Hello! Welcome to the latest Geeky Brummie Games Release Roundup!

This week, paranatural cleanup, Tron and objectophilia.

But before we get to the games, I have something very important to tell you. Our first Birmingham Anime Film Festival screenings are this weekend! No, this isn’t video games, and yes, this is a shameless plug, but we are, of course, readying up for our third year of BAFF, kicking off with two screenings at Hi-Vis Comic Con this weekend.

If you are near Kings Heath here in Birmingham, please come along for Mirai (2018, Mamoru Hosoda) and Promare (2019, Hiroyuki Imaishi). More details can be found on BAFF or the Hi-Vis Comic Con website.

Okay, with the important promotional work done, let’s talk about some games.

Re-Releases and Ports

In the complex web of mergers, acquisitions, IP buyouts and other corporate nonsense in the games industry these past few years, one thing stands above all else as making zero sense. When Square Enix sold off all the former Eidos properties to Embracer, it appears that, for some reason, they decided to keep hold of exactly one: Gex. And now he’s back! Are you excited? You shouldn’t be!

The Gex Trilogy (PC, PS5, NS1, Xbox X/S), put together by Limited Run Games for Square Enix, brings together all three classic (?) platformers from the 90s, where a TV-addicted gecko constantly assaulted the player with dated pop culture references. And now you can relive the experience, with the references being even more dated and even more tailored to a US audience, as the UK dubs, replacing Dana Gould with Leslie Phillips and then Danny “The Cat from Red Dwarf” John-Jules, are absent from this collection. Original developers Crystal Dynamics are also nowhere to be seen. I don’t blame them.

While Persona gets all the attention, it’s not the only Shin Megami Tensei spin-off that Atlus has. During the PS2 era, the Devil Summoner games were a moderate cult success. The most unusual of these was Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha vs the Soulless Army, notable for featuring real-time battles and a historical setting that allowed Rasputin to be your rival. You play as a teen detective who can also summon demons he captures, as he investigates a girl with a death wish who’s captured by the military.

If this sounds intriguing to you, good news! Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army (PC, PlayStation, Switch, Xbox X/S) is a full remaster of the game, refining the visuals, adding some gameplay improvements and generally giving newer audiences a chance to experience this RPG.

Early Access

Do you like mecha anime? Releasing in Early Access, Nitro Gen Omega is self-described spaghetti anime, as developers DestinyBit (Dice Legacy) are based in Italy. It’s a flashy turn-based tactical RPG built around directing your own big anime mech fights. Your time will be split between building and customising your mech, building bonds with your crew and heading out to fight the threats to the city. There’s some serious style on show here.

New Releases

Kity Builder (PC) is a cross between a 3D platformer and a crafting game. You collect floor plans as an adorable cat builder, allowing you to place buildings and other structures to allow you to explore the island further. Developed by four Spanish friends collectively referred to as Team Kity.

InfiniClick (PC) is an absolutely bizarre concept. Imagine Factorio but you’re constructing an automated system within your computer allowing you to earn money by clicking on stuff online. In the fiction of the game of course. If you want to do that for real, it’ll require a bit more effort. Developed by Nacho.

I famously am not a fan of deckbuilder roguelikes and will skip over them regularly for this roundup. However, Battle Train (PC, NS1) does one thing many of them simply don’t do: it has a bizarre hook. You see, this is a game about a game show where you must duel an opponent. With trains. Boost your trains, build your tracks and slam those explosive babies right into your opponent’s defences. Developed by Terrible Posture Games and published by Bandai Namco.

Nova Hearts (PC, PlayStation, NS1, Xbox) is a superhero game focused on building relationships. By growing bonds (or forging powerful rivalries), you develop combos and strategies for battle. Also, it’s set in a world where everyone in your local hometown has turned into an incredibly attractive superbeing. Obviously. Developed by Lightbulb Crew (Othercide) and published by Shoreline Games.

Lost in Random: The Eternal Die (PC, PS5, NS1, Xbox X/S) is the follow-up to former Game of the Week Lost in Random. However, things are a little different this time. The original was a narrative-driven action-adventure while The Eternal Die is a roguelike spin-off. Disappointingly, this new game has also dropped the original’s stop motion puppet look in favour of a flatter, cleaner looking to fit its new Hades inspirations. Developed by Stormteller Games and published by Thunderful (Steamworld, Lego Bricktales, Planet of Lana).

In “games I’ve learned are inexplicably popular” news, Scum (PC) left Early Access this week. This is an online survival crafting game. Developer Gampires claims it offers “unprecedented” customisation and freedom, which from the trailer seems to mean a lot of goofiness. Also there’s a poop mechanic. Of course there is.

Shadowverse is a massively popular digital card game over in Japan, similar to how big Hearthstone is here in the West. Shadowverse: Worlds Beyond (PC, Mobile) is a brand new game from Cygames (Granblue Fantasy), an overhaul of the systems and offering a perfect opportunity for new players to jump in. Watch out though, it’s clearly got gacha elements. You have been warned.

I’m not sure this is the direction anyone expected Sifu developer Sloclap to go in, but they did anyway. Rematch (PC, PS5, Xbox X/S) is a football game, albeit one where you control one player. This means you and 9 others can challenge each other to a game in a 5v5 match. Despite the vastly different shift in genre, you can still see Sloclap’s realistic animation meets stylised visuals aesthetic they handled so well in Sifu. Of course, I’m much less likely to play this one over their previous game, but at least it’s an interesting spin on the sport.

Date Everything! (PC, PS5, NS1, Xbox X/S) is a project led almost entirely by voice actors. The studio, Sassy Chap Games, was founded by Robbie Daymond (Persona 5, Final Fantasy XV, Critical Role), Ray Chase (Final Fantasy XV, Genshin Impact, Fire Emblem) and Max Mittelman (Persona 5, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Code Vein), and the game features the voice talents of basically every big name in VA right now. It’s a visual novel where you receive some special glasses that reveal that every item in your home has a personality and, yes, as the title suggests, you can date all of them.

Clearly Disney enjoyed the visual novel Tron: Identity, as they allowed Mike Bithell (Thomas Was Alone, Volume, John Wick Hex) to make another Tron game. However, Tron: Catalyst (PC, PS5, NS1, Xbox X/S) is an isometric action-adventure game set in the Tron universe. You play as a courier who gains powers that no program should have access to, and now have to evade capture by the Arq Grid. And to Keith’s immense joy, Jared Leto is nowhere to be seen.

Game of the Week

Game of the Week is FBC: Firebreak (PC, PS5, Xbox X/S), a multiplayer shooter set in the Control universe.

The Oldest House is under threat from paranatural entities, and has been since the building went into lockdown six years ago. You and two friends are part of the Federal Bureau of Control’s elite task force whose job is to take down these threats, no matter how ridiculous or terrifying.

I’m not sure if I’ve ever mentioned how much I love Control. Oh I have? Hm. Interesting. So I guess it’s not surprising that I’m making this my Game of the Week. Taking place in the same strange, shifting building of the 2019 Remedy game, only now it’s a multiplayer co-op shooter about clearing the stage of unimaginable horrors. It’s a bit of a risk, especially as Remedy are more known for their single-player narrative focus than their multiplayer prowess, but there’s an interesting setting here and a possibility for some interesting missions in future. Curious to see how it does.