By tooth
and claw, the Wolves, your ex-brother-in-arms gone rogue, have taken the Auroa
archipelago and its advanced technology. You are their prey.
About Ubisoft Ubisoft is a leading creator, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment and services, with a rich portfolio of world-renowned brands, including Assassin’s Creed, Just Dance, Tom Clancy’s video game series, Rayman, Far Cry and Watch Dogs. The teams throughout Ubisoft’s worldwide network of studios and business offices are committed to delivering original and memorable gaming experiences across all popular platforms, including consoles, mobile phones, tablets and PCs. For the 2017–18 fiscal year Ubisoft generated sales of €1,732 million. To learn more, please visit www.ubisoft.com.
About Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Launched in 2001 with critical acclaim from fans of the Tom Clancy’s world, the Ghost Recon franchise has since convinced 35 million players thanks to breakthrough releases and has become one of the best-selling Tom Clancy’s brand on the last generation of consoles and PC.
NINTENDO CONTINUES ITS COUNTDOWN TO E3 2019 WITH MORE DETAILS ON WHAT FANS CAN EXPECT
Tournaments, hands-on
with multiple 2019 games for visitors to E3, and Nintendo Treehouse: Live (with
an indie day) add up to a week of fun
7th June, 2019 – As the E3 2019 video game trade show rapidly approaches, Nintendo provided more details about some of its activities around the event, which runs in Los Angeles from 11th to 13th June. Nintendo confirmed that the Nintendo Switch games available for people to play on the show floor include Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield, which were the focus of a recently released Pokémon Direct. Other games on the show floor include Luigi’s Mansion 3, The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening, and MARVEL ULTIMATE ALLIANCE 3: The Black Order, in addition to various other games playable in Nintendo’s booth. Fans will hear details about upcoming games for Nintendo Switch during the early Wednesday-morning AEST Nintendo Direct presentation, with continued information during the week on Nintendo Treehouse: Live, with a focus on indie games on Friday 14th June AEST.
Some of Nintendo’s activities
during the week of E3 2019 include:
Multiple
game tournaments: Teams from around the world gather to compete
in multiple Nintendo Switch games on Sunday 9th June AEST in
Los Angeles. The action starts at 4:00am AEST / 6:00am NZST with the Super
Mario Maker 2 Invitational 2019, in which four members of
the Super Mario Maker community
will compete in a variety of Super Mario Maker
2 courses. Next up, fans can enjoy the action of the Splatoon 2
World Championship 2019 – featuring Australia/New Zealand champions
Lime Soda – and the Super Smash Bros.
Ultimate World Championship 2019
3v3 tournament, where the Australia/New Zealand squad of Ghost,
SebPro101, Ichigo and back-up player PillowTalk will be competing as Team
Australia/New Zealand. The competitions will be livestreamed in English
via Nintendo’s E3 2019 website*.
Nintendo
Direct: The presentation will begin at 2:00am AEST / 4:00am NZST on
Wednesday 12th June. The presentation, which focuses entirely
on software, will offer a look at games scheduled to launch in 2019. Viewers can watch it by visiting Nintendo’s
E3 2019 website*.
Nintendo
Treehouse: Live: Nintendo of America’s Treehouse staff hosts a livestream from
Nintendo’s booth at E3 that offers viewers live gameplay and commentary.
The show on Wednesday 12th June AEST starts immediately
following the Nintendo Direct presentation. For the following two days,
the show is scheduled to start at 2:00am AEST / 4:00am NZST. For the first
time ever, Nintendo is dedicating Nintendo Treehouse: Live programming on
Friday 14th June AEST to focus on indie games. People can view
every day of the livestream at Nintendo’s
E3 2019 website*.
Nintendo
eShop sale: To celebrate E3 2019, Nintendo is offering discounts on select digital
Nintendo Switch and Nintendo
3DS games in Nintendo eShop. The sale starts at 3:00am
AEST / 5:00am NZST on 12th June and runs until 11:59 (local
time) on 18th June. The full list of discounted games will be
announced next week.
For the most up-to-date information about Nintendo’s presence at E3 2019, keep an eye on Nintendo’s E3 2019 website*.
Visitors to E3 can get hands-on with a range of Nintendo Switch titles,
while fans will hear details about upcoming games for Nintendo Switch during
the early Wednesday-morning AEST Nintendo Direct presentation. Additional
information is on the way during the week on Nintendo Treehouse: Live, with a
focus on indie games on Friday 14th June AEST.
Notes
to Editors:
* This content is presented by Nintendo of America.
Please check www.nintendo.com.au for information
specific to Australia and New Zealand.
SWORDS of GARGANTUA Launches Globally on Steam and Oculus Store
Test your sword-wielding skills against the mighty Gargantua’s minions in this VR action game
TOKYO – June 6, 2019 – gumi Inc. and Yomuneco Inc. today launched the VR-based action title SWORDS of GARGANTUA for the HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, Windows Mixed Reality and Oculus Quest. Players can test their sword-wielding skills against the mighty Gargantua’s minions. SWORDS of GARGANTUA is now available for purchase of $$$ on Steam and the Oculus Store.
Grab three friends and build a team to fight foes! SWORDS of GARGANTUA is designed for cross-platform co-op play so that players can engage with friends in multiplayer action regardless of head mount display choice. Specifically, for Oculus, SWORDS of GARGANTUA is “cross-buy enabled” such that purchasers of the game on the Oculus Store will be able to play it on either the Oculus Quest or Oculus Rift headsets.
To commemorate the release of SWORDS of GARGANTUA, we’ll have a campaign in which players can earn a special unique Sword! All players who purchase SWORDS of GARGANTUA and launch the game at least once will unlock a special sword at the end of the event. The event will run until Friday, June 21, and the unique sword will be delivered in-game in an update soon after the closing date.
Key Features in SWORDS of GARGANTUA:
Hyper-Realistic
VR Swordsmanship: We’ve taken great care to ensure that each battle feels
great through heavy refinement of our battle system and accurate haptic
feedback.
Cross-Platform
Four-Player Co-Op: With native voice chat, develop strategies, revive
downed friendlies, and battle hordes of enemies in order to protect your
mana station, and penultimately fight an enormous foe.
Grand in
Size: over 50 single player missions, 30 weapons to unlock, and a
multiplayer mode rarely seen in VR melee action games.
Gargantuan
in Scale: Embrace destiny and take on the mighty titan, Gargantua. Larger
and more challenging than anything players have faced in SWORDS of
GARGANTUA before!
About Yomuneco Inc. Yomuneco Inc. is a Virtual Reality game development company based out of Tokyo, Japan. Headed by industry veteran Kiyoshi Shin, Yomuneco is dedicated to the creation of high-quality multiplayer experiences in Virtual Reality. For more information about Yomuneco, please check out our official website: http://www.yomune.co/
About gumi Inc. Founded in 2007, gumi Inc. (Tokyo Stock Exchange: 3903) is a leading global mobile game publisher and developer headquartered in Japan, with overseas operations in France, Korea, Singapore, Taiwan and the United States. The company has proven success in launching titles worldwide, such as the widely popular role-playing games Brave Frontier and THE ALCHEMIST CODE. In 2016, gumi established a Silicon Valley-based investment group with partners, called The Venture Reality Fund, which focuses on seed and early stage augmented reality and virtual reality startups. Its VR incubation subsidiaries have expanded globally, including Tokyo XR Startups, Seoul XR Startups, and Nordic XR Startups. In 2018, the company launched gumi Cryptos, an investment arm in blockchain technology and funds. With ongoing publishing and development projects on a wide array of mobile, AR and VR platforms, gumi aims to change the world through innovative entertainment products and services, including both original content and collaborations with popular IP. For more information, please visit http://www.gu3.co.jp/en/.
BANDAI NAMCO ENTERTAINMENT INC. AND GOOGLE
PARTNER TO BRING DRAGON BALL XENOVERSE 2 TO STADIA
SANTA CLARA, Calif., (June 6, 2019) – Leading
anime video game developer and publisher BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment America
Inc. today announced that DRAGON BALL XENOVERSE™ 2 will be
playable on Stadia™, the first collaboration between BANDAI NAMCO
EntertainmentInc.and Google LLC.
Stadia is an all new AAA gaming platform that aims to
revolutionize the way people access, play, and enjoy their favorite games and
brand-new titles – with instant access to play across any screen. By bringing DRAGON
BALL XENOVERSE 2 to Stadia, BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment Inc. aims to
deliver the opportunity to experience the richness of the Dragon Ball
world to a broader audience. By supporting Stadia, BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment
Inc. looks forward to new opportunities and future collaborations the platform
will offer.
DRAGON BALL XENOVERSE 2 is an action/fighting game
initially launched on PlayStation®4, Xbox One, and PC in November 2016 and then
on Nintendo Switch™ in September 2017. The game has sold millions of units
globally and is supported by a highly active community thanks to the continual
addition of downloadable content and regular updates. Features like avatar
creation, online lobby, as well as cooperative and versus modes make DRAGON
BALL XENOVERSE 2 particularly suitable for Stadia’s unique
experience-sharing possibilities.
“Google’s Stadia platform will surely be an exciting addition to
the video game marketplace; presenting cutting edge technology that will open
players up to even more video game experiences.” said Chris Gilbert, Senior
Vice President of Sales and Marketing at BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment America
Inc. “With a strong fanbase and an active community, DRAGON BALL
XENOVERSE 2 is a great selection as BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment’s first
entry into the Stadia ecosystem with which we hope to reach a new audience and
continue to achieve our goal to provide more fun for everyone.”
BANDAI
NAMCO Entertainment America Inc., part of BANDAI NAMCO Holdings Inc., is a
leading global publisher and developer of interactive entertainment for all
major video game consoles, iOS, Android, and online platforms. The company is
known for creating and publishing many of the industry’s top video game
franchises including PAC-MAN®, GALAGA®, TEKKEN®, SOULCALIBUR®, and ACE COMBAT®.
BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment America Inc. is the premier publisher in the Western
hemisphere for anime based video games including NARUTO SHIPPUDEN™, DRAGON BALL
Z®, and ONE PIECE®. More information about the company and its products can be
found at http://www.bandainamcoent.com or www.facebook.com/BandaiNamcoUS
Codemasters and Deep
Silver Showcase the Graphical Enhancements and Cars Coming to F1® 2019
Larkspur, Calif. – June 6, 2019 – Art Director Stuart Campbell at Codemasters provides an inside look at the visual upgrades coming to F1® 2019: The Official Videogame, the latest entry in the acclaimed Formula 1 racing franchise, which includes improved lighting effects, realistic atmospheric haze and refined surface details that puts fans closer to the action. Check out the assets below along with Campbell’s commentary on F1® 2019’s graphical enhancements.
“Night lighting was one of our visual update priorities for F1® 2019. We took the atmospherics system that we introduced in F1® 2018 for daytime lighting, and further developed this for the night tracks. We now have full atmospheric haze on night circuits, giving a true sense of depth. There’s a lot of dust in the air on those circuits and, at night, the particles really interact with the strong trackside lighting.
The atmospherics help pull the whole scene together and give a greater sense of realism. We have added volumetric lighting to the trackside lighting, which results in the cones of light falling off from the light sources – another key factor in making night lighting look more realistic. Finally, we added nighttime specular. This was not present at all in previous games and made the nighttime scenes look rather flat, and the surface materials ambiguous.
The specular additions have made a huge improvement to the quality of the track materials at night. The extra surface information provided by this allows you to see all the surface details that were lost previously. The vehicle paint, in particular, looks amazing on the night circuits, and picks-up highlights from all those track-side light sources making it look incredibly close to TV footage of the sport itself.”
F1® 2019: The Official Videogame launches on June 28 in the United States and is now available for pre-order. Visit http://www.formula1game.com/ for more information.
# # #
About Codemasters Codemasters (AIM:CDM) is an award winning British video game developer and publisher with over 30 years of heritage. The company specializes in high quality racing games including DiRT, GRID, ONRUSH and the BAFTA award-winning official F1® series of videogames.
For more information on Codemasters’ product portfolio, please visit www.codemasters.com. Join in the conversation with @codemasters on Twitter or Like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/codemasters.
All other copyrights or trademarks are the property of their respective owners and are being used under license. Developed and published by Codemasters.
About Deep Silver Deep Silver develops and distributes interactive games for all platforms. The Deep Silver label means to captivate all gamers who have a passion for thrilling gameplay in exciting game worlds. Deep Silver works with its partners to achieve a maximum of success while maintaining the highest possible quality, always focusing on what the customer desires.
Deep Silver has published more than 200 games since 2003, including its own brands like the open world extravaganza Saints Row, the zombie action franchise Dead Island, and the grim post-apocalyptic future of the Metro series. Upcoming highlights from Deep Silver include Dead Island 2. Deep Silver also owns the development studios Deep Silver Dambuster Studios in Nottingham, UK; Deep Silver Fishlabs in Hamburg, Germany, and Deep Silver Volition based in Champaign, IL, USA. For more information please visit www.deepsilver.com
Koch Media is a leading producer and distributor of digital entertainment products (software, games and films). The company’s own publishing activities, marketing and distribution extend throughout Europe and the USA. The Koch Media group has more than 20 years of experience in the digital media business, and has risen to become the number one distributor in Europe. It has also formed strategic alliances with numerous games and software publishers: Bethesda, Capcom, Kaspersky Labs, NC SOFT, Sega, Square Enix and Tecmo-Koei, etc. in various European countries. With Headquarter in Höfen, Austria Koch Media owns branches in Germany, England, France, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Spain, the Nordic regions, Benelux, Australia, Czech Republic and the United States.
All product titles, publisher names, trademarks, artwork and associated imagery are trademarks, registered trademarks and/or copyright material of the respective owners. All rights reserved.
Developed and published in-house by the creators of
critically-acclaimed Divinity: Original Sin 2
Larian Studios is proud to announce that they are developing and publishing Baldur’s Gate III on PC and Google Stadia. Created in close collaboration with the Dungeons & Dragons team at Wizards of the Coast, Baldur’s Gate III is based off current D&D mechanics and spells and is the official new chapter in the legendary series.
Baldur’s Gate III will push the boundaries of the RPG genre and offer a rich narrative with unparalleled player freedom, high-stakes decisions, unique companion characters and memorable combat. It is Larian Studios’ biggest production ever and will be playable together with friends or as a single-player adventure.
The teaser trailer shows a return of a malevolent presence to Baldur’s Gate, intent on devouring it from the inside out, corrupting everything that remains in the Forgotten Realms.
Alone you may resist, but together you can overcome. Gather your party.
“Baldur’s Gate means so much to so many people. It’s a great responsibility but I think we’re ready for it,” said Swen Vincke, Creative Director at Larian Studios. “We’re all about creating reactive, systemic worlds that respect player agency and having a chance to apply our team’s skillset in a universe as rich as Dungeons & Dragons is a lot of fun. We’re working very closely with Wizards to bring an unprecedented level of immersion to the realm of Faerun and I can’t wait to show the world what our team cooked up.”
“Partnering with Larian, a studio that combines a remarkable history of critically-acclaimed titles with a genuine passion for one of the most iconic locations in Dungeons & Dragons, has been a terrific experience,” said Chris Cocks, President of Wizards of the Coast. “We believe fans of the Baldur’s Gate saga – and even those new to the series – will be thrilled to step into this epic story.”
Larian Studios plans to work closely with the global community to bring the coveted series to life, with more news to follow over the course of the year.
ABOUT LARIAN STUDIOS Larian Studios is an independent RPG developer founded in 1996 in Ghent, Belgium. Over 200 people work between the four worldwide studios in Ghent, St Petersburg, Quebec and Dublin. Larian is best known for the Divinity universe, which they introduced to the world with Divine Divinity in 2002. In 2014, Larian launched Divinity: Original Sin, a classic CRPG that won over 150 awards and nominations. The company released its critically acclaimed sequel Divinity: Original Sin 2 on September 14, 2017, followed by the Definitive Edition in August 2018 for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One to a 93 Metacritic rating. Divinity:Original Sin 2 won a Bafta for Best Multiplayer Game.
ABOUT WIZARDS OF THE COAST Wizards of the Coast LLC, a subsidiary of Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ:HAS), is the leader in entertaining the lifestyle gamer. Wizards’ players and fans are members of a global community bound together by their love of both digital gaming and in-person play. The company brings to market a range of gaming experiences under powerful brand names such as MAGIC: THE GATHERING and DUNGEONS & DRAGONS. For more information about our world renowned brands, visit the Wizards of the Coast Web site at www.wizards.com.
NAUTICAL EYE-CAPTURING ARTWORK
SETS SAIL IN LYN: THE LIGHTBRINGER
All-new hand-drawn costumes,
exclusive events and more arrive for the role-playing game on the App Store and
Google Play
Seoul –
June 6, 2019 –
Renowned illustrator Jeong Juno, known for his work on Lineage 2, joins
forces with the publishers at Nexon for fresh artwork and more in LYN: The
Lightbringer, the new story-driven role-playing game (RPG) from NEXON Korea
Corporation, subsidiary of NEXON Co., Ltd. (“Nexon”) (3659.TO), a worldwide
leader in free-to-play online and mobile games. Mobile players worldwide can
download today’s LYN: The Lightbringer content update today on the App Store and Google Play.
A cast of
3D-rendered models converted from Jeong Juno’s beautiful two-dimensional art
explode to live as 3D-rendered models in LYN: The Lightbringer’s
spellbound world. Today’s content update invites players further into the
enchanted but treacherous realm with even more captivating artwork and more,
including:
New Nautical Theme – Winry, Deshua and Kriton can now be customized in their stylish
new maritime outfits;
Crystal’s Treasure Vault Event – Players are invited to collect rare
carrots that are tradable for exclusive in-game items from Treasure Vault;
Altar of Advent Change – The new legendary hero ‘Shine’ joins the fray of eccentric
characters in LYN’s dark fantasy world;
Additional Balances – Multiple in-game bugs have been addressed and other stability
and character balances applied.
LYN: The
Lightbringer is
available now to download for free on the App Store and Google Play. Additional
information for members of the press:
Check out the official Facebook page here Visit the official LYN: The Lightbringer website here
About NEXON Co. Ltd. NEXON Co., Ltd. (“Nexon”) (3659.TO) is a
worldwide leader in free-to-play online and mobile games. Founded in Korea in
1994, Nexon developed one of the world’s first graphics-based massively
multiplayer online games. Nexon also pioneered the concept of microtransactions
and the free-to-play business model, setting a new standard in which play is
free, and users have the option to purchase in-game items to enhance their
experience. Nexon currently services nearly 100 titles in more than 190 countries. The
Company is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan and its shares are listed on the Tokyo
Stock Exchange.
Ary and the Secret
of Seasons Releases Stunning New Gameplay Trailer, Reveals New
Details About the World of Valdi
The greatest adventures have
small beginnings
Walnut Creek, CA – June 6, 2019 – Developer eXiin and indie publisher Modus Games released a vibrant new gameplay trailer today for the upcoming action-exploration game Ary and the Secret of Seasons, coming to Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch and PC in 2020. Next week, E3 attendees can view a demo of the game in person by visiting Modus in the South Hall at booth #2513.
Taking on a
role traditionally reserved for young men, Aryelle (Ary) has become the newest
inductee into the mysterious Guardians of Seasons and is tasked with overcoming
monstrous enemies, secret plots and stuffy traditions to bring back balance to
Valdi after a mysterious force throws the seasons into disarray.
With
unforgettable characters and larger-than-life enemies, Ary and the Secret of
Seasons takes players on an adventurous ride through a fanciful world where
the seasons themselves hold ancient, hidden powers. Ary must learn to harness
these powers if she is to restore order from chaos, save her land and establish
herself among the Guardians of Seasons.
Ary and the Secret of Seasons is due out early next year. To keep up with Modus
Games, hit up @modus_games on Twitter. Wishlist Ary on Steam, and follow Ary on Twitter and Facebook @ArySeasons.
* * *
About Modus Games
Modus Games is one of the fastest-growing video game
publishers in the world. The label prides itself on providing AAA publishing
services to talented independent developers across the globe. For more
information, visit www.modusgames.com.
About eXiin and Fishing Cactus
eXiin is
a fast-growing indie game company based in Brussels, Belgium. Since June 2016,
eXiin is developing their new IP called Ary; the first game is “The Secret
of Seasons.”
To
increase the scope of Ary and the Secret of Seasons, eXiin joined forces with
one of the most experienced Belgian based game developer: Fishing Cactus.
Fishing
Cactus has been developing games for almost a
decade and share with eXiin a certain taste for innovation. Fishing Cactus
counts over 50 released titles and a crew of 22 developers. Fishing Cactus is
behind the successful atypical typing RPG Epistory: Typing Chronicles and
handcrafts smart games with soul.
Taking a relatively played out genre and putting a new spin on things is a great way to draw attention and when Retro CIty Rampage blew onto the scene back in 2012 it proved that top down action games in an open world still have plenty of life left in them. Now VBlank Entertainment has returned with a new open world game in that same vein in the form of Shakedown: Hawaii. Is this entry worth your time or was this one best left retiring?
Story
The aging CEO of Feeble Multinational may have written an autobiography about how his company runs itself while he’s at the beach but unfortunately over the years new technology has caused that business to run itself into the ground. After hearing that his company is nearly bankrupt the CEO learns that online shopping, video streaming, and more modern day conveniences have put his previous businesses underwater.
Not one to just let his previous dynasty crumble into nothingness the CEO immediately consults with his top men and figures that the best way to get back on top will involve some rather underhanded tactics that involve mostly criminal behavior, some rough game show appearances, and violating pretty much every law protecting consumers from predatory business practices. The CEO isn’t the only character in this game however as his son, an “aspiring” DJ who hasn’t booked a gig in a decade, is trying to earn street cred and the CEO’s own personal fixer also end up being playable characters.
That being said, this dynamic of allowing for three characters to have a story and be playable on the fly doesn’t really work the best in Shakedown: Hawaii as the other two characters besides the CEO end up feeling a bit flatter in comparison. Sure it is funny a few times seeing the CEO’s son attempting to be a gangster and failing at it but the best parts of the narrative come when playing as the CEO himself. Thankfully the writing for the story mission is as witty and humorous as one could expect from the developer of Retro City Rampage.
Sure the direct references have been toned down to basically winking at the player since we all know exactly what they are talking about in most situations and obvious memes are now non-existent but if anything that makes the comedic nature of the storyline all the better. Not only is it often hilariously over the top given what the CEO’s plans end up being and the backlash that he can end up facing (or simply getting away with), but the story often is a witty bit of social commentary on the marketing business as a whole and those looking for a game that is more than willing to let humor take the wheel need look no further than Shakedown: Hawaii.
Gameplay
Shakedown: Hawaii adopts the old school top-down approach to the action as players are tossed into a world that is almost immediately available for them to explore. Free-Roam is of course an option separate from the Story should the player choose but there’s no real reason not to take part in the game’s story mode at the same time as various collectible and the crazy challenge missions are still available in this mode. Players will find various mission markers that trigger cutscenes in the aforementioned story and, at least in the early parts of the game, introduce various mechanics and ways to make money.
Combat in this game has a nice arcade style feel to it with players easily gaining access to a wide array of weapons running anywhere from baseball bats and handguns to scissors that can cut off hair and even spread-shot guns that can annihilate anything in their path. It is worth noting that the lock on system in the combat is a bit finicky at times and considering the amount of random civilians and other vehicles around, the game can often struggle to target specifically what you wish to aim at but this is only a small problem in the end as ammo rarely feels like an issue and even if the police get a bit riled up, a quick escape in a car, which handle quite well, or run to a mission is all it takes to lose them.
You see, while players have their own pocket money that can be used to purchase clothing and eventually character upgrades this money is seperate from their overall business pool. After a set amount of time passes in-game a day will pass and depending on the player’s current income stream their business will gain that amount of money that can then be invested in various ways, or paid out to the player as a salary that can be as paltry or as exorbitant as you wish.
Outside of completing story missions one of the first ways players learn to earn a steady but smaller source of income happens to be in the form of the titular shakedowns. Nearly every building in the game is available for players to enter and then trigger a shakedown in order for that business to “subscribe” to the player with some protection money. To do this players will need to perform some sort of task that ends up leading to some of the most crazy situations that the game can offer. This can range from simply smashing shelves, clogging up all the toilets, and shooting up a rival gang, to invading customer’s personal space, escaping from their trap door dungeon, or cutting off their hair. There is such a wide array of shakedown types that this is easily one of the best parts of the game and a way for players to earn a solid bit of income.
As players advance through the story they will quickly be told different ways to help increase their daily revenue and this happens to range from everything to blowing up rival same-day delivery trucks to repossessing cars with predatory loans. This is all introduced at a fairly blistering pace and immediately gives players a variety of activities to do outside of the story mode but if you really want cash then real estate is where it’s at. Nearly every building on the island can eventually be purchased by the player and the more things they own, the more money they can end up making. Everything from homes to entire malls can eventually be purchased and to top that off, multipliers in the form of short term gift cards and targeted advertisements help increase the daily revenue to an extreme degree.
The way this is done is unfortunately a bit rough around the edges however as the game’s menu systems for multipliers as well as purchasing properties are a bit annoying to deal with. Players will need to look through the map and apply each multiplier as needed while the actual businesses need to get purchased one at a time and considering the massive amount of property available, this can be a bit time consuming even if the load times are non-existent. It also is a bit disappointing that while the goal for the player is eventually to end up owning everything, it quickly becomes an afterthought. The low cost of player upgrades, cosmetics, and weaponry won’t put a dent in any of your real spending and eventually even new buildings can be bought up without batting an eye as a single payday can eventually buy out an entire block. This makes the eventual overflow of money a bit disappointing as there simply aren’t enough ways to spend it.
Visuals & Audio
One of the first things players of the previous game from this developer will notice is that Shakedown: Hawaii has been given a significant graphical improvement over the past game and presents everything in crisp 32-bit style pixel art. This is true both in the open world overworld as well as in the cutscenes that take place, though it is worth noting that any character customization is only reflected on the overworld screens. There is a ton of variety to see in different parts of the city and while it is true that some of the buildings do end up repeating themselves, being able to venture inside of over two hundred buildings is a significant feat.
Along those same lines players will find that the game’s soundtrack happens to fit perfectly with the theme of the game. It is worth noting that while the world is designed with plenty of attention to detail with numerous things being destructible, there are parts of the map that don’t get quite the same amount of attention story-wise compared to others which is a bit disappointing.
Overall
Shakedown: Hawaii continues the legacy of VBlank’s legacy of delivering over the top action combined with a hilarious story. Sure the setting this time around is a bit more grounded but its ridiculous take on corporations still rings close to home with enough parody to keep players laughing even as they blow up a toilet for protection money or take back a farm from a drug cartel simply to sell soft-drinks at a cheaper price. Though the economy eventually ends up way overbalanced towards the player, those looking for a great action game with plenty of humor will find that Shakedown: Hawaii delivers in spades.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
Initially debuting back in 2010 few could have imagined just how much cross-genre potential the Hyperdimension Neptunia franchise could offer. While the majority of their games have been RPGs we’ve seen brawlers, strategy RPGs, a VR-enabled entry, and even an idol raising game so it only makes sense that the series tackle something a little different, especially since it happened to be a joke to start with. Neptunia Shooter is a bullet hell style shooter and with Neptune and her friends now in an 8-bit side scrolling shooter, is this entry worth it?
Gameplay
Neptunia Shooter forgoes the usual explanation as to how the girls have ended up in their current situation and drops players immediately into the game playing as Neptune. Neptune has a rapid fire ability that allows her to fire chainshots together for a faster rate of fire or separately for more spread. This allows her to be fairly versatile and help her avoid taking damage which is essential as players initially can only, at least initially, take three hits before facing the game over screen.
The primary enemy that players face happen to always be various types of Dogoos that act in specific ways that range from simply firing at the player or flinging themselves at them and this variety is kept fairly standard throughout the stages with each Dogoo having a unique coloration or style to help match their attack pattern. The early stages of the game are fairly simple as far as a bullet-hell style game go with the screen being filled with Dogoos that must be killed or avoided all while trying to avoid incoming fire though this can be a bit rough as the background design of the stages is occasionally a bit too similar to some incoming attacks that other shooters utilize, meaning players may end up dodging a harmless background particle into a more dangerous situation if they aren’t paying close attention.
At the end of every stage players will have to take down a boss that, when defeated, will join the player’s party as a character that can be swapped to on the fly. Each boss fight plays in a different manner that is a unique and fun enough take on the genre while also giving a bit of a preview of the character’s actual firing capabilities. Compa has the ability to fire close-range falling pills to hit enemies below, Iffy fires in the opposite direction to allow for enemies to be taken out from behind, and more.
This creates a fun enough game that while not incredibly hard to learn is actually quite difficult to master. After the initial stages players will quickly find themselves being overwhelmed as the challenge increases immensely the further along players get in the stages. Sure there are only six stages in total but it will take a lot of skill to actually face off against the final boss and hit that clear screen. It is worth noting that there really isn’t too much else to aim for in Neptunia Shooter besides clearing the game and of course getting the best score possible as there are leaderboards available if you want to see just how you rank.
Visuals & Audio
Stylized like an 8-bit shooter from yesteryear Neptunia Shooter pulls it off quite well. The character sprites for the various playable characters and their boss variants are nicely detailed while the Dogoo enemy types are varied in appearance enough that they stay fairly fresh although more visual enemy types would have been a better touch. It is also worth noting that the space style background can be a bit of a problem at times due to its simplistic nature and stylized “star sprites” looking like incoming fire.
The soundtrack is also similar to what one would expect in an 8-bit shooter with standard chiptune music accompanying players in these stages. It is also worth noting that players should not expect any voice work in this game as there is no dialogue.
Overall
Few could have imagined that an April Fool’s joke would have ended up being developed into a solidly designed side-scrolling shooter but here we are with Idea Factory’s Neptunia Shooter. While it may not be complicated and its simplicity is a bit of a disappointment for those who want a little bit more of Neptune and her friends’ charms, the design of this shooter works quite well as something to pop into for a bit and enjoy and considering it’s incredibly low price-point, isn’t going to break anyone’s bank.
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