Idea Factory International has announced that they are planning on bringing VVVtunia to the West under the name of Neptunia Virtual Stars where it will be releasing sometime in 2021 for the PlayStation 4. Neptunia Virtual Stars is another spin-off of the popular Hyperdimension Neptunia franchise and takes place in a dimension called Virtualand, the virtual planets that exist within it contain an extraordinary ability to produce a commodity known as content.
Of these celestial bodies is a tranquil planet known as EMO. This was the latest target of a nefarious group whose sole purpose is to destroy content created by virtual planets… Anti. Their decimation of EMO has left its citizens hopeless.Just then, VTubers, popular live-streamers from Earth, were suddenly transported to Virtualand. Because VTubers possess an affinity for creating good content, they were obvious targets for Anti, who quickly captured them and turned them into data pockets known as V Cubes.
Fair, the Virtual Goddess and leader of Planet EMO, sent out a distress signal to multiple dimensions in the hopes of a miracle. Two groups received the signal – the rising VTuber stars, Mi and Yu, members of MEWTRAL, as well as the Goddesses of Gamindustri: Neptune, Noire, Blanc, and Vert.
To go along with this announcement a number of screenshots as well as a new Japanese video featuring Neptune as a Vtuber have been released and can be found below.
Digital Extremes Re-Envisions Warframe’s Earliest Environment with State-of-the-Art Visuals, Original Storyline, Revitalized Gameplay and more
LONDON, ONTARIO, CA – June 9, 2020 – Like Chains of Harrow and The Jovian Concord before it, Canadian developer and publisher Digital Extremes has dug deep into its seven-year Warframe® content trove to re-imagine the Corpus faction’s levels in The Deadlock Protocol. Coming to PC this week, The Deadlock Protocol introduces the Corpus Faction’s dramatic origin story through richly re-crafted environments that integrate iconic new visuals and gameplay elements to reinforce the money-worshipping cult’s rise to power.
Boss Fight Enhanced, Parkour Perfect The first playable tileset in Warframe, nearly every aspect of the Corpus’ early environment has been upgraded, starting with gameplay. Fresh challenges lie in wait with the renewed Jackal boss, a fight sequence now extended across multiple levels that dares players to rethink tactics against this aggressively revamped boss. The new Granum Crowns bring a spendable currency that opens up a wild variety of gameplay options, including being transported to a surprising new Corpus nether-realm. And now nearly every wall, corridor, and room support intense parkour mobility.
Corpus Origins Revealed The Deadlock Protocol weaves larger-scale story implications into the modern Warframe narrative. Players must investigate the Corpus Faction’s desperate ploy to break their board’s political in-fighting. Through combat and discovery, Tenno will learn a small Corpus sub-faction has begun a devious plan to resurrect the faction’s founder, a revival posing an alarming new threat to the Origin System’s balance. Determined to strengthen their armada and bolster a growing space fleet against the Sentients and the Tenno, the Corpus’ plans for unbridled power must be put to an end. Do you have what it takes to confront the new Corpus threat, Tenno?
Introducing Protea, the 43rd Warframe Led by the powerful Ability to stop enemies in their tracks by rewinding time, Protea’s array of offensive and defensive grenades, drones, and turrets brings a battle tactician’s edge to the fight. Players can investigate her origin story as the former Corpus head bodyguard in her own unique Quest, and uncover a quiver of technologically advanced weapons from the new Corpus Armor Set and Primary Rifle to the Gunblade Melee, new Kitguns throughout the update. For more detailed information, visit Warframe.com.
The Deadlock Protocol is free and will arrive first on PC, followed by updates on PlayStation®4, Xbox One, and Nintendo™ Switch.
Would you like to join the Warframe community? Head to our forums to start a conversation. Check our official website at www.warframe.com. To keep up with the latest updates from the development team, be sure to follow Warframe on Twitch, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
ABOUT DIGITAL EXTREMES Founded in 1993 by James Schmalz, Digital Extremes ranks as one of the world’s top independent video game development studios. Originating with the co-creation of Epic Games’ multi-million unit selling Unreal® franchise including Unreal and Unreal Tournament, Digital Extremes went on to develop Dark Sector®, BioShock® for the PlayStation®3, the BioShock 2 multiplayer campaign, and The Darkness® II. The studio has reached its greatest critical and commercial success with the free-to-play action game, Warframe®, boasting a global community of 50 million registered players on PC, PS4™, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch™. For more information about Digital Extremes, visit www.digitalextremes.com. To sign up for Warframe, visit www.warframe.com.
Today, June 9, Need for Speed Heat will be the first EA title to offer cross-play, meaning that players can jump into Palm City together across PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
Criterion Games and EA also recently took another step to connect players and games on more platforms with the release of Need for Speed Heat on Steam, alongside 2016’s Need for Speed and Need for Speed Rivals. For full details, check out the blog post here or see the full text below.
This will be the final update for Need for Speed Heat as the Criterion team shifts gears towards developing the next Need for Speed game. Keep an eye out at EA PLAY Live for more Need for Speed and Steam announcements.
To the Need for Speed Community –
Hello, Matt Webster here, General Manager of Criterion Games. First, I wanted to let you all know how excited our team here in Guildford is to be back in the driver’s seat of development for Need for Speed. As you’ll know we have real history with racing and with Need for Speed. We’re focused on bringing Criterion’s unique point of view, unparalleled game feel, and high quality innovations that will chart a new future for this wonderful series of games.
I also wanted to share with you a glimpse of the road ahead, with our first checkpoint approaching quickly. The team has been hard at work to deliver an exciting feature to Need for Speed Heat, which will be in players’ hands tomorrow!
At Criterion, we’ve always believed that games are better with friends. We don’t want your platform of choice to be a barrier for that experience. So we’re thrilled to let you all know that on June 9, Need for Speed Heat will be the first EA title to offer cross-play, meaning that players – regardless of their platform – can jump into Palm City together as one, united community.
Once you’ve installed the update (see full update notes here, including some other fixes, too), you can opt in to race players across PC, PlayStation®4, and Xbox One. You can search for your friends who are playing on any of the above systems, given they’ve opted in for cross-play as well, inside the Find Players menu. Then, go to the new EA Friends tab in the Party Menu to see who’s online to play with.
As we at Criterion shift gears into the future with full focus on developing the next Need for Speed game, this will be the final update for Need for Speed Heat. Since the launch of Need for Speed Heat and as players continue to tear it up in Palm City, we’re listening to what you love about this experience, and what you all believe could be even better. With these insights, we have a terrific foundation to create the most expressive, most socially connected, action-packed game yet for Need for Speed fans and beyond.
As more players join the global Need for Speed community, we also want to provide more options in how the series can be discovered. On June 16, Need for Speed Heat drops into the EA Access and Origin Access Basic Vault*, giving all subscribers the opportunity to enter Palm City.
Another step to connect our players and games on more platforms is the recent release of Need for Speed Heat on Steam, alongside 2016’s Need for Speed and Need for Speed Rivals. Keep an eye out at EA PLAY Live on June 18 for more Need for Speed and Steam announcements. Cross-play will work across PC via Origin and Steam, PS4, Xbox One, and subscribers.
You’ll know from our past history that we want to bring players together however we can. With this announcement and what we’re working on for the future, we’re focused on uniting the wider Need for Speed community – so that you can play, race and compete with all of your friends.
We can’t wait to share more details about Need for Speed down the road. Until then, stay safe, and play together!
New Opportunities to Collect the Powerful Orochi,Alongside New ‘Ruby Refund Event’ Now Open for Players.
LOS ANGELES – JUNE 8, 2020 – Today’s update for Netmarble’s popular mobile action role-playing game (RPG) THE KING OF FIGHTERS ALLSTAR introduces ‘Ruby Refund Event’ and an all-new core mechanic for players eager to further strengthen their collection of characters with the Awakening Update.
The limited-time ‘Ruby Refund’ event awards players additional Rubies depending on how much they used previously, and a variety of events for daily mission, access and new entry offers further – for a potential total of 30,000 rubies for new players and up to 40,000 for existing players. The Rubies provided through this event can be used for only a limited period of time from June 4 to July 23.
Another new addition to THE KING OF FIGHTERS ALLSTAR is the ‘Awakening Feature’. Players can now awaken fighters who have reached Level 90 with new ‘Awakening’ and ‘Imprint’ materials earned from the recently introduced ‘Awaken Dungeons’. Once awakened, fighters will have access to powerful Awakening skills, further stat boosts, and other benefits, with a maximum rank of five awakenings possible for each fighter.
As part of this update, new and old players will also have the opportunity to collect Orochi from THE KING OF FIGHTERS 97 through special reward which is provided for a limited period of time till June 30. Further details of this special reward is given at the official forum of THE KING OF FIGHTERS ALLSTAR.
THE KING OF FIGHTERS ALLSTAR boasts fast-paced fighting action as players battle through waves of enemies, giant bosses, and rival fighter teams. The excitement is paired with cutting edge graphics, bold colors, and lightning-fast animations. In addition, this game features all of KOF’s classic fighters from ’94 to XIV, with more than 130 fighters available to collect, along with more to come with seasonal events, collaborations with popular IP such as TEKKEN 7 and SAMURAI SHODOWN, and additional content updates for players to enjoy.
THE KING OF FIGHTERS ALLSTAR is available to download on Google Play and the App Store in more than 175 countries and comes with support for English, Taiwanese, Indonesian, Thai, Spanish, Italian, French, Portuguese, Russian, and German languages.
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
Pre-downloads on the App Store and Google Play begin on June 16
JUNE 8, 2020 – LOS ANGELES – The prehistoric way of life has never been so adventurous with the upcoming launch of StoneAge World on June 17 for the App Store and Google Play. As the latest game in Netmarble’s internationally-known Stone Age IP, StoneAge World takes the concept of pet-collection and role-playing game (RPG) mechanics and seamlessly blends them together with a delightful and venturesome MMO experience set in a whimsically inspired take on prehistoric societies.
As a turn-based mobile reimagining of Netmarble’s online Stone Age RPG set in the land of Tectonika, players will embrace the role of “Trainer,” a powerful warrior who collects, tames, and trains Pets to protect the land from enemies. With over 250 pets ranging from dinosaurs, wooly mammoths, pigs, wolves and more, players will have their hands full with defending Tectonika from unknown enemies from the up-and-coming Machine Civilization, and exploring prehistoric society and its unique quirks.
All players who pre-register to download StoneAge World on the official website will receive 1,000,000 Stones (StoneAge World’s main currency). Players who pre-register on App Store and Google Play will also receive 50,000 Shells (StoneAge World’s premium currency). Pre-downloads begin on June 16, one day before the game’s grand launch. Also, Pet Event is being held on official pre-registration website.
NOTE FOR MEDIA / INFLUENCERS ONLY: Builds for StoneAge World and interview requests are available upon request.
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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
Hinwil, 8 June 2020 – Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN returned to winning ways as Jarno Opmeer crossed the line first in a thrilling F1 Esports Pro Exhibition race around the streets of Baku. The Dutchman won on his debut for the team, sending a strong signal about the team’s strength and depth ahead of this year’s F1 Esports Series.
In the Formula One Virtual GP, Thibaut Courtois was left flying the team’s colours after another game freeze forced Antonio Giovinazzi out of the race before the lights were even off. The Italian has endured a torrid time lately, with technical issues with the software forcing him out from several races. Thibaut had a strong performance, covering from a start-line clash to battle with Pierre Gasly for large parts of the race. The Belgian goalkeeper eventually crossed the line in P12.
In the Pro Exhibition race, the new team line-up of Daniel Bereznay and Jarno Opmeer was the subject of much expectation – and it duly delivered. The pair claimed P2 (Opmeer) and P8 (Bereznay) on the grid, setting themselves up for what promised to be an exciting race. Unfortunately for the Hungarian ace, a hit from behind at turn two and some more misfortunes – not of his own making – meant he spent the rest of the evening catching up with the pack before finishing 13th.
At the front, however, Jarno engaged in a battle for the lead against Lucas Blakeley and David Tonizza. After stalking Blakeley for most of the closing stages, Opmeer made a decisive move for the lead on the last lap and put some distance between himself and the pursuing duo to win his debut race for Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN.
A strong result in a challenging venue, and the gauntlet thrown to the rest of the field for the official season later in the year. We sure are looking forward to the final Exhibition Race next week in Canada…
Antonio Giovinazzi (DNS, Virtual GP): “Once again, it is extremely disappointing to be let down by the game after a good performance in qualifying. I think we could have had some fun in the race, it was an unpredictable one and we could have been in the mix – but we will never know. In any case, in less than a month we will be back competing in real life and we will hopefully have a bit more luck than what we had in the esports world.”
Daniel Bereznay (P13, Pro Exhibiiton Race): “It was not a lucky race for me, but I am happy for Jarno and the team. I was P8 in qualifying, it could have been better but I was not worried, as the track in Baku offers plenty of chances to overtake. I had a good start, made up two places before the first corner but on the approach to turn two I got a massive hit from behind and had to take the escape route. I lost 15 seconds and was at the back of the field. I then caught up with the pack, but found a crash blocking the road and that cost me a front wing. By the time I was back running, I could make up some places up to 13th. All these circumstances were not in my hands so I cannot be too disappointed. I did all I can and I can just be happy for the team result we had.”
Jarno Opmeer (P1, Pro Exhibition Race): “I am really happy with the result, especially to make my debut for the team like this. I am quite surprised at the same time, as I did really poorly on this track last year. I have made big steps since then and it was really nice to be able to show that in the race. There are still a few points I have to improve, but I have time to get better before the Pro Series starts again.”
About Sauber Group of Companies: The Sauber Group of Companies is composed of three operational entities: Sauber Motorsport AG, which operates and manages the Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN Formula One team; Sauber Engineering AG, which focuses on prototype development and additive manufacturing; and Sauber Aerodynamik AG, which conducts full and model-scale testing in the factory’s state-of-the-art wind tunnel and creates ground-breaking innovations in the field of aerodynamics. The companies collaborate closely and share know-how to apply the expertise of more than 500 dedicated individuals at the headquarter in Hinwil, Switzerland, to all internal and external projects. Since its founding in 1970, the passion for racing has been at the heart of Sauber.
For the last 50 years, the innovative Swiss company has been setting standards in the design, development and construction of race cars for various championship series, such as Formula One, DTM, and WEC. Following its own Formula One debut in 1993, Sauber Motorsport AG has established one of the few traditional and privately held teams in the sport. After 25 years of competition in Formula One, the company launched a long-term partnership with Alfa Romeo in 2018 and enters the 2020 championship under the new team name Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN.
Tripwire Interactive Starts Summer with Stylish Space Pirate Loot, New Weapons, and Chic Zeds
ROSWELL, Ga. — Monday, June 8 — Publisher and developer Tripwire Interactive invites players to walk the plank in the Killing Floor 2: Perilous Plunder update, out later today for PlayStation®4, PlayStation®4 Pro, Xbox One, Xbox One X, and PC via Steam. This update marks summer’s return with out of this world cosmetics, new map, new weapons, and summer-themed enemies.
Killing Floor 2: Perilous Plunderdocks today with the new featured community map, Desolation; in this new map, players can look forward to exploring the surprises and multiple levels of the facility across Killing Floor 2’s popular game modes. Also arriving on shore are returning summer zeds and brand-new Matriarch seasonal summer variants. Players can face these stylish summer fiends with two new weapons: the HRG Kaboomstick for the Demolitionist and the HRG Telauncher for the Berserker.
Today’s launch of the Killing Floor 2: Perilous Plunder update follows a longtime tradition of providing new maps, weapons, and notable free content updates since Killing Floor 2 first launched!
Supports survival, endless, weekly, and V.S. game modes
Contains optional mini-games
Weapons
2 New HRG Weapons:
HRG Kaboomstick – Demolitionist
HRG Telauncher – Berserker
Cosmetics:
New Space Pirate Themed Cosmetics
Added to Summer Sideshow Seasonal Ticket Drops
Includes hats, masks, arm bands, backpacks, helmets, and more
Returning Vault skins
Five Vault Stars themed weapon skins return
Space Pirate Outfit – available for purchase
Male or female
Five additional texture variants, including hat and mask accessories
Enemies:
Brand new Matriarch summer variations
Returning summer zeds
Additionally, Killing Floor 2: Perilous Plunder brings back premium sideshow tickets, the Neon MKVI skin bundle, The Retro Neon Gear Bundle, and The Future Neon Gear Bundle – as well as two brand-new weapons for purchase: the Single and Dual Glock 18 for the Gunslinger and the Blunderbuss for the Support. Both new paid weapon DLCs come with 5 unique skins.
To celebrate the launch of Killing Floor 2: Perilous Plunder, Tripwire Interactive will be sharing news about various digital sale offers via Facebook and Twitter. So be sure to keep an eye on Killing Floor 2 social sites for news on the latest promotions running over the course of the summer event!
In Killing Floor 2, players descend into continental Europe where the outbreak caused by Horzine Biotech’s failed experiment has quickly spread and gained unstoppable momentum, essentially paralyzing the European Union— Just one month after the events in the original KILLING FLOOR, the specimen clones are everywhere and civilization is in disarray; communications have failed, governments have collapsed, and military forces have been systematically eradicated. The people of Europe know survival and self-preservation too well and lucky survivors have gone into hiding.
Not all have given up hope though… A group of civilians and mercenaries have banded together to combat the outbreak and established privately funded operation bases across Europe. Upon tracking specimen clone outbreaks, players will descend into zed-laden hot zones and exterminate them.
Killing Floor 2 is developed and published by Tripwire Interactive and is published at retail by Deep Silver and Iceberg Interactive for the Xbox One, Xbox One X, PlayStation®4 Pro, PlayStation®4, and PC. This title has been rated M by the ESRB, PEGI 18, USK 18.
Stay up-to-date with the latest Killing Floor 2news and information onthe official website. You can also keep track of Tripwire Interactive by visiting the official website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.
About Tripwire Interactive
Formed in 2005 as a humble independent developer and founded by gamers who found success in the video game modding community, Tripwire Interactive has developed and self-published multiple critically acclaimed titles in the wildly popular Killing Floor and Rising Storm franchises, which have collectively sold over 20 million units to date. The studio’s most recent hit release, Maneater, breaks new ground in the popular action RPG genre and finds players taking on the role of a deadly shark with the uncanny ability to evolve as it feeds.
Since then, Tripwire Interactive has expanded its business and now turns its experience and resources to include publishing titles spanning multiple platforms and genres from other talented independent studios. The publishing division named “Tripwire Presents” aims to help like-minded independent studios bring their titles to market, including Chivalry 2 developed by Torn Banner Studios, Espire 1: VR Operative developed by Digital Lode, and Road Redemption developed by EQ Games and Pixel Dash Studios.
Gothenburg, Sweden – June 8th, 2020 – Indie developer Elden Pixels has announced that Alwa’s Legacy, the successor to the critically acclaimed 8-bit inspired platformer Alwa’s Awakening, is launching on Steam & GOG on June 17th for £13.99 / $17.99 / €14.99; with the Nintendo Switch launch soon to follow.
After saving the land of Alwa following the events of the first game, Zoe is about to embark on her quest home. However, upon waking up she finds herself at the beginning of her adventure with the world feeling disparate yet familiar. In order to return home, she will need to help the inhabitants of this mysterious land and save it yet again from the mysterious curse it appears to be under.
Using Zoe’s magic staff, players must negotiate the land of Alwa to solve perilous puzzles and fend off monsters. New items and a character upgrade system allows you to craft your individual playstyle, centred on an offensive, defensive or explorative skillset. Using magical upgrades, novel pathways can be found as you explore the nonlinear interconnected world by summoning blocks to climb on, bubbles to bounce off of, and lightning bolts to attack with. Quick reflexes are needed to traverse challenging rooms while avoiding booby traps and pitfalls. Along this adventure, you will meet all manner of interesting characters, comb through dangerous dungeons, and uncover incredible secrets as you attempt to save the land from extinction.
Alwa’s Legacy honours the past with it’s thoroughly contemporary take on the metroidvania genre – full of puzzles to solve, dungeons to explore, magical items to acquire and ancient secrets to discover. Varnished with it’s 16-bit inspired visuals, mixing classical pixel art aesthetics with new visual flourishes such as a realistic lighting system and modern game design principles, Alwa’s Legacy offers a timeless play experience.
This is Elden Pixels’ second game after their homage to classic 8-bit platforming adventures, Alwa’s Awakening, which received rave reviews from the likes of Rock, Paper, Shotgun, Nintendo World Report, and Nintendo Enthusiast. Fans were so enthused by it that Alwa’s Legacy was funded on Kickstarter with 924 backers offering SEK 250,000 to see its production come to fruition. Though set in the same world with the same protagonist, Alwa’s Legacy is not a direct sequel to Alwa’s Awakening, but rather a standalone experience which can be enjoyed separately.
“The decision to go full time into game development to make a sequel to Alwa’s Awakening has been very satisfying. Alwa’s Legacy is the great game we’ve always wanted to make with it’s diverse skill tree, expansive level design and gorgeous 16-bit style graphics,” said Mikael Forslind, Game Designer for Elden Pixels. “We’ve put everything into making Alwa’s Legacy the best it can be. We can’t wait for the fans to get their hands on it after all their support.”
Join our Discord community: https://discord.com/invite/65Y8YRN Visit the Elden Pixels website: https://eldenpixels.com/ Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/EldenPixels Like us on Facebook: http://facebook.com/EldenPixels
About Elden Pixels Elden Pixels was founded in 2016 when a group of friends got together and started making the game Alwa’s Awakening. What started just like a small side project eventually turned into a real studio when the game became successful. Now the goal is to create fun, creative and cool games with a focus on gameplay.
Major update brings two new expansions, quality of life improvements and more!
Helsinki, Finland — June 8th, 2020 — Independent developer Cornfox & Brothers today announced that The Golden Edition for their action fantasy RPG, Oceanhorn 2: Knights of the Lost Realm, is now available on Apple Arcade for iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple TV. The biggest update since its exclusive iOS release in 2019 sees improvements in everything from performance and graphics to game mechanics and level design, as well as new content additions.
“We’re streamlining and enhancing the play experience dramatically with this update in addition to expanding with new content,” said Heikki Repo, Creative Director of Cornfox & Brothers. “The Golden Edition of Oceanhorn 2: Knights of the Lost Realm is, essentially, the best and most approachable version of the game. And we have more to come, so enjoy The Golden Edition and stay tuned!”
The Golden Edition brings two expansions: The Shield of Chronos, which adds a new quest, a new dungeon as well as a shield that deflects projectiles, and The Criminal Hunt, bearing a series of mini side quests tasking players to chase down bandits such as Sir Stingalot and Baron Slimethorn. Additionally, as per community request, Cornfox & Brothers have expanded the game’s ending with never-before-seen scenes, intertwining both Oceanhorn chapters. Lastly, Oceanhorn 2 receives a slew of Quality of Life improvements and bug fixes, including an optional 60fps mode, a stunning new physics-based water simulation, overhauled menus, improved gameplay communication, new spoken dialog, and fresh music.
Prequel to the acclaimed Oceanhorn: Monsters of Uncharted Seas,Oceanhorn 2 follows the adventures of a young Knight who sets out on a magical journey across vast regions of Gaia to defend the lands and people of Arcadia from Warlock Mesmeroth’s Dark Army. This time, the protagonist is joined by two other characters – Trin, the granddaughter of Arcadia’s leader Archimedes, and Gen, a mysterious robot wielding an old Samurai weapon. Players control characters with contextual commands during tactical battles and puzzle-solving. Featuring gorgeous Zelda-esque visuals, Oceanhorn 2 offers open-world exploration, hack ‘n slash combat, and a variety of puzzles and quests that amass into a polished 20-hour action-filled RPG adventure, currently available on Apple Arcade.
For more information about Oceanhorn 2, check out:
About Cornfox & Brothers Founded in 2010 by brothers Jukka & Antti Viljamaa and Heikki Repo, Cornfox & Brothers is a Finnish-based independent game developer with a passion for delivering memorable, story-driven experiences for gamers of all kind, and on all platforms. The team is mostly known for the acclaimed adventure RPG Oceanhorn franchise that has been nominated for and won several awards globally. For more information, visit: https://www.cornfox.com
There are many different ways to announce a game and when it comes to Shantae and the Seven Sirens, many were a bit perplexed. Not only would the game be released in two parts, but the first part would only be available through the Apple Arcade as part of a launch promotion only for the rest to launch on the Apple store in March, leaving many of us left waiting until the final full release on consoles. So, while this journey may have been a bit of an odd one, it isn’t too unusual for the Shantae franchise over the years and now that it has finally danced its way onto consoles, is it worth picking up?
Story
After the life-changing events that happened in Half-Genie Hero, Shantae and her friends are due for a break and they have been invited to the tropical “Arena Island” paradise for a vacation with only one caveat; that Shantae participate in the half-genie festival that the town is holding. After being quickly convinced by Sky, Bolo, and even Mimic, Shantae meets with the town’s mayor and is introduced to five new half-genies, all of which have their own unique form of magic, who will also be participating in the dance festival.
During an evening practice the rest of the half-genies mysteriously vanish and leave Shantae as the sole guardian capable of uncovering the mysteries of the island and trying to rescue her newfound friends, though with the appearance of Risky Boots and mentions of a true treasure being hidden away, things may not be quite as they seem.
Shantae and the Seven Sirens feels like it is at a bit of a crossroads. Fans of the franchise have a chance to see all of their favorite characters return for a new journey in a brand new location as well as the addition of a great number of likable seeming allies in the form of the new half-genies but unfortunately many of them really don’t get a chance to shine or even develop much of a personality beyond simply existing as a goal and a way to give Shantae new dance power-ups and the new location only serves as the best way to deliver the new mystery and the source of the Sirens that players will be facing off against.
This means that while the signature brand of humor and writing is still there for what character interactions there are, especially for Shantae who continues to shine in nearly every conversation she has, the new characters really don’t have a lot going for them which is extremely unfortunate. In fact, a certain fan favorite barely plays a role in the game as a whole and even the boss battles lack the type of impact that previous games have had, with most confrontations beginning and ending with little to no fanfare which is quite disappointing and results in a narrative that has some of the charm that fans have come to love but doesn’t capitalize on any of its new characters or even most of its returning cast.
Gameplay
For Shantae and the Seven Sirens the series takes a return back to its Metroidvania roots where the entire game takes place over the course of a single map with dungeon-like areas placed at the end of most paths. Players will gain access to more areas as they progress through the story unlocking additional powers for Shantae that can be used to open up paths that were either previously untraversable or were blocked in some manner all while taking down a variety of enemies that are standing in the way with a mixture of hair-whips and magic. All this is done with tight controls and new extremely fluid transformations that make navigating areas a breeze.
As usual, most sub-weapons (that require magic to utilize) that Shantae will use in combat comes from stores that also provide various boosts to her hair whip attack, such as increasing its attack power and speed, though most of these spells will be very familiar to fans of the franchise as nearly all of them are returning from previous entries. The real special abilities that Shantae unlocks as the player makes their way through the game come in the form of Fusions that allow her to transform into various small animals to navigate the environment in various ways. This includes things such as having to transform into a newt to climb walls, a turtle to dive, and more.
The game’s layout works fairly well in pacing out progression to give players a small sample of what to expect from the exploration abilities while traversing through the dungeon they obtain them in, though remembering the exact locations of certain secrets in the main map will be a bit more difficult. This is primarily due to the fact that, while the game map does show where players have been and if there are entrances they haven’t traveled through, any caves where hidden items may be or other previously unreachable secrets, be they heart squids that can be traded for an increased health bar or saved for other reasons or nuggets that can be traded for boss cards, are not marked down which is rather unfortunate given the eventual size of the map and sparsity of fast travel platforms.
The other core ability that Shantae will unlock throughout the game happens to be special dance magic that utilizes the abilities of the other half-genies that the player has rescued so far. These dances serve as both a method of progression as well as a way to help Shantae defeat her foes since they can end up being incredibly powerful to the point that the game rarely feels like a challenge. This is also due to the fact that, while the dungeons are a real highlight that see a mixture of solid puzzle design and navigation, most of the combat and platforming is fairly simplistic at best and even boss battle tend to be rather simple in nature with only a couple of bosses requiring some unique thinking to defeat.
Now earlier there was mention of cards and that also happens to be a way that Shantae can grow stronger and be customized a bit to best fit the player’s style. Whenever a standard enemy is defeated they have a chance to drop a card that, when a certain number is obtained, can be equipped to provide various boosts. Three of these cards can be equipped at a time and they can range from simply allowing Shantae to crawl a little quicker to regenerating magic to avoiding any damage from falling into a pit, giving players an advantage that can be customized to their liking.
Visuals & Audio
One of the first things that players will notice is that WayForward has decided to give Shantae and the Seven Sirens a bit of extra love here and there as the company has teamed with Studio Trigger to produce not only an opening video for the game but a number of short cutscenes that play throughout the story to introduce key plot points and boss fights. These animations are short but gorgeously presented and hold up incredibly well to the bright and colorful art style used with the in-game world. The character sprites remain as detailed as ever with the new characters and bosses given gorgeously drawn designs that really stand out here.
As far as the soundtrack goes, it is worth noting that the series’ longtime composer Jake Kaufman was not able to return to work on the background music for the game but thankfully the songs haven’t seen too much of a drop in quality with the new team taking over. The chiptune background music remains fairly catchy, especially in regards to major confrontations, though there are a few that really lack any type of impact which may be the biggest sign of his absence. It is also worth noting that this entry also happens to feature perhaps the most voice work in the series so far thanks to the animated cutscenes seeing many characters talking for short bursts and of course providing bits of dialogue here and there during story moments and it is nice to note that all of this voice work is not only handled quite well but nearly all of the voice actors have returned to reprise their roles.
Overall
Shantae and the Seven Sirens may not have the longest run-time, as it clocks in at around eight hours roughly but the enticing New Game+ option and the blast that one can have while playing makes it easy to jump back in to make another run and maybe aim for a faster time. While the story could have been given some more attention, especially in regards to the new characters and location, and things are a bit easier than one would hope, Shantae and the Seven Sirens delivers satisfying dungeon exploration and solid boss battles all wrapped up in a gorgeous looking package.
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