Developers at Dead Space remake creators EA Motive were pushing to make a "new entry" in the sci-fi horror series before EA shelved it last year, according to the latest in a recent outbreak of Dead Spacey rumours and revelations that have spread through the bulkheads of the internet, coating everybody's devices with necrotic slime.
Never Alone, a quiet, snowy adventure set in the Alaskan arctic wilderness, won a Bafta in 2014, and at the Triple-I Initiative stream last night we got a glimpse of the upcoming sequel, Never Alone 2. It's still the tale of Nuna and Fox journeying through aforementioned cold tundra, and like the first game is inspired by Indigenous Iñupiaq storytelling traditions, but this time the story unfolds in co-op. No release date, but we have a teaser trailer for your viewing pleasure.
Last time, you decided that shopkeepers annoyed when you don't buy anything is better than security cameras following your every move. So rather than an implied surveillance which doesn't actually have consequences, you wish to be actively scolded for things you've not done. Alright reader dear, I'm noting that in your psychological profile. Onwards! This week I ask you to choose between soaring through the sky or making something else soar. What's better: gliding powers or Dragon's Dogma 2's Unmaking Arrow?
Update: EA have now denied Grubb's claims that the Dead Space 2 remake was in development before being effectively cancelled, telling IGN: "We don't normally comment on rumors but there is no validity to this story." That report adds that the sequel wasn't considered for development to begin with, despite the first remake having performed well in EA's eyes, according to a source.
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A remake of Dead Space 2 - following last year’s return of the original sci-fi survival-horror game - was reportedly in the works at EA, but has since been halted after the first game suffered underwhelming sales.
We first learned of Spiritfarer studio Thunder Lotus' latest endeavour 33 Immortals at last year's Summer Geoff Fest. They showed off some brief snippets of its 33-player cooperative roguelike-ing, where you'd beat up hellish monsters in a miniature take on MMO raids. If you were intrigued by it back then, I have good news. The Triple-i Initiative gave us more of a glimpse at how the game would look in the hands, with precious UI markers and the promise we'll uncover new "Torture Chambers". Lovely. No seriously, it does look quite lovely, if a touch predictable.
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In news that will come as a complete shock to all of you, Ubisoft is partnering with Evil Empire to bring the world a new Prince Of Persia roguelite - though according to Matthew Houghton, Evil Empire's marketing manager, this has been in the works since a post-conference meeting conversation in 2021. Called The Rogue Prince Of Persia, a name choice that makes it sound a bit like an illegal knockoff being sold out of the back of Evil Empire's Peugeot, I got to have a go of about 45 minutes of it last week. It's 2D, side on platforming, and super colourful. Think Dead Cells skinned as a kids cartoon with a branded cereal tie-in, extremely cool music, and an emphasis on wall running. It's mobile even by the standards of a platformer, in fact, and is entering Steam early access on May the 14th.
If you needed one more Pokémon comparison for Pokémon-with-guns survival game Palworld, you’re in luck! The viral monster-battling and -labouring game has teased a multiplayer arena mode arriving later this year, with more than a hint of Pokémon Stadium to it.
Among your obvious blockbuster video games ripe for similarly blockbuster film and TV adaptations like Fallout, Borderlands and The Last of Us, it seems there’s room for some of the smaller gems to be fished out and brought to the big screen, too.
Laysara: Summit Kingdom, a breathtakingly gorgeous city builder set in a fantasy world inspired by the Himalayan region, is out now in Steam early access. The meditative mountain environments are the sort of tranquil backdrop I’d happily stare out for hours, possibly with a Bonobo album and some incense, which is helpful, because the actual game is aiming to be quite a challenge.
According to its Steam page, the game “tasks you with creating a new home for your people forced out of the lowlands.” There are both campaign and sandbox modes, where you’ll establish multiple towns on multiple mountains, each with its own traits. “All your towns co-exist in symbiosis,” it continues, “creating a trading network, which you can then adjust to your needs by revisiting already developed settlements.” Here are some more deets, via Steam.
There have been a lot of remakes that take provocative creative liberties with the original game of late. I've always felt like last year's Darkest Dungeon 2 was secretly one of them. Rather than simply building on the previous game's premise of a Hamlet's worth of upgradeable, derangeable heroes venturing into tabletop RPG-style labyrinths, it stripped away Darkest Dungeon's skin and moved its bones and organs around to create a gruelling roguelike. Well, developers Red Hook appear to have done it again with Darkest Dungeon 2's free Kingdoms mode, out later this year, which slices open Darkest Dungeon 2's hide and recomposes it into a turn-based strategy boardgame, where you defend a world map against encroaching eldritch creatures.