Happy Tuesday everybody! It’s time, once again, to talk about all of the brand new video games coming out. This week probably isn’t the most exciting of the year, won’t lie, but it does have some interesting stuff. Starting off with the first new game from the reformed Telltale, we have The Expanse, a prequel story to the hit (?) sci-fi series that was on both SyFy and Amazon Prime. I had the opportunity to hear about this game at Comic-Con this past weekend and wasn’t super impressed, though it did make me want to check out the show. I guess a win for the IP holder, but a loss for Telltale. Womp, womp.

Aside from The Expanse, we have the spooky third person shooter Remnant II, a brand new beat ’em up with Double Dragon Gaiden: Rise of the Dragons, the co-op puzzle platformer Disney Illusion Island, and an indie cooking game called Venba that has you trying to whip up authentic Southeast Asian cuisine.

Top Releases:

The Expanse (PC – Epic Games Store/PS4/PS5/Xbox One/Series X|S) – Releases Jul. 27^th

Developed by: Telltale Games/Deck Nine
Published by: Telltale Games

Remnant II (PC/PS5/Series X|S) – Releases Jul. 25^th

Developed by: Gunfire Games
Published by: Gearbox Publishing

Double Dragon Gaiden: Rise of the Dragons (PC/PS4/PS5/Switch/Xbox One/Series X|S) – Releases Jul. 27^th

Developed by: Secret Base
Published by: Modus Games/Joystick

Disney Illusion Island (Switch) – Releases Jul. 28^th

Developed by: Dlala Studios
Published by: Disney Interactive Studios

Venba (PC/PS5/Switch/Xbox One/Series X|S) – Releases Jul. 31^st

Developed by: Visai Games
Published by: Visai Games

Ports and Re-releases:

Hogwarts Legacy (Switch) – Releases Jul. 25^th
Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart (PC) – Releases Jul. 26^th

Sony continues to port their best PS5 exclusives to the PC, this week with Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart. Speaking of some ratchet shit, Hogwarts Legacy is coming to Switch this week.

Expansions:

Dead by Daylight: Nicolas Cage (PC/PS4/PS5/Xbox One/Series X|S) – Releases Jun. 20^th

Looking forward to the inevitable Bill Murray and Jeff Goldblum DLC.

Notable Releases from 10, 20, and 30 (and sometimes 40) years ago:

A couple of this week’s notable titles have a sci-fi edge, which pairs nicely with this week’s top release, The Expanse. However, I’m going to go out on a limb and say that our ten year old game, Shadowrun Returns, is probably much, much better. This past weekend at Comic-Con, I played the hell out of Shadowrun on my Steam Deck in-between panels and while waiting in line. It’s a solid, well made tactical RPG that has a gripping story, solid gameplay, and gorgeous graphics.

Our other sci-fi title is the real-time strategy game Aliens vs. Predator: Extinction. This one I didn’t get to play at Comic-Con because it is completely unplayable on Steam Deck. I wish I could have said more about it to you fine folks, but I can’t, so I won’t. It got pretty bad reviews, so I don’t think I missed much.

Finally, our 30 year old title is the beat ’em up Mighty Final Fight for the NES. This comedic take on the events of Final Fight was a bit more kid friendly and featured cutesy, chibi-style graphics. The game was only single player, but it did feature all three playable protagonists, Cody, Guy, and Haggar, a feat that the SNES port of the arcade game couldn’t pull off. I always wanted Mighty Final Fight when a kid, though I would never admit it to my friends. I should have just listened to my gut and picked it up, as it is one of the more rare (and expensive) NES carts on the market.

Speaking of Comic-Con, ten years ago The Wolverine came out to try and salvage the X-Men franchise (along with First Class). In 2003, audiences got to experience the riveting tale of Seabiscuit, while Dan Aykroyd brought a cast of future comedy all-stars, in both acting and writing, into the public eye with the movie Coneheads, based on the SNL skit that he was in alongside fellow castmate Jane Curtin.

Finally, Robin Thicke put out his gross date rape anthem “Blurred Lines” ten years ago, Kraftwerk released 2003’s hottest Summer soundtrack with Tour De France Soundtracks, and one of my favorite bands, Smashing Pumpkins, hit the mainstream with Siamese Dream in the Summer of 1993. Time to jump into an old ice cream truck and wander around the make-out badlands in celebration.

Shadowrun Returns (PC) – Released Jul. 25^th, 2013: Wiki Link

Aliens Versus Predator: Extinction (PS2/Xbox) – Released Jul. 30^th, 2003: Wiki Link

Mighty Final Fight (NES) – Released Jul. 1993: Wiki Link