Multi 2025 Releases Thread

dimmerwit · Jan 14, 2025

January

Date	Game	Win	PS5	XSX	NSW	NS2
16	Assetto Corsa EVO (early access)	✔
16	Donkey Kong Country Returns HD				✔
17	Dynasty Warriors: Origins	✔	✔	✔
23	FFVII Rebirth	✔	○
23	Ninja Gaiden 2 Black	✔		✔
23	Star Wars Episode I: Jedi Power Battles	✔	✔	✔	✔
28	Botany Manor	○	✔	○
28	Orcs Must Die! Deathtrap	✔	✔
28	Virtua Fighter 5 R.E.V.O.	✔
30	Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero		✔		✔
30	Sniper Elite: Resistance	✔	✔	✔
30	Spider-Man 2	✔	○
31	The Sims 1 & 2 Legacy	✔

February

Date	Game	Win	PS5	XSX	NSW	NS2
4	Kingdom Come: Deliverance II	✔	✔	✔
5	Rift of the Necrodancer	✔
11	Civilization VII	✔	✔	✔	✔
12	Warriors Abyss	✔	✔	✔	✔
14	The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak II	✔	✔		✔
14	Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered	✔	✔	✔	✔
18	Avowed	✔		✔
18	Lost Records: Bloom & Rage (Tape 1)	✔	✔	✔
21	Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii	✔	✔	✔
28	Monster Hunter Wilds	✔	✔	✔

March

Date	Game	Win	PS5	XSX	NSW	NS2
4	Age of Mythology Retold	○	✔	○
4	Carmen Sandiego	✔	✔	✔	✔
4	Two Point Museum	✔	✔	✔
6	Split Fiction	✔	✔	✔
11	Wanderstop	✔	✔
13	Matcho	✔	✔	✔
14	WWE 2K25	✔	✔	✔
18	MLB 25: The Show		✔	✔	✔
20	Assassin's Creed Shadows	✔	✔	✔
20	Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition				✔
21	BLEACH Rebirth of Souls	✔	✔	✔
27	Atomfall	✔	✔	✔
27	Disney Villains Cursed Cafe	✔	✔	✔	✔
27	Rift of the Necrodancer	○			✔
27	The First Berserker: Khazan	✔	✔	✔
28	inZOI (early access)	✔

April

Date	Game	Win	PS5	XSX	NSW	NS2
2	Croc: Legend of the Gobbos	✔	✔	✔	✔
3	TLOU Part II: Remastered	✔	○
8	South of Midnight	✔		✔
9	Commandos: Origins	✔	✔	✔
9	Descenders Next	✔		✔
10	Blue Prince	✔	✔	✔
10	Monaco 2	✔	✔	✔
10	The Talos Principle: Reawakened	✔	✔	✔
15	Lost Records: Bloom & Rage (Tape 2)	✔	✔	✔
15	Monument Valley 1 and 2	○			✔
17	Indiana Jones and the Great Circle	○	✔	○
17	Phantom Breaker: Battle Grounds Ultimate	✔	✔	✔	✔
17	Rusty Rabbit	✔	✔		✔
17	Tempest Rising	✔
22	TES IV: Oblivion Remastered	✔	✔	✔
24	Amerzone: The Explorer's Legacy	✔	✔	✔
24	Clair Obscur: Expedition 33	✔	✔	✔
24	Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves	✔	✔	✔
24	The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy	✔			✔
24	Love Live! Nijigasaki High School Idol Club	✔			✔
24	Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero	✔	○		○
25	Days Gone Remastered	✔	✔
29	Forza Horizon 5	○	✔	○
30	Moto GP 25	✔	✔	✔	✔

Some personal highlights for April:

Firstly on the 8th is South of Midnight. From the developers of We Happy Few, it's a stop-motion style deep South gothic dark-fantasy game. I'm not sure it's more horrifying than the real South, but it looks nice and the previews were positive at least.

The very next day (9th) sees Commandos: Origins, a reboot for the classic stealth/tactics series and the first new entry (excepting that first-person nonsense one) since 2003. 2003 was 22 years ago, as if we needed reminding.

On the 10th is Monaco 2, the sequel to 2013's Monaco: What's Yours Is Mine. The stealth/heist game moves to 3D and incorporates procedural level generation.

Next on the 24th is Amerzone: The Explorer's Legacy. This is a personal pick because I remember playing the original point-and-click version but I was too young to fully understand it. This remake is for a 26 year old game. One advantage of making a remake of a game that's too old for Leonardo DiCaprio to date is that it's now a realtime 3D game.

Also on the 24th is Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, a new JRPG-style game from new French developer Sandfall. I am regrettably clueless about this stuff in general but people are comparing it to Final Fantasy which must be good...right? I guess it depends which Final Fantasy...

Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves is another game that launches on the 24th, featuring everyone's favourite SNK character...Cristiano Ronaldo. No, seriously. Even his siu celebration is in. What even is this timeline?

There are also PS5 releases for Indiana Jones and the Great Circle (17th) and Forza Horizon 5 (29th), as well as remasters/remakes of Croc: Legend of the Gobbos (2nd) and The Talos Principle: Reawakened (10th) and a console release of Monument Valley 1 & 2 (15th).

May

Date	Game	Win	PS5	XSX	NSW	NS2
1	Despelote	✔	✔	✔	✔
6	Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition	○	✔	○
6	High on Life	○	○	○	✔
8	Revenge of the Savage Planet	✔	✔	✔
8	Sonic Rumble	✔
13	The Precinct	✔	✔	✔
15	Doom: The Dark Ages	✔	✔	✔
16	Capcom Fighting Collection 2	✔	✔	✔	✔
20	RoadCraft	✔	✔	✔
20	Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate	○	✔	○	○
21	Monster Train 2	✔	✔	✔	✔
22	Blades of Fire	✔	✔	✔
22	Duck Detective: The Ghost of Glamping	✔	✔	✔	✔
22	Mobile Suit Gundam SEED: Battle Destiny Remastered	✔			✔
23	Ominusha 2 (remaster)	✔	✔	✔	✔
27	Roboquest	○	✔	○
28	to a T	✔	✔	✔
29	Scar-Lead Salvation	✔	✔
30	Disney Illusion Island	✔	✔	✔	○
30	Elden Ring Nightreign	✔	✔	✔
30	F1 25	✔	✔	✔
30	Lost Soul Aside	✔	✔

June

Date	Game	Win	PS5	XSX	NSW	NS2
5	Arcade Archives 2 Ridge Racer					✔
5	Bravely Default Flying Fairy HD Remaster					✔
5	Civilization VII	○	○	○	○	✔
5	Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition	○	○	○		✔
5	Deltarune - Chapters 1 to 4	○	○	○	○	✔
5	Fast Fusion					✔
5	Fortnite	○	○	○	○	✔
5	Hitman: World of Assassination - Signature Edition	○	○	○		✔
5	Hogwarts Legacy	○	○	○	○	✔
5	Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess	○	○	○		✔
5	The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition				○	✔
5	The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition				○	✔
5	Mario Kart: World					✔
5	Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour					✔
5	Nobunaga's Ambition: Awakening Complete Edition	○	○		○	✔
5	Puyo Puyo Tetris 2S					✔
5	Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma	✔			✔	✔
5	Sonic X Shadow Generations	○	○	○	○	✔
5	Split Fiction	○	○	○		✔
5	Street Fighter 6	○	○	○		✔
5	Survival Kids					✔
5	Suikoden I & II HD Remaster: Gate Rune and Dunan Unification Wars	○	○	○	○	✔
5	Yakuza 0 Director's Cut					✔
10	Alien Hominid HD & Invasion	○	✔	○	○
10	Dune: Awakening	✔
10	MindsEye	✔	✔	✔
10	Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine Master Crafted Edition	✔		✔
11	Stellar Blade	✔	○
13	The Alters	✔	✔	✔
13	Five Nights at Freddy's: Secret of the Mimic	✔	✔
16	Gex Trilogy	✔	✔	✔	✔
17	Date Everything	✔	✔	✔	✔
17	FBC: Firebreak	✔	✔	✔
17	Lost in Random: The Eternal Die	✔	✔	✔	✔
17	Tron: Catalyst	✔	✔	✔	✔
19	Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
24	Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate	○	○	✔	○
26	Against the Storm	○	✔	✔
26	Death Stranding 2: On the Beach		✔
26	System Shock 2: 25th Anniversary Remaster	✔	✔	✔	✔
27	Tamagotchi Plaza				✔	✔

July

Date	Game	Win	PS5	XSX	NSW	NS2
10	EA Sports College Football 26		✔	✔
11	Patapon 1+2 Replay	✔	✔		✔
11	Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4	✔	✔	✔	✔
15	Edens Zero	✔	✔	✔
15	Ready or Not	○	✔	✔
15	Stronghold Crusader: Definitive Edition	✔
17	Bridge Constructor Studio	✔	✔	✔	✔
17	Donkey Kong Bananza					✔
17	Hunter × Hunter: Nen × Impact	✔	✔	✔
18	Shadow Labyrinth	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
22	Monument Valley 3	✔	✔	✔	✔
24	Killing Floor 3	✔	✔	✔
24	Super Mario Party Jamboree: Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Jamboree TV					✔
24	Wuchang: Fallen Feathers	✔	✔	✔
25	No Sleep For Kaname Date - From AI: The Somnium Files	✔			✔	✔
25	Wild Hearts S	○	○	○		✔
29	Grounded 2 (early access)	✔		✔
29	Tales of the Shire	✔	✔	✔	✔
31	Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound	✔	✔	✔	✔

August

Date

Game

Win

PS5

XSX

NSW

NS2

7

Gradius Origins

✔

7

The House of the Dead 2: Remake

✔

7

Tiny Bookshop

✔

8

Mafia: The Old Country

✔

12

Echoes of the End

✔

12

Senua's Saga: Hellblade II

○

✔

○

14

Dorfromantik

○

✔

○

14

Drag x Drive

✔

14

Madden NFL 26

✔

14

Midnight Murder Club (full release)

✔

14

Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Definitive Edition

✔

19

Delta Force

○

✔

19

Sword of the Sea

✔

20

Black Myth: Wukong

○

✔

21

Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road

✔

22

Dying Light: The Beast

✔

26

Gears of War: Reloaded

✔

26

Helldivers II

○

✔

27

Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar

✔

28

Kirby and the Forgotten Land – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Star-Crossed World

✔

28

Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater

✔

28

Super Robot Wars Y

✔

29

Lost Soul Aside

✔

29

Shinobi: Art of Vengeance

✔

Recent Changes

Game	Old Date >	New Date
Ghost of Yotei	2025	2 October
Grand Theft Auto VI	late 2025	26 May 2026
Summer Games Fest stuff
Marathon	23 Sep	TBD
Battlefield 6	New!	10 October
Nintendo Partner Direct

September

Date	Game	Win	PS5	XSX	NSW	NS2
4	Hell is Us	✔	✔	✔
5	Cronos: The New Dawn	✔	✔			✔
5	Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion	✔	✔	✔		✔
5	Everybody's Golf: Hot Shots	✔	✔		✔
5	NBA 2K26	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
5	Terminator 2D: No Fate	✔	✔	✔	✔
10	Garfield Kart 2: All You Can Drift	✔	✔	✔	✔
12	Borderlands 4	✔	✔	✔
18	Class of Heroes 3 Remaster	✔	✔		✔
18	Frostpunk 2	○	✔	✔
19	Dying Light: The Beast	✔	✔	✔
25	Silent Hill f	✔	✔	✔
25	Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds	✔	✔	✔	✔
26	EA Sports FC 26	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
26	Pac-Man World 2 Re-Pac	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
30	Alien: Rogue Incursion Evolved Edition	✔	✔
30	Final Fantasy Tactics – The Ivalice Chronicles	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔

October

Date	Game	Win	PS5	XSX	NSW	NS2
2	Directive 8020	✔	✔	✔
2	Ghost of Yotei		✔
3	Borderlands 4	○	○	○		✔
3	Digimon Story: Time Stranger	✔	✔	✔
9	Painkiller	✔	✔	✔
10	Battlefield 6	✔	✔	✔
10	Little Nightmares III	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
10	Little Nightmares Enhanced Edition	✔	✔	✔		✔
16	Pokémon Legends: Z-A				✔	✔
17	Keeper	✔		✔
21	Jurassic World Evolution 3	✔	✔	✔
21	Ninja Gaiden 4	✔	✔	✔
23	Double Dragon Revive	✔	✔	✔	✔
23	Persona 3 Reload	○	○	○		✔
23	Plants vs Zombies: Replanted	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
24	Once Upon a Katamari	✔	✔	✔	✔
29	The Outer Worlds 2	✔	✔	✔
30	ARC Raiders	✔	✔	✔
30	Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
30	Virtua Fighter 5 R.E.V.O. World Stage		✔	✔
31	Mina the Hollower	✔	✔	✔	✔
31	Terminator 2D: No Fate	✔	✔	✔	✔

November

Date	Game	Win	PS5	XSX	NSW	NS2
5	Cairn	✔	✔
13	Anno 117: Pax Romana	✔	✔	✔
13	Beyblade X: Evobattle	✔			✔
13	Yakuza Kiwami	○	○	○		✔
13	Yakuza Kiwami 2	○	○	○		✔
14	Code Violet		✔
18	SpongeBob SquarePants: Titans of the Tide	✔	✔	✔		✔

December

Date	Game	Win	PS5	XSX	NSW	NS2
4	Octopath Traveler 0	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔

January

Date	Game	Win	PS5	XSX	NSW	NS2
5	The Legend of Heroes: Trails Beyond the Horizon	✔	✔		✔	✔

February

Date	Game	Win	PS5	XSX	NSW	NS2
10	Mewgenics	✔
27	Resident Evil Requiem	✔	✔	✔

March

Date

Game

Win

PS5

XSX

NSW

NS2

April

Date

Game

Win

PS5

XSX

NSW

NS2

May

Date	Game	Win	PS5	XSX	NSW	NS2
26	Grand Theft Auto VI		✔	✔

dimmerwit · Jan 14, 2025

OK, it's Tales of the Shire, not Tales of the Shite!

Fool's Requiem · Jan 14, 2025

Donkey Kong Country Returns HD is 60 bucks.

What the fuck is that pricing? I'm content with the Wii version...

Also, I was under the impression that Xenoblade Chronicles X was too big a game to be released on the Switch... Should help make the Wii U version cheaper, though, more than it already has.

Smacktard · Jan 14, 2025

Are Tomb Raider 4-6 any good? Because I was under the impression that they weren't, and it's kind of weird to release them in a collection.

Apart from Split Fiction, nothing really jumping out at me as a must-own for the first quarter. The only ones I'm intrigued by are MGS3, Metroid Prime 4, and GTA6. I'll see how the new IPs are received.

Fool's Requiem · Jan 14, 2025

Smacktard said:
Are Tomb Raider 4-6 any good? Because I was under the impression that they weren't, and it's kind of weird to release them in a collection.

From what I recall, Last Revalation and Chronicles were criticized for not advancing the series.

Angel of Darkness was a disaster.

If there's a Tomb Raider game that needed a do-over, it was Angel of Darkness. If they can fix all the bugs and reinstate all of the content that was cut due to time constraints, it might be worth the purchase alone.

Crazy Jamie · Jan 14, 2025

There's a Jedi Power Battles remaster?!

See, this is why I needed a thread like this. Alright, so the original actually wasn't fantastic by any stretch. But it was at that point of my life where I just played games to enjoy them and really didn't care about the quality all that much. And I really enjoyed the original, despite it being really extremely difficult. It doesn't mean I'll get it because remasters are often not worth getting in practice, but it's nice to know it's going to exist.

I have now looked up the trailer and... it doesn't look great. Probably not getting it. But still, grateful for knowing about it.

Fool's Requiem · Jan 14, 2025

If you want a true remaster of the original Tomb Raider, you play Tomv Raider Anniversary. Crystal Dynamics took the tech they used for Tomb Raider Legend and rebuild the original Tomb Raider from the ground up using it.

The trilogy remaster is just the games with a new coat of paint and the removal of the tank controls.

dimmerwit · Jan 14, 2025

I remember Angel of Darkness was the moment when I really realised how biased official games magazines were. OPSM2 UK had the first review and gave it an 8/10 despite the less than impressive text review. Even at 12 years old I knew they would overshoot on scores but that was just egregious.

Crazy Jamie said:
There's a Jedi Power Battles remaster?!

See, this is why I needed a thread like this. Alright, so the original actually wasn't fantastic by any stretch. But it was at that point of my life where I just played games to enjoy them and really didn't care about the quality all that much. And I really enjoyed the original, despite it being really extremely difficult. It doesn't mean I'll get it because remasters are often not worth getting in practice, but it's nice to know it's going to exist.

I have now looked up the trailer and... it doesn't look great. Probably not getting it. But still, grateful for knowing about it.

This was quite the journey for one post! Unfortunately one I've had myself on a few too many occasions with remasters.

Crazy Jamie · Jan 14, 2025

dimmerwit said:
This was quite the journey for one post! Unfortunately one I've had myself on a few too many occasions with remasters.

I did it with the Dark Forces Remaster too. Loved that game when I was younger, but have come to realise with reflection that the Remaster isn't something I need.

That is in contrast to the Command & Conquer remaster, which I haven't finished, but have just so thoroughly enjoyed the time I've spent with it. It's the best type of nostalgia, as the remaster keeps everything accessible in a modern context without changing the underlying experience. It just varies from game to game I suppose, both in terms of how good the remaster is and what the original meant to you.

dimmerwit · Jan 14, 2025

Crazy Jamie said:
That is in contrast to the Command & Conquer remaster, which I haven't finished, but have just so thoroughly enjoyed the time I've spent with it. It's the best type of nostalgia, as the remaster keeps everything accessible in a modern context without changing the underlying experience. It just varies from game to game I suppose, both in terms of how good the remaster is and what the original meant to you.

All I want now is a Red Alert 2 remaster, although that said that one does work OK on modern PCs.

Smacktard · Jan 15, 2025

Pretty crazy that Split Fiction will be releasing so soon after its first reveal. I think that's the game I'm most excited about. I'll pick that up ASAP after release. Can't wait to go through it with the waifu.

Also pretty amped for GTA6, but I may try to hold off on purchasing for a year or two until bugs and kinks are worked out. I mean, I played GTA4 and GTA5 for the first time last year, so I'm sure I can manage that... Maybe....... If I don't get FOMO

Crazy Jamie · Jan 15, 2025

dimmerwit said:
All I want now is a Red Alert 2 remaster, although that said that one does work OK on modern PCs.

The next game including remasters of both Red Alert 2 and Tiberian Sun just makes so much sense that it's difficult to see how it doesn't happen.

Raine · Jan 17, 2025

Curation and especially validation eats up the most time. The weekly tables took 2~3 hours each Sunday(-ish), and most of that was just trying to track down verifiable information on indies whom also have a habit of getting delayed all the way up to the day before launch.

Fandom buying and enshittifying MetaCritic really did a tremendous disservice to people. Time was, you just needed MetaCritic and GameFAQs and you could quickly and easily produce a reliable list. GameFAQs is still where I started:

PlayStation 4 Cheats, Reviews, FAQs, Message Boards, and More - GameFAQs

For the PlayStation 4, GameFAQs has game information and a community message board for game discussion.

gamefaqs.gamespot.com

PlayStation 5 Cheats, Reviews, FAQs, Message Boards, and More - GameFAQs

For the PlayStation 5, GameFAQs has game information and a community message board for game discussion.

gamefaqs.gamespot.com

Nintendo Switch Cheats, Reviews, FAQs, Message Boards, and More - GameFAQs

For the Nintendo Switch, GameFAQs has game information and a community message board for game discussion.

gamefaqs.gamespot.com

Xbox One Cheats, Reviews, FAQs, Message Boards, and More - GameFAQs

For the Xbox One, GameFAQs has game information and a community message board for game discussion.

gamefaqs.gamespot.com

Xbox Series X Cheats, Reviews, FAQs, Message Boards, and More - GameFAQs

For the Xbox Series X, GameFAQs has game information and a community message board for game discussion.

gamefaqs.gamespot.com

And then paired that with things like This Week on Xbox, because Xbox loves getting the highly dubious indie offerings but also lists them out in a friendly manner whereas Nintendo does not:

This Week On Xbox Archives - Xbox Wire

news.xbox.com

And then with a working table, I'd use a combination of MetaCritic's search (when it wasn't fucking broken) and the three official online storefronts to remove bad data and insert older ports where appropriate. So for example, Tales of Graces F is something I'm picking up this week (QQ no physical PS4 and Xbox release outside of PAL) and those pages are located:

Tales of Graces f Remastered for Nintendo Switch - Nintendo Official Site

Buy Tales of Graces f Remastered and shop other great Nintendo products online at the official My Nintendo Store.

www.nintendo.com

Tales of Graces f Remastered PS4 & PS5

Bonds Transcend Time

store.playstation.com

Buy Tales of Graces f Remastered | Xbox

Tales of Graces f is back with a beautiful and easier-to-play version! The game also includes Lineage and Legacies, an after-story to the main scenario!

www.xbox.com

Tales of Graces f Remastered Reviews

In TALES OF GRACES f REMASTERED, players follow the adventures of Asbel and his friends as they embark on a world-spanning adventure filled with unforgettable characters, shocking revelations, and unique companions brought together through promises made across time. The title is set in the world...

www.metacritic.com

I also, increasingly, had to check in with PlayStation Blog ('cause PSOne/PSP Classic re-releases get rolled into that GameFAQs list) and BestBuy to suss out things that were super old (like 3+ years!) but just randomly getting physical releases for no discernible reason. I'm still not convinced that's not some sort of money laundering scheme.

PlayStation Plus Game Catalog for January: God of War Ragnarök, Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name, Atlas Fallen: Reign of Sand, and more

Medievil and Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings launch on PlayStation Plus Premium.

blog.playstation.com

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/all-video-games/new-upcoming-video-game-releases/pcmcat1487699632767.c?id=pcmcat1487699632767

Smacktard · Jan 17, 2025

Does Graces even need a remaster? How did it run on the PS3? I'm asking because I own a PS3 copy but haven't played it. Could trade it in for a PS5 copy though if it's more worthwhile

Raine · Jan 17, 2025

Smacktard said:
Does Graces even need a remaster?

No idea on the more worthwhile part, Tales is still in that sight-unseen purchase category for me. I would expect quality on par or exceeding Vesperia’s Definitive Edition as a default, with the Symphonia shortcomings sort of off to the side and doing its own kinda bad thing.

Graces F on PS3 was already an HD Remaster of the original Graces on Wii, with an extra story segment and all those usual bells and whistles. Game ran wonderfully, played exceptionally and so the only real need for Graces F Remastered is to free it from the clutches of the non-backwards compatible PS3 and Japan-only Wii versions.

PAL folks in particular should note that the physical PS4 version does the whole free “Digital Upgrade” thing for PS5, and maybe the digital version does too but I haven’t been fussed enough to look.

Story-oriented players, also, probably aren’t going to have an amazing time with this one. It’s serviceable but the protagonist is a drag and it’s really trope-y in some annoying ways. That being said I love the cast themselves, protagonist aside, and the combat is really, really good. I’ll take Vesperia any day as a complete package, and Abyss ranks higher on my list by a good margin as well, but Graces is a good time.

Smacktard · Jan 17, 2025

Raine said:
Story-oriented players, also, probably aren’t going to have an amazing time with this one. It’s serviceable but the protagonist is a drag and it’s really trope-y in some annoying ways.

I've played four Tales Of games, and I can't say I've enjoyed the story or the characters in any except the first one I played. Trope-y and annoying is part and parcel for the series. I try to hold out as long as I can wrt cutscenes, story, characters, etc., but eventually I hit my limit and just start skipping it all and just play for the exploration + gameplay.

Thanks for clarifying though. I think I'll just keep my PS3 copy and play it that way.

Quagmire · Jan 17, 2025

Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 and the new pirate like a dragon game or my to gets for the year. I would love GTA VI but I have to wait for it to come out on pc

Quagmire · Jan 17, 2025

Raine said:
No idea on the more worthwhile part, Tales is still in that sight-unseen purchase category for me. I would expect quality on par or exceeding Vesperia’s Definitive Edition as a default, with the Symphonia shortcomings sort of off to the side and doing its own kinda bad thing.

Graces F on PS3 was already an HD Remaster of the original Graces on Wii, with an extra story segment and all those usual bells and whistles. Game ran wonderfully, played exceptionally and so the only real need for Graces F Remastered is to free it from the clutches of the non-backwards compatible PS3 and Japan-only Wii versions.

PAL folks in particular should note that the physical PS4 version does the whole free “Digital Upgrade” thing for PS5, and maybe the digital version does too but I haven’t been fussed enough to look.

Story-oriented players, also, probably aren’t going to have an amazing time with this one. It’s serviceable but the protagonist is a drag and it’s really trope-y in some annoying ways. That being said I love the cast themselves, protagonist aside, and the combat is really, really good. I’ll take Vesperia any day as a complete package, and Abyss ranks higher on my list by a good margin as well, but Graces is a good time.

It has been but I enjoyed Grace's f, not as much as Vesperia or Abyss or Phantasia but it's still solid

dimmerwit · Jan 23, 2025

Xbox event happening now. MS just shadow dropped Ninja Gaiden 2 Black.

Fool's Requiem · Jan 23, 2025

So, Microsoft is still intending to keep going with the Xbox? IGN posted a rumor suggesting that M$ was planning to put the Master Chief Collection on the Switch 2 and PS5, which suggested to me that maybe M$ was throwing in the towel and was just going to do software.

dimmerwit · Jan 23, 2025

The word is they considered pulling out in 2021 but decided on the multi-platform approach instead and bought Bethesda and Acti-Blizzard.

Fool's Requiem · Jan 23, 2025

but how do they expect to sell Xboxs without console exclusives?

dimmerwit · Jan 30, 2025

Forza Horizon 5 is announced for PS5 "this spring".

Spiner202 · Jan 31, 2025

Just waiting for Gears and Halo now. I will skip Forza, but either of those two series will get me to buy them.

Also, I wonder if we can get Rare Replay?

Fool's Requiem · Jan 31, 2025

Spiner202 said:
Just waiting for Gears and Halo now. I will skip Forza, but either of those two series will get me to buy them.

Also, I wonder if we can get Rare Replay?

I would love to get Rare Replay on the Switch. That way I don't have to get an Xbox One or Xbox Series X (though I at least one one or the other just for the backwards compatibility improvements it provides to some games).

dimmerwit · Jan 31, 2025

The rumoured Sims 1 & 2 re-releases dropped today on PC.

Rachel · Feb 1, 2025

Speaking of that, I am curious if anyone here is keeping an eye on inZOI. It's like...if the Sims actually didn't rest on their laurels and innovated.

dimmerwit · Feb 6, 2025

Rachel said:
Speaking of that, I am curious if anyone here is keeping an eye on inZOI. It's like...if the Sims actually didn't rest on their laurels and innovated.

Yeah, I saw this one. I don't play the Sims much any more but it's good to have competition. I can't help but think that's why EA have been more active with the series, including the two re-releases of the first games (which are apparently a disaster).

Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater (the MGS3 remake) is out on August 28, at least according to a store leak.

dimmerwit · Feb 12, 2025

Sony have announced a new State of Play for tomorrow:

Spiner202 · Mar 5, 2025

Sounds like the Gears of War collection will be getting a release on PS5 this summer. Single-player only, but that works for me since I've never played any of them.

Smacktard · Mar 5, 2025

Spiner202 said:
Sounds like the Gears of War collection will be getting a release on PS5 this summer. Single-player only, but that works for me since I've never played any of them.

Dope. I've been wanting to play that series. Now one less reason to buy an Xbox 360

dimmerwit · Mar 5, 2025

I forgot that was even coming to Xbox and PC.

I liked Gears 1 enough but never actually got round to playing 2 & 3.

Crazy Jamie · Mar 6, 2025

I played one of the Gears game co-op with @Andy. Really shame the collection will be single player only. They are built for co-op with the cover system. But equally great for those who haven't played them. Well worth a play.

dimmerwit · Mar 8, 2025

Killing Floor 3 has been delayed from 28 March to an unspecified 2025 date. Not a surprise since it didn't look all that impressive.

dimmerwit · Mar 10, 2025

Death Stranding 2 out on 26 June.

dimmerwit · Mar 10, 2025

Strong rumour that Indiana Jones will launch on PS5 on 17 April.

dimmerwit · Mar 28, 2025

I decided to go for an April update before the Switch 2 launch pushes everything else out of the way. I'll just add to this thread in the future.

April

Date	Game	Win	PS5	XSX	NSW	NS2
2	Croc: Legend of the Gobbos	✔	✔	✔	✔
3	TLOU Part II: Remastered	✔	○
8	South of Midnight	✔		✔
9	Commandos: Origins	✔	✔	✔
9	Descenders Next	✔		✔
10	Monaco 2	✔	✔	✔
10	The Talos Principle: Reawakened	✔	✔	✔
15	Lost Records: Bloom & Rage (Tape 2)	✔	✔	✔
15	Monument Valley 1 and 2	○	✔	✔	✔
17	Indiana Jones and the Great Circle	○	✔	○
17	Phantom Breaker: Battle Grounds Ultimate	✔	✔	✔	✔
17	Rusty Rabbit	✔	✔		✔
24	Amerzone: The Explorer's Legacy	✔	✔	✔
24	Clair Obscur: Expedition 33	✔	✔	✔
24	Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves	✔	✔	✔
24	The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy	✔			✔
24	Love Live! Nijigasaki High School Idol Club	✔			✔
24	Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero	✔	○		○
25	Days Gone Remastered		✔
29	Forza Horizon 5	○	✔	○
30	Moto GP 25	✔	✔	✔	✔

Some personal highlights:

Firstly on the 8th is South of Midnight. From the developers of We Happy Few, it's a stop-motion style deep South gothic dark-fantasy game. I'm not sure it's more horrifying than the real South, but it looks nice and the previews were positive at least.

The very next day (9th) sees Commandos: Origins, a reboot for the classic stealth/tactics series and the first new entry (excepting that first-person nonsense one) since 2003. 2003 was 22 years ago, as if we needed reminding.

On the 10th is Monaco 2, the sequel to 2013's Monaco: What's Yours Is Mine. The stealth/heist game moves to 3D and incorporates procedural level generation.

Next on the 24th is Amerzone: The Explorer's Legacy. This is a personal pick because I remember playing the original point-and-click version but I was too young to fully understand it. This remake is for a 26 year old game. One advantage of making a remake of a game that's too old for Leonardo DiCaprio to date is that it's now a realtime 3D game.

Also on the 24th is Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, a new JRPG-style game from new French developer Sandfall. I am regrettably clueless about this stuff in general but people are comparing it to Final Fantasy which must be good...right? I guess it depends which Final Fantasy...

Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves is another game that launches on the 24th, featuring everyone's favourite SNK character...Cristiano Ronaldo. No, seriously. Even his siu celebration is in. What even is this timeline?

There are also PS5 releases for Indiana Jones and the Great Circle (17th) and Forza Horizon 5 (29th), as well as remasters/remakes of Croc: Legend of the Gobbos (2nd) and The Talos Principle: Reawakened (10th) and a console release of Monument Valley 1 & 2 (15th).

dimmerwit · Apr 13, 2025

Marathon was revealed, Bungie's latest series and a revival of the classic games. Unfortunately for me at least they've switched to an PvP extraction-style multiplayer only game. It looks...fine. No doubt the mechanics will be fine as Bungie always does that well but I'm a bit uninspired by the rest.

They've said it's a premium but not full priced game akin to Helldivers 2. It's out on 23 September.

Quagmire · Apr 13, 2025

dimmerwit said:
Marathon was revealed, Bungie's latest series and a revival of the classic games. Unfortunately for me at least they've switched to an PvP extraction-style multiplayer only game. It looks...fine. No doubt the mechanics will be fine as Bungie always does that well but I'm a bit uninspired by the rest.

They've said it's a premium but not full priced game akin to Helldivers 2. It's out on 23 September.

Was hoping for a single player focused game from bungie, sad not getting that

I dont know what an extraction shooter really is, seems like from some googling it is kind of a rogue like pvp shooter?

dimmerwit · Apr 13, 2025

Quagmire said:
Was hoping for a single player focused game from bungie, sad not getting that

I dont know what an extraction shooter really is, seems like from some googling it is kind of a rogue like pvp shooter?

Pretty much. You drop in, fight/loot and extract, hopefully gaining items and resources to use in the future.

Crazy Jamie · Apr 13, 2025

Sure it’ll be fine, but I’m not interested in anything that’s PvP focused at this point. I might give something like Marvel Rivals a go at some point, but other than that if I get a PvP itch I’ll scratch it with something classic like TF2.

The Eye in the Sky! · Apr 14, 2025

Hoping Expedition 33 is good. I've been watching it for a while. Modified JRPG style turn based with QTE mixed in. Characters look very final fantasy but darker.

Would love to start it up as I'm finishing up Suikoden 2. Old school to brand new.

dimmerwit · Apr 15, 2025

It seems increasingly likely that the remake of Oblivion will shadow drop in the near future, perhaps as early as next week. Some screenshots were leaked today: https://imgur.com/gallery/oblivion-sUMSAfW

dimmerwit · Apr 15, 2025

Also, the release date for Mafia: The Old Country was leaked on Steam as 8 August by a hastily-edited community post.

Smacktard · Apr 15, 2025

dimmerwit said:
It seems increasingly likely that the remake of Oblivion will shadow drop in the near future, perhaps as early as next week. Some screenshots were leaked today: https://imgur.com/gallery/oblivion-sUMSAfW

If they fix the awful level scaling and make the Oblivion portals more interesting, it might be worth a play. I really didn't like Oblivion even tho I grew up on Morrowind.

dimmerwit · Apr 23, 2025

Ghost of Yotei will release on 2nd October.

Crazy Jamie · Apr 28, 2025

I didn't realise that Ghost of Tsushima is more akin to Assassin's Creed than something like Dark Souls, albeit the complexity of the combat system is beyond AC as I understand it. Either way, listening to podcast on it recently piqued by interest in playing it. I do have it on PS4, so might give it a look when the media wall goes in and we have a functioning television in our house again.

Smacktard · Apr 29, 2025

Crazy Jamie said:
I didn't realise that Ghost of Tsushima is more akin to Assassin's Creed than something like Dark Souls, albeit the complexity of the combat system is beyond AC as I understand it. Either way, listening to podcast on it recently piqued by interest in playing it. I do have it on PS4, so might give it a look when the media wall goes in and we have a functioning television in our house again.

Yeah, that's how I would describe it, too. The combat is much nicer than what I've experienced with AC though. It's a lot more complex and rewarding. When you get through a tough battle on a high difficulty, it feels fantastic.

Crazy Jamie · Apr 29, 2025

Smacktard said:
Yeah, that's how I would describe it, too. The combat is much nicer than what I've experienced with AC though. It's a lot more complex and rewarding. When you get through a tough battle on a high difficulty, it feels fantastic.

Given that I played and thoroughly enjoyed Sifu earlier this year, it feels like I should play Ghosts at some point. I don't really find the idea of a Souls game appealing at this point in my life because I don't have endless time to soak up the frustration, but I'm all here for a deeper but more rewarding combat system in games like this.

On an unrelated note, the reviews of Clair Obscur make me think it'll become the first proper RPG that I've played in a while, though Baldur's Gate III is also in that conversation. Depends which type of RPG I feel like playing.

Smacktard · Apr 29, 2025

Crazy Jamie said:
Given that I played and thoroughly enjoyed Sifu earlier this year, it feels like I should play Ghosts at some point. I don't really find the idea of a Souls game appealing at this point in my life because I don't have endless time to soak up the frustration, but I'm all here for a deeper but more rewarding combat system in games like this.

On an unrelated note, the reviews of Clair Obscur make me think it'll become the first proper RPG that I've played in a while, though Baldur's Gate III is also in that conversation. Depends which type of RPG I feel like playing.

I like the Souls formula, but I totally understand why many people don't. I could even argue that it suffers from bad game design (especially the later entries where bosses hit much harder and are less predictable). Often, the only way to progress is to bang your head against a boss over and over again, slowly learning their pattern. There's no ramping off difficulty or natural progression -- just sudden huge spikes.

GoT is not like that at all. It gives (pretty much) you all the knowledge you need to advance and succeed. Progression comes from your mastery of the combat system rather than learning the unique intricacies of every single enemy. Sure, there's a skill tree that expands your options and the complexity of the game, and which make certain enemy types easier to deal with, but it's still WAY more accessible and consistent than Souls

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