Geek.com likes Greedfall, too:

Review: ‘Greedfall’ Is a Western RPG With Style

It’s been a while since I’ve played a Western RPG I could sink my teeth into. This is mostly due to the fact that Bioware doesn’t release these types of games with the frequency they once did. Thankfully, developer Spiders is here with an RPG that hearkens back to the glory days of Bioware with Greedfall. While it lacks the polish and AAA presentation of high-profile Western RPGs, Greedfall is an excellent game that fans of the genre will love.

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I can safely say Greedfall caught me completely by surprise. While it contained a fair bit of bugs and glitches, they weren’t enough to ruin my overall enjoyment. The combat system is robust and allows players a high degree of strategic planning. Each mission helps bring the world to life and players can complete them in a variety of ways. Greedfall is everything you could want from a Western RPG. It is an entertaining game that serves as a great base for future installments to build upon.

Twinfinite has reviewed Borderlands 3:

Borderlands 3 Review – If it Ain’t Broke…

Borderlands 3 on Xbox One

Borderlands 3 is one of the easier games I’ve had to evaluate for Twinfinite in my tenure here. I previewed it multiple times leading up to release and it felt like just more of the same FPS/RPG action that the series popularized last generation.

To some people that might sound like a bad thing; but as a fan of the series and as someone that hasn’t really touched any of my Borderlands save files for pretty much this entire generation of consoles (which is probably the case for lots of other people I imagine), more Borderlands is perfectly fine honestly.

Borderlands 3 is a faithful, and (mostly) polished follow-up to Borderlands 2. It continues to play to its strengths and makes a few noticeable improvements.

Borderlands 3 is the ultimate example of playing it safe and giving their core fans exactly what they want to see. I can certainly understand the desire to not fix what isn’t broken. It’s a valid strategy.

The result though is a game that’s very easy to recommend to anyone that hasn’t played Borderlands in a while, and enjoyed Gearbox’s previous efforts in the series, or just likes looter-shooters; and well, is simultaneously not easy to recommend to anyone that doesn’t fit in that box.

Score: 4/5 – Great

Pros

• Top of its class gunplay
• Signature humor
• Entertaining campaign and side missions
• Insane amount of freedom for deep character building thanks to multitude of skill tree options and unique weapons

Cons

• Very frustrating technical issues
•  Doesn’t build much on previous games despite the time gap
• The grind may feel too repetitive for some

Should You Buy Borderlands 3?

Yes, it’s an excellent looter-shooter that will satisfy all fans of the genre and series. The only people that might get disappointed are those that were still dumping tons of hours into Borderlands 2 recently as it feels very similar to previous games.

Games Xtreme checked out Children of Morta:

Children of Morta Review

Children of Morta is a game that has certainly flown under my radar, available on PC, Xbox, PlayStation and Nintendo Switch this action, adventure, role playing game with rogue-like elements is developed by Dead Mage and published by 11 bit studios and it is certainly an interesting take on the genre. Children of Morta is a story driven game about an esteemed family of heroes who head out to attempt to put a stop to an impending corruption that is sure to destroy the world.  You will experience a unique pixelated designed world along with flashes of beautifully crafted artwork, a deep story to keep you wanting more and a mix of RPG and rogue-like mechanics that fans of the genre will surely enjoy.

[...]

From the moment I first loaded up Children of Morta I was pleasantly surprised; I don't play many indie games so to play one as deep as this one with a fantastic story that is superbly narrated was a pleasure. The voice acting of the narrator was top notch and professional, the music score was atmospheric and inspirational, and the game play was as good as any hack and slash game out there. There were a few issues with narration cutting out before finishing but apart from that you can't go wrong with Children of Morta, it's an indie game that is up there with the best of them and it is sure to keep you busy for hours upon hours especially if you are the type of gamer that enjoys a good grind.

-> MUST BUY

Indivisible will be released on October 8: Here's the animated opening:

Indivisible Animated Opening by Studio TRIGGER and Titmouse (FULL VERSION)

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Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch Remastered has been released on Steam:

Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch Remastered

REMASTERED VISUALS
Improved graphics and performance on Steam

ALL-STAR PRODUCTION
LEVEL-5's mastery of the RPG genre is combined with Studio Ghibli's world-class animation and music composed by the renowned Joe Hisaishi

CAPTIVATING STORY
A charming yet tragic tale unfolds through the use of animation storyboarded and created by Studio Ghibli with English and Japanese voice-overs

ROLE-PLAYING MASTERY
A rich mixture of familiar RPG elements, expertly crafted and designed, and featuring dozens of locations to explore, hundreds of creatures to battle, and a wealth of quests and secrets to uncover

DYNAMIC COMBAT
Switch freely between characters and familiars in an exciting battle system that combines real-time and turn-based tactical elements

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Journey back to the other world in Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch™ Remastered. LEVEL-5’s classic tale returns better than ever, with improved graphics and performance. Join Oliver as he embarks on an adventure through a world inhabited by new friends and ferocious foes alike in the hopes of bringing back his mother after a tragic incident.

This charming tale unfolds through the use of animation storyboarded and created by the legendary Studio Ghibli and music composed by the renowned Joe Hisaishi. Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch™ combines beautiful animated visuals, masterful storytelling, and a sweeping score to create an epic role-playing adventure like no other.

The background of the companion Khaldun has been shared  by the The Waylanders team.\

Khaldun is in her mid twenties, and is intelligent as hell. The eldest daughter of a noble family in Meroe, in The Kingdom of Kush, she was sent to Egypt as a young teenager and educated in the best schools Alexandria could offer. She relocated to Brigantia with Queen Escota and Prince Lugaid five years ago. Khaldun can read, write, and speak nearly a dozen languages, and can tell you anything about the vast pantheons of Nubian & Egyptian gods and goddesses without checking reference materials.

Khaldun prefers to wear clothing styles that reflect her adopted Egyptian culture. These costumes and styles may seem foreign and overly elegant to her Celtic peers, but Khaldun doesn’t mean them that way, and she doesn’t care. She is proud of her heritage.

Her necromantic powers come from her unwavering faith in the Egyptian pantheon, and she is a devoted priestess to the god Osiris. This may put her into direct conflict with some of your devout Celtic party members on occasion.

Khaldun views sex and romance quite separately. She’s generally down to play a little, but if you want to fully romance her, she wants you all to herself. She’s had a few bad experiences with some open relationships since moving to the land of the Celts, and she needs to know that she’s your one and only. If you’re not willing to commit to her, and only to her, she won’t have any reservations about ending things. But if you do commit, she is a powerful and loving partner.

According to a tweet of Jeff Vogel, sales of Queen's Wish are strong and there is a good chance on a sequel to the game.

Queen's Wish has been out for a week!

Our first week of sales was very strong, and our refund rate is low. Plenty of debate about the changes we made, but many are having fun. There's a very good chance of Queen's Wish 2, which thrills us.

Thank you for your support!

— Jeff Vogel (@spiderwebsoft) September 18, 2019

The development of Bloom: Memories is, despite the setbacks, still going on and now has a debut trailer for the game, of which the release is estimated to be a couple of months away.

From a previous press release we learned this:

"Bloom: Memories" Continues Despite Troubled Development

Through the rocky development spanning 6+ years and long evaporated support... the creative lead of "Bloom: Memories" continues to carry on towards completion of her ambitious RPG (for PC) while documenting the final journey on Youtube (enabled through moving home to parents farm in Kansas to continue work).

Besides featuring progress updates as the RPG comes together, the Youtube channel also hosts various overviews of the previous years and how the game has evolved.

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To date, the development of "Bloom: Memories" has made it past major setbacks such as core team members abandoning the project, to rebuilding in a new engine years into development. Yet, the journey is still somehow kept alive as the team faces the reality of creating an ambitious game in a saturated and indifferent market. 

ETA: A couple months, on Steam and Itch.io

Studio Fawn is a tiny indie team of several people, headed by Ivory, having one released title to their name (Bloom: Labyrinth, available on Steam and itch.io ). 

In devblog #24 for Vagrus, more information is given about enduring effects in the game.

We are actively working on what we call Enduring Effects for the game. What are these? Well, in short and to put it simply, these are all buffs and debuffs that last for several in-game days or are permanent (until removed somehow). They come in a variety of types and can be used for a lot of things to enhance gameplay and narrative alike.

Challenges and Results

The challenges of implementing such a system are more complex than one would think simply based on how they are supposed to work. We had to create a property system and make it compatible with a huge number of stats and attributes across a variety of in-game entities. Though it involved some heavy lifting (mainly from coding) and it is almost impossible to demonstrate, we are very satisfied with the results. The goal was to have a system that allows content creators to go wild and expand indefinitely, to keep adding stuff wherever the story or the gameplay requires it.

Enduring Effect Types

Apart from the simple distinction of positive and negative effects (that aid and hinder the player, respectively) we identify a number of parameters that set Enduring Effects (EEs) apart into neat little categories.

Leader: This type of EE affects your character, the vagrus. Typically it'll modify stats like Resourcefulness (or making certain Leadership Skills cheaper or more expensive), or alter Perks your character might have.

A good example is Inspiration, which raises the maximum Resourcefulness temporarily, or Blessing of Bal Ur Kaal, which raises the level of social Perks like Charismatic, Con, and Persuade) as well as providing a boost for faction reputation rewards.

Crew: EEs of this kind affect your crew and only your crew (meaning they don't affect Companions for example or your character). Crew-related stats are typically altered by these, such as Vigor or Morale.

Examples include Favor of Irafons, which gives MP to your comitatus, or Hangover, which lowers maximum Vigor for a day.

Companion: This type of EE affects a specific Companion or all of them. Since these characters have a wide range of abilities, combat skills, and Perks, these EEs tend to be complicated more often than not.

The Blessing of Sergorod, for example, gives a Companion some Accuracy and Critical Hit boosts, while the Wrath of Sergorod makes it so that enemies are more accurate and score criticals more often against your cursed Companion.

Comitatus: EEs that effect your whole comitatus can be more complex, modifying a wider variety of stats and mechanics. They tend to have a Companion-related EE counterpart that is automatically assigned when the parent EE is assigned.

Black Rot, for instance, is a dreadful disease that is very contagious. When your comitatus receives this EE, it is transferred to all Companions currently in your employ as well - and keeps killing your crew and Companions until you can rid yourself of the horrid sickness.

Disdain of Ahskul affects the whole comitatus, making it more common that Undead show up as random encounters as well as buffing Undead type enemies against you.

Hope this allowed a little glance into what goes on behind the scenes and gives you all an idea of what to expect from this feature package. Next up, we'll probably talk about animation. See you around, dear Follower!

To support the vote for either a paladin or a ranger class, some more information is provided about these classes and their archetypes in Solasta.

Paladins

Paladins of Solasta are elite warriors who swore an oath to fight against evil. In addition to weapons and armor, they wield the divine power of their deity.

Between tours of duty guarding temples and other sacred places, paladins wander the world in a quest to spread justice and to uphold their sacred oaths. Bound to their faith by this unbreakable promise, they are granted divine powers and clerical spells, as well as powerful abilities that serve them in battle.

The Oath of the Motherland

Paladins who follow the path of the Motherland are generally lone wanderers who do not find comfort within standard religious tenets.

[...]

Oath of Tirmar

These paladins belong to an ancient order, inherited from the Tirmarian Inquisition. Some regard them askance, as they continue to be obsessed with the ancient archenemies of humans from Tirmar, from the time before the Cataclysm.

[...]

Oath of Devotion

The “classic” paladin is clad in bright armor and fights for justice, virtue, and order, following the path of honor, courage, faith, and chivalry. Such paladins worship either Pakri, the goddess of the law, or Maraike, the patroness of healing and mercy.

Rangers

Wanderers of Solasta’s wilderness, rangers are the kind of people who prefer to sleep out in the woods rather than in a town inn, listening to the sounds of nature rather than the chatter of people.

Trained survivalists and hunters, they are fierce combatants but have enough subtlety to be stealthy when needed. Excellent trackers and archers, they can also have the ability to cast spells that channel the powers of nature.

Hunters

Masters of the of melee and ranged combat, these are Solasta’s supreme predators. Able to track their prey for days through the worst terrain, they dedicate their whole being to the art of the hunt.

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Marksmen

Heirs to the high elf archery traditions of the old Empire, these are undisputed masters of their art and the deadliest ranged combatants on Solasta. Their specialized training includes many different techniques.

[...]

Shadow Tamers

Used to wandering the desolated Badlands, these rangers know the lore and languages of darkness, traps, and the underground world. They walk without fear where others would hesitate to tread.

[...]

Indie Retro News looks back at one of the best games ever made: Prirates!

Pirates! - DarkwyndPT's BIGGEST retro gaming review yet!

Ahoy there mateys! Welcome back to Retro Freak Reviews. And before ye all send me down to Davy Jones’ locker for not posting a review during the entire summer, let me redeem my sinner soul by offering ye this fine review in this finest of International Talk Like a Pirate Day. I’m talking about Pirates! (the game, not in general…)

Pirates! (aka Sid Meier’s Pirates!) is an action-strategy game made by Microprose and originally released in 1987 for the Amstrad CPC, Apple II, Commodore 64 and the PC Booter. It was re-released the following year for the Apple IIgs and the Macintosh. In 1989, it was again re-released for the Atari ST, PC-89 and the PC-98. In 1990, it was ported for the Amiga, in 1991, it was ported to the NES and in 1994, the PC Booter version was officially ported to DOS (earlier DOS versions were actually the PC Booter version modified and/or hacked to play on DOS).

Pirates! came to be when famous game designer Sid Meier along with fellow designer Arnold Hendrick wanted to make a roleplaying adventure game but Bill Stealey, Microprose’s co-founder, was skeptical because Microprose was only known back then by their vehicle simulations. Still, Meier and Hendrick were able to convince Stealey to take a chance at different genres and inspired by pirate novels, they created Pirates!

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Roguelite Crying Suns is now available on Steam.

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When FTL meets Foundation... and Dune

Crying Suns is a tactical rogue-lite that puts you in the role of a space fleet commander as you explore a mysteriously fallen empire.

In this story rich experience inspired by Dune and Foundation, each successful run will uncover the truth about the Empire... and yourself as well.

Main Features

- Space exploration in a procedurally-generated universe
- Tactical fights between battleships and their squadron fleets
- More than 300 possible story events
- A deep and dramatic storyline structured in 6 chapters
- A dark and disturbing atmosphere inspired by our favorite S-F universes (Foundation, Dune, Battlestar Galactica)

Prepare to die often, it's a rogue-lite game... And it's a hard one…

The story: The epic journey of a clone

After 700 years of peace and prosperity, the Galactic Empire has suddenly been shattered into pieces. The OMNIs, god-like machines which did everything for their human masters, have mysteriously shut down. And humankind, having long since lost the ability to survive on its own, is dangerously close to extinction. But somewhere in a far corner of the Galaxy is Gehenna, a planet of ice and rock and a top-secret facility that is the pinnacle of Imperial Tech and also humanity’s last chance.

You are a clone of Admiral Ellys Idaho, a weapon fashioned from flesh, the best Imperial Admiral ever to battle in the stars and you have just been awoken on this planet by its strange and darkly-humorous Guardian, Kaliban, the last functional OMNI to exist.

Your mission: skillfully command a battleship through the Empire's now chaotic, violent clusters ––where one wrong move could be your last–– as you try to reactivate the OMNIs and save the future of all humankind. But you must leave Gehenna now.... for time has almost run out.

Platforms

Crying Suns will be available at first on PC and Mac. We also planned to release the game on iPad soon after the desktop version.

MMORPG checked out the Director's Cut of The Bard's Tale IV:

The RPG Files: The Bard's Tale 4: The Director's Cut Review

The Bard’s Tale 4: The Director’s Cut is an epic tale of corruption and evil, suffering and loss, of lessons learned too late and and the bitter consequences. It’s also a story of hope and triumph and perseverance. It’s a game that challenged me and a story that tugged at my heart.

The Bard’s Tale 4 had a rocky start last year. We checked out the new changes and got a feel for the performance changes in our Initial Impressions piece a couple of weeks ago. Additionally, combat, enemies, puzzles, and many other aspects of the game were reworked and polished. Those systems felt good in the initial chapters, but a lot of games start strong and finish weak. How well would these hold up over the entire game? I spent the past two weeks working my way through the story. Read on and we’ll see if InXile put as much effort into the finish as they did the beginning. There are some minor spoilers ahead so be warned.

[...]

Conclusion

The Bard’s Tale 4: The Director’s Cut is a dramatic improvement from the initial release over a year ago. More than that, it’s an incredibly solid dungeon crawler and respectable entry in the franchise. It weaves puzzles and RPG character progression into a captivating story of love, loss, and triumph.

Disco Elysium will be released on October 15:

Release Date & Features Trailer

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VideoGamesChronicles reports how the gender customisation options will work for Cyberpunk 2077.

Pears also revealed that one way the game is attempting to be inclusive for all players is by having NPCs refer to the player character, V, by name instead of gender.

He said: “We really want to make sure players get the representation that they want. In the genre of Cyberpunk as well, it asks such deep questions about what it means to be human, let alone what it means to define your gender.

[...]

Thanks Farflame!

Player2 have previewed Conglomerate 451 and felt indifferent about it.

The tactical element of combat lies again in reading the statistics of your abilities and focusing on details; different combinations of abilities will yield the best results. For example, using abilities that stun enemies before using an attack that is more effective on stunned enemies. While that sounds exciting on paper, and it’s a concept I’m familiar with from many other RPGs, in Conglomerate it didn’t feel all that exciting in tandem with the lack of mobility. Options to auto-battle or speed up combat like those found in modern JRPGs would be welcome additions to blast through enemies quickly when you’d prefer to focus on exploration.

Once a mission is done, whether it be to clear out an area of enemies or interact with certain items to apparently poison someone, you’re then whisked back to the agency to do it all over again as a means to increase your agency’s reputation and reach within the city. When I say “apparently poison someone” I mean just that – I had no idea what I was doing until I reached the relevant room to interact with the relevant object. There wasn’t any narrative punch for me in doing something morally questionable; the cyberpunk grit felt more like a thin coat of paint than anything with weight.

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Thanks Farflame!

A gameplay video of The Waylanders and a preview by GamesRadar.

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“The Hercules Tower is the sacred place of Brigantia,” Pardo says. “It’s the centre of magic in the Celtic era.” According to legend, Pardo continues, standing at the top will allow you to see all the way to Ireland – although this is little more than a tall tale. “That tower is still there and still works as a lighthouse,” Pardo says. “It's 2,000 years old.”  All of a sudden, a portal is opened up between your screen and Celtic Galicia, as you begin to realize that elements of your world and its are inextricably intertwined.

So when you’re thrust into combat situations alongside your companions – of which there are 10 – the heat of the battle is cranked right up, as if you’re brandishing steel in the midst of a sweltering blaze. “In our game, there are six basic classes,” Pardo tells me: "warrior, guardian, explorer, rogue, sorcerer, and healer.” As with traditional RPGs, these six basic archetypes branch out into different styles as the game progresses, eventuating in 30 advanced builds that combine your original class with one of the other five remaining ones.

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Thanks Farflame!

The latest update announces that you can vote for a new class in Solasta: Crown of the Magister. You have a choice between Paladin and Ranger.

@PC Gamer David Gaider has set up a new studio in Australia called Summerfield Studios'. The studio will launch alongside a Kickstarter for an, as yet, unannounced new game.

The new studio will have its official launch at PAX Australia, alongside the launch of a Kickstarter to fund its first game. Details are pretty sparse on the ground at the moment, but Summerfall Studios' website promises "an illustrated character-driven adventure", before going on to say that "Summerfall Studios will crush your dreams and tear out your heart… in the very best way." Kotaku Australia broke the news, and you can stay in touch with future Summerfall news on the developer's Facebook page.

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Some gameplay video of The Outer Worlds from TGS.

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Thanks Farflame!

The RPG Codex has reviewed Legends of Amberland: The Forgotten Crown:

RPG Codex Review: Legends of Amberland

Legends of Amberland: The Forgotten Crown is a computer roleplaying game inspired primarily by Might & Magic. When making reference to that venerable series of open-world dungeon crawlers, one must draw a distinction between the earlier titles and the later ones. Midway through the franchise, beginning with Might & Magic VI: The Mandate of Heaven in 1998, the series reduced the number of characters in the party while introducing a hybrid real-time combat system alongside traditional turn-based combat. While retaining first person exploration, it switched to allow free movement in a fully realized 3D world (not including Might & Magic X: Legacy, which was more of an experimental throwback).

The original Might & Magic and its four sequels were step-based and played on a grid. Party sizes ranged from six to eight, including hirelings who could be recruited into the party and functioned like normal party members. Conforming to the oldest of old school principles, they initially had no automap, thereby necessitating orientation via hand drawn maps on graph paper. The first two games were considered to have the most hardcore combat of the series, with tactical back and front row formations and restricted saving. It was the Might & Magic III engine that first presented a more inviting approach, boasting bright friendly colors and even cartoonish imagery, producing a more comfortable experience for the player.

That is where The Forgotten Crown fits in, with its seven character party, 100% turn-based combat, and arrangement of tile-based outdoor maps and dungeons. It's a game very much in the style of Might & Magic III through V.

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Click4Gameplay reviewed Greefall after finishing the game:

GreedFall - Review After 40+ Hours

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My final thoughts about the game. 

The Indiegogo campaign for Unworthy Life has started and they are asking for $10K.

Unworthy Life is a story driven 3D action RPG with 15 – 20 hours of gameplay. The game is 80% complete and will release on PC and console in approximately 12 months time (September 2020).

Unworthy Life has many levels and environments which include two open world areas to explore. Players will engage in combat, hacking and physics puzzles as well as upgrading their robot with modular parts and learning or developing new abilities through a skills tree system.

It will be usually be possible to tackle the same situation in several different ways. Our protagonist robot Ul155e5 is a canvas that we hope you can use to play and navigate the story of Unworthy Life in your own preferred way.

We the team behind Unworthy Life have been working on this game for about four years. Our goal as a small team has always been to push the limits of what can be achieved by independent designers on a first game. We also wished to take our skills (mathematics, coding, physics, design) earned from a background in mechanical engineering and apply it to the development of an exciting and modern PC and console game inspired by the 80s science ficition films we grew up with as well as more recent Sci-fi/RPG games we came to love as adults.

We could given enough time probably finish the game and make Unworthy Life into something we really want to play and that we will personally love. However, this has never been about us. We want to make a game that many people will play and love. By backing this campaign you help us get some much needed hardware to smoothly finish the development of this game in 4K resolution, pay for bespoke professional music, allow us to pay talented voice actors and provide the first little bit of money towards the studio support we need to release this game for consoles.

Features:

• Over 15 hours of gameplay. 
• 15 levels including 2 open world levels.  
• Customisable modular robot protagonist.
• RPG elements including levelling, unique equipment, exploration, decision making, alternative paths. 
• Hacking minigames
• Physics puzzles.
• Secret locations. 
• Fully 3D gaming in 4K resolution

We received news about Space Wreck, a game set in space and that is inspired by the original Fallout games (Fallout, Fallout 2, Fallout: New Vegas). The game is set in space 20 years post major conflict over asteroid mining. A passenger shuttle is damaged after pirate attack and you are chosen to to find replacement parts on nearby derelict space ship.

The game has the following features that in the opinion of the developer are important for an RPG:

• Role playing
• Multiple solutions
• Choice & Consequence
• Optional but unlimited violence
• Non-linear world

There is a Steam page and early access is scheduled for February 28, next year.

The turn-based strategy game Rebel Cops will be released today:

Rebel Cops

Rebel Cops is a spin-off game from This Is the Police, which exclusively features the series' turn-based tactical operations. Lead a rag-tag squad of cops in rebellion against their town's new criminal power, and see how long you can hold out when you're constantly short on supplies, and a single shot can cost a cop his life.

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You’re not exactly the police, but you're the only ones on the side of justice

Viktor Zuev, a sadistic crime boss new on the scene, has quickly taken the town of Ripton by the throat. The community's leaders and even the local police have surrendered to his will. A master of intimidation and blackmail, Zuev has seized every major business in town, all of which he now controls as his own private fiefdom. But an outlaw band of renegade cops refuse to bow. With little hope of success, they fight on -- for justice, and the soul of their town.

Gunfights are thrilling, but stealth is key

You're fighting a guerilla war, out-manned and out-gunned. Use concealment and cover, approach the enemy quietly, and take them down before they can raise the alarm. You have at your disposal an arsenal of non-lethal weapons and equipment, as well as special tactical perks, which you can unlock as you upgrade your rebels. True, sometimes violence seems inevitable, but when the time comes, don't hesitate: neither you nor the criminals have health bars. When someone is shot, they'll bleed out quickly, and getting a bullet in the head means instant death.

Explore, scavenge, and watch your back

Rebel Cops features not only compact operations where you need to fight for every inch of ground, but also large open locations to explore -- the sandbox levels. Search each room, crack open safes and vaults, try to get into inaccessible areas -- and grab everything that looks useful. Stay together and proceed with caution, or accept the risks, fan out, and try to explore every corner.

Take the high road, or the low road

Zuev's mercilessness is the key to his power. Can you defeat him without playing by his rules? Will you answer the needs of the desperate townspeople, even if it means putting the whole operation at risk? Will you spare civilian guards who are only doing their jobs? Some say that in war, you have to do whatever it takes to survive, but remember: reputation is more valuable than money. Bad blood on the street can easily put your good name in the mud. Merchants will refuse to do business with you, and even some of your own people might turn their backs on you.

@DSOGaming Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch will release September 20th on Steam.

The first Ni no Kuni game finally comes to the PC and will release on September 20th. And today, Bandai Namco released the launch trailer for Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch Remastered.

As the publisher has noted, this remaster retains the same dynamic fight system combining real-time action and turn-based tactical elements. Moreover, it features the dozens of locations and hundreds of creatures that comprise the vast universe of Ni no Kuni.

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An update for Divinity: Original Sin II tells the story of cross-save compatibility between Steam and Switch.

Science and magic hash it out in the second issue of the Larian Gazette. We’ve got headlines, if you’ve got time. 

First up, Divinity: Original Sin 2, our critically acclaimed RPG, is now released on Switch to another round of awards and praise. The reception has been very good with Gamespot hailing it as one of the best games on Switch with a 10/10 score, and USgamer is calling it “a masterpiece of role-playing, wherever you go.” 

Divinity: Original Sin 2 launched on the Nintendo Switch with the completely unique feature that allows players to share their Steam save files between PC and their Switch, seamlessly and as often as they like. 

The Gazette is pleased to report that it has obtained footage of what can only be referred to as a very daring and epic heist, one that saw the worlds of magic and science collide! That’s right, dear readers, Larian broke into Valve to make the unimaginable possible! 

Watch as Baldur’s Gate 3 and Divinity: Original Sin 2 Creative Director Swen Vinke stealthily (he thinks) infiltrates the home of Portal, Index, and of course, your entire collection of PC games. See things you weren’t supposed to see, and some things you wish you never had! 

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You heard it here first! Divinity: Original Sin 2 - Definitive Edition will be the first game featuring cross-save compatibility between Switch and Steam. That means you can store your saves on the Cloud when playing at home and continue your adventure on the road on Switch. As one source within Larian indicated, "It took some true heroes at Valve and Nintendo to make this happen. And let’s not forget our partner Blitworks who made work very hard to make this port possible. A hearty thanks to everyone!."

If you aren’t familiar with Divinity: Original Sin 2, it was Kickstarted in 2015 and thanks to the support of 45k backers, it began a fantastic journey across PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4 before finally landing on the Switch in 2019 on September 4th.  (For the complete history of Divinity: Original Sin 2, go here)

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Gift Bag 2

In a show of embarrassing excess, Larian also released a brand new Gift Bag on all platforms, in celebration of the Switch release.

Gift Bag 2: Song of Nature contains six new additions to D:OS2 on all platforms that will help to enrich your adventures in Rivellon:

Crafter's Kit: Plenty of new recipes and unique items to craft! 

Endless Runner: Find a new icon in your Hotbar to toggle sprint on and off. Sprint increases the movement speed of your party.

Animal Empathy: Allows all player characters to talk to animals without having to spend a talent point. Changes Pet Pal talent to grant maximum positive attitude in all conversations with animals. 

Fort Joy Magic Mirror: Manifests a Magic Mirror in the Arena of Fort Joy, along with a new Character Creation level. This allows you to respec before moving on to the next act of the game.

8 Action Points: Increases the base maximum Action Points of hero characters to 8.

Herb Gardens: Plant your own herb garden! Take any herb and combine it with a bucket to create a seedling. Then place your seedling in the ground and watch it grow.

All Gift Bag content is automatically enabled, but to play with modifications you'll have to manually apply each one to your game. You can do this via the in-game Larian Modifications menu--find it when you start a game or load your save game. But be warned! If you choose to play with modifications, achievements will be turned off.

Divinity Dice Set

The Divinity: Original Sin 2 Dice Set proved to be a popular item at PAX West, selling out on the second day. Made with excellence by the Q-Workshop team, these dice are a distractingly attractive addition to tabletop games. Their worldwide release will be coming soon-- beware Larian's socials for this sin against tabletop austerity.

Larian Gazette

For more breaking news and behind the scenes stories about everything Larian, make sure you sign up for the Larian Gazette at baldursgate3.game.

A word from the Larian Team:

"You've helped us make two amazing games already, and your reactions and feedback as we post updates will be as valuable as ever. We will not be doing any more Kickstarter updates so signing up for the newsletter is the definitive way to stay posted."

Make sure to follow Larian on social media, and click Youtube’s notification bell, to make sure you never miss exclusive coverage of the excess of shenanigans to come.

Finally, please make sure you wishlist the game here: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1086940/Baldurs_Gate_III/

 I got to play King’s Bounty II for an hour or so at Gamescom and I found it to be different from its predecesors, but not always for the better.

With some anticipation I was going to spent some hands-on time with King's Bounty II at the 1C booth and it turned out to be an experience that didn't completely match my anticipation, but it was well worth the hour I spent on the game. 
There is no escaping comparing King's Bounty II with its predecessor and from what I've learned while playing the game, King's Bounty II has several of the elements that its predecessor have, or at least the elements I've tried, but it changes the way how these elements come to you.

KnowTechie reports on Epic Tavern which they describe as a reverse RPG game. The game is currently available on Steam Early Access.

I found that I actually had surprising control over the characters that I ostensibly wasn’t in control of. The game sends you on a tutorial quest that is guaranteed to fail eventually, as it’s the story catalyst of why things in the world are as bad as they are when the game begins. You do control heroes in combat by telling them what kind of roll to make (e.x. Aggressive or Cautious, among several options).

From there it’s all about hedging probabilities. The best way that I can describe the level of control you have is one that goes well with the “sports management meets fantasy” pitch: You’re more of a coach on the sidelines making broad suggestions and less of a player making micro choices.

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Thanks Farflame!

@RockPaperShotgun A new expansion for Endless Space 2 has been released called Awakening.

Amplitude Studios may be working on a new Civ-ish 4X strategy game retelling human history, the recently-announced Humankind, but they’re not out of wild and fanciful sci-fi histories either. Today they released a new Endless Space 2 expansion adding an interesting new faction named the Nakalim. They’re a once-great empire who went dormant after their gods were killed and are now trying to secure their galactic position in anticipation of their gods returning. I do appreciate how Amplitude create factions who are more than your usual “they’re Klingons – but bugs!” or “they’re Borg – but less 90s!” Come meet the Nakalim.

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Thanks Farflame!

@DSOGaming A TGS trailer for Shenmue 3 which shows off the mood.

Deep Silver has released the Tokyo Game Show 2019 trailer for Shenmue 3. This trailer shows off the visuals and the animations from the game’s latest version. The trailer also showcases the game’s world, so we strongly suggest watching it if you are fans of the series.

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Thanks Farflame!

A new trailer for Rune II highlighting the players choice of Gods. The game will release November 12th.

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Pre-order RUNE II today! http://bit.ly/preorderRUNE

Which god will you choose to champion in Midgard to race against time and stop Loki? Will you choose to align with the mighty Thor and call forth the power of his lightning hammer? Or will you pledge your allegiance to the dark Hel to cast a wave of ice spikes to impale your foes? Perhaps summoning a swarm of ravens blessed by Odin to attack and antagonize enemies on the battlefield suits you best? Watch the trailer and decide which deity you will choose when RUNE II releases on November 12, 2019.

Thanks Farflame!

@Wccftech A new trailer for Final Fantasy VII Remake from TGS.

A new Final Fantasy VII Remake trailer has been released today, showing more of the upcoming remake launching for PlayStation 4 in early March 2020.

The new trailer, which can be watched below, showcases some new story sequences featuring Aerith, the Turks, and President Shinra as well as more new gameplay, including mini-games.

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Thanks Farflame!

Iron Danger has been previewed by Wccftech who comment on the games time travel mechanic.

“A game without an end-state?” I hear you ask. I asked the same question and it doesn’t seem that there isn’t an end-state. This isn’t to say you won’t die. You’re going to die a lot. It’s more the fact that as soon as Kipuna or one of your characters dies, everything stops. I like to believe that Kipuna can’t fathom losing someone she values so highly, nor does she want to die herself, so stopping time and letting you go back is her defence mechanism.

It’s this mechanism that interests me so much about Iron Danger. Combat, in games, has always been a puzzle of sorts. Only now it’s more in line with that of a puzzle game than anything else of its kind. At any point, the games turns, dictated by a bar at the bottom of the screen, is measured by heartbeats and you can go back a maximum of ten heartbeats. Fortunately, you know exactly what’s going to happen and where the enemies are moving, letting you pre-empt them.

[...]

Thanks Farflame!

IndianNoob has reviewed the action RPG Din's Legacy:

Din’s Legacy Review (PC) :: Pure Chaos

I’m glad we live in a time where there’s relatively no shortage of ARPGs. Dial the clock back 10 years and you had a lot fewer options. You’d be hard-pressed to find people talking about anything other than Diablo; maybe Sacred or Torchlight here and there. Nowadays, you have some really good alternatives such as Path of Exile, Grim Dawn and Torchlight 2 headlining the genre. One can also head over to steam to find a plethora of indie ventures guaranteeing ample amounts of hack, slash and loot. Din’s Legacy is one such indie ARPG that grabbed my attention last year while it was in early access. Fast forward to 2019 and I couldn’t pass up on the offer to review Din’s Legacy. With the prospect of acquiring loot, loot and more loot, I ventured into Din’s Legacy blind. Here’s me explaining if you should do the same.

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VERDICT

Din’s Legacy is a very unique, deep and unforgiving experience. It’s hard to find an ARPG that offers the level of nuanced gameplay Din’s Legacy does. That being said, it’s hard to recommend Din’s Legacy for the general ARPG playerbase. The level of randomness in the world and the clunkiness in the gameplay might be enough to turn players away from Din’s Legacy. It’s made with a particular niche in mind and thus can be hard to appreciate for people unfamiliar with Soldak games. But It’s never too late to join them, especially since there’s a free demo you can try to make up your mind (better than this review ever will). Everything said and done, I had a good time with Din’s Legacy. Then again, I’m a sucker for RPGs that are rough around the edges.

Score: 7/10

The RPG Crawler has reviewed Sin Slayers:

Indie Game Friday - Sin Slayers

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A dark fantasy RPG with Roguelike elements. Greater than the sum of its parts, but room for improvement.

Encased will be releasing onto Steam Early Access and a GOG release will also follow according to the latest update.

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Greetings, recruits!

The time has come. The Early Access version of Encased is almost ready, and the Dome will soon be open to everyone. On September 26th, you can begin exploring the enigma that is the Dome!

Those who pledged their support on Kickstarter, or otherwise pre-ordered the game, will receive their keys via email during the Early Access launch. Over the next few days we will send out a questionnaire where you may choose your platform, Steam or GOG.

Now we will answer the biggest question posed by community: "What can we expect in Early Access?"

•  Early Access will include a section of the game's main plot relating the events leading up to and during the Incident.
• After the prologue, you will have access to some parts of the open world, where you can explore and discover how life under the Dome changed after the disaster.
• Portions of the desert beneath the Dome will be obscured as anomalous zones, and temporarily inaccessible. But don't worry, regular content updates will gradually open up new sectors of the Dome for you to explore.
•  The open world has a life of its own. Traveling through the desert, you'll meet wandering traders, bandits, wild animals, the Forefathers' machines and anomaly mazes. Sometimes you’ll encounter unique events leading to a quest or acquainting you with one of the Dome’s factions.
• The Early Access release will include about 40 weapons. In addition, Encased lets players craft their own weapons, which can lead to more than 100 deadly devices in total!

You will also find new side quests, characters, secrets, locations, items, weapons and armor, new animations, improved sounds and music, item crafting, etc.

Right now and until the start of Early Access, we will continue to polish and improve the game. None of the feedback you sent escaped our notice. We've fixed tons of bugs, changed some small mechanics, and improved what you told us needing improving (but nothing too crazy, we can't add a Godzilla-sized Cheburashka or anything like that).

As a reminder, you can directly report any errors you find in the game by using the "Feedback" button in the interface. You can also message us in Discord .

The Dome awaits, your patience will soon be rewarded! Join your fellow Encased players on Steam or GOG!

Steam Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/921800/
GOG Store page: https://www.gog.com/game/encased_a_scifi_postapocalyptic_rpg