“It s not a great game but it’s one of those games that I always hope will spawn a great sequel,” our Adam said when he asked Have You Played… The Guild 2? That day may be coming, as The Guild 3 [official site] is coming. It’ll bring more economic strategy fun with a side of family life and social simming. Publishers Nordic Games actually announced The Guild 3 yonks ago but if there’s one thing I’ve learned about video games, it’s that if I don’t see them in the woods they aren’t being made. And, trust me, I spend a lot of time in the woods. So let’s talk virtuafolks!

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It’s a strange time to look at old turn-based shooters. While we’re hardly swamped, the genre has left its dormancy, casting strange shadows on our old sacred cows. Whisper it now: maybe some of those old things we championed for so long aren’t all that great?

Fortunately, Silent Storm can ignore such insinuations, as it was never sacred. Its 2003 release by Nival Interactive caused little splash, and it didn’t find the legendary status of UFO or the dedicated mod scene of Jagged Alliance 2.

Playing it now, that strikes me as completely unfair.

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Have You Played? is an endless stream of game recommendations. One a day, every day of the year, perhaps for all time.>

The Guild 2 does one of the best things a game can do – it takes a genre not usually associated with roleplaying and slaps a life simulation on top of it. I might be the kind of nerd who’d happily play a 15th century economic strategy game even if it were made of spreadsheets and history lessons, but throw in a spot of family management and everything becomes more immediate and personal.

… [visit site to read more]

I’ve been travelling for 25 hours, and now I’m in Utah. There’s snow, and buildings made from wood. Why do I tell you this? Because I’m knackered and want to have a little moan. Pity me. Weep for me. Tell me you love me.

Cheery news, however: 1) there’s a big pot of coffee right next to me. 2) Gothic creators Piranha Bytes might be getting their original franchise/universe back, having had to hand over the rights to erstwhile publisher JoWood some time ago.
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‘Bittersweet’ covers this news, I suppose. Arcania: Gothic 4 was a picturesque but depressingly stupid RPG, and one I couldn’t bear to finish despite a lingering hope that at some point it would suddenly open up and improve. None of this was the fault of series creators Piranha Bytes, who lost the rights in a spat with publisher JoWood, but fortunately went off to make the far more interesting Risen instead.

Nonetheless, Arcania was deemed successful enough to warrant a standalone expansion, Fall of Setarrif, which promised 10 more hours of monster-bothering and a bit more variety. It sounded quite literally “okay.” We shall never know for sure – Setariff has indeed fallen. And in a really weird way.
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PC gaming truth machine Blues News reports that Fall of Setarrif, the standalone expansion for ArcaniA – Gothic 4 has both a trailer (which you’ll find below) and a new site, bearing a new release date. March 25th! It’s like Christmas in March, except a slightly underwhelming Christmas where all the food is a bit cold. Anyway, March 25th- that’s barely enough time to get the game and finish it! You may be better off reading if Alec’s impressions of Gothic 4.
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