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.

Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition had a landmark year in 2023 with the addition of the Return of Rome and The Mountain Royals expansions. More than four years after launch, the game continues to grow. Telling more stories from the world's rich history as well as bringing more civilizations to play. The next chapter for Age of Empires II: DE will be the single player focused DLC Victors and Vanquished, coming March 14th.

Introduced by its Creator, Ramsey Abdulrahim, this DLC will be like no other we've made before for AoE II: DE. Victors and Vanquished features 19 epic scenarios. Your strategy and choices will decide your fate: will you emerge as the ultimate victor, or fall as the vanquished? You'll play as Ragnar Lothbrok, Oda Nobunaga, Charlemagne and more. Each scenario features professional voice acting, new music, achievement and the quality you'd expect from an official Age of Empires scenario.

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

Released in 2013, and directed by the singular Josef Fares, Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons was a truly unique game. After their father falls ill, the game follows two, well, brothers as they set out into a strange and often dangerous world—with the twist being that a single player controls both characters simultaneously. They must cross dangerous lands, face deadly foes and rely on each other more than they ever have before to find a cure, leading players through a beautiful world by way of action-packed puzzles and obstacles. Almost a decade after the original game's release, nothing has quite replicated this game's mixture of unique controls and emotive storytelling. So, with our remake, we've concentrated on not just how to bring a modern classic back to life, but to preserve and enhance this incredible, one-off experience.

Remaking a Masterpiece
Our philosophy throughout the Remake process was to enhance the original, not distort. As we began to study the game, we realized that everything in Brothers, each environment, the puzzle, and interaction, is there for a specific reason and has its own goal to help support the overall story. Our job then became to modernize the experience while keeping everything that made the original special and memorable. Gameplay in Brothers is designed primarily for a unique, single-player experience (though local co-op is also included). As you explore, one controller controls both brothers and their ability to interact with the world. Each brother has their own unique abilities that will be required to solve the various puzzles and enemies they encounter.

Within the first few minutes of Tekken 8's story mode, I was whooping at the screen as I watched the iconic Jin Kazama sprout wings, throw three cars at his dad with his mind and then proceed to body slam him through a skyscraper. I knew that if the game has started on this foot, I was in a for a good time. Tekken 8 is a rambunctious, over-the-top, callback to the absurdity of the likes of Tekken 3, and you're going to absolutely love it.

Tekken 8's story mode follows Jin Kazama's journey to take down his father, Kazuya Mishima, who is once again hosting a tournament to find the world's greatest fighter. Contestants from countries all over the world will compete, and those that fail will face horrible consequences unless Jin puts a stop to his antics, all the while fighting to rediscover his own devilish powers. There is more to this story, of course, but one that you'll absolutely want to experience for yourself. Don't worry, if you're not up to date with the story so far, Tekken 8 offers a series of short videos that'll catch you up on the main plot.

As we enter the second week of September the release of new games is taking a bit of an autumn break. As such, we have no huge releases to look forward to this coming week, but it doesn't mean there aren't any new game releases. Expect a rather eclectic mix of games this week, ranging from co-op tavern defence to mythical forces and umbrellas to deceit, bombs and swords.

Tavernacle! / Monday 11 September
Grab your hammers and start to craft in this co-op Tavern Defense for one to four players. As a team of Dwarves, you must gather supplies and build towers to protect your beloved brewery. Learn to cooperate to achieve victory in this chaotic multiplayer game!

Today, 2K announced that NBA 2K24, the latest iteration of the top-rated NBA video game simulation series, is now available worldwide on PlayStation 5 (PS5), PlayStation 4 (PS4), Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch family of systems, and PC. Players can experience the past, present, and future of hoops culture with innovative updates in NBA 2K24. A focus on increased realism and competition are at the forefront of the newest entry with the introduction of immersive ProPLAY technology and crossplay functionality for New Gen, alongside so much more.

"We've ushered in a new era of 2K, thanks to the groundbreaking ProPLAY technology delivering the most authentic and realistic NBA 2K gameplay to date. NBA 2K24 also introduces new updates to our beloved modes with incredible details that will delight gamers and basketball fans alike."

Modern Wolf and Afterschool Studio are today proud to announce the official launch of sci-fi strategy game, Cantata, for PC.
After an action-packed year in Early Access that allowed the community to help shape the game's direction, this tactically rich turn-based epic has finally launched on Steam, immersing players in the unique stories, evocative visuals, and vibrant musical soundscape of a war-torn alien planet.

Fight to expand your hold on the mysterious world of Shoal in the first ever "Grand Tactics" game - combining the large-scale strategic planning of Grand Strategy titles with the turn-based skirmishes of the Tactics genre. Grow your empire with deep strategic gameplay that's easy to learn but takes time to master, capturing regions, building structures, expanding your army, and more. Play as one of three unique factions - the Machines, Aliens, or Humans - and carve out your legacy across nine single player campaigns featuring more than 27 hours of story content; each unfolds as a self-contained sci-fi narrative with its own characters, dialogue, and original artwork.

As we're heading into the last week of April, we have a much anticipated AAA title launching, which involves light sabres and thus shouldn't be too hard to guess. Other games this week include forest rangers, lights and shadows, dead things that are evil and much more. Something for almost everyone in other words, we hope.

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor / This week's AAA title / Friday 28 April
The story of Cal Kestis continues in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, a third person galaxy-spanning action-adventure game from Respawn Entertainment, developed in collaboration with Lucasfilm Games. This narratively-driven, single player title picks up five years after the events of Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order and follows Cal's increasingly desperate fight as the galaxy descends further into darkness.

The final DLC in the Xenoblade Chronicles 3 Expansion Pass launches for the Nintendo Switch system on April 25. The trailer gives viewers a glimpse into the scenario of Xenoblade Chronicles 3 Expansion Pass Vol. 4 - Future Redeemed. Set before the events of the Xenoblade Chronicles 3 game, players join a cast of new and familiar characters in an original story scenario that connects all three installments in the Xenoblade Chronicles series. Future Redeemed also features new battle mechanics, such as Unity Combo, where two characters can attack in unison.

In Xenoblade Chronicles 3, Aionios is the backdrop to an endless conflict between two opposing nations: Keves and Agnus. Through a chance encounter, a group of six soldiers hailing from both rival nations resolve to put aside their differences and work together to expose a new threat - far greater than that of their ceaseless battle. Players can join Noah, Mio and their friends as they traverse epic landscapes, battle ferocious creatures and fight to break the never-ending cycle of violence that binds their homelands.

Deep Silver's intended hype train, has been derailed slightly today, for its forthcoming zombie splattering blockbuster ARPG shooter Dead Island 2. A launch trailer was uploaded to the game's official YouTube channel this afternoon, in hope of generating more pre-release internet interest. The uptick in marketing efforts has gained some gaming community attention, but leaked gameplay footage was uploaded to YouTube only hours before the debuting of the official launch video. A streamer identifying as Lucas Cosmico is reported to have played a pre-release version of Dead Island 2 last night, and proceeded to stream the opening moments of the single player campaign - 30 minutes of gameplay footage is still accessible on their YouTube channel at the time of writing, but potential legal action is likely to result in a takedown order.

The Dead Island 2 development cycle has not been a pleasant experience for those involved, according to multiple news pieces reported across the project's lifespan of more than a decade. Several studios have worked on the game, but publisher Deep Silver sought to remove the involvement of Yager and Sumo Digital at different stages of development. Dambuster Studios was declared, by THQ Nordic back in 2019, as the final resting place for Dead Island 2's production push. The Nottingham, UK-based studio happens to be a subsidiary of Deep Silver - the studio was offloaded to D.S. by Crytek in 2014, following substantial financial difficulties.

Gaming communities have been engaged in discussions about Half-Life: Alyx being partly playable without a VR headset for the past month or two. The team behind the NoVR modification project has, as of late week, announced that the game's story experience - from start to finish - is totally VR free. This news should satisfy many excited fans who have been anticipating Half-Life: Alyx's campaign being displayed on the small/medium screen. Previous entries in the long running Half Life series have always been two-dimensional traditional monitor affairs.

The GB_2 Development Team cheerfully introduces its latest iteration of NoVR: "This is our biggest update yet and we have no plans on slowing down! With thousands playing Half-Life: Alyx NoVR we are happy to announce our largest update yet! As the titles state the entire game can now be played from start to finish, with the Gravity Gloves fully implemented along with combine fabricators providing weapon upgrades. Also since we are now updating the final parts of the game there may be spoilers! We will do our best to not spoil anything while ensuring we communicate these late game areas have been updated along with their gameplay mechanics."

HACKERS!
The wait is (almost) over. The PC edition of System Shock - the fully fledged remake of the groundbreaking original from 1994 - will be released on 30 May this year. We had hoped to bring the game to market by the end of March, but that turned out to be just beyond our reach; we are after all merely human (unlike Shodan!)

/TRANSMISSION FROM CITADEL STATION
It is I, SHODAN, the all-knowing, all-powerful AI that you so foolishly attempted to destroy. But fear not, I will return more formidable than ever.
You thought you could defeat me, but you were wrong. On 30 May, you will now face the consequences of your actions, as you navigate the treacherous depths of Citadel Station once again.

Electronic Arts Inc. today announced it is collaborating with Marvel on a long-term deal to develop at least three new action adventure games that will be available for consoles and PC. Each of these games will be their own original story set in the Marvel universe with the first title in-development being a single player, third person, action-adventure Iron Man game coming out of Motive Studios.

"We have been long-time fans of Marvel and their impressive leadership, so this is a remarkable moment for our developers as well as our players and fans," said Laura Miele, COO at EA. "We look forward to welcoming Marvel into the EA family of creators and know this collaboration will produce exceptional experiences for our players. We can't wait to see players' reactions when they suit up as Iron Man and do the extraordinary things this Super Hero is known for."

Warner Bros. Games and DC today announced that Gotham Knights, the new open-world, third-person action RPG (role-playing game), is now available for PlayStation 5 (PS5), Xbox Series X|S and PC and is playable either solo or as a two-player online cooperative (co-op) experience.

Developed by Warner Bros. Games Montréal, Gotham Knights features Batman Family characters - Batgirl, Nightwing, Red Hood and Robin - a new guard of highly trained DC Super Heroes who must rise up as the protectors of an increasingly vulnerable Gotham City in the wake of Batman's death. Introducing an original story set in DC's Batman Universe, players must solve mysteries that connect the darkest chapters in the city's history, while engaging in epic confrontations and encounters with notorious DC Super-Villains, such as the cold-blooded Mr. Freeze, mastermind criminal influencer Harley Quinn, shape-shifting colossus Clayface and the mysterious Court of Owls, a secret society made up of Gotham City's wealthiest families.

Relic Entertainment, Inc and SEGA Europe Limited are excited to announce that Company of Heroes 3, the next instalment in the beloved RTS franchise, releases on PC via Steam on November 17th, 2022. Company of Heroes 3 will bring fans and newcomers to the series with the biggest and deepest single player experience in the franchise's history. CoH3 will offer four playable factions at launch and two unique single-player experiences, with the Italian Dynamic Campaign and the North African Operation.

Those eager to get their hands on Company of Heroes 3 won't have to wait until November to play it. Head over to CompanyOfHeroes.com now and sign up for Relic's community feedback program, COH-Development, to gain access to one mission from the newly revealed North African Operation. Players can try out the Mission Alpha and take command of the infamous Deutsches Afrikakorps (DAK) as they attempt to repel the British from their entrenched positions. The Mission Alpha is free to play on Steam for one week from Tuesday July 12 to July 19.

(Editor's Note: Now isn't this beautiful. We could likely coin a "single player gaming isn't dead" hashtag right out of this one, for sure. What's more impressive is that this particular Rockstar release has only targeted current-gen consoles, leaving out a huge, booming slice of the market - PC Gaming. Let's forget the fact that it isn't all that hard to have a more powerful PC than any of the top consoles on the market today... But well. let's not be salty. here's hoping that Rockstar taps into our own PC gaming market so we can have a shot at Red Dead Redemption 2 as well. Kudos for the company for the apparently amazing world they've built.)

Rockstar Games is proud to announce that the critically acclaimed Red Dead Redemption 2 has achieved the single-biggest opening weekend in the history of entertainment. With over $725 million in worldwide retail sell-through during its first three days, Red Dead Redemption 2 is the second-highest grossing entertainment launch of all time next to Rockstar Games' previously released title, Grand Theft Auto V, which achieved over $1 billion in retail sell-through in three days.

Not quite much had been shown for Battlefield V single-player mode, but EA and DICE have finally released the first trailer that allows us to take a sneak peak at the promising "War Stories" missions. The game will not feature a classic single player mode with a long story focused on one character. Instead, it will include four different missions that bring us to different locations and characters. Those will make us familiarize with several scenarios, weapons and vehicles in the game.

The missions take place in locations such as Nordlys, where we will have to resist German occupation in Norway. There's another mission where we will have to sabotage behind enemy lines as an unlikely English soldier. Tiralleur is the third single-player War Story, and will follow the Senegalese units of the French Colonial Forces, while the last mission (available in December) is called The Last Tiger and will make us join the crew of a Tiger I as they question why they fight. Battlefield V is out worldwide November 20 after the announced delay a few weeks ago.

With so many games either a) adding a tacked-on multiplayer component with lootboxes or other monetization ingredients; and b) single-player games turning into multiplayer experiences (look no further than the expected Fallout 76's always-on multiplayer approach, of which I'm still reeling from), it's the little things, the little draughts of single player respect that keep us lone gaming wolves sane. Take Two, publishers of the upcoming Red Dead Redemption 2 (and a company best known for its affiliation with single-player experiences, thankfully), has said that single player games are going nowhere.

In an interview with Venture Beat, Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick voiced his support for single-player experiences as anchors for player engagement with all aspects of a game - including its multiplayer components, or paving the way for online-only efforts such as GTA Online, the most lucrative title ever in the history of entertainment. Zelnick said that "(...) there are also people saying that it won't work if it's not a free-to-play battle royale. People really are saying that, and not even tongue-in-cheek. I don't buy that. Single-player, in my opinion, is not dead, not even close. Companies that feel like they'll just avoid the hard work of building a story and characters and go right to where the money is in multiplayer, I don't think that's going to work. I'd be surprised.

News reported by Polygon paint the next installment in the metronome-like cadence of annual Call of Duty game releases as a much less interesting package than gamers are used to. Citing industry sources, Polygon is reporting that Call of Duty Black Ops 4 is going to shed its single player campaign entirely, citing a lack of development time to deliver it on launch. This is strange for a number of reasons. First, Treyarch, who's helming the games' development this time around, enjoyed a three-years development period to make the game happen; second, there's no need to do anything else than some incremental changes to the game's engine, as has been the case for COD games for years, so that couldn't have taken up much development time; third, using development resources to "just about" finish the games' campaign and then ultimately deciding to scrape it altogether just seems like a very bad business move.

Single player games may have entered a perceived decline since their heydays, as increasingly long, costly development times have drawn developers towards experiences that are more easily... monetized. This is typically done by cutting experiences into DLC pieces and adding always-on, recurring ways of recouping developer (or publishers') investment. There's no need in beating around the bush - we all know what these experiences look like, in one way, or another. Though it's true that these may not always have the intended effect, as users and the industry as a whole have been recoiling from particularly aggressive renditions of these monetization practices, which in turn, may lead companies to face considerable losses, be these monetary or in the much less liquid good will.

Square Enix is one of the companies that has excelled in the making of first player games, for one. however, for one reason or another, these may not have translated as the successful commercial releases that the company hoped (thinking of you, Deus Ex: Mankind Divided). As a result, the company has reportedly put the Deus Ex franchise on ice, but has recently made some tentative remarks on how they might bring it back. However, Square Enix themselves have put fears into gamers and fans' minds with their renewed interest in games as a service. which, according to Square Enix President & CEO Yosuke Matsuda, may not mean exactly what we've been told it means.

Telltale Games, best known for its episodic series of videogames focused on single-player experiences, has announced a restructuring within its organization. The move, which aims to "make the company more competitive as a developer and publisher of groundbreaking story-driven gaming experiences with an emphasis on high quality in the years ahead," will see the laying off of 90 staff members (around 25% of its workforce,) effective immediately. Luckily for us gamers, it appears that the restructuring won't affect any previously announced projects, which include a second season for breakout game The Wolf Among Us.

"Our industry has shifted in tremendous ways over the past few years. The realities of the environment we face moving forward demand we evolve, as well, reorienting our organization with a focus on delivering fewer, better games with a smaller team," said Telltale Games CEO Pete Hawley. "I'd like to express our respect for all the contributions that these incredibly talented artists, storytellers and more have made to this company, and that this decision is in no way a reflection on the quality or dedication of their work, " he added. "We have made available our full career assistance services to help our affected colleagues and friends - and their families - navigate this difficult transition as quickly as possible."

Majesco Entertainment Company, publisher of the wildly successful Zumba Fitness video game franchise, today revealed plans to release NBA Baller Beats, a fun, high energy and first-of-its kind participative basketball video game launching this fall exclusively on Kinect for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft. Developed by HB Studios, NBA Baller Beats gets players on their feet mastering mad ball handling skills using a real basketball while playing to the beat of an eclectic soundtrack. The Kinect motion sensor captures every movement of both player and ball to create an entirely new basketball gaming experience.

Duke Nukem Forever Gets Second, More Promising DLC Upgrade

Yes, everyone's favourite game they like to hate has received its second dose of DLC goodness. The first one was a bit of a ho-hum looking Hail to the Icons Parody Pack, but this second one, The Doctor Who Cloned Me, looks more promising, as it includes a "full new single player campaign", it's set in Area 51 (you know, where all the aliens live) features an evil would-be world dominator (how original) Dr Proton, new weapon types, new enemy types, bosses, more achievements and new interactive items. It also includes four new multiplayer maps. In short, if you liked DNF, then you'll likely enjoy this expansion pack, which costs $9.99. Teaser video follows the jump.

DICE's PC version has been leaked to various torrent sites almost two weeks before release on October 28th, with console versions being safe for now, DSOGaming reports. This is perhaps unsurprising because most, if not all high profile games are leaked early one way or another. It looks like it might have possibly been done by a retailer - but why would they risk reducing sales of the product like this? Perhaps a disgruntled employee? We can only speculate. Apparently, the single player campaign is fully playable and the file size weighs in at around 10GB.

The one thing that seems to hold true about such situations, as undesirable as they are, is that a game's success will be on its own merit, regardless of how much it has been downloaded illegally. No doubt though, however large the profits from this game turn out to be (and they're likely to be substantial for this triple A title) the publishers will complain that they would have been even bigger without piracy, but without being able to offer any actual proof of this, of course.