Author: News Room
Nintendo has unexpectedly released an animated short film on its YouTube channel. The film, titled Close to You, centers on a baby and its seemingly sentient pacifier. Running shy of four minutes, the wordless film centers on a blonde-haired baby who, after their mother leaves them alone in their room, chases their pacifier around the room after it suddenly comes to life. The video’s description lacks any explanation and only states the film’s title (with the comments section deactivated as well). Nintendo’s social media posts and the Nintendo Today app are similarly devoid of any information about the animation. While it’s unclear if…
Shovel Knight Developer Yacht Club Games has delayed its anticipated follow-up, the Zelda-inspired Mina the Hollower. The upcoming game was scheduled to launch on October 31.Initially crowdfunded via Kickstarter, Mina the Hollower centers on the titular mouse, a scientist and explorer who embarks on a mission to rescue a cursed island. The top-down action game sports a retro aesthetic reminiscent of Game Boy Color titles while its combat evokes The Legend of Zelda and Castlevania. As a Hollower, Mina can burrow underground, which plays a substantial role in combat and exploration. In a blog post, Yacht Club explains that despite working…
Ubisoft has announced that 2023’s Assassin’s Creed Mirage is getting a free story expansion next month. Valley of Memory is a new story chapter that adds hours of new narrative threads and gameplay content. Arriving on November 18 via an update for all owners of Assassin’s Creed Mirage, Valley of Memory is a roughly six-hour expansion set before the conclusion of the main story. Protagonist Basim learns a rumor that his long-lost father is alive in the ancient valley of al-Ula, and sets off to find him. When Basim arrives, he discovers al-Ula has been overtaken by robbers. Valley of Memory unfolds…
Remakes tend to be more exciting than remasters because the improvements often go beyond mere bumps in resolution or framerate. At best, studios reimagine classic experiences in exciting new ways, sand away rough edges, and somehow retain the intangible x-factors that made fans fall in love with these titles in the first place. At the very least, remakes offer a great way to play antiquated or less accessible experiences on modern hardware. The remake boom has been in full swing in recent years to the point that it’s starting to get tough to keep track of all the projects in the…
The Outsiders, the Swedish studio behind the rhythm-based heavy metal shooter Metal: Hellsinger, is closing its doors as a result of layoffs at developer/publisher Funcom. “Change is always tough and right now we are all hurting,’ says The Outsiders’ founder and creative director, David Goldfarb, who took to social media to announce the closure of the 10-year-old studio. You can read his full statement below. Friends,I have not had much time to process the news but all of us at The Outsiders and Funcom Stockholm have been affected by the layoffs at Funcom and our 10 year old studio will be closing.…
When Square Enix revealed Dragon Quest VII Reimagined during the big September Nintendo Direct last month, it got me in a Dragon Quest mood. There’s always XI, but that’s a massive commitment I frankly don’t have the time for at the moment. I started replaying the 3DS remake of VII, but again, that’s a massive commitment (something Square Enix is aware of and addressing with the streamlined Reimagined, it says), so I landed on booting up last year’s Dragon Quest III: HD-2D Remake, and wow, am I so glad I did. It’s the third game in the Erdrick trilogy, but chronologically,…
Payday developer Starbreeze announced yesterday that it has ceased development of Project Baxter, its cooperative game set in the Dungeons & Dragons universe. The cancellation will result in layoffs at the studio.Project Baxter was first announced in December 2023 with a 2026 launch window, and was billed as an Unreal Engine 5-developed cooperative multiplayer Dungeons & Dragons game. It was also described as a live-service game, though the extent of which was never made clear. Project Baxter was slated to launch on all major platforms and would have supported cross-play.Although we don’t know what state Project Baxter was in for…
We’ve revealed our latest cover story, The Outer Worlds 2! And on this week’s episode of The GI Show, we’ve got Marcus on to chat about his visit with the studio and everything he saw in Obsidian’s upcoming sequel. Plus, Charles and Kyle chat more Ghost of Yotei, we dig into the fascinating indie Consume Me, and Charles throws a special game show around all of GI’s 10s!All this, plus a closing interview with Trinket Studios, the makers of 2017’s Battle Chef Brigade, who are launching the sci-fi mecha deckbuilder Battle Suit Aces on October 7. There are tons of…
As part of our cover story for The Outer Worlds 2, we were treated to an exclusive demo of the game’s first open-world area: Paradise Island. This idyllic destination is located on a moon called Eden, and while it may sound lovely, it’s embroiled in a three-way conflict between the game’s primary factions: The authoritarian Protectorate, the ruthlessly capitalist Auntie’s Choice, and the scientific church that is the Order of the Ascendant. Following The Outer Worlds 2’s prologue chapter, this is where players become truly acclimated with the game’s new and improved systems in an open-world setting. After exploring Paradise for…
Eating disorders are an incredibly sensitive topic, so I was wary when I learned about Consume Me, a game that turns a teenage girl’s insecurities into minigames and resource management. After completing the story, however, I’m so glad it exists. Consume Me is a touching, hilarious, occasionally visceral experience told from a perspective video games don’t touch on as often as they should. Its meta commentary on the dangers of using game systems to measure complicated, real-life issues is poignant and unique. Its ending is disappointing, but it’s rare to play a game that feels so personal to its creators,…