Dark Devotion is a new Action adventure RPG developed by ‘Hibernian Workshop‘ and published by ‘The Arcade Crew’ and ‘Maple Whispering’. It is coming out the first quarter of 2019 on the Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PS4 and PC. Dark Devotion is suppose to have some serious fights. Let’s take a look.
It’s not fully explained bu the story in Dark Devotion is that a templar sets out on a religious calling. The story must be pieced together by the players. Every item you find and every chest opened contains another piece of the story. You can find clues, a letter and even weapons. All will help piece the story together. This should tell gamers that exploration is required.
The action takes place in a fallen temple. This temple should have been boarded up and sealed by the way. There are four worlds. Your character must prove himself and dedication to his god. This won’t be easy as this temple is full of danger, answers to your questions and off course secrets. Rumour has it that this temple sort of has a mind of it’s own in a way. So learn it’s ways or have a really hard time.
Now off course this isn’t going to be your Indiana Jones adventure movie. This temple is real bad. Everything in it wants you dead. Players have to make the right decisions. Knowing when to handle curses, knowing when to retreat, knowing when to heal and when to thrust your blade through the monsters face. Every world in Dark Devotion has multiple paths. Each path is its own but you can’t turn back once you go down it.
The developers have left lots of rumours and secrets in this game that makes exploring a must. What you find can either be real good or real bad. You might find a monster that kicks your butt in 5 different countries or you may find an altar where you can save the game. Or maybe you find Doctor Who (not really). Either way, players need the items and secrets so you have to take the risk.
Dark Devotion doesn’t leave you at a complete disadvantage as there are a good dozen of weapons, armors, and relics which will give your character the boost she needs. These relics, weapons and armours can be customized with mystical runes. Each of these different items and equipment off course has their own stats and attributes. A game having attributes means that strengths and weaknesses amongst enemies is a mechanic here.
Now off course let’s get to the main dish. The enemies. There are a bunch of them. There’s simple zombie acting ones that approach you and takes a swing at you. All you got to do is time it and dodge. Then there are some big enemies who are chained to a spot, but that doesn’t mean it won’t strike with a mighty slam of their weapon. There are bosses who will make you sweat (probably). Some can teleport and then strike from the other side, some use magic and mystical powers. Powerful swordsmen with flaming swords and more. Each fight can go so badly if you aren’t careful so don’t get to cocky now.
We checked out some gameplay and it’s sort of what we expected. It’s 2D off course, the level design is very nice, everything looks responsive. You can either block or dodge. A variety of enemies who are definitely dangerous, like the pirate looking one who can dash attack. Multiple little areas to explore and items to find for sure. Dark Devotion definitely looks like it’s going to be a difficult game. We so far like what we see.
Overall Dark Devotion looks like a very good game. The graphics are handmade pixel art. The sounds are done well. The temple has traps like swinging pendulums, spike pits and more. One boss enemy looked unreasonable but it’s good to have at least one ridiculous boss. The developers ‘Hibernian Workshop’ did a very good job with this game so far. We at X35 Earthwalker look forward to seeing this game come out. Now the templar in Dark Devotion may be very devoted to what they believe but there is way more devotion in… the ‘Earth Walk!’
Hell Warders is a new action strategy game with some RPG elements, developed by ‘Anti gravity game studios‘ and published by ‘PQubed‘. It is coming out the 17th of January 2019 on the Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PS4 and PC. There has already been early access on PC. We at X35 Earthwalker like action strategy games and have been playing some recently so let’s see if they do this right. Let’s take a look.
In Hell Warders, players control… well… a Hell Warder. Hell Warders are a group of powerful heroes who have mighty powers and abilities and their job is to face and stop the hordes of demons. That’s pretty much it for the story from what we can see. So those demons are going forth as an army (conveniently in waves) and players are the only things standing in their way.
Now if you like tower defence, with the whole taking some time to plan, readjust and set up well, then you should be happy here. If you like controlling a character and running towards the enemy to back hand them yourself then you should be happy here too. Honestly this game right now reminds us off ‘World of Van Helsing: Deathtrap‘ and ‘Dungeon Defenders‘. When it comes to tower defence + action + RPG elements, these two games are excellent examples.
In Hell Warders, there are more than one type. For example you can control Dead Eye who is a longer ranged fighter using cannons. Samson III who has been described as an explosive specialist. Ash who specialises in melee combat and slicing everything with his sword. There are more. That’s right, you guessed it. These different Hell Warders have different abilities and powers to offer in your goal to destroy all the demons.
Those defences that you build are not cannons, ballistas and walls but instead your soldiers. Players can set up soldiers who are melee based and will run to attack any nearby enemies. There are archers who fire arrows quite accurately from a respectable distance. Catapults which brings in that heavy impact damage. Let’s say some big enemies will have problems with this weapon. There’s also mages that bring those effects and some magic to give you the advantage.
In terms of the enemies, we know that it’s demons. Demons come in all shapes and sizes. There’s the off course pawn small ties that just rush you, then there’s the bigger ones that require more special attention, then there are the massive towering enemies. There are some magic welding enemies like lychee. There is also Wurms who are very large and will anger some gamers.
We checked out some gameplay. It so far just looks alright. In terms of character animations it doesn’t seem on the same level as the other two games we mentioned earlier but this is all early access gameplay though, so expect everything to get better. We like that soldiers fight with you on the field but actual towers would be great to have as well and it’s something we prefer but it’s good to try something different. The variety of enemies so far looks interesting. We wonder what new abilities and powers the Hell warders will get as you play and progress.
Best of all about Hell Warders and if you been following us for even a short time you would know what that is. It is multiplayer. You can play with three more players to form a mighty team of four having explosives, melee, range and magic. You can just straight up invite and get your friends in the action but for those who want other options can use the match making to find more players. We need more multiplayer games with good options.
Overall Hell Warders looks okay right now. It’s early access but we are getting closer to the release date and we hope that Hell Warders becomes the next very good action strategy game. The developers ‘Anti gravity game studios’ have done good work right now. We at X35 Earthwalker will be looking forward to seeing this game game out. Now Hell warders may have heroes who face demons but these Hell Warders are a joke when compared to… the ‘Earth Walk!’
Deathgarden is a action first person shooter game developed by ‘Behaviour Digital‘. It is coming out in the first quarter of 2019 on the Xbox One, PS4 and PC. Sure there is early access for PC but we don’t really care about that. It’s the whole hunter vs hunted theme. We hope they do this one well. Let’s take a look.
Deathgarden is set in the so called near future. In the world of Deathgarden, the most popular sport in the world is actually a dangerous one where people can and do die. A powerful hunter must hunt down and kill a group of people called Runners. These people are willing participants in this. The Runners must hide, evade the hunter and escape the arena, the garden. Sounds fun right? We are sure normal (stupid) people would love to take part in this type of sport.
The rules are quite simple. The Runners must avoid and the Hunter and escape from the garden while the Hunter hunts them down and kills them. There are objectives for the runners to complete which will open an exit for the them to escape through. The hunter isn’t going to let that happen though. Does this sound familiar? Well it should. remember Dead by Daylight? Yeah, that’s right sucker.
There are three phases to every match so far. Phase one: the Runners are sent into the garden before the hunter. they can use this time to locate the objectives and mark them for the whole team to see and look for crates to upgrades their abilities. Then in some seconds, the Hunter comes in and things get real. Phase two is where the Runners must complete the objectives. There are two game modes: ‘Gather & Deliver’ and ‘Capture’. In Gather & Deliver the Runners must go to dispenser stations to gather keys which they must deliver to certain points in the garden. In Capture, Runners must stand in the designated areas for a period of time to capture it. All this is happening while the Hunter is chasing them down, shooting, shocking and trying to kill them. The last phase, if the Runners succeed in opening the exits by completing the objectives, is the blood mode. Now all runners are revealed and the Hunter can execute a downed Runner straight away. If the Hunter kills three runners, the runners lose. Sounds intense right? it is.
The Hunter is powerful and too much for the runners in straight up combat. He has powers, dangerous weapons, abilities and some perks too. The hunter plays in first person and cannot be killed. He must stop the runners from escaping the garden by straight up find and killing them.
Let’s go deeper though. The hunters have different weapons to choose from: shotguns, LMGs, sniper rifles and assault rifles. For example the “FR574 Devil’s breathe – Bolt action sniper” has a slow rate of fire but very long range and deals large amounts of damage. The Passam Hacksaw T24 LMG has 150 rounds per magazine and has an effective range of 30 meters. The two permanent abilities of a hunter costs stamina upon use. They are Super Charge which increase movement speed and jump distance and the other is Stun which (you guessed it) stuns and deals small amounts of damage within a short range. Hunters can do more.
There are four powers for Hunters to choose, only one, from. They are: I see you, Fade, Spawn Turret and Drop mine. I see you reveals all nearby runners for 11 seconds. Fade makes the Hunter invisible and he makes no sound, this also cure the hunter of all negative effects like slow for example. Spawn turret lets the hunter place up to two turrets which ca and will fire at any and all runners within the range of 40 meters. Drop mine allows the hunter to set up proximity mines, up to ten. The Deathgarden got a whole lot safer right. Finally the perks. Hunters can choose two always activated passive perks. For example you can have increased magazine size and have downed runners revealed to you for 6 seconds. There are more perks though.
The Runners are agile and off course fast. They can also climb any surface too which is a much needed skill. They cannot kill the hunter but have equipment and devices that can halt, distract and harass the hunter. They play in third person and rely heavily on communication and teamwork.
Let’s go deeper though. There are three runner classes: Torment are all about harassing the hunter, messing with him, debuffing and stopping him from messing with your team. Support who can heal and shield their allies from a safe distance. Control who are best at handling objectives and messing with the Hunters focus and actions. Each of their abilities have three tiers. For example the support has healing bolts that, at tier one, just heal allies, tier two has an increased radius, but at tier three can revive down allies. Another example is that the torment class has a blind ability which at tier 1 blinds the hunter, at tier two the radius is increased, at tier three the hunter’s weapon has maximum spread so basically blind and little accuracy.
Runners also have perks. More available perks than the hunter. Like with the Hunter Runners can pick two of them. For example you can have ‘revivalist’ which lets you revive with full health instead of the standard 1/3 and ‘Damage Dodger’ which reduces damage you take by 40% while evading. Or you can combine ‘Lucky Charm’ which gives a 25% chance to receive an additional weapon upgrade part from a crate and ‘Quick Rescue’ which increases rescuing speed by 50%.So get creative, communicate with your team and work out what will work smoothly together.
The gardens themselves are never the same. Like with Spelunky, Deathgarden has procedurally generated arenas. So you can’t really plan ahead as much as you want. This garden can simulate a whole forest. Some matches can have fog, others have rain, others be daytime while other matches can be at night. Let’s not forget the bloodpost. Basically the hunter can send a Runner to a bloodpost if he has enough bloodpost charges. Each time the Hunter downs a Runner, he gets a charge. Charges can be stacked. Once you have three then a bloodpost can be used in order to execute a Runner. Runners can save other runners from a bloodpost but they are revealed to the Hunter while they are rescuing. If a Runner is rescued, then the bloodpost loses three charges. So the game has some mercy for Runners.
We checked out some gameplay and it is looking good so far. The runners moved how we thought they could. They can jump, scale any surface and scatter like rats. The Hunter is real fast, powerful, jumps high, strong weapons and a real threat. You truly can’t kill the Hunter. The Runners need to look out for crates with provide ammo and also weapon upgrade parts. There are some discussions concerning the balance of the game. The Hunter does seem really strong right now.. we do like that Runners capturing an objective are revealed to the Hunter. It definitely looks better than Dead by Daylight right now. You can’t just run around that same block and the Hunter can never catch them. No! The Hunter will kill you if you try running around a big rock thinking you are safe. The Hunter is faster.
Overall, Deathgarden looks like a good game. We definitely preferred this over Dead by Daylight. We never liked that game. The executions are quite brutal. The graphics look good and the fog does give Runners an advantage most of the time. The sounds though, especially the sounds of the guns firing. The developers ‘Behaviour Digital’ did a very good job with this game. We at X35 Earthwalker look forward to seeing this game come on the consoles for some real gaming. Now Deathgarden may have a powerful Hunter who has powers but even the Hunter would get stomped against… the ‘Earth Walk!’
The Forbidden Arts is a new action adventure platformer game developed by ‘Stingbot Games‘. It is coming out in the first quarter of 2019 on the Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PS4 and PC. There was early access on PC in 2018 though. We’ve never heard about this game before but let’s take a look.
The Forbidden Arts has a story. Players control Phoenix, who’s protagonist (obviously). He was getting visions and didn’t understand them, so he sets out to find a druid and get answers concerning the visions. This druid ended up awakening the pyromancer abilities that were within him. This journey that Phoenix will take will be all about him mastering his new hot powers while becoming something much more important and powerful.
Now since The Forbidden Arts is an adventure game with platforming elements, expect to do some exploring. There are areas to discover and collectibles not far away. One of the collectibles by the way is gold which literally looks like a solid cube block of gold (that’s your rent money right there). So be patient as the worlds in The Forbidden Arts are very large. The different locations look and feel different. From swamps, to fields to deserts to dungeons and more.
There are secret locations and items that will unlock abilities for Phoenix so make sure to find them. By the way, this won’t be easy as there are lots of ancient magic and arts out there. We know for a fact that the necromancer Voltair is evil and he believes in a world that’s all about death. He is bound to show up eventually. Especially since he got kicked out by the council of magic. Bad guys never stay down.
Don’t forget, that The Forbidden Arts is a platformer. All action on the world map is 3D but all action in the dungeons are 2D. So expect lots of running, jumping, pits, wall calling, vine climbing, many obstacles, pits, spikes and more. Lots of opportunities to save your game, as in you can save almost anywhere at any time, which is both a good and bad thing. Good because then less chance of gamers losing progress but bad because some gamers are cheap who save every two seconds to undo all mistakes.
There are 5 different worlds, 5 big boss fights and many different enemies. You have enemies with shields, enemies that charge like a bull, flying enemies, melee enemies and enemies that only use projectile and some others can even teleport basically. We do like the variety though. Wolves, goblins, tortoises, bird looking enemies all around. Once you know it’s an action adventure performer you pretty much have an idea of what to expect.
We checked out some gameplay and it looks good. Remember, The Forbidden Arts is in the alpha development rage still so it will get better. You can use your pyromancer powers in a variety of ways. Use fire defensively to protect from harm, hurl fire balls at enemies, charge up your flames and even manipulate the environment. The Forbidden Arts doesn’t look like a hard game though. Timing is required though when it comes to certain enemies. The game better get difficult.
Overall, The Forbidden Arts look like a good game. The graphics for it’s alpha development stage looks good. The music is very good. The environments and even designs so far look very good too. The enemy variety and story are interesting. The developers ‘Stingbot Games’ are doing a good job so far. We at X35 Earthwalker look forward to seeing what else The Forbidden Arts has for gamers. Now the Forbidden Arts may have magic and different arts but even when working together they are no match for… the ‘Earth Walk!’
Dead or Alive 6 is the latest action fighting game, in the Dead or Alive series, developed and published by ‘Koei Tecmo Games‘. Dead or Alive 6 is coming out the 15th of February 2019 on the Xbox One, PS4 and PC. What will the latest Dear or Alive game offer? Let’s take a look.
Dead or Alive has been a long running series. There has been lots of discussions and forums concerning Dead or Alive 6. What we at X35 Earthwalker hope is that the developers focus on making good mechanics, balancing everything as best as possible and throwing in some new things to make everything exciting. Developers have to know when to it’s time to listen to fans for feedback and when to go ahead with what they wanted for their game.
Now when it comes to the story of Dead or Alive 6 that’s quite complicated and all over the place. Not to mean that it’s a bad story, but it’s like Tekken, where every character has their own story and something going on. For example Helena who is the president of the new DOATEC is threatened by a person who has special powers. Kasumi left her clan and is now a runaway ninja who’s secretly living in a mountain village. So you’ll have to play as the characters to learn and see what’s going on, which isn’t a bad idea.
Dead or Alive 6’s fighting mechanics is based on a triangle system. Throws, strikes and holds. Holds beat strikes, strikes beat throws and throws beat holds. If you successfully land a attack on the type it is strong against then you deal more damage and is counted as a hi counter. A completely new system is the break gauge system. The break guard is a new special attack meter that gets filled up when landing or taking hits and even blocking. Players can use the break gauge to execute moves like the break blow and break hold. The break hold is the strongest hold in the game and can return lower, middle and upper attacks. The break blow can parry an strike while delivering a powerful strike. There’s the fatal rush is basically four punches or kicks stringed together as a combo.
In terms of the characters, there are three new ones shown on their official website while hinting there is more. They are Kokoro, La Mariposa and Nico. La Mariposa, the ‘Immortal Butterfly’ is a luchadora wrestler excels at Aerial attacks and having tricky movements. Nico, the ‘lightning Technomancer’ is naturally skilled at martial arts and has three EMF rings that boost her speed and attacks. Kokoro, the ‘Ba Ji Dancer’ specialises in Ba Ji Quan using mid range elbow and palm thrust attacks. Watch out as she also has number of throws that could mess you up. The variety amongst characters so far look good.
In terms of the stages, in Dead or Alive 6, there are some and they look very good. There’s ‘The Muscle’ which is a large wrestling ring which as the words muscle spirit on the walls of the building. Didn’t Zangief talk about muscle spirit in Street Fighter V. There is ‘Lost Paradise’ is basically a cool jungle setting with some unfinished wooden structures around as well. There’s even a dinosaur in the area too. ‘Forbidden Fortune’ is a old pirate ship that has bones and a lot of history. These ruins are not safe and that’s a fact. The ‘DOA’ colosseum is new, ready looks great. The roaring fans cheering for their fighters and ring ropes that have some hot consequences for whoever touches them. ‘Zero’, research facility, ‘Miyabi’, an old street in a Japanese village and ‘Hidden garden’ a secluded and calming spot are all new and ready for fighters.
We checked out some Dead or Alive 6 gameplay and it’s definitely a step up from the last ones. There are even danger zones in some stages. These zones are bad news for any fighters who get knocked into them as some animation takes place dealing that fighter big damage. This reminds us of Injustice 2 and their stage animations. For example, remember that Lost Paradise place we mentioned well that stage has a danger zone and it’s a large dinosaur that attacks which cause an explosion that deals bit damage. Another stage has what seems like a kraken which uses it’s tentacles to attack fighters. These are definitely worth using against your enemies.
Overall Dead or Alive 6 seems like a good game so far. The graphics are very good and how the stages look very detailed. The sounds are good too. We like how the fighters have varied fighting styles with some real martial arts like Jeet Kune Do, T’ai Chi Ch’uan and Taekwondo. The developers ‘Koei Tecmo Games’ did a good job with this game. We at X35 Earthwalker look forward to seeing fully what Dead or Alive 6 has to offer this time. Now Dead or Alive 6 may have a fancy tournament but even that is completely lame when compared to… the ‘Earth Walk!’
The Sinking City is a new action adventure game developed by ‘Frogwares‘ and published by ‘Bigben Interactive‘. The Sinking City is coming out the 21st of March on the Xbox One, PS4 and PC. This game has something deep going on and it will come to the surface soon (se what we did there?). Let’s take a look.
The Sinking City is set in the United States in 1920s. Quite a suspicious time if you ask us. Players control an investigator named Charles W Reed. Eventually you arrive in Oakmont, Massachusetts. Before you know it, you are practically called to investigate the city. Not just any city but one that is suffering from mysterious floods. These floods will get rid of the city. It’s up to the player and Charles W Reed to figure out what’s going on.
Now there has been rumours about a sort of darkness that has not only kept the city under it’s control but also effected the minds of the people who live in this city. It might just corrupt your mind as well. So be careful. By the way, The Sinking City is also an open world that was inspired by the universe of H.P. Lovecraft. So fans will have an advantage of whats going on including the lore.
So what can you expect in The Sinking City? This whole world is pretty much fully explorable. So go down the streets and in buildings on foot, travel from port to port and explore the waters with a boat, or even go under water and see what’s happening with a diving suit. Your characters mental health is a factor in the game, so possibly like Visage, some events or activities could possibly effect what you see or your performance.
Now it’s been made clear that there are monsters in this world. The Sinking City isn’t the safest place on earth (in case you haven’t realised yet). There are dangerous monsters that will destroy you if you aren’t prepared for them. Some look like spiders that move pretty fast, while others are more like medium sized kraken monsters while others are massive king king sized krakens with tentacles and everything. It’s most likely called a cthulhu as they were introduced in the H.P. Lovecraft books, specifically the ‘call of cthulhu‘. Also there are weapons. Lots of weapons and thank goodness as they are needed. The weapons are from the 1920s so don’t be expecting a M16A2 assault rifle. Expect the Thompson and it’s automatic fire.
We checked out some gameplay and it’s a bit more than we expected actually. The whole world in this game is quite creative. The setting is good too. A number of people have an issue with water, throw in a mystery and water based monsters and you have something quite good. Also each case you faced can be solved in different ways and there are a number of endings too so players who enjoy the game can replay The Sinking City. So as we said, this game is quite deep. Your character can also do strange things like see and hear things from the past, which is like the ultimate ability for a detective or investigator. There are more abilities too.
Overall The Sinking City looks like a good game. The graphics adequate good, the sounds are better. The environment and world look sort of bland but we know improvements are coming. Looking forward to more information concerning the weapons in this game. The developers ‘Frogwares’ did a good job with this game. We at X35 Earthwalker are not looking forward to this game. It looks good but we will wait until we see something real interesting. Now The Sinking City may have water and monsters but even those combined are nothing compared too… the ‘Earth Walk!’
Metro Exodus is the new action adventure game developed by ‘4A Games‘ but published by ‘Deep Silver‘. It is coming out the 22nd of February 2019 on the Xbox One, PS4 and PC. The Metro Exodus world is said to be very immersive and have some survival features.
In the world of Metro Exodus is a messed up one. It’s post apocalyptic, there are dangerous factions, mutants and more danger all around. Metro Exodus doesn’t have a simple story either. This game’s campaign will stretch across a whole year and so players will face the four seasons: Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter. Players will once again take control of Artyom. That ranger who was hanging out in Moscow’s underground metro system. This time he is trying to get out of Moscow. He wants a better life. Sounds simple but off course it won’t be. This time something is different…
The game is more like an open sandbox. Players have more options now than the previous Metro games. Exploration is needed as there are both linear and non linear objectives. So basically side quests. Thanks to the nuclear wars in the past, players will have to survive and fight through a completely ruined country. Stealth is still a factor in this game. There are times when running and gunning may just get you killed. Especially with the type of enemies that’s running around. What’s also different is that Artyom will be leading a team this time. They are called the spartan rangers. Now from what we know, players will need to be careful as you can lose people permanently.
There are a number of characters in Metro Exodus like Anna, who is the best sniper of the spartan order. Duke, who is the youngest of the spartan rangers and most eager. Miller, who is the commander of the aurora and quite militant. Alyosha is basically the scout and survival expert. Tokarev, is basically the tech guy in terms of building weapons and maintenance. There are more characters out there so players should look forward to learning about them.
A game like Metro Exodus and it’s world needs a variety of weapons and so far there is a couple. There is the Shambler shot gun which is basically an unstable shotgun that has way more firepower. The Tikhar is basically a sniper rifle that uses ball bearings but with the right tuning can use incendiary rounds. The Helsing which stands out from other weapons is basically the stealth crossbow which can also fire explosive arrows (because why not?). There are more weapons and we hope so as big games like this with big worlds need a lot of weapons and variety.
Lastly let’s look at the enemies. There are human enemies who are divided by factions like the children of the forest who have their own lore. Basically they are a group of children who got stranded at a scout camp because of the war. Their camp teacher is their leader and they learnt how to survive and adapt in the wilderness of Moscow. It makes you wonder about the other factions that are around. Also if you though human enemies were the only thing to worry about then you are dead wrong. There are wolves too and these wolves are vicious and one by itself is said to be a threat if not careful so imagine what happens when a pack comes along. Oh there are bears by the way and they should be avoided.
But wait… there’s more! There are also mutants. You now the whole nuclear chemical make mutants thing. Metro Exodus has some. Shrimps are mutated crustaceans who hang out near water. The females hang out in groups in the water and can spit corrosive mucus while the males travel solo, have more armour on their legs, can block incoming fire and crush you in melee fashion. The Demon is basically a large flying beast who can pick up any enemy it wants with it’s great strength. It can off course fly around, attack dealing heavy damage, pick you up and ruin your whole life. The metro residents have even described The Demon as one of the deadliest creatures around. It has been advised to avoid fighting this thing.
The Humanimal are creatures that have come from real humans. They function and act like apes (apparently) being able to use rocks and wood like weapons. They also can be found in groups and if you make noise, they get aggressive and come for you (you could have guessed that). The Nosalis are like giant rats but worse off course. They are agile and very fast. They can even run along walls and ceilings to get to you. They have nests and are aggressive. They can be found above and below the ground. The Watchman is the most common enemy you will encounter most likely. They travel in packs and have the ability to call for help and reinforcements. We truly hope there are more enemies though. This world has potential to be creative and even scary.
We checked out some gameplay and so far it definitely looks clean in terms of how it plays and looks. There is some hint of horror and scares depending on the player. The wolves definitely look good. The game better be difficult and not hold your hand. The graphics and sounds are very good. Hopefully leading a group of spartans doesn’t make things walk in the park. From what we have seen everything looks good so far. Just wonder how frequent enemy encounters are and how effective and essential is stealth in Metro Exodus.
Overall, Metro Exodus seems like a good game. There needs to be a lot to do and a reason for exploring besides just objectives. The developers ‘4A Games’ did a very good job with this game. We at X35 Earthwalker look forward to seeing what Metro Exodus has to offer. Now Metro Exodus may have a ruined world but one thing that will never be ruined is… the ‘Earth Walk!’
Dual Gear is a new turn based strategy action game developed by ‘Orbital Speed Studio‘. It has been saids to be coming 2018 (year soon over) on the Xbox One, PS4, Mac and PC. This game caught out attention straight away. Hope it’s very good. Let’s take a look.
The world of Dual Gear is originally set in 2064 where powerful nations built the Gaia Belt which is the orbital energy station for receiving the newly discovered energy source. It was later attacked by terrorists after a test and the successful completion of phase one of the Gaia Belt in 2101. TEC deployed the orbital defence gear to defend and they were successful but the damage was heavy and even earth suffered from the battle. So TEC focused more on surface tactical units known as Dual Gears. Off course successful projects like that don’t stay at home but sold multiple units to clients around the world. Was that attack the last anyone will hear of the terrorists?…
In Dual Gear, players get to control the Dual Gear units. The gameplay is off course turn based and you see everything in third person. You will control each unit separately, one by one. It’s a combination of real time shooting and quick performance cut scenes. This means players will need tactical thinking, good management, reflexes and awareness. Dual Gear has two elements that must be taken into account: action point (AP) and generator output (GP). All skills need action points in order for that skill to be used within that turn but they also need enough generator output to pull it off. The example given was a Dual Gear using a powerful weapon. It might require 1 or 2 action points during this turn but it will cost some Generator Output and if you don’t have enough, that attack isn’t going to work (it’s easier when you see it for yourself).
There’s more. Units also have a sort of health and shield system in place. The two elements here are: Armour power (AP) and Core power (CP). If you get hit anywhere then the armour power decreases for that part hit, like the right arm. If that hits zero then the core power will now start to decrease upon taking damage. If that part then hits zero now, then that part is destroyed. That’s right, Dual Gear allows the targeting of specific parts of Dual Gear units. Off course there are consequences for destroying parts of a Dual Gear. For example losing a right or left arm will off course mean you can’t use any weapons that arm wielded. If a leg is destroyed then that Dual Gear will not only travel at a much slower pace but will also consume more Generator Output (GP) than normal which also means using certain skills and weapons will be more restricted.
So if an enemy unit spots one of your own it won’t do anything at first. If you start moving then it can and will fire at you. It stops firing when you stop moving again. This design choice was to allow players to not panic and think about what they want to do now. This means players will need to be aware of how much AP and GP they have before making any moves or strategizing. Management is key here so don’t be in a hurry or a rush.
Customisation is very detailed in Dual Gear as well. The options are of a wide variety. The Dual Gear is made up of five main parts. Cockpit, head, back pack, arms and legs. Each part can be customised. You can equip your Dual Gear with high weight legs which grant higher durability resistance to damage but this means less movement speed and more GP is consumed when moving. This makes you wonder about the different parts available. We hope there’s a range. Also you can customise the style. You can add camouflage, add patterns, change the colour to make that Dual Gear your very own. Also players can select an emblem. If you are going to fight at least look good while doing it.
We checked out some. Gameplay and we saw different built Dual Gears with different weapons, weight, speed, attack range and more. Launch missiles, swing with blades and snipe from a distance. You can see how much Generator Output is being used and how much each skill will consume. When the enemy fires at you you can dodge attacks which is where the reflexes come into play. So far the action looks good and seems like a real detailed turn based strategy game.
Overall Dual Gear looks like a good game. The graphics looks good and the sounds are good too. The machines are very loud though so be careful with your speakers. The developers ‘Orbital Speed Studio’ did a very good job with this game. We at X35 Earthwalker look forward to Dual Gear coming out. Now Dual Gear might have a lot of history but it’s history is nothing compared to… the ‘Earth Walk!’
Ashen is a new action RPG developed by ‘Aurora44‘ but published by ‘Annapurna Interactive‘. It is coming out on the Xbox One and PC. Ashen straight away has gotten our interest. There’s combat, danger, survival and a brutal world. Let’s take a look.
In the world of Ashen, nothing lasts forever. Players control a “wanderer”. This wanders is alone, travelling and surviving alone. That’s going to change. This is a strange world as for starters there isn’t a sun. So how does everything survive (ask the game)? There is natural light but that comes from eruptions. These eruptions is what covers the whole place in ash (ash + en = ashen). There are multiple survivors and it’s wise to work together to survive. The game is centred around this.
When you find survivors in Ashen you must decide what to do concerning them. You can ignore them or lead them to your settlement. If convinced to stay they can be of some serious help to you, offering their skills and abilities. Some might be skilled blacksmiths and other crafting skills or even “foraging expertise”. The point is that surviving alone in Ashen is a bad idea.If you want to find a place to call home then you will need some members.
Ashen is a multiplayer game as well. In your very large world you will encounter other players. You can work with them to fight evil, off course send an invite to join your party or leave them alone. Don’t be a bully now. The whole of Ashen literally is about working together, meeting people (real and) computer so keep that in mind when exploring.
The world in Ashen is huge and there is lots to see indeed. Expect forests, fields, broken structures, fjords, palaces, bogs and more. Even more interesting is that, according to the developers, no two gameplay experiences are similar. Basically the game works in a way that your adventure changes depending on where you are “at any given moment”. This means if you went to the bog first then things will be different if you had instead gone to a palace first for example, not just what happens at that exact location but surrounding things and more in the world itself. Interesting right? We know.
Off course let’s get to the interesting parts. The combat and the monsters. Combat first. The combat should make a number of Dark Souls fans happy as it’s a similar style. Being patient is needed for the combat in this game. You need to watch your enemy, see the attacks coming and know when to dash and dodge. Every fight you get into regardless of how far you progress could be your last so always be ready and prepared.
In terms of the enemies, there’s more to say. You can expect some scary monsters, spiders, flying things which swoop down, giant flying whale creatures, actual giants and more. There are thinkings hostile enemies that don’t like you and then there are indigenous creatures. You see those nice looking plants and flowers over there? Pick some. Congratulations you are dead. Even the plants and vegetation can be dangerous enemies capable of killing you.
We checked out some Ashen gameplay and it looks good so far. The graphics are quite cartoonish but done well. Movement speed is good, you can roll, evasion is fast enough, enemy attacks are telegraphed nicely (well at least for smaller ones), game difficulty seems acceptable from the start, crafting is important so loot everything you find and kill. Also Ashen has a stamina based combat system. Your attacks and moves cost stamina. Players will need to know what fights to pick and decide their actions carefully. You can decide to never see other players or never have any A.I. We are given that choice. The A.I by the way work very ell. They dodge attacks, know when to heal and fight good.
Overall Ashen looks like a very good game indeed. The sounds are very good and the controls are very responsive. The world design and enviro meets have great variety and we like that. We do hope for more variety in enemies though but how frequent we see them, we don’t know. The developers ‘Aurora44’ have done a very good job with this game. We at X35 Earthwalker look forward to seeing Ashen come out. Now Ashen might have a massive world but what’s even more massive is… the ‘Earth Walk!’
Skyforge is a very large game and it’s got the content and game world to make a Battle Royale possible. If you didn’t know about the Skyforge Battle Royale by now, then just read our previous G-Blog about it right here. We mentioned that there is a lot of strategy in this battle Royale which sets it apart from the others like Call of Duty‘s Blackout, Fortnite and Pubg. Let’s take a look into that.
The first thing that clearly makes a difference in gameplay is the character abilities. The first three that are available from the start are the recruits. Tough, agile and accurate. Now only two of the recruits have good abilities.
Tough Recruit – is the weak link here as this character class only bonus is having 10% more health. So instead of having 100 health, the tough recruit has 110. This honestly makes almost completely no difference in combat. There are some moments when you survive a firefight and thanks to the extra 10 health you come out with only 6 health left. So it isn’t completely useless, just the least useful.
Agile Recruit – has 25% more stamina and also has faster sprint. The accurate recruit (as the name suggests) grants slightly increased accuracy with all weapons that you must fire. So with agile recruit, you can get to weapons faster than anyone else early game because obviously you are faster. You can also traverse the battle field better because of the larger stamina. This means heading from place to place to find weapons and more is something easy with this character.
Accurate recruit – When playing as the accurate recruit you should feel more confident in combat as you will always have the advantage in terms of aiming. Some weapons like the plasma thrower have bloom as you fire, meaning your shots get less accurate as you hold down the trigger. This character class will suffer less from that thanks to the slightly increased accuracy.
Now the other nine character classes are much different with more various abilities. They must all be unlocked though, by spending in game currency called ‘Token of the king’. You earn these every time you play. Depending on what place you get after a round of Battle Royale determines how much you get. For example if you died 5th, you get like 490 while winning you get 700. It coasts 500 to ‘rent’ a character for one match. Strange but here’s how it works. You can rent for one match and then after using them, spend 500 more. If you rent a character class 50 times, you permanently unlock the character. That’s too much in our opinion but if you keep playing and have fun, you will horde up those token of the king currency and be able to purchase a character every time. Let’s look at those characters.
Morgan, the Filibuster – has a special weapon and item. The weapon is a explosive cocktail which can be thrown at enemies to light them and the ground on fire. they will take serious burn damage and reduce their accuracy. The item is a bottle of rum that when you drink restores a small amount of health over a few seconds and it also increases your melee damage. The cons of the Filibuster is that you can’t use other grenades or medkits you find in the match. A great way to use the Filibuster is in ambushes. Lead them around a corner, or wait behind a rock or tree and throw your cocktail at them, then shoot them as they panic. Then heal up after the fight. She is also the best character at the start of a match as she can drink to increase her punch damage and kill enemies who try to pick up weapons near you. Fun fact, the cocktail does so much damage that players having maximum armour shards and full health will get brought down to 60 health meaning you yourself only need to fire a few shots to finish the kill.
Dolph, the Mercenary – has a ability and perk. The Mercenary has infinite firearms ammo. So rifles, dual pistols, heavy pistol, dual sub machine guns, dual shotguns can all be used with ever having to find ammo. You still need to reload though which is a big downside. The perk is that you have 20% more health so basically 120 instead of 100. The cons for the Mercenary is that you can’t use mines, grenades, weapon scopes or gadgets. A great way to use the Mercenary is to be aggressive right from the start. grab a firearm and hunt down others early game, you will always have the advantage since you have more health and have infinite ammo while every else is running around looking for ammo. Try and find armour to make yourself tougher to kill. Fun fact, the Mercenary when he has heavy armour is the most durable character in the whole game having 50 more points of health than anyone else so the chance of the Mercenary winning a 1v1 is almost always guaranteed.
AVER RP-800, the Android – has a gadget and perks. The Android’s gadget when used allows you to detect enemies and reveal their location to you in a large radius. The perks is that the Android always shoots accurately and has infinite sprint. The cons of the Android is that this character takes increased damage from energy weapons and cannot use other gadgets like the active camouflage for example. A great way to use the Android is to be constantly on the hunt for items and weapons, traveling around the map quickly thanks to the infinite stamina. This can be done with confidence because if you approach a bullion for area with chests, then use your detect gadget and expose any enemies in the building, area or even following you, giving you the clear advantage in that fight. Fun facts, thanks to infinite sprint the Android is the one character that players, when using, have no excuse for getting killed by being outside the safe zone. Also the detect gadget doesn’t seem to detect camouflaged characters. Also having the experimental boots is most effective with the Android thanks once again to infinite sprint.
Kerr, the Devourer – has some abilities. The Devourer does 50% more damage… to monsters! So A.I monsters on the field are easier to kill. Also every time the Devourer kills either a monster or player, he gets a growing bonus to health and damage. The cons of the Devourer is that you can’t use armour or armour shards which isn’t much of a negative honestly. A great way to use this character is to grab a weapon and run away in search of monsters, forget other players. Kill as much monsters as you can find as each monster (the green coloured ones) grant 3 more health while stronger ones add more, also killed monsters drop loot. So if you killed ten weak enemies you will have 130 health instead of 100. If you happen to slay some players too you may end up with over 160 health and the amount of damage you do will be really high. It’s all about the kills. Fun fact, did you know X35 Earthwalker himself got over 200 health when playing as the Devourer killing many players and monsters.
Alecto, the Faceless – has a special ability and a perk. The Faceless has permanent active camouflage and the first attack you launch when invisible gets a 30% damage boost. The cons of the Faceless is that your camouflage gets disabled when you attack, take damage or pick up an item. You are also slightly exposed when you swap weapons too. Also you cannot use other gadgets and have 25% less heath so 75 instead of 100. A great way to play the faceless is to be patient and stalk your enemies, waiting for the best time to attack them from your invisibility. You can also sneak into locations ad loot everything quite comfortably thanks to your invisibility but be careful as you can still get spotted. Snipers and blasters are weapons work well with the Faceless. Fun fact, the Faceless is one of the most hated characters by players so it’s very funny when you stalk a character, wait for them to open a chest and then you kill them and take the prize for yourself.
Anna-Malia, the Hacker – has some abilities. The Hacker can summon a random item right in front of you. The other ability is that this character can instantly teleport forwards (off course there is cool down) and gets a speed boost right after the teleport temporarily. The cons of the Hacker is that you can’t use other gadgets or traps (like mines) and your maximum health is reduced by 20% so you have 80 instead of 100. A great way to use the Hacker is to keep creating the random item as soon as the gadget is available as you never know what you can get. Maybe something powerful or useful. Use the teleport to help you traverse the map faster and find the items you need before getting into fights. Also If someone gets the drop on you, then quickly teleport forwards and use that speed boost to get out of there. Fun fact, that ability to summon a random item can even give you a legendary weapon! Like we said, you never know what you will get so keep using it.
Ivy, the Sapper – has special traps and a ability. The Sapper can detect enemy mines from a great distance and even disarm them, meaning that you should never fall into traps. Also the Sapper always has three mines that can be thrown into desired positions (off course cool down). The cons of the Sapper is that you cannot use other mines, gadgets and grenades. A great way to use the Sapper is to always from time to time plant a mine behind you as you travel to hit following enemies or those just happening to be running past. You should also plant a mine at the entrance of a building you are looting so uninvited guests will pay the price for trespassing. You can also throw a mine near an enemy player who will then take big damage making killing them all the much easier. Fun fact, once X35 Earthwalker himself was at an elevated location near the final closing of the safe zone and three all three mines in there, the other 3 players all ran in towards the centre and all took heavy damage while he shot from the top and killed all without taking any damage.
Joe, the Engineer – has a special item. The Engineer has a portable auto turret which he can plant to have it fire at both monsters and players. The cons of the Engineer is that you cannot use mines and you have reduced stamina and your stamina recharges slower. A great way to use the Engineer is to go look for monsters and kill them with help from your turret. They not only drop loot but, for the engineer, turret parts which when enough is collected upgrades the turret making it deal more damage and more durable. Once your turret is at least level 2, make sure to plant that turret when you spot an enemy coming your way to give a nasty surprise. The engineer can do ambushes as well. Fun fact, X35 Earthwalker himself was facing one more player and the circle was getting really small, so he planted a level 3 turret. The last player jumped into the safe area but was getting hit by the turret and focused on that instead of the legendary soldier himself and was quickly defeated.
Selena, the Night Huntress – has two perks. The Night Huntress receives a 30% bonus to damage and movement speed at night time. The con of the Night Huntress is that she is 20% slower during the day time. A great way to use the Night Huntress is to literally go on the hunt when it is night time. As soon as it’s dark you really feel so much faster and not even strong monsters can defeat you. So hunt down players as it’s most likely you will win every time. Also take down some monsters for extra loot to get some ammo and powerful items to prepare for the final moments of the match. Nothing is more scary than a Night Huntress hunting you down at night, there isn’t that much you can do if she spots you. Fun fact, when the Night Huntress has the light armour at night time, she’s is the fastest thing in the game. it’s gets worse when she has the experimental boots. A floating rim reaper.
Thanks to all these different characters, the Skyforge Battle Royale has the most unpredictable and epic matches. Different strategies are being used during the same match by multiple players and some completely destroy others depending on the environments, situation, weapons and items at hand. Even though some characters are clearly stronger than others most of the time, any character can win. X35 Earthwalker has won a Skyforge Battle Royale match with each character which you will be able to see for yourself eventually on the X35 Earthwalker Youtube channel. Skyforge’s Battle Royale definitely stands out from the others like Call of Duty’s Blackout, Fortnite and Pubg and we’ve definitely had way more fun in the Skyforge Battle Royale matches. We trust that this information will be useful to players of this game. Off course we didn’t give away X35’s personal developed strategies. Now Skyforge Battle Royale may have many characters but even if they work together, they are no match for… the ‘Earth Walk!’
