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Shovel Knight Showdown will brawl its way to release in December
Shovel Knight Showdown began life as “Battle Mode,” a distant Stretch Goal that was added to the very end of Shovel Knight‘s Kickstarter campaign. But with the platformer’s final expansion nearing release, developer Yacht Club Games has finally been able to more fully turn their attention to the four-player brawler.
For starters, Shovel Knight Showdown has moved well beyond its beginnings as a simple “Battle Mode.” The full-fledged game got a new full-fledged trailer today, with glimpses at the game’s single-player Story Mode, as well as the addition of Mona, Plague Knight’s potions expert. Yacht Club talked more about it on their official website:
Shovel Knight Showdown has grown to be a robust and delightful multiplayer and singleplayer adventure. It’s full of new stories and revelations, goofy humor, great multiplayer level design, beautiful character art, varied playstyles, and frenetic battles. We really put our all into crafting this wholly new experience and we can’t wait for you to give it a shot!
Shovel Knight Showdown will be available as a free download this December if you own Shovel Knight on the PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Wii U, or Xbox One. It’ll also be available as a standalone download on the PC, PS4, and Switch, and as part of the Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove retail compilation for the PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
Fans who are staking out a spot at this weekend’s PAX West convention in Seattle will also want to swing by Yacht Club’s booth to try out Shovel Knight Showdown before its released.
Posted in News, PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Wii U, Xbox One
Tagged PAX West 2019, Shovel Knight, Shovel Knight Showdown
Shovel Knight: King of Cards will be released in December
Yacht Club Games delivered Shovel Knight to fans all the way back in 2014, and they’ve spent the rest of the decade fulfilling a Kickstarter campaign promise to produce additional campaigns starring three of the game’s villains. Those expansions did a lot to fill out the world of Shovel Knight and they’ve helped make the main character something of an international superstar.
But now the developers are ready to close the book on Shovel Knight’s first adventure this December with the release of Shovel Knight: King of Cards.
A fittingly jampacked new trailer for King of Cards has been embedded above, as the developer said (on their official website) that the expansion will be the biggest Shovel Knight adventure yet:
King of Cards marks our grandest adventure yet, and we hope the trailer whets your appetite for the banquet of adventure which awaits! It has more levels, mechanics, secrets, and content than any Shovel Knight game to come before it. It’s a spectacle, crammed to the coffers with ideas- it’s the biggest game we’ve ever made, and we can’t wait for everyone to finally, finally play it. We’ve used everything we’ve learned in the past to make this game shine. We hope that you’ll find it both a delightful return and a fitting sendoff to Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove.
Shovel Knight owners will be able to download the King of Cards expansion for free for the 3DS, PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Vita, Wii U, and Xbox One, though it’ll also be released as a standalone game for the PC, PS4, and Switch.
And if you haven’t dug into the Shovel Knight series yet, Yacht Club will package the original game and all four expansions together into a special retail edition, known as the Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove, for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
In the meantime, fans will be able to test out a demo of Shovel Knight: King of Cards at this weekend’s PAX West convention.
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Vita, Wii U, Xbox One
Tagged PAX West 2019, Shovel Knight, Shovel Knight: King of Cards
Yacht Club Games is bringing Shovel Knight, Cyber Shadow, and an all new game to PAX West 2019
The good folks at Yacht Club Games have been very busy over the last two years. The developer is currently hard at work putting the finishing touches on Shovel Knight: King of Cards and Shovel Knight Showdown, and earlier this year, Yacht Club signed on to published Mekaskull’s Cyber Shadow.
All three of these retro-styled titles will be playable at the developer’s booth at this year’s PAX West convention, which will be held next week in Seattle (August 30th through September 2nd). But Yacht Club has also promised that a surprise will be waiting for fans who visit their booth… demo stations for a brand new never-before-seen game.
As of now, all we know about this unannounced game is that it’s currently in development for the Nintendo Switch. But even if you’re not attending PAX West this year, you’ll be able to learn more about it during the first ever Yacht Club Presents livestream on Wednesday, August 28, at 2:00 PM (Eastern Time). The livestream will be broadcast on YouTube and Twitch, and will also include “tons” of new information about Shovel Knight: King of Cards and Shovel Knight Showdown.
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Vita, Wii U, Xbox One
Tagged PAX West 2019, Shovel Knight, Shovel Knight Showdown, Shovel Knight: King of Cards
Mighty Madden NFL 20 was the best-selling game in July 2019
The NPD Group’s Mat Piscatella (via Twitter) has delivered the analyst company’s report on the best-selling games from July 2019, and unsurprisingly, EA Sports’s Madden NFL 20 took the top spot.
A sales juggernaut for nearly three decades now, the latest entry in the Madden franchise was able to fend off a major offensive from Nintendo that included two new games and several holdovers from earlier this year. Fire Emblem: Three Houses topped Nintendo’s July output, coming in at #2. It was followed two spots later at #4 by fellow new release Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order. June’s Super Mario Maker 2 was sandwiched in between at #3.
Several other Nintendo-published titles populated the Top 20, including Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (#7), Mario Kart 8 (#9), The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (#10), and New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe (#18). In addition to its software supremacy, the Nintendo Switch was also the best-selling console platform last month.
The entire game industry (hardware, software, and accessories) recorded $762 million in sales last month, a slight increase over July 2018’s total of $759 million.
You can find a full list of best-selling games from July 2019 after the break. (more…)
Sega will bring “An All-New AAA Game” to Gamescom 2019
As usual, Sega will have a large presence at this year’s Gamescom convention in Germany, and that includes the promise of the public debut for an “All-New AAA Game.”
As far as announced titles go, Sega will also bring the console edition of Two Point Hospital to Gamescom, alongside a demo for Catherine: Full Body, and a massive Sega Genesis Mini installation:
Sega/Atlus will showcase the beautifully remastered update of the cult classic RPG/puzzle game, Catherine: Full Body (Launches 3 September 2019). Players will get the chance to try the demo which contains cutscenes that provide context to the title’s complex and nuanced narrative. Plus, there will be a playable segment from early in the game, which showcases several gameplay features; such as a variety of puzzles, character interaction/development and more.
Sharing the spotlight is the critically acclaimed Two Point Hospital on PS4, Xbox One, and Switch, developed by Two Point Studios. It’s the ultimate management sim where you play the role of hospital administrator who must build, cure, and improve in an ever-changing and atypical healthcare environment. Visitors to the stand will be the first in the world to experience Two Point Hospital on consoles by completing the first chapter.
Are you ready for a blast from the past? The long-awaited Sega Genesis Mini, coming to stores [19 September 2019 in North America], will be available to visitors of the stand and all 42 games will be playable using a GIANT, fully functioning Sega Genesis controller! The nostalgic console includes some of the most popular games released by Sega including the much-loved Sonic The Hedgehog and the iconic Streets of Rage series. Other glorious titles included in the Sega Genesis Mini include Darius, Road Rash II, Virtua Fighter 2, Ghouls and Ghosts, Strider, Kid Chameleon, and many more.
The 2019 edition of Gamescom will open its doors on Tuesday, August 20, and run through Saturday, August 24.
Super Mario Maker 2 builds its way to the top of June 2019’s list of best-selling games
It was only available on store shelves for a handful days during the month, but Nintendo’s Super Mario Maker 2 has been crowned the best-selling game of June 2019 by The NPD Group.
According to the analyst firm’s rankings (as posted by NPD’s Mat Piscatella on Twitter), Super Mario Maker 2 fended off a challenge by fellow new release Crash Team Racing: Nitro Fueled (which took the #2 spot) to come out on top, as well as surging sales from Mortal Kombat 11 (#3), Grand Theft Auto V (#4), and Minecraft (#5). No other new release managed to break into the Top 20, but more mainstays filled out the rest of the list, including Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (#6), Mario Kart 8 (#9), Red Dead Redemption 2 (#12), and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (#13).
However, without a robust new release slate, overall sales for the gaming industry dropped slightly in June 2019 versus a year ago. According to NPD, total sales of hardware, software, and accessories reached $959 million last month, a 13% decline from June 2018.
Unsurprisingly, the Switch was the best-selling hardware platform last month, and that’s unlikely to change throughout the year as the launch of the Switch Lite approaches and as gamers continue to save their pennies for the PS5 and Xbox Scarlett.
You can find a full list of best-selling games from June 2019 after the break. (more…)
Mortal Kombat 11 wins back-to-back rounds as the best-selling game of May 2019
Analyst Mat Piscatella came out of hibernation last night to share a look (via Twitter) at The NPD Group’s report on the best-selling games from May 2019. Once again, NetherRealm’s Mortal Kombat 11 landed on the top of the list, and it’s now the best-selling game for all of 2019.
Days Gone managed to hold its position as the runner-up for the month of May, fighting off PC-exclusive Total War: Three Kingdoms (which proved popular enough to slide into the #3 spot) and fellow new release Rage 2 (#4). Perennial favorite Grand Theft Auto V rounded out the Top 5 in the #5 slot.
This year’s most popular titles played musical chairs throughout the remainder of last month’s Top 20. Some went up (Minecraft went from #14 to #9) while some were trending down (Tom Clancy’s The Division 2 dropped from #4 to #12).
The Switch was the best-selling console platform in May and as the PS4 and Xbox One continue to ride off into the sunset, it’s also remained the best-selling for the 2019 calendar year.
Overall, total industry sales were done 11% versus May 2018, but that can probably be chalked up to a paltry selection of new releases last month. You can find a full list of best-selling games from May 2019 after the break. (more…)
Uncharted film adaptation will open in theaters on December 18, 2020
The pieces are finally coming together for Uncharted’s big screen debut. Tom Holland has officially signed on to play a younger version of Nathan Drake in the film adaptation and, according to The Hollywood Reporter, it even has a release date… December 18, 2020.
It’s been a long, long road for the Uncharted movie to even make it to this point. A fan campaign tried to secure the role of Drake for Nathan Fillion all the way back in 2010, but it was Mark Wahlberg that eventually got the part (with Robert De Niro aboard as Victor “Sully” Sullivan). Both would later drop out, and Holland was put in place in 2017 (though Fillion would get to portray the character in a fan film released last year).
There’s still a lot we don’t know about Uncharted‘s cinematic aspirations, but we do know that Dan Trachtenberg (10 Cloverfield Lane) will direct the film for Sony Pictures, and the current draft of the script was written by Jonathan Rosenberg and Mark Walker.
Posted in Etcetera, News, PS3, PS4
Tagged Uncharted: Drake's Fortune