[Playtest Preview] 13Z

Developer – Mixed Realms Pte Ltd Publisher – Mixed Realms Pte Ltd Platforms –  PC (Reviewed) 13Z is currently in early playtest on Steam, but its potential shines through as it immerses players in Chinese mythology through the Zodiac Trials—four intense arena acts that challenge roguelike enthusiasts. Combining action combat with mystical lore, the game balances dynamic gameplay with narrative depth, while the developers lay out ambitious plans for 13Z’s future. The team is enhancing 13Z’s roguelike system, focusing on creating intricate layers for replayability. Each run lets players explore unique upgrades, creating powerful synergies between elemental abilities and traits, fostering strategic experimentation. Combat is also expanding, with plans to add diverse movesets for varied playstyles. Each character, inspired by Chinese mythology, offers unique abilities, such as the Fox swordswoman’s speed and the Raven sharpshooter’s precision, enriching both gameplay and lore. Future updates will introduce multiplayer, allowing up to four players to conquer the Zodiac Trials cooperatively, adding a communal layer to the gameplay. Enemy variety will also evolve, with unique attack patterns that challenge players’ adaptability. Visual upgrades are ongoing, enhancing environments and character animations to create an atmospheric world filled with intricate details. An evolving village reflects players’ progress, growing from a desolate town to a lively community. The game’s lore, inspired by Chinese mythology, enriches the storyline as players uncover the secrets of the 12 Zodiac Guardians and strive to become the 13th. With planned improvements to characters, visuals, and combat, 13Z is poised to make a strong impact on the roguelike genre, blending lore, strategy, and evolving gameplay for a fully immersive experience. Im excitied to see where 13Z goes and cant wait to review the game once it’s fully complete and out. of playtest.

Mini Review: God of War Ragnarok (PC)

Developer – Santa Monica Studio, Jetpack Interactive Publisher – PlayStation Publishing LLC Platforms –  PS4/5,PC (Reviewed) Review copy given by Publisher NOTE: The following mini-review is a review of the PC Version of God of War Ragnarok and the updates/changes it brings to PC, For a more in-depth review see our Past Console Review Here God of War: Ragnarok continues the story of Kratos and his son Atreus, set in the Norse realms, three years after the events of the previous game. The story begins with Fimbulwinter, the harsh winter prophesied to precede Ragnarok, already in full swing. As the realms fall deeper into chaos, Atreus becomes increasingly curious about his identity as Loki and the role he is meant to play in the looming apocalypse. Kratos, wary of his son’s destiny and the bloodshed that typically accompanies the gods, hopes to avoid war. However, their peace is shattered when Thor and Odin arrive at their home, threatening them and pushing them toward a conflict they cannot escape. Atreus’ desire for answers propels him and Kratos on a journey across the Nine Realms, as they encounter allies and enemies alike. Freya, who once sought vengeance on Kratos for killing her son Baldur, reluctantly joins their cause after being freed from a curse that binds her to Odin. As they uncover more about Ragnarok, Atreus learns of the giants’ hidden prophecies and begins questioning his relationship with his father. While Kratos is reluctant to let Atreus venture alone, their differing views on fate and destiny lead to moments of tension as Atreus embarks on personal quests, including his encounters with characters like Angrboda and the powerful god Tyr, whom they seek to help fight against Asgard. As the story unfolds, it becomes clear that Ragnarok is inevitable. The father-son duo ultimately rallies allies, including the dwarves Brok and Sindri, the valkyrie queen Sigrun, and even Mimir. The climactic battle for Asgard is a grand spectacle of gods, monsters, and armies. Kratos, struggling with his past as the Ghost of Sparta, faces critical choices about leadership, compassion, and whether he can break free from the cycle of violence that has defined his existence. Atreus, coming into his own as Loki, is forced to make a monumental decision about his future. In the end, Ragnarok unfolds with devastating consequences. While the battle leaves Asgard in ruins and many gods, including Thor and Odin, fall, the game concludes with a sense of hope. Kratos and Atreus part ways, with Kratos embracing a new vision of peace for the future and Atreus setting off on his own journey to find the remaining giants. The game masterfully intertwines themes of destiny, fatherhood, and redemption, as Kratos’ character continues to evolve from a vengeful god-killer to a more introspective and empathetic father. The PC version of God of War: Ragnarok brings significant improvements, maximizing the platform’s power for an enhanced experience. One of the key updates is unlocked framerates and true 4K resolution, allowing for smoother gameplay and sharper visuals. Enhanced reflections, lighting, shadows, and increased geometric detail further elevate the game’s stunning environments, making the world even more immersive. The game also supports advanced upscaling technologies, including NVIDIA DLSS 3.7, AMD FSR 3.1, and Intel XeSS 1.2, enabling players to enjoy higher graphical settings and resolutions without sacrificing performance. NVIDIA Reflex technology is also integrated, reducing input lag for faster, more responsive gameplay during combat. Additional features like support for ultra-wide and super ultra-wide displays (21:9 and 32:9) provide a more expansive view of the Nine Realms. Players can customize controls with full gamepad and mouse/keyboard support, and those using the DUALSENSE® controller can enjoy haptic feedback and adaptive triggers. Spatial 3D audio rounds out the experience, enhancing in-game sound immersion. The PC version of God of War: Ragnarok truly sets the gold standard, with a suite of advanced technical enhancements that make it the definitive way to play. With ultra-sharp 4K graphics, Reduced input lag and unlocked framerates. If you’re looking for the best possible version of Ragnarok, the PC release delivers on every front.

Microsoft Is Asking Developers Why They Aren’t Supporting Xbox

At Xbox, one of the biggest issues right now is the scaling down of third-party support. From developer Game Science, the team revealed the Xbox version is on hold as technical issues withhold the game releasing on the console. Note, this is one of the best-selling releases in 2024 with more than 10 million units sold. Additionally, the Xbox indie program has also shown to be in disarray as well. According to studios Blingame & Jyamma Games were both vocal online about the lacking transparency to ship its games on Xbox. What’s more, the growing amount of Capcom releases skipping Xbox has also been a concern too. In a report from Windows Central, this is due to the severed support for Capcom’s MT Framework legacy engine. Recently, Microsoft shared a new initiative is in place to learn about the growing disconnection Xbox faces with developers. Xbox Research is now extending its reach to the retrieved direct feedback from game studios on the matter. Typically, it takes a lot of people to make and ship a game, including marketing, user research, artists, audio, PMs, community managers, and more. All these disciplines are vital to the process. We want to hear from everyone who works on games or helps support game studios because if we can make your life easier, it makes gaming better. We make a lot of tools – not just the GDK – and it’s important we hear from folks like artists using PIX, or release managers and PMs uploading stuff to our store. And yes, your entire Studio may sign up. Dr. Deborah Hendersen, Principal User Researcher for Xbox “This strategy allows Xbox to gain fresh perspectives and avoid becoming an ‘echo chamber,’” Hendersen elaborated. “It’s a bit like testing players who play games like yours – they are your target audience and you want to hear fresh perspectives because their expectations may differ from folks who are deep in your community.”  What many online are considering the issue is the messaging Microsoft continues to give a platform towards. Although Xbox is to remain with a new console on the way, it is deterred thanks to its push for cloud streaming. The most recent example of this hindrance is Microsoft advertising Xbox without a console via Amazon Fire Stick. You can read the full report by heading here. Are you surprised by this new effort from Microsoft? Source: Microsoft

Foamstars is now free-to-play on PS4 & PS5

Foamstars, the online 4v4 foam party shooter from Square Enix is officially free-to-play on PS5 and PS4. The game was released in February 2024 and was available for free to PlayStation Plus subscribers, but after that, players needed to purchase the game. Now anyone can play Foamstars with or without a PlayStation Plus subscription for free. Those who downloaded Foamstars before the free-to-play transition can continue to play as usual. Along with this update, Square Enix launched Diamond Jam, Season 8 of Foamstars which is now live until November 7. Below is an overview of Diamond Jam via Square Enix: In DIAMOND JAM, new elements will be added to enhance the gameplay further, including “Diamond Chips”, which are tokens earned through playing the game, and “Diamond Trade”, allowing players to trade these chips for various items such as skins, slideboards, emotes, and more. To celebrate the start of the new season, there will be a special login bonus that allows players to obtain Diamond Chips. Five maps will also be added to SMASH THE STAR, including Shoreline Shoppin’ Spree, Rubber Duck’s Spa-larious Oasis, Fusion Coaster Kingdom, Sing Swing Circus from RUBBER DUCK PARTY, and Dancefloor Dreamland from EXTREME PARTY’s Pitchside Homerun Party. In addition, those in the PRIVATE PARTY mode can experience four extra maps from HAPPY BATH SURVIVAL. Additionally, players can participate in new WAVE boss battles during SQUAD MISSIONS as well as limited-time seasonal events including RANKED PARTY, where players compete to climb the ladder of one of the seven ranked glories with teams or solo and EXTREME PARTY, which features multiple events, all with special rules! With the addition of free-to-play, Square Enix is hoping that this will help the player count rise. After the first two months of release, the game lost over 90% of its player base. 

Buyout Looms amid Ubisoft’s Financial Issues

Bloomberg has reported that Tencent Holdings Ltd. is in discussions with Ubisoft on possibly buying out the video game developer as it has lost over half of its market value this year. In the last month, Ubisoft has been going through tough times with games like Star Wars Outlaws which has received mixed reviews, and recently the delay of Assassin’s Creed Shadows. The outlet shared that Tencent and Ubisoft have been speaking with their advisers to find ways to stabilize the company and boost its value. Their sources indicated that they have talked about involving a partnership to take the company private. “One of the possibilities being discussed would involve teaming up to take the company private, according to the people.” Ubisoft’s shares have dropped nearly 40%, but after the Bloomberg report, shares surged by 33% in Paris. Minority shareholders including AJ Investments have also been pushing for a sale of Ubisoft after the stock has plunged. The belief is that a sale to the right investor will help Ubisoft’s value rise. 2024 hasn’t been too kind to Ubisoft as it started with Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown and shortly after that was Skull & Bones which took several years to release and has been underwhelming. XDefiant looked to be a step in the right direction, but leading up to the release there were apparently issues internally. It will be interesting to see what comes next for Ubisoft as many of us don’t know what to expect if they do get bought out. Source: Bloomberg

SHAQ is now available in the Fortnite Shop

Epic Games made a surprise announcement this week when the company revealed its latest crossover for Fortnite. The legendary NBA player Shaquille O’Neal also known as SHAQ has officially joined the Fortnite Item shop. There are two different SHAQ skins – SHAQ (DJ Diesel) and Super SHAQ. You can get either of those outfits separately as they come with their own cosmetics. The DJ Diesel outfit costs 1,500 V-Bucks while Super SHAQ costs 2,00 V-Bucks. Of course, you can purchase the Axe-lifier, Shaqsleeves, and emotes like Shaq Shimmy and Ones N Twos separately. The entire Shaquille O’Neal Bundle costs only 3,400 V-Bucks and you will get all of the emotes, outfits, cosmetics, and Lego versions of him. The SHAQ skins can be used across Lego Fortnite, Fortnite Festival, and Fortnite Battle Royale. This collaboration comes just a week after The Incredibles came to Fortnite with Frozone, Mr and Mrs Incredible joining the roster.

Halo Infinite is getting a 3rd Person Mode this November

The Halo World Championships have kicked off this weekend and 343 industries have announcements for what’s to come in Halo Infinite. One of the first reveals was a 3rd Person Mode coming to Halo Infinite this November. 343 Industries shared a short video that gives a closer look at what the new 3rd Person Mode will look like in gameplay. Experience a new way to play! 3rd Person Mode is coming to Halo Infinite this November 🔥 pic.twitter.com/WkDkGLx8fF — Halo (@Halo) October 4, 2024 This will be the first time we will see a permanent 3rd Person Mode in a Halo game as the franchise has always stuck to its First-Person POV outside of Halo Wars. A date has not been revealed for when the mode will be dropped, but as time gets closer 343i will probably provide more details. What we do know thanks to Community Manager, John Junyszek is that this mode will kick off with Firefight and it will be available to use in Forge creations allowing the community to create unique modes. The Halo World Championships conclude on Sunday, October 6. What content would you like to see come to Halo Infinite?

Chains of Fury Review: A Boomer Shooter Among Giants

Chains of Fury delivers chaotic, comic-book-style destruction in a boomer shooter package, but clunky controls and shallow gameplay hold it back from true greatness.