Welcome to our video game news for week 31. It’s been extremely rainy here in Ohio this summer. I miss the sunshine but the rainy weather means more time to play games and read about them online so I won’t complain too much. I’m still working on my Overwatch skills ahead of the tournament coming up at GenCon 50. Wish me luck, I’ve never competed in a video game tournament before and I’m fairly nervous.
Enough about me, let’s find out what is going on the video gaming world.
Video Game News Recap
General News Updates
A Hat In Time from Gears for Breakfast
Gears for Breakfast announced that A Hat In Time will release this fall on Windows PC, Mac, Linux, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4. This adorable 3d platform adventure game features 7 worlds for you to explore, upgradable gear and moves, badges that grant powers, some killer music by Grant Kirkhope (composer for Banjo-Kazooie), and one tiny but fierce leading lady in Hat Girl.
Want to get a hands-on preview? The first level, “Murder on The Owl Express” will be available at the Humble Bundle booths at Gamescon in Cologne, Germany August 23 – 26, 2017 and PAX West September 1 – 2, 2017.
No Truce With The Furies from Zaum Studio
Zaum Studio will also be demoing the alpha version of No Truce With The Furies at the Humble Bundle booths at Gamescon and PAX West in August and September on the dates above.
This RPG is molded by your every choice to create a unique gameplay experience for each player while you solve one last murder case in the seaside city of Revachol as a disgraced detective. You’ll make skill checks (and maybe fail), gather information and draw conclusions, and you may even form obsessions that will start to guide your thought processes as the game progresses.
The game features art by oil painters, dialog written by published authors, and music by an indie rock band. Check out how all of that comes together in the trailer video below to create a dark, haunting world.
Blizzard’s Latest Video Game News
Hearthstone
Pre-orders are now available for the latest expansion, Knights of The Frozen Throne in Blizzard’s turn-based online card game. To celebrate, Blizzard invited The Lich King to the Hearthstone developer area.
Overwatch
The Summer Games event returns August 8, 2017! You can watch the developer update video below but a few highlights from the announcement are:
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- Summer Games 2016 character skins will be available again in the 2017 event. Also, you can unlock the skins using gold credits as well as win them in event loot boxes. Even better? Old event skins will be discounted so they are the same as normal skins when bought using credits.
- New skins will be available (also by credit system as well as loot box) including new legendary skins for Junkrat and Mercy (two of my most played characters, for those who are curious).
- Loot box changes to reduce rates of duplication will carry into this event. So, event loot boxes will continue to show the reduced chances of duplicate items we’ve been enjoying in recent weeks with the regular loot boxes.
- Lucio Ball is back, but with changes to gameplay. Oh, and there will be a competitive version of Lucio Ball. (Am I the only person that hears that as Lucille Ball every time someone says Lucio Ball?)
Xbox’s Latest Video Game News
Girls Make Games Xbox Summer Camp 2017
For the third year in a row, Microsoft and Xbox hosted this event on the Redmond campus where girls from 8 – 17 years of age can participate in a video game design summer camp. You can read all the details of how the camp was started and why such a camp is necessary for encouraging young women to believe they can shape the future of video game development in this article. Watch the video to see the girls in action.
Upcoming Games from Xbox
A full list of the new releases coming up next week shows six new games coming out this week can be found on the Xbox news page. Here are a couple highlights from the list:
Mega Man Legacy Collection 2
The latest in this expansive Capcom series is available August 8, 2017. The game features reproductions of Mega Man 7, 8, 9, and 10. These versions of Mega Man span 8-bit, 16-bit, and 32-bit graphics. Step back in time and enjoy some classic Mega Man action for $19.99.
Masquerada: Songs and Shadows
Releasing on console August 8, 2017, Masquerada: Songs and Shadows is a solo play RPG involving amazing hand-drawn art immersing the player in a realm of magic and adventure.
Current Games with Gold are Runbow (07/16 – 08/15), Bayonetta (08/01 – 08/15), and Slime Rancher (08/01 – 08/31)
You can check out the games on sale right now on the Deals With Gold page.
Nintendo’s Latest Video Game News
I recently picked up a Nintendo 2DS XL for myself. My son never lets the 3DS out of his sight and I really wanted to play Hey! Pikmin. I really like this system. I have no desire to use the 3D feature of the 3DS (3D images make me feel like I’m going to hurl) so at the $149.99 MSRP the 2DS XL was just right for what I needed. It fits easily into my handbag or backpack for on the go fun.
I also recently snagged a Nintendo Switch when Amazon had them in stock for all of about 45 minutes. I haven’t gotten to play yet, as our second controller just arrived this past week but my son and I have some Splatoon 2 action in our near future.
Overcooked Special Edition for Nintendo Switch
Newly released, this game is described as “a chaotic couch co-op cooking game for one to four players.” Players work their way through different kitchens, each with a unique and challenging twist. This Special Edition includes two available expansions for $19.99.
As always, you can view current and upcoming releases on the Nintendo Games Store page. Here are a few that I found especially interesting this week.
Flip Wars for Nintendo Switch
Coming August 10, 2017, Flip Wars is a multiplayer action game where you stomp to flip over panels to take over the board, and possibly tip over an opponent while you do. Use power ups to dominate your opponents and turn the screen to your color to win the game.
YO-KAI Watch 2: Psychic Specters for Nintendo 3DS
The latest YO-KAI Watch game releases on Nintendo 3DS September 29, 2017. My son loves the YO-KAI games and has already asked me for this one. Check out the latest iteration in the video below.
PlayStation’s Latest Video Game News
Dreadnought
Dreadnought is now in open beta. Travel the galaxies while commanding massive ships as a mercenary captain. As a mercenary, your goals are simple. Battle, win, get rewards, and repeat.
Totally Digital Sale
Get up to 50% off (60% for Plus members) on new and old digital content. The sale ends August 15, 2017.
This week’s The Drop highlights 13 new releases in the upcoming week. Check out the blog entry for the full list but here are a couple that caught my eye:
Neptune Flux for PS4, PSVR
Neptune Flux is an underwater open-world exploration adventure game. Explore wreckage sites, find ancient artifacts and uncover long-buried secrets under the ocean’s dark surface.
Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice for PS4
Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice is the tale of a warrior’s descent into madness. Please use caution when watching the video, it is quite disturbing both visually and auditorially.
And very interestingly, you can watch how the video editor for the project from Ninja Theory became the lead actress in the video. She also discusses the physical and mental training she had to go through to become Senua.
PlayStation Plus includes free games. Currently available are Just Cause 3, Assassin’s Creed: Freedom Cry, Super Motherload, Snakeball, Downwell, and Level 22.
STEAM’s Latest Video Game News
New releases and upcoming releases are available on the Steam Games page.
Current pricing specials can be found on the Specials page. This page is updated frequently so check back often.
GeekMom and GeekDad Recent Video Game Articles
GeekMoms and GeekDads often write about video games and related items. Here is a list of all the video gaming related articles from the blogs since I last recapped things:
- GeekDad Z. – “Nintendo Unveils ‘New Super Mario Bros. 2’ 2DS Bundle and More for the Back-to-School Season.”
- GeekMom Shiri Sondheimer – “Play It Once More: Replay FX With Generation Geek 2.0.”
- GeekDad Ricardo Rebelo – “HyperX Alloy Elite Mechanical Gaming Keyboard Review.”
- GeekDad Anthony Karcz – “Beat the Summer Doldrums With Seagate’s Game Drive Xbox Game Pass Special Edition.”
- GeekDad Will James – “Lenovo Y900 Razer Edition.”
Below are the video games some of the Geek Parents have been playing lately.
Dr. Gerry Tolbert:
- Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo Switch)
Z.:
- Splatoon 2 (Nintendo Switch)
- Mario’s Picross (Nintendo Gameboy)
- Hey! Pikmin (Nintendo 3DS)
Chris Wickersham:
- Rocket League (PS4)
- That’s You (PS4)
- Halo 5: Guardians (Xbox One)
Samantha Fisher:
- Overwatch (PC)
- Diablo III (PC)
- Hey! Pikmin (Nintendo 2DS XL)
- Ticket to Ride (Android)
- Splendor (Android)
Anthony Karcz:
- Hearthstone (iOS)
- Marvel Puzzle Quest (iOS)
- Transformers: Forged to Fight (iOS)
- Pathfinder Adventures (iOS)
Will James:
- Star Wars Galaxy of Heroes (iOS)
- Star Wars Force Arena (iOS)
- Transformers Earth Wars (iOS)
For more gaming news, or to share your love of video games with me, please follow @samanthafisher on Twitter.
I heard the super-stable face-tracking 3D on the New 3DS does not make you hurl, you should try a New 3DS XL out. Also I heard Hey Pikmin sucks.
Hi Shah! Maybe when it is time to replace one of our older systems we’ll check out a new 3DS but the one in my house (played by my son) never has 3D turned on. However, I can assure you “Hey! Pikmin” does NOT suck. I think folks were just expecting a full-on new round of the old Pikmin games and not the 2D platformer that it is designed to be.