PARIS — Sept. 29, 2021 — Insurgency: Sandstorm, the hit modern combat FPS which originally debuted on PC, is now available in digital and retail formats for PlayStation®4 and Xbox One! Compete in PvP or buddy up in co-op through dense urban environments and experience the intense tactical action which put the game on the map.
Battle in war-torn environments through a series of intense cooperative and PvP multiplayer modes. Experience fierce close-quarters combat with unparalleled immersion, where every decision can mean the difference between life and death. Manage ammunition carefully, and use tactics to lead you and your team to victory. Coordinate fire support, engage enemies with vehicle-mounted machine guns, and engage in thrilling modern firefights.
Insurgency: Sandstorm is playable with enhanced performance on PlayStation®5 and Xbox Series X at 4K resolution and 60 FPS. Additional next-gen enhancements for PlayStation®5 and Xbox Series X|S will arrive in 2022.
Insurgency: Sandstorm’s Standard Edition is available in digital and retail stores; the Gold and Deluxe editions are available in digital format. The Deluxe Edition includes Insurgency: Sandstorm and the Year 1 Pass, while the Gold Edition includes these plus the Year 2 Pass.
Starting tomorrow, players can experience the transition of the original The Cycle into the high-stakes survival shooter of The Cycle: Frontier
BERLIN – Sept. 29, 2021 – Berlin-based studio YAGER has announced that the PC closed beta of the FPS shooter The Cycle: Frontier will start on Sept. 30, 2021. Players can register for the closed beta now and start playing tomorrow! The official release of The Cycle: Frontier is planned for the first half of 2022.
The Cycle: Frontier is a free-to-play, high-stakes, PvPvE FPS. The goal is to complete missions on a deserted planet while defending yourself from hostile creatures and armed opponents. But beware: resources and mission objectives can only be kept if you leave the planet alive. Whether playing solo, in a squad with friends, or making alliances with strangers, The Cycle: Frontier offers the ultimate competitive multiplayer and survival combat experience for everyone.
Due to extensive gameplay changes, the high-stakes survival shooter has gained a lot of strategic depth between its co-op and PvP gameplay, with players having to decide for themselves how much risk they want to take at any given time. Every action can have massive consequences: do you start the next drop with expensive equipment and accept the risk of losing rare resources, or do you go in with simple equipment and risk failure in the end?
At Prospect Station, the social hub in The Cycle: Frontier, players will find stores and their own quarters, as well as the three most important factions: Osiris, Korolev and ICA. Each gives players important missions to increase reputation and unlock new tools, upgrades and weapons. Of course, you’re never completely alone on the world of Fortuna III; in addition to dangerous beasts, other greedy players may be on the same mission as you — and also armed to the teeth.
About YAGER
YAGER was founded in 1999 by five enthusiastic developers and artists, focusing on creating immersive and thrilling games. Making beautifully crafted games that amaze players with the richness of their worlds, where there are multiple ways to succeed and progress their characters, and where all of this continues to evolve after launch, where novelty and drama are just around the corner, making our games immense fun to play, talk about and watch. Today, 22 years after our founding, a highly skilled international team of game enthusiasts is working to build YAGER’s vision of immersive and engaging games.
Witness the wonders of the galaxy, and the monsters that reside in it, in the high-adrenaline teaser trailer, with new trailer coming soon
Seoul, Korea – September 29th 2021 – Korean developer Action Square and publisher SK Telecom today announced that their co-op top-down sci-fi shooter roguelike, ANVIL: Vault Breakers, is coming to Tokyo Game Show, and will be released on Steam this Winter. In lieu of this announcement, SKT will be releasing a new action-packed trailer showing what it takes to become a true Vault Breaker.
In ANVIL: Vault Breakers, you’ll explore the various galaxies, crawling with grotesque alien threats and monsters, in an attempt to locate relics and artifacts from fabled Vaults. Work for the Ancient Vault Investigation Lab, or ANVIL, in a team of “Breakers”, who seek “Vaults”, the remnants of alien civilizations that have been scattered throughout the universe. Venture through galaxies, each containing random planets and unique boss monsters that need to be defeated in order to locate the surreptitious Vaults.
Grow as a Vault Breaker as you gain EXP during every battle, which will enhance your strength and provide new powers to play with. Experiment with different combinations of weapons and artifacts to become unstoppable. With over 100 randomly generated artifacts, an assortment of galaxies to explore with distinctive threats to conquer and dozens of weapons to destroy them with, every play session feels uniquely intense and different. Can you become the ultimate Vault Breaker?
“Presenting ANVIL: Vault Breakers at Tokyo Games Show comes as a result of our efforts to continue celebrating dynamic and competitive games created by Korean developers to gamers throughout the world,” said Jaeyoo Cho, Vice President and Head of Game Publishing Division at SK Telecom “We are excited to introduce the mesmerizing gameplay experience to audiences around the world and cannot wait to launch it later this year.”
SK Telecom (NYSE:SKM) is Korea’s leading ICT company, driving innovations in the areas of mobile communications, media, security, commerce and mobility. Armed with cutting-edge ICT including AI and 5G, the company is ushering in a new level of convergence to deliver unprecedented value to customers. As the global 5G pioneer, SKT is committed to realizing the full potential of 5G through ground-breaking services that can improve people’s lives, transform businesses, and lead to a better society.
SKT boasts unrivaled leadership in the Korean mobile market with over 30 million subscribers, which account for nearly 50 percent of the market. The company now has 48 ICT subsidiaries and annual revenues approaching KRW 17.7 trillion.
About Action Square
Action Square (KOSDAQ – 20550:KS) is a game development company founded in 2012 with a mission to develop action-packed games for all to enjoy. Our first mobile ARPG(Action Role Playing Game) game called “Blade”, was a major success in Korean market. The company have since then moved on to develop a sequel called “Samguk Blade” and have several other projects under development for various platforms like Steam and Xbox.
Our latest project called ANVIL is a sci-fi themed top-down roguelike shooter which will be available on PC (Steam) and Xbox.
We also have an upcoming ARPG project which is based on a Netflix miniseries called Kingdom.
From Artisan Studios, the people responsible forSuper Neptunia RPG, comes a new take on traditional J-RPGs. Astria Ascending tries to fill the void left by J-RPGs reminiscent of the old PlayStation One era such as Valkyrie Profile and the old school Final Fantasy games, to mention a few. With the game industry focusing more and more on behemoth projects with inflated budgets that prioritize “realism” and hype to the detriment of passionate and fun focused projects, games such as Astria Ascending are a godsend. With that said, Astria Ascending is an ambitious project for an indie venture; publisher Dear Villagers was able to assemble a veritable team of J-RPG stars. The story and scenario is provided by Kazushige Nojima, who wrote the story for Final Fantasy X. The music is produced and composed by Hitoshi Sakimoto, known for his work on Final Fantasy XII, Vagrant Story and many others. The art is made in collaboration with Cydesignation, known for the art of Nier Automata and Nier Replicant. With a renowned team such as this and the promise of an emotional and mature story, would Astria Ascending be the “second coming” of traditional J-RPGs?
Story
The world of Orcanon is inhabited by five races that diverge enormously in appearance and customs. If there’s something the history of humanity has taught us, it is that any conflicts between races would be resolved by endless bloodshed. Strangely enough in Orcanon, the people is able to coexist peacefully. The five races come together in the city known as Harmonia, which is situated at the center of Orcanon and serves as a symbol of the peace enjoyed by its people. All this peace has a hefty price, though; to be able to live in harmony and be a part of Harmonia’s society, the inhabitants of Orcanon must consume a fruit known as “harmelon”. The harmelon fruit is able to suppress the more extreme emotions of the inhabitants of Orcanon, allowing them to coexist without killing themselves over what belief they might have. It also robs them of much of their individuality and diminishes the innate potential each race might have; the awisi, a race of bird people, isn’t able to fly as high and free as before, for example. Harmonia is overseen by a goddess and her eight demigods. The demigods have representatives from each race, with most of them excelling at whatever proficiency they have. The demigods serve as the “world police”, responsible for maintaining peace in Orcanon and sure enough, they have their hands full, as beings only known as “noises”, threaten to break the harmony.
Astria Ascending’s story is told in a very linear fashion and with very little exposition, especially for the main characters. There will be a disturbance in a race’s dwelling inside Harmonia, and the demigods will rush in to investigate. The story follows this predictable pattern for the first 20 hours, although your mileage may vary. Until you’ve visited all race’s dwellings, their corresponding city outside of Harmonia which they hail from, and a nearby dungeon; the story is drip fed between the main story and each demigod’s own personal issues. This makes it a tad difficult to maintain interest in the story and characters in general.
Gameplay
The gameplay is Astria’s Ascending strongest point. It uses what I’ll refer to here as the “Valkyrie Profile formula”, -No I’m not sorry- which means that it combines elements of action, adventure, RPG and platformer games. The game allows players to explore the cities and dungeons in a 2D plane. When in cities, everything stays in the background with only the main character at the front plane. The player is able to interact with objects and NPCs and also enter stores and houses. The way it’s made is a bit cumbersome since you don’t know what can be interacted with; it could be some NPC deep in the background, so you need to pay attention to any prompts that might appear as you walk through the city. Fortunately this same nuance doesn’t apply to dungeons as everything that can be interacted with is very visible and obvious. As you explore dungeons, enemies will appear as a blue, glowing orb. Very early in the game you’ll have the option to either freeze the enemies, so you’ll have a chance to avoid the battle by jumping over them or slash them and try to gain the initiative. The platforming part is very simple. They’re not only ridiculously easy, but if you happen to fall into a pit, no penalty is applied. It also adds a bit of variety to the walk and fight monster pattern. In the first dungeon, you’ll have some puzzles with a basic riddle you need to solve in order to progress. Oddly, these kinds of puzzles basically disappear later on, which is a pity since exploring dungeons mostly boils down to navigating a map and defeating enemies in your way.
Fortunately, the battle system and everything that revolves around it will keep you entertained enough, if that’s your cup of tea…. At first, every character has a base job which confers upon them certain abilities: Ulan, with her huge shield, is the defender and have abilities suited to protect the other party members; Arpajo is the thief; and so on. Later on, a main job is unlocked on top of the base job and after that a support job. They don’t replace the base job but add to it, each with their own skill tree. This gives a lot of room for character customization. The battle grid is laid out in a traditional turn based RPG fashion. On the right side, four characters out of eight in your party will be used in battle, while the other four will remain dormant, unaffected by any battle outcome. On the left side are your enemies. Every demigod or foe will have a turn each. Their agility stat will decide who gets to act first. A very cool feature of Astria Ascending is the ability to switch party members in battle; With the use of 1 of your turns, you can switch one, two or all four of them in one go. On top of the options you already have regarding the customization of your party, this ability adds one extra layer of complexity to the battle system. It will overwhelm some players for sure, but it isn’t anything overly complicated. The game gives the player a lot of options, but you’re free to just use whatever you think is most comfortable and effective.
There’s also a neat card game called J-Ster. Early in the game, you’ll receive basic cards and can collect more by defeating opponents or even transforming enemies into cards. It’s frustatingly easy to play against NPCs, but it can provide a fun little distraction from the main quest sometimes.
Visuals
One quick glance at one of Astria’s Ascending screenshots and you’d think this is Vanillaware’s new project, due to the similarity of the artstyle used here. Vanillaware is known for the aesthetic beauty of their titles with games such as Odin Sphere, and, more recently, Aegis Rim. Astria Ascending may not be as polished visually as a Vanillaware title, but it has its own charm. The graphics are a mixed bag, though; it ranges from good loooking to very simple and drab. The main characters are detailed and look very good and attractive, as is the case with main NPCs; Cydesignation’s contributions to the game’s character design are a very welcome addition, as the main characters have that distinct artstyle you are able to see in their games. The backgrounds use vivid colors and go for a “painting look”. When entering a dungeon, the weather may change seemingly at random which is a very nice touch to the otherwise static look they have in most cases. Sometimes, the backgrounds will look like a draft waiting for the finishing touches. All in all Astria Ascending graphics are charming, albeit simple.
As of the writing of this review, there isn’t a single option to customize how the game runs on PC, not even a simple resolution or v-sync option. The game also suffers from what I assume are frame pacing problems. That means that even though Steam’s FPS counter never goes down from the game’s intended 60 FPS, it feels as if it’s running at 30 FPS or lower. One can only hope the developers will be able to patch out these shortcomings in time for the game’s release.
Audio
Hitoshi Sakimoto has a very distinct style of composition that he uses in every game he works on. Those who played Final Fantasy XII, and especially Vagrant Story, know the range, variety and quality that he’s capable of when making music. Astria Ascending is definitely not his best work, but it certainly has his DNA. The music and sound effects only add to Astria Ascending’s overall quality.
Overall
Unfortunately, Astria Ascending is unable to deliver the high quality, traditional JRPG experience it’s hyped up to be. It misses the mark by a long shot, especially in regards to its story. It can still be a fun experience if you dial down your expectations. The art style, even with its inconsistencies, is charming enough, and the soundtrack will please any J-RPG aficionado, especially fans of Sakimoto-san and his past works.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
The Latest Entry In The Award Winning Franchise Partners With Outright Action International, A Charitable Organisation That Has 30 Years Of Global Advocacy And Activism Within The LGBTQIA+ Community.
LONDON, UK (September 29, 2021) –Life is Strange: True Colors has just launched a charitable campaign with musical artist mxmtoon to win a one-of-a-kind denim jacket in a digital donation drive for OutRight Action International.
The jacket features patches designed by the Life is Strange team, inspired by the themes and imagery of the recently released Life is Strange: True Colors. It also stars designs by mxmtoon and a special patch created by the Life is Strange community, with the winner creating a patch that ‘showed their True Colors’ representing a powerful personal story to them.
This campaign has been brought to life with the help of a wide range of LGBTIQ+ and ally creators, such as Travis Alabanza, Fenne, Lilly, Devin, Azu, Nathan Byrne, and many more.
Representation is a huge part of Life is Strange: True Colors, and that’s why we’ve partnered with OutRight Action International. For 30 years, OutRight Action International has documented, defended, and advanced human rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer (LGBTIQ+) people around the world.
The campaign has raised over $4000 for Outright Action International so far. Head to https://sqex.link/LiSTCDonate to enter the prize draw to win this one-of-a-kind jacket by donating to OutRight Action International and assisting with their mission to support the global LGBTIQ+ community.
LIFE IS STRANGE: TRUE COLORS is available NOW on PlayStation 5®, PlayStation 4®, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PC Steam, PC Windows Store, GeForce NOW, and Google Stadia. It will also be available on Nintendo Switch later this year.
About Deck Nine Games Deck Nine Games are an independent videogame developer devoted to bringing together two passions; meaningful storytelling and rich gameplay. Its talented team of developers have won awards for their work in films, TV and videogames. Located at the foot of the Colorado mountains, Deck Nine Games is focused on becoming a premium developer of narrative adventure games for consoles, PC and mobile devices. For more information on Deck Nine Games visit: www.DeckNineGames.com
About Square Enix External Studios Square Enix External Studios is a London based development and publishing group that works with top development studios across the world, establishing new intellectual properties and developing new franchises within the umbrella of Square Enix Holdings. Square Enix External Studios have been responsible for multiple games including RPG Shooter OUTRIDERS®, the Just Cause® and Life is Strange® series, and titles such as Batman: Arkham Asylum® and Sleeping Dogs®.
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 164 million units worldwide; DRAGON QUEST®, which has sold over 85 million units worldwide; TOMB RAIDER®, which has sold over 84 million units worldwide; and the legendary SPACE INVADERS®. Square Enix Ltd. is a London-based, wholly owned subsidiary of Square Enix Holdings Co., Ltd.
A Tough Business: Three New Hardcore Telegram Missions Now in Red Dead Online – Plus, Bonuses and Rewards for Moonshiners and Traders, Double XP for all Races, and More
Your pen pal “J” has a new batch of Hardcore Telegram Missions to offer. These are different from regular Telegram Missions in that enemies are not visible on your mini-map, and you won’t have any aim assistance. They’re a true test of your aim, will, and determination.
The first of these missions — Good and Dead — sees you assigned to the killing of a target in the heart of Saint Denis. You’ll only be given a description of their last known outfit, so you’ll need to be on high alert. Keep in mind that Josiah will pay you according to how cleanly you can dispose of your mark — avoid alerting him, his gang members, and becoming wanted by the law for maximum rewards.
The second mission, Frontier Justice, concerns the Del Lobos gang’s armed occupation of Armadillo. Apart from a couple of especially guarded areas, though, you’ll be able to move about town quite freely, so long as you’re not letting gunshots off. Freeing the gang’s hostages from their captors will reveal various ways you can further disrupt the gang’s activities and raise general chaos.
In the third new Mission released as part of A Tough Business, Cold Day in Hell, it pays to keep a low profile. A local gang has plans for their next robbery and you’ve been contacted to steal them. If word gets out about the gang and their whereabouts, however, it will place your employers in immediate danger — so you’ve got to move with stealth and cunning. The documents’ contents are so sensitive that the gang leadership’s gotten paranoid and only sent a small group of their numbers to hole themselves up in Colter with hopes that the bitter cold will deter any prying eyes and potential attackers. Rest assured that backup’s stationed at a short distance, though, should they hear any commotion.
50% Extra RDO$ and Role XP on Trader and Moonshine Sales Whether it be for animal goods or shine, the market’s appetite grows more and more every day — feed it by completing Trader and Moonshine Sales and you’ll be rewarded with an extra 50% RDO$ & Role XP through October 4.
Traders and Moonshiners who return to play Red Dead Online this week will also receive a Reward for 25 Trader Goods and a Mash Refill, respectively. Traders and Moonshiners who are also members of The Quick Draw Club No. 3 will receive a Reward for a Trader Resupply, and a Reward for 2,000 Moonshiner XP, respectively.
Destroying 3 Revenue Agent Roadblocks this week will result in receiving an Offer for 40% off an Established or Distinguished Moonshiner Role Item. Please allow up to 72 hours for your Rewards and Offers to arrive.
2X XP on all Races There’s plenty of competition out there on the edges of polite society, you’ve just got to look for it in the right places. Should you and your steed get the urge to reach a full gallop, all Races are doling out 2X XP for the week.
Discounts Get your mount up to snuff by visiting the Stables and taking 30% off the cost of all Race Horses and Stable Stalls; all Horse Care Packages are free, as well.
Join the entrepreneur class this week: both the Butcher Table and Moonshine Shack are 5 Gold Bars cheaper than usual. Traders above Rank 10 can save 40% when purchasing the Hunting Wagon from the Wheeler, Rawson & Co. Catalogue. All Trader Cosmetic Role Items are 30% off for the next seven days, as well.
Keep the booze-hounds happy by spiffing up your Moonshine Shack — both Upgrades & Themes are 30% off.
Bundle yourself up to protect from the elements — all Ponchos are 30% off in the Catalogue and at Tailors across the map.
Prime Gaming Benefits Red Dead Online players who connect their Rockstar Games Social Club account to Prime Gaming before October 25 will get a Reward for 40 Capitale and an Offer for half off the Mauser Pistol.
NBA® 2K Mobile Season 4 Brings Authentic NBA Action On the Go
All-new limited-timed event, Power Cap, kicks off in October, while Damian Lillard debuts as the face of Season 4
2K today announced Season 4 of NBA® 2K Mobile, one of 2K’s flagship mobile titles with more than 28.5 million downloads* to date. Season 4 brings a new Courtside Pass to unlock exclusive rewards, updated player likenesses and jerseys, card stats to reflect the upcoming NBA season, and so much more.
Players can build their NBA all-star teams, advance their basketball careers, and slam dunk on console-quality graphics – all on the go. On top of more new ways to jump into the action, including:
Updated 2021-22 rosters and teams. Players can explore hundreds of new NBA Basketball Cards from current NBA players and icons, such as Damian Lillard, Kevin Durant, and Luka Doncic, to all-time NBA All-Stars like Dirk Nowitzki, Shaquille O’Neal, and Vince Carter;
‘The Stat Line’ that offers rewards for taking specific action in-game. Additional player modes include 3-on-3, 5-on-5, real-time NBA PvP multiplayer matchups, MyPLAYER customisation, and more;
A new limited-timed event, Power Cap, will kick off in October and let players show off their front-office skills by strategically selecting cards across five different leagues to top the leaderboard and earn Event Points, Milestone Awards, and much more;
And coming soon, the Courtside Pass provides a front-row seat to the best basketball plays and lets players collect premium rewards throughout the new NBA season.
To play, download the free NBA 2K Mobile app for Apple devices with 4+ GB of RAM and iOS 11.0 or later or on Google devices with Android 8+ (Android 9.0 recommended). An Internet connection is required. NBA 2K Mobile’s live 2K action requires newer hardware. App includes optional in-game purchases.
Ghostrunner’s Cyberpunk Action Now Available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S
CALABASAS, Calif. — September 28, 2021 — Publishers 505 Games, alongside developers and partners All In! Games, One More Level, 3D Realms, and Slipgate Ironworks™, today launch physical and digital PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S versions of Ghostrunner, the critically-acclaimed first-person cyberpunk parkour action game. Owners of the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 versions can upgrade to their respective new generation console version for free.
Soar through Ghostrunner’s stunning neon vistas, now enhanced by post-processing HDR and a ray-tracing fidelity mode. Scale Dharma Tower one wall at a time with blistering fast parkour skills rendered in 4K/120 FPS. 3D spatial audio complements Daniel Deluxe’s pulse-pounding electronic soundtrack, making each swing of the katana and gravity-defying leap sound more impactful. Feel the weight of each action with PlayStation 5’s haptic feedback.
PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S versions of Ghostrunner include all game modes One More Level released in the last year. Battle time itself in Kill Run Mode. Capture Jack’s deadly agility and grace with Photo Mode. Adapt or die in the roguelike-inspired Wave Mode. Even the odds of each one-hit-one-kill clash with Assist Mode: add an extra life, slow down the game to help with reaction times, and shorten cooldowns to use abilities more often.
Customize the Ghostrunner’s aesthetic with Jack’s Bundle, now available on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S for $7.99 / £5.99 / €7.99. This collection includes all cosmetics launched in Ghostrunner up until now, from the recently-released Neon Pack to the previous Winter and Metal Ox Packs.
Stunning Visuals, Mech Combat, Epic Storylines, True Digital Ownership of In-Game Assets
SYDNEY – Sept. 28, 2021 –Phantom Galaxies, the open-world online mecha space opera action RPG born from a partnership between Blowfish Studios and Animoca Brands, embarks on an intergalactic journey to consoles and PCs in 2022.
Save humanity from the alien threat. Enlist in the elite Ranger Squadron and pilot a Mechanized Starfighter to defeat the Sha’Har, a mysterious and warlike civilization intent on extinguishing mankind for desecrating their hallowed tomb worlds on the frontiers of known space. Defend Neoterra in its hour of need by suiting up as a young ace Ensign.
Strap into transforming mecha ships equipped for both terrestrial and celestial combat. Master an array of vessels, including the stealthy and agile Lancer, melee-oriented Breacher, the balanced Assault class, and mobile artillery Buster suit. Upgrade components to tailor each ship and forge the ultimate war machine to lead the forces of humankind. Unlock new skills, abilities, weapon configurations, and more to tailor mech rigs for every situation at hand and blow away any adversaries.
Travel across stunning star systems, exploring sectors inhabited by pirates, scavengers, and rogue factions. Take on bounties and smuggling missions in seedy backwater black markets or hunt for rare precious materials scattered across asteroid belts and abandoned mining facilities. But be cautious! Every choice the player makes will ripple across the colonies, impacting the ensign’s reputation and influencing how Phantom Galaxies’ narrative branches and unfolds.
“Phantom Galaxies is a stunning and evocative medley of everything we love about science fiction and action RPGs,” said Ben Lee, CEO, Blowfish Studios. “Building this online mecha space opera has us ‘over the moon’ and we can’t wait to take everyone on a ride later next year.”
Traditional video games are provided to users on a licensing basis in which game publishers retain ultimate ownership of the game and all game content. However, the assets used in Phantom Galaxies will be truly ownable, allowing players to have digital property rights in games.
Phantom Galaxies is a fast-paced third-person experience that looks and plays exactly like the traditional 3D action RPGs familiar to millions of gamers, with the difference that it will allow players to have true ownership and control of in-game assets such as mechs, equipment, avatars, and game currency by having those assets exist as fungible and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on an energy-efficient and scalable blockchain.
“Our goal with Phantom Galaxies is to provide not just an amazing game experience but also a shining example of how blockchain integration can put real in-game governance in the hands of the players.,” commented Yat Siu, the chairman and co-founder of Animoca Brands.
Phantom Galaxies warps to consoles and PCs in 2022. As an Epic MegaGrant recipient, the title will feature English, Russian, Italian, Spanish, German, French, and Simplified Chinese language options.
Blowfish Studios is an award-winning independent game developer and publisher based in Sydney, Australia. We strive to release original multi-platform games while also collaborating with developers from around the world. As developers first, we bring a wealth of knowledge and expertise to any partnership. Our team provides development services to get the game release ready, porting to all major platforms, platform approval, marketing, and promotion to the world.
Animoca Brands, ranked in the Financial Times list of High Growth Companies Asia-Pacific 2021, is a leader in digital entertainment, blockchain, and gamification. Animoca Brands develops and publishes a broad portfolio of products including the REVV token and SAND token; original games including The Sandbox, Crazy Kings, and Crazy Defense Heroes; and products utilizing popular intellectual properties including Formula 1®, Marvel, WWE, Power Rangers, MotoGP™, and Doraemon. Animoca Brands’ portfolio of blockchain investments and partnerships includes Sky Mavis (Axie Infinity), Dapper Labs (CryptoKitties and NBA Top Shot), OpenSea, Harmony, Bitski, and Alien Worlds. Its subsidiaries include The Sandbox, Blowfish Studios, Quidd, Gamee, nWay, Pixowl, Bondly, and Lympo.
Retro Action Platformer Steel Assault Drops Today on Nintendo Switch & Steam
MONTREAL — Sept. 28, 2021 — Side-scrolling-enthusiast developer Zenovia Interactive and the pixel art aficionados at publisher Tribute Games have joined forces to launch Steel Assault: a classic 2D action platformer delivering a solid throwback arcade experience in all the right ways. Steel Assault is available today on Nintendo Switch via the Nintendo eShop and PC via Steam at the explosive price of $14.99 (with a special 10% launch discount for a limited time).
You are Taro Takahashi, a resistance soldier on a revenge mission against the dictator who lords over the ashes. You’ll punch enemies and zipline your way out of danger in a post-apocalyptic America beautifully rendered in 16-bit-style graphics.
KEY FEATURES
TRUE ARCADE EXPERIENCE: A classic gaming throwback for both the old school and newer generations. Regardless of skill, there’s a difficulty mode for everyone. Arcade mode is the ultimate Steel Assault experience — a “1 coin clear” mode for the hardcore and speedrunners.
4:3 ASPECT RATIO/CRT FILTERS: Zenovia Interactive founder Sri Kankanahalli designed Steel Assault with the traditional 4:3 aspect ratio to keep the action quick and surprising… just like it was back in the day. Steel Assault’s many filters and video options are adjustable to accommodate a range of gaming setups.
EXPLOSIVE SOUNDTRACK: A superb, fast-paced and aggressive soundtrack that adds a layer of pressure and anxiety to the experience. Beautiful FM-synthesized tunes with just enough industrial rock and chiptune to please bit-crunched music fans.
Tribute Games is the developer and publisher of beloved pixel games Panzer Paladin, Mercenary Kings, and Flinthook. The studio is currently developing the highly anticipated official TMNT beat-em-up Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge. The signing of Steel Assault in November 2020 marked Tribute Games’ debut as a publishing partner for other developers.
Tribute Games is a studio developing and publishing video games with a focus on pixel art and classic game design. The Montreal-based studio has been steadily creating entertaining, challenging and retro-inspired games since 2011 using modern game development processes and technology. In 2020, Tribute Games announced the start of a publishing division to help smaller developers publish their games.
ABOUT ZENOVIA INTERACTIVE
Zenovia Interactive is a small game studio currently based in New York City, founded by Sri Kankanahalli in 2019. They specialize in classic 2D genres, namely side-scrollers. Their goal is to create arcade-style games that are beautiful, vibrant, and detailed: games that the present can enjoy, and that the past would be proud of.
