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ROOSTER TEETH GAMES’ UNCOOPERATIVE MULTIPLAYER SHOOTER VICIOUS CIRCLE HITS STEAM ON AUG. 13

Philip Federico
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ROOSTER TEETH GAMES’ UNCOOPERATIVE MULTIPLAYER SHOOTER VICIOUS CIRCLE HITS STEAM ON AUG. 13

SAN DIEGO — July 23, 2019 — Rooster Teeth Games revealed this past weekend at Comic-Con International: San Diego that Vicious Circle will launch on Aug. 13, 2019, on Windows PC via Steam for $19.99. Set in a comic-inspired sci-fi universe with ridiculous characters and colorful art style, Vicious Circle is a fast-paced uncooperative multiplayer shooter in which four mercenaries compete for loot against a terrifying monster — and each other!

In each round of Vicious Circle, one player is selected to become a massive, unstoppable creature with a simple goal: kill all four mercenaries. The mercs can be formidable when working together, so divide and conquer, using your enhanced senses and powerful abilities to scatter foes in a panic, hunt them down and pick them off one by one.

Mercs can team up with their rivals to survive, but only the player with the most loot wins. And that means playing dirty every chance you get. Use your gadgets and the environment to mess with your adversaries: lock doors to slow them down, trap them in rooms with the monster, and suck loot out from under them. Should you join forces against the monster hunting you down, or sneak away to gain the upper hand while everyone else is busy? The choice is yours, but remember — what goes around comes around!

Vicious Circle is available to wishlist now on Steam. For more information, visit www.ViciousCircleGame.com.

About Rooster Teeth

Rooster Teeth is a pioneering media and entertainment company responsible for some of the biggest online series in history, such as the award-winning and longest-running web series, Red vs. Blue. They also produce the globally acclaimed animated series RWBY, the first western anime series to be distributed in Japan; the award-winning Rooster Teeth Podcast; and Immersion, a reality format that brings video game theory to the real world. Rooster Teeth has a massive global footprint of more than 45 million subscribers to its YouTube Network, five million unique monthly visitors to its RoosterTeeth.com hub and three million registered community members. The company was founded in 2003 and is now a subsidiary of Otter Media, a WarnerMedia company. Discover more at RoosterTeeth.com.

Former Wolfenstein New Order, DOOM and New Colossus Developers Create New Studio, Bad Yolk, in Sweden

Philip Federico
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With a focus on employee health and happiness, the fledgling studio hits the ground running with its first IP already in production

Uppsala, Sweden — July 23rd, 2019 — Former Machine Games developers Michael Paixao and Joel Jonsson today announced the beginning of a new era – with the formation of Bad Yolk, a brand new, forward-thinking video game studio that aims to attract the best talent by offering a healthy and happy work-life balance, and thus, make the greatest, most creative and technically superior games possible. 

Bad Yolk’s core team is made up of 10 senior AAA developers with a combined 90+ years of experience and over 14 AAA titles shipped including Chronicles of Riddick, Eve Online, Gears of War, The Division, The Darkness and many others. The studio is already well underway in developing its first, as yet unannounced, new IP.

“After years of working with some extremely talented people on some really great projects we felt it was time to branch out on our own to create a new kind of studio,” said Michael Paixao from Bad Yolk. “Obviously high quality video games should be fun to play, but we also believe that they should be fun to make and that creativity thrives best in a healthy and balanced work environment, which is a central pillar of our corporate message and structure.”

About Bad Yolk
Begun in Uppsala, Sweden in 2017, Bad Yolk have a core team of 10 former AAA senior developers on a mission to attract the greatest talent to make the greatest games with an emphasis on creativity and a happy and healthy work environment.

Pawarumi Review

James Ogilvy
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Pawarumi Review

Pawarumi

Developer: Manufacture 43
Publisher: Manufacture 43
Platforms: PC, Linux, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One
Release Date: 24 July 2019
Price: US$14.99 – Available Here

Overview

Pawarumi is a futuristic shoot’em up set in a pre-Colombian universe, developed by French studio Manufacture 43, the game has impressed audiences and critics alike with it’s original release on PC and Linux back in 2018, but does Pawarumi make the leap to consoles or does it’s fast paced gameplay fail to deliver?

Story

As touched on above, Pawarumi takes place in an futuristic pre-Colombian universe, meaning that the look and story elements of the game is inspired by Aztec and other similar American civilizations around the same time and earlier, before the colonization of the Americas. In Pawarumi, you play as Axo, the empire’s best pilot, who is seeking revenge for the crimes perpetrated against her people. Axo, with her legendary ship Chukaru, fight against the armies of the Council. The game has three slightly different stories (due to the order of the bosses) and different endings depending on if you’re playing on easy, normal or hard difficulties, with the last level in hard mode finally being your revenge.

I don’t think this story was told well in the game. The little bits of dialogue offered by the game doesn’t fill you in much to the story of the world, but I don’t think Pawarumi is a game that is relying on story and prefers to get to the gameplay quickly.

Gameplay

When I first read about Pawarumi’s gameplay, I thought it sounded crazy. The game describes itself as a ‘rock, paper. scissors’ shooter which makes no sense until you play the tutorial, then it feels so natural and you begin to wonder why no other game (as far as I’m aware) has done anything like this.

In Pawarumi, the enemies come in three different colors, red, green, and blue, with your attacks also being colored in the same pattern. Attacking enemies with the same color that they are increases your shield/health. Attacking the enemy with their ‘crush’ color defeats them quickly (e.g. Blue crushes green, green crushes red, red crushes blue) and attacking with the other color combination ‘drains’ the enemy for your super attack. (E.g. Red attack against green).

Pawarumi is challenging. It’s a fast paced that makes you earn beating a level, even on easy and normal difficulties. The difficulty curve means that it’s a good idea to beat the game on easy first before moving on to normal. The game is very reminiscent of the shooters of old, and would not be at all out of place in an arcade.

The game features local and online leaderboards and as mentioned above, is already available on PC. One feature that differentiates the Nintendo Switch edition is that you can have the ship change color depending on what joycon you’re using. I preferred playing the game in handheld mode and it’s a great game to play on the go, especially when playing the levels individually in training mode to improve my performance when I get time to try a full play through.

Visuals

Pawarumi is aiming for a Aztec-like, retro 80’s, pre-Colombian look. The game delivers on this look beautifully and looks very sharp. The colors are clearly defined on the ships which is helpful to color deficient players, the levels have lots of variation and the background of levels are interesting without being distracting, especially the snow level having very crisp looking snow and the lava cave level giving everything a warm glow.

The story artwork in the game is very visually interesting but I would of liked to of seen more, especially of the main character, Axo, who only has one artwork shown for her, if the game had more artwork for the character, perhaps showing the characters journey and growth as shes getting revenge, then the story may have stuck out more and become more visually interesting.

Audio

Pawarumi is musically uninteresting, the music fits in well and blends into the other sounds of the game, and only makes itself noticeable when required. The other sounds of the ships blend together and no sound feels as if it’s overstaying its welcome. It’s all very standard for what you would expect from a shoot’em up.

Overall

Pawarumi has entertained audiences on PC for over a year now, and it will gain a whole new audience on Nintendo Switch and Xbox One with a game that I couldn’t imagine playing without a joystick. When reviewing this on the Switch, the game feels as if it was made exclusively for the switch since all the controls feel so perfected. The story is interesting enough without falling into cliche and the graphics amaze. This is a must buy for anyone wanting a shoot’em up experience on console.

Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.

Persona 5 Royal Trailer Focuses on Futaba Sakura

Travis Bruno
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Persona 5 Royal Trailer Focuses on Futaba Sakura

Atlus has continued their series of character trailers for Persona 5 Royal with this latest one focusing on the Phantom Thieves’ hacker Futaba Sakura who previously only provided various buffs to the party. Now, shown in the trailer below, she appears to actually participate in group beatdowns though whether or not this is a special ability at the moment is unknown.

Also found in the video are some slice of life scenes where we see Futaba and the rest of the crew taking part in a study session and visiting a shrine on New Year’s. Currently Persona 5 Royal is set to be released on October 31st in Japan for the PlayStation 4 with a Western release coming sometime in 2020.

Cutie Honey Universe Complete Collection Review

Travis Bruno
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Cutie Honey Universe Complete Collection Review

Cutie Honey Universe Complete Collection

Studio: Production Reed
Publisher: Sentai Filmworks
Format: DVD, Blu-ray (Reviewed)
Release Date: July 23, 2019
Price: $69.98 – Available Here

Overview

Among the names of influential manga writers Go Nagai would be near the top of the list and although nearly every series he is known for originally ran back in the 1970s he still is an inspiration for many famous names that are currently producing the anime and manga fans know and love. While Go Nagai created series such as Devilman and Mazinger Z he also created a series known as Cutie Honey that has been given numerous anime adaptations over the years. After four different adaptations since the 70s the series, the series returns once again in Cutie Honey Universe.

Story

Honey Kisaragi appears to most at the private girls only Saint Chapel Academy as a beautiful girl that gets along with everyone but in reality she is an android known best as Cutie Honey. Created by her father and housing the Airborne Element Fixing Device Honey is capable of transforming into a number of different versions of herself all with special abilities, be it musical talent, investigation, or most of all combat. Sometime after her creation her father was slain by Panther Claw as they sought out the Airborne Element Fixing Device for their own means and Honey now works in tandem with the Panther Claw Criminal Investigation Service (PCIS) to put a stop to their activities whenever they appear.

Unfortunately, since Panther Claw’s main goal happens to be what Honey happens to protect, things are never quite so simple. Especially since Sister Jill, the leader of Panther Claw and the one capable of transforming normal girls into Panther monsters to do her bidding, seems to be far more interested in Honey than simply taking the device, going so far as to even disguise herself as an inspector that works against Panther Claw.

In many ways Cutie Honey Universe feels like a half-baked series as it manages to feature some solid story threads throughout its twelve episode run these threads tend to be left hanging by the time the credits roll one final time and the poignant plot points that do stick out happen few and far between primarily due to how episodic in nature the series is. Throughout most of the series viewers will find that a group of people are being threatened by members of Panther Claw only for Honey to track them down, lose a bit, then defeat them in a flash. This leaves the aforementioned threads about Sister Jill’s infiltration playing as background development throughout episodic events.

On the other side of things Cutie Honey Universe is also one that isn’t afraid to go full throttle when it needs to. Civilian casualties due to Panther Claw’s actions are a real threat and when they begin targeting those close to Honey the cruelty of the group comes out in full force. Numerous people who are close to Honey end up murdered due to the actions of the Panther Claw members and unlike many series that appear colorful on the surface such as this one, these deaths are an almost permanent factor.

This dark nature appears more often throughout the second half of the series as Sister Jill’s manipulations of events continue to push Honey to the edge though after a certain point it does become a bit questionable about just what Panther Claw’s motives actually are. At the start it may appear that Sister Jill’s aim is to simply obtain the Airborne Element Fixing Device but throughout the series her motivations simply turn into torture for the sake of seeing Honey crushed. While this turn in desire may work if it were properly built but instead we are left with a main villain that ends up falling so deeply into the deep end of evil that one would question why anyone would follow her. This fact is at least slightly touched upon by a few members thinking for themselves but otherwise they have blind devotion to Sister Jill even when being slain for no reason by her.

This leaves Cutie Honey Universe as a series that has some solid action sequences, mostly in the latter half as the fights begin to last longer and especially in the case of the final two episodes, mixed in with some hit and miss humor very reminiscent of the ’70s where a number of gag characters pull off most of the jokes. In fact, outside of Honey, Sister Jill, a pair of Panther Claw monsters, and Honey’s close friend Natsuko, nearly every other character plays such an irrelevant part to the story they tend to nearly entirely feel like gag characters outside of the rare serious moment. Thanks to numerous plot holes, little background details, and information that never manages to pan out in any way, those looking for a solid storyline here beyond Honey facing down Panther Claw, will find Cutie Honey Universe lacking.

Visuals

Being an adaptation of Go Nagai’s work it is clear that Production Reed, the animation studio for Cutie Honey Universe, wanted to try to capture his character designs perfectly and for the most part the company pulled it off perfectly. This does mean that some side characters do have a rather odd design to them but the core cast and designs of the Panther Claw monsters are quite strong here. Unfortunately those looking forward to seeing a variety of Honey’s transformations will find that most of her forms are given an extremely short time of use compared to her default and combat forms.

The series features a great contrast between vibrant colors for normal scenes and those featuring Honey and darker more sinister tones when the Panther Claw members are attacking. It is worth noting that this release of Cutie Honey Universe is uncensored though outside of some extra nipples being shown here and there the nudity is kept fairly low while fan-service in the form of torn clothing and panty shots remain quite high.

Audio

With the release of Cutie Honey Universe in the West Sentai Filmworks has produced an English dub to accompany the Japanese voice track and longtime fans of the series will be happy to note that they even went as far as to obtain Jessica Calvello, the original English voice for Honey in all previous Western releases for the franchise, to reprise her role here. The English voice cast does a solid job here with some decent voice effects used for the monsters, though the Japanese voice track is there for those that wish to use it and listen to a fairly stacked line-up of well-known Japanese voice actors.

The soundtrack for the series is something of an odd topic as it has a number of great pieces of background music and even goes so far as to include a number of vocal background tracks during important scenes but it also happens to be missing a key opening theme that the series has used all previous anime iterations, “Cutie Honey.” Instead the opening theme is replaced with “You Can’t Fight Without Love,” by AouP which is a solid theme on its own but has a hard time replacing the nostalgia and tradition of the original theme while the ending theme is “Sister” by Luz.

Extras

The bonus features included in Cutie Honey Universe include a clean version of the opening theme animation as well as clean versions of the two ending theme animations accompanied by trailers for other releases from Sentai Filmworks.

Overall

Cutie Honey Universe is a series that had plenty of potential to be tapped but unfortunately doesn’t really manage to deliver in any meaningful way as numerous plot points are skimmed over with little explanation or final resolution and even the main villain’s motivations feel flimsy at best. The action scenes featuring Honey battling against Panther Claw are a delight, although character development is rather barren it comes off perfectly when it does occur, and as for the humor, it works well at times but will be rather hit and miss for viewers due to it sticking true to the ‘70s style.

Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot Screenshots Highlight Gohan, Piccolo, and Vegeta

Travis Bruno
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Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot Screenshots Highlight Gohan, Piccolo, and Vegeta

Despite being called Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot Bandai Namco recently confirmed that players will have access to play as other characters from the series besides just Goku, with the currently confirmed playable characters being Gohan, Piccolo, and Vegeta as well as a handful of support characters who happen to be Krillin, Yamcha, Tien Shinhan, and Chiaotzu.

As such Bandai Namco has released some screenshots for Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot that give us a look at these characters in action and you can check them out below. Currently the game is set to be released on the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC sometime in early 2020.

Overwatch Adds Sigma as New Hero

Travis Bruno
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Overwatch Adds Sigma as New Hero

Fans of Overwatch have wondered just what type of hero would be joining the game next and now we have our answer. Blizzard has announced that the next hero will be named Sigma and have released a video featuring his origin story and a snippet of what looks like a highlight intro featuring the ability to possibly manipulate gravity.

Currently no information about what his actual abilities have been revealed nor has he been given a release window but the company does describe him as “an eccentric astrophysicist who hopes to unlock the secrets of the universe, unaware he’s been turning into a living weapon.”

60 Seconds! Reatomized Coming to Steam on July 25

Jamie Laike Tsui
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60 Seconds! Reatomized Coming to Steam on July 25

Robot Gentlemen announced today their remastered version of 60 Seconds! will launch on Steam on July 25th. 60 Seconds! Reatomized will cost $9.99 USD, but owners of the original indie game will get an upgrade for free as long as they own the game before July 25th.

The remastered version of 60 Seconds! features 4K support, refreshed graphics, improved UI, and new content. Robot Gentlemen have added a storyline that spans through multiple playthroughs, a new relationship system, and the new Survival Challenges mode.

60 Seconds! Reatomized follows the McDoodle family in the middle of a nuclear attack. Players have 60 seconds to rush around the house scooping up family members and supplies before they take cover in a nuclear bunker. From there, they must ration supplies and deal with interpersonal issues to survive as long as they can.

Dragon Star Varnir PC Version Delayed to October

Travis Bruno
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Dragon Star Varnir PC Version Delayed to October

A little under a month ago Dragon Star Varnir was announced for release on PC in September but now Idea Factory International has announced that the release date for the game is now set for sometime in October. The reason given by the company is that they are aiming to have “better optimization” for the game when it is released on Steam.

In Dragon Star Varnir players take on the role of Zephy, a knight sworn to hunt witches, who ends up being turned into a witch when two find him on the brink of death. With witches cursed to consume dragon meat that will either see them die once the dragon in their body bursts out or go insane from starvation, the group must find a way to break the curse. It is worth noting that this PC release will include all of the same content and gameplay found in the Japanese release of the game that was slightly altered for console release.

NBA® 2K20 is Changing the Game with a Dynamic Soundtrack Developed in Partnership with UnitedMasters

Philip Federico
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NBA® 2K20 is Changing the Game with a Dynamic Soundtrack Developed in Partnership with UnitedMasters

2K partners with industry legend Steve Stoute’s latest venture to curate and update soundtrack;

Kicks off international search to find “Next” Artists to be featured in NBA 2K20

Sydney – July 23, 2019 – 2K has announced that NBA® 2K20,the next iteration of the top-rated and top-selling NBA video game simulation series of the past 18 years*, is launching their most expansive soundtrack to date with 50 tracks from artists such as Drake, Meek Mill, Billie Eilish, Post Malone and the late Nipsey Hussle.

All of the songs have been chosen by 2K and validated by UnitedMasters, the new industry alternative for independent artists, founded by the legendary music entrepreneur and businessman, Steve Stoute. Additional songs will be dynamically added throughout the year across genres, spanning hip-hop, R&B, electronic, pop and rock. Fans can experience the soundtrack beginning today on Spotify by visiting https://2kgam.es/2xXSZXK.

Alongside the new soundtrack, 2K and UnitedMasters are kicking off a global search[i] to discover the hottest new artists and tracks to be added to the game. From August 1st until September 15th, artists can submit their track using the new UnitedMasters app and it will be evaluated by Steve Stoute, 2K and star-studded celebrity judging panel. The 10 best tracks will be chosen and added to the soundtrack in a later update.

“NBA 2K has become a centerpiece of culture and sports for the gaming community, with the soundtrack playing a significant role in its success,” said Steve Stoute, Founder and CEO of Translation and United Masters. “Artists can now get discovered and launch their careers by having a song featured. UnitedMasters will open that opportunity to independent artists and help curate the next generation of talent. This year’s soundtrack will be updated constantly with new exciting music from the next generation rising stars to give you something you never heard before.”

“Music is at the core of the NBA 2K experience, and each year, we work hard to deliver a soundtrack that reflects basketball culture and inspires 2K players,” said Alfie Brody, Vice President of Marketing for NBA 2K. “We wanted NBA 2K20 to showcase the best of the next generation of up-and-coming artists, and our global search with UnitedMasters gives these musicians a platform to reach the 2K community.”

The full track list for this year’s soundtrack was revealed this weekend at ComplexCon Chicago. At the show, 2K hosted a panel discussing the intersection of hoops, tech, fashion and music. Steve Stoute, along with Paul Rivera, Karl-Anthony Towns, Don C, and NLE Choppa for an insightful conversation on culture and the role that 2K plays.

Developed by Visual Concepts, NBA 2K20 is <insert local rating>. For more information on NBA 2K20, please visit https://nba.2k.com/2k20/.

Follow NBA 2K on Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, and Facebook for the latest NBA 2K20 news.

2K is a publishing label of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO).

Online Account (13+) required to access online features. See www.take2games.com/legal  and www.take2games.com/privacy for additional details.

[1] The following countries are eligible to participate in the International contest: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, Spain, Germany, France, China, South Korea, Netherlands, Belgium.

About Take-Two Interactive Software

Headquartered in New York City, Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. is a leading developer, publisher and marketer of interactive entertainment for consumers around the globe. The Company develops and publishes products principally through its wholly-owned labels Rockstar Games and 2K, as well as its Private Division label and Social Point, a leading developer of mobile games.  Our products are designed for console systems and personal computers, including smartphones and tablets, and are delivered through physical retail, digital download, online platforms and cloud streaming services.  The Company’s common stock is publicly traded on NASDAQ under the symbol TTWO.  For more corporate and product information please visit our website at http://www.take2games.com.

About 2K

Founded in 2005, 2K develops and publishes interactive entertainment globally for console systems, handheld gaming systems and personal computers, including smartphones and tablets, which are delivered through physical retail, digital download, online platforms and cloud streaming services. 2K publishes titles in today’s most popular gaming genres, including shooters, action, role-playing, strategy, sports, casual, and family entertainment. The 2K label has some of the most talented development studios in the world today, including Visual Concepts, Firaxis Games, Hangar 13, Cat Daddy Games and newly formed, to-be-named studio in Silicon Valley. 2K’s stable of high quality titles includes the critically acclaimed BioShock®, Borderlands™, Mafia and XCOM® franchises; the beloved Sid Meier’s Civilization series; Evolve™ and Battleborn®; the popular WWE® 2K franchise and NBA® 2K, the highest rated* annual sports title of this console generation.

*According to 2008 – 2019 Metacritic.com

All trademarks and copyrights contained herein are the property of their respective holders.

About United Masters

Launched in 2017 by Translation founder and music industry veteran Steve Stoute, UnitedMasters provides a new industry alternative for independent artists. UnitedMasters gives artists access to premium music distribution services, a suite of tools to help them directly connect with fans, and opportunities for unique partnerships with some of the world’s biggest brands. The UnitedMasters platform enables artists to operationalize their independence and maximize their creative and economic potential while allowing them to maintain full ownership over their master recording rights.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

The statements contained herein which are not historical facts are considered forward-looking statements under federal securities laws and may be identified by words such as “anticipates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “expects,” “intends,” “plans,” “potential,” “predicts,” “projects,” “seeks,” “should,” “will,” or words of similar meaning and include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the outlook for the Company’s future business and financial performance. Such forward-looking statements are based on the current beliefs of our management as well as assumptions made by and information currently available to them, which are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict. Actual outcomes and results may vary materially from these forward-looking statements based on a variety of risks and uncertainties including: our dependence on key management and product development personnel, our dependence on our Grand Theft Auto products and our ability to develop other hit titles, the timely release and significant market acceptance of our games, the ability to maintain acceptable pricing levels on our games, and risks associated with international operations. Other important factors and information are contained in the Company’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, including the risks summarized in the section entitled “Risk Factors,” the Company’s most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, and the Company’s other periodic filings with the SEC, which can be accessed at www.take2games.com. All forward-looking statements are qualified by these cautionary statements and apply only as of the date they are made. The Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

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