Mar 17, 2018 | Game ON news

Saturday, March 17, 2018

News:: Yakuza Kiwami 2 finally gets western release date

I'm a relatively new fan to the Yakuza series. My first interaction with it was actually in Project X Zone 2. Kiryu and Majima are my favorite duo in the game, so once the remake of the original Yakuza released last year, I quickly added it to my PS4 collection. Looks like I won't have to wait too long to continue the story.

Sega has revealed Yakuza Kiwami 2, released this past December in Japan, will launch in the West on August 28, 2018. Completely rebuilt in the beautiful Dragon Engine, the game will feature a brand new Goro Majima-centered campaign as well as new minigames. Yakuza Kiwami 2 will retail for $49.99, $20 more expensive than the first Kiwami. Pre-orders and first-run copies of the game will include a steel box casing.

Yakuza Kiwami 2 finally gets western release date screenshot

News:: Aigis, Jubei and Carmine announced as DLC for BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle

Arc System Works has revealed the second DLC pack for upcoming team-brawler BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle. Character Pack Two will feature three roster additions from the franchises that make up the crossover fighter's universe.

Samurai cat Jubei will come purring into battle, blade in hand. Representing BlazBlue, the stoic feline was previously a DLC character in Centralfiction. From Under Night In-Birth comes tryhard Carmine. The goth teen is typified by his lax attitude, foul-mouth and a temper as hot as his flowing red hair. Finally, repping Persona Arena, is the very-popular android girl Aigis, literally armed and dangerous.

To have two waves of DLC already pushed two months before Cross Tag Battle has even seen its Japanese release leaves a bad taste in the mouth. I suppose ArcSys are just getting their marketing machine in gear, considering that the game will feature twenty DLC characters, in addition to the twenty characters in the game's original roster.

BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle launches on PS4, PC and Nintendo Switch May in Japan and June 5 in North America, a European release has been confirmed for Summer.

Aigis, Jubei and Carmine announced as DLC for BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle screenshot

News:: And now, a dramatic retelling of a Smash standoff

It’s little surprise that the biggest buzz from that Nintendo Direct last week came from the extremely vague Smash Bros. teaser. After all, Smash is one of the biggest IPs in video game history, mainly because it gathers together many of the other biggest IPs in video game history. It features dozens of memorable faces carousing around with random items punching each other in the face, just like any party!

For many of us, Smash is the prime party game. And like any party, it’s given many of us a lot of embarrassing experiences we may or may not want to share. Today, I have one such story I do want to share regarding the most hilarious loss I ever suffered in Brawl.

And now, a dramatic retelling of a Smash standoff screenshot

News:: Japan's next splatest is yet another product placement deal

Nintendo Japan has revealed the topic of the next splatfest to be held on Switch shooter Splatoon 2. As is sometimes the case with splatfests in the East, it features cross-promotion with a top retail brand.

The question this time around pertains to buying habits, asking whether, when it comes to your purchasing decisions, you're a fan of buying "What's New" or "What's Popular". Gross. Pearl is apparently all about blinding buying the latest thing to hit the streets, while Marina follows the crowd like a puppet.

Honestly, I think this is easily the worst splatfest topic to date. Neither answer, nor the topic itself, is particularly interesting. The splatfest is sponsored by legendary sportswear company Nike, and as such Team New will be wearing Air Max 270s while Team Popular will be wearing Air Max 95s.

The splatfest goes live in Japan March 24 from 15:00 JST until March 25 at the same time.

Japan's next splatest is yet another product placement deal screenshot

News:: The rise and rise (and rise) of ’Fortnite'

It's safe to say that, when a video game that counts Drake among its fans has breakfast TV shows around the world discussing its effect on younger players, it has truly made it. No, we're not talking about Grand Theft Auto, but Fortnite, Epic Games' free-to-play mass-multiplayer shooter that has over 40 million players across consoles and PC, and continues to grow at a rapid pace.

When Fortnite launched as a paid Early Access game in July 2017, it was solely as a PvE (player vs. environment) experience. Players completed levels by collecting materials and crafting super-elaborate bases to repel hordes of zombies. Reviews were mostly positive, but Epic kept one eye on the success of another Early Access game -- PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG) -- and quickly spun out a new, free-to-play mode, "Battle Royale," the following September.

via Engadget RSS Feedhttps://www.engadget.com/2018/03/17/fortnite-battle-royale-record-breaker/

News:: Sonic Mania Adventures animated series coming to YouTube

The Sonic brand has had a weird love affair with animated TV series, seeing highs and lows for decades now, from the meme-riffic original show to the woefully "edgy" Sonic Underground. It looks like the spiky one and his chums are giving animation another try, only this time the hands of a proven team.

In the wake of recent news regarding Sonic Mania Plus and a new Sonic racer, it was also announced that a new, animated mini-series is en-route, put together by the same talented folk who created the animated sequences for last year's Sonic Mania.

Sonic Mania Adventures will consist of five animated shorts starring Sonic, Tails and Knuckles. The episodes will be dialogue-free, relying only on music (by Mania's Tee Lopes) and visuals to tell the story. The show will be hosted by YouTube, with the first episode expected to go live within the next month.

You can check out a sample below. I think it looks pretty good, and definitely better for not having hideous "cool dude" voices.

Sonic Mania Adventures animated series coming to YouTube screenshot

News:: Warriors Orochi 4 announced for 2018 release in Japan

Koei Tecmo have announced that Warriors Orochi 4 is happening, and is coming to Japan this year. The announcement was made via a teaser video, which you can check out below.

The video itself names the game "Warriors Orochi 3" as Western localisations of the series are titled "one game ahead", so to speak. This is due to the re-naming of 2008's Musou Orochi: Rebirth of the Demon Lord, which is known as Warriors Orochi 2 in North America.

No further info was forthcoming about the new game, including localisation possibilities or even platforms. Warriors Orochi 4 launches in Japan sometime in 2018.

Warriors Orochi 4 announced for 2018 release in Japan screenshot

News:: Cyan is re-releasing the Myst series this year

Cyan has something special planned for the 25th anniversary of its iconic adventure series Myst.

The developer says that while acquiring rights isn't always feasible (especially for an independent studio), it has "managed to finally talk to all the right people and departments and put some funding together to try to make it happen. With agreements in place, we're happy to announce that we'll be releasing updated (for Windows 10) versions of all the Myst games later this year!"

The 25th anniversary plans will also include a limited-time Myst collection "in a unique package with a cool artifact," which sounds like a fantastic way to celebrate a milestone like this.

Cyan added that "there will probably be more adventures in the Myst universe." For now, though, 2018 is reserved "for remembering our journey" and continuing work on Firmament.

Cyan is re-releasing the Myst series this year screenshot

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/cyan-is-re-releasing-the-myst-series-this-year-494702.phtml

News:: Ys: Memories of Celceta enters the PC forest this Summer

Ever since XSEED released Ys SEVEN on PC, my gut feeling was telling me that Ys: Memories of Celceta would appear on it one day. As the company unleashed its mystery stream, we can now rejoice about 2018 being the year where people get to own every English Ys game on one system.

A few great things about this release is that you'll have the option to set it at resolutions above 1080p, along with having unlocked framerate. Just like Ys SEVEN, this port is being done by HYDE, Inc., which means that it'll run well. Of course, XSEED deserves props for improving the localization of this new version of Celceta. This shows how they want to give people a taste of their current skills with their enhanced rereleases.

In terms of the series' timeline, Celceta takes place after Ys II, and it shows us how Adol's reputation as an adventurer grew. It's also Nihon Falcom's take on the fourth game, with Ys IV: Mask of the Sun for SNES and Ys IV: Dawn of Ys for PC Engine being made by two different developers.

With the game having a segment where we try to help the red-haired swordsman recover his memories, Celceta teaches about his past and other traits. Since I heard nothing but great things about the game, it's going to be a fun ride going through it when it hits PC this summer. For now, I'm loving the idea of picking dialogue options for Adol to make him sound snarky.

Ys: Memories of Celceta enters the PC forest this Summer screenshot

via destructoid https://www.destructoid.com/ys-memories-of-celceta-enters-the-pc-forest-this-summer-494677.phtml

News:: The Morning After: Weekend Edition

Hey, good morning! You look fabulous.

Welcome to the weekend! Other than some highlights from last week, you can check out an Alphabet-backed smart city plan and Facebook's latest Friday night news dump.

via Engadget RSS Feedhttps://www.engadget.com/2018/03/17/the-morning-after-weekend-edition/

News:: Bite-sized, black-and-white game 'Minit' lands April 3rd

A crew of indie veterans, including half of notable studio Vlambeer, will release Minit on April 3rd for Steam (PC), PS4 and Xbox One. In the monochromatic Lo-Fi title, players rushing out their front door to do as much adventuring as possible before the day ends in a real-life minute due to an evil curse that must be undone.

Source: Minit

via Engadget RSS Feedhttps://www.engadget.com/2018/03/16/bite-sized-black-and-white-game-minit-lands-april-3rd/

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Saturday, March 17, 2018