A film about a campaign to ban greyhound racing in Scotland has won an animal welfare award at a ceremony in London.

Joshua asks “Am I fighting a house?!” (spoilers: he is). Chris is on the wrong side of 40, and somehow forgets JRPGJuly. Kelley espouses “Exposure: The Cryptocurrency of Artists.” Anna Marie is teaching the whole RPGamer staff how to speedrun FF4: Free Enterprise. Yes, things got a little…weird this week.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 590: “Get Back in the House, Yona!” appeared first on RPGamer.

Josh and Scotty get into a father-son slap fight. Kelley ascends to divinity playing Picross. Johnathan sees how much his ZHP is worth and has to go make a transaction in a back alley. And Chris tries to justify life without a back button.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 601: “Tactical Baking RPG” appeared first on RPGamer.

It's the RPGCast trio bringing you another week of mild insanity. Kelley struggles because Japanese names are hard. Chris wants to take all the cats camping, but Anna Marie swiftly vetoes the idea. The dad jokes arrive in full force, and everyone's thinking about vacations.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 604: “Press 5 for More Rune Factory” appeared first on RPGamer.

Kelley ruins Warcraft by including Conker. Chris mortgages his Xbox. Josh's cat won't let him control his Xbox. And Microsoft has announced their new Candy Crush themed Windows 12.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 615: “The New Dialga Looks Like My Brother’s Broken Vacuum Cleaner” appeared first on RPGamer.

Josh's cat admits that, while he likes Josh, he is disposable. Robert works on his perfecting his boatsona cosplay. Chris orders acrylic bookends for the collector's editions he doesn't need. And Kelley learns that Final Fantasy XIV housing is an NFT in disguise.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 625: “Critical Hit to the Face of E3” appeared first on RPGamer.

Kelley watches the American Sailor Moon pilot acid trip fever dream. Tam is going off to get 800 glamour shots. Chris gets carded while trying to buy a Mara.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 644: “Is That a Demon Machine Making a Pizza?” appeared first on RPGamer.

Chris is on the dice web. Kelley's cat will break her foot with a metal d20. Johnathan fights his "bad me" supervillain self.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 658: “Space Marines Were in the Bible” appeared first on RPGamer.

Chris performs a ritual that needs more hands. Kelley has to clean just one more car. Ryan likes to think he can't be replaced by Bing yet. And Jason just keeps yelling, "Barrel!"

The post RPG Cast – Episode 668: “Nacho Chakotay” appeared first on RPGamer.

Kelley "accidentally" barbecues her horse. Josh slaps "Trails" onto Horizon: Forbidden West to get Americans to play it. Jason has to go get a tako taco.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 677: “My Parents Thought Final Fantasy Tactics Was a Strategy Guide” appeared first on RPGamer.

Josh learns that despite Bethesda's best efforts, Starfield is not Fallout 76. Robert learns the taste of Amiibo blood. Chris is just here to ask, "kink-why?" And Kelley is obsessed with Red XIII on a chocobo.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 692: “Vending Machine Isekai” appeared first on RPGamer.

Phil goes for the water bottle. Sam releases her Thirst-Sona. Matt talks about cantaloupes in panties. Kelley regrets visiting a kitty strip club. All of this and Extra Life to boot! Donate! Now!

The post RPG Cast – Episode 698: “Marry, Thwack, Puff Puff” appeared first on RPGamer.

Robert finds out what Godzilla sushi tastes like. Josh pimps his Segway. Phil has a pictomancer at home. The awards all Chris's fault, because he didn't vote. Also, PoE is to Chris, as CoH is to Phil.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 710: “Xenoblade Chronicles X Doesn’t Love You Back” appeared first on RPGamer.

Chris sits in a time loop watching Vegeta backhand a guy. Kelley buys solar panels for her Red XIII werewolf. Were you into RPGs before they were cool? Now slide, slide, baby, slide.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 714: “Thirsty for Tactics” appeared first on RPGamer.

Kelley risks her life trimming her cat's nails. Chris optimizes Eiyuden Chronicle live on stream. Robert plays dental roulette.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 722: “They’re Just a Stack of Rocks” appeared first on RPGamer.

Ryan slip 'n slides his health away. Robert lives on the side of danger and poor choices in video games. Meanwhile, Chris makes his own bathtub Geralt.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 725: “Not Every Idea in the Factory Is a Good One” appeared first on RPGamer.

Kelley uses familiars to click her buttons. Josh scribbles in comic sans over your collector's edition with a sharpie. Which is good because Chris can't handle yet another collector's edition. They're all doing better than Ryan, though, who is suffering from Wizardry PTSD.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 731: “Dragon Quest: Start Your Own Taco Adventure” appeared first on RPGamer.

Chris saw a wizard in Tokyo in Trader Vic's, his robe and wizard hat were perfect. Kelley got tired of Alf memes. Josh shoved his Steam Link in a closet somewhere. Gamers suck, tune in next week for monitor cast.

The post RPG Cast – Episode 740: “Truck-Kun in the Background Is Slightly Less Blurry” appeared first on RPGamer.

REVERB features 17 audiovisual installations including new works by Es Devlin and Theaster Gates, plus Devon Turnbull's Listening Room.

The post The Vinyl Factory celebrates art and sound with immersive exhibition at 180 Studios appeared first on Fact Magazine.

Reverb features new works by Es Devlin and Theaster Gates, plus Devon Turnbull's Listening Room.

The post The Vinyl Factory: Reverb exhibition extended until 22 December appeared first on Fact Magazine.

Up to 700 international competitors and crew will flock to Benalla as the event returns to Australia after 30 years.

THE Federal Bureau of Investigation is probing a possible computer hacking attack on J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.

Publisher Xbox Game Studios and developer The Coalition have announced John DiMaggio, the voice actor for Marcus Fenix, and Carlos Ferro, the voice actor for Dom Santiago, will reprise their roles for the prequel Gears of War: E-Day.

"On today's 18th anniversary of Gears of War, we're proud to share that John DiMaggio and Carlos Ferro are reprising their roles as the iconic voices of Marcus Fenix and Dominic Santiago in Gears of War: E-Day," announced the developer.

Gears of War: E-Day is in development for the Xbox Series X|S, PC, and Xbox Game Pass.

A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012 and taking over the hardware estimates in 2017. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel. You can contact the author on Twitter @TrunksWD.

Full Article - https://www.vgchartz.com/article/463012/marcus-and-dom-voice-actors-to-return-for-gears-of-war-e-day/

Sony has released the US and European PlayStation Store downloads charts for September 2024.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 topped the PlayStation 5 charts in the US and Canada, as well as on the European charts. Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero was number two in the US and Canada, as well as in Europe. Undisputed was number three in the US and Canada, while it was EA Sports FC 25 in Europe.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 was the most downloaded game on the PlayStation 4 charts in the US and Canada, while it was EA Sports FC 25 on the European charts. Minecraft was number two in the US and Canada, while it was Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 in Europe. Red Dead Redemption 2 was number three in the US and Canada, while it was The Forest in Europe.

Arizona Sunshine Remake topped the PlayStation VR2 charts in the US and Canada, as well as in Europe. Beat Saber VR was number two in the US and Canada, while it was The Dark Pictures: Switchback VR in Europe. The Dark Pictures: Switchback VR was number three in the US and Canada, while it was Metro Awakening in Europe.

ASTRO BOT Rescue Mission topped the PlayStation VR charts in the US and Canada, while it was Batman: Arkham VR in Europe. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim VR was number two in the US and Canada, while it was The Exorcist: Legion VR in Europe.

Throne and Liberty topped the free-to-play US and Canada charts, and in Europe. Fortnite was number two in the US and Canada, and in Europe.

Here is the complete list of charts:

PS5 Games

PS4 Games

PS VR2 Games*

PS VR Games

Free to Play (PS5 + PS4)

A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012 and taking over the hardware estimates in 2017. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel. You can contact the author on Twitter @TrunksWD.

Full Article - https://www.vgchartz.com/article/463025/call-of-duty-black-ops-6-tops-the-ps5-ps-store-download-charts-in-october/

The PlayStation 5 was the best-selling console in the UK in October, according to GfK Entertainment data reported by GamesIndustry. 

The Xbox Series X|S was the second best-selling console for the month, followed by the Nintendo Switch in third. The Xbox Series X|S has also surpassed the Switch in year-to-date sales.

Sales for the PS5 are up 27 percent month-on-month and down 18 percent year-on-year. Sales for the Switch are up 13 percent month-on-month and down 18 percent year-on-year. Sales for the Xbox Series X|S are down seven percent month-on-month and down 17 percent year-on-year. 

Overall, there were just under 144,000 video game consoles sold (NielsenIQ/GfK panel data) in the UK in October 2024. This is down 18 percent year-on-year.

GSD data shows there were 2.9 million games sold in October 2024, which is up 3.2 percent year-on-year. 

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 debuted in first place on the software charts (digital and physical combined). Sales are 11 percent lower than the launch month of 2023's 2023's Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III, however, this is most likely due to the number of people playing the game via Xbox Game Pass.

Sales of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 are up 24 percent year-on-year on PlayStation consoles, while sales dropped on Xbox consoles and PC. 75 percent of total sales were on PlayStation consoles, followed by 15 percent on PC, and just under 11 percent on Xbox consoles.

Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero debuted in third place with the first four week of sales up 80 percent compared to 2020's Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot.

Undisputed debuted in fourth place and had the second biggest launch for a sports title in 2024. Only EA Sports FC 24 had a bigger launch.

The remake of Silent Hill 2 debuted in fifth place. Launch sales are 32 percent lower than the remake of Dead Space and 62 percent lower than the remake of Resident Evil 4.

Super Mario Party Jamboree debuted in ninth place. Sales are 11 percent higher than 2018's Super Mario Party, but are four percent lower than 2021's Mario Party Superstar. It should be noted Nintendo doesn't share digital sales with these charts.

Sonic X Shadows Generations debuted in 10th place. Sales for the game are 150 percent compared to 2023's Sonic Superstars, but are down 21 percent compared to 2022's Sonic Frontiers.

Metaphor: Refantazio debuted in 12th place and the new version of Until Dawn debuted in 30th place.

EA Sports FC 25 came in second place with sales down 14 percent year-on-year.

There were over 681,000 accessories and add-on products sold in the UK in October, which is up nearly 16 percent year-over-year, but is down over eight percent month-on-month.

The White DualSense controller was the best-selling accessory, followed by the Midnight Black DualSense controller. The PlayStation Portal Remote Player is up four spots to take fourth place.

Here are the top 10 best-selling games in the UK (Digital + Physical):

A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012 and taking over the hardware estimates in 2017. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel. You can contact the author on Twitter @TrunksWD.

Full Article - https://www.vgchartz.com/article/463042/ps5-best-seller-in-the-uk-in-october-black-ops-6-leads-strong-month-of-new-releases/

Nintendo has announced its Black Friday 2024 deals. 

Dozens of games will be discounted including The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Super Mario Maker 2, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Pikmin 4, Nintendo Switch Sports, Kirby and the Forgotten Land, Super Mario Odyssey, Pikmin 1 + 2, and more.

The Neon Red and Neon Blue Joy-Con controllers and the Nintendo Switch Pro Controller will be discounted by $20, while the Nintendo Switch Carrying Case & Screen Protector - The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Edition will be discounted by $10.

The Nintendo Switch: Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Bundle will once again return for $299.99, while the new Nintendo Switch – OLED Model: Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Bundle will be available for $349.99. Both bundles include a digital download of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and a 12-month Nintendo Switch Online Individual Membership.

The Nintendo Switch Lite: Hyrule Edition with Bonus Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack will be available for $209.99. The bundle includes a 12-month Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack Individual Membership.

A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012 and taking over the hardware estimates in 2017. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel. You can contact the author on Twitter @TrunksWD.

Full Article - https://www.vgchartz.com/article/463045/nintendos-black-friday-2024-deals-revealed/

Billionaire Bill Ackman spent days after the ABC presidential debate promoting false claims that a network “whistleblower” had allegedly uncovered collusion between ABC and Kamala Harris’ campaign. Now, a month and multiple denials later, he sees the claims differently.

“It seems pretty clear that the alleged @abc whistleblower debate story claiming that @KamalaHarris was given questions in advance and other advantages was a fake,” Ackman posted on X alongside a blog post by Megyn Kelly discussing the dubious claims.

What Ackman, CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management, did not acknowledge, however, is that he was one of falsehood’s early boosters. After an X account named “Black Insurrectionist” claimed it had been in touch with a whistleblower who alleged the Harris campaign had been given debate topics ahead of the showdown with Donald Trump and had demanded Trump—and Trump alone—be fact-checked.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

A collective gasp echoed like a thunderclap in a valley in our Daily Beast newsroom late Wednesday afternoon at the news that singer Liam Payne, who became famous as a member of the group One Direction, died at age 31.

TMZ reports that Payne fell from a hotel balcony in Argentina, where he had reunited with bandmates at 1D-er Niall Horan’s concert. He had, according to the site, been behaving “erratically,” earlier in the day, and was spotted smashing a laptop in the hotel lobby and having to be carried back to his room. He had been in headlines on gossip blogs over tension with his ex-fiancée Maya Henry, who, TMZ says, alleged “he'd left her after asking her to get an abortion.”

In the shock of his death, fans couldn’t ignore the eerie nature that Payne had just connected with his One Direction bandmates. Dark questions emerge when a celebrity dies so young: What role did the often horrific toll of fame have on a person like Payne, who has been open about addiction and suicidal ideation? But there’s also an impulse to go back to the roots of a person’s talent, to revisit what it was that we all fell in love with—and was their passion—in the first place.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Stationeers and Icarus developers RocketWerkz are making a spiritual successor to beloved space sim Kerbal Space Program, which is currently titled "Kitten Space Agency" in a flagrant display of adherence to wholesome internet trends. It's based on an actual Kerbal Space Program 2 pitch the studio threw at Take-Two subsidiary Private Division back in the day. RocketWerkz CEO and original DayZ creator Dean Hall has hired several former KSP and KSP2 developers to work on the game, and is describing it on social media as a "KSP killer".

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Remedy's Alan Wake 2 has now "recouped most of its development and marketing expenses", CEO Tero Virtala has announced in a business review for January-September 2024. Speaking as somebody who would quite like there to be more Alan Wake games - or at least, moderately weird and pretty decent blockbuster singleplayer horror games - I am both pleased by this news and a little troubled that Remedy's eldritch forest fable (which came out in October 2023) has yet to break even.

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People have asked me, a Call Of Duty liker, "How's the new COD?" - such is the mass appeal of Call Of Duty that even a lot of my non-industry pals are invested in whether Black Ops 6's shooty really does bang. And every single time my brain clunks into gear and I turn inwards, where I struggle to come up with anything meaningful to say. So much so that a fog develops and out of the fog emerges a figure - it's me. I'm holding an M4A1 with an extended barrel and a vertical foregrip. My brain and body perform a pincer movement of physical response: 1) I shrug 2) I say, "It's like Call Of Duty".

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Like a plague doctor delicately administering another handful of leeches, Ice Pick Lodge have shared a bit more about the recently announced Pathologic 3, explaining how their plans for the cult epidemic-battling series have progressed since the release of Pathologic 2.

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One of my lesser quality tests for an RPG is whether the shopkeepers complain at you for not buying anything. Grumpy shopkeepers, good RPG. This most specific of litmus tests has served me well, although I must admit that I’d happily upgrade it to ‘shopkeepers you can attack’, would that not disqualify 99% of games. But not turn based dungeon crawler Thysiastery, it turns out. This “dungeon crawler RPG featuring traditional roguelike and turn-based gameplay” apparently trusts you enough to let you recklessly batter its friendly wandering lizard merchants. You’d be a monster for it, of course, but it’s nice to have options.

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I was excited for Slitterhead, an action adventure game by Bokeh Studio, a studio founded by none other than your boy Keiichiro Toyama: the creator of Silent Hill, Gravity Rush, and the Siren series. And within that first hour, Slitterhead's body-possessing and Hong Kong-inspired streets had me thinking, "Is this it, the sleeper hit of 2024?!"

No, sadly not. It's no doubt built a compelling universe filled with brain-sucking aliens that masquerade as humans, and it attempts plenty else besides: bouncing between bodies as you stealth around dingy apartment blocks, fighting with blood katanas, and gorging on pools of red plasma to refuel skills, many of which require more body-flitting. Thing is, they are ultimately just attempts, attempts that fall victim to an emptiness and jitteriness that quickly reveals Slitterhead's true, irritating form.

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Minor spoilers for the first few hours of Veilguard and heavy spoilers for Baldur’s Gate 3

For all the things I ended up enjoying about Dragon Age: The Veilguard, it isn’t much of an RPG. What little roleplaying it does offer revolves around what flavour of supportive hero you prefer, and you can count the number of impactful dialogue decisions on a three-fingered hand. This might sound utterly damning in the wake of Baldur's Gate 3’s incredible reactivity, and if I approached games as some sort of tedious comparative intellectual exercise rather than just, y’know, seeing how I felt about them, then I suppose it would be. Weirdly, though, the recent memory of Baldur’s Gate 3 didn’t diminish my time with Veilguard at all. It was actually the opposite: it freed Dragon Age from having to carry the torch for a certain period in Bioware’s history, and let me enjoy Veilguard for what it was.

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Beloved roguelike traumatic-childhood-em-up The Binding Of Issac: Rebirth turned 10 yesterday, and it’s half off on Steam to celebrate. What’s more, maker Edmund McMillen has announced that the foretold online co-op update is due on the 18th of this month, alongside a “considerable” balance update. Consider me considering the considerability of said considerable update!

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Early reactions to Call Of Duty: Black Ops 6 multiplayer range from frothing dislike through omnimovement hype to our own Ed Thorn's dead-eyed appraisal that it's "a good one, I think. Not a bad one. If you like Call Of Duty, you will like this. If you don't like Call Of Duty, you will not like this." I feel like we need to emergency-deploy a supply crate of smelling salts, because the sheer OK-ness of Black Ops 6 appears to have tumbled Ed into a stupor.

Perhaps it would be a different story if he'd encountered some of the spawning issues and glitches people are talking about, with players joining games and materialising right into a hail of fire. The players in question include Black Ops 6's developers, who comically note in the latest Black Ops 6 patch notes that "Yes, we saw ourselves in a Killcam before selecting a Loadout too." The latest patch seeks to address this, naturally. As regards the campaign side of things, it also resets your safehouse currency to 5000, if you've had your single player funds stolen (or multiplied) by technical gremlins.

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I have zero archaeology experience or knowledge, but I bet archaeologists really love their jobs (for the most part). They get to analyse and discover cool artefacts and educate us on the histories of forgotten civilisations. That's dreamy stuff, that is. But I do wonder what it's like for archaeologists to discover and study something they shouldn't have; something with a disturbing secret - a curse, maybe. Bite-sized horror game The Children Of Clay explores this idea and I'd like more of it, please.

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To say that Factorio: Space Age throws out the rulebook is an understatement. It'd be more fitting to say it's somehow automated the whole process: an inserter plucked out the rulebook from my brain and deposited it in hot magma, while a new rulebook was churned out in a nearby machine and plopped into my brain from the other side - only for that to be immediately plucked out and incinerated as well. With each new planet and each new phase, Space Age reinvents itself. I'm battling hyperbole here, but ah hell, I admit defeat. Factorio: Space Age is a masterpiece, the final form of perhaps the most well-crafted building game I'll ever play.

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As a yearly blockbuster, Call of Duty, through sheer expense and effort, would like you to think it is the Die Hard of video games. Or, depending on the setting, the Saving Private Ryan of video games. But it is barely Black Hawk Down. This latest campaign in Call Of Duty: Black Ops 6 reminds me more of the forgettable Netflix shootfests that thumbnail their way across your TV screen as you try to find some gritty nothing to aid you in zoning out of life. Still, there is an anecdotal contingent of casual sofa sitters for whom Call Of Duty is the game. A balls-to-the-wall shooter to return to every winter and rinse through in a weekend. Ed has already gestured at its multiplayer, announcing: "yup, it's COD", like a deeply tired Captain Birdseye inspecting the day's catch, wondering when his life will change. But never mind that. How does the single player story mode hold up? Some are calling it the best campaign in years. And I guess that's true, in the sense that it is the least worst.

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"Never read the comments," is a truth much-rehearsed by senior games journalists, but I have long since levelled-up past this axiom and entered into a new world of benevolent narcissism. I always read the comments, for all commenters are my children. They exist to glorify and preserve me in my dotage. True, occasionally my children say things like "I think your writing and opinions are appalling, and that you deserve to be repeatedly run over by a herd of deer", but it is the nature of children to rebel.

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I would never have predicted there'd be an isometric tactics game based on run-and-gun series Metal Slug, yet here Metal Slug Tactics is, and I am here for it. We've been following its development for a while but it's out now on Steam, and seemingly as strong as its demo suggested.

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Putting aside my natural annoyance at Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater for almost beating out the Twarhammer series in the headline real estate wars, I am more than a little excited to play. Some days, you simply must feast on a tree frog, and while we still don’t have a solid release date, that day doesn’t feel too far away. Good news for stealth fans, and perhaps gooder news for a dozen strapline writers sweating profusely, soiling themselves in anticipation of using “kept you waiting, huh?”.

Until then, I at least have a steady drip feed of new information to keep me sated, the latest of which is the substantial hint that there'll be some new dialogue in the game, as per the video below. Alongside that, the previously pseudonymous Suzetta Miñet - who was credited with voicing EVA in MGS3 and Peace Walker - has revealed herself to be Jodi Benson, the voice of Ariel in Disney’s The Little Mermaid. Cheers for the spot, Automaton West.

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Calling a game ‘no frills’ or ‘no nonsense’ is always a back-handed compliment, because it sounds like you're saying it's a bit straightforward and simple. And yes, that’s exactly what I’m saying here. Acts Of Blood feels like a spiffy PS2 action brawler; a slightly tighter old Yakuza game, or a stripped-back Sifu. It’s snacky and a bit janky, but it’s also great coffee break fodder, assuming you want to spend your break breaking a selection of heavy objects over the crumbly skulls of ne’er-do-wells. I mean, they might have done some things well, I don’t know them. But they aren’t doing any well to my character in the game, so violence it is.

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Life simulation game Inzoi will launch on PC via Steam early access on 28th March 2025, publishers Krafton have announced. Billed as a potential Sims 4 usurper, and equipped with syrupy Unreal Engine 5 visuals, it was originally slated for launch this year.

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Roblox is making changes in an attempt to keep younger players safe in the online platform. Beginning later this month, children under the age of 13 will no longer be able to search, discover or play unrated experiences within Roblox, and will be unable to access social hangout experiences.

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Could tower defence be the ultimate "it's Friday and I am here in body only" genre? I haven't really thought about it before, but Rift Riff's effusively laidback crowd control has me pondering those optimal moments in any tower defender when the incoming horde hits the flamer-MG triangle just right, and you can settle back comfortably into the role of clockwatcher.

Rift Riff encourages this behaviour by being nice to look at. Created by a trio of developers including Hidden Folks designer Adriaan de Jongh, it's a world of spacey, sun-carved mountains, forests and monoliths. The towers resemble the sacred architecture of Monument Valley, and the colour scheme and general ambience remind me of Cocoon. There's a demo, if you fancy it.

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In all honesty, Toads Of The Bayou could have been several notches less ribbet-ing than its Steam demo ended up being, because its stylised pixel fly-snatchers are just that good. There’s only one of the three characters available in the freebie (one of the others is a toad nun with a shotgun), but he’s got a little cutlass, a flintlock pistol, and a can-do attitude - at least when it comes to either stabbing or shooting things. The game itself is a little bit deckbuilder, a little bit Into The Breach: turn based strategy with perfect information and various tricks you can pull to make enemies hit each other instead of the thing you’re trying to protect. Indulge yourself on the gourmet tray-tray below.

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Palworld developers Pocketpair have finally revealed which patents Nintendo and the Pokémon Company are suing them about. It looks like they're focusing on the act of throwing capsular items to catch or release monsters, together with the usage of monsters as mounts.

If you've somehow yet to encounter Palworld, it's a bestselling survival game that takes hefty - some would say, scandalous - inspiration from Pokémon, with players poaching Pokésque critters using magic spheres, and deploying them as soldiers and minions.

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