GamersHeroes Thursday, November 21, 2024 4:32 PM The team behind Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed Shadows recently provided a stealth gameplay overview for the title's two protagonists Yasuke and Naoe. The post Assassin's Creed Shadows Stealth Gameplay Overview Released appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
GamersHeroes Thursday, November 21, 2024 2:23 PM The 32nd best-reviewed game on Steam, see what top critics at Checkpoint Gaming, GameLuster, and But Why Tho? are saying about Strange Scaffold's I Am Your Beast with the new accolades trailer for the title. The post I Am Your Beast Accolades Trailer Released appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
GamersHeroes Thursday, November 21, 2024 1:59 PM Players will be able to jab, dodge, and sweat their way to the top of the boxing world better than Mike Tyson (too soon?) with today's release of Halfbrick Studios' The Thrill of the Fight 2 in Early Access. The post The Thrill of the Fight 2 Now Available in Early Access appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
GamersHeroes Thursday, November 21, 2024 1:54 PM Global game developer MoreFun Studios announced that early access for Arena Breakout: Infinite Season One is now live. The post Arena Breakout: Infinite Season One Early Access Now Live appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
GamersHeroes Thursday, November 21, 2024 12:50 PM Byking, Gemdrops, and Bandai Namco's Jujutsu Kaisen Cursed Clash will be expanding its domain with today's release of the Shibuya Incident DLC and free update 4. The post Jujutsu Kaisen Cursed Clash Shibuya Incident DLC Now Available appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
GamersHeroes Thursday, November 21, 2024 12:18 PM Sand Sailor Studio and Thunderful will release the third major update for their sandbox survival builder ASKA on Monday, November 25. The post ASKA Major Update 3 Launching November 25 appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
GamersHeroes Thursday, November 21, 2024 11:35 AM Stay strong, GTA Online players! All Original Heist finales will pay out Double GTA$ and RP this week in Rockstar Games' GTA Online to help with the final push towards GTA$20 trillion stolen. The post Bonuses on Original Heist Finales This Week in GTA Online appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
GamersHeroes Thursday, November 21, 2024 11:15 AM Singularity 6's cozy MMO Palia new Season of Spendor update is now live, treating the Palian community with more quests, seasonal content, plushes, and decor. The post Palia Season of Splendor Update Now Live appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
Kotaku Thursday, November 21, 2024 5:00 PM  If you've been enjoying the return of Dragon Age with The Veilguard, there are some cool quality of life changes and bug fixes in the latest patch that went live on November 21, 2024. I'll break them down below to let you know what you're getting into. |
Kotaku Thursday, November 21, 2024 4:50 PM  Dragon Age: The Veilguard had a lot to live up to. Its predecessor, Dragon Age: Inquisition, launched in 2014 and left the series on a devastating cliffhanger, a cliffhanger that went unresolved as developer BioWare went through 10 years of development hell and internal reboots, before ultimately making its way to a… |
Kotaku Thursday, November 21, 2024 4:40 PM  Stalker 2 is out now on Xbox Series X/S and PC. And you might be curious to check it out despite the bugs and performance problems. However, if you are someone who can't stand the idea of shooting or killing dogs in a video game, then you probably should stay far away from Stalker 2. |
Kotaku Thursday, November 21, 2024 3:31 PM  Elden Ring is an open-world RPG about surviving incredible boss fights and piecing together fascinating bits of tragic lore. Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon is an arcade mech shooter about customizing robots and dueling to the death. They are both excellent and shockingly cheap right now at just $20 each. |
Kotaku Thursday, November 21, 2024 2:55 PM  It was nighttime and I was creeping through grass of S.T.A.L.K.E.R 2's digital recreation of the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone. I needed to meet up with someone, but getting anywhere in the "Zone"— the eerie, desolate, but oddly beautiful irradiated setting of the game—is dangerous. To make sure I was going the right way I… |
Kotaku Thursday, November 21, 2024 2:35 PM  You shouldn't pre-order games, but people do it all the time anyway. Increasingly, people have gotten in the habit of pre-ordering DLC too, paying up front for content that won't be delivered for months or even years, if ever. Valve's now cracking down on the whole thing with stricter rules for companies selling… |
Kotaku Thursday, November 21, 2024 2:25 PM  If you ever feel embarrassed that you've spent the equivalent of two and a half weeks on a video game, just remember that some of the most accomplished and busy entertainers in the world have done the same. During a sit-down chat with Scott Lussier, creative director of western-themed extraction shooter Hunt: Showdown… |
Kotaku Thursday, November 21, 2024 12:20 PM  Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is already a massive game, but some out there might be wondering if DLC is on the way for the open-world RPG. According to Rebirth's director Naoki Hamaguchi, the answer is no, as the team is focused on finishing part three of the FF7 Remake trilogy. |
Kotaku Thursday, November 21, 2024 11:55 AM  Here's the plot: Popular 56-year-old actor threatens the voting body behind the most revered award in cinema with his retirement if they fail to deliver on his desired nomination. While that may sound like an A24 dark comedy waiting to happen, it's actually Josh Brolin's reality, as he has threatened to never act… |
Kotaku Thursday, November 21, 2024 11:38 AM  One of the reasons it took me so long to start a second playthrough of Dragon Age: The Veilguard is that recreating the Inquisitor, the protagonist of 2014's Dragon Age: Inquisition, is a painstaking process. I loved making an older version of my Inquisition hero the first time I played through The Veilguard, but the… |
PCGamesN Thursday, November 21, 2024 5:16 PM  From Blasphemous to Hollow Knight, there are some truly brilliant action platformers out there for you to play - however, South Korean studio Newcore Games is aiming to "rejuvenate" the genre with its new game The Devil Within: Satgat. With soulslike combat and dark fantasy samurai, it's certainly got all the ingredients to be a terrific and challenging experience. After showing promise during early access, the day has finally arrived for Satgat to hit 1.0, and it's out right now on Steam. Continue reading Stunning samurai soulslike The Devil Within Satgat hits 1.0 MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best soulslikes games, Best platform games, Best Metroidvania games |
PCGamesN Thursday, November 21, 2024 5:01 PM  We're just a couple of weeks from the Path of Exile 2 early access launch, so developer Grinding Gear Games finally lifts the lid on exactly what we can expect when the doors open. With Diablo 4 Vessel of Hatred now behind us, PoE 2 has a clear space to stake its claim as the ARPG of choice for the holiday season. Ahead of its new presentation, which reveals the full breadth of content on offer from day one, I sat down with game director Jonathan Rogers to discuss how the team decided what would make the cut. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Path of Exile 2 Witch class guide, Path of Exile 2 preview, Path of Exile 2 release date |
PCGamesN Thursday, November 21, 2024 4:54 PM  What are the Black Ops 6 events? If you're on the hunt for even more cosmetic goodies and unlockable weapons in BO6, you're in luck. Black Ops 6 has brought back limited-time, seasonal events that reward you handsomely for completing various challenges. As of Black Ops 6 Season 1, there's only one event to speak of for now. However, Treyarch has already confirmed more Black Ops 6 events are on the way with December's mid-season update for the FPS game - Zombies enjoyers, you're not being left out of the fun, either. So, polish off your best BO6 loadouts, get out onto the BO6 maps, and start racking up those rewards. Continue reading Black Ops 6 events explained MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Black Ops 6 guns, Black Ops 6 missions, Black Ops 6 loadouts |
PCGamesN Thursday, November 21, 2024 4:38 PM  How do you unlock the Sirin 9mm in Black Ops 6 and Warzone? The Overkill Wildcard can sometimes feel like a big limitation if you're running a DMR or sniper, sacrificing three extra Gunfighter attachments for your big shooty stick in return for a short-range sidearm that doesn't suck. Well, the CoD gods have heard your grumbling and may have prepared the perfect solution. During Season 1, Black Ops 6 is set to introduce Sirin 9mm - a fully automatic special-class sidearm that functions like a mini SMG. While it may be slower than the best C9 or KSV loadouts the FPS game has to offer, we're hopeful that it'll be able to hold its own against established beamers in a pinch. To find out how to unlock the Sirin 9mm in BO6, as well as what we reckon the best loadout for it will be, read on. Continue reading How to unlock the Black Ops 6 Sirin 9mm MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Black Ops 6 guns, Black Ops 6 missions, Black Ops 6 loadouts |
PCGamesN Thursday, November 21, 2024 3:36 PM  2005 was a year bursting at the seams with great games - Resident Evil 4, the first God of War, Psychonauts, GTA Liberty City Stories, and so many more iconic titles all arrived. On the other end of the spectrum, though, were some less-memorable games that got a frosty reception. One such game was Utopia City, a futuristic FPS that was panned by critics at the time. Bizarrely, it just appeared on Steam, almost two decades on from its original release date. Continue reading One of the worst-rated FPS games ever mysteriously appears on Steam |
PCGamesN Thursday, November 21, 2024 2:00 PM  Death plays a strange role in videogames. You're always trying to avoid it, but at the same time, it's basically inconsequential. You might lose a bit of progress, but mostly, it just means hitting quickload (and maybe deploying a few cuss words). Dark Souls, Elden Ring, and the rest of the FromSoftware oeuvre frame death differently. Every time you're killed, it's canon. You come back to life, but as per the games' conceits and lore, you did die. Roguelikes have a similar approach, except its mechanical rather than narrative - in Dead Cells, The Binding of Isaac, et al, every failed run teaches you something new, and maybe grants you some fresh abilities and gear next time around. Combining all these sensibilities, and an original take on turn-based combat, Blightstone is an upcoming indie RPG with a twist. Continue reading Elden Ring and Darkest Dungeon inspire punishing new roguelike RPG MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best RPGs, Best roguelikes, Best soulslikes |
PCGamesN Thursday, November 21, 2024 1:55 PM  A small but significant update has just hit Call of Duty Warzone that contains some very welcome buffs. Following its rather embarrassing false start earlier in the week, Rebirth Island has also been re-added back into the shooter's playlist. Continue reading Patched-up Rebirth Island returns to Warzone alongside XP buffs MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Warzone loadouts, Best Warzone AR, Best Warzone guns |
PCGamesN Thursday, November 21, 2024 1:31 PM  November 21, 2024: We've added the latest new Monopoly Go dice links for free dice rolls. How can I get Monopoly Go free dice links? The household favorite board game has been reimagined as a free-to-play app on smartphones, allowing everyone to experience the thrills of Monopoly on practically any device. Everything that makes the board game special is here in Monopoly Go, so you'll be collecting properties and building hotels as you go around the board, and there are a variety of multiplayer minigames to get through along the way. You're going to need to get your hands on Monopoly dice rolls, but they are difficult to come by no matter how far you are into the board game. There are ways to earn additional dice rolls, including logging into the game every day to collect daily bonuses, progressing further in the game, and inviting friends to try Monopoly Go. While you can also spend real money to unlock more dice rolls, you may want to give our list of Monopoly Go dice links a try instead, especially if you're waiting for the next Monopoly Go Golden Blitz event. Take a look at all the currently active Monopoly Go free dice links for today. Continue reading Free Monopoly Go dice links November 2024 MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best board games, Monopoly Go events, Monopoly Go dice |
PCGamesN Thursday, November 21, 2024 12:40 PM  My time with Stalker 2 has been difficult. I've had to battle the horrors of The Zone, anomalies that hide in plain sight, and the survival game's many technical issues to keep my head above water. Stalker 2 is an effort to bring the much-beloved cult series up to modern standards and to a wider audience, now with the support of Microsoft and a day-one release on Game Pass. Continue reading Stalker 2 review - a brutal and rewarding FPS MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Stalker 2 weapons, Stalker 2 review, Stalker 2 artifacts |
PCGamesN Thursday, November 21, 2024 12:28 PM  How do you complete Jinx Fixes Everything Act 1? Riot has treated us to a very special Arcane-themed minigame within the League of Legends client, and its first act takes place just before the events of Arcane season two, episode two. There are a couple of finicky conundrums that could prove troublesome, so we've pulled together all our tips and tricks into this handy walkthrough. Spoilers ahead. Jinx has brought Sevika's busted cyborg arm back to her Zaun workshop to give it some much-needed TLC after Vi disarmed her (sorry) in the first season of Arcane. League of Legends' scrappiest inventor needs to collect some parts from her old stomping grounds to grant the limb new life, so read on to find out how to gather them in the MOBA game's in-client experience. Continue reading Jinx Fixes Everything Act 1 guide - complete walkthrough MORE FROM PCGAMESN: League of Legends ranks explained, League of Legends Mythic shop rotation, League of Legends tier list |
PCGamesN Thursday, November 21, 2024 12:30 PM  Look out, AMD, because Qualcomm is coming for your crown. During an annual investor day, Qualcomm executives shared that the company plans to ship $4 billion worth of CPUs for the laptop and PC market by 2029, placing it very close to AMD's current regular revenue from Ryzen gaming CPUs. If that came to pass, it might suggest AMD's supremacy over the gaming CPU market could be in danger. While the company has been trouncing Intel in the battle to produce the best gaming CPU in recent years, the duopoly is under threat from new pretenders like Qualcomm. Newer, energy efficient Arm CPUs, like Qualcomm's Snapdragon X, are quickly gaining steam, especially in laptops and mobile devices. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best graphics card, Best gaming PC, Best SSD for gaming |
PCGamesN Thursday, November 21, 2024 12:09 PM  Who are all the current Dreamlight Valley characters? An array of Disney characters will join you on your adventure in this adorable life sim, as you become buddies with familiar faces from your favorite animated movies. We've been playing the game for some time now, and have gotten to know everyone in the game so far, so we can help you befriend them all. While Dreamlight Valley is a life sim, it is also very story driven, and some of the characters you come across make up part of that story. Others can be chosen and unlocked in any order from inside the Dream Castle - though you'll want to read our Disney Dreamlight Valley guide beforehand, as it recommends you spend your Dreamlight on something else before unlocking too many realms. Here though, we go through all the Disney Dreamlight Valley characters you'll come across in the story, those you can rescue from their realms, and the ones we're yet to meet. Continue reading All Disney Dreamlight Valley characters MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best Disney games, What's the next Dreamlight Valley update?, Disney Dreamlight Valley guide |
PCGamesN Thursday, November 21, 2024 11:25 AM  Does Stalker 2 have multiplayer? Exploring a hostile environment can be a huge detriment to your health, and The Zone is no exception. There seemingly isn't a single being in the wasteland that doesn't want to tear you limb from limb. A lot of the time, the only thing you can rely on is yourself, and the weapon in your hand. Multiplayer could change that, but does Stalker 2 have it? We quite enjoyed Stalker 2, but one evident thing is that the survival game can be a lonely place sometimes. Sure, there are Stalker 2 missions to go on, creepy basements to explore, and abandoned cities to wander, but we can't shake the feeling that bringing a friend or two along would lift the mood a little, if nothing else. Continue reading Does Stalker 2 have multiplayer? MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Stalker 2 weapons, Stalker 2 review, Stalker 2 artifacts |
PCGamesN Thursday, November 21, 2024 11:19 AM  What are the latest Roblox music codes? Thousands of popular songs are available to listen to in Roblox simply by entering music ID codes into your boombox or the radio. You can even play your favorite TikTok songs in games with your friends using song IDs. So, how do you play music in Roblox? The method varies depending on which game you want to blast your tunes in. Some games allow free access to the boombox — equip and press it to bring up a text box to enter a song ID code. Catalog Heaven is a great place to test the Roblox music codes you find, as it allows you to equip any boombox in the shop and try it out. Continue reading Roblox music codes November 2024 - the best song IDs MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best Roblox games, Roblox promo codes, Roblox music codes |
PCGamesN Thursday, November 21, 2024 11:18 AM  November 21, 2024: Expired codes have been removed, and there are no new Dreamlight Valley codes right now. What are the latest Disney Dreamlight Valley codes? We've done some digging to make sure we've got the latest codes available from Gameloft. To celebrate the release of Dreamlight Valley multiplayer, there are two new codes below. The Dreamlight Valley golden potato code was the first to come to the Disney game, and gives you just that, a golden potato. It doesn't even do anything yet, but the exciting news is that it appears to be part of a future Dreamlight Valley quest. The code might no longer be available, but if you still don't have a golden potato, you can pick one up in Scrooge's shop, and notes hidden around the valley suggest that the potato might be put to use any day now. Other codes have since been released with various celebrations and events, and all current Dreamlight Valley codes can be found below. Continue reading All Disney Dreamlight Valley codes November 2024 MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best Disney games, What's the next Dreamlight Valley update?, Disney Dreamlight Valley guide |
PCGamesN Thursday, November 21, 2024 11:09 AM  What is the best DM-10 loadout in both BO6 and Warzone? It's easy to focus on assault rifles and SMGs when you're trying to level up in Black Ops 6 as these weapons are easy to use, but you could be missing out on a different gun that suits you better. The semi-auto DM-10 marksman rifle in Black Ops 6 certainly won't be for every type of player due to its heavy weight and slow fire rate. That said, if you enjoy blasting enemies away from range in only a couple of clicks, you won't find many Black Ops 6 weapons better than the DM-10, whether you're playing in BO6 multiplayer or Warzone. The DM-10 could eventually find a place on our best Black Ops 6 loadouts list - it really is that good when you get to grips with it. Continue reading Best DM-10 loadout in BO6 and Warzone MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Black Ops 6 guns, Black Ops 6 missions, Black Ops 6 loadouts |
PCGamesN Thursday, November 21, 2024 11:10 AM  What are the new Genshin Impact codes? Gathering Primogems and Mora in Genshin Impact can be quite the grind. Fortunately, developer Hoyoverse occasionally sends out gifts in the form of Genshin redeem codes. Most codes only work for a limited time, so it's best to redeem them as soon as possible to avoid missing out. Genshin Impact codes are released periodically, frequently appearing in Hoyoverse special programs: regular video updates detailing future updates to the free PC game. Redeem codes can also drop to celebrate milestones or to coincide with new Genshin Impact events. You can find all the active Genshin codes for November 2024 below, and we also detail what they get you, how to redeem them, and where you can look for more. Continue reading Genshin Impact codes November 2024 and how to redeem MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Genshin Impact codes, Genshin Impact character tier list, Genshin Impact leveling guide |
PCGamesN Thursday, November 21, 2024 12:04 PM  Early Black Friday PC gaming deals are already popping up around the internet. Whether you want to expand your Steam library with a few games at a discount price, or you're keen to revamp your setup with some shiny new gear, there are already lots of bargains to be found ahead of the day itself. Continue reading Best early Black Friday PC gaming deals for 2024 MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best graphics card, Best gaming PC, Best SSD for gaming |
Rock Paper Shotgun Latest Articles Feed Thursday, November 21, 2024 3:22 PM |
Rock Paper Shotgun Latest Articles Feed Thursday, November 21, 2024 2:45 PM  Assassin's Creed Shadows is making changes to how it handles stealth, versus other games in the long-running series. Gone is the companion eagle who can spot enemies for you, for a start; instead, players can hide in the - hey - shadows, lie on their tummies for the first time, and make use of a "shinobi and assassin arsenal" of smoke bombs and bells. There are old moves that are coming back after an absence, too: Shadows will allow for 'double assassinations' again. |
Rock Paper Shotgun Latest Articles Feed Thursday, November 21, 2024 2:08 PM  Star Wars Outlaws' stealth has been much debated, though not hotly. Some people think it's rubbish, some others think it's basically fine. Ubisoft themselves seem to think it's one of the key issues with the game, with the creative director previously saying the forced stealth sections are "incredibly punishing". Now there's a new patch, apparently Outlaws' biggest yet, and stealth and combat are firmly in the crosshairs. The AI and player detection has changed; you can now choose combat in areas where it was previously not allowed; and enemies have had weak points added, for those who wish to cause massive damage. |
Rock Paper Shotgun Latest Articles Feed Thursday, November 21, 2024 12:26 PM  I go through this life burdened by the knowledge that I will never be framed for murder on a luxurious, multiple-day train journey. Not for me the thrill of flushing out the true culprit (or culprits???) between visits to the exquisitely upholstered dining car, against the backdrop of passing mountains. The best I can hope for is getting chewed out for hogging the toilet on a crowded commuter train to Leeds. |
Rock Paper Shotgun Latest Articles Feed Thursday, November 21, 2024 11:47 AM  S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl stays largely faithful to the original series' bleak yet inquisitive tone and propensity for technical problems, but there's another, much smaller feature that it also brings back: silly titles for its lesser NPCs. All the major and side characters are, indeed, characters, but rather than leave inconsequential henchmen and roving bandits nameless, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 assigns Zone-merc handles to each and every one of them. Some try to sound badass, some might as well have been chosen by the owner panickedly looking around the room for something to name himself after, and all of them sound like they should be on the actor's wall in Toast of London. Because your life partly depends on relieving slain foes of their belongings, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 encourages you to get up close and looty with these blokes, meaning you end up spending a lot of time reading goofy nicknames. I thought I'd pay tribute to the best ones I've seen so far, even if the majority of these honours will need to be given posthumously. |
Rock Paper Shotgun Latest Articles Feed Thursday, November 21, 2024 11:12 AM  Overthrown is a city building game made by and for people who can't work out whether they love or despise city building games. In this curious concoction from developers Brimstone and publishers Maximum Entertainment, you are a chirpy anime monarch equipped with a magic crown that confers the ability to seize entire buildings and throw them away because aaaararargahragrhagh, I am sick of this dang sawmill. I am sick of perfecting the infrastructure. I am sick of stockpiling food for the winter. I am sick of my hard-working peasants and their happiness levels. I am going to pick everything up and hurl it into the sky. |
Siliconera Thursday, November 21, 2024 5:00 PM
CyberStep has released a new visual novel titled Doki Doki Maid-Bu in Japanese and Shirogane Maid Club in English. The new title boasts support of around 40 languages. However, the company has also acknowledged the use of AI for the visual novel's translations and illustrations.
The new visual novel is available on Nintendo Switch and the PC gaming platform Steam. The Switch version lists pretty much all languages Nintendo has formally supported; in addition to the common Western European (EFIGS) and Eastern Asian (CJK) languages, it also supports Dutch, Portuguese, and Russian.
However, it is the Steam release that garners more attention, as it lists a whopping 40 languages that include the likes of Igbo, Xhosa, and Maori. There is an obvious catch to this, though. CyberStep's Japanese press release revealed that this game is part of the PandaShojo brand, which intends to make Japanese visual novels accessible to people worldwide by using automatic machine translations for over 50 languages.
CyberStep is originally known for releasing online titles like Onigiri and CosmicBreak Universal. However, in more recent years, the company has been more frequently releasing visual novels on Steam. Earlier in November 2024, it released Nurse Call and Me and Gamer Girl with support for 15 languages.
Translations are not the only activities CyberStep used machine programs to release these visual novels. The Steam pages also have an AI-generated content disclosure, where the company acknowledged that it used AI to produce some of the illustrations in the visual novels.
Shirogane Maid Club is now available worldwide on Nintendo Switch and PC via Steam.
The post Shirogane Maid Club Visual Novel Launches With 40 Languages appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Thursday, November 21, 2024 4:00 PM
Benelic has opened the third permanent Kirby Cafe outlet in Osaka, Japan. People can now visit the Kirby-themed cafe, which will remain open year-round, on the ninth floor of the Daimaru Shinsaibashi department store.
After taking the escalator to the ninth floor, people can find the cafe on the western pathway that would connect with the Parco building. A smaller merchandise store has also appeared on the other side of the path.
Benelic also employed a queuing system for the merchandise store on the opening day to anticipate an influx of visitors. People who want to visit the store on launch day must have a LINE account, as the queuing ticket has a QR code that connects with the messaging app. The shop's staff would then contact each visitor via the app when their turn to enter had come.
Kirby Cafe's official X account has also published a new tweet on the new Osaka branch's launch day:
Benelic has gone a long way to establish the new Kirby Cafe outlet. It made its first announcement in July 2024. Later in mid-October 2024, the company confirmed that it would open the outlet on November 21, 2024.
The third permanent Kirby Cafe outlet has now opened on the ninth floor of Daimaru Shinsaibashi in Osaka, Japan.
The post Kirby Cafe Osaka Opens Year-Round With Goods Store appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Thursday, November 21, 2024 3:00 PM
Goblin Slayer is a light novel series which has attracted controversy due to its extreme violence and shocking content. But while the source material has been dealing with book bans, Goblin Slayer Another Adventurer: Nightmare Feast has been in development. Now it's arrived, bringing with it an original story set within the same universe.
You play as Guild Master, a princess returning to her kingdom after some time away. However, she is reluctant to take the throne and devotes herself to running the local adventurers' guild instead. Much of the story follows her efforts to recruit new members to the guild while a growing demonic threat grows in the dark corners of the world.
The game is a tactical RPG, clearly inspired by older games like Final Fantasy Tactics. It has an isometric view, characters are all sprites and the environments are low poly. It's old school almost to a fault, with every aspect being about as standard as you'd expect from a game from the SNES/PlayStation eras. You fight on a grid, you have a range of units in different classes and you need to organize your party in a way that maximizes damage to the enemy and minimizes it for your side.
Sadly, it doesn't do much beyond that. It's the most standard definition tactical RPG you could possibly imagine, seemingly going through the motions by looking up the foundational elements of the genre and leaving it at that. About the most original mechanic is a dice roll to determine just how damaging a critical hit will be. However, this mechanic showed up so sporadically, even when I scored criticals, that I often forgot it was there until I got a dice jump scare again.
This isn't to say Goblin Slayer Another Adventurer is a bad game. I enjoyed the battles while they were happening. Good positioning proved to be a genuine challenge and my units felt squishier than I first expected, which led me to play more carefully and methodically. There was a degree of satisfaction every time I managed to isolate an enemy unit and whittle its health down while his teammates struggled to get close to me.
There's a wide range of classes to choose from, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. You have warriors, rogues and barbarians for melee damage, while archers and mages provide support from the rear. Each class type feels noticeably different too, with the rogue's range being an obvious benefit while archers are some of the best units for getting early damage because of how huge their range is.
Even among different units within a single class, these units all feel unique and interesting to play with. While some abilities are shared, they all get their own unique traits. Some warriors started out much more useful than others, with wider-ranging attacks and more powerful defensive capabilities. It allowed me to build some diverse squads which were ready for anything, and I would often agonize over my choices at the start of a battle.
But if this all sounds like generic positive things anyone could say about any other game in the genre, you'd be correct. Goblin Slayer Another Adventurer plays everything so safe and never once did anything notable with what it had to offer. It even lacked counterattacks, which felt like a huge absence.
Despite being generally enjoyable, combat suffered two huge flaws outside of being generic. The first of these was how unwieldy the enemy range information was. It was only available when looking over the whole map and couldn't be turned on while moving characters. This involved a lot of leaving the enemy range view, selecting the unit you wanted to move and remembering which specific tile you felt was the right place to send them. Or the reverse, where wanting to double check the enemy range while moving a unit required backing out of two menus and then pressing another button.
The second was how little value spells and extra abilities were given. Battles were often long, with your party vastly outnumbered. This would be fine, if your party didn't have a laughably small arsenal of special abilities. Characters often start out with 3 spell or ability points, sometimes even as low as a single point, so no matter how good these abilities are, you either use them up too early while thinning the herd or get so paranoid about not getting to use them, you save them and never use them. Either way you're mostly hitting stuff over and over with basic attacks which gets a little tiresome. I have a mage, let me throw fireballs!
The story of Goblin Slayer Another Adventurer fares a little better. Guild Master is a plucky yet naive character who throws herself into saving her kingdom from goblin attacks with an enthusiasm and optimism that's almost detrimental to her survival. Case in point, one of the first missions of the game sees her recruiting a vampire lady who isn't exactly shy about wanting to do what vampires do. This is a decision often questioned by other members of the guild too, although Blood Princess does manage to show a surprising amount of restraint about exsanguinating everyone.
Mostly, anyway, and this is where one of the least appealing aspects of Goblin Slayer Another Adventurer comes in. Guild Master has made an agreement that she will allow Blood Princess to suck her blood in exchange for helping with the adventures. This leads to a number of scenes where Blood Princess brings up the bargain and they almost go ahead with it. However, these scenes have a disturbing sexual overtone that I found unpleasant.
This is nothing new for vampire media, as vampiric temptations have been used as a metaphor for sexual avarice countless times in fiction. My objection doesn't lie in the presence of sexy vampires, it lies in how clumsily overt it is. When the deal is first proposed, Blood Princess even outright asks if Guild Master is a virgin, entirely unprompted and in the middle of an otherwise ordinary conversation. And it keeps happening constantly throughout the story. There's a leering desperation to the way it's handled, when a more subtle approach would have worked much better.
Away that plot point, the overarching story suffers a little from telling and not showing. The main quest implies a sense of urgency from goblin and demon attacks while most of the big stuff seems to happen off screen. This is mostly down to the low budget presentation, which seemed to afford some character sprites and not much else. The city is under attack from goblins? We'll have a character mention it before moving onto another mission. Demons pouring out of a portal? Trust us, it's happening. We don't even get a dramatic still image of the action to heighten the tension, like plenty of visual novels do for these moments. It leads to an adventure that feels a bit lacking in drive.
That said, there is a Polar Bear Priest, so there is still plenty to like about the writing. Character interactions were generally entertaining and there was some genuine intrigue cropping in Guild Master's backstory. In fact, this is the strongest aspect of the game in my opinion. It's also fully voice acted (exclusively in Japanese), and the performances are generally excellent.
Ultimately, Goblin Slayer Another Adventurer: Nightmare Feast was an odd one. While I did enjoy the battles and most of the character interactions, it also didn't do much to make itself stand out. It certainly has appeal for fans of old school RPGs, but I can't help but feel it could be doing a lot more.
Goblin Slayer Another Adventurer: Nightmare Feast is available for the Switch and PC.
The post Review: Goblin Slayer Another Adventurer: Nightmare Feast Lacks Bite appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Thursday, November 21, 2024 2:00 PM
Wakatsuru has announced that it will sell Shin Megami Tensei if-branded whisky bottles via its Saburomaru Distillery. The alcoholic drink will also appear to mark the 30th anniversary of the RPG that first appeared on the Super Famicom (SNES) in Japan in 1994.
This Japanese whisky drink is made with single malt, and it will have 59% alcohol. Atlus and Wakatsuru depict this drink to be the same one distributed at a reunion event for the Karukozaka High School graduates after 30 years have passed since the events in Shin Megami Tensei if.
The distillery will produce 780 bottles of this drink with a capacity of 700ml and a tax-inclusive price tag of 16,500 yen (~$106.80). However, the bottles won't be available on a first-come-first-served basis. Wakatsuru will hold a sales lottery to determine people who can buy the bottles starting on November 22, 2024.
Shin Megami Tensei if will join the ever-growing list of games from which Wakatsuru and its Saburomaru Distillery have produced alcoholic drinks. The company had previously released drinks branded with Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance and Persona 3, 4, and 5. Besides Atlus games, Wakatsuru also worked with Arc System Works to produce Guilty Gear-branded liquor.
Wakatsuru will open applications for the lottery sales of the Shin Megami Tensei if Single Malt Japanese Whisky on Friday, November 22, 2024.
The post Shin Megami Tensei if Whisky Will Mark the 30th Anniversary appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Thursday, November 21, 2024 1:00 PM
A mall in Osaka will have a Monster Hunter Wilds-themed illumination event throughout the 2024-2025 Winter season. The mall in question will be Shinsaibashi Parco, and the event will run from late November 2024 until early March 2025.
The mall will decorate the mall's entry gates and the escalators' side glass walls with Monster Hunter Wilds key visuals, which feature the upcoming game's new flagship monsters like Rey Dau and Arkveld. Capcom will also showcase the life-size Hammer weapon that it previously displayed at its demo booth during the Tokyo Game Show 2024 event held last September.
As a side note, Shinsaibashi Parco has also been the host building for Capcom Store Osaka. Located on the sixth floor, the physical store has been selling merchandise related to the company's game franchises, such as the Tsum Tsum-like stackable Capcorom plushes featuring characters from the likes of Devil May Cry 5 and Resident Evil 4.
The Monster Hunter Wilds Winter Illumination event will run at the Shinsaibashi Parco mall in Osaka from November 22, 2024, until March 2, 2025. Capcom will release the game simultaneously worldwide on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC on February 28, 2025—which will also be the final week the decorations appear inside the Japanese mall.
The post Monster Hunter Wilds Will Illuminate an Osaka Mall appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Thursday, November 21, 2024 12:00 PM
The Pokemon Company revealed a new lineup of merchandise themed after Pokemon Gold and Silver right on the game's 25th anniversary date on November 21, 2024. The company is also gradually putting the items up for sale in its Japanese online and physical Pokemon Center stores.
The merchandise lineup ranges from plushes of Golden Ho-Oh and Silver Lugia priced at 4,400 yen (~$28.55) each to jackets that cost 22,000 yen (~$142.85). However, most of the items already have their online stocks sold out in just half a day after the company made the reveal at 10 AM JST. As of midnight in the Japanese time zone (10 AM ET), the only items still available for orders online are the 495 yen (~$3.20) socks, the Miltank Moomoo Milk-themed correction tape at 550 yen (~$3.55), and a set of multicolored pens with one side producing square pixels at 1,540 yen (~$10).
Pokemon Gold and Silver appeared on Game Boy Color first in Japan on November 21, 1999. Nintendo released Pokemon Heart Gold and Soul Silver as remakes on the DS to mark the game's 10th anniversary in 2009. The company also brought the original GBC games to the 3DS via Virtual Console in 2017.
The Pokemon Gold and Silver 25th anniversary merchandise is immediately available to order online—although most of the items have already sold out in less than half a day since the opening. The items will be available for sale in physical Pokemon Center stores across Japan on November 23, 2024.
The post Pokemon Gold and Silver 25th Anniversary Goods Appear appeared first on Siliconera. |
Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Thursday, November 21, 2024 12:20 PM A Nintendo Switch trailer was also released. The post RollerCoaster Tycoon Classic Coming to Nintendo Switch Next Month appeared first on Gaming Instincts - Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism. |
Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Thursday, November 21, 2024 12:11 PM A trailer was also released. The post Marvel Rivals Adds Hawkeye as a Playable Character appeared first on Gaming Instincts - Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism. |
Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Thursday, November 21, 2024 12:03 PM As confirmed in a recent interview. The post Final Fantasy VII Rebirth Will Have No DLCs appeared first on Gaming Instincts - Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism. |
Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Thursday, November 21, 2024 11:55 AM According to SteamDB. The post S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl Surpasses 113,000 Peak Concurrent Players appeared first on Gaming Instincts - Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism. |
MonsterVine Thursday, November 21, 2024 2:00 PM It's been a long time since I reviewed Kathy Rain back in 2016, but I was excited to check out the demo for the newly-announced sequel, Kathy Rain 2: Soothsayer. Now working as a private eye, Kathy is broke and looking for a way to make ends meet. With a serial killer known as the […] |