Happy this week, you people! The sky is a washed eggshell blue, the air smells of circus straw, and all the fallen leaves have eyes that glitter mischievously and mouths that screech underfoot like dial-up modems. The Maw must be feeling festive. Let's see if there are any new PC games we can feed it.
Monday 18th November is a day of crafty auto-battling care of Seer's Gambit. On Tuesday 19th November, Into The Breach meets Tails Of Iron in Toads Of The Bayou. There's also Threshold, for people who love trains, stress and grimy pixelation, Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, for people who love planes and pretty clouds, and Towers Of Aghasba, for people who love village-building and off-brand Avatar. On Wednesday 20th November, the actual, no-foolin' release of post-apocalyptic shooter S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart Of Chornobyl. Stardew lovers may prefer Luma Island. On Thursday 21st November, "grand RTS" ICBM Escalation wants to have a word about those nukes you're stockpiling in Norway. And on Friday 22nd November, the choice of Hard Chip, an extremely nerdy puzzler about semiconductor chip design, or Toastercide, in which you try to launch a toaster into somebody's bathtub using Spider-Man grappling and time control. Not actually about killing toasters, then, but I guess "Peoplecide", aka plain old "Murder", isn't much of a game title.
As ever, there may be other and better games on offer that only you, the debonair RPS cognoscenti, can find. Our comments thread awaits your insights. Well, assuming it doesn't shove them into automod purgatory (pulling the Automod's teeth is top of my to-do list this week). There's also our weekly news liveblog below, in which sporadic journalism may occur between music recommendations and notes-to-self about replenishing my stocks of mold cleaner. Hope you have a good one!
Our live coverage of this event has finished.
Key points- 09:00 am November 22 2024 STREET FRIDAY MAW
- 09:02 am November 21 2024 THE KING OF THURSDAYS
- 09:08 am November 20 2024 MAWVEL VS CAPCOM
- 09:11 am November 19 2024 BLAZBLUESDAY
- 10:00 am November 18 2024 MAWTAL KOMBAT
MAWTAL KOMBAT
Can we do a fighting game-themed pun week? I sure hope we can. Break out the Obsidian Wordplay Oscillators and FEED IT, FEED IT. Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 10:05 am UTCGTA: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition was comprehensively updated last week, and rather strangely, port developers Grove Street Games have been removed from the opening title screens (they're still mentioned in the final credits). Grove Street's Thomas Williamson appears unhappy about this.
Speaking entire hypothetically: It's a dick move to remove primary developers from credits in an update, especially when an update includes hundreds of fixes that were provided by those developers that stayed out of players' hands for years.
— Thomas Williamson (@TSWilliamson) November 14, 2024 To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 10:07 am UTC The Horror at Highrook, an occult cardgame set in a foetid mansion, will receive funding from Among Us dev Innersloth's Outersloth indie funding initiative. Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 10:09 am UTCRatatan is a new martial rhythm extravaganza from Tokyo Virtual Theory and Patapon creator Hiroyuki Kotani. It sure looks/sounds Patapony.
《Ratatan》揭露宣传影片 | GSE Watch on YouTube Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 10:16 am UTCVia PCGamer, BioWare art director Matt Rhodes has shared a bunch of concept arts for the next Dragon Age project after Inquisition, way back in 2014. Always find it interesting to compare concept art with the final game.
Veilguard
All the way back in 2014, before Dragon Age: Inquisition had even shipped, I started sketching out what cool things might come next.
We had momentum, so these quick mock ups explored where some of the unfinished story threads might lead. pic.twitter.com/nSGjX1ybul
SeekerX has another game for the Maw - train detective sim Loco Motive, out 21st November, which Katharine liked.
Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 10:29 am UTCThrilling but maddening spelunk-o-dystopia Lorn's Lure has been updated with an Explore mode that makes certain parts a fair bit easier.
Official Lorn's Lure Explore Mode Launch Trailer! Watch on YouTube Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 10:38 am UTC Counter-Strike 2 has been updated with a new version of classic map Train. They've made it "60% cloudier". More here. Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 15:29 pm UTC In The Abyss Of Dream is a cosmic horror game from Studio Chien d’Or that explores Québec’s real-life "Great Darkness", which I understand was a period of prejudice, corruption, repression and tragedy. It's a prelude to the developers' October Nightmares. I'm not familiar with the history, here - are you? In the Abyss of Dream | Reveal trailer Watch on YouTube Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 15:36 pm UTC MP1st calls our attention to the iStunt portfolio of actor and stuntman Jesse Hutch. It makes mention of "Gobi 2" - "Gobi" being the codename for Back 4 Blood, for which Hutch did motion capture. The site adds that last May, somebody registered a domain name for black4blood2.com. Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 09:11 am UTCBLAZBLUESDAY
Quarter-circle around the flanks! Lay down a suppressive bombardment of kamehamehas and hadoukens! FEED THE MAW. Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 09:24 am UTC Via Inverse, Dragon Quest 3 Remake producer Masaaki Hayasaka is keen on the idea of a HD-2D remake of Final Fantasy 6, often described as the secret best FF (every FF is the secret best FF). Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 09:27 am UTC Via VGC, Rainbow Six Siege is getting PC and console cross-play next month. Finally, we will kick down the doors and corner those silly Xboxers on their home turf. Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 09:43 am UTC The big 2.5.0 update for Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous is here. It accompanies the Game Of The Year edition, and encompasses many changes and fixes for areas, quests, items and class mechanics (beware spoilers through the link). Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 09:46 am UTCI pretty much never write about VR these days (I only have an original PSVR headset, which is currently being used as a draught excluder) so please be upstanding and clap your hands for this brief aside that VR game Alien: Rogue Incursion is out on 19th December.
Alien: Rogue Incursion - Story Reveal Trailer | PS VR2 Games Watch on YouTube Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 09:55 am UTCFoxhole, the MMO wargame Graham will not shut up about, has been treated to a major update. "Prepare for a major revision in Foxhole's infantry gameplay, designed to be more team-oriented and tactical," reads the Steam announcement. "This update introduces deeper suppression gameplay, weapon shouldering mechanics, and a stamina overhaul, alongside other features to make the entire infantry playspace more impactful on the persistent battlefield."
Foxhole Infantry Update - Official Launch Trailer Watch on YouTube Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 09:57 am UTC As for me, I'd rather watch plastic ducks. Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 10:03 am UTC Roblox have introduced some new rules and restrictions for child safety, including a new type of account that lets parents track and control what their kids are doing in the game. Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 16:36 pm UTC For the sickos, here's over two hours of Remedy talking to investors about how they're going to win the games industry (read: broad strategic plans for series like Control and Alan Wake, together with scattered thoughts on the industry as a whole). Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 07:36 am UTCReflector Entertainment, the studio that last month released third-person action adventure Unknown 9: Awakening, is seeing an unspecified number of layoffs, reports Ethan Gach of Kotaku.
Brendan Caldwell 09:08 am UTCMAWVEL VS CAPCOM
Thanks to Fighting Game pun week I have learned that "footsie" is both a romantic practice and a series of techniques for keeping your opponent at the optimal range. What do you mean, they're both the same thing? FEED THE MAW. Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 09:13 am UTCIGN has a report on the disagreements between the three Disco Elysium successor studios who all revealed themselves on the same day a few weeks back. There's talk of a cancelled Disco Elysium sequel on a USB stick, and claims about one particular studio head sharing around pictures of his ex-wife in a bikini.
Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 09:17 am UTCUndeterred by the brutal paddling administered to the first Minecraft movie trailer, Warner Bros and Legendary pictures have released a second one. Highlights include bees, child Jack Black, and the OG Minecraft score. This movie is going to make a trillion dollars and we'll all look like chumps for insisting that it looks rubbish.
A Minecraft Movie - Official Trailer - Warner Bros UK & Ireland Watch on YouTube Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 09:24 am UTC Path Of Exile 2 early access pack pricing will start at $30, Grinding Gear have announced. Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 09:28 am UTCMicrosoft Flight Simulator 2024 is experiencing pretty severe launch difficulties, with reports of massive download times and login delays. Microsoft have said "whoops" and "let me get on that".
We are aware of user reports of long initial loading times into Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024.
With so many users initializing the sim concurrently, we have a large number of server requests. We are working to help resolve the issues as soon as possible.
For users whose…
Shiren The Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon Of Serpentcoil Island has been announced for PC release via Steam. I played one of the Shiren games on DS many years ago - it's a banger catacomb-crawler, with all sorts of weird props and knock-on effects. But don't take it from me - take it from Immortality developer Sam Barlow.
I want 200 words on 'why I did not nominate Shiren the Wanderer' from each and every press outlet who voted for the Game Awards on my desk by Wednesday
— Sam Barlow 🧜♀️ Project C & D (@mrsambarlow) November 19, 2024 To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 14:38 pm UTCA big update out of the blue for wibbly physics brawler Gang Beasts. It now has a crane you can drive and birds who'll pick you up and fly away.
Gang Beasts - Update 1.25 'Crane' Stage Watch on YouTube Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 15:09 pm UTC In Neko Odyssey, you roam a nice side-scrolling Japanese neighbourhood taking pictures of cats. There's a demo. Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 09:02 am UTCTHE KING OF THURSDAYS
Terrible. Terrible! FEED THE MAW. Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 09:04 am UTC Microsoft are expanding their game streaming offering. Game Pass Ultimate members can now stream certain games through TVs and browser on supported devices like smartphones, PCs, and tablets in the 28 countries where the Xbox Cloud Gaming beta is underway. More here. Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 09:07 am UTCGSC Game World have posted on Elan Misk's Ailing Algorithmic Cabaret about plans for STALKER 2, now it's out. Beyond the initial hotfixes, there will be larger updates that add things to the game. We'll hear more in December.
A message from the GSC Game World Team.
Before you step into the Zone, we’d like to take a moment to share something from the heart. pic.twitter.com/wuLRAkq7Ba
One we missed from earlier in the week: Overwatch 2 is getting a new tank hero, Hazard. There's going to be a playtest this weekend.
Hazardous Tactics | Hazard Hero Trailer | Overwatch 2 Watch on YouTube Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 11:03 am UTC As reported by Eurogamer, forced stealth is all but gone from Star Wars Outlaws as of the latest, "biggest" update. Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 14:44 pm UTCEmpyreal is a new action-RPG from Silent Games and Secret Mode in which you, a star-faring mercenary, explore a huge alien monolith. "Venture inside the Monolith and face the automatons that yet remain, remnants of the impossibly ancient civilisation that built this unknowable structure," explains the Steam page. "Survive and uncover revelations that transform our understanding of humanity itself." Also loot. Lots of loot.
Empyreal - Official Announcement Trailer Watch on YouTube Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 14:47 pm UTCItch.io now require developers to disclose that they've used generative AI tools, be it for graphics, sound, text and dialogue, or code.
Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 14:53 pm UTC I don't like bigging up Google's doings, but there's a fun lunar boardgame hidden inside today's Google Doodle. Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 15:18 pm UTCGuntouchables is a 1-4 player co-op roguelike shooter from the Deep Rock devs. It casts you as a bunch of wobbly sausage men fighting mutants in angled top-down view. I know, I know - you've played a lot of roguelike shooters, but this has a certain style.
Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 09:00 am UTCSTREET FRIDAY MAW
Fighting Game pun week started well enough but has gone downhill rapidly. No time to worry about that, for the Maw must be fed. Fill the supertankers with condensed Tekken effluence! Full steam ahead! Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 09:05 am UTCDuneCrawl is a bit like Sea Of Thieves, but 1) top-down, and 2) instead of ships, you get a bunch of crustaceans. Scorpion-riding, is it? I think there's a proverb somewhere about that.
Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 09:07 am UTCDon't Wake The Beast appears to be a fine blend of Spelunky and Thief. It's a stealthy procgen dungeon crawler with the twist that there's a very large dragon at the bottom, and if you wake it up, it'll destroy everything pursuing you.
Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 09:11 am UTC Kill The Man In The House is a lurid little FPS experiment, featuring high player agility and slow motion. There is a man in the house and yes, you must kill him. Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 09:14 am UTCTime for the full release of Kura5: Bonds Of The Undying, a fangame remix of Hideo Kojima's old solar-sensitive Boktai games for the GBA. Find it on Itch.
Kura5: Bonds of the Undying - Release Trailer Watch on YouTube Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 09:16 am UTCDragon Age: The Veilguard's latest patch lets you rebind arrow keys for movement, as reported by PCGamer.
Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 09:19 am UTCAlso passed on by PCG, a short documentary about the making of Infinity Nikki, the open world gacha dress-up game.
Behind the Scenes of Infinity Nikki: The Grand Millewish Tree Silently Grows Watch on YouTube Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 13:24 pm UTCIn Dante's Ring (they will regret calling it that, if they aren't already), you search an erupting volcanic island for survivors while reckoning with "your own inner demons" and "deep-seated human beliefs". Sounds fancy. You also get a propellor-powered sled, among other retro gadgets.
Dante's Ring (now Into the Fire) - Teaser Trailer (Golden Joystick Awards) Watch on YouTube Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 13:25 pm UTC Follow the meaning is a just-released, hand-drawn, point-and-click adventure inspired by Samorost and the Rusty Lake series. Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 13:50 pm UTCVirtua Fighter 5 is coming to PC this winter. It's a remaster with 4K graphics, higher resolution textures, and rollback netcode support for better online play. Ta, Eurogamer.
VIRTUA FIGHTER 5 R.E.V.O. - Opening Cinematic Watch on YouTube Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 15:06 pm UTC Good news for Nic and other connoisseurs of inexplicable decapitations - according to Eurogamer, I Am Your Beast is getting nine more levels for free. Edwin Evans-Thirlwell 15:47 pm UTC PlanetSide 2 devs Rogue Planet Games have popped up a 12th anniversary letter to players which includes discussion of planned additions next year, from a new kind of Assault Facility to the Stryder, a hexapodal bio-tech tank. Edwin Evans-Thirlwell Load more comments Loading
