June 2023

Thirsty Suitors will be released on PlayStation, Xbox (including Xbox Game Pass), Switch, and PC on November 2, it's been revealed. 

This news comes by way of today's Annapurna Interactive Showcase, where developer Outerloop Games released a new trailer showing off more of what to expect in this RPG that's one part a skateboarding game, another part a cooking game, and always a game about confronting your exes and parents. It looks great – we quite enjoyed playing it recently during Summer Game Fest 2023 – and you can check it out for yourself below in the newest Thirsty Suitors trailer: 

As you can see, players take on the role of protagonist Jala, who, after a bad breakup, returns to her hometown. There, she must confront her exes and try to reconcile with them, please her tough-to-please parents, and mend broken friendships in time for her sister's wedding. To do all that, Jala will skateboard, take part in turn-based combat seemingly inspired by Persona and Pokémon, cook meals with her parents, and more. 

Thirsty Suitors hits PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC via Steam on November 2. 

Are you going to check out Thirsty Suitors this November? Let us know in the comments below!

Stray was first revealed by publisher Annapurna Interactive and developer Blue Twelve years ago, at the same event where the PlayStation 5 was revealed. It finally hit PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4 last year alongside a PC release, and in two months, it's finally coming to Xbox. 

Stray will launch on Xbox Series X/S and Xbox One on August 10. This was revealed with a very cute new trailer starring the stray cat that gives the game its namesake, and you can check it out for yourself below: 

We enjoyed Stray last year, giving it an 8 out of 10 in our review, which you can read here. 

Are you going to play Stray on Xbox this August? Let us know in the comments below!

Cocoon will be released this September. 

More specifically, the upcoming sci-fi adventure game from Jeppe Carlsen, the lead gameplay designer of Playdead's Limbo and Inside, hits PlayStation, Xbox, Switch, and PC on September 29. I recently played Cocoon during Summer Game Fest 2023 and came away extremely impressed (read about why here). In the game, you control a small beetle-like creature as you traverse through a mysterious alien world using strange orbs that they themselves are worlds you can dive into. 

Check out Cocoon in action in the trailer below: 

As you can see, Cocoon continues to look great and now we know we don't have to wait too much longer to play it. 

Cocoon hits PlayStation, Xbox (including a day one launch on Xbox Game Pass), Switch, and PC via Steam on September 29. 

Are you diving into Cocoon this September? Let us know in the comments below!

Elden Ring may be a tough open-world RPG that requires precise timing and ongoing dedication, but the enemies don’t scale in difficulty with you. So if your progress ever hits a wall, it’s technically possible to take the easy way out and simply grind your character into having better stats than whatever challenge is…

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Would you buy an expensive console just for one video game? Probably not. However, according to Sony, about 1 million PlayStation owners only play Call of Duty. That’s it. Nothing else.

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BlizzCon 2023, a massive celebration of Blizzard games like Overwatch, World of Warcraft, and Diablo is back in-person for the first time in four years, and offering two very different paths to enjoy the ceremonies. For the first time ever, you can watch the livestream in its entirety for free, but if you want to go…

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Steam's summer sale is live now and will run until July 13th. As always, there are discounts across all kinds of games, including 30% off Elden Ring, 70% off Need For Speed Unbound and 40% off Valheim. Of particular note: there's also up to 20% off the Steam Deck.

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Just when it looked like we might be done with the showcases for the summer, here comes another one, this time from the ever-reliable Annapurna Interactive. And it was a typically strong showing for the publisher, offering a fresh look at some already announced titles - including the new one from Sayonara Wild Hearts' studio Simogo and the fascinating Cocoon - as well as some big reveals. From stunning photographic adventures to an honest-to-goodness new Blade Runner game, there's a lot to look forward to in the months and year ahead, and a full round-up of the showcase can be found below.

Lorelei and the Laser Eyes

Sayonara Wild Hearts developer Simogo's latest is a baroque blend of surreal mystery thriller and puzzle adenture, faintly bringing to mind the studio's iOS classic Device 6. It focuses on a woman's search for answers, deep in a strange manor house, as players attempt to solve the enigma at its heart. There's no release date yet, but we do it's coming to Switch and Steam - and while we await further details, there's a tantilising new trailer above.

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A new trailer for Sword Art Online: Last Recollection shows all of the game-original characters from the past who will show up in this entry. These characters are not from the light novel or the anime. Instead, they were exclusive to various Sword Art Online console titles. However, they’ll reappear once again as playable characters in Last Recollection.

In the trailer, all of the characters show up with a voice line. You can also see a little bit of them in action behind them. All of the voice actors will reprise their roles for Sword Art Online: Last  Recollection. The characters in this trailer are:

• Itsuki
• Kureha
• Medina
• Philia
• Premiere
• Rain
• Seven
• Strea
• Tia
• Zeliska

You can watch the trailer for the game-original characters in Sword Art Online: Last Recollection here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43rvazYGNak

The very Sword Art Online video game, Infinity Moment, came out in 2013. Since then, there have been five more games in the series. Most of these characters have only appeared in their respective games until Last Recollection assembled them all together. It’s unclear if they’ll play in the exact same way as they did in their original games, or if Last Recollection will switch things up.

The third teaser trailer for Fate/strange Fake -Whispers of Dawn- focuses on Caster and his Master. Francesca Prelati also makes an appearance, though the teaser does not go into detail as to what kind of role she’ll have in the Snowfield Holy Grail Wars. Like the other trailers, you can watch it on Aniplex’s YouTube account.

While Caster’s Master, Orlando Reeve, has a very serious personality, his Servant, Caster, is a lot more boisterous. Similar to Shakespeare, who was a Caster in the Fate/Apocrypha Grail War, he’s more interested in observing the fates of those participating in the War rather than participating himself. Francesca only has a very short appearance in the trailer. So those who are unfamiliar with the source material may be unclear of her plot significance from watching it.

You can watch the Caster teaser for Fate/strange Fake -Whispers of Dawn- here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpFtWCQrLuk

Wataru Hatano will voice Orlando, and Showtaro Morikubo will voice Caster. Hatano has previously appeared as Gaku in IDOLiSH7 and Gajeel in Fairy Tail. Morikubo’s past roles include Shikamaru in Naruto and Yosuke in Persona 4. As for Francesca, Maaya Uchida will voice her. Uchida also voices Hiyori in Noragami and Angel Devil in Chainsaw Man.

Nendoroids of The Knight and Hornet from Hollow Knight are now available to pre-order. Previously shown off at Good Smile Company's WonHobbyG 2023, both characters will cost $43.99 or ¥6,400 each. They will ship in either November 2023 for Japanese store orders or Q1 2024 for orders from the US store.

The Knight Nendoroid comes with 2 cloaks, its signature Nail weapon, a stand and several optional parts for different poses. The Knight's Knightling companion is also included and comes with its own base. The Hornet also comes with 2 cloaks as well as her Needle weapon, a cogfly companion, and several parts to facilitate additional poses. Pre-orders from either of the Good Smile Company online shops will include a bonus, which is a special round base with the game's name or a set of hands and signs.

You can get a look at the Nendoroids in the gallery below:

[gallery ids="970885,970886,970887,970888,970889,970890" link="file"]

Originally launching in 2017, Hollow Knight is an action platformer set in a ruined insect kingdom. A sequel, Silksong, was announced back in 2019 and planned for an early 2023 release, but developers Team Cherry Games have since announced a delay.

A new promotional website appeared ahead of the launch of Netflix's live-action One Piece adaptation. The site currently allows fans to download phone-screen wallpapers and sign up for a newsletter with the promise of an early look at the new show. The idea is to "sign up" to join the One Piece Straw Hat Grand Fleet.

The site currently shows a board filled with notices from the World Government faction, attempting to ward off any potential pirate attacks. Posted on top of the notices are two clickable posters recruiting for the One Piece Straw Hat Grand Fleet, which link to the sign-up page for the series newsletter and a downloads page currently hosting three phone wallpapers. The newsletter page promises that signing up could get you invited to an early screening of the series itself.

Scheduled for release on August 31, 2023, the One Piece live-action series has the cooperation of creator Eiichiro Oda and counts among its cast Iñaki Godoy as Monkey D. Luffy, Emily Rudd as Nami, and Mackenyu as Roronoa Zoro. Those wanting to dive into the franchise ahead of the launch of the Netflix series can check out our guide on how to read and watch the manga, anime and movies.

Dear reader, I hope you’re in the mood to possibly suss out artificial humans from real ones, because there’s a new Blade Runner game on the way from Annapurna Interactive. Blade Runner 2033: Labyrinth will be the first game in the series since 1997’s Blade Runner on PC, and it will also be Annapurna Interactive’s…

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During Annapurna Interactive Showcase on Thursday, we got a look at Katamari Damacy creator Keita Takahashi’s fun-looking new puzzle game about a child perpetually stuck in a T-pose.

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If you want more visuals from gaming’s very own Loch Ness Monster, that of course being the followup to Half-Life 2: Episode Two, I have some good news for you. Following DidYouKnowGaming’s recent video on canceled Valve games, the YouTuber has released a huge collection of high-resolution concept art that was…

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During tonight's Annapurna Interactive Showcase, we got another lovely look at Flock, the latest game from Wilmot's Warehouse and I Am Dead devs Hollow Ponds and Richard Hogg. In it, we get to see exactly how its adorable creature herding works in co-op, which you'd probably hope to see, given its own Steam page also describes it as a co-op multiplayer game. But rest assured, Flock is still very much a game you can play on your own, without the need to have a pal along for the ride, the devs tell me.

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Annapurna Interactive have announced their first internally developed game at their publishing showcase this evening, and it's an all-new Blade Runner game. Exciting! It's called Blade Runner 2033: Labyrinth, and it's set "squarely between" the original Blade Runner film and its more recent sequel, Blade Runner 2049, say Annapurna. The reveal trailer doesn't give too much away at this stage, but I'm getting very big Her Story and Immortality vibes from it. Come and have a gander below.

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Tonight's Annapurna Interactive Showcase brought us 30 minutes of fresh game announcements, putting a lovely (and hopefully final) full stop on this year's notE3 / Summer Game Fest period. While most of the announcements were updates on games we already knew about, there are a couple of cool new things in there that I'm personally quite pumped for, including a new Blade Runner game being developed internally at Annapurna Interactive, a new Keita Takahashi joint about a kid stuck in a T-pose of all things, and a new ghostly biking game from the team behind Nidhogg. I'd highly recommend watching the showcase in full if you can, but in case you need a quick refresher of what happened, or are just short on time, we've rounded up every announcement in order below.

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The Danganronpa franchise, spearheaded by creator Kazutaka Kodaka, has endured an afterlife far beyond its humble origins as a PSP murder investigation and school life simulator run by a maniacal two-tone bear. It shows what good writing and character design can get you. Characters like Junko Enoshima are perhaps more recognisable today for their place in TikTok cosplay circles and Tumblr discussions than for the games they came from.

The power of online fandom is intertwined with Danganronpa’s legacy, where even minor characters are beloved and memorable because of how clearly-defined their personalities and motives are from visuals alone. As a result, a dedicated fan base latched onto the game’s unique psycho-philosophical clash of hope and despair. Even now he’s left the series behind to found Too Kyo games with his good friend, and fellow cult creator, Kotaro Uchikoshi, experiences like Death Come True and World’s End Club, while of mixed quality, retain Kodaka signature violent rumination on justice.

Still, as those are smaller experiences, it’s hard not to view Master Detective Archives: Rain Code as the return of Kodaka, his first major release since the end of the Danganronpa trilogy in 2017. Rather than throwing a bunch of unhinged schoolkids into a tightly-controlled environment where their only means of escape is the successful murder of their friends, we're in for a fantasy-mystery adventure. This is a game that blends Ace Attorney’s investigative intrigue with Persona-esque Mystery Labyrinths, all channeled through the stylistic filter of the creator’s iconic hit franchise.

When we were first introduced to Pioneers of Pagonia, a new city builder from original The Settlers designer Volker Wertich, earlier this year, there wasn't much to go on beyond a brief description and a teaser video. Now, though, with its early access release steadily drawing nearer, we've been given a first proper look at the thing via a new in-game trailer.

Pioneers of Pagonia, to get the fundamentals out the way, sets players loose on the titular (and procedurally generated) islands of Pagonia with the goal of establishing a presence through production, economic expansion, and exploration, making use of the resources they uncover - and the alliances they forge with Pagonia's not always friendly inhabitants - along the way.

40 different building types have also been promised for Pioneers of Pagonia's Steam early access launch, along with more than 70 different goods and dispersed production chains. A co-op mode is also planned, meaning you'll be able to be a ruinous blight on the land (or otherwise, I suppose) with a friend in tow.

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As we clomp stompily toward RoboCop: Rogue City's September release, like some, oh, I don't know, machine-augmented crime fighter, developer Teyon and publisher Nacon have announced a closed playtest is happening next week.

RoboCop: Rogue City - which is build around an "original story" set between RoboCop 2 and 3 - looks to land somewhere between a first-person shooter and cybernetically enhanced detective adventure, whisking players to the rain-slicked streets of Old Detroit to solve crimes, slay baddies, and perhaps even turn a few wrong 'uns into goo.

"Explore open areas and complete your objectives according to your own sense of justice," explains Teyon. "Finding evidence, interrogation and maintaining public order are just some of your daily tasks as a police officer. But don't take decisions lightly: your choices can determine the fate of citizens and the result of your mission."

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Following a video clip for Claude, there's a new Star Ocean The Second Story R Rena teaser showing gameplay too. This footage follows the same approach. First, the new character art and sprite appear. Then, we see some in-game scenes. That’s followed by gameplay footage of Rena in a fight.

Here’s the full Star Ocean The Second Story R Rena trailer. It begins after she found Claude in the Expel forests. After that, we see her talking to Dias and convincing him to join the party and fight alongside her. From there, we get to see her in battle. In the first snippet, she uses the symbology spell Faerie Light to heal herself. After that, she performs Star Flare. The entire video also shows off her English voice acting.

Rena Lanford has the ability to use the symbolic arts and mysterious healing powers.

One day while exploring the forest, she was rescued by Claude from a monster attack and now thinks he is the hero of myth who bears a Sword of Light in #StarOcean The Second Story R. pic.twitter.com/RrKN0sZryG

— STAR OCEAN (@StarOcean) June 29, 2023

Dengeki Bunko uploaded a new key visual and trailer for the 2024 version of Spice and Wolf. It is not a sequel to the original anime. Rather, it will adapt the story from the beginning again. The full title of the 2024 version is Spice and Wolf: Merchant Meets the Wise Wolf.

The new key visual has us looking up at Lawrence and Holo from a pile of apples. The title of the show is at the bottom. It’s unclear at this point what major differences there will be between the 2024 version and the original adaptation. However, since the anime only covered a small portion of the light novel, this series might cover events from later volumes.

You can watch the first trailer for Spice and Wolf: Merchant Meets the Wise Wolf here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DuWQOwwI9z4

Jun Fukuyama and Ami Koshimizu will reprise their roles as Lawrence and Holo respectively. Other roles Fukuyama has portrayed include Joker from Persona 5 and Lelouch from Code Geass. As for Koshimizu, she has previously played Kallen in Code Geass and Yukiko from Persona 4.

2023 is continuing to be a weird one as Epic revealed that the bus from its free-to-play battle royale super-hit Fortnite is actually a Transformer.

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Larian Studios has once again addressed the Xbox version of its upcoming RPG Baldur's Gate 3, confirming that while it's still in the work, the developer may ultimately be forced to make "compromises" in order to release on the platform.

Larian's struggles with Baldur's Gate 3 on Xbox first surfaced in February, when - amid fan fears the game was a PlayStation console exclusive - the studio confirmed it was working on an Xbox version but that it had "run into some technical issues - particularly with split-screen co-op."

In a statement provided to Digital Foundry shortly after, Larian explained its decision not to formally announced an Xbox release was more specifically down to issues it was having getting "split-screen co-op to work to the same standard on both Xbox Series X and S". And now, in an interview with IGN, studio founder and creative director Swen Vincke has shared more.

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This is Ghost Bike, a new game announced earlier today. It’s being developed by Messhof (Nidhogg), and will be published by Annapurna. As the headline says, I think it’s important we all sit down and watch this.

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The MCM London Comic Con is held twice a year, but for this gallery we’ll be looking at the most recent event, which went down in late May. Held at the ExCeL London convention centre, it drew a ton of cosplayers, and we’ll be featuring some of our favourites in this gallery.

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I would rather not liken Master Detective Archives: Rain Code to the games its creative team is best known for, but I can’t help it when Spike Chunsoft and Too Kyo Games’ latest murder mystery sure does invite the comparison. Like Danganronpa before it, Rain Code is a murder mystery from the mind of Kazutaka Kodaka,…

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Over a decade on from its Nintendo DS release, there's still nothing quite like Ghost Trick. In this smart murder mystery detective game from the creator of Ace Attorney, you play the recently deceased amnesiac Sissel as he attempts to piece together his own demise. Who killed him? And why? And what's the deal with these newfound powers he has to turn back time and manipulate inanimate objects in his vicinity? That definitely wasn't in the ghostbusting 101 manual. Alas, he doesn't have long to find out, as he'll cross over to the afterlife in the morning. Thus begins a frantic night of whodunnit puzzling at its finest, with director Shu Takumi showing us exactly what he's made of outside the courtroom dramas he built his name on.

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