking damage.

The Barbarian is capable of using Warcries to damage and stun nearby foes while Battlecries lower their damage and defenses. Along with skills like Bash and Taunt, he can also Leap Slam into foes and perform a Whirlwind to attack multiple at once while moving. There's quite a few ways to customize the class but it's mostly meant for those who favor up close and personal melee combat.

Diablo 2: Resurrected is out on September 23rd for Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5, PC and Nintendo Switch. For more details on what to expect, check out our feature here.


Genshin Impact – Kujou Sara Stars in Latest Character Trailer

Though the Raiden Shogun has been garnering more attention, Genshin Impact's next 4 star character is worth keeping an eye on. Wielder of the Electro Vision and skilled with the bow, Kujou Sara serves the Tenryou Commission and is a loyal bodyguard to the Shogun. Her character banner goes live tomorrow with update 2.1 so it's a good time to see what she can do.

Along with firing up to five times with her normal attack, Sara unleashes an Electro-infused arrow with charged shots. Her Elemental Skill is Tengu Stormcall, which instantly allows her to retreat and gain Crowfeather Cover for 18 seconds. Aiming and firing in this state will create a Crowfeather, which triggers Tengu Juurai: Ambush and provides the active character a bonus to attack based on Sara's base attack damage.

Sara's Elemental Burst is Subjugation: Koukou Sendou and sees her calling down a burst of Electro energy, followed by four additional blasts dealing AoE damage. Once again, the active character will receive an attack bonus if they're within its area of effect. Stay tuned for more details on Sara's passives when the character banner goes live tomorrow.


Aliens: Fireteam Elite Review – Unforgiving In All The Wrong Ways

Cold Iron Studios' Aliens: Fireteam Elite takes a number of design cues from Valve's Left 4 Dead games, but falls flat in achieving the heights of its inspiration. Aliens: Fireteam Elite has a great concept, but lacks the polish and variety found in Valve's offerings in the same space which made it a household name in gaming for more than a decade. Many of these oversights are further exasperated by a litany of glitches and technical problems that make enjoying Aliens: Fireteam Elite a tough ordeal at times.

Aliens: Fireteam Elite is a co-op survival shooter set in the world of the Alien IP. The source material is the posterchild of inconsistent output with titles such as Aliens: Colonial Marines which was abysmal in many ways, and Alien: Isolation which was a true gem, with both of them occupying two completely different ends of the quality spectrum. Aliens: Fireteam Elite does a great job at capturing the aesthetics of the source material, with what seems to be a pretty authentic representation of the Alien universe that lore buffs would have a great time with.

Aliens Fireteam_02

"Aliens: Fireteam Elite has some good stuff going for it, but none of it really stands out in any particular way."

The game is set more than 20 years after the original Alien trilogy and sees players controlling a custom character titled Marine. As a soldier under the UAS Endeavor, players will be tasked to rid planets and installations across alien planets of well, Xenomorphs, all the while uncovering a larger narrative involving hideous experiments, synthetic robots, and whatnot. The story isn't exactly front and centre for Aliens: Fireteam Elite, but the game manages to pull off a respectable job with its writing and voice cast. I particularly enjoyed the hilarity provided by commanding officers and other officials, which share some funny banter among themselves. It's nothing spectacular, but this does lend a sense of authenticity to the overall vibe that makes listening to these conversations endearing.

Aliens: Fireteam Elite has 4 separate campaigns, each with a set of 3 missions that players can take part in as a group of 3 people or with AI bots if matchmaking doesn't get you partners in time. The game has a handful of different classes to choose from – Demolisher, Gunner, Technician, Doc, and Recon. Each class has 2 special abilities that operate on a cooldown timer, as well as class-exclusive perks that players will utilize over the course of their playthrough. Most of my time with the game was spent with the Demolisher, who has a flurry of rocket blasters and a firecracker of sorts that stuns enemies in a given radius. Other classes have grenades, health stations – all of which can be pretty useful at times. There's a decent variety amongst the classes, and using abilities in tandem with each other is pretty enjoyable.


"Gunplay feels solid, with great sound design and feedback that gives each weapon the heft it should carry. "

The majority of the gameplay revolves around fending off enormous hordes of increasingly tough Xenomorphs and Synth soldiers. Gunplay feels solid, with great sound design and feedback that gives each weapon the heft it should carry. However, there is a big issue with the camera, it feels that it's jutted so close behind your character that peripheral vision remains quite limited. It's quite common to continually get backstabbed by a Xenomorph, which can become quite annoying at times. The controls can also feel equally sloppy at times. Rolling in general is accompanied by a pervading sense of clunkiness and unresponsiveness at times. What makes this issue more egregious is that most Xenomorph types will continually rush towards your position – making rolling an essential part of the combat loop.

When it comes to Xenomorphs and Synths, there is a fair bit of variety in the roster of enemies but in the heat of the battle you don't necessarily need to be tactical in your approach, and everything just essentially boils down to pumping Xenos with hot lead until they stop moving. The AI can glitch at times, with some enemies getting stuck on cover or terrain which makes finding them an annoying ordeal after a stressful encounter. The Synths, on the other hand, are bullet sponges for the most part. Defeating them involves taking cover and exchanging gunfire, which gets stale pretty quickly due to the aforementioned sponginess. The heavy synth variants are even worse offenders in this regard, and their gargantuan health pools make them feel more like a raid boss than an enemy meant to fight alongside a horde of marginally weaker enemies.

aliens fireteam elite 3

"The heavy synth variants are even worse offenders in this regard, and their gargantuan health pools make them feel more like a raid boss than an enemy meant to fight alongside a horde of marginally weaker enemies."

A neat trick up Aliens: Fireteam Elite's sleeve is that most fights against these hordes will have a preparation phase before it – where players can choose to install their line of defence using a number of sentries and mines. It's quite satisfying to see this preparation bear fruit when the arena gets filled with dozens of different kinds of enemies.
As mentioned before, Aliens: Fireteam Elite has some great art direction, and the levels look great from a purely aesthetic standpoint. However, the rooms that players will fight through to get to the end of each stage just feel bland with repetitive layouts and visual designs, which when combined with repetitive objectives make getting through levels a slog at times. Undoubtedly, the biggest factor contributing to this front is the lack of mid-mission checkpoints.
Aliens: Fireteam Elite doesn't feature any mid-mission saves.

A mission can last up to 40 minutes or even more, and failure will set players back to the starting of each stage. This makes the game extremely unforgiving and bland at the same time. This issue becomes even more painful when the aforementioned litany of bugs and glitches come into play. Furthermore, during my time with the game, I experienced a number of glaring issues – such as getting kicked out of sessions even when my internet was working completely fine and the game refusing to open doors even when all teammates were present at the spot. During one mission's finale, the audio would completely cut off making dealing with a humongous horde an exercise in pain.

"A mission can last up to 40 minutes or even more, and failure will set players back to the starting of each stage. "

There's also a progression system in the game, where you have to fit a number of perks such as stat boosts and upgrades in a frame. It works in a similar way to NieR: Automata's chip system, and there is some potential to push for specific builds. The same mechanic is present for weapons, whose individual parts such as muzzles and magazines can be swapped out for better ones which provide some added benefit. From what I experienced, the effects of these perks didn't feel impactful except my arbitrary combat rating kept going up. Much like Valve's Left 4 Dead, players can choose challenge cards for a particular mission – which is an interesting concept executed well enough in Aliens: Fireteam Elite. One particular run with a Challenge Card reduced our health pool significantly, but gave the team health regeneration ability provided that we didn't take damage for a certain while.

There isn't a lot left to do once you beat the campaign. There's a Horde mode which tasks your Fireteam to fend off these same enemies in increasingly tough waves. You could always go back to the campaign and beat it on higher difficulties or with challenge cards, but from what I experienced – not a lot of changes with every new run. Enemies spawn in exactly the same location as per my observation, and the number of revives per teammate decreases with increasing difficulty levels.

Aliens: Fireteam Elite has some good stuff going for it, but none of it really stands out in any particular way. There's some clunkiness within the gameplay loop, which becomes more aggravating when coupled with a number of bugs and glitches. It's not impossible to have fun with Aliens: Fireteam Elite, but doing so requires putting up with several annoyances such as no checkpoints. For fans of the Aliens franchise, Fireteam Elite might serve well as a co-op shooter but for others – there are better options out there.

This game was reviewed on the PlayStation 5.


Lost Judgment Reveals English Cast in New Trailer

Lost Judgment will be the first Yakuza/Judgment game to receive a simultaneous worldwide launch, and naturally, following in the footsteps of its predecessor and Yakuza: Like a Dragon, it will also have a full English dub at launch. In a newly released trailer, developer Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio has revealed the game's English cast. Check it out below.

Greg Chun is returning as protagonist Takayuki Yagami, of course, as is Crispin Freeman as Masaharu Kaito. Stephanie Sheh will also be voicing Saori Shirosaki once again. Fumiya Sugiura is also returning, and will once again be voiced by Mark Whitten. Matt Y. King will play Kazuki Soma, Todd Haberkorn will be Jin Kuwana, while Artt Butler will voice Akihiko Ehara. There's also Erica Lindbeck as Yoko Sawa, and Brent Mukai as Daimu Akutsu.

Lost Judgment's localization director Scott Strichart has previously said that due to the tighter timeline of the game's development and localization, its English lip syncing won't be as smooth as it was in last year's Yakuza: Like a Dragon. Read more on that through here.

Lost Judgment launches on September 24 for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, and Xbox One. It's possible that it gets a demo soon, some time before its release.


Tormented Souls Review – Back to the Basics

Even though the survival horror genre has seen a resurgence in recent years, there's a very specific itch genre fans have that very few games are scratching even now. The itch for a classic, moody, old-school, fixed cameras survival horror game with a focus on exploration, puzzle solving, and resource management, like the Resident Evil and Silent Hill games of old. The elevator pitch for Torment Souls is that that's exactly what it is. It's a game that is singularly focused on the idea of creating a modern old-school survival horror game- and that is this game's biggest strength, but, at times, also its biggest weakness.

Tormented Souls evokes the original Resident Evil (and its remake) in a lot of ways, from its fixed camera angles to its haunted mansion setting (or part-haunted mansion, at least) to the moody atmosphere and quite dread it so successfully builds. Making your way through the dimly lit, creepy halls and rooms of a hospital that once used to be an abandoned mansion is done exactly the way you'd want- deliberate exploration and carefully searching environments is encouraged, and the pace is kept slow.

"Tormented Souls evokes the original Resident Evil (and its remake) in a lot of ways, from its fixed camera angles to its haunted mansion setting (or part-haunted mansion, at least) to the moody atmosphere and quite dread it so successfully builds."

Plenty of emphasis is placed on resource conservation and management right off the bat, which means running and gunning isn't always advisable, and often isn't even an option, and deciding when to use your healing items and when to hold on to them also adds an element of strategy. This is all typical survival horror stuff, of course, but it's executed well enough here, and definitely deserves to be praise. Tormented Souls' horror isn't about sudden spikes of fear as much as it is about maintaining a constant foreboding atmosphere, which is the perfect way to utilize its setting.

Solid lighting and well-crafted decrepit environments with blood splattered across the wall and unsettling objects or paintings scattered here and there contribute a whole lot to that atmosphere. Tormented Souls' setting definitely has a sense of place, and its fixed cameras definitely leverage that strength. Camera angles are carefully placed and serve a range of purposes- in a small room, the camera angle ensures that you can't see too much of the space in front of you, so you never know what's around that corner. Walking through a hallway, however, the camera might dynamically move around to give you a better look of your surroundings.

Tormented Souls also uses darkness as an actual gameplay mechanic- which isn't a novelty in the horror genre, sure, but is used quite well here. Many of the halls and corridors and environments you'll find yourself in will be quite dimly lit, or even completely dark, but staying in darkness for too long physically hurts you. Your tool against the darkness is a lighter, but if you have that equipped, you can't equip your weapon- which makes treks through patches of darkness particularly tense, especially if there are enemies lurking around. The fact that you can only save the game with tapes – like Resident Evil's ribbons – further heightens the tension. Tapes are not abundantly found, and you need to be careful about when to use them.

tormented souls

"Quite a few of the puzzles are really well designed, and honestly, I'm all for a deliberately paced survival horror game that's all about the puzzles and exploration- but Tormented Souls doesn't quite strike the right balance at times."

Another area Tormented Souls borrows a lot from classic RE and Silent Hill titles is its focus on puzzles. Careful exploration is crucial (as is backtracking, naturally), because finding items and item pieces scattered everywhere and then figuring how and where to combine or use them is how you solve most puzzles, in classic survival horror fashion. Quite a few of the puzzles are really well designed, and honestly, I'm all for a deliberately paced survival horror game that's all about the puzzles and exploration- but Tormented Souls doesn't quite strike the right balance at times.

For starters, the map is not the most useful, which is a cardinal sin in a game such as this one. The game also just throws a bit too many steps of different puzzles at you at the same time, and it can get a little hard to keep track of what items you have, or where a particular item needs to be used. Narrowing down things a little bit and not having too many puzzles active at the same time would probably have made for a better, more focused experience, because more than anything else, this leads to aimless exploration and trying to grapple with some obscure cues that you can't quite make sense of without some trial and error.

Movement in Tormented Souls is also a little rough around the edges. While the fixed cameras themselves do a great job of heightening the tension, both movement and aiming can feel a little clunky and, at times, sluggish, especially in instances when the camera angle switches and your direction is suddenly changed. Trying to zigzag around enemies to just run past them if you're trying to save ammo also always take more work than it has to, and combing through environments as you're searching for items and resources feels a little sluggish as well. I realize that this stiff movement is a very deliberate choice on the developers' part, since that's what they're trying to evoke in this decidedly old-school horror game, but they didn't have to retain this part of that experience as well.

tormented souls

"While the fixed cameras themselves do a great job of heightening the tension, both movement and aiming can feel a little clunky."

Storytelling isn't one of Tormented Souls' strengths either. The story on the whole is quite forgettable, thanks to several well-worn tropes, predictable twists, and uninteresting characters. The Resident Evil fan in me did enjoy picking up bits and pieces of logs and files to get a deeper understand of the backstory and the history of the creepy hospital/mansion, but the actual content of the narrative is uninspired at best. The writing is consistently sloppy, and the completely stilted and wooden voice acting doesn't do it any favours either. Also as much as I do think the visuals do their job of crafting creepy, atmospheric environments, they just don't hold up very well when the game takes control for cutscenes or more directed storytelling.

It feels a little unfair to ding on the game for some of these things, because though this is clearly a small-budget production, it's been made with a lot of love- a lot of love for the classic days of survival horror games. Tormented Souls is completely dedicated to realizing its vision of delivering a hardboiled old-school experience, and honestly, that is why it excels when it comes to its focus on exploration and resource management and its palpable atmosphere. But there are plenty of rough edges too, all of which do add up in the end. For fans of the fixed camera era of the survival horror genre, Tormented Souls is a solid trip down memory lane, but even so, it's got a lot of room for improvement.

 This game was reviewed on the PlayStation 5.


Bravely Default 2 Has Sold Nearly 1 Million Copies

Bravely Default 2 may not have been the most high-profile release of the year, but those who're always on the lookout for a good old-school JRPG (which means most of us) were more than satisfied with what Square Enix delivered. On top of solid reception from critics and players alike, in fact, the game has also done pretty well for itself in terms of sales.

Square Enix announced in a recent press release that Bravely Default 2 has sold nearly a million copies on the Switch since its launch in February- over 950,000 copies, to be exact, which is a pretty solid figure. With the game also coming to PC in just a few days' time, it seems likely that it will continue to sell pretty well for the foreseeable future.

Bravely Default 2 is currently available on Switch, and launches for PC on September 2. You can read our review for it through here. A mobile game, titled Bravely Default: Brilliant Lightsis also currently in development for iOS and Android devices.


Dead Space Will Show a "Very Early Look at Development" in a Livestream Tomorrow

EA and Motive Studio announced the Dead Space remake over a month ago, but details on the game have been scant since then. While it certainly seems like we're going to have to wait longer for some substantial information on the game to emerge, we're certainly going to get something very soon.

Developer Motive Studio has confirmed on Twitter that it'll be doing a livestream tomorrow at 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET, during which we'll get some "very early" glimpses of how the survival horror remake's development is progressing. So don't expect to see a ton of gameplay or new details on the game- but we'll probably get some interesting insights from the development team, so stay tuned for that.

Dead Space is currently in the works for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC, but doesn't yet have an official release date. It's been reported that the game is currently targeting a Fall 2022 launch if things go to plan- you can read more on that through here.


No More Heroes Developer Wishes To Make A Deadpool Game With Marvel

In a recent livestream with IGN Japan, No More Heroes creator Goichi Suda revealed what he wishes to do after the recent release of No More Heroes 3. In the interview which you can check out below, he expressed his desire to work on a Deadpool game with Marvel.

Of course, this is just wishful thinking on Suda's part, since he also mentions that there are a number of IPs already in development that are currently in the works. That being said, it'd be certainly be great to see Grasshopper use its learnings from the No More Heroes IP with a Deadpool game.

"So you can definitely look forward to a lot of new, interesting original IPs from Grasshopper. We also of course have other plans and are working hard on them to bring them to fruition," Suda said(as transcribed by VGC). "But [in terms of] the kind of things I'd love to do, I'd also love to work with Marvel on a Shatterstar or Deadpool game, something sort of Grasshopper-y like that. Maybe a Quicksilver title of some sorts. So, Marvel, you know."

The No More Heroes series is now over, which was confirmed recently by the series' official Twitter account. With 2K games licensing out Marvel properties for its upcoming Midnight Suns, it wouldn't be too farstretched to imagine a full-fleged 3D action game from Grasshopper Manufacture using Marvel's Deadpool.


Psychonauts 2 Developer Double Fine Doesn't Have "The Extra Budget" Required To Add More Languages

A recent post by Double Fine's community manager James Spafford on the official forum reveals that the studio doesn't have the time or budget required to add more languages to the game. Many fans and industry people have been critical of this post, which of course – resulted in a heated debate on the matter on Twitter.

The post reads,"We would love to add more languages to Psychonauts 2, and we are investigating to see if that could be possible at some future time. Script wise this is the largest game we've ever made and adding even one extra language would take a lot of work and a lot of extra budget that we currently do not have. To add languages that use entirely different alphabets and have other considerations is an even bigger job still. We may get that chance, and we really really hope we do, but we can't make any promises, and we also would not be able to do so in time for launch."

The recent launch of Psychonauts 2 was received extremely well by critics and fans, with many pointing out the litanny of accessibility options Double Fine included in the game – most notably an assist mode. Coupling this with the fact that Double Fine now has the financial backing of Microsoft, many fans including Jez Corden from Windows Central have criticized the game for lacking on this front.

Another fan was quick to point out that a budget would have been announced prior to release, which probably prohibited multi-language support. Of course, it remains to be seen how this pans out post-launch but it'd certainly be great if these fan-requested features get added in a future update.


Yakuza Creator Toshihiro Nagoshi Is Leaving SEGA – Report

A recent Bloomberg report statest that industry veteran and Yakuza creator Toshihiro Nagoshi is on the brink of leaving SEGA and negotiations with NetEase are already underway. The report states that the change is directly influenced by China's recent crackdown against gaming addiction.

It's been also stated that Toshihiro Nagoshi will be assembling his own team at NetEase which will then be working on new games for the Hangzou-based company. It's believed that if these negotiations do come to fruition, this would be a clear confirmation of NetEase to expand beyond the region of China. As of the time of writing, Sega and NetEase are yet to comment on the matter.

NetEase is one of many Chinese gaming giants who have been eyeing on potential partnerships with developers and publishers outside the region. The Tecent-owned TiMi Studios recently partnered with The Pokemon Company for Pokemon Unite, announced a partnership with Xbox Game Studios, and completed the acquisition of Sumo for $1.27 billion.

NetEase itself has been a publishing partner for Blizzard for a while now, and reportedly wants to hire foreign talent for its original IPs. Yakuza developer Sega also recently got embroiled in a controversy with Lost Judgment voice actor's talent agency over a PC release, which you can also read through here.