Did we put the Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater and Silent Hill 2 remakes on that list of our most anticipated games of 2024? The article is so voluminous I’m not sure I have the energy to check. I get halfway down the page and feel like I need to pitch camp below one of the paragraph breaks, like a mountaineer sleeping beneath a crag in one of those dangling tents. Assuming we didn’t, both have been slated for 2024 release by the PlayStation blog.
City of Heroes is making an official return as a fan server dedicated to keeping the superhero multiplayer game running has been granted an official license by publisher NCSOFT.
Revealed in a forum post, a representative of the fan server, titled Homecoming, announced their hard work paid off. City of Heroes was shut down more than a decade ago in November 2012, but fan servers kept players entertained and now its biggest has officially revived the massively multiplayer online role-playing game.
“We’d like to thank you all for your patience over the past few years, and we’re incredibly thrilled to announce that it’s paid off,” the post said. “NCSOFT has officially granted Homecoming a license to host City of Heroes.”
Aware fans would have many questions about the change, the post made the most important points clear: players accounts and characters are safe, new content will continue to be developed, and it will remain free and run through donations. More details will arrive in the coming months.
“Realise your comic book dreams in this MMORPG that is home to an entire universe of super-powered heroes and villains,” reads the game’s synopsis. “Build your own unique hero from millions of possible character combinations and venture into Paragon City to discover all the danger, wonder and excitement that await you.”
In our 8/10 review from 2004, when the game debuted, IGN said: “City of Heroes is fun. It’s exciting, it’s colourful, it’s cute, it’s brutal, and it’s a great realization of comic books in MMO form. It seems like a great place to start for those that have always found MMOs intimidating.”
Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.
A look at Atari’s lineup of neo-retro revivals.
Before there was Nintendo, there was Atari.
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
Welcome to Next Week on Xbox! In this weekly feature we cover all the games coming soon to Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Windows, and Game Pass! Get more details on these upcoming games below and click their profiles for further info (release dates subject to change). Let’s jump in!
Catthia Games
Cynthia: Hidden in the Moonshadow – January 10
A third-person stealth adventure game focused on the story of the Moonshadow Huntress: Cynthia Stranborg. Take control of the young adept and learn new stealth skills during your journey. Find out what happened in the home village and follow your desired path to rescue the ones you love the most.
Eastasiasoft Limited
Ikkarus and the Prince of Sin – January 10
Prove your worth as a village hero by rebuilding a tavern, taking on quests and discovering romance along the way! Ikkarus and the Prince of Sin is a Yaoi-themed fantasy adventure visual novel where you can manage your daily routine, travel the land, accept side quests, and more.
Battle Geek Plus, L.L.C.
Play it old school like being back in the arcade in a fluid top-down space shooter which feels as smooth as buttery popcorn! Have fun blasting away as you jam out to some rockin’ 8-bit, 16-bit, and orchestral tunes just like playing arcade games at the movie theater!
Gaming Factory S.A.
Electrician Simulator – January 11
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S / Smart Delivery
Learn the secrets of the electrician profession and become the best professional in town. Check your inbox regularly and accept a variety of jobs, from small tasks to complex electrical installations. Try to do your job with as much attention to detail as possible!
QUByte Interactive & bleem.net
Top Racer Collection – January 11
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S /
Top Racer Collection brings back three ‘90s classic arcade racers in one incredible package, featuring classic titles such as Top Racer, Top Racer 2, and Top Racer 3000. In addition, the collection will feature new and exclusive content. Get up to speed and experience the nostalgic mix of action and addictive gameplay today!
Ultimate Games
A point-and-click adventure game that takes players to an abandoned psychiatric hospital. Set in a world ravaged by an enigmatic and dangerous pandemic, play the role of a mental hospital patient who has awoken to a devastated world — your job is to find out what really happened.
Nacon
War Hospital – January 11
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S
The year is 1918. You are major Henry Wells, a retired British combat medic, drafted back to take charge of a field hospital in the nightmare of World War I. Understaffed and undersupplied, the hospital is the last bastion of hope for countless soldiers on the Western Front. Your main aims are to keep up your team’s morale and support the war effort with the soldiers you have treated.
Old School Vibes
Immerse yourself in this mind-bending platformer as Caleb who has awakened in a mystical dimension after experiencing burnout in his job. Door-to-door, guided by enigmatic musical notes, he needs to be reminded of his true calling.
FreeMind S.A.
In Creatura, design and take care of enclosed ecosystems full of animals and plants grown from scratch, using scientifically accurate natural/artificial selection and genetic engineering. Make an epic journey over epochs of evolution, from single cell organisms sharing water with algae, to complex animals living in lush gardens.
Digerati
Grotto – January 12
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S / Smart Delivery
Grotto is a mystical, narrative-focused experience. You are the Soothsayer. The one capable of talking with the stars and unveiling their messages. In a time of turmoil, the tribe of the valley turn to your powers of divination and come to you for guidance.
Ratalaika Games S.L.
Kitten Hero – January 12
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S / Smart Delivery
A fast-paced action platformer were you play as an extremely cute little cat trying to save his human and other kittens trapped inside a spaceship controlled by a powerful supercomputer. To get there, you’ll jump, climb, and dash your way through 80 levels filled with deadly spikes, saws, missiles and more.
Red Art Games
Shinorubi – January 12
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S
A shoot ’em up rooted in the bullet hell, danmaku, and manic shooter genres. In the universe, there is a compound that can only be found on one singular planet, Shinorubi. Shinorubi packs a great arcade action punch with great replayability thanks to its numerous difficulty levels, arranged modes, and player ships.
The post Next Week on Xbox: New Games for January 8 – 12 appeared first on Xbox Wire.
Surgeon Simulator and Lost Skies developer Bossa Studios has become the latest affected by the sweeping lay-offs hitting the video game industry.
As revealed by GI.biz, the UK developer laid off almost one third of all staff as 19 employees lost their jobs, caused by what co-founder Henrique Olifiers called a “perfect storm of events”. The lay-offs came at the end of 2023, with 40 employees remaining at the studio.
This “perfect storm” was, according to Olifiers, caused by the number of high profile triple-A games launching after September that took attention from smaller studios, increasing operational costs, and delayed funding decisions across the industry.
“Resulting from this blue moon situation, we had to make the difficult decision to reshape the studio to reflect the position we find ourselves in at the end of this year, focusing all our efforts now on Lost Skies,” he said. “This means we find ourselves in the heartbreaking position of having to let roughly one third of the studio go — amongst them, some of our closest colleagues.”
Olifiers pleaded for other studios to hire the laid off members where possible, though the entire video game industry is currently struggling with job losses.
Lay-offs in 2023 were among the worst in industry history, with myriad studios of all sizes affected. Dreams’ Media Molecule, Cyberpunk 2077’s CD Projekt Red, F1 Manager’s Frontier Developments, and Assassin’s Creed’s Ubisoft all suffered lay-offs. Destiny 2 developer Bungie was also affected, causing a “soul crushing” atmosphere at the studio that IGN learned about in an investigative report.
Colossal companies like Embracer, who owns the likes of Borderlands developer Gearbox Software and Tomb Raider developer Crystal Dynamics, Fortnite publisher Epic Games, and Dungeons & Dragons owner Hasbro also saw sweeping job losses. Embracer laid off 5% of its workforce, amassing to 904 staff in total, Epic laid off 16%, or 830 employees, and Hasbro cut close to 20%, meaning around 1,100 staff.
Entire studios were also closed, including Embracer’s Campfire Cabal and Saints Row developer Volition Games, plus the studio behind TimeSplittlers Free Radical.
Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.
Star Citizen developer Cloud Imperium Games is releasing a ship bundle for its controversial space simulator that costs an eye-watering $48,000.
Revealed on its website, the Legatus 2953 pack will arrive in the first quarter of 2024 and cost $48,000 despite the game not having officially launched yet.
“Ahead of all others, this definitive armada is an equal match to the noble title of Legatus Navium,” the Legatus 2953 item page reads. “Comprised of over 175 vessels from every manufacturer of note, this perfect collection, including all ships released and concepted through 2953, empowers every fleet commander to forge a lasting legacy, leading humanity towards a brighter future.”
Adding even more to the price, the Legatus 2953 pack is only available to members of Star Citizen’s Chairman’s Club, which can only be entered after spending $1,000 on other items in game.
Star Citizen is considered one of the most controversial projects in all video games. Over the years it’s been called many things, including a scam by those who wonder whether it will ever properly launch.
What cannot be denied is the huge amount of money so far raised by Star Citizen, which CIG displays on its website. At the time of this article’s publication, Star Citizen had raised $658,161,596 from more than five million accounts.
Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.
Content Warning: The following article contains mentions of themes some readers may find distressing, including those of self-harm and suicide.
Atlus has released the super stylish opening cinematic for Persona 3: Reload ahead of its February 2 launch.
The two minute movie, which can be viewed below, is everything you’d expect of a Persona game, featuring a bright and colourful aesthetic over some incredibly dark themes.
Persona intros, which appear before the main menu when booting up the games, usually feature an upbeat pop track too, and Persona 3: Reload’s is no different. Protagonist Makoto Yuki even boots the tune up on an MP3 player in the beginning of the cinematic, which also acts as a quick reminder that Persona 3: Reload is set in 2009 and won’t feature smartphones as Persona 5 does.
The dark themes present in the trailer include suicide, headlined by Persona 3’s controversial method of summoning Personas that has characters put gun-like items called Evokers to their heads.
This method of summoning, which is regularly featured in the game as both a plot point and battle animation, has been debated for years, but Atlus opted to include it in the remake of the 2006 game.
Persona 3: Reload is a full recreation of the original, meaning it doesn’t include the additional features and options in the likes of Persona 3: FES or Persona 3: Portable. It also features a brand new English voice cast. The game was finally announced at the 2023 Xbox Games Showcase following a string of rumours and one final leak ahead of the event.
Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.
Fan-favourite monster results arriving in March.
Capcom has been gearing up for the 20th anniversary of Monster Hunter for a while now and today’s New Year’s video message from series producer Ryozo Tsujimoto gives some indication of what’s in store for 2024.
To be clear, the message is not packed with information on anniversary plans, though Tsujimoto does confirm that the results of the fan-favourite monster voting will be revealed to mark the occasion this March. We can expect to see a new piece of artwork featuring the three most popular monsters too.
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
Hideo Kojima’s new Xbox Game Studios project OD is a horror game that is “also a movie, and at the same time a new form of media” and who knows, perhaps it also runs on solar power. That’s the extremely direct and literal reading of Kojima’s latest social media tease, in which he compares his latest endeavour to Boktai: The Sun Is In Your Hand, an isometric vampire-hunting game for Game Boy Advance, which Kojima worked on while at Konami in the early noughties. Boktai stands apart to this day for making use of solar energy. There’s a sun sensor built into the cartridge, which allows you to re-energise your weapon by using the console in sunlight, though this isn’t outright necessary to prevail.
I doubt OD employs a similar peripheral, though a Steam Deck verified horror game that can only be played outdoors in pleasant weather would be an… interestingly contrary experience. But it’s an opportunity, at least, to jump aboard one of my personal hobby horses and give you a scrappy rundown of older and recent games that employ similar functionality.
Christmas has come late. A new IGN UK Podcast episode has arrived as Cardy, Dale, and Mat have a big ol’ catch-up and chat about all the games, movies, and TV shows that were enjoyed (and some not so much) over the festive break. We’ve got everything from God of War Ragnarok: Valhalla to Cobalt Core. Big blockbuster hits like Godzilla Minus One to French new wave noir. A bit of something for everyone innit.
What are you most excited about watching or playing in 2024? Get in touch at ign_ukfeedback@ign.com.
