Gamewatcher has some new screenshots for Necromunda: Underhive Wars.

Focus Home Interactive has sent over a few new screenshots for Necromunda: Underhive Wars, which is its fast-paced tactical combat game that features RPG elements and unit customization. Rogue Factor are the developers, who are known for making Mordheim: City of the Damned.

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Techraptor tried out the latest build of We Happy Few which will release August 10th.

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As I snuck my way into a train station and met up with a surly war vet, my demo ended. If our E3 awards had a much-improved category, We Happy Few would be a shoo-in. The survival elements, while still present, now serve as just one strand in the wonderful tapestry that Compulsion Games have weaved. The narrative is front and center where it belongs, guiding players through an expertly crafted world. I can’t wait to get past the train station one more time and see what else this twisted dystopia has in store for me.

Our We Happy Few demo took place behind closed doors in Gearbox Publishing’s meeting rooms during E3 2018. The game is releasing on PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4 on August 10th.

Gamerant interviewed Julian Gollop about Phoenix Point.

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When the aliens develop strategies to counter your own, is there a point at which they might get too powerful? How are you balancing this issue?

Balancing partly comes from the fact that the aliens are responding to your battle victories, rather than pursuing a fixed advancement. They don’t care too much if they are winning, but will go through mutation processes if they are losing.

What are some of the challenges you’ve faced during the development of this game?

The procedural generation of environments and aliens is a big challenge, as is the character customisation system. Also, we are setting high goals for the production quality, which is always hard work.

Can you tell us a bit about what we can expect from boss fights in the game?

The boss monsters are a bit like battleships with multiple weapons systems and defences, and a whole variety of AI behaviours. They will usually be quite unique and memorable. One interesting thing is that the monsters are persistent characters with a specific lair, and if they survive a battle they will get stronger and strike again.

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Shadowrun Returns Deluxe is free on Humble Bundle for a limited time.

Shadowrun Returns Deluxe is provided via Steam key for Windows, Mac, and Linux. For key redemption, a free Steam account is required.

Description

The Shadowrun Returns Deluxe product contains the following content:

• Shadowrun Returns base game
• Shadowrun Returns Anthology DLC
• Shadowrun Returns Soundtrack DLC

Shadowrun Returns Soundtrack
From the composers of the much-loved Shadowrun SEGA and SNES games, the Shadowrun Returns Soundtrack will pay homage to the classics but with a modern twist.

Shadowrun Returns Anthology
Explore the world of Shadowrun Returns even more with an illustrated PDF of short stories written for the game and edited by Jordan Weisman, the creator of Shadowrun.

About the Game
MAN MEETS MAGIC & MACHINE. The year is 2054. Magic has returned to the world, awakening powerful creatures of myth and legend. Technology merges with flesh and consciousness. Elves, trolls, orks and dwarves walk among us, while ruthless corporations bleed the world dry. You are a shadowrunner - a mercenary living on the fringes of society, in the shadows of massive corporate arcologies, surviving day-by-day on skill and instinct alone. When the powerful or the desperate need a job done, you get it done... by any means necessary.

In the urban sprawl of the Seattle metroplex, the search for a mysterious killer sets you on a trail that leads from the darkest slums to the city’s most powerful megacorps. You will need to tread carefully, enlist the aid of other runners, and master powerful forces of technology and magic in order to emerge from the shadows of Seattle unscathed.

The unique cyberpunk-meets-fantasy world of Shadowrun has gained a huge cult following since its creation nearly 25 years ago. Now, creator Jordan Weisman returns to the world of Shadowrun, modernizing this classic game setting as a single player, turn-based tactical RPG.

Key Features

• Gripping Tactical Combat: When you’re running the shadows, every turn matters. Choose your actions wisely - move to better cover, charge into melee, or lob a fireball into a crowd of enemies. With the variety of weapons and spells at your disposal, every turn is filled with meaningful choices. A successful run requires commanding a team of runners with the right balance of combat, tech, and magical abilities.
• Skill-Based Character Progression: Choose a starting character archetype and build from there! Street Samurai and Physical Adepts use advanced combat skills to dominate the battlefield, Shamans and Mages summon powerful allies and cast deadly spells, while Riggers and Deckers provide critical technological support, projecting their consciousness directly into drones and computer systems. Shadowrun Returns’ classless skill system allows you to grow your character in any direction you choose. Want to start summoning spirits as an ork Shaman and evolve into a cybered-up weapon specialist? Do it!
• Engaging 2D/3D Art Style: Shadowrun Returns mixes dynamic 3D characters and lighting with a vibrant, hand-painted environment. Illustrated character portraits bring every conversation to life. Explore a world filled with detail, from the slums of the Redmond Barrens to the extravagant offices of powerful corporations.

An update on HellSign announces a release date of November 7th.

Hey everyone and thanks so much for your enthusiasm regarding the HellSign upcoming release!

We have said that HellSign would be in your hands in the second quarter of 2018, and we wanted to give you an update on that.

We are very proud to announce that HellSign will be releasing on November 7th 2018! We know that this isn't as soon as you all hoped, and we hate not delivering when we say we will. As many of you know, we recently had a major upset involving trademarking issues which resulted in a name change for the game. Dealing with this setback cost us valuable time being two indie devs.

The other reason is we've added a whole lot of awesome elements to give you a more complete representation of the final game. These include deeper RPG elements, investigation mechanics, and (with the help of a professional author) a unique lore, story & dialogue.
We've decided to hold on localization, to keep things open ended for the community feedback, as we believe together we can create the best supernatural hunting experience, and a sincere apology to all our non-english speaking fans, we haven't forgotten about you :)

We are sure the wait will be worth it, and we can't wait to get HellSign in your hands! We've included a little sneak peek for the backstories of some of the characters for you to check out!

Finally, we want to say a big huge thanks to all of our supporters. This game wouldn't be happening without you, and we wouldn't be out here making our dream game. So we ask that you stick with us and hang on for the next five months; we are so excited to finally be able to share HellSign with you!

Whalenought Studios have revealed a new graphic style for Copper Dreams on Twitter.

[1/2] Last month we finalized a 3d art style we’ve been tinkering with for awhile. As we’re more comfortable with traditional 2d, we’ve always been looking for a way of making 3d more comfortable to work with. Making everything sketchy is just a treat to design. pic.twitter.com/pzGgKGBJzA

— Whalenought Studios (@whalenought) June 21, 2018

[2/2] This style allows us to abstract a lot of gameplay elements that would otherwise be hard to make look realistic. We’re preparing a wonderful week of news for Copper Dreams: turn-based motorcycle action, more tentacle arms, and new rolling with Search skill!

— Whalenought Studios (@whalenought) June 21, 2018

PC Powerplay has reviewed Warhammer 40,000: Inquisitor - Martyr:

Review: Warhammer 40,000: Inquisitor - Martyr

FOR EMPER... or... Look, I really can't get excited about this any more.

I’m not the only one who’s a little jaded by the rapid release date of games based on Games Workshop franchises. As the satirical games website Point and Clickbait notes, it feels like just about anyone can get into the action. So it’s rare that a game like Warhammer 40,000: Inquisitor – Martyr comes along – that is, a game that I’m actually genuinely keen to play.

Martyr – no WAY am I saying the overblown full name every time – is essentially grim-dark take on the action RPG genre, as typified by Diablo. But instead of a dungeon, you’re exploring the bowels of a gigantic, abandoned space-hulk, whose gleaming bulkheads and rusted partitions gradually give way to gore-soaked corridors and the fleshy architecture of the corruption of Chaos. And instead of a stalwart adventurer, you play a stalwart Inquisitor of the Imperium – a loyal servant of the Emperor with enough clout and confidence to talk to back even to Space Marines.

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If you hate the constant fight, loot, gear-up, repeat process of Diablo, this might appeal, but when all you’ve got each level is just click-killing everything in sight, the game gets a little dull, and the terri-bad voice-acting doesn’t do Martyr any favours either. 

Which is, all up, a real shame, as there is the structure of a good game here. But the end product just doesn’t add up to something worth sticking with.

Verdict

A gorgeous game in looks, but repetitive and miserly in its gameplay. And that voice acting - UGH!

Score: 6/10

City A.M. checked out Vampyr:

Vampyr review: Dontnod's open world action RPG shows a more sociable side to the creatures of the night

Vampyr is an open world action RPG in which you, a doctor specialising in blood transfusions, are unexpectedly turned into a vampire. It’s a painfully ironic transformation that every character in the game can’t help but repeatedly comment on.

The setting is a Victorian-ish London crippled by the outbreak of Spanish Flu – all cobbled streets, jellied eels and corpse piles – and your goal is to find the vampire who turned you, in the hopes of returning to some kind of normal life. And if along the way you happen to become embroiled in a war between London’s secret paranormal factions, all the better.

[...]

Combat is clunky, and the environments – while necessarily dark given your character’s aversion to sunlight – are grey and lacklustre. Look past the rough edges and there’s an interesting game to be found here, one about a chatty Nosferatu and a city full of unexpectedly deep characters.

Score: 3/5

Larian Studios brings us more news about the Definitive Edition of Divinity: Original Sin II, some of which is provided by means of a video.

When we decided to bring Divinity: Original Sin 2 to console, we knew we didn't want to just repackage the same game and put it on a store shelf. We wanted to take the opportunity to improve it and craft an even better experience than what we delivered in 2017. Divinity: Original Sin 2 - Definitive Edition, available in August will come with 1000s of changes that take into account all the feedback we've received. Check out our latest Kickstarter update to see Swen quiz the team about what some of these changes are.

Divinity: Original Sin 2 - Definitive Edition will be completely free to everyone who owns Original Sin 2! Without the support of everyone who bought the game already, and without all the feedback we’ve received from you, we couldn’t have made this new and improved edition of Divinity: Original Sin 2. As a little "thank you" to you all, we’re ensuring you'll get to enjoy all of the improvements without spending a cent more! Because we know some of our will want to still play the original version, both versions will remain available on PC and you'll be able to select which one you want to play. 

What follows in the update is an incomplete overview of changes, including this one about the changes made for console support.

We didn't make any significant graphical, UI, gameplay or story changes for the PS4 or Xbox One but the one thing we didn't manage to port to console is the Game Master mode. This will come as a disappointment to some of you but will probably be no surprise to those who've played with it. The number of menus present in Game Master mode and the speed with which a GM needs to be react to the antics of a party made it impossible to make a port that would be fun to play with. All other online modes are available however and playing in split-screen with two controllers is a blast! We've also included a new hot-seat arena mode which is loads of fun!

The Color of Madness DLC has been released for Darkest Dungeon.

A new update for Phoenix Point shows off the good guys and bad guys with some new art.

Good Guys and Bad Guys

Since our last update, the team has been busy working on Backer Build Two, fixing bugs and adding more content and functionality.
The Good Guys

So far our demo and Backer Build have only showcased 3 classes from the New Jericho faction. Our reasoning for this is that our New Jericho models were in a more complete state and we wanted more time to work on the others before showing them.

The Technician class has so far been absent from our NJ lineup. This is mainly due to some unique mechanics that the Technician has (such as their turret and exosuit arms). These all required extra animation and programming which we didn't want to rush through just to have them included in the first Backer Builds.
The Technician, now with his un-deployed turret stowed beneath the power pack of the exosuit.

Not only does the Technician have a deployable turret which requires its own set of animations and unique mechanics, but they also have some unique attacks of their own.
A Technician melee range attack using the exosuit

The art and animation teams are also busily working on the other factions. The Phoenix Project, the player faction, is one of the most anticipated. We have shown some concept work for them in the past, but now we have fully textured models.
The Phoenix Project Assault class

We're also working on the Alien Chitin Armor set which will be usable by The Phoenix Project in the Luxury Edition DLC
The Alien Chitin Armor set

Sticking with the Good Guys, (if New Jericho are the "Good Guys"), we're also working on animations for the Armadillo, the New Jericho APC.
Everyone in the back has just spilled their coffee

The Bad Guys

So far we have shown the Crabmen, the Queen, some concept work for the Chiron and the Queen's larva. In this update, we're going to be looking at some developments on some of those creatures and also take a look at two new creatures.

Let's first have a look at the progress on the Chiron.
A selection of different Chiron mutations

As the Chiron has a very beetle-like carapace, this provides the perfect opportunity to use some chromatic blue and purple colours. We are very conscious not to just make everything in muddy shades of brown and grey, which is so easy to do in a post-apocalyptic setting.

Next we have the Queen.
The Queen with a heavily armored carapace

Back in April at EGX Rezzed, Julian did show off some new mutations for the Queen as part of his presentation, though they were untextured models at that point. Above, you can see the Queen with heavy armor (both undamaged and damaged versions).

We said that we had 2 new enemies to share with you. So here they are!

Firstly, we present to you The Siren.
A small selection of the Siren mutations

The Siren has undergone some major changes since her early concepts. Along with having some pretty nasty attacks of her own, the Siren also has a number of support abilities to help her allies and hinder your own troops.

For something completely new and never seen before - The Juggernaut!
Just one variation of The Juggernaut

The Juggernaut is one of the heavy hitters for Team Pandoravirus. While we don't wish to spoil too much about the Juggernaut, they have a number off different and unique ways to attack. Some of them might really surprise you.

PC Gamer reports that the Diablo source code has been reverse engineered.

A coder who goes by the name of GalaxyHaxz has uploaded a reverse-engineered version of the original Diablo source code. According to this GitHub post, it took them over 1,200 hours over the course of "6-12 months", in bid to ensure "that everything is preserved."

Devilution, as the project is known, doesn't contain any of the original game's assets so don't expect a free copy of the classic action slasher. Do however expect an accessible project that aims to make things "much easier" to support and maintain into the future.

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Owlcat has launched a voice over contest where you can send them your interpretation of a line of text for a character in the game. The contest page holds a list of characters and a line of text.

How would you like to win a Royal Edition of Pathfinder: Kingmaker? Sure, you may have already backed our project on here or pre-ordered your version, but you know what's always better than one copy of Kingmaker? Two copies! Share it with a loved one. Share it with your cat, teach Mr. Whiskers how to play videogames and make a viral video! Share it with an enemy who hates classic CRPGs, just to rub it in! The possibilities are endless! Also, all winners will be getting a free Syrinscape subscription for a year! The award-winning Syrinscape app brings tabletop games to life with epic sounds that have been custom-created for epic games, including the official sounds of Pathfinder, Starfinder, Call of Cthulhu, Shadows of Esteren and many more, with an extensive library to accompany any fantasy or sci-fi game.

For your chance to get your hands on that sweet, sweet swag of ours, please read the following rules carefully:

1. Use one of the pre-written lines of text for your character of choice (provided at the end of this update) and record it. If you're feeling brave, you may also improvise something.

2. No more than 2 submissions per participant, please.

3. The absolute maximum length per submission is 20 seconds.

4. You may enhance your submission by adding background music or sound effects.

5. Send your submission to [email protected]

6. We will accept submissions until July 1st. Please be sure to submit your contribution in time!

Voting process

We are going to publish all submissions on the forums. Every member of the community is invited to vote in the polls in order to determine the most popular submissions. The Owlcats reserve the right to pick personal favourites and hand out additional rewards for them. The voting process starts after we stop accepting submissions and lasts for one week.

Xenonauts 2 is on Kickstarter and has already funded. There is also an alpha combat demo to try out.

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The Setting

Glad to see you made it, Commander. We got the helicopter away from CENTRAL with a dozen or so survivors, our Chief Scientist included - although naturally he spent the entire flight complaining that we'd rescued his lab assistants instead of his research notes.

That's where the good news ends, I'm afraid. The political situation is continuing to worsen - NORAD is reporting something with Soviet transponder codes buzzing the Eastern Seaboard, but I know for a fact the Soviets don't have any jets in the area. If we let the aliens run around unopposed for much longer we're going start seeing mushroom clouds on the horizon...

We'll have ATLAS Base online by the end of the day. In the meantime, you need to figure out a strategy for rebuilding our organisation, bringing the political situation under control and defeating a vastly superior foe that we know almost nothing about. Best get started, eh? There's coffee in the pot.

XENONAUTS-2 is a "strategic planetary defense simulator" that puts you in charge of a clandestine military force attempting to protect the planet from extraterrestrial invasion. It is the sequel to the acclaimed Xenonauts, successfully Kickstarted way back in 2012!

We are building a hugely complex strategy / tactics game that gives you total control of your organisation all the way from the command staff in your base down to the troops on the battlefield. The formula will be familiar to anyone who has played the classic X-Com games from the 90's (or the modern reboots), but Xenonauts-2 expands those foundations to create something deeper and more distinctive!

The action takes place in the modern day - but in an alternative timeline where decades of alien interference has prevented the end of the Cold War, leaving NATO and the Soviet Union teetering on the brink of a catastrophic nuclear war. Can you hold humanity together long enough to end the alien threat forever?

Xenonauts-2 is not a chronological sequel to the first Xenonauts but rather an updated portrayal of similar events. The game is in development on Windows PC and is expected to launch on Steam & GOG in late 2018; we will hopefully natively support Linux and Mac on release but cannot yet offer a firm promise of this (please see the FAQ for further details).

We've been developing Xenonauts-2 for three years now and the game is in an advanced state. If you want to check out how things are progressing, you can download a free demo of a single tactical combat mission at the link below. Bear in mind this is still an alpha; expect it to improve a lot before release!

VentureBeat interviewed Casey Hudson about Anthem.

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GamesBeat: I don’t know if they were joking, but some people seem to want more romance in the game.

Hudson: I think the expectations from a BioWare game—Mass Effect and Dragon Age, they’re quite mature-rated storylines, things like that. That was one framework for what romances were in a BioWare game. So then the question is, are there going to be romances in Anthem? We’ve been saying no, but—the nuance is, of course we do want relationships. It’s just more in an action genre of storytelling.

Of course, like with other games, we just want to see how people respond to that, and then we can build more. You might remember, with Mass Effect, Garrus was an alien that, as we developed the story—he was a kind of birdlike concept art that we eventually pulled together and shipped that game. But we didn’t know what he would really be like and what the reaction would be. It turned out that people loved Garrus so much that they wanted romances with him, so we built that into Mass Effect 2 and people loved it. That same opportunity exists here. If people really like a character and they want to spend more time with them, want a relationship with them, that’s definitely in the cards for the future.

[...]

Thanks Farflame!

Realms Beyond has shown off its combat alpha with a gameplay video.

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Ambush in the Forest A battle taken from the alpha version of our combat system. While traveling through woodlands on the worldmap, the player's party has been ambushed by a group of orcs and trolls Reminder: Particularly the user Interface, sounds, FXs and animations are still work in progress. https://www.realms-beyond.com

Some previews for Cyberpunk 2077.

Gamingbolt

And that’s only a taste of Cyberpunk 2077. There wasn’t a moment in this edge-of-your-seat thriller where fatigue sets it. Every second I had my eyes wide open, ready for more. Every scene is filled with attention to detail that you’d only notice in a real life setting. Not only was the engaging story, gameplay mechanics, and lively world impressive, Cyberpunk 2077 is easily my best game of E3 2018.

Wccftech

The cool stat! For example, it’s going to unlock certain things that you might not have been able to do, certain options when dealing with situations. Or, another example, the vendors that you have, the ripperdocs, if you have that cool and street cred level, they might bring down certain weapon prices or unlock certain weapons you might not have had there. So it is an integral part of it. It’s also a throwback to the original tabletop game as well. So we are thinking of—forgive me for saying this—cool ways to use it. It’s going to be an important thing for sure. It’s definitely a way to help interact with people.

[...]

Worthplaying

Cyberpunk 2077 has roots that date back to the tabletop game Cyberpunk 2020 from the late 1980s, so this universe of ideas has been swirling around for a long time. Seeing how CDPR has given life to these ideas and packaged them together in one experience (we haven't even gotten into how Night City has six different districts), makes Cyberpunk 2077 an event release — whenever it comes out.

Thanks Farflame!

StarCrawlers has received a substantial content update that was originally intended as DLC.

StarCrawlers v1.1 - Hotwire Update

Hotwire Hotfix 1 Deployed! Details inside...

The Hotwire Update is live and it's FREE. Originally intended as DLC, we've reworked and integrated all of the content from Hotwire into the base StarCrawlers game as a free update for all players. Here's what's inside:

Hacking

• Hacking is now a fully developed and separate system that works alongside the base game.
• Datajacks will now spawn on randomized missions allowing access to the virtual Wire network which connects all of the systems of the map you're on.
• Using your Deck, jack in and ride the Wire to encounter 35+ new enemies and discover 25+ new abilities exclusive to hacking.
• The Hackshop in STIX sells Programs and Utilities to beef up your Deck and tackle the toughest denizens of the Wire.
• Enemy programs guard the Wire and change depending on the type of network, security rating of their nodes, and other factors to give a different feel to each network you hack.
• New hacking element types (Security, Corruption, and Deception) each have their own enemies and program types for you to unlock and use both in hacking combat and when interacting with nodes.
• Nodes in the network control security doors, alert levels, contain loot data, and more. Hack your way to the Core and crash it to bring the system down and stick to the megacorps.
• Now that hacking is live, more hacking specific content is in the works (and will arrive Sooner^TM)!

Additional Patch Notes for v1.0.4

Tip Jar

• We'll be supporting ongoing development of StarCrawlers with free updates and content patches by adding a Tip Jar button to the title screen. If you enjoy the Hotwire Update and want to see more of it (and new stuff!), please consider showing your support with a $1 tip!
• Tipping confers no in-game advantage and never will (but we'll think you're really cool) and amount may vary in your local currency as determined by Steam.
• If the Tip Jar bothers you, simply click the Hide Tip Jar button and you'll never see it again.

Story

• Fixed a plot hole that could allow a certain character to randomly appear on the final mission (despite your refusal to work with them earlier in the story).
• Firing the Prototype allows it to be rehired from the STIX bar - possibly. It may wander off and do its own thing if it feels like it.

Smuggler

• Sped up animation of Showdown crosses on target when stacks are greater than 3.

Linux

• Unsupported resolutions checks are no longer ignored on Linux as a workaround - as such, you may need to adjust your resolution and reset your preferences if you are playing on Linux with a non-3:4 display.
• If you encounter issues with your resolution on Linux - please let me know your distro and native resolution in the forums so I can support as many as possible.
• Double typing on text entry is still a known issue - Unity has not patched it. Investigation continues!

Other notes

• Fixed additional elusive typos.
• Minor bug fixes and QOL improvements.
• Known issue (non fatal) with event entering hackshop for the first time that can cause a sentence be skipped.

DSOGaming reports that Valkyria Chronicles 4 will release September 25th.

SEGA has announced that Valkyria Chronicles 4 will release on September 25th. The PC version of Valkyria Chronicles 4 will support 4K resolutions, customisable keyboard and mouse controls, as well as ultra-widescreen monitors.

[...]

@Twinfinite The Surge 2 will have online features that will let you influence other players experiences.

According to Jan Klose, the creative director for The Surge 2 at Deck13, the game will have online features that let you influence other players games. During our interview, Klose told us “We really do love multiplayer gaming, and right now we have planned lots of online features there. There’s no synchronous co-op or multiplayer gameplay planned right now, but so far we’re starting with some online features where you can influence other gamer’s experience in a way. So this will definitely be there, and the other stuff has to be seen maybe further in the future. But we’re looking into that stuff very much.”

[...]

Thanks Farflame!

Gameplay for Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden was shown off at E3.

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Get an all new look from the developers of Mutant Year Zero, coming later this year.

Thanks Farflame!

Venturebeat explored Assassin's Creed: Odyssey and asked some questions.

Odyssey will give you plenty of choices about how you will approach your specific adventure. You can play as either Alexios or Kassandra, you can romance a huge number of characters, and you can approach missions however you want.

In the clip below from my play session, you can see some of how this works. In this video, I took a mission from Socrates to go free a radical freedom fighter. I went in and killed all of the guards to let him go free, but when he lashed out wildly at me, I killed him, too. When I went back to talk to Socrates, the conversation reflected those gameplay choices. But had I avoided killing the guards and/or the radical, that discussion would have played out differently … and the results of those actions could have had consequences on other parts of the game.

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[...]

GamesBeat: This is an RPG, so did you ever consider letting people make their own characters?

Scott Phillips: That’s where the balance of Assassin’s Creed versus an Assassin’s Creed RPG comes in. We wanted to tell a story, but we wanted to give you as much freedom as possible within that story. It’s a narrative. It’s going to be different for every player, but the core of that is going to be the same, because that’s part of what Assassin’s Creed is. That’s the DNA of Assassin’s Creed. But we wanted to take that in our own direction by making you — allowing you to choose a lot of different things, small and large, that have an overall impact on that story.

[...]

Thanks Farflame!

The Sequel to Anima: Gate of Memories, The Nameless Chronicles, has been released today.

Anima: Gate of Memories - The Nameless Chronicles is now available for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC.

Madrid, Spain, June 19th, 2018:  Today, the long-awaited sequel to the indie jewel Anima: Gate of Memories has been released in digital format. The Nameless Chronicles is now available on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC; the Nintendo Switch version, which shares every detail of the versions already launched (including a stable 60fps framerate), will be available on Nintendo eShop on June 29th.

The Nameless Chronicles takes us back to the events that gave birth to the first Anima, but from the standpoint of the enemy side. We will put ourselves in the role of The Nameless, an immortal who has been assuming different identities throughout history, and his quest to find a meaning to his eternal existence. In The Nameless Chronicles we will accompany him on a journey in which his past lives will be interwoven with a war in the shadows in which the fate of the world will be at stake.

Like Anima: Gate of Memories, this new installment is an Action RPG packed with spectacular attacks and memorable bosses, which mixes elements inherited from traditional table top RPG with a gameplay reminiscent of hack & slash classics like Devil May Cry and Nier: Automata. Action, exploration and evolution of the character through experience points are some of the mechanics included in its gameplay.

This new Anima is an adventure completely independent of the original game, although there will be no lack of elements, characters and winks that only those who have played the first instalment of the saga will recognize.

With an epic soundtrack created by Sonotrigger Studios and stunning visuals that, like on the first installment, blends cel-shading graphics with realistic 3D environments, The Nameless Chronicles has it all to become the Action RPG indie game of the year

If you haven't already had the chance to enter the world of Anima, Anima: Arcane Edition, which includes both installments in a single bundle, is also on sale in addition to The Nameless Chronicles. And if your preferred platform is Steam, you can take advantage of a series of launch discounts and get both titles at an irresistible price

You can get Grid Cartographer 4 on Steam now:

Grid Cartographer 4 is now available on Steam with a 10% launch discount.

I've put years of work into this project and I hope you enjoy using it. If you have any questions or feature requests, please stop by the discussion forum.

Grid Cartographer 4 is a powerful map creation and design tool, with many features:

• Square, Hexagon and Tile-map Grid Types.
• Unlimited floor area with named floors and multiple tabbed 'regions'.
• Quick brush selection with a popup overlay.
• Standard editing tools such as undo, redo and cut, copy and paste.
• Range of selection tools including marquee, paint and wand.
• Simple text labelling and a quick note system.
• Fog-of-war overlays in several different styles.
• Map themes including blueprint, phosphor and parchment styles.
• Scripting system for exporting to proprietary data formats.
• 3D view mode for first-person visualisation.
• Avatar cursor to help track your movements as you explore a map.
• Export maps to PNG with powerful filtering options to create a 'player map'.
• Export maps to OBJ mesh or XML for use with Unity and Unreal Engine.
• Interactive wall levers and treasure chests.
• Custom marker and terrain tile art import.
• Flexible grid setup for limited areas or infinite planes.

Capsella The Lights of Lucern is an action RPG releasing on Steam early access 22nd June.

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About This Game

Capsella The Lights of Lucern is an action RPG that takes place in Galad, a mysterious and magical universe.
Four heroes were chosen by the goddess to hold the Capsella, an artifact that is capable of dispelling the darkness cast on the Link Crystals that is breaking the balance between light and darkness.
The heroes will face multiple dangers across the land to dispel the Crystals and find out who is behind the attacks.
Featuring a local multiplayer cooperative with four unique heroes, explore the dimension of Lucern in an top down action driven adventure!
You can play as Ambar, Aran, Laurina and Lucas! Each with an unique set of technics and gameplay style!
Ambar is a powerful mage that can cast powerful spells!
Aran is a mighty brawler that can unleash swings with his two handed sword!
Laurina is a swift and skilled archer!
Lucas is a fierce swordsman that can take a blow and protect the group!
Fight enemies, earn experience to gain levels and unlock new technics! Get stronger by upgrading your equipment and use elemental properties to be more effective and defeat your enemies!

Titan Outpost is an isometric, single-player RPG set on Titan. The latest update shows off some screenshots and reports that all core systems are in place and ready for testing.

Features

Titan Outpost is an isometric, single-player role-playing game set on Titan, the sixth moon of the planet Saturn. Humanity is engulfed in an energy crisis and you are there to harvest the moon's precious resources and uncover its mysteries.

There is no combat in the game. Titan itself is your biggest enemy and your character will need to use a variety of skills to handle missions. In an atmosphere so uninvitingly cold that methane is a liquid, every choice matters and every step counts.

• The PICA character system features four attributes -Physical, Intelligence, Charisma and Awarenss- and six skills, ranging from science to exploration.
• Branching storylines and multiple quest solutions.
• Discrete time system, where every passing second determines unfolding events and the game world continues while your character sleeps. The game would be considered turn-based if it had combat.
• Logistical elements , think original Dune adventure meets the strategic layer of X-com.
• A rich backstory with a combination of realistic science-fiction and cold war tension.
• Over twenty locations, a hundred if you count all the lakes.
• Build and expand your base, it's not called Titan Outpost for nothing.
• Research exciting new technologies, ranging from new ways to keep warm, generating more power or making Titan ever so slightly more like Earth.
• Multiple factions: You can decide to join the Chinese, work for independent contractors or stay loyal to your employer.
• 70s aesthetic.

Ancient Frontier: Steel Shadows has been announced for summer 2018.

About This Game

A new chapter in the world of Ancient Frontier!

Steel Shadows is a standalone RPG set in the epic universe of Ancient Frontier. You do NOT need to own or have played Ancient Frontier to enjoy this content. Take command of a rag tag band of pirates and outlaws as you fight your way across the Frontier for treasure and glory. Delve into our latest turn based tactical RPG.

You play as Rogan Harker, a recently freed convict. He travels to the Frontier to find old friends and start a new life. But the overpowering Federation still controls most of the Frontier, and the new and budding Alliance is no fan of outlaws. Hated and feared, the pirate life is one of constant danger. Friends and allies are hard to find and harder still to keep. Beset on all sides can Rogan find fame and fortune with his fledgling pirate fleet?

FEATURES

• A full campaign with over 20 story missions
• Over 50 procedurally generated side missions
• Dynamic initiative based turn based combat
• Purchase, outfit and control the unique Pirate faction ships
• Hire and assign crew members that gain experience and power along with your ships
• Hidden unique mercenaries and ships to add to your fleet
• Experience over 50 random events
• Customize your play style by unlocking technologies in an extensive Tech Tree
• Large, detailed space maps to fight across
• Three different strategic resources to manage
• Dozens of different weapon systems and abilities to control
• Includes both free DLCs; Ancient Frontier - The Crew and Ancient Froniter - Quests and Events

Will you survive the frontier?

Update 1.1 Beta for BattleTech is now available.

Last month we talked about what's next for BATTLETECH, and outlined some key items we were working on for our first larger free Update to the game. Well - we've just pushed that Update 1.1.0 to the public_beta branch on Steam and GOG. This Update is all about giving you more ways to customize your experience, as well as reacting to common pieces of feedback that we've heard from you about the game. It also includes a healthy dose of optimizations and general bugfixes across all areas of BATTLETECH.

We're pleased to report that most of the items we mentioned last month made it into this 1.1.0 release. One thing that didn't is the "Tutorial Skip" feature, but that's still on the roadmap for our next Update. Many more things DID make it in beyond what we mentioned last month, though, like ultrawide monitor support and some additional quality-of-life improvements. The full release notes are below.

We would like to encourage interested players to switch to public_beta right away and start playing BATTLETECH 1.1.0. Instructions for switching to public_beta can be found below. And if you do try this release, we'd really appreciate it if you could also take a few minutes to report back directly in this thread with your impressions, and to let us know if you encounter any issues. This will help us test at a broader scale before pushing this Update to the live branch. Thank you in advance!

-- HBS

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New Features & Content

MechWarrior customization. Players can now customize the appearance, callsign, name, pronoun, and voice of all non-Ronin MechWarriors in their mercenary company. The starting MechWarriors (Behemoth, Dekker, Glitch, and Medusa) are now considered Ronin.

Granular difficulty settings. Added a wide variety of Granular Difficulty Settings that can be adjusted at any time from the Settings menu.

• Lethality - when enabled, MechWarriors that are disabled in combat will always be killed.
• 'Mech Destruction - when enabled, 'Mechs disabled from Center Torso destruction are permanently lost. This setting is intended for veterans and those seeking a significant challenge.
• No Rare Salvage - when enabled, + and ++ items are no longer generated as salvage results (but remain purchasable in stores).
• MechWarrior Progression - adjust the amount of experience that MechWarriors gain after each mission.
• Advanced MechWarriors - increase or decrease the frequency of more powerful MechWarriors appearing in Hiring Halls in later parts of the game.
• Enemy Force Strength - increase or decrease the baseline strength of the enemy forces you'll face in procedural contracts.
• Contract Payment - increase or decrease the amount of C-Bills paid by procedural contracts across the game.
• Salvage - increase or decrease the amount of salvage you may obtain from negotiation on procedural contracts.

New custom campaign mode. The following added Difficulty Settings can only be adjusted when starting a new campaign (Select "Custom Campaign" when starting a New Game from the Main Menu.)

• Ironman Mode. Your campaign is limited to a single save game slot that automatically updates as you progress. Run out of funds or fail a Priority Mission and it's game over!
• Unequipped 'Mechs - enable this to make 'Mechs completed out of 'Mech parts start empty instead of with a stock loadout.
• Parts for 'Mech Assembly - increase the number of 'Mech parts that must be salvaged to assemble a new 'Mech. This setting is intended for veterans and those seeking a significant challenge.

Accelerate the current action with SPACEBAR. Players can now press SPACEBAR to greatly accelerate the current action. Game speed will return to normal after the action completes.

[...]

PC Gamer tried Rune and had fun throwing limbs and other objects at enemies.

I'm not sure if it says something about me or the kinds of games I play, but while trying out an alpha build of Rune, the upcoming third-person sandbox survival RPG from Human Head Studios, the first thing I asked after picking up the dismembered arm of a human enemy was: "Can I eat this?"

In my defense, a few minutes earlier I had stomped on a lizard, then picked it up, bit its head off, and casually tossed the rest of it over my shoulder. So maybe (hopefully) asking Rune's project director Chris Rhinehart if I could eat human limbs wasn't a question completely out of left field. Turns out you can't use human limbs as food, but you can use them as weapons. In Rune, you can beat a guy to death with his dead buddy's arms and legs. Just look elsewhere for a snack.

[...]

Iratus: Lord of the Dead has been funded on Kickstarter.

RPGamer interviewed Kei Mikami and asked him about Valkyria Chronicles 4.

...

RPG Site: In the first Valkyria Chronicles, you were able to recruit more characters at the main camp over the course of the game while in Valkyria Chronicles 3, additional characters would join you overtime. How does Valkyria Chronicles 4 approach the recruitment of new characters?

Kei Mikami: So in VC4, more characters join Claude (the main character) at certain points in the story. It’s similar to VC1 in that everyone has different Potentials - some characters are more comfortable being around specific people more than others. Characters will come into the game within each new chapter.

RPG Site: I have an important question. Can you tell us a little about the inclusion of Ragnarok the dog?

Kei Mikami: Ragnarok is actually a rare character that you only get to see at random basically. There’s a random 10% chance that he’ll come running ahead of the medic when a unit is in danger.

Ragnarok does have a certain relationship with the main characters. They see Ragnarok as a good boy - kind of like a funny little dog character, but Ragnarok actually sees himself as a level above humans.

RPG Site: One thing I liked in Valkyria Chronicles 3 is that I was able to change the class of any character. For example, it allowed me to make a Shocktrooper into a Scout, unlock an ability to travel farther under that Scout specialization, and then change back into a Shocktrooper retaining that ability to travel farther. Is there anything like that in Valkyria Chronicles 4?

Kei Mikami: That level of customization is actually not available in VC4 because of the sheer number of characters that join you - there’s about 50 of them. That depth of customization you speak of was possible because there was a more limited number of characters available to you, so the goal there was to have a system flexible enough to make up for the limited quantity.

[...]