Chasing Metal Shooter Vengeance with Release of Valfaris: Mecha Therion - Hardcore Gamer

While last night’s Game Awards show primarily focused on the biggest games of 2023 and the most anticipated titles for next year and beyond, one of 2022’s best games also got a fresh announcement that players will be able to check out very soon.

During The Game Awards, Red Barrels showed off a new trailer and provided an official release date for the third release in the Outlast franchise, The Outlast Trials. The game will be available on both PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S and PC. Two digital launch versions will be available that can be pre-ordered on both the Xbox and PlayStation digital stores now. This will include the Grizzly Hazmat Outfit with the pre-order. The Outlast Trials will release on March 5 for all platforms as the game launched in Early Access on PC during May 2023. This will be set in the same universe as the previous games but can be played with a friends in a team of up to four people.

The Game Awards played host to a lot of world premieres tonight, with one apparently being this sort of dark fantasy action-RPG game that, if nothing else, looked absolutely beautiful. Then halfway through, it was revealed that this was the latest game from Moon Studios, the folks behind Ori and the Blind Forest and its follow-up, and suddenly things made a ton of sense. Their new game with publishers Private Division is called No Rest For the Wicked, and it seems to showcase the team going even bigger than they have before.

Anyone with an ounce of an interest for rhythm games will have at least heard, if not experienced, the name Thumper in years past. And while it’s been a whole seven years since developer Drool dropped the hard-hitting, on-rails, rhythms of a sole silver beetle rushing through psychadelic worlds, Thumper’s visuals as much its soundtrack, remains a memorable release. Well now, Brian Gibson — the original artist and composer behind Thumper — is back with a new project. Collaborating with Mike Mandel of Fuser fame to form development team Puddle, with what looks to be a spiritual successor releasing sometime next year, in the form of Thrasher.

Apple Arcade has played host to a variety of outstanding games over the years – from Konami’s release of a new side-scrolling Castlevania adventure to Fantasian bringing back the classic Final Fantasy feel to more recent games like Samba Di Amigo getting an exclusive version with a storyline for the service. Today, Sega releases an all-new Sonic game exclusively to Apple Arcade in the form of Sonic Dream Team. This lightning-fast adventure sees a new 3D Sonic game created for the service and allows players to play as Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Cream, Rouge, and Amy Rose.

Ok, we knew this was coming but it was supposed to be tomorrow.  Then the trailer leaked, Rockstar decided that sticking to a plan that didn’t survive first contact with the enemy was a terrible idea, and here we are with the first trailer for the biggest, most anticipated game of, as it turns out, 2025.  It wasn’t supposed to go like this, but-  Surprise!  On the plus side it’s scored to Tom Petty’s Love is a Long Road, and any day with more Tom Petty is a good one.

Today, Capcom has officially announced the release date for the upcoming VR mode coming to the remake of Resident Evil 4. Releasing earlier this year, the remake starring Leon S. Kennedy was held in high regards across the gaming world. Now, those with a PlayStation VR2 will have the opportunity to step in the literal shoes of Leon Kennedy to experience the horror first hand, and its sooner rather than later. So much sooner that it will be available as free DLC on December 8. This is exclusive to the PlayStation 5 version of the game as the PC version will not have the option for VR, much in the line of Resident Evil 7 and Village (although an upgrade for RE7 would be nice).

As we head into the final month of the year, Sony is looking to treat their monthly subscribers with a fresh trio of games to download, with three unique titles that should please those who were lucky enough to be gifted a PlayStation this holiday season.

The highly anticipated Dragon’s Dogma 2 has confirmed a scheduled launch date. Additionally, the upcoming sequel is now available for pre-order. Dragon’s Dogma 2 is scheduled for a release date of March 22 for PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Seriex X|S. In Dragon’s Dogma 2, players will once again be stepping into the boots of the Arisen, a hero whose heart has been stolen by the dragon. This will sound familiar to fans of the 2012 original but the sequel takes place in a parallel world where two nations have different approaches to the dragon threat. In the kingdom of Vermund Queen Regent Disa has installed a false Arien to maintain of the kingdom for her son. The nation of Battahl views the otherworldly Pawns as a source of misfortune and have begun worshipping the Lambert Flame and their empress Nadinia in hopes of staving off calamity.

It’s generally a sketchy idea to build a companion from parts, even at the very best of times.  Intentions may be good but surprises will be few, and that’s gong to cause problems in keeping a relationship going. Still, it worked out all right for Cherry and her creator Shinji Fallon, right up to the point the sweet, loving robot took a bullet to the head and was torn almost completely apart as her creator was abducted.  It turned out Shinji had created better than she may have expected seeing as Cherry survived, put back together by the mechanic Raz in a highly-altered form that’s far more capable than the old one of going on the combination bloody revenge spree and rescue mission.

Steel Mantis’s Valfaris: Mecha Therion, a sequel to the 2D action platformer from 2019, is out now on PC. It sees protagonist Therion returning to take down Lord Vroll through the galaxy. This time, he has Mecha Therion, a powerful mech for causing mass destruction.

Released in 2019, Steel Mantis’ Valfaris impressed me with its high-octane, thrash metal-infused take on the run and gun. Building on their first game, fantasy hack and slasher Slain (one of my first reviews on this site back in 2016) and improving on it in almost every way, it remains one of my favourite action titles of recent years. Now, four years later, Steel Mantis are back to continue the adventures of Therion but they’ve taken a surprise turn in genre and approach. Aesthetically, this is still very much within the world of Valfaris but rather than the platforming run and gun, here we have a more traditional horizontal shoot-em-up. Does this bold change pay off or does Mecha Therion blow up in the devs’ faces?