Platform: Xbox One
[Early Access] Without taking anything away from Pocketpair, it’s kind of wild that it took this long for someone to pull this off. For everything Palworld may lack in (narrow) originality, it makes up for in execution. It throws down the gauntlet for what a creature collector could be, and somehow blends it with modern genres and sensibilities in a way that, surprisingly… just works? Time will tell if they truly stick the landing over the course of EA, but there’s already enough here for an outrageously fun time.
Apparently Tencent is developing a mobile adaptation of Elden Ring - with a desire for gacha elements - according to sources. The company acquired licensing rights in 2022 and has initiated a small team to prototype the game, although progress has been slow. This sounds… kinda disgusting, and currently hard to believe.
Epic continues to push the Fortnite-as-a-platform strat. Understandably not as deep as LEGO Fortnite, but a fun little racing game with a big emphasis on drifting and obstacles reminiscent of Mario Kart, and wild courses à la Trackmania. Be prepared to feel like Schumacher as you first place Bronze and Silver ranks only to be met with your first decent human opponents and summarily crushed. Fun though!
What I thought would be a quick, relatively low-effort brand collaboration turns out to be a remarkably fleshed out exploration/building/survival game with an incredible level of polish. A bit of Minecraft, a tiny bit of Animal Crossing, and even rolling in combat - sooo, we’re a soulslike now? Fun game, and the fact that Epic remade over 1,200 skins to suit the LEGO-verse is crazy in itself.
Elden Ring’s upcoming expansion, Shadow of the Erdtree, is “progressing well”, according to producer Yasuhiro Kitao. In a new interview, he hinted at ‘new battles and characters’, drawing comparisons to Bloodborne’s huge and beloved DLC. Despite no confirmed release date, FROMSOFT are assuring smooth development.
Following a successful launch, Lies of P director Ji Won Choi has confirmed plans for and showcased some art from forthcoming DLC. He also mentions some balance and QOL changes, a couple of which are huge improvements. Watch the full Director’s Letter here.
Ahead of Alan Wake 2 releasing on October 27th, Epic Games have unveiled a clever promotional tie-in, in the form of a playable custom Fortnite island. Alan Wake: Flashback is a ‘reimagining the iconic story’, available now with island code 3426-5561-3374. We’ve seen these sort of collabs before, but this is a bit more involved, substantial and creative. Perk of a good relationship I s’pose!
The latest from Jeppe Carlsen, lead gameplay designer of LIMBO and INSIDE - COCOON is just as intriguing, creative and moreish. The puzzles are really nice, and all a good level of challenge. Everything else, from the visual and sound design to each little interaction wouldn’t be misplaced in a ‘Satisfying Aesthetic ASMR Compilation’ video. Really cool.
As far as non-FromSoft soulslikes go, this is the real deal. It’s not doing anything revolutionary, but it has enough compelling new ideas, and a level of polish that elevates it beyond its otherwise decent contemporaries. It also commits so hard to Timothée Chalamet Pinocchio Bloodborne that you kind of forget how silly that actually is.