As part of the lead-up to Sonic X Shadow Generations, a short comic about the Chao has arrived. On Twitter, the official Sonic the Hedgehog account posted the comic in full, and revealed the principal creators behind it. You can see the tweet and read the full comic here.

The story of the Sonic X Shadow Generations X Chao comic, a Shadow Chao and a Sonic Chao crossing space and time to try and rescue lost Chao, was written by Ian Flynn, one of the lead writers for the Sonic the Hedgehog IDW comics, Sonic Frontiers, and Sonic X Shadow Generations. The line art is done by illustrator Misa Shion, and the panels are colored by Min Ho Kim, cover and interior artist for the IDW Sonic comics and lead character designer for The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog.

This comic is part of a number of projects to celebrate the release of Sonic X Shadow Generations. Earlier in 2024, a Shadow the Hedgehog-centric short series, Sonic X Shadow Generations: Dark Beginnings, was released on the official Sonic the Hedgehog YouTube account. In addition, a Sonic the Hedgehog crossover comic with DC Comics' superheroes was announced, with Shadow as Batman and Sonic as The Flash.

Sonic X Shadow Generations releases on October 25, 2024 for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, PC, and Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X. The Sonic X Shadow Generations X Chao comic is free to read on the Sonic the Hedgehog twitter account.

The post New Sonic X Shadow Generations X Chao Comic Arrives appeared first on Siliconera.

Nippon Ichi Software announced that the Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero sequel will add Castile and Walnut as DLC characters. The two are returning from the original game. The company also revealed that other characters from a variety of Nippon Ichi Software titles will be joining the game as DLC. [Thanks, 4Gamer!]

More details about Castile and Walnut as DLC characters in the Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero sequel will appear in the future, as well as more information on other DLC characters for the game. Castile is a14-year-old girl and Phantom Brave protagonist Marona's best friend. In Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero, Castile seems to have recovered from her illness and is no longer wheelchair bound.

You can check out Castile and Walnut in Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero here:

Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero is a brand-new sequel to the original PlayStation 2 title released in 2004. The sequel was revealed during the June 2024 Nintendo Direct. NIS America recently announced that the original Phantom Brave game will receive a remastered version for the PlayStation 5 due out on November 7, 2024. A limited edition for Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero was also revealed during TGS 2024.

Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero will come out on January 30, 2025 for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5.

The post Phantom Brave Sequel Includes Playable Castile and Walnut DLC appeared first on Siliconera.

Bandai Namco shared a free costume for Sword Art Online: Fractured Daydream, and it is based on an outfit worn by SAO theme song singer ReoNa. All female characters can now get a One-Man Concert Birth 2024 outfit, which is called Dark Otherworldly Singer, to wear if someone uses the code Birt-h202-4. 

The official announcement on social media offered an idea of what to expect. It showed what Yuna would look like if she wore the outfit. It is an entirely black outfit with a jacket over a dress and boots. The back of the jacket reads, “Hello, UNHAPPY. ReoNa.”

ReoNa and her music are quite closely tied to the Sword Art Online series, with tracks being used as opening and ending themes for the anime and games up through SAO Fractured Daydream. The latest one is “Our Song,” which was used as the opening theme for this game. Here’s how that sounds:

Some of her other recent songs used in SAO shows or games include “Anima” and “Forget-Me-Not.” She also appeared as a character in Sword Art Online: Alicization Lycoris.

Sword Art Online: Fractured Daydream is available on the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, and PC via Steam.

The post Sword Art Online: Fractured Daydream ReoNa Costume Code Shared appeared first on Siliconera.

As a developer that often worked on Mega Man games, we often see Inti Creates create original titles that are clearly inspired by them. In the case of Card-en-Ciel, we have a game that has a Mega Man Battle Network approach when it comes to aesthetics and gameplay. However, while it may look familiar and feels inspired by the other title, it lacks its charm of the other series.

In a world filled with VR full-dive games that people jump into, there are incidents that require accomplished hackers and detectives to solve. After getting an urgent message from someone working alongside a Rust Tactics VR game development team named Ancie, Neon the Gaming Chair Detective finds himself dealing with corruption and data tied to many different games. There involve abnormalities, bugs, characters from other titles are appearing where they shouldn’t, and Muses are buffing certain enemies with their songs. It’s up to us to work alongside Neon and Ancie to set things right in dungeons based on certain other “games” invading Rust Tactics. 

The thing is, Inti Creates isn’t great at telling a story in Card-en-Ciel or making its world appealing, something Capcom excelled at when it came to the Mega Man Battle Network games. When we go through the story dungeons based on full-dive games, each one looks practically identical. The structure of square rooms connected by brief “bridges” gets incredibly repetitive, especially considering the similar Mega Man titles managed to inject so much personality into the “net” we’d visit as MegaMan.EXE. When you enter an area inspired by an in-game series, there are no outward or immediately recognizable distinctions. Just the same blocks. Even the enemies you fight aren’t only drawn from that “title,” as instead Inti Creates pulls from its actual game library and original ones created for Card-en-Ciel. 

While this can make the idea of going through Card-en-Ciel dungeons a little boring, I feel the turn-based, deck-building gameplay actually improves upon the Mega Man Battle Network formula. When you’re dealt cards or pick them up after fights and while exploring, you’ll find they either deal HP or break damage to opponents. HP damage wears the enemy down and defeats them. Break damage affects the attack meter, keeping them from being able to take action against you and weakening their defense against HP attacks. Each round, you start with three points, and cards can require between 0-3 points to use. 

All cards are also used for movement to evade attacks or move so you can target enemies. Icons on each one show if they’ll move Neon up, down, left, or right. So you need to get out of ranged of the telegraphed attack under your feet that happens in X number of turns, you need to play one of your cards to move instead of taking the action shown on it.

While those are the three basic uses for cards, there are other factors to consider. Some are yellow. If you see the opponent’s timer counting down to show they are about to attack, you can play that card to counter and take action during that turn. Cards can have additional effects that add buffs, cause clones to appear, create 0-cost cards that deal damage and break damage, ensure cards of the same type get a boost, or affect future turns. 

There are also Muses to content with as you play Card-en-Ciel. You tend to start with one available when you enter a dungeon, with additional ones found in fights on floors. Once you collect one, you can trigger their buffs in battle by meeting requirements. So you may need to play the same card twice in a row, which means ensuring your deck is stacked with duplicates of a certain type. Another Muse might require you to play a three-cost card or for there to be exactly five cards in your hand after taking an action. Likewise, enemies can have Muses on their sides too, providing them buffs and adding junk cards to your hand that could force movement or affect your deck. 

It’s really quite clever, and I loved whenever I’d see a cameo from a returning Inti Creates game character in Card-en-Ciel. For example, Azure Striker Gunvolt and Gal Gun folks are here! But at the same time, since the story isn’t really compelling or well-executed, the cards and enemies based on “original” characters aren’t very appealing. In many cases, it feels like they’re excuses to insert some extra fanservice. But since we don’t know who they are until this title, it rings a bit hollow and doesn’t have the same appeal as it would if it involved actually recognizable people. Though personally, I also found the Muse and Ancie fanservice a bit overdone here. Others might enjoy it! But it was so out of place in the roguelike that it struck me as being more odd than appealing.

Once a fight is over, you will see certain options available in the “node” where you fought. You can choose to recover some HP. You can enhance one of the cards in your deck. It is also possible to station one of the characters in the cards you have, removing them from your deck in the process, for buffs. There can also be random events triggered after a fight is done that affects your cards and deck. Not to mention if you avoid fights for too long or make certain choices in those events, your Memory Gauge goes up and inflicts negative effects in fights until you battle enough to reduce it.

As Card-en-Ciel is a roguelike, there are elements that put you in a better position for future runs if you win. You can forge Wild Cards, which give you a chance to do better in a pinch during a fight. When recuperating with Ancie after a run, you can put points into determining if rarer cards come up, Neon’s HP goes up, Treasure Chests show up after battle, or other benefits come up. There are also different difficulties to choose from when heading in, which can help with players’ experiences. 

Though to be honest, I didn’t get much out of the PvP mode. This feature unlocks after a few runs. It offers a daily dungeon with leaderboards or an opportunity to face others. The daily dungeon is fine, but I got nothing out of the fights against others and would just… rather go through the base dungeons on different difficulties instead. 

I enjoyed Inti Creates’ approach to gameplay in Card-en-Ciel and appreciate how it built on the tactical deck-building found in the Mega Man Battle Network series. While it looks similar, it feels like its own thing. That’s great! Unfortunately, the actual story surrounding Neon and Ancie’s adventure is pretty weak and not handled well, and there’s no personality to any of the dungeons we explore. It’s a case where there’s some good gameplay we can sink our teeth into, but the style isn’t quite there even with colorful characters and some fun cameos. It can be entertaining, but lacks Mega Man Battle Network's charm.

Card-en-Ciel will come to the Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC on October 24, 2024, and a demo is available on the PC via Steam and Switch. 

The post Review: Solid Card-en-Ciel Card Lacks Mega Man Battle Network Charm appeared first on Siliconera.

Poncle announced a second Vampire Survivors crossover with Konami, this time being the Ode to Castlevania DLC. It will debut on Halloween 2024, adding characters and the largest map so far. It will be on the PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, PC, and mobile devices for $3.99 on October 31, 2024.

As this is a Castlevania add-on with no vampires, it means other iconic characters from the series will be playable instead. Poncle confirmed over 20 will be available. It noted that many of them will be from the Belmont and Belnades families. 

So far, the following folks are all confirmed.

• Charlotte Aulin
• Eric Lecarde
• Maria Renard
• John Morris
• Jonathan Morris
• Richter Belmont
• Shanoa
• Simon Belmont
• Sonia Belmont
• Sypha Belnades
• Trevor Belmont
• Yoko Belnades

Poncle confirmed over 40 weapons for the crossover too. Alucard’s Shield, Spear, and Sword will all be present. Eight different kinds of whips will appear, building on the one in the base game. The announcement also confirmed Glyphs, elemental magic, and projectiles will show up. 

Here’s the animated announcement trailer, which showed many of the characters we’ll get to use when the add-on appears. It also hints at Soma Cruz and Alucard’s inclusions. 

As a reminder, the Vampire Survivors Konami crossover prior to the Castlevania DLC involved Contra. Characters and stages from that game showed up in the Operation Guns add-on.

Vampire Survivors is available for the PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, PC, and mobile devices, and its Ode to Castlevania DLC launches on October 31, 2024. 

The post Vampire Survivors Ode to Castlevania DLC Adds No Vampires appeared first on Siliconera.

Horror games are so iconic. Few games immerse the player in an evocative and memorable world as well as horror titles. Famous, classic Japanese horror series like Resident Evil and Silent Hill keep putting out games. In fact, the recent release of Silent Hill 2 shows there is plenty of room for more horror remakes. This are our picks for the classic horror games that need a sequel or remake next.

Siliconera Speaks Up: Horror Games That Need a Remake or Sequel

I'm kind of loathe to think of Siren: Blood Curse as a remake of the original game since it's SO different in terms of…well, everything. It's more a reimagination, really. While a much more faithful remake of Siren would be nice, I'm one of those people who believe that if you're going to play it, you should play the original, horrible, janky version and get that true frustrating experience. It's part of the charm. -- Stephanie (1/2)

Siren 2, on the other hand, seemed to have genuinely wanted to provide some quality-of-life upgrades. As such, it would be nice to see a proper remake of that one. Heck, a Siren 3 that's similar to the first two in terms of gameplay and writing would be great too. It might be difficult though, since the main creative team for Siren seem to be at Bokeh Game Studio now and I don't know who even has the rights to the IP anymore. -- Stephanie (2/2)

I have to agree with Stephanie. Siren should come back. It's such a memorable story, and the gameplay was so unusual and different. It genuinely felt desperate and horrifying when you knew the Shibito were everywhere, you were outnumbered, and it would be so easy to panic and slip up. -- Jenni

I’m a wimp when it comes to horror games so I mostly stick to visual novels. Though not outright horror games, I keep hoping and praying for new games in the Zero Escape and Danganronpa series. They both have light spooky elements, especially 999 with the “knocking” part that actually made me jump when I first played it. Both series made me fall in love with the visual novel genre and I just need more of both. This is particularly painful for Zero Escape since I will stand by that Zero Time Dilemma’s most horrifying part was its terribly unfinished ending that needs a sequel someday. -- Cody

The post Which Classic Horror Games Need a Remake or Sequel Next? appeared first on Siliconera.

Sword Art Online left an indisputable imprint on the anime landscape since its adaptation in 2012, and it continues to influence shows that are coming out today. Of course, with the premise centered on people playing a VR MMORPG, many video games naturally followed. Sword Art Online Fractured Daydream is unequivocally made for veteran fans of the franchise, which might sound great on paper, but it packages itself into a niche category that only die-hard enthusiasts will find the experience cathartic, isolating much of its casual audience.

The main attraction of Sword Art Online Fractured Daydream is supposed to be its multiplayer experience. But as you need to make a reasonable dent in the primary campaign to unlock the multiplayer and the characters available, let's dive into this aspect first. Sword Art Online Fractured Daydream harbours an independent brand new story tailored for the game, presumably occurring sometime after the Alicization Arc. Without going into spoiler territory, characters introduced in this arc play a pivotal role in the overarching story. A new, updated beta system called Galaxia has been added to ALfheim online, aiming to enable players to relive their most cherished memories of the game. However, a critical error has now ensnared Kirito within the Galaxia system. Kirito will now need to navigate Galaxia, assisted by many familiar faces throughout the Sword Art Online timeline, to figure out how to return to the real world.

Sword Art Online Fractured Daydream has the best storytelling and cutscenes across all the games, and some of the moments that transpire are superb. One that stands out vividly is right at the beginning of the game, where Kirito realizes he is participating in an anomaly of the programming, and a fight quickly ensues. It felt like the scene could have been ripped straight out of the anime, which will surely place a gleeful smile on any fan's face. My only critique is that the overall plot requires a good knowledge of Sword Art Online. The story can be very "meta" at times, as characters across the Sword Art Online multiverse interact with one another. It's like watching Avengers Endgame without seeing the prior Marvel films leading up. You can do it if you want, but you'll be confused about certain parts.

The gameplay structure of the primary campaign is where things get a bit iffy. There are five chapters in total, all with several quests. Initially, your character will be transported to a new location, and you will have to travel to specific points on the map while fighting monsters along the way. In order to conclude the quest and move on to the next part of the story, you must defeat a minor boss battle. As you can tell from that description, the setup is very basic. What also does not help is that every location in the game feels empty and rigid due to an invisible barrier stopping you from fully exploring the environment. This often made me awkwardly zig-zag across the map to find a direct route. There are a few collectables you can pick up as well, which I assume is an attempt to make the environmental space not feel barren, but they are tedious to gather because of the terrain layout.

The combat is somewhat of a mixed bag, but enough distinction between the classes make it more enjoyable than not. There are six fighting classes: fighter, tank, rogue, ranger, mage and support. Each character is automatically categorized into one of these classes and plays distinctively differently from one another, which adds a lot of diversity to the combat. Kirito, in the fighting class, has his iconic dual blades, which allow him to excel at close combat while moving reasonably fast across the battlefield. Agil, part of the tank class, will move slower in comparison but will be able to endure more hits, and Llenn in the rogue class will utilize a massive gun, allowing her to attack from far away, mimicking the Fatal Bullet gameplay format. Usually, in a quest, you will pick one character to be your main fighter and can then select additional characters to join your team, but sometimes, you'll have to play a particular character, forcing you to try out all the classes. If you want to complete the main storyline as soon as possible, you'll want to stick with the fighter class as they feel stupidly overpowered, but all the classes have some merit to them.

Regarding the real-time combat system, there is the standard stuff you would expect to see, like normal and heavy attacks. Each character also has special and ultimate moves, which are excellent to use if you find yourself in a tight spot. However, you will have to wait for a brief cooldown before reusing one of these manoeuvres, which encourages you to think before you act. But the lock-on system is what brought down the combat for me. The game encourages you to lock onto opponents, as you can then dash towards enemies and unleash a string of combos, but it rarely works. Most times, when I tried to implement it, I would be left in mid-air or at a strange slant, so I would often attack opponents without using it, which made any flying monsters a bit trickier than the game intended.

After progressing through an hour or so of the primary campaign, you will then unlock the multiplayer mode, which shares a lot of parallels with Granblue Fantasy: Relink, as it encompasses real-time combat mashed up with MMO gameplay mechanics. The multiplayer is divided into three modes: free roam, co-op quest and boss raid. Free-roam is by far the best, as you can leisurely walk around the entire map, fight enemies and take on daily challenges. This was a breath of fresh air compared to the main campaign, which constricted where you could explore (yes, the invisible barriers are a sticking point). It reminded me a lot of Dauntless's open terrain environment, which may not be a complimentary statement to some, but I always like the relaxed atmosphere the game attempted to encapsulate.

In comparison, the co-op quest inhabits a more frantic vibe as twenty players are split into five squads, running through a massive dungeon to reach a boss at the very end. You have thirty minutes, but most lobby groups should be able to do this within the 15-20-minute range. On successful completion of this mission, you will then be rewarded with better weapons and different cosmetic appearances. Although looking at the scoreboard at the end to see how your performance faired to other players was interesting, the rewards didn't really incentivize me much to continue playing.

The boss raid was easily the weakest mode out of the bunch. Again, twenty players are broken down into five squads, but this time, your goal is to defeat an astronomical boss battle while your team attempts to score the most points. It felt repetitive as there was not much cooperative play, as you're mainly just striking the enormous adversary with endless attacks. The enemy's fighting pattern is nothing special either, and they would repeatedly recycle the same moves. Honestly, I got bored during the first boss I took on. I did a few more for good measure, but it somehow became even more mind-numbing.

There was a clear executive effort towards the Sword Art Online Fractured Daydream multiplayer experience, but it's average at best. When you're trying to get players to commit hours to multiplayer content, you need to offer something unique and different, but throughout, I got a severe case of déjà vu because I've partaken in this repetitive action in endless other titles. Within a short period, I felt like I had seen everything, got the t-shirt and was ready to play something else. You would only start investing serious hours into the multiplayer if you were a massive Sword Art Online fan who wanted to gain every item possible. But you would probably be a lone ranger in this pursuit because convincing others to tag along would be hard unless your friends are also gigantic fans.

Sword Art Online Fractured Daydream shines in some departments but flops in others.  
I wish the game had concentrated more on the primary campaign because the story here is terrific, and with a few tweaks to the open map environment and battle mechanics, it could have been a quintessential play for any fan. But the multiplayer feels so half-baked and unrewarding that only hardcore fans will enjoy the long, tedious grind to grab every morsel item.

Sword Art Online Fractured Daydream is now available on the PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch and PC.

The post Review: Sword Art Online Fractured Daydream Will Only Appeal to Hardcore Fans appeared first on Siliconera.

The Pokemon Company International announced that it is now possible to get a shiny Meloetta in Pokemon Home following the 3.2.2 update. However, it isn’t an unconditional giveaway. It is tied to Pokedex completion.

Here’s how it works. You need to have your copy of Pokemon Home synched up with Pokemon Scarlet and Violet on the Nintendo Switch. This is because you need to have the full Pokedex for the main game, which is the Paldea Pokedex, as well the ones from the Blueberry and Kitakami Pokedex ones from the two areas in the expansion pass. If you did that and confirmed it within Pokemon Home in “Games,” you get the Shiny Meloetta as a Mystery Gift. Once that is in your boxes, you could then move it to one of your games.

There’s also a screenshot showing the Shiny Meloetta in the Pokemon Home app. The Normal and Psychic type will be at level 50 when it arrives. The one shown in the screenshot has 170 HP, 82 attack, 162 special attack, 92 defense, 148 special defense, and 110 speed. The Modest nature boosts special attack at the cost of attack. Serene Grace also makes it more likely Meloetta’s attack effects will trigger. The character arrives knowing Echoed Voice, Psybeam, Relic Song, and Sing. So Serene Grace would affect Psybeam and Relic Song. 

Here’s how the character will look:

Pokemon Home is available on the Nintendo Switch and mobile devices. It is compatible with games up through the latest Pokemon Scarlet and Violet Switch entries.

The post You Can Earn Shiny Meloetta in Pokemon Home Now appeared first on Siliconera.

When it comes to a personality test, it honestly might be better to think of it as a game or hypothetical, rather than a reliable determination of who you are as a person. (Especially if you’re just doing so online.) Refind Self: The Personality Test Game leans into that by basically giving you a light slice-of-life experience following a grieving android coming to terms with recent events while also going about their day and considering what to do next.

Within the “world” of Lizardry and Playism’s Refind Self: The Personality Test Game, you are taking a test designed to help someone recover and determine who they are by playing through said game about the android. You’re warned that you can only take so many actions while exploring and interacting before your “heart is full,” which will then result in an assessment based on what you did and decisions you made. From there, you’re tossed into the life of an android who’s just lost the Doctor who acted as a parent to them and go about your day.

While this is a personality test of sorts, I think it is better to think of Refind Self: The Personality Test Game as a life sim that might be different each time you play it. The first time you go into it blind is probably when you’ll both get the most and least accurate assessment of who you might be, since you’re given no guidance beyond “live.” There are no instructions. Provided you didn’t look up details online, you won’t know what to expect. Also, since you likely won’t turn streamer mode on, you’ll be making decisions naturally and not considering the fact that the game is actually keeping track of how long it takes you to do certain things as part of the determinations as well.

The world of  Refind Self: The Personality Test Game is a homey and relatively peaceful one. After heading down from the hill, you can visit with other human and robotic inhabitants of the village. It is possible to investigate things, collect items, and shop. You’ll learn about possible tasks or activities, which you can take part in. So in a way, it really does feel like it could be an assessment of who you are. After all, there are a lot of choices as to what you might do.

As such, I found the second and third runs of Refind Self: The Personality Test Game were more satisfying than the first. During the second, I had a better idea of where everything was an knew what I hadn’t gotten around to the first time. So I had more of an idea what to expect and perhaps even felt like I enjoyed it more since I better understood what was possible. But in the third, I actually started working toward some of the potential “objectives” or activities that really feels like you’re supposed to be pushing yourself toward a certain way to get something done. Also, the more you play, the more you unlock and know about the game.

The execution also makes doing so something of a pleasure. Playism noted a playthrough can last about an hour, but it might even be shorter than that depending on what you do. It’s easy to go through and fun to explore. Not to mention it’s quite a pretty diversion, with fantastic spritework and a subdued color scheme that matches the tone of the experience perfectly. I ended up taking to playing it either between other games or before heading to bed each night to relax. I eventually felt like I wanted to go out of my way to earn personalities I hadn’t seen yet, just to get feedback on that mindset, get a look at the fun outfits, and see how to trigger that result.

Refind Self: The Personality Test Game may not be the best at accurately assessing who you are, but it is absolutely entertaining. I really liked the relax atmosphere and presentation. Plus, its length encourages you to return and see what you might discover and unlock next. It’s an enjoyable way to briefly spend some time thinking about your actions.

Refind Self: The Personality Test Game is available on the Nintendo Switch, PC and mobile devices.

The post Review: Refind Self: The Personality Test Game Is a Fascinating Time Sink appeared first on Siliconera.

Banjo-Tooie is the latest N64 game being added to Nintendo Switch Online. The Banjo-Kazooie sequel will be added for players who have the Expansion Pack on October 25, 2024.

Originally released in 2000, Banjo-Tooie features lots of returning characters. The bear and bird return for another adventure as they tried to stop another of Grunty’s schemes. While the main gameplay from the original game was retained, which involves players collecting Jiggies and music notes, several new features were added for the Banjo-Kazooie sequel. Things included a larger explorable world, new moves including a first-person egg-shooting mode, and a multiplayer mode featuring various minigames. Some sections of the game also made Kazooie playable on her own.

The Nintendo Switch Online version of Banjo-Tooie will feature a full widescreen mode. However, it’s unlikely this release will contain the Stop ‘n’ Swop feature that was restored for the Xbox Live Arcade version of the game. This was a feature intended to be in the original N64 release but was scrapped due to technical limitations. Since this new release will seek to remain faithful to the original N64 release, it’s likely to be left out.

Despite Rare now being owned by Microsoft, Banjo-Tooie is the sixth N64 game developed by the studio that’s appeared on Nintendo Switch Online. As well as the original Banjo-Kazooie, Goldeneye, Jet Force Gemini, Blast Corps and Perfect Dark are also currently available. Banjo and Kazooie also made another appearance on the Switch as a playable DLC character for Super Smash Bros Ultimate.

Banjo-Tooie will come to the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack on October 25, 2024.

The post Banjo-Kazooie Sequel Banjo-Tooie Heads to Nintendo Switch Online appeared first on Siliconera.

Hello, everyone. I'm Shaun, and I'm a very big fan of Dragon Quest. This is not an especially unique condition, but it's uncommon enough among Western gaming enthusiasts that we always have to cross our fingers that any given game will get localized and released globally. As one of those fans, I am very excited about Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake. It's a great game and a very important one for the history of the medium, and it's awesome to see it get such a high-class treatment.

On top of that, Square Enix has also announced that the first two games in the series will also be getting the HD-2D Remake treatment. It's easy to see why Square Enix would lead this effort with the third game in the series. Dragon Quest 3 is where the series really hit the big-time in Japan, pushing the brand into the wider pop culture in a way few games had done before. Where the first two games have a rather prototypical feel at times due to being genre pioneers, Dragon Quest 3 has most of what modern players would expect from a JRPG. It feels classic, but never terribly dated.

It's that latter point that is most important outside of Japan, where the series has enjoyed a decent level of popularity but never truly broken out the way it did in its home country. This isn't the first time Square Enix has tried to push Dragon Quest in the West, and it surely won't be the last. The attention afforded to HD-2D games right here and now presents a unique opportunity, however. It's a chance for the formative games in the franchise to shine, and one that Dragon Quest 3 can take advantage of in a way its predecessors might not be able to.

Editor's Note: There will be spoilers for the first three Dragon Quest games below.

There's another fortunate aspect at play here. You see, unlike most of the games in the series, the first three Dragon Quest games have strong narrative ties. Where this could present a huge problem for releasing the games out of order, Dragon Quest 3 ducks the issue by being a prequel. Chronologically speaking, this is where the trilogy starts. There's no issue with playing Dragon Quest 3 first and then going on to the first two when they're released. Or… is there?

Prequels aren't a new thing by any means, and they certainly weren't back when the 8-bit Dragon Quest games were made. History is full of interesting stories, and that can apply to fictional worlds as well. A skilled storyteller can use a prequel to flesh out the world further, and even surprise those familiar with the original works by going against their firm expectations. Part of the fun of a prequel is that we generally know where things will end up, but not how they get there. There's a lot of narrative meat in that type of tale. The more the person knows about what comes next, the more fun you can have playing around with that.

There's another kind of prequel, though. Sometimes the person experiencing the story doesn't even know it's a prequel until the storyteller chooses to reveal it. Sometimes they know it's a prequel but specific connections are kept under wraps until the right moment. It can be carefully hinted at along the way, enough to tickle at people's memories. When the boom is finally dropped, the impact can be tremendous.

At first, Dragon Quest 3 seems like it's completely separate from the first two games. Unlike Dragon Quest 2, the world you're thrown into has no resemblance in form to that of the original game. A whole new map, albeit one that might be familiar in other ways to the observant. After going on a long quest that spans the whole world, evil is defeated. Celebrations are underway when it is revealed that there is a greater threat, and the only way to put an end to it is to chase it into its own realm. Courageously, as thou must, you volunteer to make that journey.

Suddenly, you find yourself in a completely new world. If you've played the first two games, you know exactly where you are. The geography, the layout of the nearest settlement, and even the music hammer it home. A clever little move that was played in a smaller way in the previous game. If you know the previous two games very well, some of the details will start adding up. You're not just in Alefgard. You're in Alefgard at a time before the original game's events. The tasks you must perform to reach the final boss should also ring a bell.

By the end, many players will have already figured out what the final twist will be. It still hits. It turns out the legendary warrior Erdrick who the heroes of the first two games descended from is… you. So the trilogy closes, having fully closed its circle in a surprisingly elegant way for games of this vintage. It's a stunning end to an excellent game, and one that might have you anxious to replay those first two games again.

Virtually every Dragon Quest fan already knows this, of course. Among Japanese gamers in general, the original Dragon Quest trilogy occupies such a large part of the history of the medium that even those who aren't into the games have a good chance of being aware of this twist. If that's the case for you, then it doesn't really matter what order you play these games in now. It can even be fun to play them in their narrative chronological order.

This release of Dragon Quest 3 is very likely to reach people who haven't played the original trilogy and aren't aware of the story, however. For them, none of those big story beats are going to land the way they're meant to. Dragon Quest 3 happens first, but it was never meant to be played first. It's still a great game even without all of those connections being revealed, but it loses something. In a series that envelopes itself in nostalgia more than most, the final hours of Dragon Quest III are quite possibly its greatest, most natural callback.

Ultimately, Square Enix is probably making the right call by presenting Dragon Quest 3 ahead of its more rough-edged forbearers. At the same time, there's a real cost to presenting these games out of their original order. While I'm sure that Dragon Quest 3 can get by just fine without its memorable endgame flourish, it's a heavy sacrifice for those experiencing this legendary trilogy for the first time.

Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D will come to the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, and PC on November 14, 2024.

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Dwango announced that the NicoNico app is available again on the Nintendo Switch since October 17, 2024. NicoNico video and its associated services are slowly returning back to service after the application suffered a large scale cyberattack back in June 8, 2024.

Those interested in downloading and using the NicoNico app on the Nintendo Switch will need to have access to the Japanese Nintendo eShop as well as a Japanese account to download it. For users that already have the app downloaded on their systems prior to the cyberattack, they will need to update the app to Ver. 4.51 in order to be able to access its services again.

Furthermore, in an effort to strengthen security measures, NicoNico parent company Dwango announced that the NicoNico app password has been reset. Users that haven’t logged into the app after the service went back online earlier in August 5, 2024 will need to create a new password for their accounts to be able to use the service.

As a reminder, aside from a new version of the NicoNico service returning earlier in August 2024, Dwango also revealed that some of the NicoNico services would cease to exist due to a loss of data caused by the cyberattack, such as the NicoNi Community function.

The Nintendo Switch version of the NicoNico app has resumed its services from October 17, 2024.

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Bandai Namco announced during the 2024 New York Comic Con Dragon Ball Daima anime panel that DLC involving its characters and story will be in Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero, Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2, and Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot. In each case, no exact dates were set for the add-ons, but there are trailers for each one showing them off. 

In the case of Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero, Goku (Mini) is already part of the cast as the first DLC. As such, the additional Dragon Ball Daima add-ons will be Vegeta (Mini) and Glorio. Those will appear after Gamma 1 and Gamma 2.

Here’s the trailer showing both of them:

In the case of Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2, the Dragon Ball Daima DLC comes up during Future Saga Chapter 2. We already know that pack would involve Belmod, Champa, and Perfected Ultra Instinct Goku. Goku (Mini) will also be playable, and he’ll be a part of a free trial. 

Here’s how that looks:

Finally, the Dragon Ball Daima related addition to Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot will be Adventure Through the Demon Realm Part 1 DLC. Once again, this means we’ll spend time with Goku (Mini). It also means visiting the Demon Realm. 

Here’s that trailer: 

Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero is on the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, and PC. Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 appears on the PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Switch, and PC. Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is available for the PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC. Dragon Ball Daima is streaming on Crunchyroll, and the English dub will debut in US and Canadian theaters on November 10-12, 2024.

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Another one of the Good Smile Company announcements from New York Comic Con 2024 involves a The Binding of Isaac figure that is a Nendoroid of the main character. It is the furthest along of all of the company’s announcements at the event, as a painted prototype appeared and there are multiple photos showing the extra parts included with it.

The multiple photos tied to a gif released alongside the reveal covered many of the parts Isaac will include. His face plates always show him crying, and it seems he will have ones that feature both his eyes open and closed. He’ll come with a standard body, as well as an additional one of him curled up in a fetal position on the floor. You can arm him with Mom’s Knife, which was a passive in the original game. He also comes with a Dead Cat passive item, which can be displayed alongside him.

Here’s the official announcement gif showing some of the different The Binding of Isaac Nendoroid poses that will be possible.

While there’s no pre-order open yet, we should see that happen soon. Not only did the painted prototype appear at NYCC 2024, but there are multiple photos of its accessories and extra parts.

Many of the other NYCC 2024 Good Smile Company reveals involved games. There will be a new World of Warcraft Nendoroid and Diablo 4 Pop Up Parade figure coming from the company.  

The Binding of Isaac original game is available on PCs. The remake showed up on the 3DS, PS4, PS5, Switch, Vita, Wii U, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, PC, and mobile devices. There’s no release window for The Binding of Isaac Nendoroid yet.

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Konami announced the release date for Yu-Gi-Oh Early Days Collection, a collection of retro Game Boy games headed to the Switch and PC. It will launch on February 27, 2024. There will also be a bonus included in physical Switch copies.

Konami announced that people who buy the Switch copy in stores will get a Harpie's Feather Duster card. There will be one of two included in each one. These will be the Quarter Century one. There is no promotion like this mentioned for the PC version. This is a Spell Card that, when used, will destroy all of the Spells and Traps your opponent played.

As a reminder, eight Yu-Gi-Oh games that appeared on the Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance are confirmed for this Early Days Collection so far. The two most recently confirmed entries are the three GBA games The Eternal Duelist Soul, Reshef of Destruction, and The Sacred Cards.

Here are the titles we end up getting:

• Yu-Gi-Oh: Dark Duel Stories
• Yu-Gi-Oh: Dual Monsters
• Yu-Gi-Oh: Dual Monsters 2: Dark Duel Stories
• Yu-Gi-Oh: Dual Monsters 4; Battle of Great Duelist
• Yu-Gi-Oh: Dual Monsters 6, Expert 2
• Yu-Gi-Oh: Eternal Duelist Soul
• Yu-Gi-Oh: Reshef of Destruction
• Yu-Gi-Oh: Sacred Cards

At launch, only Yu-Gi-Oh: Dual Monsters 4; Battle of Great Duelist is confirmed to have online multiplayer support. However, Konami did note there will be future updates to add that support for other games. 

The Yu-Gi-Oh Early Days Collection release date is February 27, 2024, and the game will appear on the Switch and PC. 

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