Even as Nic spent this morning writing lovingly about frogs, I was watching trailers of frogs disintegrating beneath an unstoppable ant tsunami. The game in question is Empires Of The Undergrowth, an RTS from developers Slug Disco and Manor Lords publisher Hooded Horse. The 1.0 version launches on June 7th, after almost eight years in early access during which Empires Of The Undergrowth has accumulated positive user reviews with truly antlike meticulousness. Here’s the release date trailer, which you should not watch if you dislike seeing various larger insects and small animals getting eaten alive by ants.
Confirmation comes from publisher CI Games, which announced the deal was signed on May 3 in a financial note. Microsoft has yet to announce either game for Game Pass. Terms were not disclosed, nor which parts of Game Pass both games will release into, but it seems safe to assume Xbox and PC Game Pass.
Hexworks’ Lords of the Fallen launched in October last year to positive reviews and sales, although it suffered significant performance problems. IGN’s Lords of the Fallen review returned an 8/10. We said: “Lords of the Fallen is an awesome soulslike with a fantastic dual-realities premise, even when performance shortcomings and wimpy bosses crash the party.” Hexworks recently released update 1.5, its “final milestone” for the PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X and S soulslike, as publisher CI Games turns its attention to future games in the franchise.
Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts 2, meanwhile, is a June 2021 tactical shooter stealth video game developed and published by CI Games for PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Xbox Series X and S, with a PS5 version following in August 2021. IGN’s Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts 2 review returned a 6/10. We said: “Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts 2 is a competent sniper sim that lacks the edge required to be a real sharpshooter.”
Microsoft is yet to announce the second wave of games coming to Game Pass in May 2024, but we know Little Kitty, Big City (Cloud, Console, and PC) hits the subscription service on May 9, followed by Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons (Cloud, Console, and PC) on May 14. Xbox first-party game Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 comes out on May 21.
The Game Pass news comes amid sweeping cuts at Microsoft’s gaming business that have seen a number of Bethesda studios, including Redfall developer Arkane Austin and Hi-Fi Rush developer Tango Gameworks, shut down.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
Fans of Helldivers 2 have started a petition asking developers Arrowhead to reinstate a fired employee in charge of community management. The employee, “Spitz”, was let go following the fiasco in which Sony told PC players they would need to link their Steam and PlayStation Network accounts to continue playing the shooter. Sony and Arrowhead changed their mind about that after player backlash in the form of 100,000+ negative reviews on Steam. The kicker? Community manager “Spitz” was low-key encouraging players to continue the review bombing. This doesn’t seem to have gone down well internally.
Destiny 2 players can now access three major expansions for free ahead of The Final Shape’s release on June 4, 2024, developer Bungie has announced.
From May 8 to June 3, players who download the free standard edition of Destiny 2 on any platform can also access Shadowkeep, Beyond Light, and The Witch Queen at no additional cost, essentially adding three years of expansions to the game.
Bungie has branded the three expansion bundle the Expansion Open Access Month, and it also includes all seasonal content from Year 6 of Destiny 2. This grants players access to the Season of Defiance, Season of the Deep, Season of the Witch, and Season of the Wish and all unlockables they come with. Players will keep any gear they earn even if they don’t purchase the expansions following the free trial period.
Those looking forward to The Final Shape, which is the final part of the story told through these aforementioned expansions, can now purchase its bundle with the Year 7 Annual Pass at a discounted price on the PlayStation Store, Xbox Store, and Epic Games Store. Steam users will get access to the same discount on May 21.
The Final Shape was due to arrive on February 27, 2024 but suffered a delay because it needed “more time to become exactly what [Bungie] wants it to be”, according to the developer’s official statement.
Vampire shooter Redfall was to receive an offline mode via update this very month before Microsoft staked creators Arkane Austin, according to a report. To spell it out, the cancellation of the offline functionality means that Redfall will now be officially playable for only as long as Microsoft run the servers. Another win for videogame preservation!
You know what will really set off your soft furnishings and put further strain on your relationship when you’re already worried your girlfriend is more angry about you leaving crumbs around the toaster than she would be if all were well? A 10-foot-tall statue of a video game character to cram in the corner of your living room! To celebrate the impending release of massive gloomy RPG DLC Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree, Bamco are running a competition for players to edit together a cool trailer. Best trailer overall wins Big Messmer – the lad in the header image up there. I’m sure he’ll make a great home for many happy spiders and their cobwebs.
Picture this… You’re at Download Festival in Donnington Park, you’re rocking out to a bit of Queens of the Stone Age, and suddenly you have an urge, a need, to play Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance.
But, oh no! You don’t have your Switch with you. Furthermore, you didn’t want to bring your Switch to Download Festival for fear of it being lost, trampled on, or ruined by the inevitable downfall of rain during the British festival season.
Apart from the Switch, Nintendo has a bunch of mobile apps it’s still maintaining and one of them happens to be the Switch Online app, which allows users to connect and interact with others online in select multiplayer games.
The next Stern Pinball machine will be based on the John Wick movie franchise, including music, movie clips, and likenesses of all major characters – most importantly that of Keanu Reeves, who graces the art and presumably many clips of assassinations. This is not Keanu’s first pinball appearance – he’s already been the star of the 1995 machine from Williams, Johnny Mnemonic, and Reeves was a cast member that appeared in Williams’ Bram Stoker’s Dracula, which was also a game in 1993.
John Wick seems to be primarily themed around assassinations appropriately, and that’s where things get weird. Causing trouble for you is an AI-controlled opponent. Here’s how Stern says this all will work:
To raise the stakes, John Wick pinball introduces Stern’s all-new dynamic AI combat system, an innovation that brings the frenetic combat of the legendary films to the game. The Stern team has created a primitive video game AI system to control the enemy lights on the playfield, setting the John Wick pinball games apart from prior pinball machines, where all lights were controlled by player actions, timers, and random number generations. In this new AI combat system, enemy icons are responsive to player behavior and will illuminate dynamically around the playfield to challenge the player. The enemies move tactically with this dynamic software to counter player objectives, creating a unique challenge in each game session. The system also features a new action video player that dynamically reflects player action – as you defeat three enemies, you’ll see video clips of John Wick doing the same in the films!
It sounds like a bit of randomization is involved, and that’s on point with pinball’s unpredictability. It will be interesting to see how it all pans out.
John Wick series mainstay Ian McShane will reprise his character Winston in a way in the game, lending his voice to callouts which you can get a taste of in the first trailer here.
A closer look at the various exclusive features of the Premium and Limited Edition versions can be found in the slideshow below. So far we spot a motorized car toy, a drop target leading into the Red Circle Club Area, a ramp diverter (center), an upkicker, and a weapon case toy that hides a subway shot, among other custom toys and features that the Pro Version will leave out. The Limited Edition comes with all sorts of extra non-playfield goodies.
Notably, all three versions have unique artwork, but the Premium Version’s artwork is described as Neon Noir and really is killer, with a very retro futurism vibe. The lit up neon plastics featured throughout the playfield seem to complement it nicely.
Stern Pinball recently hosted a John Wick pinball preview event that IGN attended. Here’s what IGN’s Host and Producer Benjamin Watts thought of it:
Stern’s John Wick Pinball machine is out now. The MSRP for the Pro Edition is $6,999, with the Premium Edition coming in at $9,699 and the Limited Edition at $12,999. You can buy them here – except for the LE, it’s already sold out! And if you need a series refresher, here’s where you can stream the John Wick movies right now.
Samuel Claiborn is IGN’s managing editor and a fixes/breaks ancient arcade and pinball machines in his garage. TCELES B HSUP to follow him @Samuel_IGN on Twitter.
There’ll be a standard edition for $39.99 (estimated to ship in October) and a collector’s edition available for $89.99 (estimated to ship in November), with pre-orders going live on 10th May 2024. The higher tier will come with a copy of the game, a special Trapezoid Box, acrylic standee, soundtrack, steelbook, and art prints.
