A super-satisfying ‘Hades x Match-3’ puzzler from the developer of Knights and Bikes
Team Artichoke, the indie dev team led by Moo Yu (Knights and Bikes, Ratchet and Clank, LittleBigPlanet), have just announced the release date for their first project – the Match-3 mythological puzzler Mythmatch! It’s coming to Steam on March 13th, and will also be a part of the upcoming Steam Next Fest.
Mythmatch combines casual Match-3 puzzling, rich narrative and Greek mythology into one divinely satisfying package. Merge resources into new creations, complete quests, and expand your town into a thriving community. Prove your worth and stick it to the tech bros of Olympus Inc!
‘This low-budget puzzle game is also about building communities and challenging capitalism – while still looking cute and approachable’ – The Guardian
‘Mythmatch’ is a narrative-rich mythological puzzler driven entirely by merge and match style puzzles! The Gods have cast Artemis to the mortal realm, specifically to Ithaca, where all the local men are lost on their way home from the Trojan war. It’s up to Artemis to build this hamlet into a thriving community!
Merge resources to create new materials, which you can use to create new buildings and even attract new residents. Get to know the Ithacans and find your place in this new home. You’ll also meet other Gods, and challenge them in unique mini-games to earn their favour (and activate perks for your town).
Merge, upgrade, make some new friends, and earn your place in the pantheon!
Features:
Satisfying match-3 gameplay!
Combine resources to craft new tech!
Repair and expand a thriving community!
Play unique mini-games to earn the Gods’ favour!
Play mini-games with a friend in local co-op!
Late capitalist satire with a mythological twist!
About the Developers
Team Artichoke is a small friendly dev team based in the UK, currently working on their debut project, narrative merge game Mythmatch. They are led by indie dev Moo Yu, who previously co-developed Knights and Bikes, and worked as Lead Gameplay Programmer on Ratchet & Clank and Senior Gameplay Programmer on LittleBigPlanet.
Nomadic Pack Will Be Hare Soon on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S
STOCKHOLM and DELFT, Netherlands — Feb. 10, 2026 — Paradox Interactive, a developer and publisher of games about wondering and wandering, today shared details and a release date for Age of Wonders 4: Rise from Ruin, a forthcoming DLC for Triumph Studios’ hit fantasy strategy game. Launching on March 9, 2026, for PC, PlayStation®5, and Xbox Series X|S, Rise from Ruin includes a new in-game Culture, Physical Form, and new environmental challenges and features designed around a new nomadic playstyle. The pack will be available on digital storefronts for a suggested retail price of $19.99/£16.99/€19.99, and is also included in the Age of Wonders 4: Expansion Pass 3 bundle.
Age of Wonders 4: Rise from Ruin Release Date Trailer
Forge a mighty realm from the ashes in Age of Wonders 4: Rise from Ruin. Journey into the Withered Worlds and explore their devastated landscapes with the Nomad Culture, uniquely adapted to survive and thrive in desolation. Unearth the lost magics that ravaged these realms, and choose to either banish them forever or harness their power for your own ascendancy.
Age of Wonders 4: Rise from Ruin Key Features:
New Culture – Nomads: Masters of mobility on the battlefield and world alike, Nomads can carry entire cities across the realm in relentless pursuit of conquest and power. Scavengers of the magical wastes and conquering hordes, they drain the land for potent essences before moving on, leaving only desolation behind. Choose Conquerors for fast, aggressive raids that seize enemy territory, or Scavengers to harvest ancient wonders and battlefield loot for growing power.
New Form – Harefolk: When the world collapsed, the Harefolk endured through speed, instinct, and an unyielding will to live. They thrive where others fall, turning agility and cunning into the ultimate weapons of survival.
3 New Tomes: Build strong armies and rise units through the ranks with the Tome of the Warband; spread sands, blind enemies, and summon desert guardians with the Tome of Sand Stalkers; conquer the realm with mighty warriors and infernal allies with the Tome of the Warlord.
New World Map Content: Survive in the Astral Barrens, a new terrain type born from a catastrophic magical calamity, where magic itself has been corrupted. This unforgiving wasteland drains mana, halts regeneration, and punishes spellcasters as unstable energies cause spells to backfire and living magic to wither away. 20 additional handcrafted regions, a new realm trait that threatens the use of magic, and many more features provide new challenges at each turn!
So Much More: 2 new mounts, 5 new Realm traits, 3 new music tracks, new Narrative Content, new Wildlife and Units, a new interface skin, and beyond!
All players of Age of Wonders 4 will also receive the free “Scorpion Update” content patch, releasing the same day as Rise from Ruin. In addition to quality of life updates and fixes, in-game unit movement and combat balance are receiving a substantial overhaul, alongside new customization and pantheon options.
Paradox Interactive is one of the premier developers and publishers of strategy and management games for PC and consoles. The players are located all over the world but some of the biggest markets are North America, Western Europe and Asia.
The game portfolio consists of popular franchises such as Stellaris, Europa Universalis, Hearts of Iron, Crusader Kings, Cities: Skylines, Prison Architect, the Surviving games, Age of Wonders and Victoria. Paradox Interactive also owns the World of Darkness brand catalog.
Featuring event-limited 5-Star Memories, seasonal activities, and a wide range of in-game rewards
February 5, 2026 – With the arrival of Spring, Love and Deepspace has unveiled Mortality’s Tenderness, a new 5-Star Interactive Memory Series celebrating warmth, reunion, and fleeting moments of intimacy. Launching alongside a special seasonal event, the update brings event-limited Memories, interactive features, and generous in-game rewards, offering players a rich and immersive experience throughout the celebration period.
Running from 05:00 on February 10 to 04:59 on February 27 (Server Time), the event introduces five limited-time 5-Star Memories: [Xavier: Blades with Blossoms], [Zayne: Entwined Kites], [Rafayel: Carved Gemheart], [Sylus: Shared Lanterns], and [Caleb: Clearday Return]. Players may select three of these Memories to focus on and earn cumulative wish rewards by making wishes during the event, including Limited Headwear, Memory-themed Outfits and Hairstyles, Limited 20 Deepspace Wishes, and more.
In addition to wish rewards, completing growth tasks tied to the event-limited 5-Star Memories grants various in-game materials. Upon reaching Rank 1 for an event-limited Memory, players can redeem a [Special-Coloured Memory-Themed Outfit] corresponding to that love interest, further expanding customization options during the event.
The [Illusio] feature also returns for a limited time, allowing players to freely customize the appearance of Kindled Moments across all 5-Star Memories. During the event, players can select outfits and accessories for each love interest—and, when applicable, customize their own character’s hair and makeup—to recreate Kindled Moments in a personalized style. After the event concludes, Kindled Moments will revert to their default appearances.
As part of the seasonal celebration, players who log in for 10 days during the event can unlock the new outfit set [Wealth Overflow], inspired by the God of Wealth. Login rewards include [Deepspace Wish*10], [Empyrean Wish*10], His and “My” Outfit Sets, Dynamic Portrait Photo Pose*2, and additional items. The [Wealth Overflow] outfit set features both a Hat and an Outfit, which can be used separately.
A new limited mini-game, [Courteous Fare], is also available during the event. Players will manage Yunshao Restaurant, serving guests to earn reputation and unlock [Prep Together]. Participation rewards include exclusive stories, Deepspace Wish, “My” Daily Outfit, accessories, limited decor, and more. By collecting a certain number of Intel pieces, players can receive Floral Invites from their love interests, unlocking further interactions.
Daily engagement is further rewarded through the Golden Fortune event. Players can log in each day to receive one free shake, earning a random reward of 68–108 Diamonds, with up to 1,296 Diamonds available for free throughout the event. Players may also choose to purchase options that double Diamond rewards. A limited-time All-in-One special offer, providing all 12 double attempts at a reduced price, will be available alongside additional value packs.
With Mortality’s Tenderness, Love and Deepspace continues to expand its interactive storytelling and seasonal content, blending heartfelt narratives, customization features, and rewarding gameplay into a festive celebration marked by limited-time events and exclusive rewards.
About Love and Deepspace
As part of the acclaimed Mr. Love series, Love and Deepspace blends cinematic storytelling, real-time 3D interactions, and romance-driven gameplay in a futuristic sci-fi setting. Players take on the role of Deepspace Hunters, battling unknown threats while forging emotional connections with five Evol-gifted heroes. Since its global release on January 18, 2024, Love and Deepspace has captivated over 80 million players around the world. Slogan: Traversing Deepspace, Be With You
The Broken Beyond takes Besiege into space, introducing new mechanics, blocks, and levels to the timeless favorite.
London, United Kingdom, February 10th, 2026 |Spiderling Studios, the studio behind the acclaimed title Besiege, is thrilled to announce a new expansion to their physics-based builder. Venture out among the stars, face new challenges, and unleash interplanetary mayhem in The Broken Beyond, a Besiege expansion available on Steam later this year.
The Final Frontier
Enriching the original game’s experience, Besiege: The Broken Beyond offers a new expansion to the popular physics-based building and destruction game. In TheBroken Beyond, players battle through a new space-themed campaign, introducing new block types for bringing chaos to other worlds. Using new gravitational mechanics, this expansion challenges players to explore new builds capable of escaping a planet’s atmosphere and navigating the dangers of space travel.
Test your creations in the expansion’s new sandbox, featuring a large moon-inspired world for players to explore or leave behind- launching into space to discover what curiosities are in orbit. Using The Broken Beyond’s new space-themed blocks, you can spread your destruction across the star system to alien worlds.
Gameplay Features:
Space Campaign Challenges: Launch into new space-themed campaign levels, pitting your creations against alien foes, battling their spacecraft, and even destroying their worlds.
Building Spaceships: Harness the power of new blocks specially designed for inter-planetary madness, introducing new options for propulsion & control, and featuring a completely new fuel system.
Immersive Physics Simulation: Experience new forms of gravitational field, harness orbital mechanics, and overcome the challenges of entering and leaving atmospheres. Spherical worlds and unusual gravity fields offer entirely new, mind-bending, gameplay.
Brand New Sandbox: Explore a large spherical “moon” sandbox environment and discover the curiosities in orbit around it.
Multiplayer Madness: Engage in multiplayer combat with friends, create custom levels with the in-game editor, and unleash chaos in Besiege‘s low-gravity arenas.
From The Developer
“There’s a good saturation of great space games on the market, but we wanted to create something different.” says Daniel Schmidt, Project Lead on the expansion. “With Besiege originally being a medieval building game it was exciting to explore that aesthetic in space, drawing inspiration from the likes of DaVinci, Jules Verne, and even Space-Orks to forge our creative direction for the expansion.” he continues. “Think medieval space program, where the ships are cobbled together from wood, bolts and rocket boosters- that’s what we went for.”
“At Spiderling, we sometimes bite off more than we can chew, but we love the process of learning and turning a wacky idea into something real. The team always outdoes themselves, and seeing this come to life has been crazy!”
A Fan Favorite
Launched in Ver. 1.0 in 2020, with its first expansion (The Splintered Sea) released in 2024, Besiege continues to dominate in the builder genre. Using an intuitive building system, players can construct war machines to destroy villages, annihilate armies, and obliterate castles. With over 70 building blocks available, players can achieve success or epic failure through the limitless creativity of their machine designs. Conquer Besiege’s 55 single-player campaign levels, spanning four island nations ripe for conquest. Players can test their builds in an expansive sandbox environment; once you’re ready, enter the Besiege Multiverse, a multiplayer experience that supports head-to-head combat, intricate puzzle solving, and cooperative conquering.
Besiege: The Broken Beyond launches this year on Steam. An expansion bundle will be available for new players to purchase, and players who own Besiege or The Splintered Sea expansion can purchase the new expansion separately.
About Spiderling Studios Spiderling is an independent game developer from the UK. We specialize in physics-based sandbox games and are best known for the castle-smashing, machine-building game, Besiege and aquatic expansion The Splintered Sea.
When Romeo is slain by a monster that is far from the end of his story as he is saved through time-travel shenanigans and rises as Dead Man to fight bloody battles with monsters and hunt down space-time’s most wanted fugitive in Suda51 and Grasshopper Manufacturer’s Romeo is a Dead Man.
ROMEO IS A DEAD MAN – Gameplay
ROMEO IS A DEAD MAN is a hyper-stylized, ultra-violent sci-fi action adventure from legendary creator Goichi “Suda51” Suda and Grasshopper Manufacture. You play as Romeo Stargazer, a man saved from death by a space-time paradox and transformed into a special agent for the FBI’s Space-Time division. Tasked with hunting fugitives across multiple universes, you’ll tear through surreal environments packed with grotesque enemies, explosive set-pieces, and signature Grasshopper flair. The game blends stylish third-person shooting with brutal melee combat, letting you seamlessly switch between guns and blades in fast, fluid encounters.
As Romeo’s mission unfolds, his hunt for space-time criminals becomes intertwined with the mysterious disappearance of his girlfriend, Juliet. With wild narrative twists, over-the-top boss fights, and systems that let you customise your combat style, ROMEO IS A DEAD MAN delivers a blood-soaked, high-energy experience that feels like a spiritual successor to No More Heroes — pushing Grasshopper’s trademark insanity to new extremes.
ROMEO IS A DEAD MAN Developer: Grasshopper Manufacture Inc. Publisher: Grasshopper Manufacture Inc. Platform: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC (Steam) Release Date: 11 February 2026 Price: $49.99 USD
Recommended – “Romeo is a Dead Man delivers peak Suda51 weirdness, mixing a wild story with simple but stylish combat that rewards anyone willing to embrace its eccentric edge.”
London (February 10, 2026) In the Monster Hunter Wilds™ 1st Anniversary Message | Ver.1.041 video, series producer Ryozo Tsujimoto offered a look at the content coming in the final Monster Hunter Wilds update arriving on February 18 alongside quality improvements for all platforms. Additionally, Ryozo confirmed that a massive expansion for Monster Hunter Wilds is in development, with more information to come this Summer.
Check out the latest Monster Hunter Wilds trailer here.
In Search for a Challenge
Arch-tempered Arkveld whips into the Forbidden Lands and offers an extreme 10★ challenge for Hunters with HR100+. After completing the AT Arkveld quest, Hunters will not only receive materials for a powerful Gamma armour set but will also unlock 10★ quests featuring each Apex predator, as well as a hunt-a-thon Optional Quest featuring Arkveld and the Apex predators of the Forbidden Lands. Timeworn Charms received from these 10★ quests can be appraised into rare talismans. Additionally, battle-tempered Emblems can be obtained from 10★ quests and can be used to reinforce Gogma Artian weapons.
Celebrating a Year in the Forbidden Lands
Celebrate the One Year Anniversary of Monster Hunter Wilds from February 18 to March 19 with special log-in bonuses, the Special Supplies: Hunter Appreciation Pack, and a weekly rotation of the seasonal Festival of Accord events. Additionally, new Event Quests will be introduced on a weekly basis that reward special pendants, pit Hunters against the least hunted monster in the Forbidden Lands, and a quest that unlocks materials for the dazzling Gala Suit α armour set for your Hunter and Felyne Star α Palico equipment. An additional free Character and Palico Edit Voucher will be made available to all players to celebrate the anniversary.
Hunters can unlock the winning Original Weapon and Pendant Design Contest designs for the Shatterseal Great Sword submitted by Nolan Lu and the Meatmergency! pendant by ikei after completing the Event Quest, “Every Hunter’s Dream”. Hunters can also unlock a new armour set by completing a new Side Mission with the Support Hunter Nadia to unlock a set of her armour for their own use.
Exciting Collaborations
Celebrate the March 13 launch of Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection by bonding with Rudy, the Royal Palico, in an optional transport quest! Starting on February 18, work with Rudy to deliver precious eggs to Pop-up Camps for special Palico equipment designed by Rudy himself and Monstie-themed pendants!
About Capcom Capcom is a leading worldwide developer, publisher, and distributor of interactive entertainment for game consoles, PCs, handheld, and wireless devices. Founded in 1983, the company has created hundreds of games, including groundbreaking franchises Resident Evil™, Monster Hunter™, Street Fighter™, Mega Man™, Devil May Cry™, andAce Attorney™. Capcom maintains operations in the U.S., U.K., Germany, France, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Tokyo, with corporate headquarters located in Osaka, Japan. More information about Capcom and its products can be found at www.capcom.com.
Capcom, and the Capcom logo are registered trademarks of Capcom Co., Ltd. In the U.S. or other countries. Ace Attorney, Devil May Cry, Mega Man, Monster Hunter, Resident Evil, and Street Fighter are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Capcom Co., Ltd. and/or its subsidiaries, in the U.S. and/or other countries. All other trademarks and trade names are the property of their respective owners.
A new Event Pass, Festive Calendar, and the Nian Paradox Event arrive as part of the Lunar New Year celebrations, alongside new battle types, ships, and more
February 10th, 2026 – Wargaming, the developer and publisher of the leading naval MMO World of Warships, is kicking off Lunar New Year celebrations with a brand new update. Players can enjoy a plethora of themed rewards as part of the new Event Pass and Festive Calendar, and a dive into a new event that tells the story of the mighty Nian Beast. The update also introduces the Unbreakable Front battle type, new ships, improvements to existing modes, and more.
Lunar New Year Celebrations Commence
World of Warships’ massive Lunar New Year celebrations are in full swing, led by the Nian Paradox event, which tells the tale of the mighty Nian Beast across two progression tracks filled with thematic rewards. Players can choose a coalition to side with–Defenders of Order and Adherents of Chaos–and earn Lunar Tokens through special combat missions, with more available each week of the update. Lunar Tokens can be used to progress party tracks and earn rewards, and depending on Token allocation, players can earn up to 5 ships for free, alongside special event containers. These containers have a chance to drop the Nian’s Treasure container which features even greater rewards, including three new ships: Tier IX Pan-Asian battleship Yimeng, Tier IX Italian cruiser Messina, and Tier X Pan-American Aircraft Carrier Independencia.
Additional rewards are available through the Festive Calendar, which can be accessed daily, as well as the Lunar New Year Event Pass. The Pass has two progression lines, the second of which can be unlocked for 2.500 Doubloons, and grants Pan-Asian commander Nian immediately. Players that log in between now and March 12th will also receive a Lunar New Year gift bundle including event containers, special camouflages, and Lunar Tokens to spend during the event.
Experience a New Battle Type and Set Sail with New Ships
Alongside festive celebrations, this update introduces a new battle type to the lineup. Unbreakable Front builds on Unbreakable Line with a revised 7v7 format, improved respawn mechanics for better overall positioning, and new team bases that can be captured for instant victory. In addition, players can choose one event consumable before the battle in Port for more tactical choices.
February also brings new ships to the armory across the coming weeks, too, including rare Tier X Commonwealth cruiser Pioneer and rare Tier X French destroyer Châteaurenault. Based on the light cruiser design considered in Great Britain in the late 1930s, Pioneer carries sixteen 152 mm guns split across 3 superfiring front-facing battery turrets and 1 rear-facing turret plus powerful consumables such as the crawling smoke generator, making her a formidable foe on the battlefield. On the other hand, Châteaurenault, originally part of the Italian Navy before being ceded to France in 1947, excels as an aggressive torpedo destroyer, dealing huge damage at close range.
European Battleships and Surcouf Remain Available
Four of the new European battleships introduced in January’s Update–Laudon, Enigheten, Gustav Den Store, and Thor–are still available in Early Access for players to try ahead of the full launch next month. The Salvage for Victory event also remains until the end of Update 15.2, with Legendary French Submarine Surcouf up for grabs alongside battleships M. Colonna and Zarya S, plus cruiser Narai. Surcouf is the first submarine in World of Warships with ASW airstrike capabilities, and comes equipped with a twin 203 mm gun and rotating torpedo launchers for maximum damage.
To round out the update, Operations are getting an upgrade, with a UI refresh as well as the addition of 5 randomised secondary tasks per battle to enhance replayability. Brawls are undergoing changes too, with specific ship parameter changes keeping battles more unpredictable and wild.
About World of Warships
World of Warships is a free, historical, online combat PC game from Wargaming. With its massive fleet of most iconic war vessels, including five different ship classes and strategically designed environment, World of Warships provides the ultimate naval warfare gaming experience, suitable for everyone. Thanks to its largest collection of historically accurate ships available to play, World of Warships prides itself as a digital ship museum and a focal point for naval history enthusiasts. New thematic content and innovative game modes are being added on a regular basis, providing a diverse and exciting gameplay to its broad player base.
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 Guildford, Prague, Chicago, Austin, Shanghai, Tokyo, Vilnius, Kyiv, and Belgrade. Millions of players enjoy Wargaming’s titles across all major gaming platforms. Our flagship products include hit free-to-play franchises – World of Tanks and World of Warships.
Celebrating Safer Internet Day 2026 Reaffirming our Commitment to Player Safety
As we reflect on Safer Internet Day, an annual global initiative that emphasises the importance of online safety and encourages responsible use of technology, we reaffirm our dedication to creating a safer gaming environment for our PlayStation community. Supporting Safer Internet Day aligns with our commitment to fostering player safety and wellness across PlayStation.
Updates in the past year
As part of our commitment, we continue to advance on our three pillars of Online Safety, ‘Control’, ‘Shield’, ‘Enforce’, using player feedback to guide ongoing improvements to our products, tools, and services. Here are just a few examples of progress we’ve made.
Empowering tools for parents – We introduced the PlayStation Family app to help families build healthier, safer digital habits together. Designed to give parents peace of mind while supporting kids’ growing independence, the app makes it simple to set age‑appropriate controls, manage playtime, approve requests instantly, and stay informed with activity insights all from the mobile device. By giving families better visibility and simple tools to guide online play, the PlayStation Family app supports more balanced gaming routines and encourages ongoing conversations about digital safety. Since launch, the app has surpassed one million users across iOS App Store and Google Play, and we are pleased to support families in managing responsible play.
Educating parents and families – I recently joined Canadian podcast hosts Cat & Nat for a thoughtful conversation on how families can navigate technology today and build healthier, more confident habits around gaming. We discussed practical tools and approaches that can help parents set clear expectations, encourage healthy play, and give kids the space to explore responsibly. Watch the podcast below.
Automated moderation technology enhancement – This past year, we enhanced our collection of automated safety tools by leveraging machine learning text analysis alongside image detection capabilities. These technologies look for and flag content that may violate our Code of Conduct to promote safer experiences across PlayStation.
Updated alliance for safer gaming industry – Online safety is a shared responsibility and we are proud to reaffirm our shared online safety principles for safer gaming with Nintendo and Microsoft.
Expanding safety features – Since our trial-launch, we’ve been thrilled by the positive impact of the Nudge feature. Starting this month, players in applicable regions will be given a second chance to review and edit their messages as we expand the Nudge feature globally to all English-language conversations on the PlayStation app. With the Nudge feature, we will empower players to pause and reconsider, while educating them about content that may violate our Hate Speech policy before it is sent.
Accessing wellness resources
· Global support (including Australia) can be reached via playstation.findahelpline.com, or by using the ‘Find A Helpline’ web tool, which has been recently integrated into our support site in most regions. The web tool allows users to find the right resource quickly without leaving our support page.
· For anyone in the US in need of support, you can reach out to Crisis Text Line by texting ‘CIRCLE’ to 741741 to connect with a live volunteer Crisis Counselor.
Continuing the Journey Toward Safe and Joyful Play
At Sony Interactive Entertainment, online safety is essential to our mission to create incredible gaming experiences. We are committed to creating safe, age-appropriate experiences for players and families while respecting privacy and giving players and parents meaningful control over how they engage with gaming.
In the year ahead, we will continue to iterate on online safety measures to ensure the best experience on PlayStation. For example, in recent years, we have piloted age verification in select markets to better understand how these tools can support families. As we continue to learn from these pilot markets, we plan to thoughtfully expand our age verification capabilities over time.
As play continues to bring people together, we look forward to another year of supporting safe, joyful experiences on PlayStation. Thank you to our players for being part of this journey as we continue to prioritise safety, well-being, and joy.
Here’s to another year of safe and inclusive play!
Kasey Karlsen and Jessie Grace Uncover The Use Of Heavy Metal Influences To Create The Most Immersive Game Sound Design And Score Yet.
Los Angeles, CA (February, 12, 2026) – Today, Kristala, the upcoming dark fantasy from Astral Clocktower Studios, unveils the fourth installment of its Dev Diary series, The Sounds of a Cursed World. The latest digital diary explores the game’s immersive sound design and the voices behind its characters, featuring heavy metal icon and musician Kasey Karlsen.
Alongside Kasey, the diary spotlights contributions from lead vocalists David Simonich, Joey Sourlis, Jessie Grace (Full Metal Jessie), and Paxton Grizzle, who brought Kristala’s cursed enemies and bosses to life with guttural screams and growls.
“I think Saphael’s design really did it for me because I’m a very visual person,” said Kasey when discussing her approach to voicing one of the game’s bosses. “You can tell she’s tethered to something deeply painful. I tried to convey that while she may be evil, she’s also someone who is suffering.”
Metal influences extend beyond the characters’ voices and into Kristala’s score, shaping a world that doesn’t just look alive, but sounds alive.
“Hearing those gritty, distorted screams and roars really gave me the confidence to push metal influences in the soundtrack, especially during boss fights,” said Kristala composer Adeel Jafree. “It’s been really fun leaning into those inspirations to create hard-hitting drums and driving rhythm guitar sections that heighten the intensity.”
Set in the unforgiving realm of Ailur, the title combines the swift, punishing combat of Dark Souls and Sekiro with a dynamic difficulty system. This system adapts to your performance, adjusting in real-time to your wins or failures. Elements such as enemy aggression, timing windows, and combat pressure shift based on player skill, which allows the story and gameplay to evolve alongside the player, creating a unique adventure each and every time:
Adaptive Difficulty: Play on Kristala’s innovative dynamic difficulty mode, which actively adapts the game’s difficulty to the player’s skillset, opening up the famously unpassable difficulty of the Soulslike genre to all types of gamers.
Customize your Cat – Create your feline warrior by choosing fur color, fur length, your clan, and your starting class. All of these choices will factor into building your unique playstyle. The paw-sibilities are endless!
Comprehensive Magic System – Each clan specializes in an ancient/elemental magic, sourced by the Sacred Six Kristals. Unlock and level powerful spells and spell perks for each clan on a comprehensive, branching magic tree to customize your playstyle.
Atmospheric, Story-Driven Worldbuilding – Immerse yourself in the mystical realm of Ailur, where ancient prophecies, cursed creatures, and lost civilizations weave a dark and emotional narrative.
Players transform into elite cat warriors, mastering fluid parkour, pulling off precise aerial finishers, and using clan-specific magic. Kristala provides a fresh and unforgettable experience, boasting six clans, each with its own magical system, extensive customization possibilities, and a rich backstory. The game’s PS5 demo recently soared to the #2 position on the PlayStation Store, a clear sign that its development is resonating with players.
Ready to pounce into the grimdark world of Kristala? Wishlist the game and play the free demo now on PlayStation, or dive deeper with the Early Access version—available now for purchase on Steam and The Epic Games Store, with all early supporters to receive the deluxe version of the game come Kristala’s 1.0 release.
About Kristala
Unleash your arcane power in Kristala, a dark fantasy Action RPG featuring challenging combat, fluid parkour, and deep exploration to uncover a detailed story. Step into the role of a feline warrior destined to master Ailur’s ancient magic and uncover the source of a deadly curse threatening your world.
About Astral Clocktower Studios
Astral Clocktower Studios is a US-based women-led indie game development studio dedicated to crafting immersive, story-driven fantasy games that speak to players on a deeply personal level. The studio’s debut title, Kristala, blends dark fantasy themes with fast-paced combat and fluid parkour. Set in a rich, lore-filled world, Kristala’s feline characters and unique mechanics offer a fresh take on the soulslike genre. Kristala is currently in Early Access on Steam, with release plans for PlayStation, Xbox, and Switch following a full PC release this year. For more information, visit https://www.astralclocktowerstudios.com/.
PlayStation Australia is excited to share that State of Play will return this Friday, 13 February (AEDT). State of Play is PlayStation’s video program, showcasing all the latest updates, announcements and new trailers from the world of PlayStation in a livestream format.
Tune in live this Friday for 60+ minutes of news, gameplay updates, and announcements from game studios across the globe. February’s State of Play will spotlight eye-catching third-party and indie games headed to PS5, along with the latest from teams at PlayStation Studios.
