Way back in 1989, Jordan Mechner’s original Prince of Persia represented one of the first and best examples of what’s become known as the ‘cinematic platformer’. It’s a traditionally challenging genre, one that combines strong art, fun storylines, and fluidly animated protagonists to bring us adventures that test reflexes and puzzling abilities to their limits. You know the sort of thing, stuff like Flashback and Another World; y’know, the classics.
Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is the latest rebirth of sorts for the franchise — following on from The Sands of Time and 2008’s Prince of Persia revamp — one that takes the established lore of past entries and ditches them in favour of a tangentially-related new lead character, and a bit of role-switching fun. Yes, this brand-new tale sees you play as Sargon, a member of The Immortals (crime-fighting hero types), and a man who meets all the criteria required of a bonafide action hero.
The task of developing a game, from its initial idea to the final version, involves hard work and many challenges that are invisible to those who play it. The standard in a billion-dollar industry involves large teams and all kinds of tools and methods to make the process run as smoothly as possible.
Raccoo Venture is one of the cases that escapes this pattern not by choice but by necessity. Just as the raccoon hero often faces trials and challenges alone in the kingdom of Verta, his creator, independent developer Diego Ras, on the other side of the screen, faced all kinds of challenges alone for five years to get his game onto modern video game consoles.
At 39 years old and the son of a typical Brazilian family, Diego was born in the region known for being the cradle of industry around one of the largest cities in the world, the state capital of São Paulo. Due to the typical difficulties of a family formed by a metalworker Diego had late contact with games and technology. Always a few steps behind the most modern consoles, he had his first contact with games at the age of 8 and his first computer at the age of 21.
For Diego, making games for a living had until then seemed a very distant and impossible reality. He graduated from a technical school for mechatronics and went on to study design. He entered the advertising industry and worked there for years until he suffered burnout from working at a fast and chaotic pace.
He gave up what he did for a living and decided to divide his time between freelancing and starting his big project, Raccoo Venture. His entire professional history up to that point had given him a certain ease in the creative and design aspects, and even in programming due to his technical knowledge. But in making this choice, Diego had to give up some things and began to strictly control his savings in order to get the game off the ground. Even so, he used up his reserves and had to borrow money.
Even his father, his biggest supporter, ended up helping out financially as best he could. But in 2019, the bad news came: his father was diagnosed with cancer. Now it was time for Diego to help his father financially who, during his many visits to the hospital, was the one who most wanted to know if the game was ready and how the project was progressing.
The choice of genre and hero was no accident. When he started his project in 2018, he missed the more colorful and cuddly games of his childhood. The raccoon always had a bad guy stigma with its fur almost always looking like the mask of a thief or something. But that mask could also be that of a hero like Zorro, for example!
The part that took up the most of the developer’s time was the level design, not because it was exactly labor-intensive, but because Diego wanted a game balance that would make the game progressive and, of course, fun for the players.
In this whole process, Diego needed a lot of balance and determination to get Raccoo onto the screens of gamers all over the world in a game that is closely linked to his personal history. And for this very reason, the developer never thought of giving up. On the contrary, he learnt valuable lessons that he is keen to share with every developer who wants to make their first game.
He says that if someone has done it, he can do it too. Nothing is impossible to do. If you do it alone, the only difference is that it will take longer. With hard work, dedication, discipline and study, you can achieve it, or at least come close. Especially because what matters most is the journey and everything you learn along the way, not necessarily the final destination.
Diego knows that Raccoo Venture could be much better than it already is. But what he really hopes is that the adventures through the kingdom of Verta manage to put a smile on the faces of the players who decide to venture into it. And, of course, that the game brings back wonderful memories for those who, like him, spent hours as a child collecting items and jumping around a colorful fantasy kingdom. That would be his greatest reward.
Diego’s father, Edvaldo, passed away in 2023 and, as the biggest supporter of the game, he never saw it finalized. But all the players around the world will be playing this role for him. Have fun with the game that tells two incredible stories of two beloved, likable, persistent and fun characters: Raccoo and Diego Ras.
Defeat different enemies and challenges in this spiritual successor to the 3D platform genre. Find new ways to customize the hero, and discover new friends who will help you on your journey to retrieve the holy relics.
Discover your true destiny through a world full of magic and secret items. Save the harmony of the world and prevent chaos from returning to the land of Verta. But for that, many puzzles and the most unusual enemies will cross your path.
Soon you’ll be able to play the latest and greatest hits from Night City’s top radio stations at home with the Cyberpunk 2077 Radio Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 vinyls, which are officially up for preorder. These bright yellow vinyls are set to release on April 26 of this year and will set you back $29.98 each. They’re well worth the investment as well given the artists included on them. Check out the links below to preorder a copy for yourself today.
Preorder Cyberpunk 2077’s Radio Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 Vinyls
If you’ve yet to jump into Night City and explore the world of Cyberpunk 2077 for yourself, there’s no better time than now to do so. Cyberpunk 2077’s Ultimate Edition released back in early December and features the game in its fresh 2.0 updated state alongside the excellent Phantom Liberty expansion. It’s well worth picking up if you’ve been looking to play it. We also gave Phantom Liberty a 9/10 upon release in our review, calling it a “more sophisticated level of storytelling with excellent performances, smarter insights on the cyberpunk genre and its dystopian themes,” and that it lands “on top of a much-improved gameplay experience thanks to its fresh 2.0 update,” so you know you’ll be in for a great time.
The Independent Games Festival awards – aka: the only awards that are actually worth paying attention to – have announced the finalists for their 2024 cohort, and wouldn’t you know it, there are lots of RPS-endorsed games in there, lemme tell ya. Cooking adventure Venba leads the pack with a total of four nominations, but it’s closely followed by Cocoon, A Highland Song, Mediterranea Inferno and 1000xResist, all of which have scooped three noms apiece.
A demo for upcoming role-playing game Granblue Fantasy: Relink launches on PlayStation 4 and 5 at midnight tonight, January 11, publisher Cygames has announced.
Three modes will be available in the demo — Tutorial, Story, and Quest — with players able to earn rewards for the full version of Granblue Fantasy: Relink in each one. Story mode won’t be a prequel or separate part of the game but instead just offer “a small slice” of Granblue Fantasy: Relink’s main story.
Quest mode gives players an additional three quests to work through, playable either solo or with up to three others via online co-op. 11 characters are available in this mode: Gran, Katalina, Rackam, Io, Charlotta, Ghandagoza, Narmaya, Lancelot, Siegfried, Yodarha, and Zeta. Finally, Tutorial mode gives players a chance to get to grips with the basics. Progress made in the demo does not transfer over to the full game.
“Granblue Fantasy is set in Zegagranda Skydom, in the corner of the world where islands are guarded by primal monsters and winds,” its synopsis reads. “Players are tasked with discovering the web of intrigue reaching far beyond the borders of Zegagrande and will fight to determine the future of the Sky Realm.”
New year, same us! The Electronic Wireless Show podcast returns and kicks off the new year with a look forward at what 2024 may bring. We chat about our most anticipated video games that may or may not be arriving this year, including some racing, some spac(marine)ing and some book selling. Also some freezing and some despairing (at BioWare and Bloodlines 2, potentially). Plus: Nate and James have an anecdote off, which makes me lose my mind and become a horrible person for about four solid minutes. I have apologised, and me and James are still friends.
No matter your opinion on Bethesda’s latest game Starfield, which has turned out to be quite the controversial RPG, the game has still had over 12 million players and should be considered at least a moderate success for Xbox for the time being. Especially since more regular updates are coming starting in February this year, alongside the first expansion pack, and the highly anticipated launch of the Creation Kit and mod support for PC and consoles.
We can rattle on all day about the reception of Starfield, but here’s the crux of this latest offer available. Starfield’s Premium Edition Upgrade was notable for its ‘up to’ 5 days early access. While this early access period has since expired, there are still a few other goodies up for grabs at what is seemingly quite a reasonable price. It’s now down to just £14.99 at Amazon in the UK, a considerable drop from the RRP of £34.99 when the game launched in September 2023.
What’s included? I hear you ask. This is the physical edition of the Premium Upgrade, so you’re getting the following: Starfield Steelbook, Starfield Patch, Shattered Space Expansion, Digital Skin Pack, Digital Soundtrack, and Digital Artbook. For £15, that’s quite a steal (and a £20 discount), especially if you’re looking forward to trying out the Shattered Space expansion and what Bethesda might have in store.
Just so we are clear, this is the Premium Edition Upgrade for Xbox consoles, with ‘upgrade’ being an important phase. You’ll need to own Starfield or have Xbox Game Pass to take advantage of any of the digital content like the eventual Shattered Space DLC. Other notable UK deals right now, that you might be interested in as well, include a great discount on Steam Deck, PS5 Slim, and Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 (among other games as well).
Robert Anderson is a deals expert and Commerce Editor for IGN. You can follow him @robertliam21 on Twitter.
The latest Nintendo Download update for North America has arrived, and it’s bringing new games galore to the eShop in your region. As always, be sure to drop a vote in our poll and comment down below with your potential picks for the week. Enjoy!
Switch eShop – Highlights
Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown(Ubisoft, 18th Jan, $49.99) – Prince of Persia returns in this action-adventure platformer! Meet new characters, uncover mysteries and explore an engaging narrative set in a mythological Persian world in this new installment of the legendary franchise.
It’s time to see which PS5, PS4, PS VR2, PS VR, and free-to-play games topped the PlayStation Store download charts last month.
December’s PS5 downloads saw Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III hold its position in the top spot, with Grand Theft Auto V breaking into the top 4 on the PS5 and PS4 charts. PS VR2 newcomers Five Nights at Freddy’s: Help Wanted 2 and Among Us VR snuck their way into the top spots for both US and EU regions.
Check out the full listings below. What titles did you play most last month?
PS5 Games
US/Canada
EU
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III
Madden NFL 24
EA SPORTS FC 24
Grand Theft Auto V
Grand Theft Auto V
NBA 2K24
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora
EA SPORTS FC 24
Hogwarts Legacy
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
ARK: Survival Ascended
Baldur’s Gate 3
Baldur’s Gate 3
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
ARK: Survival Ascended
Cyberpunk 2077
Hogwarts Legacy
UFC 5
God of War Ragnarök
Alan Wake 2
Mortal Kombat 1
God of War Ragnarök
UFC 5
Resident Evil 4
Cyberpunk 2077
The Crew Motorfest
STAR WARS Jedi: Survivor
It Takes Two
Alan Wake 2
Assassin’s Creed Mirage
The Crew Motorfest
STAR WARS Jedi: Survivor
Resident Evil 4
NBA 2K24
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege
F1 23
NHL 24
ELDEN RING
*Naming of products may differ between regions *Upgrades not included
PS4 Games
US/Canada
EU
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III
EA SPORTS FC 24
Red Dead Redemption 2
Red Dead Redemption 2
Minecraft
Grand Theft Auto V
Grand Theft Auto V
Minecraft
Madden NFL 24
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III
NBA 2K24
Hogwarts Legacy
EA SPORTS FC 24
The Forest
Batman: Arkham Knight
Need for Speed Heat
theHunter: Call of the Wild
Batman: Arkham Knight
Hogwarts Legacy
Gang Beasts
Gang Beasts
Battlefield V
Need for Speed Heat
God of War
Call of Duty: Black Ops III
STAR WARS Battlefront II
God of War
Sniper Elite 4
The Forest
TEKKEN 7
STAR WARS Battlefront II
theHunter: Call of the Wild
God of War Ragnarök
The Last of Us Remastered
Rust Console Edition
CarX Drift Racing Online
Red Dead Redemption
Outlast 2
NHL 24
Outlast
*Naming of products may differ between regions
PS VR2 Games*
US/Canada
EU
Five Nights at Freddy’s: Help Wanted 2
Among Us VR
Among Us VR
Five Nights at Freddy’s: Help Wanted 2
Beat Saber
Beat Saber
Arizona Sunshine 2
Arizona Sunshine 2
Job Simulator
Job Simulator
Pavlov
Pavlov
Swordsman VR
Kayak VR: Mirage
Star Wars: Tales from the Galaxy’s Edge
Star Wars: Tales from the Galaxy’s Edge
NFL PRO ERA II
Crossfire: Sierra Squad
Synapse
The Dark Pictures: Switchback VR
*PS Store purchases only. Game upgrades or games bundled with hardware not included
The Finals developer Embark Studios has released the popular shooter’s first update of 2024, and it makes significant changes to the way aim assist works.
Aim assist is one of the hottest topics within the game’s burgeoning community, which Embark Studios said it had paid close attention to as it worked to tone down the mechanic.
“Today we have a small patch that addresses community feedback on aim assist, fair play, and bug fixes,” the developer explained. “These changes are the result of an in-depth review of how aim assist works — something we’ve only been able to validate with a player base as large as ours (thanks so much for playing our game, yolks!).”
Here are the The Finals update 1.4.1 patch notes in full:
Aim Assistance
Zoom Snapping Angular Velocity now has a max cap, preventing unintended rapid 90-degree turns.
Camera Magnetism will be reduced to 35% from 50%, making player aim less sticky and lowering controller accuracy.
Zoom Snapping Time will be reduced to 0.25s from 0.3s.
Zoom Snapping will be removed from the SR-84 Sniper Rifle, Revolver, LH1, and all Shotguns, as it buffs them more than other weapons.
Aim assist will ignore invisible players, fixing a bug with the existing system.
Clients running key re-mapping programs on PC will not have access to aim assist.
Embark Studios said it has another bigger update in the works for next week, with a major security fix and some new content.
The Finals is a free-to-play competitive first-person shooter made by former Battlefield developers. It launched with a huge concurrent player count on Steam, where it’s still going strong and wowing fans with its impressive destruction tech.
IGN’s The Finals review returned an 8/10. We said: “The Finals is a fresh and exciting take on team based PVP shooters, featuring some of the best environmental destruction in any FPS.”
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.
