Kane99

Project Pantheon is an upcoming free-to-play live service extraction RPG with hack-and-slash mechanics from Wolcen Studio. It sounds interesting enough. Seems there is a lot of PvPvE combat. There will be a closed alpha test for the game. For those in Europe it'll be from January 25-26, 2025, and for players in North America it'll be February 1-2, 2025. You fan check out a Q&A with makers here for more info on the game - https://www.gematsu.com/2025/01/free-to-play-extraction-rpg-project-pantheon-announced-for-pc You can find the game on Steam here - https://store.steampowered.com/app/3086590/Project_Pantheon/

Source - https://mp1st.com/news/the-elder-scrolls-oblivion-remake-real-gameplay-improvement-details Well this is good news for console games, as a remake of The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion is currently being worked on. This of course is not to be confused with the fan remake Skyblivion that is being worked on for PC. I wonder if Microsoft and Bethesda will try to take that game down with this remake coming. The new remake will be made under unreal engine 5 and is confirmed to be fully remade and not just a remaster. There is even new improvements to the game that should help with gameplay as well. So are you psyched that Bethesda is making a remake of Elder Scrolls 4? Will Skyblivion still come out?

The Blood of Dawnwalker is a new single-player open-world RPG from the people at Rebel Wolves. It will release for PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox X|S. You can find more on the game on their website here - https://dawnwalkergame.com The trailer below doesn't state a release date, but does mention a gameplay reveal will come in summer 2025. So it will probably be a ways off yet.

Human Within is a new VR game for PC & Meta Quest 3S, 3, 2, and the Quest Pro. It released last week on the Meta platforms and looks to be coming out on Steam at a later date. This is a story driven game where your choices matter throughout. You can find it on the meta store here - https://www.meta.com/experiences/human-within/6218357148255323/ Steam - https://store.steampowered.com/app/1546070/Human_Within/

Dawn of the Jets is a new VR flight sim available for the Meta Quest 3, 3S, and 2 VR headsets. Check it out on the meta site here - https://www.meta.com/experiences/dawn-of-jets/3677727965681410/

What would you say was your all time favorite game or games to beta test? I have been a part of a couple beta tests in the past, mostly for some of the older Call of Duty games, or the ones that did a short beta period for pre-ordering the game, I don't remember which ones though, it's been so long as they all sort of blend together. But I don't remember being a part of too many others. So I want to ask you guys, what were some of your favorite beta's to be a part of? And did you eventually go on to buy the game you beta tested for?

Home Sports is a new VR sports game from the people at Resolution Games. They've produced games such as Demeo, Racket Club, and Blastion. All happen to be VR games as well. Home Sports features sports like; badminton, pickleball, mini-golf, bowling, and hockey. The game is available for the Meta Quest 3 and 3S, sadly it seems like the Meta Quest 2 is not supported. You can find the game here - https://www.meta.com/experiences/home-sports/8975028309180826/ This site did a review of the game and go more in detail on it - https://www.thumbculture.co.uk/home-sports-quest-3-review

Go Home Annie is a new psychological thriller from the team at Misfit Village. The game is set in the SCP universe. I don't know a whole lot about that, but I know there's a fandom around it. The game looks interesting. Check out the trailer below. It's available for PC (Steam, Epic Games Store, and GOG).

Flint: Treasure of Oblivion is a pirate themed real-time turn-based combat game from Savage Level that released early Dec 2024. It's available on PC via Epic Games, Steam, GOG, as well as the PS5, and the Xbox Series X|S. Has anyone here played it yet? Worth checking out?

Be safe when it comes to downloading games on mobile markets, it seems like so many of them are clogged with suspicious and potentially dangerous apps/games. It seems another scam has come our way in the form of a Baldur's Gate 3 mobile port on the iOS app store. This port is a game made by scammers called Baldur’s Gate 3 – Mobile Turuk was released back in November of 2024. The scam is said to be getting people to pay for a useless subscription at $29.99 for 30 days. It says the subscription unlocks access to the game, but that isn't the case at all. The article discussing this, also discusses how there are other scam games that get released on the iOS app store, like a GTA 6 mobile game. Thankfully these games do not last long on the store, but it's not good that so many of these games get released in the first place. I think there needs to be more vetting on these games before they can just release on the app stores. Check the article out here - https://www.videogamer.com/news/fake-baldurs-gate-3-mobile-port-scam/

A Nintendo Switch 2 replica will be shown off behind closed doors by video game accessory maker Genki as they will be showing off some of their upcoming peripherals and accessories for the upcoming console. This is essentially another leak for the Switch 2, and this time by a third party gaming company. I hear even dbrand leaked some details on the console with their accessory previews. You can read more about this news here - https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/a-nintendo-switch-2-replica-is-being-showcased-behind-closed-doors-at-ces/

Source - https://www.timeextension.com/news/2025/01/after-what-feels-like-a-lifetime-amazon-is-cancelling-mighty-no-9-3ds-and-vita-pre-orders?utm_campaign=promoted-articles If you happened to put in a pre-order for Might No. 9 for the 3DS or PS Vita back in 2018, well I'm sad to say, those versions are not coming. Amazon recently cancelled all outstanding pre-orders of these versions, as the developer never finished them. The 3DS and PS Vita versions were delayed back when the game released for other consoles, and never saw life. I didn't even know Amazon holds pre-orders that long in their system. Especially for a game that had already released on various other consoles. Makes me wonder if anyone put in pre-orders in at gamestop for these versions. My guess is Gamestop kept any of those pre-order earnings. I know Amazon doesn't charge you until a game is shipped, but I imagine GameStop had some pre-orders, with people putting down $5 or more to pre-order it. That money is never going to get returned.

DETECTIVE - The Motel is a new crime/investigation game where you're responsible for solving crimes as fast as you can. It just released on PC, Xbox One, Series X|S, PS4 and PS5. Game here - https://store.steampowered.com/app/2852480/DETECTIVE__The_Motel/

Tokyo Xtreme Racer is an upcoming racing game that will first release in early access this month (jan 22nd). I'm getting Need For Speed Underground vibes from this one, and I can see myself giving this a shot. I know my brother who is a big NFS fan would likely be into this one. I'm hearing though that this is based on a series already. You can find more on this game here - https://simulationdaily.com/news/tokyo-xtreme-racer-release-date/ And the actual game can be wish listed here until its official release - https://store.steampowered.com/app/2634950/Tokyo_Xtreme_Racer/

Source - https://www.ign.com/articles/ces-2025-hyperkin-unveils-dualsense-style-xbox-controller-called-the-competitor Looks like Hyperkin has a DualSense-Style Xbox controller coming out soon called the Competitor. It was revealed during CES 2025. It will also work on PC. it will be more like a pro-controller as it has back buttons and Hall Effect sticks and triggers. They say it's meant for highly competitive gamers, but I'm kind of tempted to pick this up. Two of my PowerA fusion controllers have stopped working on my PC, so I am in need of a good replacement controller. Just hope it's not crazy expensive, which I imagine it will be.

I'm thinking about updating an old PC I have lying around to build it up into a cheap gaming PC. I was wondering if anyone here has had any success buying PC parts from places like Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist? What tips would you give? If you have purchased parts on FB Marketplace or any other classifieds site, how did the build go? What suggestions would you give to help make the process easier?

It's an end of an era for the Friday the 13th: The Video Game, as the servers have been shut down and the game is no longer for sale as of December 31st. You can still play th game on PC, likely through private servers, but fans of the console port will be out of luck, as that version of the game will be rendered obsolete. So if you own the game on console, you will no longer be able to play it. I didn't play much of this game, but did have fun the brief time I did play it. It's kind of sad to see a game end its run like this though, but I think it's always been inevitable when the studio behind the game had to stop working on it due to a licensing dispute. Just imagine if they were able to update the game, we might have gotten a vastly improved game. But that's not how it turned out unfortunately. Anyway, what do you think the legacy of this game will be? Will we ever get a new Friday the 13th game from a new studio? Would it be a multiplayer game again? You can read about this news here - https://www.gamesandwich.com/news/friday-the-13th-the-game-goes-offline-forever-after-the-new-year/

I found an interesting article that discusses the idea of seeing Assassin's Creed taking place in the wild west, and it made me wonder, what other locations would be interesting to see featured in an Assassin's Creed game? You can check that article out here - https://tech4gamers.com/wild-west-assassins-creed/ Honestly a wild west setting would be cool, especially in the AC world. The next game we're getting will take place in Japan, so where else could we end up seeing an AC game take place? I am always for a future AC game, as there was teases in past games of a future setting with the animus and the fact you learn your ancestors skills. So a future setting I think would work great. But what are some other locations or time periods would you like to see AC venture off into?

This is really cool, I guess a prototype early build for Half-Life: Blue Shift leaked recently. It was a build from back in 2000. Blue Shift was an expansion that came out for Half-Life in 2001. The cool thing is, this seems to be from a Dreamcast version of the game, but that game never released as it was cancelled before it could drop. Check out the footage below. You can also read more about this news here - https://twistedvoxel.com/half-life-blue-shift-prototype-leak/

And you can play the full game to completion. I guess early on, the game was planned to release on the Dreamcast, but Rockstar later moved development to the PS2. But it seems it was very possible to make a port work on the Dreamcast. It's not perfect right now, but works. I imagine it can be fixed up even better, to the point gameplay may even get smoother. Check out a video showing it off and discussing it.

NerdStash has a post up about 10 early access games you should have on your wish list essentially. I've never heard of any of these games myself, but the majority of them look pretty decent. The list can be viewed below, and more details on each game can be viewed here - https://thenerdstash.com/10-early-access-games-you-should-have-on-your-most-anticipated-list-but-probably-dont/ The Ranch of Rivershine Ender Magnolia: Bloom in the Mist Mind Over Magic Beastieball Worshippers of Cthulhu Critter Cove Cursed Crew Trash of the Titans Coffee Please STONKS-9800: Stock Market Simulator Do any of these games interest you? Trash of the Titans, Ender Magnolia, and Cursed Crew look interesting to me.

Source - https://tech4gamers.com/gaming-industry-laid-off-25000-people-2023-2024/ It's sad that so many people were laid-off when it came to the gaming industry. Around 25,000 employees were let go or fired from their jobs. The big companies that partook in the layoffs were big time companies like; Microsoft, PlayStation, EA, Activision and more. The article above seems to blame the layoffs on increasing costs of game development. As well, it seems live-service games has been a big reason for layoffs as well. Concord is a bit one to bring up as an example. What I don't get is why are all these CEOs and people in charge making majority of the money, and yet thousands of employees get let go to save money? Why do CEOs need to be paid millions or even hundreds of millions to do their work? Couldn't they let some of those earnings trickle down to the workers more? What do you think? Do you think we'll see a rise in layoffs in 2025? Or will things calm down in the new year?

Source - https://gamersocialclub.ca/2024/12/30/10-non-gaming-ips-that-need-a-new-game-who-should-develop-them/ The article above lists off 10 non gaming IPs that need a new game along with the developers that should work on them. The list has some franchises that have had games already, but haven't had one in years. Some of those include The Punisher, SpongeBob, Sherlock Holmes, Judge Dredd, The Hulk, John Wick and I think a couple others on the list. Some on the list that I don't recall got a game were Doctor Strange, and Invincible. I don't know about Berserk or Avatar, but I thought both had a game already. They mention ID as a good developer for The Punisher. Sloclap for John Wick as they worked on Sifu and I think his style of fighting would work in game form. Sloclap would be the team to do it right too. Remedy for a Doctor Strange game, and Invincible from Rocksteady. Would you be into any of these IPs being given another game?

2025 is going to be a stacked year for major anniversaries in the gaming world. All I know, is this all just makes me feel super old now. Destructoid recently posted a list of the major anniversaries, including the likes of; Battle Arena Toshinden (PS1) (going on its 30th anniversary), Resident Evil 4 (GameCube) (20th anniversary), Oddworld: Stranger’s Wrath (Xbox) (20th anniversary), and more. You can view the full list here: https://www.destructoid.com/all-major-2025-gaming-anniversaries/

I was huge into the first couple Jak & Daxter games, and am sad to see that Sony hasn't really done anything with franchise since. I hear there are some classic Sony IPs featured in AstroBot and I hear there is a nod to Jak & Daxter. I haven't played it myself, but I can only imagine what the nod was. Anyway, it made me think of a new Jak & Daxter game. I would love to see them revive the game. I know Naughty Dog were the original developers, but I don't think they would be involved if a new game was produced. But I would just love to see a revival or even a continuation of the series. We got Ratchet and Clank pretty much each generation since, why no Jak and Daxter love?