I’ve tried visual novel games in the past, like A Space For The Unbound and Hatoful Boyfriend. And what’s frustrating is that I just don’t get on with them, despite knowing that they can convey brilliant stories through all sorts of interesting cuts and shots and whatnot. I’m sorry to report that certain stories won’t grab me if they’re not ticking along at just the right pace or if they don’t pull me in straight away. I’m a needy soul, someone who demands immediacy and a special emotional sauce.
Until Then is, without a doubt, the only visual novel-y game I’ve truly enjoyed. In fact, I’d say I’ve more than enjoyed it – I think it’s superb so far. The teens that drive this story are written with an authenticity I’ve not encountered before, and the 3D interwoven with the 2D adds some surprising – besides the literal – depth.
Usually when a game makes me want to stop playing and go outside it’s a bad sign, but with Dungeons of Hinterberg it’s different. It’s an action RPG that made me pine for the outdoors and want to be whisked away from all my responsibilities and just exist for a bit. Each time I would finish playing I’d be thinking about my next getaway, and although dungeon delving wouldn’t be on my holiday itinerary Dungeons of Hinterberg is making me think twice.
Here’s your reminder that this update for Splatoon 3 is now officially live. It will bump the game up to Version 8.1.0 and comes with multiple adjustments, changes and fixes covering player controls, multiplayer and more. You can see the original story below:
The Switch Joy-Con are quite easy to charge, but the catch is you have to attach them to the system. With this in mind, Nintendo is finally giving users an alternative way to charge these controllers with the official Switch Joy-Con Charging Stand.
Hello everyone, I’m Kee Zhang from Hotta Studio. I’m incredibly excited to introduce our brand new title, Neverness to Everness, to PlayStation players today!
Neverness to Everness (NTE for short) is a supernatural urban open-world game set to release for free on PS5. You will step into the shoes of an Appraiser, embarking on an extraordinary supernatural adventure in the bustling metropolis of Hethereau.
Let’s dive into what makes this game unique.
Welcome to Hethereau, a city beyond the ordinary
You’ve probably played many city-based games, but Neverness to Everness offers a Hethereau that is both familiar and bizarre, yet convincingly real. In this open world, every moment is an adventure as you explore and live in this unique city.
In Hethereau, you’ll encounter TV-headed otters, skateboarders creating graffiti on the street at midnight, and countless supernatural phenomena we call Anomalies. The origins of these anomalies are varied and remain unexplained. Encountering an anomaly in Hethereau is as common as breathing—hopefully, your first encounter won’t scare you.
Hethereau is also a living city.
Operational shops and businesses: A complete business management system lets you purchase vehicles and property to enhance your city life.
Dynamic NPCs: The streets are filled with realistic pedestrians who have destinations and genuine actions. Most NPCs follow traffic rules, but if you disrupt the order, expect different reactions from them.
Authentic vehicles: You can modify and drive them, wreak havoc on the roads, or participate in races.
Anomalies: light comedy with a twist
A great open-world game needs a compelling story, and Neverness to Everness revolves around these anomalies.
As the protagonist, you’ll debut in this anomaly-filled city as an appraiser at the antique shop “Eibon”, beginning an extraordinary daily life by nullifying and containing various anomalies.
Seeing anomalies in the city is like hearing a discordant note in a symphony—they stand out and offer rich, explorative content. We tell the story through episodic narratives with a light comedic touch, aiming to deliver vivid, nuanced storytelling and distinct character portrayals. Our goal is to spark players’ curiosity, maintain immersion, and drive a continuous desire for exploration.
Meet companions, battle with supernatural abilities
While exploring this urban open world, you’ll meet companions with various supernatural abilities to help you solve upcoming events. These abilities, known as Espers, are awakened powers in ordinary humans—some can utilize anti-gravity to climb high-rise buildings, unlocking new urban perspectives, while others can destroy environments, enhancing immersive realism.
These abilities also shine in combat, creating “Esper Reactions” that are easy to master and make battles more exciting. With great Esper comes great responsibility—the safety of Hethereau relies on you and your companions.
Building Hethereau with cutting-edge technology
Hethereau combines cutting-edge technology with the latest trends. To achieve our desired effects and make the city scenes more realistic, we used Unreal Engine 5 to construct the city’s framework and leveraged Nanite virtualized geometry technology to significantly enhance scene realism. We will also continue optimizing for the PlayStation platform to ensure an exceptional player experience.
Neverness to Everness has been in development for a while, and Hethereau has been built from scratch. This city will continue to grow, with more residents and features added over time.
Thank you to every player who has followed our journey, stay tuned for more news about Neverness to Everness.
For those who spent their youth in the captive grip of arcade games, the name Metal Slug needs no introduction. The action-filled side scroller was a mainstay in arcades across the globe, and it’s making a comeback with Metal Slug: Awakening, now accessible on PC and mobile.
Unfamiliar with the franchise? It all started in 1996, when Metal Slug first appeared as an arcade machine. Almost every laundry shop or pizza joint had a Metal Slug machine. For just 25 cents, you could enjoy top-tier fun. There’s something nostalgic about that wild yet joyful arcade era of the ’90s, when you’d get so hooked on a game that you’d forget what time you were supposed to go back home.
The story of Metal Slug was set in a dystopian 2028. You took on the role of a soldier, fighting a coup that threatened to shatter the peace and impose a new world order. You bombarded enemies with relentless gunfire and melee attacks, all the way to the boss showdowns in each level.
On the way through each level, you could find prisoners of war who would give you rewards when you freed them. You always started with a simple handgun, but as you progressed through levels, you picked up special weapons — like machine guns, rocket launchers, and shotguns. You could also jump in tanks called Metal Slugs (the series’ namesake, of course). As the series progressed, it added more heroes and more special weapons.
Awakening is built on the same foundation as its predecessors. It still features side-scrolling action, special weapons, and Slugs. Even the iconic “mission start” and “mission complete” announcements from the original game are still present. But it’s not all old-school — graphical updates breathe new life into characters, weapons, and vehicles; fresh characters with unique abilities debut; and innovative features and game modes offer a refreshing twist to the gameplay.
Speaking of characters, that’s an area where Metal Slug: Awakening has expanded. While previous games had a maximum of six characters, Awakening has more than 20 — with more still on the way. You can unlock characters in the Treasure Dig mode, and each character has unique skills and an ultimate ability that can range from slowing down time to summoning a battleship.
Awakening introduces a mix of classic weapon types as well as unique, new-to-the-series armaments like sniper rifles, saw launchers, and a boxing gun (a literal firearm with a spring-loaded punching glove attachment). Additionally, all weapons come in different varieties, some of which can apply distinct status effects, such as freezing or burning enemies.
Joint Operation is another one of the major innovations in Metal Slug: Awakening. In contrast to traditional arcade games where you might face bosses alone, you can now join forces with two additional players for those epic showdowns. You can do this by getting together with your friends or teaming up with strangers the game pairs you with. You’ll each choose your own character and pack your most potent weapons before hitting the battlefield to claim victory.
Looking for a change of pace? You can dive into the PvP mode for a different experience. Face off against real players, controlling three characters and switching them in and out to demonstrate your unique combat style. With three characters and three weapons at your disposal, the combinations you can come up with offer countless possibilities.
Now, time for play! Metal Slug: Awakening is available to download for free right now on PC, iOS, and Android, and you can play it with a controller. Your progress is linked to an account that can be used across all platforms, so you’ll never have to start over from scratch. Enjoy your time revisiting a classic series.
Amazon’s major annual sale, Prime Day, is running right now. That means you can save a ton of cash on all sorts of items, ranging from furniture to Fritos. Among the deals are a whole lot of discounts on all things Xbox. We’re talking a great deal on a refurbished Xbox Series X, as well as great sales on controllers and games.
Xbox is in a somewhat weird spot lately. While Microsoft owns heavy-hitting game publishers like Bethesda and Activision (the maker of Call of Duty!) its hardware is trailing far behind both PS5 and Nintendo Switch (to say nothing of the Switch successor). But Microsoft isn’t resting on its laurels. It’s making big moves, like letting people play Xbox without an Xbox. And more and more of its attention seems to be on Xbox Game Pass going forward. Still, these deals are worth taking a look at.
Xbox Series X (Renewed) for $369.99
It’s not brand-new, but it’s close, and it costs way less than a new Xbox Series X typically does. Amazon has “renewed” Xbox consoles (refurbished, but in “excellent” condition) on sale for $369.99. That’s $130 less than they cost new. And despite Xbox Series X|S sales lagging behind PS5, I actually prefer my Series X over my PS5 for cross-platform games. Trust me, the “quick resume” feature is a game changer.
New Xbox Series X + $50 Best Buy Gift Card for $449.99
If you’d prefer a deal on a brand-new Xbox, Amazon has nothing for you – but Best Buy does. You can get a new Xbox Series X, plus a $50 Best Buy gift card, all for $50 less than the typical MSRP of the Xbox alone. That’s a pretty great deal – and you don’t even need a Prime membership to take advantage of it.
Free $7.50 Amazon Credit With 3 Months Xbox Game Pass Ultimate
Xbox Game Pass Ultimate just got a price hike – at least it did if you buy it directly from Microsoft. Thankfully Amazon hasn’t gotten the memo yet, and is still charging $49.99 for a three-month membership. But if you’re a Prime member, you can get a free $7.50 credit to your Amazon account if you buy during Prime Day. Just do it.
WD_Black 1TB C50 Expansion Card for $118
It’s no secret that modern AAA video games take up a whole lot of storage space. They take up so much that you’ve probably already reached the limit of your Xbox Series X|S’s onboard storage. Expanding that storage is easy, but it’s usually absurdly expensive, thanks to Microsoft’s proprietary format. This all-time low price on the WD Black C50 is the best you’re likely to get anytime soon, so stock up. If you prefer the Seagate one, it’s on sale too, but for $5 more.
Xbox Controller for $39.99
Ready to add player two? Pick up a wireless Xbox controller, on sale for as low as $39.99. Various colors are also discounted, so pick your favorite and run with it. The Core Controller, which we consider the best Xbox controller, period, also works on PC, Mac, iOS devices, and more, so it’s quite versatile.
2TB Seagate Game Drive for $74.99
External hard drives aren’t quite as useful as the expansion cards above, but they’re way cheaper. This 2TB Seagate Game Drive was designed for Xbox, and it holds a boatload of games. The only drawback is that you can’t play games that are optimized for Series X|S from the drive. But you play non-optimized games (Xbox One games, for instance) from it, and you can download optimized games to it for storage and quick transfer to internal storage when you want to play them.
Xbox Game Deals
Frankly, there aren’t as many Prime Day Xbox game deals as I would have expected. The above games are all that appear to be on sale. If more discounts go live in the future, this is where we’ll put them. Owners of Xbox’s rival consoles can also check at our lists of the best Prime Day deals for PS5 games and Switch games.
Chris Reed is a commerce editor and deals expert for IGN. He also runs IGN’s board game and LEGO coverage. You can follow him on Threads.
If you’re a fan of college football, chances are you’re excited for Friday. For the first time in over a decade, a new college football video game is coming out. EA Sports College Football 25 will feature all 134 FBS teams with player names featured for the first time ever. If you’ve yet to pre-order the big game, Best Buy has one of the onl deals available right now.
You can score a free $5 Best Buy gift card when you pre-order either the PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X version of College Football 25. This is perfect to use on your next game, a new controller, or even digital currency that you can use in College Football 25. Be sure to take advantage of this offer while it’s available, as Best Buy only has this promo available for pre-orders. This offer will expire on Friday with the game’s release.
Pre-Order College Football 25 at Best Buy to Score a Free $5 Gift Card
EA Sports College Football 25 is the first college football game from EA since NCAA 14 in 2013. EA was ordered to stop creating college football games after a lawsuit between the company and former college football players arose over name, image, and likeness (NIL). This prevented any new games until 2021, when the NCAA created rules to compensate players based on NIL. Three years later, College Football 25 is here, with player names available in game for the very first time.
Many of the older modes have returned to College Football 25, including Dynasty, Team Builder, and Road to Glory. Of course, dozens of new features have been added, including Stadium Pulse, which creates challenging road environments in college football’s biggest stadiums. Over 10,000 athletes have opted into the NIL program for the game, with roster updates periodically planned as more players transfer or opt into the game.
While this Best Buy deal is great for console owners, Amazon has an ongoing promotion where you can save $30 off a new PlayStation 5 by purchasing the College Football 25 game. Simply add both to your cart from this link and you can save on a new console!
During Prime Day 2024, the best Switch Lite deal isn’t on Amazon. Walmart is offering the Nintendo Switch Lite (Timmy’s and Tommy’s Aloha Edition) console for only $159. It normally retails for $199, which was already a great deal because it included the full Animal Crossing: New Horizons game. This special edition Switch Lite was originally part of Walmart’s larger sale that competed with Amazon Prime Day. That sale has now ended, but this deal is one of few that are still available, and we’re pretty certain Amazon won’t match it.
Nintendo Switch Lite with Animal Crossing for $159
The Switch Lite retails for $100 less than the original Switch and $150 less than the Switch OLED. It is compatible with most Nintendo Switch games and it runs off the same hardware, so performance is identical. The three main tradeoffs of the Switch Lite is that (1) the controllers are not detachable, (2) the console can’t be docked and played on a TV and (3) the display is smaller (5.5″ vs 6.2″ on Switch and 7″ on Switch OLED).
If you were intending to use the Switch solely as a handheld console, you might be better off just getting the Switch Lite. Even though the controls aren’t detachable, the Switch Lite does support wireless Bluetooth, so you can always purchase another pair of Joy-Cons, a Switch Pro controller, or a compatible third party wireless Switch controller, and you can still play untethered.
If you enjoy cozy games like Stardew Valley, Harvest Moon, or Minecraft, you’ll probably love Animal Crossing. It’s obvious that Nintendo put in a lot of love into this first party title and it’s certainly one of the best – and most relaxing – games for the Nintendo Switch. This is an excellent pick for gamers of all ages, even children. Check out our glowing IGN review for more details.
Other Nintendo Switch related sales and news that might interest you:
And just like that, Nintendo’s next major release of 2024 is right around the corner. Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition lands on Switch on 18th July (that’s tomorrow!) and the reviews are here to give us an idea of what to expect.
Before we dive into the round-up, let’s first provide a brief refresher of what we had to say about this one. We scored Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition a ‘Good’ 7/10 in our review. While we were left “fully entertained” by its bite-sized speedrunning challenges and whistle-stop tour of Nintendo’s history, we couldn’t help but see it as “a downgrade in many ways to NES Remix“. Check out our full thoughts below:
