Not too long ago I shared a quick overview of the gaming and esports space on how new players could participate and be part of the community, including its set of financial incentives around it for the passionate few. To further back up my claims, The Toyota Gaming Engine is hosting the Thumbderdome S2: Knuckles of Vengeance FIFA 23 tournament for players to win themselves a share of cash prizes up to R15,000. The tournament is a cross-play type open to the current ninth-generation consoles: Microsoft's Xbox Series S + Series XSony PlayStation 5 This simply means that existing users with older consoles sadly won’t be included (which gracefully ends the 10-year generation cycle that the previous generation of consoles completed). TTGE intend to have sign-ups that can fill up to 512 gamers competing within 4 Qualifier Rounds (Each round hosting 128 players) hosted on specific days until the best players progress to Knockout Stages. The Knockouts are where the top 16 thumbers fight to secure a slot in the finals which, guess this, shall in turn only house the top 8 players to duke it out for a share of the glorious winnings of R15,000 in cash prizes. What are you waiting for? sign-up right here. Written by Smilo "Slim" Gosa

My journey through developer Mad Head Games’ sci-fi action adventure, Scars Above, started off innocently enough. After a brief introductory cutscene summarising the current situation involving a four-person research expedition to the Metahedron, a large alien structure that had suddenly appeared near Earth, my interest was piqued. In no time at all I was given full control over our protagonist, Dr Kate Ward, and could explore a small section of the team’s Hermes spacecraft while going through the usual tutorial motions. Several points of interest within the three or four accessible rooms could be interacted with to enter a close-up “investigation” view; individual objects could then be picked up and fully rotated. I’m a big fan of when games allow us this kind of excruciatingly in-depth asset analysis, even if it comes with an obnoxious motion blur effect as is the case here. Having exhausted all examinable photographs and trinkets within my immediate surroundings, I went for the exit only to have the game crash on me. Thankfully, this was a one-time occurrence. One restart later and I was back on the Hermes, now purposefully avoiding any distractions and soldiering on with story progression. The other crew members you’re introduced to throughout the opening sequence don’t come across as particularly interesting, all sporting the same near-expressionless face as our dear Kate. Despite the shallow presentation of these characters, you really get the sense that the crew are quite close and have spent a considerable amount of time together. Once you’ve made the necessary preparations for what’s to come, the commander gives a speech and orders the commencement of the mission in earnest. Surprising no one, something goes horribly wrong as the Hermes becomes inoperable after setting its sights on the Metahedron. Some time later, after regaining consciousness on the surface of an unknown planet, Kate sets out on a quest to determine what remains of her crewmates and ship, while having to come to grips with the strange environment she now finds herself in. Following a seemingly spectral being known as “The Apparition”, Kate slowly begins connecting bits of information obtained through audio logs that confirm her worst fear: a lot more time has passed since the crash than she had originally thought. The incredibly hostile life-forms that inhabit this planet pose a formidable initial challenge and will do everything in their power to see to it that your life is cut short, emptying your health bar in mere seconds if you’re not careful. You won’t have to face them empty-handed, however, as various small caches left behind by the other crewmates serve as convenient loot points for both weaponry and gadgets. Your arsenal slowly expands as you move through the story, acquiring three more weapons with different types of damage as well as additional upgrades. Your first means of self defense takes the form of a rifle that fires bolts of electricity, dealing additional damage to foes already submerged in water. At about the same time, the electric cutter, or space knife as I prefer calling it, becomes available. This melee weapon is particularly effective at dealing with the smaller enemies you’ll come across resembling mutated spiders but is otherwise totally unusable in most encounters. Your arsenal slowly expands as you move through the story, acquiring three more weapons with different types of damage as well as additional upgrades for those already in your possession. There’s a decent variety of enemy types, along with elemental variations that pop up as you delve further into the world. As strange as it sounds, the larger creatures tend to provide less of a challenge than the smaller ones. This can mostly be attributed to the gigantic, glowing weak points on their bodies that directly correspond to the type of weapon you should be using. If the glowing pustules on the giant alien yeti’s back are orange, it’s time to switch to the gun that shoots flaming projectiles. If it’s light blue, it’s back to the electric rifle. It can be tricky to nail some of these shots, particularly on the gorilla-like Alluvials, who only provide a clear line of fire to their glowing chests when rearing up before an attack. The infrequent boss battles also feature this same “shoot the glowing balls” mechanic, with some clever exceptions later on. If you’re still having a tough time staying alive, there are a myriad of gadgets that Kate can utilise to make combat encounters significantly less challenging. Depending on which device you use, you’ll have to fork over one of two types of energy currencies. If you replenish ammo for a gun or inject yourself with a healing agent, fiber found throughout the map or looted off of creatures will be consumed. If you choose to activate a full-body shield or throw a gravity trap to slow down approaching enemies, you’ll expend batteries. However you choose to get the job done, scanning the dead organism for a detailed scientific run-down of its biological structure and weaknesses awards a viewable 3D model of the enemy for your codex/log, which is a neat touch. If this is your first time encountering this specific species, the scan will additionally award knowledge – a currency used for unlocking abilities. Small purple cubes containing varying amounts of knowledge can also be found on the planet, usually just off the beaten path. Once Kate gathers enough “information” to fill the knowledge bar, you are awarded an ability point to unlock a personal upgrade of your choice. These range from shorter reload times to reducing fiber consumption when activating consumable gadgets. It’s a shame, then, that navigation is quite linear. It ruins the immersion somewhat realising you’re running through what is, in essence, a series of corridors with extremely minor offshoots. While Scars Above’s enemies, weapons and gadgets are easily the most appealing aspects of the whole package, the world and environmental design play an important role in establishing the overall tone and aesthetic. Every chapter’s fauna and flora contribute excellently to that lingering sensation of alienation, of being somewhere you absolutely shouldn’t be. It’s a shame, then, that navigation is quite linear. It ruins the immersion somewhat realising you’re running through what is, in essence, a series of corridors with extremely minor offshoots. The glowing pillars dotted around the various maps act as Dark Souls-esque checkpoints offering a refill of health and some ammunition, while reviving all previously downed enemies. I have no idea why the developers thought this was a thing Scars Above needed. Sure, checkpoints are a no-brainer for games like this, but the enemy respawn just comes across as a way of artificially extending the game’s short 7–8-hour campaign. There are a few other design choices that perplex me, biggest of all being the complete lack of firing from the hip. As far as I can tell, the only way to use your gun involves aiming down sights, drastically reducing your movement speed and leaving you vulnerable to close and long-range attacks from the much faster enemies. This is also why attempting to maintain some space between you and your target totally fails at being a viable option in most scenarios. This wouldn’t be too much of a problem if Kate wasn’t so damn squishy. Even with all the (frankly overpowered) weapon and gadget upgrades at your disposal, the combat never leaves the realm of feeling purely serviceable at best. Around the halfway point of the game, enemy encounters begin to feel less interesting and more of a tedious, repetitive inevitability. These battles no longer pose even a shadow of their former threat, and the environments start losing their outlandish appeal. The plot held my interest for a decent amount of time before it too faded into the background and I found myself progressing less for the sake of solving this great mystery and more because I just wanted to reach some sort of conclusion – regardless of its quality. The plot held my interest for a decent amount of time before it too faded into the background and I found myself progressing less for the sake of solving this great mystery and more because I just wanted to reach some sort of conclusion. Crafting makes an appearance at various scripted points in the story. Rather than actually having a dedicated menu where looted materials can be combined at any point, the interface only shows up when an upgrade is discovered. Up comes the crafting menu, you’re prompted to hold down a button, and there you have it. You’re done. The bizarre way this is handled gives the impression that at one point in development, there was a significantly more robust crafting system planned out that, for whatever reason, never materialised in the final product. Other than the crash I previously mentioned, I didn’t encounter too many bugs. Kate’s movement can feel a bit stiff at times (especially her dodging), and I’m pretty sure she never blinks. In the first two chapters of the game, I encountered a glitch that made my gun automatically fire and another that prevented me from healing. A short while later, I came across an enemy that disappeared into thin air after I ran around a nearby corner. Meanwhile in the pause menu, switching tabs would sometimes result in a brief white flash. There was also an instance later on while figuring out an environmental puzzle where Kate suddenly blurted out a line of dialogue meant to serve as a clue in the incorrect location, resulting in me searching for a solution in the wrong area entirely. Scars Above is an interesting experience for all the wrong reasons, my feelings upon finishing the title a mixture of disappointment and frustration. It’s easy to see what Mad Head Games were going for here, and the foundation for a more fleshed out experience is alive and well within the game as it currently stands. The stand-out moment for me was the discovery of the full wreckage of Kate’s ship, within which you come across and thoroughly investigate the remains of a crew member in the process of undergoing a horrific transformation. If there were more moments that felt this engaging, I’d be inclined to offer a stronger recommendation. With a bit more polish, improved mechanic implementation, and actual character investment, this could have been a much smoother ride. *PS5 Review code provided by Prime Matter Reviewed by Ryan Pretorius

Microsoft continues to build a case for itself in the ongoing Activision Blizzard deal. With some opposition from Sony, the company is at the whim of decisions ruled by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). Some new documents from Microsoft now suggests that The Elder Scrolls 6 won’t be exclusive to Xbox and PC only but could very well release on PS5 in the distant future. As detailed by PlayStation LifeStyle, Axios reporter Stephen Totilo recently stated that two upcoming games under ZeniMax (Bethesda’s parent company) are set to release on Xbox and PC as exclusives. However, back in December 2022 Microsoft claimed that “three future titles” would be exclusives to Xbox and PC. Tango Gameworks’ Hi-Fi Rush is presumably one of them which launched in January, leaving two unaccounted for. Interestingly, both Starfield and Redfall are exclusive to Xbox and PC meaning it’s likely that these are the two upcoming games recently mentioned by ZeniMax. This leaves The Elder Scrolls 6 off the table and within the realm of possibility that it might head to PS5 as well. The Elder Scrolls is a huge franchise and since Bethesda largely remains an independent publisher even under Microsoft’s banner, it can still choose to release The Elder Scrolls 6 on multiple platforms. Given the enormous popularity of the franchise too, it would only make sense to try and maximise the sales potential of The Elder Scrolls 6 which is almost guaranteed to be a big seller at launch. Personally I don’t think it would make much sense to throttle the game’s release and tie it to an exclusivity deal, though we can’t be certain. There’s also the issue of the deal only strictly mentioning two upcoming titles, not counting other Bethesda studios like id Software which might be deep in the development of its next game. Either we believe that the next id Software game (along with The Elder Scrolls 6) might not be exclusives to Xbox and PC or the document simply omits exclusive deals beyond Starfield and Redfall. It’s too early to tell so treat this as mere speculation for now. The Elder Scrolls 6 doesn’t have a release date yet. Source: PlayStation LifeStyle Original article on GLITCHED

It’s been nearly a decade since the last entry in the Castlevania series, Lords of Shadow 2. Publisher Konami has kept the series dormant for several years, only releasing upscaled ports and remastered collections of classic Castlevania titles including Rondo of Blood and Symphony of the Night. However, one Konami developer is well-aware of fan enthusiasm to see the IP finally return to the spotlight, stating that it’s “motivating” for the company. During an interview with IGN regarding the recent release of the crossover expansion Dead Cells: Return to Castlevania, Konami assistant producer Tsutomu Taniguchi said that the buzz surrounding Castlevania was “really motivating for Konami.” Taniguchi danced around the idea of potentially reviving Castlevania similar to what Konami accomplished with the Silent Hill series, but did give fans some light at the end of the tunnel. Taniguchi’s reply when talking about fan enthusiasm for Castlevania reads: “We tried to bring back the games that people loved and cherished with the Castlevania Anniversary Collection and the Castlevania Advance Collection. We also brought back Rondo of Blood and Symphony of the Night for our PlayStation fans and on mobile, and launched Grimoire of Souls on Apple Arcade to celebrate the lore of the franchise. But we know that our fans always want more, and we do too, so this opportunity to have this amazing crossover with Dead Cells was impossible to pass up on.” A recent report from VGC claimed that Konami will attend E3 this year and could reveal a new Castlevania game, rumoured to be a reboot of the franchise, that’s been in development for some time now. The report also mentions a remake of Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater. Castlevania is long-overdue for a revival and it seems like Konami is listening to fans on this one. Hopefully it leads to something great in the near future. Source: IGN Original article on GLITCHED