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Ubisoft Is Creating A New Subsidiary Company In Charge of Assassin’s Creed, Rainbow Six And Far Cry

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Ubisoft Is Creating A New Subsidiary Company In Charge of Assassin’s Creed, Rainbow Six And Far Cry


After years of taking a beating and even speculation as to whether Ubisoft could collapse, the embattled French publisher is creating a new spin-off company dedicated to its three biggest IP: Assassin’s Creed, Rainbow Six and Far Cry.

There had been reports prior from Bloomberg that Ubisoft was considering a move like this. People speculated that it would be a way for the Guillemot family to retain control of their biggest IP should Ubisoft fold, or that it could be the first step in Ubisoft selling off some of its IP.

Now, though, we know for sure that Ubisoft is indeed creating a new company. Not only that, but Ubisoft investor Tencent will also play a part in this new venture to the tune of a  €1.16bn stake, equating to roughly 25%.

According to Ubisoft, they are valuing the spin-off company at €4bn, which is considerably more than Ubisoft’s current market valuation of €1.7.

“Today Ubisoft is opening a new chapter in its history,” Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot wrote. “As we accelerate the company’s transformation, this is a foundational step in changing Ubisoft’s operating model that will enable us to be both agile and ambitious. We are focused on building strong game ecosystems designed to become evergreen, growing high-performing brands and creating new IPs powered by cutting-edge and emerging technologies.”

Martin Lau, President of Tencent, said “We are excited to extend our longstanding partnership with Ubisoft through this investment, which reflects our continued confidence in Ubisoft’s creative vision andexceptional talent to drive sustained success in the industry. We see the immense potential for these franchises to evolve into long-term evergreen game platforms and create engaging new experiences forgamers.”

As for Ubisoft itself, it will focus on “nurturing the development of iconic franchises including Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon and The Division, accelerating the growth of top performing titles and leveraging disruptive technologies on selected new IPs, while continuing to deliver state-of-the-art production game engines and online services.” 

That leaves a lot of IP that Ubisoft does not specifically mention , potentially lending credence to the idea that Ubisoft will seek to sell off some of its IP.

Ubisoft’s press release also details the following provisions relating to Tencent’s involvement:

“A 5-year lock-up undertaking on New subsidiary shares held by Tencent, unless Ubisoftno longer owns a majority of New subsidiary voting rights and share capital– Ubisoft may not cease to hold a majority of New subsidiary voting rights and share capitalfor a 2-year period– Customary share transfer provisions, including, a right of first refusal to the benefit of Ubisoft, a right of first offer to the benefit of Tencent, tag-along right to the benefit ofTencent, and drag-along right to the benefit of Ubisoft (subject to certain conditions)– Call option to the benefit of Ubisoft and put option to the benefit of Tencent in the event of certain change of control of Ubisoft approved by its Board of Directors – [Exercise price will be the higher of (i) the fair market value of New subsidiary shares and (ii) the same EBIT multiple as that in the change of control transaction of Ubisoft; it beingspecified that for the call option there will be a specific minimum price protection during the first 4 years following closing of the transaction with Tencent.



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Space Marine 2 devs promise “much more content” is coming as “no one is abandoning the game” for Space Marine 3

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Space Marine 2 devs promise “much more content” is coming as “no one is abandoning the game” for Space Marine 3


You can trust VideoGamer. Our team of gaming experts spend hours testing and reviewing the latest games, to ensure you’re reading the most comprehensive guide possible. Rest assured, all imagery and advice is unique and original. Check out how we test and review games here

Saber Interactive and Focus Home Interactive have reiterated their plans to continue supporting Warhammer 40K: Space Marine 2 for “years to come”. 

Following the announcement of the “bigger and better” Space Marine 3, the studios confirmed the team’s dedication to the second game, promising that “no one is abandoning the game” because of the new title. 

Space Marine 2 will be supported for years 

In the latest patch notes for Space Marine 2’s upcoming 7.0 update, Saber “set the record straight” with fans. 

“Space Marine 3 does not mean the end of Space Marine 2’s development. ​Far from it,” the studio confirmed. “No teams are shifting over, no one is abandoning the game, and our plans to bring more awesome content to Space Marine 2 remain.”

Saber teased that the team is working on “much more content and surprises for the months to come, such as a new class, more operations, melee weapons, and more”. The studio even jokes that data miners haven’t uncovered all of their secrets just yet so we’ll have to keep our eyes peeled. 

“This announcement simply marks the genesis of a new project, years away from release,” the team said. “We’ve made a decision and have just started the process.”

With Saber aiming to give the third game a considerable jump in scale, Warhammer 40K: Space Marine 3 will take a long time to create. Combined with continued development of Space Marine 2 Operations, new enemies, PvP and more, as well as a unique Horde Mode, there’s tonnes of goodies coming. 




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Tunguska: The Visitation – Complete Edition Reminds of the Horrors of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. on Xbox | TheXboxHub

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Tunguska: The Visitation – Complete Edition Reminds of the Horrors of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. on Xbox | TheXboxHub


Tunguska The Visitation CoverArt
Tunguska The Visitation – now on Xbox

Soviet era, exclusion zones, ghoul hunting. Yep, Tunguska: The Visitation on Xbox has all the hallmarks of being inspired by the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series, and developers Rotorist Workshop make no secret of this. The question is, will this top-down action shooter be as equally as captivating? Read on for more info!

A Cursed Realm

Now available on Xbox consoles – a first foray onto console for a game that has previously only been PC-exclusive – Tunguska: The Visitation is heavily inspired by the novel Roadside Picnic, and sets you slap-bang into the middle of all of the panic that came with the Soviet era.

You are a Ghoul Hunter in a long-abandoned Soviet Exclusion Zone, which has come a cropper after the mysterious Tunguska event of 1908. Your goal? Figure out the mystery behind this terrifying and dangerous area, avoid the monsters that aim to kill you without a second’s thought, and perhaps make a bit of a fortune in the meantime…

The console edition of Tunguska: The Visitation just so happens to be the Complete Edition. This means that your hardcore survival experience will come bundled in with a ton of previously-released DLC that PC players must shell out extra for.

This includes New Game+, additional modes such as Slaughterhouse mode, additional weapons in the Shadow Master DLC, and story-based additional content such as the Ravenwood Stories DLC. You lucky, lucky Xbox player!

Tunguska: The Visitation – Complete Edition Key Features

Dangerous mutants and skillful, well-equipped human NPCs powered by Goal-Oriented AI

Radiation hazard and T-Syndrome infection, both mitigated in multiple ways

Large arsenal of Soviet-era weapons with matching ammunition

Weapon customization/upgrade via attachments

Skill system with 12 skills and 72 perks, each adds a unique ability for the player and NPCs

Earn combat and survival XP separately through gameplay, which converts to skill points after each level

Grid-based tetris inventory with weight limit

Power-ups crafted from mutant body parts with both positive and negative effects

Extensive story and lore discovered through dialogues, notes, and journals

Realistic weathers with continuous day/night cycle that affects gameplay

Suppressed weapons, silent takedown, and interactive dynamic lighting allowing for stealth style gameplay

Wearable detectors to assist the player across different situations

Fast-travel available via vehicles or as a paid service through the NPCs

Play Today!

Tunguska: The Visitation – Complete Edition is now available on Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One. There’s also versions of the title available for PC players.

So, what are you waiting for? Pick up a copy today via the Xbox Store for £33.49, and make sure to check out our full review of Tunguska: The Visitation – Complete Edition on Xbox, coming soon!

Tunguska: The Visitation – Complete Edition Description

Seek fortune as a Ghoul Hunter in an abandoned Soviet Exclusion Zone. Use your grit and ingenuity to survive deadly radiation, mysterious anomalies, and poisonous mutants. Go in guns-blazing, or stay in the shadows – your choice.

Uncover the dark secrets of Tunguska from the Soviet era. Venture across desolate villages, abandoned facilities, toxic swamps, and ominous tunnels in this top-down adventure RPG, in a realm cursed by the mysterious Tunguska Event in 1908.

Inspired by the novel Roadside Picnic, Tunguska is one man’s vision and creation of a new post-Visitation zone: a place not just full of horror and danger, but also the freedom and opportunities sought after by many near the fall of the USSR.



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How to Make Turkey Leg in Disney Dreamlight Valley

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How to Make Turkey Leg in Disney Dreamlight Valley


Turkey Leg is one of the 4-star Entrée Meals added with the A Rift in Time expansion. Players can make this meal for themselves to restore energy or gift it to villagers to increase their Friendship Level. However, this recipe is exclusive to the owners of the expansion. This guide will help you cook a Turkey Leg in Disney Dreamlight Valley.

Required Ingredients to Make Turkey Leg in Disney Dreamlight Valley

Players can make a Turkey Leg entrée meal with the following ingredients.

Poultry is a meat ingredient that you can purchase from Gaston’s Stall for 500 Star Coins. You will have to pursue Gaston’s Friendship Quests to unlock the stall. Paprika is a spice that you can find growing in the wild. Go to the Oasis and Borderlands area of the Glittering Dunes biome to find paprika. Cumin is another spice ingredient that you can find growing in the wild. Go to any area of the Ancient’s Landing biome of the Eternity Isle to find Cumin on the ground. Lastly, Agave is a sweet ingredient that grows on the ground in the wild. Players can forage it from the ground in all the areas of the Glittering Dunes biome.

How to Cook Turkey Leg in Disney Dreamlight Valley

After gathering all the ingredients for the Turkey Leg, go to any Cooking Station to start making it. Go to any cooking station in the Valley/Eternity Isle and interact with it. After that, put the ingredients into the Cooking Pot individually and then select the “Start Cooking” option to cook the Turkey Leg Entree Meal.

Use of Turkey Leg

Players can choose to eat the Turkey Leg to restore 1,123 Energy. Moreover, players can gift it to another villager to increase their Friendship Level. Lastly, players can sell it to Goofy for 884 Star Coins.



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Bad Dudes vs DragonNinja conversion is in the works via JOTD for the Amiga [Alpha 3 update]

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Bad Dudes vs DragonNinja conversion is in the works via JOTD for the Amiga [Alpha 3 update]


An IndieRetroNews reader, has recently informed us in our comments feed, that JOTD is still working on a Bad Dudes vs DragonNinja Arcade conversion for the Commodore Amiga (AGA). Although it’s still in a very early stage of development, and the original Amiga version of the game was regarded as terrible with one such Lemon Amiga saying “This is absolute dreck with horrible graphics, terrible backgrounds, how did this get released in this state?” Rest assured if JOTD finishes this conversion, it’s sure to be another hit in the Amiga scene.

If you’ve been waiting for more updates on this upcoming Arcade to Amiga development. Then we have just found out, that the creator has not only updated the EAB thread with a new work in progress video ( Shown above ), but he was also quoted as saying “alpha 3 in the zone. Now all levels are playable without trashed gfx including levels 6 and 7. Helicopter boss now is displayed. Lockup on level completed fixed. Still a lot of optimizations & fixes to apply but this is great.”

Bad Dudes vs DragonNinja was NOT created using the Scorpion EngineOnce the game has progressed far enough I’ll be doing new articles but for now, this article will be updated with the latest Alpha developments.

Links :1) Source 2) Download  



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Animated series ENA gets a video game with the free surreal adventure ENA: Dream BBQ

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Animated series ENA gets a video game with the free surreal adventure ENA: Dream BBQ


I’ll admit I’m pretty uncultured apparently as seeing the release of ENA: Dream BBQ today led me down a bit of a rabbit hole about the ENA animated series. After watching what’s available, I still have absolutely no idea what’s going on. Perhaps it’s just not my thing but apparently it is for a lot of people.

Now available with Native Linux support, ENA: Dream BBQ was announced multiple years ago (2021) with Chapter 1 now available. It’s free but there’s also an optional supporter pack DLC with some extra goodies. The Steam page doesn’t exactly give much away about it:

The first interactive adventure of the ENA series by Joel G.


Play as ENA as she searches for the Boss that everyone wants to be. Explore strange worlds, take on side gigs, and meet both sweet and sour characters along the journey.


There is a lot to encounter on your adventures:




Explore new environments filled with hidden secrets and oddities.
Meet different characters who only want you to do things for them.
Use strange Tools to solve unusual problems.
Live the experience of being the least popular person at any party.

Seems people like it with an Overwhelmingly Positive user rating on Steam.

Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.



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No Man’s Sky Relics update out now | TheSixthAxis

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No Man’s Sky Relics update out now | TheSixthAxis


Hello Games has announced and released a brand new update for No Man’s Sky, dubbing this update with the name Relics. If you have ever wanted to be a space paleontologist then now is your chance, as the worlds of the No Man’s Sky universe are now filled with the bones of ancient creatures. You can find these remains and put them on display, or sell them to the highest bidder. Just be careful, as some of these remains are guarded and won’t be easy to take. The full patch notes are below.

COLLECT AND DISPLAY SKELETONS

Planetary fossil beds now contain a vast array of specific bone formations.
Each of these bones can be placed as a decorative base part, either individually or mounted on a display plinth.
Larger display plinths allow a collection of bones to be reassembled into a complete skeleton, allowing the design and reassembly of ancient and extinct beings.
Completed displays can be packaged into an easily transportable module, allowing them to be re-deployed in other locations, traded with other players, or sold on the galactic market.
A new planetary dig-site building has been added, serving as a hub for interested fossil collectors.
The icon for planetary fossils has been improved.
A small tutorial mission has been added to guide new palaeontologists.
A new palaeontology section has been added to the guide.

FOSSIL EXCHANGE

A fossil collector has been added to the Space Station.
Surplus fossils can be exchanged with the fossil collector, allowing players to target specific skeleton components for their designs.
The fossil collector will barter for items in their collection, allowing individual inventory items to be swapped.

RELICS EXPEDITION

Expedition Eighteen, Relics, will begin shortly and run for approximately six weeks.
Rewards include new posters, decals and titles; a living stone suit customisation set; the unique Basilisk Crown staff; a mysterious skeletal companion; and the exclusive Living Stone jetpack.

STONE GUARDIANS

Fossil beds are now watched over by a vigilant stone eye, ready to protect the bones from those who would exhume them.
Disturbing the vigilant eye may yield valuable rewards, but comes at the cost of awakening the guardians.
Two forms of stone guardian await – a huge living statue, and a whirling storm of re-animated rock.
Huge guardian statues have been added to relic worlds.

SKELETAL LIFEFORMS

A new and highly rare skeletal lifeform has been added to some planets.
Some planets are now home to the elusive titanic bone-worm…

QUALITY OF LIFE AND UI

Planets in your current system can now be marked from the discovery page, adding a marker to the starship navigation systems.
Added an accessibility option to increase the contrast in mission-critical UI panels.
Fixed an issue that could cause the camera to move erratically back and forth while inside high-ceilinged rooms in player bases.
Nearby NPCs that have specific unseen interactions will now be highlighted with a marker.

Added a new water state for ocean worlds with significantly larger waves.
Various volumetric and other atmospheric effects no longer play on planets without an atmosphere.
Story details from the In Stellar Multitudes mission now appear in the Journey Records page in the catalogue.
Reduced the number of corrupt drones that attack player settlements.
The space station marker is now dynamically offset, preventing the marker from obscuring the station while at a distance.
Fixed a number of minor text issues in some extractor UIs.
Fixed a number of minor text and icon issues in shop interactions.
Fixed an issue that caused companions that were set to use no accessories to have a random accessory assigned after re-summoning them.

Fixed an issue that caused the starship to too-aggressively lock on to markers when engaging the pulse engine.
An organic version of the Teleport Receiver has been added for use in living starships.
Fixed an issue that caused the repair requirements for several living starship technologies to all be the same.
Lingering on-screen display messages that report pulse drive errors will now clear as soon as a successful pulse drive engagement is detected.

SAVE SYSTEM

Significantly improved the compression used for saved games, improving filesizes and upload/download times for players in the cross-save beta.
Created a section for cross-save settings within the general Options menu.
Players in the cross-save beta are now alerted to situations where uploads are timing out, and can manually adjust how long the game will wait for a successful upload before detecting a timeout and cancelling.

COOKING

New fossil-related cooking recipes have been added.
Base storage container inventories are now accessible while cooking.
Fixed an issue that prevented access to the nutrient processor’s internal storage while on a freighter or the Exo-Skiff.
Fixed a number of issues while cooking the Exo-Skiff, including progress resetting or incorrect items appearing in various slots.
Cronos’ grill on the Space Anomaly can now be used by several players at once.
Fixed an issue that made it impossible to cook jellied eels.

ABANDONED MODE IMPROVEMENTS

Multi-Tools found in abandoned mode are now always free, but start with damaged slots.
Settlement-related missions will no longer start in abandoned mode.
Abandoned space stations now have access to Exosuit, starship, and Multi-Tool upgrade stations.
Additional salvage boxes have been added around abandoned space stations containing valuable upgrades and inventory expansion modules.
Purple systems are now unlocked automatically in abandoned mode.
In abandoned mode, crashed freighter containers and other buried caches can now contain additional valuable upgrades.

OPTIMISATION

Introduced a number of optimisations to planetary prop rendering.
Introduced an optimisation to dynamic physics groups.
Introduced a significant memory optimisation for nav mesh generation.
Introduced a number of minor texture memory optimisations.
Introduced an optimisation for loading large bases.
Introduced a number of optimisations for text display, particularly in the Journey Records pages.
Introduced an optimisation to the various catalogue and guide pages.

OTHER BUG FIXES

Fixed a number of issues that could occur when warping on board another player’s freighter.
Fixed an issue that could cause water creatures to be generated for a planet that would never have deep enough water for those creatures to spawn.
Fixed a number of mission blockers in They Who Returned.
Fixed an issue that could cause some bases to become invisible when constructed at the water’s surface on ocean planets.
Fixed an issue that could cause PC players to appear jerky in cross-platform multiplayer.
Fixed a rare issue that could cause players’ settings to reset in VR.
Fixed an issue that could cause NPCs to sink into the floor.

Fixed an issue that could cause a softlock when browsing the Exocraft inventory.
Fixed a rare hang on load when returning to a savegame that was saved while in an Exocraft after playing in multiplayer.
Fixed a rare crash related to camera shakes.
Fixed a memory-related crash on PlayStation 5.
Fixed a number of rare crashes related to mesh scaling.
Fixed a number of rare maths-related crashes.

Fixed an issue that could cause some planetary props to pop in.
Fixed a number of Mac-specific rendering issues.
Fixed a rare issue that could cause saves to reach a max size and stop saving on Nintendo Switch – saves can now expand as required.
Fixed an issue that could cause multiple ships to become docked to the same landing pad.
Improved the placement positioning of decorative base building props.
Fixed a number of text clipping issues in large popups.
Fixed an issue that could cause a teleport destination to have two copies of a mission marker added.
Fixed an issue that could make interactions difficult on freighters that were summoned a long way from the centre of the solar system.
Fixed a number of issues affecting markers and planet labels when entering atmosphere.

Fixed a rare issue that could cause empty systems to generate incorrect information about their potential Atlas Stations.
Fixed an issue that could cause the galaxy map to incorrectly choose a purple system as part of its path to a distant star when purple systems are not unlocked.
Fixed an issue that could cause players to start in a purple system when arriving in a new galaxy, when purple systems were not unlocked.

Fixed an issue that caused the water effects from the Nautilon submarine to remain in the world after summoning the sub to a new location.
Fixed an issue that prevented Exocraft laser effects from playing correctly in multiplayer.
Fixed an issue that could cause erratic torso movements in Sentinel mechs.
Fixed an issue that could cause the ship to hover as if above water when reloading on a planet.

Fixed a number of inconsistencies in creature descriptions, where creatures would be described as being from the wrong environment.
Fixed an incorrect texture being used for the Titan expedition in the expedition history screen.
Fixed a number of decals and posters from previous expeditions being missing from the catalogue.
Fixed an issue that caused a number of unusable and legacy items to be included in the catalogue.

As part of the Relics release update, Hello Games has set a new community challenge that tasks players to find the rarest of skeletons, competing with each other to dig in all sorts of places including some of the most dangerous ones in the universe.

Source: Hello Games



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No Man’s Sky’s Relic Update Delivers Indiana Jones-Style Space Adventure

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No Man’s Sky’s Relic Update Delivers Indiana Jones-Style Space Adventure


Summary

Uncover ancient alien civilizations with the new Relic update, turning you into an intergalactic treasure hunter. Hunt for ultra-rare relics to trade at space stations, creating personal alien museums. Encounter threats like Artifact Guardians and Titan Worms at excavation sites, adding a thrilling risk-reward dynamic.

No Man’s Sky has never been short on adventure, but its latest Relic update 5.6 takes planetary exploration to a whole new level. Hello Games has introduced a full-fledged archaeological system, turning you into an intergalactic treasure hunter.

Think Indiana Jones, but with a jetpack, a scanner, and an entire galaxy of lost civilizations to uncover.

Announced by Hello Games founder Sean Murray, the now-available Relic update expands on the game’s excavation mechanics in a massive way. For years, players have been digging up buried technology and resources, but now you’ll be unearthing the remains of ancient alien creatures.

Related

Eight Years Later No Man’s Sky Receives ‘Very Positive Status’ And It’s On Sale

The greatest redemption story in gaming continues, and now it’s on sale!

No Man’s Sky Universe of Hidden and Risky Relics

no man's sky gas giant

You can reassemble fossils into full skeletons and display them in your bases, effectively turning your outposts into personal alien museums. Some relics, however, are far rarer than others, making the hunt for the most valuable discoveries all the more rewarding.

These ultra-rare artifacts can be traded for a hefty sum at space stations, giving you a lucrative reason to channel your inner archaeologist.

Players are already showcasing intricate museums filled with reconstructed fossils, with some comparing the experience to real-world paleontology. As one fan put it:

“I spent hours just hunting for bones—it’s like an intergalactic Indiana Jones adventure!”

Related

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle: Where to Find the Gizeh Relics Map

Get your hands on those Ancient Relics!

In true Indiana Jones fashion, not every excavation goes smoothly. Alongside the excitement of unearthing ancient remains, you will need to contend with new threats lurking beneath the surface.

Much like Indy dodging poison darts and rolling boulders, No Man’s Sky’s latest update introduces formidable Artifact Guardians. These encounters aren’t just aesthetic additions; they add a thrilling risk-reward dynamic to exploration.

And that’s not all. Titan Worms are now even more present, adding an ever-looming sense of danger to excavation sites. It’s the kind of grand mystery that would have even Dr. Jones reaching for his whip.

“Players should be wary where they choose to excavate, though. Dangerous creatures guard the greatest treasure and may be awoken from their slumber, including Stone Ghosts and the colossal Stone Golem,” Hello Games warned.

Related

No Man’s Sky February Update 5.56 Fixes Titan Expedition Bugs and PS5 Crashes

No Man’s Sky’s latest update fixes keep the spacefaring adventure smooth.

If you’re aiming to complete full skeleton collections, space stations now feature specialist NPCs who facilitate fossil trading. They allow you to swap duplicate bones for missing pieces, enhancing the sense of progression and encouraging collaboration as you seek out the rarest and most elusive remains.

Much like a real-world archaeologist, or, say, a rogue adventurer bartering for ancient relics in a shady backroom, you will need to track down specific fossils to complete your collections. And with some relics fetching sky-high prices, there’s a booming new economy emerging in No Man’s Sky’s intergalactic black market.

Following the massive Worlds Part II update earlier this year, Relic is yet another example of how the studio continues to inject fresh, engaging mechanics into its ever-expanding universe.

Late last year, Hello Games hailed No Man’s Sky, hitting a ‘very positive’ Steam user review rating for the first time, eight years after players initially slammed the game’s controversial launch.

Relic Update 5.6 is out now across PC, console, and VR for free.

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Nintendo Direct for March 27th, 2025: How to Watch & What Times

Before we learn more about the Nintendo Switch 2, it’s one last hurrah for the Nintendo Switch.

mixcollage-07-dec-2024-08-42-am-1209.jpg

Released August 9, 2016

ESRB T for Teen: Fantasy Violence, Animated Blood



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Kaiserpunk melds multiple genres while succeeding in none

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Kaiserpunk melds multiple genres while succeeding in none


When Kaiserpunk was announced a couple of years ago, I couldn’t contain my excitement. Having played numerous strategy games in the past, the notion of combining concepts from city-building management sims, 4X strategy, and grand warfare, all wrapped up in an alternate post-World War I timeline, seemed too good to be true.

Regrettably, it surely is. Having played Kaiserpunk for roughly 15 hours, this offering from Overseer Games initially shows promise, though it’s bogged down by several glaring flaws with its UI, core mechanics, and general progression.

Kaiserpunk is set in an alternate post-World War I time period where survivors have risen from the devastation to form their own city-states across the world. While there are several options of different regions to choose from, there’s an almost Eurocentric focus. Just imagine my surprise when I thought I could play as my home country, the Philippines, only to realize that the four options in South Asia and Southeast Asia were for locations in India and Indonesia only. Europe, meanwhile, has close to two dozen map options.

Regardless of your decision, there’s still very little to differentiate your chosen region/nation outside of the “heritage” that you choose at the start of the campaign. Think of it as akin to passive bonuses with one drawback, such as having improvements to scientific developments and agricultural output at the cost of lower military production speed.

Image: Overseer Games via Polygon

As for the city-building aspect, this is where Kaiserpunk initially shines. The mechanics should feel familiar to anyone who’s played logistics/management sims like the Anno or Tropico series. You start with just a town center, and you have to construct various residences, production facilities, mines, farms, and amenities, all to satisfy the needs of citizens. All roads must lead to the town center, too, and you have to create side streets and pathways to improve logistical throughput. It’s a good idea to have clusters of facilities that are part of the same production chain, such as farms, bakeries, and flour mills, plopped down next to each other to speed up the manufacturing process.

All in all, this core concept where you start from scratch, plan the layout of your city, and gain new citizens from laborers to specialists, while watching your burgeoning settlement turn into a sprawling metropolis, is so thoroughly engaging that I found myself playing for hours just to see my capital’s continued development.

Perhaps my only gripes here are related to the logistical radius and the game’s UI/UX. Regional maps are huge, and numerous resource nodes dot the countryside. Evidently, you have to place mines and other buildings to gather those resources. But these, too, require additional depots and infrastructure (i.e., power stations or water towers), not to mention extra laborers. A larger effective radius for utility and logistics buildings would alleviate intensive micromanagement. As for the UI/UX, this facet surely needs a few tweaks — upgrade icons are so tiny that I have to squint just to read descriptions, and notification tooltips regarding issues aren’t particularly clear either.

The image shows an isometric view of a city’s laborer houses and farms.

Image: Overseer Games via Polygon

Where Kaiserpunk woefully falters is in its transition from city builder/management sim to grand strategy warfare. Firstly, it’s because trying to get your armies up and running — not to mention your navy and air force — is a painstaking and arduous task. You need to have enough unemployed citizens, as well as extra resources to manufacture military rations and equipment, just to train a single unit. When you do encounter problems, the game’s tooltips aren’t quite clear about what caused them in the first place. At one point, I knew I had a surplus of wheat and bread, so I built a factory that made rations. I couldn’t tell for certain if it used up all the bread I had, but whatever I did caused my citizens to grow hungry due to a lack of food.

Secondly, warmongering and diplomatic options are about as bare-bones as they could get. For the most part, you attack adjacent regions with your armies in fairly simplistic combat encounters. You also need to ensure that you advance with multiple units in your battalion; not engaging with overwhelming force almost certainly leads to defeat, which means waiting until your units are finished with cooldown and in tip-top condition again. The poor execution is more akin to a board game like Risk, as opposed to a title with strategic depth like Hearts of Iron or Europa Universalis.

Thirdly, the overall development of your region takes so long that you’re unlikely to build ships and planes until you’re several hours into your campaign. So, if you somehow need to cross the sea before then, you need the proper facilities and related scientific improvements. It’s a mind-boggling design decision given the setting. It’s as though World War I was a “swords to ploughshares” reset for the entire human race, and everyone suddenly forgot how to make armaments and military transports.

But perhaps the most glaring flaw of Kaiserpunk is that you don’t necessarily feel that you’re working toward a goal or objective. 4X strategy series like Civilization and Age of Wonders have unique victory conditions, whereas grand strategy titles from Paradox Interactive have events and requirements that lead to enforcing debilitating demands upon your foes, restoring your nation’s prestige, or unifying a fractured empire. In Kaiserpunk’s sandbox campaign, I mostly just recruited units, sent them over to nearby territories, hoped that they’d win battles, and moved on to the next region. It’s conquest for the sake of conquest, minus the engrossing “one more turn” (or “one more hour”) aspect.

The image shows a map of Europe, including active garrisons and available resources.

Image: Overseer Games via Polygon

I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention how the endgame section of your Kaiserpunk campaigns will go. This is a single-player game and, other than minor factions that hold single regions, you can choose to battle up to seven AI-controlled leaders. However, since the sandbox takes place on the world map — emphasis on world, since you can’t change the map size, make custom maps, or interact with minor factions — you end up having to scour the whole planet just to finish off your opponents. This makes future playthroughs egregiously tedious and repetitive to a fault.

Ultimately, the Kaiserpunk team tried its hand at presenting a mishmash of genres, but the resultant game is a jack of all trades without excelling in any individual facet. That said, if you’re looking for a game that combines warfare and strategy with other aspects, like role-playing or management, then you might be better off playing titles like Crusader Kings 3, Mount & Blade, or Manor Lords. A take on the modern era, sadly, will just have to wait.

Kaiserpunk was released March 21 on Windows PC. The game was reviewed on PC using a copy provided by Overseer Games. Vox Media has affiliate partnerships. These do not influence editorial content, though Vox Media may earn commissions for products purchased via affiliate links. You can find additional information about Polygon’s ethics policy here.



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Grab The Complete Castlevania Netflix Series On Blu-Ray For $40 This Week

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Grab The Complete Castlevania Netflix Series On Blu-Ray For  This Week


Castlevania fans can get all four seasons of the original Netflix animated series for roughly $40 at Amazon during the retailer’s Big Spring Sale. A box set containing Seasons 1 and 2 is discounted to $18.77, while Seasons 3 and 4 are up for grabs for about $20 each. All three Blu-rays are eligible for Amazon’s B2G1 free promotion. Simply add them to your cart and you’ll get an additional discount at checkout equal to the cost of Seasons 1 and 2.

Castlevania: Nocturne Season 1 isn’t included in Amazon’s promotion, but you can still save $15 off its $40 list price.

Netflix’s Castlevania Animated Series on Blu-ray

It’s unclear if Nocturne Season 2, which aired in January on Netflix, will receive a physical release, but considering all of the other seasons of Castlevania have, it seems likely.

Castlevania Animated Series on Blu-ray

Fans of the show will also want to check out Castlevania: The Art of the Animated Series, a nearly 200-page book detailing the development of the show’s original four-season run.

In case you missed it when it first aired, the original Castlevania series follows vampire hunter Trevor Belmont, powerful witch Sypha, and Alucard as they take on Dracula and his demonic armies. The second half of the show focuses on a coven of vampires looking to create their own undead kingdom, as well as the foul-mouthed Grim Reaper himself (this might just be Malcolm McDowell’s best role ever).

As you’d expect, the show is violent and has beautifully animated action scenes, as well as banter sharper than a razor blade during some of the more quiet scenes. The Blu-ray editions come with behind-the-scenes videos, voice actor interviews, storyboards, art galleries, and other special features.

Castlevania: Nocturne
Castlevania: Nocturne

Set hundreds of years after the original Castlevania animated series, Nocturne Season 1 followed Richter Belmont and took inspiration from the 1993 PC Engine game Rondo of Blood, which some fans may know better by a different name. Rondo of Blood was exclusive to Japan at launch; Konami brought the story to North America on Super Nintendo as Castlevania: Dracula X. Nocturne Season 2 answered many of the remaining questions from Season 1 while leaving the door open for a third season.

Netflix hasn’t renewed Castlevania: Nocturne for Season 3. There’s also a chance that instead of continuing Nocturne’s story, a new Castlevania arc begins. The Castlevania animated series has been a bright spot for the franchise in recent years, so hopefully it continues in some fashion.

Speaking of Netflix animated adaptations of video games, Arcane Season 1 released on 4K and standard Blu-ray alongside Nocturne last October. Arcane launched with two Limited Edition Steelbooks, a 4K Blu-ray featuring Jinx cover art and a 1080p Blu-ray featuring Vi cover art. Amazon recently restocked Arcane’s 4K Blu-ray Limited Edition Steelbook for $37.76 (was $60), and the standard Blu-ray Limited Edition Steelbook for $35.64 (was $55). The non-steelbook Blu-ray edition is available for only $26 (was $45). Arcane concluded its run on Netflix with its second and final season in November.



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