Xbox News: Seasons Update Arrives for Sea of Thieves!

Sea of Thieves enters a new era on January 28th with the arrival of Seasons! Learn all about earning Renown in the Seasonal progression system, the rewards you can earn, the optional Plunder Pass and much more…

Executive Producer Joe Neates goes into further detail: “The plan is for a Sea of Thieves Season to last approximately three months. Each Season will add new content to the world – for example, in Season One a new Merchant Alliance Voyage becomes a permanent part of the game – and we’ll also introduce new Events and challenges throughout the Season to keep you entertained. 

Seasonal content is free for all Sea of Thieves pirates to play, and its progression system offers a treasure trove of rewards to earn as you progress through levels of Renown – rewards ranging from in-game currency through to cosmetics, emotes and even Ancient Coins to spend in the Pirate Emporium! There will also be an optional premium element to Seasons via the Plunder Pass, which we’ve explained in its very own article. Access to Seasons will not be gated through this Pass, and as is the case with all our updates, the Seasons updates will be free for all players.

While this new approach shifts the pace of major content updates to every three months, it also allows us to craft more meaningful experiences for you all and return to a more predictable rhythm of release. As we said back in November, we’re incredibly proud of the amount of free content rolled out in 2020 despite all the changes and challenges of remote working. However, we had to be flexible with our plans for each month – so working to this new rhythm means we have more space to deliver new and engaging, world-enriching content.”

Sea of Thieves is available with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate for the Xbox family of consoles including Xbox Series X/S, Windows 10 PC and STEAM. For more information on Seasons in Sea of Thieves head here:

Video Game News: Watch the New ‘Persona 5 Strikers’ Trailer

Turn the tides of battle with the power of the Phantom Thieves! A newly released Persona 5 Strikers trailer shows off their unique combat abilities. Whether you play as Joker or Queen, harness their strength and strike back, Phantom Thief-style!

Persona 5 Strikers takes players on an epic road trip with the Phantom Thieves, where they strike back against the corruption overwhelming cities across Japan. A summer vacation with close friends takes a sudden turn as a distorted reality emerges; reveal the truth and redeem the hearts of those imprisoned at the center of the crisis!   

New story and sights – Persona 5 Strikers features a deep story campaign and thrilling combat that makes for a true Persona experience. Visit 6 different cities across Japan, cook tantalizing regional recipes, and lend a helping hand to those in need; then fight against the Shadows to uncover the source of the corruption within the Metaverse dungeons. Jump into the story whether you are a newcomer to the series or a longtime fan! 

Fight with Style – Attack enemies in the hybrid battle system that fuses explosive action-combat with pause-and-plan sequences to decide your next strategic move. Gain an advantage over your enemies by ambushing them, striking their elemental weaknesses to knock them down, and deal the finishing blow with an All-Out Attack! 

Harness the Phantom Thieves’ full strength – All Phantom Thieves are fully playable, so utilize each character’s specific skills and summon their Personas for smooth, elegant combat! Strengthen their skills and abilities and fight with your own style. Each character has their own unique suite of wide-ranging, flashy spells and magic to clear out big hordes. Have you ever wanted to fight as a giant cat bus? Well, look no further. Persona 5 Strikers is purrfect for you. 

SEGA and ATLUS has revealed the pre-order packages and bonus items for each:

Digital Deluxe Edition – €69.99 / £64.99

Pre-order the Digital Deluxe Edition from PlayStation Store, the Nintendo eShop, or the Steam Store! The Digital Deluxe Edition includes:

• Exclusive access to the game four days early, on 19^th February
• Bonus Content Digital Download
  • Digital Art Book
  • Digital Soundtrack – Over 40 songs included 
  • Behind-the-Scenes Video – Making of the Music “You Are Stronger” and “Towards a Dream”
• Persona Legacy BGM
  • Persona 1 and Persona 1 PSP remake
  • Persona 2 Innocent Sin and Persona 2 Eternal Punishment
  • Persona 3 and Persona 3 Portable
  • Persona 4 and Persona 4 Golden
• All-out Attack Pack
  • Boost Skills Pack
  • Basic Affinity Skills Pack
  • Ally Buff Skills Pack
  • Armor Pack
  • Persona Points
  • Enemy Debuff Skills Pack

Standard Edition – €59.99 / £49.99

Pre-order Persona 5 Strikers from digital and physical retailers now! All pre-orders, digital or physical, come with access to the Bonus Content Digital Download. 

Persona 5 Strikers is coming to PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch and Steam on 23^rd February! Players who pre-order the Digital Deluxe Edition now will get access to the game four days early, on 19^th February. 

Video Game News: Watch the New ‘Live Action’ Trailer for The Medium

Bloober Team, the studio behind acclaimed horror games including Blair Witch, Observer: System Redux and Layers of Fear, today released a live action trailer for its upcoming psychological horror title, The Medium.

The cinematic two-and-half-minute trailer was produced in cooperation with award-winning VFX and animation studio Platige Image, with academy award nominee Tomasz Bagiński serving as Writer and Creative Producer, and talented Paweł Maślona as Director.

The trailer brings to life in stunning detail the game’s unique atmosphere and art style inspired by painter Zdzisław Beksiński – in addition the key characters central to the game’s mystery, including Marianna the titular medium, an enigmatic man named Thomas, a spirit called Sadness, and The Maw, a deceptive and hostile entity who can travel between the material and spirit world.

“The Medium is a game with a very strong narrative backbone. The most important thing for me was to understand what the essence of this story is, who its heroes are and its tone.” said Writer & Creative Producer, Bagiński. “The task was to lean as hard as possible on the emotional side of the story while trying to keep as many of the twists as possible a secret. The script is supposed to build a certain mood rather than reveal a story”.

Bagiński is an academy award-nominated and Bafta-winning filmmaker, visualist and storyteller. He was responsible for directing the now-iconic cinematics for such games as The Witcher series and Cyberpunk 2077, as well as Microsoft and Ubisoft productions.

While the live-action trailer takes a thematic, atmospheric and character-driven approach to The Medium, Bloober Team also recently released an extended 14-minute gameplay trailer that can be seen below. Players will be able to fully recognize and appreciate the many references and interesting details included as part of the live-action trailer once they have the chance to play the game later this month.

“The Medium is our biggest and most ambitious project to date,” said Piotr Babieno, CEO, Bloober Team. “When we thought who could write a live action trailer for the game, Tomasz Bagiński quickly became the most natural choice. After all, his Oscar-nominated The Cathedral was also inspired by the art of Zdzisław Beksiński, just like the spirit world in our game. I’m personally very happy that we could create something together.”

Players can head to www.themediumgame.com to preorder on Steam, Epic Store and the Microsoft Store at the price of $49.99/€49,99/£41.74 with a 10% off discount before launch. Players who pre order via Steam will receive The Medium Original Soundtrack (by Akira Yamaoka and Arkadiusz Reikowski) and The Art of The Medium (digital artbook).

Developed and published by Bloober Team, and rated M for Mature by the ESRB and PEGI 18. The Medium will launch on Xbox Series X|S and PC via Steam and the Epic Store on January 28, 2021. It is also included with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate for the Xbox Series X/S and can be preinstalled right now ahead of release on the 28th.

For more information on The Medium, please visit www.themediumgame.com; Follow on Twitter @TheMediumGame; Like on Facebook @MediumGame, or follow on Instagram @the_medium_game.

Video Games News: Find out how to help Celebrate SEGA 60th Anniversary!!

It’s official! 2020 marks the 60^th Anniversary of SEGA! It’s been a long and winding road to get here, encompassing some of gaming’s most iconic moments, scores of unforgettable games and the overcoming of multiple obstacles in a way that would make a certain hedgehog incredibly proud. SEGA West is delighted to announce its plans to celebrate this amazing milestone in its history with its millions of fans around the world. Head over to the newly launched sega60th.com for more details.

The week-long 60th anniversary celebrations start today on Steam, as gamers will be treated to awesome discounts on SEGA’s diverse portfolio of products (check the Steam promotion page here for more details). There are also some brand new, free-to-own retro-inspired mini games, which have been created by SEGA studios specifically for this 60th anniversary. 

• Armor of Heroes – Relic Entertainment – A retro-inspired multiplayer tank romp for up to four players in versus combat and couch co-op. Available from 15-19 October.
• Endless Zone – Amplitude Studios – The Endless universe and Fantasy Zone™ collide in this side-scrolling shoot ‘em up. Available from 16-19 October.
• Streets of Kamurocho – SEGA – Kiryu and Majima from SEGA’s critically acclaimed Yakuza™ series are raging on the Streets of Kamurocho in a new, but familiar challenge. Available from 17-19 October.
• Golden Axed – SEGA – A build of a never-before-seen glimpse at a canned project called Golden Axe™: Reborn.  Available from 18-19 October. So, just one day.

To claim your free games, all you need to do is head to the linked product page on Steam above and click ‘Play Game’, this will add the game to your library, and it will be yours forever. Act fast, once they’re taken down from Steam, they’re gone forever! In addition, Steam users who link their accounts to their email addresses at  sega60th.com will be treated to SEGA Saturn classic, NiGHTS into Dreams, for free during the 60 day celebration. 

The fun doesn’t stop when the promotion is over though, as from today, the SEGA social channels and 60^th Anniversary website will be lit up with 60 days of fantastic SEGA content. SEGA will be hosting let’s plays, regular competitions, interviewing SEGA stalwarts from all corners of the business and treating you to video and editorial content covering different parts of SEGA’s rich history.

Stay tuned to Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube channels for your daily dose of SEGA content.

For more information about SEGA and its 60^th Anniversary, head over to sega60th.com as it will be updated regularly with new content and information.

Video Games News: Maid of Sker Out Now!

Multi-award-winning publisher and developer Wales Interactiveare proud to announce that survival-horror title Maid of Sker is now available on Steam, Xbox One and PlayStation 4. 

Steeped in rich Welsh folklore, Maid of Sker draws players back to 1898 to venture through the notoriously macabre Sker Hotel. With multiple ways for your stay at Sker Hotel to come to an end, use your time wisely as you navigate the halls and grounds, employing no-weapon survival tactics, and relying on your ability in keeping quiet to keep breathing.

Richard Pring, Game Director said, “we’re proud to announce that Sker Hotel is now open for reservations. We hope guests take in the sights and sounds, and sample the litany of delights we have on offer for them – they’re set to have an unforgettable experience!”

Maid of Sker is out now Steam, Xbox One and PlayStation 4. 

Video Games News: New Gameplay Trailer Released for Biomutant

THQ Nordic and developer Experiment 101 have released a brand new Trailer for BioMutant showcasing some fresh gameplay but sadly still not offering a release date.

If you were going to make a new Biomutant gameplay trailer, what would you show? Impressive cities and vast landscapes? Action-packed combat, true martial arts masters showing off their skills or an outpost being conquered? Wild, exotic and fluffy creatures, plus majestic, towering bosses who test your limits? Crazy mutations and abilities on the Hero? A submarine, an airship a combat mech and some mounts for the hero to ride on? Or just So. Many. Weapons?

Biomutant is still showing on the official Website as coming to PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC Via STEAM. No Mention of New Gen consoles in PS5 or Xbox Series X however.

• Pre-Order here: https://biomutant.com/order-biomutant/
• Website: http://biomutant.com
• Steam: http://n.thq.com/ScdU30qTesn #Biomutant #THQNordic #Experiment101

Xbox News: Collect the ‘Blighted Ship Set’ in New Sea of Thieves Event June 10 – 16

Behold the bold Blighted Ship Set! Spread your reach across the Sea of Thieves with this design inspired by the hordes and monstrosities of State of Decay!

Inspired by State of Decay 2, State of Decay fans can now celebrate their zombie affinity by collecting parts of the creepily creative Blighted Ship Set, adorning their ship with the ghoulish, grasping hands of the dead! Fast-acting pirates can grab four items from this set for free by completing Sea of Thieves in-game challenges between June 10th and June 16th.

Log in now to learn more about these items and track your progress towards unlocking them!

Collect the Blighted Hull, Sails, Flag and Figurehead now, before they move over to the Pirate Emporium, with the Blighted Bonus event: www.seaofthieves.com/blighted-bonus

Xbox News: Wasteland 3 Release Pushed Back to August 28th 2020

Yesterday it was confirmed that Wasteland 3 was also going to be delayed due to current world events with its release date now moved to August 28th. The developer team inExile released this statement via their official Twitter:

We have an important update on Wasteland 3’s release date. pic.twitter.com/hiX1CygcUk

— Wasteland ☢️ (@Wasteland) March 31, 2020

Wasteland 3 welcomes new recruits and seasoned Rangers alike to post-apocalyptic Colorado where the end has just begun. Premiering on Xbox Game Pass for console and PC, and available now for pre-order on Xbox One, Windows 10, and Steam.

Video Game News: SaGa SCARLET GRACE: AMBITIONS Out Now!

SQUARE ENIX has announced that SaGa SCARLET GRACE: AMBITIONS is now available on to purchase digitally on the Nintendo Switch system, PlayStation 4 , STEAM, the App Store and Google Play.

Now available for the first time in the West, SaGa SCARLET GRACE: AMBITIONS is an enhanced version of the Japan-exclusive SaGa SCARLET GRACE. SCARLET GRACE: AMBITIONS brings a host of exciting new improvements and updates to the game, including enhanced graphics, character voiceovers, new skills to learn and more, delivering an exciting adventure perfect for newcomers and series fans alike.

The world of SaGa SCARLET GRACE: AMBITIONS is full of conflict and intrigue. The Firebringer, a fallen god and bane of humanity, wrought havoc on the planet. To survive, mankind built an Empire with one goal: defend humanity from this wicked creature. Now, after a millennium of battle, the Firebringer has been defeated. Left without a unifying purpose, the Empire falls to rebellion. Amid the chaos, four adventurers set out on journeys that will change them and the world. Gamers can shape their own destiny, playing as these four exciting protagonists – Urpina, Taria, Balmaint and Leonard – each with their own unique storyline, allowing players to enjoy four different adventures in one game.

To celebrate the release of SaGa SCARLET GRACE: AMBITIONS and welcome new players into the world of SaGa, a 20% discount is available across all platforms.

Discount runs until December 23 for Nintendo Switch. Discount runs until January 3, 2020 for STEAM and Playstation 4. Discount runs until January 5, 2020 for the App Store and Google Play.

SaGa SCARLET GRACE: AMBITIONS is now available digitally for the Nintendo Switch system, PlayStation 4 , STEAM, the App Store and Google Play.

Related Links:
Official website: https://sagafranchise.square-enix-games.com/en-us/saga-scarlet-grace-ambitions
Official Facebook: www.facebook.com/squareenix
Official Twitter: @squareenix
Official Instagram: @squareenix