Yearly Archives: 2018

Beholder 2 Has Officially Released Onto Steam

Warm Lamp Games and Alawar Premium (a division of Alawar Entertainment) are proud to announce that Beholder 2 has launched on Steam, as of December 4th, 2018 at 7pm PST. It’s being sold for 14.99, and every player who bought the original Beholder game on Steam will receive a 20% off coupon for Beholder 2, which can be combined with a traditional launch discount. They also announced that in partnership with Curve Digital, Beholder: Complete Edition will release on the Nintendo Switch on December 6th, for 14.99. This is the original game and the DLC.

The same hopeless, grim dystopian universe Beholder was originally set in is back, but now it’s in a 3D format. Privacy is dead, and a totalitarian state controls all aspects of life, ruled by the same “Wise Leader”. New scenes and rooms wait to be explored in this expansive new title, as well as floors inside the actual Ministry. The continued Orwellian theme is very strong in Beholder 2.

“You are a newly employed department officer within the Ministry of a totalitarian State. While you are poised to have an illustrious career and possibly become Prime Minister someday, the way up won’t be easy. So, how high up the career ladder will you climb? The choice is still yours to make!” –  Evgeny Sister, Producer – Alawar Premium

– Every citizen of our great State dreams of working at the Prime Ministry!
– Have you already decided what you’re going to become?
– Will you become a diligent and responsible officer decorated by the Wise Leader himself?
– Or will you become a hardline careerist capable of destroying anyone who stands between you and the Prime Minister’s seat?
– Or maybe you are just a whistle-blower?
– Whatever the case, you are now part of the Ministry!
– From this moment on, no one beyond these walls has ascendancy over you!

Star Control: Origins – Earth Rising Coming in December

Press Release:

Star Control Origins Earth Rising

Star Control: Origins continues next week with Earth Rising – A four-part season pass that covers humanity’s expansion into the galaxy. The first part, Aftermath, will release on December 11, 2018. Earth Rising will add dozens of missions, new alien races, and a variety of ships.

As Captain of Earth’s first interstellar starship, your primary mission is to ensure the safety of Earth from hostile alien forces through a combination of diplomacy and combat skill, while acquiring the materials and technologies Earth needs to begin growing beyond its home solar system.

In the first part, Aftermath, players discover that not every alien is happy about the prospect of an expanding human empire. There are unknown enemies lurking in the shadows seeking to undermine Earth’s ambitions, while others begin to react to the recent successes of the Earth captain and his primitive ship.

While the expansion adds a great deal of content for those who have already completed the major events of Star Control: Origins, much of the new content greatly expands the richness of the Star Control universe for first-time players, including many new side-quests, new alien species, and new ships to recruit.

Star Control: Origins – Earth Rising is $19.99 with part 1, Aftermath available on December 11. Part 2 will be released this Winter, part 3 this Spring and part 4 this Summer.

Dungeon Crowley Early Access Preview

By Terris Harned (NWOrpheus)

Unreal Engine 4 has been out for quite a while now. Long enough for Indie studios to get hold of a copy and decide, “Hey, we can make a game!” and for consumers to see that game and go “Oooh, shiny! Look at the amazing graphics!” This isn’t necessarily a good thing for the game industry at large, as I’m afraid what we’re going to see come out of this could potentially just be the next generation of disappointment.

Brazilian based Animvs Game Studio seems to have potentially jumped on this bandwagon and on October 11th released to Steam an Early Access title by the name of Dungeon Crowley. While the crew does have a road map and it seems they intend to add at least a bit more content to this title, I really feel like Dungeon Crowley is little more than an engine demo than a real game.

First off, there is no new player experience. You start the game, you enter the game. No story preface video, no tutorial, no orientation. Heck you don’t even get a splash screen telling you basic commands. You get nothing. The only story I was able to find about the game came from the trailer and the Steam listing page, and both of these had some minor translation issues. Very minor compared to some other titles I’ve come across recently, but enough to be off-putting given the lack of anything else.

Then there’s the gameplay itself. There’s some good premise here, at the core. Animvs seems to be going for something like a 3D Diablo-esque experience. Currently there’s only a first person mode, but according to their Discord “#bug-reports” channel they do intend to allow for switching to third person at some point in the future. Players begin in some sort of little hovel. You leave this and find the front of a building. When I went there, I found a pig wearing sunglasses. I named him Bacon. He’s a good boy.


I think these guys with the yellow bars are supposed to be bosses or something? They always seem to drop loot. They’re not very hard though.

Then I went in the building and there were… I don’t know what; they don’t have names, only levels. I’m guessing kobolds or goblins or something. Apparently, as of right now, there are a whopping 10+ foe types. After launch, they intend to double that to 20+ whole bad guys. Okay, sorry for the snarky sarcasm, but they list this as a feature. Like they’re proud they have 10 different enemies? I dunno man, that seems like being proud you took a shower this morning. The same with their “3 Dungeon Styles” being listed as a feature. Especially since it seems like the dungeon styles are just Unreal Engine 4 assets pasted together on a procedurally generated map.

Which leads me to my next beef. There’s no actual map in the game. As you run around exploring, mindlessly and effortlessly killing enemies in some of the most boring one-button combat I’ve experienced in ages, you get lost, because the terrain is terrifyingly homogeneous, and you have no access to any sort of map or waypoints or even so much as a compass.

The loot, too, is very boring. You find chests around that appear to be full of gold and gems when you open them, and then a couple weapons drop out. You utterly ignore the precious stones and coins and can interact with a club, sword, magic wand, or ranged weapon. Maybe there’s a piece of armor. I just didn’t get excited for any of it. Some of the stuff I found had special properties, but I couldn’t see what these were, as they required identification. The tooltip told me to hold the interaction button to identify, which I did, to no avail. Perhaps early access bugs. I couldn’t honestly be bothered to care.

Apparently there are also plans for more character customization, but currently as you level you add one attribute point into one of the three stats. Strength, Dexterity, and Intelligence. The sole purpose of these stats is to increase the damage you do in a weapon type. Melee weapons, ranged weapons, or magic weapons. Both weapons and armor have an attribute requirement, but for the life of me I cannot currently see why you would divest points in more than one stat.


Decisions, decisions.

For the record, I think it’s great that Brazil is trying to break into the development market. I’ve talked to a few developers recently about the gaming industry in Brazil, and apparently those folks love games, but because of currency differences AAA American titles run the rough equivalent to 240 dollars down there. So it makes sense that Brazilian folks would want to make games that are more affordable for themselves. But this? I hope to heck that Anmivs Games Studios intends to add a lot more meat to the bones they’ve got now and can produce something of quality, but Dungeon Crowley has a long long road to get there. For $18.99 I expect a lot more.

I give it 2 out of 5.

Note: A game key was provided for preview purposes.

Just Cause 4 Now Available on Console and PC

Just Cause 4 arrives today (December 4th 2018) on PC, PS4, and Xbox One from AVALANCHE STUDIOS and brings Rico Rodriguez back with his trademark parachute, wingsuit, and grapple hook. These have new functionality and are fully customizable. The game is set in the fictional South American Solis and shows off the might of the new Apex engine, which offers Extreme Weather events that cause untold destruction and danger. JUST CAUSE 4 has four distinct biomes: Rainforest, Grasslands, Alpine & Desert. With each biome offering its own individual, fully simulated weather event, players will have a truly unique experience as they traverse this deep, diverse world.

JUST CAUSE 4 Standard Edition, Digital Deluxe Edition & Gold Edition are is available to buy now from participating retailers. JUST CAUSE 4’s Digital Deluxe Edition comes packed with special Black Hand weaponry – The Black Hand Stealth Micro Jet and SkyStriker Wingsuit. The Gold Edition includes the Expansion Pass, the Golden Gear Pack, and all the Digital Deluxe Content.

Code: Realize ~Wintertide Miracles~ Limited Edition Details Revealed

Code: Realize news

Aksys Games is proud to reveal that a special edition of Code: Realize ~Wintertide Miracles~ is going to be available for the next chapter of the interactive fiction series. Launching on February 14th, 2019 for both the Playstation 4 and Playstation Vita systems, Idea Factory and Design Factory bring the continuing adventures of poison-skinned maiden Cardia and a series of famous (and famously handsome) figures from Western literature.

The Limited Editions of Code: Realize ~Wintertide Miracles~ will contain six 3” acrylic figurines featuring the characters rendered in adorable Chibi style and eight 4×6” oversized character cards, all contained in a collectible rigid case. Both the Limited and Standard editions are available now for pre-order. ~Wintertide Miracles~ takes fans deeper into the world of Code: Realize and its intriguing characters. Experience the magic and chaos of two-on-one dates and play with dynamics (and hearts) by bringing multiple members of Lupin’s gang on a wide variety of romantic romps.

Learn more about the dashing detective Herlock Sholmés and the mysterious Finis in the continuing sagas involving the newest men in the Code Realize universe, and join Cantarella, the mysterious young lady Cardia met during one of her many adventures, as she gets caught up in the chaos that always seems to surround Lupin and his gang.

Mutant Year Zero Arrives on Console and PC

Mutant Year Zero Road to Eden launch

Funcom and The Bearded Ladies are proud to announce that their turn-based tactical adventure game, Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden has arrived. Available on PC, Playstation 4 and Xbox One, it’s also available to Xbox Game pass subscribers starting today. Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden combines the in-depth tactical gameplay of XCOM, with real-time stealth, exploration, and incredible mutant characters. The game is part of a broader Mutant IP which includes the 80’s pen and paper RPG Mutant that has a loyal following across the world and is frequently seeing new releases.

“We are a small indie team and it has been a long and challenging journey getting to where we are today, but we are incredibly proud of what we have created with Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden,” says Haraldur Thormundsson, CEO and self-proclaimed Circus Director at The Bearded Ladies. “With Funcom’s support we have had the opportunity to create the game we have always wanted to make. Now it is in the hands of the players and we cannot wait to hear what they have to say about it.”

Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden is available on PC as a Standard Edition 34.99), and a Deluxe Edition (54.99) which contains a digital version of the latest Mutant tabletop RPG as well as an artbook, soundtrack and desktop wallpaper. The Standard Edition is also available on both Xbox One and PlayStation 4 ($34.99) and the game is included in the Xbox Game Pass program.

Override: Mech City Brawl Is Out Now, Unveils Mecha Unicorn DLC

Override: Mech City Brawl has officially launched, on PC, PS4, and Xbox One. Get ready to pilot a giant robot, each with their own unique fighting style and look, and in the weeks and months following launch more content will release for Override. Stardust is the first post-launch DLC, and kicks of hooves of steel up, and unleash aerial launches and shooting stars. She arrives on December 14th for 3.99, and owners of the Super Charged Mega Edition get free access to Stardust, as they will with all future mecha.

Whether it’s a drill-powered horn or a good old-fashioned mouth laser, players will need all the firepower they can get to come out on top in Override’s many modes. From an alien invasion-flavored story mode for solo players, to local and online versus & co-op destruction, all the way up to a party mode that sees players working together to pilot different parts of the same mech, there’s a playstyle for everyone. They recommend finding your favorite Mech, turn on a classic Tokusatsu program (Jason recommends Dekaranger), and get ready to brawl!