Game Informer

Game Informer

Five Nights At Freddy's Creator Scott Cawthon Announces Retirement After Political Donation Backlash

Posted: 17 Jun 2021 03:12 PM PDT

Scott Cawthon, best known as the creator of the indie breakout Five Nights at Freddy's, has announced in a post on his website that he is retiring from his current role in the series. This announcement follows the recent surfacing and criticism of Cawthon's monetary political contributions.

Cawthon starts the post by reminiscing about fans having sent him letters and fan art over the years. Five Nights at Freddy's released almost seven years ago and, in that time, many fans of the series connected with the characters, games, and even Scott Cawthon himself. "I've had a blessed, fulfilling, and rich career. I've been shown great kindness and I've tried to show great kindness in return," Cawthon writes in his retirement post.

Scott continues the post by talking about the passage of time and how creating games has transitioned from something he would do in his free time for fun and for his kids. Getting to the crux of the announcement Cawthon says, "All of this to say that I am retiring. I have been shown tremendous love and support over this last week, a lot of which has come from the LGBTQ community. The kindness shown to me has been surreal."

While he mentions the LGBTQ community, Scott has been strongly criticized recently over his contributions to politicians who have supported legislation or have views that many believe do not favor this marginalized group. A list of Cawthon's donations in recent years made its rounds not long ago. Some of the campaigns he supported include Devin Nunes, Ben Carson, Tulsi Gabbard, and former President of the United States Donald Trump. Cawthon's retirement post doesn't mention that these donations are connected to his retirement, but he has recently defended his actions in a lengthy Reddit post titled "My response, and maybe last post." That title and the contents within his response point strongly at the recent backlash being the cause of Cawthon's departure from the Freddy's series.

"Even if there were candidates who had better things to say to the LGBT community directly, and bigger promises to make, I believed that their stances on other issues would have ended up doing much greater harm to those communities than good," Cawthon wrote on Reddit after listing candidates he supported and why. Further in, Scott says, "I've always been supportive of creators, and have tried to treat everyone fairly, and treat everyone with dignity and respect. I've never cared about anyone's race, religion, gender, or orientation. I just treat people as people, everyone the same, and because of that, I've ended up with a very diverse group of people that I've worked with over the years."

Cawthon might have even foreshadowed his retirement post from Wednesday night: "If I get cancelled, then I get cancelled. I don't do this for the money anymore; I do it because I enjoy it. If people think I'm doing more harm than good now, then maybe it's better that I get cancelled and retire. I would accept that. I've had a fulfilling career."

Though Cawthon is resigning as the head of the Five Nights at Freddy's, the series will continue with someone he chooses and can trust as a successor. Cawthon says he has one wish as he gives up control of the property he created, "I only ask that my fanbase respect my decision. I will still be around, just not in the capacity that I used to be. What a blessed career I've had; what wonderful people I've met; and what a tremendous blessing to have been able to know all of you. Thank you so much."

There's currently no word on what this announcement means for the previously announced Five Nights at Freddy's: Security Breach from Steel Wool Studios which is scheduled to release on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and PC sometime in 2021.

Enhanced Version Of A Plague Tale: Innocence Comes To PS5 And Xbox Series X/S In July

Posted: 17 Jun 2021 01:58 PM PDT

2019's A Plague Tale: Innocence is getting an enhanced encore for current-gen consoles next month. The game is also coming to Switch via Nintendo's cloud streaming service. If you missed out on Asobo Studios' acclaimed narrative adventure, this sounds like the perfect time to hop in now that the sequel is on the way.

On July 6, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S owners can enjoy a new version A Plague Tale: Innocence with 4K UHD visuals, 60 frames-per-second performance, and 3D audio support. It's unclear if this will be a digital-only release or if it will come to stores as well. There's also no word on price either. Take a look at the improvements in action in the announcement trailer below. 

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A Plague Tale: Innocence was positively received upon release, largely for its dark, yet heartfelt story (read our review). It stars two noble-born siblings, Amicia and Hugo de Rune, on a search for a cure for the latter's mysterious illness. After suffering a family tragedy, their journey takes them across 14th century France which is currently overrun by a supernatural swarm of ravenous rats spreading the black plague. If that's not bad enough, the kids are also being hunted by the French Inquisition. 

The game is best described as a stealth adventure game, with players largely evading or distracting soldiers, though a few combat scenarios are present. Rats, on the other hand, are sensitive to light and many puzzles involve using torches and other light sources to repel floods of them. That's because these cursed critters can devour creatures in an instant. 

I'm a big fan of the original, so I'm happy to see its already sharp presentation get shined up further and made available to a wider audience. If you've been eyeing A Plague Tale: Innocence, does this upgrade entice you to give it a shot? Let us know in the comments!

Xbox Design Labs Is Open To Make The Xbox Controller Of Your Dreams

Posted: 17 Jun 2021 12:01 PM PDT

After putting the service on hiatus prior to the arrival of the Xbox Series consoles, Microsoft is reopening the Xbox Design Lab and is selling user-created controllers again. This time, the newest version of the Xbox wireless controller is for sale and set for complete customization.

Those looking to customize a new set of sticks will have many of the choices available previously in the design studio. Ushering the new controller design into the Lab is the arrival of 3 new colors: electric volt, pulse red, and shock blue, all of which have been on stock controllers in the past. There are a total of 18 colors to choose from which can be used in any combination on the front, back, bumpers, analog sticks, triggers, and d-pad. The face buttons have their own options as well including the new black text on color the ABXY buttons, and black icons on a white background option for the view, menu, and share buttons. There seems to be a staggering amount of choices to make a unique controller.

Microsoft is touting their use of recycled plastics in some of the controller colors. James Hunter, Senior Director of Strategy and Business at Xbox has a blog post on the reopening of the service, and talks about the use of this new kind of plastic in the controllers. "Most of our color options are made with plastics containing 30% post-consumer recycled (PCR) materials by weight. These color options will reduce the amount of waste plastic that ends up in landfills and ensure we are all doing our part to take care of the planet," says Hunter. This may not be the only change coming to this product; Hunter continues, "Our team is hard at work developing new processes, testing new materials, and innovating so that we can continue to evolve the Xbox Design Lab experience."

Ordering one of these colorful controllers will run $69.99, while an optional laser engraving will be an additional $9.99. The current standard Xbox controller design is the only option available for customization at this time. Sorry to anyone looking for a spicier Elite Series 2 or Adaptive Controller.

How do you feel about the new color additions? What's missing from the service that you'd like to see in the future? Let us know in the comments, and check out all the sweet new games coming to Xbox throughout the year and beyond!

OlliOlli World – New Gameplay Today

Posted: 17 Jun 2021 11:54 AM PDT

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OlliOlli World is an upcoming vibrant skateboarding game that tasks players with landing tricks and combos as they skate through the colorful and weird Radlandia, a totally real place with totally real skateboarders. The OlliOlli series began in 2014 and quickly gained a following for its addictive one-life gameplay loop that had fans replaying levels over and over trying to land their next big trick. OlliOlli World plans to deliver the same beloved precision skateboarding experience but in a more expansive and brightly-colored package. Join Alex Van Aken and Blake Hester as they show off some of the game's colorful courses in this episode of New Gameplay Today.

With last year's release of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2, my excitement to play extreme sports games is at an all-time high, and I've recently spent much of my free time playing titles such as Lonely Mountain Downhill and Trials Fusion. Though I haven't played an OlliOlli game previously, I've also recently revisited classics like Skate 3 and even more recent indie skateboarding games like Skater XL. While those games have great style and are a joy to play, they haven't captured my eye the same way that OlliOlli World does with its highly-saturated colors and characters. Also, what the hell is "Gnarvana" and why does this game have mystical skate gods? While I have no clue what the answers to those questions are, I can't wait to play OlliOlli World when it releases later this Winter on Steam, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S and Nintendo Switch.

Did you enjoy our quick look at this new OlliOlli game and want to see gameplay of other upcoming 2021 video game releases? Then be sure to subscribe to the Game Informer YouTube channel and catch up on recent episodes of New Gameplay Today right here. As always, be sure to leave a comment down below letting us know if you're excited to check out this upcoming game.

Dying Light 2 Contest Could Win You The Limited Collector’s Edition, Rust Crossover Also Announced

Posted: 17 Jun 2021 11:42 AM PDT

Dying Light 2 has been in the making for so long that fans assumed the worst: development hell. Small updates and assurances from Techland helped alleviate any worry, but earlier this year an extensive gameplay trailer dropped. Thankfully, Dying Light 2 is coming out this year and collector's edition copies of the game are nowhere to be found. Luckily, a writing, fan art, and cosplay contest has been announced and collector's editions are one piece of the reward package if you win. 

According to a press release emailed to Game Informer, starting today the Dying Light 2 Stay Human User Contest offers cash prizes, the Dying Light 2 Collector's Edition, and the chance for your submitted art piece to be featured in the upcoming sequel. You can submit a short story about The City's inhabitants, create a piece of visual art, or put your tailoring skills to the test with an impressive cosplay, makeshift Dying Light weapon and all. 

Submissions are open through December 7, and finalists and winners will be selected by Techland. No matter what, every finalist will receive the Dying Light: Platinum Edition, so you're better off trying than not! And if you're less inclined to submit, that's alright too; there are other ways to get your daily dose of Dying Light content. A new crossover event with Rust has also been announced. From now until July 1, you'll be able to hop into the DLC to don new outfits, fire new weapons, and drive new vehicles. You can read more about what the returning crossover offers here.

Dying Light 2 Stay Human releases on December 7 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. 

Are you going to submit some creative work to the contest? If so, which category will you participate in? Let us know your plans in the comments section!

New Hellblade 2 Trailer Shows More Behind-The-Scenes, "Not A Direct Sequel"

Posted: 17 Jun 2021 11:09 AM PDT

During the extended Xbox Games Showcase, Ninja Theory founder, Tameem Antoniades, talked about Senua's Saga: Hellblade II. Ever since the first Hellblade released to high praise, I've been waiting for any news about the sequel. The teaser trailer that premiered at The Game Awards a few years ago definitely scratched the itch, albeit briefly. The process that Antoniades' described today makes me even more hyped. Apparently, Hellblade II "is not a direct sequel," but Ninja Theory is making big moves to ensure it's an unforgettable experience. You can watch the montage below.

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During the early portion of the Hellblade II video, Antoniades affirms that the sequel is set in 9th century Iceland. He goes on to list the boot-on-the-ground work that the developers have committed to the upcoming title. Art and audio teams have been sent to Iceland and have conducted comprehensive photography shoots, and utilized photogrammetry as well as satellite data to recreate the landscape so that Hellblade 2 is more immersive and true to life. Ninja Theory is also working alongside Epic Games to implement next-generation digital characters; we all know how incredible the models looked in the first game, so this comes as no surprise! 

Additionally, Antoniades made sure to let fans know that combat is grittier and more intense than it was in the first game. Lead actor Melina Juergens has been training for two years alongside her cast members. The sheer amount of dedication that Ninja Theory is bringing to Hellblade II continues to fuel my excitement for the game.

Joe Juba reviewed the first Hellblade and said, "Psychosis in video games is often used to justify a villain's world-destroying ambitions, or as a vehicle to present gameplay gimmicks. Hellblade goes beyond those conventions, using Senua's mental illness as the core from which the entire tale radiates. That approach results in some phenomenal and unsettling narrative moments that knock you off-balance. However, in pursuit of that achievement, Hellblade weaponizes the real-world frustration it causes in exploration and combat. That's where it falters as a game, even while it captivates as a piece of interactive art."

Pokémon Unite Launching On Switch This Year, Everything We Know About The MOBA So Far

Posted: 17 Jun 2021 09:48 AM PDT

Last summer, Pokémon Unite was revealed by President and CEO of the Pokémon Company Tsunekazu Ishihara during the Pokémon Presents showcase. A 5v5 team-based MOBA, Unite has players drive down their respective lanes to capture wild Pokémon and upgrade their stats and abilities. Because of Unite's competitive nature, players will have to thwart one another's progress while traversing the arena. This means that many skirmishes will likely take place so you'll need to remain cautious as you progress down the battlefield; you can watch some cinematic and gameplay footage below. If this piques your interest you'll be happy to know that, according to a new press release posted on the official site today, the game is launching on Switch and Mobile this year.

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Everything We Know About Pokémon Unite

The Location

So where will these epic team battles take place? The Hoenn region? Sinnoh? Well, no one really knows. What we do know is that you'll be traveling to the mythical Aeos Island somewhere in the uncharted frontiers of the ocean. While competing in Unite battles on the island, players might discover Aeos energy which can be used to evolve Pokémon. You will star as a rookie trainer looking to find glory (and pocket monster friends, of course) in the legendary tournaments.

The Rules of Play

This is a 5v5 game, which means that direct lines of communication and cooperation is key to finding success. You win based on the amount of points you accrue throughout a given match. In ranked playlists, you'll look to earn performance points which can increase or decrease depending on the results of battle; you'll start at the Beginner rank and try to climb your way into Master. 

Even though type strengths and weaknesses don't exist in Pokémon Unite battles, each playable Pokémon will start the match at Level 1. They'll gain veterancy through fights against other players and will learn more powerful abilities as the match goes on. Aeos energy can be used to evolve Pokémon for even more statistical bonuses. 

Each Pokémon has a role with its own unique stats: Attacker, Defender, Speedster, Supporter, and All-Rounder. The titles are pretty self-explanatory, but, as you can see, there are enough for all types of playstyles. Of course, you can't just grab any starter Pokémon you want and dive in. You'll need to buy Unite licenses from the Unite Battle Committee with Aeos coins earned from combat. 

The Battle Pass & Other Content

Pokémon Unite comes with a seasonal battle pass which can be leveled up for exclusive rewards. You can also use Aeos gems to increase your battle pass levels. Aeos coins can be exchanged for cosmetic items for your trainer and Pokémon  as well as Unite licenses as stated above. Gems and coins can also be used at the Aeos Emporium to purchase held items and Aoes tickets will nab you all the fashionable items that you could ever want. 

Pokémon Unite launches on Switch in July and on mobile devices in September. Which platform will you be playing on, and what are you most looking forward to?

Resident Evil Has Come To Dead By Daylight And It Rocks

Posted: 17 Jun 2021 09:15 AM PDT

With Resident Evil Village still very much part of 2021's best of gaming discussion, the iconic horror brand is finding its way to another realm. That realm is Behavior Interactive's Dead by Daylight, one of the seemingly rare success stories in the asymmetric game category. Four survivors take on one killer in what amounts to a mini-horror movie experience when it works, and as of Tuesday Resident Evil has made its way into the game. With all the buzz of the last week solidly around E3 and new announcements, this content drop brings some big names into the long-running survival game.

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This certainly isn't the first time major games and movies have come into Dead By Daylight, with characters like Michael Meyers, The Pig (Saw), Pyramid Head, Freddy, and even the Demogorgon from Stranger Things all hanging out there. Dead By Daylight has become a destination of sorts for creatures and characters horror, so it makes sense that Jill Valentine, Leon S. Kennedy, and Nemesis are all in the game now. In addition to the Resident Evil cast, a new map that lets players explore the Raccoon City Police Department is also available, and it's very much in the spirit and design of how the area is featured in Resident Evil 2 Remake.

Dead by Daylight tends to do an excellent job at tapping into the various horror icons and translating their flavor into mechanics and features. Nemesis comes with zombies that appear on the map to create additional pressure for the survivors. While the zombies are slow, shuffling, and easy to avoid, they can create some passive problems when they decide to hang out around generators or land a lucky shot on a survivor that doesn't see them around a corner. Granted, you have to dodge them playing as Nemesis as well as they can block you a the worst time during a chase, but watching a zombie hang out above the basement stairway is the best feeling ever if you're playing Nemesis. 

Alongside your undead friends, Nemesis grows over the course of a match by inflicting T-Virus on survivors. Initially, you may find that the tentacle attack that conveys T-Virus is fairly weak as your basic attacks do more "damage" to survivors, but as it builds up you can use your tentacle to crush pallets and land long-range strikes through windows and over obstacles, giving you a serious edge when it comes to hitting survivors that have loops memorized and can kite you forever. While it can take a while to get going and leaves you at an early game disadvantage for focused survivor teams that start ripping through generators, it's a fun mechanic that taps into the flavor of the franchise.

On the survivor end of things, both Leon and Jill have some serious tools that may find their way into the meta - or just really irritate killers. Leon can craft flashbangs that blind the killer, so grab your best flashlight tapper crew and get out there to really bully some bad guys. These flashbangs also serve as a noisy distraction if you need to divert the killer's attention.

Jill has a special skill that lets her plant a trap on generators so that when the killer kicks them, they get a nasty surprise. Planting a bomb that stuns and blinds, this skill can be an unexpected problem, especially for killers that practice fastidious generator management via Surveillance or other watchful perks.

Have you tried out any of the new survivors or Nemesis? What do you think? Let us know in the comments!

Stranger Of Paradise Final Fantasy Origin Is Awesome Or Terrible. Possibly Both.

Posted: 17 Jun 2021 08:15 AM PDT

I really didn't know what to expect when I sat down with Team Ninja's take on classic Final Fantasy last night, but I sure as hell wasn't ready for what I experienced. At once, it was both a nostalgic romp through one of my favorite Final Fantasy game settings in precision timing action form and a bizarre B-movie with characters hammier than a pork sandwich. I've heard a ton of people complaining about the graphics as well, but I actually didn't have an issue with them. PlayStation 3? Have you actually looked at a PlayStation 3 game lately? Seriously, c'mon. Yes, it's absolutely not the definitive "current gen experience", but to call it a PS3 game is ridiculous.

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The goblins (imps), wolves, and the rest of the temple setting actually work for me and herald back to one of the more underrated games in the Final Fantasy series, the original game for the NES. At the time, creating your own party was a rarity when the JRPG was basically being shaped and molded by linear fare like Dragon Quest, so bringing your own concept team into a long playthrough was exciting. Sure, you could run the default team of fighter, thief/blackbelt, white mage, black mage, but it was way more fun to try to do something cool for your second or third playthrough like four blackbelts, four black mages, or the extreme four white mage composition. While playing Stranger of Paradise, I especially appreciated the callbacks to the early game creatures of Final Fantasy. I really, really enjoyed the soundtrack which played with the original music for the area. The combat and mechanics seem heavily inspired by both Nioh and Sekiro, and seem to work well once you get the hang of things - you can even "blue mage" your opponents by stealing their abilities by parrying and send them back at them, rewarding exact timing. While it's impossible to tell exactly how in-depth the sets and skills get from the demo, I'm confident that the lessons and takeaways from Nioh will work out fine in that area in the greater game.

The team of Jack, Jed, and Ash is beyond puzzling. Is this some kind of galaxy brain discoverability and discourse play? Did they know we'd all be talking about these characters and how out of place they are in a Final Fantasy universe? Have we secretly become mere pawns in some genius marketing plan that seeks to create a conversation around this game via absurdity? Jack belongs in a wrestling arena or something and feels shockingly out of place among the fantasy trappings, an "angry dude" who loves powerbombing Bombs and ripping wolves in half. The dialogue is atrocious to the point that they should have just used text from the original Final Fantasy. I don't know why this crew exists, but one thing is for certain - they are here to kill Chaos. Hell yeah. Jack is gonna snap into a Slim Jim right after he takes Garland out with a jump from the corner ropes.

The big boss fight with Garland actually worked for me as a battle. Taking him on by refusing to engage with the mage class was a lesson in parrying, blocking, and dodging, which brought out a bunch of mechanics that one could otherwise ignore during the demo. The battle absolutely felt Sekiro-ish, with careful and continued play rewarding me with opportunities to shred his stamina to nothing and lead to the critical blows. A phase transition halfway through the fight was both expected and pleasant. As boss battles go, I've had better. I've had worse. With Garland being the main villain of the original Fantasy Game (who yes, eventually becomes Chaos), I am really curious as to how many of the other major bosses in the title will translate into multiphase encounters, from Kraken to Tiamat. I can't wait to see Jack rip one of Tiamat's heads off and shove it into Warmech and say something like "This machine wants power? Let's see it handle THIS! UNH!". Maybe he'll just pick up the entire desert tower and shove it into Tiamat. Who knows!

The Stranger of Paradise demo isn't exactly what I expected when we all heard the rumors of a Team Ninja Final Fantasy Souls-like. Like an incredibly cheesy movie that borrows from big brands to create some weird spinoff, the more I think about it, the more I think it works in some strange way. It's like the Freddy vs. Jason of games. It's having fun with it, even if not everyone will. The amount of folks out there that care about canonical devotion to the source material can probably be counted on one hand, so maybe it's alright that Jack is just gonna crush his way through Final Fantasy. The days of belts are over. The time for a new hero is here. A hero that KILLS CHAOS. What a ride, and somehow I'm curious to see what comes next.

Hands-On With Tales Of Arise Reveals Smart, Strategic Gameplay Tweaks

Posted: 17 Jun 2021 07:03 AM PDT

Publisher: Bandai Namco
Developer: Bandai Namco
Release:
Rating: Teen
Platform: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC

I've been a longtime fan of the Tales series; whether it was watching Symphonia's Llyod confront his naivety or seeing Abyss' Luke realize he's kind of a jerk, I love how the main characters become better versions of themselves through the bonds they build. While Tales' strongest features are its character interactions and the fast and fun action combat, it's struggled this last generation to both appeal to modern gamers and provide something new and exciting for its longtime fans. 

Tales of Arise is being called a "reinvention" for the venerable, if stuck-in-a-rut, franchise. Any time a long-established series uses the word "reinvention," it's hard not to be skeptical. Change is scary and risky, as developers try to toe the line between retaining the elements that fans cherish while also evolving the formula in different and interesting ways. I wasn't sure what side Tales of Arise would land on, but after going hands-on with the game, I feel much more confident in Bandai Namco's new vision for the series due to some smart tweaks to combat and a new interesting world that begs to be explored. Here are some of my big takeaways.

A Vast World With Cool Discoveries

The hands-on demo didn't offer much in terms of story or character personalities, outside of allowing us to see protagonists Alphen and Shionne bickering. The demo did, however, highlight part of the game's third region called Elde Menancia, which looked more rural, focusing on nature's beauty with forests, streams, and even a hidden waterfall for good measure. The demo took place about 10-20 hours into the main story, when you finally have all your party members.

What stuck out about the world to me – outside of the breathtaking watercolor-like aesthetics – was just how much is hidden off the beaten path to discover. From items such as ores for crafting to ingredients for recipes, there always seemed to be a reward for taking the time to explore. This includes stumbling upon special treasure chests, where I found valuable materials, such as accessories and better weapons. At one point, I came across a small farm with cows, pigs, and horses grazing, and of course, the cows provide milk to use in cooking recipes. Yes, cooking is back. Bandai Namco said it will talk about this feature more at a later date, but so far it looks like what we've come to expect from these types of systems, offering stat boosts in battle, like giving you more attack power for a certain duration.

Alternate paths are all around if you seek them out. Later, I found a hidden stream, which had a waterfall with a small cave housing a valuable chest. I played the demo three times, and each time I found a new discovery, whether it was a hidden area or treasure to unearth. It appears that Bandai Namco is packing a lot into the zones, so they don't feel like big, empty spaces like in previous games. Tales of Arise isn't open world, but it certainly feels grander than any other Tales game. 

The Fluid Action Combat Still Shines

A strength of the series has always been its fast and fluid action combat that's focused on chaining up combos and pulling off flashy moves. That isn't changing; the action is still fast-paced and combo-driven, where you swap between regular attacks and your artes (special moves that cost points to use). You can string up to three normal attacks together, but this limit can be increased once you learn certain skills. Jumping and attacking in the air also causes characters to unleash different normal attacks, which is a nice touch and adds some variety to how you play and what moves you want to chain together. 

The controls are a little different than previous games and it did take me a few battles to acclimate to them. Your regular attacks are executed using the right bumper, while all your artes are on the face buttons. The right trigger acts as your defend/evade. If you time your evade/guard just right, you perform a perfect evasion/guard, nullifying any damage and giving you the opportunity to counterattack by pressing attack.  

You have two things to keep track of as you fight: AP (artes points) and CP (cure points). The former is all your special, damage-inducing attacks, while the latter is your support and healing artes. New to this entry is boost strikes –potent, one-hit kill co-op attacks – that can be executed once you fill a gauge up through combat. These are more likely to occur at low enemy HP and higher combo counts. In addition, every character also has their own unique boost attack, which you can use in battle with the d-pad. Filling up a boost gauge, which charges over time and by landing attacks and counters on enemies, enables you to activate these.

I was impressed with how smooth the controls felt, the variety of attacks at my disposal, and the satisfaction that comes from delivering those satisfying cinematic special moves. The battlefield remains chaotic, which means it can also be hard to keep track of where everyone is when the action heats up. Four total party members can be on the field at once, with two others in the support spots. At any given time, you control one character, but can swap to others in an instant. You can also play around with the party tactics, which allows you to focus your members on attacking, healing, or taking the default, balanced approach.

Different Character Playstyles Make Battles Feel Exciting

Party members all have something different to offer in terms of their playstyles, and each one has their own special perk and boost attack. I played the demo multiple times using various party members, and my strategy shuffled depending on who I controlled, offering a new and exciting feeling to how battles played out.

I started with knight Kisara, who wields a giant hammer and has a huge shield to match it. With her strong offensive and defensive capabilities, she's perfect to fight on the front lines, but with big weapons and armor comes slower attacks and movement. Thankfully, Kisara's perk is Guard Ignition, which means she uses her shield to block attacks instead of dodging them outright. She can even trigger some artes while guarding. If you successfully block with her shield, it raises her morale, making any artes and combos unleashed during this time stronger and harder to block. 

Kisara is a more advanced character to learn; she's powerful but you need to use her abilities wisely to get the most out of her. For instance, her massive shield can also protect others, but that requires paying attention to your party members and the enemy in front of you. Like I said earlier, battles play out fast and chaotically, so this isn't exactly always easy. It took me some time to find my rhythm with her, but she's fierce and her boost attack can be a big blessing, as it downs any enemies it hits, weakens their charge attacks, and boosts all allies' defense, both physically and elementally. 

The next character I tried was mage Rinwell, who, as expected, relies on magic-infused artes. Rinwell's casting takes time, but her magic has far reach and is extremely potent. For her perk, she can charge up her magic; all you have to do is hold the arte button down to boost its power, and let go to unleash it. Better yet, you can charge a cast up and save it for later by pressing the bumper, which will activate it after your next attack/arte. However, that's not all to this special charge power, if you cast the same arte in succession to the one currently charged, they combine into a higher-tier spell. 

My strategy was to get as far away from the enemy as possible to perform a charged-up cast before an enemy could thwart my plans. This wasn't an issue for me in regular battles, but in the big boss battle I took on, I had to restart my casts a few times in order to dodge incoming attacks. Rinwell's boost attack can cancel an enemy's magic attack; if she executes it while they're casting an arte, it not only downs them, but she steals the spell, charges it, and then blocks them from casting it for a while. 

The last character I experimented with was close-quarters martial artist Law, who is a purely offensive character. Expect to use his fists and feet to distribute flurry after flurry of strikes to overwhelm foes, but also be aware that his low defense means you have to keep your hand on that evade button. Law was by far the fastest, most get-in-the-action character I played, with rapid diving kicks and fiery punches.

Law's perk, Awakening, raises his concentration the longer you avoid hits; this ups his attack and elemental power. The boost ends once he gets staggered or fails to land hits for any period of time. What you give up in defense, you gain in power. His boost attack, Breaker Fist, is highly effective on armored baddies, breaking through their defense and downing them.

More Strategy Is Part Of The Fun

The high action and flashy moves have always been fun in the Tales series, but the core strategy has certainly revolved around combos and special moves. As you can see with the different characters and their abilities, there appears to be much more to think about on the battlefield than mashing buttons at opportune times. From what I played, the addition of boost attacks alongside character perks really changed how I thought about battles. 

It all came together for me in a boss battle against a giant mantis, where I realized I had to study my enemy for success. Bigger foes now have weak points you can target to take them down faster, and this is essential in boss battles. With the left bumper, you can swap to different targets on the enemy's body, and the weak points will usually have an orange glow to draw your eye. Attacking these orange cores and breaking them immediately downs an enemy, making them take increased damage from your strikes, so it's smart to also use boost attacks during these windows. Combos also have diminishing returns if you repeat the same arte multiple times for four actions. This forces you to try different combinations and not rely on the same tactics.

Between targeting the mantis' weak points, evading its big moves like a charge attack that could send my characters across the screen for high damage, and calling in boost attacks and strikes after I chained enough combos, I ended up victorious. However, it wasn't easy and it wasn't a short battle. This fight really showcased the increased strategy behind the combat, and I loved how the adrenaline rush of it all. 

Tales of Arise makes a lot of smart tweaks to Tales' core formula. I can't say much about the story, but I saw a lot of promise in what I played. Varied enemy types with different weaknesses and characters having their own special skills via boost attacks to capitalize on feel like steps in the right direction. Time will tell how it stakes out, but I'm optimistic about the future of the franchise. 

Madden NFL 22 Preview – Hoping For A New Set Of Downs

Posted: 17 Jun 2021 07:00 AM PDT

Madden NFL 22

Publisher: EA Sports
Developer: EA Tiburon
Release:
Rating: Everyone
Platform: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Stadia, PC

While a running joke among sports video game players is about what little innovation takes place in the space, last year's Madden NFL 21 was a particular target thanks to minimal upgrades to the series' most played modes. In response to a launch that brought about an unprecedented amount of backlash from the community regarding Franchise mode, EA Sports and EA Tiburon appeared to take the criticism to heart and laid out a roadmap that included free post-launch updates as well as improvements that would be implemented in Madden NFL 22. Today, the studio pulled back the curtain on Madden NFL 22 as a whole, including changes to Franchise mode, new ways that Next-Gen Stats are being implemented, and various improvements to the atmosphere of the games you play.

Feel The Atmosphere

If you've ever attended a high-stakes, live sporting event, you know the electric feeling that comes from being there for the tense moments of anticipation, the crescendo of the big play coming together, and the devastation of defeat. With Madden NFL 22 on new-gen consoles, EA Tiburon wants to replicate those feelings, and in the process grant gameplay advantages to the home team.

New Gameday Atmosphere mechanics bring the crowd to life and give the home team extra benefits beyond the cosmetic realm. While new crowd animations, remastered crowd recordings, and "hero" crowd characters help make the spectators more believable and realistic, they can and will impact the way games play out.

"We want you to feel like if you're a fan and that's your home team, you go there and you get that sense of what it sounds like; we hope to translate that to the game," executive producer Seann Graddy says. "We also wanted to feel like that when you're the away team and if you're playing in Franchise with your favorite team and you're playing as the Steelers and you hate the Ravens, but you've been there and you know what that sounds like when your team goes there. We want to bring that to the table."

Madden NFL 22

Crowd noise can make it tough for opposing quarterbacks to hear the playcall, and new characteristics for each stadium grant special bonuses to the home team and apply various gameplay modifiers based on the location. For example, in the thin air of Denver, throws and kicks will fly further for both teams, while the visiting team will struggle to catch their breath, taking a hit to short-term stamina. Other examples include the Windy City of Chicago making it tougher for kicks to fly straight, Vikings players getting a red zone boost as the "Skol" chant rings through the U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. And the notorious 12th Man of Seattle rattles visiting players, making it so their pre-snap play art is squiggly.

That might sound familiar for those who have played the NCAA Football series, but according to EA Tiburon, this goes beyond anything that series did. "Gameday Momentum, it really has its origins in what we had in NCAA for sure, but it's modernized and one of the key pieces of feedback we got way back when we made an NCAA game was it was a little too ambiguous and there wasn't a lot of different objectives to know when you unlocked certain things," gameplay producer Clint Oldenburg says. "So that's what we really attacked with Gameday Momentum, is giving you the proper feedback to know exactly what you need to do and what you're going to unlock and when you're going to unlock it. It's a modernized version of that blast from the past, if I may put it that way."

Of course, if you don't give the fans something to cheer about, they can't be a factor in the game, which is where Gameday Momentum, another new mechanic, comes into play. Now, when you play through a game of Madden, a Momentum meter appears at the top. Depending on performance of each team, momentum shifts back and forth, granting additional bonuses (called M-Factors) to the teams. These can include activating those aforementioned modifiers like making the play call more difficult, or other bonuses like making kickers less accurate or making receivers less effective at running hot routes. While each team can use these M-Factors, the home team gets a slight advantage with one additional M-Factor to hammer home the notion of home-field advantage.

Building Up The Franchise

As I mentioned before, the Franchise mode of Madden NFL 21 was perhaps the most maligned mode in the game. EA Tiburon made decent strides post-launch via three separate title updates, and while Madden NFL 22 will operate under that strategy, with post-launch updates planned throughout the NFL season, the Franchise mode will be stronger right out of the gate. 

"Just like when we started in Madden 21 when we started that title, players were saying they wanted more from the mode," Graddy says. "We came back with the three title updates that we talked about and set out a roadmap that we wanted to achieve. For the most part, we delivered the things that we rolled out. At the same time, we said, 'Hey, we're going to come back in 22 and invest in this super popular mode – depending on the time of the year, it's our most popular mode, the highest number of players inside of it. It was important to come back with a robust feature set for that audience that kind of started at the launch of Madden 21."

The new Franchise Staff feature lets you build, grow, and customize four coaching staff positions using RPG-style skill trees. Using experience earned through play, you can develop your head coach, player personnel, offensive coordinator, and defensive coordinator with more than 60 different talents. Additionally, players can expect more talents to arrive following launch. 

Madden NFL 22

For Madden NFL 22's Franchise, EA Tiburon wanted to make every week feel like a distinct struggle. Sure, it accomplishes that through the new crowd and stadium atmosphere mechanics, as well as the specialized team-based momentum modifiers, but each team behaves different, and the gameplay should reflect that down to the core of the experience. Now, before every game in Franchise, you can set your strategy heading in. Using a new interface, you can study your opponent's strengths, weaknesses, and tendencies, then shape your gameplan around that. For example, if you're playing against the Ravens, you might want to set up some way to try and contain their hybrid quarterback, while facing off against the pass-heavy Bills might require a different strategy. Then, if you get into the game and see new tendencies emerging or that certain strategies are more or less effective than you thought, you can now adjust your gameplan at halftime.

It's no secret the game of football is a grueling sport that can grind down the human body week after week, so Madden NFL 22 is including a new way to monitor player health. Now, when you set up the practices for the week, you can manage each player's practice intensity and if they're donning full pads the whole week in a careful balancing act of getting them the fullest benefits while also making sure they're healthy when they suit up on Sunday.

The decisions don't stop there, however, as you now have more engaging goals to complete alongside choices to make and challenges with better rewards. New storylines emerge, complete with cinematics, choices to make, and more goals specific to the team you're controlling. Through these sequences, you can earn staff points, player experience, or even Dev Traits. 

It all comes together in the newly redesigned Franchise Hub, which has been streamlined to surface the most important and pertinent information to you. If all this isn't enough, EA Tiburon is also planning its first post-launch title update for Franchise mode, tentatively targeted for September. In that mode, you'll be able to dive deep into player scouting, with the ability to manage and assign national and regional scouts, with players that gain and lose value on your draft board throughout the course of a season. This much requested feature looks great in the small glimpse I saw of it, and hopefully it's just as detailed in execution, giving players the much-needed tools to have better control over their draft planning.

Replicating Real Life

Of course, every new gameplay innovation and off-the-field mechanic is for naught if the on-the-field product is bad. While the actual gameplay itself may have been the best part of last year's package, EA Tiburon has continued improving upon the successes while tightening up the shortcomings. The PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S versions of Madden NFL 21 utilized NFL's Next-Gen Stats to create a more realistic and less robotic experience, and EA Tiburon is continuing to tweak and expand the parts of the game that these specialized stats impact. 

Since this is the second year of Next-Gen Stat implementation, its effects are wider reaching. Players feel more accurate to NFL superstars and thanks to additional route-running and player-speed data, ball carriers feel more explosive, receivers have more control in catching (including more situational awareness for things like sidelines toe-drags and jump-balls against defenders), and quarterbacks have more control both in and outside of the pocket. 

Madden NFL 22

On top of that, new Star-Driven A.I. means players behave more like their real-world counterparts when under the control of the game's A.I. According to EA Tiburon, more than 80 percent of Madden NFL 21 games were played against A.I. instead of real players, so the team wanted to make sure that experience felt just as dynamic and meaningful. Quarterback decisions under pressure are now more reflective of real life, as are situations like passing on the run, making decisions under pressure, open-field pathfinding, and the A.I.'s knowledge of opposing X-Factor abilities. On a team level, playing against run-heavy teams feels different from pass-heavy teams, as does driving down the field against a blitz-heavy defense. As tendencies emerge throughout the course of the real NFL season, EA Tiburon will update the characteristics of the players and teams in the game.

Finally, player momentum is more respected in Madden NFL 22. The upgraded system does a better job of taking player size, speed, and traits into account when collisions happen. Additionally, players can expect a more dynamic passing pocket that feels more authentic, and run blocking momentum enhancements lead to better running lanes and more realistic animations.

The package is rounded out with other returning modes, including The Yard, Face of the Franchise, and of course, Madden Ultimate Team. While details aren't as readily available for those modes just yet, we do know that Face of the Franchise is called "United We Rise" and lets you choose quarterback, wide receiver, running back, or, for the first time ever, linebacker as you strive for superstardom with an all-new cast of characters. The new class system combines with player physiques and customization to let you create your avatar that will travel between Face of the Franchise and The Yard.

Only time will tell if these changes result in a meaningfully better experience both on and off the field, but the early outlook is positive for the next entry in the long-running football franchise. Madden NFL 22 launches on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Stadia, and PC on August 20. If you want to experience the Gameday Atmosphere, Gameday Momentum, and Next-Gen Stats features, you need to play on the PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X/S version.

Tom Brady And Patrick Mahomes Are Your Madden NFL 22 Cover Athletes

Posted: 17 Jun 2021 07:00 AM PDT

Every year, being named to the Madden NFL cover serves as a major honor for the player chosen. Despite the long-standing superstition that landing on the Madden cover guarantees that you'll have a major downturn or, in some cases, an injury during that season, EA Sports and developer EA Tiburon have continued naming top players to be their Madden NFL cover athletes year after year. This year, the developer is going about it a little differently, as it's bringing a rare two-athlete cover featuring quarterbacks Tom Brady and Patrick Mahomes.

Interestingly enough, both Brady and Mahomes have been featured on the cover in recent years. Brady, the current quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, appeared on the cover of Madden NFL 18 when he was still with the New England Patriots, while Mahomes, the man under center for the Kansas City Chiefs, was the face of Madden NFL 20. Both athletes are also seemingly impervious to the "Madden Curse," as the 2017 season saw Brady play about as well as ever, making it to the Super Bowl that year (though his Patriots lost to the Philadelphia Eagles), while Mahomes not only made it to the Super Bowl the year he was featured on the cover, but won the championship game and took home Super Bowl MVP honors. 

With both Brady and Mahomes on the cover, Madden NFL 22 features two of the most iconic players in the NFL today, with many considering Brady to be the greatest quarterback of all time and Mahomes to be one of the best quarterbacks in recent memory. These two also happen to be the two quarterbacks who faced off earlier this year in Super Bowl LV, with Brady's Buccaneers emerging victorious, and Brady walking away with the Super Bowl MVP award at age 43. 

Madden NFL 22 launches on August 20 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Stadia, and PC. For more on the next iteration of Madden and what it brings to the table, head to our full preview here. 

Are you excited for Madden NFL 22? If you were a detractor of last year's game, are you hopeful for this year's? What do you think about the developer bringing back two cover athletes who were on the cover in previous years? Let us know your thoughts about Madden NFL 22, the Tom Brady and Patrick Mahomes cover, or anything else about the long-running football franchise in the comments below!

Madden NFL 22 Release Date Set For August 20

Posted: 17 Jun 2021 07:00 AM PDT

Madden NFL 22

Madden NFL 22 releases on August 20, EA Sports and developer EA Tiburon have announced. When Madden NFL 21 launched last year, the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X weren't yet to market, but even so, those versions of the game didn't release until December of last year. Now that EA Tiburon has one year of new-gen releases under its belt, Madden NFL 22 will release simultaneously on new-gen consoles, last-gen consoles, Stadia, and PC.

This year's game comes on the heels of a game that was widely criticized for its lack of new features and improvements, particularly regarding the title's franchise mode. While modes like The Yard, Face of the Franchise, and Madden Ultimate Team return in Madden NFL 22, EA Tiburon is paying close attention to the Franchise experience this time around. This version of Franchise implements more immersive interactions with players and coaches, as well as a weekly strategy planning session to allow you to pay close attention to the strengths, weaknesses, and tendencies of each opponent. On top of committing to various post-launch updates to the mode, all of the improvements made in Madden NFL 21 after launch are being carried into Madden NFL 22's iteration of the popular mode.

Click here to watch embedded media

This year's Madden title also promises various improvements related to stadium atmosphere, crowd behavior, momentum, and home-field advantages. For more on the newest edition of EA Sports' long-running football franchise, check out our full preview here.

On top of all that, EA Tiburon has also announced its cover athletes as Tom Brady and Patrick Mahomes. For more on that announcement, you can head here. Madden NFL 22 launches on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Stadia, and PC on August 20. For our review of last year's game, head here. For a breakdown on some of the most recent improvements developer EA Tiburon implemented to the series' franchise mode post-launch, click here.

Metroid Dread Preview – A Fusion Follow-Up Two Decades Later

Posted: 17 Jun 2021 06:00 AM PDT

Metroid Dread

Publisher: Nintendo
Developer: MercurySteam
Release:
Rating: Teen
Platform: Switch

This last week we saw several announcements and reveals, but perhaps the biggest surprise was the unveiling of a new 2D Metroid game on the E3 2021 Nintendo Direct stream. Metroid Dread picks up following the events of Metroid Fusion, which launched on Game Boy Advance in 2002. While we've received remakes like Samus Returns on 3DS, a full trilogy of first-person shooters, and a third-person 3D action game since Fusion's release, the newly announced Metroid Dread is the first all-new 2D game in nearly two decades. 

Dread is being developed by MercurySteam, the studio behind Samus Returns, and is under the watchful eye of Nintendo's Yoshio Sakamoto. Sakamoto, who serves as producer for Metroid Dread, has a long history with Samus Aran's series. In addition to serving as a designer on the original Metroid, Sakamoto was the director of the beloved Super Metroid, Metroid Fusion, and Metroid: Zero Mission. While Sakamoto's role is as a producer on Samus Returns and Metroid Dread, he says his input has gone beyond that of a typical producer.

Metroid Dread

"My role on Metroid Dread was similar to or the same as it was on Samus Returns, where [Nintendo of Japan] and MercurySteam worked together to be one team," Sakamoto says. "They are different companies, of course, but we had one mind. Also the same as Samus Returns, I was always in communication with MercurySteam from a day-to-day basis, looking at the good and bad, what they were producing for designs. I guess I was called the producer, but I was more involved on the creative side of things as well."

Sakamoto's history with the series, as well as MercurySteam's respect for the classic franchise, is evident throughout the demo I saw. Taking place after the events of Metroid Fusion, Samus makes her way deep beneath the surface of a mysterious planet to investigate a transmission sent to the Galactic Federation. However, once she arrives she discovers that the planet has been completely overrun by hostile alien life. However, the robotic threats, known as EMMI, might be even more horrific. These bots patrol certain rooms and hunt down any intruders. While Samus may be a formidable warrior, her power armor's weaponry is no match for these creatures, so her only option is to avoid them or make a break for it if they discover her.

Metroid Dread

Samus is more nimble than ever before, and she'll need to use her full moveset to survive the encounters with EMMI robots. In addition to moving quicker than in any previous Metroid game, Dread maintains many of the moves from Samus Returns. The Free-Aim mechanic from Samus' recent 3DS outing is back, as is her ability to melee counter incoming attackers to devastating effect if the player times it right. Unfortunately, her missiles and arm cannon are no match for the thick armor of the EMMI, and if they catch her, she has a very narrow window to counter the killing blow and escape; if the player misses the chance to wiggle out of the EMMI's clutches, it will deliver an instant kill. Samus' only chance to stand toe-to-toe with an EMMI (that we know of so far) is the grab the temporary Omega Cannon power-up that can blast through their thick armor.

If you played Metroid Fusion, this gameplay convention likely sounds familiar, as one of the main antagonists was SA-X, a powerful parasite that mimics Samus' abilities. Since SA-X is more powerful than Samus, the bounty hunter had no choice but to run or hide from it. The EMMI encounters are undeniably tense and add a looming, nearly invulnerable threat that constantly pursues you, similar to how horror games add extra layers of anxiety to their situations. Despite this convention being borrowed from that genre, Sakamoto doesn't consider Metroid Dread a horror game. "It's really about Samus encountering fear, but she actually stands against that fear and fights it and beats it," he says. "That part of it is important. As far as where the inspiration came for my wanting to take the game in this direction, it comes from the tension surrounding the SA-X gameplay from Metroid Fusion, and how we wanted to take that style of gameplay and put it into what is considered to be the normal Metroid gameplay to make for an exciting experience."

Metroid Dread

In stark contrast to other Metroid games, where Samus begins on the surface and drills into the depths of the planet, in Metroid Dread you start underground and work your way towards your ship. As you make your way through ZDR, you can expect all the trappings of a typical Metroid game, including unlockable weapons and abilities that allow you to explore new areas of an ever-expanding map. However, you often must solve exploration-based puzzles in order to obtain these powers. I see this play out in the demo as the player comes to a couple of rooms where heat radiates through the door; it's too hot to go inside, so Samus blasts through several enemies and drops down an alternate route featuring timed flame traps. 

Samus reaches a terminal, where she can communicate with Adam, the A.I. of her ship. This section uses text to expound on the lore of the planet, as well as the situation Samus is in, but my demo intentionally skips through this section to avoid spoiling story details. As players experience Metroid Dread, they'll encounter plenty of text, but that's not the only way the story reveals itself. "With Samus Returns, we made use of cutscenes as well; there were 3D cutscenes and 2D scenes as well that transitioned very seamlessly between the two," Sakamoto says. " That helped us with showing expressiveness in the game. We found those very effective in Samus Returns. In a similar way in Metroid Dread, we use those to maintain a sense of tension and also expressiveness. Also, the story is very important in this game, so these cutscenes will be used to express the story as well."

Metroid Dread

Samus eventually arrives at a device she can interact with to redirect fuel and change which doors are accessible; now she can double back and pass through those hot doors from earlier. However, the fuel redirection has blocked her path, so she has to find an alternate route back. Samus can blast through weak walls, but unluckily for her, the way back involves stepping through a pixelated door, indicating that she's entering an EMMI-patrolled zone. 

As mentioned before, Samus doesn't have much of an answer for these stalking robots, but her Phantom Cloak ability, which turns her invisible for a short period, is extremely useful. Players shouldn't rely on it too much, though, as once Samus use up her Phantom Cloak's energy, staying invisible eats away at her health. EMMIs track you based on sight and sound, but you have some tools at your disposal as well: A red dot on the map shows where EMMIs are, and their haunting chirps and beeps broadcast when they are near. The EMMI zones are tense affairs; the relentless robots stalk Samus with scary effectiveness, and losing them looks to be no easy task. As nimble as Samus is in Metroid Dread, the EMMI bots appear to be just as capable and intelligent.

Metroid Dread

Samus finds the exit to the next area and is finally free from the oppressive automaton. She accesses another fuel redirect, opening new doors in a previous area. Unfortunately, to get back there, she needs to once again go through the EMMI zone. This time, the EMMI gives a more spirited chase, even crawling through what looks like a vent that runs beneath Samus' feet. The robot snatches Samus and goes in for the kill, but luckily the Nintendo Treehouse demoist times his counter perfectly and Samus is able to escape and continue running from the EMMI. 

The EMMI has lost track of Samus, but continues hunting her throughout the area. As with most stealth games, you have to make difficult calls about routes to take and when to make a mad dash for a clear path at the cost of making extra noise. After an intense chase, Samus finally exits the EMMI zone and the demo comes to an end.

Metroid Dread

With Metroid Dread, the five-part arc that began with the original Metroid game in 1987 and continued through Metroid II: Return of Samus, Super Metroid, and Metroid Fusion, will come to an end. However, that doesn't necessarily spell bad news for the franchise. In fact, it sounds like the next idea may already be coming down the pipeline. "The Metroid story until this point has dealt with Samus' strange fate that's been intertwined around this strange being called the Metroid, and until now that has been the focus of the series," Sakamoto says. "What this game represents is a bit of a pause, or kind of a new start to something else. Nobody wants the Metroid series to end, and we know that. We ourselves don't want that either, but we just want people to know that there is some kind of new episode that is waiting in the works. We want you to look forward to what we do with that next, but there are no specifics now."

After spending this extra time with Metroid Dread, I'm even more confident this 2D revival is what fans of the series have been clamoring for over the last couple of decades. The exploration, the combat, and the ever-encroaching sense of, well, dread all look to add up to be a stellar continuation of Samus' galactic journey through the years. 

Metroid Dread launches for Switch on October 8. To learn why the game took so long to make, head here.

Why Metroid Dread Took So Long To Make

Posted: 17 Jun 2021 06:00 AM PDT

Metroid Dread

The announcement of Metroid Dread earlier this week was met with widespread excitement as fans of the series are finally receiving a new 2D Metroid. While some games in the series, primarily 1994's Super Metroid on Super NES, are considered among the greatest games of all time, fans of the 2D style of Metroid have been waiting for news of a new adventure for Nintendo's galactic bounty hunter to embark on.

Following the launch of the last all-new 2D Metroid game, 2002's Metroid Fusion on Game Boy Advance, the name "Metroid Dread" began floating around as early as 2004. Though we've heard rumors of cancellation, development restarts, and platform changes throughout the last 16 years, Nintendo has been largely quiet on the follow-up game to Metroid Fusion. However, Tuesday's re-emergence finally gave long-suffering fans the relief they've been waiting for.

Click here to watch embedded media

While the Metroid faithful have known the name Metroid Dread for more than a decade and a half, Nintendo's Yoshio Sakamoto, who serves as producer on Metroid Dread, says development has been on and off rather than continuous. "At the time that we came up with the idea, the hardware wasn't there; the technological concepts weren't working with our vision," he says. "We had to put it on hold. Then some time later, we started again, but then we stopped again for pretty much the same reasons."

The technological hurdles were largely surrounding the platforms Nintendo had on store shelves at the time. Two years after the launch of Metroid Fusion on Game Boy Advance, Nintendo released the DS, adding additional hardware capabilities, including better graphics, more processing power, and a second screen with touch functionality. "Thinking in terms of the specs that I had in mind, it was a bit difficult to realize that concept with that hardware," Sakamoto says. 

Metroid Dread

As the hardware continued progressing, Sakamoto kept his eyes open for ways to make Metroid Dread. He says that a confluence of events – better hardware, a better development system, and an established collaboration with Metroid: Samus Returns developer MercurySteam – led to the game finally getting made. "With Samus Returns, you know that we met with MercurySteam Entertainment to make that game," he says. "The reason that I actually met with them was in the hopes that they'd be able to realize the concepts that I had for Metroid Dread, and with their ability and their technical know-how that they'd be able to make what was once a concept an actual reality. I'm sure you know having played Samus Returns that they are a good team. So, in meeting with them, I got the sense that they were a team that I could work together with towards a singular concept and realize this goal that I had in mind for Metroid Dread."

Despite all of the time that has passed since the original idea, Sakamoto says that the main concepts endured since that initial period of wanting to create a direct sequel to Fusion around 15 years ago. The idea was the powerful warrior Samus would be stalked and chased by an overwhelming enemy and she would have to escape, creating a tense environment as players explore. That notion is realized through EMMI robots, nearly invincible adversaries who patrol certain areas of the game. These characters can deliver one-hit kills if they can get ahold of the bounty hunter, with only a tiny window available for players to try and counter the killing blow.

Metroid Dread

Now that Metroid Dread development is in full swing and the game is set to hit later this year, Sakamoto seems pleased with the results when compared to the vision he initially had when dreaming up a 2D sequel to Metroid Fusion in the early 2000s. "My excitement for Metroid Dread has to do with the EMMI gameplay," he says. "It is really better than I imagined those 15 years ago when I had the idea for this. Seeing that realized made me really, really satisfied. It's to the extent that I really can't wait for this game to be released and for you to get your hands on it and enjoy it yourselves."

Metroid Dread launches on Switch on October 8. For more, check out our extensive preview here.

Everything We Know About Redfall, The Vampire Co-Op Game Revealed During Xbox E3 2021

Posted: 17 Jun 2021 06:00 AM PDT

Let's be real, Xbox-Bethesda absolutely slayed its shared E3 2021 showcase. From Starfield to an incredible look at Halo: Infinite and a plethora of other titles, Microsoft wasn't playing around this year when it came to bringing the heat (something that was very much needed because overall, this year's show had quite a few pitfalls). Among the titles showcased was a brand new IP from Arkane Austin, the studio that gave us 2017's Prey. This time, we're not going to space; we're going to vamp town. For those curious, here's everything we know about Redfall. 

From the co-op structure to the dark and explosive nature, many likened Redfall to Valve's Left 4 Dead. But there's so much more we don't know. Luckily, we know more now than we did at the time of the reveal, thanks to Bethesda. 

Welcome to Redfall

Click here to watch embedded media

Redfall can be played solo or with a team of four friends, all with the task of going up against hordes of dangerous vampires looking to go in for the kill. Redfall is a tiny little island town that is pretty boring. That is until vampires decided to make it an all-you-can-eat buffet. Luckily, we've got some badass characters to help make sure that if we do all go down, at least we can go down on our terms (unlike Batman in the DC comics-verse, apparently, and not in that way). 

According to Bethesda, players will be able to choose their path when taking the fight to the vamps while having a few unique characters to choose from. Each playable character has their own special abilities and gear they like to bring to battle, and more customizable weapons can be found the more you explore the island. "Do whatever it takes to build the perfect vampire slayers," tasks the studio. We say, "Challenge accepted." 

Meet the squad

There are four heroes to choose from. Whether more will be added post-launch remains to be seen, but here's what we've got so far: 

  • Devinder Crousley
    • Dev is that influencer with a claim to fame in the realm of all things paranormal. His shtick revolves around investigating the extraordinary, and he's also a pretty nifty inventor. Want cool gear? He's your guy because he can basically make it all. You know, if he survives. 
  • Layla Ellison 
    • A biomedical engineer, Layla actually has a connection to the sudden takeover. When in attendance at the mysterious Aevum Therapeutics research facility, Layla recalls that something "very wrong" happened there, but she can't remember exactly what it was. Whatever happened, it gave her awesome telekinetic powers, effectively turning the vamp hunter into a kickass supernatural wizard.
  • Remi de la Rosa
    • Ah, Remi. Remi is a combat engineer and smarter than pretty much everyone else around her. She used to be a part of an elite Navy rescue force, but now she's taking her talents to fight the undead instead. And she's got a spiffy robot companion called Bribon. 
  • Jacob Boyer
    • Another character with a military background, Jacob is a sharpshooter than lands his mark every time. He also has a weird vampiric eye and a spectral raven that acts as his partner. 
      • (Yes, they had me at spectral raven)

All about science, baby

Oh, you thought these were your average vamps that Buffy herself would be familiar with? Nah, son, that's not how Arkane rolls. These vamps were a scientific experiment gone horribly wrong, and then evolution decided to step up to the plate to say, "You know what? They're not scary enough; let's make it worse and throw in some psychic powers and psychological warfare into the mix." 

There are numerous types of vamps that players will encounter: scientific, psychological, magical - you name it. Oh, and there's a cult too. Because naturally.

"Every game we make is a little different for the last," says Co-Creative Director Ricardo Bare. "Dishonored featured stealth. Prey leveraged tons of physics-related gameplay. Mooncrash introduced rogue-like elements. Despite those differences, in every case, our focus remains on deep world-building and inventive game mechanics. The same will be true of Redfall."

Redfall makes its grand debut sometime in the Summer of 2022 and will be available on Xbox Game Pass on day-one. To learn more on other big reveals from this year's E3, check out our dedicated events hub here to play catch up! 
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