Finji has built a reputation around distinctive indie experiences, and Usual June looks set to continue that tradition with an action-adventure that combines supernatural mystery, coming-of-age drama and fast-paced combat. Set in the fictional town of Fen Harbor, the game follows a college student whose plans for an uneventful summer are derailed by disappearing ghosts, strange crystalline creatures and a mystery that threatens the entire city. We got to take a closer look at Usual June during an online presentation hosted by Finji, as well as spending some hands-on time with the Steam demo. Continue reading “Usual June preview (PC)”
Category: Previews
Disney/Pixar Toy Story: Retro Roundup! preview (Gamescom)
There is something inherently appealing about revisiting licensed games that were once everywhere and have since largely disappeared from the conversation. Disney/Pixar Toy Story: Retro Roundup! is built around exactly that idea, bringing together a sizeable selection of Toy Story games from the 1990s and early 2000s, including several different versions of the same titles. With Digital Eclipse handling the collection, however, this is intended to be more than a straightforward exercise in putting old ROMs on a modern platform. During Gamescom, we got a closer look at the PC version and discovered a collection that appears to be just as interested in preserving the history surrounding these games as it is in making them playable again. Continue reading “Disney/Pixar Toy Story: Retro Roundup! preview (Gamescom)”
Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse preview (Gamescom)
After more than a decade without a brand-new 2D Castlevania adventure, the series is finally returning to the formula that helped establish it as one of the defining names in action exploration. Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse puts a new Belmont at the centre of the action, while bringing in a development team with considerable experience in fast-paced 2D combat. Developed by Evil Empire together with KONAMI, the game has the difficult task of living up to a legacy that includes some of the genre’s most celebrated games. After spending time with the PS5 version across a Gamescom demo, there are already plenty of reasons to be optimistic. Continue reading “Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse preview (Gamescom)”
Croak preview (Gamescom)
There is certainly no shortage of 2D platformers, and a new game in the genre needs more than a cute protagonist and a colorful world to make an impression. WoodRunner Games’ Croak at least has a rather compelling answer to that challenge: give its Frog Prince a tongue that can be used as a grappling tool, a launch mechanism and, when the circumstances are right, a way to turn the character into a living pinball. Combined with a beautifully animated visual style and compact challenges that reward precision without becoming needlessly punishing, Croak is already shaping up to be an appealing addition to the platforming genre. Continue reading “Croak preview (Gamescom)”
The Wolf Among Us Remastered preview (Gamescom)
The Wolf Among Us Remastered is an interesting proposition for a game that already left such a strong impression on players the first time around. Rather than attempting to reinvent Telltale’s dark take on fairy-tale fiction, the remaster largely focuses on making the original experience look and sound more at home on modern hardware. With the five-episode story intact, a new Noir Mode and additional archival material, The Wolf Among Us Remastered is shaping up to be both a way for longtime fans to return to Fabletown and an opportunity for newcomers to discover one of Telltale’s most distinctive adventures. Continue reading “The Wolf Among Us Remastered preview (Gamescom)”