Ocean Drive Studio looks back at Gamescom, PAX West, and demo:

Triple Expedition Wrap-Up: Gamescom, PAX West, and Demo

Tacticians,

This year has been full of new feats, for both our team and Ashe’s crew. For us, we went to our first-ever Gamescom and then forged onward to Seattle for PAX West; for the game, it has been in closed beta and public demo, with Early Access coming in the near future.

The unprecedented triple expedition for us will soon be completed, with the demo closing at 3PM PT today (September 3rd). If you played the demo but haven’t filled out the feedback survey, please do so here, as it will remain open for only a few more days. We are deeply grateful for all the feedback, both from new players as well as those who played the game before (including previous PAX events). We can never emphasize and thank you enough on how your feedback shapes our game.

[...]

Thanks Couchpotato!

Grinding Gear Games looks back at the Gamescom 2024:

Path of Exile 2: Gamescom Recap

Thanks Couchpotato!

IGN explains the photo mode of Dragon Age: The Veilgard:

Dragon Age: The Veilguard Photo Mode Details: 15 Exclusive Screenshots and How It Was Inspired by Mass Effect

We take a look at The Veilguard's photo mode and reveal a host of new screenshots as part of our ongoing IGN First.

When Dragon Age: The Veilguard releases in October, it will include a first for the series — a fully-featured photo mode that will let fans capture personalized moments within Thedas. Photo modes have become a common sight in big-budget games in the years since the release of Dragon Age: Inqusition, but it nevertheless marks an important milestone for BioWare's fantasy series.

Happily, Dragon Age: The Veilguard's version of the popular mode has plenty of toys for fans who want to indulge their dreams of being a fantasy photographer. Here's some of what The Veilguard's photo mode has to offer.

• Free-roaming camera, tilt, focal length, and lens distortion
• Depth of Field
• Auto Focus
• Distance
• F-Stop, which lets you control the lighting
• Vignette mode, which darkens the edge of the screen and gives it a more cinematic look
• Bloom strength
• Saturation, brightness, and contrast
• The ability to hide the player, the party, enemies, or NPCs

[...]

Thanks Couchpotato!

Ossian Studios will start a Kickstarter campaign for Pathfinder: The Dragon’s Demand soon:

Pathfinder: The Dragon’s Demand Official Announcement

Today, Ossian Studios and Paizo sent out the call to get ready to back the Pathfinder: The Dragon’s Demand CRPG on Kickstarter with a new trailer and press kit that reveal the first details about the game.

Pathfinder: The Dragon’s Demand is all about miniatures in a tabletop-style world. It does what isn’t possible to show on a physical tabletop, like a 3D grid system, adaptive miniature poses, dynamic weather impacting the world, and more. Over a year in the making, this single-player, turn-based RPG features a faithful adaptation of the remastered Pathfinder Second Edition rules. The Paizo-licensed game is set in the captivating Lost Omens world, in an expanded version of the popular deluxe super-adventure of the same name. The Kickstarter campaign will launch soon and offer authentic minted precious metal City of Absalom coins and 3D printable STL minis files among its many rewards.

So get ready for wild adventures in a world filled with monstrous enemies in this brand-new style of CRPG. Become a follower of Pathfinder: The Dragon’s Demand at DragonsDemand.com and get notified when the campaign launches!

Thanks Couchpotato!

Vertigo checked out Gothic 1 Remake:

The Gamescom Experience: The Remake, my thoughts + exclusive Info

Thanks Couchpotato!

Couchpotato spotted an Q&A video for Exodus:

EXODUS Founders Q&A Video | September 2024

Couchpotato spotted a new development update for Xenonauts 2:

Xenonauts 2 Monthly Development Update!

Hello everyone - hope you all had a good August. Here's our monthly update on what the team here at Goldhawk have been working on.

Programming
This month our technical director spent much of his month on honeymoon, and the rest of it fixing the trickier bugs discovered in Milestone 4 by the community. Our other senior programmer split his time between bugfixes and working on our updated internal game editor (mentioned in last month's update), which meant we only had one programmer available to work on feature implementation.

Aside from the weekly stability fixes we've released for Milestone 4 and various small usability changes / AI improvements, we added a few useful gameplay features to our upcoming Milestone 5 update. One was a much-requested update to the item sale price system, allowing sale prices to slowly regain lost value as time passes, and another was expanded options for "difficult terrain" which makes it more costly for soldiers (but not vehicles) to walk through and crush plants like hay. This may allow things such as shallow water that can be waded through on the Jungle maps, making the different biomes a bit more distinct from one another.

Invasion Phases
I've spent a lot of time this month on the new "Invasion Phase" system. This divides the alien invasion into five escalating phases, with a narrative event and some artwork and a short conversation with the Operations Director and Chief Scientist at the start of each one.

The goal here is to tie the lore together and explain how the invasion is escalating, what the aliens are doing differently and how the world is reacting to it. It also allows us to more clearly explain the shifting role of the Xenonauts throughout the conflict, starting as an clandestine organisation fighting a secret war against an unknown enemy and ending as an elite military organisation leading the fight against a full-scale alien invasion.

This coming month I'll be experimenting with several mechanical changes that we're hoping to tie to the Phase System, making the Geoscape mechanics a bit less static throughout the campaign. I'm quite excited about these, but I also don't want to talk about them yet in case I disappoint someone - they're still at the prototype phase, and could be changed or abandoned entirely based on playtesting. Hopefully I'll have more to say about this next month!

Other
Other areas of the game continued to progress over the past month. We partnered up with a couple of new illustrators, one of whom painted the new "Funding Report" artwork we've used as the cover art for this post, and the other is working on environment concepts for the tactical combat. We've also added lots of small things like some new 3D weapon models, some updated textures for certain alien combatants, and new tactical biome ambient sounds.

That's everything for this month - thanks for reading!

Couchpotato spotted a making of video for Flint - Treasure of Oblivion:

Tactical RPG Flint: Treasure of Oblivion – Making Of #03 Designing the Gameplay

Wccftech reports that the Dark Horizon DLC for Remnant 2 will be released on September 24.

Remnant 2 - DLC & New Mode Release Date Trailer

Thanks Couchpotato!

Gematsu reports that the new game mode Neighborhood Watch will be released on October 22.

Thanks Couchpotato!

Fextralife gives an overview of The Witcher 4:

The Witcher 4 – EVERYTHING We KNOW About CD Projekt Red’s Project Polaris

Thanks Couchpotato!

The Outer Haven checked out Path of Exile 2:

Path of Exile 2 Hands-On Preview – Shaping Up to Be Even Better

After playing Path of Exile 2 during Summer Game Fest, I’ve been eagerly awaiting another chance to dive back in. Unfortunately, I wasn’t one of the lucky few to gain access to the closed beta, but thankfully, PAX West 2024 gave me another shot—or should I say, multiple opportunities - to try the game. Unlike at Summer Game Fest, I was given more time to explore the game’s content.

I jumped back in, first with the Warrior, then returned to the line, which moved faster than the one at the Monster Hunter Wilds booth. This time, I played as the Witch. Afterward, I inquired whether any developers were available for a chat. A few minutes later, I found myself speaking with Chris Laferriere, who is in charge of skill development for Path of Exile at Grinding Gear Games. He was an absolute pleasure to talk to.

I asked Chris about the major changes between Path of Exile and Path of Exile 2, specifically how skills and gems are handled in the game. Chris explained, “I know a lot of players were daunted by the previous system, but in PoE 2, skills are a bit different. The best way to describe it is that they will be more user-friendly, allowing new players to jump in more easily.” He went on to say that the handling of gems has also been streamlined. However, Chris was quick to point out that if veteran Path of Exile players prefer the original system, they’ll still have that option in PoE 2. Essentially, it offers the best of both worlds.

[...]

Thanks Couchpotato!

The Outer Haven checked out Kingdom Come: Deliverance II:

Kingdom Come: Deliverance II Hands-On Preview

It feels like ages since I last played Kingdom Come: Deliverance, which was originally released in 2018. While at PAX West, I had the chance to test out a mission from Kingdom Come: Deliverance II, and it gave me a glimpse into the grand scope of the upcoming sequel.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance II The Upgrade

The preview opens with you in the town of Kuttenberg, where you meet a friendly man recruiting apprentices for his sword technique school. You have the option to ignore him and go about your day, or you can ask for a sparring match. I chose the latter, eager to test my mettle. During the sparring match, I was getting accustomed to the sword-fighting mechanics. You can direct your sword’s angle and left-click to attack from that angle. If you manage to strike from a position his sword can’t parry, you land a hit. However, you must be cautious, as he can attack from various angles too. If your sword is positioned correctly, a shield icon appears over your angle indicator, signaling that you can block. By right-clicking at the right moment during his attack, you can block and follow up with a counterattack.

The sword-fighting mechanics, as well as the alchemy and blacksmith systems, are designed with a strong emphasis on realism. This realistic approach allows players to deeply engage with the systems they enjoy, while completely ignoring others if they choose.

[...]

Thanks Couchpotato!

Mirthwood got delayed until November 6:

A Brief Delay

Hi Folks!

Today, we have some news that we will be delaying the launch of Mirthwood until November 6th, 2024.

We want Mirthwood to be the best it can be on day one. As a small, passionate team, we've worked tirelessly to create a world that you will love, but we felt there were still key areas, like performance optimization, localization, and some of the systems, that needed more work and attention before launch.

We know that this is disappointing for many of you, but we want to make sure the game is completely ready before we release it and don’t want to release it unfinished. So, in the meantime, we are going to be holding some Beta weekends where you’ll get to jump in and try out what we’re working on.

If you haven't already, join the Discord, which just opened up as a way to get access to the upcoming beta weekends.

Secondly, we're releasing an updated roadmap to keep you up to speed on Mirthwood's development. A few original planned post-launch features will now be in the full launch.

Our small team never expected to have quite so many of you along for the ride with us. It's amazing, yet we recognize that expectations are both high and varied! Rest assured, we are working tirelessly to meet them—today, tomorrow, and into the future.

See you on November 6th,

Daron & Brian

Thanks Couchpotato and Daveyd!

Feixiao is a new playable character:

Feixiao Trailer — "Nothing to Laugh At" | Honkai: Star Rail

Here's the Official Accolades Trailer for Visions of Mana:

Visions of Mana - Official Accolades Trailer

Here's a new news roundup for the last week at RPGamer.

Tim visited PAX 2024:

PAX 2024

RPG Site checked out Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven:

Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven remakes one of the most unconventional RPGs ever brilliantly - Preview

Not many modern game franchises enjoy the small, consistent prosperity that the SaGa series has established within the last decade. These RPGs aren’t Square Enix’s most well-known games, and they are not heavy-hitters when it comes to sales performance. Most SaGa fans, including me, are aware that part of the reason that us SaGa enjoyers are spoiled with new remasters and entries lately is thanks to the ongoing success of the Romancing SaGa Re;univerSe mobile game. We know this, we accept this, and to some extent, we embrace this.

Even over the last three years, SaGa players have feasted with SaGa Frontier Remastered, Collection of SaGa Final Fantasy Legend, Romancing SaGa -Minstrel Song- Remastered, and just recently back in April, SaGa Emerald Beyond. I’ve been expecting the remaster treatment for SaGa Frontier 2 for a while, so I was completely caught off-guard when Square Enix pulled back the curtain on Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven a few months ago.

Never in my wildest dreams could I have predicted that this installment in the SaGa series would receive such a lavish remake, especially one that looks to have significantly higher production values than recent SaGa releases by a considerable margin. Even within the unconventional SaGa franchise, Romancing SaGa 2 is unlike any other game in the series.

It is beloved for sure, though it is mechanically dense and offers a huge nonlinear experience that embodies the “play your own way” philosophy of the SaGa series. There are many choices for players to make that they will have to commit to; there are little-to-no universal “right” or “correct” answers in how to play Romancing SaGa 2 which, to some degree, has gradually become antithetical to the expectations of the mainstream audience for RPGs.

[...]

Farflame spotted two older devlogs for The Night Wanderer:

The Night Wanderer Devlog #1

The Night Wanderer Devlog #2

Farflame spotted an Elder Scrolls Online Q&A on Wccftech:

Elder Scrolls Online Gamescom 2024 Q&A – Beyond the 10th Anniversary

At Gamescom 2024, I caught up with Rich Lambert, Game Director for Elder Scrolls Online at ZeniMax. This wasn't the first time I interviewed Rich - I met him in person at E3 2019, and then we had a number of remote interviews over the past five years or so. This year, though, is special for the MMORPG, which has turned 10. ZeniMax is doing several celebrations with the community throughout the whole year, with the excuse that the console version launched around a year after the PC version.

With the release of Gold Road, the yearly expansion (or Chapter, as they like to call them) firmly behind us, we looked to its making and then moved to the future, answering quite a few long-standing community questions on highly requested features.

You announced some new events as part of the 10-year celebration, right? In Milan and elsewhere.

Yeah, Milan, San Diego, and then I don't know if it's 100% announced yet, but we'll go to PAX Australia as well.

Cool. Overall, how is the ten-year anniversary of Elder Scrolls Online going for you so far?

It's been amazing. The players and the community that has gone to these events are just really enjoying themselves. They get to see us, but they go to see their friends. In Amsterdam, we had a group that has been doing podcasts together for almost 10 years, and they've never actually met in person. One lives in Turkey, the other guy lives in the United States, and the first time they met each other face-to-face was at our Amsterdam event, which is cool. That just kind of echoes all the way across things. Also, putting the event together was really cool because we had to look at stuff we hadn't looked at in years—literally years—and so it's just been really cool.

[...]

Wccftech checked out The First Berserker: Khazan:

The First Berserker: Khazan Gamescom Hands-On Preview – Vast Potential

With the Souls series, FromSoftware has created a trend that isn't going to disappear anytime soon, as every developer seems intent on offering their own take on the formula, to varying results. Among the games inspired by the popular series by the Japanese studio is The First Berserker: Khazan by Neople, a game that is aiming at the upper echelon of Soulslikes, taking many of the lessons provided by the Souls series to heart to offer a well-crafted experience that has the potential of becoming one of the best ever seen to date.

During Gamescom 2024, I had the chance to try out The First Berserker: Khazan, playing through a 30-minute long demo that culminated with an intense boss battle. The demo started right from the beginning of the adventure when the disgraced military general Khazan, voiced by Ben Starr, the voice of Final Fantasy XVI protagonist Clive Rosfield, was released from the cage he was being transported in. Following his release, the long-haired warrior acquires a mysterious sword that had been calling out to him, filling him with the power required to make it out of the danger-filled snow mountain he is in. Sadly, this was all the story that was featured in the demo so it's hard to say where it will be going, but the personable character design definitely made these short sequences memorable enough.

[...]

Thanks Farflame!

Couchpotato spotted a major update for Alaloth - Champions of The Four Kingdoms:

A whole new crafting sys, new items and much more!

Hello Champions!

We are thrilled to announce the release of our latest update, Forgemasters! This update is the culmination of countless hours of work, dedication, and feedback from our amazing community. Crafting has always been an essential part of Alaloth, and with the ever-growing list of items and content added on the way, we knew it was time to give it the love it deserves. When we first envisioned Alaloth, our goal was to create a world where players had complete freedom from the start. The game’s rich crafting system was designed to let you forge your own path, with every item and resource readily accessible as you ventured across the lands. However, as the game has evolved, so has the need for more depth and refinement in crafting. The Forgemasters update brings a complete overhaul to the system! We’ve introduced new recipes, rebalanced existing ones to align with the latest drops from mobs, and added a range of new reagents and materials for you to discover. Whether you’re crafting powerful weapons, sturdy armors, or reliable shields, you’ll find that everything has been fine-tuned for better balance between quest rewards and the items you can craft on your own.

[...]

RPGFan looks back at Dragon Age: Inquisition:

Retro Encounter Final Thoughts – Dragon Age: Inquisition

Audra Bowling
I still have fond memories of my first Dragon Age: Inquisition playthrough, so I was thrilled when the opportunity to revisit the game right before the looming release date for Dragon Age: The Veilguard presented itself. I’ll always have a nostalgic soft spot for BioWare games, and I am pleasantly surprised to find that DAI still holds up incredibly well.

For my second foray into DAI, I shook things up from my typical DA playthrough traditions by choosing to be a warrior instead of a mage or rogue, eventually specializing in the potent Reaver class. I opted to go for a Dalish Elf Origin even though I’ve always personally been more partial to the City Elves in DA lore. I also actively tried to befriend all of the characters I could. I even decided to go for the tragic Solas romance to see how it permeated the engrossing Trespasser epilogue DLC, despite my preference of happy/hopeful love stories.

I don’t regret these decisions, finding myself rewarded with a thoroughly satisfying playthrough. This time around I managed to encounter a bevy of new scenarios and dialogues that helped strengthen my opinions on characters such as Sera and Blackwall, with my Inquisitor even becoming an honorary Red Jenny! I feel confident with carrying over this particular version of my DAI forays into the fourth game’s lore. Thedas is a fascinating and compelling fantasy world with plenty of memorable characters, and the Inquisition’s wide-spanning quest continues to have considerable reach.

[...]

Thanks Couchpotato!

After a successful Kickstarter the Adenture RPG Whispers of the Eyeless has been anoounced:

Whispers of the Eyeless Announcement Trailer

Whispers of the Eyeless is a strategy RPG set in a dark fantasy world full of secrets. Infiltrate the city of Aranthor and gather resources across its districts, slay enemies through turn-based combat, guide your cult to glory, and influence the fate of Aranthor by reviving the Dead Gods.

Thanks Couchpotato and Farflame!

Couchpotato spotted some new details about Starfield - Shattered Space on Wccftech:

Starfield Turns One Today and Bethesda Has Shared Some New Shattered Space Details

Today, Bethesda Game Studios celebrates the one-year anniversary since the release of Starfield, its first new intellectual property in 25 years, as well as its first-ever sci-fi franchise. On Twitter/X, the team thanked all the millions of players (14, last we heard in June) that made this first year 'incredible' for Bethesda. At the same time, they said there's much more on the way, starting with the Shattered Space expansion set for a debut on September 30.

They then took the opportunity to share a few new tidbits about what will be in Starfield Shattered Space:

• Over 50 new locations to discover and explore across Va'ruun'kai.
• New grenades to craft that stem from organic material you gather (and it's gross).
• Formidable new enemies - be on your guard for Redeemed and Vortex Horrors...
• You haven't seen the last of Zealots, Spacers, or the Crimson Fleet... As you explore the planet, be on the lookout for those taking advantage of the situation.

[...]

Gamereactor interviewed Virtual Alchemy about Band of Crusaders:

A dark medieval strategy RPG (Gamescom) - Interview with Virtual Alchemy about Band of Crusaders

We caught up with Dominik Sypnicki and Kamil Mickiewicz to learn more about their upcoming dark fantasy RPG based in a twisted and medieval version of Europe.

-> Video-Link

[...]

Thanks Couchpotato!

Like every week the RPG Crawler sums up the computer and tabletop RPG news:

RPG News Roundup (9-7-2024)

Learn more about the adventure game The Crimson Diamond:

MC537: The Crimson Diamond with Julia Minamata

Thanks Couchpotato!

Couchpotato spotted a new trailer for GreedFall 2:

Greedfall 2: The Dying World - Official Fausta Character Trailer

The immersive sim CORPUS EDAX has been released:

CORPUS EDAX - Gameplay & Release Date Trailer

Mortismal Gaming presents the highlights of the newest Baldur's Gate 3 patch:

Baldur's Gate 3: Patch 7 Highlights

Thanks Couchpotato!

Couchpotato spotted two previews for Fantasian Neo Dimension:

MMORPG: FANTASIAN Neo Dimension Preview: Once More, With Feeling - PAX West Hands-On

Shacknews: Fantasian Neo Dimension reinvents the classic Final Fantasy turn-based battle

Techraptor checked out Kingdom Come: Deliverance II:

Kingdom Come: Deliverance II - Preview

Everything I loved about Kingdom Come: Deliverance is back in the sequel, just done in a bigger and better way. More importantly for some, Kingdom Come: Deliverance II is more refined -- easier to get a grip on.

Because Kingdom Come: Deliverance is so crunchy with so much emphasis on trying to be as realistic as possible, it’s an easy title to bounce off of. Layer on top of that a combat system that takes some time to get used to, and it can be an even tougher sale. 

Thankfully, from the brief time I played with the sequel, a lot of that is much easier to get a grip on and understand right away. The sequel is just as deep with just as many moving pieces as before, just easier to manage this time. 

[...]

Thanks Couchpotato!

Insider-Gaming asks the following question:

One Year Later, Will Shattered Space Save Starfield?

It has been a year to the day since Starfield was released on Xbox and PC, taking the world by storm but landing a relatively mixed reception after a few days in the open. It was in development for a staggering amount of time, and when it finally hit the market, it wavered in its ability to live up to the hype.

The game is now one year old, and the first major expansion for the title – Shattered Space – will be released at the end of the month. With that in mind, it’s a critical time to take a look at the game’s performance and determine if anyone is still playing Starfield.

[...]

The Turn Based Lovers checked out Guild Saga: Vanished Worlds:

Tactical RPG Guild Saga: Vanished Worlds Arrives In October

Ocelot Technologies proudly announces the upcoming release of Guild Saga: Vanished Worlds, a tactical turn-based RPG arriving on Steam October 10, 2024. Blending classic RPG elements with modern storytelling, the game offers players a chance to shape their own adventure in the vast and dynamic world of Aarde.

[...]

Thanks Couchpotato!

Gamesindustry thinks about expandalone games:

Does the rise of 'expandalone' games mean the end for big DLC?

There's been a recent spate of expansions that have been reimagined as full games

Dying Light: The Beast is a new game from Techland that, originally, was destined to be DLC for Dying Light 2.

It's a familiar story. Last year's Assassin's Creed Mirage from Ubisoft was originally conceived as an expansion for Assassin's Creed Valhalla, before becoming its own, shorter standalone game. The most recent Call of Duty, Modern Warfare 3, according to reports, was initially planned as an expansion for Modern Warfare 2 before, again, it was reimagined as a separate game.

The idea of a shorter 'semi-sequels', or 'expandalone' games, is nothing remotely new. It's the idea of taking the work done on a previous title – such as the assets and structure – and building something new out of it. And this approach has led to some truly iconic games, such as The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon and Fallout: New Vegas.

[...]

Thanks Couchpotato!