Those who like little cross-over games may be delighted to hear that Arc System Works is working on a new one of these by the name of Code Shifter. Code Shifter is a 2D pixel art action game that takes a hundred characters from numerous franchises such as Guilt Gear, River City, BlazBlue, and more to allow them to battle against a number of enemies all re-imagined in 8-bit pixel art.
The game will offer four player battles through a “Colorful Fighters” mode that allows players to fight each other in a free for all or battle against other CPUs in an effort to unlock more characters. Outside of the cross-over game players will take control of Stella, a game developer at the “Awesome Rainbow Corp” who is tasked with squashing the remaining bugs on the eve of the company’s biggest game release. As she scrambles to fix the game, mysterious errors in the program suddenly appear and time is running out to finish the game in time.
Code Shifter will be released in Japan on January 30th with the Western version arriving sometime in Q1 2020 for the Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC.
A new English gameplay trailer for Arc of Alchemist has been released by Idea Factory International and this one focuses on showing off various bits of the game as well as a number of screenshots highlighting the different abilities the “Lunagear” can bring forth. The Lunagear is a weapon that allows players to master four different elements and while they can be used separately they can also be combined to create devastating attacks.
Arc of Alchemist is currently set to be released in North America and Europe on January 30th for the PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch with the game being released digitally only in North America and the PlayStation 4 version in Europe being available both digitally and at retail.
Literary Metroidvania Bookbound Brigade Turns
the Page to Nintendo Switch, PS4, PC Jan. 30
SEOUL – 10 Jan. 2020 –Bookbound Brigade, the side-scrolling action platformer starring legendary characters from history and literature by developer Digital Tales and publisher Intragames, begins chapter one on 30 Jan., releasing on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Steam for Windows PC.
Take charge as a noble
team of iconic historical and fictional characters, guiding King Arthur, The
Wizard of Oz’s Dorothy Gale, Dracula, Queen Victoria, and more. Harness
each characters’ special abilities to topple foes, surmount obstacles, and
master an “all for one and one for all” approach, swapping between four
formations to avoid enemy attacks, access new areas, and solve puzzles.
When the Book of Books,
a mystical tome housing every word ever written, goes missing, trouble befalls
the Literary World. Without the all-powerful Book, history’s greatest heroes
and fiction’s most beloved characters will blink out of existence. Faced with
this terrible fate, eight champions band together with one mission: retrieve
the Book of Books before it’s too late. Known as the Bookbound Brigade, the
heroes band together to search for the magnum opus.
Explore five sprawling,
hand-drawn worlds evoking classic settings from acclaimed works of fiction.
Engage with more than 50 non-playable characters ripped from chronicles and
classics, undertaking sidequests to gain upgrades and experience to assist the
Bookbound Brigade’s quest. Search for secrets, lost artifacts, and clues to
unravel the fate of the Book of Books on an unforgettable journey set to an
orchestral soundtrack imbued with an adventurous spirit.
“Bookbound Brigade breathes
new life into many renowned characters and historical figures we read about,”
said Sue Yim, Overseas Marketing Manager, Intragames. “We’re thrilled Digital
Tales’ creative spin on the metroidvania genre will allow fiction lovers,
history buffs, and platforming fans a chance to undertake this new adventure
when the game launches for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Steam on Jan.
30.”
Bookbound Brigade will be available on Nintendo Switch,
PlayStation 4, and Windows PC via Steam on 30 Jan. 2020 for $19.99 / €19.99 /
£17.99 / $30.00 AUD. The game features support for English, French, Italian,
German, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, Korean, Japanese, Simplified and
Traditional Chinese language options.
For more information
about BookboundBrigade, please visit theofficial website, follow Intragames onTwitter, and join the BookboundBrigade
community onTwitter andFacebook.
About Intragames
Based out of Seoul and
publishing games worldwide, Intragames works for delivering the joy of playing
games to the world. The publisher endeavors to make healthy entertainment
content and to build a creative gaming culture. With more than 15 years of
solid experience in games publishing, distribution, and indie game funding,
Intragames strives to be a company beloved by gamers through delivering passion
and pride in its games.
For more information
about Intragames, visit theofficial website.
About Digital Tales
Digital Tales is a
Milan-based video game studio with experience releasing projects on home
consoles, portable gaming devices, tablets, smartphones, PCs, and Web browsers.
Since its founding, Digital Tales games have been downloaded more than 45
million times and the studio has won two Italian Video Game Awards for Best
Indie Game and Best Tech.
For more information
about Digital Tales, visit theofficial website.
Infinite – Beyond the Mind Pounces onto
Consoles, PC in Q2 2020
SYDNEY – 10 Jan. 2020 – Infinite:
Beyond the Mind, the futuristic retro action platformer from
developer Emilie Coyo and publisher Blowfish Studios, races to Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox
One, and Steam for Windows PC in Q2 2020.
Raised on battlefields in a world devastated by war, two women who share a bond over their special powers fall under the watchful eye of the tyrannical Beljantaur Kingdom. When one is abducted by Queen Evangelyn and her heavily armed forces, the other must spring into action and rescue her partner from captivity by any means necessary.
Battle as Tanya or Olga
through 16 side-scrolling stages rife with enemy troops, platforming
challenges, and intense boss fights. Perform acrobatic double jumps and dodges to
elude oncoming fire and surmount environmental hazards while closing distance
between enemies to cut them down in close combat. Harness the power of mounted
gun emplacements to decimate Beljantaur battalions, call on allies to summon
screen-clearing bombardments, and blast through waves of hostile gunships in
genre-bending high-speed aerial shoot-‘em-up sequences.
Call in the other half
of the duo during Tanya or Olga’s fight for freedom to turn the tide on their
foes. With the press of a button, a second player can seamlessly join the fray,
taking command of a flying robot companion kitted out with long-range weaponry.
Rack up high scores by defeating adversaries, avoiding damage, and completing
stages quickly.
“With Infinite –
Beyond the Mind, I set out to make the game I always wanted to play when I
was a child,” said developer Emilie Coyo. “Being able to realize that goal has
been a dream come true and can’t wait to share it with PC and console players
all over the world later this year.”
Infinite – Beyond the
Mind will be available on
Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Steam via Windows PC in Q2 2020
for $9.99 USD / €8.99 / £7.99 / $12.99 AUD. It features English and French
language support. PAX attendees can check out Infinite – Beyond the Mind in
action by visiting Blowfish Studios Jan. 17 -19 at PAX South 2020 in San
Antonio, Texas (Booth #12034) and Feb. 27 – March 1 PAX East 2020 in Boston,
Mass. (Booth #29044).
For more information on Infinite
– Beyond the Mind, please visit the official website.
About Blowfish Studios
Blowfish Studios is an
award-winning independent game developer and publisher based in Sydney,
Australia. We stride to release original multi-platform games, while also
collaborating with developers from around the world. As developers first, we
bring a wealth of knowledge and expertise to any partnership. Our team provides
development services to get the game release ready, porting to all major
platforms, platform approval, marketing and promotion to the world.
To learn more about
Blowfish Studios, please visit the team’s website.
About Emilie Coyo
Emilie Coyo is an
independent video game developer based in Occitanie, France who aims to create
genre-bending experiences with distinct and varied playstyles.
PRE-REGISTRATION NOW OPEN FOR NETMARBLE’S NEW REAL-TIME STRATEGY MOBILE GAME MAGIC: MANASTRIKE
Pre-Registration Available for
In-Game Rewards Including Gold, Gems, Emojis, and More
LOS ANGELES – JANUARY 9, 2020 – Netmarble Corp. announced
today that pre-registration for Magic: ManaStrike is now
open. Magic: ManaStrike is the first game developed
by Netmarble Monsterfor the Wizards of the Coast franchiseMagic: The Gathering. Magic: ManaStrike will be
globally available on the App Store and Google Play.
Anyone who pre-registers to download Magic:
ManaStrike will receive a suite of in-game prizes once the game launches
and they complete the tutorial. These include Gold (in-game currency), Gems
(premium currency), one Player Icon, and five emoji themed after Magic: The
Gathering’s iconic Planeswalkers.
Magic:ManaStrike
is a mobile combat game that brings spells inspired
by Magic: The Gathering’s cards and characters to life in a new genre. After losing a war with the
Planeswalkers, Magic: The Gathering’s most powerful villain Nicol Bolas
creates a parallel universe to find the Planeswalkers’ weaknesses. Players
enter a contract with Nicol Bolas to provide combat data by controlling
Planeswalkers and units in his universe.
The gameoffers simple, tactical,
and strategic gameplay as players collect new cards and enhance their units to
suit their individual playstyles and strategies. Gameplay spotlights many
customized strategies between opponents in intense Player vs. Player (PvP) matches.
As players progress, they can experience Magic: The Gathering’s vast
universe of original spells and characters presented with impressive
Planeswalker animations in high-quality 3D.
Representatives from Netmarble and Wizards of the Coast sat down to showcase highlights of the Magic: ManaStrike development process, including key features, art, and how Magic: ManaStrike was conceived. View the discussion here
For more information, please visit Magic:
ManaStrike’s official website. Also, please follow Magic: ManaStrike on Facebook and Twitter.
# # #
About Netmarble
Corporation
Netmarble Corporation strives
to entertain audiences of all ages around the world by providing great mobile
gaming experiences. Established in Korea in 2000, Netmarble is one of the
fastest-growing mobile game companies and consistently ranks as a top mobile
developer and publisher worldwide. With more than 6,000 employees, Netmarble
has been producing and servicing some of the most successful mobile games
including Lineage 2: Revolution, Blade & Soul Revolution, MARVEL Future
Fight, BTS WORLD, Everybody’s Marble, and Seven Knights. As a parent company to
Kabam, a top mobile game developer in massively multiplayer free-to-play games,
the largest shareholder to Jam City, a leading casual social game developer and
a major shareholder of BigHit Entertainment, a music production, artist
management and publishing company, at the end of 2019, Netmarble decided to
acquire Woongjin Coway for new business growth and signed the stock purchase
agreement. Netmarble has a strategic partnership with CJ ENM Corporation,
Asia’s largest entertainment company, Tencent Holdings, Asia’s largest internet
company, and NCsoft, a prominent MMORPG company. More information can be found
at http://company.netmarble.com
About Magic: The Gathering
Magic: The Gathering’s compelling characters, fantastic worlds, and deep strategic gameplay
have entertained and delighted fans for more than 25 years. Fans can experience
Magic through the tabletop trading card game, the new digital game Magic:
The Gathering Arena, a New York Times bestselling novel, critically
acclaimed comic book series, and professional esports league. With over 40
million fans to date, Magic is a worldwide phenomenon published in eleven
languages in over 70 countries.
About Wizards of the Coast
Wizards
of the Coast, a subsidiary of Hasbro, Inc., is an award-winning developer and
publisher of tabletop and digital games that ignite a sense of adventure in
passionate players around the globe. Best known for publishing groundbreaking
fantasy franchises, MAGIC: THE GATHERING® and DUNGEONS &
DRAGONS®, Wizards is dedicated to bringing together world-class
talent to create unforgettable play experiences at its headquarters in
Washington and studios in Austin and Montreal. Learn more at www.wizards.com.
XSEED Games Releases a Slider-Sized BurgerTime
Party! Demo on the Nintendo eShop Today
Following the sizzling launch for BurgerTime Party! on the Nintendo Switch™ system in October, XSEED Games, the independent-minded publishing brand of Marvelous USA, Inc., is serving up a fresh demo for the title on the Nintendo eShop for Nintendo Switch. Available for free download today, players can get a taste of 4 different gameplay styles on offer in this fresh spin on the arcade classic: single-player “Solo Burger” mode, “Main Burger” mode featuring massive levels for 1-4 players, the PVP “Battle Burger” mode, and the arcade-style “Challenge Burger” mode. To satisfy those hungry for the full meal, the game is on sale with value-menu pricing for $13.99, 30% off its standard price of $19.99, today through January 16.
About BurgerTime Party!
Chef Peter Pepper and the Food Foes return to serve up a fresh
look and tons of new gameplay in this tasty reimagining of DATA EAST’s 1982
arcade classic! After firing up the grill for some action, new modes and items
will have modern chefs thinking outside of the bun to solve bite-sized puzzles
like crumbling floors, oil spills, and freezing ladders, all while evading
edible enemies both old and new. Local multiplayer lets 2-4 friends cooperate
as cooks or compete as cuisine across 100+ stages that will keep the fun from
getting stale long past Mr. Hot Dog’s expiration date. Now, let’s get cooking!
Developed by G-MODE and published in North America by XSEED Games,
in Europe by Marvelous Europe, and in Japan by G-MODE,BurgerTime Party! launched
exclusively on Nintendo Switch on October 8, 2019. It is available for purchase
digitally on the Nintendo eShop for $19.99, and with a physical release
available through the XSEED Games online
store and select retailers
for an MSRP of $29.99. The title has been rated “E for Everyone” by the ESRB.
With visual novels growing ever more popular in the West, it only makes sense that one of the most popular franchises, the Science Adventure series, continue to grow and what better platform to take advantage of than one that has mobility in the form of the Nintendo Switch. Although already released in various forms, Spike Chunsoft has now brought Steins;Gate 0 to the Switch, following the release of the original entry and alongside a more light-hearted spin-off. So now that this darker continuation of a time traveling story has arrived on the Switch, is it worth diving into?
Story
Now before going any further it is worth noting that Steins;Gate 0 is, in many ways, a direct sequel to Steins;Gate in both its original form and in the recently released Elite version. In fact it even begins during the ending sequence of one of the game’s routes so those who do not want to be spoiled about certain key events in Steins;Gate should avoid reading further or be prepared for certain key events to be discussed due to their heavy role in Steins;Gate 0’s storyline.
Now that that is out of the way, it is interesting to note that Steins;Gate 0 plays both as a sequel to one of the game’s routes and also not one, primarily due to the time traveling nature of the series and the True Ending of the original. Steins;Gate 0 begins partway through the final chapter of the first game where Rintaro Okabe, in an effort to prevent World War III, travels back to the past to prevent the genius, and potential love interest, Kurisu Makise, from being slain by her father. Unfortunately during this trip Rintaro accidentally ends up killing Kurisu himself and despite his friends telling him that he still has a chance to make things right, this final loss after losing Mayuri so many times breaks Rintaro who gives in to the thought that the past cannot be changed and abandons his old friends and previous mission as he falls into a deep state of depression.
In an attempt to try and move on with his life, Rintaro also attempts to abandon his goofier alter ego and focus on learning more as a college student and having a normal life, though given that one of his friends is already from the future, things still remain a bit strange and it also seems that the realm of normal will never be within Rintaro’s reach as five months after moving on with his life he meets with a number of prominent scientists who previously had worked alongside Kurisu and were continuing her line of work learning that she previously had worked on a cutting edge artificial intelligence called Amadeus. Just as luck would have it, Amadeus was developed by these scientists through the uploading of it’s creators’ memories in an attempt to recreate the thoughts of a living being that can grow and develop its own personality.
It doesn’t take long before Rintaro finds himself as one of the testers for Amadeus and it just so happens that the version he receives is the one featuring Kurisu’s thoughts and memories. Throughout the story Rintaro, and now the players, will be able to interact with this AI version of Kurisu through Rintaro’s phone and it is through this AI as well as Rintaro’s new allies and old friends that Steins;Gate 0 once again delves deep into the science fiction world of time travel, extreme technology, and morales that come with it. In an interesting turn from the usual visual novel experience, Rintaro doesn’t serve as the player’s only viewpoint through this story as the perspective does shift from time to time to different characters, though it is worth noting that Rintaro does serve as the primary protagonist through most of the game’s storyline.
Since Steins; Gate 0 expects players to have already played the original game, the title does not pull any punches when it comes to its story presentation and dives quickly into advancing the main storyline. Along those same lines players shouldn’t expect quite as many light-hearted humorous moments in this release compared to the first game. Whereas the original Steins; Gate took some time before taking a more serious tone and tackling darker themes, Steins; Gate 0 begins with its main character already in a horrific state and in the middle of grieving the loss of someone close to him.
While there are still a number of light-hearted moments spread throughout the game, there is a lack of the original’s charm because of this but in its place Steins; Gate 0 captures the struggles that people go through when faced with loss and emotionally damaging events. All is not horrible however as the game’s writing does show that Rintaro’s friends are still with him and watching these relationships develop through the course of the game and seeing Rintaro grow and interact with the AI Kurisu makes for some incredibly interesting scenes, but players should be prepared for a much darker toned game compared to the original.
Gameplay
Many of the various gameplay elements found in the original Steins;Gate return here in Steins;Gate 0 as players will find themselves presented with an encyclopedia that fills up over the course of the game’s routes in the form of TIPS. These tips cover some more unique terms that range from being scientific themes, both real and made-up, as well as internet slang and even otaku cultural terms. Along those same lines players will still be able to use the “RINE” mobile phone app to answer phone calls and messages throughout the game on Rintaro’s phone. It is also worth noting that the Amadeus AI can also be accessed through the phone in a manner similar to the RINE app and talking with Kurisu is available most of the time.
As before, it is worth noting that certain endings will require the player to make or ignore certain calls or take certain actions with Rintaro’s phone at various points in the storyline. Many of these extra interactions don’t play a major role in the storyline but be wary that a few will play a major impact as the choice system isn’t quite as clear cut as one may expect.
Visuals & Audio
The transition of Steins;Gate 0 to the Nintendo Switch has been handled flawlessly as the visual novel’s aesthetics work wonderfully on the console, both docked and on the go. Unlike the Elite version of the original game Steins;Gate 0 features all of the classic artwork that fans have come to expect from the franchise with its unique artistic style. The character portraits here look crisp and polished, with a few characters given a bit of a different look compared to the original game and the CG artwork is gorgeous looking.
With a more somber tone, Steins;Gate 0 does feature a soundtrack that matches it quite well but also features a handful of songs taken from the first game and remixed to work with the darker themes of this game. It is also nice to note that all of the original Japanese voice work has been retained in this release of the game with all of the previous voice actors retaining their roles.
Overall
Steins;Gate 0 tells a darker storyline than fans may expect compared to the original release but while this may throw fans a bit alongside with the fact it immediatly tosses readers in the deep end, this storyline ends up managing to tell a grand story that makes players empathise with Rintaro all while telling a sci-fi storyline that never feels overly complex. While those who played the original may have found themselves satisfied with the true ending there, Steins;Gate 0’s extra take on how things could have gone is certainly worth exploring, especially since it does fill in a few gaps in the original’s storyline.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
Although Nintendo had something a bit different for fans during their Nintendo Direct, the core of the presentation focused on Pokemon Sword and Shield and the Expansion Pass that will be released for both versions of the game. The expansion pass will come in two parts, one arriving in June and another sometime this fall for the second one with each expansion pass being priced at $29.99 a piece.
Pokemon Sword and Shield’s expansions are called “The Isle of Armor” and “The Crown Tundra” and both areas will feature brand new fashion items, both new and old Pokemon roaming the areas, as well as additional story content featuring brand new characters and battles for players to challenge as well as more clothing and customization options.
It is worth noting that the company has stated that players will still be able to obtain the brand new Pokemon if they do not purchase the expansion passes, however they will then need to be obtained through trade with other players. The trailer showing off the new features can be found below.
Nintendo announced during their special Pokemon focused Nintendo Direct that they are working alongside Spike Chunsoft on a new game that fans have been hoping for, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team DX. The game will allow players to once again play as a Pokemon and allow them to meet and recruit Pokemon in a dungeon-crawling adventure within their world, building a rescue team to take on strange and mysterious, changing dungeons and strategically plan their moves to try and save the world.
Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team DX will be released on the Nintendo Switch on March 6th with a demo made available through the Nintendo eShop today that will allow players to carry their progress over to the full game once it is released. A trailer highlighting the game’s art style and mechanics can be found below alongside a number of screenshots.
Toei Animation has announced that they are working with Fathom Events to bring the Digimon Adventure: Last Evolution Kizuna anime movie to a number of theaters throughout the United States on March 25th. The film will be presented with Japanese voice work accompanied by English subtitles and tickets for the film will be available for purchase starting on February 7th. Unfortunately it appears that until the tickets go on sale through the official event page the exact locations available do not appear to be available at this time.
Digimon Adventure Last Evolution Kizuna continues the story with Tai now being a a university student, living alone, working hard at school, and working every day, but with his future still undecided. Meanwhile, Matt and others continue to work on Digimon incidents and activities that help people with partner Digimon. An unprecedented phenomenon occurs and the DigiDestined discovers that when you grow up, your relationship with your partner Digimon will come closer to an end. As a countdown timer activates on the Digivice, they realize that the more you fight with their Partner Digimon, the faster their bond breaks. Will you fight for others and lose your partner? The time to choose and decide is approaching fast. There is a short time before “chosen children” will become adults. This is the last adventure of Tai and Agumon.
