Shapeshift and change your personality to converse with a world of misfits in CRITICAL REFLEX’s latest surreal narrative adventure!
NICOSIA, Cyprus – Dec. 2, 2025 –Today CRITICAL REFLEX, the publisher of memorably off-kilter video games like Mouthwashing and No, I’m not a Human, has released the first public demo for indie developer IODINE’s Burden Street Station, available now for free on Steam. Inspired by the classic visuals of ‘90s adventure games, Burden Street Station is a cosmic narrative experience about finding a missing God.
Burden Street Station is a story-driven adventure about memory, grief, and community. In a surreal universe where memories are harvested from mortals and sold as sentient books to celestial consumers, one day, production stops. God is gone, and it’s up to a lowly librarian and his reluctant sidekick Memo to investigate. Shapeshift during conversations, collect different personalities through talking and exploration, and use them to unlock dialogue options and advance multiple stories in search of answers.
Demo Features
Experience two interwoven storylines, offering a dip into the cosmic opera of Burden Street Station’s unique world
Discover one of the game’s three major maps and the first clues to its mysteries in the Grand Archive
Expect impossible architecture, dubious rules and liminal atmosphere
Interact with LoTown’s cast of eccentric misfits and learn their quirks
Test your personality-switching power and make new friends (or foes!)
Nearly an hour’s worth of content!
Download the free Burden Street Station demo on Steam today and wishlist the game to follow the latest news and updates.
About IODINE
IODINE did audio lead and programming on a VR titled called IRONSTRIKE after they graduated college, and once their work on that game was finished, they decided to share this work with the world.
About CRITICAL REFLEX
CRITICAL REFLEX is an indie game publisher obsessed with genre-blending, rule-breaking, brain-melting games. We help devs polish the weird, sharpen the wild, and launch their projects loud. Known for titles like Buckshot Roulette, Lunacid, Mouthwashing and No, I’m not a Human, we champion the unforgettable experiences. Genre is a prison and we ate the warden.
Experience Room Rush, a new world available on Meta Horizon, where the competition heats up in the ultimate interior decorating challenge
Boston, United States, December 2nd, 2025 | Petricore is proud to announce that Room Rush, an interior design party game, is now available for free on the Meta Horizons mobile app. Taking inspiration from similar makeover games such as Dress to Impress, Room Rush is perfect for any players who enjoy customization and interior decorating, along with a little friendly competition, of course!
Lights, Camera, Decorate!
You have been invited to Room Rush, the latest and hottest house-building TV show. In this exciting competition, players will take center stage, split into teams, decorate the most stylish individual themed rooms, and then vote to determine which team has the best design, ultimately crowning a winner! You’ll begin in the waiting room, where you will receive a brief tutorial and have a chance to explore a sample showroom to get familiar with the decorating controls. Once you’re ready, head down to the showroom floor, where you and your team will be assigned a theme and a room of the house. The assigned themed categories can be anything from Modern, Gamer, and Haunted, as well as some more unusual themes like Mismatched, Hoarder’s, and even rooms where players compete to fill their spaces with an outrageous number of chairs!
Roll Out the Furniture!
Now that your team has been assigned a room and a category, you can move on to the next phase, decoration. Four kiosks will be located in the center of the stage, each offering different furniture and prop pieces to enhance your creation. The kiosks will be color-coded to correspond with your team, allowing team members to manage the wallpaper and flooring layouts of their rooms. Remember, each group has only a set amount of time to complete their designs, a limited number of decorable items, and only one object can be held at a time! To optimize your limited decorating time, use ‘Re-style’ to repurpose the material of the object you are currently holding, ‘Place’ to create multiple copies, and ‘Remove’ to delete any unwanted items from the area.
Place Your Votes!
Once the timer runs out, it’s time to roll in with the final votes! Each team will be given 25 seconds to do a walkthrough, showing off their final creations. Other teams will be able to vote on a scale from 1 to 5 stars. Then, viewers and a live studio audience will also judge each room on several key factors, such as the number of furniture pieces used and the overall variety of styles implemented throughout the room! These two combined scores will lead into the team’s overall score, and whoever has the highest number of total votes wins! Winners will be awarded their Team Score in Stars, which can be used as in-game currency.
What’s More, On Room Rush!
Whether you win through competitions or collect them along the way, gather as many Stars as possible to spend at the Kiosk shops available in the waiting room. Stars unlock additional customization options while playing. When players win trophies, they will also release Stars, so be sure to tail behind them! There will also be a solo experience available, where individual players can earn Stars based on how well they can impress their live audience, that is! Be sure to stay tuned to Room Rush for upcoming new content updates, such as new furniture, holiday themes, and more!
Full Game Features:
25 Total Furniture Packs, to play and fill up your space with!
5 Room Style Packs to complement your designs with the appropriate matching themes
Challenging Decor Categories such as Minimalist, Maximalist, and more!
Team and Live Audience Voting System to determine whose room design outshines the rest of the entire house!
Room Rush is now available on iOS, Android, and desktop browsers. Play for free by downloading the Meta Horizons app. For more information on Petricore, please visit the official studio website.
About Petricore
Founded in 2015, Petricore is an independent gaming studio specializing in emerging technologies and game development. The studio has created original IPs and collaborated on digital projects across platforms such as Meta, Apple Vision Pro, and Pico. Intent on pushing the boundaries of immersive gaming, Petricore also supports clients in porting games to new platforms, ensuring seamless transitions and optimized experiences. In 2025, Petricore released the original mixed reality title Mythic Realms for Meta Quest to strong reviews from players and press, including Vice and UploadVR. For more information, please visit PetricoreGames.com.
New Critical Strike Map, new Air Strikes, and much more
December 1, 2025 – Troopers, the war against the bugs is flaring up on new fronts, and General Rico needs your help once again. Developer Offworld, together with publisher Knights Peak, isn’t slowing down and is rolling out Update 1.8 for Starship Troopers: Extermination. This update introduces the new Company Progression system, a fresh Critical Strike map, and Air Strikes – a brand-new side objective for ARC and AAS missions.
Highlights of the 1.8 content update include:
Brand-new Company Progression: Update 1.8 introduces a new Company Progression system with over 50 tiers, unlocking unique emblems, frames, and additional Company slots. Intel’s earnings after each match contribute to the Company’s growth, allowing for distinctive customization on the Leaderboards.
New Critical Strike Map: Boreas – Prepare for a new Critical Strike map set in the frozen wastelands of Boreas. Bundle up, Troopers… It’s going to get cold out there.
New Side Objective: Air Strikes – Troopers will need to defend Fleet Relays out in the field to call in TAC Fighters for devastating bombing runs on the Bug hordes. The more Bugs you obliterate, the closer the Federation is to winning the war. Keep your eyes peeled for the ‘TAC Fighter Support’ and ‘Fleet Relay’ Mutators on Valaka, Agni Prime, and Boreas missions.
Bug fixes and quality of life improvements
And that’s not all; players can already start looking forward to future updates that will introduce not only new threats, but also tools to resist them.
Inspired by the Starship Troopers movie, Starship Troopers: Extermination is an action-packed co-op FPS where players join the Deep Space Vanguard to fight non-stop Arachnid hordes across hostile planets. Developed by Offworld, the game launched in Early Access on May 17, 2023, with its full release on October 11, 2024, for PC via Steam, Epic Games Store, and the Offworld shop, and for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.
About Offworld
Originating from humble roots within the modding community, Offworld is now an acclaimed studio responsible for the ongoing development of Starship Troopers: Extermination, the hit FPS shooter Squad, and the WW2 shooter Squad 44.
Offworld’s relentless dedication to game quality and cultivating vibrant communities has helped establish its titles as premier options for teamwork, strategic cooperation, and competitive action.
Sony Pictures Consumer Products (SPCP) is the licensing and merchandising division of Sony Pictures’ Motion Picture Group and Sony Pictures Television for Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE), a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sony Group Corporation. SPE’s global operations encompass motion picture production, acquisition, and distribution; television production, acquisition, and distribution; television networks; digital content creation and distribution; operation of studio facilities; and development of new entertainment products, services, and technologies. Sony Pictures Television operates dozens of wholly-owned or joint-venture production companies around the world. SPE’s Motion Picture Group production organizations include Columbia Pictures, Screen Gems, TriStar Pictures, 3000 Pictures, Sony Pictures Animation, Stage 6 Films, AFFIRM Films, Sony Pictures International Productions, and Sony Pictures Classics.
Knights Peak Interactive, a division of MY.GAMES, is a game publisher partnering with diverse developers worldwide. Committed to equality, it supports both emerging and established studios in reaching new heights in global markets and brand development. Knights Peak views games as portals to immersive stories, offering players a multitude of adventures in a welcoming environment. For details, visit: https://www.knightspeak.com
December 2, 2025 – Wargaming, the developer and publisher of the leading historically accurate naval multiplayer game World of Warships, is celebrating the festive season with activities and rewards for players across PC, console, and mobile. Players on PC can look forward to a new Advent Calendar and Festive Event Pass, plenty of seasonally themed camouflages and ships, and the return of a decorable Christmas Tree in Nordlyshavn Port. The festive fun continues for players on console and mobile in World of Warships: Legends, with the introduction of Santa City Port, Merry Tokens to unlock Christmas-themed rewards, Mystic Crates, and a Merry Shipmas campaign featuring two Legendary ships up for grabs.
World of Warships Welcomes a Flurry of Festivities with New Advent Calendar and Event Pass
The festive season is in full swing across World of Warships in the December update, brimming with seasonal activities and themed rewards. Starting from today, players can claim a free tech tree Tier IX ship on login, alongside two Santa’s Gift Containers and two Christmas themed permanent camouflage. The rewards continue with a new Advent Calendar available throughout the entirety of December, as well as a Festive Event pass featuring two chapters and bursting with prizes including Santa’s gift Containers, camouflages and Tier VII cruisers Nurnberg’44 and Lanzhou.
Nordlyshavn Port also returns this year with an updated look, with a Christmas Tree waiting to be decorated. Players can unlock ornaments for every two battles played, with no daily limits, and special rewards await for those who have placed 10 ornaments on their tree, and have collected all 24.
In addition to these festive additions comes a brand new map, Sunset Isles, available for Random Battles and select Co-op Battles for ships Tier VI and above. December’s update also sees the start of construction of Tier IX French battleship Roussillon in the Dockyard, and the first week of the update gives players their last chance to finish building Liberty Harbor. Both Asymmetric battles and the Temporal Rift event continue, joined by a new season of Clan Battles, and the return of the Steel Fleet Event featuring six powerful ships including three brand new ships of Tier X, the Japanese battleship Aki, the German cruiser Bremen and the American cruiser Hawaii.
Santa City Port Introduced in World of Warships: Legends
The celebrations continue for players in World of Warships: Legends, with the introduction of the Santa City Port. A themed currency, Merry Tokens, are available through completing activities, and can be redeemed for Port decorations and seasonal rewards. Amongst these are new Frozen skins, new Commander guises including Unfreezable Sam, and Mystic Crates that may bestow players with rare and Special Edition ships including the new Incomparable, Aki, and Marceau.
The season of giving continues, with a new Merry Shipmas campaign with free Admiralty backing, granting players one of two Legendary Tier ships as a final reward: U.S. battleship Rhode Island or Soviet cruiser Sevastopol. In addition to these two Legendary ships, players will also unlock the winter version of Pan-European destroyer Orkan, as well as many other rewards.
December’s Legendary update also sees three new Tier VI-VIII Japanese hybrid battleships, Ise, Suwo and Dewa, sail into Early Access, available through Japanese Hybrid Battleship Crates. They’re joined by Legendary Tier battleship Aki, found in Mystic Chests. These ships wield not only intense firepower, but are capable of executing airstrikes–armed with aircraft carrying an impressive haul of torpedoes. Closing out the update is the return of War Tales, with two new operations, including a special mission to help Santa. With the ability to play through all previous Tales, players will also be able to try out a new type of high-explosive shell that splits into multiple subshells, causing significant damage.
Just in time for the holidays, World of Warships has also launched its merch store, packed with perfect gifts and stocking stuffers for naval history enthusiasts and fans of the franchise, with available products ranging from premium-quality t-shirts and hoodies to mugs, gaming mats, collectibles, and more.
About World of Warships
World of Warships is a free, historical, online combat PC game from Wargaming. With its massive fleet of most iconic war vessels, including five different ship classes and strategically designed environment, World of Warships provides the ultimate naval warfare gaming experience, suitable for everyone. Thanks to its largest collection of historically accurate ships available to play, World of Warships prides itself as a digital ship museum and a focal point for naval history enthusiasts. New thematic content and innovative game modes are being added on a regular basis, providing a diverse and exciting gameplay to its broad player base.
About World of Warships: Legends
Experience epic naval action in World of Warships: Legends, a massively multiplayer online game where you can master the seas in history’s greatest warships! Recruit Legendary Commanders from maritime history, upgrade your vessels, and stake your claim to naval supremacy with or against players from around the world in thrilling and immersive battles.
World of Warships: Legends brings the online naval action loved by millions to home consoles and mobile for the very first time, alongside a host of content and features exclusive to the console experience.
Wargaming is an award-winning online game developer and publisher headquartered in Nicosia, Cyprus. Operating since 1998, Wargaming has grown to become one of the leaders in the gaming industry. Its 15 offices around the world include studios in Chicago, Prague, Shanghai, Tokyo, Vilnius, Belgrade, and Kyiv. Millions of players enjoy Wargaming’s titles across all major gaming platforms. Its flagship products include the free-to-play hits World of Tanks, World of Tanks Blitz, World of Warships, World of Warships: Legends, and World of Warships Blitz.
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA –DECEMBER 2, 2025 – Today, Ubisoft is launching Assassin’s Creed Shadows on Nintendo Switch™ 2, bringing the epic adventure of Naoe and Yasuke in feudal Japan to Nintendo players.
The Nintendo Switch™ 2 version has been carefully optimized to preserve the richness of Shadows’ experience while embracing the freedom of playing anywhere, anytime. At launch, players will have access to all free post-release content, including the Attack on Titan exclusive mission available until December 22. The Claws of Awaji expansion will be coming early 2026.
On Nintendo Switch™ 2, Assassin’s Creed Shadows introduces several Switch‑specific features designed making player’s experience seamless and intuitive. These include touchscreen navigation for menus and maps, targets 30fps for smooth gameplay in docked and handheld modes, offline play after download, and a game-key card physical edition for digital installation.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows offers cross-progression via Ubisoft Connect, letting players continue their journey seamlessly across all platforms. In-game store content is unified across platforms, so items purchased on Nintendo Switch™ 2 are shared with linked accounts. The game will be available for AU$89.95 on the Nintendo Store.
For the latest news about Assassin’s Creed Shadows and other Ubisoft games, please visit news.ubisoft.com.
Since it first launched in 2007, the Assassin’s Creed series has sold more than 230 million games worldwide. The franchise is now established as one of the best-selling series in video game history. Recognized for having some of the richest, most engrossing storytelling in the industry, Assassin’s Creed transcends video games, branching out into numerous other entertainment media.
About Ubisoft
Ubisoft is a creator of worlds, committed to enriching players’ lives with original and memorable entertainment experiences. Ubisoft’s global teams create and develop a deep and diverse portfolio of games, featuring brands such as Assassin’s Creed®, Brawlhalla®, For Honor®, Far Cry®, Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon®, Just Dance®, Rabbids®, Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six®, The Crew® and Tom Clancy’s The Division®. Through Ubisoft Connect, players can enjoy an ecosystem of services to enhance their gaming experience, get rewards, and connect with friends across platforms. With Ubisoft+, the subscription service, they can access a growing catalog of more than 100 Ubisoft games and DLC. For the 2024–25 fiscal year, Ubisoft generated net bookings of €1.85 billion. To learn more, please visit: www.ubisoftgroup.com.
TOKYO — Nov. 29, 2025 —Yunyun Syndrome!? Rhythm Psychosis, the psychological rhythm adventure co-developed by Alliance Arts and WHO YOU, brings internet brain rot to a new rhythmic reality in April 2026 on PC via Steam alongside a demo update today, as revealed during INDIE Live Expo.
Ever heard of Yunyun, the angelic internet sensation? No? How!? Avid anonymous poster (and possibly psychotic shut-in) Qtie aims to change that by spreading Yunyun love on social media until the entire planet matches her obsession. Spread degenerate copypasta across the web by tapping out love notes on her keyboard to the tunes of 30+ intense denpa tracks.
One itty bitty, kind of important detail…Yunyun might not exist. While Qtie’s feelings are real, the winged wonder may be a figment of her imagination. Navigate music-induced fantasies as she attempts to win the affections of her soon-to-be sweetheart. Somehow, this parasocial situationship may lead to the destruction of the world. Oh well, all is fair in love and war, and if Qtie can’t secure Yunyun’s affections… no one can.
Yunyun Syndrome!? Rhythm Psychosis corrupts the whole world on PC via Steam with an updated demo. Look forward to the new denpa world order when the full game launches in April 2026, with English, Russian, Brazilian Portuguese, French, German, and Polish language support.
Alliance Arts is a new Tokyo-based publishing company committed to the creation of captivating games, and behind titles including The Great Villainess: Strategy of Lily, Touhou Dungeon Maker: The labyrinth of heart, and Marisa of Liartop Mountain.
TOKYO — Nov. 29, 2025 —INDIE Live Expo, the live digital showcase connecting indie game fans worldwide with more than 100 million total views since its 2020 debut, spotlighted 100+ titles’ worth of world premieres, new trailers, and content updates this past weekend.
Indie Live Expo came out swinging with world premieres, including 2D scrolling adventure Avemary Rocket – Captain Patchwork – by Shuhei Miyazawa (Raindrop Sprinters), Studio Pixel (Cave Story+), and room6, launching on PC via Steam in 2026. Korean developer Vittgen revealed the illustrative adventure game All Adrift coming to PC via Steam in 2026. Additionally, developer Ichthys and publisher CRITICAL REFLEX announced a December playtest for souls-like metroidvania Being and Becoming.
Pixelated Milk announced a January 2026 playtest for its supernatural pixel art JRPG SacriFire, and developer Wild Dog revealed excavation simulator Keep Digging’s 2.0 content update coming this winter. Pajama Llama Games’ aquatic colony sim Flotsamlaunches into 1.0 on PC via Steam Thursday, Dec. 4th, 2025. Pugstorm’s popular sandbox adventureCore Keeper arrives on Nintendo Switch 2 on Wednesday, Jan. 28th, 2026.
213℉’s hack-and-slash roguelike TSURUGIHIMEwill hit Early Access in 2026. Developer Katanalevy’s Dead Format brings 1990s psych horror to PC via Steam very soon on Dec. 10th, 2025. WONDER POTION’s hit action platformer SANABI debuted free DLC on PC via Steam Nov. 27th, and will come to Nintendo Switch this winter. Publisher PARCO GAMES announced developer RexLabo unveiled a horror-themed teaser for an unrevealed title coming in 2026.
2P Games, the publisher powering INDIE Live Expo’s grand prize-winning Sultan’s Game, supported fellow indies with a publisher showcase:
In addition to the online festivities, a new partnership between INDIE Live Expo and BitSummit has been announced. More details will be shared in future announcements.
“Indie games have had a momentous year. Both this year’s award winners and the games announced throughout this weekend’s showcase are a testament to the endless creativity that exists within game development,” said Ryuta Konuma, Founder and CEO, Ryu’s Office. “Many thanks to our sponsors, media partners, and millions of fans across the world. We couldn’t do it without all of you.”
Go hands-on with select titles from this weekend’s showcase at a discount during the INDIE Live Expo Steam Sale beginning today until Saturday, Dec. 6th, 2025.
Check out every game highlighted during last weekend’s showcase on the official INDIE Live Expo Website, and rewatch the stream here. Developers, publishers, and content creators can keep up with the latest global indie news with the free INDIE Live Expo Letter. Rewatch this April’s INDIE Live Expo broadcast here. For more information, please visit the INDIE Live Expo website, follow @INDIELiveExpoEN on Twitter, and search for #INDIELiveExpo on social media.
About Ryu’s Office
Ryu’s Office offers in-depth marketing solutions for smartphone, console, arcade, and PC games in Japan. They are particularly focused on the planning and production of numerous live broadcasts based out of Japan for the gaming industry. To learn more, visit the official Ryu’s Office website.
Fortnite players can soon channel their inner immortal demon slayer—Ember and Blade cosmetics arrive with the game’s launch in 2026.
[November 24th, 2025] — LINE Games announced a cross-title collaboration with Epic Games to coincide with the 2026 launch of Ember and Blade on the Epic Games Store. As part of the collaboration, exclusive Ember and Blade cosmetics will arrive in Fortnite, giving players the chance to wield the fiery style of the upcoming action RPG within one of the world’s most popular battle royale titles. These cosmetics will be available at launch and included with all purchases of Ember and Blade on the Epic Games Store.
In Ember and Blade, play as Fenrix, a cursed immortal bound to an endless cycle of death and rebirth. Once a man, now a weapon of divine punishment, he descends into the burning depths of Oblivion to stop the rise of the archdemon Asmodeus. Every death reshapes his path, driving him closer to mastery as he unlocks relics, forges new weapons, and turns his curse into divine power.
Key Features of Ember and Blade
Heavenly Blessing and Limitless Strategies – Your journey is blessed by the abilities of unique angels! Unlock powerful Awakening Skills by combining skills bestowed by angels and discover a universe of infinitely evolving strategies.
Hellsent Boss Encounters – Twisted Judicators of Fate who sold their souls to become demons for reasons of their own, obstruct your path with immense power and deadly attacks. Achieve victory through meticulous planning, perfect timing, and the power of immortality.
Truth Concealed Beyond Death – Death is not the end of the story, but a new beginning. The secrets of the universe gradually come to light through countless cycles of death and rebirth. What deep, dark truths lie beyond the twisted web of fate?
Otherworldly Visual Art – A stunning yet delicately balanced setting, unique characters with vibrant colors and striking forms, and captivating visuals produced by outstanding visual effects and dynamic battle scenes await you.
Ready to slash into the ethereal world of Ember and Blade? Wishlist the game on the Epic Games Store and Steam.
About LINE Games
LINE Games, a subsidiary of LINE Yahoo, is a Seoul-based publisher and developer dedicated to creating and publishing games across PC, console, and mobile platforms. With a portfolio spanning action RPGs, narrative adventures, and multiplayer experiences, LINE Games brings distinctive titles from Korea to players worldwide. Its in-house studio, Nine Lives, is a small team of 15 industry veterans, with experience across globally recognized titles, dedicated to delivering high-quality, memorable game experiences.
Visual novels come in many kinds of lengths and forms. Some of the best around happen to be hours long experiences with branching paths that could take the story in wild directions. At the same time, other extremely memorable ones happen to be rather short but impactful thanks to either incredible writing, unique twists, or unique gameplay worked into the genre. Sacrifice for Sale happens to be one of the latter, offering a unique approach to handling choices and endings from sole indie developer Daniel Klautsch. With an interesting premise and a unique way to navigate the many branching paths, is Sacrifice for Sale worth opening up for?
Story
An unnamed vacuum Salesman is down on his luck and desperate to make a sale after seemingly striking out after numerous attempts. Upon selecting a home with a nice birdhouse out front he knocks on the door only to find that the resident isn’t prepared to slam the door in his face. Instead she cautiously inquires about who the Salesman might be and even about the product itself and, one way or another, the Salesman ends up inside the house. This only reveals a big bloodstain right near the front door, the woman they were talking to happening to be a zombie, and a powerful beast woman knocking their lights out the second they arrive inside.
As the Salesman comes to, they can try to figure out more about their surroundings, the pair of girls themselves, or even just straight up play dead but it quickly becomes clear that these two are a pair of cultists and, as a door-to-door Salesman that no one cares about, the player has just been served up to them on a silver platter as the next sacrifice that might just bring their ritual to fruition. It will be up to the player to make use of their questions, choices, and even silence to try and find a way out of being sacrificed, though what fates may await them at the end of the branching paths might be just as strange.
Having a branching storyline is nothing new for a visual novel but when it comes to Sacrifice for Sale and the massive number of dialogue options players can select or even choose to ignore makes for a rather extensive number of variations. Through these numerous variations players will learn a bit more about what makes each girl tick a bit better and potentially use it to find a better ending the next time through. None of the actual knowledge learned in a past playthrough is carried over so players will still need to follow each dialogue choice properly to hopefully avoid a bad ending or ending up at an ending they’ve already seen before. This is one issue that does seem to be a bit apparent with the game’s branches is that many happen to intertwine and either double-back on themselves or result in the same ending, only slightly changing how players got there.
Both characters that the Salesman interacts with have their own unique personalities and ways that the player can approach them, trying to learn both their actual names rather than just their nicknames and even why they ended up joining the cult in the first place. Since none of the player’s interactions carry over between runs then players may see completely different sides to some characters depending on how their initial interactions play out. The writing is rather engaging and trying to uncover all of the secrets throughout this visual novel is quite the task. Despite being only a half hour or so for a single run, with subsequent runs being a lot faster thanks to the ability to skip past-read dialogue, there is a lot of content to be found here and surprising emotional depth for both Vinny and even Mia, though trying to survive the latter one will take some surprising effort.
That being said, thanks to the way the branching paths work, players may find themselves struggling to figure out how to get down the correct choice path to reveal a new secret or obtain an ending they’ve yet to obtain. Ironically, Sacrifice for Sale offers sixty-nine achievements that not only tie to endings but also little revelations and twists that players can pull off as well, working as something of a guideline as to how many secrets and potential endings players still have yet to uncover in this short visual novel that hides a surprisingly sprawling web of choices.
Gameplay
One of the key elements that helps set split visual novels into two separate categories is whether or not players are given any actual choices throughout the game. Those that don’t are kinetic visual novels while those that do feature branching pathways that can lead to different routes and endings and Sacrifice for Sale embraces that in spades. In a fairly unique format at that. Unlike a standard visual novel that will pull up choices to select from at set times, Sacrifice for Sale instead presents players with countless choices throughout standard dialogue with the two characters they interact with and ironically this can often involve being completely silent as well.
While talking to characters there will often be certain bits of dialogue that are highlighted in that character’s color, Pink for Vinny, Blue for Mia, and Green for the Salesman. Using the analog stick players can select a piece of dialogue they want to interact with and comment on it there, making a choice that may send them down an entirely different story branch or perhaps changing nothing at all. Similarly players can often simply press RB to stay silent and advance the dialogue without commenting or replying back to the character. What makes things interesting here is that since there are well over fifteen different endings, with at least seventeen being the highest number obtained, the variations and how to end up at these endings are wildly different and can be rather difficult to discern.
For example, there are countless ways to interact with both Vinny and Mia and building rapport with them can also play various roles in how they may question and respond to the player further down that route. Being brutally cold may instantly lock the player into being sacrificed without any hope for changing things while trying to build some empathy with the pair might see other options unlocked, providing new ways to avoid death or take on a different form perhaps entirely. Previously selected dialogue will be grayed out but that doesn’t truly help too much thanks to the fact that there are still potential routes hidden away behind choices built on choices, creating a spider-web of selections that even after spending hours trying still keep some unique interactions hidden away. This creates a rather unique presentation of choices and interesting dynamic as players try to figure out just how they might try to save their hides from being sacrificed, whether it be through pleading, charm, bluffs, or even submitting entirely.
The game is lacking a bit of some bonus features that one would expect from a visual novel. There is no “ending” collection shown somewhere to indicate what endings players have already obtained while playing the game though some endings do provide tips to obtain other endings, though these tend to only involve avoiding the bad end players may have just ended up in. Similarly while there are ten save slots available, there is no quick-save on consoles or quick-loading. It is nice to note that players can press RT to skip through all previously seen dialogue if they are trying to rush through and test their luck on a new route.
Throughout Sacrifice for Sale on Xbox Series X we did experience a number of bugs though these may be fixed before the game’s full launch on the console. These bugs ranged from the game not progressing past the start screen, vanishing text that would no longer load in text boxes that required a fresh reload, and a number of misspelled words scattered throughout the game’s varied routes. While the latter isn’t too much of an issue, the former two are problematic and while restarting the game does fix the issue most of the time, it would be nice to see these patched before launch.
Audio & Visuals
Sacrifice for Sale is a fairly basic visual novel that keeps itself to a rather bare minimum. The player character, the Salesman, is never given a character portrait of their own, instead the only two character portraits in the game are Vinny and Mia but it is nice to note that they are lovingly detailed and presented as well-designed monster girls. Both character portraits have a number of unique poses and expressions but most action is simply represented by sliding the portraits around or zooming in, there is no Live2D aspect here. The backgrounds are similarly rather simplistic in nature presented in grayscale compared to the character portraits outside of a dream sequence. It is interesting to note that some haunting text can appear from time to time flashing across the dialogue box hinting at things and moving to provide some extra emphasis to certain character actions.
There is no voicework of any kind in Sacrifice for Sale and even the sound effects are kept to a bare minimum with various thuds, stabbing noises, or slashing sounds being roughly all there is. The background music is fitting enough with a number of solid tracks to listen to as players make their way through each short playthrough, the track changing properly to fit how the player’s current situation is unfolding.
Overall
Sacrifice for Sale may be a rather short visual novel but it is far from a simple one. Thanks to a unique approach to its choice mechanic, players will have an entire web of interactions with the limited cast of characters as they try their best to talk their way to safety by being friendly, flirtatious, sneaky, or even just being miserable. There are some lacking elements here and there such as lacking extras, bugs, and misspelled words but for a ten dollar indie visual novel, this monster girl and cult focused title is certainly worth picking up.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
New map explores the iconic Scottish countryside, including species and landmarks. Players will also find an array of new weapons.
STOCKHOLM – Dec. 1, 2025 – Expansive Worlds, a creative division within Avalanche Studios Group, announced that theHunter: Call of the Wild’s new DLC, Scotland Hunting Reserve, as well as the new Premium Trophy Mount Pack, will launch on PC, PlayStation and Xbox on December 9.
Amidst breathtaking, atmospheric scenery and legendary landmarks, players will hunt a rich roster of 17 animals inspired by Scotland’s most iconic species on the Tòrr nan Sithean map. The Scotland map DLC will launch for $11.99. Check out the Scotland Hunting Reserve’s beautiful scenery in the new trailer below.
Scotland Hunting Reserve – Key Features:
An immersive Scottish environment. Explore six unique biomes in Late Summer/Early Fall:
Caledonian Forest
Purple Heather Moorland
Grass Hills
Wetlands
Highlands
Rainforest
Exclusive new weapon, the Benelhag 12GA. A versatile semi-auto shotgun featuring a tubular magazine, it can load birdshot, buckshot, and slug, so it’s great for hunting all sorts of game.
Iconic landmarks for players to discover including weathered castles, ancient ruins and coastal caves.
This reserve comes with 17 iconic animals, including five new species, three animal remasters and a great one.
Alongside the new Scotland map, there will also be a new Premium Trophy Mount Pack for players to take their lodge customization to the next level featuring 16 new plaques, 40 new platforms as well as new textures so players can display their greatest hunting achievements, all for £3.39/$3.99/€3.99.
Additionally, as part of a free content update, Patch 8.4, all players will be able to enjoy Trophy Lodge filtering and improvements.
About theHunter: Call of the Wild theHunter: Call of the Wild is the world’s #1 hunting game, offering an immersive hunting experience to millions of players every month. Developed in close collaboration with its passionate community, the game offers a thrilling outdoor adventure for seasoned hunters and those eager to explore the wonders of nature from the comfort of their home. Since its 2017 release, theHunter: Call of the Wild has continuously expanded, now featuring a large and diverse roster of animal species across 15 unique reserves worldwide – from the expansive plains of Africa to the dense forests of North America and the towering peaks of Nepal. theHunter: Call of the Wild is available on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, Microsoft Store (including PC Game Pass), Steam, and the Epic Games Store.
About Expansive Worlds Expansive Worlds is a creative division within Avalanche Studios Group and a leading developer and publisher of outdoor games. Since 2007, Expansive Worlds has been devoted to delivering highly immersive outdoor gaming experiences for millions of players. It is best known for the long-standing and successful theHunter franchise, as well as the open-world fishing game Call of the Wild: The Angler. Expansive Worlds develops games using the proprietary Apex engine, enabling vast open worlds with endless creative possibilities. Learn more at www.avalanchestudios.com/divisions/expansive-worlds.
About Avalanche Studios Group Avalanche Studios Group is a leading interactive entertainment company offering a wide range of games and live services from creative divisions Avalanche Studios, Expansive Worlds, and Systemic Reaction. Its portfolio includes the Just Cause franchise, theHunter: Call of the Wild, Generation Zero, Rage 2, and Call of the Wild: The Angler. Founded in 2003, Avalanche Studios Group draws from nearly two decades of open-world experience. All its games are developed using the proprietary Apex engine, enabling vast and dynamic worlds, full of emergent gameplay and endless creative possibilities. Learn more at www.avalanchestudios.com.
