Top Releases:

It’s a busy week for smaller titles, one more chance for the indies to be seen before we move into the busy Fall schedule.

There’s some pretty great stuff to check out, particularly SteamWorld Heist II, the next installment in the SteamWorld franchise that has built itself quite a nice reputation over the last ten years. Retro gaming fans have a couple of 2D side scrollers to check out. First is Eden Genesis, which will have you zipping & zooming around a dystopian, cyberpunk city. Second, we’ve got Volgarr the Viking II, a brutal, hardcore action/adventure game that will have you tearing your hair out.

If you’re looking for something a bit more calm and cozy, check out Cat Quest III. Okay, maybe this isn’t a cozy game by definition, there is combat to take part in, but everything is just so dang cute. Be a cat, sail the open seas, and look for treasure. Just watch out for those pesky Pi-rats. Get it? Pi-rats…pirate rats…pirates…pirates who are rats!!

SteamWorld Heist II (PC/PS4/PS5/Switch/Xbox One/Series X|S) – Releases Aug. 8^th

Developed by: Thunderful Development
Published by: Thunderful Publishing

Eden Genesis (PC/PS4/PS5/Xbox One/Series X|S) – Releases Aug. 6^th

Developed by: Aeternum Game Studios S.L.
Published by: Aeternum Game Studios S.L.

Volgarr the Viking II (PC/PS4/PS5/Switch/Xbox One/Series X|S) – Releases Aug. 6^th

Developed by: Crazy Viking Studios
Published by: Digital Eclipse

Cat Quest III (PC/PS4/PS5/Switch/Xbox One/Series X|S) – Releases Aug. 8^th

Developed by: The Gentlebros
Published by: Kepler Interactive

If 2D, indie games aren’t your jam then you can always pick up the very dark, very grim Deathbound (spooky!) and slay some monsters. This game claims to be a “one of a kind, party based Soulslike” which, I think we already had a game like this come out a few weeks ago, no? In any case, “Dark Souls with a party” seems like an interesting concept, but the Soulslike genre is starting to get really played out and I just don’t have time to waste on something that only MIGHT be good.

Deathbound (PC/PS5/Series X|S) – Releases Aug. 8^th

Developed by: Trialforge Studio
Published by: Tate Multimedia

Finally, for all you anime fans out there, we have the game That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime ISEKAI Chronicles, which, wow. What a title. This is the video game adaptation of the popular manga/anime series which is in the Isekai genre. Don’t know what the Isekai genre is? Pfft, OKAY, well, this is a genre of manga/anime in which a character (or characters) are transported to a world that they do not belong in, like if I was transported into a world of cat people who all ride around in flying cars (which would be awesome…until they probably ate me…). This genre is always fun in that “fish out of water” kind of way, and while I have no idea what this manga/anime is all about, story wise, I’m sure its fans will be excited to jump into that world, living out their own Isekai fantasies.

That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime ISEKAI Chronicles (PC/PS4/PS5/Switch/Xbox One/Series X|S) – Releases Aug. 8^th

Developed by: ZOC Co., Ltd.
Published by: Bandai Namco

Ports and Re-releases:

Pepper Grinder came out earlier this year on PC & Switch, and is now making its way to the rest of the home consoles. It’s put out by Devolver Digital, which is typically a sign of quality, and I hear the game is pretty good. Princess Maker 2 Rgeneration is a port (maybe re-make) of an old, 1993 PC game (eventually coming to the Saturn & PS2) that came out only in Japan. It’s a “social simulator” in which you raise a young girl into a princess. It’s probably not creepy.

• Pepper Grinder (PS4/PS5/Xbox One/Series X|S) – Releases Aug. 6^th
• Princess Maker 2 Regeneration (PS4/PS5) – Releases Aug. 8^th

Everything else:

And here’s the rest…YAY!

• CYGNI: All Guns Blazing (PS5/Series X|S) – Releases Aug. 6^th
• Dungeons & Degenerate Gamblers (PC) – Releases Aug. 8^th
• Mononeko: A Rhythm Adventure (PC) – Releases Aug. 8^th

Notable Releases from 10, 20, and 30 years ago:

Hey there folks, welcome to Notable Releases! Today’s games, films, and albums, are (mostly) well known properties that I’m sure will fill you with some kind of nostalgia, good or bad. Enough chit chat, let’s get going.

From 2014, we’ve got what is one of the biggest, most influential, and most successful games of the decade, Five Nights at Freddy’s. Created and designed by one person, Scott Cawthon, FNAF was built almost by accident after his earlier title, a family friendly adventure called Chipper & Sons Lumber Co., was panned for being unintentionally creepy, with characters that looked like evil animatronics.

Cawthon, a devout Christian, had been making games since the mid 1990’s. Having found mild success in the Christian video game market, the well started to dry up in the 2000’s. Cawthon moved on to making secular (non-Christian) video games to pay bills and support his wife & child, but eventually found that even those games were not enough. With the failure of Chipper & Sons, Cawthon found himself at an existential crossroads, wondering if he went into the right profession. He needed divine intervention…I guess God works in the weirdest of ways.

Taking the “creepy animatronic” quote about Chipper & Sons to heart, Cawthon decided to make his next game intentionally scary and feature, yes, creepy animatronics. Calling the game Five Nights at Freddy’s, the premise is that players take on the role of an overnight security guard who is tasked with watching over a children’s entertainment venue called Freddy Fazbar’s Pizza, which is like Chuck E. Cheese. The player is informed that the animatronics are allowed to roam the venue at night, autonomously, to keep their endoskeletons from locking up (sure…).

Unfortunately, these robots can’t tell the difference between a human and another animatronic, and will kill anyone it sees, thinking that they are an endo skeleton outside of their suit. This is where the gameplay comes in, as players must consistently check a series of camera feeds and darkened hallways to stay alive for their six hour shift. Each camera feed, door, and hallway light requires energy to be used, and you are only given a set amount before all of the power shuts off. If the player is unable to stop the animatronics from reaching them, a jump scare appears on screen and they lose.

Despite the simplistic, janky gameplay, Five Nights and Freddy’s would become a massive hit for Cawthon, with the game becoming his most financially successful to date. Critics enjoyed the game, calling it terrifying, with solid controls and a brilliant horror experience. Some critics, however, weren’t as kind to the game and found the simple gameplay to be tedious and repetitive. Although the jump scares were terrifying at first, these critics eventually found themselves bored by them, even annoyed, and felt that FNAF had a very finite shelf life and zero replay value.

Part of the success of FNAF must be attributed to its success in the YouTube “Let’s Play” community, with big names like Markiplier & PewDiePie uploading videos about it on their channels, and popular YouTuber MatPat helped to piece together the somewhat convoluted lore of FNAF through his “Game Theory” series. Cawthon would sometimes comment on MatPat’s, and other fans theories, confirming or debunking certain ideas, and was very engaged with the community.

Shortly after the release and meteoric rise of FNAF, Cawthon announced a sequel would be coming out in November of 2014, followed by a third and fourth entry in 2015. In all, there have been 17 FNAF games and spin-off’s, with two more coming in the near future; there’s even been a feature film based on the series. In 2021, Cawthon, who you might remember is a devout Christian, was found to have donated money to several Republican candidates in 2020, including Donald Trump. This caused a large stir in the FNAF community who didn’t realize that Cawthon was a conservative who described himself as pro-life.

The backlash was fairly swift from his fans, and gleeful “told ya so’s” from his detractors. Cawthon has since stated he would step away from the franchise and give control over to others, though its unclear if this has actually happened. In any case, the games are all still out there for you to play if you so desire.

While our 2014 game turned into an international hit, 2004’s notable title might be one you’ve never heard of, Astro Boy: Omega Factor. While the character Astro Boy and his manga might be well known to you, I’d be surprised if you had ever heard of Omega Factor, even more surprised if you had played it.

Developed by iconic studio Treasure, as well as an internal Sega studio called Hitmaker (formerly R&D 3), Astro Boy: Omega Factor is, of course, based on the manga/anime Astro Boy, created by Osamu Tezuka. More specifically, though, the game was meant to be a tie-in with an anime that released in Japan in 2003 and the U.S. in 2004, first as part of Kids WB and later Toonami.

Omega Factor is, at its core, a side scrolling beat ’em up. However, with team at Treasure in charge, the game was a bit more artistic than a standard side scroller. Treasure are well known for their beautiful graphics, unconventional gameplay, and solid music. Omega Factor was a bit more traditional, gameplay wise, then say Gunstar Heroes, but it still contained signature Treasure graphics and music.

Critics gave Omega Factor mostly positive reviews, with GameSpot calling it a “must own” title for the GBA, and one of the best action games on the device. They even gave it their award for “Best Game Boy Advance Game” during the end of year accolades. Critics praised the game’s graphics, animation, and level design, calling them works of art meant to be appreciated, but did note that these technical marvels did cause occasional slowdown on the GBA.

While the game wouldn’t sell well, it would only see its reputation grow over the years. In 2012, Nintendo Power listed Omega Factor as the 38th best game ever released on a Nintendo console, while in 2013, Game Informer placed it on its list Best Anime and Manga-Based Games Released in English. Despite the love and adoration, Astro Boy: Omega Factor is unavailable on any modern system, with emulation being your only hope of checking it out. Oh, one other note, a PS2 game from Team Sonic, called Astro Boy, came out the same day and was universally panned for its generic gameplay and poor controls; oops.

Moving on to 1994, we’ve got Capcom’s first traditional RPG, Breath of Fire. By the beginning of the 1990’s, it was clear that the video game RPG genre was not just here to stay, it was about to explode. While titles like Wizardry and Ultima laid the foundation on PC, it was Enix’s Dragon Quest and Square’s Final Fantasy that perfected it for the console. Capcom, seeing the success of those series in Japan, wanted in on the action and decided to cook up their own franchise.

To produce this new RPG, Capcom tapped Ghosts ‘n Goblins creator Tokuro Fujiwara, while for the game’s art they went to Mega Man’s Keiji Inafune, although he would later be removed from the title and replaced with Tatsuya Yoshikawa who had just come off of Mega Man X. To work on the game’s design, Capcom went to a relatively new hire, Yoshinori Kawano, who would eventually go to direct the Mega Man Legends and Mega Man Zero franchises, as well as the first Dead Rising.

The game play in Breath of Fire is nearly to what you would have seen in Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy, with players moving their party of characters around an over world, going to towns to buy items and gain clues about their next adventure, explore dungeons, engage in random battles, and level up their characters so that they are strong enough to defeat the next boss.

For Breath of Fire’s North American release, Capcom went to a rival studio, Square, to help them get the game localized and shipped in time for its August 1994 release. Square did their part to help promote the game, featuring it in their North American newsletter and claiming it was a new game from “the makers of Final Fantasy“. Breath of Fire was well received by critics when it came out, earning high scores from multiple outlets.

The magazine EGM praised the game for its excellent graphics and sound, claiming that it would appeal to fans of any genre, not just RPG diehard’s. Over at Electronic Games magazine, their reviewer absolutely loved Breath of Fire, calling it a masterpiece due to its length and complexity. They noted that it was far longer than Final Fantasy II (IV), and blew away two other recent Super Nintendo RPGs, Wizardry V and Eye of the Beholder.

Sales for Breath of Fire were decent, but not great. It wasn’t until the release of the second game, Breath of Fire II in 1995, that sales of the first game really started to take off. My guess is, due to its release in December, most parents likely bought both games for their kids, at what I assume was a nice discount.

Five mainline titles in the Breath of Fire franchise would come out over the next 8 years, with a sixth entry, 2016’s free to play MMO, only seeing release in Japan. A GBA port would come out in 2001, boasting a few updates, while the SNES version would get re-releases across multiple Nintendo consoles, including the Wii U, 3DS, and Switch. Breath of Fire, while well known, never hit the same kind of success that Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy did. Capcom has abandoned the franchise with no signs of ever reviving it. At least we can still play the original on a modern console.

Jumping over to notable films, 2014 didn’t just have creepy CGI creatures in video games, they had them in movies too. I’m talking about the Michael Bay produced Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Directed by Jonathan Liebsman who had put out dreck like Battle: Los Angeles and Wrath of the Titans, this new Ninja Turtles movie was just as bad as his earlier films.

Despite critics calling it one of the worst movies of the year, as well as many fans trashing it online, the film still went on to gross nearly $500 million worldwide, making it the highest grossing Ninja Turtles movie of all time. A more favorably received sequel would come out in 2016 but audiences had learned their lesson, staying away in droves and turning it into a box office failure, ending the Michael Bay Ninja Turtles franchise.

From 2004, we’ve got the Tom Cruise/Jamie Foxx thriller Collateral, in which Cruise plays an assassin and Foxx plays the taxi cab driver tasked with driving him around (against his will). Unlike Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Collateral was a critical smash, being named one of the best movies of 2004 by multiple outlets, and earned Jamie Foxx one of two Oscar nominations that year, Best Supporting Actor (he would lose here but win Best Actor for his role in Ray).

It’s funny to note that Foxx was the fourth choice for the role, with director Michael Mann wanting Adam Sandler in the film, but he was busy with the James L. Brooks film Spanglish. The film writer, Stuart Beattie, then wanted Mann to cast Robert DeNiro in the role, but the studio forbid it, claiming the actor was too old. Finally, Cuba Gooding Jr. revealed that he had been asked to play the part but declined, saying he would have felt miscast.

Collateral is also notable for being the first major studio film to be shot on the Viper FilmStream High-Definition Camera, a digital video camera that helped evoke a gritty realism that Mann wanted to convey in the film. There was, however, one sequence filmed on 35mm film, where Foxx and Cruise go to a nightclub where Cruise is set to kill another one of his targets. I love Collateral and can easily call it one of my all-time favorite movies. If you’ve never seen this film I would strongly urge you to check it out.

Our 1994 notable film is a bit of a cheat, as this would be its fifth week in theatres, but I totally missed it; Angels in the Outfield. All of the other releases this week in 1994 are pretty lame, and I couldn’t let this year go by without talking about one of my favorite movies growing up. For those unaware, Angels in the Outfield is a family comedy starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt as an foster kid who loves baseball and loves his dad. One day, while meeting with this clearly deadbeat father, he tells him that he’ll bring him home when the California Angels (now Los Angels Angels of Anaheim) win the pennant, an impossible feat for one of the most notoriously terrible teams in all of major league baseball.

Well, the kid prays to God for help, asking that the Angels win so that he can be with his total loser of a dad and, miraculously, God says yes. Suddenly, real angels are appearing and helping the team play better and, long story short, they win the pennant. While JGL doesn’t get taken in by his father, he is adopted by the Angels manager, played by Danny Glover. The movie is cheesy, but heartwarming, and features two future Oscar winners in minor roles, Adrian Brody and Matthew McConaughey.

In the world of music, 2014 had the debut studio album, LP1, from rapper FKA Twigs. The album was a critical darling, being hailed as one of the best albums of the year. It was also a commercial success, debuting at number 30 on the Billboard Top 200, selling nearly 100k copies in the U.S. in its first year.

2004’s notable album is Siren Song of the Counter Culture from punk band Rise Against. This was the bands third studio album, but first on a major label, having previously appeared on Fat Wreck Chords. Despite the move to a major label, Siren Song performed dismally on the sales chart, with its #138 debut on the Billboard Top 200 having more to do with how well they were loved by their fans and, to some degree, promotion by their previous label, Fat Wreck Chords. Non stop touring and word of mouth eventually helped the band sell over 500k copies in the U.S., going gold.

Finally, from 1994, we’ve got 6 Feet Deep the debut album from hip hop group Gravediggaz. A creation of producer/DJ Prince Paul, producer/rapper Frukwan, producer/rapper Too Poetic, and producer/rapper RZA (of the Wu-Tang Clan). Their idea was to take hip-hop into the realm of the occult and make an album that both metalheads and rap fans would listen to.

Originally titled Ni**amortis, the group would change the name to 6 Feet Under in the U.S., as most stores would refuse to carry an album with such a risqué title. While the subject matter is dark and grim, the album’s lyrics are fairly tongue in cheek. This was also similar to Coolio’s recent release, but instead of putting a light touch on the horrors of reality, Gravediggaz were doing just straight up horror references in a somewhat lighthearted way.

Critics adored the album, calling it one of the best releases of 1994. While it was often noted as a rap meets heavy metal album, a listen will quickly dispel that notion. While it may have been made with metalheads in mind, the album is an unapologetic hard core hip-hop album, with gritty, ugly beats underneath snarling rhymes. 6 Feet Deep is a great album, one that oozes with darkness, a perfect listen for those upcoming Fall evenings.

Five Nights at Freddy’s (PC) – Released Aug. 8^th, 2014: Wiki Link

Astro Boy: Omega Factor (GBA) – Released Aug. 17^th, 2004: Wiki Link

Breath of Fire (SNES) – Released Aug. 10^th, 1994: Wiki Link

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