Author: Zach Barbieri

My first thought when starting Dungeons of Hinterberg, which was developed by Microbird Games, was how much the intro reminded me of Persona. This was in a good way of course. Your character arrives in a small town and spends blocks of their days meeting the locals, who slowly and methodically explain to the player the world and how to interact with it. It’s one of the many ways Dungeons of Hinterberg wears its inspirations directly on its sleeves. As somebody who has friends who constantly complain about slow opening like that, I could see how that could be a…

S.T.A.L.K.E.R 2, the long-awaited sequel to the 2007 game of the same name being developed by GSC Game World, has received yet another in a long list of delays. This latest delay sees the game pushed back from its previous release date. Its new release date is slatted as November 20th, a decision which was made so that the studio could have “breathing room to address technical issues.” The studio announced this delay in a YouTube video that additionally poked fun at the fact they have had to delay the game a multitude of times called “Really, again?” This video…

Following the two beta events for Concord, both of which failed to make a dent at least on the Steam charts, it has been announced that the game will not feature a battle pass mechanic. This is a deviation from most live-service, multiplayer-focused games in recent years after the battle royale title Fortnite popularized this feature years ago. This came at a time when random chance loot boxes were the most popular monetization scheme, something that was criticized for being similar to gambling. In an FAQ shared by the developer via Twitter, Firewalk Studio explained its plans to abandon the…

Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn, at its core, borrows from a lot of other games that are, for lack of a better term, more successful in their execution. That being said, there was never a time in my experience with Flintlock when I thought I would rather just put this game down and play them. There is something charming at the heart of Flintlock that sort of grabs you and pulls you through, and I’m not sure what it was exactly as the game had many flaws on display from the opening moments. When at its best, there are new and interesting…

As much as I enjoy fighting games, my biggest issue has been finding the time to sit down and learn them. There probably was a time when I might have been considered an ok Blazblue player, had at least an understanding of Tekken, or had a friend base for multiple nights on Injustice or Mortal Kombat, but sadly that isn’t the case anymore. To be fair I love fighting games, and Evo (Evolution Championship Series) is my most anticipated event each year even more so than the VGAs or Summer Game Fest. This being said, I probably invest way too…

The thing is, from a business standpoint I understand the idea of a Live-Service game, like XDefiant for instance. Look at where this all started after all. Years ago the cost of development was already ballooning and a successful property could find additional ways to bring in revenue that were much lower risk. The absolute pinnacle of this is Call of Duty just printing dollar bills after release. And if you are a corporation like Ubisoft, just one successful Live-Service title could help fund any riskier projects in the pipeline… Like that Beyond Good & Evil 2, right guys? Remember…

Road trips are more about the journey than the destination, as they always have been. You could fly to Disney Land, it would always take you a few hours, but you will also fly over the beautiful vistas, giant balls of string, and artery-clogging burgers you would find along the way. It’s ultimately about togetherness, the feeling that Open Roads manages to nail right from the start. Here we experience the story from the point of view of 16-year-old Tess, as she is being forced to pack up her room since her single mother Opal is unable to afford it…

Microsoft has made cuts to studios Aquried in their 2021 acquisition of Zenimax. This includes the closures of the Japanese Studio behind Ghostwire: Tokyo and Hi-Fi Rush Tango Gameworks, and Redfall developer Arkane Austin. Additionally, mobile developer Alpha Dog Studios will also close, and Roundhouse Games will be absorbed into Elder Scrolls Online developer ZeniMax Online Studio. In the case of Redfall, the poorly received looter shooter that was released in 2023, development on the game is being officially discontinued by Microsoft. This follows the official one-year anniversary of the game, which was marred with controversy over the hero characters…

Mark Twain once famously wrote “All ideas are second-hand, consciously and unconsciously drawn from a million outside sources,” or, that there are no original ideas left. In this vein, Stellar Blade, the first console game from Shift Up is in fact an idea thief. Many of the elements from the story, to combat, to exploration are, for lack of a term, farmed from other games and movies to the point that going down the rabbit hole can offer confusion as you try to navigate the who’s ideas are who’s, and what ideas work in the body of the product they…

I’ll admit, I wasn’t fully sold on Little Kitty, Big City from Double Dagger Studio Until a recent showing at a Nintendo Direct. Was I excited for it, Yes. Was I planning to pick it up, yes. But, maybe it was the lack of hats in some previous trailers, but it hadn’t clawed its way into my heart like I did when I finally watched it in action. This, of course, is just weird, because I loved Stray in all its feline goodness, and in truth, both games have a similar vibe. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-39kuBXyKWo Stray featured a hyper-realistic cat in a…