Swedish game developer Stunlock Studios have today announced that V Rising, the upcoming open-world fantasy vampire survival game, will launch on Steam Early Access on May 17th following their successful on-going closed beta. Explore the gothic world of Vardoran in solo or co-op playthroughs this Spring as you control newly awakened vampires on the hunt for blood, fighting against bandits, mythical creatures and the light-wielding Church of Luminance in intense combat encounters.
In V Rising, you need to survive as a newly awakened vampire in a world ruled by humans and rise to become the next Dracula. Feed on blood to gain new powers, hide from the scorching sun, and engage in real-time PvE and PvP combat set in a dark fantasy realm. Raise your castle and invite friends to join as you explore a vast open-world, pillage villages, skirmish with bandits, and delve into the lairs of supernatural beasts. Attack other players’ castles, or become a diplomat in a game of blood, power, and betrayal.
Blackbird Interactive and Focus Entertainment’s acclaimed, zero-g, sandbox spaceship-salvaging game Hardspace: Shipbreaker is blasting out of Steam Early Access on May 24! After nearly two years of regular content additions, the 1.0 version will officially release on PC via Steam, the Microsoft Store and PC Game Pass. Prepare to roll up your sleeves and get to work in the perilous (but profitable!) world of deep-space salvage, where your planning and execution will be put to the test.
Get ready to explore the world of a blue-collar worker salvaging the dangerous husks of decommissioned spaceships. You’ll cut, pull apart and destroy all manner of vessels while contending with reactive, true-to-life, zero-g physics. With several classes of procedurally designed ships, from small transports to large freighters, every vessel is a unique and open-ended challenge for your creative thinking.
Experience a thrilling campaign where your employer – the LYNX Megacorporation – may not be your friend, and your coworkers may be the only people you can trust. Upgrade your tools, take on more and more valuable ships, and recover hazardous materials to pay back your astronomical debt to the Lynx company – without blowing yourself up in the process.
Take a break from the day-to-day work of a shipbreaker and flex your skills in competitive challenges against other players in the R.A.C.E. game mode leaderboards. And if you want to simply relax, hone your technique or just enjoy the calming, meditative nature of high-stakes salvage, you can play on any ship with no limits in the Freeplay game mode.
Want to try the game before launch? Hardspace: Shipbreaker will be playable this month at PAX East, where it was first unveiled and played by the public two years ago! Come visit Focus Entertainment booth #12043 and discover the latest enhancements to the Freeplay game mode.
Hardspace: Shipbreaker is also in development for a future release on consoles. For more on the game, visit https://hardspace-shipbreaker.com.
Universal Studios Hollywood debuts the first four electric trams in its fleet of 21 Studio Tour trams. Weather and feature anchor of NBC’s TODAY and Co-host, 3rd Hour of TODAY, Al Roker is featured in a video introduction aboard the trams as part of the guest experience.
“I am extremely proud of this innovative undertaking and our commitment to creating a zero-emissions Studio Tour fleet in collaboration with our parent company and local partners,” said Scott Strobl, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Universal Studios Hollywood. “This is just one of many steps we are taking to transform our business in line with Comcast NBCUniversal’s carbon neutral goal, all while pioneering first-class attractions for our guests.”
The world-famous, behind-the-scenes Studio Tour is a hallmark Universal Studios Hollywood attraction that, for over 55 years, has taken millions of guests from around the world through authentic movie and television production studios, featuring iconic sets made famous in blockbuster movies such as “Back to the Future” and dynamic rides such as “Fast & Furious—Supercharged” and “King Kong 360 3-D.”
“The Universal Studio Tour has always been a groundbreaking attraction with lots of thrills, excitement and scary moments. I’m honored to be part of an experience for adults and children to learn about these best-in-class electric trams that will transport them around this iconic studio lot and help the environment,” said Al Roker.
The conversion to electric trams was spearheaded in 2017 by visionaries within the Universal Studios Hollywood technical services department and represents some of the first-ever and largest battery-powered, off-road, high-torque and low speed mass people movers in the U.S.
Full conversion of the 21 trams from diesel-hydraulic engines to electric will help reduce carbon emissions as well as improve the guest experience by reducing noise associated with the diesel-hydraulic engine.
Installation of inductive charging technology from WAVE (Wireless Advanced Vehicle Electrification) by Ideanomics was a critical factor in the conversion designed to meet the trams’ rigorous daily demands of navigating the Studio’s varying topography. Trams will routinely charge during the normal operation at the start and end of the attraction route. Coupled with a regenerative braking feature, the trams will continue to build up charge when they travel downhill, providing added energy efficiency.
The elaborate clean air conversion design process evolved from a collaboration between Universal Studios Hollywood and L.A.-based Complete Coach Works to reimagine the trams from diesel-hydraulic engines to electric.
The project continues to be made possible by a grant from the South Coast Air Quality Management District — the local regulatory agency that works to reduce air pollution in the region — which provides funding to replace older equipment with cleaner ones that are cost-effective while reducing air pollution. It was also supported by a significant investment from Comcast NBCUniversal and Southern California Edison through its Charge Ready Transport Program.
“It is truly so exciting to see initiatives like Universal Studios Hollywood’s new fleet of electric Studio Tour trams come to fruition — initiatives that show our public and private entities working together to do our part to combat air quality and climate change,” said L.A. Councilmember Nithya Raman. “As a new member of the South Coast Air Quality Management Board, I am looking to broaden these types of collaborations and accelerate the positive impacts they will have for our region and world. Our climate crisis demands we do this.”
ININ Games and TAITO are happy to release the TAITO MILESTONES collection for Nintendo Switch tomorrow, April 15th in Europe and North America! Retro fans can get the special compilation of ten classic games spanning different genres through selected retailers and the Nintendo eShop.
Celebrating TAITO’s legacy!
To celebrate the milestones in their company’s rich history, TAITO combined ten groundbreaking classics from the ‘80s in one amazing collection, including games from several genres – platformer, sports, shooting, puzzle and more:
1981
QIX
1983
Chack’n Pop
1981
SPACE SEEKER
1983
ELEVATOR ACTION
1982
ALPINE SKI
1985
The FairyLand Story
1982
FRONT LINE
1986
HALLEY’S COMET
1982
WILD WESTERN
1987
THE NINJAWARRIORS
Avoid the enemies while filling in the territories on the playfield in QIX – the game that spawned a genre of action-puzzle painting games. Become a skilled ninja and defeat the evil Banglar’s hordes in THE NINJAWARRIORS – one of the games that established TAITO’s in-house sound team Zuntata in gaming music.
The collection represents the innovative ideas that led to TAITO’s arcade dominance at the time. So get ready for a true retro flashback – heading straight to your home screens!
The boxed edition and the digital download version of TAITO MILESTONES for Nintendo Switch will launch tomorrow, April 15th.
Check iningames.com for more information and the latest updates on the game!
Rebellion, one of the world’s most successful independent studios, has today released a new video for Sniper Elite 5 which gives in-depth insight from the development team about the variety of weapons in the game as well as the incredible customization options available to the player. The new Weapons & Customization Spotlight also reveals the steps the team at Rebellion takes to recreate the authentic weapons in minute detail and is available to view here:
Rebellion worked with renowned military historian and star of the Combat Dealers TV show, Bruce Crompton, as well as the Imperial War Museum and Royal Armouries Museum to capture thousands of reference images and audio recordings of World War 2 weapons and vehicles to help ensure maximum authenticity. The new video takes you behind the scenes and shows the meticulous level of detail that goes into creating the game.
Sniper Elite 5 offers a level of customization never seen before in the franchise with players able to change a weapon’s stock, magazines, receiver, barrel, scopes and iron sights as well as the materials. This enables the player to finesse their weapons to best suit their playstyle, whether that is stealthy and methodical, ‘run and gun’ or a mixture of the two. Customization options can also be accessed during gameplay as the player discovers Workbenches in the game maps. These will in turn unlock further customization options.
The latest game in the award-winning franchise, Sniper Elite 5 will release simultaneously on Xbox Game Pass, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4 & 5, Epic, Steam and the Windows Store on May 26, 2022. The game is available to pre-order now and players that do pre-order will receive an additional Target Führer campaign mission titled “Wolf Mountain.” A Deluxe Edition is also available, which will include Season Pass One, as well as the P.1938 Suppressed Pistol for pre-orders.
To keep up to date with all the latest Sniper Elite 5 news please visit sniper.com and follow the game on social media: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
MOUNTAIN, creator of innovative, premium peripherals with user-centric design to enable gamers and content creators to perform at their best, introduces its first small form factor keyboard with Everest 60. Staying true to its mission of delivering peak performance, MOUNTAIN cut no corners with the latest entry to the Everest product family.
Everest 60 comes in the extremely compact 60% form factor but does not cut necessary functional corners, as arrow keys remain part of the layout. Contrasting its sleek and minimalistic exterior is a complex and sophisticated interior design, using multiple layers of foam and silicone to create a satisfying and muted sound profile.
Featuring a plethora of high-end tuning, the manufacturing of Everest 60 includes countless extra steps to achieve a premium result. Unheard of outside of the keyboard enthusiast DIY space, including additional materials and hours of manual precision work, this intricate attention to detail delivers value unlike any other keyboard on the market today.
Premium switches are a key element to a superior mechanical keyboard. MOUNTAIN developed its very own lineup of mechanical switches with MOUNTAIN Linear 45, Linear 45 Speed, and Tactile 55 switches, which make their debut on Everest 60. Factory-lubed and optimized for smooth and precise operation, these switches are rated for a lifetime of 100 million actuations.
Rounding off its meticulous sound design are Cherry stabilizers, hand-clipped and hand-lubricated from the factory to enable rattle-free gaming and typing experiences. All Everest 60 keyboards ship with double-shot keycaps made of extremely durable PBT, guaranteeing translucent legends that never fade or wear off.
Much like Everest, Everest 60 is modular and upgradeable with its separately sold Everest 60 Numpad, which is hot-pluggable and can connect on either side. The switches are hot-swappable and easy to replace or exchange with any other Cherry MX style 3-pin or 5-pin switch.
Customization is at the heart of MOUNTAIN’s user-centric design philosophy. To enable every user to make Everest 60 truly their own, its launch is accompanied by the release of ten MOUNTAIN Mineral keycap sets. Also made of PBT and featuring translucent double-shot legends, a wide choice of colorways is available, inspired by some of the world’s most beautiful minerals.
“MOUNTAIN’s strong focus on putting users’ needs front and centre of every step in our product development bears fruit in a 60% mechanical keyboard unlike any other,” says Tobias Brinkmann, Founder and CEO of MOUNTAIN. “Everest 60’s custom layout ensures that, despite its portable form factor, functionality for both gamers and content creators remains intact.”
“The enormous success of Everest Max showed that our idea of a modern and innovative mechanical keyboard resonates incredibly well with gamers and content creators” added Bram Rongen, Brand Strategy Manager of MOUNTAIN. “We condensed the very essence of Everest in Everest 60 and introduced some of the latest trends in enthusiast keyboard tuning, such as multi-layered noise-dampening, 5-pin hot-swappable switch support, and more.”
MOUNTAIN Everest 60, Everest 60 Numpad, MOUNTAIN Mineral keycap sets, and MOUNTAIN Switches are now available, in stock and ready for immediate dispatch at https://us-mountainggshop.com
Stranger Things 4 Vol. 1 premieres May 27th, only on Netflix.
It’s been six months since the Battle of Starcourt, which brought terror and destruction to Hawkins. Struggling with the aftermath, our group of friends are separated for the first time – and navigating the complexities of high school hasn’t made things any easier. In this most vulnerable time, a new and horrifying supernatural threat surfaces, presenting a gruesome mystery that, if solved, might finally put an end to the horrors of the Upside Down.
“Ave Imperator, Morituri te salutant!” (“Hail, emperor, those who are about to die salute you!”) – a sentence shouted by the warriors, who were about to risk their life not for their country or a greater cause but for glory itself: The Gladiators! In ancient Rome, it was all about “panem et circensis” (~ “bread and games”) to entertain the masses and to keep them satisfied with the current rulership.
With its brand new DLC “Death or Glory”, the critically acclaimed CRPG Expeditions: Rome will bring the feeling of these ancient roman games to your PC by introducing a new class – the Gladiator – and adding arenas to the different regions, you’ve visited throughout the campaign. You can now prove the combat prowess of your praetorian guard in the sands of the arena and fight against various enemies, including ferocious lions and very talented champions – will you claim their titles for yourself?
The new DLC is out today and a legion of other additions are coming along with the Gladiator-class, and its unique set of 24 skills. There are the new arenas, new weapons, new armours, new crafting recipes, and new enemies as well as new customization options for your legion and your praetorians. The DLC content will be included into the campaign or can be accessed directly by starting the game in the new “Gladiator Mode”.
The Expeditions: Rome DLC Death or Glory launches today, April, 12th, 2022 on PC at an SRP of $ 9.99 | € 9.99 | £ 7.99 and comes with a 20% release discount.
Try before you buy? Download the Expeditions: Rome demo now on Steam, you can even continue playing from your save game if you get the full game: https://thqn.net/rome-steam
Frontier Developments plc (AIM: FDEV) invites players to experience Planet Zoo: Wetlands Animal Pack, a brand new expansion for the ultimate zoo simulation, launching today on Steam for a suggested retail price of £7.99 / $9.99 / €9.99.
With the arrival of Planet Zoo: Wetlands Animal Pack, players can now welcome eight mesmerizing new species from one of the world’s richest biomes to their zoos. The laid-back Capybara, the remarkable-looking Platypus, the graceful Asian Small-Clawed Otter, the peeping Spectacled Caiman, the agile Nile Lechwe, the magnificent Wild Water Buffalo, the elegant Red-Crowned Crane, and the distinctive Danube Crested Newt Exhibit Animal are certain to fascinate zookeepers and guests alike.
Players can ensure their new arrivals will thrive with new enrichments. Watch as the Capybara bathes under the Hot Water Tap, or find the Platypus using its webbed feet to burrow into its home. The Small Underwater Feeder, Underwater Buoy, and Natural Water Jet will also add comfort and fun to habitats.
Planet Zoo: Wetlands Animal Pack also provides players with the chance to try their hand at an exciting new timed scenario set in Brazil’s breath-taking Pantanal region, one of the largest and most diverse wetlands ecosystems in the world. Budding zookeepers must help to rescue animals who cannot return to the wild and ensure they can truly flourish, in this welfare and conservation-focused challenge.
Alongside today’s pack launch, players can also enjoy a free base-game update, bringing a range of exciting extras and enhancements, including roaming educator talks, a new ‘Explore Cam’ feature that allows players to experience their zoos at guest height, new water customisation options, and more.
While Planet Zoo: Wetlands Animal Pack brings the much-requested Capybara to the game, Frontier will be celebrating today’s launch by bringing the real thing to Twitch with a special stream in aid of conservation. Streaming from Cambridgeshire’s Shepreth Wildlife Park, viewers will get a deeper insight into the daily habits of these notoriously relaxed and sociable animals via carefully placed habitat cameras and zookeeper talks, and take a closer look at gameplay from the pack. All proceeds from the stream, which runs from 11am-7.40pm BST on 12th April, will go directly to the Shepreth Wildlife Conservation Charity, which helps support conservation efforts at Shepreth Wildlife Park and donates grants to a number of projects worldwide.
Stardock announced the April 26th release date for Galactic Civilizations IV today. The newest installment of the award-winning space 4X strategy sandbox game series takes the best of what its predecessors had to offer and adds new features like multi-sector maps, the ability to customize your civilization mid-game via policies, internal factions, a unique mission/quest system, and so much more.
As the all-powerful leader of a spacefaring civilization, players will seek out new star systems and discover the exciting potential of the subspace realm. With over a dozen starting civilizations to choose from – plus the ability to create unique custom civilizations from scratch – the possibilities for each playthrough are endless, leaving players with a truly unique experience every time they start up a new game.
“Galactic Civilizations IV is the result of years of thinking about the exciting innovations that have been occurring in strategy games,” said Brad Wardell, Stardock CEO. “We want to give players the ultimate turn-based strategy experience, and we’ve accomplished this by adding in tons of new features that add to the depth and scope of the game while incorporating feedback over several alpha and beta testing phases.”
For nearly 30 years, the Galactic Civilizations series has focused on four main pillars: a simulated universe, strong AI opponents, rich lore, and multiple paths to victory. Galactic Civilizations IV supports this approach through several new features.
Multi-sector maps add a new depth to the scope of Galactic Civilizations IV. While players will still be able to play a smaller map, the ability to span an adventure across an enormous map with multiple sectors gives a true feeling of galactic conquest and exploration. Each sector is connected by subspace streams that will allow the player to travel between them.
While the idea of citizens was introduced in Galactic Civilizations III, their role was not as distinct as it is now. Citizens have individual approval ratings and keeping them happy is important – a disloyal and unhappy governor might just take their planet and corresponding colonies with them and start a new empire if the player isn’t careful. The story of the game changes depending on which characters are recruited and how their various backstories manifest throughout.
Galactic Achievements solve the age-old problem of a player seeing a clear trajectory to victory that is locked behind another couple hours of gameplay. Historically, many players quit at this point and don’t bother finishing their game because they “know they are going to win,” but it’s hardly a satisfactory victory. With this new feature, players can take on a challenge to earn “prestige points” that will go toward a total necessary for them to win the game. This cuts down on the “grind” of late game and allows a story to come to a much more interesting conclusion.
The concept of the Core Worlds system was introduced to reduce micromanagement. Previously, players would have to manage each world they conquered individually. When a player colonizes a subpar world, it will feed into a core world that the player has already established. With this system, players will directly oversee a lower number of worlds, but still receive the benefits of colonizing and conquering as many as possible.
To further support a unique experience for every game of Galactic Civilizations IV, players will now be able to set and update policies and issue executive orders during gameplay. Policies allow a player to shift priorities as they play by choosing between different buffs and focuses, while executive orders allow the player to spend a new resource called control to do things like print money or draft colonies.
There are many other features that comprise the Galactic Civilizations IV experience, including several new additions for helping newer players. An in-game tutorial and advisors that offer strategic and tactical advice make getting started easier than ever before. Many old and beloved features from previous games – including the ship designer and civilization creator – are also included.
For more information or to get into the beta now, visit www.galciv4.com.
