Publisher All in! Games recently announced that fantasy action RPG Arboria will receive a full Steam release on 9 September 2021. The game has been available via Steam Early Access since May 2020. Developed by Dreamplant Studio, Arboria is set in a dark fantasy world and features third-person, “soulslike” gameplay. All In! heralds Arboria as “the first game to combine
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To celebrate 40 years of the monumental Space Invaders franchise, Taito has partnered with ININ Games to release Space Invaders Invincible Collection, a compilation that features 11 sci-fi shooters from the Space Invaders series (or, in some cases, loosely tied to the series). Here’s the list of games included with Space Invaders Invincible Collection: Space Invaders (1978, Arcade) – original
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Welcome back to 80s August, The Splintering’s month-long celebration of the greatest decade since the discovery of pasteurization! It is hard to imagine gaming without The Legend of Zelda. Made up almost exclusively of hits and only a few misses (thank you CD-i), from its 1986 NES debut to last years’ Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity (2020), the Zelda franchise
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Publisher Live Wire recently announced that arcade shoot ‘em up Espgaluda II is scheduled to release for Switch on 9 September via the Nintendo eShop. Developed by Cave, Espgaluda II was originally released in Japanese arcades in November 2005. It has since been ported multiple times, including to pre-smartphone mobile phones in 2006, and later to Xbox 360, iOS and
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Welcome back to 80s August, The Splintering’s month-long celebration of the greatest decade since tigers had sabers for teeth! Today, we’re going to dig deep into Spelunker HD Deluxe for Nintendo Switch and PS4,* a modern reimagining of the 1983 Spelunker game by Timothy G. Martin… sort of. Why “sort of”? Because Spelunker HD Deluxe actually takes more inspiration from
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Game publisher Hamster has announced that Kurikenton, the side-scrolling, martial arts action arcade game, is now available on PS4 and Nintendo Switch as part of the digital Arcade Archives series. Originally released in arcades by Taito in 1988, Kurikenton (or sometimes “Kuri Kinton”) eventually saw a home release as part of the Taito Legends 2 compilation for PS2 and Xbox.
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Welcome back to 80s August, The Splintering’s month-long celebration of the greatest decade since mankind’s mastery of fire! Getting old is a strange thing. Remember how we all used to play video games to avoid things like reading or doing book reports for school? Well, now that all of us old fogies are all grown up, what do we want
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Publisher Digerati recently confirmed that card battler game The Magister will release for both Nintendo Switch and Steam PC on 2 September and Xbox One on 3 September. Developed by Nerdook, The Magister features a randomly-generated murder-mystery set in a remote village. Gamers play as a Magister who is responsible for enforcing the law across the empire, and you must
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Indie game developer Tiamat Games (great name) recently announced that their RPG adventure Maritime Calling is scheduled to launch on 28 September via Steam Early Access. Set on the high seas, Maritime Calling blends “roguelite” elements with crew-management tasks of FTL: Faster Than Light. Players will take the helm of their own ship to oversee crew wellbeing, survive deadly oceanic
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During the 2021 BitSummit Indie Game Showcase, X PLUS Games officially announced that retro-inspired platformer Bat Boy is in the works (on deck?) for Steam PC, PS5, SeXbox, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch. Co-developed by X PLUS and Sonzai Games, Bat Boy features a sentai sports-hero named Ryosuke (the Bat Boy) who must battle other sports-themed enemies in a world
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Sleepy Creepy Studio has announced that their psychedelic horror game The Revenge of Sophia Red is scheduled to release on 22 September via Steam. The very first project from Sleepy Creepy, The Revenge of Sophia Red is a first-person puzzle/adventure about the life of author Sophia Red. Here’s the official breakdown of The Revenge of Sophia Red from Sleepy Creepy:
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Playism has announced that Japanese horror series Tsugunohi is coming to Steam on 13 August. Developed by ImCyan, Tsugunohi was originally released in 2012 via Freem! and other free game websites. This new collection will include all seven original episodes, with episodes 1-3 being aesthetically remastered. The Steam release will also include two bonus episodes: The Ethereal Railroad Crossing and
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KEMCO has announced that Alphadia Genesis 2 is now available on the PS4 and PS5 as of today (that’s Friday, 6 August, to be precise). Beginning its life several years ago on iOS, Alphadia Genesis 2 is described as an “orthodox JRPG” that now features adjustable encounter rates, smartphone integration, and cross-buy between the PS5 and PS4 versions. Here’s the
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Game publisher Hamster has announced that Bio-Ship Paladin, the 2D horizontal scrolling shoot-em-up arcade game, is now available on PS4 and Nintendo Switch as part of the digital Arcade Archives series. Originally released in arcades by UPL in 1990 and ported to the SEGA Mega Drive in 1991, Bio-Ship Paladin has never received an official release in western regions until
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Welcome back to 80s August, The Splintering’s month-long celebration of the greatest decade since the domestication of poodles. Hey, bitches. It’s me. Chomp the termite. What’s up? Me? Oh, nothing much. Things pretty much suck on my end, but thanks for asking. Why, you ask? Well, lots of reasons, really. This interview being one of them. You see, we here
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On Tuesday, game developer and Grizzly Games co-founder Paul Schnepf (aka Hyperparadise) released a new independent skateboarding game The Ramp on PC via Steam. Described as a “digital skateboarding toy”, The Ramp is designed more for chill than challenge. Here’s the official breakdown of The Ramp from Schnepf: Chill out, do tricks, and look damn cool. In The Ramp, players
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Welcome back to 80s August, The Splintering’s month-long celebration of the greatest decade since the evolutionary development of the imposable thumb! Since The Eternal Castle [REMASTERED] just recently made its way to the PS4, what better time to re-post our review of the Nintendo Switch version of the game, which released last year? Retro revivals are a dime a dozen,
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Publisher Screenwave Media has announced that their throwback multiplayer puzzle game Dumpy & Bumpy is will be receiving console ports, though specific platforms and release dates have yet to be confirmed. The game was released via Steam PC in May. Developed by Programancer, Dumpy & Bumpy is a puzzle adventure with pixel art graphics and 80 stages to take on
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The office full of IP lawyers who are currently wearing the skin suit once known as Atari (allegedly)* recently announced that a new version of Food Fight is in the works, thanks to a collaboration with developers at Mega Cat Studios. Arriving in early 2022, new Food Fight will launch first as a timed exclusive for the Atari VCS PC/console
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Game publisher Hamster has announced that NOVA2001, the lesser-known shoot-em-up arcade game, is now available on PS4 and Nintendo Switch as part of the digital Arcade Archives series. Originally released by UPL in 1983, NOVA2001 is the predecessor to Ark Area. In NOVA2001, players control a space fighter that can shoot in all directions (similar to Asteroids or Sinistar). Your
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Publisher Koei Tecmo recently announced that their horror title Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water is scheduled for a digital release on 28 October for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, SeXbox, Nintendo Switch and Windows PC… and it will be censored on all platforms. Maiden of Black Water is an updated version of the Wii U release in 2014. Like other
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As of today (that’s right now), Alien Pixel Studios’ portal-hopping, puzzle platformer Unbound: Worlds Apart is now available on Nintendo Switch and PC (via Steam). Described as a dark fairy tale, Unbound is set in a fantasy world with gameplay featuring Metroidvania (nonlinear 2D adventure) elements. Players harness the world-altering portals to defeat monsters, solve puzzles and save reality from
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On Tuesday, developer FlyPenguin released a new gameplay trailer for BarricadeZ, their 2D tower defense survival game that is available now via Steam Early Access. This latest trailer features the game’s basic mechanics and a few of the more advanced features of the game, including how to set up trap hallways and “Autocrafting” (if a game insists on including crafting,
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Publisher Ultimate Games has announced that Disturbing Forest – a genre-blending puzzle/adventure/survival game set in a fantasy world – will be coming to Steam PC in Q4 of 2021 with a Nintendo Switch release to follow in 2022. Disturbing Forest is the debut game by Panteon Studio, an independent development studio in Poland. According to Mateusz Kuliś, one of Panteon’s
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Taito and ININ Games have partnered up to release G-Darius HD, a remastered port of 1997’s arcade title… G-Darius. Developed by M2, G-Darius HD will be available physically and digitally for Nintendo Switch and PS4 later in 2021 (that’s for both North American and European territories). While the Darius shoot ‘em up series dates back to the mid-80s (or as
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Since Alex Kidd is oddly relevant this year, today we’re going back to an Attack Helicopter Week of years past to look at one of the most innovative stages from SEGA’ flagship title for the Master System, Alex Kidd in Miracle World. In the mid to late 80s, the SEGA Master System was the underdog in a sales race with
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Welcome back to Attack Helicopter Week here at The Splintering! We previously reviewed Desert Strike: Return to the Gulf in Attack Helicopter Weeks of years past, so this year, we’re diving into that game’s sequel: Jungle Strike for SEGA Genesis. Published by Electronic Arts in 1993 for multiple platforms, Jungle Strike: The Sequel to Desert Strike is very much like
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Welcome back to Attack Helicopter Week here at The Splintering, where we celebrate all things attack helicopter, whether good or bad! And today we have “bad” in spades, folks, as we’ve chosen to subject ourselves to critiquing Airwolf published by… Acclaim. (*Shudder!*) So everyone find your seat, buckle up, and keep your hands close to yourself, because it’s going to
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Welcome back to Attack Helicopter Week here at The Splintering! Today, we’re taking off with Choplifter for the SEGA Master System. We previously reviewed Jaleco’s Nintendo Famicom port of Choplifter a while back, so let’s take a gander at how SEGA’s Master System port fares compared to its 8-bit contemporary. (Spoilers! – Pretty damn well) Among side-scrolling shooters, Choplifter is
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In the era between arcade classics like Defender and “bullet hell” shoot-em-ups like Ikaruga, the 2D shooter genre really hit its stride. The greatest titles of the 80s and 90s featured a mishmash of several genres, including sci-fi space shooters (R-Type, Thunder Force), fantasy (Wings of Wor, Lords of Thunder), and even underwater warfare (In the Hunt). However, one of
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