Month: August 2020

Nameless XIII, a new studio from co-founder of Dontnod (Life Is Strange, Vampyr) Hervé Bonin, has revealed Cendres, a ‘non-linear narrative survival sim’ due for release on Steam in 2021.

Revealed at Gamescom 2020 and published by Dear Villagers, Cendres aims to cross over the decision-making and narrative focus of Choose Your Own Adventure books with the more direct control of a classic adventure game.

The result is a game that sees you leading a party of four characters through a ravaged world, on the search for safe haven. Along the way you’ll need to scavenge and manage supplies, choose between moral dilemmas, and work your way to one of 16 different endings. Check out a reveal trailer below:

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Cendres is set 200 years after a volcanic apocalypse destroyed the game’s planet, and sees a captain, Petra, a warrior, Sinh, a scholar, Kali, and a scout, Nadir attempting to find a safe home. Nameless XIII promises to let you get know each party member, and their relationships and conflicts with the rest – as well as protecting them from madness, despair and starvation.

The bleakness of the trailer, and the fact that we see a varying number of party members throughout, suggests the game won’t shy from killing off your party members, and a press release explains that the game will provide different paths to its many endings based on your choices along the way.

There’s much, much more to come from Gamescom 2020 on IGN – check out our full Gamescom schedule to find out what else is on the way.

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Joe Skrebels is IGN’s Executive Editor of News. Follow him on Twitter. Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to [email protected].

Solasta: Crown of the Magister will arrive on Steam Early Access this fall.

The CRPG from Tactical Adventures – which uses Dungeons and Dragons’ SRD 5.1 Ruleset – will allow players to create their own party of adventurers (including rolling for stats) for a more tabletop RPG-like experience, and take them through the shattered world of Solasta. Check out an announcement trailer below:

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Alongside the Early Access announcement, Solasta will also get a demo starting today – you can check that out, and wishlist the game, on its Steam page, or take a tour of its Indie Arena Booth right now.

Solasta: Crown of the Magister draws on tabletop RPGs, but throws in its own ideas. The game’s battle areas are dynamic, taking into account destructible environments, light and dark, and verticality, letting you ambush (or be ambushed) from above or below.

There’s much, much more to come from Gamescom 2020 on IGN – check out our full Gamescom schedule to find out what else is on the way.

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Joe Skrebels is IGN’s Executive Editor of News. Follow him on Twitter. Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to [email protected].

Just like during Summer of Gaming, we’re back with more Check Out This Game for gamescom 2020! These quick recommendations scattered throughout the gamescom 2020 schedule will highlight exciting, under-the-radar games that are well worth your attention by showing off exclusive new gameplay.

We’ll be showing off just a small bite of each during our gamescom livestreams, but this page will be updated every day with extended versions of nearly all the games that are featured!

Gamescom 2020’s Extended Check Out This Game Gameplay!

Retro Machina Gameplay

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Retro Machina is an isometric action game where you control an charming little robot in a long destroyed, retro-futuristic world. You can wishlist it on Steam here.

And plenty more games to come…

Be sure to follow all of gamescom 2020 right here, and check out our full gamescom 2020 schedule. Also, keep checking back on this page for even more exclusive extended gameplay!

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Tom Marks is IGN’s Deputy Reviews Editor and resident pie maker. You can follow him on Twitter.

Gamescom 2020 has officially kicked off and what better way to start it than with Geoff Keighley’s Opening Night Live. An abundance of gaming news, announcements, and reveals have already been teased by developers such as Gearbox Software, Blizzard, Bungie, Mediatonic, and even Tarsier Studios. That said, we’re anticipating an eventful start to the show. So you can stay up to date on all the latest, we’ll be rounding up all of the news coming out of Opening Night Live below.

Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War Trailer Revealed

Geoff Keighley and Creative Director of Raven Software Dan Vondrak talked over what players can expect with Call of Duty Black Ops Cold War. The segment finished off with a Perseus Briefing cinematic.

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Unknown 9: Awakening Announced and Cinematic Trailer

Reflector Entertainment revealed its current project Unknown 9: Awakening with a new cinematic trailer. We see a young girl by the name of Haroona as she discovers some new abilities. We actually spoke with developers Alexis Ottier and Tomas Street of Reflector Entertainment to learn more story details about Unknown 9: Awakening.

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Doom Eternal The Ancient Ones DLC Revealed

The first official DLC of Dooms Eternal, The Ancient Ones, was shown alongside a release date announcement. Doom Eternal The Ancient Ones DLC will launch on October 20, 2020.

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Dragon Age 4 First Look Trailer

We finally got our first look at Dragon Age 4 with BioWare developers diving into concept art, footage of some new locales, and even confirming the return of Solas.

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Surgeon Simulator 2 is Out Now

An announcement brought to us by none other than Doc Brown himself, developer Bossa Studios has released Surgeon Simulator 2 and it launches with a story mode and 4-player online co-op. It’s available on the Epic Games store.

Bridge Constructor: The Walking Dead Live-Action Reveal Trailer

ClockStone and Headup showed off Bridge Constructor: The Walking Dead, a project that takes the shape of a physics-based puzzle game.

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Sam and Max Reboot Coming to VR

The crimefighting duo will return in an upcoming reboot made for virtual reality.

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World of Warcraft: Shadowlands Release Date Announced

A new World of Warcraft animated short premiered giving us a look at one of the new realms coming to the Shadowlands expansion this fall. World of Warcraft: Shadowlands also got its release date and is planned to launch on October 27.

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Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Storm Ground Revealed

Coming from Gasket Games and Focus Home is the reveal of an upcoming fantasy strategy game, Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Storm Ground.

Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time Flashback Tapes Revealed

For Crash fans that love a punishing platformer, hidden levels with ramped up difficulty called Flashback Tapes have been revealed for Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time.

Outriders New Cinematic Trailer Revealed

In a new Outriders cinematic trailer, new details around abilities, enemies, and the world you can explore with your friends were shown.

Necromunda: Underhive Wars Trailer

A new trailer for Necromunda: Underhive Wars details the different houses players can choose from. It will launch on PS4, Xbox One, and PC on September 8.

Teardown Gameplay Trailer Revealed

Tuxedo Labs’ Teardown got a new gameplay trailer showing off how players can work together in destructible environments to pull off the perfect heist.

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Little Nightmares 2 Gameplay Trailer Revealed

We finally got a look at some gameplay for Little Nightmares 2 during Opening Night Live. The trailer featured new protagonist Mono as they explored some very eerie locales.

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WWE 2K Battlegrounds Gameplay Trailer Reveals Commentators

Jerry “The King” Lawler and Mauro Ranallo will be joining forces to commentate WWE 2K Battlegrounds.

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Star Wars: Squadrons Campaign Gameplay

The developers of Star Wars: Squadrons gave us a look at some single-player campaign gameplay that features Princess Leia and a TIE Fighter attacking an enemy outpost.

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12 Minutes Voice Cast Revealed

A new trailer for psychological thriller 12 Minutes has revealed the cast behind the voices of the characters in the game. James McAvoy, Daisy Ridley, and Willem Dafoe will be the actors bringing the characters to life.

Warframe: Heart of Deimos Expansion Arrives on All Platforms

Warframe: Heart of Deimos launched earlier this week for PS4, Xbox One, and PC and now it’s also on Nintendo Switch, making it available on all platforms.

Override 2: Super Mech League Announced

Robot brawler Override 2: Super meach League was announced alongside a Holiday 2020 release window. It will be available on PS4, Xbox One, PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X.

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The Sims 4: Journey to Batuu Expansion Arriving Soon

The Sims 4 is getting a new Star Wars expansion called Journey to Batuu that will arrive on September 8 for PS4, Xbox One, and PC.

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Mafia: Definitive Edition Story Trailer Revealed

A new cutscene featuring the Salieri family alongside some vehicle and combat gameplay was shown in a new Mafia: Definitive Edition Story Trailer.

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Lemnis Gate Announced

The first-person shooter meets turn-based strategy game was announced for PS4, Xbox One, and PC for 2021.

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LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga Delayed

More details about TT Games LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga were revealed, including plans for PS5 and Xbox Series X versions and a delay into 2021.

Struggling Launch Trailer Shown

Developer Chasing Rat Games revealed the Struggling launch trailer which showed off a physics-based co-op platformer where players need to work together to control the arms of a strange, meaty creature.

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First Chorus Gameplay Revealed

Dark dogfighting space game Chorus got its first gameplay trailer featuring some impressive ray traced graphics.

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Fall Guys Season 2 Announced

Season 2 of Fall Guys has been announced and it features new levels and costumes with medieval themes.

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Age of Empires 3: Definitive Edition Release Date Announced

Age of Empires 3: Definitive Edition has a release date of October 15 and will launch on PC via Steam and the Microsoft Store.

Wastelanders 3 Liberty Character Trailer Revealed

A new Wastelanders 3 trailer shows off the fierce character, Liberty.

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Medal of Honor: Above and Beyond Story Trailer Revealed

A new story trailer for Medal of Honor: Above and Beyond was shown alongside a developer interview that touched on some new plot details.

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Spellbreak Release Date Announced

Magic-based battle royale Spellbreak got its release date and will launch on September 3 with crossplay for PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.

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Turrican Anthology in Development

We got a behind the scenes look at Factor 5 who is currently working on the Turrican Anthology.

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Destiny 2: Beyond Light Element Stasis Shown

A new trailer for upcoming expansion Destiny 2: Beyond Light showed off new Stasis abilities players can use against enemies.

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Ratchet and Clank Rift Apart PS5 Gameplay Trailer

We got an extended look at some PS5 gameplay of Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart and confirmation it will be a launch window game.

Make sure to check out our gamescom 2020 schedule for everything else we have planned.

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Felicia Miranda is SEO Editor at IGN and you can find her on Twitter at @FeliciaVagabond.

With the film’s March 2021 release date looming, Disney has brought in a new lead voice actor as well as an additional writer and directors for their upcoming animated fantasy adventure Raya and the Last Dragon, Disney Animation’s first original production since Moana. Star Wars veteran Kelly Marie Tran has replaced original actor Cassie Steele as the voice of Raya. Awkwafina remains the voice of Sisu, a dragon trapped in human form.

Disney has described the film as the story of “Raya, a lone warrior from the fantasy kingdom of Kumandra who teams up with a crew of misfits in her quest to find the Last Dragon and bring light and unity back to their world.”

Don Hall (Moana, Big Hero 6) and Carlos López Estrada (Blindspotting) have now been announced as directors. Raya’s original directors, Paul Briggs and Dean Wellins, are now listed as co-directors.

Playwright-screenwriter Qui Nguyen (She Kills Monsters, Vietgone) has also been added as a screenwriter; Crazy Rich Asians’ Adele Lim penned the original screenplay.

Disney also released a new first look photo of Raya and her trusty steed Tuk Tuk (seen below).

In a statement to Entertainment Weekly, Walt Disney Animation Studios’ Chief Creative Officer Jennifer Lee addressed the hiring of Tran, Hall, and López Estrada:

“As filmmakers, Don and Carlos bring a combination of animation know-how and emotional storytelling to Raya and the Last Dragon, bringing our fantasy adventure to surprising, original, and dynamic heights. … They both saw the potential for this film and had a strong vision for the story, especially for our lead character, played by the wonderfully talented Kelly Marie Tran. And no small feat, directors Don and Carlos, writers Qui and Adele, and the entire crew of 400 Disney Animation artists are making this film together, while separated and working from home.”

Raya and the Last Dragon is the first Disney animated film to showcase Southeast Asia. Nguyen told EW how important it was to have “the artists who represent those cultures in there to be able to give the subtleties of what our families are actually like, what our relationships are actually like, has given a lot of nuances to this great adventure.”

Tran said that while Raya is a princess, the movie aims”to flip the narrative on what it means to be a princess.” The actress, who played Rose Tico in Star Wars: The Last Jedi and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, described Raya as “totally a warrior. When she was a kid, she was excited to get her sword. And she grows up to be a really badass, gritty warrior and can really take care of herself.”

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Disney touted Raya and the Last Dragon at last year’s D23 Expo, bringing out original voice actor Cassie Steele, co-star Awkwafina, and original writer Adele Lim to present three minutes of footage from the movie.

Raya and the Last Dragon isn’t the first animated Disney release to get an overhaul. Ratatouille, Brave, and Cars 2 all replaced their directors, while The Good Dinosaur was “completely reimagined” and saw its voice actors recast.

Developer Counterplay Games showcased Godfall, the PC and PS5-console exclusive looter-slasher, is set for a holiday release, during Gamescom 2020, with an in-depth look at the third-person action gameplay and some of the customization players can expect with its launch.

Speaking to IGN during Gamescom (in an interview you can watch below), Director Keith Lee spoke at length about some of the player choice inherent in the studio’s Valorplate system.

Inspired by medieval armor sets, Godfall’s Valorplates serve essentially as character classes, and in the interview above you can take a look at Silvermane, the base Valorplate everyone starts with, as well as Mesa, Typhon, and Vertigo in action.

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Lee described each Valorplate’s set of skills essentially as “star constellations” — players will be able to slot in augments into these constellations. But the order and proximity to one another of these augments can lead to drastically different versions of the same Valorplate. There are 12 Valorplates in total, including Silvermane, and players are able to construct others by collecting Valorplate cores, as well as various other resources collected from different enemies, chests, and even different game modes. The Valorplates fit into three different models — balanced, specialized, and exotic, with some geared toward High DPS, other toward cooldown abilities, and others on debuffs, but still Counterplay is aiming to let players customize their experience.

Additionally, Archon Mode is a major factor in choosing the Valorplate for you, and Counterplay has designed them with four core components in mind.

Activated by pressing L3 and R3 together, Archon abilities can be used after collecting enough Ethirium to fill up your meter, and each is tied uniquely to a Valorplate. The four elements Counterplay kept in mind included a passive ability that’s inherent to your armor; an instant like Silvermane’s ability to summon three ancient glaive allies; a set of buffs that are enabled; and the opportunity to trigger certain conditions based on your Valorplate, which can in turn escalate the effects of your Archon skills.

Lastly, Lee spoke to some of the benefits of playing in co-op, which is supported for up to three players total. Namely, players are able to drop banners on the ground to impact their teammates with beneficial buffs like AOE healing or other benefits depending on the mission types. Players can also work together to try different Valorplate combinations and see what works best, or even play all as the same Valorplate if they so choose.

Previously we’ve learned Godfall won’t feature microtransactions, as well as how Godfall will take advantage of PS5’s DualSense controller.

There’s much, much more to come from Gamescom 2020 on IGN – check out our full Gamescom schedule to find out what else is on the way.

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Elden Ring fans have had enough of the radio silence, it seems. From Software hasn’t released any more info about its upcoming open-world action RPG since announcing it at last year’s E3. The internet’s sadness finally reached a boiling point today after no news was revealed during Gamescom 2020 Opening Night Live.

Fans were eager to see more of the game at one of the many summer game showcases, but no new info was shown at any of the streams put on by major publishers and gaming conventions. The game was originally announced for current-gen consoles, but it may not launch before the Sony and Microsoft’s new consoles come out later this year.

Elden Ring fans have flooded the internet with depression-fueled jokes about the From Software’s development process. Some of the post are beyond desperate and are quite hilarious. Fans have gone mad waiting for news–with some going as far as creating their own lore and playable demo to make the wait slightly more tolerable.

We don’t know much of anything about Elden Ring outside the fact that Game of Thrones author George R.R. Martin is helping build the world and lore. The action RPG, which is From Software’s “biggest” title yet, has been in development since Dark Souls 3’s DLC wrapped up but we still don’t have a release window.

It’s the early years of the 22nd century, and Hell has frozen over — at least, that is, if Colorado happens to be your idea of Hell. It certainly looks like it in Wasteland 3: Colorado Springs was spared the nuclear holocaust at the heart of Wasteland lore, but an unrelenting nuclear winter holds the entire Centennial State in its grip. Radiation oozes through mountain valleys. Killer clowns ravage the eastern plains. A cult that worships Ronald Reagan controls Colorado’s oil supply. It’s a distinctively bold setting for this lengthy and often challenging isometric RPG, and it improves on Wasteland 2 in almost every way.

If you prefer your post-apocalyptic landscapes filled with snow rather than sand, no worries: You don’t need to play the hot and dusty Wasteland 2 to understand what’s going on now. Here you play as a duo from Arizona’s Desert Rangers, an Old-West-meets-sci-fi lawkeeping outfit whose base was destroyed at the end of Wasteland 2. The Rangers head to Colorado after a leader there offers Arizona vital aid in exchange for some help on his own turf, but the mission goes south when almost the entire Ranger company gets wiped out in an ambush. You play as the only two characters who survive, and you need to fulfill your mission with a severe disadvantage.

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After that, the story can go in substantially different directions. Wasteland 3 does a fantastic job of tying meaningful consequences to almost every choice, and it prepared me for about 60 hours of such decisions mere minutes in. If you, for instance, convince a hostage taker to let a Ranger go she’ll run away and warn her friends, who’ll set up and ambush and kill other innocents. Attack her and she’ll kill the Ranger, meaning you’ll have one fewer recruit for your party, but you won’t have an ambush ready for you. And that’s just a small taste of the choices to come.

[poilib element=”quoteBox” parameters=”excerpt=Wasteland%203%20does%20a%20fantastic%20job%20of%20tying%20meaningful%20consequences%20to%20almost%20every%20choice.”]Later, Wasteland 3 forced me to decide between saving a family being attacked and saving a convoy of lawkeepers transporting some power armor for the Marshals faction. I chose the power armor, but I ended up wandering through the gutted remains of the family’s home for a reminder that decisions have consequences. The power armor gave a nice reputation boost, but not without making me regret my decision a bit by hearing one of the Marshals say “these refugees aren’t going to punch themselves.”

These often aren’t easy choices, either, as everyone you meet in Colorado is kind of an asshole. They’re written well enough that they left me puzzling over which degree and brand of assholery I could live with, and it’s remarkably hard to avoid being corrupted by the sketchy business unfolding around you. Adding a kicker to that, I like that I rarely saw the effects of my choices quickly, and usually not until I was well past whatever pivotal save file I’d made for backtracking. Some don’t even become apparent until the later hours and Wasteland 3’s wide assortment of endings. It makes “gaming” the various factions essentially impossible. (And even if it didn’t, the ridiculously long load times even on my SSD made me think thrice before going back to a previous save.)

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Sometimes these effects would catch me by surprise, as they did when I returned to a faction I liked and found them massacred in the wake of a seemingly throwaway decision I’d made. These moments can hit hard, partly thanks to the fact that Wasteland 3 looks significantly better than its predecessor. That’s especially true on the overworld map where the Kodiak — your tanky weaponized vehicle — plows through the frozen wastes between towns. Sometimes key characters get special up-close animations, allowing their personality to shine better than it does in general conversations in the usual isometric perspective. Fully voiced dialogue lines mean it sounds better, too, leading to memorably silly moments as when you meet a “Scottish” mechanic who learned his accent from watching a tape of Braveheart.

[poilib element=”quoteBox” parameters=”excerpt=The%20American%20political%20allegory%20sometimes%20feels%20a%20little%20too%20on%20the%20nose.”]That’s tame and cheesy by the standard of most of Wasteland 3’s rough-edged and often bloody humor, much of which is wrapped in contemporary American political allegory about fascism, refugees, and a brutal police force that sometimes feels a little too on the nose. Deer splurt out a pond’s worth of blood when you run over them with the Kodiak, and I once came across an old copy of Oliver North’s “Under Fire” with “something viscous” dried on the pages. I chatted up a male prostitute called Jack Off Hearts and heard a confession of erectile dysfunction while strolling about Colorado Springs. Just in case, you know, you had some idea that Wasteland 3 was for kids.

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All of the color commentary comes from NPCs you meet, because the two surviving Rangers you play as don’t have any personalities but the ones you create for them in your head. There are preset pairs of folks you can choose, like punk lovers and a father/daughter duo, that give a false impression that their relationship might have some real impact on the story. For the most part, they’re as generic as any custom character you make yourself, which you might as well do because that way you can start off with “quirks” with big bonuses for one stat at the expense of others.

Why two Rangers instead of one? The idea is that you can play Wasteland 3 in online co-op if you wish, although I didn’t have a chance to do so as part of my first 55-hour playthrough. It sounds delightfully maddening, though, as either player can make decisions without the other one, which could have the nasty side effect of turning two factions hostile when you only mean to tick off one.

[poilib element=”quoteBox” parameters=”excerpt=Many%20quests%20offer%20alternative%20methods%20of%20resolution%20if%20you%20have%20the%20right%20perks.”]Having two Rangers around at all times also gives you some leeway for more skills, as Wasteland 3’s gameplay hinges on six-person teams. It’s best to keep these as well-rounded as possible instead of specializing everybody along a similar path, particularly since many quests offer alternative methods of resolution (or at least an advantage before combat begins). Having a character with the “Hard Ass” perk, for example, can let you skip otherwise inevitable fights with a few gruff words. “Kiss Ass?” You can sweet-talk your way out. Got a person with high-explosive expertise? You won’t have to worry much about landmines. These options are so numerous, though, that I frequently found myself holding back from allocating points when I leveled so that I’d have some left over in case I needed to meet some requirements. It also made me more cautious about switching out team members for fresh recruits once I’d invested a ton of points into rounding out my squad.

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With the right skills, Wasteland 3 even lets you enlist animals ranging from tomcats to robot chickens to the cause, and some other usually uncontrollable NPCs will sometimes join up as well. These guys are great to have around because they tend to be heavy hitters, but they’re also overly fond of rushing into danger because you can’t control them. I lost a particularly good one because he ran into the rocket trajectory I had planned out, and I hated having to convince myself he was worth the sacrifice and to not reload my save.

[poilib element=”quoteBox” parameters=”excerpt=You%20can%20use%20your%20heavy%20hitters%20when%20you%20absolutely%20need%20them%20most.”]Superficially, Wasteland 3’s turn-based combat looks a lot like Wasteland 2’s (or XCOM’s, for that matter), and its emphasis on action points and flanking doesn’t differ much from familiar tactical RPGs. A few changes, though, make it a heck of a lot more satisfying this time around. For one thing, the key change is that enemies and friendlies take turns as an entire team. Within a team, though, you’re free to choose which order your characters fire in, even to the point of hopping back to a specific character after you’ve spent all the action points for another. This can be brutally punishing if you didn’t get your squad members set behind cover before the fight begins and the entire enemy team gets a free shot, but it also means you can use your heavy hitters when you absolutely need them most. There’s also a greater emphasis on environmental interaction this time around, ranging from simply blowing up explosive barrels to firing the big gun mounted on top of the Kodiak. It’s especially satisfying to unleash precision attack abilities by building the strike meter after a few rounds of normal attacks, as these can turn the tide in seemingly hopeless battles.

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And there are many such battles. Wasteland 3 is as tough as its Rangers, and it’s overly fond of tossing you into overwhelming situations with little easy access to cover. It rewards careful thinking, though, such as making you find terminals that shut down deadly weapons or remember to bring along a few deployable turrets of your own for extra protection. Cool weapons spice it up, too, such as the Frozen Ferret Launcher (which is exactly what it sounds like). It’s also relatively easy to revive downed team members, so total wipeouts weren’t as common as I expected them to be when I was first learning the ropes of combat. When I needed an extra health boost in combat, the new shared inventory made it easier to find one.

[poilib element=”quoteBox” parameters=”excerpt=The%20Frozen%20Ferret%20Launcher%20is%20exactly%20what%20it%20sounds%20like.”]When paired with Wasteland 3’s humor and personality, the changes help keep the combat interesting, and that’s a good thing because there’s a lot of game here. Developer inXile Entertainment claimed there’s around 80 hours of play here, and that’s not far off the mark based on my experience.

My main issues with Wasteland 3 have more to do with the interface and, to a lesser extent, performance. It definitely doesn’t have as many bugs as its predecessor, but I’d still sometimes find myself having to restart because the “End Turn” button wouldn’t work. Weirdly, framerates had a tendency to tank when the otherwise excellent and entertaining folksy songs that play over key battles kicked off. The map was a constant annoyance, as you can’t just click a point on the map to move the camera there and then right-click a spot for your team to travel to. Instead, you have to steer the camera to center it over to that spot. That was particularly maddening in towns like Colorado Springs and on maps I’d already completed and surprises no longer awaited.

But maybe there’s a reason for that. Surprises seem to lurk around every snowy corner of Wasteland 3, ranging from simple first aid caches to new NPCs who pop up at your base of operations. It’s a world that invites exploration and rewards it, as many frozen bread crumbs lead to massive new chunks of an already massive story.