This is the full 48-minute video of the Cyberpunk 2077 gameplay reveal that was live-demoed for a select few journalists at E3. The previously behind-closed-doors demo was highly praised by those that experienced it back then, but only a few static screenshots were released to the public, so gamers had to use their imaginations when they read impressions of the demo. Here it is, all cleaned up and ready for Gibson and Sapkowski fans to drool over.
Adam Badowski, the game director and head of CD Projekt RED, admitted that the studio wasn’t initially going to show the demo to anyone but journalists due to its rough nature, but relented after fan outcry. He cautions viewers that this is very much a work-in-progress, even though some of it has been cleaned up since the E3 debut.
“Animation glitches, work-in-progress character facial expressions, early versions of locations – all this made us hesitant to release what you’re about to see.”
Even though the game is probably quite a long way from launch, it will be interesting to see how other studios respond to Cyberpunk 2077. Many publishers and development houses have acknowledged the influence The Witcher 3 had on their games.
The PC version of The Last Remnant is going away. According to the publisher, the game will be pulled off Steam and physical stores on September 4th in the United States and European Union, and September 5th in Japan. Owners will be able to download the game again and play it, but after the removal date, it will no longer be offered for sale.
It’s not clear why Square Enix is removing the PC version of The Last Remnant from digital and physical shelves, but it could be a licensing issue. The Last Remnant was the first game Square Enix made with the Unreal Engine, and in 2009 that was a controversial decision within the company. While The Last Remnant was sold on PC and The Xbox 360, it’s one of the rare Square Enix titles that never came to the PlayStation 3 during that generation.
It’s clear early on what game the Gladius developers have been playing. And not just from the interface. Not even from the fact that you start with a settler and two warriors. But from the way it gallops apace. The turns tick-tock along with the nearly clockwork drumbeat of your thumb on the spacebar. This needs your attention, then that, then this, then you’re done with the turn. Spacebar, spacebar, spacebar. Units then cities then end turn. Thumb thumb thumb from units to cities to end turn. Units to cities to end turn. Units to cities to end turn. Units to cities to tech tree to end turn. Units to cities to end turn. It’s a steady sequence, designed so that the act of playing is rhythm and the act of not playing is dissonance. Why would you want to mess up that rhythm? It would be more natural to keep playing than to stop playing. Units to cities to end turn.
Reigns, the popular adventure game described as “Tinder for monarchs” finally takes on the license that was always meant to be ruled via capricious mobile game finger-swiping. Reigns: Game of Thrones transfers the simplistic yet satisfying Reigns mechanic to the lands of Westeros. There, you can play as Tyrion, Cersei, Daenerys, Jon Snow, or others vying for rule of the Seven Kingdoms by randomly swiping left or right on decisions. Take the Riverlands? Swipe! Outlaw the High Septon? Swipe! Sitting on the Iron Throne has never been so engaging.
Reigns: Game of Thrones will launch in October on Apple iOS, Google Play, and PC.
Gears for Breakfast has announced new DLC for A Hat in Time. The Seal the Deal DLC will add a brand new Arctic Cruise chapter, a new Death Wish boss-fight mode, additional Time Rift levels, and new outfits to grab. Alongside the DLC, the game will be updated with full split-screen co-op support. You and a friend can yell at each other in the same game while collecting hats.
The Seal the Deal package will be free on the September 13th launch day only. If you miss the freebie, the DLC will cost $4.99. The co-op update will be free for all owners of the game.
Every location from 2016’s Hitman will be returning to Hitman 2 as DLC. The Legacy Pack of locations will be free to owners of Hitman Season 1, and they will be updated with Hitman 2’s improvements. That’s Paris, Sapienza, Marrakesh, Bangkok, Colorado, and Hokkaido free if you already own the full first game. There’s no price announced for the DLC if you don’t have the first game, but it should be available at launch.
IO Interactive and Warner Bros call their games-as-a-service strategy World of Assassination which they say will offer “a continuous experience that will never stop growing” for players. Big words for a game about knocking people out and stealing their clothes.
Wadjet Eye Games and Sunless Sea writer Richard Cobbett have announced Nighthawks, a vampire roleplaying game. The trailer is light on details or gameplay, but it’s got that essential 1990’s Vampire: The Masquerade angsty vibe. So dark! So goth! The Kickstarter goes live on September 5th, so you’ll have to be content for now with some mock-ups of some in-game dialogue choices. The most important piece of information to convey at this point is that Corbett’s independent game studio is called “Quarter to Thirteen.” Great name Richard!
Since Monster Hunter: World‘s release on PC was a few days ago, chances are good that you may be a complete newbie to the series. Like me, you may have been intrigued by the franchise since its debut in 2004 on the PlayStation 2, but just never got around to picking it up for a console or handheld. New players can quickly find themselves overwhelmed, because the Monster Hunter games do very little hand-holding. Monster Hunter: World is slightly better in that regard, but it can still be a steep learning curve. Luckily, there are dozens of great starter guides available to ease new players into the lore and gameplay. They’re written by hardcore folks that can tell you the best combat strategies, how you should prioritize your crafting, and secrets of endgame play. Here, we offer something different. This is a beginner’s guide to the game. A beginner’s guide.
After the jump, it’s our Monster Hunter: World guide written by a beginner.Continue reading →
Bethesda and id Software’s reinvention of Doom was a revelatory experience that turned monster closets into skate parks of death. The sequel, Doom Eternal, looks like it will evolve those largely horizontal combat arenas into acrobatic sky-dances of death. The Doom Slayer’s new toys include a “meat hook” for the super shotgun that propels the player through the air by latching onto meaty demon parts and pulling him towards the target. As demonstrated in the QuakeCon video, that meat hook pull can be combined with maneuvered turns, and by stringing hook targets one after the other, the player becomes an airborne threat. Rocket-jumping is so 2016.
Maps of fantasy kingdoms look cooler than maps of real kingdoms, because real kingdoms don’t have lava rivers, mountains festooned with Minas Tirith looking cities, or massive blue sky vortices. But that’s not stopping Creative Assembly from trying to wow Total War: Warhammer players with the map of China in their upcoming Total War: Three Kingdoms. The above video has a touch of the usual army spectacle, but it’s mostly a flyover of campaign map graphics that would make any ork green with envy.
Total War: Three Kingdoms is scheduled for a spring 2019 release.
Hyperion is not what you would expect if the only Dan Simmons you’ve read is The Terror, a slab of historical fiction with an uneven supernatural glaze. It’s overlong, tedious, confused, and ultimately flat. You’d never guess it was written by the same person who wrote Hyperion, a sparkling collection of multi-faceted science fiction, with carefully built characters, a lovingly detailed world, and a glaring problem that threatens to undermine it all.
But we’ll get to that later. The first thing that’s clear in Hyperion, which I don’t remember being a takeaway from The Terror, is that Simmons is an adroit writer. Maybe it helps if you’ve been reading someone who isn’t.
