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Underkeep's indeed out! Underkeep - Official Trailer! Underkeep is my favorite old-school dungeon crawler since Legend of Grimrock, and yes that includes Queen's Domain | PC Gamer Played the demo a good while back . Looks pretty lovely. Also, whilst it is an oldschool dungeon crawl, it plays pretty snappy. Like only a single right-click required to place items into corresponding slots, ranged weapons require no ammo cache too. Projects like this make me feel warm and fuzzy inside. It's like the glorious early days of home computing are back, where a handful of people could make something fun. Like the perfect antidote to the corporate boardroom and shareholder engagement metric bloat. And the only numbers pushed to go up here are for your xp, mana/health bars and enjoyment.

Bavaria. All that research surely won't be wasted now?

Dave The Cthulhu Diver AKA Dive Or Die. Actually pretty neat. In particular if played in a 100% dark room with the headphones on. It's good to play something focused once in a while. And this game knows what it wants to be and focus on pretty well. IT THAT CRAWLS. That's what they call one of the things hidden below here... If such a something lurking into the depths gives you a shiver, there's still a demo. Like the 2d art too. Plus the more simplistic storytelling -- some decent voice acting by a narrator/mentor of sorts. An introductory cutscene, some environmental storytelling™ and the occasional diary bit to be found. Sometimes, less is more. Best to go in blind without possibly spoiling the sounds and... sights, btw. Started my first proper run on hard (2nd difficulty though). We'll see how that pans out, as the Timer Until End Of The World™ is cut 10 days short... and progression seems a bit puzzely -- e.g. you need to find items to be really able to progress further and further below... Like plans to upgrade your diving gear, etc. Would have liked if they had stated clearly in the difficulty pick whether you better had map knowledge before going harder. The items+plans are always to be found in the same locations, it seems. Ah well, you can always up the timer by... sacrifcing your divers to the RAINMAKER. HP would be proud. :D edit: The full release also has an optional "endless mode" with no doom clock ticking. But as that means you can just stay in the starting areas and horde until kingdcome come, it should be child's play.

Ubisoft rumoured to be interested in buying (the rest of) Arkane... Xbox’s Arkane Studios Attracts Multiple Bidders, Including Ubisoft - Bloomberg

On a related note: Arkane's founder has left the big budget gaming industry himself many years ago (post Prey). He's now mainly playing indie games when he plays in his spare time himself. Aside of enjoying BG3, the last game in that space he argued he'd touched him personally was... New Vegas. (Funny that purely commercially, it was like the safest of bets after the Walmart box office smash of FO3, naturally. But they doubled down on RPG-ness compared to its predecessor -- rather than diluting it, as was the industry norm at this time of homogenization... One of the few games I enjoyed without much caveat myself. And today it's a favourite even amongst the masses of FO fans, who'd lose their **** if a sequel would be announced.) 6:30-7:00ish minutes mark The Making of Dishonored & Prey | Raphael Colantonio

BioWare did good business. They've been chasing trends though since day #1. (See MMO/RTS/RPG Battleground Infinity, course corrected at that fateful Interplay pitch). After, they applied their "Bioware romance/companion" formula influenced by Final Fantasy/JRPGs to whatever was hot at the time.(Mass Effect? Gears Of War. DA3? Skyrim. And naturally, The Old Republic was meant to be yet another WOW killer. ) Also the days of their commercial heights artistically were the lowest of this industry as far as I'm concerned. It was the peak era of the traditional gatekeepers: Very few publishers ruled the show, backed by physical retail and shelf space made available for safe formulas primarily -- and then exploding production budgets with the Xbox 360 HD era did the "rest". With several established franchises all over the industry starting to chase the "Call Of Duty / Gears Of War" crowd. Including Resident Evil, Final Fantasy, etc. etc. Several genres saw the axe outright (only to re-appear and flourish again in the Digital Era after). Luckily, that era is over -- and it's even cannibalizing itself. If every game starts to become a little samey, nothing sticks out (plus physical retail at Walmart et all can't gatekeep anymore what's available to a mass audience). Final Fantasy ain't Final anymore? I'll just play Claire Obscur, Persona or get good ol' FF6 in a digital store of my choice. Dragon Age ain't Dragon Age anymore? Let's play BG3, WOTR, Pillars etc. Capcom pivoted back with Resident Evil after 6 -- probably as they realized that going that direction was a dead end. (Why play Resident Evil if you've already got Call Of Duty anyway). Square Enix though? Still learning this the hard way. And whilst I'm not "glad" that Bioware is gone -- they did some good games regardless and it's actual people losing jobs here -- I'm glad that what they stood for as a company is changing. TL;DR: Bioware: We want Call Of Duty's audience. BioWare's Muzyka: Line Between RPGs, Shooters Blurring | WIRED Warhorse: "We just wanna make a damn great RPG." (And we don't give a damn if Call Of Duty players don't like us -- those who like us are going to be hit hard and tell all their friends about it, unlike Corporate Checklist Compromise 27582 swallowed by the algorithm and same same fatigue outright.

Matter of debate. Also: My heart-felt condolences to people now losing their jobs. I'm 100% convinced though that there's a parallel universe out there in which Feargus Urquhart slipped in the shower, broke his ankle and called in sick that fateful day. In that universe Bioware isn't mourned as some former king and savior of the Western RPG (that only later imploded when chasing the Live-Service and Shooting trends). Over in this universe, Bioware is vaguely remembered as a small boutique studio first doing a Mech sim and then chasing 1990s multiplayer/RTS trends already -- all for finite gains in a crowded market until imploding early (like Cavedog, say). "Bioware magic"? It's a myth! And made by chance. 😁 Developer BioWare – now itself a titan of the RPG genre, responsible in Mass Effect and Dragon Age for two of the biggest modern roleplaying franchises – had already worked with Interplay on its debut game, the mech shooter Shattered Steel. The devs then pitched Urquhart their next title: a real-time strategy game called Battleground: Infinity. “I couldn’t get my head around why they thought it was going to be so amazing,” Urquhart explains, admitting that he actually rejected the first pitch. It was only when they came back claiming to be about to sign with a rival publisher (“I don’t know how true that was”) that he took a second look, and inspiration struck. “I looked at it [and said:] ‘I don’t know that this is the game we’d wanna make. What about making it a D&D game?’” 🤑 Feargus Urquhart is doing what he does best

More Drova 2: "There will be no ****ing quest markers!" Revealing our new Open World RPG - Drova II Devblog #1 [Eng Dub/Sub] - YouTube I mean, even Nintendo has figured by now that in order to get an audience engaged, you need to actually engage them first rather than making them go through a corporate and convenient checklist of tasks, bandit camps and question marks (kinda like at work, only in the spare time). Still: Insta-wishlist.

The guy of many ImmSim choices seemed to like it a little. 😁 'The last time I liked everything about a game was probably Baldur's Gate 3': Raphael Colantonio, co-founder of Arkane Studios, talks us through the games installed on his PC | PC Gamer I also thought it was a big upgrade over DOS (never really warmed up to that). It's remarkable how little MANDATORY combat there is, for a start (in particular for its genre... and with a little spell / environment creativity, charisma, sneaking and outside of the frigging box thinking rather than typical "tackle quest / area and rush through it). I mean, DOS is really a thinly veiled combat parcours, with every path through the maps gatekept by mobs (and if you don't keep level, you're toast). However, if you skip too much, you may still lack xp+gear for the end game (though speed runners are having a blast here exploiting the **** out of it). Still, Owlcat doesn't like this. :D On topic: Thief II. Hadn't played that proper in a decade or something. It's about time. They're not making them like this anymore. Whilst we're at it: Not a single fight so far in this one. 😆 Thief 2 - cutscene 6 [Eavesdropping]

RetroSpace (aka Double-Indie Prey or Discoshock). One the one hand, it seems a bit soft (even in 1999 mode) as resource management is barely a thing and it is too simple to disengage from combat in tough situations by fleeing and hiding. One the other, levels offer lots of paths to explore, are wonderfully interconnected to form a station, there's even a fully realized central transport system. Plus, I've just received this audiolog from someplace arguing why you may like this if you're into Shock-Likes. Let's hit the play button, shall we? I am Andrew Ryan, and I'm here to ask you a question: Is a man not entitled to the sweat of his brow? "No!" says the quest marker, it belongs to the impatient. "No!" says the in-game GPS, it belongs to the blind. "No!" says the witcher sense, it belongs to the dumb. I rejected those answers. Instead, I chose something different. I chose the impossible. I chose... RetroSpace. A game where the curious would not fear the quick-time event, where the creative would not be bound by petty cinematics, where the ideas would not be constrained by the playtesters. And with the sweat of your brow, RetroSpace can become your game as well.

Agree, but that was the last project prior to Bethesda/ZeniMax losing the trust. Basically, Dishonored did outperform expectations, Dishonored 2 underperformed them (and was multiple times more expensive to make) and Prey "sealed" the deal. If they were that insecure at that point, they should have sat them on a popular IP (Fallout) instead of encouraging a switch in game type outright (so stupid and short-sighted, considering how highly specialized these studios are). But then that was also during the Live Service / Multiplayer hype -- and Avowed was initially meant to have some elements itself (even encouraged by Feargus when still shopping for publishers/money). At least that's probably a lesson learned by the industry the hard way: With dev cycles like these, chasing the latest fad is a suicide mission / gamble. And personally, I'd argue in such a highly fragmented market with options a plenty , studios with a distinct signature are an asset to build upon, rather than something to axe in an investor meeting. Obsidian meanwhile even started out as a studio making sequels to other peoples' IPs (NWN, Kotor, Dungeon Siege, Fallout...). So they don't do a complete switcheroo in a sense now. By reporting to Bethesda and doing Fallout again, it could be argued that they're back to the start...

That's got to be expected some. Prior, they could work on own IP. Now that's increasingly unlikely. However, things could actually transition pretty smoothly overall in this case. Obsidian after all were specifically brought under the Bethesda umbrella to handle Fallout product etc. -- and that's the type they were build for. Compare that what happened to Arkane under Bethesda/ZeniMax, where the entire genre was questioned.... and staff including leadership fled en masse because they were forced to make product that they had never signed up for at all. Nor did they have the skills. That's kinda like Hollywood asking Sofia Coppola+production company to do the next Marvel movie, becuz more money. Only gaming can be that kind of stupid. (Doofus should have sat Arkane on a Fallout ImmSim/RPG-Like THEN, which WolfEye are kinda now making themselves -- interestingly, even Tim Cain was briefly involved before re-joining Obsidian). WolfEye Studios - Next: First Person Action RPG on X: "About our next game: "We wanted to create a game like Fallout meets Dishonored, or a game in keeping with Arkane Games to be more accurate. So what we want is to land in the Action RPG space with all those values, dialogue and so on, and that’s still our inspiration." Link below https://t.co/X3h9O6cEa1" / X

Bit selfish, but the "best" thing since Beth lost trust in Arkane is that there's two new studios working on two ImmSim-Likes now. Colantonio+Roby formed WolfEye after all. And Smith+Horne+Bare formed Black Pony Immersive. And the way the industry generally has been going for most of the past decade at the top, it's to the benefit of the games. These people aren't corporate drones after all. They're more the auteur kind -- the type of people that unlike in big budget movies are barely allowed to exist in gaming.

Wasn't this always a probable outcome, considering the popularity of Bethsoft IPs? Obsidian had tried to pitch TES spinoffs to Bethesda back then themselves post ca. New Vegas... In particular considering that Bethesda is unable to provide two, now three IPs alone. The last "proper" Fallout mainline game is over a decade old, TES a decade and a half -- and even Starfield has turned three this year already. But that's the way things are generally headed, years of franchise service. Even Rockstar hasn't done anything FRESH in decades! Not even Hollywood is this limited, as it's still maintaining slot for new IP. But considering where the industry is going... Will be interesting to see what's gonna happen to inXile.

Another replay (in preparation for RetroSpace): FIFA 2072: In space no one can hear you VAR. 😋 Feels good to be back aboard Citadel Station (the crew turned into mutants and cyborgs may disagree, but who the hell are they). Whilst Nightdive could have well introduced a quest log to keep track of the tasks without killing the vibe -- it's overall so much better storytelling if you actually need to engage with a world and characters rather than checking the checklists. Even Pixar know this, and they make product for all ages: Don't give the 4. Give the 2+2. Yeah audiologs are kinds old hat to convey that -- but they all started here. Right on Citadel. Enjoy your stay... and don't mind the crazy AI that wants to turn your hacker ass into a cyborg too.

On-topic: Replaying a game definitely made by someone for someone. And taking its ideas (sandbox slapstick) and inspirations (Dark Messiah) and RUNNING with them. And KICKING with them. And BANANA SLIPPING with them. Unlike those bloated open worlds full of side activity to farm that people insist on 100% completing anyway: This one can be finished in 7-8ish hours or so. Sorry in case you're allergic to bananas tho. You've got to pick your lane somehow. 😁 Sir Kicksalot is the Perfect Dark Messiah Parody

More like: After dealing with boring quest checklists to be completed at work... ... dealing with boring quest checklists to be completed at home... All question marks on the map unlocked, all side quests and fetch activity cleared, completion rate at 100% -- boss says you're all done now, god job! 😁 By the way: My above take wasn't an argument for time mechanics in every game. GODDAMN PLEASE NO! :) (The path of the spreadsheet design is beset on all sides by the lack of imagination of the CEOs -- and the tyranny of the shareholder value. See Ubisoft et all, and Witcher 3 REALLY wasn't that far off in its world design). It thus all depends on the game. The mood and emotions it targets. And the stories it tries to tell. As such I'm still waiting for the mod that: ..adds more combat to Disco Elysium? (I’m narcoleptic and always fall asleep when there’s that much text) ...swaps the Brütal Legend soundtrack for country music? (I hate metal and need something I actually like) ...gives Death Stranding infinite carrying capacity? (I work in logistics and want to be able to switch off when I’m home) ...adds a pacifist mode with tranquilizer darts to Doom: The Dark Ages? (I'm a hippie at heart and full of BFG remorse) ...caps the speed in Autobahnraser at 130 km/h? (I’m a Green Party supporter and want to see that implemented—at least in the game) ...unlocks a rocket launcher in Thief 2? (I’m a speedrunner and learned to like the rocket-jump) ...removes the puzzles from Portal 2? (I hate it when a plan doesn’t come together) ...gets rid of the choices in The Walking Dead? (You should see me frozen in the super market, eternally facing those 100 different frozen pizzas to pick from...) Wait, why MODS? Unlike movies, books and music, games will hit so much more if they're truly made for everyone, straight outta the box. 100% convenience. 100% retention and completion rates unlocked! Just like a lawnmower! Come on triple-A studios, CEOs and shareholders! You can make it if only you truly try! ^^

Re: Blood Of Dawnwalker (and that supposedly "timer"..) I sympathize with people disliking elements of a game (be glad if you're not as allergic to markers for everything as I am btw ^^). But this still highlights why I'm barely playing triple-A blockbusters anymore. Numerous mainstream outlets have already highlighted how they've had all the time to explore almost everything (GameStar ran articles and a video, PC Gamer argued they were near invincible after 20 days of 30... calling it a bit tame.) But more importantly: The moment there's even a tiny bit of friction teased, people panic (or mod it out). Let this sink in: It isn't a game over, as the game carries on. Or a real-time clock ticking. It's just trying to represent the consequences of your (in-)actions. In a way that only a game could do. A book may describe a tragedy. A movie may show a hurry. But only a game could make you find a pile of corpses and realize: "Oh my GOD, if I hadn't wasted the prior 1000 hours on brainlessly farming every question mark on the map, that Ciri girl, er, my family may still be alive!" Hollywood is laughing, with gaming throwing its core advantage away, one formulaic triple-A blockbuster at a time. :D And yeah, rather hesistant to pay premium for ideas that sound grand on paper ("Narrative Sandboxes!") -- but then get nerfed in playtesting to barely matter anyway. The good thing is that studios that go with the friction can be winning (Warhorse being the most recent example). Whilst those that are desperate to please everyone in the room and heavily compromise, they may suffer (Bioware). After all, these aren't the mid 2000s anymore, where the entire market was gatekept closely by major publishers (and even retail). Similar to music, this is now a heavily fragmented digital one. Where playing it bland now can run the risk of being ignored (in particular if your product isn't a part of an established franchise or studio still riding high). Prior, lawnmower product makers worldwide only had to upload a glitzy trailer -- and hit the launch button. No more.

Started playing Parkside: Decayed Soul Manipulation. TL;DR: It's Deus Ex, had Deus Ex been a launch smash on PSX. When I first tried the demo a couple weeks or so ago, the game didn't win my heart immediately over. As basically a solo take on huge ideas, there's naturally bit of jank. But then I appreciated the openness of the levels. The varied mission goals. Some non-violent solutions (which also involve dialogue choice or environmental interactions). And lately the game "shocked" me also with making a decision of mine permanent, influencing my gameplay experience from now on... (There's no auto or quick saves, and now I understand why). What needs tuning a little is the aggro of the AI (you're weirdly frequently attacked by security/police force when you didn't even open the aggro, e.g. a bunch of druggies starts coming after you). And it seems a little inconsistent what "theft" NPCs react to. Otherwise, it's fun. And just my type. When there's no more ImmSim in triple-A hell, the indies will make your day. Oh, and you can drive cars and put rats on peoples' plates too. Rats on the table -- probably the last ever feature in the milky way that Ubisoft has yet to paste+copy for its checklists.

OH **** OH ****, this was my personal GTA 6 moment (due to reasons... -> Fallen Aces Preview - Gabagood Immersive Sim ) And it's heeeeeeeeeere! (Biggest steal on Steam right now, btw).

Triple-Indie is the way. No shareholders or kings. Only games. ❤️

Have you played Pentiment? IIRC you weren't particularly fond of lots of combat, so just your kind of game. Granted, it was always set up to be a more niche experience (art style, narrative, historical focus). I still think it deserved to go a little bigger. Btw, what's being done do id Software highlights how crazy this industry is. They didn't only make games, after all. They had one of the most experienced engine tech teams in the industry. In other words, major long-term assets. Which is something that Obsidian for instance don't have, didn't have even in the Black Isle days (without Bioware's Infinity Engine, most of their games as we know them now would have never been). Throwing all (or most) of that under the bus just figures. And that by MS -- for which gaming isn't the main business anyway. In other words, they could "afford" to keep those assets. Rather than axing them straight away.

Wasn't Game Pass supposed to be about "minimizing risk" too? Speaking of which: New Vegas 2 -- the GaaS/ Live Service Unlimited Adventure. 😍 Joking, surely they learned that lesson on that one. Commercially, a new Fallout has the chance of being Obsidian's greatest hit now. When Vincke was shopping for IPs to capitalize on, he considered Fallout too... Larian CEO Swen Vincke says there were only two other RPG series he was interested in working on if he couldn't get Baldur's Gate: Fallout and Ultima | PC Gamer

Ya, to be honest, I'm not even that hyped about Fallout anymore. At least Obsidian's take may be spicy again, rather than another postapoc Bethesda theme park. There's certainly still themes and conflicts to explore in this world. Hoping for another more adventurous smaller project too (see Pentiment et all).

Obsidian doing Fallout was always a likely outcome. Not only because they want to work on that themselves (they even pitched TES spinoffs to Bethesda way back, so who knows...) But because it's just a BIG NAME. One of those that hasn't been "served" by a main line game in well over a decade too now. And it's obvious that Bethesda can't handle it all themselves at these crazy dev cycles (7 years plus for Starfield). Franchises such as Call Of Duty still release regularly because it's studios taking turns. Else, not a chance. Question is, what is going to happen with inXile after Clockwork Revolution.