TheSixthAxis News, Tips, Tricks, Ideas

Bungie’s 1994 Classic Marathon is now free to download from Steam, thanks to the fan development team Aleph One Developers. Marathon released all the way back in 1994, an early compatriot to Doom that was a Mac exclusive before spreading to PC with its sequel. It had a story focused on AI, time travel, and aliens, which laid the influential groundwork for Bungie’s Halo series.

The wait for a third Homeworld game has finally come to an end. The pioneering 3D space RTS was a brilliant sun flare of excellence at the turn of the millennium, but faded into an almost mythological status amidst acquisitions, IP purchases and more. After a two decades wait, Homeworld 3 is ready for launch.

If you’re a fan of motorsports, this weekend is a great time to see if the World Endurance Championship is for you. It’s the 6hrs of Spa today – starting at midday in the UK – with a now bustling field of Hypercar teams having to weave through the GT3 class competitors, and this iconic track will act as a prelude to the 24hrs Le Mans next month. I love seeing all these cars going flat out for hours at a time, the contrasting strategy calls and reactions to incidents.

Can Disney Speedstorm be considered a rival to Nintendo’s near-unstoppable Mario Kart 8? While the kart-racing subgenre has seen a good few new entries since the moustachioed motorist and his entourage sped their way to glory on the Wii U almost a decade ago, few have come close to a podium finish, let alone besting what many consider the finest kart racing game of all time.

Wouldn’t it be lovely if gaming devices could handle being played outdoors a bit better? Sure, screens are getting brighter and better all the time, but as soon as those glossy glass screens catch a whiff of reflected sky or sunlight, the image gets so washed out that there’s almost no point trying. Also power sockets don’t grow on trees. Still, at least it’s better than having to get close to a window and angle your original Game Boy Advance just right in the fading light while trying to beat Ecks vs. Sever or something.

Like a lot of people, I played the incredible cat-driven adventure game Stray back in 2022, and also like a lot of people, I came away wishing that the whole game was just a simply, atmospheric cat simulator like the opening hours had been. I loved scratching trees and hopping across balconies, but as soon as the game introduced coloured keys and nuanced NPCs I lost interest. Little Kitty, Big City is a game that’s laser focused on delivering that wandering cat power fantasy I had been dreaming of.

Ever since Microsoft started on their spending spree of acquisitions in 2018, gamers have feared the worst. Would Microsoft simply out-spend Sony to secure market dominance? Would PlayStation gamers be deprived of innumerable great games? Were they building Game Pass into a video gaming Death Star?

In one of the most double-think statements ever made outside of George Orwell’s 1984, Xbox Game Studios head Matt Booty has told employees that “We need smaller games that give us prestige and awards,” just one day after closing down the game studio that was responsible for the prestigious award-winning game, Hi-Fi Rush.

With STALKER 2 long-awaited release scheduled for later this year, there’s been an unsurprising spike in interest surrounding the original trilogy which debuted on PC almost two decades ago. Capitalising on this curiosity, Ukrainian publisher GSC recently launched STALKER: Legends of the Zone Trilogy, bringing the three games to Xbox and PlayStation for the first time.

Sonic Rumble has been revealed by SEGA, and going by the trailer it is inspired by Fall Guys. The game will allow up to 32 players to compete against each other in different challenges, some of which are shown in the footage. Sonic Rumble is going to be a mobile title only though, coming to both Android and Apple mobile devices.

Master Detective Archives: Rain Code+ is coming to PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC, launching on 18th July. With a ‘+’ at the end of the game name, this is an enhanced version of the game that first launched on Nintendo Switch last June, giving it around one year of timed exclusivity.

As a lover of both asymmetrical multiplayer games and horror in general, the idea of Killer Klowns from Outer Space really caught my imagination. Co-developers IllFonic are no strangers to this style of game, having previously tapped into other 80s film franchises and adapted them to asymmetrical multiplayer with Friday the 13th: The Game, Predator: Hunting Grounds, and Ghostbusters: Spirits Unleashed.

The alien-filled hospital management sim Galacticare will launch on 23rd May, developer Brightrock Games and publisher CULT Games have announced. Interstellar healthcare will be coming out across PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC via Steam, Epic and GOG.

Codemasters has released the third in a series of deep dive trailers for F1 24, this time digging into the track and driver updates that we’ll see in the yearly sports series. F1 24 is coming out on 31st May (with three days early access for special editions) across PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PS4, Xbox One and PC.

Following the news that Microsoft has closed Arkane Austin, along with Tango Gameworks, it has been confirmed that Redfall will not receive any further updates. Those who purchased the Premium Bite Back edition of the game, or the Bite Back upgrade will not be getting the advertised content, including two new characters as a result. It has been confirmed that those who purchased that content will get the value of the upgrade back as part of the Redfall Credit program.

The bountiful creations of the late Akira Toriyama are household names, but you won’t find any of his most well-known characters in Sand Land. His lesser-known graphic novel has remained a footnote when compared to Dragon Ball Z’s prodigious success, but it’s clear that someone out there thinks that now is Sand Land’s time, with the arrival of a movie, an animated series, and a video game adaptation, all in the last six months. This multi-format assault showcases that the genius of Akira Toriyama extended far beyond the Dragon Balls, and while it might have taken a long time coming, it was well worth the wait.

Microsoft has confirmed it is closing studios with Arkane Austin, Tango Gameworks, and Alpha Dog Studios all having their operations ceased. Roundhouse Games is being absorbed by ZeniMax Online. An email was sent by Xbox Game Studios head Matt Booty to teams, and it has been verified by IGN. The email is below.

The Invincible has been updated to version 1.2 with the release of the Voyager update, 11 bit Studios and Starward Industries have confirmed. This new update adds new story slides, a wider field of view option, dynamic camera for the Rover, enhanced walking and sprinting speeds in some locations, and some smaller changes too. The full notes can be read below the update video.

Remedy has announced that it has cancelled Project Kestrel, formerly (formerly Vanguard), which was in development with Tencent. Project Kestrel was meant to be Remedy’s first entry into the Games-as-a-Service business model. The cancellation has been announced as Remedy looks to focus on its existing catalogue of games and IP.

Nintendo has confirmed that the Nintendo Switch 2 reveal will take place this fiscal year, but set expectations ahead of June’s Nintendo Direct by stating that this stream will not feature the next generation console.

Hades II is now available to purchase as an early access title on both Steam and Epic Games Store, Supergiant Games has announced. For those who have a Steam Deck, the game is verified for that too. The early access version of Hades II has been priced at £24.99/$29.99

Realm of Ink will be moving to early access on Steam from May 17th, 663 Games has confirmed. The early access version of Realm of Ink will expand upon the current demo with eight bosses, 20 ink gem skills, 15 ink pets which will have 40 forms, 150 perks, the first 30% of the storyline, and an endless challenge mode. Red the Swordsman will remain as the only playable character in early access.

Sony has cancelled their planned update for Helldivers 2 which would require a linked PSN account for the game on PC, following a days long campaign by the community to pushback against the plan.

Helldivers 2 has now been delisted in 177 regions on Steam, following Sony’s announcement that a linked PSN account will become a requirement for the co-op shooter, and the community backlash that this has sparked.

It’s a double celebration this weekend, with Star Wars Day coinciding with the May Day bank holiday weekend and all the Jack in the Green shenanigans that are due to take place on Monday. Are you more likely to dress up like a Stormtrooper or a big anthropomorphic bush this weekend?

Sony has announced that, starting next week, Helldivers 2 players on Steam will start to be required to connect their Steam account to a PlayStation Network account in order to play the hit bug and bot shooter. In response, PC players have taken to a now traditional campaign of review bombing to crater the game’s reputation on Steam and share their overwhelming dissatisfaction at this move.

What a week it has been, with the sun finally showing its face again after a chilly April for the UK. We’ve still had plenty of time to play games though, and I’ve been continuing to plug away at Fallout 4 and No Rest for the Wicked, as well as taking some time to chill out with Endless Ocean: Luminous which is just a little bit too calm for its own good. Besides that I’ve made a start on Sand Land for our review which will appear after the weekend.

You can get me to do a lot of things if you just toss a collectible card system into it. The rush of opening a pack, or the satisfaction of browsing dozens of card illustrations, and the thrill of discovering a brand new card could make even doing your taxes entertaining. Whether it’s in a physical card game or a genre-bending video game, card collecting is always a delight. So I was pretty excited when I saw Dungeon Drafters, a game seemingly blending all the best parts of turn-based roguelikes and Mystery Dungeon thrills with a robust card system.

Bethesda has revealed what’s coming in the Starfield May update, with new detailed maps, ship customisation, difficulty modes and higher Xbox Series X performance modes. The update is out now in Steam Beta on PC, with the general release coming on 15th May.

Take-Two is closing two game studios under their Private Division label, with Kerbal Space Program 2 developer Intercept Games shutting down (as we already knew) and OlliOlli and Rollerdrome studio Roll7 following them into the twilight.

A new game in the beloved Batman: Arkham series has been announced, but there’s a catch. Batman: Arkham Shadow is coming out in late 2024, but it’s exclusively coming to Meta Quest 3.

Madison VR is, as you might expect, the virtual reality version of Madison, a psychological horror game that originally launched in the summer of 2022. We did try and review the game back then but due to a bug that deleted our save file we could not, so it’s nice to have a second – ahem – stab at it.

Intercept Games is reportedly shutting down as Take-Two enacts their cost-reduction plan and layoffs across the company, with the Kerbal Space Program 2 developer’s continued existence now in doubt. Despite this, Take-Two has pledged to continue providing support and updates for the game’s PC Early Access release.

The May 2024 PlayStation Plus monthly games have been confirmed, with Sony pulling together a trio of games for all PS Plus subscribers – Essentials, Extra and Premium. Headlining this month’s selection is EA Sports FC 24, though there’s four games to choose from this time around.

Bethesda and Sony have managed to fix the issue preventing some PS Plus subscribers from grabbing the Fallout 4 PS5 upgrade edition – specifically those that snagged a copy of Fallout 4 from the PS Plus Collection can now get the PS5 upgrade.

Deliver Us The Moon and Deliver Us Mars studio KeokeN has laid off its entire team after failing to get funding for new projects, co-development or work for hire opportunities through the start of the year. Founders Koen and Paul Deetman have committed to rebuilding KeokeN “brick by brick” in an effort to round out a Deliver Us trilogy with Deliver Us Home

We’ve all heard of Persona — it’s one the undisputed kings of the RPG right now, each game pitting one unwitting school kid against an evil adult, using an army of angels and demons to achieve the insurmountable odds stacked against them. But how many people have played a Shin Megami Tensei game, the franchise from which Persona was born? We’d guess comparatively few people. Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance is the latest opportunity to change that.

DreadXP  and Lovely Hellplace have announced that the classic early 2000’s inspired open world RPG Dread Delusion will be exiting early access and getting its full release on May 14th. The game has been in early access since June 2022, and has received positive feedback from the community during the early access phase.

Microsoft has announced that it will be hosting the Xbox Games Showcase on June 9th, and that this will be followed by a [Redacted] Direct. All we know is that the game being shown after is part of a “beloved franchise”, and that it will be a deep dive. The logo that represents the [Redacted] Direct seems to be a three headed dog, aka Cerberus. Cerberus has been part of or referenced in lots of franchises.

RapidEyeMovers and Wolf & Wood have announced the a new free update for C-Smash VRS that will be available from May 1st. This update will add a new time attack mode, where you need to destroy as many blocks as possible in a set time. There will also be monthly refreshes of the top 10 in leader boards. A practice mode and a feature shortcut on the main menu are also being added. The C-Smash VRS May 1st updates notes have been released, and you view them below.

The original Endless Ocean game’s slogan was ‘Dive, Discover, Dream’. While that might be gloriously alliterative, it wasn’t enough to make the diving game genre achieve much more than a few air bubbles of interest in a sea of alternatives. It’s somewhat surprising then to discover that the Wii original spawned not one, but two sequels, and here Luminous stands as the third in an unlikely trilogy. While Endless Ocean Luminous is clearly doing its own thing, it seems likely that the diving game genre will wait a little longer for a tidal wave of interest to wash in.

Pine Hearts has been given a release date of May 23rd by Hyper Luminal Games, and there is also confirmation the game will be on both PC and Switch. Previously, Pine Hearts was only destined for PC.In the game, players play as the character Tyke who will wander the world making friends, helping them solve problems, and just chill out too.

Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island has received a new update on Switch, Spike Chunsoft has confirmed. The update brings quite a bit of new content to the game, including dojo challenges, a new playable character, new Sacred Tree dungeons with six new modes though the sixth is a mystery. A further content update is due in the summer too. The content update notes are below.

Stampede: Racing Royale will be added to Xbox Game Preview and Steam Early Access in the summer, Secret Mode and Sumo Leamington have confirmed. Those on the Xbox Insider Program can already get access to the game already. The 60 player racing battle royale game will also be receiving playtests on Steam soon.

The start of Season 4 in EA Sports WRC brings with it beta support for VR headsets on PC, a free update available across Steam, Epic and EA App versions of the game. The VR Beta and update 1.8.0 are available from 11AM BST today.

A Commandos: Origins closed beta is set to take place this summer, with fans of the real-time tactical series able to sign up to take part now.

After a decade of child-friendly(-ish) party packs, the next Jackbox Party Pack will be the Jackbox Naughty Pack, the first M (Mature 17+) rated game from the Jackbox Games team.

Pocketpair has announced that Palworld is going to be getting four new Pals, though they have not been named yet. They will be part of the updates coming this summer for the game, and it looks like a new area could be in the works too, but the PvP mode for Palworld is not likely to be released during the summer.

Promise Mascot Agency! has been revealed by the Paradise Killer developers Kaizen Game Works. Promise Mascot Agency! is an open world mascot management crime drama, where you play as a disgraced Yakuza lieutenant called Michi. He is sent to the bankrupt agency and is tasked with turning it into a profitable business.

Beyond Galaxyland has been revealed by developer Sam Enright, and it is due to come out later this year. In Beyond Galaxyland, the main character is Doug, a high schooler, who is transported away from Earth moments before the planet is mysteriously destroyed, and arrives in a galactic zoo called Galaxyland.

Codemasters has released the latest video for F1 24, showcasing 13 minutes of raw gameplay across five of the circuits, giving a broad sample of the game’s racing credentials. F1 24 will launch on 31st May 2024 across PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PS4, Xbox One and PC.

Q-Games has announced its newest project and it is All You Need Is Help. The game is a co-operative multiplayer puzzle game, where players are different shapes, that look a bit like Tetris shapes, work together to solve various puzzles.

Helldivers 2 patch 01.000.300 is out now and the overarching impact of it is balance changes for weapons, enemies, and stratagems. Helldivers 2 patch 01.000.300 has also made changes to the Spread Democracy mission too. And there will be no more posing for all either as only those who get extracted will have their victory poses played at the end of the missions.

Developer Microbird and Curve Games have confirmed that the action RPG Dungeons of Hinterberg will be available from July 18th, for PC and Xbox Series X|S. It has also been confirmed that Dungeons of Hinterberg will be available on Xbox and PC Game Pass on day one too.

Enhance and tha ltd. have announced that their puzzle platformer Humanity will be coming to Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One on 30th May. The game will also be available via Xbox Game Pass for both console and Windows PC.

Capcom has released the gameplay trailer for Akuma as players get ready for his return. The new gameplay trailer shows Akuma absolutely beating Ryu, and staking his claim on the title as the true Master of the Fist. You can feel the rage, and if you want to harness it you can too. Akuma, like other characters, can be your master in World Tour mode, and train you in Satsui no Hado.

Bandai Namco has released a brand new trailer to showcase Tekken 8’s season 1, confirming a new stage, mode and fighter. First off the trailer confirms that there will be a battle balance update released, which will tweak various elements for the fighters, though no release notes have been released yet.

On one end of the gaming mouse spectrum, you have mice specialising in lightweight, low-latency capabilities that are purely built to be as fast and reliable at aiming and clicking as possible, and on the other it’s all about having unique ergonomics, as many buttons, and as much configurability as possible, weight and wires be damned. I’ve mostly preferred the latter category over the last few years, and it’s hard to imagine going any other way after I’ve gotten used to the convenience of a super customisable mouse. Spending time with the Corsair M75 Air has me reconsidering my needs, and I’ve been surprised at how a difference a lightweight wireless mouse makes in my day-to-day.

Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves has got a brand new trailer, and it showcases the character Marco Rodrigues. In addition to the reveal of Marco Rodrigues, the footage also showcases the Yuri Fitness Club, which hints at Yuri also being part of the roster as well. In the trailer, Marco is beating the heck out of Tizoc.

We’re coming to the end of the month, and it feels like April has raced by. It does feel like the steady grey cold is starting to lift, so perhaps it’s a good time to get on with some DIY and projects… alongside a little bit of gaming.

The first SMITE 2 alpha weekend will be taking place from May 2nd to May 5th, Titan Forge Games has confirmed. These alpha weekends will be taking place every weekend afterwards too, until SMITE 2 reaches 24/7 closed beta later this year. Players can register their interest in taking part through the official website, with a selected number being chosen. However, those who buy the Founder’s Edition, Deluxe Founder’s Edition, or Ultimate Founder’s Edition will have guaranteed access.

Capcom has announced that it will be delisting Dark Void, Dark Void Zero, and Flock! from Steam on May 8th. It has not yet confirmed if this delisting will also occur on the Xbox store but it does seem likely. If it does then Dark Void and Flock! will be impacted on that platform, as Dark Void Zero was not released on Xbox platforms. Dark Void was already delisted from the PlayStation store, but Flock! is still available.

Alien: Rogue Incursion has been announced for PSVR 2, Meta Quest 3 and Steam VR, in a dream come true for VR gaming fans of Alien: Isolation. The single-player action-horror VR game will be coming out in Holiday 2024.

Shadow of the Ninja Reborn has been given a release date of August 29th, SEGA and NatsumeAtari have confirmed. The game originally released 33 years ago for the NES, and the original team has got back together to remaster Shadow of the Ninja for a new audience. You can see the gameplay in the trailer below.

Kakao Games has confirmed that it will be closing the North America and Europe servers of ArcheAge on June 27th. The main reason behind this is the declining player count which has meant some of the game’s content is not as accessible as it should be for the remaining players. Players will not be able to migrate characters to other server regions for ArcheAge, with those respective regions placing IP blocks in too. The full statement can be read below.

As we come to the end of another cold and grey week, I’m heading into London to see what’s what at WASD. Before getting to that, though, I’ve had a few different games on the go this past week, with the remake of Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door in my Switch and the puzzle-sniper action of Children of the Sun on my PC. I did also squeeze in one solitary mission in Helldivers 2 – every little bit helps when spreading Managed Democracy!

Gameloft has officially launched Disney Speedstorm season 7 “Sugar Rush” which introduces a wealth of new kart racing content based on Disney’s Wreck-It Ralph series.

You’ve heard of the Lands Between, but have you ever considered the Sands Between? That’s not a joke, that’s a genuine area in Another Crab’s Treasure, and I don’t think anything sums up the exact vibe that this game is going for better than the name of that one area. This is a love letter to and a sendup of so much of what FromSoftware has done, all wrapped up in a very cute crab protagonist just trying to get their home back, and a deeply unsettling message about pollution that we all already know, but don’t often get to play through.

It wouldn’t be a classic Mario game if he didn’t blindly follow the instructions of a letter or invitation and end up going on yet another adventure. That’s exactly what happens at the start of Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, though in this rare instance, it’s actually a genuine invitation from Princess Peach to come and hunt down a mystical treasure, and not a dastardly ruse.

Bethesda has officially dropped its hotly anticipated Fallout 4 PS5 upgrade, coinciding with the recent launch of Amazon’s superb TV adaptation. Also available on Xbox Series X|S as well as PC, this beefy free update comes loaded with new features and improvements almost a decade after Fallout 4 was first released.

As popular as big multiplayer games are, there’s nothing quite like the solo escapism and wish fulfilment of playing single-player, is there? And when it comes to sports games, that wish fulfilment comes in the form of stepping into the shoes of a professional athlete and rising to glory, whether it’s becoming the world number 1 tennis player, leading an underdog football team to win the Premier League, or bringing your favourite F1 team both kinds of championship glory. F1 24 is bringing a bunch of great new options to the career mode, which will add just a few more variable and fun twists in your quest to be the best.

The gaming tech universe is incredibly competitive these days, but there’s always room for new and innovative entries from creators around the world. Hong Kong-based PB Tails are entering the controller arena with the Crush, a Bluetooth 5.0 enabled pad compatible with PC, Switch, iOS and Android. Fully customisable, it boasts Hall Effect sticks and triggers which will last you well into the next generation.

The PS5 and Xbox Series X|S upgrade for Fallout 4 is here, with updates rolling out for Xbox and PC players and a new PS5 version of the game available as a free upgrade for owners on Sony’s console – sadly not for PS Plus subscribers.

Stellar Blade is one of those action-adventure boob games. You probably know the ones I mean, where you fight off huge monsters using incredible powers whilst wearing skin-tight fetish outfits. We’re talking head-to-toe black leather that looks like it was painted on with incredibly thin paint, and that’s one of the more reserved options you have for dressing up Eve. Once you’ve adjusted to the constant fetishisation, there’s a pretty enjoyable game to be found in here with quite a few interesting quirks, along with a few not-so-interesting ones.

CI Games and Hexworks have released Lords of the Fallen update 1.5 – Master of Fate. This free update for the Soulslike action RPG is the last in a sequence of rapid updates after a troubled initial launch, but also a new Advance Game Modifier System that can twist the game into being more of a Roguelike, even.

Ubisoft has release Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora update 3.2, bringing with it a 40 FPS performance mode for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. A potential downside to the update on PC is the removal of AMD FSR 3 support, while Ubisoft work to fix artifacting issues with FSR 3 Frame Generation.