EA saw how many studios Embracer has been shutting down and got worried about losing their record for killing off the most game studios.
EA saw how many studios Embracer has been shutting down and got worried about losing their record for killing off the most game studios.
So, they’re no longer part of Activision and presumably no longer part of Microsoft, but they want to keep working with Microsoft? So will they be completely independent or are they just no longer under Activision in the Microsoft hierarchy? Either way I hope a partnership with Microsoft means they might be able to make Spyro 4. Also, excited at the prospect of studios breaking away from Embracer. Obviously there is no guarantee that they’ll be treated better, but at least they have a better chance of not being shut down by the end of the month.
I love the commitment to it, especially the spine reveal. It’s a shame they were shut down soon after they finished it, but what a note to go out on.
So after banning adult content a few years ago, Tumblr decided to shoot itself in the other foot? It feels like the people in charge are actively trying to drive off the site’s users.
I never played Galaxies, but I was always fascinated by the concept of it, especially before it was revamped. The idea of giving you the freedom to just exist in the world of Star Wars was always something I wished more games would do. I mean, I loved KOTOR for what it was, but you were still the main character of a story someone else had written. It’s a shame nothing has really tried to emulate the style of Galaxies since then.
It’s a shame for everyone involved, but at the same time it doesn’t feel that surprising. It doesn’t feel like their games after Until Dawn reached the same level of success. I remember the Dark Pictures Anthology getting mixed reviews as it went on and I don’t really remember much about the Quarry’s reception except the hype around it being the next Until Dawn.
Thirty hours into Yakuza: Like A Dragon. Main story has started to ramp up, but I keep getting distracted by the business management mini-game and the kart-racing minigame that I just discovered while wandering around the map. It never ceases to amaze me just how dense these games are and just how many side activities they managed to pack into one game.
This is what happens when you wish for the resurrection of a beloved IP. Another finger on the monkey’s paw curls. The idea of a Crazy Taxi live service game is weird enough, but it’s just bizarre that they are using Fortnight as a major inspiration for the Jet Set Radio reboot. I guess at the very least we are getting proper remakes of these games alongside the live service reboots. It will be interesting to see how the games do head to head, especially with the difficulties live service games have been having lately.
It’s a shame that people are being laid off, especially when it seems like it’s retaliation for complaining about working conditions. Still, I don’t think I’d ever be able to buy anything from ZA/UM after they kicked most of the creators out of the company and took control of the IP.
You know if anyone needs to be let go maybe it’s the management who were spending like there was no tomorrow and are now throwing everyone overboard to stop the ship from sinking. Or, you know, just keep cancelling games and shuttering studios. I’m sure that’ll work out eventually.
It’s crazy how far micro-transactions and monetizing games have come since Bethesda charged $2.50 for cosmetic armor to put on your horse. If you’d told someone back then that one day an in-game mount would cost more than the game itself they would have laughed you out of the room.
Back to Yakuza: Like A Dragon after a week of playing steam demos from the Next Fest. I was surprised at just how many I ended up enjoying. Crypt Custodian is a neat little metroidvania about a cat sentenced to be the underworld’s janitor. Nice art style, sense of humor, and good puzzles. Cryptmaster is a typing-based dungeon crawler where every enemy you defeat gives you letters that you use to spell out the names of the skills you use in combat. It’s certainly an inventive take and I’m looking forward to the release. Surprisingly, my favorite demo ended up being for a platformer called Happy! the Hippo. It’s based on janky PS2-era platformers like Spyro: Enter the Dragonfly. The game is purpose built for you to pull off those kind of tricks where you skip chunks of the level or even break outside the bounds of the game entirely. It’s really fun to play, but what I’m really enjoying about the game is the weird, almost horror game stuff that shows up the longer you play. It feels like an ARG game in a way, like Crow 64 if anyone remembers that. Or something like Shipwreck 64, a game that is a platformer on the surface but is actually a horror game once you get in far enough. Except Happy! the Hippo never turns into a horror game. At least not in the demo. There’s plenty of strange stuff the more you explore, but it never descends into an outright horror game. It feels like all the talk about how old 3D platformers could be unsettling and odd was a major inspiration for the game. Hoping the finished the game keeps that tone when it releases.
Seven years feels about right for a length between consoles. I am curious to see what they do with it. It’s hard to see Nintendo not sticking with the handheld console approach with the Switch 2, but just building a more powerful Switch doesn’t feel very Nintendo, if that makes sense. Like there has to be some feature or gimmick to set it apart from the Switch.
It’s really been whiplash inducing to go from reading about how Microsoft was going to dominate gaming because of the Activision buyout to reading about how Microsoft is going to be the next Sega and are possibly exiting the console market. And it all happened in the span of a few months.
Yes, because console wars. A lot of people that bought into the Xbox brand are angry Microsoft is “giving up” and “disgracing” developers by putting their games on PlayStation. It doesn’t help that without a clear statement from Microsoft people are free to speculate that Microsoft is going to be the next Sega and Phil Spencer is going to personally come to their house and destroy their Xbox.
More seriously, there is some genuine concern about what will happen to the digital libraries of people who bought into the Xbox eco-system if Xbox stops being a thing. Or what will happen if the AAA game market comes down to Sony and Nintendo. But there are a lot of people angry their favorite mega-corporation “lost” even though we have no idea what Microsoft’s actual plans are.
Basically. The main rumor is that Starfield, the new Indiana Jones game, and all of their other first-party exclusives are going to be coming to PS5 and Microsoft is giving up on the idea of console exclusivity. Not sure what that means for Xbox in the long-term, but it is going to be an interesting week.
Well, that’s certainly not going to reassure Xbox fans. Just seems like they’re waiting for things to die down before confirming the rumors. It will be interesting to see how that goes. If they start treating PlayStation the way Sony treats PC in terms of releases then I could maybe see the Xbox consoles staying afloat as a Gamepass box. I’ve seen speculation that they’ll pull out of the console market entirely, but I just can’t see Gamepass coming to the PS5 or Switch especially since Sony has been trying to build up their own answer to Gamepass with their PS plus tiers. Then again stranger things have happened. If they do decide to become the next Sega it’s going to be surreal watching Halo and Gears of War show up on PlayStation.
Honestly, I’m curious to see if this rumor turns out to be true. If it does then I’m not really sure what that means for Xbox in the long-term. Putting just Starfield out on PS5 is one thing, but it sounds like they are thinking of putting most if not all of their first-party games on other platforms. If you’re releasing your first-party games on other consoles then what exactly is the point of the Xbox? Is it just going to become a Game Pass box or are they planning on pulling out of the hardware business entirely like Sega?
Finally got around to Yakuza: Like a Dragon, so I’ve been making my way through that. Enjoying the turn-based RPG game-play a lot more than I was expecting. Focused on the main story right now, but the side-content I’ve dabbled in has been pretty fun. Feels like one of those games I’m going to be chipping away at for a while.
I’ve also been playing Dread Delusion and absolutely loving it. I don’t tend to pick up Early Access games, but hearing it described as a “Morrowind-like” RPG caught my interest and it is the perfect way to describe the game. It really captures that feeling of playing Morrowind for the first time, of being a nobody in a strange land. The game doesn’t even give you a map when you start out. You have to get by on directions and landmarks until you complete the side quest that gives you a map. And even then you have to fill it out as you explore the world. More than that, it’s that sense that you never really know what you’re going to encounter around the next corner. You can wander into a town looking for your contact to continue the main quest only to end up accepting a quest from the atheistic Inquisition to help them hunt down a rogue god and their followers.
Like I said it’s still Early Access so it is a little rough around the edges. There’s more than a handful of bugs and the combat is…fine, but not much else. Then again there’s such a focus on sneaking, talking, and magicing your way around problems that that might be intentional. Still, what I’ve played so far has got me excited for when the finished product releases.
I’ve been grinding away at Yakuza: Like A Dragon. Spent the last few days running up against the brick wall of the Chapter Twelve Two-against-four boss fight that still manages to make you feel outnumbered. I was suspicious of just how the insistent the game was about checking out the battle arena, but it kind of feels mandatory if you want to get through that fight. Also managed to get spoiled for that Chapter 14 boss fight while looking up strategies, so I’ve got that to look forward to.