I’ve been fumbling for a grasp on Bokeh’s skull-splitting horror game Slitterhead since I first heard the words “brought to you by Keiichiro Toyama, former designer of Silent Hill, Siren and Gravity Rush”. Thanks to a new interview, I now have a proper description of the relationship between protagonist and antagonist. Friends, Romans and countrymen: this is a game about a war between two sets of body-stealing monsters, waged in the neon shadows of a fictional East Asian city. It all puts me strongly in mind of a certain John Carpenter movie about squelchy goings-on in Antarctica.
Helldivers 2’s next warbond may have leaked from an unlikely source: PlayStation itself.
Arrowhead’s explosive PlayStation 5 and PC co-op shooter releases new warbonds — essentially battle passes — regularly, and each adds new weapons, armor, and gear under a theme.
Helldivers 2 players reported receiving a PlayStation notification for the current warbond, called Viper Commandos, but the text relates to an unreleased warbond called Freedom’s Flame. According to this text, Freedom’s Flame includes “fiery weapons, life-saving armor, cool capes, fresh emotes, player cards, and patterns.”
Clearly, this new warbond revolves around fire damage, so expect the new weapons to tap into that part of the game. The hope is that Freedom’s Flame adds fire resistant armor, which should help particularly on planets such as Hellmire, which feature fire tornados as an environmental hazard. The perhaps unreleastic hope is the warbond also adds a flamethrower turret or flamethrower drone.
Arrowhead has yet to indicate when Helldivers 2’s next warbond will launch, but it has slowed down the pace of new content drops in order to ensure it gets them right, so there may be a bit of a wait.
Indeed, Arrowhead recently revealed it was in the process of setting the studio up so it could “make more and better stuff” in the long-term. In an introductory post on reddit, Jorjani said the studio has had to adjust to the enormous success Helldivers 2 has brought to the company.
Helldivers 2 is the fastest-selling PlayStation game of all time, having shifted an incredible 12 million copies in just 12 weeks. Amid the huge revenue Helldivers 2 has generated, Arrowhead has suffered a number of crises, including launch server problems and a battle with Sony itself over the console maker’s controversial attempt to force Steam players to account link to PlayStation Network.
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.
When you dive into the mess of folders on your PC, what do you find? Cobweb-plastered manuscripts for those twelve fantasy novels you started? Mouldy design documents for those nine games you never actually began coding? Perhaps dozens of little motheaten thumbnails of that masterpiece you’re planning to someday paint? Relax, I’m not calling you out (I have my own groaning cybercabinet of neglect). Rather, I’m here to say don’t worry. Everyone does it. Even famous Final Fantasy character designer and Kingdom Hearts director Tetsuya Nomura, who has a “huge number of game proposals lying dormant” in a mish mash of folders on his PC. You’re just like him!
Former Rare artist Brett Jones, who worked on the classic N64 games GoldenEye 007 and Perfect Dark, has died.
Jones’ work on the classic first-person shooter was wide-ranging and included concept art and character creation, model rigging, animation, and texturing. He would go on to do much of the same work on Perfect Dark, including work on the protagonist herself and leading efforts on the game’s memorable motion-captured animation.
I’ve tried visual novel games in the past, like A Space For The Unbound and Hatoful Boyfriend. And what’s frustrating is that I just don’t get on with them, despite knowing that they can convey brilliant stories through all sorts of interesting cuts and shots and whatnot. I’m sorry to report that certain stories won’t grab me if they’re not ticking along at just the right pace or if they don’t pull me in straight away. I’m a needy soul, someone who demands immediacy and a special emotional sauce.
Until Then is, without a doubt, the only visual novel-y game I’ve truly enjoyed. In fact, I’d say I’ve more than enjoyed it – I think it’s superb so far. The teens that drive this story are written with an authenticity I’ve not encountered before, and the 3D interwoven with the 2D adds some surprising – besides the literal – depth.
Usually when a game makes me want to stop playing and go outside it’s a bad sign, but with Dungeons of Hinterberg it’s different. It’s an action RPG that made me pine for the outdoors and want to be whisked away from all my responsibilities and just exist for a bit. Each time I would finish playing I’d be thinking about my next getaway, and although dungeon delving wouldn’t be on my holiday itinerary Dungeons of Hinterberg is making me think twice.
Here’s your reminder that this update for Splatoon 3 is now officially live. It will bump the game up to Version 8.1.0 and comes with multiple adjustments, changes and fixes covering player controls, multiplayer and more. You can see the original story below:
The Switch Joy-Con are quite easy to charge, but the catch is you have to attach them to the system. With this in mind, Nintendo is finally giving users an alternative way to charge these controllers with the official Switch Joy-Con Charging Stand.
Hello everyone, I’m Kee Zhang from Hotta Studio. I’m incredibly excited to introduce our brand new title, Neverness to Everness, to PlayStation players today!
Neverness to Everness (NTE for short) is a supernatural urban open-world game set to release for free on PS5. You will step into the shoes of an Appraiser, embarking on an extraordinary supernatural adventure in the bustling metropolis of Hethereau.
Let’s dive into what makes this game unique.
Welcome to Hethereau, a city beyond the ordinary
You’ve probably played many city-based games, but Neverness to Everness offers a Hethereau that is both familiar and bizarre, yet convincingly real. In this open world, every moment is an adventure as you explore and live in this unique city.
In Hethereau, you’ll encounter TV-headed otters, skateboarders creating graffiti on the street at midnight, and countless supernatural phenomena we call Anomalies. The origins of these anomalies are varied and remain unexplained. Encountering an anomaly in Hethereau is as common as breathing—hopefully, your first encounter won’t scare you.
Hethereau is also a living city.
Operational shops and businesses: A complete business management system lets you purchase vehicles and property to enhance your city life.
Dynamic NPCs: The streets are filled with realistic pedestrians who have destinations and genuine actions. Most NPCs follow traffic rules, but if you disrupt the order, expect different reactions from them.
Authentic vehicles: You can modify and drive them, wreak havoc on the roads, or participate in races.
Anomalies: light comedy with a twist
A great open-world game needs a compelling story, and Neverness to Everness revolves around these anomalies.
As the protagonist, you’ll debut in this anomaly-filled city as an appraiser at the antique shop “Eibon”, beginning an extraordinary daily life by nullifying and containing various anomalies.
Seeing anomalies in the city is like hearing a discordant note in a symphony—they stand out and offer rich, explorative content. We tell the story through episodic narratives with a light comedic touch, aiming to deliver vivid, nuanced storytelling and distinct character portrayals. Our goal is to spark players’ curiosity, maintain immersion, and drive a continuous desire for exploration.
Meet companions, battle with supernatural abilities
While exploring this urban open world, you’ll meet companions with various supernatural abilities to help you solve upcoming events. These abilities, known as Espers, are awakened powers in ordinary humans—some can utilize anti-gravity to climb high-rise buildings, unlocking new urban perspectives, while others can destroy environments, enhancing immersive realism.
These abilities also shine in combat, creating “Esper Reactions” that are easy to master and make battles more exciting. With great Esper comes great responsibility—the safety of Hethereau relies on you and your companions.
Building Hethereau with cutting-edge technology
Hethereau combines cutting-edge technology with the latest trends. To achieve our desired effects and make the city scenes more realistic, we used Unreal Engine 5 to construct the city’s framework and leveraged Nanite virtualized geometry technology to significantly enhance scene realism. We will also continue optimizing for the PlayStation platform to ensure an exceptional player experience.
Neverness to Everness has been in development for a while, and Hethereau has been built from scratch. This city will continue to grow, with more residents and features added over time.
Thank you to every player who has followed our journey, stay tuned for more news about Neverness to Everness.
For those who spent their youth in the captive grip of arcade games, the name Metal Slug needs no introduction. The action-filled side scroller was a mainstay in arcades across the globe, and it’s making a comeback with Metal Slug: Awakening, now accessible on PC and mobile.
Unfamiliar with the franchise? It all started in 1996, when Metal Slug first appeared as an arcade machine. Almost every laundry shop or pizza joint had a Metal Slug machine. For just 25 cents, you could enjoy top-tier fun. There’s something nostalgic about that wild yet joyful arcade era of the ’90s, when you’d get so hooked on a game that you’d forget what time you were supposed to go back home.
The story of Metal Slug was set in a dystopian 2028. You took on the role of a soldier, fighting a coup that threatened to shatter the peace and impose a new world order. You bombarded enemies with relentless gunfire and melee attacks, all the way to the boss showdowns in each level.
On the way through each level, you could find prisoners of war who would give you rewards when you freed them. You always started with a simple handgun, but as you progressed through levels, you picked up special weapons — like machine guns, rocket launchers, and shotguns. You could also jump in tanks called Metal Slugs (the series’ namesake, of course). As the series progressed, it added more heroes and more special weapons.
Awakening is built on the same foundation as its predecessors. It still features side-scrolling action, special weapons, and Slugs. Even the iconic “mission start” and “mission complete” announcements from the original game are still present. But it’s not all old-school — graphical updates breathe new life into characters, weapons, and vehicles; fresh characters with unique abilities debut; and innovative features and game modes offer a refreshing twist to the gameplay.
Speaking of characters, that’s an area where Metal Slug: Awakening has expanded. While previous games had a maximum of six characters, Awakening has more than 20 — with more still on the way. You can unlock characters in the Treasure Dig mode, and each character has unique skills and an ultimate ability that can range from slowing down time to summoning a battleship.
Awakening introduces a mix of classic weapon types as well as unique, new-to-the-series armaments like sniper rifles, saw launchers, and a boxing gun (a literal firearm with a spring-loaded punching glove attachment). Additionally, all weapons come in different varieties, some of which can apply distinct status effects, such as freezing or burning enemies.
Joint Operation is another one of the major innovations in Metal Slug: Awakening. In contrast to traditional arcade games where you might face bosses alone, you can now join forces with two additional players for those epic showdowns. You can do this by getting together with your friends or teaming up with strangers the game pairs you with. You’ll each choose your own character and pack your most potent weapons before hitting the battlefield to claim victory.
Looking for a change of pace? You can dive into the PvP mode for a different experience. Face off against real players, controlling three characters and switching them in and out to demonstrate your unique combat style. With three characters and three weapons at your disposal, the combinations you can come up with offer countless possibilities.
Now, time for play! Metal Slug: Awakening is available to download for free right now on PC, iOS, and Android, and you can play it with a controller. Your progress is linked to an account that can be used across all platforms, so you’ll never have to start over from scratch. Enjoy your time revisiting a classic series.
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