This Week in Gaming (Week 41)

[TheLostSwede]

Welcome to the first full week of October and another busy week of new game releases. This week's AAA release involves balls and dragons, but no need to worry, it's not an adult only game. This is followed by a co-op metroidvania game that actually appears to have a story, this week's remake which involves a ghost town on a hill, a shady parkour platformer, an old-school style JRPG, a turn-based RPG and finally a peaceful exploration game. Also out this week is the Diablo 4: Vessel of Hatred DLC.

Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero / This week's AAA release / Friday 11 October
Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero takes the legendary gameplay of the Budokai Tenkaichi series and raises it to whole new levels. Become a super warrior and experience the earth-shaking, limit-breaking power of Dragon Ball battles! Engage in heart-pounding, high-speed 3D battles that stay true to the anime and video game series, with breathtaking visuals and authentic combat moves like beam clashes, rush attacks, movements too quick for the eyes to see, and planet-razing ultimate attacks. Steam link




Anima Flux / Monday 07 October
Anima Flux is a co-op metroidvania with two genetically enhanced soldiers, special agents of a theocratic dictatorial regime. Fight your way through swarms of mutants through a desolate, dystopian space city and save humanity's last stronghold, if, of course, anyone is still alive... Steam link



Silent Hill 2 / This week's remake / Tuesday 8 October
Investigating a letter from his late wife, James returns to where they made so many memories - Silent Hill. What he finds is a ghost town, prowled by disturbing monsters and cloaked in deep fog. Confront the monsters, solve puzzles, and search for traces of your wife in this remake of Silent Hill 2. Steam link



Shady Knight / Wednesday 9 October
Shady Knight is a first-person skill-driven melee action game centered around swift swordplay, acrobatic archery, and fluid platforming that seamlessly blends combat and parkour skills into a stylish dance of death full of creative chaos. Steam link



Guild Saga: Vanished Worlds / Thursday 10 October
An ancient entity stirs in the darkness, casting a veil of shadows across the land and threatening all of humanity. This growing menace has escalated the already dire situation on the newly discovered continent of Andra, where tensions run high. As a fledgling on your first mission for the Heroes Guild, you will be unwittingly drawn into the heart of this unfolding crisis. The secrets you uncover and the choices you make will shape your path as you navigate this perilous world… Steam link



Metaphor: ReFantazio / Friday 11 October
From the creative minds behind Persona 3, 4, and 5 comes Metaphor: ReFantazio, a unique fantasy world, where your protagonist will journey alongside his fairy companion, Gallica, to lift the curse from the kingdom's lost prince. Control your destiny, face your fears and awaken magical "Archetype" powers that lie dormant in your heart. By awakening to an "Archetype," you will unlock the power to channel and combine the abilities of unique job classes. Strengthen your bonds and build your party to take down powerful foes and discover the kingdom's true nature. Steam link



Europa / Friday 11 October
On the moon Europa, a lush terraformed paradise in Jupiter's shadow, an android named Zee sets out in search of answers. Run, glide and fly across the landscape, solve mysteries in the ruins of a fallen utopia, and discover the story of the last human alive. Europa is a peaceful game of adventure, exploration and meditation. As you travel you'll gradually upgrade the capabilities of your Zephyr jetpack, boosting yourself further through the air until you can flow freely into the sky. Steam link

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[the54thvoid]

Might buy SH2. I read the game is x2 as long as the OG SH2. I hate short games that cost so damn much.

But also, I saw this and, no kidding, my first thought was - I'm fighting Lady Gaga. (It's like something she'd wear to an award gala circa ten years ago.)

 

[Sithaer]

I'm a huge fan of Dragon Ball and its the only anime/manga I still follow/keep up with since my childhood so thats defo on my play list at some point. 'also really liked Fighter Z and Kakarot'

 

[Space Lynx]

I added Anima Flux and Shady Knights to my wishlist, thanks! Two of the others were already on there. I like these lists, sometimes I find a hidden gem.

 

[Onasi]

Might buy SH2. I read the game is x2 as long as the OG SH2. I hate short games that cost so damn much.

Seems like they dragged it out with a lot of filler combat and walking sections. So if that sounds appealing - guess there it is.

I personally have less than 0 interest in it since the whole idea of “remaking” something like Silent Hill 2 is deeply distasteful to me. We already had the abomination that is the HD collection and now this. Just make the original easily accessible on modern platforms, you cowards. Like, work with GoG to clean up and re-release the PC Directors Cut. Maybe include the mods that address graphical inconsistencies between it and the PS2 version. That’s all that’s needed and ever WAS needed.

 

[Hyderz]

oh another big AAA releasing this week is Diablo 4 Vessel of Hatred Expansion, if anybody still cares about it

 

[Sithaer]

oh another big AAA releasing this week is Diablo 4 Vessel of Hatred Expansion, if anybody still cares about it

I have it pre dled just waiting for the launch time. 'which sucks for EU since its at the middle of the night so I will only start playing the next day after I'm done with my work'

 

[TheLostSwede]

Seems like they dragged it out with a lot of filler combat and walking sections. So if that sounds appealing - guess there it is.

I personally have less than 0 interest in it since the whole idea of “remaking” something like Silent Hill 2 is deeply distasteful to me. We already had the abomination that is the HD collection and now this. Just make the original easily accessible on modern platforms, you cowards. Like, work with GoG to clean up and re-release the PC Directors Cut. Maybe include the mods that address graphical inconsistencies between it and the PS2 version. That’s all that’s needed and ever WAS needed.

You still using a CRT monitor?

Also, loads of people are never going to have played the original, as they weren't even born when it was released and most likely would have zero interest in playing an old game.

Maybe fixing the old version is good enough for you, but even my cousin who is in his 60's is looking forward to this, as he loved the original. He still have all his PlayStation consoles and games for that matter, but it's still looking forward to this.

oh another big AAA releasing this week is Diablo 4 Vessel of Hatred Expansion, if anybody still cares about it

It's a DLC and if you'd bothered reading the text you would've seen that I mentioned it.

 

[Onasi]

Also, loads of people are never going to have played the original, as they weren't even born when it was released and most likely would have zero interest in playing an old game.

I loathe this argument. Look, if people want to play the remake - fine. But those who will play it will experience SH2 Remake, however it turns out. Not SH2. This isn’t me being obnoxious, it’s a simple fact. Games are products of their time and are shaped by the time. SH2 is what it is, with warts and all. If someone really wants to experience it - they will. If one cannot bring themselves to do it unless in a form that’s patently NOT SH2, well… guess they weren’t too interested after all.
But I understand that my take is perhaps too radical in this day and age when all that matters is consuming more slop and artistic integrity has no value, so… meh.

 

[Hyderz]

It's a DLC and if you'd bothered reading the text you would've seen that I mentioned it.

oh mah bad

 

[Sithaer]

It's a DLC and if you'd bothered reading the text you would've seen that I mentioned it.

Actually Blizzard states it as an Expansion on their official site:

Vessel of Hatred - Diablo IV

New Class. New Region. More Story. Endless Evil.

diablo4.blizzard.com

Its like what LoD was for D2 and RoS for D3, this has more stuff in it than a typical DLC.

 

[Onasi]

@Sithaer
It IS an expansion, but it’s content and is very much downloadable, so it’s not like Swede is wrong on this, technically. He also had a mention like this for the Starfield DLC expansion last week, so he’s consistent in this regard. I think I agree with this approach since otherwise it would be an agonizing chore to start picking and choosing which DLC are “expansion-sized enough” to be featured in the main body as a release and which aren’t.

 

[TheLostSwede]

I loathe this argument. Look, if people want to play the remake - fine. But those who will play it will experience SH2 Remake, however it turns out. Not SH2. This isn’t me being obnoxious, it’s a simple fact. Games are products of their time and are shaped by the time. SH2 is what it is, with warts and all. If someone really wants to experience it - they will. If one cannot bring themselves to do it unless in a form that’s patently NOT SH2, well… guess they weren’t too interested after all.
But I understand that my take is perhaps too radical in this day and age when all that matters is consuming more slop and artistic integrity has no value, so… meh.

Well, that is your opinion, someone else will have a different one. No-one is making you buy the remake.

Actually Blizzard states it as an Expansion on their official site:

Vessel of Hatred - Diablo IV

New Class. New Region. More Story. Endless Evil.

diablo4.blizzard.com

Its like what LoD was for D2 and RoS for D3, this has more stuff in it than a typical DLC.

Expansion and DLC is not the same thing? I don't really care about the amount of content, it's not a new game, is it?

@Sithaer
It IS an expansion, but it’s content and is very much downloadable, so it’s not like Swede is wrong on this, technically. He also had a mention like this for the Starfield DLC expansion last week, so he’s consistent in this regard. I think I agree with this approach since otherwise it would be an agonizing chore to start picking and choosing which DLC are “expansion-sized enough” to be featured in the main body as a release and which aren’t.

Thank you. I felt like it was worth pointing out add-ons for popular games, but in the past I threw some DLC/expansions/whatever in with the games, but it didn't really work with what this post is about, new games. So I decided to at least include a mention like this instead, even if the new content doesn't get proper coverage in this weekly update, but will most likely get its own news post during the week.

Also, it's hard enough picking the games of the week, I include some extra games almost every week, at least when there are a lot of potentially popular releases. I skipped Trans Formers this week, as it seem to have little to no interest on Steam. Maybe that was a mistake, but there are five big-ish games launching this Friday, I included three of them.

 

[Sithaer]

Expansion and DLC is not the same thing? I don't really care about the amount of content, it's not a new game, is it?

Kinda depends on a game-developer basis, Expansions are usually bigger with more content/bigger changes to the core game + it continues the main story not just a side addittion.
Well technically everything is a downloadable content nowadays so I can understand why some would stick to calling all of them DLCs to make it easier.

And then we get some of those ppl whos gonna complain that how dare a team charge 40$ for a DLC when in reality it has 2-3x times the new things than your average DLC in other games so ye I'm also not a big fan of this DLC-Expansion naming thing nowadays.