A new month has begun, and with it come several game releases for PS5, PS VR2, and other consoles. We've put together a brief overview of what players can look forward to in the coming weeks.
Stellar Blade
The top PS5 release is likely to be Stellar Blade This game, initially released exclusively, will appeal to fans of hack-and-slash games like Devil May Cry. In this action-adventure, you can expect lightning-fast combat, brutal attack combinations, spectacular moves and weapon upgrades, as well as epic boss battles that can be overcome with strategy and power.
Stellar Blade appears on April 26, 2024, A playable demo has been available on the PlayStation Store for a few days now.
sandland
Bandai Namco is bringing its new IP sandland on the way, which is also at 26. April It is released. In this action RPG by Akira Toriyama, players take on the role of Beelzebub and immerse themselves in a nostalgic universe. Together with the chaste demon Sheef and the fearless Sheriff Rao, players accompany Beelzebub on an extraordinary adventure in search of the legendary spring hidden in the desert.
A Demo for Sand Land is also available in the PlayStation Store.
TopSpin 2K25
2K Games brings back the TopSpin series, developed by Hangar 13. In TopSpin 2K25, novice players travel the world to earn the biggest names in tennis and conquer the world's center courts, including Wimbledon, Roland-Garros, the US Open, and the Australian Open.
TopSpin 2K25 appears on April 26, 2024.
Sea of Thieves
Microsoft brings with it Sea of Thieves Another first-party exclusive title is coming to the PS5. The game offers a typical pirate experience with plundering lost treasure, intense combat, defeating sea monsters, and much more. Sea of Thieves is already considered Microsoft's biggest release on the PS5.
Sea of Thieves is from the 30. April .
Also new on PS5 & Co.
Beyond the major release, there are many smaller titles that are definitely worth a look.
There would be Tales of Kenzera: ZAU (April 23), which tells a story about grief, loss and courage. Happening Ritual (April 18) puts players in a turn-based zombie horror shooter while they are in Harold Halibut (April 18th) an interesting stop-motion adventure awaits. Also releasing on April 10th is Broken Roads, in which players experience a captivating story set in a devastated future Australia.
Other indie highlights include Planet of Lana (April 16), Withering Rooms (April 05) and Loretta (April 11).
I played the Stellar Blade demo and thought it was cool, but I set it to easy because otherwise you have to invest hours trying to find the perfect moments to block, dodge, etc. The windows of opportunity are incredibly small, and it's just annoying how stressful everything has become. Nier, Devil May Cry, etc., did it better in my opinion. So, worst case scenario, I'll play through it on easy, but have some fun... The only problem is that it costs €80, and that just makes me laugh out loud... €80? The game doesn't even come close to Nier, and Nier was a €50-€60 title. It's a niche and very specific. The fact that every game (it seems) now thinks it has to cost €80 is ridiculous. Especially since the production costs, scope, and variety vary so much from game to game. Eyuden Chronicles is also supposed to cost €80 on the PSN. Octopath cost around €40-€50 back then and serves as a benchmark here. It can't be that such a "copycat" game is almost twice as expensive as the original.
In gaming, the relationship between price and quality is completely off, and so the cheapskates lose day-one buyers or more... when the novelty wears off and better games come along.
We can only thank Sony.
I also tried the demo; for me, it's definitely not an €80 game, but rather €50-60.
If the game costs €80, what should DMC5 cost with 4 playable characters that play uniquely, with a bloody palace mode, with graphics that still look great, and an awesome soundtrack?
If Sony's price is anything to go by, it'll probably be €120+... as if they only stop at €80.
I probably would have pre-ordered Stellar Blade for €50. Not for €80… oh well, I'll wait and see, the price will probably drop anyway.
Oh god, IGN is making a fuss about the actress because she's too sexy, as if professional journalism didn't have any other problems.
Seriously, I'd much rather have a character like that than that face-smashing mess from The Last of Us, like Abby or whatever her name is. Yes, the Japanese, or in this case the Koreans, tend to overdo it a bit with their sexy characters, which would be highly questionable in real life, but these are games, and they're meant to take you away from everyday life. I don't want realistic characters in such over-the-top games. Sexy women, perhaps depicted as slightly exaggerated, badass guys who can do anything and are totally stylish, like Dante in Devil May Cry, simply fit into these kinds of games and also provide a contrast to, for example, the threat within the game. Then there are a few cool one-liners, the attitude that no matter what happens, you can handle it anyway, which simply ensures that the games, despite sometimes heavy themes, have a positive atmosphere and make you want to spend time in them.
In anime RPGs where everything is just raunchy and suggestive, and the girls are supposed to look incredibly young, and everything is geared towards being super sexy, I find it simply off-putting. For example, I actually thought Xenoblade Chronicles 2 was pretty cool, but the fact that the female Blade Pyra runs around in a sort of semi-nude outfit with a metal bikini didn't fit the game's style and its slightly chibi aesthetic at all. I don't find it off-putting in Stellar Blade at all, but maybe that's just a matter of personal taste.
Yes, I agree with you, I also increasingly dislike the uncanny valley faces of Western games, especially among women.
A gaming journalist shouldn't start an identity debate; they should simply test the game and say whether it works, looks good, or if the gameplay is good. The journalist claimed the developer has never seen a real woman, when in fact the developer is married to one who also happens to be the face in the game. Yes, personally, I found the amount of nudity excessive, but to each their own.