We know a lot of you are pretty excited to play Star Ocean: The Second Story R. After all, the original game is a true classic of the RPG genre and this new remake improves it even further! It adds a beautiful new 2.5D art style, a revamped combat system, a rearranged soundtrack, new illustrations and a galaxy's-worth of quality of life improvements. To cut a long story short, this crown jewel of the Star Ocean series now sparkles even brighter than before! The game releases on November 2, 2023 for Nintendo Switch, PS5, PS4 and PC via Steam… but what if you want to play it earlier? Good news then because a free demo is available right now! Read on and we'll tell you all about it:

What's in the STAR OCEAN THE SECOND STORY R demo?
The free demo lets you experience this interstellar adventure for three hours or until you make your way to the exit of Krosse Cave - whichever comes first. In that time, you'll get to see how the story gets underway as Pangalactic Federation officer Claude C. Kenny is transported to a mysterious location by an equally mysterious mechanism. Around that time, a local named Rena, is attacked by a monster in the Sacred Forest. Claude jumps into action and saves her, but his advanced technology means Rena mistakes him for a hero of myths from her homeland. She hopes he can save her nation, while he wants to find a way back home. Together, they set off for the village of Arlia… and an epic adventure begins.

Hi Everyone, today I'd like to share that the talented team at Criterion Games will be joining EA Entertainment. Criterion has a rich history in gaming, having worked on Battlefield, Battlefront, Burnout, and of course, Need for Speed. I'm thrilled to have a studio with such pedigree join the studios I oversee. As we've said before, we're all-in on Battlefield. Today, Criterion is added to our world-class Battlefield studios dedicated to ushering in a new era for the franchise.

The majority of the team will be working alongside DICE, Ripple Effect, and Ridgeline that are led by Byron Beede, GM of Battlefield. Criterion's experience with Battlefield, our technology and building engaging experiences will have an immediate positive impact as we continue to work on Battlefield 2042, and as we continue pre-production on a connected Battlefield Universe. There is no better studio to join us on this journey and I couldn't be more excited.

Just a few weeks ago at Gamescom we announced that an expansion for Age of Empires IV—The Sultans Ascend—would be coming soon. Today we're thrilled to let our PC and Xbox console players around the world know that they'll be able to play this exciting new content on November 14! Pre-orders are available now for everyone wanting to graduate The Sultans Ascend from their wishlist and begin counting down the days.

This new Age of Empires IV single player campaign takes place in the Middle East during the European Crusades. You'll take on the role of the Muslim resistance to the invasion and follow the story of well-known Muslim leaders, their struggles with the Crusaders, and the battles they fought. Our story begins with the First Crusade at the end of the 11th century, when Muslim provinces are mired in rivalry with one another.

If you're looking for the latest games coming to Game Pass, you've come to the right place. Maybe you're looking for a Soulslike, or mysterious adventures. Maybe you're looking to solve crimes, or even do crimes (maybe please keep that in the context of video games). Either way, we've got something for you!

Available Today—Lies of P (Cloud, Console, and PC)
Available on day one with Game Pass: Lies of P is a thrilling soulslike that takes the story of Pinocchio, turns it on its head, and sets it against the darkly elegant backdrop of the Belle Epoque era. You must adapt yourself and your weapons to face untold horrors, untangle the unfathomable secrets of the city's elites and choose whether to confront predicaments with the truth or weave lies to overcome them on the journey to find yourself.

Fan-favorite Resident Evil 4 additional scenario "Separate Ways" returns as new story DLC on September 21! Separate Ways—the missing link in the main story—is a thrilling, survival-horror adventure starring Ada Wong. Additionally, on the same day an update arrives for the free DLC "The Mercenaries," adding new playable characters. If you haven't experienced Resident Evil 4 yet, the base game is currently discounted for a limited time!

The mission requires secrecy. Failure is not an option
Play as Ada Wong in this additional scenario and experience the events of Resident Evil 4 from her perspective, filling in unanswered questions posed in the main story. See the other side of the story from her eyes as her mission, and fate, intertwines with Leon Kennedy's a second time.

We welcome you to Krat, where the most spectacular display of human endeavor on Earth can be seen. For those who have been long waiting for the gates to open, we fully assure you that the adventures you will experience will be filled with unexpected turns. Take on the role of Geppetto's prized puppet to uncover the mysteries of Krat and save the City in this new take on the Fairy-Tale Classic! In this once-prosperous city, prepare yourself to face untold horrors, untangle the unfathomable secrets of the city's elites and choose whether to confront predicaments with the truth or weave lies to overcome them on the journey to find yourself. We hope your visit to Krat is a safe and prosperous stay.

Lies of P is a fantastic interpretation of "The Adventures of Pinocchio," dropping our beloved puppet within the nightmarish city of Krat, a fallen utopia built on the backs of mechanical puppets who have gone mad and slain its citizens. Their creator, Geppetto, has gone missing and "P" is brought to life to track him down to try and save the city. In the classic fairy tale, Pinocchio embarks on many adventures of self-discovery and encounters a wide range of characters - many of them bad actors who take advantage of his ignorance—which leads him on a transformative journey where he learns what it means to be human, the power of forgiveness, and of course, repercussions for lying.

Developers at Insomniac Games have confirmed that Spider-Man 2's ray tracing feature will be running as standard/by default within the PlayStation 5 version—a player's adjustments of graphical performance settings will have no bearing on this being turned on or off. Mike Fitzgerald, Insomniac's director of core technology, shared technical information in an interview with IGN, although he stopped short of making any promises for an inevitable PC conversion—gamers on that platform will likely be waiting another 18 months post-October 20. It is possible that Nixxes Software has been contracted to work on a port, given their recent-ish track record. The Insomniac dev cites advanced experience gained by working on past titles—notably Spider-Man Remastered, Miles Morales, and Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart—as the main factor behind the confident push into implementing an "always-on" ray tracing graphical feature. Fitzgerald stated: "We've really gotten to leverage everything we've seen in developing those games."

He continued: "Our performance mode for this title has ray tracing on by default. We've really expanded ray traced reflections throughout the game. It's on the water and the oceans and really gives a more realistic picture everywhere...For this game we're really able to deliver (ray tracing) as a baseline performance mode. There's no mode of this game that has the ray tracing turned off, no need for it. We've really figured out how to deliver what we feel like is the right Spider-Man visuals and we want to make sure every player is seeing that." Fitzgerald also praises PlayStation 5's storage solution—SSDs allow for "faster traversal" across the New York City environment. Players can look forward to traversing the urban landscape at about "three times as fast" as the pace experienced in Spider-Man 1.

We are honored to announce Tales of Arise - Beyond the Dawn. Through this expansion players will enjoy a story that depicts the world after the main story of Tales of Arise, which was released in September 2021. This is the first DLC in the Tales of series that is a direct continuation of the main story in this scale. We will discuss what players can expect from the storyline and why we made the decision to create it.

Sometimes a story is over, but not quite done. Over a year has passed since the conclusion of Tales of Arise, but there's more to the story that hasn't been told yet. Enter Tales of Arise - Beyond the Dawn the upcoming expansion to The Game Awards 2021 RPG of the Year from Bandai Namco Entertainment America Inc. Adding 20+ hours of game content, the new expansion adds new quests, dungeons, boss fights, and an epic new story arc all within the backdrop of an evolving, beautiful fantasy world. The game will be available on November 9, for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One and PC via Steam. To learn more, please visit the official website.

Hail Commanders. Alongside the cinematic campaign and multiplayer modes already announced, those with a keen eye for the ever shaping landscape of the Realm before us may have noticed some exciting updates unveiled recently over on our Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin Steam store page. It's time to discover more in our latest video here (see below).

A real-time strategy game from Frontier, set in the iconic Warhammer universe. Become a warlord and lead four unique factions to conquer the wild and savage Realm of Ghur in tense and tactical battles. Wage a campaign of brutal conquest in this realm-shattering real-time strategy game set in the Warhammer Age of Sigmar universe.

Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora is coming to PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC on December 7. A new trailer for the game reveals further story details about the hero's journey and the clans they will meet as they explore the Western Frontier of Pandora to reconnect with their lost heritage. In Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, you will play as a Na'vi who was abducted as an infant by the RDA and trained in The Ambassador Program (TAP) to serve human interests on Pandora. When the RDA evacuated Pandora during the Battle of the Hallelujah Mountains (as seen in the first Avatar movie), you were put into emergency cryosleep. You wake up 15 years later, finally free from the RDA, but lost and unfamiliar with your home world.

You set out on a journey to discover the world that was kept from you, meeting other Na'vi clans and learning about Na'vi culture. You discover that you are a member of the respected Sarentu clan, believed to have disappeared years before. As you journey across the Western Frontier, you will meet the Aranahe, a clan of artisans known for their weaving skills; the Zeswa, a proud nomadic clan that lives in symbiosis with gigantic beasts called Zakru; and the Kame'tire, a reclusive, enigmatic clan skilled in healing and potion-making.

The Crew Motorfest is out now on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PS5, PS4, and PC, and is included with a Ubisoft+ subscription. At launch, the game has over 600 available vehicles, 15 themed Playlists, and four PvP game modes for players to participate in, and it all takes place on the Hawai'ian island of O'ahu. Get ready to speed down the streets of Honolulu, soar above volcanoes in a plane, cruise along the beach in boats, customize your vehicles, and so much more in a game designed to be a car-culture celebration. With everything The Crew Motorfest has to offer, here are our top five ideas for what to check out first:

Experience Motorfest
Motorfest is a car-culture festival, and its grounds will serve as the heart of your experience. At the festival, you'll be able to see massive decorations, murals, inflatables and lot more, designed to honor O'ahu and car culture; show off your car collection; kick off the game's themed campaigns, called Playlists; and participate in online game modes including the Grand Race, Demolition Royale, Summit Contest, and Custom Show. As you explore Motorfest, you'll also see other players driving by, showing off their custom rides as they take part in the festivities as well, and deepening the sense of car-culture community.

IMDA, Singapore's rating board, has evaluated a new version of Horizon Forbidden West—a website entry for an upcoming "Complete Edition" on the PlayStation 5 platform was uncovered late last week. This information was removed at a later date since, but several media outlets have preserved crucial details. Horizon Forbidden West Complete Edition is M18 rated in that part of the world, thanks to gory content and sexual themes. IMDA's extended classification blurb implies that the base campaign as well as this year's Burning Shores DLC will be bundled together in a new package.

Dealabs leaker billbil-kun believes that a PC version is lined up for "imminent" release on Steam and the Epic Games Store—they cannot confirm an exact launch date, but it could arrive within a month based on potentially accurate data leaks. Sony tends to keep its flagship titles exclusive to PlayStation systems for 18 months—the base Horizon Forbidden West game arrived on PlayStation 4 and 5 last February...so the timing is about right for a converted edition to arrive PC-side. A State of Play presentation is scheduled for later today—billbil-kun recommends that folks check it out, given recent insights posted by Giant Bomb's Jeff Grubb.

Lies of P is a fantastic interpretation of "The Adventures of Pinocchio," dropping our beloved puppet within the nightmarish city of Krat, a fallen utopia built on the backs of mechanical puppets who have gone mad and slain its citizens. Their creator, Geppetto, has gone missing and "P" is brought to life to track him down to try and save the city. In the classic fairy tale, Pinocchio embarks on many adventures of self-discovery and encounters a wide range of characters - many of them bad actors who take advantage of his ignorance—which leads him on a transformative journey where he learns what it means to be human, the power of forgiveness, and of course, repercussions for lying.

It doesn't take much to see that the string that connects Lies of P to the classic tale of Pinocchio is a delicate one, but that's precisely the allure the game brings to the table here. This isn't a story you've heard before and it plays with the familiar in ways we really haven't seen with the Pinocchio fable. The lurid world of Lies of P is a compelling one, filled with evil puppets, dim alleyways, treacherous rooftops, and bodies scattered about; victims of a corrupting Petrification Disease or at the hands of puppets turning on their former masters.

We're almost there - tomorrow we're excited to bring to life all our updates for Xbox Game Pass Core! As we shared last month, this is our latest evolution of what was previously known as Xbox Live Gold. Same great online experience, new name, and an added library of games! When we announced Xbox Game Pass Core, we shared that this membership would come with more than 25 high quality games from the Xbox Game Pass library - we're thrilled to share that there will be 36 games available to play on Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One starting tomorrow! We'll get to the full list - starting with some truly iconic multiplayers, games with incredible storytelling, and influential indies.

Check out the most recent single player Fallout game, Fallout 4, and use your continued access to multiplayer in Fallout 76. Traverse the backyard in Grounded or explore Tamriel in The Elder Scrolls Online. Play the absolute mind trip that is Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice (get some headphones for this one!). These are only a few of the Xbox Game Studios games for you to dig into tomorrow.

The Drop Bear Bytes team is excited to announce that Broken Roads is coming to PC, Xbox One & Series X/S on November 14, 2023! Embark on an unforgettable journey across a post-apocalyptic Australia full of danger and tough decisions. Stay tuned for release date information on other platforms coming soon! Broken Roads is a narrative-driven RPG that brings exploration, strategic turn-based combat and meaningful philosophical choices to an all-new Australian post-apocalyptic setting.

BROKEN ROADS IS A NARRATIVE-DRIVEN RPG FOR PC AND CONSOLE COMING 14 NOVEMBER 2023
Bringing exploration, strategic turn-based combat and meaningful philosophical choices to an all-new Australian post-apocalyptic setting.
Broken Roads was born of a love for traditional isometric computer role-playing, and will provide a rich, engaging narrative in which players make their way across a desolated Australia. Blending together traditional and all-new role-playing elements on top of a classless system offering near-unlimited character development options, Broken Roads presents players with an original morality system: the Moral Compass. This novel design sees dialogue options and questing decisions influence, and be influenced by, a character's philosophical leaning.

Ready to start your adventure? Saturday mornings are back with MythForce! Complete with 1980s rogue-lite cartoon chaos, co-op dungeon crawling action and an epic eighties-throwback soundtrack. Inspired by beloved Saturday morning cartoons, MythForce unites swords & sorcery with gripping first person combat in a new rogue-like adventure. Brave the dungeon alone or join forces with friends to take on an ever-changing Castle of Evil!

Scratch that nostalgic itch with wholesome fun that's easy to pick up and play (but tough to master). In true rogue-like fashion, each time you're defeated, you'll have to start over at the beginning—but every playthrough makes you a little stronger. Level up as you explore the dungeon, uncovering magical artifacts and upgrades to make you say "I HAVE THE POWER!"

When Assassin's Creed Mirage launches on October 5, it will represent a return to the series' roots - but what does that mean, exactly? For one thing, it means we'll be back in the Middle East (the dense urban landscape of Baghdad, specifically) amongst the ranks of the Hidden Ones, who at this point are classic Assassins in all but name - working out of secret bureaus, constructing the legendary fortress at Alamut, and sporting the familiar white robes we first saw on Altaïr back in 2007. They can also speak entirely in their native language, with the series' first-ever full localization in Arabic.

But the connection isn't merely in the setting and story; Assassin's Creed Mirage recaptures the spirit of the series' origins through gameplay, in ways both big and small. For example, as a former street thief, Basim can pickpocket people in the crowds, much like Ezio Auditore could. He can also make use of explosive noisemakers and mines, like the ones Ezio could craft in Assassin's Creed Revelations - and if he draws too much attention, his notoriety will rise, and players will need to tear down wanted posters or bribe officials if they don't want continual, escalating attention from guards.

Focus Entertainment and Pathea Games have released a new trailer for My Time at Sandrock, the much-anticipated follow-up to the award-winning, player-acclaimed sandbox simulation RPG My Time at Portia. Currently available on PC via Steam Early Access and Epic Games Store, it will launch in V1.0 on November 2nd. As the date approaches, this new gameplay trailer entitled "A Builder's Life" gives you an insight into the engrossing construction and farming activities that will soon fill your busy-yet-cozy days as a newly-arrived Builder in Sandrock.

Build the future of Sandrock
Welcome to Sandrock, a fascinating little city nestled deep within the Wild West. Ravaged years ago, it is now up to you, your tools and your Builder's skills to restore Sandrock to its former glory. Your experience will be as adventurous as it will be wholesome. When you are not searching for mysteries and hidden treasures on a galloping horse, use all the resources you've found to vigorously reconstruct the city and cultivate its land. Build and customize your headquarters and city buildings, craft and upgrade modern tools and machinery, revive farming and ranching, and fix damaged Sandrock technologies. Discover, buy or unlock new designs to always expand your builder's crafting book and prove yourself by earning the most enviable title of all: Builder of the Month!

Hello XDefiant Fans! I've got an update for you and it's a big one! We want to explain further why we haven't given a specific date yet for our launch. And sometimes full transparency is like drinking from a firehose so hope you all are thirsty! First things first. Here is a detailed description of how the submission process goes: Submission is the part of development where we give the game to the 1st parties (Sony, Xbox, etc.) to check that the game works correctly in their environments. To get to that we have to self-test with internal QA/Compliance teams to try and find any issues that might get flagged in the submission process. Once we have fixed or completed all of the tasks that we want/think we need for submission we then spend about 2-3 weeks prepping and validating a CM (Candidate Master) that we think is the final version of the game for submission.

It then goes through 1 week of heavy QA & Compliance testing by several Ubisoft teams. If it passes, then it goes to the 1st parties to be certified for release. 1st parties take a week to get their final report on the submission and give us a Pass or Not Pass with a list of must fixes for the next submission. Also, to be clear during this submission process, the QC team at Ubisoft are putting the build through the ringer looking for functionality bugs and another team at Ubisoft, divided up into PC, Sony and Xbox groups are looking for compliance bugs.

Greetings Ghostrunners, the entire Ghostrunner team (at One More Level) is proud to share that Ghostrunner has sold over 2.5 million units since it launched on October 27, 2020! Thank you for being a part of the Ghostrunner community and helping to spread the word about Ghostrunner and Ghostrunner 2.

We originally intended to make a 2 million units sold announcement, but the excitement around Ghostrunner 2 has been so incredible that we quickly jumped to 2.5+ million copies so we thought we might as well provide you the most up to date figures. Regardless, we still wanted to share with you an awesome image of 505 Games presenting One More Level with a plaque and poster to celebrate the 2 million copies sold achievement. Something tells us we are going to need to make a 3 million unit announcement soon! Thank you for the incredible support.

Blasphemous set itself apart in 2019's crowded indie scene thanks to a firm belief in its roots. Developed in Spain, it was clear from the beginning that The Game Kitchen would have to adapt itself to an international audience—but even if the game released with an English demographic in mind, the art direction and overall tone were uniquely Spanish.

With the sequel, the team was adamant that they preserve that identity in the writing as well, regardless of which language you choose to play in. For Enrique Cabeza, Creative Director at The Game Kitchen, the development of Blasphemous 2 felt sentient. It continued to shift and morph of its own volition, almost as if providing guidance to the team about where to go next. "You have to make mistakes and realize when it's time to change course to avoid paths you shouldn't take," he said.

A few new releases from last week flew under the radar with the meteoric response to Starfield's early access, especially since the Xbox Wire crew was all-hands on deck to support the launch. But there was one new title I knew I wanted to bump to the top of my playlist, as I've adored all the previous games in the series. Trine 5: A Clockwork Conspiracy will take Amadeus the Wizard, Zoya the Thief, and Pontius the Knight on their most action-packed journey yet! With their reputations tarnished, loved ones in danger, and their own magical powers at stake, the Heroes of Trine must reunite to push back a fearsome Clockwork army and bring peace and justice to the land! I've always been bewildered by the Trine series. It's not fair to call a game with five releases - each one a bit bigger and better than its predecessor - a hidden gem. Perhaps, "rare gem" is more befitting. But it is a true treasure indeed - a fun, feature-filled series with a rich story, vibrant characters, and epic adventure.

Once Upon a Time…
The Trine series is a collection of fantasy action-adventure games with equal shares of platforming and puzzle elements sprinkled in about three heroes: a knight, a thief, and a wizard. The heroes are bound together by a magical artifact called the Trine and must work together using their unique skills to solve puzzles, fight enemies, and explore breathtaking environments.

Focus Entertainment and Dream Powered Games are thrilled to announce that Warstride Challenges v1.0 is now available on PC, as well as on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series! The high-octane fast-FPS in which you blast demons in satisfying one-minute massacres has left early access after over a year of continuous improvement. The small, close-knit team of passionate devs thanks the community of Warstriders wholeheartedly for its amazing involvement. Want to give it a try and test your skills? A free demo is available for both newcomers and challenge lovers on Steam.

RACE AGAINST THE CLOCK
In hellish challenges, blast hordes of demons at lightning speed with powerful abilities and weapons. Slow time to pull off impossible headshots, bunny hop to pick up speed, slide around corners and shred your enemies into pieces with destructive shockwaves!

Hello heisters, we hope you're having a wonderful week - and if you're not, we have some cool news for you to dig into when it comes to Payday 3! This is the much anticipated sequel to one of the most popular co-op shooters ever. Since its release, Payday-players have been reveling in the thrill of a perfectly planned and executed heist. That's what makes Payday a high-octane, co-op FPS experience without equal.

Post Launch Plans
We're nearing the launch date on September 21 (Early Access on September 18), but today we wanted to give you a glimpse of what's to come for Year One of Payday 3 and its future content. Besides 4 DLCs, with names yet to be fully determined, we'll also look at seasonal events, playable characters, new enemy, weapons, Unreal Engine 5 upgrade, cosmetics, quality of life improvements, new features and much more. Let us know in the comments which part you're the most excited for!

Rod Fergusson, general franchise manager of Blizzard Entertainment's Diablo IP, has confirmed that IV's post-release content release model is set for some adjustments—in an interview, conducted by Dextero, he said: "When you look at the launch of the game and this first season, we see that as building a foundation on which we can build for the future. So, as we look at our quarterly seasons, and we look at our annual expansions, those are the things that we're really focused on for our live service." Several media outlets have jumped on Fergusson's statement—comparisons have been made to Bungie's approach to keeping online multiplayer franchises alive for a long time. Paul Tassi (via Forbes) pointed out that Diablo IV's leadership is pushing for the: "exact same model as Destiny 2."

Sections of the fan base have not yet warmed to this more live service-heavy content model, when compared to previous entries in the long-running ARPG series. Past reports have cited Blizzard's continued recruitment drive to bolster these efforts, albeit only for seasonal DLC. The annual release model is very much a fresh announcement, and Fergusson stopped short of revealing pricing and exact launch windows: "We've got plans, we have storylines that go well into the future. When you look back and realize that there were 11 years between Diablo III and Diablo IV, that feels like we didn't live up to our players, our community, and what they deserve. That's something we are rectifying in D4 with our seasons and our expansions."