Rock, Paper, Shotgun

Everyone loves a robot companion, from Half-Life’s Dog to the plethora of Star Wars droids that are so cute they generate millions in merchandising. That’s why I’m intrigued by Plasma, a spacey physics-driven engineering game that lets players build a variety of robot friendos, useful machines, and generally wild contraptions. Plasma comes from Patrick Corrieri and Marco Bancale, who have previously worked on the Poly Bridge series and the tense Kingdom games. Their new creative engineering sim is heading into early access on March 30th, and I can’t wait to see what people make.

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There are plenty of great games based on books, but I’ve never seen an adaptation as unconventional as The Forest Cathedral, a dramatic reimagining of Rachel Carson’s science book from the ‘60s, Silent Spring. Carson’s book investigated the pesticide known as DDT, its harmful environmental impacts, and the misinformation that allowed companies to indiscriminately use it. The Forest Cathedral reimagines this series of events as partly a first-person walking sim across the woods and partly a 2D platformer set inside scanning equipment. So, yeah, not exactly a one-to-one adaptation.

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Publisher Paradox Interactive are preparing to announce three new games and four expansions at their Paradox Announcement Show airing next week - an announcement of an announcement if you like. The Paradox Announcement show will go live at 6pm CET/ 5pm GMT/ 9am PT on March 6th and you can catch the show on Paradox's official YouTube and Twitch channels.

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Aside from the newly added PvP colosseums, Elden Ring has been relatively quiet after selling a gazillion copies and winning every game of the year award in existence (except for the coveted RPS one.) Fans have been clamouring for DLC and you’d expect a big expansion announcement to coincide with the game’s first anniversary - February 25th - but developer FromSoftware chose to celebrate the mega-RPG’s birthday three days later - this morning. In a Twitter post, FromSoftware announced Elden Ring’s first expansion called Shadow Of The Erdtree.

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With the new Ryzen 7000X3D processors arriving today, it's perhaps not surprising to see last-gen models reaching new price lows. That's the case for the Ryzen 5700X, one of the fastest eight-core Ryzen CPUs ever made (behind the 7700X, 5800X and 5800X3D) and now firmly a member of the sub-£200 club. In fact, this processor is down to £177 at Amazon UK at present, meaning it's rapidly approaching half of its £329 UK RRP.

Yes, I know the CPU pictured is the 5800X. Please don't tell anyone! I didn't think you'd look at it that closely.

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Buying American imports on Amazon UK is one of the best ways to get a steep discount without resorting to lesser-known sellers, and occasionally you find a deal that is streets ahead of the nearest comparable price in Blighty. That's the case with this deal, where you can pick up Lexar's NS100 SATA SSD in a beautiful 1TB capacity for just £46.

That's a super low price for what is by all accounts quite a reasonable drive, with read speeds up to 550MB/s, write speeds up to 500MB/s, TLC NAND flash memory and a DRAM-less design.

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I’m not enough of a survivalist log-lugger for Sons of the Forest to be my leisure time bag, though it’s always entertaining to performance-test a PC game that’s constantly trying to kill you. This analysis and settings guide, then, is brought to you the ragged nerves of someone that’s spent several hours being screamed at by camouflaged cannibals, having only survived long enough to hear them by consuming several tins of cat food. Honestly, I am more cat food than man at this point.

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Oh no, poor Kerbal Space Program 2. The extremely anticipated sequel to everyone’s favourite rocket-building space exploration game is a hot mess. A list of bugs longer than a Saturn V reads like a terrible medical diagnosis: quivering periapsis, unpredictable methane leakage, late-stage separation anxiety, loose payloads, non-stop burning, and sensitive nodes.

The developers, smiling bravely in circumstances presumably beyond their control, describe the launch as like dropping a kid off for their first day at school. Well the kid forgot their lunchbox, their uniform, their books and their pencil case. They showed up at the wrong school, on a Saturday during half-term. If you were stranded on a desert island and had to recreate Kerbal Space Program from memory using nothing but coconuts and string, it would look something like Kerbal Space Program 2. The game is nowhere approaching finished, it barely resembles the promotional videos, and it isn’t ready, even by Early Access standards.

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Most JRPG fans on PC probably know Hironobu Sakaguchi as the creator and grandaddy of the Final Fantasy series. After he left Square Enix in 2003, Sakaguchi opened his own studio and worked on turn-based adventures like Blue Dragon and Lost Odyssey - games that arguably matched his genre-defining classics - but PC gamers have been largely unable to experience them, until now. Maybe. Sakaguchi recently took part in a Q&A (reported by IGN Japan, translated by VGC) where he expressed the desire to bring his Apple Arcade exclusive Fantasian to PC.

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Retro action-platformer Berserk Boy was first announced in the ancient year of 2021 and its reveal caught many fans (and me) off guard with how unbelievably rad it looked. After ten months of radio silence, the devs have finally released another trailer and launched a second Steam page - thankfully, the game still seems just as cool.

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As previewed by Alice Bee, The Outer Worlds: Spacer’s Choice Edition doesn’t simply bundle up Obsidian’s spacefaring RPG with its DLC expansions. It’s also an unexpected remaster, redoing and fine-tuning everything from companion AI and facial animations to weather effects and dynamic lighting. It’s an enticing prospect for a game that never previously counted visuals as its strong suit, though there will be a catch: the Spacer’s Choice Edition will have significantly higher PC system requirements than the 2019 original.

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Late last year game voted Most Likely To Make Me Accidentally Say The Name Of A Different Game and neo-old-school space RPG The Outer Worlds was rated for a mysterious Spacer's Choice Edition. Obsidian are now ready to officially reveal said wash and brush up, which is coming next week on March 7th, and bundles both DLCs for the game with remaster-y improvements to AI, VFX and technical art. To mark the occasion I got to chat with co-directors Leonard Boyarsky and Tim Cain, and producer Eric DeMilt, all of whom who made games that are stastistically likely to number among your favourites - especially if you like RPGs.

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I spent some time with Crime Boss: Rockay City, the upcoming Payday-esque heist FPS that sees you tackle crime and murder in either singleplayer or co-op, all with nostalgia hits from characters played by Michael Madsen and Vanilla Ice. What's happened here is: I've come away with thoughts, but they're thoughts on one of three modes that's the least useful one to have thoughts on. The other two - the bulk of the game - weren't playable. Still, what I did play was simplistic fun that valued chaos over stealth, with middling results. Unless the other two modes wrap up its action in more interesting ways, I'm unsure whether I can see Crime Boss racking up the cash when it releases next month.

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Every weekend, indie devs show off current work on Twitter's #screenshotsaturday tag. And every Monday, I bring you a selection of these snaps and clips. This week, my eye has been caught by mech battles, Japanese horror, colourful farming, a hand-drawn horror game in the Doom engine, and plenty more. Come look!

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Halo Infinite has been in an extended slump since its second season began 10-months ago, but 343 Industries are hoping to turn things around when Season 3: Echoes Within starts next week on March 7th. Echoes Within is undeniably the biggest update to Infinite since launch, as it’s adding new maps, weapons and equipment, and expanding the multiplayer’s narrative - which has been a series of perpetual teases so far.

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Sundays are for ordering a Steam Deck and getting quite excited about its arrival. Before you track its delivery, let's read this week's best writing about games (and game related things).

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Blood Bowl 3 released this past week to a reception from players as brutal as one of its matches. As its Steam reviews sit at the 'mostly negative' mark, developers Cyanide have posted a response aimed at "addressing the main topics of discussion".

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The Dead Space remake was well received by players whether old or new to the scifi horror slice 'em up. EA are seemingly now asking a handful of players if they would therefore like the same remake treatment applied to Dead Space 2 and 3.

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I think the headline I wrote is true. But I think it would also be true if it read, "If you sort-of liked but were also hugely frustrated by The Ascent, similar isometric cyberpunk shooter SlavicPunk: Oldtimer could offer a salve to your gripes." Bit long, though, as titles go. Watch the trailer below.

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The Sims 4's will add infants in a free update on March 14th, but just two days later the Growing Together expansion will arrive. It aims to expand lifetime milestones for more than just children, as well as adding new complexity to relationship dynamics. You'll find a trailer explaining exactly how it all works below.

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First, snowdrops. Then crocuses. Now, daffodils. You know, I had always appreciated council budgets including spring bulbs to make places pretty, but it's only this dismal winter that I truly realise the mental health bonuses of this. Spring is coming, they tell everyone by poking up in parks and on roundabouts, hold on just a little longer. But what are you playing this weekend? Here's what we're clicking on!

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Most RPGs set you off on some kind of grand quest, a hero's journey filled with danger and peril as you track down some legendary sword to defeat a world-ending evil. Boots Quest DX, however, has much humbler aspirations. You are a mere boot enthusiast on an adventure to find the very bestest best boots known to man (or blobs, I genuinely can't tell what provenance these rotund creatures hail from), and nothing else will deter you from achieving your lifelong goal. Find a honking great sword on the beach? Trash. A pirate's cutlass? Get in the sea, literally. If it's not a pair of boots, you're not interested - and it all makes for a brisk, anti-RPG adventure that's incredibly refreshing.

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Jank. I am saying "jank" several times upfront, not because Spacebourne 2 is particularly janky, but because it is a bit, and I want to temper your expectations so you're not unfair on its flaws if you try it after I bang on for the rest of this article about how impressive it is.

There's a dream space game we all imagined, where you pilot a ship freely around the galaxy, landing on planets and space stations and running around them doing stuff, finding things, maybe having a fight, then get back into your ship to launch into space, where you can stop at any time and do a little space walk. Maybe walk around on an asteroid, just because.

Spacebourne 2 isn't the dream. But for a game made, as far as I can tell, by one person, it is an astonishing effort to capture that spirit.

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To no one’s surprise, Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League is an always online game, even when playing alone without friendos. The news comes from an official FAQ page that reads, “Yes, an internet connection is required to play Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League solo or via online co-op.” It’s disappointing news, especially for those hoping to play Suicide Squad as a single-player experience with AI bots filling in for squadmates.

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“At some point," says Joel Jordan, "Animal Crossing poses the question to you with alarming force: how do you want to spend your time?”

Allow me to open with the scoundrel’s refuge that is a seemingly weighty dichotomy: I reckon there’s two really special types of indie games. Those that work wonderfully despite their smaller scope, and those that work wonderfully because of it. It’s that second kind - the particular and peculiar voyages into the miniature and mundane - that really spin wonders. Games like Unpacking, PowerWash Simulator, and Dinkum. Games humble enough in scope, and curious enough in outlook, to be uniquely capable of framing everyday experiences so that their inner oddness and strange magic - unfairly dulled by familiarity - shines.

So, when Jordon - solo dev on the upcoming Time Bandit - brings up the question: how do you want to spend your time? I’m left pondering it for far longer than I think I otherwise would, thinking about it in context. The obvious answer here is: playing an videogame, please. But Time Bandit’s free demo doesn’t take long to make me almost uncomfortably aware that there’s more than one way to play something. I don’t even need to be anywhere near the PC. I might actually be playing it more when I’m not [X-Files music, but also I’m going somewhere with this].

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It looks like we’ll finally be able to play as sad dino teens this summer, since Goodbye Volcano High just announced its release date of June 15th. The coming-of-age high school drama was originally set for a 2021 release, but a narrative reboot let it slip into 2022, which then turned into 2023 - which is now.

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Capcom revealed three more fighters coming to Street Fighter 6's roster last night: big lad Zangief, Union Jack-wearing Cammy and newcomer Lily, a descendant of T. Hawk's famous Thunderfoot tribe. Before we talk about anything else, though, can we please just take a moment to appreciate Zangief's enormous bod? The Street Fighter wrestler was always a force to be reckoned with in earlier games, but holy heck, I bet you could fit four Marcus Fenixes into those biceps and still have room left over for his son and fellow Gears Of War slab JD. Come and see what I mean in the new trailer below.

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Microsoft Flight Simulator was already impressive at launch, using satellite data and some streaming tech to recreate the entire globe. Since launch, the team have been diving in to touch up certain areas giving Australia, Japan, Canada, and more big makeovers. Now, MS Flight Sim has its sights on the magical realm of Middle-Earth, also known as New Zealand. World Update 12, out today, is sprucing up New Zealand’s vistas, adding in nine handcrafted airports, and introducing a bunch of missions.

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"A better Alien game than any official Alien game" is how our Brendy described 2016's Duskers, the latest game that's going free for keepsies on the Epic Games Store. Duskers is a roguelikelike sci-fi horror survival game about salvaging supplies from derelict spaceships using drones, seeing through their sensor readouts and issuing commands by typing into a console. Oh, by the way, there's a reason why all these spaceships are now empty. Well, mostly empty.

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I know it's only February, but my God do I feel like I need a holiday. Somewhere nice and warm away from the UK's gross rain and seemingly never-ending winter. Looks like I won't have to wait that long, because Awaceb's Tchia looks exactly like the kind of break I need, and it's out March 21st. We got the news, and a new trailer, at last night's State Of Play showcase,

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The difference between game and film reveals has always been funny to me. Game announcements are accompanied by million-dollar trailers, teased with reveals of reveals, and some fans tiptoe online to avoid the spoilers of a debut trailer. Meanwhile, films are often first revealed haphazardly through an excel sheet five years before they hit, or mentioned casually in an earnings call - which is exactly how Warner Bros. Discovery announced the existence of Mortal Kombat 12.

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According to a report by Bloomberg, Activision may have switched up their plans so this year's Call Of Duty release will pivot from being a paid expansion to another new Modern Warfare game developed by Sledgehammer Games. It's said to continue Modern Warfare 2's story and carry over bits and pieces from its multiplayer, too.

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I was excited to play The Settlers: New Allies. Not so much because it's the first Settlers game in thirteen years, but because the last game by developer Ubisoft Blue Byte was Anno 1800, the best city-builder this side of Cities: Skylines. With an evocative depiction of its simulated industrial revolution, including some delightfully chewy production-line wrangling, Anno 1800 was a treat, and I was keen to see what the Dusseldorf-based studio would cook up next.

The answer, unfortunately, is a big bowl of strategy gruel. I'm not sure what has gone wrong in the last five years, but Blue Byte clearly left whatever magic Anno 1800 had in the nineteenth century. The Settlers: New Allies is a dismal strategy affair, confused, anaemic, and achingly dull.

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The Resident Evil 4 Remake is only a mere month away, but I still had plenty of questions about what’s in the action horror revival. Can I wrestle old ladies? Roundhouse kick a clergy of priests? Shoot grenades at the Spanish Amish? Capcom’s newest trailer reveals all and it looks like Leon Kennedy’s dance moves are still intact.

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I am extremely sympathetic to professionals complaining about celebritites horning in on their turf, but I will make an exception in the case of J.K. Simmons voicing video game villains. Portal's Cave Johnson remains one of the greatest turns in video game voice acting history, and we can now look forwards to Simmons playing a well evil, invincible necromancer in Larian Studios' RPG Baldur's Gate 3 - which, incidentally, is releasing into 1.0 form on August 31st. Fair play to 'em: they said August, and August it is. A new trailer featuring Simmons' character Kehteric Thorm, and the release date, was showcased at Sony's State Of Play event last night.

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Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League got a lengthy demonstration at tonight's PlayStation State Of Play event, which clarified several things about what kind of game Rocksteady's long-awaited return to the DC Universe really is. It turns out it's a game with lots of floaty air combat, lots of noise, lots of loot and gear scores and weapon classes, and with a battle pass (but for cosmetics only). Plus there will be DLC to add new characters post-launch.

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The next game from the developers of Tetris Effect and Rez Infinite is called Humanity, and it's an action-puzzle game in which you control a Shiba Inu and try to guide crowds of people around obstacle-strewn greybox levels. A bit like Lemmings, maybe, but presumably with a surprising emotional resonance. Watch the trailer below.

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Forza Horizon 5 announced its second expansion this evening as planned. Rally Adventure will launch on March 29th and is entirely focused on getting your wheels dirty. You'll find the announcement trailer below.

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As I write this, Sons Of The Forest is the third most played game on Steam with 265,000 concurrent players. That's not bad for a game that came out a little over three hours ago. It's so popular in fact, it might have crashed Steam.

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Earlier this month, we asked you to vote for your favourite strategy games of all time to celebrate the launch (and glorious return) of several strategy classics this month, including Relic's WW2 RTS Company Of Heroes 3, Blue Byte's The Settlers: New Allies and Cyanide's fantasy Warhamball Blood Bowl 3. And cor, I've never seen such love for individual expansions and total conversion mods among mainline RTS games and 4Xs. As with all strategy games, however, there can only be one victor - and you can find out what that single strategy game to rule them all is right here. Here are your 50 favourite strategy games of all time, as voted for by you, the RPS readership.

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