Like slicing and kicking the shit out of people? Then you’ll enjoy the range of titles on offer this week. Injustice 2 lets you (virtually) put the foot into Superman or Batman’s junk. Lo Wang returns to slice and dice enemies in Shadow Warrior 2, there’s an arena fighter between black and white samurai, PlayStation VR gets one of its biggest releases yet, and there’s an adventure involving some bloke called Mr. Pumpkin.
Farpoint (PSVR)
What is it? An adventure in space goes wrong, and you make it right by pointing a plastic gun at aliens and pretending you’re in Starship Troopers.
Should you care? Farpoint‘s campaign will set you back around five or six hours, and there’s a co-op Horde mode as well to enjoy. That doesn’t sound like a lot compared to normal games, but it’s a fair bit when you consider the fatigue from wearing VR all the time.
The Surge (PC, PS4, XBO)
What is it? A sci-fi third person robot brawler. Think sci-fi Dark Souls.
Should you care? You’ll know whether you do after seeing the video below. It doesn’t look half bad so far, although I’d wait to see if the game needs a patch or two first.
Fire Emblem Echoes – Shadows of Valentia (3DS)
What is it? A new Fire Emblem game, complete with new amiibo (although not really in Australia) for the 3DS.
Should you care? If you played Fates or Awakening, it would make sense to grab this as well.
Chroma Squad (PS4)
What is it? A turn-based RPG where you control a set of stunt actors trying to make their own Power Rangers spin-off series.
Should you care? Soft spot in my heart for this game. Definitely one to grab if it goes on sale and you like Power Rangers.
Injustice 2 (PC, PS4, XBO, iOS, Android)
What is it? Your favourite superheroes beat the shit out of each other in increasingly gruesome ways.
Should you care? Mortal Kombat was more my thing than Injustice, but the campaigns are always good fun for several hours at least.
Tango Fiesta (PS4, XBO)
What is it? A pixel-art styled top-down co-op shooter inspired by 80’s action films.
Should you care? Not sure this game does enough for what it is.
Shadow Warrior 2 (PS4, XBO)
What is it? Lo Wang comes to consoles again with even more creative combinations of magic, swords and insults.
Should you care? The campaign supports four players in co-op, which should seal the deal for anyone who enjoyed the original reboot. Those who hated Lo Wang, however, will hate him just as much in the sequel.
Black & White Bushido (PS4)
What is it? A couch co-op game involving black and white samurai, with levels designed for both to blend in.
Should you care? Looks good fun.
Thumper (Switch)
What is it? A “rhythm violence game” made by two former Harmonix developers.
Should you care? It’s got a look to it, that’s for sure:
Seasons After Fall (PS4, XBO)
What is it? The console release of a 2D platform puzzler starring a very cute fox.
Should you care? Definitely one for people who enjoyed Ori and the Blind Forest. The game looks gorgeous.
Akiba’s Beat (PS4, Vita)
What is it? A JRPG set in Akihabara where you wander around disposing of vampires.
Should you care? JRPG fans might? There are better JRPGs or Japanese games to catch up on from 2017 though (NieR, Nioh, etc.)
Skylar & Plux: Adventure On Clover Island (PC, PS4, XBO)
What is it? Another call back to 3D platformers of old.
Should you care? This game is for people who liked Yooka-Laylee or Ratchet & Clank. Otherwise, probably not.
Bokida: Heartfelt Reunion (PC, XBO)
What is it? An open-world puzzler set in a sedate, minimalist environment.
Should you care? No idea, but I’m digging the artstyle:
So those are the main games out this week. Anything catch your eye, or did I not include something close to your heart? Let us know in the comments!
Comments
28 responses to “This Week In Games: The Shadow Of Injustice”
Thumper seems alright, I have to do that thing where I vaguely remember the ‘hive mind’ talk about it for however long we did, but have to and look for stuff from that period of time.
Ideally, a port of it to the Switch would spur a revival of interest, a renaisSwitchance, if you will. Don’t hit me.
Re-Nin-aissance?
Been playing the Surge for around 5 days now, the NDA finished today thank gawd. We got the code at our page (fb review page) and I’ve been *really* enjoying it. It’s like Dark Souls Lite basically. Been playing it on Xbox One, it’s surprisingly stable, no major issues at all so far and I’m pretty impressed. I haven’t seen any microtransactions so far which has made me happy (hoping they don’t come post release). It’s got a decent premise, rather painful opening to watch (in the sense you’ll wince watching your wheelchair bound hero get all ‘Elysium’ed up’, and yeah, it’s pretty goddamn smooth. The combat system is pretty neat, being able to target individual arms, legs, body or head to collect different armoured parts from badguys to gain new armour sets you can mix and match as your own, this is also how you get your new weaponry. You can also upgrade, get a little drone sidekick you can upgrade along the way as of level 2. I’ve put around 30 hours into it so far and I’m on level 3. Really enjoying it. Personally, I say it’s a must play for Dark Souls enthusiasts, it’ll scratch that itch nicely, but it wont replace Dark Souls by any means if you get my drift.
hows it compare to Lords of the Fallen? (same devs)
i know that one got a lot of flak for trying & not-quite-being Dark Souls, but i rather liked it.
pretty interested in the Surge. just need to wait until payday to grab it
Honestly I haven’t played Lords of the Fallen but this has gotten me interested in playing it now. The Surge has tickled that spot for me that’s been needed since I got through Bloodborne and the Souls games. Many, many times I keep getting killed and having to ‘restart’ the area I’m in, there’s no ‘game over’, you just regenerate in the Medibay and can progress back to an area you dropped your ‘scrap’ (the currency) in (there’s a timer too to get it). I don’t think I’d say it’s as hard as Dark Souls by any means, but it gets goddamn hectic (you can see it in those videos). I haven’t found a few of those weapons in that video, I’m pretty much a lumbering brute at the moment with clubs and what looks like an ALIENS style powerloader armour lol, but it’s definitely fun and worth the money. I’ve reviewed a few games lately such as Troll and I (don’t touch it, it’s shit), Sniper Ghost Warrior 3 (it’s garbage) and Sniper Elite 4 (oh what a glorious game!) and I have to say, this has been the best one so far 🙂
After not enjoying lords of the fallen at all, I’m sceptical of Surge but it certainly looks pretty.
When companies try to do ‘dark souls’ it always sounds good in theory but FROM simply do it the best.
This is the reason I haven’t played Nioh yet. I’d like to see FROM do a souls like game set in a cyberpunk world or perhaps even a prehistoric setting with dinosaurs.
The dark souls format is so addictive it’s scary sometimes.
Which is a fair call. I just say Dark Souls Lite as it’s really the closest I can compare it to. Dark Souls itself was kind of derivative too, but did it so damn well it became ‘its own thing’. It was basically the John Wick of videogames, i.e. nothing incredibly original, but pulls all the unoriginality together in such a glorious way it transcends that issue and becomes something entirely new 🙂
Cripes, if you haven’t tried Nioh yet, you really should. Is there a demo? Try that, if there is. The first couple levels look a little samey (ruined rustic Japanese villages), but it really opens up after a while.
My thoughts exactly. I made several attempts to get into Lords of the Fallen, but each time got incredibly bored very quickly. I did not enjoy it in the slightest.
I know one of my mates owns it, I may borrow it first? The medieval setting doesn’t truly do a lot for me. Scifi settings honestly do more, however Souls infuriating gameplay does a hell of a lot lol. Ta for the thoughts 🙂
Ah, so it is the ‘this is the sci-fi Dark Souls thing everybody!’ I had heard about mentioned off-hand by dozens of podcasts for years.
I’m a Dark Souls enthusiast still playing Dark Souls games (haven’t even started the DLC for DS3 yet) and Bloodborne of course.
My questions/hang-ups would probably be the same as the ones for Nioh.
Do I really want to to expend the time and energy learning the game’s ‘not-at-all-like-Souls’ quirks? When I could just play more Souls?
What is the death mechanic this time?
Online/multiplayer? I’d hope a sizable player-base for the PC version at least.
More brawler or more RPG?
‘Clones’ of this nature end up turning into their own genre, I get that. The thing about Dark Souls was it was a sequel, it got released during a time of much-more-hyped and popular titles, but its appeal was a slow-burn.
Front-loading all of this for such a game, ie Bloodborne, robs it of reaching truly critical mass.
More brawler based, a nice little upgrading system, chop and change power armour, a lot of weaponry to find. Inventory system is simplified from Dark Souls, some minor crafting power armour bits that you find but nothing major. If you die, you regenerate in a medibay which acts as the ‘hub’, for the level you’re on. Levels seem linear at first, but as you progress, you open up new paths back to the hub til it seems more like a giant spiderweb of a level than a linear path. It hasn’t been overwhelming and it’s been a pleasure to play, hence really calling it Dark Souls Lite. It seems to know what it is at least and doesn’t try to step outside that area. Check some Lets-Plays that are bound to pop up before you think of buying then, but its a lot of fun so far 🙂
The physics and movement looks a little floaty and weird based on those surge combat previews.
Lords of the fallen felt so ‘off’ in this regard too.
I feel sorry for the dude having the gear screwed in OVER his clothes. I mean, that’s pretty much it for him and that outfit; I hope he likes it :P. No more washing or changing clothes, ever…
They definitely fucked his jacket and the chance to get a good haircut ever again… just sayin’.
Good to know! Definitely on my to play list then.
As for Lords of the Fallen, its a pretty primitive Dark Souls clone through and through. Setting is standard medieval affair without Souls originality and it suffers from a lot of balance issues and (at least when I played) tons off bugs, some game breaking.
I’d skip now there are more Soulslike games out there.
Yeah, don’t expect The Surge to match Dark Souls and replace it or anything just expect it to be fun, Dark-Souls-esque futuristic fun. I’m enjoying it, and usually honestly, after I’ve done the review don’t go back to games. I finished the review 2 days ago and I’m still playing so…. eh… make of that what you will.
Where can I find the cheapest copy of Injustice 2 for the PS4? I’m moving house soon and gotta be a cheap skate but I need to play through this game
Probably the usual suspects:
Mighty Ape
Target (if they stock it, they seem to ignore certain games for some reason)
JB sometimes have day one deals.
Never ever buy from EB unless you want to pay $110 and endure their annoying staff and mode of sale crap.
There are UK based retailers on EBAY which often have very competitive prices if you don’t need it at midnight day one. Never really understand the FOMO culture of gamers. There are loads of games to play.
Also out this week:
– Sword Art Online: Hollow Realisation DLC Abyss of the Shrine Maiden (PS4/Vita)
– Seasons After Fall (XBOne)
– Operation Babel: New Tokyo Legacy (Vita/PC)
Ah yeah, missed the XBO port of Seasons. Added that in.
Aww man, we aren’t getting the fire emblem amiibo straight away? That’s a bummer.
Well I’m in for Farpoint, first time since REVII I’ll be giving my PSVR a decent run.
As someone who has Both Shadow Warrior 1 and 2 on PC, i highly recommend people People Pick up Shadow Warrior 2 especially if you like a Shoot and Loot game like Borderlands.
If you do pick it up i suggest you start on normal then work up from there (treat the difficulty levels like diablo 2) especially if play co-op as each person increases the difficulty. (starting on insanity 1 with 4 people playing will turn you off the game)
I don’t know whether I want to play the Surge yet or not. Really enjoyed Nioh, I was very surprised by it. I felt it differed enough from the Souls games to feel fresh. The Surge looks like something I’d be interested in, but I also haven’t picked up Prey yet.
I was hoping Shadow Warrior 2 would have local co-op on console, but it seems not 🙁
A+ username mate.
“Skylar & Plux: Adventure On Clover Island” sounds like a title made up to avoid copyright infringement in a Disney TV show.