August 2021

Shiisaa yaibin!

The post Series Staple Shiisaa Will Return in SMT V appeared first on Siliconera.

With over 89.04 million units sold, Switch is just 12 million units shy of eclipsing Wii (at 101 million units) to become Nintendo's most successful console venture to date. The numbers come from Nintendo's latest financial results, showing the company shipped another 4.45 million Switch units in the first quarter of this year. These numbers are down 21.7 percent from the previous year, with net sales coming in at $2.94 billion, a decline of 9.9 percent.

Nintendo's first-quarter sales last year were lifted by Animal Crossing: New Horizons, a game that sold over 10 million copies in that time. Animal Crossing: New Horizons' sales haven't slowed much, making it the second best-selling Switch game with 33.89 million units sold. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe sits in the top slot at 37.08 million units, with Super Smash bros. Ultimate ranking third at 24.77 million units, and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild in fourth with 23.20 million units.

Switch's booming numbers push it beyond the successes of Sony's PlayStation 3 (which sold 87.4 million units), and Microsoft's Xbox 360 (which sold over 80 million units). PlayStation 2 remains the top-selling console of all time with over 155 million units sold.

Square Enix reported declining net sales and operating income in its Digital Entertainment division, which houses its video game operations. ...

Surprise! Nintendo has announced a free update for Mario Golf: Super Rush, which will be available to download tomorrow.

This adds a new Ranked Match mode, a new course themed around Super Mario Odyssey's New Donk City and - honestly, best of all - Toadette.

Footage of Toadette shows her using the Super Pickax item from Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker to fire off her golf shots. She can also dash across golf courses while flinging the vegetables from Super Mario Bros. 2.

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Twitch will lower the cost of Tier 1 subscriptions in the UK from £4.99 to £3.99, starting this week.

The change is part of a wider programme to introduce local pricing relative to the cost of living and exchange rates in every region.

Under the existing pricing structure, UK subscribers were paying approximately $7 USD per sub, significantly higher than the $4.99 paid by Americans. The new price is therefore much fairer to subscribers outside the United States.

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Taito's recent Bubble Bobble revival is heading to Steam with a new Mario Maker-esque level design option.

Retitled as Bubble Bobble 4 Friends: The Baron's Workshop, this will feature all of the extra bits and pieces added as DLC to the game on Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4.

On top of that, Steam Workshop will support the new map maker mode and let you share creations with friends.

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This week on the Electronic Wireless Show podcast we discuss our favourite weapons, which I was reasonably sure we hadn't done before but as we started recording I lost that confidence... Today is a healthy mix of nonsense and actual sense, as we do chat seriously about weapons and what, for example, having a very silly gun brings to a game brand.

On the nonsense side, we discuss what our weaponsonas would be in Boyfriend Dungeon (please sent fanart of Nate the Ashtray), learn more about Matthew's tragic childhood, and have a Cavern Of Lies hosted by friend of the show Anthony Hopkins, featuring enemy of the show Ed Harris

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I am not very good at Death Trash. With effort, I have improved. Death Trash is an isometric, punky, grim RPG where you start with nothing and combat is unforgiving. You, hitherto an inhabitant of an underground city guarded by robots, are chucked into the post-apocalyptic outside world for being contaminated. What you are contaminated by, it turns out, is flesh.

If that sounds weird and unsettling, then know that this is the overall tone for Death Trash. There are piles of flesh growing out of the ground; a character suggests that maybe we are living on a planet full of meat and it's just bursting out of the soft outer shell of dirt. And the meat is, jointly and sometimes individually, sentient. One of the first beings you meet is a giant Cthulhu-esque tentacle monster made of meat. It is actually quite friendly; in fact it is lonely, and your first quest is to try and find it a pal. Death Trash!

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When I was a stupid child, I once played a round of golf in my street. It ended as you’d expect: a broken window and a very, very shouted at Craig. I was reminded of that dark, tear-filled moment of my life when I watched Golf Club: Wasteland’s brand-new trailer. It’s a game where a golfer gleefully plays a round of golf through a ruined Earth. Previously dated for August, it's now coming out on September 3rd. Sure, the world is a mess and there’s no more air left, but I’d take that over my dad screaming at me again.

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Starmancer, the space station management sim where you build a sustainable habitat for potentially belligerent astronauts, has just been released into early access. As the AI in charge of the station, you build and decorate a station, and try to keep the humans happy and alive. You can also just toss them into space, but that’s the sort of action that won’t go unnoticed.

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 Team Earth Wars had some reveals to make for its 2D side-scrolling action RPG Lost Epic, currently in early access.

A new update coming in September will bring two new worlds, The Capital and The Underworld, effectively doubling the content in the game. It’ll also add the wand and shield gauntlet as new weapons.

The game will be released in Q4, but there will still be more to come in early 2022 with post-launch content.

Here are all the details directly from the press release, plus a new trailer and an infographic displaying the roadmap.

“Adventurers can ready their weapons to explore and unlock new worlds The Capital and The Underworld in Q3 2021, doubling the current amount of content in the game. The ominous anatomical landscape of The Capital connects underground to The Underworld with multiple routes to discover and giants that can destroy buildings.

Arsenals will expand with stylish new weapons coming to the world of Sanctum in the lead up to 1.0. Equip the Shield Gauntlet, which allows players to guard without losing stamina; the Wand that inflicts status ailments with high offensive stats; and the Torch which brightens dark areas. Additional quests from new NPC’s like a frightened ghost girl in The Underworld encourage returning travelers to try out the latest additions and discover new paths.

The future holds more conquests in v1.0 with extra content updates planned for later this year including the story finale, one last new world, more weapons and skills, extra combat element types, as well as post-game content. After the full version releases, Team EARTH WARS plans to award dedicated daredevils with even more tribulating trials in post-launch content planned for early 2021.

Today, Canadian developer Studio Aurum and indie publisher SOEDESCO have announced that their upcoming retro monster-taming RPG, Monster Crown, will be launching on consoles and PC on October 12.

While the Pokémon-esque title has been in early access since July of last year on PC, this new date will mark the first full-fledged v1.0 release of the game across PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One platforms.

Specifically, if you’re wondering what Monster Crown is like, well, the elevator pitch is that it’s an 8-bit turn-based RPG that tasks players with collecting a multitude of different monsters which each boast their own unique set of skills and talents. Remind you of anything?

Of course, comparisons to Nintendo’s iconic pet-battling franchise are indeed striking, but we think that Monster Crown may have the potential to carve out its own distinct retro niche akin to other indie titles like Siralim and Monster Sanctuary.

For more information, here’s a rundown of what you can expect in Monster Crown courtesy of the game’s latest press release, as well as a new screenshot of the official box art, too:

Unravel Crown Island’s dark story as you create your own monster legacy. With a history of sadistic rulers and heroic saviors, the island faces another threat in the form of a malicious young woman seeking power. It’s up to you and the monsters you make pacts with to prevent the return of tyranny. Will your decisions make you a savior or a dark messiah?

Nintendo of America has shared on Twitter that Mario Golf: Super Rush will receive a free update later today that will add some new content to the game. This is the first major update to the game since its release.

This new update will add a mode called Ranked Match, a new course set in New Donk City, and the new playable character Toadette. Additionally, the update will add “improved motion controls” to the game.

You can read more about the new Ranked Match mode in the tweet above. If you achieve A- or higher in Ranked Matches, you will be able to unlock different colored Yoshis to play as, such as blue, red, and yellow.

Additionally, Nintendo has confirmed that there will be more updates for Mario Golf: Super Rush later this year to look forward to, so it’s possible that more characters, courses, and modes may be added as time goes on.

The latest Sonic Colors Ultimate trailer focuses on the Wisps that Sonic will meet and team up with to gain special powers.

The post Sonic Colors Ultimate Wisps Star in the Newest Trailer appeared first on Siliconera.

Prepare for trouble, and make it double!

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There's a new collection of Blue Reflection: Second Light screenshots, and they tend to focus on the game's battle system.

The post New Blue Reflection: Second Light Screenshots Show Its Fights appeared first on Siliconera.

The first free Mario Golf: Super Rush update is out and adds Toadette as a golfer, a Ranked Match mode, and a New Donk City course.

The post Mario Golf: Super Rush Update Adds Toadette and Ranked Match Mode appeared first on Siliconera.

Night School Studio is known for its graphic adventure titles - games that convey stories through environmental interactions. Moreover, witty, realistic dialogue and low-poly but vivid art is used effectively in past projects like Oxenfree and Afterparty. A few months ago, Night School Studio unveiled the sequel to the former game (Oxenfree) and a set platform: Nintendo Switch. Today, Oxenfree II: Lost Signals got a PlayStation launch announcement as well. You can watch the trailer below.

The first Oxenfree follows a ragtag crew of angsty teenagers traveling to an abandoned island for a weekend party. Horror ensures when protagonist Alex inadvertently activates a dimensional rift that leads to a bevy of supernatural occurrences and ghostly sightings. Players use a handheld radio to solve puzzles and mysteries while also talking to their companions with branching dialogue options. Kim Wallace reviewed Oxenfree for Game Informer and deemed it a 7.75 experience:

Bad puns aside, the latest controller creation from Pope Art looks like the perfect grab for any Halo fan. This Xbox Series X wireless controller is designed with the beloved weapon in mind and dons a familiar purple theme with a grey backdrop, translucent blue buttons, and the telltale pink-hued needles themselves. 

The Halo Needler controller comes by the one and only Pope Art. Pope began his creative journey by crafting expertly designed controllers and console skins modeled after some of our favorite games. It didn't take long before his talent caught the eye of many in the games industry, leading to some impressive collaborations with some of the biggest names in the business. That includes the exclusive Claptrap-themed Borderlands 3-inspired Xbox Series X console design that the artist collaborated with Gearbox on. But we're not here to talk about Borderlands; let's dive into that Halo Needler love: 

Click image thumbnails to view larger version

Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the creators of South Park, have just signed a whopping $900 million deal with ViacomCBS, and a new report says that part of that investment is being put towards a brand new South Park game. 

As reported by Bloomberg, Parker and Stone have signed on to create more episodes of the hit comedy TV series for Comedy Central and "several spinoff movies" for Paramount+, a streaming service under the Viacom umbrella. Earlier this year, both Parker and Stone solidified a $600 million credit with HP Investment Partners LLC, a company that confirmed that South Park's library is worth an estimated one billion dollars. Because of that, there are several other South Park-related projects in the works. 

Many of you logged well over 100 hours into Assassin's Creed Origins and got to know protagonist Bayek of Siwa quite well as he took on the Templars in Ptolemic-era Egypt. Sideshow Collectibles is bringing this popular lead back in a high-end statue limited to just 1,500 units.

Fatal Fame producer Keisuke Kikuchi mentioned recently that a possible sequel could be coming down the pipeline following the positive reception seen with the Maiden of Black Water re-release. Depending on how well the re-release performs in sales, he mentioned that he "would love" to tackle a sequel if that's what gamers want. 

The re-release of Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water is poised to make its debut later this year, just before the holiday season commences. In an interview with the Japanese site Famitsu, Kikuchi responded to whether or not a new entry could be something fans can expect. He replied, saying, "That's what I'm hoping, we're releasing this game to commemorate the series' 20th anniversary. We're hopeful a lot of fans will take the opportunity to play the game." He added, "We'd love this to lead to a new title."

Fatal Frame has always been a beloved horror experience on the PlayStation console. With the re-release also launching on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5, that franchise love is about to see a reawakening. Hearing that this new wave of horror appreciation could lead to a new game is exciting, especially since it's nearly been 16 years since the initial release of Black Water. 

Splitgate, a free-to-play arena shooter that bills itself as a mix between Halo and Portal, is having a moment. You might even be able to play it now.

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Nintendo’s Super Star isn’t the bright and shiny New Pokémon Snap or even the juggernaut that is Animal Crossing: New Horizons. No, well into the Nintendo Switch’s lifespan in the year 2021, it’s Mario Kart 8 that takes the lead.

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UPDATE 6/8/21: Pokémon Go developer Niantic has responded to yesterday's community-wide outcry over its removal of the game's extended interaction distance in the US and New Zealand.

Niantic's lengthy blog acknowledges the community's concerns, but again underlines just how important the removal of extended interaction distance seems to be to the company. Even in the face of enormous community pressure, there is no quick U-turn here.

However, Niantic has said it will, with a bit of time, look further into the matter with an internal team and community leaders - with findings to be shared by the game's next season change on 1st September.

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There's a new Apex Legend in town, but Seer might be bringing a little too much firepower to the table - as Apex Legends players are complaining that his abilities are too powerful. Some are even comparing his abilities to "wallhacks", and many are calling for the character to be nerfed.

Over on the Apex Legends subreddit, complaints are piling in about how Seer's abilities stack up to give him too much of an advantage in combat. Many of these complaints are centred on Seer's microdrones - and the fact they're seemingly the Swiss army knife of Legend abilities. Not only does the tactical ability do damage, it also reveals enemy locations (including health bars) and interrupts actions such as healing.

While Seer's tactical does take some time to travel, players have found that it has a surprisingly large hitbox, as you can see from the experiment below... and the poor soul hiding inside a building who got caught out by the ability. It's also a seemingly unstoppable force that can go through mountains.

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The sweet, camping exploration game Haven Park is out today, and takes inspiration from the equally charming indie title A Short Hike by Adam Robinson-Yu, and also from Nintendo's popular villager hoarder Animal Crossing. Haven Park hopes to make us love the outdoors again despite the state of things - at least by the looks of its screenshots and gameplay videos. Like any successful game, you play as a bird named Flint, exploring the park around you. The soundtrack fits the gameplay shown in its trailer quite nicely, and reminded me of the work Natureboy Flako did producing the futuristic, chill sounds of indie explorer Stonefly.

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Vasilisa was raised by her grandfather to be a knower, a kind of wise woman. When her fiancé unexpectedly dies by suicide — being buried in unhallowed ground as a result — she crosses the line from theoretical knowledge to practise, and steps into Hell to become a koldun, a witch. Legend states if she breaks all seven seals on her mentor's black book, her wish to retrieve her betrothed from Hell will be granted. And that’s how Black Book begins: on one of the worst days of Vasilisa’s life.

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Just last week, I reported on a leak that hinted at a new zombie-specific game mode coming to Playerunknown's Battlegrounds. Well they’re herrrrrrre. PUBG Labs, where the designers explore ideas without breaking the main game, has just added a time-limited 'Zombie Survival' game mode today. That name is very on the nose. It’s a PvE horde mode against waves of the undead. And they are nude.

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Today the French games publisher and developer, Focus Home Interactive, announced that they have acquired fellow French developer Dotemu.

Over the last few years, Dotemu has become a well-known and well-respected name within the gaming industry. It has shown a knack for working on well-established and popular franchises with care and achieving results. It recently worked on Final Fantasy VIII Remastered alongside Square Enix, helped create the multiplayer for the re-release of Windjammers, and revived the long-dormant Streets of Rage franchise to great success.

With several RTS franchises both new and returning coming to PC, fans of the genre are enjoying somewhat of a resurgence at the moment. As ever, though, console players always get the short end of the stick — except in the case of King Art Games’ acclaimed Iron Harvest, that is.

After having already launched on PC, the developer is busy at work honing its console versions, which were delayed from the original release date last year. Today, a new teaser trailer gives us a sneak peek of its performance, as well as confirming PS5 and Xbox Series X versions. And from the looks of it, things are progressing nicely.

A handy YouTube synopsis offers us a quick breakdown of some key details:

Earlier today, Playstation revealed that the hit 2019 PC indie game, A Short Hike, would finally be heading to its platform, as it is set to release on PS4 this fall. As you can see in the announcement trailer below, the game is simple, yet gorgeous, as players must help guide the protagonist, Claire, to the top of the mountain she finds herself hiking around.

In this short but sweet adventure, you’ll glide hike, climb, and glide your way across the peaceful mountainside landscapes of Hawk Peak Provincial Park, following marked trails and exploring backcountry as you guide Claire to the summit.

As players continue further up, they’ll meet other hikers, discover hidden treasures, and a lot more fun stuff that helps mold the world around Claire. The game’s official description describes the game in the following way.

Today Eidos Montreal released a new trailer and a developer commentary video for the upcoming Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy.

The video introduces Lady Hellbender, who appears to be ready to play rival to Lady Dimitrescu. She certainly seems to have some chemistry with Drax the Destroyer.

The developer commentary video also provides a deeper look into what we can expect from her.

You can check both videos out below, alongside an official description for the characters.

Just when I thought I was done with my Pokémon-snapping safari, Nintendo and The Pokémon Company pull me back in. This past week saw the unexpected but much-welcomed addition of free DLC to expand the already robust New Pokémon Snap package.

New Pokémon Snap’s DLC includes three new areas with day and night variants, at least 20 Pokémon that are new to the game (such as Tepig, Rockruff, Crustle, Shroomish, Gyrados, and Snorlax, to name but a handful), as well as several quality of life improvements to make a satisfying safari even more enjoyable.

My previous experience with New Pokémon Snap back in April saw me enjoying my time with the game, going through all of the courses, all of the variants, and doing my best to complete both my Photodex and as many of the requests given to me by Todd, Rita, and Phil. The latter has been made much easier and less of a headache due to one of the previously mentioned quality of life improvements.

For example, when you take a picture that fulfills the requirements of a given request, after your expedition, and when you’re selecting which photos you took to present to Professor Mirror, the photo will have a special icon in its corner.

No more guessing which photo may or may not have fulfilled those tricky and often pesky requests of catching Pokémon on film only to be disappointed when the photo did not turn out well enough to satisfy the request. This was originally my biggest issue with New Pokémon Snap (in fact, the problem was so common that we here at Twinfinite even have a guide made for requests not registering), and this issue being remedied is tremendous news.

Earlier this week, the Star Wars Redemption fan project revealed a full trailer alongside a demo. As you can see in the video below, the idea has come a long way since its original inception, bringing Game Artist Etienne Beschet’s idea of a Clone War Jedi to life.

In a post dedicated to the launch of the trailer and demo, Beschet went on to explain their plans for the Unreal Engine 4 Star Wars project, which we’ve summarized for you down below.

“Star Wars – Redemption” is the temporary title I’ve found for a fanmade project inspired mostly by the Clone Wars TV series and, of course, Star Wars universe. At the beginning it was just about a Jedi in a clone outfit and the more I spend time on it, the more new stuff is added to this base concept. I’ll add all things about it here, it’s the project’s main page. But you may see individual assets on separated projects if you want.

As it’s a fan project I don’t spend the time I’d want on it, the evolution will be chaotic in terms of regularity. The project may take place between Ep2 & Ep5 or more, I’m not done yet with the story. I work on it with Thomas Chaumel who is the animator behind most of the moving characters & objects in Redemption.

Today Izanagi Games released another trailer of its upcoming escape game/bullet hell shoot ’em up hybrid Yurukill: The Calumniation Games.

The trailer introduces Binko, who appears to be basically this game’s version of Monokuma.

She is voiced by Yuu Kobayashi, well known for voicing Luka Urushibara in Steins;Gate, Lucina in Fire Emblem Fates, Darli Dagger in Samurai Shodown, Katsuragi in the Senran Kagura series, and many more.

This follows previous trailers that introduced the hero, Sengoku Shunju and the heroine, Rina Azami.

The game is written by Homura Kawamoto, whom you may know for creating Kakegurui – Compulsive Gambler, and by his younger brother, Hikaru Muno.

You can check out the trailer below, alongside an official description for the character. Incidentally, you can activate English subtitles with the CC button.

Arkane Studios and Bethesda’s upcoming time-looping action game, Deathloop, has gone gold according to the game’s official Twitter.

Announced back at E3 2019, Deathloop has followed a relatively stable path towards release. Although it was hit with a delay, considering that a pandemic unfolded between its announcement and its soon-to-be release, the team appears to have done a good job keeping Deathloop more or less on schedule.

Despite it being known by the gaming community for a couple of years now, we still don’t know a ton about Deathloop. The most we have been able to glean about the game is from a preview event back in May of this year.

A lot of Deathloop seems to be centered around a need to explore and experiment within loops to try and come up with new strategies and clues to help you break out of them, with details such as which time of day you approach missions leading to some different events.

Atlus has released another gameplay trailer focusing on the over 200+ demons of its upcoming JRPG Shin Megami Tensei V.

The demon showcased today is Shiisaa, going back to demons that have been around for a long time after a stint showing new and semi-new ones.

The Monster Crown Switch, PS4, Xbox One, and PC versions will officially launch in October 2021, with physical console copies available.

The post Monster Crown Switch, PS4, and Xbox One Ports Arrive in October appeared first on Siliconera.

Beware the Brainwasher.

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