Welcome back to This Week In Games Australia, your local look ahead at the games you’ll be playing in the next seven days.
This week, it’s all about Redfall, the latest game from Dishonored and Deathproof developer Arkane Studios. Will it be the next big PVE hit? Can Arkane translate its signature immersive sim style to the genre? We’ll all find out tomorrow.
Elsewhere, the week is a cavalcade of fantastic indie games, from turn based tactics to old school adventure games.
If you’d like a preview of This Week In Games Australia, make sure you check out The Kotaku Australia Podcast every Friday! Ruby and I discuss the games we’ve been playing and what’s coming up in the next week that we reckon you should know about. You can find us on YouTube or wherever fine podcasts are uploaded.
May 2
Arto (PC)
Arto is an art-driven RPG about a young woman bringing colour and life back to her drab and desaturated world. There’s a little Mario Sunshine in here, sure, but it’s the way the game weaves various real-world art styles into its design that will impress.
City of Beats (PC)
City of Beats is a top-down rhythm shooter about listening to the heartbeat of a city and using it to cross its rooftops in the middle of a rainy night. Cyberpunk vibes meet twin-stick shooting with a twist.
Dumb Ways To Die 4 (iOS, AND)
Following a surprise resurgence of the popular mid-2010’s ad jingle as a TikTok trend, Melbourne’s Playside is launching Dumb Ways To Die 4 on iOS and Android to capitalise. Part safety warning, part bleak comedy, these games are exactly what they say on the tin.
Ethyrial: Echoes of Yore (PC)
An MMORPG inspired by the hardcore genre giants of the past, Ethyrial: Echoes of Yore is all about treacherous politicking, battling tough monsters and building powerful guilds with friends. Reformed Ultima Online players just sat up for a look.
Monster Tribe (PC)
Monster Tribe is a tactical RPG about exploring an island full of collectible creatures. No, not those ones. This resembles but is legally distinct from that other game where you collect monsters. I really like the SNES-styled visuals on this one. A lot to like here if you prefer games that come from the old school of RPG design.
Redfall (XSX, PC, XBO)
The week’s biggest release by far, Redfall is Arkane Studios’ latest game, and seems as though it might be something very different for the Dishonored studio. 4vE multiplayer against an army of vampires, gameplay that (according to previews) resembles Far Cry in many ways. At the time of writing, reviews have not yet dropped, and the game is out tomorrow — make of that strategy what you will.
Redfall drops on Game Pass for Xbox and PC at midnight tonight.
R.I.C.E (PC)
R.I.C.E., which stands for Repetitive Indie Combat Simulator, is the next game you can use to satiate your cravings for Vampire Survivors. Indeed, the game’s developers make no secret that this is a clone. Here’s the Steam blurb straight from the official page:
“A rich paragraph of information which will try to charm and pique interest, trying to catch your eye in a sea of competition using a slew of buzzwords such as ‘bullet heaven’ and ‘in-depth meta-progression’, in a vain attempt to make you believe this game is any different from others in its genre.”
I have no choice but to respect the hustle.
Showgunners (PC)
Showgunners is a turn-based tactics game about that most familiar of sci-fi tropes — televised bloodsport in a dystopian future. I think it’s a great premise for a tactics game, embracing the outwit, outplay, outlast tactical spirit of competition shows like Survivor and applying it to turn-based strategy.
We. The Refugees: Ticket to Europe (PC)
We talked about We: The Refugees on this week’s episode of the podcast, but in case you missed it: this is a text-based adventure game in which you play a journalist attempting to write a story about the dangerous refugee crossing from Africa to Europe. It’s a game that only wags a finger of admonishment at its lead character, too caught up in the idea of getting the story of a lifetime to realise that the telling of that story is what’s most important. There’s a bit of mixed media going on here — comic style art, instances of FMV, maps, real-world photographs. The developers embedded with real African refugees to understand their plight and better translate their story to an interactive medium. It’s piqued my interest, for sure.
The Witch of Fern Island (PC)
The Witch of Fern Island is a life sim about a witch and her cat slowly making a home for themselves in a little country town. They do this through magic, yes, but also through good old fashioned hard work. One for the cozy gamers, it goes into Early Access this week.
World Turtles (PC)
Another game going into Early Access this week is World Turtles, a game that takes the turtle-borne world building of Terry Pratchett’s Discworld and turns it into a city builder. Yes, you are tasked with building little civilisations on the back of a massive turtle as it travels through space.
File this one under “game ideas that were so obvious this whole time, but no-one ever did it for some reason.” Instantly on my wishlist.
May 3
Age of Wonders (PC)
Age of Wonders is a fantasy version of Sid Meier’s Civilization. That’s the easiest way I can describe it. It’s a 4X turn based strategy game set in a dark fantasy universe, and I know there’s going to be a massive audience for this. Civ is great, but what if I hate the real world and want elves to fight dwarves? Friends, this is that game.
Magic Toenail (PC)
The winner for this week’s Video Game Title Misnomer Award definitely goes to Magic Toenail, which is not, in fact, a game about the intersection of arcane power and foot claws. It’s a game about wizard strategy! It’s a turn-based tactics game (few of those this week) about playing a wizard in a dungeon!
May 4
AFL 23 (PS5, XSX, PS4, XBO)
DONS FOOTY. (Nobody mention last Sunday’s game).
Killbug (PC)
Killbug, by Australian studio Samurai Punk, is the second game this week that is exactly what it says on the tin. It’s a classically styled boomer shooter about getting fed up and killing loads of bugs. Now that I think about it, the whole premise might actually just be programmer humour. Anyway, had a rough day at work? Come home and unload on some bugs.
Tape to Tape (PC)
Tape to Tape is a roguelite ice hockey game about building a world-beating hockey team. There’s actual hockey play involved, but there’s a business management side to the game as well. You’ll need to court star players and keep the ones you have happy and well-trained if you want to progress up the seasonal ladder. Different teammates can have ability synergies, you can outfit them with better gear, or (if you’re not above taking the easy way out) you can bribe the referees to look the other way when you instruct your players to hit somebody.
Bare Butt Boxing (PC)
If you listened to this week’s podcast, you’ll know this was the game that sent Ruby insane. It’s a 3D, arena-based fighting game full of weird little guys who are all caked up beyond belief. Just a load of strange little dudes with huge, jiggly badonkadonks.
Kaku: The Ancient Seal (PC)
Kaku: The Ancient Seal is a character platformer in the vein of games like Tak and the Power of Juju. This one is aimed pretty squarely at kids, but man they’ll have a good time with it. Simple puzzle solving and combat that wont make you work too hard.
Room of Depression (PC)
Room of Depression is a game about a depressed office worker and how the condition she battles every day alters her perspective on the world. Failures seem insurmountably huge. The little wins feel unearned. This is a serious game that tackles serious subject matter. Consider this your content warning: You will need to be in the right headspace to play this one. It is a fairly grim exploration of a sometimes debilitating mental health disorder, but it is nevertheless a story I’m glad the developers are willing to tell.
May 5
Knight Crawlers (PC)
Knight Crawlers is a physics-based action RPG about taking on hordes of enemies and trying not to let them knock you around too much. Imagine Diablo meets Fall Guys and you’ll have a good idea what you’re in for. Some of you reading this are already furious. I understand.
May 6
Hometopia (PC)
Since none of us can afford to buy our own homes, what if we just built some in a video game instead? Hometopia is a free-to-play, co-operate home building simulator. Recreate the dwelling you live in now, or build your own personal Barbie Dream House. Personally, I’m a fan of the co-op aspect here. I cannot think of anything more chaotic than trying to align on a shared vision for a house in a video game where any build is possible.
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