From renowned game designer Yasuhiro Wada (Bokujo Monogatari, or the better-known titles outside of Japan, Harvest Moon and Story of Seasons) comes his latest potential masterpiece: Little Dragons Café.
Little Dragons Café – Harvest Moon Returns?
The story opens with a twin brother and sister learning to cook and manage a small café under their mother’s tutelage.
You see, all was peaceful and routine until one morning when the twins discover that their mother has fallen into a deep sleep and won’t wake up. Suddenly, a strange old man appears to inform them that they must raise a dragon in order to save her:
Working together with three quirky café employees, the two siblings must work out how to a wrangle a dragon and manage the family business while finding a way to save their mother. The gameplay you would expect from Wada appears to be present too, with harvesting, cooking, exploring the world, and erm, flying dragons around. Ok, that last one is different.
The exciting new title hits the PS4 and Switch this summer. One to watch.
Control the skies and battle your way through blistering aerial combat in the 2D procedurally generated, dogfighting arcade game – Rogue Aces. Set in the slightly historical World War II, players will soar across over 100 hundred missions throughout the dangerous skies riddled with enemy bullets.
Rogue Aces – PS4, PS Vita, Switch
Publishers Curve Digital has announced the release of Rogue Aces with an exciting trailer showcasing the hectic dogfighting you’ll find in the arcade aerial combat title.
Here are a few takeaways from the announcement of Rogue Aces:
Over 100 procedurally generated missions including rescuing prisoners of war or fending off enemy bombers from destroying ally buildings.
Simple but unique control scheme has players adjusting direction and throttle control using only the two analogue sticks.
Limited fuel supply for each plane adds a deal of strategy when replenishing and repairing your bomber during the aerial combat and capturing of enemy bases.
The heated combat and acrobatic manoeuvres provide an excellent pick up and play style of gameplay, good for handhelds!
Releasing on the PS4 and PS Vita with the cross-buy/play platform, and the Switch – Rogue Aces is set for release on April 12th, 2018. With a price of £9.99/€12.99/$12.99, this aerial dogfighter looks like quite the little package of intense arcade chaos on the go.
Big news out of Passtech Games – creator of the favourable tower defence title, Space Run – as they have officially announced a release date for their upcoming strategy/adventure game – Masters of Anima.
Masters of Anima – What’s It About?
You raise armies of golem smashing guardians in this new adventure across the magical, and dangerous, world of Spark. Check out the announcement trailer below:
Taking on the role of the Anima apprentice Otto, you’ll embark on an adventure to save your fiancée from the dreadful grasp of the dark lord Zahr and his army of golems. A few takeaways from the official announcement are:
You can control up to 100 Guardian soldiers – each type with their own unique combat style, talents and abilities.
You can conjure up the sacred power of Anima – the life source of everything in the vast world of Spark.
You can learn new skills and abilities with every victory against massive armies and powerful bosses that stand in your way along the journey.
We can expect to see the latest release from Passtech Games – Masters of Anima – hit adventure seekers on April 10th, 2018 on the PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and PC systems.
Just like any Nintendo Direct or ‘Nindie’ presentation, there was a lot of speculation from the gaming community on what would and wouldn’t be announced in the most recent Nindie showcase. The funny thing is that the game everyone had as a shoo-in to be announced at the showcase, was actually announced after it ended…
Hyper Light Drifter Switch
Yes, that’s right, Hyper Light Drifter is finally coming to the Switch. Let’s get you guys caught up:
Believe it or not, Hyper Light Drifter was originally supposed to come out for the Wii U. But, thanks to the technical limitations of that console, Hyper Light Drifter never saw the light of day.
The new “Export to Switch” option on Gamemaker Studio 2 (the software that developer Heart Machine used to make HLD) means that Switch owners will finally be able to play one of the most beloved indie titles.
Like I mentioned above, HLD actually wasn’t shown in the most recent Nindie Showcase. The reason for this exclusion is currently unknown, but if I was a betting man, I’d say Nintendo wanted to show off more unknown/obscure up and coming titles, and not have them be overshadowed by an indie juggernaut like HLD.
Shortly after the showcase, Nintendo actually posted a tweet confirming Hyper Light Drifter’s upcoming release.
Hyper Light Drifter will launch on the Switch eShop this summer. But, the real question is whether HLD will get a physical release for Switch. Just like some other indie titles have – Axiom Verge, Wonderboy and Darkest Dungeon.
So, will you guys be picking up Hyper Light Drifter on the Switch? Or are you going to hold out for a possible physical edition? Let me know in the comments below.
Ok, so there was no Oddworld: Soulstorm to be found, (as we speculated). And from what we can tell, the big tease from Oddworld Inhabitants today seems to have been over Oddworld: Abe’s Origins: a new book that, shockingly, celebrates the origins of Abe – it’s via Kickstarter. That’s pretty cool, but we’re sure there’s more news on the way for Soulstorm (it’s apparently out this year).
Nintendo’s Nindies Showcase Spring 2018
What about Nintendo? What did they announce today at their Nindies Showcase? Well, in short, lots of great indie titles will be heading to the Switch, including the following:
Fantasy Strike – out summer
Banner Saga 1 and 2 – TBA
Banner Saga 3 – out summer
Just Shapes and Beats – out summer, first on Switch
Garage – out spring, first on Switch
Lightfall – out spring, first on Switch
Pool Panic – out 2018, exclusive to Switch
Bomb Chicken – out summer, first on Switch
Lumines Remastered – out spring
Reigns: Kings and Queens – out spring
West of Loathing – out spring, exclusive to Switch
Pode – out spring
The Messenger – out summer
Garage – out spring, first on Switch
Mark of the Ninja Remastered – out fall
Bad North – out summer, first on Switch
You can catch the brief Direct-style showcase here:
It’s worth mentioning that some of these indie titles are bigger than others (Banner Saga, for example), but overall, it was another strong commitment from Nintendo to put the smaller guys out there front and centre on the Switch.
Nintendo has announced its next online broadcast, but this time there’s a special focus on the smaller, indie games coming to the Switch. Or, as Nintendo likes to call them, ‘Nindies’.
Nindies Showcase Spring 2018
There’s not long to wait either, as you’ll be able to watch the spring Nindies Showcase at 9 am PST/4 pm GMT next Tuesday, March 20th:
Tune in 3/20 at 9am PT for a #Nindies Showcase highlighting the hottest upcoming indie games for #NintendoSwitch!
There’s a chance we’ll be seeing Oddworld: Soulstorm, the remake of Abe’s Exoddus, and the next title in the Oddworld series as one of these Nindies. It’s set to be a follow up to 2015’s New ‘n’ Tasty and has been teased for next week. Can you guess when? Yep, March 20th:
It’s now official. You can pick up the game on Xbox One and PlayStation 4 on June 14th – a Steam version is out a day earlier. That’s along with these exclusive Bombers:
Super Bomberman R New Bombers
ORIGINAL:
Last March Super Bomberman R launched alongside the Nintendo Switch as an exclusive for the new console.
At release, Bomberman suffered from average to bad review scores and performance issues that lasted well over a year. Fans of Bomberman were starting to lose faith in the title until Konami finally released a series of patches that stabilized the game.
Super Bomberman R – Xbox One and PS4
Now, with the Switch version running properly, it looks like Konami is planning on bringing Super Bomberman R to other consoles. Let’s get you guys caught up:
On March 9th a Korean game rating board put out a listing: they have officially rated a PS4 version of the game
Then just today, Super Bomberman R was posted as a new product listing on the Xbox game store
According to the Xbox game page, Bomberman will launch on June 11th for the price of $39.99
Additionally, Super Bomberman R has some new pre-order content that includes “Golden Vic Viper” and “8 shiny Bomberman brothers”
Along, with the new pre-order content, the PS4 and Xbox One version will be identical to the Nintendo Switch version. That’s including the new Grand Prix Mode that was added into the Switch version via an update
So, if you guys haven’t bought Super Bomberman R for the Switch yet, will you be buying it on the Xbox One or PS4 and sharing the love?
The Switch has updated itself to firmware 5.0 – it has a sentient mind you see. Well technically, a mind is sentient, yes that’s true… ahem… The good news? It’s now even faster to download games. The bad news? There’s still no web browser.
Nintendo Switch Firmware 5.0
So here’s everything that’s been updated with the latest firmware:
New user icons are available from ARMS and Kirby – Kirby is ridiculously cute!
There are now new ways to view news articles on the Switch (once you’ve read one, it will go a slightly lighter colour. That’s some Nintendo-level attention to detail!)
Switch Pro Controllers will now be coloured in the controller menu
Purchase downloadable software via PC (and smart device) and the download will now whizz along for you
A new whitelist feature for the parental controls app – good to keep the kids (and parents) happy
Pretty functional stuff in reality then. The number of times I’m playing games and want to quickly Google search for information (images, artwork, developers, release dates, facts etc) is increasing – come on Nintendo, that browser needs to be added.
Two simple gifts for E3? A browser and some jolly menu music. Thanks in advance – Sally!
It’s hard not to get excited by a slick announcement like that. Yes, a Super Smash Bros. game is making its way to the Switch, surprisingly this year, and we think it’s a new title too. Masahiro Sakurai is even onboard – presumably chained to the desk at this point and gasping for air:
With that said, it’s worth remembering that Nintendo announced a lot of other interesting games (quite a bit smaller) would be making their way to the Switch (and even the 3DS as well).
So reader, here are some of the other games that won’t get a spotlight compared to something as big as Super Smash Bros:
Dillon’s Dead-Heat Breakers – May 24th
Dillon is back again… Who? Yep. That’s why we’re covering it. The armadillo Dillon was the star of a few indie gems on 3DS, so it’s great to see a new instalment. It’s action meets tower defence with added racing.
Luigi’s Mansion Remake – 2018
We didn’t see this coming. If there was ever going to be a chance to play the classic game starring the forgotten brother, we thought it would be on a theoretical Switch Virtual Console.
Nintendo has decided otherwise and is remaking the game for 3DS. There’s a boss rush mode, and you can use the second screen as a map for the mansion. “Mario?!!”
Okami HD – Summer
Okami HD was released late last year (December) with the Switch initially missing out. We now have confirmation it’s on the way along with touchscreen controls in handheld mode, and Joy-Con motion support in console mode.
Sushi Striker: The Way of Sushido – June 8th
Anime and lots of sushi battles? That’s The Way of Sushido. An original, quirky title where you shockingly eat sushi and match the colours to win – one that could be a surprise hit.
There are even super-powerful eating moves. Why not? It’s out this year for both 3DS and Switch.
Undertale – TBA
Critically acclaimed indie title Undertale is coming to Switch at some point this year. It’s one of the bigger indie titles out there, but we’re betting there’s a huge amount of people that still haven’t played it. Here’s another chance to do just that.
WarioWare Gold – August 3rd
The next entry in the WarioWare series, it promises to be the biggest collection yet. It’s significant because the series hasn’t had a new game in over 5 years. Not to mention that it’s exclusive to the 3DS, a console which, you would think, is on the way out.
Little Nightmares Complete Edition – May 18th
A Complete Edition of Little Nightmares is heading to the Switch. Essentially? All of the DLC content will be included. Using the Pac-Man amiibo with the game will also unlock the ‘Pakku’ Mask. Tanya from our site quite liked Little Nightmares…
Notable Mentions:
South Park: The Fractured But Whole is coming to Switch April 24th
Dark Souls is getting an amiibo: Solaire of Astora
Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes is multiple games in one. There’s a new story mode and local co-op play
Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story + Bowser Jr.’s Journey was announced, a remake of the DS classic – but where’s Partners in Time?
The bizarre Detective Pikachu is out on 3DS March 23rd – no Ryan Reynolds
RPG throwback Octopath Traveler is out on Switch July 13th + there’s a special edition
Overall it was a strong showing from Nintendo on some of the more niche titles out there. The continued support of the 3DS is rather curious though. It might mean they have no plans to replace the handheld and are giving it one last hurrah. Or, they are quietly working on a new handheld altogether, but are keeping the 3DS going until then.
Considering the Switch is a handheld as well, it may well be better to go with the former…
Lunar Great Wall Studios has revealed Another Sight, a rather surreal, dreamscape fantasy game. The title is set to launch on PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch this year.
Here’s a very brief trailer for you:
Neil Gaiman And Urban Fantasy
Another Sight is a fantasy adventure with steampunk elements set in 1899 towards the end of the Victorian era in London. It’s a world inspired by writer Neil Gaiman’s urban fantasy “Neverwhere”.
The story features two leading characters: Kit, a bold teenager, who loses her sight after the under-construction London Underground tunnel she was exploring collapses, and Hodge, a mysterious red-furred cat she meets in the darkness.
“The world we’ve created for players to explore in Another Sight is so rich and engaging, filled with heart and discovery.”
Naturally, they team up, with Hodge an essential companion upon whom Kit comes to rely on. You’ll be using each of their talents to tackle the environments and will solve ‘intriguing’ puzzles together.
Another Sight launches in 2018 on PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Switch, and more details will be revealed at GDC.
By kicking off the registration phase for Indie Game Expo at QUO VADIS 2018, organizer Aruba Events extends a long-standing tradition; up to 60 selected indie studios have the opportunity to present their works at their own booth.
QUO VADIS 2018 – The Indie Game Expo
QUO VADIS 2018, Europe’s longest standing developer conference enables aspiring studios to present their viral hits of tomorrow to an expert audience.
Meet The Speakers
Up to 60 indie developers will be selected and can choose between three packages. All three comprise a booth with furnishings, include wide-coverage media presence for the first time, as well as a contingent for the matchmaking platform MeetToMatch and more.
In time for the Indie Game Expo registration kick-off, the website received a redesign to give a better overview of the conference’s many attractions. The improved appearance offers a more engaging interface for the confirmed speakers and bundles all details about schedules, event location, offers into an inviting package.
For example, ordering a Business Pass before Tuesday, March 6th 7 p.m GMT, secures the buyer a Conference Pass for free. This and more offers are available here.
QUO VADIS, the longest standing developer conference in Europe, awaits the gaming scene on April 24th and 25th this year at Station in Berlin.
Indie studio Hungry Pixel has launched a Kickstarter campaign to fund NetherWorld, its dark adventure full of “excesses” and “outlandish” characters.
The NetherWorld creators hope to raise enough money to finish the title’s development. If the Kickstarter campaign overcomes the initial goal, the studio wants to make the PC game compatible with other platforms, including the Switch. It will also allow them to add extra features such as new scenarios, characters and storylines.
NetherWorld is a 2D side-scrolling pixel art adventure game, with, we’re told, an irreverent and sinister plot.
The protagonist will be involved in a surreal story after being abandoned by his wife. There’s some misfortune with alcohol, drugs and lust too:
According to the developer, the main purpose of NetherWorld was to create something different, an unusual story with deeply eccentric characters. Count us in!
