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Curse of the Dead Cells?! Indie Roguelikes Collide in New Update for Curse of the Dead Gods on April 14

Curse of the Dead Cells?! Indie Roguelikes Collide in New Update for Curse of the Dead Gods on April 14

PARIS April 7, 2021 — Focus Home Interactive and Passtech Games have partnered with Motion Twin and Evil Empire for “Curse of the Dead Cells,” a new crossover event featuring the smash-hit indie roguelikes Curse of the Dead Gods and Dead Cells. On April 14, players will be able to download a free update for Curse of the Dead Gods on PlayStation®4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and PC featuring special new content inspired by Dead Cells.

Here’s what surprises Dead Cells fans can discover in Curse of the Dead Gods when the new event kicks off next week:

  • New Curse — Curse of the Headless: Players will move faster but take more damage, with a visual twist emblematic of Dead Cells’ main character.
  • Three New Weapons: The Sword of Conjunctivius, the Broadsword of the Knight, and the Crossbow of the Condemned.
  • New Challenge Room that can be found during runs featuring a Dead Cells Cursed Chest, a special challenge and a rare weapon.

The update will also include other new content for Curse of the Dead Gods players, including a new two-handed weapon style and an additional Curse. For more on the game, visit www.focus-home.com/en-us/games/curse-of-the-dead-gods.

Solve mind-bending 3D puzzles in atmospheric adventure The Last Cube

Coming later this year to PC, Xbox, PlayStation, and Switch

Espoo, Finland – April 7th, 2021 – Improx Games are proud to announce that their brain-teasing puzzle adventure game The Last Cube is coming to PC, Switch, Xbox, and PlayStation platforms later this year. Set in a series of surreal otherworldly landscapes, it’s up to you to discover the history of this mysterious alien civilization.

The Last Cube is a richly atmospheric puzzle game about guiding a cube through a plethora of moody, monolithic chambers as you uncover the story behind this peculiar world. Explore a wide array of brutalist architecture ranging from foggy nightmarish abysses, to oppressive lava lit factories, to uplifting natural landscapes full of golden rays of sunshine glistening against mountains. Coupled with an epic soundtrack that thoroughly enriches the atmosphere, and an abstract story of a dying world on the cusp of ruin, The Last Cube is a moody, mysterious puzzler that fully immerses you in its derelict world.

Each of The Last Cube’s stages introduces a new type of sticker you can latch onto a side of your cube, introducing an entirely new mechanic. Some will allow you to dash through barriers, others will create makeshift stairs, and some grant the ability to teleport over bottomless gaps or conjure temporary, but useful cube friends. Positioning your cube to acquire the desired stickers on the correct surface can range from pleasingly simplistic, to masochistic head scratchers as you scramble through The Last Cube’s 100+ puzzles. New mechanics are introduced at a breezy clip, rapidly expanding one’s perception of what your cube is capable of.

Clamouring through each chamber offers a sturdy challenge, though only the most dedicated players will uncover all of The Last Cube’s bevy of collectibles and bonus stages littered throughout the adventure. Do you have what it takes to solve the puzzle tracks left by your ancestors and save this peculiar world from collapsing? 

“We’ve identified the audience who loves atmospheric puzzle games with lightweight narrative – we ourselves love these games. The Last Cube is an experience that delivers exactly that, while the unique mechanics also bring a whole novel aspect to it”, said Max Samarin, creative director at Improx Games. “You might have played certain cube games as a kid, but not executed like this. And it’s not just about the puzzles – it’s also a cosmic adventure through a varied, alien world full of mystery and wonder that draws players from outside the puzzle genre as well.”

Players interested in trying the game out can head to The Last Cube’s Steam page and download the demo, which demonstrates the variety in the puzzles and mechanics that will be further expanded in the full game.

More information on The Last Cube:
Follow Improx Games on Twitter: http://twitter.com/improxgames 
Like Improx Games on Facebook: http://facebook.com/improxgames 
Follow Improx Games on Instagram: http://instagram.com/improxgames 
Visit The Last Cube website: https://www.lastcubegame.com/ 
Join The Last Cube community on Discord: https://discord.gg/P28q6fb86g 
Try The Last Cube demo on Steam:  https://store.steampowered.com/app/903630/The_Last_Cube/ 
 

About Improx Games
With their roots in game jams and pixel graphics, five Finnish students founded Improx Games in 2016. Their first game gathered over 150,000 downloads on Steam and 8 million views on YouTube. As the team’s rate of mastering their craft has grown exponentially, the next project they started is quite ambitious. Since 2017, Improx Games has been working on a beautiful 3D puzzle platformer – The Last Cube, which is already winning awards and earning nominations internationally. The Last Cube is set to roll out on PC and consoles in 2021.

Interview with Shirli Ainsworth, Creator of Venus: Improbable Dream

As much as they can be a form of escapism from life, video games can also be a good medium to tackle some more serious topics. Spec Ops: The Line showed us that war isn’t all that magnificent as Hollywood tends to portray it Another game with an incredibly long name, The Missing: J.J. Macfield and the Island of Memories, can teach you a lot about gender identity and being comfortable with who you are. The ending of Mass Effect 3 taught us that we should never have high expectations from life, especially when it comes to decent video game endings. With all that said, the topic of depression and anxiety is something that you’ll rarely see in this medium. And that’s for a good reason. If you do it wrong, you’ll just get some people mad. If you depict it only as a selling point of your game, you might make even more people mad. That is why only a small selection of games that have dealt with such topics have been brutally honest and unforgiving in the depiction of depression and anxiety.

Today we are chatting with Shirli Ainsworth, the person behind Borealis and the sole creator of Venus: Improbable Dream, a visual novel that doesn’t shy away from being honest, as well as engaging.

First of all, am I correct in labeling you as the sole creator of the game? Just a quick glance at the Steam store page tells me that it probably took a lot of effort and work hours to piece all that together. Is Shirli also the mastermind behind the soundtrack, the art, and not just the story?

Yes, I’m the sole creator of the game. I hired an artist to create the character sprites and CGs, because that’s the only area I’m not capable of, and a friend lent a hand with some of the GUI customizations. Other than that, I wrote the story, coded the game, wrote and recorded the soundtrack, and edited/produced everything.

2. What was the main inspiration behind the story of Venus: Improbable Dream? I noticed that the main character has a body disfigurement and another character later in the story is shown as disabled so obviously, that made me remember Katawa Shoujo.

The game’s story was mainly born from wanting to portray two people coming together to achieve something great through the power of music, as music is the biggest thing in my life. However, the more I started to flesh out the story and explore who the characters were and what their feelings and motivations were for things, I realized that I wanted to incorporate mental health struggles. That topic ended up being much more prominent than I’d originally planned, but I’m happy about it. I love content that shows mental health/disability in a realistic way and highlights important issues that often get ignored, like support for boys/men with mental health struggles especially – that’s the whole reason I made Kakeru a male protagonist. As you say, Katawa Shoujo was massive for me. It was the first visual novel I ever played back in 2013, and thanks to how well it dealt with those themes, I really identified with it. I have to say though, I didn’t really have other VNs in mind when I was creating my own. I kinda just went with what I felt was right.

3. Valve has fairly recently eased up the restrictions on accepting games to their store (and sometimes they were pretty strict on vsual novels). How hard it is for an indie dev to stand out on Steam?

It’s incredibly hard to stand out on Steam, and as an indie dev in general! I certainly don’t feel as though I’ve made much progress with it at all. The industry is saturated with so many content creators trying to get you to buy their thing, so it’s like trying to yell over the noise of an entire stadium full of screaming people – it’s very difficult to make yourself heard. It can be pretty disheartening, but I keep hoping that the right people will find Venus: Improbable Dream if I keep plugging away.

4. You’ve been a musician for quite a while so it’s no surprise that music plays a big part in the story of Venus: Improbable Dream. Did your music expertise help you a lot in creating the soundtrack and shaping the story of the game?

I think being a musician was most of the reason I even made a game in the first place. I’ve always loved to write stories from being a child, but despite being a dedicated gamer, making a game was never something I’d ever thought about. When I discovered VNs and realized that there was free software available to create them, I thought it’d be a cool way to tell a story, but it was mainly the idea of working music into the story as a big plot point and device that was appealing. I wanted to make music the main premise. And yes, I certainly used a lot of my music knowledge when creating the soundtrack. I had a lot of fun composing the pieces, and I was mindful of trying to use certain devices effectively. For example, I used instruments to build an association with characters. Haruka plays the flute, and so sometimes, when Kakeru is alone and thinking about her, a flute will appear in the background music to add to that association.

5. How did you approach the topics of depression and anxiety in this game? If someone were to make a different game tomorrow that talks about these issues, what should they definitely try to avoid when it comes to the depiction of mental health?

Honestly, I just went with my gut. I’ve suffered from mental health issues for a long time myself, and have friends and family that suffer too, so I know from myself and them what people tend to respond to or dislike when it comes to discussing these issues. When it comes to things to avoid, I’d mainly just recommend ignoring the tropes that you see in a lot of other games. Often you’ll see a protagonist who hates everything and everyone and uses that front to ‘explain’ their issues without actually providing a genuine backstory or a reason. It kinda gives mental health the idea of just being “I hate the world, man”, when in reality it runs incredibly deep with people’s personal insecurities and has a horribly strong hold on them. A lot of games can accidentally give protagonists a very shallow appearance, and therefore their story doesn’t really represent realistic mental health issues very well.

6. If money is no object, what game would you set out to make tomorrow? What would be Shirli’s dream game?

Oh, if money weren’t a thing! I’m not quite sure – I’d like to make another visual novel, although I don’t have any plans, so I’m not sure what it would be about. But it would have amazing art, including the backgrounds – that’s something I really wished I’d been able to afford to do with Venus: Improbable Dream. I wanted fully illustrated backgrounds, but I funded the entire game from my own personal pocket, and could only afford the sprites and CGs. Fully illustrated everything is a dream! I also love pixel horrors, in complete contrast to what I’ve created so far, so I’d be tempted to give one of those a go too.

7. Aside from the obvious pick of Katawa Shoujo, what were some other games that made an impact on you with their story and surprised you?

It’s a cliche to say, but Clannad is incredible. Key are a fantastic company capable of delivering really emotional stories, and Clannad totally knocked me out – a lot of crying was done! Moving away from visual novels, I absolutely love the To The Moon game series. Kan Gao is brilliant, and the story of To The Moon itself is really bittersweet. That game is a wonderful way of taking what looks like your average RPG/adventure game and making something really touching from it. One last thing I’d really like to mention is something not very well known, but I want to shine a light on it; the credits of Venus: Improbable Dream feature a memorial to someone called Robert Brock, aka Wertpol. He was an indie dev who made a truly brilliant set of games, the best of which is called Presentable Liberty. He had a real gift for making games that looked like nothing much on the surface, and then suddenly carving out this really emotional story out of nowhere with it. Presentable Liberty has you thinking “okay, this is just whatever” at the beginning, but by the end, you’re angry, upset, full of affection and a sense of loyalty, and fully invested in everything before you even realize what’s happening to you. Wertpol passed away under tragic conditions, but his work inspired me for sure, even with the small amount of content he made.

8. Venus: Improbable Dream is your first release for PC and although the game is fairly new (barely a month at the time of writing this), is there some upcoming project that we should look forward to? What game would you like to create next?

I’m so deep into trying to get people to play Venus: Improbable Dream that I really can’t think about anything else right now! Also, being honest, creating games was never an ambition of mine – it was something that came out of a side interest. I’m a musician before and after everything, so what’s going to come next from me is certainly music. However, I’m not ruling out the possibility of making another game in the future – I’m going to start putting myself out for commission, so I’ll be available to write soundtracks for other people’s games. In fact, I’ve already started – my good friend and fellow indie dev Daisy Games is releasing a sinister puzzle game later this year called Dark Sheep, and I’ve written and recorded its soundtrack. I’m certainly not going to disappear, so don’t worry!

To keep up with Shirli and her upcoming projects, be sure to follow her on Twitter and check out Venus: Improbable Dream on Steam.

Coming Soon to Xbox Game Pass: Grand Theft Auto V, Xbox Touch Controls, and More

Coming Soon to Xbox Game Pass: Grand Theft Auto V, Xbox Touch Controls, and More

by Megan Spurr, Community Lead, Xbox Game Pass

It’s time to assemble your gaming team, be they friends you take down zombies with, family you play with, or just a squad you compare stats with — we have a fresh batch of games for you. Grab your keyboard, your controller, or your mobile device and your hands for touch controls! Let’s jump in!

Coming Soon

Grand Theft Auto V (Console) – April 8

When a young street hustler, a retired bank robber and a terrifying psychopath find themselves entangled with some of the most frightening and deranged elements of the criminal underworld, the U.S. government and the entertainment industry, they must pull off a series of dangerous heists to survive in a ruthless city in which they can trust nobody, least of all each other.

Zombie Army 4: Dead War (Console and PC) ID@Xbox – April 8

Hitler’s zombie hordes are back for more in this spine-chilling shooter from the makers of Sniper Elite 4! Abominable occult enemies, epic weapons and a harrowing campaign for 1-4 players await in 1940s Europe, as you fight to save humankind from undead Armageddon!

NHL 21 (Console) EA Play – April 12

Carve your path to superstardom in an expanded Be A Pro mode and go down as one of the league’s greatest. On the ice, change up your attack with all new moves, dekes, dangles, and evasive manoeuvres, inspired by the league’s most ground-breaking innovators.

Rain on Your Parade (Console and PC) ID@Xbox – April 15

Travel the world as a cute cardboard cloud and ruin everybody’s day! Unlock new methods of mischief in over 50 levels, each with unique setting and objectives. Make new friends and help them too – it’s an adorable schadenfreude game!

Pathway (PC) ID@Xbox – April 15

Assemble a bold team of adventurers and journey through the desert-wilderness. In 1936, Nazi influence has spread, along with rumours of secret excavations, mysterious artefacts, and gruesome occult rituals… Outwit foes in strategic squad combat and locate ancient treasures before they fall into the wrong hands!

MLB The Show 21 (Console) – April 20

MLB The Show 21 is coming to Xbox Game Pass, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S. Experience faster, deeper, and more intense moment-to-moment action on the field in 4K 60FPS on Xbox Series X|S consoles. Lead your ballplayer to Road to the Show and Diamond Dynasty glory as a two-way star and face your friends on PlayStation 4 or PlayStation 5 with cross-platform play.

New Xbox Game Pass Experience on Xbox Console

Playing games with your friends just got easier with Xbox Game Pass on your console. Within the Game Pass, you’ll see a new section that says Play with Friends when you have people on your friends list playing any of the games in Xbox Game Pass. You’ll be able to either jump right into a joinable multiplayer session or begin installing the games your friends are currently playing!

In Case You Missed It

Genesis Noir (ID@Xbox)

A noir adventure spanning time and space. When a love triangle between cosmic beings becomes a bitter confrontation, you’ll witness a gunshot fired by a jealous god — otherwise known as The Big Bang. Jump into the expanding universe and search for a way to destroy creation and save your love.

Octopath Traveler

Eight travellers. Eight adventures. Eight roles to play. Embark on an epic journey across the vast and wondrous world of Orsterra and discover the captivating stories of each of the eight travellers. Use each character’s distinctive abilities in and out of battle and make decisions to shape your path.

DLC / Game Updates

Among Us: The Airship Update (PC) – Available now

Prepare for but beware the Impostor. Hop onto the newest Among Us map: The Airship! Out now for 4 to10 players in local and online multiplayer, work together on the biggest map yet to carry out the greatest plan… though whether that’s as a Crewmate or Impostor is another question. Free hats, new tasks, and even more emergency meetings to call!

Gears 5: Free Batista as Marcus Skin – Available until April 12

Calling all Gears 5 wrestling fans! For this week only, get the Batista as Marcus skin for free in the in-game store. Previously released for use in campaign, the Batista as Marcus skin can now be equipped in Versus and Horde modes.

Grounded Photo Mode Update – Available now

This update brings with it the first iteration of Photo Mode available in single-player games, allowing players to show their creativity and share images from their life in the Backyard. Along with new content and features, this update is helping to pave the way for more to come!

Halo: The Master Chief Collection Season 6 – April 7

The free Season 6 update for Halo: The Master Chief Collection starts April 7! Enjoy new content like Halo 3 armour, vehicle and weapon skins inspired by the Halo: Fireteam Raven arcade game alongside over 100 additional seasonal rewards. 

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Perks

Visit the Perks gallery on your Xbox Series X|S or Xbox One consoles, Xbox App on Windows 10 PCs, or the Xbox Game Pass mobile app on iOS and Android to claim these rewards:

Sea of Thieves: Ocean Crawler Bundle – Available Now

Claim the Ocean Crawler Bundle of cosmetics for your character and ship, including the Ocean Crawler Jacket and Hat, matching Figurehead and Sails, and a windfall of 10,000 gold!

Gems of War: Shadow Dragon Legendary Starter Pack – Available Now

The Shadow Dragon Legendary Starter Pack available now via Perks, features the Shadow Dragon, Legendary weapon “Order and Chaos”, 10 legendary ingots and 1500 Souls.

Phantasy Star Online 2: April Member Pack – April 7

Snag the April Member Pack which includes Triboosts, EXP, Coins, and more!

Apex Legends: Have Faith Weapon Charm– April 8

Show the competition what you’re made of with your new Have Faith Weapon Charm, brought to you by EA Play! Equip this to your favourite weapon and battle for glory, fame, and fortune in style.

Spellbreak: Chapter 2 Pass – April 8

Join the Order of the Vowbreakers as you reveal the secrets of the cataclysmic Fracture! As an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate member, you get a free Chapter 2 Pass that unlocks 50 levels of rewards, gold, and exclusive cosmetics. Can you complete the chapter and unlock the Vowguard Inquisitor?

Xbox Game Pass Quests

April Quests launch today with an Easter Egg theme running throughout the month! Keep your eyes peeled as you play your favourite games. Claim and redeem the Points you earn from Quests to use for Xbox gift cards and more.

Try out these select monthly Quests that can earn you double points starting today!

  • Forza Horizon 4 – 150 points: Earn 7,000 Influence.
  • PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds – 150 points: Play 2 matches.
  • Alien Isolation – 150 points: Spend 5 minutes successfully avoiding Alien detection.
  • The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited – 150 points: Find 2 Skyshards or Have 3 Alliance VS Alliance Kills.

Leaving Soon

It’s time to say farewell to the following games leaving the Xbox Game Pass library on April 15, as well as a batch of EA Play games to be delisted from The Play List on April 16. You know the drill, be sure to show these games some love before they go (calling all Achievement hunters here)!

If you want to keep the fun going, you can use your Game Pass member discount to save up to 20% on games leaving the Game Pass library, while Ultimate and PC members can save up to 10% on EA Play games.

April 15

  • Deliver Us the Moon (Console and PC)
  • Gato Roboto (Console and PC)
  • Wargroove (Console and PC)

April 16 (EA Play)

  • Madden 15 (Console)
  • Madden 16 (Console)
  • Madden 17 (Console)
  • Madden 18 (Console)
  • Madden 25 (Console)
  • NHL 18 (Console)
  • NHL 19 (Console)

Starting off April with games you can touch here on the ground, quests for games you can drive, Perks for games you can sail – we’re getting games in all sorts of places. If you haven’t tried Xbox Game Pass Ultimate yet, get your first month for $1 and make sure you don’t miss out on any of these games coming up. Find us on Twitter and Instagram, and we’ll be back with more games this month!

Wilderness Rewards in Red Dead Online: Bonuses for Naturalists, Free Roam Fishing Challenges, and Wildlife Photographer, Plus Free Care Package, Discounts, and More

Experience the Great Outdoors with Naturalist Bonuses and Rewards

All Naturalist Sample Sales pay out double, plus a wilderness-ready Care Package

Enjoy the wonders of nature this week in Red Dead Online and make the most of your next excursion with a complimentary care package featuring 3 Potent Herbivore Bait, 3 Potent Predator Bait, and 3 Special Lake Lures for all players. And those yet to answer Mother Nature’s call can take 5 Gold Bars off the retail cost of the Naturalist’s Sample Kit.

Whether they be fresh-faced or seasoned, all Naturalists will take home double the cash and XP on all Sample Sales this week. Sampling any Legendary Animal will land you 100 Sedative Varmint Rifle rounds and 5 Animal Revivers with which to sedate and rejuvenate your targets.

Should your animal documentation equipment need an upgrade, make sure to complete a round of Wildlife Photographer: you’ll receive an Offer for 40% off the cost of the Advanced Camera if you do.

Bring your pelts in to Gus Macmillan for him to turn into Garments and Trinkets alike — craft any item at Gus’ Store to get an Offer good for half off any Outfit below Rank 15.

Angler Bonuses

Toss your lure, kick your feet up, and enjoy the benefits of a day on the lake. There’s 2X RDO$ and XP on all Free Roam Fishing Challenges, which are occurring more frequently this week. Plus, visiting the Butcher to offload any fish will earn you 50% extra cash on all sales.

Discounts

In addition to the discount on the Sample Kit mentioned above, Naturalists can take an extra 30% off a range of items this week, including: all of Harriet’s Tonics, Novice and Promising Naturalist Items, all items in Gus’ Store, and the Elephant Rifle.

Elsewhere, anglers can take 40% off the price of the Fishing Rod, all Fishing Lures, and all Hats — don’t forget to keep your scalp safe out there in the sun.

Prime Gaming Benefits
Red Dead Online players who connect their Rockstar Games Social Club account to Prime Gaming will receive Rewards for:

  • A free Bounty Hunter License
  • An Award for the Trimmed Amethyst Bounty Wagon Livery

In addition, players who connect to Prime Gaming before April 12th will receive Offers for 30% off select Multi-Class Horses and Horse Care Pamphlets available for purchase from the Fence, and 40% off any Saddle available at the Stables.


Check Rockstar Support for details and limitations.

Experience the Thrill of Big Bass Fishing with Bassmaster Fishing 2022, Coming this Fall

Sports Simulation Expert Dovetail Games Partners with Bassmaster to Create the Official Videogame for Console and PC

KENT, UK Apr. 6, 2021 – Dovetail Games, developer and publisher of authentic simulation titles, are thrilled to announce their new partnership with B.A.S.S., the worldwide authority on bass fishing, to create the biggest bass fishing video game ever made, Bassmaster Fishing 2022. In development for the PlayStation®5, PlayStation 4 home computer entertainment system, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One family of devices including the Xbox One X, and windows PC via Steam, the in-depth fishing simulation will release in North America and Europe this fall.

Scott Martin, professional angler and host of ‘The Scott Martin Challenge,’ is working closely with Dovetail Games to help create this exciting new simulation title and will be featured prominently throughout the game and its career modes. Martin’s story of joining the B.A.S.S. tour and fulfilling his family’s legacy is well known in the fishing world and soon players will be able to see if they have what it takes to become a bass master. More information about the new technology and features being added to Bassmaster Fishing 2022 to enhance immersion and deliver an authentic angling experience will be announced in the coming months.

Jon Rissik, CEO of Dovetail Games says: “Partnering with a prestigious organization like Bassmaster and an elite angler like Scott Martin is incredibly exciting, especially for our passionate team of anglers creating the game. The expertise, experience, and knowledge of Bassmaster and Scott will help ensure a fantastic and authentic sports fishing experience. We are also thrilled to announce that we are title sponsor of the forthcoming Bassmaster Elite Event taking place on the Sabine River in Orange, Texas between April 8 and 11.’’

Bruce Akin, CEO of B.A.S.S. is just as excited; “B.A.S.S. remains at the forefront of promoting fishing and reaching out to new and younger audiences. We are incredibly excited to be partnering with Dovetail Games on the Bassmaster Fishing 2022game and we can’t wait to see our tournaments and anglers featured in-game. Having the official video game as the title sponsor for the Elite event at the Sabine River demonstrates how successful this partnership is going to be.

Scott Martin can’t wait to return; “I’m pumped to be working with Dovetail Games again. Everyone knows I have unfinished family business and my aim is to win the biggest prize in bass fishing. I’m so excited that fans will get the opportunity to try to do the same through the game. It would be incredible to win my first Elite event when Bassmaster Fishing 2022 is the title sponsor.

Developed and published by Dovetail Games, Bassmaster Fishing 2022is due to release this Fall in North America and Europe on the PS5™, PS4™ system, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One/Xbox One X, and windows PC via Steam. Keep checking both Bassmaster’s and Scott Martin’s social channels for updates. For regular updates please visit www.bassmasterthegame.com.

About Dovetail Games

Dovetail Games was launched in 2013. Previously trading as RailSimulator.com Ltd, the business launched in 2009 initially producing and marketing the PC game Train Simulator. Today, Dovetail Games is responsible for developing train, and fishing simulation games for PC and leading consoles. http://www.dovetailgames.com.

About B.A.S.S.

B.A.S.S., which encompasses the Bassmaster tournament leagues, events and media platforms, is the worldwide authority on bass fishing and keeper of the culture of the sport, providing cutting edge content on bass fishing whenever, wherever and however bass fishing fans want to use it. Headquartered in Birmingham, Ala., the 515,000-member organization’s fully integrated media platforms include the industry’s leading magazines (Bassmaster and B.A.S.S. Times), website (Bassmaster.com), TV show, radio show, social media programs and events. For more than 50 years, B.A.S.S. has been dedicated to access, conservation and youth fishing.

The Bassmaster Tournament Trail includes the most prestigious events at each level of competition, including the Bassmaster Elite Series, Basspro.com Bassmaster Opens Series, TNT Fireworks B.A.S.S. Nation Series, Carhartt Bassmaster College Series presented by Bass Pro Shops, Mossy Oak Fishing Bassmaster High School Series presented by Academy Sports + Outdoors, Bassmaster Team Championship, Bassmaster B.A.S.S. Nation Kayak Series powered by TourneyX and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic presented by Huk.

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MYTHICAL GAMES’ PLAYABLE NFTS UNLOCK A NEW UNIVERSAL ECONOMY, INCREASING VALUE OF DIGITAL COLLECTIBLES THROUGH GAMEPLAY

Collect, Upgrade and Sell Playable NFTs for Cash or Crypto; Alpha Phase of Peer-to-Peer NFT Marketplace Announced, Bolstered by New Hires Stoyan Stoyanov, Matt Nutt and Cristina Lee

Los Angeles, Calif. – April 6, 2021 – Mythical Games, a next-generation technology studio creating universal gaming ecosystems around playable NFTs, led by industry veterans and former executives from Activision, Oculus, EA and Zynga, today announced the Alpha phase of its proprietary Marketplace. Mythical’s Marketplace will facilitate peer-to-peer sales of playable NFTs from Blankos Block Party, an open-world multiplayer party game with an emphasis on player-designed levels. A new video released by Mythical provides a small preview of the Marketplace’s functionality:

Blankos Block Party offers NFTs with utility in a AAA game experience; with playable NFTs, collectors take an active role in increasing the value of their digital vinyl toys by leveling them up, competing in special events and more. Players have invested billions of dollars into digital items in other online games without a tangible way to benefit from it beyond occasional gameplay advantages; content remains locked behind their account because their purchase is really just a lease or licensing agreement, with no ability to transfer or sell. And while other secondary marketplaces have existed in the form of grey and black markets, players who participate are exposed to unsafe transactions, scams and even the threat of losing their accounts for Terms of Service violations. Through the proprietary Mythical Marketplace, players can unlock the value of monetary, rarity and time-based investments by selling their Blankos to other players for real/fiat or crypto currency in safe and secure transactions, with proof of authenticity.

“Rolling out the Mythical Marketplace is the next big step for us toward creating true player-owned economies in games,” said John Linden, CEO and co-founder, Mythical Games. “With the recent boom of NFTs and digital assets in pop culture, we’re happy to be at the forefront of introducing these concepts to AAA games and leading the way to new sources of revenue and value creation for players and creators.”

With Blankos Block Party and its Marketplace, Mythical aims to drive mass adoption of ownership in games through NFTs and Proof of Stake (PoS) blockchain technology, opening the door to a new kind of global game economy where creators are owners and players are investors. In the Blankos open beta, the community currently holds more than 60,000 NFTs for over 300,000 registered players, but there are fewer than 5,000 of each artist-designed Blanko in circulation. As the game’s audience continues to grow, earlier assets and specialized releases will become more scarce and likely more valuable in the secondary market, creating rarity on a mass market scale.

To facilitate its Marketplace, Mythical recently welcomed to its team three new executives focused on developing world-class systems that have never before been available in a game, including unique intelligence tools to help players better understand the value of their items through sophisticated but accessible data, dashboards and other valuable insights.

Vice President of Marketplace Stoyan Stoyanov joins Mythical from StubHub, bringing 13+ years of expertise in cross-cultural leadership and global business operations. Stoyanov is an accomplished Marketplace Leader knowledgeable in marketplace management, product innovation, inventory strategy and pricing across e-commerce marketplaces. He is focused on both the consumer-facing NFT Marketplace for Blankos and the Mythical platform, both powered by the company’s proprietary engine.

Matt Nutt joins Mythical as Vice President of ‘NFT Engine’, working with Stoyanov and the Marketplace team to empower other games and interactive media companies to build their own economy engines leveraging Mythical’s proprietary platform. Nutt began his career at Microsoft, where he focused on product and partner development as part of the team that created Expedia, before transitioning to the games industry. Prior to joining Mythical, he was the Vice President and Group General Manager for EA Mobile. Previously he oversaw studios at Glu Mobile, ran indie studio Cie Games (sold to Glu in 2014), and held management positions at Blizzard Entertainment and Square Enix, in business development roles.

Cristina Lee joins the company as Vice President of Finance, following nearly a decade at Warner Bros. Entertainment and more than six years at Fox Filmed Entertainment. A highly experienced finance and accounting executive with divisional and product-level financial management across emerging and established business models for content distribution, Lee brings a diverse background in mobile and digital gaming, home entertainment digital distribution and international television to Mythical, paired with substantial strategic and analytical expertise in financial planning & analysis and driving business growth from the early phase in fast-growth, dynamic environments.

Mythical is continuing to hire for select roles on its game, marketing, and Marketplace teams. For a listing of open positions, please visit: mythicalgames.com/careers.

Blankos Block Party and the Marketplace are built on EOSIO blockchain using a Proof of Stake model that is more environmentally friendly and sustainable than the Proof of Work model used for mining (neither the game nor Blankos NFTs require any crypto mining to participate). Mythical’s Marketplace will launch to all Blankos Block Party players later this year.

More information on Blankos Block Party and the Mythical Marketplace Alpha is available on Blankos.com.

About Blankos Block Party

Blankos Block Party, the debut title from Mythical, is an open-world multiplayer party game with an emphasis on player-designed levels. Unlike other games where the content you pay for licensed and leased, Blankos Block Party offers players ownership of digital assets through NFTs, allowing the community to not only buy and sell their items in secondary marketplaces for fiat or crypto currency, but to dictate the value and scarcity of their collections.

The stars of Blankos Block Party are collectible vinyl toys called Blankos, designed by some of the world’s top vinyl toy artists including Jon-Paul Kaiser, Tara McPherson and Pete Fowler. Each Blanko is part of a limited mint, recorded to blockchain as a non-fungible token (NFT). Coming to PC first in 2021, the immersive world is styled like a giant block party where players can compete on levels created by the community or Mythical, build their own minigames to share, take on challenges and more!

About Mythical

Acknowledged by Forbes as one of the Disruptive Technology Companies To Watch in 2019, Mythical is a next-gen games technology company creating a universal gaming ecosystem by leveraging blockchain technology and NFTs for tools that enable players, creators, artists, brands and game developers to become stakeholders and owners in new game economies.

Led by gaming industry veterans, the team specializes in building games around player-owned economies and has helped develop major franchises including Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, Guitar Hero, DJ Hero, Marvel Strike Force and Skylanders and a marketplace team of experts from Stubhub, Charles Schwab, QuantCo and Cloud9 Technologies. Blankos Block Party is Mythical’s first flagship title. Blankos transforms the relationship between game economies and players, brands, content creators and game developers and showcases Mythical’s vision of player-owned economies.

SLAM DUNK INTO THE CHAMPIONSHIP WITH NETMARBLE’S NBA BALL STARS – OFFICIALLY LAUNCHING ON THE APP STORE AND GOOGLE PLAY TODAY

SLAM DUNK INTO THE CHAMPIONSHIP WITH NETMARBLE’S NBA BALL STARS – OFFICIALLY LAUNCHING ON THE APP STORE AND GOOGLE PLAY TODAY

Assemble and Train an Elite Team of NBA Superstars in this Strategic, Gem-Bursting Puzzle Game

LOS ANGELES – APRIL 6, 2021 – Global mobile game publisher Netmarble Corp officially launches NBA Ball Stars today – an all-new, puzzle-based, mobile basketball game starring 2019-20 Kia NBA Rookie of the Year Ja Morant as its cover athlete. Now live on the App Store and Google Play, NBA Ball Stars, created in collaboration with the National Basketball Association (NBA) and National Basketball Players’ Association (NBPA), is the first publishing project for Netmarble’s Los Angeles-based subsidiaries Netmarble US and Kung Fu Factory.

NBA Ball Stars combines star players from the NBA, fast-paced gameplay and franchise-building skills into a strategic, team-based game suitable for general sports fans, casual gamers and players of all levels. Gamers will take charge of their favorite team and make a run for the championship title, choosing from an extensive line-up of NBA players to draft and train. By successfully bursting sequences of matching gems, players control their team and power-up their athletes to execute special shots, steals, slam dunks and more.

“Our partnership with the NBA has been momentous in the creation of a unique genre of game with appeal beyond casual gamers and sports fans to broader NBA culture, within the mobile gaming industry,” said Simon Sim, President of Netmarble US. “Kung Fu Factory’s expertise in the sports action and puzzle space has also been paramount to this project, and we’re proud to debut our first publishing project together, with fresh content and surprises planned for players in the months ahead.”

With a variety of accessible matchups and quick-play sessions, NBA Ball Stars players have full franchise control at their fingertips, including:

  • Collecting and Managing NBA Stars Gamers can create customized lineups from a large selection of the NBA’s ongoing athlete roster. Strengthening their team’s talent enables players to compete for a chance to attain rare rewards and move up the leaderboard to gain trophies.
  • Powering Up Players Through Gem-Bursting Success Successful puzzle gameplay powers up players, increases offensive and defensive skills, and unlocks signature moves. Strategically clear any defensive “Blocker Gems” placed by opponents on the board and generate electrifying, board-clearing effects to bring home victory.
  • Strategizing Lineups to Succeed in the Playoffs – By increasing their OVR (overall rating), gamers will train their favorite players over time, use the Formations System to strategize ideal line-ups, and utilize their athletes’ unique skillsets to take a shot at winning the championship.

NBA Ball Stars is available as a free download starting today (with in-app purchases) on the App Store and Google Play. For more information on future updates, including new seasons, players and other content, please visit the official website (https://nbaballstars.netmarble.com/), and follow NBA Ball Stars on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.

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About Netmarble Corporation

Established in Korea in 2000, Netmarble Corporation is a top developer and publisher pushing the boundaries of the mobile gaming experience with highly innovative games including Lineage 2: Revolution, The Seven Deadly Sins: Grand Cross, Blade&Soul Revolution and MARVEL Future Fight. As a parent company of Kabam, and a major shareholder of Jam City and Big Hit Entertainment, Netmarble strives to entertain audiences around the world with a variety of mobile games based on its powerful franchises and collaborations with IP holders worldwide. More information can be found at http://company.netmarble.com

About Netmarble US 

Netmarble US, Inc. is a subsidiary of Netmarble Corp. established in 2012 as part of the company’s commitment to Western expansion. Netmarble US has extended the global audience for Netmarble’s innovative mobile games including MARVEL Future Fight, Lineage 2: Revolution, The Seven Deadly Sins: Grand Cross, and BTS WORLD by bringing these titles to players across North America, Europe and Latin America. Netmarble US strives to entertain audiences around the world with a variety of games based on its powerful franchises, collaborations with IP holders worldwide, and new and future relationships with start-up and independent Western developers. More information can be found on the official website.

THE CLONE WARS ARE BACK – STAR WARS™ REPUBLIC COMMANDO™ NOW AVAILABLE ON NINTENDO SWITCH AND PLAYSTATION 4

AUSTIN, Texas, April 6, 2021 – The Squad is your weapon! Aspyr and Lucasfilm Games today announced that Star Wars Republic Commando is now available for digital purchase on Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4 for $14.99. The classic, first-person tactical shooter is back, now as a single player experience for today’s modern consoles.

Star Wars™ Republic Commando™

Chaos has erupted throughout the galaxy. As leader of an elite squad of Republic Commandos, your mission is to infiltrate, dominate, and ultimately, annihilate the enemy. Boss, Fixer, Scorch, and Sev, better known as Delta Squad, are back! Your squad will follow your orders and your lead, working together as a team – instinctively, intelligently, instantly. Relive the legendary campaign.

  • Welcome to the Clone Wars: Chaos has erupted throughout the galaxy. As leader of an elite squad of Republic Commandos, your mission is to infiltrate, dominate, and ultimately annihilate the enemy. 
     
  • Battle Relentless Enemies: Battle a variety of highly intelligent and deadly enemies—from brutal Trandoshan mercenaries to the flying insectoid warriors of Geonosis.
     
  • The Squad is Your Weapon: Your squad will follow your orders, performing complex commands and strategic maneuvers. You are their leader. They are your weapon.
     

Availability

Star Wars Republic Commando is now available for digital purchase on Nintendo eShop and PlayStation Store for $14.99.

About Aspyr

Aspyr is a leading video game publishing and development partner focused on maximizing the potential of games across all platforms and for all players. Today, the company supports a growing network of partners that includes many of the industry’s leading entertainment IP holders, publishers, developers, and technology providers. Aspyr is based in Austin, TX. For more information, visit www.aspyr.com.


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Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Storm Ground Releases May 27 on PlayStation®4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch & PC

Pre-orders are open now for Focus Home Interactive & Gasket Games’ new turn-based strategy title from the Warhammer universe

PARIS April 6, 2021 Focus Home Interactive and developer Gasket Games have announced that Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Storm Ground will release on May 27, 2021, on PC, PlayStation®4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch.

Today’s new trailer also offers the closest look yet at one of the three factions from this action-packed, turn-based strategy adaptation of Games Workshop’s iconic fantasy IP: the Maggotkin of Nurgle. A tide of death that corrupt everything they cross, the Maggotkin create hazardous zones on the battlefield they can use against their enemies.

Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Storm Ground lets you lead one of three highly customizable armies — the eternal Stormcasts, the ghoulish Nighthaunt and the rotting Maggotkin — to glory in rogue-like single-player campaigns or against real players in online PvP. With each new battle, you’ll collect new cards granting new units, skills, weapons and gear to strengthen your armies and let you define your own style of conquest.

Pre-order Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Storm Ground today on PC, PlayStation®4 and Xbox One to receive a special discount and the “Spoils of War Weapon Pack,” featuring one exclusive weapon for each of the game’s three armies. Visit the official store for more information.