Well, wow. The Game Atelier has been busy and quiet for a bit, but there’s the reason why above. Monster Boy And The Cursed Kingdom is looking even more phenomenal and according to publisher FDG Entertainment, will be coming to PS4 and Xbox One first, followed by PC and possibly, a Nintendo console (according to NintendoLife). No speculation here on that latter point, but at least two versions of this one will be played here at DAF HQ.
-GW
With Blue Isle Studios‘ upcoming action/exploration game VALLEY under two weeks away, the strategy of the developer revealing their new game within a short time before it’s available could work for it quite well. Getting gamers to hold out a bit on a day one buy and wait for reviews might pay off in making this an “evergreen” title in the long run, particularly the jaded types out thee who follow games for years and complain about anything and everything as much as possible.
What I’ve seen so far intrigues the hell out of me. But by not getting every drip of development info or wasting time poking around on message boards in Jadedgamerville, I’m more likely to be pleasantly surprised by the end result. Now, will that surprise be good or bad? I’m not telling (well, I have NO clue, kids!), but I can say it’s going to at least be positive on the visuals and constructive critically on the gameplay if there are issues. We shall see. For now, all is right in this game world as far as I can see. VALLEY lands on PC, PS4, and Xbox One August 24, 2016.
-GW
Look at him go! As a big ol’ nostalgic gamer, Bonus Level Entertainment’s absolutely gorgeous platformer FOX n FORESTSjumped out at me right away with those beautiful graphics and nostalgic soundtrack kicking the cobwebs off a few shelves in my brain. THIS, folks, is how you do 16-bit right. Make a game that looks and very hopefully plays as if it’s been made in the mid 90’s when developers were maxing out the Super Nintendo hardware and coming up with some technically incredible game experiences.
Anyway, the game is on Kickstarter and VERY close to it’s funding AND has very wisely been Greenlit on Steam. There are about 40 hours or so left and you KNOW you want this in your library, right? Yeah, you’re smiling and reaching for that wallet. Good.
Go throw money at these guys, NOW.
Bandai Namco has kept Pac-Man relevant for decades in all sorts of games, but that speedy yellow dot-gobbler is always best when things are simplest. PAC-MAN Championship Edition 2 does an excellent job at blending old and new gameplay elements that allow classic fans to dive in and play while giving newbies an actual fighting chance to keep up on the scoring front.
Some hands-on time at the company’s recent NYC event revealed a game that’s faster and more frantic than the first installment, adding new modes, fixing up a few things and overall, making for a guaranteed thrill ride experience that’s going to be hard to put down.
Releasing digitally on Sept. 13th for $12.99 on PS4, Xbox One, and PC (via Steam), the game will “PAC”-in several modes for solo or competitive play, all featuring flashy, energetic visuals that riff on the classic arcade game flawlessly. During my ten minute session and plenty of minutes watching people dive in and play with the same “no way!” grins on their faces on a PS4 build, it was clear as a bell that the game would be a total smash when it drops next month. The non-stop action handles like a dream using the PS4 pad, so you don’t need to fret that the game needs an arcade stick. In fact, the game handles so well that I’d bet a nickel all those moms or dads who were PAC-MAN players that don’t play many modern games, but have a console or PC in the house for the kids just might get a bit scared their kids can now keep up with them in a competitive game.
Time Attack and Adventure Mode offer up their own sets of challenges, and the while the very idea of tutorial stages to play a PAC-MAN game may seem horrifying to some stalwarts, what’s here works exceptionally well in getting everyone up to speed. New maze types and some massive boss battles in Adventure mode plus the crazy train Ghost Train stuff in the main mode will keep this one in play stacks even when the inevitable third installment arrives at some point. All I know is some of us will be taking a sick day or hoping for a rainy weekend after the game launches so we can have an excuse for staying home in our PJ’s grooving on a bit of CE2 action. Er, I’m speaking in CLEARLY hypothetical terms, of course.
As someone who owns the original PlayStation game that never completed it thanks to poor Japanese language skills (hey, I’m working on it!), I’d been hoping to get some hands-on time with the recent BitSummit demo of The Silver Case even though I didn’t go to BitSummit. Thankfully, the folks at grasshopper manufacture and publisher Playism read my mind and have decided to help me (and you) out significantly.
So, what’s this all about? Watch and learn:
1999 – the “24 Wards”. A string of mysterious serial killings plagues the city.
The detectives of the 24 Wards Heinous Crimes Unit have their eyes on one man: Kamui Uehara, legendary serial killer and assassin of a number of government officials 20 years prior in the now-famous “Silver Case”. However, nobody knows the true identity of Kamui.Has he really returned? Who is this infamous serial killer?
The player takes control of the protagonist, a member of the Special Forces Unit “Republic”, from a first-person perspective. The game takes inspiration from the adventure and novel genres, leading the player through an in-depth story in which the truth is gradually revealed as they solve various puzzles, offering a fresh and unique experience.
“The Silver Case” was the debut game from developer SUDA51, who has worked on “Flower, Sun and Rain”, “Killer 7”, the “No More Heroes” series, “Lollipop Chainsaw” and currently “LET IT DIE”. Now, “The Silver Case HD Remaster” will become the maiden work of Grasshopper Manufacture Inc., scheduled for release this Fall, 2016 on various PC distribution platforms.
The game will be fully remastered, while retaining the same atmosphere of the original 1999 game for Sony PlayStation, and the game will be fully localized into English for the first time, finally giving fans of SUDA51 worldwide the chance to enjoy “The Silver Case”.
Yeah, so color me thrilled that this is coming out and sooner than later. Feel free to download it and give it a go if you’re a fan of point & click-style adventures and keep an eye peeled for more news as to the game’s release date.
(thanks, Park Circus!)
This is beautiful news. That said, I hope that “international” re-release means we’ll see this here in North America. This is one of those films I’ve wanted to see on the big screen in a nicer print than I’ve previously seen and this trailer sure looks spectacular. We shall see. In my opinion, this is a film that needs to be bucket listed if one considers him or herself a movie lover.
Back in 2005, Russian developer Ice-Pick Lodge released Pathologic, an unsettling horror/adventure/RPG hybrid that garnered excellent reviews at home, decent to fair reviews in the west, and gathered somewhat of a “cult” following for its unusual, creative art direction, extreme difficulty and distinctly bleak tone. The game’s fan base grew with its gog.com release and subsequent 2012 HD remastering (both of which come with the purchase of the HD Classic version). With a successful Kickstarter to re-imagine the game in 2015 for PC (and possibly consoles) Pathologic’s new path has added even more fans to this weird game’s potential player base. Ahead of Gamescom, IPL has released a nice set of screenshots that show off some lovely, haunting images from the new version.
Let’s take a look now, shall we?
While gameplay videos have yet to surface, this 2014 Kickstarter video should give you an idea of what to expect. As the game has no set release date, the waiting period between information drops will no doubt keep fans begging for more. It’s a good thing there’s a board game coming to make that wait less frustrating.
Speaking of more, click below the jump for more about the game (in handy cut/paste/corrected form)…
So, there’s actually a game called Office Suicide Saga, but it’s not what you’re thinking. Unless you’re thinking correctly that it’s a game made to draw attention to abuse at the workplace. Polish developer Despair Games (go figure, right?) has their pride and joy up on Kickstarter, but it’s kind of stalled out and is in need of open-minded funders of all stripes.
Here’s a gameplay video sample to check out:
There’s also an open beta to play if you want some hands-on time as a heartless CEO, so get clicking and spend some of that bankroll helping Despair become a lot happier. I say they should try for a Steam Greenlight vote-in as well.
-GW
Remember that big news about the Nintendo-produced NES Classic Edition coming in November? Well, say hello to some actual competition. Gaming accessory manufacturer/distributor/sourcing agent Innex Inc. is planning to distribute a rather and looking quite essential cool mini console of its own called Retro-Bit Generations this year for the same $59.99 price point as Nintendo’s system, but with a much larger on board games lineup (100 titles!), two controllers, and a VERY handy SD card slot.
Check out the details below the jump. I’d never heard of Innex before today, but they just cracked my radar screen with this news. Click away here to check out their other Retro-Bit consoles. Thanks, Mika!
Developer OPQAM’s first game, Project Root was and is a pretty solid modern take on the top down arcade shooter that slowed the pace down and opened up its maps to allow for near total freedom to fly and blast enemies through some fairly lengthy missions. That game really felt like a modern take on Thunder Force II‘s top-down sections, but some critics and gamers didn’t “get” the game’s seemingly languid pacing at all, opting to call it “boring” when this wasn’t the case. To each his or her own, I suppose… but this guy thinks a lot of people got it wrong.
Still, it seems OPQAM took the brickbats to heart in creating DOGOS, its upcoming PC, PS4, and Xbox One follow up, set to land soon as another digital-only release. It’s been Greenlit on Steam and looks as if it’ll be a big hit for the Recent hands-on time with a three-mission build shows the developer has hit on a great combination of classic shmup gameplay set in an more structured open map that almost gives the game the feeling of a dungeon crawler. There’s a story here to follow about Desmond Phoenix, a lone pilot tasked with some heavy duty mission work on an enemy-packed planet, but I’ll save that for the full review later. What you need to know is the game controls like a dream so far and the go-anywhere aspect coupled with the ship maneuverability really stand out. Yes, there are bosses and mini-boss ships to face off against with players needing to shoot aerial and ground targets as they fly around each large level. While the camera is generally top-down, OPQAM notes a few cool features in the final product:
"DESTROY ALL FANBOYS!" 