Review: Astral Ascent – Probably The Best Roguelite Since Hades

There’s always room for one more good one.

In 2019, a small French studio called Hibernian Workshop released a game called Dark Devotion, a promising 2D soulslike that was met with mixed reviews, but managed to garner a passionate fanbase. A couple of years later, the team returned with a Kickstarter pitch for a new roguelite called Astral Ascent, which hit its funding goal within two days and managed to blow past it considerably in the weeks to come. Since then, the crew has been busily working away at it while sharing periodic updates, and the day has now come that Astral Ascent is seeing its full release. We’re happy to report that this is a tremendous new entry in the Switch’s packed roguelite library, quickly inserting itself amongst the very best.

Astral Ascent is set in a modern fantasy land called the Garden, which is a lush and beautiful prison guarded by 12 godlike jailers, each based on a Zodiac symbol. You play as one of the prisoners in this magical place, trying your absolute hardest to break out and secure freedom for both you and your allies. Each of the Zodiacs has a unique personality and clearly knows their prisoners personally, and as you engage in your endless attempts to escape, more of the backstory is slowly revealed that highlights the connections between these characters and why they find themselves locked in this seemingly eternal loop.

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‘Blade Chimera’ Combines Stunning Pixel Art With Stylish Metroidvania Action

Coming Spring 2024.

As part of the latest Indie World Showcase, Team Ladybug and Playism announced Blade Chimera, a 2D action game with heavy emphasis on exploration and stylish combat. It sports some truly stunning pixel art visuals.

Launching in Spring 2024, it looks like we can expect to see some epic boss battles, light puzzle solving, and weird enemy designs. We’re definitely up for that. Let’s take a look at the official description:

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Konami’s Super Crazy Rhythm Castle Brings Toe-Tapping Musical Mayhem To Switch Today

Bring the noise.

Earlier this year, we were invited along to a preview event by Konami and of all the games on display, one took us by surprise. That game was Super Crazy Rhythm Castle, and it is available to pick up on the Switch eShop today (14th November).

Developed by Second Impact Games, Super Crazy Rhythm Castle appears to do everything that it says on the tin: it’s a rhythm game, set in a castle and it’s super crazy. So far, so rhythm game, right? Well, we’d recommend taking a look at the above launch trailer to get a taste of just how ‘super crazy’ things can get.

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Mortal Kombat 1’s DLC Fighter Homelander Won’t Be Voiced By ‘The Boys’ Actor

“Nope”.

Although Mortal Kombat 1 was able to secure the actual voice actor of Omni-Man for the first DLC fighter release, it seems it hasn’t had as much luck with ‘The Boys’ character Homelander.

In a brief exchange with a fan on social media asking if he would be voicing the character, the New Zealand actor Anthony Starr said he wouldn’t be showing up in NetherRealm’s latest entry – sharing the following one-line response:

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Zelda’s Voice Actor Would “Love” To Reprise Her Role In The Live-Action Movie

You hear that, Nintendo?

Last week, Nintendo legend Shigeru Miyamoto surprised everyone when he announced a live-action Legend of Zelda movie was currently in the works. It’s already led to a lot of speculation about who could play each character, and one person who’s already put their hand up is Patricia Summersett.

In case you didn’t know, she’s actually the voice of Princess Zelda in both The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom. When queried by GamesRadar about the possibility of reprising her role for a live-action movie adaptation, she was all for it:

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Bandai Namco Forms New Dev Studio Focused On Commissioned Projects

Nintendo appears to be a big part of the plans.

For many years now, there have been development teams at Bandai Namco working on Nintendo exclusives. Now, Bandai Namco has established a new studio, which will work on “commissioned development projects” including Nintendo titles.

“Studio 2 & Studio S” has already listed a bunch of Nintendo games its teams have contributed to in the past. This includes Smash Bros. and Mario Kart as well as newer IPs like ARMS. Here’s a translated description of the developer from the same page:

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Nintendo Is Most-Nominated Publisher At The Game Awards 2023

The Big N scoops 15 noms.

Earlier today, Geoff Keighley announced the nominations for The Game Awards 2023, including the hotly-contested Game of the Year — where both The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and Super Mario Bros. Wonder are in contention.

But perhaps more impressive is that Nintendo has secured the most nominations of any publisher at this year’s awards, scooping up an impressive 15 nods. Let’s break that down a bit…

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Zelda: TOTK And Mario Wonder Land GOTY Nominations At The Game Awards 2023

Both games collect 5 noms each.

The nominations have been officially announced for Geoff Keighley’s night of razzle-dazzle, The Game Awards, which this year will take place on 7th December.

Of course, the category on everyone’s mind is the prestigious Game of the Year, which this time sees two Nintendo games in the running for top prize. Yes, both The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and Super Mario Bros. Wonder have received a nomination for GOTY — way to go, Nintendo!

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Nintendo Announces Indie World Showcase For Tomorrow, November 14th

20 mins(ish) of news and updates.

Fasten your seatbelts folks, Nintendo has announced a new Indie World Showcase for tomorrow – that’s Tuesday, November 14th, 2023.

Kicking off at 9am PT / 12pm ET / 5pm BST / 6PM CET / Wed 3am AET, the showcase will feature “roughly 20 minutes of new announcements and updates on indie games coming to Nintendo Switch”.

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New Pokémon Scarlet & Violet 7-Star Tera Raid Battle Event Announced For This Weekend

Take on Eevee.

The next 7-Star Tera Raid Battle event has been announced for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet and, with ‘Eevee Day’ rapidly approaching (apparently), there are no prizes for guessing the starring ‘mon this time around (thanks, @SerebiiNet).

Yes, Eevee will be taking the spotlight in the upcoming event, which kicks off this weekend from 17th-20th November. Paired with the Normal Tera Type and carrying the Mightiest Mark, this special first-gen Pokémon can only be caught once per save file.

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