A release date for Indiana Jones and the Great Circle has been announced. The game will be released for PC and Xbox Series X/S on December 9, 2024, plus a PS5 release in 2025.
The release date for Indiana Jones and the Great Circle was announced alongside a new trailer led by Troy Baker. The ubiquitous voice actor will be portraying the famous archaeologist in the game. In the trailer, we got to see snippets of gameplay, including the combat making use of brawling, shooting and Indy's iconic whip. Some puzzle gameplay was also shown off, including the use of photgraphy to help solve these challenges.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STrKl828Aeg
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle was first announced in a teaser by developer MachineGames in 2021. The game initally appeared to be an Xbox exclusive following Microsoft's acquisition of Bethesda, and since been shown off in Xbox presentations such as the January 2024 Developer Direct and Xbox Games Showcase in June 2024. It is the latest of a long line of Indiana Jones games, from LucasArts point-and-click adventures in the 1980s to the Lego Indiana Jones games of more recent years.
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle will release on Xbox Series X/S and PC on December 9, 2024. It will also release on PS5 in Spring 2025.
A release date for Indiana Jones and the Great Circle has been announced. The game will be released for PC and Xbox Series X/S on December 9, 2024, plus a PS5 release in 2025.
The release date for Indiana Jones and the Great Circle was announced alongside a new trailer led by Troy Baker. The ubiquitous voice actor will be portraying the famous archaeologist in the game. In the trailer, we got to see snippets of gameplay, including the combat making use of brawling, shooting and Indy's iconic whip. Some puzzle gameplay was also shown off, including the use of photgraphy to help solve these challenges.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STrKl828Aeg
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle was first announced in a teaser by developer MachineGames in 2021. The game initally appeared to be an Xbox exclusive following Microsoft's acquisition of Bethesda, and since been shown off in Xbox presentations such as the January 2024 Developer Direct and Xbox Games Showcase in June 2024. It is the latest of a long line of Indiana Jones games, from LucasArts point-and-click adventures in the 1980s to the Lego Indiana Jones games of more recent years.
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle will release on Xbox Series X/S and PC on December 9, 2024. It will also release on PS5 in Spring 2025.
A new land vehicle, the REV-8, is coming to Starfield in a free update. This was revealed at Gamescom Opening Night Live 2024 in a teaser trailer.
The REV-8 is a land vehicle that will allow players to drive around on planets at high speed. While the vehicle looks a lot like a moon buggy, it appears to handle like a sports car. The trailer shows the REV-8 drifting around moons and alien planets. It also has jet boosters underneath that allow it to jump and the ability to shoot while driving. The new vehicle will be coming to Starfield in a free update later today.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rA1z1DbA_Io
While the Gamescom announcement focused on the new vehicle, there was also a teaser for the Shattered Space DLC expansion at the end. While little was shown in this latest look, a release date of September 30, 2024 was confirmed. More news is likely to arrive during Xbox's own streams, where Starfield is confirmed to appear on August 21, 2024.
Starfield is out now for PC and Xbox Series X/S. The REV-8 vehicle update arrives today.
A new timed event for Zenless Zone Zero focused on unique coffee bonuses called Coffee Sorcery: Tuning is about to begin. HoYoVerse noted it will involve bonuses for drinking special event coffee in-game between August 7-12, 2024.
Two new coffee varieties will be available from Coff Cafe during the Zenless Zone Zero event, each of which will offer special bonuses. Ginseng Americano will allow players to obtain double Drive Disc rewards during Routine Cleanup missions. Meanwhile, Mint Espresso will award double Plating Agent drops in Combat Simulation missions. Due to the rewards on offer, the event will only be open for players who have unlocked the Routine Cleanup missions. As with all coffees in the game, only one coffee can be purchased a day, and its effects will last the whole day.
The "Coffee Sorcery: Tuning" event will run almost up until the release of the first major update for Zenless Zone Zero. The 1.1 Update will release on August 14, 2024 and feature new Agents Jane Doe, Qingyi and Seth Lowell. These Agents will feature heavily in a new storyline featuring the Criminal Investigation Special Response Team.
Zenless Zone Zero is out now for PC, PS5 and mobile devices. The "Coffee Sorcery: Tuning" event will run from August 7-12, 2024.
A new event focused on trashcan photography will appear in Honkai: Star Rail, and it is called The Self-Accomplishment of a Trashcan Photographer. It will run August 7-19, 2024, and HoYoVerse revealed the unlock requirements.
The event will take place across multiple stages in Honkai: Star Rail, and players must use their photography skills to capture trashcan pictures. The trashcans are special ones added for the event, with three varieties making appearances within the crowds. Bronze trashcans will award someone 100 Capture Points, silver 150, and gold 200, with the gold offering a bonus for capturing its special poses. These Capture Points can then be used to obtain rewards, including up to 500 Stellar Jades and leveling items.
To take part in the trashcan photography event, Honkai: Star Rail players need to be at least Trailblaze Level 21 and are recommended to have completed the mission "Penacony – Tales from the Golden Age”. The mission will be offered by a trainee doctor from Penacony hanging out in Starskiff Haven on the Xianzhou Luofu.
This is the latest timed event added as part of the Honkai: Star Rail 2.4 update. It will run alongside another timed event, Saga of Primaveral Blade: Swordsage Saga, which stars March 7th. This event is currently ongoing until August 9, 2024.
Honkai: Star Rail is out now for PC, PS5 and mobile devices. The "Self-Accomplishment of a Trashcan Photographer" event will run from August 7-19, 2024.
A new timed event for Zenless Zone Zero focused on unique coffee bonuses called Coffee Sorcery: Tuning is about to begin. HoYoVerse noted it will involve bonuses for drinking special event coffee in-game between August 7-12, 2024.
Two new coffee varieties will be available from Coff Cafe during the Zenless Zone Zero event, each of which will offer special bonuses. Ginseng Americano will allow players to obtain double Drive Disc rewards during Routine Cleanup missions. Meanwhile, Mint Espresso will award double Plating Agent drops in Combat Simulation missions. Due to the rewards on offer, the event will only be open for players who have unlocked the Routine Cleanup missions. As with all coffees in the game, only one coffee can be purchased a day, and its effects will last the whole day.
The "Coffee Sorcery: Tuning" event will run almost up until the release of the first major update for Zenless Zone Zero. The 1.1 Update will release on August 14, 2024 and feature new Agents Jane Doe, Qingyi and Seth Lowell. These Agents will feature heavily in a new storyline featuring the Criminal Investigation Special Response Team.
Zenless Zone Zero is out now for PC, PS5 and mobile devices. The "Coffee Sorcery: Tuning" event will run from August 7-12, 2024.
A new event focused on trashcan photography will appear in Honkai: Star Rail, and it is called The Self-Accomplishment of a Trashcan Photographer. It will run August 7-19, 2024, and HoYoVerse revealed the unlock requirements.
The event will take place across multiple stages in Honkai: Star Rail, and players must use their photography skills to capture trashcan pictures. The trashcans are special ones added for the event, with three varieties making appearances within the crowds. Bronze trashcans will award someone 100 Capture Points, silver 150, and gold 200, with the gold offering a bonus for capturing its special poses. These Capture Points can then be used to obtain rewards, including up to 500 Stellar Jades and leveling items.
To take part in the trashcan photography event, Honkai: Star Rail players need to be at least Trailblaze Level 21 and are recommended to have completed the mission "Penacony – Tales from the Golden Age”. The mission will be offered by a trainee doctor from Penacony hanging out in Starskiff Haven on the Xianzhou Luofu.
This is the latest timed event added as part of the Honkai: Star Rail 2.4 update. It will run alongside another timed event, Saga of Primaveral Blade: Swordsage Saga, which stars March 7th. This event is currently ongoing until August 9, 2024.
Honkai: Star Rail is out now for PC, PS5 and mobile devices. The "Self-Accomplishment of a Trashcan Photographer" event will run from August 7-19, 2024.
The Collector’s Edition of Life is Strange: Double Exposure will not contain the game. This is according to the Square Enix store page, where the edition can exclusively be bought.
The Life is Strange: Double Exposure Collector’s Edition has appeared on the Square Enix store as an exclusive item. It features a range of items connected to the game. It contains:
12” vinyl soundtrack containing 13 songs from the game.
4 double-sided 12” artcards, featuring characters from the game.
A replica of the Owl Pin Max wears in the new game.
What it doesn’t contain is the game itself, meaning players will need to purchase it separately. The Collector’s Edition box is $59.99, which is slightly more than the game alone. Life is Strange: Double Exposure’s basic edition is currently available to pre-order for $49.99.
Life is Strange: Double Exposure was announced at the Xbox Games Showcase. It's the latest game in the beloved Life is Strange franchise, bringing back original protagonist Max Caulfield. She is now older but still dealing with mysterious time-shifting powers. Her new story sees her trying to save the life of her friend Safi. Chloe, who also played a major role in the first game, is nowhere to be seen.
Life is Strange: Double Exposure will release for PS5, Xbox Series X, and PC on October 29, 2024. A Switch version has also been confirmed for an unknown release date.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 will make it a requirement for players to be always online, even in campaign mode, and all past bans will apply to the new game as well. This came up after the June 2024 Xbox Games Showcase reveal
In a page detailing the features of various editions of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, Activision confirmed the always online requirement. According to the site, the game will make use of texture streaming. The studio claims this will allow them to provide high quality visuals while reducing storage space on player hard drives. This will include the Campaign mode, meaning even single player content will require a connection. Activision has confirmed that the Campaign mode can be played without the need for an online subscription on console.
In addition, Activision also confirmed that all permanent bans will be carried over to Call of Duty: Black Ops 6. This restriction will apply for any bans issued in all games released since Call of Duty: Modern Warfare from 2019. This will extend to Battle.net, as any banned player attempting to buy the game through the storefront will be unable to do so. They can buy the game through other storefronts but will be unable to access online modes due to their ban. The ban appears to not affect the ability to play the Campaign mode, despite the online requirement.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 is the latest game in the hugely successful FPS franchise. The latest game was revealed at the Xbox Games Showcase and has been confirmed to be a day one release on Xbox Game Pass.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 will release on October 25, 2024 for Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PS5, PS4 and PC.
The origins of Tales of Kenzera: Zau are unusual. It’s developed by a new studio called Surgent Studios, which was founded specifically to make this game not by a game designer, but by a voice actor.
Abubakar Salim is perhaps best known as the voice of Bayek, the protagonist of Assassin’s Creed: Origins. Following the death of his father, Salim sought out a way to deal with his grief through fiction. Thanks to childhood memories of playing Genesis games with his father, video games became the medium in which he chose to tell his story. Surgent was born, and with it came Tales of Kenzera: Zau.
This backstory is important to understanding what Tales of Kenzera: Zau is all about. Much like the real-life inspiration, the game focuses on someone dealing with the loss of his father. Zau, a shaman within the fictional land of Kenzera, is devastated by the recent passing of his Baba. Out of desperation, he calls upon Kalunga, the god of death, to bring his father back. Kalunga issues a challenge to Zau: seek the three spirits of the land and solve the associated trials, and he will grant his request.
Screenshot by Siliconera
Each of the game’s acts focuses on the quest to find one of these spirits, and along the way the spirit’s story echoes Zau’s own struggles. They each exist to impart a little wisdom on how to deal with the tough emotions that come with losing a loved one. It feels a lot like a series of fables, each designed to pass on a lesson. The setting adds to this feeling, inspired by folk tales from Salim’s Kenyan heritage, told to him as a child by his father.
From the description of the story, you’d be forgiven for thinking this was a pure visual novel or adventure game, focused mostly on story. Instead, Tales of Kenzera: Zau is a Metroidvania, inspired heavily by Ori and the Blind Forest. This influence is heavily present, with fast movement and abilities that gradually culminate in Zau being able to traverse the world as if the floor was made of lava. Which, to be fair, in some parts of the game, it is. There are even large-scale chase sequences, clearly inspired by similar sequences in Ori and the Will of the Wisps.
Screenshot by Siliconera
Moving around Kenzera is a joy. You get a double jump and a dash right out the gate, along with two modes of combat, based on which shaman mask Zau is wearing. Wearing the Mask of the Moon gives Zau a projectile attack and a quick melee move that can be enhanced to bounce projectiles back to enemies. The Mask of the Sun is a pure melee build, where Zau has a short combo of light attacks or a juggling heavy attack. You can switch masks with the press of a single button, and every part of combat feels fluid and responsive. It’s so fun that it did disappoint me there was no style meter like in Devil May Cry, because it absolutely feels like it could use one.
Platforming is also a blast, with each area built as a series of parkour obstacle courses. You’ll hop off walls, air dash over dangers and slide under low-hanging door frames. Each new ability you get adds to this, with a grappling hook, a directional dash, a glide and a way to turn waterfalls into new walls to jump off. Most of the game involves you dashing through platforming challenges that feature a natural flow that’s incredibly satisfying to pull off.
Screenshot by Siliconera
There are issues with how all this comes together, however. Some combat challenges, particularly late in the game, rely too heavily on bombarding you with enemies that require specific strategies to defeat. Trying to concentrate on one tactic for one enemy often leaves you open to attacks from another, which does occasionally get tiresome.
Progression is also a little too linear. Metroidvanias typically have a sweet spot between linearity and open-endedness. While I’ve recently criticised Biomorphfor being too open, Tales of Kenzera swings too much in the opposite direction. You are often on a fixed path for most of the game, with many of the typical genre concessions focused on one or two extra collectibles within a given area. While it was not generally an issue because of how much fun the game is to play, it did remove a lot of the fun of exploration. Mostly because it barely existed.
There are also occasional moments when controls aren’t quite as fluid as they could be. While most games will allow you to hold a direction as a cutscene is coming to an end, allowing you to get moving immediately, Tales of Kenzera does not, leaving multiple moments where Zau simply didn't move. The automatic ledge grab can also sometimes get in the way while navigating tight spaces, particularly when breaking through walls in later parts of the game. Whether this was a quirk of the review copy that will be fixed for the final release remains to be seen.
Screenshot by Siliconera
However, these flaws end up being forgivable for how deeply personal this game feels. There’s a moment at one of the game’s various meditation spots where Zau reflects on the last night of his father’s life. Unsurprisingly, Abubakar Salim voices Zau himself, and in this moment, it feels like he is recounting his own father’s final moments. The performance is powerfully raw and intimate, like he’s confiding in us during a quiet moment. Salim built an entire studio to make this game, all to deal with the grief of losing his father. While the game may have some flaws, moments like this show the passion behind the whole project. This game is not only a success for its creator to deal with his own emotions, but to hopefully help anyone else dealing with similar circumstances see themselves in Zau’s struggles.
Tales of Kenzera: Zau is a beautiful little game. Fun platforming and a setting we rarely see in games both support a genuinely moving story of grief. While it is a game about the acceptance of death, it’s also about the joys of life. And just like life, it’s a little rough around the edges and can be frustrating, but ultimately worth it.
Tales of Kenzera: Zau will release on the PC, PS5, Xbox Series X, and Switch on April 23, 2024.
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