Get ready to raise hell in this cover-based, twin-stick, action game
WEST OF DEAD’s launch date has been revealed at the Guerilla Collective event tonight. The cover-based, twin-stick, action game with roguelike elements is set to release on Xbox One and Steam on the 18th of June.
Awaken, trapped in the underworld, surrounded by evil souls bent on hunting you down. To escape your grim and gritty Purgatory, make sure to take the tactical approach and vary your playstyle, weapons, and abilities for each new threat.
GET READY TO RAISE HELL – PLAY WEST OF DEAD’S OPEN BETA: The Open Beta is live until launch day, the 18th of June.
[There is a 15% bonus discount on Steam at launch for everyone that played the Beta]
WEST OF DEAD stars the vivid voicework of Ron Perlman(Hellboy, Sons of Anarchy) as the protagonist William Mason, a dead man who awakens in purgatory.
Your path will lead through the procedurally generated maze of the underworld which will change every time you enter. The deeper you get in your run, the more intense the danger will become.
Find your flow and sharpen your reflexes to dodge bullets, slide behind cover and take out undead outlaws and monsters that threaten you while piecing together the mystery of your own past. Think and act fast to catch your enemies by surprise before pandemonium breaks loose. Ignite light to shatter the darkness and thereby stun your enemies.
WEST OF DEAD, created by developer Upstream Arcade and publisher Raw Fury, is releasing on the 18th of June on Xbox One, Xbox Game Pass and PC, coming in August to PlayStation 4 and Switch.
For more info, enter: https://westofdead.com
ABOUT UPSTREAM ARCADE Upstream Arcade is a small team of four veteran Indie developers based in Godalming, UK. They all met while at Lionhead (the studio is a bit of a reunion), and have individually contributed to loads of games including Black and White 2, Max Payne 3, as well as multiple titles in the Fable Franchise. Having left AAA to go Indie, the studio is bound by a desire to use everything they’ve learned toward developing action games with something different to offer. They sure hope that shows in their upcoming game West of Dead.
Stay one step ahead of a mysterious serial killer as you drive the streets of a tumultuous Paris in Night Call. Coming to Xbox One and Nintendo Switch on June 24th.
Friend. Confidant. Therapist. Voyeur.
As a cab driver working the Paris night shift, you are many things to many different people. You’ll need to play these roles well in NIGHT CALL, if you want to catch a serial killer who once found you on the end of his knife…
Your gift is getting people to talk; and in order to catch the killer who left you for dead, that’s exactly what you’ll need to do. You are no detective, but your gift with words will find you in that role. Around you, people feel more at ease. They talk. They share their thoughts, their emotions, their stories… their secrets. NIGHT CALL is coming to Xbox One and Nintendo Switch on June 24th.
Night Call strength lies in its narrative experience accompanied by light resource management and investigation mechanics. With a potential of 90+ passengers that may hail down your cab, you’ll encounter whimsical and lighthearted moments, intriguing stories, and tackle thought-provoking themes not often seen in games.
Night Call is not a single story, but a collective narrative seen through the eyes of your fares who may have something to share and contribute to the greater investigation to save your life.
**WARNING: Night Call is intended for mature audiences. Text references to violence, sexual acts, and use of alcohol. Potentially triggering dialogue with themes including tragedy, politics, religion and violence. Use of profanity and potentially offensive language.
Features:
GORGEOUS GAME NOIRE STYLE: Every character and location are lovingly hand-drawn in stunning black & white, evoking the pure tension of the noire style of art.
A VIVID AND ORIGINAL CAST: Meet dozens of original, surprising, realistic characters and share their lives for a few brief moments. Listen and help they might have something useful for you.
NON-LINEAR NARRATIVE GAME: Encounters are random. Every run is different.
INVESTIGATION VS. SURVIVAL: Will you forsake information for more money, or sacrifice your income to get the info you need? Make your choices quickly time is running out!
MULTIPLE ENDINGS, MULTIPLE KILLERS: Can you uncover the identity of the killer each time? Be careful: a guilty suspect in one playthrough may be completely innocent in the next.
FREE ROAMING MODE: Sometimes you just want to roam the dark city streets and enjoy some interesting conversations. Free Roaming lets you do just that — this highly requested fan feature is perfect for drivers looking to relax and fill up their Passidex!
A new shop simulator/potion brewing game is on the way for PC as XSEED Games has announced that they will be publishing Voracious Games’ Potionomics sometime in the future. Players will take on the role of Sylvia, a penniless young witch, who must save her shop from the clutches of a debt collector, but she can’t do it alone. With the help of fellow merchants, fledgling adventurers, and an overbearing owl, Sylvia will master the art of potion brewing and the nuance of salesmanship to rescue her shop.
After using magical ingredients to brew up a bevy of potent wares, the budding entrepreneur will wheel and deal to make sales with a colorful cast of fickle customers, all while tackling fierce competition and an ever-changing economy. The announcement trailer showing a bit of what players can expect from Potionomics can be found below.
Originally Bandai Namco and Supermassive Games were hoping to continue their anthology of horror games this summer with the release of The Dark Pictures Anthology: Little Hope but that will no longer be the case as the developer wished to make sure that its workers were protected from COVID 19 as best as possible.
Since the Supermassive Games team was working from home, things did slow down a bit and now in an effort to deliver “the best possible game” Pete Samuels, the CEO of Supermassive and executive producer of the title, announced that the game will now be releasing sometime this fall for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.
For now, those who want a small taste of what to expect from the game can always check out the first game in the anthology, The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man of Medan which was released August of last year.
Summer in Marais a crafting, exploration, and farming game. Players take on the role of Koa, a girl who is now in charge of a little farm after the passing of her adoptive grandmother. Koa is struck by the need for adventure, desiring to leave her tiny island and explore new places. Her wish comes true when a mysterious creature lands on her island and an evil alien corporation appears in Mara.
Story
The story is the sort of relaxed and heart-warming fare that is perfect for a player looking for a calm andd enjoyable gaming experience. It is just as much about the journey as it is the completion. The writing rarely gets too heavy and is generally joyful and lighthearted. Getting to know the citizens of Mara is an important part of the game, and the people are mostly loveable, even if it takes a little time to warm up to them.
Gameplay
Summer in Mara is a laid-back game that runs at the player’s pace. The game mixes Harvest Moon with the island-hopping elements of Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. The world is set to a day/night schedule where players have a limited amount of energy to expend on whatever task they wish to do. While energy and hunger can be replenished with food, energy is consumed at a faster pace as the evening wears on. Sleeping for the night will restore energy, but only sleeping in the comfort of home will bring Koa back to full energy in the morning.
The farming and resource gathering gameplay is pretty standard fare. Players buy seeds from the vendor, plant it in their plots, and harvest their crops several days later. The plots are quite limited to begin with as they can only be constructed in pre-determined spots. Some of the spots are blocked in the beginning and can only be cleared as the player progresses through the story. While the hardcore farming sim fan will be disappointed with the restrictions, the limited number of plots is balanced well with the shorter day/night cycle and the rate energy is expended. There are just enough plots to maintain every morning while still having enough time to run to town to restock supplies, do a few missions, or explore an island and still be able to make it home to sleep.
How Summer in Mara handles water and fertilizer is unique. Instead of having each plot consume a single charge of a watering can or similar implement, players simply need to run over a plot while holding a bucket of water or a bag of fertilizer. Players do need to plan their path for maximum efficiency as the bucket and the fertilizer bag can only be carried for a limited number of steps. The system is an interesting twist, but I would have preferred to see the bucket and the bag last for a few more steps, so an extremely efficient route could hit all the plots. This would be a great way to reward skill while keeping the original design in mind.
The crafting system is decent, but it could use some quality of life improvements. Players gain a large number of items to craft over the course of the game. The need to return home to craft is a bit restrictive and frustrating, especially when players need to take two boat rides to turn in the quest after. I would have preferred to have the ability to craft some simple recipes on the boat right away. I would have also liked to see the number of raw materials in my inventory when crafting, instead of having to back out to the inventory to check. Finally, a faster way to craft missing raw materials for complex recipes would have been a great time saver, whether it meant automatically crafting the needed material or offering some sort of shortcut to access the missing material.
The questing system is how Summer in Mara tells the story, but also drives crafting progression forward. There is plenty to do as many of the game’s NPCs will need a favour or will barter with Koa. They almost always involve instructions to fetch, craft, or explore. The system works well, but the progression of the side quests is a bit uneven as they require items that haven’t been unlocked yet by the main quest line. The worst offenders are the quests involving flour and pineapples. The flour will be addressed in a future patch by having one of the vendors sell flour, according to the developers.
While there are several quality of life features that can improve Summer in Mara, the gameplay is enjoyable overall. It manages to strike the right balance of activities, without being wildly punishing if a player focuses slightly more on one thing or another. The rate of progression is set that players are getting a steady stream of new recipes and quests to keep them going. The pacing of the game is excellent, and it is easy to fall into a rhythm that makes hours go by quickly. As a fan of the Harvest Moon franchise and the sub-genre it spawned, Summer in Mara’s gameplay is the perfect blend of something familiar and something new.
Visuals
Summer in Mara has a bright and eye-catching animated look inspired by Studio Ghibli. Even the cut scenes are done in a similar anime style. The style, animation, and models are excellent. The only issue with the game’s visuals is some of the smaller, more desolate islands as they tend to look too similar and visually blend into a single mass.
Audio
The audio experience in Summer in Mara has its ups and downs. The sound effects are good, but the volume of some sound effects is quiet compared to the rest of the game. The mining sound and the breaking boxes sound are more extreme examples. The soundtrack is excellent. The music gently swings back and forth from relaxing tunes to uplifting songs. The problem is how the game decides to play music and when to stop. The game tends to choose a song, play the entire song, and then leave the player to contemplative silence until an event or a location triggers the next track. The end of the track can be very abrupt. At the bare minimum I would have preferred to hear the music fade out gently into silence, though I think I music backing the entire game would be ideal.
Overall
Summer in Mara is perfect for anyone looking for a relaxing game paired with a colourful, Studio Ghibli inspired look. While the game does struggle with some odd quality of life issues, these are mild nuisances, not game breaking experiences. I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Mara and only wish I could have stayed longer.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
While we already knew that Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town would be heading to the Nintendo Switch in the West on July 14th XSEED Games has announced that PC players will also be able to revisit the classic game as the game will be coming to PC through Steam on that same day. To go along with this announcement a new trailer can be found below.
For those who haven’t been following the game, Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town is a rebuilt version of the 2003 Game Boy Advance release of the game and this new version features not only updated systems and character designs but also a number of brand new additions.
Quite some time ago Vanillaware announced that they were working on a brand new sci-fi game and now that game is finally heading to the West as Atlus has announced that 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim will be released on the PlayStation 4 on September 8th in North America and Europe. It is worth noting that due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the game will only feature a Japanese voice track at launch but the company will be releasing a free English voice over patch sometime after the game is released.
13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim is a 2D sidescrolling adventure that will feature battles against kaiju in fast-paced top down battles where players will use an arsenal of mechsuit weaponry to defeat their foes. A new trailer to accompany this announcement was released and can be found below.
Last year during what used to be E3 Bethesda and Tango GameWorks announced a mysterious game by the name of Ghostwire: Tokyo and now a year later we have a new release window, some gameplay footage, and platform information.
Bethesda has revealed that the game will be coming to the PlayStation 5 as a console exclusive and on PC in 2021 and the game itself is a first person style game where a massive paranormal event causes the sudden disappearance of 99% of the population while spirits from Japanese folklore storm Tokyo. Players will harness paranormal abilities to solve the mystery of the disappearances and save the city.
Players will have access to supernatural powers to unleash devastating, otherworldly attacks and interact with the paranormal in a variety of ways—cleanse, banish, and destroy. Throughout their journey players will grow their newfound powers to suit their playstyle and take the fight to the supernatural, some of which so far include Amewarashi, Shiromuku, and Kuchisake.
Capcom has announced that they have a new, rather unique looking game, on the way called Pragmata though fans will have to wait a bit as the game is currently aiming to be released sometime in 2022 for the Xbox Series X, PlayStation 5, and PC. Pragmata is set in a dystopian near-future on Earth’s moon and will take players on an “unforgettable adventure” that will take full advantage of next-gen hardware.
No exact gameplay details were revealed but you can check out an extended reveal trailer below that shows off plenty of interesting world elements that will be part of Pragmata, including cyborg animals, strange supernatural occurrences, and more.
Last year Bethesda and Arkane Studios announced that they were working on a new game involving a timeloop called Deathloop and now the company has revealed not only a few more details about the title but also roughly when and where players can expect to pick it up.
Deathloop places players into the role of Colt, a man trapped in a time loop on the enigmatic island of Blackreef, doomed to repeat the same day for eternity. The only chance for escape is to break the loop by unearthing information and assassinating eight key targets before the day resets. However, lurking in the shadows is rival assassin Julianna, equipped with her own equally powerful abilities and weapons, on a mission to protect the loop by assassinating Colt, and restarting the cycle. Players can also choose to take control of Julianna, turning Deathloop into a deadly game of hunter-vs-hunted.
Deathloop will be released later this year during the holiday season and will be a PlayStation 5 console exclusive and also released on PC.
