Today, Warner Bros. Pictures and New Line Cinema released the official global red band trailer for their explosive new cinematic feature “Mortal Kombat.”
Inspired by the blockbuster video game franchise, which most recently enjoyed the most successful video game launch in its history with Mortal Kombat 11, “Mortal Kombat” features MMA fighter Cole Young, a brand new character to the Mortal Kombat universe, played by Lewis Tan (“Deadpool 2,” Netflix’s “Wu Assassins”).
In the film, Cole is unaware of his heritage, and why he is being hunted by Outworld’s Emperor Shang Tsung’s best warrior, Sub-Zero. Fearing for his family’s safety, Cole goes in search of Sonya Blade at the direction of Jax, a Special Forces Major who bears the same strange dragon marking Cole was born with. Once he is brought to the temple of Lord Raiden, Cole begins his training with experienced warriors Liu Kang, Kung Lao and rogue mercenary Kano. Soon he will stand with Earth’s greatest champions against the enemies of Outworld in a high stakes battle for the universe.
Helmed by award-winning Australian commercial filmmaker Simon McQuoid, marking his feature directorial debut, and produced by James Wan (“The Conjuring” universe films, “Aquaman,”), Todd Garner (“Into the Storm,” “Tag”), McQuoid and E. Bennett Walsh (“Men in Black: International,” “The Amazing Spider-Man 2”), “Mortal Kombat” is releasing worldwide on April 16, 2021 in theaters and will be available in the U.S. on HBO Max for 31 days from theatrical release.
Today, KOEI TECMO America and famed developer Team NINJA revealed the long-awaited and highly-anticipated NINJA GAIDEN: Master Collection for the Nintendo Switch™, PlayStation®4 Computer Entertainment System (playable on PlayStation®5 via Backward Compatibility), the Xbox One consoles (playable on Xbox Series X|S via Backward Compatibility), and Windows PC via Steam®. The collection, slated to launch on June 10, 2021, will package the classic game NINJA GAIDEN Sigma alongside beloved titles NINJA GAIDEN Sigma 2 and NINJA GAIDEN 3: Razor’s Edge – with most of the previously released game modes and DLC costumes in one thrilling collection.
The NINJA GAIDEN: Master Collection brings the renowned action games to PC and consoles, allowing fans and newcomers alike to experience the tale of “super ninja” Ryu Hayabusa as he battles deadly fiends causing chaos around the world. NINJA GAIDEN Sigma, originally released in 2007, set the standard of high-speed action for the series – introducing dual-wielding weapons, and a Mission Mode alongside its gripping Story Mode. NINJA GAIDEN Sigma 2, originally released in 2009, continued Hayabusa’s journey alongside characters Ayane, Rachel, and Momiji, with four difficulty levels testing player’s battle techniques with every heart-stopping fight. The latest entry, NINJA GAIDEN 3: Razor’s Edge, originally released in 2012, upped the challenge with powerful new enemies and fiercely violent depictions, as well as bringing Kasumi into the action, making it the series’ most alluring white-knuckle experience to date.
The nostalgic yet timeless action of the three games offers a highly responsive and challenging experience – with battles that require defensive and offensive moves similar to fighting games. Players can enjoy playing as the fan-favorite ninja, Ryu Hayabusa, alongside the additional characters such as Ayane, Rachel, Momiji and Kasumi as they appeared in the original version of the games. Master your favorite characters in intense action-packed battles like only the NINJA GAIDEN series can deliver.
“NINJA GAIDEN is one of the most important and monumental titles for the Team NINJA brand, but we haven’t been able to release the series title on current generation platforms, so I am very delighted to be able to release it in this format as a trilogy,” says Yosuke Hayashi, Chief Head of Team NINJA. “If you enjoy challenging action games, we hope you will give it a try.”
Adds Fumihiko Yasuda, Head of Team NINJA: “NINJA GAIDEN is the origin of Team NINJA’s action games, and I hope that not only fans of the series, but also fans of the Nioh series will play these games. I hope that the day will come soon when I can provide information about the next game in the NINJA GAIDEN series, which I’ve been continuously saying that I want to develop, but until then, please play as the ‘super ninja’ Ryu Hayabusa in the NINJA GAIDEN: Master Collection.”
To celebrate the reveal of NINJA GAIDEN: Master Collection, Team NINJA will also run a special collaboration with Nioh 2. The development team have created the “Dragon Ninja” skin, which players can use to transform themselves into Ryu Hayabusa, the protagonist of NINJA GAIDEN: Master Collection. Players who own Nioh 2 – The Complete Edition (PlayStation®5, PlayStation®4, and Steam) or Nioh 2 (PS5 and PS4) can download this costume for use in-game starting on Feb. 18 – with further details on this collaboration detailed on the official Nioh 2 website.
For all of the latest news on the NINJA GAIDEN: Master Collection, check out the official site, Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/koeitecmous and Follow us on Twitter @koeitecmoUS.
Today on the Nintendo Direct livestream, Annapurna Interactive and Mobius Digital announced that Outer Wilds, 2019’s critically acclaimed mysterious first-person space simulator game, is coming to Nintendo Switch this Summer 2021. Previously released on Xbox One, PC and PlayStation 4, this open-world exploration game rewards players’ curiosity as they probe their surroundings, track down mysterious signals, decipher ancient alien writing, and roast the perfect marshmallow. Watch the official announcement during the Nintendo Direct reveal here:
Outer Wilds started as a student project by Creative Director Alex Beachum, and the alpha version of the project won the Seamus McNally Grand Prize and Excellence in Design awards at the 2015 Independent Games Festival. Following its launch, Outer Wilds has garnered numerous industry accolades including award wins from the BAFTA Game Awards 2020, New York Game Awards 2019, Golden Joystick Awards 2019 and Pégases Awards 2020, as well as nominations from The Game Awards 2019, D.I.C.E. Awards 2020, SXSW Gaming Awards 2020 and Game Developers Choice Awards 2020.
Outer Wilds Key Features:
From planets and moons to alien structures and spacecraft, discover the mysteries of this hand-crafted, fully dynamic solar system.
Play as the newest recruit of Outer Wilds Ventures, a fledgling space program searching for answers in a strange, constantly evolving solar system.
The planets of Outer Wilds are packed with hidden locations that change with the passage of time. Visit an underground city before it’s swallowed by sand, or explore the surface of a planet as it crumbles beneath your feet.
Use a variety of unique gadgets to probe your surroundings, track down mysterious signals, decipher ancient alien writing, and roast the perfect marshmallow.
Frogwares have surprise launched a PS5 enhanced version of The Sinking City. The HP Lovecraft inspired, story-rich, free investigation horror game comes to the PS5 store with multiple enhancements and improvements that utilize the console’s power and functionalities.
This digital-only version of the game rolls out on Friday, February 19th, 2021 at midnight in each respective region. The game is solely published by Frogwares themselves.
A gameplay video showcasing loading times, graphic comparisons and additional features was also released.
Confirmed PS5 Version Improvements:
Frogwares has confirmed the following improvements and features for the Playstation 5 version:
4K (3840×2160) resolution
60 frames per second
Improved graphical fidelity
Improved loading times
Additional quests – part of the Merciful Madness DLC (included in Deluxe Edition, or as a separate purchase)
DualSense controller features
PS5 activities support
New Adjusted Price
Frogwares has also made the conscious decision to drop the price of the PS5 version to 49.99 USD for the standard edition and 64.99 USD for the Deluxe Edition, despite both the previous pricing and next-gen game price increases being seen elsewhere.
“As the sole owner and publisher of The Sinking City on PS5, we have chosen to price the game in a region that we feel is fair to players for this type of game. We’ll also be carefully looking at how we price all our future releases to try keep with this way of thinking.” – Serge Chervonnyi, Head of Production
On top of the reduced price, PS+ subscribers will have an additional 30% off discount for the first two weeks of the game’s release.
To coincide with the launch, Frogwares is putting together an extensive digital artbook that shows the game’s journey from conception to release. Players who purchase the PS5 version of the game will receive the artbook automatically as a DLC at a later date.
The Sinking City PS5 (Digital) launches worldwide today on the PlayStation 5 store. The game is published and wholly owned by Frogwares.
Today at its second Panel From Hell livestream, Larian Studios unveiled Baldur’s Gate 3’s fourth major update: Nature’s Power. This huge update will include the first new playable class for Baldur’s Gate 3, which launched into early access in October 2020. The changes coming to the game when Patch 4 arrives will be greater than all three prior patches combined!
The Druids
The Druid class comes with over 30 spells and abilities, including Wild Shape. New dialogue and voice-over have also been recorded so that playing a Druid delivers the same deeply narrative experience as the other classes (Humans, Elves, Half-Elves, Halflings, Dwarves, Tieflings, Drow, etc.). We won’t spoil them, but those who visit Druid’s Grove as a Druid may enjoy a game of spot-the-difference. And of course, as a game that reacts to who you are, there will be new rewards, options, story moments, and interactions scattered throughout Act 1.
With the power of the wilderness at their fingertips, Druids can transform their shape to adapt to different situations. Crunch bones and slam into enemies as a Dire Wolf or Polar Bear. Spin your silken thread over the environment as a Spider. Soar above Faerun as a Raven. Sneak into hostile spaces unnoticed as a Cat. Burrow under the earth and ambush opponents as a Badger. Or temporarily embrace the tadpole that the Mindflayers have implanted inside you, discovering a new, mysterious Aberrant Shape.
There will be eight Shapes available: Deep Rothé, Cat, Raven, Dire Wolf, Badger, Spider, Polar Bear, and Aberrant. NPCs will react to your animal form in procedural ways. Bear blocking your path? Assume Bear Shape and speak his own language!
D&D fans will know that Druids traditionally come from one of a number of Circles. Druids will be able to choose from one of two Circles to inform how they play:
Circle of the Land: Keepers of the Old Faith, these Druids are connected to arctic wastelands, sunny coasts, scorching deserts, fair forests, green grasslands, tall mountains, treacherous swamps and even the vast, otherworldly realm of the Underdark. Based on what type of geography they’re connected to, they gain additional power.
Circle of the Moon: Changeable as the moon, these stewards of nature haunt the deepest parts of the wilderness. Transformation is no problem for most Druids, but those who keep the ways of the moon gain the ability to morph into more powerful combative Wild Shapes like the Polar Bear.
For further information on Druids in D&D, be sure to check out the VOD version of the Panel From Hell 2, where Lead Systems Designer Nick Pechenin and D&D Principal Rules Designer Jeremy Crawford explored the ways in which Larian has incorporated the versatile character class into the game. With the aforementioned Wild Shape ability taking center stage, the panel talked through many more spells, abilities and character interactions that the Druid has enabled.
Global Expansion
The Panel From Hell 2 also covered the ways in which Larian has and continues to meet the challenges of such a gargantuan RPG. Already situated in Belgium, Ireland, Russia, and Canada, the studio today formally announced expansion into England and Malaysia with its Guildford and Kuala Lumpur studios, respectively. This expansion is not only about increasing the number of developers working on the game, but also allowing development to follow the sun, with each studio acting as a mirror-image of one another, insofar as it’s possible.
The result of this continued commitment is, of course, all the updates through to Patch 4, but also, as covered in the Panel From Hell 2, specific examples of how Larian was able to quickly address and work with player feedback to create tangible quality-of-life improvements to the game.
Big Changes in BG3’s Patch 4
Along with Druids, Patch 4: Nature’s Power will bring a number of changes to the game, many of which have been requested by the community or influenced by community feedback, including (naturally) fixes, but also major overall improvements like:
Optional Loaded Dice: This optional change will help smooth out the extremes of the bell curve. It retains the core elements of RNG, ensuring a player can no longer be unlucky or super lucky with several dice rolls in a row. The system also runs in two parts: dice rolls in dialogue are different to those in combat, and this change only impacts the d20, not damage rolls.
Improved Cinematics: Narrative cinematics will be given a new lease on life thanks to major improvements in lighting and animation, resulting in some truly spectacular story sequences.
Speak With Dead Cinematic Functionality: Cinematics in special cases like Speak with Dead will get huge improvements, along with the ability to join conversations as an animal. The patch will also add improved animations with the Druids in the Grove as they cast spells and use their abilities.
Multiplayer: Those embarking on their adventure together with friends will be able to see other players’ equipment, spells, inventory and character sheets (as well as the ability to take and place items to and from). There is no lock function — that will come in a future patch. As a result, your friends could, for example, steal your items. But don’t worry. They’re your friends. They wouldn’t do that to you, would they?
Quality of Life: A series of much-requested features will be implemented. Players will be able to target friends and enemies with spells and equipment by clicking on their portraits. As an alternative to clicking on a character in the world, players will also be able to easily select and attack whoever they want from the UI. We’ll also be adding a flee button for the errr… tacticians among us. And using torches will be easier thanks to the long-awaited addition of the torch button!
Now, this PR is getting insufferably long, so be sure to recap on the Panel From Hell 2 for all the latest news and updates, as well as the patch notes once they’re published ahead of Patch 4’s launch, which is coming very soon (…when it’s ready).
Independent developer Midjiwan AB has announced that its popular turn-based strategy game, The Battle of Polytopia, has been downloaded over 13 million times across Steam, the App Store and Google Play. Featuring 4X gameplay, auto-generated maps, single-player functionality and online multiplayer for up to 15 players on PC and Mac, the title allows fans to command a global conquest as the leader of one of 16 unique Polytopian tribes.
The studio also shared that its long-awaited Cymanti Tribe expansion pack is now available across the aforementioned platforms. Inspired by real-world plants and insects, players are now able to unleash giant bugs and poisonous spores on their mission to become ruler of the world. The Cymanti Tribe is discounted 20 percent during its first week on Steam.
https://youtu.be/Orb1nVqF9zY
“We love challenging The Battle of Polytopia players on Steam with our expansion packs,” says Christian Lovstedt, GM at Midjiwan AB. “The Cymanti Tribe introduces depth and complexity designed to test the game’s most devoted fans.”
The Cymanti are Polytopians that have formed symbiotic relationships with Ciru bugs that sit atop their heads. The Tribe’s unique abilities allow players to command a variety of bugs to do their bidding. Some of these creepy crawlies include Elytra beetles that act as Defender units, the winged Phychi swarms that act as Archer units, and long Centipedes that split into two units when attacked in the middle.
A complete list of features found in the base version of The Battle of Polytopia are below:
Single-player and online multiplayer for up fifteen players on PC and Mac
Online matchmaking
4X gameplay: eXplore, eXpand, eXploit and eXterminate
Choose to play as one of 16 distinct Polytopian tribes, each with its own unique nature, culture and attributes
Fans can explore, farm, build, research and wage war
Auto-generated maps ensure each session is a totally new experience
Online leaderboards feature top scores for the best civilization builders
Five map types: tiny, normal, large, huge and massive
Configurable map types: Dryland, Lake, Continents, Archipelago and Water World
Three game modes: Perfection, Domination and Creative
A mirror match option where identical tribes can meet one another in the same session
Keyboard controls and shortcuts
The Battle of Polytopia is now available on Steam, the App Store, Google Play and Tesla Arcade. Four Tribe expansion packs – Aquarion Tribe, ∑∫ỹriȱŋ Tribe, Polaris Tribe and today’s Cymanti Tribe – are also available for purchase. The Cymanti Tribe is discounted 20 percent from its regular Steam price of $2.99 during launch week. The expansion retails for $1.99 on mobile platforms.
Victura and Highwire Games today announced Six Days in Fallujah, a first-person tactical military shooter based on true stories from the Second Battle for Fallujah in 2004, coming to PC and consoles in 2021. Originally announced by Atomic Games in 2009, Six Days in Fallujah returns with a new publisher, new developer and an all-new game from many of the core leadership team who created the original Halo and Destiny games.
“Sometimes the only way to understand what’s true is to experience reality for yourself,” says former Marine Sergeant Eddie Garcia, who was wounded during the Battle for Fallujah and proposed the original idea for Six Days in Fallujah in 2005. “War is filled with uncertainty and tough choices that can’t be understood by watching someone on a TV or movie screen make these choices for you. Video games can help all of us understand real-world events in ways other media can’t.”
The Second Battle for Fallujah began in 2004 after Al Qaeda seized control of one of Iraq’s major cities. The battle proved to be the toughest military conflict for Western forces since 1968.
Atomic Games announced Six Days in Fallujah in 2009, but saw the title abandoned by its original publisher following controversy about the ability of video games to cover challenging real-world events. Victura is a publishing and production company founded in 2016 by former Atomic Games CEO Peter Tamte with the goal of bringing a new Six Days in Fallujah to players, along with other games based on true stories.
Working in partnership with frontline Marines and Soldiers who fought in the Battle for Fallujah, Victura and Highwire have spent more than three years building unique technologies and game mechanics that bring players closer to the uncertainty and tactics of modern combat than other video games have explored.
Over 100 Marines, Soldiers, and Iraqi civilians who were present during the Second Battle for Fallujah have shared their personal stories, photographs, and video recordings with the development team. The game gives these stories voice through gameplay and first-person accounts captured in original documentary interview footage. Six Days in Fallujah aims to be the most authentic military shooter to date and to tell these military and civilian stories with the integrity they deserve.
“It’s hard to understand what combat is actually like through fake people doing fake things in fake places,” says Peter Tamte, CEO of Victura. “This generation showed sacrifice and courage in Iraq as remarkable as any in history. And now they’re offering the rest of us a new way to understand one of the most important events of our century. It’s time to challenge outdated stereotypes about what video games can be.”
Six Days in Fallujah will launch for PC and consoles in 2021. Victura will announce more details about Six Days in Fallujah in the coming weeks.
For more information about the game go to Six Days in Fallujah at www.sixdays.com where you can also read a letter from the team about why it’s important for this game to be made (https://sixdays.com/why). Six Days in Fallujah is also on Twitter (@VicturaGG), and YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0_ZHfbMbeosqhCQutQgzVw).
Today, Skybound Entertainment, home of The Walking Dead, Invincible, The Grim Forest and more, officially launched its highly-anticipated Kickstarter campaign for Bloodstone, a first of its kind PvP/PvE (Player vs Player / Player vs Environment) arena tabletop roleplaying game.
Created by Skybound Entertainment’s Senior Director of Tabletop Games, James Hudson, and available exclusively on Kickstarter, Bloodstone boasts eight playable characters with their own unique backstories and playstyles who are trapped in eternal combat and forced to fight to the death – then get up and do it again – all to the whims of a cruel tyrant who has been corrupted by the Bloodstone, an evil and powerful relic that enchants any who possess it. Utilizing a custom dice mechanism to determine your character’s attacks and movements (ranging from dealing straightforward damage towards enemies in the arena to banking dice for a later turn that can aid allies or beleaguer foes) Bloodstone allows for PvP bloodsport or coordinated PvE attacks against a common foe.
wwwwwwwwBacking this 24-day Kickstarter-exclusive campaign is the only chance to experience the world of Bloodstone as games will be made to order with a very limited number available to purchase from Skybound following the campaign.
To accompany Bloodstone, Skybound is releasing a book tie-in that explores the lore behind the game, fully explaining how the dangerously powerful Bloodstone works and diving into the backstories of each combatant as well as how they become trapped in the deadly pit. In Bloodstone: Awakening, veteran game and fantasy author Ari Marmell (A Mick Oberon Job urban fantasy detective series, Widdershins Adventures YA series, The Goblin Corps) brings to life the characters from this soon-to-be-beloved tabletop game with vivid realism and intense combat for fans of sword-and-sorcery fantasy and tabletop gaming alike. The tie-in novel, published by Simon & Schuster, is set to release in Spring 2022, with the first five chapters available to Bloodstone Kickstarter backers.
Today, Perfect World Entertainment Inc., a leading publisher of online games, and Cryptic Studios announced the first chapter of Neverwinter’s three-episode Sharandar module, Episode 1: The Iron Tooth, is now available on PC (Steam, Epic Games Store and Arc), and will launch on Xbox One and PlayStation®4 on March 16. The Iron Tooth marks the debut for the first phase of the revamped mystical land of Sharandar — originally introduced in Neverwinter’s first ever module in 2013, Fury of the Feywild — where adventurers will find the Ruins of Malabog adventure zone, New Sharandar social hub, Vault of Stars end-game dungeon, along with epic enemies and rewards. The next episode, Episode 2: The Soul Keeper, will launch on PC in April and on consoles in May.
“The Iron Tooth strikes a balance between new and old, as it not only preserves the spirit of Sharandar that Neverwinter fans have come to love, but also brings several new features that all adventurers will enjoy,” said Chris Whiteside, Neverwinter’s executive producer. “The Neverwinter community has asked for more evolving worlds to explore, so we’re very excited for adventurers to enter the mystical lands of the Fey once again like never before.”
Across three epic episodes, Neverwinter’s newest module has players return to Sharandar to end the unsettling darkness creeping across the Feywild and the area’s age-old elven stronghold. The Iron Tooth, introduces new and returning players to the Feywild lands of Sharandar, where they must head to the Ruins of Malabog to investigate the disappearance of an elven dignitary. With loutish creatures that will kill any foolish enough to enter the ruins, players will need to join forces to successfully be Protectors of the Feywild and rise against the darkness.
Players will also discover that deep in the forest, a coven of ancient hags have claimed the lands around Sharandar and gathered scattered bands of Malabog’s minions and other creatures long ignored by the Fey courts. In The Iron Tooth, players must band together to enter the lair of the foul Annis Hag, the first of Sharandar’s three menacing hags, in the Ruins of Malabog. To stand a chance against the hags in each episode of Sharandar, players need to enter the Vault of Stars to steal a fragment of the powerful Night Diamond from the Queen of Air and Darkness, an entity of great power.
Episode 1: The Iron Tooth introduces plenty of playable content and exciting updates for PC players to explore. A full list of game features released with today’s update includes:
Ruins of Malabog Adventure Zone – Explore the Ruins of Malabog, where the remnants of Malabog’s army have joined forces with minions of the Annis Hag. Together, these brutal and murderous creatures have begun terrorizing the lands of Sharandar once again.
New Sharandar Social Hub – The Iliyanbruen elves of New Sharandar have taken the time after King Malabog’s defeat to rebuild their stronghold, making it a haven for travelers and fey creatures alike.
Annis Hag Lair – The foul Annis Hag has made a lair for herself in the Ruins of Malabog. Do you dare enter its depth to confront this horrid hag?
Vault of Stars End-Game Dungeon – The Gloaming Court is ruled by the Queen of Air and Darkness, a formless entity of great power. But she keeps within the Vault of Stars a powerful magical item known as the Night Diamond. Could this be the key to defeating the hags?
While pushing back the darkness in the epic new Sharandar campaign in Episode 1: The Iron Tooth, players can also earn new rewards including the Forest Guardian’s armor set, the Sparkling Fey Emblem artifact and the Blink Dog companion.
The next two episodes, Episode 2: The Soul Keeper and Episode 3: The Odious Court will continue the story of Neverwinter: Sharandar. Players will have the chance to experience the transformation of Sharandar as they take on the sinister hags revealed in the first episode and push back the darkness. More details, including features, for these episodes will be revealed soon.
Neverwinter is a free-to-play action MMORPG featuring fast-paced combat and epic dungeons. Players explore the vast city of Neverwinter and its surrounding lands, learning the vivid history of the iconic city in the Forgotten Realms and battling its many enemies. Neverwinter is available on PC and is free to play digitally on Xbox One (with Xbox Live Gold*) and PlayStation®4 (PlayStation®Plus not required).
SnowRunner, the ultimate off-road driving experience from Saber Interactive and Focus Home Interactive, is expanding once again with “Season 3: Locate & Deliver.” Available now for all Season Pass and Premium Edition owners on PlayStation®4, Xbox One, and PC, Season 3 brings two original maps in a new region, plus new vehicles, vehicle skins, stickers, and the return of the franchise’s iconic logging gameplay. There’s also a free update today with new content for all players.
Season 3 introduces Wisconsin, USA, a new region that’s all about logging lumber for big paydays. A limited number of generators are needed to power all the buildings in the area, and it’s up to you to pick and choose what you need and when as you repair a train station and its accompanying lines.
Your new vehicles for Season 3 are the International PayStar Twin Steer, the Pacific P512 PF, and the BOAR 45318. They’ll help power you through the new maps of Grainwoods River and Black Badger Lake, two flooded, densely forested landscapes filled with broken-down machinery and challenging missions to discover.
Season 3 also adds a free content update for all players featuring new trials, cargo, missions, and various cosmetic upgrades. More logging activities have been added to previous maps, meaning everyone can get a taste of the action. And don’t forget to check out the ever-expanding selection of community-made mods on both consoles and PC to further enhance your SnowRunner experience.
“Season 3: Locate & Deliver” is also available as standalone DLC. SnowRunner’s Premium Edition, which includes both the base game and its Season Pass, can be purchased on the official store.
