Private Division, a publishing label of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc., and Wētā Workshop, known for their work on the world of Middle-earth for The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, today revealed Tales of the Shire: A The Lord of the Rings Game, a cosy Hobbit life sim set in the Middle-earth universe of J.R.R. Tolkien. Developed by Wētā Workshop Game Studio, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Wētā Workshop, Tales of the Shire will launch in the second half of 2024 on the Nintendo Switch system, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC via Steam.

In Tales of the Shire, experience the storybook return to Middle-earth's most inviting region by living life as a Hobbit in the idyllic town of Bywater. Unwind in the breathtaking pastures, visit the townsfolks' local shops, or even enjoy second breakfast. Help bring the community together and achieve official village status by throwing the greatest Bywater Festival the Shire has ever seen!

The time has come, sharpen your axe and ready your shield. ⚔️ Godsworn is now available in Early Access! Godsworn is a classic mythological RTS. Experience an epic fantasy retelling of the northern crusades, where pagan gods and their tribes clash against crusaders and armies of heaven. Choose a divine hero, rally worshippers alongside mythical creatures, and smite the unworthy!

The wild pagan lands have been under the watchful eye of the gods for as long as time. The arrival of a knight order bearing the banner of heaven threatens to upset the uneasy alliance. Will the realm burn, or will blood of both divine and mortal be spilled to protect it?

Calling out to all necromancers! Necrosmith 2 is now available on Windows and macOS ☠️Return to the world of the necromancy! This time, raise your undead against dreadful monsters, utilizing the newest features to create titans and control them to lead your army to victory. They await your command to begin the battle!

Like a dead man reanimated by dark sorcery, the necromancer simulator is back. Assemble your undead from different body parts, combining the abilities of various fantasy races. Upgrade your tower and give it a unique look. Fight your way through hordes of enemies in a procedurally generated world and take titans under control. Give the undead the ability to fly over mountains and swim across rivers, explore a fully generated world at night and fend off enemy hordes during the day. Start a new, uhm, life.

Welcome to the 13th and luckiest week of the year, which is also the last week of March and Easter Week in many countries. Fortunately, we're still getting a ton of new games this week, most of which are released on Tuesday for some strange reason. This week's major release is from strategy game experts Paradox Interactive and it's one of several strategy games this week. The remaining game releases this week includes a cosy MMO, robots, a new take on a city builder, some familiar faces that are up to no good as usual, some necromancing, divine heroes and a spice grinder.

Millennia / This week's major release / Tuesday 26 March
Create your own nation in Millennia, a historical turn-based 4X game that challenges your strategic prowess across 10,000 years of history, from the dawn of humanity to our possible futures. Set the course of history and experience different timelines in every playthrough as you write an epic story through your actions. Lead your people through times of crisis and ages of discovery, face great challenges and opportunities, and build a civilization that prospers through the ages. Steam Link

Stolen Realm is a game that's been partly inspired by the work of Larian Studios, via the fantastic Divinity: Original Sin games, so while we've been finishing up Stolen Realm over the last few months, it's been fantastic to see Baldur's Gate 3 explode and show there is a huge appetite for games like ours. If you're one of those Xbox fans looking for a new game to scratch that Baldur's Gate 3 itch, we hope Stolen Realm will do that for you. However, we also want to tell you about the unique twists our game has that helps speed up combat, keeps you making fun choices and makes it perfect for co-op.

Stolen Realm has a synchronous turn system. This means that all the players on your team can all take their turns at the same time, the enemies likewise. With this system, our game offers the same kind of tactical combat you'd expect from the likes of Baldur's Gate 3 and Divinity: Original Sun, but with combat encounters that move at a far quicker pace. This means that when you're playing co-op with your friends, there's no waiting around for your turn while your buddy ponders his next move. You'll be onto the next step of your adventure in no time, so you can spend less time waiting and more time having friendly argument about whether you should go for another combat encounter, a special event, or some treasure as you move through our games diverse fantasy environments.

Week 12 is really delivering a baker's dozen when it comes to big game releases, as we have both new and old big releases this week, with this week's AAA release being an open world action RPG game. However, if that's not your cup of tea, then we still have a week packed to the brim with big releases, although it starts off with a bug-sized indie game, but its theme carries over to the next release and this game somehow involves robots. This is followed by a game where you might want to have someone's hand to hold, as it can get a bit scary, even if it's a remake. Towards the end of this week we have another major release, which also involves robots and was a big hit on the PlayStation consoles. We end the week on a somewhat similar theme as the first two game releases of the week, even though it's on a much grander scale.

Dragon's Dogma 2 / This week's AAA release / Friday 22 March
Dragon's Dogma is a single player, narrative driven action-RPG series that challenges the players to choose their own experience - from the appearance of their Arisen, their vocation, their party, how to approach different situations and more. Now, in this long-awaited sequel, the deep, explorable fantasy world of Dragon's Dogma 2 awaits. On your journey, you'll be joined by Pawns, mysterious otherworldly beings, in an adventure so unique you will feel as if accompanied by other players while on your own adventure. All of these elements are elevated further through physics technology, artificial intelligence (AI) and the latest in graphics, to create a truly immersive fantasy world in Dragon's Dogma 2. Steam Link

Founded in 2022, Mighty Koi Studio aims to prove that "The Witcher" is not the only Polish fantasy story that can conquer the world. The studio holds the rights to two electrifying titles, offering creators vast creative possibilities. "Thorgal" and "The Night Wanderer" will launch on PS5, Xbox Series and PC. The release date is yet TBA. The team bases its productions on the Unreal Engine 5 with proprietary extensions and utilizes cutting-edge technologies such as photogrammetry and AI.

The approach to plans comes with great ambition, announcing two AA+ / AAA projects and engaging experienced experts from the world of gaming and animation - currently, the team consists of over 100 people, and the number is expected to double by the end of the year, with external studios also being involved. Mighty Koi hopes that the upcoming productions will conquer not only the Polish but also the foreign gaming market and, like "The Witcher," make Polish fantasy literature a world-class product.

Prepare for your grand adventure, Arisen! Create your characters for Dragon's Dogma 2 in this free tool, available now! Customize the looks of your main character, the Arisen, and the looks and inclination of your companion, your Main Pawn. The character data created in this tool can be transferred to the base game of Dragon's Dogma 2. In this tool you can store up to 5 characters of each, the Arisen and your Main Pawn respectively. PC gamers can download the Dragon's Dogma 2 Character Creator & Storage tool via Steam.

Dragon's Dogma 2 is a single player, narrative driven action-RPG that challenges the players to choose their own experience - from the appearance of their Arisen, their vocation, their party, how to approach different situations and more - in a truly immersive fantasy world. You can pre-order the Standard Edition or the Digital Deluxe Edition of Dragon's Dogma 2 via the game's official site. Dragon's Dogma 2 will release worldwide on March 22.

Hello everyone! The Thaumaturge is out now! Traverse the complex tapestry of 1905 Warsaw where harsh reality intertwines with mysterious powers and dark entities. Use your mystical abilities to tame powerful salutors and investigate the city's deepest secrets. Step onto the culturally flourishing streets of Warsaw with an even more fashionable style in The Thaumaturge Digital Deluxe Edition.

The Thaumaturge bypasses traditional genre elements and features side quests seamlessly integrated with the main story, along with a meaningful, personal, narrative-driven adventure backed by a myriad of smaller stories. Influence and manipulate characters, carving your path in this world. Exercise caution, as each decision holds consequences that either restrain or feed your inner flaws such as pride, vehemence, or scheming. Give impactful responses through the choice-infused dialogue system. Immerse yourself in turn-based encounters elevated by salutors, ethereal entities commanded by the thaumaturge. Employ your perception to predict and overtake enemy moves, and utilize salutors' unique abilities for strategic dominance. Drawing inspiration from Slavic folklore, these entities feature psychic strikes and manipulation, along with a wide array of upgrades that transform Wiktor's skills in combat into an engaging dance of strength and strategy.

ATLUS has announced Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance, coming to the Nintendo Switch family of systems, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Windows and Steam on June 21, 2024. The latest title in the series, Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance allows players to enjoy the story of Shin Megami Tensei V in its entirety, with a new story path, untold in the original. Massively expanded with new areas, demons, and music, Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance features more accessible gameplay, an improved battle system, new demon experiences, and greater field exploration.

When a grisly murder scene in modern-day Tokyo blocks the protagonist's walk home, an unplanned detour leaves him buried and unconscious. He finds himself in a wasteland ravaged by apocalypse now called Da'at. Before bloodthirsty demons can claim his life, a savior emerges, and they unite to become a mighty being, neither human nor demon: a Nahobino.

As we enter the third week of the year's shortest month, we have a ton of new games to look forward to, with the major release this week being a gaslamp fantasy game with an open world and some multiplayer co-op action. As for the remaining games this week, we have an indie sci-fi shooter, a racing sim, a terminator franchise title, a couple of survival games set in different locations, with the latter one being a multiplayer game as well.

Nightingale / This week's major release / Tuesday 20 February
Nightingale is a PVE open-world survival crafting game played solo or cooperatively with friends. Build, craft, fight and explore as you venture through mystical portals into a variety of amazing and fantastical realms. You are stranded beyond our world, cut off by the collapse of the arcane portal network. This catastrophe has left you fighting to survive in a labyrinth of beautiful and dangerous Fae realms. Your goal: become a skilled Realmwalker, and navigate the web of transdimensional portals. Only then can you discover your way to the magical city of Nightingale, the last known bastion of humanity.

Aye, Banishers!✨We are pleased to announce that Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden launched with critical acclaim on February 13! Discover how the intimate narrative Action-RPG conquered the hearts of players, with a current 89% user score on Steam, and garnered worldwide praise from the press in today's Accolades trailer! Immersing players in an "atmospheric, lore-rich world," Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden strikes a chord thanks to its "engaging and well-written story, dynamic combat system" and "excellent character performances."

Focus Entertainment and DON'T NOD are thrilled by such a positive reception, and can't wait to hear what players will share in the future, as they take on an emotionally moving journey between life, death, love and sacrifices. Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden is out now on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Steam and Epic Games Store. Buy the game, grab its Collector's Edition or the Red Echoes Edition, and sign up as a Focus member or subscribe to the newsletter to get the latest exclusive information and upcoming special offers for Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden and the entire Focus catalog.

We—Fool's Theory—are happy to share that the game is now complete, and numerous reviewers have it already in their hands. At the same time, taking February's busy launch period into account and the opening for a better release window, we've decided to take this opportunity to give The Thaumaturge more breathing room so it receives the attention we believe it deserves.

We want you to have enough time to enjoy the game in full, and we feel that the current release window is not the perfect moment for it. With that in mind, we are moving the launch date to March 4th, 2024. The additional time we're getting will be used to polish the game further so that your journey through the streets of 1905 Warsaw is even more enjoyable. We truly can't wait for you to play it, and thank you for your patience!

As we enter the year of the dragon according to the Chinese zodiac, we have a week full of new game releases to look forward to, although none of them are unfortunately dragon themed. This week's AAA release has a more caribbean theme and has been a long time coming. As for the remaining releases, we're looking at a dash of phobia, banishment, some insight, dwarves, colonisation and a dark town.

Skull & Bones / This week's AAA release / Friday 16 February
Enter the perilous world of Skull and Bones, a co-op pirate open world action RPG experience, to become the most infamous pirate kingpin. Engage in thrilling naval battles, craft a variety of unique ships, forge unlikely alliances as you overcome the odds, and bring mayhem on the seas. Be part of an immersive world that introduces new challenges and features every season

Hi everyone, we have received feedback from players about the quest progression of Enshrouded. Many of you are frustrated with the fact that it is currently mainly server-side instead of player-side. We have some good news to share. Put your reading hats on, this one's long...When designing this system, we believed that the best way to enjoy Enshrouded was with a group of friends who are all working cooperatively together. However, we know that having quests completed while one player is offline might feel bad for those who feel they are missing parts of the gameplay experience. We designed Enshrouded as a co-op game. While working on it, we envisioned one group of friends experiencing the world together—sharing bases, resources, crafting recipes, and loot.

Furthermore, we wanted players to be able to play together meaningfully with different groups of friends and on different servers. We developed a game environment where a new player could join a long-running server and jump into the same action as their friends. Skipping the "tutorial" server quests to instead learn through conversation and cooperation, uniting the group. Our reasoning was that players shouldn't feel forced to participate in quests. Our player base is diverse, after all. Not everyone is bound to enjoy our combat or puzzles as much as building a base or exploring. If some players in a group want to focus on building or farming, while others are going on adventures, both making meaningful progress for the group, that should be fine.

Paradox Interactive and Triumph Studios have announced the release date for Age of Wonders 4: Primal Fury, a new content pack coming on February 27, 2024 to the award-winning fantasy strategy game for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. The studios also revealed the full list of features that will be included with Primal Fury, including a new Primal Culture themed around mastery of beasts and nature, new Tomes of Magic to wield the forces of mists and storms, new physical forms, mounts, and much more. Primal Fury will be available on all platforms for a suggested retail price of $9.99/£8.49/€9.99; players who purchased the Premium Edition of Age of Wonders 4 or the Expansion Pass will receive Primal Fury at launch for no additional cost.

In the Age of Wonders 4: Primal Fury content pack, players will discover new ways to conquer the realms, and bring the land itself under their control. The new Primal Culture will enable rulers to channel an animal spirit that shapes their empire, both physically and spiritually. The Tome of Fey Mists and the Tome of the Stormborne, both added in Primal Fury, include new spells to conceal troops in magical fog, gain advantages over seas and shorelines, and even transform armies into fearsome nagas. The pack will also launch alongside the free Wolf Update, which will add new features and improvements requested by the Age of Wonders community, including a rework of necromancy, new randomly generated items, and War Bounties to better direct allies in conflicts.

Welcome to February proper, a week that brings one fairly big AAA release, followed by a few lesser titles. We have sparky tales, a remake by MicroProse, dungeons, inquisitors and a space based RPG game for you, none of which can be considered major releases, but might still be fun to play.

Helldivers 2 / This week's AAA release / Thursday 8 February
Helldivers 2 is a 3rd person squad-based shooter that sees the elite forces of the Helldivers battling to win an intergalactic struggle to rid the galaxy of the rising alien threats. From a 3rd person perspective, players use a variety of weapons (pistols, machine guns, flamethrowers) and stratagems (turrets, airstrikes, etc.) to shoot and kill the alien threats. Players can also aim down the sights for a more accurate 1st person camera view. Combat is accompanied by frequent sprays of blood and dismemberment as players exterminate the alien forces or players and squad mates are hit by environmental explosions or friendly fire. Enemy encampments and battlefield environments depict bloodstains and dismembered corpses.

Hey, everyone! We're excited to bring you some big (and heartwarming) news today! Today is the day! Get ready to trade in John's bang-bang gun for a watering can, and embark on a tranquil new life in Octopia. (Don't worry, you'll still need that frying pan 🍳). In Eastward: Octopia, Sam and John return in a parallel world adventure, leaving the miasma and monsters behind them, to start a simpler life, living off the land. Get ready to trade swords (or may we say rusty pans?) for shovels and embark on a tranquil world of rural life, fishing, and culinary magic in Octopia, the brand-new DLC for Eastward, landing on Steam and Nintendo Switch TODAY at $5.99 / £4.99 / €5.89 / 700円 / ¥22 CNY, with a special launch offer of 15% off the DLC running from today until February 14th! We're also running special limited-time offers on the base game & bundle too.

"I haven't played Eastward! Do I have to play the base game to get the most out of the DLC?"
Eastward: Octopia takes place in a parallel universe, so there's no need to have finished (or even started) Eastward's base game story to enjoy the simple life—you can even play it straight from the menu. However, please note that a copy of Eastward is required to access the DLC. Although many familiar faces appear in Eastward: Octopia, the plot, gameplay and character 'settings' will be a completely new experience. Once you've purchased and downloaded the DLC, make sure the DLC is 'checked' in the base game properties. After starting the base game of Eastward in your Steam Library, you can then travel to the pastoral time and space of Eastward: Octopia is a single click from the main menu interface! 🚞

Beneath the cathedral of Tristram, past the catacombs and deep caves, a Prime Evil grows in strength. Terror grips the townsfolk. They pray for someone to descend into the darkness, avenge their fallen friends, save Tristram, and destroy their demonic malefactor. Will you answer the call? Return to 1997's Diablo, the title that launched one of gaming's most enduring action-RPG franchises. Warriors, Rogues, and Sorcerers can now grab the game from the Battle.net Shop and stand against darkness once again in this genre classic.

Experience the legendary action-RPG that defined a genre
1997's Diablo set the stage for a new type of game that combined fast-paced action, deep character customization, intense multiplayer combat, and dark gothic fantasy in one bone-chilling package. Choose your destiny—storm Diablo's halls as either a Warrior, a Sorcerer or a Rogue, each with unique skills and abilities. Unite to destroy Diablo—join forces with up to 3 other players, delve into the hellbound depths beneath Tristram, and face the Prime Evil together.

Greetings, Flameborn! In just four days, Enshrouded has attracted over a million players! We are completely blown away by its success and the overwhelmingly positive reception. From the bottom of our hearts, we want to thank all our players. We're excited to let you know that this is just the beginning for Enshrouded. We are looking forward to continuing the development of the game with your support, aiming to make Enshrouded the best game it can be.

We are back to work this week and working tirelessly on the next update. We would like to thank those of you who have sent suggestions and feedback, as well as those who have reached out to share issues they've encountered. There is a lot of you but this is the start of something we want to make truly special, and thanks to your support, we're well on our way to make it happen with Enshrouded. Once again, a heartfelt thank you to everyone! The Keen Team.

With his long silver hair, enormous odachi blade and epic theme song composed by legendary Nobuo Uematsu himself - Sephiroth is one of the most recognizable antagonists in RPG's history. The one-winged angel debuted in the original Final Fantasy VII in 1997 as a once-loved war hero and first-class SOLDIER who descended into madness and promised to destroy the planet upon learning of his unnatural creation. But there is much more to Sephiroth than just that. In Final Fantasy VII Remake, Sephiroth appears sporadically, mainly as a haunting memory, as the story focuses on Cloud and his friends trying to stop the evil corporation Shinra from killing the planet by using its life essence, mako, as an energy source.

In the upcoming Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, however, we will see Sephiroth in his full glory. We asked Producer Yoshinori Kitase to discuss reimagining this iconic character in the Remakes: "The story in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth starts after the team has escaped Midgar and continues all the way up to the Forgotten Capital. In the original game, Sephiroth barely appeared during this section, but in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, he is the driving force that pulls the story along to fill that void. He is depicted in even more depth than in the original game, and I think this makes him an even more charismatic and appealing antagonist than before."

Greetings, Flameborn! What a week it's been for Enshrouded! We've actually been quite overwhelmed with the amount of support we've seen. The realm of Embervale is lost. In their greed for magical power, your ancestors unleashed a pestilence that consumed the world. Enshrouded is a game of survival, crafting, and Action RPG combat, set within a sprawling voxel-based continent. As you journey across the mountains and deserts of an open world, you are free to choose your path and shape your destiny. Ignite the Ancient power of the Flame, and piece together the fragments of a story that unfolds below the surface...After nearly choking on our celebratory drinks, we got back to work. But before we talk about what's ahead, allow us to share a couple of reviews we liked: IGN 8/10, RPG Site 8/10, and God is a Geek—they're utterly hooked!

Now onto the work part!
We've released 5 hotfixes for the game since Wednesday's release. You can find the specifics here. There are a few issues we are aware of but need more time to fix—our outstanding tasks list is here. We will be taking some much needed rest this weekend, and are coming back ready to kick some bug ass next week. You've helped us make sure Enshrouded is off to a great start. We'll be back next week for the next step of the journey! Thanks, The Keen Team.

At the recent Xbox Developer_Direct 2024 broadcast, Obsidian Entertainment shared its most comprehensive look yet at its upcoming fantasy-action RPG, Avowed. But even that only scratched at the surface of what's coming your way this fall. On today's special episode of The Official Xbox Podcast, Avowed Game Director Carrie Patel and Gameplay Director Gabe Paramo shared an extended look at the quest showcased during Developer_Direct, providing more detail on the moment-to-moment experience of the flexible combat system, and where this side quest fits in the larger narrative of Avowed.

This latest look at Avowed gives us a good idea of what to expect from Shatterscarp, one part of the ecologically diverse island of The Living Lands, all in the same universe as Obsidian's CRPG series Pillars of Eternity. But what makes Avowed a very 'Obsidian game' goes far beyond the commonality of setting in the world of Eora. "It's really about our player-centric approach to role play," Patel shared during this week's Podcast. "The way we really approach consequence and choice is giving players the opportunities to define who they are in this world, how they want to behave - what fantasy, what challenges they want to undertake." It's all part of Obsidian's "your worlds, your way" approach, and players will feel the weight of their choices moment-to-moment with every slash, parry, and spell cast.

It's going to be a good year for Xbox players. At this week's Developer_Direct show, we provided deep-dives into five new games launching across Xbox Series X|S, PC, Game Pass and/or cloud—all of which will arrive later in 2024. Development teams at Xbox, Bethesda, and even one of our third-party partners invited you into their studios to showcase extended gameplay, reveal key information, and more. Members of each development team gave us a look into their creation, with new information, and offered a tantalizing glimpse of what's to come this year. All four of these games will arrive on day one with Game Pass, and will contribute to what's going to be another huge year for members, delivering incredible games throughout 2024.

Avowed—Launching Fall 2024
Avowed Game Director Carrie Patel gave us a first deep-dive into the gameplay in Obsidian's upcoming fantasy action RPG, from its dynamic combat, to its thoughtful reactivity, to its "colorful, vibrant, strange" world set in the Living Lands. Avowed continues Obsidian's signature style of creating games with deep themes and player choice at the forefront. Not only will you make narrative decisions that can impact changes in the game down the line, but Avowed is also looking to offer choice in combat. Gameplay Director Gabe Paramo discussed not only how varied your weaponry will be - with melee weapons, ranged guns and bows, and magic-based wands (even dual-wielded wands!) to name a few—but how flexible combat can be, allowing you to quickly change loadouts for enemy encounters. Swappable loadouts mean you can approach combat however feels right to you.

Hello, Dom here, Studio Head at Ninja Theory. As I write this, we are now in the final few months of development on Senua's Saga: Hellblade II, preparing for our launch Day One on Xbox Game Pass and across Xbox Series X|S, Windows and Steam on May 21. It was a pleasure to give you all a deeper insight into Senua's next journey, our studio and our talented team in Developer Direct.

Since the release of Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice, Ninja Theory has transitioned from being an independent team to one that sits within Xbox Game Studios. Although this has seen change for Ninja Theory, particularly in terms of the support now available to us for striving towards our ambitions, what has not changed is our passion and commitment to our studio mission - to craft life-changing art with game changing tech.