If you don’t own a PlayStation Vita or were simply waiting for Idea Factory International to bring the second Re;Birth game to the PC then you are in luck as the company has announced when fans can expect Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth2: Sisters Generation to be released on PC through Steam.
Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth2: Sisters Generation will be released on May 19th and will feature 1080p graphics as well as all of the improvements included in the original PS Vita release that we reviewed back in February. Alongside this announcement Idea Factory International also released a new batch of screenshots for the title and you can check those out below.
Hyperdimension Neptunia U: Action Unleashed now has a solid release date in the West as Idea Factory International has revealed that the PS Vita hack ‘n’ slasher will be released at retail and digital in North America on May 19th and in Europe on May 22 via retail and May 27 via digital.
Hyperdimension Neptunia U: Action Unleashed will feature an English dub as well as the original Japanese voice track and will be supported by the PlayStation TV when it is released. Developed by Tamsoft, this Neptunia game will feature new playable characters, customizable equipment, torn clothing, and plenty of over-the-top skills that have not been shown in past Neptunia titles.
Idea Factory International has announced that they will be releasing their very first visual novel in the West sometime this August. The visual novel is an otome title called Amnesia: Memories and if that sounds familiar to you, then you may have read our review of the terrible anime adaptation that was released last year.
Amnesia: Memories follows the story of a heroine who has had her memories taken from her and must navigate complex relationships with five different men in order to piece it back together. When Amnesia: Memories is released it will be available for the PC and the PlayStation Vita as a digital download. You can check out a few CGs from the game below as well as an announcement trailer.
Previously XSEED Games announced that Ys VI: The Ark of Napishtim would be released on PC sometime this Spring and now the company has revealed a solid release date for the title. Ys VI: The Ark of Napishtim will be launching for PC via Steam, the Humble Store, and GOG.com for $19.99 / €17.99 / £13.99 on April 28.
For the first week of release Ys VI: The Ark of Napishtimwill be sold at 15% off. A batch of new English screenshots for the game can be found below as well as the minimum and recommended system requirements:
Minimum System Requirements
OS: Windows XP
Processor: Pentium III 800 MHz
Memory: 1 GB RAM
Graphics: 32 MB VRAM, 3D accelerator compatible w/ DirectX 9.0c
DirectX: Version 8.0
Hard Drive: 1 GB available space
Sound Card: Compatible with DirectX 9.0c
Recommended System Requirements
OS: Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8
Processor: Pentium III 1 GHz or higher
Memory: 1 GB RAM
Graphics: 32 MB VRAM, 3D accelerator compatible w/ DirectX 9.0c
Overview Back in February 2014 Koei Tecmo released Toukiden: Age of Demons in the West and while it did have a few issues here and there, I found it to be an enjoyable title worthy of a sequel. Now a little over a year later and we have not quite a sequel, but an expanded and enhanced release in the form of Toukiden: Kiwami. Filled with extra content and bumped up to the PlayStation 4 alongside the original’s release on the Vita, is Toukiden: Kiwami worth picking up?
Story It is worth noting that Toukiden: Kiwami contains the entire campaign and storyline of the original Toukiden. This means that players who have either not played the original game, or chose not to import their save file from the Vita, will need to start from scratch before reaching the storyline events that begin in Kiwami starting at the eighth chapter.
That being said, demons, or as they are called in Toukiden, Oni, are a constant threat to mankind. Humanity has been struggling against these powerful enemies and only the elite Slayers are capable of defeating these monsters and purifying the land. Players take the role of a fresh Slayer that is assigned to protect the small town of Utakata, one of the last bastions of defense for humanity that is right on the front lines.
While the original story already did a surprisingly solid job of keeping the player engaged by providing their fellow Slayers backgrounds and quite a bit of development throughout the game as the story progressed. There were plenty of high and low moments but despite never taking becoming the central focus it was always intriguing and now that the story continues past its previous ending point, there is even more to enjoy.
Toukiden: Kiwami starts three months after the previous events of the storyline and as the fight against the Oni grows more difficult, a number of forces from the North are driven back and forced to take refuge in Utakata Village. With the appearance of new forces, also comes a new threat worse than ever before and it is up to the player, their allies, and a number of new characters that are all given quite a bit of development, including a rather interesting woman wielding a firearm, to put down this threat, adding even more content to what is already an impressive offering.
Gameplay Now it is worth noting that the basics of combat remain the same in Toukiden: Kiwami as they did in the first game so I will not go into length in that regard, though you can read about it in my previous review here. As far as a base summary goes, players will still be using Utakata Village as a home base where they can interact with NPCs, purchase and forge new equipment, take on missions, and more before venturing into combat where they will need to eliminate numerous small Oni and tackle larger Oni by slicing off various limbs and purifying them.
While most of the changes and enhancements can be found on the battlefield, Koei Tecmo has made sure to provide plenty of additional resources for players to take advantage of. There are now even more Mitama (trapped souls of historical and mythological figures) to collect and equip to weapons to further customize their character for a certain opponent or to fit their playstyle as well as a number of new abilities that come with these additional Mitama. There are also plenty of new weapons and sets of armor to collect and craft, adding an additional challenge for those who want to try and have a complete set of everything.
Now once you take the battlefield not only will you find that all of the previous weapons are still in the game, but they are now joined by a spiked club, a naginata, and a rifle. While the previous weapon types were fairly balanced, the club serves as a heavy hitting but slower weapon that is capable of easily countering enemy attacks and dealing massive damage, the naginata serves as a bit of a slower but more damaging polearm, and the rifle is a more complex variant of the bow and arrow system. In fact, of the new weapons, the rifle gives players the most interesting and unique role on the battlefield as the weapon can be armed with six different bullet types including explosive, piercing, and even buffing types allowing the character to play multiple roles on the battlefield while also sniping at enemy weakpoints from a safer distance.
If you happen to be playing offline or in the single player modes, players now also have the ability to command their NPC allies in combat by telling them to either attack, defend, aid one another, or have free reign. Ally AI was already very helpful in the past title and in Toukiden: Kiwami they have been improved to the point that players can generally rely on them to perform on their own but this does help with certain bosses. It also is worth noting that a new team attack can be performed whenever the “Unity Gauge” is filled up. These team Slayer attacks can deal massive damage capable of slicing off numerous limbs from an enemy Oni in a single strike.
The player’s Tenko can continue to be sent out to gather items while the player is on a mission but this time not only can players give the Tenko various items and equipment to improve the items they find, but if you happen to be exploring the same map that the Tenko has been sent to, there is a very good chance that you’ll meet up with it on the battlefield. If you are traveling with your Tenko then it will support the player by trying to purify Oni limbs and reviving any fallen Slayers.
While playing single player is fun on its own, the real enjoyment comes from playing with three others in a team of four. Toukiden: Kiwami excels in the multiplayer side of things. Not only are the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita versions able to cross-play with one another but the whole experience is as seamless feeling as possible.
Now it is worth noting that while the new weaponry, new foes to face off against, and slew of new content does add a lot of extra value to the package, the main flaws in the first game carry over into Toukiden: Kiwami. This means that while players have more options than ever to customize their fighter and take on challenges, the core gameplay is still very repetitive. Thanks to item drops and the crafting system players will constantly need to be grinding through specific areas in order to obtain items required to create a certain piece of equipment and, although the new weaponry does add variation, the standard combos remain fairly limited and repetitive throughout the course of the game.
Visuals & Audio Now it is worth noting that Toukiden was first released on the PlayStation Vita and it does show in some areas despite being upgraded to the PlayStation 4. The environment textures are rough looking at times but I must say that the character models have benefited greatly from this upgrade. The character designs of returning and new characters in Toukiden: Kiwami are memorable and nicely detailed while the creatures are as stunning looking as ever but it is worth noting that the game does suffer from slowdown at times and relatively long loading times.
The voice work remains Japanese only which is fitting thanks to the setting of the game as well as to the fact that the voice actors have done a fitting job with the cast. The soundtrack is also a real highlight as it mixes up plenty of heated rock tracks as well as plenty of songs featuring traditional Japanese instruments to fit the setting.
Overall The upgrade to Toukiden: Kiwami adds a lot of new content to an already meaty experience in the form of new weapons, new allies, new Oni to take down, and a lot of extra story content. However this upgrade does very little to change repetitive nature of the game nor does it make a smooth transition to the PlayStation 4. That being said, Toukiden: Kiwami is certainly an exciting title featuring fast paced group combat that is absolutely amazing when playing with others and is still a great experience even for those who want to hunt down the Oni alongside the intelligent ally AI.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
To the surprise of no one and to the delight of fanboys and girls across the globe; Creative Assembly have finally confirmed that they are working on a Warhammer entry in their Total Warseries. The game has been titled creatively; Total War: Warhammer, will be published by SEGA, and has a new trailer which can be seen below.
From the looks of things in the trailer, there are going to be x races in the game with the Greenskins, Undead, Dwarves, Chaos (corrupted humans), and the Empire (plucky humans) all making an appearance. Furthermore, it appears that specific heroes and characters will be making an appearance in the game as Karl Franz appears to be in the trailer riding his gryphon ‘Deathclaw’. Mannfred Von Carstein might have also made his animated debut as the vampire count in the trailer, but it could just as well have been another bald vampire (but how many could there be?).
The Total War series is well known for melding turn-based grand strategy and real-time tactical battles and you can read our review of the most recent installment here. Warhammer is a tabletop strategy game with an IP owned by Games Workshop and which features a distinctive dark fantasy universe where the various factions are in near constant state of war. Many fans of Total War and the Warhammer universe have long fantasised about the two being combined with fervent speculation reaching a new high when it was announced that Creative Assembly had bought the rights to the Warhammer fantasy IP in 2013.
No concrete details have been released as of yet, but we’ll keep you informed of the coming WAAAAGH! as it unfolds…
When Dark Souls II first released, I was hooked. As a longtime fan of From Software’s work I am always immediately sucked into the worlds that they create and the stories they tell, although I was disappointed that I had to play it on last-gen hardware when I had an Xbox One sitting in my cabinet begging to be played. Well Namco Bandai and From Software have rectified this issue by bringing Dark Souls II, as well as its three Lost Crowns Trilogy DLC chapters and a few extra upgrades to the current systems with Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin. While new visual improvements and a new quest line really do give this game a new lease on life, there just isn’t all that much new here for players who have “been there, done that.”
Story
Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin comes with the complete Dark Souls II story. As with the original, the game’s narrative is told through cryptic descriptions and obscure references that force the player to piece it together on their own. In addition, Scholar of the Fist Sin includes the Lost Crowns Trilogy, and with it comes the expanded history of Drangleic that those extra chapters provide.
While the Lost Crowns story adds a bit to the game’s lore, the real crux of the story comes from the new NPC; Aldia, Scholar of the First Sin. As you encounter Aldia through the course of the game, you will learn more about the world of Drangleic and the curse of the undead that afflicts the player character. Interestingly enough, this new questline seems to give the most information about the world and its history than anything else.
Combining the Dark Souls II base game, Lost Crowns Trilogy and Scholar of the First Sin gives players a comprehensive look at the world of Drangleic and the past and future of the land. It is pretty cool to see the whole world unfurl and develop like that, even after having played through the original game so many times.
Gameplay
At its face, Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin is the same basic game that you know and love from the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC but with the included Lost Crowns DLC and a brand new quest line – Scholar of the First Sin. For a more in-depth look at the combat and game mechanics of Dark Souls II, check out our original review here.
The new First Sin content included with the game changes some enemy placements around the world’s map. I’m not going to lie – these new enemy placements make the game a bit harder, especially during the opening few areas. The new dragon enemy was certainly a shock when I encountered it, and it promptly reduced my warrior to ash. Making an already challenging game even more difficult was admittedly something I really liked about Scholar of the First Sin, as it gave me a little incentive to play through it again to see what was different.
In addition to the original base game, Scholar of the First Sin includes the entire Lost Crowns DLC trilogy, which up until I played Bloodborne was by far the most difficult challenge that I had ever faced in a From Software game. The three DLC areas are available during your first run through the game, but you need to reach certain points in the story for them to become available to you. As is typical with Dark Souls, you aren’t told specifics as to where and how to get to these new locations, and it is left for you to decipher it for yourself. These areas are insanely difficult, with bosses that will challenge you to the point where you will just want to give up. You wont have to beat these areas to complete the game, but any Dark Souls fan wont let themselves give up without thwarting the bosses that lie within.
Video & Audio
I’ve said before that remakes and re-releases seem to be flooding the market a bit lately, and while I stand by that – I cannot deny that the visual upgrades to Dark Souls II are a very welcome upgrade. I’m not even talking about the visuals themselves so much as the frame rate (although some of the new backdrop changes are really beautiful). Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin now runs at 1080p, 60fps and the difference is quite noticeable. Considering this is a game that is based around precision attacks and pin point accuracy, having the extra frames really helps you get into position quicker and make the perfect strike.
Overall
I love just about everything that From Software releases. Demons Souls, Dark Souls, Dark Souls II, Bloodborne, you name it and I really enjoyed diving back into the world of Drangleic all over again, but that’s just it – I was doing it all over again. I had already bought all of the Lost Crowns DLC for my Xbox 360 copy of the game, and the new Scholar of the Lost Sin content had been added to that version weeks ago. The new visuals and frame rate adjustments are a nice touch and the enemy placements made it a bit of a challenge to get used to again but really if you already own the original, there just isn’t all that much here to warrant a second purchase. However, if you haven’t gotten onto Dark Souls II before, then Scholar of the First Sin should absolutely be your next game purchase.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
Tywin Lannister was a powerful figure on Game of Thrones, making cold, calculated, and ruthless actions cherished works of actor Charles Dance’s career. Now, Charles Dance will be playing Emhyr var Emreis, the Emperor of Nilfgaard, in CD PROJEKT RED‘s upcoming fantasy RPG, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.
Dance shared some insight into his character and the broadening worlds of fantasy fiction and video games in a video from CD PROJEKT RED. Check it out below:
If the video and Dance’s character description are any indication, Emhyr var Emreis looks to be right up Charles Dance’s alley.
The Witcher 3: Wild Huntis complete and slated for release on May 19, 2015 for Windows PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4.
After binge-watching Marvel’s Daredevil and finishing it in a day, I like many of you out there were disappointed. Not in the show, which exceeded any and all expectations but in the fact that we were going to have to wait until after the Defenders crossover series in 2017 (or possible even 2018) to see the Man Without Fear once again.
Thankfully, Disney, Marvel, Netflix, ABC Studios and everyone else involved with the project have announced that we wont have to wait that long! Daredevil has already been renewed for a second season, which is currently slated for released next year!
Now, Daredevil only premiered on Netflix less than two weeks ago, so this is an absolutely phenomenal announcement. All of the positive buzz and viewership has Disney and Marvel seeing dollar signs in the sky for sure!
We are still reeling from the epic 13-part series, and are trying to pick our exploded brains off of the carpet for a review which will be coming soon, but in the mean time let us know what you thought of the series and the news that it has already been renewed.
“What’s Bloodborne?” “Oh it’s like Dark Souls but with werewolves instead of dragons.”
That was a conversation I had with someone when I first loaded up From Software’s latest action RPG, and while it is great starting place for a conversation, it is far from accurate. The spiritual successor to Dark Souls, Bloodborne takes a lot of those mechanics and elements that fans around the world have loved for years and polished, tweaked and changed enough to give a brand new experience that may just very well be the best game on PS4.
Story
Like the Souls series of games that preceded it, Bloodborne’s story is told a little more cryptically and subtly than many other games. Instead of long, wordy cut scenes that are filled to the brim with exposition, Bloodborne tells its tale through the actions of the player character, the NPCs of the world and the items you find along your quest. In this way, it helps to immerse you into the game’s world in a very natural way. When you move to a new city you likely won’t know all the landmarks or the lives of its residents straight off the bat and Bloodborne integrates that feeling of unknown right into the game.
What we do know from the outset is that you are a hunter who has been tasked with ridding the city of Yharnam from a plague, and to find its origin. You aren’t the only hunter present however, as many others have joined in on the crusade, but very few are your allies. Bloodborne does a great job of making the player feel isolated and alone, even more than Dark Souls ever could.
Gameplay
Bloodborne is the spiritual successor to Demons Souls and the Dark Souls franchise, and as such it shares a lot in common with these games. The controls are almost exactly the same as they have been since Demons Souls first launched in 2009, which will give longtime players of the franchise a leg up in getting used to the controls. However, there are some notable differences from the previous games that really help Bloodborne stand apart from its predecessors.
Firstly, Bloodborne is a far more aggressive game than any of the three Souls instalments. Instead of holding up a shield and watching to attack, you will be jumping, ducking and weaving your way through enemies in order to try and bait them out so that you can finish them off. At the same time, the enemies themselves are more wild and aggressive than I had come to expect from a From Software game. The most standard of enemies can and often will push you to your extremes. The focus on combat and aggressiveness also means that Bloodborne is a fast game. The pace never seems to slow down and there is hard,y ever room for a breather.
Another major different is that the weapon (and armor) selection are slim in contrast, but everything operates in a unique and different way. Instead of finding the best longsword in the game, you will find the weapons that suit your play style and work from there. The melee weapons also feature the ability to transform, which offers a different mode and means of attack. One of the starting weapons (and my personal favourite) was a sword cane that operated like a short sword, but once transformed became a whip that was excellent for clearing out crowds of enemies.
I thought long and hard about how to word my experiences with the actual gameplay of this game, and the best description I can come up with is; soul crushing. Bloodborne will break you, there’s no ifs and buts about it. The very first area is probably the most difficult that I have ever experienced in all of my years of gaming. Thrown into a city that is over populated by manic infected townspeople and given a weapon that is better suited to spreading butter than hacking off limbs makes for an incredibly tiresome starting area.
Playing Bloodborne will push you to your utter limits and challenge everything you think about yourself as a gamer. All hope is not lost though. Because the fact that the game kicks your ass for hours on end just lights that fire inside us all and makes us get up, find the strength to keep going and finally overcome. Then when you do finally beat that boss or run that gauntlet of enemies, you get that feeling of satisfaction and euphoria that almost cannot be described. After finally beating the game’s second boss, I actually jumped up and screamed “f*** yeah! Suck my f***ing d***!!” I was just so overwhelmed and excited about my accomplishment that obscene profanity seemed to be the only way to properly express myself.
Video & Audio
Unlike its predecessors, Bloodborne moves away from the fantasy world of dragons and castles, and i stead is set in a Victorian-era, gothic horror inspired city. From the moment you load up the game, the entire world feels different to anything that has come before. The game’s first area is designed so that you have multiple different paths you can take to make your way through the city streets, while at the same time those paths feel closed off and narrow.
While the setting has changed, the attention to detail has not. Bloodborne’s landscape is littered with tiny little intricate details, that if you ever have a moment where you aren’t being hunted down by plagued townspeople, are just impressive to look at.
The audio here, as in most From Software games is very subdued. The quiet ambient noises work really well with the setting and game’s method of storytelling to make the player feel like they are truly alone In the middle of a nightmare. The soft sound effects are broken but by the screams of the infected as they try to turn you into mincemeat.
Overall
Bloodborne is the most challenging, frustrating and downright difficult game I have ever played, and I cannot get enough. The level of difficulty means that the reward for overcoming a wave of enemies or a giant grotesque boss is a feeling beyond compare. From Software have done an amazing job in taking the mechanics that players had become all too familiar with in their Souls games, and tweaked them just enough so that the gameplay, while reminiscent of those past titles, feels fresh and new. While the difficult of Bloodborne is likely to turn off many, those who persevere will find an incredibly rewarding experience that is not only the best that the PS4 has to offer, but might be the best game available on current gen consoles.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
