Category: Video Games

PlayStation Plus Game Catalog Additions for January 2025 Announced

Sony has revealed the full line-up of PlayStation Plus Games Catalog additions for January 2025, which includes God of War Ragnarok, Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name, and more.

Announced on the PlayStation Blog, a total of 11 games are joining the library, nine on the PlayStation Plus Extra tier and two on the PlayStation Plus Premium Tier through the Classic Games Catalog. They’re available January 21.

While the beloved PlayStation 5 title God of War Ragnarok joins the library this month, it’s otherwise a tad short on the usual numbers. The additions usually include upwards of a dozen entries, and at least one on PlayStation VR2, but January’s offerings do not.

PlayStation Plus Games Catalog Additions for January 2025

God of War Ragnarok is the beloved sequel to the beloved God of War reboot that arrived in 2022. It continues the story of Kratos and Atreus as they navigate the wild worlds of Norse mythology. “God of War Ragnarok is an almighty achievement and creates a new high that makes many of its peers look mortal by comparison,” IGN said in our 10/10 review.

Perhaps the next biggest game in January 2025 is Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name, a side story of the Yakuza series that sees longtime protagonist Kiryu become a secret agent. “Like a Dragon Gaiden’s combat hits with flash and fury and its story is sharp, but its setting and side activities feel a bit on the stale side,” we said in a 7/10 review.

Another large entry arrives this month in an open world role-playing game called Atlas Fallen, which unleashes its Reign of Sand expansion onto PS Plus. It also earned a 7/10 from IGN. “Atlas Fallen is a solid open-world action RPG with plenty of platforming and large monsters to fight with a co-op buddy, so long as neither of you cares about story or is a stickler for high-quality textures,” we said.

Something quite different arrives in action RPG SD Gundam Battle Alliance, a game where Gundam fans can explore the series’ history by battling through its most iconic scenes. Players can also collect myriad Mobile Suits and characters from throughout the mech battling series.

Described as a “euphoric music video dream about being awesome, riding motorcycles, skateboarding, dance battling, shooting lasers, wielding swords, and breaking hearts at 200 miles per hour,” Sayonara Wild Hearts is a unique amongst this lists and video games overall. “Sayonara Wild Hearts’ music and art combine for a stirring, unique experience,” IGN said in our 7/10 review.

Anno: Mutationem, meanwhile, is a side scrolling adventure game where players take on the roll of Ann as she fights through a neon metropolis. It earned an 8/10 from IGN. “Punchy, side scrolling combat and a richly realized, anime-inspired world make Anno: Mutationem a blast, but the script is a bit rusty,” we said.

Adding more variety to January 2025’s PlayStation Plus line-up is Orcs Must Die 3, a tower defence game about slaying lots of orcs. “Orcs Must Die 3 is very familiar to players of the second game but still a fun and goofy action/tower-defense challenge,” IGN said in our 7/10 review.

Citizen Sleeper arrives next. “Role-playing in the ruins of interplanetary capitalism, Citizen Sleeper puts you in the life of an escaped worker, washed up on a lawless station at the edge of an interstellar society. Explore the station, choose your friends, escape your past and change your future,” its synopsis reads.

This next game will teach you when to hold ’em, when to fold ’em, when to walk away, and when to run. Poker Club “offers players more ways to play than ever before with a full house of Texas hold’em online tournament modes and ring-games,” its synopsis reads.

Not ready to let Xbox get away with releasing an Indiana Jones game of its own, Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings arrives on the PS Plus Games Catalog in January. This 2009 adventure game originally released on PlayStation 2 earned a “mediocre” rating in IGN’s review.

Finally, the classic platforming and puzzle solving fantasy game Medievil 2 comes to the Classic Games Catalog this month. “In this sequel to Medievil, you control Sir Daniel Fortesque, the undead knight, as he makes his way around the world’s foggiest city, London,” the synopsis reads. “Your arsenal ranges from swords to muskets, and if you defeat enough enemies on each level, you’ll unlock its Chalice of Souls and be rewarded with special items.”

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.

DOOM Creator Calls Legendary Final Fantasy Programmer An “Inspiration”

“Without Nasir, there is no DOOM”.

Co-founder of id Software and one of the minds behind the seminal FPS Doom, John Romero, has honoured a legendary Square programmer on social media, calling him an “inspiration”.

Sharing his thoughts in the wake of Japanese broadcaster NHK’s interview with Nasir Gebelli, who lead programmer on the Final Fantasy games on NES and SNES action RPG Secret of Mana, Romero says “Without Nasir, there is no DOOM.” High, high praise indeed.

Read the full article on nintendolife.com

Celebrate the New Year With UFC 5 Joining the Play List and EA Sports Week

Celebrate the New Year With UFC 5 Joining the Play List and EA Sports Week

  • Charlie FortescueDirector, Global Corporate Communications, EA

EA Play UFC Rewards Image

EA Sports UFC 5

Get ready to unleash your fury as EA Sports UFC 5 is now on the Play List for all EA Play members (conditions, limitations and exclusions apply – see here for details). Members can now step into the Octagon with their favorite MMA players for the most definitive MMA experience with authentic gameplay and graphics maximized for modern consoles. Alongside unlimited access to EA SPORTS UFC 5, EA Play members can score the Bruce Lee Bundle and play as Alter Egos of the father of MMA. The bundle is available to all members at no additional cost from January 14 through February 11.

Powered by the Frostbite Engine, EA Sports UFC 5 features the all-new Real Impact System, which elevates the stakes, technique, drama and excitement; players can feel every strike and deliver highlight-reel finishes bringing the intensity and strategy of a fight to life. The game’s advanced visuals and enriched gameplay, coupled with features like Cinematic K.O. Replays, Doctor’s Checks and Stoppages, Seamless Submissions and more, create an unparalleled MMA interactive experience, making EA Sports UFC 5 as real as it gets.

EA Sports Week

This month, the fight continues outside of the Octagon as Game Pass Ultimate subscribers can punch into EA Sports Week with a special, 90% off discount for UFC 5 Super Deluxe Edition! Members can celebrate EA Sports Week with friends as everyone will be able to access the EA Sports game collection, earn discounts on EA Sports games, get a Free Play weekend January 16-19, 2025 for all sports titles, and more. The celebration starts with the EA Sports FC 25’s ‘Team of the Year’ two-week activation and the addition of EA Sports UFC 5 to the Play List. 

January Rewards

If you thought that was it, you’re mistaken! The gifting continues this month for EA Play members as the new year brings new heart pumping action with all the great rewards, including:

  • Apex Legends Feelin’ lucky? Weapon Charm – Now to February 3
  • Battlefield 2042 Winter Series – Now to January 28
  • EA Sports F1 24 5000 XP Boost – Now to January 31
  • Madden NFL 25 MUT Pack – Now to January 31
  • EA Sports FC 25 Black FC Mask & Clubs Coins – Now to January 30
  • EA Sports FC 25 Football Ultimate Team™ Draft Token– Now to February 14
  • EA Sports NHL 25 WOC Battle Pass XP Modifier Tokens – Now to January 30
  • EA Sports NHL 25 3000 CHEL Coins – Now to January 30

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and Xbox Game Pass PC members receive EA Play with their Game Pass subscription. Members can experience the world of EA with unlimited access to a collection of top titles, trials of select new games, in-game member rewards, 10% on EA digital purchases and more. Members can unlock the thrill of their next favorite game with up to 10-hour trials of EA’s latest titles such as EA Sports FC 25, EA Sports NHL 25 EA Sports Madden NFL 25, EA Sports College Football 25, F1 24 and Dragon Age: The Veilguard, in addition toaccess to an unrivaled collection of EA’s best-loved series and top titles, including Madden NFL 24,EA Sports FC 24, EA Sports WRC and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor.

Visit the EA Play page for more details, and to stay up to date on the latest from EA Play, follow EA Play on, Instagram, or X. Please see EA.com/EA-Play/Terms for terms and conditions.

The post Celebrate the New Year With UFC 5 Joining the Play List and EA Sports Week appeared first on Xbox Wire.

PlayStation Plus Game Catalog for January: God of War Ragnarök, Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name, Atlas Fallen: Reign of Sand, and more

Explore the mythical snowy landscapes in God of War Ragnarök, Osaka’s vibrant underworld in Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name, the vast, sandy expanses of Atlas Fallen: Reign Of Sand, and the futuristic mech-sized battlefields of SD Gundam Battle Alliance. These games and more form January’s PlayStation Plus Game Catalog lineup* and will be available to play from January 21.

Two timeless classics are also joining PlayStation Plus Premium: PS2 adventure epic adventure Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings and PS2’s spooky Medievil II.

Finally, in case you missed it, PlayStation Portal released a system update that allows PlayStation Plus Premium members to test Cloud Streaming (Beta) for select PS5 games on Game Catalog. Learn more here.

PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium | Game Catalog

God of War Ragnarök | PS4, PS5

From Santa Monica Studio comes the sequel to the critically acclaimed God of War (2018). Embark on an epic and heartfelt journey as Kratos and Atreus struggle with holding on and letting go. Fimbulwinter is well underway. Kratos and Atreus must journey to each of the Nine Realms in search of answers as Asgardian forces prepare for a prophesied battle that will end the world. Along the way they will explore stunning, mythical landscapes, and face fearsome enemies in the form of Norse gods and monsters. As the threat of Ragnarök grows ever closer, Kratos and Atreus must choose between their own safety and the safety of the realms.

Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name | PS4, PS5

Once a legendary yakuza, Kazuma Kiryu faked his own death and abandoned his name for the sake of protecting his family. Now, he is thrust into conflict by a mysterious figure attempting to drive him out of hiding. Under the codename ‘Joryu’, Kiryu embarks on a gripping action narrative with bone-shattering combat in vibrant locations filled with exciting characters and activities.

Atlas Fallen: Reign Of Sand | PS5

In this action RPG, master the sands and explore a unique fantasy land teeming with secrets and dangers alone or in online two-player co-op, as you hunt colossal legendary creatures in spectacular combat. Reign of Sand is the ultimate version of Atlas Fallen: an expanded world, new enemies and challenges, revamped progression, new quests, reworked voice acting, additional difficulty mode and ‘New Game+’ modes! 

SD Gundam Battle Alliance | PS4, PS5

Mobile Suits and characters from across Mobile Suit Gundam history take center stage in this all-new action RPG. The story takes place in G: Universe, a world where Gundam canon twists and turns in ways no one can predict. To correct this world’s distorted history, you lead a 3-unit squadron consisting of Mobile Suits and pilots from across Gundam history – a true Battle Alliance. Experience Gundam history’s most famous scenes as you develop new Mobile Suits to add to your arsenal. In multiplayer, you can play through the game with up to 2 other players in a 3-person team. Enjoy this new SD Gundam action RPG solo, or with friends.

Sayonara Wild Hearts | PS4

Sayonara Wild Hearts is a dreamy arcade game about riding motorcycles, skateboarding, dance battling, shooting lasers, wielding swords, and breaking hearts at 200 mph. As the heart of a young woman breaks, the balance of the universe is disturbed. A diamond butterfly appears in her dreams and leads her through a highway in the sky, where she finds her other self: the masked biker called The Fool. Journey through a custom-written pop soundtrack, chase scores, and set out to find the harmony of the universe, hidden away in the hearts of Little Death and her star-crossed allies: Dancing Devils, Howling Moons, Stereo Lovers and Hermit 64. Let’s Pop!

ANNO: Mutationem | PS4, PS5

Welcome to the neon-covered, 2D-meets-3D Cyberpunk world of ANNO: Mutationem. In this Action-Adventure game with RPG elements, you become Ann: a highly-skilled combat-trained lone wolf on a personal mission in a giant Metropolis, full of sinister mega-corporations, mysterious fringe groups and creatures more bizarre than words can express. 

Orcs Must Die 3 | PS4, PS5

Orcs Must Die! 3 ushers orc-slaying mayhem to a previously unimaginable scale. Solo or with a friend by your side, arm yourself with a massive arsenal of traps and weapons. Slice, burn, toss and zap hordes of repugnant orcs in this long-awaited successor to the award-winning series. It’s everything fans loved about the first two games and more. More orcs, more traps, more weapons, more upgrades and even better looking. It’s cranked up to at least eleven.

Citizen Sleeper | PS4, PS5

You are a sleeper, a digitised human consciousness in an artificial body, owned by a corporation that wants you back. Inspired by Tabletop Roleplaying games, Citizen Sleeper uses Dice, Clocks and Drives to create a player-led experience, where you choose your path in a rich and responsive world. Thrust amongst the unfamiliar and colourful inhabitants of the Eye, you need to build friendships, earn your keep, and navigate the factions of this strange metropolis, if you hope to survive to see the next cycle. 

Poker Club | PS4

Welcome to Poker Club. Live the life of a poker pro in the most immersive poker simulation ever seen, with Ultra HD 4K visuals and breath-taking ray tracing. Join a community of online players on their way to the top and track your progress in more than 10 Texas Hold’em tournament modes including freezeouts, shootouts, super-turbos, bounties and more. Whether you’re a seasoned poker pro or brand new to the table, perfect your play style for the chance to win big. 

PlayStation Plus Premium

Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings | PS4, PS5

Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings, originally released in 2009 on PlayStation 2, takes you on a perilous, around-the-world quest for the staff of Moses. This classic third-person action adventure has been enhanced with up-rendering, rewind, quick save, and custom video filters. Grab your whip and get ready for a thrilling journey in true Indiana Jones tradition.

Medievil II | PS4, PS5

The sequel to MediEvil released on the original PlayStation in 2000. In this new and improved version, featuring up-rendering, rewind, quick save, and custom video filters, you’ll have to challenge the powers of darkness and untold magic as Sir Daniel Fortesque returns from the grave to thwart an evil sorcerer’s plans. Arm yourself with a mighty arsenal of weapons, including swords, daggers, crossbows, hammers, and even the occasional chicken drumstick. Solve fiendish puzzles and riddles, face ghoulish enemies that will strike fear into the bravest of souls, all of it set to a spine-tingling soundtrack.

*PlayStation Plus Game Catalog and PlayStation Plus Premium/Deluxe lineups may differ by region. Please check PlayStation Store on release day.

Larian Keeps Baldur’s Gate 3 Fans Abreast of Latest Mod Download Milestone With New Withers Pic

Baldur’s Gate 3 players have now downloaded more than 100 million mods since developer Larian Studios released its official modding toolkit with Patch 7.

Similar to how it shared the Withers “Bone Daddy” mod to celebrate hitting 50 million mod downloads, Larian has once again relied upon the helpful companion to announce the new milestone. It released an image of the living undead corpse man with large breasts, from a Baldur’s Gate 3 mod called Withers Big Naturals.

“You are modding naturals,” Larian said, with the “100” of the 100 million mods suggestively positioned over Withers.

Baldur’s Gate 3 crossed the 50 million mods mark in October so it’s taken just another two and a half months to reach this new milestone. Patch 7 and official mod support arrived in September, meaning an average of around 25 million mods have been downloaded each month.

Larian is only counting mods created with this tool too, meaning traditional mods (that have been available since the game arrived in July 2023) aren’t counted towards the 100 million number. The actual number is therefore much higher.

Mods released so far include one that adds real-time combat to the otherwise turn-based RPG and another that brought entire new maps to Faerûn, including the highly requested Avernus.

Earlier this week, Larian said it was fully focused on its next game, promising a “media blackout” for the foreseeable future. The hotly anticipated Baldur’s Gate 3 Patch 8 is still due out this year.

In our 10/10 review of the base Baldur’s Gate 3, IGN said: “With crunchy, tactical RPG combat, a memorable story with complex characters, highly polished cinematic presentation, and a world that always rewards exploration and creativity, Baldur’s Gate 3 is the new high-water mark for CRPGs.”

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.

Forest Reigns is a STALKER-style FPS in which Paris has been conquered by sentient trees

My feelings about Forest Reigns are equal parts enthusiasm and disappointment, inflation and deflation, straight off the back of the announcement trailer. On the one hand, as a fan of weird forests, which is to say all forests, I’m keen on the prospect of an FPS set in a post-apocalyptic Paris that has been overrun by sentient, pissed-off trees. It’s from a team led by a former S.T.A.L.K.E.R. developer, too, and those S.T.A.L.K.E.R. alumni certainly know how to post a good apocalypse. On the other hand, the announcement video suggests a game in which you will mostly treat the frenzied flora as a source of “emergent” cover and terrain traps. Have a look.

Read more

New Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater Funko Pops Are Up for Preorder

What a thrill… Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater Funko Pops are officially up for preorder. There are two figures currently available, one of Naked Snake and the other of The Boss, with price tags of $12.99 a piece. You won’t have to wait too long to add them into your collectible collection either as they’re set to release on March 25 this year. Head to the links below to get your preorders in today.

Preorder Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater Funko Pops, Out March 25

As for when the game itself is coming out, it’s still unannounced. You can check out our Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater preorder guide for all the info about what comes in each edition, though. Generally, Funko Pops come out around the release of the main game/movie/show/etc.

Alongside preorders for new gaming items, the year has started off strong with an excellent variety of video game deals as well. Best Buy, in particular, has a major sale going on at the moment on a variety of games for PS5, Xbox Series X, and Nintendo Switch. This includes Dragon Age: The Veilguard, Sonic X Shadow Generations, and quite a few more that are worth having a look at if you’ve been hoping to expand your physical game collection.

To see even more of the best deals available at the moment, check out our individual roundups of the best PlayStation deals, the best Nintendo Switch deals, and the best Xbox deals. For an overall look of the best gaming deals available right now across each platform, our roundup of the best video game deals will point you in the direction of some of our favorites.

Another great place to look for gaming deals is our Daily Deals roundup. There, we gather up some of the best offers across games and tech that have caught our eye recently. At the moment, some of our favorites include a discount on Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora for Xbox Series X and a deal on an M2 MacBook Air.

Hannah Hoolihan is a freelancer who writes with the guides and commerce teams here at IGN.

Random: Now You Can Play DOOM… Inside A PDF?

PDF Software.

Your eyes are not deceiving you, reader — the hugely influential FPS DOOM is now fully playable inside a PDF file. Did anyone ask for this? Probably. And it’s a pretty impressive feat.

Reported on by IGN (via Push Square), a high-school student known as ading2210 on github has ported DOOM into a PDF that you can play inside a Chromium-based browser. Dubbed DOOMPDF, it’s missing some text and sound, but it’s otherwise a fully functioning black-and-white version of DOOM.

Read the full article on nintendolife.com

Arken Age – A new sci-fi fantasy adventure hits PS VR2

We’re back! My name is Blake Stone, Lead Designer at VitruviusVR, the development team behind Mervils & Shadow Legend VR on the original PS VR. We are very excited to launch our newest title Arken Age, a single-player VR adventure set in a terraformed sci-fi fantasy world. 

In the game you engage in full physics-based combat using Arkenite infused swords & guns; and can freely explore the densely filled environments under siege by Hyperion’s neural corruption. Arken Age has a full 15-hour story driven campaign, was built from the ground-up for PlayStation VR2, and is launching tomorrow, January 16.

10 years of developing for PlayStation VR 

In 2015, we were demoing an early version of Mervils: A VR Adventure, our third-person VR platforming game at the Immersed Conference in Toronto, Canada when we were approached by Richard Marks, Head of Sony’s Magic Lab at the time. He couldn’t tell us too much, but said that his team “had something really cool in works for VR” and that Mervils could be a great fit for it. He later sent us a prototype of the Project Morpheus headset which would later be renamed PlayStation VR, and since then we have never looked back.

We released Mervils in 2017 and later launched Shadow Legend VR in 2020, a first-person medieval sword-fighting game, and we learned a ton from the PlayStation VR community’s feedback on those games that we have directly applied to Arken Age. 

From Shadow Legend we learned that players loved the Climbing Picks both for their fluidity of movement in VR and haptics on impact. For Arken Age we took the Climbing Picks one step further and physically integrated them into the players forearms and added the ability to flick your wrists upwards to deploy them at any time during the game. 

The Climbing Picks is only one example, but there’s so much more included in the game. We further refined our custom VR inventory system, weapon crafting, character interactions, unique combat features, exploration elements, and our design philosophy behind building high-fidelity worlds in VR.

Dynamic Foveated Rendering & breath-taking HDR graphics 

In order to take full advantage of the PlayStation VR2 we worked hard to ensure Arken Age’s rendering, shaders, particle-effects, and post-effects were compatible with Dynamic Foveated Rendering (DFR) for the best image resolution possible. Although, image quality is not the only benefit of the PS VR2, with the vibrant world of the Bio-Chasm in Arken Age, it really showcases the importance of HDR graphics in VR with the bright blue waters, lush foliage, and emissive energy bloom from Arkenite weapons, buildings, & the robotic Hyperion soldiers in the world. 

VR weaponry & custom adaptive triggers

When developing Arken Age our biggest focus was on realistic physics-based combat and one-of-a-kind VR weaponry; each with their own unique Adaptive Trigger haptics.  In the game you begin with 3 fully customizable & paintable weapons and can collect over 30 unique weapon mods in total. Each attachment is custom designed for VR gameplay, ranging from the Hyperion God Axe; a throwing axe that uses PS VR2’s eye-tracking & can be recalled at your will, the Tempered Cutter; a deployable saw blade that dismembers enemy limbs, and the Astral Ballista; a high-powered chargeable bow, to name a few. In addition, eye-tracking is used to enable the sniper scopes in the game, just close one eye when your head is close to a scope and watch the magic happen!

Uncover the story of Bio-Chasm & your full VR alien body 

In Arken Age you are a biological alien creation, built with full locomotion and the ability to freely jump, crouch, climb, & swim. You can view your full body in first-person and holster all weapons physically onto your character. 

Your journey begins in Celestial Custodian’s Tower on the shores of the Bio-Chasm, a terraformed realm created to harvest Arkenite Energy. Its divine founder, the Grand Arborist, has ceased cultivation of your planet and every transmission sent to him has been met with abject silence. In Arken Age you uncover the truth behind the disappearance of the Grand Arborist, forge alliance with the Nara alien race, take up arms against Hyperion’s legion of corrupted soldiers, and learn how your character; who is part Nara and part Hyperion tech, fits into this world. 

Arken Age takes the player through a full 15-hour adventure, combines both physics-based sword combat with long-range gun combat, has a wide-range of custom VR interactions, epic VR boss fights, and gives the player full freedom to explore the dense environments of the Bio-Chasm.

We want to thank everyone in the PlayStation VR community for their support over the years and we hope Arken Age will be something PS VR2 fans can enjoy this Jan 16 and for the years to come!

Promise Mascot Agency Voice Cast Includes PlayStation Legend Shuhei Yoshida and Deadly Premonition Dev Swery

Promise Mascot Agency just announced its voice cast, which includes a number of surprise additions from the world of video game development.

Kaizen Game Works’ open-world narrative adventure sees players explore a cursed Japanese town and recruit mascot friends. You even help a living finger work through anger issues.

Where Promise Mascot Agency is punching above its weight is in the voice cast department. It’s nabbed PlayStation developer legend Shuhei Yoshida in his first ever video game voice role, and the announcement comes hot on the heels of Yoshida’s last day at Sony.

Shuhei Yoshida worked on PlayStation from the very beginning, playing a key role in the original console’s success from 1993. He was one of the more public-facing PlayStation executives while President of SIE Worldwide Studios from 2008 to 2019, championing indie and VR success in particular. Yoshida announced his exit from Sony in November during his 31st year at PlayStation.

“When I hit 30 years, I was thinking, hmm, it may be about time for me to move on,” he explained at the time. “You know, the company’s been doing great. I love PS5, I love the games that are coming out on this platform. And we have new generations of management who I respect and admire. And I’m so excited for the future of PlayStation.”

While Yoshida long-term plan remains up in the air, in the short-term he’s turned to video game voice acting, and that’s where Promise Mascot Agency comes in. Yoshida plays Monouge, an odd-looking green-skinned former mascot who is opening their own game center.

Yoshida isn’t the only big name joining the Promise Mascot Agency voice cast. Yakuza: Like A Dragon’s Takaya Kuroda, who plays series protagonist Kazuma Kiryu, and Legend of Zelda’s Ayano Shibuya also star, as do Eri Saito (Chainsaw Man, Metal Gear Solid 4, Way of the Samurai 3) and Swery, developer of Deadly Premonition, The Good Life, and Spy Fiction.

You can see what Yoshida and co sound like in-game in the exclusive trailer, below.

“We can’t believe that our weird game managed to attract such a strong voice cast,” said game director Oli Clarke Smith.

“When our lead Japanese localiser, Roppyaku Tsurumi, told us that Kuroda-san had auditioned, we just about lost our minds. All of the cast have brought our group of misfits to life wonderfully. After working on these characters for four years, they have become like friends to us, and we’re so happy that they have all been given a voice. The team at the recording studio, Xenorex, did an amazing job.”

Here’s the official blurb:

Takaya Kuroda voices the disgraced ex-yakuza Michi, exiled to the forgotten (and quite definitely cursed) Japanese town of Kaso-Machi with two goals: pay off his debt and restore glory to the town’s defunct mascot agency! Recruit the weird and wonderful mascots across town with help from your severed finger assistant manager and chaos goblin, Pinky☆ – voiced by Ayana Shibuya, negotiate their contracts and assign them jobs they love.

Promise Mascot Agency will be available on PC and consoles early 2025.

Photo by Stuart Wilson/BAFTA/Getty Images for BAFTA.

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.