GamersHeroes Wednesday, January 29, 2025 1:42 PM Virtua Fighter 5 R.E.V.O. provides the definitive Virtua Fighter experience, packing serious depth just waiting to be mastered. The post Virtua Fighter 5 R.E.V.O. Review appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
Kotaku Wednesday, January 29, 2025 2:50 PM  Pokémon card art is always fantastic, but my god, Pokémon Trading Card Game Pocket's latest line of full-art cards is particularly exceptional. The "Space-Time Smackdown" set will be released on the app on January 30, primarily featuring Pokémon from the Nintendo DS games Diamond and Pearl. I am a Sinnoh sicko, so… |
Kotaku Wednesday, January 29, 2025 2:40 PM  What's left of BioWare, the renowned RPG powerhouse behind beloved franchises like Dragon Age, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, and the original Baldur's Gate games? It's a hard question to answer in 2025 after multiple rounds of layoffs and restructurings as the studio pivots between the character-driven… |
Kotaku Wednesday, January 29, 2025 1:35 PM  MAX Original Series Creature Commandos was a surprise hit of 2024, and further evidence that James Gunn is one of the greatest minds rethinking the superhero genre at the moment. And though the show is packed with undead heroines, weasels, and nazi-killing robots, there are still plenty of characters who didn't make… |
Kotaku Wednesday, January 29, 2025 1:10 PM  Actor Elliot Page and developer Quantic Dream are developing a TV show based on the 2013 PS3 game Beyond: Two Souls. |
Kotaku Wednesday, January 29, 2025 12:45 PM  PlayStation Plus is moving away from offering monthly PlayStation 4 games beginning in 2026. The paid subscription service will still offer them "occasionally," but the main focus of the program will be PS5 games, and it only took almost the entirety of the current console's life-cycle to see customer demand get there. |
Kotaku Wednesday, January 29, 2025 12:30 PM  Sony will no longer force Steam users to create a PlayStation Network account to play some of its popular PlayStation PC ports. But if you do choose to login to PSN you'll soon receive in-game rewards in titles like God of War: Ragnarok. |
Kotaku Wednesday, January 29, 2025 12:00 PM  The PlayStation VR2 Headset didn't light the world on fire when it originally released in 2023, but its user base has grown despite a lackluster launch. Plus, the headset itself features some pretty impressive VR hardware. Following a substantial $200 discount in 2024, many PlayStation 5 owners got to enjoy Beatsaber a… |
Kotaku Wednesday, January 29, 2025 11:20 AM  Sniper Elite: Resistance is all about making the most of your equipment and stealthy instincts as you work to complete the objectives scattered around each map. As such, you'll need to invest some points into skills as you level up, granting you some boons to help you survive. Here are the skills most folks should buy… |
Kotaku Wednesday, January 29, 2025 11:05 AM  Dino Crisis games are the latest PlayStation 1-era classics to get ported to PC with new enhancements. It's part of an ongoing trend of old games that only ever came to the platform in CD-ROM format getting the digital download treatment for modern gaming rigs, and storefront GOG is asking fans which ports they want… |
Kotaku Wednesday, January 29, 2025 10:01 AM  Good news! You can finally trade cards with friends in Pokémon TCG Pocket. Bad news! It sucks. It feels even more limited and backwards than when it was originally teased, and fans are in full revolt over the long-anticipated feature's completely bungled rollout. |
Kotaku Wednesday, January 29, 2025 9:05 AM  Marvel Rivals has been given a lot of shit for its unapologetic poaching of Overwatch's ideas. From the overall format down to individual hero's kits, NetEase copiedBlizzard's homework and didn't try to change it much. That being said, it's nice that Overwatch 2 has a direct competitor to put its feet to the fire, and… |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 2:37 PM  With the enjoyable but ultimately underperforming Dragon Age The Veilguard now behind it, BioWare's next mission is to create a stellar new entry in its beloved Mass Effect series. However, despite the game having been in pre-production for a few years now, it still seems it's nowhere near ready to ramp up into full production. BioWare has just announced that while an experienced "core team" continues to work on the next Mass Effect game, it is restructuring the studio and is seeing many of its devs reallocated to work on other EA projects. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best space games, Best old games, Best PC games |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 1:38 PM  Space Marine 2 has already cemented itself as one of the biggest Warhammer videogames ever, but the co-op shooter is keen to keep on evolving, improving, and expanding. Developer Saber Interactive has just dropped some new information on what's arriving in its next major update, which includes a first look at its brand-new PvP map and the reveal of a new, terrifying Tyranid enemy. Continue reading Space Marine 2's next major update includes a terrifying new Tyranid MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Space Marine 2 review, Space Marine 2 system requirements , Best Warhammer 40k games |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 1:23 PM  Despite relying on VPNs for years, I've never specifically used them for gaming. That was, however, until I decided to test Marvel Rivals with NordVPN - and while I was worried it might be more trouble than it's worth for multiplayer games, I came away pleasantly surprised. Continue reading I used a Marvel Rivals VPN and now I won't be playing without one MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best VPN service, Best gaming VPN, VPN deals |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 1:00 PM  There are some frighteningly realistic games out there. Battlefield 1 sticks in my mind, primarily for its sound effects and destruction physics. Hell Let Loose is similar, and then there's Escape From Tarkov and the controversial SWAT simulator Ready Or Not. But when it comes to the brutal attrition of war, where both sides suffer horrible casualties and neither can truly be called a winner, WW2 MMO Foxhole has just become the perfect metaphor. So drawn-out and deadly is the latest in-game battle that developer Siege Camp has been forced to intervene. |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 12:38 PM  The best action roguelikes are defined by choice. Deciding which boons to go for in Hades, which biomes to explore in Dead Cells, or what item to hold onto in Spelunky. These are tough decisions, and they quickly come to define your run and, in turn, future. Perhaps one route will lead to victory? Or, more likely, it'll lead to another lifeless corpse littering the ground. New roguelike Cryptical Path is taking a different approach, though, and it's one of the coolest ideas I've seen in the genre for a while. Best of all, the game is out now with a nice discount too. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best roguelike games, Best platform games, Best indie games |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 12:30 PM  One of the foremost faces of the Diablo 4 development team is stepping down from Blizzard after 15 years at the studio. Diablo 4 lead class designer Adam Jackson has become a popular figure among the ARPG's community for his enthusiastic campfire chat appearances and frank balance discussions. Now he's announced that he's leaving the company, just a short while after the launch of Diablo 4's seventh season. Continue reading Diablo 4's lead class designer is leaving Blizzard after 15 years MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Diablo 4 builds, Diablo 4: Vessel of Hatred review, Diablo 4 classes |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 3:33 PM  An interesting new leak points to a new Asus NUC mini gaming PC that, if true, would be a huge push away from the NUC's original Intel legacy. According to the leak, Asus is planning on launching a new NUC powered by the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395 gaming CPU. NUC was a division of mini gaming PCs started by Intel but sold to Asus in 2023. Since then, the company has been putting its own slant on the line, with the ROG NUC lineup ranking among the best mini gaming PCs that you can buy, offering performance to rival any gaming laptop. Up until now, however, Asus has stuck to Intel CPUs for the NUC line, but this leak would suggest that it is broadening its horizons by using AMD chips in NUCs for the first time. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Asus ROG Swift PG27UQ review, Asus ROG Raikiri review, Best gaming motherboard |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 12:09 PM  What are the Black Ops 6 Wonder Weapons? Wherever you find zombies in Call of Duty, you're also bound to encounter Wonder Weapons. These devastatingly powerful tools of destruction have been a series staple since World at War first introduced the Zombies mode, and the Black Ops 6 selection is up there with the best. There are five Black Ops 6 Wonder Weapons in the zombie game right now, but more special weapons arrive with each Black Ops 6 update. The classic Zombies Ray Gun is available on all Zombies maps, while each map has its own unique Wonder Weapon to boot. Here are all the current BO6 Zombies Wonder Weapons so far, and instructions for how to get your hands on them. Continue reading All Black Ops 6 Wonder Weapons and how to get them MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Black Ops 6 guns, Black Ops 6 missions, Black Ops 6 loadouts |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 12:00 PM  A new Steam Deck mod has unlocked AMD FSR 3.1 frame generation for a number of games that don't actively support it, hugely improving performance in the process. The Decky Framegen Plugin replaces Nvidia DLSS DLL files with equivalent files for FSR 3.1, and while the swap isn't totally perfect, the improvements shouldn't be dismissed, based on what we've seen so far. The Steam Deck is one of the best handheld gaming PCs you can buy, responsible for kickstarting an entire industry of gaming rigs that offer portable gaming performance. While the Steam Deck performs surprisingly well across hundreds of games, performance can vary quite wildly. Thankfully, the signs so far seem to suggest that this unofficial AMD plugin could be a great help, depending on the game you're playing. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best graphics card, Best gaming PC, Best SSD for gaming |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 11:51 AM  Spider-Man 2. The Last of Us. God of War. Horizon Zero Dawn. There are a lot of Sony-published games that you want to play on PC and Steam, but in some cases, logging in means linking your existing player accounts to the PlayStation maker's very own PSN. Last year, Helldivers 2 became mired in controversy after Sony announced, months after launch, that players would eventually need to wed their Steam accounts to the PlayStation Network. While that decision was rolled back, other Sony games, including Horizon and the remake of Until Dawn, still demand account linking. But the whole system is about to be partially transformed. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: The best Last of Us settings, The best horror games, Best action adventure games |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 11:39 AM  What are Black Ops 6 Augments? Augments are a new mechanic in Black Ops 6 Zombies that allow you to customize Perk-A-Colas, Ammo Mods, and Field Upgrades. For the most part, there are different Augments for different playstyles and abilities, but there are also some stand-out options and we've listed our top picks below. We've also listed every single BO6 Augment available for each of the Black Ops 6 Perk-A-Colas, Ammo Mods, and Field Upgrades, and which work well together, so you need look no further for help with this new mechanic in the multiplayer game. You can't take on hordes of the undead with just perks and Field Upgrades though, so don't forget to kit yourself out with the best Black Ops 6 weapons, too. Continue reading Black Ops 6 Zombies Augments explained MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Black Ops 6 guns, Black Ops 6 missions, Black Ops 6 loadouts |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 11:33 AM  What is Black Ops 6 Zombies Perk-A-Cola? Any FPS game worth its salt (and lime) includes some sort of perk system, allowing to players to put their focus on an area or areas in which they excel - or often fail. Stealth player? Make yourself quieter. Bad at aiming? Reduce your recoil. And so on and so forth. Even the Zombies more in Black Ops 6 is no stranger to perks, and the classic Perk-A-Cola system returns from previous games in the series. Here are the refreshing details you need to know about BO6 Perk-A-Colas. When you're looking at the best BO6 loadouts to equip for zombies mode, and the best field upgrades to go with them, you're preparing yourself before you drop into the zombie game. Zombies maps are full of in-game items to boost your play as well. You don't overlook the Black Ops 6 Pack-A-Punch machine, and you certainly shouldn't overlook Perk-A-Colas. Continue reading All Black Ops 6 Zombies Perk-A-Colas MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Black Ops 6 guns, Black Ops 6 missions, Black Ops 6 loadouts |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 11:31 AM  Within two minutes of booting up DeTechtive 2112, you've been robbed by a gang of virtual thugs. You've just left the local bar - ironically called Friends Bar - and you've been left with nothing. There's a sense of hopelessness and unease, amplified by the crushing darkness of the city's rain-soaked streets and the eerie flickering of colorful neon signs advertising everything from medical help to a good ol' fashioned night on the town. It's a world that you want to explore - even if you'll potentially lose your belongings along the way. Continue reading DeTechtive 2112 is a cyberpunk murder mystery that you can play now MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best detective games, Best co-op games, Best RPG games |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 11:17 AM  When was the Black Ops 6 Season 2 release date? The first season reload of Black Ops 6 and Warzone arrived at the end of last year, spinning up the annual content cycle in style. Following a loaded content drop with season start, Season 1 Reloaded brought with it a huge new Zombies map, a winter event, and more. Suffice it to say, a tantalizing precedent was set ahead of Season 2. Now it's here, it doesn't disappoint. The latest Zombies map, The Tomb, features a beautiful-but-terrifying portal to 'Nowhere', and new Black Ops 6 modes include the return of Gun Game, a true test of your ability. That doesn't even scratch the surface though, so here's a rundown of everything available in Black Ops 6 and Warzone Season 2. Continue reading Black Ops 6 Season 2 details, anti-cheat update, and more MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Black Ops 6 guns, Black Ops 6 missions, Black Ops 6 loadouts |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 11:02 AM  Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 stock will suffer from "significant demand" that will inevitably lead to GPU shortages, according to the GPU maker. In news that will surprise absolutely nobody, RTX 5090 and RTX 5080 stock is expected to be so highly sought after that Nvidia has itself warned potential customers to expect "stock-outs" to occur. The launch of these new Nvidia graphics cards is highly anticipated, but it's expected to be a bumpy one. While the RTX 5090 and RTX 5080 are set to be the best graphics cards you can buy once they're released on January 30, actually getting your hands on one might be difficult, with some gamers already camping outside brick-and-mortar stores for the chance to own one. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: RTX 5090 review, DLSS explained, Best graphics cards |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 3:38 PM  Almost a year ago to the day, Arrowhead dropped Helldivers 2. Perfectly balancing Starship Troopers-esque satire with a simple yet fun gameplay loop, the futuristic co-op shooter was everywhere for months on end, spiking at a colossal 450,000 players on PC alone. While a series of awkward balance changes and the infamous PlayStation Network account link controversy hit the game hard, it remains one of 2024's biggest winners. But there's still room for newcomers to muscle their way into the fray, and Phantom Line, a co-op FPS from a team of ex-Bioshock and Cyberpunk 2077 devs, is designed to do just that. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best FPS games, Best co-op games, Best horror games |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 11:00 AM  Seeing new simulation sandbox game RoadCraft in action has me very eager to get stuck into its gorgeous heavy-industry construction projects. It's a spiritual follow up to Saber Interactive's realistic, physics-driven off-road driving simulator SnowRunner, and leans into that delightfully weighty sense of vehicular heft. It's all about rebuilding some of the planet's most devastated locales, putting construction equipment to work in either single player or co-op, and it's looking spectacular. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best simulation games, Best sandbox games, Best building games |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 10:58 AM  Friday December 10, 1993: That's the day the FPS genre changed forever as Doom came barreling onto our PCs. The weapon feedback, blood-pumping soundtrack, and unashamed over-the-top violence might seem quaint today, but that's only because the entire videogame industry learned from the lessons id Software was teaching. That was over 30 years ago, though, and since then every other shooter to grace our screens owes the Doomguy an unpayable debt. This is why the recent Doom re-releases from Bethesda are so important, because not only do they make these classics easier to play than ever, but they're spruced up for the modern age. There was one thing missing at launch, however, and Bethesda has finally added it to the games. Continue reading The classic Doom games get a surprising update from Bethesda MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best old games, Best FPS games, Best zombie games |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 10:47 AM  What are the best fantasy games? There's nothing quite like escaping into another world, immersing yourself in its history and people, and getting to grips with your new virtual life. Fantasy games are especially good at offering these sorts of experiences, but the genre is so packed with great adventures that it can be hard to pinpoint where exactly to place your attention. We've put together this list of the best fantasy games on PC so you'll know where to hitch your horse, so to speak. As always, we want to highlight a varied selection of the best PC games, from mammoth RPGs to 2D action platformers. Whether you're looking to slay some dragons in a sprawling open world or try something a little off the beaten path, we've got you covered with our list of the best fantasy games on PC. Here are the best fantasy games to play now. Continue reading The best fantasy games on PC 2025 MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Elden Ring builds, Elden Ring bosses, Elden Ring weapons |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 10:34 AM  What are all the Black Ops 6 Zombies maps? Round-based Zombies is back with a bang, and we're loving it. Following the two fantastic maps available at launch, Citadelle Des Morts was added to the roster with the launch of Season 1 Reloaded, and The Tomb has arrived with Season 2. The four BO6 Zombies maps available in the zombie game feature operators from Black Ops Cold War as their story continues six years later with some new faces along for the ride. You can play as any of the BO6 operators, but we recommend picking one specially made for the Black Ops 6 Zombie mode as they feature special voice lines. Whoever you choose, here's everything you need to know about where they'll be taking you. Continue reading Black Ops 6 Zombies maps list MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Black Ops 6 guns, Black Ops 6 missions, Black Ops 6 loadouts |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 10:30 AM  What is the next Monopoly Go event? With so many limited-time events in Monopoly Go, it can be hard to keep track of the rewards you can get your hands on. Monopoly Go events can last anywhere from a few hours to a week, so bookmark this page as we'll keep it regularly updated with the next events and their start and end dates. Monopoly Go is the latest online board game sweeping the globe, but completing all of these events won't be easy without some free Monopoly Go dice links, so check out our daily updated guide for some freebies and rewards before you get started on the next Monopoly Go tournament. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best board games, Monopoly Go events, Monopoly Go dice |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 10:30 AM  January 29, 2025: We've checked for the latest Monopoly Go dice links for free dice rolls and tokens. 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 January 2025 MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best board games, Monopoly Go events, Monopoly Go dice |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 10:29 AM  How do you trigger the BO6 The Tomb easter egg song? The Black Ops 6 soundtrack just keeps getting better, and Kevin Sherwood is bringing in even more big name musicians to Zombies as more maps are added. Without building too much hype, we think the secret song for The Tomb is perhaps the most electric yet. Whether you're struggling through the BO6 Zombies The Tomb main quest, or you're looking to spice up your zombie killing experience in the FPS game, nothing makes slaying zombies feel better than a heavy metal soundtrack. Each Zombies map has a hidden music track, and we've got the details on how to play The Tomb's easter egg song in Black Ops 6 Zombies mode. Continue reading Black Ops 6 Zombies The Tomb easter egg song MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Black Ops 6 guns, Black Ops 6 missions, Black Ops 6 loadouts |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 10:30 AM  What are the BO6 Zombies easter eggs? Over the years, it's become less of a secret that Call of Duty's Zombies mode has hidden puzzles and quests. These easter eggs can do anything from uncovering fun secrets, like musical tracks, to unlocking some of the games most powerful weaponry. In the latest Black Ops Zombies adventure, you can discover a metal soundtrack, turn yourself into a superhero, and even craft certain Black Ops 6 Wonder Weapons, well known to be among the best available in the zombie game. You can always look for these Black Ops 6 secrets yourself, but if you'd rather someone else did the hard work for you, well, you're welcome. Continue reading Every Black Ops 6 Zombies easter egg MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Black Ops 6 guns, Black Ops 6 missions, Black Ops 6 loadouts |
PCGamesN Wednesday, January 29, 2025 9:59 AM  One lucky gamer grabbed the deal of the century this week, picking up an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Super for a huge 60% discount, just as retailers prepare for brand-new RTX 5000 series cards to hit the shelves. Thanks to this incredible Walmart discount, this gamer paid just $350 for the RTX 4070 Super, saving $249 in the process. It's rare to see any modern Nvidia GPU with a discount, but a 60% cut in price like this is almost unprecedented. It's even more surprising to see it happen with an RTX 4070 Super, a card which is only a year old at this point and which is still the best graphics card for the average gamer, at least for the time being. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: RTX 5090 review, DLSS explained, Best graphics cards |
Rock Paper Shotgun Latest Articles Feed Wednesday, January 29, 2025 12:32 PM  It's easy to feel pride when you're flying through space at 1000 metres per second. "Look at my spaceship go," you say to yourself, "look how fast it crashes into that other, smaller ship." Building your own galactic snowpiercer from scratch in Space Engineers 2 will bring a smile to anyone who once revelled in clicking together Lego podracers and bashing them into one another on the living room carpet with a violence eight-year-olds should not yet have mental access to. That said, this is the precise extent of the things you can do in the game so far. Build 'n' crash. Every feature fits in this opening paragraph. There's good reason to trust the developers' ability to deliver the rest of this crafting and survival game. But right now, it's all core, no loop. |
Rock Paper Shotgun Latest Articles Feed Wednesday, January 29, 2025 12:24 PM  Open world spec op gun-brandisher Phantom Line takes place during a paranormal crisis of such intensity that the outbreak of nuclear war gets relegated to bullet point five on the latest press email. Atomic apocalypse? Ehhh. That's a roadside picnic compared to what S.T.A.L.K.S this alternately Lynchian and Tarkovskian battlefield. You'll wish you'd been dusted by nuclear fire when you're being torn open by some kind of demon puppet in a labyrinth of red curtains. If you do get torn open by a demon puppet, the good news is that players have a range of artificial bodies to choose from. Among Phantom Line's headline features is the HUSK system, which lets you switch between members of your squad right in the middle of combat. Unless, presumably, the body in question is already occupied by one of your co-op partners. If all this sounds appealing, the even-gooder news is that there's now a demo available via the developer Discord. |
Rock Paper Shotgun Latest Articles Feed Wednesday, January 29, 2025 12:00 PM  You'll have to bear with me for this one, because the press release we received for Demeo X Dungeons & Dragons: Battlemarked contains about an 86/14 split between scrambled hypeguff and actual tangible information. In brief, it's a VR collaboration between D&D traffickers Wizards Of The Coast and Demeo studio Resolution Games that aims to simulate a tactical co-op tabletop experience without any of the boring bits, like seeing your mates' genuine reactions to things or having your frigid digitised soul warmed at the hearth of human kinship. Here is - in a sense of the word so loose I fear imminent smiting by a bellicose scribe god for typing it - a trailer: |
Rock Paper Shotgun Latest Articles Feed Wednesday, January 29, 2025 11:15 AM  Nic says that RPG remake sequel Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is "uneven, unfocused, and unmissable". You also can't miss its regular performance hiccups, which most often manifest as little but frequent stutters that occur as you're moseying around its poorly planet. Or can you? News comes via Nic himself that modder FrancisLouis, whose previous works include performance-enhancing rejigs of various games (and one that turns the Silent Hill 2 remake's pipe weapon into a rigid, A-posing wife), has produced Fantasy Optimizer: an overhaul of how FF7 Rebirth handles shaders and streamed visuals. Both Nic and myself have tried it out on our respective rigs, and it works! Mostly. |
Twinfinite Wednesday, January 29, 2025 10:04 AM  |
Siliconera Wednesday, January 29, 2025 4:00 PM
TeeTurtle announced its line of reversible plushies will get a new Valentine's Day collection for 2025, and it includes two Sanrio styles. There are four items total, the Amazon storefront is already carrying them, and they cost $15 each.
The two Sanrio variants in the TeeTurtle reversible plushies Valentine's Day line are Hello Kitty and My Melody / Kuromi. In the case of the Hello Kitty design, one side features her in a white outfit with hearts on it. That version's face is also blushing. If you reverse her, she has an expression with both eyes shut like she's smiling and a red outfit. The other option has My Melody in a white outfit with red hearts and red bow hairband on one side, and Kuromi in a matching outfit and with red bows on both of her ears on the other.
The other two characters in this collection are original ones. One is Strawberry Cat. On one side, you see it dipped in chocolate and with an expression that has hearts in the eyes. The other version has an angry expression and no chocolate coating. The other option is a red panda and standard panda plush. A red panda with hearts in its eyes is on one side, while a more emotionless panda is on the other.
Here's how all four look:
Build-a-Bear also featured a 2025 Valentine's Day collection that featured Kuromi and My Melody stuffed animals.
The TeeTurtle Valentine's Day plushies collection with Sanrio and original characters is available now.
The post TeeTurtle Reveals Valentine's Day Sanrio Reversible Plushies appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Wednesday, January 29, 2025 3:30 PM
To commemorate a collaboration between the NieR: Automata IP and Japanese bookstore Hon Hikidashi, a new illustration featuring 2B, 9S, A2, and Devola and Popola has been shared. Starting on February 26, 2025, a NieR: Automata pop-up store will appear at select Hon Hikidashi locations. The pop-up stores will run until March 20, 2025.
You can take a look at the commemorative illustration announcing the NieR: Automata pop-up store, which includes details about the collaboration, below:
More details about the pop-up stores will appear on February 12, 2025. This will include which locations will be facilitating this collaboration. As to what merchandise consumers may be able to purchase, that information could appear that day as well.
In December 2024, Square Enix announced NieR: Automata surpassed 9 million units sold worldwide. This combines units sold across all platforms, which includes PlayStation 4, PC, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.
Square Enix has released a continued slew of NieR: Automata merchandise, which includes a wide range of figures, jewelry, t-shirts, and other clothing items.
NieR: Automata is available worldwide on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, and Nintendo Switch. The NieR: Automata pop-up stores will appear on February 26 and remain open until March 20, 2025.
The post NieR: Automata Pop-Up Store Stars 2B, 9S, A2, Devola, and Popola appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Wednesday, January 29, 2025 3:00 PM
Dance of Cards is a sharp, if flawed, gambling RPG that is filled with some clever and downright risky design choices around its Poker-based play. Even with little interest in Poker, this game pulled me in with its special abilities that reshaped how you would play the card game. Its lethal death games see you putting your character's life on the line in thrilling games where strategy and pure chance clash. Its story twists and turns at a brisk pace, shifting from playful to soul-crushing in moments. All of it had me in a tight grip as I played through the game despite some elements that came close to souring the whole experience.
Martin is a magician and skilled Poker player who's heading to the New World to find better opportunities (and more people to fleece at cards) alongside his sister, his director, and his director's talking dog. It seemed like a strange setup for a Death Game, but once I was among several different, varied characters on a ship, automatons soon reveal themselves to be the ship's crew and they pit everyone against one another in Poker- and gambling-based games where the losers are executed. What ties all of these people together? Why do the machines want them all dead? You'll wonder that for most of the game as you pore over your hands of cards.
Dance of Cards is largely focused on Poker for its gameplay. You get dealt a hand of two cards, then make choices about steadily raising your bet or backing out as five more cards are dealt that all players can use (Texas Hold 'Em rules, I believe). You build the best hand of five cards you can out of this public pool and the cards in your personal two-card hand. Players all start with varying amount of chips in the game (often depending on how many players are on your team versus the opposite team, or bosses possessing more chips). You don't have to fully drain your opponent's chip reserves to win – usually the game eliminates a player with the lowest number of chips every four rounds. So, you just want to be sure one of your opponents is doing worse than you in round four. Although you can eliminate someone immediately by taking all of their chips.
This system is made a bit more complex using Talents. Each specific character (and there are quite a few throughout the game) has a handful of special talents they can use to spice up each turn. Martin can switch one card with one of his opponents, causing major upsets when it happens. He can also swap a card in his hand with an Ace. Archie the dog can Sniff an opponent to tell if their current hand will beat his. Another player can bribe opponents to reveal one of their cards. These abilities can have dramatic effects on the hands being played, although the abilities cost TP to use (which slowly regenerates over time). You can't constantly use most effects, but knowing when to use even one of them can really turn things around for you. And some of the bosses have some devious abilities that will turn every hand into a tense (and possibly unfair-feeling) showdown.
As you play, you will often have a team of up to four players in Dance of Cards. This gives you several different players and hands to maintain as you play, which increases your chances of getting something good you can use to beat the opponent. It also means you have to keep several people from running out of chips as you play, which can make things more difficult. You can experience for each player who survives all the way until the other team is fully eliminated, which can be challenging to do. More experience gives you levels and Mastery, which can be used to unlock better Talents or more of them (or just better luck at getting good cards), so you'll want to keep people alive.
That said, it is quite tempting to abuse the rules of the game to bull rush a single player to victory. As I said, the person with the least amount of chips is eliminated each round. As long as you have a single chip more than another player, they'll be taken out. So, there is a temptation to make your own players lose so that you get a sizeable chip lead with one character, then Fold (quit) every single round until you reach the Elimination stage. If you have more chips than the other players, you basically quit constantly until you "win". It trivializes the game's Poker play in many of its matches, although this strategy can come with some dangerous consequences at the end of the game when you don't have a team full of people to challenge the brutal final opponents. This plan can work and seem pretty great, but keep in mind you are taking a serious gamble with this "easy" route.
Gambling with your life is a big theme of Dance of Cards, so maybe that is fitting, though. With each win, a player or team will be killed, although you can hop in to play a Death Game in order to try to spare some of the characters. These are often more chance heavy, requiring you play roulette with unique rules, board games with hidden hazards, or number matching games. These feel simultaneously focused on luck and predicting opponent behavior, and can be utterly frustrating but tantalizingly intense as you work through them. I loved and hated these games at the same time for how much they would get my heart rate up, and they truly make you feel like you're putting something serious on the line.
Nowhere is that feeling stronger than during the game's final moments. I don't want to go into too much detail here on the narrative reasons it happens, but you need to know this going into the game. You will get a single shot to finish the final boss, and they are relentless. You will need to bring every skill and trick you have to bear, and if you fail, you have to restart the whole game. I did not think the game actually meant it when they threatened me with restarting a five-to-ten-hour playthrough, but they absolutely do. This lead to what may have been the most pulse-pounding games of cards I have ever played, and firmly showed that this game wanted to explore what gambling with you "life" would feel like. It's a hell of gamble to take as a developer to stick to your theme in such a devastating way, and I'm genuinely impressed the developer was willing to take that risk.
I wasn't just captivated by this high-stakes experience from a gameplay perspective, as the game, despite its zippy storyline, managed to get me to feel some attachment to its many characters in a hurry. You get to spend just enough time with the cast, and their identities are fleshed out so well so quickly, that the game got its narrative hooks in fairly deep. The various passengers all stood out for various reasons, seeing me want to help them, learn more about them (which you can do in optional sequences – assuming they live long enough for you to complete the three sequences needed to learn everything), or watch them die with some satisfaction.
Despite the compelling characters, the ending does feel like it comes together in a bit of a strange way in Dance of Cards. I won't go into details, but the reason that connects all of the characters feels a bit out of left field. The story feels like it needed some more hints to be laid out to feel like a connected mystery versus something you could never know suddenly taking over the game. It is still an interesting ending in its own way, but it's not as good as the rest of the experience (and dulls the intensity of the final sequences).
I really wasn't expecting this level of attachment, nor this compelling depth to the gameplay, when I saw the game's screenshots. It looks fairly uninteresting when you look at its pixel art, but its developers really put together some neat characters that stand out and some locales that look decent. The art style did not ever really blow me away, but there is a lot of creativity that went into the different places you'll see throughout the game and the oddball people you'll meet.
While the art style doesn't really hurt the game, there are a few design issues that take away some of the fun to varying degrees. The Talents are not explained very well in the menus during a Poker game, and even less so when they're used. Some of these Talents do baffling things, but the only place you can find them out is in a separate side menu where you can read up on what each character is doing. I would have loved to see an explanation in the actual menu I use to access a Talent or to have an explanation when an opponent is using one. More upsetting, this game suffered from semi-frequent crashes. I had five total crashes across two playthroughs, each one costing a significant amount of time to catch up (Poker can take a long time to eliminate several people), so these can be very irritating.
Dance of Cards, overall, is a strong Poker and narrative game that went all-out with its gambling theme, aiming to make the player feel the same fear and exhilaration as its in-game characters. I really came to this game expecting very little, but instead got an experience that drew me into the lives of its characters and had me experiencing a hint of their own terror and the rush of a deadly risk. While I have my problems with the ending and some of the game's problems, it's still an impressive game that has a lot to offer if you're willing to give yourself over to its quirks.
Dance of Cards is available now on the Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC.
The post Review: Dance of Cards Captures the Exhilaration of Gambling With Your Life appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Wednesday, January 29, 2025 2:30 PM
Sony announced that a PlayStation Network (PSN) account will no longer be a mandatory requirement when playing certain PS5 games on PC platforms. The change is set to go into effect on January 30, 2025, alongside the release of Marvel's Spider-Man 2 for PC.
The announcement came via a post on the Playstation blog that detailed how the change will affect the PC ports of Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered and God of War Ragnarok, as well as the upcoming ports of Spider-Man 2 and The Last of Us Part II Remastered. Instead of requiring an account to play the game, players will instead be incentivized to sign in to an account by in-game rewards. These include two suits for Spider-Man 2, a resource bundle and early unlock for an armor set in God of War Ragnarok, an outfit for Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered, and a jacket skin and unlock points for The Last of Us Part II Remastered.
Sony previously required PSN accounts for games like Helldivers 2, even when playing the PS5 game on a PC, which resulted in a significant backlash for the company.
Starting from January 30, 2025, a PSN account will no longer be a mandatory requirement for playing certain PS5 games on PC. Spider-Man 2 is immediately available for PS5 and will release for PC on January 30, 2025.
The post PSN Accounts Becoming Optional for PS5 PC Game Ports appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Wednesday, January 29, 2025 2:00 PM
The crewmate from Among Us is now available as a DLC character in Super Monkey Ball Banana Rumble. Sega made the surprise announcement alongside the crewmate's release.
A reveal trailer showed the Among Us crewmate sealed inside a monkey ball, dashing their way through courses throughout Banana Rumble. They will mostly be featured in their armless standard look, occasionally revealing their hands for certain victory poses. Instead of the game's usual bananas, the crewmate will collect pizza slices.
The trailer for the Among Us crewmate DLC can be seen here:
The Among Us crewmate will be part of the Version 2.10 update for Super Monkey Ball Banana Rumble. They will be joined by a selection of new free content, including a new stage for the "BA-BOOM!" battle mode. Scattered Stones will be added for free along with repeated seasonal rewards and additional customization options for certain characters.
While the crewmate from Among Us is a surprise addition, it's not the first time guest characters have made an appearance in Super Monkey Ball Banana Rumble. The previous update featured Hatsune Miku and Godzilla in chibi forms, with music notes and trains replacing the bananas respectively.
Super Monkey Ball Banana Rumble is out now for the Nintendo Switch. The Among Us crewmate is also out now as part of the Version 2.10 update.
The post Among Us Crewmate Now in Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Wednesday, January 29, 2025 1:30 PM
It's the last chance to get Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp Complete, the paid version of the formerly free-to-play, mobile life simulation game, at a launch discount. It is only $9.99 until 10pm PT on January 30, 2025/1pm ET on January 31, 2025. The price will go up to $19.99 on the App Store and Google Play after that.
As a reminder, Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp Complete doesn't work exactly like the original game, as the mobile simulation is about decorating a campground, maintaining it, and meeting the needs of any animals that show up as campers. There are also special events, and you have a camper and cabin you can decorate. The multiplayer element is now limited to cards you can swap.
While the Animal Crossing Pocket Camp Complete price increase is one notable date to keep in mind, there's one other one to remember. You only have until 11pm PT on June 1, 2025/2am ET on June 2, 2025 to carry over save data from the original, free-to-play game to this paid one. If you buy the new app and connect a Nintendo Account that has save data from the previous version tied to it, you can pick up where you left off. This means all of your visitor friendship levels, collected items, and layouts will remain. If you pick up this game and start after that date, then you have to completely restart from scratch.
Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp Complete is available on Android and Apple iOS mobile devices. The original version of the game is no longer available.
The post PSA: Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp Complete Price Goes Up Tomorrow appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Wednesday, January 29, 2025 1:06 PM
Been reading Siliconera for a while and have thoughts on the site, our newsletter, and what you'd like to see us do in the future? Well, we'd like to know what you'd think about us! Our Siliconera survey is live, and we're hoping you'll take part to help us learn more about what you're interested in and enjoy.
We're constantly aiming to make Siliconera a better and stronger site to visit, and that means checking in with our community to ensure we're on the right track. Our survey consists of 15 critical questions that will shape not only our newsletter, but build up Siliconera itself! Could you please take 5-10 minutes to make your voice heard? We care about what you think, and really want to know more about you!
Thanks so much for being a Siliconera reader and for your time! Here's hoping we all have a fantastic 2025!
The post Share Your Thoughts on Siliconera by Taking Our Survey appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Wednesday, January 29, 2025 1:00 PM
Marvel Snap now has a US publisher, according to an update from the developer, Second Dinner. The move is designed to keep the game active after the recent unexpected closure of the game.
According to an update posted on social media, Second Dinner will be working with the US publisher Skystone Games to maintain Marvel Snap. Second Dinner will be bringing many of the game's publishing requirements in-house, with support from Skystone. Skystone Games are an indie publisher responsible for bringing a few smaller games to market. Their catalogue includes apocalyptic child-raising game Undying and astronaut shooter Boundary, among others.
This decision follows the game's unexpected closure after the US government blocked TikTok. ByteDance, the company behind TikTok, also owns Nuverse, which is Marvel Snap's international publisher. The game became inaccessible in the US as a side effect. Mobile video editing app CapCut was also taken down for similar reasons.
With the TikTok ban swiftly reversed, Marvel Snap is now back online in the US. The game is available from mobile app stores and the game. Second Dinner will be providing a Welcome Back package for all players as an apology for the downtime. This will include a variety of rewards such as Spotlight Keys, Collector's Tokens and additional Season Pass XP. Despite the ban only affecting the US, international players will also receive similar rewards as part of the Global Gratitude Pack.
Marvel Snap has been a big hit since its launch in 2022, even winning awards at The Game Awards and DICE Awards.
Marvel Snap is available now for iOS and Android devices.
The post Marvel Snap Gets a US Publisher so It Won't Disappear Again appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Wednesday, January 29, 2025 12:30 PM
Bandai Namco opened pre-orders for a new Star Wars Tamagotchi Nano featuring Darth Vader, which comes with a silicone case shaped like the Sith Lord's iconic helmet and lets people raise the character from the series with the virtual pet. Pre-orders are currently available from Amazon at $29.99, with the release date listed as March 11, 2025.
With a black design patterned after Vader's suit controls, the actual Star Wars Tamagotchi nano virtual pet can be inserted or removed from the helmet case as desired and also comes with two LR44 batteries included. The game itself features five minigames, 12 recreations of scenes from the movies, and 10 different versions of Vader that can appear as you play. Owners will also be able to feed their Vader Tamagotchi and meet other Star Wars characters. However, as this is only a Tamagotchi nano model, there is no interactivity with others. So it can not connect to the other Star Wars Tamagotchi produced by Bandai Namco like Grogu and R2D2.
You can get a look at the Darth Vader Tamagotchi Nano via the gallery below:
Earlier in January 2025, Bandai announced three unique original designs available from Lawson stores in Japan. Meanwhile, back in December 2024, Disney Japan began releasing anime shorts on Instagram featuring Grogu from The Mandalorian.
Pre-orders for the Darth Vader Tamagotchi Nano are available via Amazon with a release date of March 11, 2025.
The post Darth Vader Tamagotchi Nano Comes With Helmet Case appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Wednesday, January 29, 2025 12:00 PM
Being an iterative medium, it's not surprising how common it's become to describe games in terms of other games. Think of the rampant overuse and subsequent meme-status of phrases like "Skyrim with Guns" or "The Dark Souls of X". But sometimes a game wears its influences so openly, or pulls so liberally from a variety of sources that it's hard not to drop those names when trying to describe it. So it is with Yellow Brick Games' Eternal Strands, which combines and recontextualizes mechanics from games as broad as Monster Hunter and Breath of the Wild. And while the resulting mélange of ingredients may not blend together seamlessly, neither do they clash and the resulting game is honestly a pretty joyful experiment in picking and mixing mechanics, backed up by a decent story and good voice work.
Developed by Yellow Brick Games with Bioware alumnus Mike Laidlaw acting as CCO, Eternal Strands is an action RPG with a focus on physics and exploration. You play as Brynn of Kalnhaven, a member of a caravan of itinerant mages called Weavers. While investigating the collapsed mage-run city-state called the Enclave your Weaver band becomes trapped and your leader injured, forcing Brynn to take on the role of Point. It's from there that you'll explore the ruins of the Enclave, search for supplies or materials, and try to find out what caused it to collapse.
In combat, Brynn controls as you would expect for this kind of action-RPG, with the usual suite of blocks, dodges and slashes. You can switch freely between a sword and shield, a bow, and a greatsword once you've crafted one, with certain magical weapons crafted later also having an elemental ability. My distinct favorite was the Kinetic Greatsword that let you use a soaring uppercut-slash, which doubled as a mobility tool for climbing. Generally the combat felt fairly basic, but then that's because the intention is that you'll also be using your spells and the environment as you fight too.
There are 9 spells you can learn and upgrade, and while most of them are fairly unique I did find the simpler ones you get early on to be the most useful. There are a lot of different uses for the Ice Wall power, that lets you create huge frozen chunks to serve as platforms, slow or pin enemies, or just cool the area down. But then the second spell that summons an ice mine mostly just deals damage, though it can be useful for tempering. The 3rd ice spell is admittedly very cool, as Brynn encases herself in ice for thermal protection and a new set of attacks, but again there was just little motivation to use it. There are few enemies that can't be defeated by pinning them with ice and whacking them with a greatsword a few times.
But while Brynn is the one seeing all the action, you'll be relying on your fellow Weavers to get stronger. This is because rather than amassing experience points, your character's strength in Eternal Strands is based almost entirely on the materials their gear is made of and what level of spells you have. That and how you use them, of course. Materials can be gathered in the way you might expect: drops from enemies, treasure chests, and broken pieces of the environment. The interesting part is that how you gather them can change the materials you gain, as heating or freezing metallic rocks can affect the item you receive when you crack them open. Similarly, fire can be effective against several icy, wolf-like enemies but can also burn their fur off, so if you want that specific material you'll need to change up your strategy.
Then there's the crafting system itself, which lets you craft armor and weapons from up to 4 materials each with their own stats. Metals offer heavy physical protection as you might imagine, while furs tend to be lighter and more insulative and each individual resource further leans towards physical, thermal, or balanced protection. There's a lot of interesting little detail there and room for crafting specific armor sets for specific tasks, though I do wish the game gave you an idea of the break points for elemental resistances such as when you'll be insulated against general ambient temperatures or your own spells. Lack of information is kind of a recurring bugbear in Eternal Strands, actually, as the game also doesn't tell you what actually improves when you level up a spell either.
But in general, the way you're reliant on your team and the materials available to get stronger has a lot of cool thematic implications beyond the usual "I've killed a lot of dudes so I've gotten really good at it" idea that a simple experience system gives you. That said, while I ended up liking pretty much all the characters in Brynn's weaverband (including ones I really thought I'd dislike!) they still feel like vendors rather than characters with at least similar agency to the player. Maybe it's a bit of a big ask to fix, but because they're almost always stuck at base camp they felt a little static. Perhaps being able to bring one with you or meet them in the field would have helped? Either way I'd take it as a sign the writing succeeded that I actually wanted to spend more time with these characters.
Back on the gameplay side of things, the actual core loop of the Eternal Strands felt very reminiscent of Monster Hunter to me. You get access to a new area and then explore it for new materials, armor recipes, and lore notes before returning to camp to upgrade your gear. Then, when you're confident enough, you head back out to face down some of the Epic Foes that appear in each zone. These are the big beasties you'll need to climb over and hit the weak points of the bring down, á la Shadow of the Colossus, Dragon's Dogma or whichever you prefer. Not only are they a great source of high quality materials, but breaking certain parts allows you to reveal a weakspot that you can 'harvest' to unlock new spells and level up existing ones. All that stuff about using physics and elemental interactions on the environment works here too, so you can heat armor to make it break easier and drop different resources or load up a limb with ice to hamper its movement.
These are, naturally, the highlight of the game and let you flex a lot of the tools you've gained. That said, there are some frustrations. The climbing can be just as finicky as in Dragon's Dogma, especially as the monster itself moves around. You might be trying to climb up its arm to the head, only to find yourself accidentally crawling onto its waist with your camera spinning out because of the way the beast moved. I also found pinning monsters in place with ice gave you only a small window of opportunity to take advantage of it before the monster broke out, so I usually resorted to just coating a limb in ice to slow rather than stop it. This also showed off an interesting piece of animation tech, where the creature's movements were slowed or moved in response to how you restricted it. It's usually subtle, but if you massively overloaded one side of an Ark with ice, for example, you could see their gait lean sideways very amusingly.
Between felling beasts and crafting armor you'll also be hunting around for lore tidbits and completing quests for your companions. These can be as simple as gathering certain materials or clearing out enemies, but a lot of the more interesting ones involve finding written records from before the Enclave's collapse. Even if you're not taking the time to read all of them, your companions will summarize and what is there paints a surprisingly in-depth image of the Enclave as a society. There's a particular focus on, of all things, logistics and politics, which for a certain kind of freak (like myself) is genuinely compelling. You also get a good sense of the Enclave's flaws and the political machinations that helped exacerbate it's downfall, to the point I think it would be fair to call the city-state itself a major character in the game
The main plot itself didn't quite hold my attention as much, though it wasn't egregiously bad or anything. I've often criticized games from developers like Bioware and others for having what might be a good story but a bit of a lacking plot, and that's something Eternal Strands also falls afoul of. Exploring and unraveling the mystery is fun, but the actual reveals don't quite land. There's also a moment perhaps a little over mid-way through the game that sticks out to me, when a new threat emerges and new characters are introduced. While they acknowledge the new threat and your party's culpability for it, there was a distinct lack of urgency in the conversation that killed a lot of the tension for me. The side quests and conversations mostly made up for it, however, with a number of interesting threads about the Weaver's lost heritage and history and how the Enclave changed their place in the world both when it was built and when it was destroyed.
I honestly went in to Eternal Strands with few expectations. I've loved a good many of the game's stated influences but it's easy to assume a lack of originality when what's being borrowed is so recognizable. Thankfully, the game itself proved more interested in actually playing with the mechanics than just borrowing the appeal from other titles. It's not a perfect mix, but Yellow Brick Games has me excited to see how they might build on what they've done here.
Eternal Strands is set to release on January 28, 2025, for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S. A Demo is also available via Steam and EGS.
The post Review: Eternal Strands Weaves a Tapestry of Influences appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Wednesday, January 29, 2025 11:30 AM
Hololive English Myth Vtuber Ninomae Ina'nis and Promise member Hakos Baelz worked together on a song cover of the NieR: Automata song "Weight of the World." Each one contributed something to the track. Baelz provided the vocals for the song, while Ina'nis handled the art for the music video. It is available to watch now on YouTube.
The two Hololive Vtubers teased this NieR: Automata song cover before it happened. They appeared on a stream together with Koseki Bijou before it released on January 28, 2025. First, Hakos and Bijou discussed the game together. At the one hour, seven minute mark Ina'nis joined the stream. They looked over her concept art for the music video and other designs for it.
Here's that full pre-release stream for the cover. Note that there are some spoilers discussed in the first part, when Baelz and Bijou are talking about the game.
You can watch the full Hakos Baelz "Weight of the World" NieR: Automata song cover with art from Ninomae Ina'nis. There are no spoilers in it.
We might see more announcements regarding the NieR series in 2025. Producer Yosuke Saito mentioned wanting to do something for its 15th anniversary this year in a 2025 New Year's message.
NieR: Automata is available on the PS4, Switch, Xbox One, and Windows PC. There is also an anime adaptation that is available to stream via Crunchyroll.
The post Hololive's Hakos Baelz, Ninomae Ina'nis Worked on NieR: Automata Song Cover appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Wednesday, January 29, 2025 11:00 AM
Shoko Komi finally achieved her goal and her time in school is at an end, and so the Tomohito Oda manga Komi Can't Communicate is now over. Chapter 499 debuted on January 28, 2025. It's also available to read in English worldwide via Viz Media, the company that publishes it in North America.
Komi Can't Communicate stars Komi, a high-schooler who is seen as some sort of ideal young woman. However, she's secretly suffering from a communication disorder that keeps her from interacting other people, even though all she wants to do is open up and make friends. Her classmate Hitohito Tadano discovers the truth about her and learns that what she wants more than anything is to actually talk to people. So the two team up to help her make 100 friends.
The final chapter of the Komi Can't Communicate manga begins by revisiting what a communication disorder, before us seeing the graduation ceremony and end of the series from her perspective. It also puts Tadano in the spotlight as he gives a speech. The chapter ends with a riddle, but the solution won't be revealed until volume 37 of the manga is out in Japan.
There are still Komi Can't Communicate releases ahead, as physical copies of the manga are catching up. Viz Media released volume 32 on January 14, 2025, and volume 33 will debut on March 11, 2025. Two seasons of the anime adaptation are on Netflix, but it's unknown if we'll see more than that.
2025 kicked off with a number of manga series ending. Undead Unlock's last chapter appeared in Shonen Jump on January 26, 2025. Mission: Yozakura Familyalso stopped on January 19, 2025.
The Komi Can't Communicate manga is now over. The next physical copy of the manga to appear in English is volume 33, which launches on March 11, 2025.
The post Komi Can't Communicate Manga Ends appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Wednesday, January 29, 2025 10:00 AM
Capcom and GOG started selling Dino Crisis 1 and 2 PC versions not only alone, but in a bundle with the two sold together. Individually, they are $9.99 each for the first and second games. However, it is cheaper to get them in the bundle, which costs $16.99. This comes after PS4 and PS5 owners were able to purchase them in November 2024.
The announcement noted these are part of the GOG Preservation Program. This is an endeavor to make older PC games compatible with more modern operating systems and devices. The product pages also confirmed both games now offer cloud save support, improved controller support, more rendering options, and other updates. It also features all past modes, such as Original Arrange, and Operation Wipe Out for the original game, and feature six localizations including English and Japanese.
GOG and Capcom also released trailers highlighting the PC versions of Dino Crisis 1 and 2. Rather than establishing added features for the latest releases, they focus on sharing what we can expect from them.
First, here's the trailer for the original game.
And here's the refresher showing us what to expect from the sequel.
Back when Capcom released Exoprimal, we saw an increased surge of interest and response from people who remembered and wanted more from the Dino Crisis series.
Dino Crisis 1 and 2 are available for the PC via GOG alone or in a bundle. The original game first appeared on the Dreamcast, PlayStation, and PC, while the sequel only appeared on the PlayStation and PC.
The post Buy a Dino Crisis 1 and 2 PC Bundle at GOG appeared first on Siliconera. |
WGB Wednesday, January 29, 2025 1:39 PM Sony announced a shift in PS Plus offerings, focusing on PS5 games starting January 2026, reducing PS4 titles despite significant PS4 user numbers on PSN. |
WGB Wednesday, January 29, 2025 1:24 PM Sony announced February's PS Plus Essential games, including Payday 3, High on Life, and Pac-Man World Re-Pac. The selection is deemed weak, with mixed reviews for Payday 3. |
WGB Wednesday, January 29, 2025 9:13 AM After so many games, the Sniper Elite series is starting to languish and the next entry needs to show some marked improvement. For now, though, Sniper Elite: Resistance is another fun entry in one of AA gaming's best champions. |
Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Wednesday, January 29, 2025 3:52 PM According to Konami. The post Silent Hill 2 Remake Surpasses Two Million Units Sold appeared first on Gaming Instincts - Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism. |
Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Wednesday, January 29, 2025 3:40 PM As spotted in a recent report. The post Nintendo Loses Trademark Battle Against A Super Mario Supermarket appeared first on Gaming Instincts - Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism. |
MonsterVine Wednesday, January 29, 2025 3:00 PM Today on the PlayStation blog Sony announced the three titles redeemable by PlayStation Plus subscribers. I'll go over the games further down because I have a few thoughts on those, but the games themselves are Payday 3, High on Life, and Pac-Man World: Re-Pac. While these posts are typically just reserved for the games themselves, […] |
MonsterVine Wednesday, January 29, 2025 2:00 PM Chris Davis, the original creator of 2D prison sandbox The Escpaists, is working on a new JRPG. Guard Break is a short 3D JRPG with no main protagonist, no random encounters, and a bond system for you and your in-game buds. The game looks to have a bit of a PS1 aesthetic with some low-res […] |
MonsterVine Wednesday, January 29, 2025 1:00 PM Digital Eclipse, under license from Hasbro, has announced that Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Rita's Rewind is getting a physical release for Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 5 on May 30, 2025. Fans can now pre-order the game in both Standard and Collector's Editions, ensuring they get their hands on this retro-inspired beat 'em up in a […] |
MonsterVine Wednesday, January 29, 2025 12:00 PM Good Old Games, the storefront owned by CD Projekt known for releasing DRM-free versions of games and preserving them, recently released both Dino Crisis and Dino Crisis 2. Dino Crisis, originally released in 1999 for the Sony PlayStation, is a horror game in the vein of Resident Evil, directed by one of the grandfathers of […] |