Rock Paper Shotgun VG247 Feed

enFri, 22 Dec 2023 12:46:26 +0000Bounty of gaming news discovered in isolated Scottish cabinhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/bounty-of-gaming-news-discovered-in-isolated-scottish-cabinEdwin Evans-ThirlwellFri, 22 Dec 2023 12:46:26 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/bounty-of-gaming-news-discovered-in-isolated-scottish-cabinVG247

The existence of the Upper Lunch Hut implies the existence of a Lower Lunch Hut, but as far as I can tell, no such building exists. It's one of many mysteries that surround the edifice, which I discovered during a holiday in the Cairngorms this August, while everybody else at RPS was writing about some tyrannous entity called Gamescom.

First, the approach: having exited a vast pine forest of primeval aspect and supernatural disposition, with distant, daylit clearings leading the eye deeper and deeper into the undergrowth, till it feels at last as though your gaze has become tangibly enmeshed with clutching root and lowering branch - having finally escaped from that terrible, terrible forest, with its single, mournful stream crossed by a bridge of predatory bareness that is surely a haven for trolls, you set out across a grey and purple oblivion of reed and heather, a moorland rising to the border between glens, broken only by the stark red stain of a door. Nearing this otherworldly aberration, this scarlet phantasm, you realise that there is a house constructed around it, a sloping excrescence of withered planks and flaking plaster. What fell secrets could it harbour? Let us go and make our visit.

Read more

]]>
Elden Ring is taking its orchestral soundtrack on tour next spring, including its first UK concerthttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/elden-ring-is-taking-its-orchestral-soundtrack-on-tour-next-spring-including-its-first-uk-concertMatt JarvisWed, 20 Dec 2023 19:11:31 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/elden-ring-is-taking-its-orchestral-soundtrack-on-tour-next-spring-including-its-first-uk-concertBandai Namco EntertainmentFromSoftwareMultiplayer CompetitiveRPGXbox Series X/SSingle PlayerXbox OnePCMultiplayer CooperativeElden RingAction AdventureThird personVG247PS4PS5

Elden Ring’s very Soulslike OST will be performed live in the UK for the first time next April, as a “Symphonic Adventure” concert based on the game’s score heads to London’s Royal Albert Hall.

Read more

]]>
Starfield's pillow talk will make me swear a vow of space-celibacyhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/starfields-pillow-talk-will-make-me-swear-a-vow-of-space-celibacyAlice O'ConnorTue, 09 May 2023 17:51:17 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/starfields-pillow-talk-will-make-me-swear-a-vow-of-space-celibacyRPGBethesda SoftworksSingle PlayerXbox Series X/SFirst personBethesda Game StudiosPCAction Adventuresexy sexVG247Starfield

I hereby vow for all the world to see that when Starfield launches in September, I will do my damndest to avoid having any sex at all in Bethesda's spacefaring RPG. The North American ratings board have detailed the types of content which earned the game a Mature 17+ rating, including "suggestive material" in dialogue "after sharing a bed with characters". Oh no. The listing includes several examples of post-coital pillow talk, and they are about sexy as you would expect from the studio whose dialogue is best known for inadvertently spawning memes about mudcrabs and knee injuries.

Read more

]]>
Distract guards by flushing toilets in this free little Thief homagehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/distract-guards-by-flushing-toilets-in-this-free-little-thief-homageMatt CoxWed, 21 Dec 2022 19:23:15 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/distract-guards-by-flushing-toilets-in-this-free-little-thief-homageprocedural generationLi'l TafferComedyProcjamVG247

Cute, free little thief homage Li'l Taffer starts you off in front of a door to a big manor, along with five instances of an ability called 'knock'. Reader, I am telling you this so that you don't waste all of them pointlessly knocking on the door like I did, as you are in fact supposed to use them to knock out guards.

It's a procedurally generated game made for 7dfps 2022, a game jam that challenges folks to make an fps game in seven days. Your manor will be different to mine, but the toilets will probably still be silly.

Read more

]]>
A text adventure started 40 years ago has only just been finishedhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/a-text-adventure-started-40-years-ago-has-only-just-been-finishedCJ WheelerFri, 07 Oct 2022 13:36:30 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/a-text-adventure-started-40-years-ago-has-only-just-been-finishedStory Richinteractive fictionSimulationPoint and ClickScience FictionFerretVG247

A piece of interactive fiction that was created for a 16-bit minicomputer in the early 1980s has finally been completed, four decades later. Ferret, a Zork-like text adventure, began development in 1982 for the Data General Nova 2. The game was put together by a group of software engineers from Data General’s UK-based Systems Division. Ferret only received a final functional release complete with an endgame in August this year, according to a post on the game’s Facebook community.

Read more

]]>
Our cycling tour of PC gaming is complete, read it all herehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/our-cycling-tour-of-pc-gaming-is-complete-read-it-all-hereAlice O'ConnorMon, 08 Aug 2022 14:52:23 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/our-cycling-tour-of-pc-gaming-is-complete-read-it-all-hereBlockbusterIndieTour de JeuxSportsVG247

After five weeks, 12 posts, 14 games, and 11,146 words, my cycling tour of PC gaming ended on Friday. I've crossed the active warzones of GTA Online and PUBG, stunted down murderous descents in extreme sports games, tried to learn serious bike race tactics in strategy games, gone for a weird ride in a walking simulator, and even needed to ride my real bike for a game powered by Strava. For your convenience and enjoyment, that's now all gathered here with some bonus bike thoughts.

Read more

]]>
Descenders is a fun mountain biking game wrapped in a bland roguelikehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/descenders-is-a-bland-roguelike-but-a-lovely-mountain-biking-gameAlice O'ConnorFri, 05 Aug 2022 14:51:11 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/descenders-is-a-bland-roguelike-but-a-lovely-mountain-biking-gameDescendersTour de JeuxNo More RobotsThe Game PassengerSportsRoguelikeRageSquidVG247

I don't think I like the game Descenders ostensibly is, but I enjoy playing. It's a downhill mountain biking game with dangerous speeds and even more dangerous stunts, including leaping through a ring of fire over of a moving train. This is fun. The roguelikelike campaign structure this is all built into, eh, I don't think it has added any enjoyment. But it is very fun to stack a double-backflip, slam into a rock, and watch your ragdoll corpse rocket downhill. It's a good reminder to ride whichever way you enjoy, expectations and pressures be damned.

Read more

]]>
Lonely Mountains: Downhill goes murderously fast but appreciates stopping for a good viewhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/lonely-mountains-downhill-goes-murderously-fast-but-appreciates-a-beautiful-viewAlice O'ConnorThu, 04 Aug 2022 12:47:49 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/lonely-mountains-downhill-goes-murderously-fast-but-appreciates-a-beautiful-viewMegagon IndustriesLonely Mountains: DownhillTour de JeuxSportsArcadeThunderful PublishingVG247

My cycling tour of video games is almost at its end but we're in no hurry. Let's pause for a wee break, like in Lonely Mountains: Downhill. The mountain biking game is full of gnarly descents, dangerous jumps, and barely controlled skids, but also has secret spots where you can sit down and enjoy a nice view for as long as you like. Lonely Mountains is a collection of little adventures, each leading to your tent at the end of the day. Delightful.

Read more

]]>
This visual novel takes you on a lovely little cycling tourhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/this-visual-novel-takes-you-on-a-lovely-little-cycling-tourAlice O'ConnorMon, 01 Aug 2022 16:03:49 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/this-visual-novel-takes-you-on-a-lovely-little-cycling-tourIndieTour de JeuxIndiescoveryAran's Bike TripSokpop CollectiveVG247

While the Tour De France Femmes ended on Sunday and the Tour Hommes the week before, I'll not be rushed on my own Tour De Jeux. I can't keep pace with professionals so it's fine if I run long, and today I want to take my time and enjoy the journey. I'm playing Aran's Bike Trip, a visual novel/interactive diary/thingamy where Dutch indie dev Aran Koning (the designer of Stacklands) documents a two-day bike tour with 360° photos. It's a lovely little adventure, taking in sights including an art deco radio station and the tallest waterfall in the Netherlands. The waterfall is... about what you might expect in a notoriously flat country.

Read more

]]>
Bicycle repair could make for a great puzzle gamehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/bicycle-repair-could-make-for-a-great-puzzle-gameAlice O'ConnorFri, 29 Jul 2022 17:27:06 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/bicycle-repair-could-make-for-a-great-puzzle-gameSimulationTour de JeuxBicycle Mechanic SimulatorBike Mechanic Simulator 2023VG247

After the last stage of my Tour De Jeux gave me a flat tyre on my real bike, I started daydreaming about a bike repair game. A grubby game with fuzzy deductive puzzles as you rule out the many possible causes of similar symptoms. As far as I can find, no such game exists. But I did see two upcoming games with similar names: Bicycle Mechanic Simulator and Bike Mechanic Simulator 2023. Alas, I fear they might be PlayWay-style sims where you just click stuff in order then it all works tickety-boo. That is not the bike repair I know and begrudgingly enjoy.

Read more

]]>
You play this idle game by going for a real bike ride on Stravahttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/you-play-this-idle-game-by-going-for-a-real-bike-rideAlice O'ConnorTue, 26 Jul 2022 15:40:51 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/you-play-this-idle-game-by-going-for-a-real-bike-rideWrenRPGIdle GamesTour de JeuxIndiescoverySportsbig numbersVG247

"Do you do Strava?" people often ask upon learning I like cycling. This is not the question they wish to ask. They are trying to feel out a stereotype, attempting to maintain the civil spirit of small talk by not saying aloud, "So are you a prick about cycling?" To broach the subject of stats, let's talk about Wren, an idle RPG powered by going for a real bike ride then connecting the game to your Strava or Fitbit. I got a puncture in the course of playing the game for this post, such is my dedication to you, reader dear.

Read more

]]>
Bicycle commuting in PUBG is fun, silly, and sometimes even smarthttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/tour-de-jeux-pubg-bicycle-commuting-is-fun-silly-and-sometimes-even-smartAlice O'ConnorFri, 22 Jul 2022 15:56:10 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/tour-de-jeux-pubg-bicycle-commuting-is-fun-silly-and-sometimes-even-smartShooterTour de JeuxKraftonPUBG: BattlegroundsVG247

Cycling in video games leans towards the extreme and the exciting: bombing downhill at murderous speeds, professional racing, treasure hunt, and such. I'd like to see more of the mundane too. For many adults, a bicycle is simply a way to get to work, to the shops, or to see your pals. So after battle royale shooter PUBG: Battlegrounds added bicycles, I decided to commute around the stag & hen weekend warzones by bike as much as possible.

Read more

]]>
GTA Online offers a lovely bicycle ride, murder asidehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/tour-de-jeux-gta-online-offers-a-lovely-bike-ride-murder-asideAlice O'ConnorMon, 18 Jul 2022 16:40:26 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/tour-de-jeux-gta-online-offers-a-lovely-bike-ride-murder-asideBlockbusterTour de JeuxRockstarAction AdventureGrand Theft Auto VGrand Theft Auto OnlineVG247

The game I've done the most virtuacycling in is named after a whole other form of transport, but it is also a great place to ride a bike. When I'm visiting Grand Theft Auto Online for funsies, just to watch mayhem unfold, I like to do it atop a BMX. Sure, everyone in Los Santos wants to murder me, but players are a little friendlier when you're pulling sikk tricks. A little.

Read more

]]>
Learning bike pr0 stratz from cycling management gameshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/tour-de-jeux-learning-from-cycling-strategy-gamesAlice O'ConnorFri, 15 Jul 2022 17:30:11 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/tour-de-jeux-learning-from-cycling-strategy-gamesNaconThe Cyclist: TacticsDemosManagementCyanide StudioSimulationCamshaft SoftwareTour de JeuxPro Cycling Manager 2022IndiescoverySportsVG247

As much as I enjoy watching the Tour De France, I have a weak grasp of professional cycling's strategic level. While individual riders get the fame, it is a team sport with complex tactics and strategies across each stage and the overall race—which sometimes leave me flummoxed. So to help me better understand, I've been playing two strat-o-management games: the flashy Pro Cycling Manager 2022 (from the makers of the official Tour De France game) and the board game-esque indie game The Cyclist: Tactics.

Read more

]]>
Take a weird ride with this walking simulator on a bikehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/tour-de-jeux-a-weird-ride-with-a-walking-simulator-on-wheelsAlice O'ConnorWed, 13 Jul 2022 16:17:47 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/tour-de-jeux-a-weird-ride-with-a-walking-simulator-on-wheelsBird SnapperIndieTour de JeuxFree gamesIndiescoveryTom van den BoogaartWalking SimulatorSokpop CollectiveVG247

While the Tour De France is currently zooming about the Alps, the next stage of my own cycling journey through video games leads somewhere far flatter—and weirder. Bird Snapper is a nice little free game that's just you, an endless grey desert, a bicycle, a howling night, and innumerable antennae and electricity pylons. A walking simulator on two wheels, with a bell.

Read more

]]>
What's better: sex cutscenes or bullet time?https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-better-sex-cutscenes-or-bullet-timeAlice O'ConnorWed, 13 Jul 2022 14:28:05 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-better-sex-cutscenes-or-bullet-timeBlockbusterIndieVG247What's the best thing in video games?

Last time, you decided that explosive barrels are better than hints. I suppose you don't need hints to know what a red barrel does. While we still have so many more things to assess, let's next revisit somewhat familiar ground. You previously decided romance is better than de_dust2 and now I want to escalate both things. What's better: sex cutscenes or bullet time?

Read more

]]>
Riders Republic has the rudest 'tude but such lovely cyclinghttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/tour-de-jeux-riders-republic-has-the-rudest-tude-but-such-lovely-cyclingAlice O'ConnorMon, 11 Jul 2022 16:44:12 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/tour-de-jeux-riders-republic-has-the-rudest-tude-but-such-lovely-cyclingBlockbusterUbisoft AnnecyTour de JeuxUbisoftSportsVG247Riders Republic

I had expected to dislike Riders Republic because Ubisoft's marketing made the open-world xtreme sports game look like it was about gnarly middle-aged dudes with sikk lingo and twatty hats. And it is, and they are awful. But behind the rude 'tude and Fortnite-grade fashion, Riders Republic makes riding a virtual bike feel like riding a real one in a way few video games manage. Switch to the first-person camera, turn off the music and HUD, and just cycle through American national parks with your bike humming beneath you. Bliss.

Read more

]]>
Knights And Bikes and the joy of personalising your ridehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/knights-and-bikes-and-the-joy-of-personalising-your-rideAlice O'ConnorThu, 07 Jul 2022 12:11:10 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/knights-and-bikes-and-the-joy-of-personalising-your-rideFoam SwordIndieTour de JeuxDouble Fine ProductionsSportsKnights and BikesVG247

After starting my Tour De Jeux with the official Tour De France game, stage 2 takes me to Knights And Bikes. Foam Sword's 2019 game evokes childhood joys of zooming around with your pal and tricking out your bicycle with reflectors and Spokey Dokeys. That might seem far from the Tour De France but grown-up cyclists are just as keen on customising their bikes for coolness, and even some Tour bikes are rocking garish decoration this year.

Read more

]]>
I'm riding bicycles in loads of games to mark the Tour De Francehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/im-riding-bikes-in-games-to-celebrate-the-tour-de-france-starting-with-the-official-gameAlice O'ConnorFri, 01 Jul 2022 18:52:37 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/im-riding-bikes-in-games-to-celebrate-the-tour-de-france-starting-with-the-official-gameNaconCyanide StudioTour de France 2022SimulationTour de JeuxSportsVG247

The Tour De France, the grandest race in professional cycling, started today. Across three weeks, 176 cyclists will ride 3328 kilometres (2068 miles) winding through France, Denmark, Belgium, and Switzerland, including the Alps and Pyrenees. As a keen cyclist and avid Tour watcher myself, I'm excited. So in celebration, over the coming weeks I'll be gabbing about the Tour De France, cycling, and bikes in a wide variety of video games with my own Tour De Jeux, from big-budget open-world extravaganzas to cute wee indie adventures. Let's start in the obvious place: the official Tour De France video game.

Read more

]]>
What's better: romance, or de_dust2?https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-better-romance-or-de_dust2Alice O'ConnorWed, 27 Apr 2022 19:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/whats-better-romance-or-de_dust2ShooterCounter-Strike: Global OffensiveBlockbusterWhat's the best thing in video games?Counter-StrikeIndieCounter-Strike: SourceVG247

Last week, our mission resumed after a wee hiatus and you decided that parody in-game brands are better than photo modes. Or are less bad? Some of you have a lot of pent-up frustration because you lack the dexterity to keep your fingers from fumbling photo buttons. But it is decided, and we must move on. This week, it's a question of love versus a battlefield. What's better: romance, or iconic Counter-Strike map de_dust2?

Read more

]]>
Now you can ride your real bike around Grand Theft Auto in multiplayerhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/now-you-can-ride-your-real-bike-around-grand-theft-auto-in-multiplayerAlice O'ConnorMon, 04 Apr 2022 16:34:25 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/now-you-can-ride-your-real-bike-around-grand-theft-auto-in-multiplayerBlockbusterModsSportsGrand Theft Auto VVG247

One of the coolest mod ideas is GTBike V, which basically lets you turn Grand Theft Auto V into Zwift, pedalling a bike in the real world to ride a virtual bike around Los Santos. Now a new version has added multiplayer, letting you trundle around the same city independently or join up for group rides. It almost makes me want to get the kit to hook my bike up.

Read more

]]>
AMD FSR 2.0 is a more demanding, higher-quality upscaling upgradehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/amd-fsr-20-is-a-more-demanding-higher-quality-upscaling-upgradeJames ArcherThu, 24 Mar 2022 13:54:22 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/amd-fsr-20-is-a-more-demanding-higher-quality-upscaling-upgradeGraphics CardsHardwareAMDVG247

AMD have revealed more about FSR 2.0, the major overhaul of its FidelityFX Super Resolution upscaling tech, after a detail-light announcement last week. FSR 2.0 will represent a switch from simple spatial upscaling to more closely match the advanced temporal upscaling techniques of its rival, Nvidia DLSS – and while it won’t use DLSS-style machine learning, AMD say the trick to FSR 2.0’s improved performance is down to some good-old-fashioned human brainpower.

Read more

]]>
Have you ever played a game for 500 hours?https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/have-you-ever-played-a-game-for-500-hoursKatharine CastleWed, 12 Jan 2022 14:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/have-you-ever-played-a-game-for-500-hoursshowtimeSteamBlockbusterVG247

Much has been made of how long games take to complete this week. After Dying Light 2 developers Techland boasted that it would take 500 hours to fully complete the game over the weekend, the internet's collective groan over the revelation was reportedly heard from the far reaches of space. Personally, I think it's a preposterous figure for a single-player game, but as someone who also maintains an active spreadsheet of all my various playtime stats (yes, really), it also got me thinking. Is 500 hours really so nonsensical in the grand scheme of things? I asked the team what their most played game on Steam is to find out.

And as it turns out, Dying Light 2's 500 hour completion time ain't got nothing on some of our favourite time hogs...

Read more

]]>
Turkish police detain 40 people over Twitch money launderinghttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/turkish-police-detain-40-people-over-twitch-money-launderingAlice O'ConnorWed, 05 Jan 2022 15:31:11 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/turkish-police-detain-40-people-over-twitch-money-launderingTwitchBlockbusterVG247Legal

In a serious of coordinated raids, Turkish police have detained 40 people suspected of involvement with a money laundering ring which allegedly used Twitch for money laundering. Supposedly they were using stolen credit card info to buy Bits (Twitch's virtuacurrency), which they would then donate to Twitch streamers who had agreed to give money in return in exchange for keeping a portion for themselves. This first came to light following Twitch's big data leak last year.

Read more

]]>
Microsoft are selling a Minesweeper "ugly" Christmas jumperhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/microsoft-are-selling-a-minesweeper-ugly-christmas-jumperAlice O'ConnorWed, 01 Dec 2021 12:39:10 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/microsoft-are-selling-a-minesweeper-ugly-christmas-jumpermerchandiseBlockbusterChristmasVG247MinesweeperAbleGamers

After dropping the ball with Solitaire merch, Microsoft have now done right by Minesweeper with an "ugly" Christmas jumper turning one of the most iconic PC games of all time into a blocky Christmas tree. For £58 (plus shipping), you can tell all your festive friends how little work you actually did on your PC in the 1990s. It's not bad!

Read more

]]>
Study finds that Red Dead Redemption 2 players sure do know their animalshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/study-find-that-red-dead-redemption-2-players-sure-do-know-their-animalsLauren MortonMon, 12 Jul 2021 21:19:36 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/study-find-that-red-dead-redemption-2-players-sure-do-know-their-animalsRed Dead OnlineScienceRockstarRockstar GamesAction AdventureVG247Red Dead Redemption 2

Posse up, Red Dead Redemption 2 players. The results are in and science says that if you know your sturgeon from your steelhead trout you may have Rockstar's surprisingly detailed cowboy 'em up to thank for it. A published research study has found that RDR2 players, especially those who've played recently, are more likely to be able to visually identify 15 different species of animals that appear in the game. The statistical results are interesting on their own, but what's almost cooler are the anecdotes players shared during the study about things they believed they'd learned from all of RDR2's simulated wildlife.

Read more

]]>
Restore a ravaged world in reverse city-builder Terra Nilhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/terra-nil-reverse-city-builder-announcement-trailerLauren MortonMon, 07 Jun 2021 19:01:15 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/terra-nil-reverse-city-builder-announcement-trailerFree LivesSimulationDevolver DigitalIndiescoveryTerra NilVG247

The folks behind Broforce have a new game on the horizon that is not at all about running, gunning, or blowing stuff up. Quite the opposite, Terra Nil is what they're calling a "reverse city-builder" about rehabilitating an environment that's been completely decimated. You'll turn it green again with the power of irrigation and renewable energy sources to fix the climate and the wildlife. It looks quite lovely and chill in this new trailer and even has a free demo coming up this month if you'd like to try out your planetary green thumb.

Read more

]]>
More bikes please, video gameshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/more-bikes-please-video-gamesAlice O'ConnorThu, 03 Jun 2021 17:20:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/more-bikes-please-video-gamesVG247

Today is World Bicycle Day, so allow me to say: more bikes in video games, please. The ones we have are nice, but more would be grand, ta. I'll take more games about cycling. I'll take more bikes in games not about cycling. I'll take hot stunts and I'll take gentle transport. And what I truly crave is more crap bikes in games.

Read more

]]>
Slice-of-life sim The Garden Path looks like a lovely place to stay a whilehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-garden-path-slice-of-life-sim-announcedLauren MortonFri, 28 May 2021 18:59:45 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-garden-path-slice-of-life-sim-announcedCarrotcakeIndieIndiescoveryThe Garden PathVG247

Gather round, farmlife-sim likers. Another swell-looking indie game is planning a move to the village. The Garden Path is a laid-back slice-of-life sim with shades of Animal Crossing in its little painted world. You can spot it's lovely art style and sweet cute villagers down here in its new announcement trailer. We'll be able to dig in later this year when it launches.

Read more

]]>
Monster Hunter Stories 2 is going to let me do gene science on giant bearshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/monster-hunter-stories-2-shows-off-monstie-gene-inheritingLauren MortonWed, 26 May 2021 16:09:22 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/monster-hunter-stories-2-shows-off-monstie-gene-inheritingCapcomMonster Hunter Stories 2: Wings Of RuinStrategyVG247

What is better than battles between giant bears? Obviously it's battles between giant bears that I have bred specifically to shoot giant plasma beams out of their giant mouths. Also the bear is my bestie because this is Monster Hunter series spinoff Monster Hunter Stories 2 where mega deadly creatures are also my best pals. Ahead of its launch in July, MonStories 2 has shown off some of its monstie gene splicing and (obviously) I am psyched for bears.

Read more

]]>
Total War: Warhammer 3's new trailer shows off Kislev's big, awesome bearshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/total-war-warhammer-3-new-cinematic-trailer-kislev-vs-khorneLauren MortonWed, 12 May 2021 18:30:06 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/total-war-warhammer-3-new-cinematic-trailer-kislev-vs-khorneTotal War: Warhammer IIIGames WorkshopThe Creative AssemblySegaFeral InteractiveVG247

Kislev and Khorne are going head to head in the newest Total War: Warhammer 3 trailer that just landed today. The next part of Creative Assembly's series is giving some serious love to the snowy folks of fantasy Russia with cavalry bears, magical bears, and other pretty cool looking icy units. You can spot the lot in the new cinematic trailer right here ahead of the gameplay reveal that's still scheduled for tomorrow.

Read more

]]>
Elite Dangerous: Odyssey is now letting alpha players scan space plantshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/elite-dangerous-odyssey-launches-alpha-phase-3-exploration-with-exo-biologyLauren MortonFri, 16 Apr 2021 19:45:42 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/elite-dangerous-odyssey-launches-alpha-phase-3-exploration-with-exo-biologyElite DangerousFrontier DevelopmentsVG247Elite Dangerous: Odyssey

Greetings, Commanders. Here's your regular status report on the Elite Dangerous: Odyssey alpha. After gradually expanding the capabilitties of alpha players from their initial walkabouts to some FPS games, Frontier Developments are now sending players off to explore new planets again. The latest alpha phase, focused on exploration, turns players into exobiologists with genetic scanners.

Read more

]]>
Preview: the Elite Dangerous Odyssey FPS expansion is best when you're not shootinghttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/elite-dangerous-odyssey-expansion-is-best-when-youre-not-shootingBrendan CaldwellTue, 13 Apr 2021 16:00:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/elite-dangerous-odyssey-expansion-is-best-when-youre-not-shootingFeatureElite Dangerous: OdysseyElite DangerousPreviewsVG247Frontier Developments

There's a Vulture circling overhead. Not a scavenger bird, but the somewhat larger Core Dynamics Vulture. Its engine reverbs across the moon's surface as it boosts off into orbit, ignoring me. I'm not worth the hassle. My Sidewinder, the trash-tier space banger of Elite Dangerous, is parked quiet and unoccupied on the edge of a huge meteor crater. I'm out for a walk, you see, with the long-awaited space legs of the upcoming Odyssey expansion. Not everything is smooth and picturesque in this ongoing public alpha. Despite that, it's gratifying to boot up your favourite space-trucking game and find not just a walking simulator inside, but a moon-walking simulator.

Read more

]]>
Baldur's Gate 3 Patch 4 will add Druids and their eight animal formshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/baldurs-gate-druid-class-patch-4-announcement-eventLauren MortonWed, 17 Feb 2021 18:50:23 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/baldurs-gate-druid-class-patch-4-announcement-eventUpdatesLarian Studiosearly accessBaldur's Gate 3VG247

Larian Studios have introduced the next big update for their big early access D&D RPG Baldur's Gate 3. This one calls up the Druid class and their eight animals forms for you to play around with along with other game changes and improvements. Larian have just shown off lots of details about Druids in their second Panel From Hell event.

Update: Larian CEO Swen Vincke declared pretty emphatically at the start of the livestream that Patch 4 is "releasing today" though I've since gotten word from Larian that "he goofed." Patch 4 is actually arriving "soon, when it's ready."

Read more

]]>
Magical cat cafe simulation Calico is out nowhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/magical-cat-cafe-simulation-calico-is-out-nowLauren MortonWed, 16 Dec 2020 20:19:05 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/magical-cat-cafe-simulation-calico-is-out-nowIndieVG247Calico

Cat cafe simulation Calico has come out of the oven right on time. I was starting to fear that it would roll over into the new year without hitting its expected 2020 release window. Never fear though, Calico has scooted out here in the last weeks of the year, so you can jump in to decorate cakes, collect animal friends, and assemble your cafe right now.

Read more

]]>
Battlemage royale Spellbreak now has a duos modehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/battlemage-royale-spellbreak-now-has-a-duos-modeLauren MortonMon, 14 Sep 2020 16:24:30 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/battlemage-royale-spellbreak-now-has-a-duos-modeProletariatPAX OnlineSpellbreakPAX Online × EGX DigitalAction AdventureVG247

If you happened to miss it in the flurry of summer showcases, there's a new battle royale on the block. Spellbreak ditches firearms in favor of spellcasting mages who can all dual wield magical gauntlets that blend the elements in colorful combos. The battlemage royale launched a duos mode today to go along with its current solos or squads of three options. Proletariat also participated in a PAX panel over the weekend digging into the history of the game's development from melee viking royale to the explosive mage battleground. Forewarning: there be bears.

Read more

]]>
Bear And Breakfast will let you manage an adorable forest B&B next yearhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/bear-and-breakfast-will-let-you-manage-an-adorable-forest-bb-next-yearLauren MortonWed, 19 Aug 2020 20:17:24 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/bear-and-breakfast-will-let-you-manage-an-adorable-forest-bb-next-yearArmor Games StudiosIndieBear And BreakfastVG247

Throw in the towels, game developers. Someone's already making the perfect game. Bear And Breakfast is an upcoming management game where you're a teenage bear just trying to run a successful B&B in the woods. It's due out in 2021, so you've got until then to release any other games you're working on before I just call off gaming for good.

Read more

]]>
Elder Scrolls Online will turn player houses into living dioramas with NPC routineshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/elder-scrolls-online-will-turn-player-houses-into-living-dioramas-with-npc-routinesLauren MortonWed, 19 Aug 2020 16:24:50 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/elder-scrolls-online-will-turn-player-houses-into-living-dioramas-with-npc-routinesZeniMax Online StudiosMMOBethesda SoftworksThe Elder Scrolls OnlineVG247

The Elder Scrolls Online's player homes are instanced areas where you can decorate to your heart's desire. I've been working on my daunting snowglobe house for years it feels like—slowly chucking in more curtains and little candles and whatnot. Even for a snowglobe though, my homestead feels a bit lifeless. I've housed my bear steeds (obviously I have multiple) in the stable outside and my little thief follower to the main hall inside. They don't do anything other than stand in place and run their idle animation though. Now though, Zenimax Online Studios are adding tools to create routines for NPCs in your home, turning your homestead into a living diorama.

Read more

]]>
Pony Island developer's horror deck-builder Inscryption plays a new trailerhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/pony-island-developers-horror-deck-builder-inscryption-plays-a-new-trailerLauren MortonFri, 14 Aug 2020 19:01:03 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/pony-island-developers-horror-deck-builder-inscryption-plays-a-new-trailerInscryptionIndieHorrorThe HexDaniel Mullins GamesPony IslandVG247

Spooky deck-builder Inscryption has drawn and played another trailer to tease you into its weird mashup of card, critters, escape rooms, and like five other genres probably. Brewing up a genre stew is apparently something of a thing for developer Daniel Mullins Games who you may know from past games Pony Island and The Hex. A new trailer for Inscryption lets on that it'll be just as wild a ride when it launches in 2021.

Read more

]]>
Guide your animal tribe in strategy roguelike As Far As The Eyehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/guide-your-animal-tribe-in-strategy-roguelike-as-far-as-the-eyeLauren MortonWed, 12 Aug 2020 19:37:33 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/guide-your-animal-tribe-in-strategy-roguelike-as-far-as-the-eyeAs Far As The EyeMaple Whispering LimitedGoblinz StudioStrategyVG247

You know when you see a game and just know "oh yes, that is for me"? I knew just from a screenshot of As Far As The Eye that it would be my wheelhouse. Hexagonal tiles, turn numbers, and resource counts tell me it's a turn-based strategy game while the vibrant colors and giant, fluffy creatures give me that tingly feeling in my heart. Fortunately, you and I won't have to wait long to try it out. As Far As The Eye will launch on September 10th according to its new gameplay video.

Read more

]]>
Animal deck-builder Banners Of Ruin enters early accesshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/animal-deck-builder-banners-of-ruin-enters-early-accessLauren MortonFri, 31 Jul 2020 16:01:52 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/animal-deck-builder-banners-of-ruin-enters-early-accessBanners of RuinGoblinz StudioIndieVG247

In any situation where you can choose to have animals on your team you should definitely pick bears, which is part of what looks lovely about turn-based deck-building game Banners Of Ruin. You assemble a team of six grim-faced animal warriors, presumably meaning that I could pick six bears if I were so inclined—and oh am I ever inclined. Banners Of Ruin is now out in early access, so you can pick your own squad of furry fighters. Obviously I recommend the bears.

Read more

]]>
Minecraft Dungeons' first DLC Jungle Awakens is out nowhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/minecraft-dungeons-first-dlc-jungle-awakens-is-out-nowLauren MortonWed, 01 Jul 2020 16:14:18 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/minecraft-dungeons-first-dlc-jungle-awakens-is-out-nowMicrosoftMojangRPGAction AdventureMinecraft: DungeonsVG247

If you've already hacked and slashed and tumbled your way through Minecraft Dungeons' campaign, you can grab your enchanted boots for another spelunking. The first DLC for Minecraft-but-Diablo is out now. The Jungle Awakens DLC sends you into the overgrowth to battle the Jungle Abomination. Even if you don't grab the DLC, a free update including a new secret mission has been added for all players.

Read more

]]>
Calico's cute new trailer shows off flying broomsticks and oh wow bear mountshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/calicos-cute-new-trailer-shows-off-flying-broomsticks-and-oh-wow-bear-mountsLauren MortonMon, 15 Jun 2020 17:59:32 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/calicos-cute-new-trailer-shows-off-flying-broomsticks-and-oh-wow-bear-mountsE3 2020IndieVG247Calico

Magical girl cat cafe simulator Calico has lots of cats—orange cats and black cats and calico cats and cats big enough to ride like horses. Thanks to this new trailer in the Guerilla Collective showcase, I have now learned that it also has bears. I like cats, sure, but I really, really like bears. I cannot ride them or pick them up like stuffed animals in real life but I will definitely do both in Calico.

Read more

]]>
The Sims 4 Eco Lifestyle reviewhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sims-4-eco-lifestyle-reviewAlice BellWed, 10 Jun 2020 08:00:17 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-sims-4-eco-lifestyle-reviewFeatureBlockbusterElectronic ArtsReviewsSimulationThe Sims 4 Eco LifestyleEA MaxisVG247Wot I ThinkThe Sims 4

A while back politicians in the UK identified the environment as a key battleground to fight over, and all started riding around on those tiny bikes you can fold up and carry around London to prove they cared about trees. Not to be outdone, EA have, ten years later, released their latest expansion to blockbuster tiny-person life simulation series The Sims 4 along a green theme. Eco Lifestyle adds a new world with three neighbourhoods, a bunch of new Create-a-Sim and build items, and the requisite personality traits, aspirations and skills to go along with being an eco-warrior. The bits that are there are very fun - possibly the most fun I've had with The Sims for a while - but it also feels like parts are missing.

Read more

]]>
Every remastered game should have an upgrade sequence like Command & Conquer Remastered Collectionhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/every-remastered-game-should-have-an-upgrade-sequence-like-command-conquer-remastered-collectionKatharine CastleTue, 09 Jun 2020 13:00:50 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/every-remastered-game-should-have-an-upgrade-sequence-like-command-conquer-remastered-collectionFeatureElectronic ArtsCommand & Conquer Remastered CollectionStrategyHardwareCommand & Conquerhow much graphics does it haveVG247Command & Conquer: Red Alert

You know you're onto a winner when your heart swells ten times its normal size out of pure excitement from the boot-up sequence for the remaster of a game you never played. I was far too young to even comprehend Command & Conquer when it first came out in 1995, and to my great shame it's never been something I've sought out in the intervening years. But watching Command & Conquer Remastered Collection's newly re-tooled EVA opening sequence had me pumping my fists and bellowing with excitement like I'd been down there in the fan trenches all along.

Read more

]]>
Upcoming RPG The Waylanders introduces 12 possible pets for your fantasy rangershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/upcoming-rpg-the-waylanders-introduces-12-possible-pets-for-your-fantasy-rangersLauren MortonWed, 03 Jun 2020 18:53:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/upcoming-rpg-the-waylanders-introduces-12-possible-pets-for-your-fantasy-rangersThe WaylandersRPGGato StudioVG247

Upcoming Celtic-inspired RPG The Waylanders has announced some new members of the party. Ranger class characters will have the ability to choose between a total of twelve possible animal partners. Predictable RPG choices like wolves and bears are joined by a few less-obvious friends like jay birds and rabbits. I don't know if I'd rely on a bunny during a battle, personally, but go off, Gato Studio.

Read more

]]>
G2A pay Factorio devs over £32,000 after uncovering stolen key saleshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/g2a-pay-factorio-devs-over-32010-after-uncovering-stolen-key-salesNatalie ClaytonThu, 21 May 2020 19:34:17 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/g2a-pay-factorio-devs-over-32010-after-uncovering-stolen-key-salesPuzzleVG247FactorioStrategyWube SoftwareG2A

Last year, second-hand games marketplace G2A made a bet: If any developers or publishers could prove that stolen keys were being sold on G2A, the storefront would pay back the money lost on chargebacks tenfold. Only one studio offered to take them up on the offer, Factorio developers Wube Software. Turns out, Wube were right to suspect stolen sales - and now G2A's gamble has cost the storefront $39,600 (roughly £32,360).

Read more

]]>
Early access review: Lumberjack's Dynastyhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/early-access-review-lumberjacks-dynastySteve HogartyTue, 05 May 2020 16:00:54 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/early-access-review-lumberjacks-dynastyFeaturePremature EvaluationReviewsSimulationLumberjack's DynastySteamToplitz Productionsearly accessVG247

The weirdest thing about Lumberjack's Dynasty – in a very long list of strange things – are the overheard snippets of conversation as you approach the game’s various NPCs. As you round the crest of a hill you might eavesdrop on a neighbour muttering something about how “everyone is talking about it”. Stroll up the drive of your aunt’s house and she’ll be whispering “yes, it will all be out in the open soon” to your uncle, before they both stop mid-conversation and slowly rotate on the spot like a pair of rotisserie chickens to face you.

Read more

]]>
Titan Quest is two-thirds of a game, but exactly what I needhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/titan-quest-is-two-thirds-of-a-game-but-exactly-what-i-needJohn WalkerMon, 27 Apr 2020 12:00:49 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/titan-quest-is-two-thirds-of-a-game-but-exactly-what-i-needFeatureRPGRetroPast PerfectVG247Action AdventureTitan Quest

I wrote a different introduction to this one. One about how odd it is that Titan Quest should be a game I so frequently return to given its being the antithesis of much of why I play games. But while I'll get to that, I need to begin with the real introduction:

I'm really struggling. This situation, this lockdown, it's triggering my mental health issues in so many directions, and I'm really having trouble holding it together. I feel like I'm a really weakly version of Spider-Man in that moment where he's trying to hold a collapsing building with webs in all directions, as gravity tries to tear it down around me. And that's why I returned to Titan Quest. Because it felt like it was going to be a familiar, simple place. And it turns out it's just what I needed.

Read more

]]>
A cat picked this week's hero pools for the Overwatch Leaguehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/a-cat-picked-this-weeks-hero-pools-for-the-overwatch-leagueImogen BeckhellingTue, 31 Mar 2020 09:35:56 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/a-cat-picked-this-weeks-hero-pools-for-the-overwatch-leagueShooterCoronavirusOverwatchEsportsBlizzard EntertainmentVG247

The Overwatch League casters, hosts and players alike are all holed up at home for the time being, with matches taking place online while the world waits for the Covid-19 pandemic to run its course. It seems like cabin fever is starting to set in though, as this week they've adopted a cat into the analyst's panel to decide on the hero pools.

It went about as well as you can imagine.

Read more

]]>
Premature Evaluation: Russian Fishing 4https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/premature-evaluation-russian-fishing-4Steve HogartyTue, 10 Mar 2020 17:00:22 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/premature-evaluation-russian-fishing-4FeaturePremature EvaluationReviewsSimulationSportsRussian Fishing 4SteamVG247

Back in the before times, before the fires and the disease came, you could feed bread to ducks without being cancelled by the bird police. Just grab a sliced pan of wholewheat Warburtons and hurl it into a lake, then watch as every duck, swan and anaemic-looking goose in the postcode descended upon it in a feathery gale, quacking and honking and feasting in a sordid maelstrom of avian debauchery. Now, say the bird police, it is only appropriate to feed fresh organic frozen peas to the ducks, otherwise their insides will turn to slime and their beaks will go soft and drop off.

Read more

]]>
Ubisoft's Roller Champions is getting a closed alpha next weekhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/ubisofts-roller-champions-is-getting-a-closed-alpha-next-weekImogen BeckhellingThu, 05 Mar 2020 11:59:44 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/ubisofts-roller-champions-is-getting-a-closed-alpha-next-weekUbisoft MontrealRoller ChampionsUbisoftSportsAction AdventureVG247

Remember Roller Champions? It was, by far, one of the coolest games announced at E3 last year, and now Ubisoft have organised a closed alpha on PC starting next Wednesday to give players a chance to check it out. Roller Champions is basically a 3v3 roller derby with some basketball thrown in, and it looks so colourful and different to a lot of the other stuff Ubisoft are trying to sell us, I personally can't wait to give it a go.

Read more

]]>
The Division 2 is returning to the Big Apple in the Warlords Of New York expansion next monthhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-division-2-is-returning-to-the-big-apple-in-the-warlords-of-new-york-expansion-next-monthImogen BeckhellingWed, 12 Feb 2020 11:44:45 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-division-2-is-returning-to-the-big-apple-in-the-warlords-of-new-york-expansion-next-monthMassive EntertainmentTom Clancy's The Division 2UbisoftAction AdventureVG247

New York needs saving again, and it's your job to do it when The Division 2's Warlords Of New York expansion drops on March 3rd. The DLC will bring back the big bad from the first Division, and lo' and behold he's got another strain of the nasty virus that caused the world to go to shambles in the first place. This expansion kicks off Year 2 of the game's content, and Ubisoft say it's "an encapsulated narrative experience from the start".

Read more

]]>
Sea Of Thieves players hosted a fashion showhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/sea-of-thieves-players-hosted-a-fashion-showSin VegaWed, 05 Feb 2020 13:25:43 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/sea-of-thieves-players-hosted-a-fashion-showRareMMOSea of ThievesfashionAction AdventureVG247

A French Sea Of Thieves outfit called L'Arche Du Grog eschewed the call of booty to host the first major fashion event of the season earlier this week.

Players joined together to showcase their outfits, but in terms of style and personality rather than price tag. They "had to walk and emote creatively according to the themes", as you can see in the below video.

Read more

]]>
Everything you need to know about upgrading your PC in 2020https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/how-to-upgrade-my-pc-everything-you-need-to-knowRPSMon, 03 Feb 2020 11:00:11 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/how-to-upgrade-my-pc-everything-you-need-to-knowFeatureBlockbusterCPUGaming Monitorsdesktopsmotherboardshow to build a PCHardwareGraphics CardsVG247

Some of you love building a PC. You’re well into hardware trends and technical innovations and model numbers and all of that. This is fine and valid. But a lot of players are just not interested. They love games on the PC, but the machinery itself is irrelevant. I am one of those people.

I’m not totally clueless. I know some basics. I can put a machine together, given the parts. But once it’s working, I jettison all hardware knowledge so I can make brainspace for more Dessa lyrics or oblique Due South references. This becomes a problem when I can’t put off buying or upgrading my PC any longer. Such as now.

To that end, I have cornered RPS Hardware Empress Katharine to ask for her advice. If you’re looking to upgrade your ageing PC funbox but don’t want to study every hardware development of the last ten years, here's everything you need to know about buying a new PC in 2020.

Read more

]]>
Premature Evaluation: Ecohttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/premature-evaluation-ecoSteve HogartyTue, 21 Jan 2020 17:00:04 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/premature-evaluation-ecoFeaturePremature EvaluationMMOReviewsSimulationIndieSteamEcoVG247

Ask anyone what Minecraft is missing and they’ll all tell you the same thing: an impending sense of climate doom, the pervasive fear of a warming globe that haunts the modern psyche like a crap ghost who keeps showing you scary looking graphs. Eco is an open world co-operative survival game that manages to do just that, incorporating that now-familiar sense of creeping dread which perches in our collective subconscious, and in our quietest moments reminds us that the planet is dying and that one day this hot, wet little space rock will boil over and turn back into mud, dissolving us all in the acidic stew that was once our oceans. So that’s nice.

Read more

]]>
Premature Evaluation: Lumberjack Simulatorhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/lumberjack-simulator-early-access-reviewSteve HogartyTue, 07 Jan 2020 17:00:15 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/lumberjack-simulator-early-access-reviewFeaturePremature EvaluationRacingLumberjack SimulatorReviewsSimulationSteamVG247

January. Hell month. My powerful brain – usually a throbbing, high-performance organ capable of doing several sums per minute – has atrophied to a wet walnut, a sodden grey scrap of cauterised flesh that ricochets around inside my skull like a horrible slug. The excesses of the holiday season have left my wretched body brittle and hollow. My eyes are sunken into my cadaverous face, like somebody launched two bad grapes as hard as they could at some uncooked bread. There is only one reprieve from this cursed month, and that is to become a lumberjack. Don’t try and stop me.

Read more

]]>
Planet Zoo's first DLC adds arctic animalshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/planet-zoos-first-dlc-adds-arctic-animalsLauren MortonWed, 18 Dec 2019 17:46:46 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/planet-zoos-first-dlc-adds-arctic-animalsSimulationPlanet ZooDLCVG247Frontier Developments

Planet Zoo already got Rock Paper Shotgun's "bestest best" stamp when it released in November. If possible, it is now even bestier than before with its first DLC which adds arctic animals to your zoo's list of potential inhabitants. There are two new scenarios, new buildings, foliage, and—most importantly—polar bears.

Read more

]]>
Wot I think: Blacksad: Under the Skinhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/blacksad-under-the-skin-pc-reviewGiada ZavariseMon, 18 Nov 2019 08:00:19 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/blacksad-under-the-skin-pc-reviewFeatureStory RichReviewsWot I ThinkComicsVG247Action AdventurePendulo StudiosBlacksad: Under The Skin

For reasons unclear to me, detective work seems to be a popular choice for enterprising animals keen to enter the gig economy. Indeed, creatures of all kinds have been sleuthing it up recently - just this year we had the pleasure of meeting a Goat Detective, a Frog Detective and a Raccoon Detective, and we heard about the arrival of the Chicken Police. And now it's time for Blacksad, a gruff detective cat who's hopped from his noir comic series to the PC screen, courtesy of Runaway developers Pendulo Studios.

Read more

]]>
Steam Charts: Free Diving Editionhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/steam-charts-free-diving-editionJohn WalkerMon, 21 Oct 2019 15:09:00 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/steam-charts-free-diving-editionHell Let LooseFeatureDestiny 2: ForsakenOctopusesVRDestiny 2: ShadowkeepDestiny 2PUBG: BattlegroundsDisco ElysiumTotal War: Warhammer IIAction AdventureSteamVG247

People, I face a dilemma. (Great cars, them Dilemmas. - Ed) This week Destiny 2 takes up an astonishing five out of ten spaces on the Charts. So what's a professional games journalist of 20 years experience to do? Write ten octopus facts in less detail but with more jokes, or six more involved entries perhaps better celebrating our cephalopod friends? I've opted for the latter, and I hope you'll endorse me in this decision rather than join the inevitable social media backlash.

Read more

]]>
G2A blame rogue staff for undisclosed promotion schemehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/g2a-blame-a-lone-employee-for-anonymous-advertorial-schemeDominic TarasonMon, 08 Jul 2019 17:56:41 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/g2a-blame-a-lone-employee-for-anonymous-advertorial-schemeIndieHorrorBusinessVG247StrategyG2A

Key-reseller marketplace G2A should probably consider digging up, after a recent series of PR gaffes culminated in an apparent attempt to have media outlets publish undisclosed promotion. Thomas Faust of Indie Games Plus blew the lid off this one, sharing via Twitter an email he had received earlier today. In it, G2A push to have an "unbiased" piece that they had written be published, explicitly without mentioning that it was by them. G2A have since responded, confirming the email is authentic, but claiming that it was "sent by our employee without authorization".

Read more

]]>
All of Infocom's text adventure source code archived and publichttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/infocom-adventure-source-code-archived-on-githubDominic TarasonThu, 18 Apr 2019 21:03:13 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/infocom-adventure-source-code-archived-on-githubStory RichinfocomPuzzleActivisionStealthVG247

Infocom text adventures were some of the first PC games I ever played. I was too young to properly wrap my head around them at the time, but they still mean a lot to me. Thus, I'm happy to report that archivist Jason Scott of textfiles.com has uploaded the original source code for all of them to GitHub this week. Digital historians and aspiring coders alike can poke through the bones of these videogame dinosaurs, and hopefully learn a few things about the do's and do not's of text parser interfaces. You can find the code here in the Historical Source section of the site.

Read more

]]>
Tickets, please: stolen Metro Exodus Steam keys cancelledhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/metro-exodus-stolen-steam-keys-cancelledAlice O'ConnorTue, 02 Apr 2019 11:10:47 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/metro-exodus-stolen-steam-keys-cancelledShooter4A GamesMetro ExodusEpic Games StoreSteamDeep SilverVG247

Deep Silver have cancelled a load of Metro Exodus Steam keys sold through key resellers after discovering, they say, the keys had been stolen from the factory making boxed copies. Metro Exodus switched to Epic Games Store exclusivity late enough in development that they produced physical PC copies set up for Steam, then swapped out the Steam keys for Epic keys and stuck Epic stickers over the Steam logo. Apparently some scoundrel scooped those abandoned Steam keys to sell on, Deep Silver found out, and they've now cancelled those keys, removing the game from the Steam libraries of players who bought them.

Read more

]]>
Priceless Play - 23 Februaryhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/priceless-play-23-februaryKat BrewsterSat, 23 Feb 2019 12:00:17 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/priceless-play-23-februaryFeatureChristine LoveHurt Me PlentyIndiePriceless PlayFree gamesRobert YangLadykiller in a BindVG247

**This week's Priceless Play is NSFW!!!**

Sex in games is certainly nothing new. There are, of course, the various moral panics -- GTA's famed "hot coffee," for instance -- to countless articles about the sex lives in SecondLife. Our Very Own Kieron Gillen wrote a primer on Sporn (that's "Spore porn," for the uninitiated) eleven years ago. Cara Ellison had a column, called S.EXE, here at RPS from 2014-2015. And now, for a brief second, this piece will be the very latest in adding to the conversation on sex in games. It certainly won't be the last.

Look. Sex is complicated. For those who have it, it's a melange of vulnerability and tenderness and pleasure -- or perhaps sex has become rote muscle memory. Maybe it is, instead, consensually brutal. Sometimes there are genitals involved in sex. Sometimes there are facsimile genitals. Maybe there's an orgasm, or two, or four, or five, or zero. Two people, four people, more people, one people. Sex is a wildly complicated interconnected series of questions, conversations, yesses, maybes, nos, agreements, disagreements, and (crucially) respect. Or consensual disrespect. Ultimately, one hopes, despite all of this, sex is as easy as breathing.

Here are some games which consider sex from all sorts of angles.

Read more

]]>
The Joy Of the stars in Planetarianhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-joy-of-the-stars-in-planetarianElizabeth HengesTue, 18 Dec 2018 10:00:12 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-joy-of-the-stars-in-planetarianFeatureStory RichSekai ProjectThe Joy OfPlanetarian: The Reverie Of A Little PlanetVG247

We easily take the stars for granted. The starry sky is something we can see every night, and while the starscape changes with the seasons, an untrained eye wouldn’t know the difference. While we think nothing of looking up at the stars and the moon at night, in another reality it would be impossible.

In Planetarian: The Reverie Of A Little Planet, Earth is plunged into a global war that kills most of humanity. Dangerous man-made ‘Gods of Death’ still roam the land, killing anyone that stumbles into their path. A corrosive acid rain falls across the planet, drowning plants, rusting metal, and hiding the sky. The scant few remains of humanity struggle to survive the aftermath of a war they didn’t start.

Read more

]]>
The pain of designing Path of Exile’s exquisite balance of restriction and rewardhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-pain-of-designing-path-of-exiles-exquisite-balance-of-restriction-and-rewardAlex WiltshireWed, 10 Oct 2018 16:00:59 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/the-pain-of-designing-path-of-exiles-exquisite-balance-of-restriction-and-rewardFeaturedesignRPGPath of ExileGrinding Gear GamesAction AdventureThe MechanicVG247

Every three months, Grinding Gear Games adds a new league to its excellent action RPG, Path of Exile. Each league adds a new spin on its core monster-slaying action for a few weeks until the next is added, and the latest is Delve, which launched at the end of August.

Delve presents you with an infinite and pitch-dark mine to dig into, a sprint into the black of the unknown that’s almost a metaphor for its production as its makers raced to find an idea and make it fun in time for release. But as they found rather too late, the real challenge was preventing Delve’s players from avoiding the fun they were meant to be having.

Read more

]]>
Get rewarded for the Plunkbat weapon balance surveyhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/get-rewarded-for-the-plunkbat-weapon-balance-surveyBrock WilburSat, 05 May 2018 21:08:51 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/get-rewarded-for-the-plunkbat-weapon-balance-surveyPlunkbatPUBG CorpPUBG: BattlegroundsBluehole StudioVG247

The folks of Playerunknown's Battlegrounds have made one of the most significant adjustments to how the game is played, via the Weapons Balance Update (Patch 12), which re-balanced everything from damage to scope reticle to movement speeds while certain weapons are equipped. It's such an intricate and deep re-alignment of the entire game that Plunkbat players are encouraged to take part in a new survey in order to make sure PUBG Corporation haven't, you know, completely ruined the game. In exchange, there is a lottery system for survey participant rewards.

Also, if you're still not on board with Plunkbat, please read about Plunkbat's creator agreeing with you. You're wrong, though, and so is he.

Read more

]]>
Far Cry 5 has the worst endings in all of gaming historyhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/far-cry-5-has-the-worst-endings-in-all-of-gaming-historyJohn WalkerWed, 11 Apr 2018 16:00:16 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/far-cry-5-has-the-worst-endings-in-all-of-gaming-historyFeatureFar Cry 5BlockbusterUbisoftVG247

Far Cry 5 has a bad story in the same way that the bubonic plague has a bad bacterium. It is, by a considerable stretch, the most abysmally written narrative in AAA gaming. Not just in how it so idiotically interrupts you in the middle of other scripted missions to force you to play through hideously badly written enforced semi-playable cutscenes, but in every word uttered by every character from start to finish. And wow, does it reach its subterranean nadir when it comes to the finish. It is time to drape yourself in spoiler warnings and embrace the volcano of awful that is Far Cry 5's ending.

Read more

]]>
Far Cry 5's interrupting story ruins everythinghttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/far-cry-5s-interrupting-story-ruins-everythingJohn WalkerTue, 03 Apr 2018 17:00:19 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/far-cry-5s-interrupting-story-ruins-everythingShooterFeatureFar Cry 5Far Cry 4Far Cry 3Far Cry PrimalUbisoftVG247

I have very much enjoyed the Far Cry series, most often despite itself. Far Cries 3, 4 and Primal (why is everyone forgetting poor old Primal?) have all occupied me for countless hours, provided enormous amounts of entertainment in their kleptomania-inducing maps, and always done so despite everything it thinks is so compelling about itself. Far Cry's self-belief in its own abysmal stories is always so grossly apparent, like a strutting buffoon bursting into the bar and looking around, confused, when every man, woman and animal doesn't immediately throw themselves at his feet. So then he starts loudly demanding people throw themselves at his feet. And when they don't, runs around putting his feet as near to people as he can and declares to the room that this counts. Oh Far Cry.

Unfortunately, this time out things have gotten a lot worse. Far Cry 5 - to run with the previous analogy - barges up to you, grabs you by the collar, and throws you down onto the ground by its shoes, screaming "MY FEET! WORSHIP MY BLOODY FEET!" Which is to say, engaging with its godawful cutscenes has become less optional. Far Cry 5 has the most egregiously bad imposition of its story.

Read more

]]>
Welcome Back, GameFronthttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/welcome-back-gamefrontBrock WilburSat, 17 Mar 2018 14:13:33 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/welcome-back-gamefrontStory RichModsmodDBStrategyVG247

GameFront (also known as FileFront and originally FileLeech) was shut down nearly two years ago, and in the process, nearly 20 years of history was lost. The site, which offered demos and mods for gamesfolk all over the world, went down in 2016 after being an internet mainstay. Guess who is back?

Read more

]]>
Far Cry 5's map editor includes bits from Assassin's Creed and Watch Dogshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/far-cry-5-arcade-map-editor-includes-assassins-creed-assetsAlice O'ConnorTue, 06 Mar 2018 16:48:56 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/far-cry-5-arcade-map-editor-includes-assassins-creed-assetsShooterUbisoftFar Cry 5VG247

The Far Cry 5 map editor will include bits and pieces from other Ubisoft games, Ubi announced today, which should let players create places far beyond rural America - and the modern day. A number of assets from Watch Dogs, Far Cry 4, the prehistoric Far Cry Primal, Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag (the pirate one), and Assassin's Creed Unity (the French one) will be thrown in. I'm so up for building a Virtuaparis monster truck obstacle course. It sounds like Ubisoft are planning to make a real go of player-made maps, building around them something they call the Far Cry Arcade.

Read more

]]>
Dungeon of dicks: The Binding Of Isaac's most hateful enemieshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/binding-of-isaac-enemiesAlec MeerWed, 03 Jan 2018 17:00:56 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/binding-of-isaac-enemiesFeatureThe Binding Of IsaacThe Binding of Isaac: RebirthNicalisThe Binding of Isaac: AfterbirthVG247

The Binding Of Isaac: Rebirth (plus Afterbirth add-ons) is very much my jam right now. It's been in my life for a while, but December (and now January) was when I fully committed to it. By which I mean 'it took over almost my entire life.' I've seen so much, I've killed so much, and I've been killed by so much. I have a degree of skill at the game I never believed possible (and which, clearly, pales into insignificance against that of longer-term players), but even so, there are certain enemies that always, always give me grief, even as I am able to face down far great horrors.

I say enemies. I mean dicks. Absolute, total dicks who have humiliatingly cost me victory on more occasions than I could ever admit to. These are those dicks.

Read more

]]>
The joy of Assassin's Creed Origins' costumeshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/assassins-creed-origins-costumesAlex WiltshireMon, 27 Nov 2017 19:00:02 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/assassins-creed-origins-costumesFeatureAssassin's Creed OriginsThe Joy OfUbisoftAssassin's CreedVG247

Assassin’s Creed clothes are some of the best clothes in all games. Those layers, all those flowing, flapping, swinging layers: cloth and leather and swords and knives and pouches and harnesses. I often idly wonder, as I watch an Assassin’s Creed loading screen, how many people - how many studios! - produce Assassin’s Creed’s clothes? They’re a wonder of code and art coming together, of layers of beautiful fabric flapping just right. And Ubisoft knocked Assassin’s Creed Origins’ clothes out of the goddamn park.

Read more

]]>
Divinity: Original Sin 2 just killed my adopted cat, and I don't know what to do with myselfhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/divinity-original-sin-2-just-killed-my-adopted-cat-and-i-dont-know-what-to-do-with-myselfJohn WalkerTue, 12 Sep 2017 12:11:33 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/divinity-original-sin-2-just-killed-my-adopted-cat-and-i-dont-know-what-to-do-with-myselfFeatureLarian StudiosVG247Divinity: Original Sin 2

The random death of a cat might be the most shocking moment I can remember in a game.

I'm playing Divinity: Original Sin 2 [official site], and it's my first experience of the series as a whole. Not knowing what to expect, but knowing the game to offer unexpected moments, I was simply pootling around the island on which magic-laden beings were being held captive. And at a certain point a black cat started following us about. A very welcome black cat, causing no trouble, a little too meowy but nothing offensive beyond that. It seemed to have an odd look in its eyes, and I was intrigued to learn if there might be more to this mog than met the eye.

Read more

]]>
Darkwood devs upload a torrent of their own game to thwart key resellershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/darkwood-devs-upload-game-torrentAlice O'ConnorSat, 26 Aug 2017 08:00:28 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/darkwood-devs-upload-game-torrentDarkwoodAcid Wizard StudioVG247

The makers of Darkwood [official site] have uploaded a full version of their wonderfully dreadful new horror game to a torrent site. Acid Wizard Studio say it's for people who want to play Darkwood but don't have enough money to buy it, giving them a "safe" version to download. They also hope that this will dissuade people buying the game from key resellers, who they call a "cancer that is leeching off this industry". Blimey.

Read more

]]>
Police Stories has a free alpha and a lot of potentialhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/police-storiesJohn WalkerTue, 06 Jun 2017 18:00:11 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/police-storiesFeaturePolice StoriesFree gamesArcadeMighty MorganKickstarterVG247

There's always a risk in putting out a feature-incomplete early alpha. Will it leave potential purchasers coming away with the impression that it doesn't yet meet their hopes, or will it inspire people to imagine where it could go? That's the gamble developers Mighty Morgan are taking with Police Stories [Steam page] - a top-down police tactics shooter that wants you to think, albeit for a split second, before you shoot.

Read more

]]>
Gearbox drops partnership with key reseller G2Ahttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/gearbox-drops-partnership-with-key-reseller-g2aBrendan CaldwellMon, 10 Apr 2017 19:05:55 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/gearbox-drops-partnership-with-key-reseller-g2aShooterHorrorBulletstorm: Full Clip EditionGearbox SoftwareVG247G2A

Bulletstormers Gearbox have dropped out of a deal to sell their remastered shooter on G2A.com, following a spat over the key reseller’s business practices. They were selling Bulletstorm: Full Clip [official site] and its expensive, statue-sporting collector’s editions through the site but following complaints and a backlash focusing on the reseller’s less-than-wholesome history of complaints, that has fallen apart.

Last week we saw that Gearbox seemed to listen to those complaints and had openly given G2A a list of demands, including better protection against fraud for both developers and customers. Gearbox have since decided those demands were not met and have now cut ties with the reseller completely, taking their game off the shelf. Obviously, it’s more complex than all this. If you really want to dive into this slurry pit of videogame distribution, come with me and I’ll try my best to explain.

Read more

]]>
Gearbox demand G2A makes changes, after launching promotion with G2Ahttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/gearbox-demand-g2a-changes-policies-after-bulletstorm-full-clip-editionAlice O'ConnorFri, 07 Apr 2017 11:10:05 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/gearbox-demand-g2a-changes-policies-after-bulletstorm-full-clip-editionShooterG2ABulletstorm: Full Clip EditionGearbox SoftwareVG247

Days after launching an exclusive physical 'Collector's Edition' of Bulletstorm: Full Clip Edition [official site] on key reseller marketplace G2A, Gearbox Software have reeled and demanded that the controversial store change its practises. Gearbox's list of demands for G2A includes stopping selling fraud protection as an extra, and letting developers find and remove fraudulently-bought keys on G2A. If not, Gearbox will... do something. The demands sound sensible, given that G2A have long been accused of enabling shady shenanigans. However, even the briefest of Googlings before launching a high-price exclusive edition -- costing around £226 -- with G2A would have uncovered all of those complaints. None of these problems are secrets.

Read more

]]>
Wot I Think: Stories Untoldhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/stories-untold-reviewJohn WalkerTue, 28 Feb 2017 18:00:11 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/stories-untold-reviewFeatureRPS RecommendedStories Untoldinteractive fictionReviewsNo CodeHorrorDevolver DigitalWot I ThinkVG247

Gosh, we’re living in brilliant times for interesting games. It seems barely a month goes by now without something novel and fascinating appearing, pushing at the edges, upcycling old ideas for new minds, and messing with our brains. The latest that fits all these categories is the really very splendid Stories Untold [entirely pointless official site], ostensibly a collection of four novella-like adventures linked by an opaque theme. It’s part parser-based text adventure, part horror peculiarity, part 80s TV show... It’s unlike anything you’ve played before, despite being built from the half-remembered remains of a childhood of gaming.

So a familiar caveat to accompany such a review: if you trust me, if you want to experience the game with as little information as possible so everything’s a surprise, then take the above paragraph as everything you need and spend £6 on this. If you want more details (wonderfully written and spoiler-free), then read on.

Read more

]]>
Christine Love's Ladykiller In A Bind Releasedhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/christine-loves-ladykiller-in-a-bind-releasedAlice O'ConnorTue, 11 Oct 2016 12:56:15 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/christine-loves-ladykiller-in-a-bind-releasedStory RichChristine LoveIndieLadykiller in a BindLove Conquers All Gamessexy sexVG247

Christine Love, creator of Digital: A Love Story and Analogue: A Hate Story, has released her latest visual novel. Ladykiller in a Bind [official site] is just a touch sexier than those, as will become perfectly clear when I tell you the game's extended name: My Twin Brother Made Me Crossdress As Him And Now I Have To Deal With A Geeky Stalker And A Domme Beauty Who Want Me In A Bind!!

We've all been there.

Read more

]]>
Demo Of Surveillance Game Beholder Now Availablehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/beholder-surveilliance-demoAdam SmithThu, 06 Oct 2016 10:17:01 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/beholder-surveilliance-demoDemosIndieBeholderFree gamesWarm Lamp GamesVG247

The games they are a-changin'. A beholder used to be "a floating orb of flesh with a large mouth, single central eye, and many smaller eyestalks on top with deadly magical powers". You'd find them in dungeons, hovering about and making a nuisance of themselves. 2016's Beholder [official site] is a man called Carl and he's a whole lot creepier than a floating testocular monster:

"As Carl, the landlord of an apartment house employed to serve the state...your daily routine is simply to make the property attractive to its tenants. Little do they know that you have ulterior motives and will use any means available to observe, whether it's spying, eavesdropping or wiretapping as you build tenant profiles..."

Papers, Please meets The Lives of Others? There's a demo available now.

Read more

]]>
Have You Played... MST3K Presents: Detective?https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/have-you-played-mst3k-presents-detectiveRichard CobbettWed, 05 Oct 2016 14:30:32 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/have-you-played-mst3k-presents-detectiveFeatureHave You PlayedInformAction AdventureVG247

Have You Played? is an endless stream of game retrospectives. One a day, every day of the year, perhaps for all time.

Many years ago, there was a truly terrible IF game called "Detective". But that's not really what's important. What matters is what happened next. Inspired by the wonderful TV series Mystery Science Theatre 3000, currently returning to us via Kickstarter, another player set about first reimplementing the whole cursed thing... and then ripping the piss out of it, courtesy of TV's Mike, Crow and Tom Servo.

Read more

]]>
The Smart Swordplay & Wonderful Character Models Of Ubisoft's For Honorhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/for-honor-alphaAlec MeerTue, 20 Sep 2016 18:00:09 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/for-honor-alphaFeatureFor HonorimpressionsUbisoftAction AdventureVG247

Oh my God, the Ladyvikings are awesome.

Read more

]]>
A Really Interesting Post About Heads And Scalehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/a-really-interesting-post-about-heads-and-scalePhilippa WarrMon, 01 Aug 2016 09:22:50 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/a-really-interesting-post-about-heads-and-scaleIndiegamasutraVG247

There's a really interesting post over on Gamasutra about proportion and scale when making game characters. I feel like that still sound a bit dry given I'm trying to tell you how interesting it is, but essentially it takes a look at how different head sizes and body proportions make you see game characters differently as well as affecting tone and mood.

Read more

]]>
Game Key Reseller G2A Offers Royalties To Developershttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/g2a-game-key-reseller-offers-royaltiesSteven MessnerTue, 28 Jun 2016 19:13:51 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/g2a-game-key-reseller-offers-royaltiesSpeedRunnersTinyBuildG2AIndieVG247

Last week G2A, a sort of eBay but for video games keys, and tinyBuild, the publishers of Speedrunners and others, had a bit of a tussle after tinyBuild accused G2A of facilitating the sale of $450,000 worth of fraudulent game keys. Both sides exchanged demands, and today G2A seems to have pulled back on their stance and is now rolling out a program that will, in part, offer developers and publishers up to 10 percent royalties on each sale of their game. But is that going to be enough?

Read more

]]>
My Driving Sim Story, Part 1: Firing Up The Playseathttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/my-driving-sim-story-part-1-firing-up-the-playseatJeremy LairdThu, 19 May 2016 20:00:37 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/my-driving-sim-story-part-1-firing-up-the-playseatFeatureRacingThrustmasterweek in techVG247

What was I expecting when I set out on this driving-sim adventure? I’m not sure, but it wasn’t this. If the logistical complexities of doing driving sims properly caught me out a little, the initial experience is completely off the map. But I’m finally up and running thanks to the arrival of a Playseat seatpod thingie and I’ve had something akin to my own Matrix moment…

Read more

]]>
Premature Evaluation: Kimhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/kim-review-early-accessRob ZacnyTue, 03 May 2016 18:00:31 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/kim-review-early-accessFeaturePremature EvaluationRPGearly accessVG247

Every Monday, and this Tuesday, Rob Zacny settles down with his game library in search of the next great Early Access game. This week, an adaptation of Rudyard Kipling's Kim.

An adventure game based on Rudyard Kipling's novel Kim [official site] is almost as strange and difficult to assess as the book itself. Like its source material, it's full of contradiction and complication, a work at once in conflict with its goals and yet more enticing because of it. It shouldn't work, and in some ways it very much doesn't… but then you get caught up in it and those objections are forgotten. At least for a time.

Read more

]]>
Doctors Ordered: Big Pharma's Marketing Expansionhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/big-pharma-marketing-malpractice-expansion-releasedJoe DonnellySun, 01 May 2016 12:00:13 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/big-pharma-marketing-malpractice-expansion-releasedTwice CircledBig PharmaPositech GamesStrategyVG247

Over and above its management and strategy groundings, Big Pharma [official site] shines a light on the billion dollar, often unscrupulous, pharmaceutical industry. While Alec enjoyed his hands-on time with Twice Circled's medicine manufacturing sim last year, he noted it didn't "go for pharmaceutical industry’s jugular". Its first expansion - Marketing and Malpractice - takes a distinguished step towards doing exactly that by introducing dodgy tactics and the ability to manually set medicine prices.

Read more

]]>
Latest Aer Trailer Looks Even Prettier Than Beforehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/aer-trailer-flying-gameJohn WalkerThu, 21 Apr 2016 14:36:06 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/aer-trailer-flying-gameForgotten KeytrailersAerAction AdventureVG247

I had a play of Aer [official site] last year and, while very early in its development, it was already a really rather attractive and endearing thing. Lots of lovely flying, which is inexplicably rare in gaming. A year on, a new trailer has emerged, and gosh, it's still looking like something rather ace. And hopefully coming out this autumn.

Read more

]]>
Big Pharma Expansion Adds Malpractice & Manipulationhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/big-pharma-expansion-malpractice-manipulationJohn WalkerThu, 31 Mar 2016 12:30:37 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/big-pharma-expansion-malpractice-manipulationTwice CircledTim WicksteedBig PharmaPositech GamesStrategyVG247

When Big Pharma [official site] appeared last year, Alec approved but pointed out it perhaps went a little easy on a severely dodgy target. Today's announced expansion, Marketing And Malpractice, looks like it might add a few more teeth to the management satire. With your drug developed, you now need to ensure doctors think it's the right one for their patients. "Take them to dinner, buy them some drinks, maybe a new set of golf clubs? It's no biggie! Everyone does it."

Read more

]]>
Premature Evaluation: Konahttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/kona-review-early-accessRob ZacnyMon, 14 Mar 2016 21:00:03 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/kona-review-early-accessShooterFeaturePremature EvaluationKonaParaboleearly accessVG247

Every Monday, Rob Zacny braces himself for the chilly wastes of Early Access and attempts to find warmth by the side of a worthy in-progress game.

From its opening on a park-bench at a roadside rest stop in northern Quebec, Kona tantalized me with a combination of period detail and immersive-sim mechanics. Before my character, private detective Carl Faubert, even finished his cigarette, I'd made sure to stash his extra smokes, Instamatic camera, and map in my inventory. Then it was time to hop into a carefully recreated '65 Chevy pickup and drive up a narrow ribbon of backcountry highway, while a gentle snowfall turned into a blizzard outside my windows.

Kona is a wonderfully atmospheric game, though atmosphere isn't hard to come by when you've turned the blizzard effects up to 11 and marooned the player in the wastes of northern Canada. With nothing but howling winter winds and a mysteriously deserted village for company, it's easy to get caught up in the setting and its feeling of menacing isolation.

Read more

]]>
Can A Real-World Car Lover Truly Dig Driving Games?https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/driving-game-hardwareJeremy LairdThu, 25 Feb 2016 21:00:11 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/driving-game-hardwareFeatureRacingDirt RallyHardwareweek in techVG247

I like games. I like driving. But driving games? Not so much. Not since I could actually drive, at least. But in the name of natural science and fortnightly deadlines, I'm having another crack at it. As is my remit, I'm going heavy with the hardware. With the Laird Gaming Dungeon™ now operational, a top-notch driving-sim setup should provide for empirical exposition. Before that, however, please allow me to bother you with a broader theory of games that explains why driving sims have failed to fire my pleasure neurons in adulthood...

Read more

]]>
Premature Evaluation: Garbage Dayhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/garbage-day-review-early-accessMarsh DaviesMon, 25 Jan 2016 21:00:59 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/garbage-day-review-early-accessShooterFeaturePremature EvaluationReviewsIndieGarbage Dayearly accessVG247

Each week Marsh Davies descends like a hungry urban gull upon the reeking heap of Early Access, hoping to yank free a tasty treat without choking on a crinkled Space Raiders packet. This week, he’s been stuck in Garbage Day, a game that is nominally about replaying the same looping time period, again and again, until you piece together the mystery and escape your temporal prison. In its current form, however, it’s no more than a colourful but cramped chaos sandbox, in which you can kill and maim cartoonish inhabitants of a highly-smashable town in the knowledge that any consequences will be reset as soon as the clock strikes midnight. But does its eternal present suggest a plan for reaching a less frivolous future?

Read more

]]>
Star Citizen 2.0's Big Problems & Bigger Improvementshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/star-citizen-2-0-reviewAlec MeerThu, 17 Dec 2015 19:00:17 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/star-citizen-2-0-reviewFeatureStar CitizenRPGCloud Imperium GamesVG247

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas a game. Maybe not a lot, actually, but certainly a little. Star Citizen [official site] 2.0, as the latest alpha update calls itself, is out now and tries to expand the scope of the long-in-the-making, $100 million space game in addition to improving its core fight'n'flight aspect. So the big question is: is now the time to give Chris Robert's record-breaking comeback a try if you're not someone who's already backed it?

Read more

]]>
Devilian Is Like An Afternoon Nap In Gaming Formhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/like-an-afternoon-nap-in-gaming-form-devilianJohn WalkerThu, 17 Dec 2015 18:00:02 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/like-an-afternoon-nap-in-gaming-form-devilianFeatureMMOimpressionsFree-to-playTrion WorldsVG247

Trion Worlds have been churning out MMOs for so very long now that one seems to blur into the next. Their latest to appear on Steam, a translation of the South Korean free-to-play original, is Devilian [official site]. It said it was a Diablo-ish action RPG, so I thought - HMMMM? IS IT THOUGH? And took a look. Well, it sort of is. And it's sort of an afternoon nap in gaming form. Here are my impressions from a few hours of somnambulistic slashing.

Read more

]]>
All Klei Games Free To Play On Steam This Weekendhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/klei-free-steam-weekendAdam SmithFri, 13 Nov 2015 10:53:30 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/klei-free-steam-weekendKlei EntertainmentIndieDon't StarveFree gamesMark of the NinjaInvisible Inc.SteamVG247

If you haven't been paying attention to Klei Entertainment's creations for the past few years, you're missing out on some of the best games in the world. This year's Invisible, Inc. [official site], recently expanded in fine style, might be the best turn-based game I've discovered since I joined the Chess Club all those years ago, and Mark of the Ninja is a completely different but almost equally brilliant rewrite of the stealth genre. All of the studio's games are free to play on Steam this weekend, starting right now, with discounts should you wish to buy them after having a taste.

Read more

]]>
How To Make A Great British Bake Off Gamehttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/great-british-bake-off-gameGraham SmithFri, 23 Oct 2015 16:00:21 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/great-british-bake-off-gameFeatureBlockbusterCook Serve Delicious! 2!!Cook, Serve, Delicious!eskil-steenbergMichael CookHeat SignatureHolly GramazioRobert YangVG247GunpointTom FrancisThe Great British Bake Off

The latest series of The Great British Bake Off has come to an end, causing those of us hooked by its cream-filled buns, end-of-the-pier puns, and oddly sincere celebration of the human spirit, to feel as empty inside as an incompletely prepared batch of jam donuts. After a few days spent facing a future free from sugar, gluten, and the strange tension between Paul Hollywood and hosts Mel & Sue, I decided to do something about it. I emailed some game designers and asked them a question: if you were charged with making a computer game of The Great British Bake Off, how would you do it?

The answers are below.

Read more

]]>
Just Cause 3 Is On A Mission For Demolitionhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/just-cause-3-mission-trailerJoe DonnellyFri, 09 Oct 2015 08:25:50 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/just-cause-3-mission-trailerSquare EnixAction AdventureAvalanche StudiosJust Cause 3VG247Just Cause

I've hardly moved from behind my desk this week, but I just cannot get enough of flying. To my delight this afternoon ushers in more of the same courtesy of Just Cause 3 [official site] as it propels us head-first into its latest trailer, dubbed 'On A Mission', in all its wingsuit-wearing, parachute-popping, South-American dictator-detracting glory. There's tanks, flash cars, ridiculous physics, and about a gazillion 'splosions. Business as usual, then.

Duck inside to see Rico in standard death-defying action.

Read more

]]>
Quetz Is A New Dinosaur In ARK: Survival Evolvedhttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/quetz-is-a-new-dinosaur-in-ark-survival-evolvedJoe DonnellyWed, 07 Oct 2015 11:54:33 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/quetz-is-a-new-dinosaur-in-ark-survival-evolvedArk: Survival EvolvedStudio WildcardVG247MMO

Following last week's rather extensive update, ARK: Survival Evolved [official site] has welcomed a new species of dinosaur to its shores - a "massive flying battleship" creature identified as Quetzalcoatlus that goes by the synonym Quetz.

Although I'd have to question the physical plausibility of this particular beast - something we've put to experts in the past - hopping aboard a Quetz and taking to the skies does look like fun, if the trailer below is anything to go by.

Read more

]]>
Minecraft 1.9 Update Gets Magic Flying Capeshttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/minecraft-1-9-flying-capesJoe DonnellyWed, 07 Oct 2015 09:47:37 +0000https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/minecraft-1-9-flying-capesMojangMinecraftVG247MMO

Minecraft [official site] will let you live out your childhood Peter Pan-inspired dreams when it adds magic flying capes to its 1.9 update. Last night, developer Jens Bergensten took to social media to namedrop a new "dramatic feature" for the forthcoming update, before parting with some work-in-progress screens. Nip inside for pics and gifs galore.

Read more

]]>