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[Update]: The System Shock Remake has now arrived, and it's looking quite good so far! The console versions are also on the way, though those will be coming at a later date.
The highly anticipated System Shock remaster recently hit a major snag in development which resulted in the whole project being put on ice. Thankfully, instead of simply canceling the game, Nightdive Studios ended up returning to it with a renewed focus. Perhaps most importantly, at least for fans anyway, they returned to System Shock with the desire to create a game as similar to the original vision as possible.
"We’ve gone back to the original vision we shared with you at the start of our Kickstarter campaign - this time with more reliable performance and higher fidelity visuals thanks to the Unreal Engine", reads the Kickstarter update. "No, we’re not starting over. We have been able to re-use the majority of work we’ve done over the past year and we’re making significant progress in a very short amount of time."
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[Update #2]: Sons of the Forest, sequel to the The Forest, will be launching on May 20, 2022 for PC.
[Update]: After four years in Early Access, The Forest has now finally been unleashed alongside mostly positive reviews!
After spending around four years in Steam Early Access, the survival-focused horror game The Forest is now finally getting ready to shed the "beta" tag. According to the most recent developer post, you can expect to see the full version emerge from Early Access on April 30th. This transition will be marked by a major update, a portion of which was detailed back in February, along with an increased price tag - from $15 to $20.
If you're wondering whether its worth your time and money, I would say the answer depends entirely on your tolerance of the "gather, craft, kill, loot and repeat" style of gameplay. So if the idea of collecting dozens upon dozens of wooden logs to construct your base doesn't sound appealing to you, then chances are The Forest will drive you insane, and not in the good horror kind of way. On the other hand, if you would like to create your own little sanctuary amidst a cannibal-infested landscape, then The Forest is going to provide you with plenty of exciting moments.
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The upcoming Total War: Thrones of Britannia is going to be the very first of the new Total War Saga series. In other words, instead of covering a large amount of territory across an equally large time frame, Thrones of Britannia will offer a much more detailed look at some of the most interesting events and battles that took place after the English king Alfred the Great halted the Viking invasion in 878 AD.
In gameplay terms this means there's going to some major differences between Thrones of Britannia and its predecessor Total War: Rome 2, especially when it comes to the battles. If you're wondering what exactly those differences might be, wonder no more as Creative Assembly has now released a brief preview showing off some of the major changes and additions. Have a look:
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After having us destroy the greatest threat the universe has ever seen, World of Warcraft is now getting ready to take things down a few notches by having the primary focus of the upcoming Battle for Azeroth expansion be about the constant conflict between the Horde and Alliance. After all, it is high time we've reached a decision on whether putting spikes on literally every available surface is a good idea or not!
In gameplay terms, however, the August 14th expansion will bring with it a massive new area to explore, six new Allied Races with unique storylines and racial bonuses, the ability to group up and investigate uncharted islands, and perhaps most interestingly of all, a new large-scale PvP mode that will let you build and defend your own fortresses in strategic locations. Naturally, there will also be a bunch of new dungeons to conquer, raids to endlessly bash your head against, and thousands of quests to undergo.
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The Humble Monthly is a $12 subscription service that instantly gives you access to a couple of games, and then a whole bunch more once the next month rolls around. Last time both the featured and bonus games were pretty darn good and easy to recommend, while this time around you're looking at a much more... interesting combination of Kerbal Space Program, Ruiner and Dead Rising 4.
If you're wondering whether this bundle is worth your time and money, I'm afraid the answer isn't a simple one. First and foremost, Dead Rising 4 has an impressive array of technical problems on PC, problems that have never and will never be solved. But while Dead Rising 4 might as well be a write-off, both Kerbal Space Program and Ruiner are highly enjoyable games in their own right. The only problem with them is that they represent completely different genres and gameplay styles, thus making this whole bundle incredibly hard to recommend.
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[Update #2]: The Spyro Reignited Trilogy has been officially announced for both PC and Nintendo Switch!
[Update]: The PC version has now been all but confirmed.
This shouldn't come as much of a surprise given that the announcement has somehow managed to leak out a dozen times over the past week, but the three original Spyro games are officially getting a Crash Bandicoot styled HD remaster! What this means in gameplay terms is that the Spyro Reignited Trilogy will have greatly improved visuals and audio, updated controls and a much smoother camera, as well as a whole bunch of quality of life changes to make the experience as enjoyable as possible.
Since trying to explain all of this through words alone is a bit of a pointless task, allow me to share with you the recently posted trailer. It's not very long, but it'll give you a pretty darn good idea of what to expect from the new and improved Spyro. Have a look:
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While the servers are still running, LawBreakers is as good as dead in terms of player population. During the last 30 days it hasn't even managed to reach an average of 5 players, while the peak for the whole month is a rather sad 27. In most cases this sort of failure would bring the studio down with it, but thankfully it would appear that Boss Key Productions are willing to weather the storm and move on to a different project.
"The team here has worked hard on this game over the past three and a half years and our studio is determined to give this game the second life it deserves. However, between now and then, we cannot sit idle. We will continue to support the game in its current state, but we also need to focus on other projects with fresh creative leaders", reads the brief announcement. "We have been working on something new and we can’t wait to share more about it! It’s a passion project that we’re in complete control of."
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[Update #2]: The Retribution update has now arrived. You can learn a little bit more about it over here.
[Update #1]: Blizzard has now also revealed a new Mei skin - Pajamei! You'll find it, as well as the other four, down below.
Overwatch's Retribution event is set to arrive this April 10th, bringing with it all of last year's content alongside a whole bunch of brand new stuff. As far as new content is concerned, you can expect to see a unique PvE mission starring Genji, McCree, Reaper and Moira, some much-needed balance changes, as well as 60 new cosmetic items and voice lines.
Speaking of which, you might be interested to hear that Blizzard has now released brief teasers for four of the new legendary skins: Talon Sombra,Talon Doomfist, Scion Hanzo and Blackwatch Moira. There doesn't seem to be a way for me to embed the preview videos without having them auto-play, so instead I'll share with you an image of the new skin, as well as a link to where you can see it in action.
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Sunless Skies, much like its predecessor Sunless Sea, is an exploration focused adventure set in an utterly bizarre universe where terror and madness lurk behind every corner. It has been in early access since August of 2017 and is unfortunately still not finished, but you might be interested to hear that the developers have now added the second major region to explore - Albion.
According to the brief description Albion is the heart of the British Empire and home to Her Majesty Queen Victoria, though perhaps most importantly, the "only place you can reliably get a decent cup of tea." Oh, and there's also a whole bunch of new mysteries to uncover, strange beasties to wage battle against, as well as a Sun to murder! Here's what all of this looks like in-game:
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Vampyr is an upcoming vampire themed action-RPG from Dontnod, the studio behind Life is Strange and Rembemer Me. Once it arrives this June 5th it'll have us take on the role of a doctor trying to cure a deadly plague that's sweeping through London, while also wrestling with a vampiric curse that forces the otherwise noble doctor to attack his fellow humans in order to survive. A rather interesting premise, especially considering how Vampyr seems to be going for a more serious tone.
If you're wondering how all of this will play out in-game, however, wonder no more as Dontnod has now released a decently lengthy and highly atmospheric story trailer. Have a gander, it's quite an interesting one: