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Firegirl: Hack ‘n Splash Rescue DX Blazing Its Way Onto Console On June 22nd

Overhauled version of firefighting roguelite rescue platformer coming to PlayStation, Xbox and Switch

Gothenburg, Sweden – June 7th, 2022 – Thunderful & Dejima are excited to unveil a new deluxe version of roguelite indie firefighter Firegirl: Hack ‘n Splash RescueFiregirl: Hack ‘n Splash Rescue DX is making its way onto PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S and Nintendo Switch on June 22nd, with the PC version of the game to be updated to the DX version on the same day.

Firegirl: Hack ‘n Splash Rescue DX is an overhauled and rebalanced version of the game that hit PC late last year. It offers new enemies, reworked environments, a rebalanced difficulty curve, a streamlined upgrade tree, improved level design and much more. Thanks to these tweaks, a play style focused on extinguishing enemies is now more viable, with players now receiving more additional time for extinguishing fiery foes. Players will find that exits are now easier to discover, water refills will be more readily available when they are running low and the income system has been rebuilt from the ground up.

Firegirl: Hack ’n Splash Rescue DX is a roguelite platformer where you take on the role of a young fire rescue officer breathing new life into her rundown local fire station. Armed with your trusty axe and high-pressure fire hose that also doubles as a jetpack, respond to emergency calls that bring you to dangerous procedurally generated blazes across the city. When Firegirl arrives on the scene, she has 3 minutes to save all the civilians caught in the blaze! Extinguish fire monsters to buy more time in these tricky missions where you will feel the heat as you battle to get the job done. Uncover the truth of why these fires have engulfed the city, in a mystery that goes all the way to the top!

Between high-octane missions where you will be boosting your jumps with your hose, extinguishing dastardly pyro-monsters, and rescuing trapped civilians (and cats!), you can hang out at the Firehouse. Here, you can upgrade your equipment and hire new staff to make you more effective in tackling the challenging blazes to come. You’ll need all the help you can get to survive in this fun, thrilling and tricky roguelite!

“The original release of Firegirl on PC gave us invaluable feedback on how we could improve the experience significantly ahead of a console release,” said Julien Ribassin, founder of Dejima. “With the completely reworked and rebalanced version of the game that is Firegirl: Hack ‘n Splash Rescue DX, we’ve kept everything that was great about the original version and reworked the wrinkles to provide a definitive version of the game. Look forward to it on June 22nd.”

About Thunderful
Thunderful Group is a group of companies that develops, publishes and invests in games as well as distributes Nintendo products, games, game accessories and toys. Founded in 2017 Thunderful Games is one of the two business segments in Thunderful Group, the other being Thunderful Distribution. Over the last few years Thunderful Games has, organically and via acquisitions, grown into a global organization with eight development studios and over 300 employees. Besides the award-winning internal development pipeline, Thunderful Games also publishes a large number of third-party titles and invests in external game projects.

About Dejima
Dejima was founded in 2016 in the snow-covered city of Sapporo by Julien Ribassin. The same year he released his first commercial game, illumine. This unconventional roguelike received high praise from websites and magazines such as Famitsu and was showcased in several game shows, including Bitsummit, BIC, IndieCade Europe and Game Happens. Seoul based artist Gabe Miller is mostly known for his work on games like Strike Vector, Remilore and the upcoming bloodthirsty helicopter aztec goddess simulator Megacopter. Gabe and Julien started exchanging ideas in 2017. Firegirl is the first game coming out of their unexpected collaboration.

Meridiem Games Announces Special Boxed Edition of art of rally for PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch

To do dangerous things with style is what we call art…

Madrid, Spain – 7th June, 2022. Meridiem Games is thrilled to announce a special boxed edition of art of rally will be launching for PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch this autumn. Developed and digitally published by Funselektor Labs Inc. and physically published by Serenity Forge, art of rally is a beautifully crafted, stylized racing experience inspired by the golden age of rally from the creators of Absolute Drift

Meridiem Games, in partnership with Serenity Forge and Funselektor Labs Inc., will be responsible for the design, manufacture and distribution of the art of rally special boxed edition across European retail stores. More details on the contents of the special edition will be revealed soon! 

In art of rally, aspiring rally drivers will race through colourful, top down view environments. Compete for the top spot on the leaderboards with daily and weekly challenges.

From beginner-friendly options to driving modes that’ll challenge even the most expert drivers, all players can tackle the races using their favourite rally driving tricks including the Scandinavian flick, counter steering, left foot braking and handbrake turns.

Will you master the art of rally?

Stay tuned, as Meridiem Games will be announcing more information about the special boxed edition content soon! 

About Meridiem Games

Meridiem Games is an independent video game publisher and distributor for all platforms. The entire Meridiem Games team is focused on meeting the demand of players who are fond of physical editions, titles such as Fahrenheit 15Th Anniversary PS4, KUNAI Day One Edition NSW, Daymare: 1998 Black Edition PS4, Pang Adventures Buster Edition PS4 / NSW, etc. They have come out in their physical edition thanks to Meridiem Games.

About Serenity Forge

Based in Boulder, Colorado, video game development and publishing studio Serenity Forge prides themselves on the care and dedication they put into their work, creating meaningful games that challenge the way you think. Firm believers in the artistic, cultural, and educational power of video games, Serenity Forge aims to craft unique interactive experiences to broaden players’ horizons and expand their perspectives.

About Funselektor

Funselektor launched in 2014 when its founder, Dune Casu developed his prototype made at a game jam which would later become Funselektor’s debut title, Absolute Drift in 2015. After the release of his first game and with the drive to apply his passion for rally in a new game, Dune immediately began development on Funselektor’s second title, art of rally while supporting Absolute Drift. It involved collaborators for art and music until 2020 when more developers and producers came on to help finish it and provide post-launch support.

World of Tanks Calling on Tankers to GameOn for Cancer

June 7th, 2022 — World of Tanks ANZ is calling on all tankers to help raise funds for cancer research by joining in two livestreams on Thursday 9th June and Saturday 11th June.

The charity livestreams, a part of the GameOn Cancer initiative, will aim to raise $10,000, with a swag of entertainment, matches, and silent auction. This includes rare in-game World of Tanks items on offer and even the ability to choose the hair colour, for World of Tanks Associate Producer, Jake Truman and World of Tanks ANZ Community Evangelist, Kevin Zhu.

World of Tanks ANZ Community Evangelist, Kevin Zhu, says unfortunately, everyone has been affected by cancer in some capacity and cancer does not discriminate.

“Our community of tankers love to have fun, get together, be competitive and we thought what better way to raise funds for a worthy cause, than combining all of that together through two fundraising livestreams, filled with shenanigans along the way.”

“Every dollar counts in the fight against cancer, so any donation big or small will go a long way. We have a swag of prizes lined up on offer and a silent auction, with one prize choosing what hair colour I’ll be rocking,” said Kevin.

The World of Tanks ANZ team will be streaming on the World of Tanks ANZ Twitch page on Thursday 9th June, from 12pm – 8pm AEST, and the ANZ community contributors will be raiding each other from 12pm – 12am on Saturday 11th June.

To join the livestream or donate visit https://www.twitch.tv/worldoftanksanz, or the official portal article https://worldoftanks.asia/en/news/general-news/GameOnCancer-June-Fundraiser/

Players can also donate during the ANZPL broadcast on Friday the 10th of June, which will be happening from 7pm AEST on the same channel.

For more information about World of Tanks or to download the game, visit https://worldoftanks.asia/

GameOn Cancer is a Cure Cancer initiative that funds early career cancer researchers who are working across all cancers and all areas of cancer research. For more information visit https://gameoncancer.com.au/

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About Wargaming

Wargaming is an award-winning online game developer and publisher headquartered in Nicosia, Cyprus. Operating since 1998, Wargaming has grown to become one of the leaders in the gaming industry with 15 offices around the world, including studios in Chicago, Prague, Shanghai, Sydney, Tokyo, and Vilnius. Millions of players enjoy Wargaming’s titles across all major gaming platforms. Our flagship products include the free-to-play hits World of Tanks, World of Warships and World of Tanks Blitz.

Official website: wargaming.com

About World of Tanks

World of Tanks is the first team-based, massively multiplayer online action game dedicated to the golden age of tank-engineering. Immerse yourself in epic tank battles with gamers all over the world. Your arsenal includes over 600 armoured vehicles from 11 nations, carefully detailed with historical accuracy.

Official website: https://worldoftanks.asia/

WayForward to Publish Cinematic Platformer LUNARK

Be part of the revolution in Canari Games’ epic sci-fi adventure

Valencia, Calif. and Montreal, Quebec, Canada – June 6, 2022 – Independent game studio WayForward and developer Canari Games are thrilled to announce that they have entered into a partnership in which WayForward will handle the digital publishing duties for Canari’s highly anticipated cinematic platformer, LUNARK. Inspired by 2D classics from the 1980s and ’90s such as Prince of Persia, Flashback, and Out of this World, and given life via a successful Kickstarter campaign, LUNARK is a retro-style sci-fi adventure that is expected to release on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, the Xbox family of systems, Mac, and PC in late 2022.

Steam Store Link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1050370/LUNARK/

Set in a far future where Earth’s moon has been transformed into a vessel for humanity’s survival and a totalitarian regime reigns supreme, LUNARK puts players in control of Leo, a courier with unique abilities and a mysterious past. As he gets unwittingly caught up in the rebellion against LUNARK’s iron fist, Leo must run, jump, hang, climb, roll, and shoot his way out of one life-threatening situation after another as he navigates impressively animated pixel-art environments ranging from a dystopian megalopolis to eerie caves to an alien forest. Using their reflexes and their wits, players must overcome traps, solve puzzles, earn upgrades, and battle enemy droids, and when they aren’t fighting for survival, they’ll find themselves interacting with a cast of colorful characters who will put Leo’s allegiances to the test.

“Years ago, WayForward was one of the first companies to give me a chance as a freelance artist,” says Johan Vinet, creator of LUNARK. “Knowing the passion they put into their games, accepting this partnership was a no-brainer. LUNARK couldn’t be in better hands.”

“From impeccable level design to top-notch storytelling and animation, LUNARK is a perfect homage to the great cinematic platformers of the past, yet stands out as something exciting and new,” adds WayForward Tyrannical Overlord Voldi Way. “It is our privilege to be teaming up with Canari Games to help bring LUNARK to players.” In addition to the digital version of LUNARK, a physical edition, published by Limited Run Games, will be released on select platforms, including Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5. Further details will be announced at a later date.

For more news on LUNARK, as well as information on other titles, please visit www.wayforward.com and www.canarigames.com, and follow @wayforward and @CanariGames on Twitter and Facebook.

Key Features

  • Experience a modern 2D cinematic platformer, featuring precision gameplay and stunning animation
  • Immerse yourself in a compelling sci-fi story of survival, revolution, and mystery
  • Intuitive but versatile controls: Run, jump, hang, climb, roll, and shoot your way to freedom!
  • Explore glorious pixel-art environments, including mysterious alien ruins, a flying penitentiary, a high-tech megalopolis, and an alien forest
  • Solve puzzles, overcome traps, and interact with a variety of characters
  • Discover hidden upgrades to expand your health and weapon capabilities
  • Yes, you can pet the dog

About WayForward

Based in Valencia, California, WayForward was founded in 1990 and has remained an independent game developer for more than 30 years. It is home to many talented individuals including programmers, environment artists, animators, modelers, illustrators, audio wizards, designers, and team leaders. With new avenues for distributing games directly to fans, they are finally able to make the games they have always wanted to.

About Canari Games

After years of providing his expertise to other game studios as a pixel artist, animator, or sound designer, it was in 2018 that Montrealer Johan Vinet founded Canari Games to work on his passion project, LUNARK.

Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl’s Free New Update Adds Full CharacterVoice-Over and Battle Items

Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl’s Free New Update Adds Full CharacterVoice-Over and Battle Items

PlayStation Plus subscribers can get the hit game for free throughout June

MINNEAPOLIS June 6, 2022Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl’s biggest update yet, featuring full character voice-over and items, is now available for free on PlayStation, Xbox and PC (and coming soon to Nintendo Switch). Experience your favorite Nickelodeon characters battling it out with more fire than ever, with the authentic sounds of SpongeBob (Tom Kenny), Ren & Stimpy (Billy West), Garfield (Frank Welker), Patrick Star (Bill Fagerbakke), Korra (Janet Varney), and the rest of the all-star roster.

This free update also adds a new wrinkle to the gameplay with the addition of usable items that allow you to fight with things like the Krabby Patty, Sokka’s boomerang, Tommy’s ball, a Reptar toy, Log from Blammo and more!

Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl is free starting June 7 for all PlayStation Plus subscribers until the end of the month, so if you’ve yet to dive into the action, this is the perfect opportunity!

About Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl

Brawl it out as your favorite Nickelodeon characters in bombastic platform battles! With a power-packed cast of heroes from the Nickelodeon universe, face-off with all-stars from SpongeBob SquarePants, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, The Loud House, Danny Phantom, Aaahh!!! Real Monsters, The Wild Thornberrys, Hey Arnold!, Rugrats and more. Each character has a unique style of play with special move sets inspired by their personalities for use in single-player or online and local multiplayer for up to four players.

Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl is available now on PlayStation®5, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation®4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC via Steam.

For more information, visit www.NickelodeonAllStarBrawl.com, and follow the team on Twitter, TikTok, Facebook, and Discord.

Roguelite Mining Game Dome Keeper Gets a New Steam Demo

Dig deep to defend your Dome, Sweet Dome

STOCKHOLM  June 6, 2022  Just ahead of Steam Next Fest, developer Bippinbits has unveiled the newest demo for its upcoming roguelite mining game Dome Keeper. While development continues, this new demo features improved sounds and music, more treacherous mines to explore, a complete graphics overhaul, and plenty of other goodies to check out!

Dome Keeper is playable now in its latest form on Steam. The game will also take active part in Steam Next Fest as it prepares to release on PC in Q4 2022.

About Dome Keeper:

Defend your dome from wave after wave of hostile attacks in this roguelike survival miner. Strategically spend your time between each attack digging beneath the surface in search of valuable resources. Use them carefully on powerful upgrades to help you stay alive and make it to the next world.

Features:

  • Engaging & Motivating: Easy-to-learn gameplay with many ways to customize your play. Unlock new domes, characters and gadgets as you uncover the mysterious depths beneath your dome.
  • Meaningful Upgrades: A straightforward tech tree will challenge you with tough decisions that have a direct impact on your play style and success.
  • Deeper & Deeper: Dig down into cave systems between attack waves, searching for valuable resources – but beware, the next wave is on its way!
  • Creatively Deadly: Monsters will surprise you with devious tricks to stop your mining operation.

About Bippinbits

Bippinbits are René and Anne, a game development duo based out of Dresden, Germany. The couple first met in 2006 while attending school together and have been making games as a team since 2011. Through experimentation and participating in international game jams, the team has developed titles such as KarawanOf Mice and Moggies, and the original Dome Romantik – now known as Dome Keeper.

About Raw Fury Raw Fury is a boutique indie (un)publisher founded in 2015 by Jonas Antonsson, Gordon Van Dyke, and David Martinez. We do not care about genres or mechanics. We care about experiences and emotions. We want to help developers make magic.

DEMO OUT NOW for radical voice-controlled thriller Unknown Number – can you save the world using nothing but your voice?

Your chance to try out the world’s first “First Person Talker”, as Steam Demo released alongside brand new Gameplay Trailer

London, United Kingdom – June 6th, 2022 – Indie studio godolphin games have today released a playable demo of their voice-controlled story-rich puzzle adventure, Unknown Number. The demo is accompanied by a brand new “Let’s Play”-style Gameplay trailer, starring Twitter comedian Flora Anderson. 

Set to launch in Q3 2022 on Steam, Unknown Number tells the story of a daring heist taking place on an abandoned oil rig. Using a combo of cutting-edge voice-control technology, fictional telephone calls, and in-game web browsers, it drops the player in some serious hot water.

“We’ve been banging on about ‘First Person Talkers’ for a while now. The response tends to be positive (thanks Mum), but we almost always get the same question: ‘So how does the gameplay actually work?”, said Thomas Keane, Creative Director of godolphin games.

“In the end, nothing can answer that question like experiencing the real thing. And today – finally – we present just that. A chance to experience ‘the real thing’ for yourself via a genuine Steam Demo. PLUS a brand new Gameplay Trailer that shows a real person experiencing the real game in real life. Come on ye doubters – we’re spoiling you.”

Also unveiled today is the real-world website for the evil in-game oil company SLIGOIL (https://sligoil.com). The website holds a whole host of secrets, and will also be accessible via the in-game web browser. It features portraits by influential fashion photographer Raphael Bliss.

Unknown Number is the first game in an all new genre – the “First Person Talker”. It explores the full diversity of voice as a core gameplay mechanic – from talking to whispering, shouting to singing. It seeks to end the notable absence of voice-control in games – and inspire other developers to create “First Person Talkers” of their own.

The game is played via a series of interactive ‘phone calls’ – and starts with a mysterious voicemail from an unknown number. The player must use their voice to solve puzzles, and talk directly to a dynamic cast of professionally-voiced characters. Chief among those characters are Amanda and Ethan – two eco-warriors who dialed your number by mistake in the chaos of a botched heist.

The game also includes a number of ARG elements – such as using real-world websites to solve in-game puzzles. The first of these is the website for SLIGOIL – a fictional petrochemical company, headed up by multi-billionaire Lara Sligo. As the fates of Amanda, Ethan, and Lara entwine, it’s up to the player to untangle an increasingly complex moral quagmire… and maybe, just maybe, get out alive.

Will you answer the call?

More information about Unknown Number:

About godolphin games

Godolphin games is a new indie studio devoted to exploring unlikely gameplay mechanics. It brings together award-winning talent from the world of games, film, and even pop music. Unknown Number is their first game, coming to PC in 2022

GOG partners with SEGA and release Alien: Isolation for the launch of the Summer Sale

GOG partners with SEGA and release Alien: Isolation for the launch of the Summer Sale

SEGA joins GOG to offer their renowned games DRM-free, starting with the release of Alien: Isolation • Sanitarium giveaway now available for all • Summer Sale brings 3500+ deals up to 90% off •

June 6th, 2022 – Gamers from every generation will find something for themselves during the just launched Summer Sale on GOG – from multiple giveaways, and flash deals to new releases and several surprises. The 3 weeks-long event starts with the announcement of SEGA partnering with GOG to release a selection of their hit titles on the platform.

SEGA, one of the leading interactive entertainment companies in the world, is the latest big addition to GOG’s lineup of partners offering their games in the DRM-free format. Today’s announcement comes with the release of Alien: Isolation (-75%), the 2014 survival horror that follows the events of Ellen Ripley’s daughter, Amanda, who is on a survival mission to unravel the truth behind her mother’s disappearance. GOG users can also start preparing for more SEGA releases, with Two Point Hospital and Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine – Anniversary Edition coming soon pages already live and more titles to be announced in the coming weeks.

This Summer we’re bringing back memories to awaken our inner child and pass on the passion for games to others, no matter their age. Rediscover the classics, check what great stories new games tell today, and explore the history of your hobby. Summer Sale is here to show how games connect generations!

Let’s start the journey with the 1st of 5 planned game giveaways with Sanitarium – the 1998 classic that will give you shivers even on the hottest days of the summer. This immersive psychological horror game is available for grabs right now on GOG’s front-page till Wednesday June 8th at 1 PM UTC.

To make your exploration of the history of PC games a bit more organized, there are special game collections to discover decade by decade. Start with games from the 80’s and 90’s with such Good Old Games like Diablo + Hellfire (-20%), METAL GEAR (-30%), Heroes of Might and Magic III (-75%) or Space Quest 1+2+3 (-67%). Dive into the new millenia with memorable titles from 2000’s and 2010’s like Vampire®: The Masquerade – Bloodlines™ (-50%), The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (-80%), STAR WARS™: Knights of the Old Republic (-65%) or Divinity: Original Sin 2 – Eternal Edition (-45%). And finally check all the latest and greatest hits from 2020’s including Wasteland 3 – Deluxe Edition (-67%), Cyberpunk 2077 (-50%), Horizon Zero Dawn™ Complete Edition (-50%), Disco Elysium – The Final Cut (-65%) and many, many more.

While you’re looking for new games to play, be sure to check Chorus (-40%), the fast paced space-combat shooter, that joins GOG’s DRM-free catalog today.

Summer Sale is all about great offers, and the best discounts can be found during flash deals. New games will enter the sale with an extra 48h flash deal, starting with Möbius Front ’83 (-50%), the turn-based tactical strategy that resemble the classic hex wargames, the beautiful pixelart action adventure Black Skylands (-30%), and Mars Horizon (-40%) a simulation strategy game where you run your own mission to put a man on Mars. After the flash deal discount ends, these games will remain on sale at a lower discount.

That’s just the beginning of cool and exciting things to come during this Summer Sale. Stay up to date with everything about the event by visiting the special hub page. GOG’s Summer Sale will last untill June 27th at 9:59 PM UTC.

FINAL FANTASY XVI TO RELEASE SUMMER 2023 –
NEW TRAILER “DOMINANCE” REVEALED

LONDON (2nd June 2022) – Today, Square Enix Ltd., have announced that FINAL FANTASY® XVI for PlayStation®5 console (PS5™) will be released globally summer 2023. Alongside this announcement, the latest trailer for the game, entitled “Dominance”, as well as messages from the Producer and Director, new details of the key development staff, character information and environmental screenshots have been released.

To view the trailer, please visit

“The latest trailer gives players a clearer picture of what actual gameplay will entail,” commented Naoki Yoshida, Producer, FINAL FANTASY XVI. “Namely, high-octane battles featuring our protagonist Clive Rosfield wielding a full arsenal of attacks unique to the game’s many Eikons (summons). Not to mention epic clashes between the Eikons themselves that put you right in the action.”
 
“In our latest trailer, we’ve introduced several new Eikons, as well as provided a more detailed peek at our action-packed battle system and the freedom it gives players,” said Hiroshi Takai, Director, FINAL FANTASY XVI. “As for development progress, I’m happy to announce that the game is fully playable from start to finish; though, from optimization to brush-up, there is still a mountain of challenges to tackle as we head into our final push. Until then, please stay tuned.”
 
“The team, under direction of Hiroshi Takai, has entered the final leg of development and is focusing on polish as they continue their march toward launch.” Yoshida added, “With the power of the PlayStation®5 console behind us, we’re looking to take you on a seamless, story-driven, white-knuckle ride that will rival even the most thrilling roller-coaster. So, buckle up. The wait is almost over.”

SQUARE ENIX also unveiled information on key development staff, including veterans from FINAL FANTASY XIV Online, DEVIL MAY CRY 5, THE LAST REMNANT and more. The talented staff includes: 

  • Producer – Naoki Yoshida (FINAL FANTASY XIV Online, DRAGON QUEST X, DRAGON QUEST: Monster Battle Road)
  • Main Director – Hiroshi Takai (FINAL FANTASY V, SaGa Frontier, THE LAST REMNANT)
  • Creative Director & Original Screenplay – Kazutoyo Maehiro (FINAL FANTASY XIV Online, FINAL FANTASY XII, THE LAST REMNANT)
  • Localization Director – Michael-Christopher Koji Fox (FINAL FANTASY XIV Online, FINAL FANTASY XI Online, FINAL FANTASY VII Dirge of Cerberus)
  • Art Director – Hiroshi Minagawa (FINAL FANTASY XIV Online, FINAL FANTASY XII, FINAL FANTASY TACTICS)
  • Combat Director – Ryota Suzuki (DEVIL MAY CRY 5, Dragon’s Dogma, MARVEL VS. CAPCOM 2)
  • Character Design – Kazuya Takahashi (FINAL FANTASY XIV Online, FINAL FANTASY XI Online, FINAL FANTASY X)
  • Composer – Masayoshi Soken (FINAL FANTASY XIV Online, Mario Hoops 3-on-3, Nanashi no Game series)

Finally, to see new screenshots showcasing the vast environments in the game, the full comments from both the Producer and Director, and information about characters Hugo Kupka and Benedikta Harman, please visit the official FINAL FANTASY XVI teaser website: http://www.finalfantasyxvi.com
 
FINAL FANTASY XVI brings players into a world where Eikons are powerful and deadly creatures that reside within Dominants—a single man or woman who is blessed with the ability to call upon their dreaded power. The story follows Clive Rosfield, a young man dedicated to mastering the blade, who is dubbed the First Shield of Rosaria and tasked to guard his younger brother Joshua—the Dominant of the Phoenix. Unexpected events set Clive on a dark and dangerous road to revenge.
 
FINAL FANTASY XVI is a standalone single player action-RPG being developed for the PlayStation®5 console.  This title is not yet rated.
 
About FINAL FANTASY
For over 30 years, the FINAL FANTASY series has delighted generations of gamers and millions of players worldwide through beloved Role Playing adventures that are built upon the benchmarks of spectacular visuals, highly imaginative worlds, rich stories, memorable characters and technical and gameplay innovation leading the industry and earning the highest accolades from around the world. Each mainline game in the series is a completely new experience, and an ideal entry-point to the series. Titles of the series have sold over 168 million units worldwide. 
 
About Square Enix, Ltd.
Square Enix Ltd. develops, publishes, distributes and licenses SQUARE ENIX®, EIDOS® and TAITO® branded entertainment content in Europe and other PAL territories as part of the Square Enix group of companies. Square Enix Ltd. also has a global network of leading development studios such as Crystal Dynamics® and Eidos Montréal®. The Square Enix group of companies boasts a valuable portfolio of intellectual property including: FINAL FANTASY®, which has sold over 168 million units worldwide; DRAGON QUEST®, which has sold over 84 million units worldwide; TOMB RAIDER®, which has sold over 88 million units worldwide; and the legendary SPACE INVADERS®. Square Enix Ltd. is a London-based, wholly owned subsidiary of Square Enix Holdings Co., Ltd.
 
More information on Square Enix Ltd. can be found at https://square-enix-games.com
 
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© SQUARE ENIX CO., LTD. All Rights Reserved.
LOGO ILLUSTRATION: © 2020 YOSHITAKA AMANO
 
FINAL FANTASY, the FINAL FANTASY XVI logo, DRAGON QUEST, EIDOS, EIDOS MONTREAL, SPACE INVADERS, SQUARE ENIX, the SQUARE ENIX logo, TAITO and TOMB RAIDER are registered trademarks or trademarks of the Square Enix group of companies. All other trademarks are properties of their respective owners.

About FINAL FANTASY

Since the release of FINAL FANTASY in 1987, this unique RPG series continues to showcase the spectacular visuals, highly imaginative worlds and rich stories leading the industry and earning the highest accolades from users around the world. Titles of the series have sold over 168 million units worldwide.

Citizen Sleeper Review

Citizen Sleeper

Developer: Jump over the Age
Publisher: Fellow Traveller
Platform: Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Windows (Reviewed)
Release Date: 5 May 2022
Price:  $19.99 USD/$28.95 AUD– Available Here

Video Review

Overview

Citizen Sleeper is a story-focused RPG seeking to replicate the narrative freedom of tabletop titles. Players take on the role of a Sleeper, an artificial human who now must learn to survive while on the run from the corporate overlords. To gain their freedom, players will need to find allies among the inhabitants of Erlin’s Eye all while grinding away at whatever work the player can find to feed their most basic needs for survival.

Story

Citizen Sleeper is a well written game. The game is not very long as a full run clocks in at three to five hours. Yet the writers crafted reasonably well fleshed out world filled with a colourful cast of characters in such a short time. The writers make effective use of their limited space by taking a cast of standard sci-fi characters, like the battle-hardened mercenary and the back-alley doctor, and giving them their own motivations and drives so the interaction with the player feels more like a mutual transaction versus someone being dragged along for a ride.

I like the variety of quests the game has to offer. They range from epic manhunts to humble life stories being traded at the local food stall. The variety gives Citizen Sleeper a more believable feel to both the game and Erlin’s Eye as a location.

The replayability is decent. If players learn how to play the game efficiently, then there is enough story content for players to experience all the side quests and the endings from two playthroughs of the game. There are multiple endings stemming from three different paths and multiple endings in a run can be done if they are chosen in the right order before reloading the save.

Gameplay

Citizen Sleeper is inspired by tabletop roleplaying games. The mechanics revolve around energy and dice management. Every action in the game costs dice, credits, or an item. The Sleeper’s condition determines the number of dice available per cycle, while energy serves as a secondary action limit. Dice actions can result in positive, neutral, or negative consequences resulting in the loss or gain of story progression, credits, items, energy points, or condition points. The chance of each type of consequence is based on stat bonuses and the dice used to pay for the action. Each cycle costs condition and energy points. Quests are time limited. Players are heavily incentivized to minimize risk and maximize the number of dice available per cycle because some quest progression or failure conditions occur after a set number of cycles have passed.

The Sleeper has five stats, one for each type of action. Each stat type has two skills and bonus stats that can be purchased with upgrade points earned as the game progresses. The balance is okay, but far from perfect. The Engineer and Interface skills are incredibly powerful, and I found having both maxed out made survival laughably easy by end game. Intuit’s final skill to reroll dice once per day was handy, but Endure’s final skill needs to be buffed significantly to bring it in line with the rest of the skills. That Endure skill guarantees Sleepers a minimum of two dice per day, but the game’s time pressures means players should be operating at or near the maximum of five dice if they plan on getting through most of the content during the run.

The pacing of the game is very good until end game. The developers hit the right balance between time pressure, resource scarcity, and progression activities in the early to mid game. Once the resource scarcity and time pressure almost disappear at end game, I found myself trying to rush through to the ending as quickly as possible as the challenge faded and things started to drag.

Citizen Sleeper is a polished game but could benefit from a lot of minor quality of life features. Travelling between different sections of Erlin’s Eye could have been cut down to one click once the area is unlocked. The change would speed up navigation and smooth out the pacing a little. Listing the dice required for hacking nodes on the tool tip would have been helpful as players right now have to click the node to determine what input is required. It isn’t an issue for agent nodes that always ask for the same value, but the story-based nodes can ask for a value of four, five, or six.

Visuals

The game’s visual style is eye catching. The game combines gorgeous 2D character portraits with a simple yet effective 3D environment. The colour palette is perfect for the game world as it mixes dark earth tones with bright yellows and pink accents.  

Audio

The audio experience is solid. The simple sound effects work well. The soundtrack is enchanting and relaxing. It fits the sci-fi setting beautifully and is perfect for the text heavy nature of the game. It hits the right emotional tones without getting too intense or distracting.

Overall

Citizen Sleeper is a very good narrative heavy game that is just about the right length. The world is rich, and the story is enjoyable. The gameplay loop, pacing, and balance is solid. It only starts to come apart at the seams at the very end of the game. The audio/visual experience is pleasant and delivers the game in a clean, slick package. Citizen Sleeper is absolutely worth a look for fans of RPGs and visual novels who want to try something a little off the beaten path.

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