kaser-focus:-the-end-of-year-game-releases-are-upon-us

Kaser Focus: The End-Of-Year Game Releases Are Upon Us

It’s not a 3D Sonic game if it doesn’t have rail grinding.

Image Credit: Sega

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I have finally finished my review of God of War Ragnarok, and fittingly just as the cold has come to my home. Tis the season to settle in and play some games without that pesky sunshine beckoning you outside. With the late fall season comes the arrival of the November-December release bracket, which has several prime titles. In addition to Ragnarok, we’ve also got Sonic Frontiers, Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, Goat Simulator 3, The Callisto Protocol, Pentiment, Marvel’s Midnight Suns and The Devil in Me. That’s only naming the major players.

In other news, Embracer have shut down Onoma, the studio formerly known as Square Enix Montreal. Only a few weeks after the studio rebranded itself, too. Reportedly the company offered at least some of the Onoma employees jobs at one of the other studios it acquired earlier this year, Eidos Montreal. Supposedly Eidos is working on a new Deus Ex games, which means they listened to my pleas. It’s still a pity that Onoma got the boot, though Embracer told GamesIndustry.biz that it was a “a difficult decision.”

We also got some updates on the new PlayStation VR2 headset, including a release date and launch titles. It’s a surprisingly large list of games, too. While the $549 price tag is a bit intimidating, Sony seems to be doing everything it can to set the new hardware up for success. Understandably so, as the company appears to be bleeding PlayStation Plus subscribers, if its most recent financial report is anything to go by.

Now that I’m done playing Ragnarok, I’ll be getting back to Bayonetta 3. I’ve been taking it a bit slow to savor the experience, but I love everything about it I’ve seen so far. I will update on my progress next week. I’ll also probably try out The Chant and Harvestella — the former because I’m still in the mood for some atmospheric horror. Also, in news from my own niche interests, Frogwares revealed the trailer for its remake of Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened. I played the original point-and-click adventure game, and am looking forward to the updated version.

What to play this week

What’s new:

  • The Chant
  • Harvestella
  • Ghost Song
  • Football Manager 2023
  • The Legend of Tianding
  • Horse Tales: Emerald Valley Ranch
  • The Entropy Centre
  • How to Say Goodbye
  • The Past Within

New on subscription services:

  • The Walking Dead: A New Frontier (Xbox Game Pass)
  • The Walking Dead: Michonne (Xbox Game Pass)
  • Praetorians – HD Remaster (Xbox Games with Gold)
  • Nioh 2 (PlayStation Plus Essential)
  • Lego Harry Potter Collection (PlayStation Plus Essential)
  • Heavenly Bodies (PlayStation Plus Essential)
  • Fallout: New Vegas Ultimate Edition (Prime Gaming)
  • Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (Prime Gaming)
  • Facility 47 (Prime Gaming)
  • WRC 9 (Prime Gaming)
  • Etherborn (Prime Gaming)
  • Whispering Willows (Prime Gaming)
  • Last Day of June (Prime Gaming)
  • Freshly Frosted (Luna Prime)
  • Baseball Stars 2 (Luna Prime)
  • Thymesia (Luna Prime)
  • Youtubers Life (Luna Prime)
  • Against the Storm (GeForce Now)
  • Space Tail: Every Journey Leads Home (GeForce Now)
  • Filament (GeForce Now)
  • Star Ocean: The Divine Force (GeForce Now)
  • Pagui (GeForce Now)
  • RISK: Global Domination (GeForce Now)
  • Total War: Three Kingdoms (GeForce Now)
  • Mario Party (Nintendo Switch Online)
  • Mario Party 2 (Nintendo Switch Online)
  • Battleheart Legacy+ (Apple Arcade)

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