As the Epic Store grows in influence, we’re seeing a number of games–including Hades and the PC releases for Metro Exodus and The Division 2–release as exclusives on the new online marketplace. Another game launching as an Epic Store exclusive is The Cycle, coming from Yager Entertainment–the same developers behind Spec Ops: The Line and 2018’s multiplayer combat-sim Dreadnought. With the full rollout planned later this year, The Cycle will be Yager’s first self-published game, it blends PvE gameplay with the pace of an online shooter.

The developers explained why they felt the game was such a good fit for the Epic Store, crediting the success of Fortnite and flexibility of the Unreal Engine for online games. As a live game, Yager has plans to work on The Cycle for the long-term, adding in new content and features over its lifetime.

“We wanted to have a different type of relationship with the community than what we’d had before on Dreadnought,” said Jonathan Lindsay, Executive Producer at Yager Entertainment. “There’s been a lot of lessons learned from that, on a technical level, and also, we’ve gotten a lot of benefit out of the lessons we’ve learned from Epic on Fortnite, since they’ve worked on the Unreal Engine. The engine itself is really great for a live game and it supports that format really well.”

The Cycle is a PvPvE game (player-versus-player-versus-environment) that blends together different genres for a somewhat unorthodox approach to an online shooter. Landing on the hostile alien world Fortuna III, your character will have to explore the surface of the planet and collect resources to craft new gear to survive. In addition to fighting off the local wildlife, you’ll need to complete a number of contracts from your chosen faction in order to gain enough credits to call in better gear. However, you’ll also come across other players who are doing the same.

When reading that particular premise, it sounds like a game trying to take a crack at the battle royale genre. Though it features a very similar setup, complete with a map that has themed areas, The Cycle is not a battle royale game. Along with contending with dangerous alien creatures and tackling new missions thrown in during a match, you’ll need to actively collect materials to haul back to the extraction point. You’re certainly free to shoot other players on sight and try to take some of their resources, but you might be better off trying to form a squad with other players you can meet in the world.

The end goal is to make it to the extraction with your set of resources by the end of the match, but unlike other online shooters, multiple players can come away with a win. Resources kept with you during extraction can be used to craft new upgrades for your gear. These upgrades are persistent, allowing to you flesh out your character and loadouts, letting you bring a slightly more prepared character into the next game. However, you’ll still start fresh in every match, and you’ll need to collect credits to call-in the more high-end gear you’ve acquired.

The developers at Yager Entertainment state that The Cycle will be a community-driven game, with feedback collected from players helping to inform what comes next for the online game. At the end of this month, from March 28-30, a new alpha test will open up for players who sign up for access on the official site, allowing newcomers to check out what the online shooter has in store.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/epic-store-lands-another-exclusive-with-online-act/1100-6465701/

Following today’s Nindies Showcase, which announced new indie games for the Nintendo Switch, Nintendo is continuing its celebration of indie games with a massive Switch eshop sale, which just went live. The US-only sale includes discounts up to 30% off on some of the Nintendo Switch’s best indie games.

The indie sale quite a few notable deals, such as Iconoclasts for $15, Inside for $14, Night in the Woods for $14, and Darkest Dungeon for $17.49. Moonlighter is marked down to $16.74, and Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon is only $7. All of these indie games are now below $20 with the discounts.

The eshop sale on select indie games runs now until March 27 at 8:59 AM PT / 11:59 AM ET, so pick up these amazing titles for yourself while this offer lasts. And while you’re already in the eshop, check out the new indie games announced in today’s Showcase that are available to purchase now, such as Nuclear Throne and Blaster Master Zero II.

Shop Nintendo’s eshop sale on indie games »

See the full list of games on sale below!

• Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon — $7
• Blossom Tales: The Sleeping King — $10
• Darkest Dungeon — $17.49
• Donut County — $9.74
• Firewatch — $16
• Flat Heroes — $6.69
• Flinkhook — $10.49
• Horizon Chase Turbo — $14
• Iconoclasts — $15
• Inside — $14
• Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes — $9
• Minit — $6
• Moonlighter — $16.74
• Night in the Woods — $14
• Old Man’s Journey — $5
• Salt and Sanctuary — $12.59
• Thimbleweed Park — $10
• Unruly Heroes — $14
• Wandersong — $15
• Wizard of Legend — $11.19
• Yoku’s Island Express — $10

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/nintendo-just-launched-a-huge-eshop-sale-on-some-g/1100-6465719/

On Wednesday, Nintendo hosted its annual Nindies Spring Showcase. Running for nearly 30 minutes, the Direct-style video presentation provided us with a look at a bunch of new games headed to Nintendo Switch this year, including a couple that are available right now.

Among the highlights of the event was word that Cuphead, previously an Xbox One and PC exclusive, is headed to Switch. We also learned of a Zelda-themed successor to Crypt of the NecroDancer called Cadence of Hyrule. Below, you’ll find a roundup of all the games and news from the event, along with many of the best new trailers. For more, check out our coverage of the new Switch game sale that’s now live on the Eshop in the US.

Also of note, this presentation didn’t include all of the day’s Nintendo Switch news. Separately, during Epic’s GDC keynote, publisher Funcom and developer The Bearded Ladies announced that XCOM-like game Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden will release for Switch on June 25. It will launch alongside a new DLC expansion.

Cadence of Hyrule – Crypt of the NecroDancer Featuring the Legend of Zelda

Brace Yourself Games is making this spin-off follow-up to its 2015 indie hit. Cadence of Hyrule takes the familiar rhythm gameplay from Crypt of the NecroDancer, but this time Cadence finds herself in the land of Hyrule, assisted by Nintendo’s Link and Zelda. It’s coming this spring.

Switch Gets Zelda-Themed Crypt Of The NecroDancer Crossover This Spring

Cuphead

The acclaimed 2D action game Cuphead, noted for its gorgeous 1930s cartoon-style visuals and brutal difficulty, is officially coming to Switch. Notably, the Studio MDHR-developed game was previously an Xbox One and PC exclusive. The showcase specifically shouted out Nintendo’s “friends at Microsoft” for helping to make this port possible. The game releases on April 18.

Cuphead Coming To Nintendo Switch Next Month

Stranger Things 3: The Game

The retro Netflix show is getting a game to match, with this co-op action game that sports a 16-bit style. In Stranger Things 3: The Game, you can fight your way through Hawkins and the latest threats from the Upside Down as one of 12 playable characters. It will release alongside the Season 3 of the show (which just got a new trailer) on July 4.

Red Lantern

Red Lantern is set against the harrowing backdrop of the real-life Alaskan Iditarod race. As the Musher for a team of five sled dogs, you’ll have to contend with bears, frostbite, and catching food to survive as you navigate the wilderness and make your way back home. It’s coming this year.

Rad

Double Fine is teaming up with publisher Bandai Namco for an action roguelike called Rad. A post-apocalyptic wasteland is crawling with monsters and mutants, but you’ll develop your own mutations to unlock new powers and attacks as well. It’s coming this summer.

Katana Zero

Devolver Digital’s stylish action-platformer Katana Zero arrives in the Switch Eshop on April 18. As an assassin known enigmatically as “The Dragon,” you’ll cut your way through side-scrolling levels, using your precognitive powers to see into the future and manipulate time. You’ll need to tread carefully, however, as a single hit from an enemy will be enough to bring you down–but even if you fall in battle, you’ll rewind to the beginning of the level and get another chance.

Nuclear Throne

Vlambeer’s Nuclear Throne is out today for Switch. The roguelike-style shooter first launched for PS4, PS Vita, and PC in 2015, but is now available for download on Nintendo’s hybrid console.

Super Crate Box

Another Vlambeer game coming to Switch is Super Crate Box, which releases in April. It’s a single-screen action game in which you fight off an endless horde of enemies and collect weapon crates in an attempt to set a high score. On Switch, there will be exclusive multiplayer modes for two players, with co-op and competitive options available.

Vlambeer Arcade with Ultrabugs

Whereas the previous two Vlambeer games are existing ones, the third is something new and different. Vlambeer Arcade will serve as a collection of “bite-sized games” that will expand over time. The first of these games it will include is Ultrabugs, an action game in which you kill enemies using a spaceship but then have to deal with the additional enemies those spawn when defeated. Vlambeer Arcade is slated to launch with Ultrabugs later this year.

My Friend Pedro

My Friend Pedro is a quirky balletic action game that has you running and gunning and pirouetting through a series of gangsters, with the help of a talking banana named Pedro. The game from Devolver Digital and developer Deadtoast is coming this June.

Creature in the Well

This dungeon-crawler gets an unlikely influence from pinball games. In Creature in the Well, you’ll make your way into a haunted mountain and charge energy orbs, ricocheting them to solve puzzles, uncover gear, and make your way to a deadly creature dwelling inside. It launches this summer.

Blaster Master Zero 2

Blaster Master Zero II is another of the games that is already available for download from the Switch Eshop. It’s a sequel to the 2017 3DS platformer Blaster Master Zero, itself a remake of the NES’s 1988 title Blaster Master.

Pine

Described as a primeval fantasy, Pine stages a war between anthropomorphized moose, foxes, and alligators. Five different factions do battle across six biomes, and you’ll have to harvest and craft your wares to take on the other tribes. It launches in August.

Bloodroots

Bloodroots is a top-down action game built around pulling off combos and using every tool in the environment to your advantage. The fast-paced revenge tale launches this summer.

Overland

The squad-based survival game Overland is coming to Switch this fall. The procedurally generated levels will get increasingly hazardous as you make your way westward, in a post-apocalyptic roadtrip.

Darkwood

Darkwood is a survival-horror game played from a top-down perspective. It doesn’t feature a single linear path and is said to not rely on jump scares to terrify you. The game is set in a European forest where evil is abound, and you’re forced to fight back by injecting an “essence” from mutated plants into your blood to obtain new powers. It releases in May.

Neo Cab

Neo Cab is a narrative-driven survival game from Fellow Traveler and Chance Agency that puts you in the shows of Lina, the last human rideshare driver in a city driven by automation. You’ll need to pick up fares and control your emotions while searching for your missing friend. It’s coming this summer.

Swimsanity

Swimsanity is a side-scrolling multiplayer shooter that is set underwater. You can play with a total of four players (or bots) through online and local multiplayer in co-op and competitive game modes. Based on what we saw, the game has a vaguely Castle Crashers-like vibe to it. It releases this summer.

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/nintendo-direct-nindies-spring-showcase-all-switch/1100-6465723/

In case you haven’t heard: The Epic Games Store is giving away a free PC game every two weeks this year to celebrate its first 12 months in business, and all you have to do is create a free Epic account to claim it. For the past two weeks, Epic members have enjoyed free access to Slime Rancher, a charming game about collecting slimes and running a farm–but starting tomorrow, Slime Rancher will be replaced by Oxenfree, a supernatural mystery game from Night School Studio. Oxenfree will be available for free from March 21 to April 4–and once you claim the game during that time period, it’s yours to keep forever. You don’t even have to install it.

Oxenfree is a story-driven adventure where you play as a teenage girl named Alex on a weekend trip with her friends to an island. After they accidentally trigger the release of a supernatural force, Alex and her friends must find a way to set things right and escape with their lives. Alex has free rein to explore the whole island, and the main gameplay centers around dialogue bubbles that appear above her head as she talks–at any given time, you have multiple dialogue choices to pick from, or you can choose to say nothing at all. Player choices have a significant impact and multiple endings are possible.

“The rabbit hole of influence goes deep in Oxenfree–from playing matchmaker among Alex’s friends to destroying or strengthening her own relationships with them–and it’s entertaining to repeat it all in an effort to learn what could be,” wrote Alexa Ray Corriea in GameSpot’s Oxenfree review. The game received an 8/10 for its amazing dialogue, unpredictable story, fantastic soundtrack, and deep influence of player choice.

Oxenfree generally sells for $20 on PC, so don’t miss this chance to pick it up for 100% off. And if you fall in love with its style and story, keep an eye out for the next game from Night School Studio, Afterparty, which is set to release this year.

Get Oxenfree for free in the Epic Games Store »

from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/the-latest-free-game-from-the-epic-store-is-out-to/1100-6465713/