Yearly Archives: 2018

Bandai Namco Announces “Dragon Ball FighterZ World Tour” Tournament Series

DBFZ - Bardock and Broly 3

Bandai Namco is proud to announce that the “Dragon Ball FighterZ World Tour” is a new fighting game tournament series centered around their latest smash hit, Dragon Ball FighterZ. The first stop for this inaugural tournament will be at CEO Fighting Game Championships, with registration ending on June 19th, and the actual competition going from June 29th to July 1st in Daytona Beach, Florida. Registration can be done at the following link.

Nintendo Switch News: Week of 6/8/2018

by Jason Parker (Ragachak)

Goodness has it been a busy week/month for the Nintendo Switch, and it’s only the first week of the month! Well, the first full week. Several big titles dropped this week, a few awesome digital releases, and that’s not even everything! Earlier this week we reported on MMOHuts that Paladins is coming to the Nintendo Switch, and as I have access to it, I got into a few matches last night to see how it feels. I. Love. It. It will be available for digital purchase on the Switch as of June 12th. It will cost 29.99 and will be the Founder’s Pack for the game. This will get you into Paladins, all current/future champions, a number of Founder Exclusive cosmetics. The Free-to-Play option will come a little later in the summer. Plus, it will have cross-play with Xbox Live users, so all my Xbox friends, don’t worry – I’m coming to carry you to victory.

We also learned this week that Asmodee Digital, arguably an industry leader in digital board game entertainment, is going to tackle the Switch! They will soon begin publishing their games on the Switch, starting with “Carcassonne”, the digital version of the tile-laying board game (which is already available on Android, PC, and Mac via Steam). The Nintendo Switch adaptation will be available in Winter 2018, and that is the first of many IPs they plan on bringing the Switch, making it a powerhouse with gaming options for everyone. Simple to pick up but challenging to master, Carcassonne presents players with endless opportunities for tactical play. I can definitely see it being a fun game to bring the friends over for board game night, and everyone picks up a joycon and sees who is the tile-laying master. Without further ado though, let’s get into this current releases!

BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle (June 5th): I do love BB:CTB, but the DLC controversy does grate on my nerves a bit if I’m being honest. While I’m glad we know everyone who is DLC right out of the gate (and in fact have for months), is that really better than having to wait every year to see who will be DLC for “that year” like other companies are doing right now? It’s hard to say. Regardless, it’s an insanely fast-paced anime 2D fighter featuring 2v2 tag battles with BlazBlue, RWBY, Under Night: In Birth and Persona characters. Is there really more that needs to be said? This is a strong fighting game that you can pick up on your Switch now. I also wrote a review of the PS4 version, seen here. (49.99)

Iro Hero (June 6th): I talked about this a week or so ago, and EastasiasOft teamed up with Artax Games to release a retro-style vertical scrolling SHMUP (Shoot ’em Up), Iro Hero. It combines the charm of the 80s pixel-style artwork with the more modern bullet hell style gameplay, where the player will need to shift polarities to avoid certain-colored bullets, much like you would see in Ikaruga, or other popular bullet hell titles. Set in the year 2306, Iro Hero begins a century after humans have learned to harness their energy to produce energy (sounds kind of like The Matrix to me). Crazy, fast-paced stages, tons of projectiles to avoid, skills to unlock and a heap up fun await in Iro Hero.

Shaq Fu: A Legend Reborn (June 5th): Unfortunately, my review copy is for Steam and not the Switch, but I did try! Look forward to some interesting content on that soon enough. Shaq Fu: A Legend Reborn tried something pretty bold in their advertising – admitting that the first Shaq Fu game ever happened in the first place. This is what it should have been all along, a mighty side-scrolling beat ’em up, with Shaq and his alternate personalities making sure evil catches a series of large, angry hands. This new Shaq Fu game looks absolutely incredible, from an absurd story (that still somehow seems to be grounded in a bit of reality) and plenty of action to go around. It’s up to Shaq to redeem his good name and also save the planet in Shaq Fu: A Legend Reborn. Will Shaq be officially redeemed? I’d like to think so. (39.99)

 

Total War: Three Kingdoms Press Preview

By Noe Ponce (Inohe)

The Romance of the Three Kingdoms: an 800 thousand word historical novel from 14-century China has been the inspiration for dozens of games over the years. Everything from Hack and Slashers to MMOs to Real Time Strategy. Well, add another tally to the RTS count because the Three Kingdoms is joining the Total War family!

OnRPG was invited out by SEGA Europe and Total War’s developer, Creative Assembly, to experience the game first-hand before E3. While only in pre-alpha, the game already plays great and looks amazing. One of the biggest changes I noticed right out the gate is the minimalistic new art style. It’s dialed back, refined and more elegant than any previous Total War game. You notice the new style the most in the little things: the Chinese mountains off in the distance, the simple-yet easily distinguishable UI cards, and the low hanging mist found throughout the environment. There’s even calligraphy.

Three Kingdoms Xiapo Siege

Total War: Three Kingdoms is more than just a pretty face though. The game focuses on the era’s most famous Warlords. These warriors are larger-than-life with unmatched skill and prowess on the battlefield. Players choose to play as one of 11 legendary generals in the campaign. I played the famed strategist, Cao Cao, and invaded the city of Xiapi.

In an interview with James Given, Total War’s community manager, he explains to me the benefits of playing these generals:

They got loads of abilities that make them unique and kind of reflects who they are as a character but also who they are as a hero as well. Some will be more focused towards melee engagements, some, like the strategist Cao Cao, will be much more [focused on] buffing their troops on the campaign map but also in battle. They also have retinues as well. Each hero will have a selection of warriors they can recruit on the campaign map. Some might be unique to them and can follow them into battle.

Three Kingdoms Warriors
Cao Cao was invading Xiapi because he received word that the recently disgraced Lu Bu was hiding out there with his army. If you’ve never heard of Lu Bu, he’s a crazy strong warrior, a terror to fight in any of the Three Kingdoms inspired games he appears in. So I knew it would be a tough fight. And it was here, in a fight against Lu Bu, that I tried out one of the game’s new mechanics: dueling.

In Total War: Three Kingdoms, certain commanding units can challenge each other to duels. Their forces will respect the duel and not interfere. The two units then begin to clash and the better AI wins. While James later shared strategies for dueling success, my initial attempt at dueling with Lu Bu ended in horrific failure. It cost me the game. Had I been able to defeat Lu Bu, however, I would have immediately won the battle.

We want to give you lots of options when you’re fighting in these battles. You can soften-up these heroes using a wide range of your army before [dueling]. Or maybe you’re lucky and have someone like Lu Bu who’s such a high ranking warrior and dangerous on the battlefield. You can literally be like, ‘I can just go for this guy straight away.’ And when you’re in battle you can use your abilities to kind of slow down, deflect or mow down your enemies depending on what they bring to the battlefield. Unfortunately, I think you put a level 3 guy against a level 9.

Three Kingdoms LuBu

The final feature I learned about was the different game modes. There are actually two different ways to play the campaign in Total War: Three Kingdoms. You have Fantastical mode (also dubbed Romance mode by James) and Classic mode. Fantastical mode is the way the game is meant to be played. The warlord you chose for your campaign is essentially more than a man. He’s an all-powerful force that can take down a small army single-handedly.

All 11 generals are designed to be like this, as the focus of the game is about them and their accomplishments. On the flip side, classic mode strips this feature away, drastically changing the way you should play the game. Patrick Lally, Total War’s Brand Manager, explained it the best to me:

In Classic mode you kind of dial-back those fantastical elements. Lu Bu is still better than a single Warrior, he’s still great, but compared to 10 guys he’s probably going to go down.  [Classic] is a different experience, it’s a different Total War game. Similar to Total War Rome or Attila, it’s all about how you control your armies as a whole. Whereas in [Fantastical mode], it’s more about your heroes and the Romance aspect.

Three Kingdoms Xiapi

Total War: Three Kingdoms is slated for a spring 2019 release but those going to E3 can play it next week by visiting the Total War booth, #5222, in the West Hall! Please visit the Three Kingdom’s blog or keep an eye on its Steam page for information and game updates!

OnRPG would like to thank SEGA, Creative Assembly and the team at Clever Communications for allowing us to once again to experience the newest game in the Total War series.

 

Quake Champions’ June Update Adds Bots, Gore and More

Quake CHampions - June Update

As Early Access soldiers on for Quake Champions, the team are paying close attention to community feedback – the June update is no exception to this. One of the most requested features drops in today’s update, and that’s Bots. Bots have a scalable level to help players of all levels and get better in training mode. They will also fill slots in live games as they are needed. These bots can appear in Team Deathmatch, Deathmatch, and Instagib modes. And if the game wasn’t bloody enough for you, the new Gore system will let you adjust how much of the gooey parts go spurting out of you and your foes as players are blown to bits. It will also adjust according to what special skins or shaders a Champion is wearing. To that end, the in-game store has also been updated with a ton of new cosmetics, so players can look their best when making enemies feel their worst.

Other Added Features:

  • Multi-Mode Play Lists: Been playing all day and need to mix it up? Now you can change modes between matches while remaining in the Match Lobby. Players can vote on what they want to play next, choosing between two selected combinations of mode and map, and one random option. Stay in the Arenas FOREVER! You know … like Ranger!
  • Killer Cam and Stacks: Quake Champions is fast. So fast that sometimes you can’t even tell how someone survived fragging you. Now, during unranked matches, the new Killer Cam will show freshly fagged players their opponent’s remaining Health and Armor on the death screen. They made the kill with 1HP? Good for them — now get back in there and get revenge with a single machine gun shot!
  • Team Health and Armor Stacks: In team-based modes, the Health and Armor stacks of allies will show onscreen so players can decide whether to suck up that Mega-Health for themselves or leave it for their barely surviving friend.
  • New Progression and Loot Systems: Earning XP has been adjusted to help people climb levels faster. In addition, players who choose to play in parties will receive bonus XP and Favor. Backpacks, Chests and Reliquaries also now have a lower number of duplicates and Shards can be used to purchase Chests. The entire system is faster, easier, and more rewarding than ever.
  • New Way to Try – and Buy — Champs: The roster of Champions has grown since Early Access launched and our free players want to keep trying the new additions. To help make this easier, Champion rental has been removed and replaced with a rotation of free Champions. In addition, Champions can now be permanently unlocked with in-game Favor as well as premium Platinum – in short, you can now try Champions easier and acquire new Champions just by playing.
  • Balance Changes: In addition to the more on-the-surface improvements, Quake Champions is receiving some under-the-hood tweaks to improve the overall balance of the game. These changes include alterations to movement speed, health and armor stacks for Light, Medium and Heavy Champions as well as changes to certain weapon statistics and specific Champions abilities.

Subnautica Teams Up With Steam to Support Whale/Dolphin Conservation on World Oceans Day

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The developers of Subnautica are trying to make a difference this World Oceans Day, by running a weekend sale with Steam. This will help raise funds for the conservation charity WDC (Whale and Dolphin Conservation). From June 7th till June 11sth (10 am PST), Subnautica will be available for 20% off of the regular price of 24.99. 15% of the net developer profits will go directly to WDC to support work all over the world. The game can be found right here.

Subnautica invites players to descend into the depths of a fascinating underwater world filled with wonder and peril. After crash-landing on an uncharted world, explorers will navigate a wide array of ocean biomes in search of answers. From sun-drenched coral reefs to deep-sea trenches, the surroundings and life forms change as they delve deeper – posing new threats.

Head of Strategic Partnerships at PWE, Whitney Henderson, said: “It’s really exciting for us to be able to work with WDC on the Oceans Day promotion and to be able to use Subnautica to help make a difference. Only this week, a pilot whale in Thailand died of starvation after eating 80 plastic shopping bags that he had mistaken for food so it’s wonderful to have the chance to increase awareness of the important work that WDC does to help keep our seas healthy and to give players the chance to donate to such a great cause.”

 

Persona 3: Dancing in Moonlight and Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight Coming to the West

Attention, Dancing Queens, Dancing Kings, Robots, Cats, whatever you identify as – More hot Persona dancing is coming in Early 2019! Persona 3: Dancing in Moonlight as well as Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight will be released in the Americas and in Europe for the Playstation 4 and Playstation Vita. Fans of both games will have incredible music to dance to in 2018, as both are well on their way. In both games, join the Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad (SEES) and the Phantom Thieves are whisked away to the secret Club Velvet. They will have no choice but to dance away, unaware of what lies ahead.

A playable demo of both will be available at the ATLUS/SEGA booth at E3 2018 (West Hall #5222) from June 12-14 in Los Angeles, California.

Persona 3: Dancing in Moonlight and Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight features include:
  • Memorable Soundtrack – Return to the worlds of Persona 3 and Persona 5 and relive cherished memories with the games’ most memorable songs by Shoji Meguro, composed by Ryota Kozuka, as well as all-new remixes by ATOLS, Lotus Juice, ☆Taku Takahashi (m-flo / block.fm), Jazztronik, and more! Unlock a total of 25 fan-favorite tracks in each game.
  • Dancing! – Choose from several difficulty levels and dance alongside the members of SEES and the legendary Phantom Thieves in a customizable rhythm game experience. Characters can tear up the dance floor with a partner by performing well during a song and entering “Fever” mode; try out some of your favorite character combinations!
  • English and Japanese Voiceovers – Choose to listen to your favorite characters’ voices in either English or Japanese with dual audio options! English, French, Italian, German, and Spanish subtitles are also available.
  • Social – In “Social,” players can connect with their favorite characters and deepen their social bonds through conversations and mini-events. Fulfill character-specific conditions to unlock special events and unlock new items.
  • Collect Costumes – Collect and equip a variety of costumes and accessories to create an even flashier dance experience.

Wreckfest is Gearing Up for Release

Wreckfest leaves early access in just one week and is the racing game Bugbear has been aiming to make for almost five years. They are grateful for all the early access patrons who helped get Wreckfest this far, and until June 14th, as a thank-you, it will be available for the lower price of 44.99. The Backer Car will finally enter the game once Early Access is over, but will no longer be available for purchase. The Deluxe Edition will be unavailable for a short time but will return with a unique car, a soundtrack, as well as an exclusive wallpaper.

Wreckfest will also be hosting a Streaming Event on June 7th, where almost 40 international streamers will do battle and smash their cars into bits and pieces. The details can be found at this link.

Features of Wreckfest:

  • Awesome Cars – Old, banged-up, patched-together cars that simply ooze style! From old American heavy-hitters to agile Europeans and fun Asians, you won’t find anything like this in other games.
  • Meaningful Customization – Change not only the look of your cars but also upgrade their body armor.
  • Multiplayer – Wreck your friends online and take racing to the limit while chasing for demolition dominance!