FTS: (HoundPicked) Kawaii & Cozy Sequel 'NAIRI: Rising Tide' Set For November Release! (PC & NSW)

 

Save Your Parents as Darkness Looms! Experience an engaging story filled with charm, adventure, cute animals & intricate puzzle-dungeons

17th October, 2024. Today developer HomeBearStudio and publisher Hound Picked Games are pleased to announce that NAIRI: Rising Tide is set to release on PC Steam and Nintendo Switch on November 14th, 2024! The game is available to pre-order now on Nintendo Switch with a 25% discount - €10.79 $11.99 £9.75! In this next instalment of the series, players can expect to experience richer, vastly improved hand drawn artwork with many new characters and, of course, some beloved friends returning! Set after the events of NAIRI: Tower of Shirin, NAIRI: Rising Tide sees Nairi continue on her journey to save her family. As Nairi and her companions try to overcome the many dangers of the corrupt city of Shirin, an apocalyptic prophecy emerges that threatens to devour everything. In NAIRI: Rising Tide players experience an engaging story filled with charm and adventure. Exploration is key with a large, hand drawn world full of colourful and memorable animal (and human) characters that players know and expect from HomeBearStudio! As players explore, they will be able to craft creative solutions by combining items with the new Toolbelt, which will aid them with challenging brain teasers that are contained within intricate puzzle-dungeons! Will Nairi and her companions be able to overcome the many dangers of the corrupt city of Shirin while an apocalyptic prophecy threatens to devour everything? Nothing to see here, just Gilligan enjoying a sandwich… Features: World: A larger and more interconnected world/dungeons. Puzzles: more complex dungeons and puzzles require serious wit to overcome. Skip: for players who would rather focus on the narrative: dungeons can be skipped. Toolbelt: craft new items by placing items in the 'Toolbelt' and using the correct tool! Maps & Goal Markers: find maps to help with orientation and figure out where to go. Fast-Travel: alleviate backtracking by fast-travelling to key areas in the  'overworld'. Improved Hint System: purchase hints system ranging from nudges to full solutions. Collectibles, Lore & Log: the Journal now includes much more than just hints. Recruits: earn coins by recruiting certain NPCs (which also spruce up your 'base)'. Figurines: coins aren’t just for hints - purchase cute figurines for extra lore! Item Descriptions: items can now be examined for context and/or guidance. Synopsis: an illustrated synopsis explains the events of 'NAIRI: Tower of Shirin' to catch up new and old players alike. Artwork: another collectible comes in the form of hidden concept art pieces. "We were fortunate to be able to work with fewer restraints this time around and are proud of how Rising Tide turned out. HomeBearStudio is beyond excited for NAIRI fans - and any fan of the genre - to finally get their hands on the sequel!" - Joshua van Kuilenburg, HomeBearStudio. Rated T for Teen!

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FTS: "TANUKI: Pon's Summer" Revealed at Xbox Tokyo Game Show Broadcast (PC, Xbox)

CRITICAL REFLEX & DENKIWORKS REVEAL TANUKI: PON’S SUMMER AT THE XBOX TOKYO GAME SHOW 2024 BROADCAST

Bike through a picturesque Japanese village, deliver mail, land sick tricks and make friends in this Japanese summer adventure, coming to Xbox and PC

TOKYO – Sept. 26, 2024 – Look at the little guy go! At the Xbox Tokyo Game Show 2024 Broadcast, CRITICAL REFLEX and indie developer Denkiworks officially revealed TANUKI: Pon’s Summer, a colorful, epic, and chill adventure about an adorable BMX-riding mailman set in a delightful Japanese town. Who said hardcore can’t be cute?! TANUKI: Pon’s Summer is coming to Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One and PC via the Microsoft Store and Steam.

Step into the furry paws of Pon and BMX in style as a part-time mailman in a picturesque Japanese town, delivering packages, pulling off tricks, and helping locals with quests. In this awesome summer adventure, you’ll enjoy fun activities like bug catching, plating sushi, baseball, sumo and more while unlocking a variety of decorations to restore the Great Tanuki Shrine for the end-of-summer Matsuri festival! Experience village life and create your own unique story as you befriend (or annoy) a cast of quirky townsfolk and manage your relationships with an intuitive, emoji-based dialogue system!

Key Features

• Ride your bike freely while doing sick BMX tricks, grinds, flips and stunts
• Deliver packages and complete odd jobs around the village as a part-time mailman
• Enjoy summer activities like bug catching, karaoke, fishing, baseball and more
• Make friends with – or even upset – the quirky townsfolk with a fun emoji-based dialogue system
• Unlock different decorations to restore the Great Tanuki Shrine
• Explore a lovingly crafted world inspired by the developers’ lived experiences in Kyoto, Aomori, Sapporo and Beppu. Hot summer days in Japan await!

Enjoy the Full Xbox Tokyo Game Show 2024 Broadcast and... game on!

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Save big on spooky fun!

Starnaut: The Quirky Rogue-like Space Adventure - New Updates

Starnaut, the unique rogue-like indie game, is still in early access, but the updates are coming in steadily. The latest update was released less than a month ago, showcasing the team’s dedication to continuous development and improvement.

In this article, we’re presenting recent gameplay from September 2024 along with gameplay from February 2024 to showcase the game’s dev progress. The latest update addressed several bugs, and the development team is actively seeking feedback from supporters for potential new features as well. I've always respected that to the degree that solid updates and useful features are implmented. One notable addition is the beginning stage animation when your choice mask appears on your character, in addition to “Lost Data Copiasu".

Instead of just talking about the game, let’s dive into the latest gameplay since the update:

While the final release is still uncertain, Starnaut offers plenty of fun and replay value for just $7.99. If you like what you see, consider adding it to your collection. There’s also a prequel titled “Starnaut - Prologue Copiasu” available for $1.99. Personally, I believe this should be a reward for early supporters, but I digress. Other things I've noticed is the appearance of the... "Wonderful" character in the stage, who gets uncovered when you smash up bundles of scrap, the world is more fleshed out and I haven't come across any bugs.

Anyway, let's get into the initial gameplay (from February 2024):

Overall, I’m impressed with what I’ve seen so far, and I can tell there is more structure for sure. The team at Crim Co. has done a fantastic job, and fans of El Shaddai will be happy to know that you get cross over action in Starnaut. I haven’t had the chance to try out the new character yet, but I’m excited to continue exploring this spaced-out fantasy action game. I don't believe the El Shaddai character is the one that's imprisoned, but I will find out when I find him. If anything comes to mind that can improve the experience, I will certainly run it by the team. Now that I think about it, I think this would be a great experience on Switch!

Shoot for the stars and game on! (Takes off on a used rocket held together by indestructible duct tape.)

 + Sophi 

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