All Articles: PAX South 2017

Freedom Planet 2 Hands-On Preview: Not Your Parent’s Platformer

Posted on February 6, 2017 by Brittney Williams

Over the last few days, I’ve had the pleasure of playing around with a demo for Freedom Planet 2, which is in development at GalaxyTrail. The demo itself isn’t that long (one stage with a boss battle), however, the game is just that damn fun that I kept coming back to it, trying to beat my time and experimenting with the four characters in an effort to determine whose move set best fit my play style.

Before playing the Freedom Planet 2 demo, I had never heard of GalaxyTrail or the original Freedom Planet game. Though fascinated by indie developers and the masterpieces that they create, I often shy away from playing them, instead opting for AAA titles. Freedom Planet 2 makes me regret that decision.

It’s hard to gather much from a demo that can be finished in a little over two minutes, however, I have drawn the conclusion that Freedom Planet 2 is definitely not your parent’s platformer. What do I mean by that? Despite its obvious similarities to Sonic the Hedgehog, Freedom Planet 2 sets itself apart from traditional platforming games while still holding on to the charming components that define the genre. (more…)

Posted in PC, Previews, Switch, Top Story | Tagged ,

Nintendo will bring eight Switch demos to this weekend’s PAX South

Posted on January 23, 2017 by John Scalzo

The Nintendo Switch will launch on March 3, but Nintendo wants to give all gamers a chance to play it before its available in stores with a whirlwind North American tour that’ll roll into San Antonio this weekend.

This morning, the consolemaker revealed plans to bring demos for eight games to the annual PAX South expo. The list includes launch titles like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, 1-2-Switch, and Super Bomberman R (from Konami), as well as titles that are a bit further out such as Snipperclips: Cut It Out Together, Splatoon 2, Arms, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and Ultra Street Fighter II: The Final Challengers (from Capcom). Fans will also be able to try out the demos in a living room setting (on a large TV) or in the cross-section of an airplane to “show how easy it is to take Nintendo Switch with you anywhere.”

“We absolutely love bringing our games and systems directly to the fans, and PAX South is a great venue to do just that,” said Doug Bowser, Nintendo of America’s Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing. “PAX South will be one of the first opportunities for fans to try out Nintendo Switch before it launches on March 3.”

PAX South will open its doors on Friday, January 27.

Posted in News, Switch | Tagged , , , , , , , ,

Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment will be released in April

Posted on January 19, 2017 by John Scalzo

Yacht Club Games has confirmed (via the PlayStation Blog) that Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment will be available in April.

The Specter of Torment expansion will serve as a prequel to the entire Shovel Knight saga, and will actually turn the game into an acrobatic platformer reminiscent of Ninja Gaiden. Body Swap Mode, Two-Player Co-Op, and a Sound Test Mode will also be available as part of the free update.

Fans who want to give Specter of Torment a shot before its Spring debut should find a way to travel down to San Antonio next weekend, because the developer is going to demo the expansion at this year’s PAX South expo.

However, if you’ve never played Shovel Knight before, you’ll be able to dig into the series in a new way this April. New fans will be able to pick up Specter of Torment as a standalone game, and Yacht Club also plans to re-release the original campaign (rechristened Shovel of Hope) and the Plague of Shadows expansions separately as well. Current owners of Shovel Knight will be upgraded to the Treasure Trove bundle, which will also be available in April, and will include access to all future Shovel Knight content.

The Specter of Torment expansion will be available in April for all owners of Shovel Knight on the 3DS, PC, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii U, and Xbox One.

The standalone re-releases (Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope, Shovel Knight: Plague of Shadows, and Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment) will also be available in April for the PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Switch.

Posted in 3DS, Mobile, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Vita, Wii U, Xbox One | Tagged , ,

GalaxyTrail will bring Freedom Planet 2 demo to PAX South; Demo will also be released as a free download after the show

Posted on December 27, 2016 by John Scalzo

GalaxyTrail got dressed up in a big red coat and a bushy white beard and played Santa on Christmas as they delivered a series of tweets about their upcoming plans for Freedom Planet 2.

According to the developer, they’re going to make an appearance at PAX South in January with a playable demo of the side-scrolling homage to Sonic the Hedgehog. But if you can’t make it to the first major gaming convention of the year, GalaxyTrail also revealed that they plan to make the demo available as a free download (presumably for the PC) after the show:

But wait, there’s more… GalaxyTrail also released a brand new trailer for the game, and it’s been embedded above. More trailers will be uploaded over the next few weeks.

Freedom Planet 2 will be released for the PC this Summer. It’ll also be available for “Nintendo Platforms” (probably the 3DS and/or Switch) sometime later.

Posted in 3DS, News, PC, Switch | Tagged ,