April 9th, 2018 by Vega Montanez
Post PAX East festivities! This past weekend the video game industry came to visit the northeast New England region. A place also recognized as Boston. And although it didn’t bring a ton of news, the news it did bring was insane. Collaborations, new projects, and single player second year DLC. Yea feel lucky, cause I damn sure do. Here’s why:
1. Fantasy Raider 1.
That seems like it will be the exact title of the upcoming project from Square Enix. To open the PAX East gates Square Enix announced a cross over project of two of its biggest franchises, Final Fantasy & Tomb Raider. There wasn’t any other information reveled so time to go into hyper speculation mode. I think it would be amazing to introduce some sort of lore that ties the two worlds together with one being present/past and the other being present/future. Either way I’m excited to see what comes of it, so long as its not a damn Pachinko machine. Looking at you Konami.
2. Final Fantasy XV lives on.
A few years back. Ok, maybe a little bit more than a few years but who’s counting. I remember conversing with my co-workers about DLC. I would always say to them, all I would want from DLC would be story expansion. You know like, when theres still more to the story but not necessarily enough for a full fledged sequel. Fast forward to 2018, and for the most part that’s what we get. Anyway, on to the news. Final Fantasy XV will be receiving new story based episodic DLC all the way through 2019. That is amazing because of how long the string of content for this game has been. Imagine a world where you fall in love with a game and instead of being given a full blown sequel that wasn’t necessary, you get episodic additions to the game you love. That’s he direction we could be heading in the games industry. That, and of course Battle Royales.
3. Return of the Dragon.
Everyone’s favorite purple dragon is back. Don’t believe me? Find another purple dragon nearly as popular as Spyro. I’m not even gonna wait because I know you won’t. Spyro the dragon is returning for the second time. This time however, he’s coming back in true form. Activision announced the Spyro remastered trilogy, featuring the first three games to make the dragon a star. Much like the recent Crash Bandicoot Trilogy, the remaster will feature upgraded graphics, modernized controls, and a reimagined take on the original music. The game will be available on September 21 for PS4 and Xbox One and no mention of a Switch version in the works.
4. Spider-Man, Spider-Man, spins a web when he can.
This week Spidey showed up to drop gems about his upcoming game. First the release date. Spider-Man will be arriving exclusively on a PS4 near you on September 7th, 2018. Plans for DLC were also briefly highlighted stating in will come in the form of a three part campaign with new villains, suits, missions, and more. And speaking on suits, this new Spider-Man game will allow us to dress Spidey up in over a dozen different suits from various comic story lines. A collector’s edition was also announced with more info coming in the summer, but it will come with all DLC included just like the Deluxe edition. Insomniac, the developers, also made a big deal to note there will be absolutely no micro transactions in the game.
5. Vive Pro Starter Edition.
With VR finally reaching a point of mass general interest, the manufacturers have also started finding better ways to cut cost on production. This perfect middle ground genesis is the type of thing that results in price drops and special bundles. In this case we are getting a special bundle from HTC. Taking feedback and backlash into consideration, HTC has announced a new starter kit for the Vive Pro VR system. This special bundle includes the Vive Pro Headset, two Vive 1.0 controllers, and two 1.0 base stations for $1100. Considering all of that is necessary to use the system it makes a ton of sense to see such an aggressive pricing. When considering the cost of all things separate that’s about a $300 savings. Pretty good if you ask me.
6. PC to Console, Console to Switch.
So before any Nintendo fan boys come at me for not calling the Switch a console, understand I do it with the highest respect. The Switch is not a console. It is so much more. That however is save for another day. Today let’s talk about Firewatch, the incredibly unique adventure game, coming to Nintendo Switch. The Switch version will include system specific upgrades, although most of those will be under the hood. And no date was provided. On the flip side, I am very excited for a new RPG being ported from PC to Console. As rarely as that happens, it is my pleasure to share with you Divinity: Original Sin 2 is coming to PS4 and Xbox One in August. Featuring 4 player online and local split screen Co-Op, Divinity is a story based action RPG that looks phenomenal.
7. Is that a new… Challenger?
Warner Bros has obtained the rights to distribute and publish IO Interactive’s Hitman. Wasting no time with this new muscle, Hitman: The Definitive Edition will be releasing on May 18th. And with rumors floating around the world of a new Hitman coming, it’s very possible we may see some version of the nemesis system in everyone’s favorite modern day assassins world. This is the real outrageous news though. Here comes a new challenger! In the most abstract way. Right now you can hop on Kickstarter and support the Street Fighter Board Game. I don’t even know how to explain the incredible thing that is this project. I mean for real the only bad part about it is the price tag but as a collector’s item its well worth it. Dive in and see for yourself.
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