After quite a while using the Fnatic Streak65, a 60% keyboard with Cherry brown switches, I have moved on from fruit (technically drupe, according to Google) and into a vegetable era. My Streak’s brown switches became a bit loud and quite rattly, which, as someone with hearing declared by an audiologist to be so sensitive that I give myself tinnitus, started to get to me.
So I type this to you now as someone who’s graduated to Kailh low profile switches, which is proving as nutritious for my finger pads as I’d imagine its leafy homophone would be. Here’s hoping that there’s more low profile mechanical keebs out there in a few years, as the options seem very limited at the mo.
In an official confirmation on social media, Japanese fighting game specialist Arc System Works has revealed it was the developer behind the new Switch release Another Code: Recollection.
Cing shut up shop years ago, so it’s no surprise to hear someone else handled it but we’ve now got an official confirmation. Here’s the rough translation, courtesy of Google:
Now that the new year is underway, Nintendo is slowly returning to its regular schedule with new game releases, Switch Online subscription content, and game updates. With this in mind, Nintendo has today released a new update for its smash-hit RPG Xenoblade Chronicles 3.
Square Enix appears to be on the verge of shaking up its development portfolio. According to its president, we may soon see fewer titles, but a more diverse array of genres coming out of a developer and publisher traditionally known for its massive RPG franchises.
In an investor Q&A that took place back in November but which was only recently published in English, Square Enix president Takashi Kiryu addressed multiple questions from investors about the company’s portfolio going forward. In response to a question about what Square Enix was lacking that it needed to achieve sustained growth and meet its business goals, Kiryu cited two points: the limited diversity of the company’s portfolio, and a lack of strong marketing. On the limited diversity point specifically, he went on to explain the need to increase the different kinds of games in Square Enix’s portfolio by strengthing internal development capabilities, or perhaps even making acquisitions.
“Because we possess strong IPs like the Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy franchises, I believe that we have tended to be overly reliant on certain gameplay styles or genres,” Kiryu said. “Meanwhile, the tastes of customers in the gaming market have diversified, and customers have come to enjoy content from a variety of genres. Moreover, blockbuster titles are not the only ones that enjoy popularity. For example, our title Powerwash Simulator is somewhat of an outlier in our portfolio in that it is a game well suited for casual play, but we have been able to steadily build up our earnings from it.”
Later in the Q&A, Kiryu was asked again about the company’s development efforts, and repeated that he wanted to strengthen Square Enix’s internal capabilities and “take on new challenges, partly because we want to add to the diversity of our portfolio of titles, as I noted earlier, while also enabling our developers to expand their skill sets.”
But, at the same time, Square Enix also appears to be very aware of its reputation as the RPG company. Elsewhere in the Q&A, Kiryu noted that the “numerous entries in our lineup” were making it difficult to keep tight control over development efforts. “I want to structure our development function so that we are able to ensure higher quality from each title by slimming down our lineup,” he said.
In a follow-up question, Kiryu continued:
“As our customers’ needs and the types of devices available have diversified, we have tried to produce hits by developing a wide variety of titles rather than by focusing only on certain ones. I believe that this has resulted in the splintering of our resource pool. Meanwhile, there have been clear winners and losers among the major titles released recently in the gaming market, and it has become possible for even indies titles to make their presence felt. The market is increasingly polarized between blockbuster and indies titles, but I feel that we have developed many titles that fell somewhere in the middle. I want to make clearer distinctions going forward.”
The market is increasingly polarized between blockbuster and indies titles, but I feel that we have developed many titles that fell somewhere in the middle.
What the president of Square Enix seems to be indicating here is that the company has been a bit too reliant on just making lots and lots of mid-budget RPGs that weren’t massive successes – see recent efforts like Harvestella, Various Daylife, or Valkyrie Elysium. While the big AAA swings like Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest are unlikely to stop being hits for Square Enix, Kiryu is noting a need to spend some development energy developing games like Powerwash Simulator (developed by Futurlab) internally and capitalizing on title diversity, instead of just reiterating the same formula across dozens of different, AA releases.
That’s one interpretation, but we’ll have to wait and see what Square Enix is cooking up in 2024 and beyond to say anything definitive about Square Enix’s plans. We do know it’s on the verge of publishing Foamstars from Toylogic, and has Visions of Mana in the chamber for 2024 alongside a remake of Dragon Quest 3, the new Dragon Quest 12, and (maybe someday) Kingdom Hearts 4. We also know the company is really interested in getting AI to make content for some of these games, as Kiryu stated in a New Year’s Letter earlier this year. it’s also one of the few companies that hasn’t fully given up on blockchain tech, even as other companies appear to be abandoning the idea.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.
Hey Xbox Insiders! We are releasing a new Xbox App for Windows build to Xbox Insiders who are enrolled in the PC Gaming Insiders preview! Thank you all for being Xbox Insiders. Continue read to learn about fixes and known issues. Make sure that you update the Xbox app, and Gaming Services to ensure you get all of the fixes!
New Versions of PC Gaming prerelease products:
Xbox App version: 2401.1000.59.0
Available: 5:00 p.m. PT – January 18th, 2023
Current versions of Windows Gaming prerelease products:
Game Bar version: 6.123.11012.0
Released: 5:00 p.m. PT – November 3rd, 2023
Xbox App Bug Fixes:
Fixed an issue where certain pages weren’t loading when trying to preinstall games.
Fixed an issue where the tooltip for games in MRU doesn’t always show the full title
Fixed various UI issues, including some cut-off text, misaligned buttons, truncated text, etc…
Fixed an issue where the “only show unread messages” setting did not persist after changing it
Fixed an issue where playtime might not correctly show up in a friend’s profile.
Fixed various issues where content was not correctly displaying upon initially loading the app
Known Issues:
The team is investigating an issue where you might see an error when trying to install a small number of games.
The team is investigating an issue where some buttons on certain screens do not properly render
How to Get Xbox Insider Support
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You can also provide feedback, as well as interact with the community, on the Xbox Insiders Subreddit. Please be as specific as possible when providing feedback.
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Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 was featured in this evening’s Xbox Developer Direct. Ninja Theory gave a further glimpse of the things they show when talking about Hellblade: motion capture, graphical fidelity, mental health representation, and stabbing. They also provided a release date: May 21st, 2024.
Another year, another annual 30+ hour Chapter to further expand the already mind-bogglingly expansive RPG universe of The Elder Scrolls Online, which is now steadily approaching its 10th anniversary (coming up on April 4). This special occasion calls for a long-awaited classic TES feature to finally make its way into Zenimax Online Studios’ massively multiplayer online spinoff when the newly announced Gold Road expansion becomes available later this year. And for what it’s worth, that classic feature is indeed spell crafting in the form of Gold Road’s new Scribing system, as some theorized on Reddit following an unintentional leak of Gold Road’s introductory videos on YouTube via Zenimax itself.
Gold Road will release in June on all platforms, with PC and Mac versions releasing on June 3 ahead of its console launch on June 18.
As ZOS puts it, Scribing lets you “collect and customize” unique skills called Grimoires across ESO’s open-world zones through various means, and it’s even being described by Zenimax as a “fictional precursor to what could become spell crafting 1000 years in the future,” so take that as you will.
It’s exciting to hear that those skills each have a “primary, secondary, and tertiary effect” which you can alter and build upon with socketable Scripts. In theory, that could immediately open up tons of opportunities for new builds no matter which class you play as – and if I’m being optimistic, it could even shake up what many (myself included) believe is a stagnant combat system where skill rotations rarely change within a given CP160+ build.
But hey – if you’re more obsessed with getting your ESO character’s visual style just right, they’ve got you covered. At launch, Gold Road will feature 22 collectible styles that can be applied to your customizable Grimoires, and The Elder Scrolls fans who remember spell crafting from Daggerfall, Morrowind, and Oblivion may be pleased with the new system – which will tie directly into the skill lines that already exist for all classes, whether or not you directly engage with Gold Road’s content.
To that end, there will be “at least one” Grimoire for each of the major Weapon and World (Mage’s Guild, Fighter’s Guild, Soul Magic, Assault, Support) skill lines. Frankly, it’s been a long time since the Soul Magic line got any love, and I’m stoked to finally replace Soul Trap on my Templar’s skill bar.
It wouldn’t be a new ESO Chapter without a new zone featuring the usual mix of new quests, delves, points of interest, a new 12-player trial called Lucent Citadel, and a new main story – as we’ve come to expect from ESO’s annual Chapters since the Morrowind expansion released in 2017. The only thing missing is the usual duo of fresh NPC companions, who Zenimax says are coming in the final DLC of 2024.
The new area is set in the West Weald region of Cyrodiil, home to one of Oblivion’s iconic cities – Skingrad – which serves as Gold Road’s capital city.
The West Weald sounds like a sizable region, split threefold. There, you’ll find yourself exploring the titular Gold Road which is described as a “deciduous forest with windswept fall colors,” the jungle rainforest-inspired Valenwood Annexation, and the arid Colovian Highlands. From what’s been shared by Zenimax Online Studios, it sounds like you can simply walk into the West Weald via Cyrodiil, Reaper’s March, Craglorn, or the Gold Coast.
Once you get settled in the West Weald, you can choose to embroil yourself in the politics of a faction of Bosmer splintered off from the Valenwood named the “Recollection,” as they try to help out the newly-introduced 18th Daedric Prince, Ithelia – who, without spoiling too much about her identity or her connection to the broader story, was first mentioned during the events of 2023’s ESO Chapter, Necrom.
Like Necrom, that makes Gold Road’s role in terms of expanding broader TES lore especially important because we haven’t seen any additions to the Daedric Pantheon – which typically numbers 17 – since The Elder Scrolls series was in its infancy.
If you complete the main stories of both expansions, you’ll get to experience “capper” quests that resolve the combined stories. Ithelia and her realm Mirrormoor could very well make an appearance in The Elder Scrolls 6 in the far-flung future, so Gold Road may make it worthwhile to jump back into The Elder Scrolls Online and play the new main quests – even if you’ve been burned out of ESO’s otherwise decent Chapters over the last few years.
The Elder Scrolls Online: Gold Road is currently in development for PC, Mac, Xbox, and PlayStation.
Tonight’s Xbox Developer Direct brought an update on Avowed, Obsidian’s first-person fantasy RPG. A new trailer provided a substantial look at combat, including pistols, dual-wielding swords and wands, as well as a slightly updated release window: this autumn.
Today’s Xbox Developer Direct stream offered updates on some of 2024’s biggest Microsoft games, including MachineGames’ Indiana Jones And The Great Circle, Obsidian’s Avowed and Ninja Theory’s Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2. If you missed the stream and want a quick roundup of all the news, games, release dates and trailers featured, we’ve gathered it all together in this post.
