Next Week on Xbox: New Games for April 22 to 26

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Next Week on Xbox: New Games for April 22 to 26

Welcome to Next Week on Xbox! This weekly feature highlights all the games arriving soon on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Windows, and Game Pass. Discover more about these forthcoming titles below and explore their profiles for additional information (note that release dates are subject to change). Let’s dive in!


Xbox Live

Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes

505 Games


25

$49.99

Eiyden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes – April 23
Game Pass

Available on day one with Game Pass! Gather your allies for Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes, the grand JRPG adventure. Assemble your 6-party team from a cast of over a hundred heroes and shape your destiny in this lush, hand-crafted 2.5D world brimming with war, intrigue, and magic. Manage your town of vibrant characters, play delightful mini-games, and prepare for an unforgettable narrative of boundless charm.


Xbox Live

Hammerwatch II

Maximum Entertainment

Hammerwatch II – April 23
Smart Delivery

Gather your heroes and journey beyond the dungeons of Castle Hammerwatch to explore a pixelated world like never before. Adventure alone or gather your party to aid King Roland’s resistance, all while helping villagers along the way. Battle beasts, finish off hordes of the undead, and face the forces of evil in this epic ode to classic ARPGs.


Xbox Live

Lunar Lander Beyond

Atari

$29.99

Lunar Lander Beyond – April 23
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S / Smart Delivery

As a newly appointed captain of the Pegasus corporation, you must guide a roster of colorful pilots, eclectic advisors, and state-of-the-art landers through a taxing series of missions. Deliver cargo, retrieve resources, and rescue stranded pilots as you navigate a mysterious universe of moons and planets.


Xbox Live

Tales of Kenzera™: ZAU Standard Edition

Electronic Arts


5


$19.99

$17.99

Tales of Kenzera: Zau – April 23
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S

Adventure into the beautiful and treacherous lands of Kenzera as Zau, a young shaman who bargains with the God of death to bring his Baba back from darkness. With your cosmic powers and untried courage, advance into unknown mythological lands in this metroidvania title. Will you embrace the dance of the shaman?


Xbox Live
Xbox Play Anywhere

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Arcade: Wrath of the Mutants

GameMill Entertainment


$29.99

$25.49

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Arcade: Wrath of the Mutants – April 23
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S / Smart Delivery / Xbox Play Anywhere

Re-experience the 2017 arcade classic with three additional stages and six additional boss battles! Take control of Leonardo, Michelangelo, Donatello, or Raphael in this classic beat ‘em up inspired by the cult favorite Turtles in Time. Play with your friends through local co-op and dominate the Foot Clan to foil the Shredder’s maniacal plan.


Xbox Live

Aery – Cyber City

EpiXR Games

$9.99
Xbox One X Enhanced

Aery – Cyber City – April 23
Xbox One X Enhanced

Play a little bird on its journey to find a home after losing its dear friend. You will discover unknown, giant, and beautiful environments and you will be able to enjoy the feeling of flying while exploring a whole world filled with beauty and little secrets.


Xbox Live

Farm Tycoon

PlayWay S.A.

Farm Tycoon – April 24
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S / Smart Delivery

Expand your farm business, produce cheap and sell your products at high prices. Control the land cultivation process, select the best employees, buy the most appropriate farm equipment, raise livestock, and process the harvested crops. Manage your own farm in the game Farm Tycoon!


Xbox Live

Hidden Cats in New York

Silesia Games Sp. z o.o.

Hidden Cats in New York – April 24

Come and visit the famous Big Apple for a brand new cat-spotting adventure! Relax and look around the city, and with enough patience, find over 700 feline friends! The city only gets more vibrant the more cats you find!


Xbox Live

Insurmountable

Daedalic Entertainment

Insurmountable – April 24
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S / Smart Delivery

An adventure roguelike with permadeath where you must overcome huge mountains. Thanks to the procedurally created environment, no two climbs are the same. Keep your climber alive by always making sure that your vital values don’t get into the critical range. This is made more difficult by a dynamic weather system, day/night changes, and a multitude of randomly generated events.


Xbox Live

Metro Simulator 2

Ultimate Games

Metro Simulator 2 – April 24

A distinctive game that recreates Moscow Metro and authentic train controls. 24 stations, various tunnels, and items within them. The game uses modern technologies to show the full experience of Russian capital’s subway — stations on this line will reflect the changes of their era.


Xbox Live

Ratyrinth

Eastasiasoft Limited

Ratyrinth – April 24
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S / Smart Delivery

Take the role of a nimble rodent separated from his family and lost in a frightening forest filled with fearsome foes! Ratyrinth is a side-scrolling precision platformer with brainteasing level design and retro presentation. Run, jump, cling to walls, swim and climb through mazelike stages presented in minimalistic 2-tone style with fluid pixel art animation.


Xbox Live
Xbox Play Anywhere

Another Crab’s Treasure

Aggro Crab

Another Crab’s Treasure – April 25
Game Pass / Xbox Play Anywhere

Available on day one with Game Pass! A soulslike adventure set in a crumbling underwater world. As Kril the hermit crab, you’ll need to wear the trash around you as shells to withstand attacks from enemies many times your size. Embark on an epic treasure hunt to buy back your repossessed shell and discover the dark secrets behind the polluted ocean.


Xbox Live

Assault Suit Leynos 2 Saturn Tribute

CITY CONNECTION CO., LTD.

Assault Suit Leynos 2 S-Tribute – April 25

Developed by Masaya in 1997, this robot action game gained popularity at the time thanks to its customizable features, incredible robots, engaging storyline, and its position as the next installment in the Leynos series. The Saturn Tribute version includes new features like Rewind, Quick Save & Load, and Tips functions for smoother gameplay. You can also get power-ups with your Assault Suit.


Xbox Live

Manor Lords (Game Preview)

Hooded Horse

Manor Lords (Game Preview) (PC) – April 26
Game Pass

Available on day one with Game Pass! Manor Lords is a medieval strategy game featuring in-depth city building, large-scale tactical battles and complex economic and social simulations. Rule your lands as a medieval lord — the seasons pass, the weather changes and cities rise and fall.


Xbox Live

SAND LAND Pre-Order

Bandai Namco Entertainment America Inc.


6

$59.99

Sand Land – April 26
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S

In this action RPG, players will find a nostalgic and heartwarming world created by Akira Toriyama where you’ll meet the Fiend Prince Beelzebub, his chaperone Thief, and the fearless Sheriff Rao, and follow the team on an extraordinary adventure in search of the Legendary Spring hidden in the desert. The end is only the beginning, as beyond this arid ground lies a new realm to explore.


Xbox Live

TopSpin 2K25 Cross-Gen Edition – Pre Order

2K


3

$69.99

TopSpin 2K25 – April 26
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S

Travel the world as an up-and-coming pro, go toe-to-toe with the biggest names in tennis, and take Centre Court at Wimbledon, Roland-Garros, the US Open, and the Australian Open as you strive to become a Grand Slam Champion in the MyCareer mode. Or choose from over 24 playable pros and unleash their explosive power and clever finesse against other players locally or online.


Xbox Live

Zombies, Aliens and Guns

Ratalaika Games S.L.

Zombies, Aliens, and Guns – April 26
Optimized for Xbox Series X|S / Smart Delivery

Aliens have attacked the planet, and they’re turning innocent people into mindless zombies. It won’t be long before the invaders have destroyed the planet unless somebody with guns stands in their way. That’s where you come in! Lead a cadre of soldiers who are ready to take down every last enemy in their path.


The post Next Week on Xbox: New Games for April 22 to 26 appeared first on Xbox Wire.

It Took Helldivers 2 Players Less Than 24 Hours to Kill 2 Billion Bugs — and Super Earth Sounds Surprised

Now that’s what I call a big hunt! It took Helldivers 2 players less than 24 hours to complete its latest Major Order: to kill two billion Terminids.

On April 18, developer Arrowhead triggered the next step in Helldivers 2’s ongoing Galactic War after the PC and PlayStation 5 co-op shooter’s community successfully completed a Major Order to slow a significant Automaton invasion. Game Master Joel turned players’ attention to the Terminid front with the biggest kill order since the game’s explosive launch in February.

Helldivers 2 players were given six days to kill two billion Terminids, which sounded like an insurmountable task, but players made it clear they’d hit the kill count sooner rather than later. So fast was progress that some wondered if Helldivers 2’s Terminid kill tracker was bugged.

But today, April 19, the Major Order is complete and medals have been dished out to players as a reward. Cementing the achievement is an in-universe message from the official Helldivers 2 Twitter account:

In the game itself, messages celebrating Super Earth’s victory make clear this bug clearout came as something of a surprise.

”In further proof of their elite training and irreplaceable value, the Helldivers reached the target set for Terminid biomass production far faster than anticipated,” the message reads. “While additional destruction of Liberty’s enemies is always beneficial, E-710 refinement pipelines are full at the present time. However, there will be ample opportunities for additional biomass production in the future.

“Super Earth High Command commends the Helldivers for their boundless enthusiasm to destroy the enemies of Freedom.”

The upshot of this is Helldivers 2 players head into the weekend without a Major Order to work towards, which means it’s weapons free time for the community. That’s no bad thing, really. Kill Automatons or Terminids or whatever you fancy!

As Arrowhead maintains the Galactic War and adds new content to the game, it’s also battling bugs of a different kind. This push and pull was a topic discussed by CEO Johan Pilestedt recently as part of a fascinating insight into Arrowhead’s live service philosophy. If you’re looking for more on Helldivers 2, check out IGN’s feature on the Let Me Solo Her of Helldivers 2, a player who has answered over 100 SOS Beacons as part of a mission to help others.

Helldivers 2 has become one of the surprise hits of 2024 since launching in February, topping the charts on Steam and reportedly selling around three million copies. According to at least one analyst, it’s still growing. Check out IGN’s Helldivers 2 review to find out why it’s going down so well.

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.

Stardew Valley gets yet another update, adding new mine layouts and ominous-sounding “fish frenzies”

It’s starting to feel like ConcernedApe (aka Eric Barone) may in fact be a modern day Sisiphus, destined to work on Stardew Valley forever. Following on from the mega update of 1.6 a month ago, and 1.6.3 soon after that, the hardy perennial farming game has a new 1.6.4 mini update. The key addition this time is more new layouts that will appear after you reach the bottom of the mines, and more layouts for the volcano mines too. If you’ve not played Stardew Valley you might wonder why there are deep mines and volcanos, and to you I say “Pah! You should play Stardew Valley.”

1.6.4 also has a lot of bug fixes (including fixing disappearing pets, new pets being a key feature of 1.6) and some balance changes, as well as a host of fixes for modders and modded players. ConcernedApe said early on that 1.6 would be an update for modders, so it’s nice to see that being supported. You can read the full patch notes here.

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Alice0 is leaving RPS, come and celebrate her work and make lamentation

We’ve suffered some body blows recently, but perhaps none will ever be as winding as the news I now deliver to you: Alice0 is leaving RPS. She recently celebrated 10 years here, so that should tell you something about how much of an influence she’s had over the tone of the site over it’s lifespan. Truly, the site won’t be the same without her – so let’s take the opportunity to celebrate here work here.

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Upcoming Dragon’s Dogma 2 Patch to Nerf Dragonsplague and Make Pawns Speak Less, but There’s No Mention of a Performance Mode

Capcom has detailed an upcoming patch for Dragon’s Dogmas 2 that makes a number of changes and fixes, but there’s no mention of the performance mode so many players are waiting for.

Following the release of the sprawling action role–playing game in March, players experienced inconsistent framerate performance, particularly on PC. Whereas games like Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth gives players a Performance or Graphics mode option — prioritizing either a consistent framerate or increased graphical output — Dragon’s Dogma 2 only has one visual mode across all consoles. Check out IGN’s Dragon’s Dogma 2 Performance Review – PS5 vs Xbox Series X/S vs PC, for more.

Now, Capcom has announced an upcoming Dragon’s Dogma 2 patch, due out later in April, and confirmed what it sets out to do, but players shouldn’t expect a performance mode. What is included is a nerf to the pesky dragonsplague illness, which turns pawns murderous but only exhibits a few subtle symptoms up to that point (modders have already made things really obvious for PC players by sticking a big number on the follower’s forehead).

Elsewhere, there are adjustments to pawns’ behavior and dialogue, including a tweak to make it less likely for pawns to fall of cliffs. There’s also a note about reducing the frequency of some pawn dialogue, which should make them a little less annoying to be around.

Dragon’s Dogma 2 arrived more than a decade after its predecessor on March 22, 2024 and proved a monster hit for publisher Capcom despite being seeped in controversy, selling 2.5 million units in 11 days amid microtransaction and the performance complaints.

In our 8/10 review, IGN said: “More of a redo than a sequel, Dragon’s Dogma 2 is a strange and wonderful action-RPG that bolsters the original’s strengths without addressing its weaknesses.”

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.

Fallout 76 has a hellish new area and Bethesda want you to nuke it

Timed perfectly off the back of the Fallout TV show’s success, Fallout 76 players can start testing out Skyline Valley, a new woodland area in the game’s upcoming major update. There’s a new public event to try, as well as combat readjustments that’ll be drip fed over the course of the test period. Anyone who owns the game on Steam can give these things a go, which is a bonus, too. I think I own it? I genuinely can’t remember. Anyway, yes, maybe I’ll hop in and see how things have changed since, errr, launch.

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Super Nintendo World’s Donkey Kong Country Park Delayed To Late 2024

Swinging away from Spring.

It was right at the end of 2023 that Universal Studios announced the opening date for its Donkey Kong Country park at Super Nintendo World Japan. It was supposed to be this Spring (any day now, we would assume), but instead, the studio has announced that the opening has been pushed back to “late 2024”.

The delay was announced by Universal Studios Japan on Twitter, with the notice giving no indication of why the opening had been delayed, but confirming that more details would be coming in the future when they are ready.

Read the full article on nintendolife.com

Valve Updates Team Fortress 2 to 64-Bit, Boosting Performance of the 17-Year-Old FPS

Valve has updated its near 17-year-old competitive first-person shooter Team Fortress 2 to finally add 64-bit support.

The update, which some fans are calling the most significant from Valve itself in years, should result in a performance improvement for most users. Reports indicate Team Fortress 2’s frames-per-second count is increased by around 20%, resulting in a much smoother experience.

While this Team Fortress 2 update is certainly welcome, it has done little to calm the constant stream of requests from the player base for Valve to tackle the game’s most troublesome issue: bots. Team Fortress 2 has had a bot problem for years, and despite a community-wide drive to raise awareness for the issue, there is little sign of improvement.

Team Fortress 2 April 18 update patch notes in full:

The major changes include:

  • Added 64-bit support for Windows/Linux client and server
    • Should include performance improvements for most users
    • Bugs can be reported here: https://github.com/ValveSoftware/Source-1-Games/issues
  • Fixed an exploit related to uploading invalid custom decals that would crash other clients

Team Fortress 2 launched in 2007 on PC and console, and it has endured as one of Steam’s most popular games ever since. At the time of this article’s publication, Team Fortress 2 was the 16th most-played game on Valve’s platform, with 50,092 concurrent players. That’s more than the likes of Monster Hunter: World, Call of Duty, and Football Manager.

Despite Team Fortress 2’s ongoing popularity, players have often accused Valve of neglecting the game in favor of other projects, such as Dota 2. In January, Team Fortress: Source 2 and Portal 64 fan projects were shut down by Valve takedowns. In development since at least 2021, Team Fortress: Source 2 was envisioned as a new version of the classic game on Garry’s Mod spiritual successor s&box. With Team Fortress 2 now 17 years old and largely overrun by bots, Team Fortress: Source 2 was intended to inject fresh life into Valve’s beloved shooter. The team at one point had more than 20 volunteers helping to port assets from the base game and rebuild Team Fortress 2 mechanics.

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.

Cities: Skylines 2 devs apologise for “rushed” DLC, offer refunds, promise conciliatory fan summit

While Cities: Skylines 2 has made progress on the performance front, not everything about the troubled citybuilder is on the up. In fact, player reception to the recently released Beach Properties DLC has proven so un-sunny that both developers Colossal Order and publishers Paradox Interactive have issued a joint statement apologising for the state it launched in.

The letter, addressed to Cities fans and signed by Colossal Order CEO Mariina Hallikainen and Paradox Interactive deputy CEO Mattias Lilja, also promises refunds for anyone who bought Beach Properties. Or, in the case of those who got it through snapping up Skylines 2’s Ultimate Edition, compensation in the form of three Creator Packs and three radio stations. The contentious DLC is also going free to anyone who’s yet to put money down.

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Stardew Valley Adds 40 New Mine Layouts In Latest Update, Here Are The Full Patch Notes

The Switch release is still waiting on the ‘1.6 Update’.

Although we’re still waiting on the Stardew Valley1.6 Update‘ for Switch, the game’s creator Eric ‘ConcernedApe’ Barone is already rolling out new updates for the PC version.

In the latest update (1.6.4 update), the creator has added all sorts of new content and features on top of everything that’s already been included in the 1.6 update. The highlight in 1.6.4 is the fact there are now 20 new ‘alternate’ main layouts and 20 new volcano mines layouts.

Read the full article on nintendolife.com