It’s a big week for all you heroes. There’s a Storm a-comin’. I can feel it in my knee.
Yes, Heroes of the Storm is officially out this week, as is Hatred, the game we’re sure to see in many a FOX News story to come. Hasn’t it been boring without the moral outrage?
Also this week is the usual slew of indie releases on Steam, some of which are coming out of Early Access and look a bit rough, but some of which look kind of fun.
Though this list is for releases, it’s worth noting that this week also sees the beta of Dirty Bomb go public. Give that a go if you were ever into the Enemy Territory mod. Reports from those I know who’ve played it says it’s very much what you’d expect: An unashamed, team-based, objective-oriented FPS that doesn’t give a first or second thought to mass appeal. Hopefully the free-to-play model can get it the playerbase that Quake Wars and Brink lacked.
If we missed anything, pop it below in the comments!
Heroes of the Storm (PC/Mac/Linux)
What is it? Blizzard’s take on a MOBA, starring prominent Blizzard characters from all its universes.
Should you care? Yep. It’s good. MOBA vets will see it as “MOBA-Lite” but hey, 20 minute matches are fantastic.
Hatred (PC)
What is it? It’s that viral game featuring an angsty brotagonist who goes on a civilian-shooting rampage.
Should you care? Aesthetics/premise aside, and on a purely dynamic level, this looks like a game about shooting people running away from you. I’m not sure what’s interesting about that.
Dungeon Crawlers HD (PC)
What is it? A TBS dungeon crawler with a Ghostbusters theme.
Should you care? I like the look of the art style. Might be worth checking out.
stratO (PC)
What is it? Fly a glider through obstacles at the “speed of dubstep”.
Should you care? Looks like a casual game, but specifies that it is not: “Rather than telling your plane to go up/down/left/right, you control INDIVIDUAL air deflectors, and the sum of their generated torque is the result.”
Avenging Angel (PC)
What is it? An FPS/Adventure game set in a steampunk world.
Should you care? I can’t deduce much from the trailer, other than enemies will be fought, cranks will be turned, and the music suggests everything is EPIC.
Artifact Adventure (PC)
What is it? Open world RPG with pixel aesthetic.
Should you care? Travel to gather certain powers across the land, and use those for future challenges. Everything you do leads to endings numbering over 70.
This Starry Midnight We Make (PC)
What is it? Make pretty pictures and patterns in the sky with your star-seeing basin.
Should you care? If you’re after something slow-paced, narrative-driven, and cutesy.
UFHO2 (PC)
What is it? Play an alien navigating a maze of hexagons.
Should you care? Looks like an little puzzle game.
Sparkle 2 (PC)
What is it? Match three orbs before they get pushed over the edge.
Should you care? If you liked Bubble Bobble, this could be up your alley.
Fleeting Ages (PC)
What is it? Open world game with strong survival elements and a constantly changing world and ages.
Should you care? Looks a bit like Rust, with simpler graphics. Might be less buggy than Rust.
Barren Roads (PC)
What is it? Survival game in the vein of DayZ.
Should you care? If you liked DayZ! This has less zombies and more nuclear fallout.
The Jackbox Party Pack (PS4, One)
What is it? Assortment of trivia/party games using your phone as a controller.
Should you care? This is from the team behind You Don’t Know Jack, which was decent. There’s a focus on comedy as well as trivia. Always good to have one of these for when friends pop over.
Comments
10 responses to “This Week In Games: Hatred of the Storm”
Guilty Gear Xrd Sign (PS3/PS4), Lord of Magna: Maiden Heaven (3DS) and Operation Abyss (Vita) should all be available digitally this week.
There seriously isn’t one physical (noting Casual Prolix comment above about digital) console release this week at all? There are 7 possible consoles primed for games but not one of them is getting a new game? I dont know if thats a good thing….
Highlights the seasonal nature of releases, I guess. There’s always one or two weeks with low numbers of releases.
The increasingly common trend these days is that EU territories get digital releases only. It’s great for shelf space but not so great for disk space when PS3 and PS4 don’t have external storage options.
This was the reason I imported Hyperdimension Neptunia Action Unleashed U for the Vita. I dont want digital, I wanted a physical English release!
The E3 period is where releases go to die 😛 I’m actually surprised Dirty Bomb is going open beta on the same day as HOTS’ release. But yeah, I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s quiet for a bit.
E3 is next week? Yike for the light next few weeks then
I remember June is usually quiet, but this is crazy! Not even the usual shovelware (although I’ve noticed there has hardly been much console shovelware this year at all)
E3 is June 16-18
might also want to mention that new dino game ARK goes into early access this week as well and the devs have been communicating a fair amount on the steam forums + they are backed by sony so it doesnt seem like another stomping land
4th June
Wander, on steam
im interested in the MMO without combat…. for the right price and the right feedback on early adopters
E3!