Details for the PS5 Pro Console

On Tuesday the 10th of September Sony held a technical presentation revealing the details of the
upcoming PS5 Pro console. It’s set to release on November 7th of this year and preorders will
open on the 26th of September. Alongside the technical specifications, Sony revealed that the
PS5 Pro will cost a whopping $1199 AUD.

So, what is the PS5 Pro offering to justify that mammoth price tag?

Well, the biggest improvement is higher-fidelity graphics and smoother frame rates which
they’re promising to deliver with a bigger GPU, Advanced Ray Tracing, and some AI-driven
upscaling. Storage is also getting an upgrade. Where the original console came with 825GB of
space, the PS5 Pro features a 2TB SSD.

There are some downgrades though. The PS5 Pro does not have a disc drive so if you have a
collection of physical games you’ll need to invest in a separate drive for $159 AUD. The PS5 Pro
is also missing the vertical stand that came with previous versions of the console, and yes you
can buy it separately but that will drive the price even further up.

Speaking of Sony….

If you’ve been paying attention to the games industry this year, there’s no way you’ve missed the
huge number of layoffs hitting studios big and small. It’s a depressing trend that’s forced a lot of
talented people out of the industry, but not everyone is sympathetic.

As a guest on a recent episode of My Perfect Console podcast Chris Deering, the ex-president of
Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, disputed that the trend is a result of corporate greed.
“I don’t think it’s fair to say that the resulting layoffs have been greed. If the money isn’t coming
in from the consumers on the last game, it’s going to be hard to justify spending the money for
the next game.”

There’s definitely truth to that, and Chris wouldn’t have come under fire if he’d stopped there,
but he didn’t stop there. “It’s like the pandemic,” he continued “You’re going to have to figure out
how to get through it, drive an Uber, or whatever. Find a cheap place to live and go to the beach
for a year.”

Rockstar Games slammed for Low Offer to Musicians.

In a post on Twitter, X, Martyn Ware from the British band Heaven 17 shared that Rockstar
Games had contacted him about using the song Temptation in GTA6. He was excited about the
opportunity until he saw what they were offering. $7500 for a buyout of any future royalties from
the game forever.

Considering GTA 5 has made over $8.6 billion in revenue, the offer does seem quite low, but
many people were quick to argue that the exposure from being in a GTA game was more than
worth it. To those people, Martyn only had one thing to say: “Ah, but think of the exposure… Go
fuck yourself”

Baldurs Gate 3 Gets a Big Update

Late last week, Larian Studios dropped a new update for Baldur’s Gate 3. Alongside typical
gameplay improvements and bug fixes, Patch 7 brings changes to honour mode, improved split
screen, and added an in-game mod manager.

OH! And a bunch of evil ending cinematics if that’s your thing. They even renamed the “Show
Cinematic Nudity” toggle to “Show Sexual and Violent Cinematics” so people can avoid “a few
select moments of extreme violence that may be distressing to some” in these new endings.
While Larian has said that Patch 7 isn’t the last they’ve got in store for Baldur’s Gate 3, future
patches will likely be a lot smaller as the team focuses on their next project.

Upcoming Game Releases

• Mexico, 1921. A deep slumber. is coming to PC & Mac on September 13th.
• Also on September 13th, Evotinction will release on PS5, PS4, & PC
• On the 16th, The Spell Brigade leaves early access on PC.
• And on the 17th we’ll see The Plucky Squire release to PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and the Switch.

That’s all, this week, in gaming news.

This week on Zed Games agents of Chaos Paul and Caroline talk the week in  Gaming News from Zahra, the death of Concord, Secret Level, and game conservation. Paul proves words hurt more than sticks and stones while reviewing Leximan. Caroline rolls up their chilly balls in a review of the puzzler A Good Snowman Is Hard To Build. And then Paul returns to get gooey to review the game Dros.

Well… Concord Didn’t Last Long

Ryan Ellis, Game Director at Firewalk Studios, has released a blog post stating that feedback has been received loud and clear and that “your support and the passionate community that has grown around the game has meant the world to us”.

Concord, a first person shooter that launched on 23rd of August, didn’t have the most robust launch, pulling in only 697 concurrent players on Steam at its peak. Reviews towards the game were generally average, with nothing particularly glaring. It just didn’t catch on. And now it won’t have the chance, with sales ceasing as of the 6th of September, and full refunds will be offered to players over the coming weeks.

It’s implied that they’re going to make some changes, and “explore options, including those that will better reach our players”, but otherwise that makes it 2 weeks since it launched, to it shutting down.

But Maybe More Games Could Last Longer

The National Film and Sound Archive of Australia, has joined forces with the BFI National Archive in the UK, and The Strong National Museum of Play in the US, to put out the call for improved game preservation across the globe.

A worldwide survey was held, to formally discover and acknowledge that current measures are just not good enough, due to a lack of established resources, difficulty accessing game material, and not enough collaboration between communities. Many gamers are familiar with the feeling of not being able to play an old favourite again due to it being impossible to obtain through ordinary means, and with an estimated 87% of classic video games deemed ‘missing’ in a 2023 study, even piracy or emulators might not be an option.

With the organisations teaming up, the NFSA wants to establish more structured collaboration between organisations, develop a framework so that games can be preserved legally and safely, as well as pushing for an understanding of how important this can be.

“For the last half-century, video games have become not only a massive industry, but an art form connecting people around the world through play. It is vital that institutions work together globally to preserve the history of this revolutionary medium before it is lost,” says Jon-Paul C. Dyson, Director of The International Center for the History of Electronic Games.

Good Bye Itsuno…For Now

Hideaki Itsuno, a senior developer at Capcom, has bid the company farewell at the end of August, 2024. Dragon’s Dogma being his dream game, it seems fitting for him to move on after releasing the sequel (although there might be an expansion on the way).

He’s not done with games though!

“From September, I will start developing a new game in a new environment. I hope to create fun, beautiful games that are as memorable as, or even more memorable than, the ones I have created so far”, he says.

News Nibbles!

I didn’t know where else to put this, but Bethesda removed a Doom mod due to complaints about its…political tone? It’s about the former UK Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, being resurrected in “The Tenth Circle of Hell: The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland”.

Attendees for PAX Aus, 2024, will be able to witness TWO unholy matrimony ceremonies. “We are literally building a real Cult of the Lamb Temple for this!” the studio, Massive Monster, said on socials.

Console players of Stardew Valley… we’ll need to wait a little longer for update 1.6. ConcernedApe has acknowledged that it’s taking a long time, there are reasons for this, but the bottom line is that it’s just not out yet. People waiting for his next project, Haunted Chocolatier, will have to wait, as development won’t continue until Stardew 1.6 is finalised.

And now for some upcoming games!

September 6

• Ace Attorney Investigations Collection – PC, Switch, PS4, Xbox One
• Astro Bot – PS5
• NBA 2K25 – PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X
• Perennial Order – PC, PS5, Xbox Series S/X, iOS
• Fitness Boxing Featuring Hatsune Miku – Switch
• El Paso, Elsewhere – PS5
• Age of Mythology: Retold – PC, Xbox Series S/X

September 9

• Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 – PC, PS5, Xbox

September 10

• Yars Rising – PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox, Switch
• Towerborne – PC, Xbox Series S/X

Maylee and Peter talk mini painting before Paul brings us the best in Gaming News and Sonic trauma, Then Zahra unravels in narrative puzzler while playing A Star Named EOS from Silver Lining Studio. And Maylee teases a review of Tavern Keeper coming next week!

Nintendo Showcases

Nintendo held a double direct event this week starting with an Indie World direct followed by a Partner Showcase.

Kicking off Indie World there was a reveal of free DLC for this years mega indie hit Balatro. The  Friends of Jimbo update adds cosmetic cards from titles such as The Witcher, Vampire Surviviors, Dave the Diver and Among us.

Fans of the visual novel series Coffee Talk got a surprise with Coffee Talk Tokyo showing the path forward after the 2022 death of the series original creator Fahmi. The spin off features much of the same talent from the original games including the composer and Kimitaka Ogawa who did the Japanese translation of the original game has moved into a writing role. The game is expected in 2025.

The Indie World Presentation wrapped up with the announcement that cult hit Pizza Tower would be releasing on switch. The 90’s cartoon, Wario Land inspired platformer will be release3d…. right now!

The Partners showcase featured Tetris Forever, a celebration of the Tetris franchise releasing in time for the original game’s 40^th anniversary. It includes classic tetris games like Tetris! Tetris 2 + Bombliss! and Tetris Battle Gaiden, plus a new mode named Tetris Time Warp that switches the player between game styles at random. Tetris Forever is due later this year.

A new Capcom fighting game collection was announced and the Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection got a release date. The Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection launches September 12^th as a digital release and November 22^nd for physical. Capcom Fighting Game Collection 2, features Capcom vs. SNK 2: Mark of the Millennium 2001, Plasma Sword and most importantly Power Stone and Power Stone 2 including online play.  The Collection is scheduled for a 2025 release.

A collection of the Nintendo DS Castlevania games was announced and released. The Castlevania Dominus Collection, contains Portrait of Ruin, Order of Ecclesia and Dawn of Sorrow.

The show ended with the announcement that Yakuza Kiwami would be coming to the Switch and would be available on October 24^th.

There was lots more to see so check out the presentations online.

News Nibbles

Foamstars, the Splatton inspired Playstation multiplayer game is going Free to play on October 4^th.

Animal Crossing Pocket Camp will be closing down its mobile services on November 28th. Nintendo will release a paid standalone version of the game players can transfer their camps into.

Sonic 3, the movie that is has a trailer featuring Keanu Reeves as Shadow the hedgehog and double the Jim Carrey.

In the cleanup from Gamescom there was a pack Future Games Show stream. There were many announcements and updates but perhaps the most surprising was a theme park simulator based on Mars using the Mars Attacks license called… Mars Attracts.

Wizards of the Coast announced that along with the release of the new updated rules for 5^th edition they would remove the existing content on the D&D Beyond platform that players had paid for.  They have since backed down from the decision following massive backlash.

Valves worst kept secret, Deadlock the 5vs5 hero shooter, has finally been officially announced. This was after a weekend where the game was ranked #3 on steams most played leaderboard.

Concord, Playstation’s latest attempt at a live service game has had an unspectacular release with less than 700 concurrent players on steam on release day. This has led to many meme comparisons including pointing out that the this number is worse than the launch of the much maligned The Lord of the Rings: Gollum.

Game Releases

Akimbot (PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC), Bloodless (PC), Emio — The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club (Switch), Gori: Cuddly Carnage (PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Switch, PC), Gundam Breaker 4 (PS5, PS4, Switch, PC), Monster Jam Showdown (PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Switch, PC), Squirrel With a Gun (PC), Visions of Mana (PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PC), Star Wars Outlaws (PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC) – August 30

Sumerian Six (PC) – September 3

Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions (PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Switch, PC), Star Trucker (PC) – September 4

Age of Mythology: Retold (Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PC) – September 5

This week on Zed Games Maylee, Peter, and Caroline organise boardgame nights before Tobi brings us the week in Gaming News, Caroline gets not so clicky in the the idle farmer games Plantera 1 and 2 developed by VaragtP. Peter does an elevator pitch of Leaderboard. Then Zahra channels their inner deity and embraces the carcinization within while reviewing of Crab God developed by Chaos Theory Games.

Gamescom 2024

On the morning of August 21 here in Australia, Gamescom 2024 went live. And dropped a Santa sack of goodies onto the web. Here’s a highlight reel of what happened…
In the 30-minute preshow we got; Dave the Diver crossovers with Balatro and Potion Craft coming October, life sim Inzoi, and game announcements for Sniper Elite Resistance.
Then in the actual main show a teaser for Borderlands 4, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 coming October, Goat Simulator Remastered coming later this year, Persona 3: Reload DLC – Episode Aigis pitting you against Joker from Persona 5 coming September, Kyle Crane returns in Dying Light: The Beast, Arc Raiders got a price tag and release for 2025, Path of Exiles 2 is coming to early access in November, Xbox mecha fans are getting a closed beta in August for Mecha Break, Little Nightmares creators are returning in Reanimal, while Supermassive Games is continuing the series in Little Nightmares 3 coming 2025, more info into the upcoming survival MMO Dune Awakening, Marvel Rivals will release December, Civilization 7 is coming February 2025, be the Batman in VR with Batman: Arkham Shadow, Indiana Jones and The Great Circle is coming to Xbox and PC December, and Peter Molyneux took to the stage to announce Masters of Albion

“So I’ve looked at Dungeon Keeper – I’ve taken some things that I’ve wanted to explore further with Dungeon Keeper. I did the same with Black & White – I’ve taken some things from Black & White. I’ve done the same with Fable.”

The Monkey King Rises

The highly anticipated action RPG, Black Myth: Wukong, has officially launched. Based on the classic Chinese novel “Journey to the West,” the story follows the transforming Monkey King as he is faced with regrets, sacrifice, and fate all while seeking redemption. Developed by Chinese studio Game Science, the game is filled with Chinese folklore and mythology and has garnered a massive hype.
Since its release, Black Myth: Wukong has quickly climbed the charts, and at the time of writing Steam’s second biggest game ever with 2.2 million concurrent players.
However, the release has not been without controversy/ragebait. A leaked streaming agreement explicitly prohibits content creators from discussing politics, China, or feminist topics. While this was not extended to journalists who did not receive the same brief, it has raised concerns about censorship and the influence of the developers’ guidelines on free speech.

Now for some Gaming Bytes

Nerfs ahoy with Sorcerers in Diablo 4’s Season of the Infernal Hordes getting buffed… a little too much. The Fractured Winterglass item was causing so many Splintering Energy procs in one build it was causing server lag. A nerf was quickly released halving the procced spell numbers but doubling the damage. This still halved the damage output of the sorcerers and you’re only hearing about it because it is the build I play and I’m salty.
Helldivers 2 released a new update full of “balancing” nerfing flamers and more. The backlash has led to players purposely failing Major Orders, traitorous player killing, and more generally – uninstalling the game.
A PSA to Counter Strike players: Don’t go out and get the Razer Huntsman V3 Pro or Wooting’s Snappy Tappy keyboards for that sweet SOCD strafing because Valve has just banned them and if you use them, you too can get hit with the ban hammer.
And at Devcom 2024 those attending were surveyed and 90% of the devs say that games don’t need microtransactions and games can be “…financially successful just by being Buy-to-Play.”

And finally some game releases

Hey look, it’s another power up team-based shooter called Concord coming to PC and PS5 Friday August 23. Then on Monday August 26 World of Warcraft’s newest expansion The War Within releases. Tuesday August 27 why not chase taxes and collect debt in Debtors Club on PC. And Wednesday August 28 clean up the cutest afterlife as a cat in Crypt Custodian coming to PC and all major consoles. And in more cat themed adventures, why not become a giant monster cat and destroy cities in Monster Run: Downfall of the Empire on PC. Or you can shout PARKOUR in Supermoves coming to PC.

This week Hazel and Peter scream from the rafters talking the Indie Dev Night going on at Netherworld and spruik 4ZZZ and the Radiothon Subscriber Drive. But first Zahra brings us the highs and lowes in the week in Gaming News, and Paul gets real in a review The Crush House from Nerial.

Misty’s Voice Actor Passing Away

Voice actress Rachael Lillis, has passed away at the age of 46 due to breast cancer. She was most well-known for her roles as Misty and Jessie in the English dub of Pokemon, before the cast was changed in 2006. She also voiced  Utena in the English dub of Revolutionary Girl Utena, some Pokemon, including Jigglypuff in Pokemon Detective Pikachu, and Princess Charlotte in the English dub of Beserk.

In May 2024, her sister had created a GoFundMe to help raise money for her care, a campaign that many of her fellow voice actors contributed to.

Turkey Bans Roblox

Roblox, the very popular free-to-play online game, has recently been banned in Turkey over concerns of child exploitation.

Roblox has faced some criticism since launching in 2006, with reports suggesting that the game isn’t safe for minors. Bloomberg reported that in July, Roblox submitted over 13,000 reports to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in 2023, and an executive suggested that perhaps the game could “provide jobs to kids living in slums”. The company had released a statement claiming that the majority of creators are over 18, and the company has never hired teenagers.

Turkey’s ban was largely driven by reports of alleged child exploitation, as well as reports of in-game sexual content.

A Roblox spokesperson has stated “We respect the laws and regulations in countries where we operate, and share local lawmakers’ commitment to children. We look forward to working together to ensure Roblox is back online in Turkey as soon as possible.”

Well, Borderlands 3 Is Doing Well

Borderlands: The Movie, hasn’t had the easiest time at the box office, with a 9% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and only pulling in $8.9 million USD in its first weekend. However, Borderlands 3 has had an increase in players with the movie’s release, peaking at 12,379 players, a significant increase for a 5 year old game.

Borderlands 2, Borderlands, and Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel has also had an uptick in players, at least according to Steam.

Gearbox did launch a feature for Borderlands 3 that allows the player to skip the main campaign with a new character, as long as you’ve previously beaten the campaign once and have a max-level character, so returning players will have an easier time getting to the endgame, so that works out well.

Toxic Chess

Amina Abakarova, a Russian chess player, has allegedly attempted to poison an opponent using mercury, a famously toxic element. Chess, like any game, can get pretty heated, and extremely competitive, but normally these heated interactions fall within the realm of fair play.

In this case, a chess tournament in Dagestan was cancelled when one of the players, a European champion named Umayganat Osmanova, became very unwell quite suddenly. After an investigation which revealed the presence of mercury on her table. Footage supposedly shows Amina spreading the metal across the table.

Umayganat is in stable condition, and Amina has been temporarily suspended from participating in all competitions until the conclusion of the investigation. She is likely to face legal consequences.

News Nibbles!

We still don’t know when the Switch 2 will launch, but it is not coming before April 2025. We don’t even really know if it’ll be called the Switch 2, nor do we know much about its specs, but we should receive an official announcement during the company’s current financial year, which wraps up in March 2025.

Cult of the Lamb now has local co-op in its most recent update, Unholy Alliance. The update has also added new items, quests, buildings, chores, and more. For local co-op, you just need to plug in a second controller and set up co-op through the pause menu.

Tango Gameworks, the publisher for Hi-Fi Rush, has been adopted by Krafton, welcome news after the studio was set to be shut-down by Microsoft.

And now for some upcoming games!

August 15th

• Dredge: The Iron Rig (DLC) – PC, Xbox, PS5, Nintendo Switch
• Kena: Bridge of Spirits – Xbox

August 16th

• Madden NFL 25 – PS4, PS5, Xbox, PC
• Rugrats: Adventures in Gameland – PC, Xbox, PS5

August 20th

• Black Myth: Wukong – PC, Xbox, PS5
• Dustborn – PS4, PS5, Xbox, PC

August 21st

• Enotria: The Last Song – PC, PS5

That’s it this week in gaming news!

This week on ZED GAMES

Maylee brings us this week’s #GamingNews while Paul, Rani, and Zahra banter wildly and mourn the loss of the glossy mag Game Informer. Paul distracts Zahra and confuses Rani while they yearn for the mines in a review Gluck. Then Paul takes over in the autocorrect special talking relaxation and discovery of garbles, giggles, and squibs in a review of Flock from @AnnapurnaInteractive. And Zahra spruiks the packed and annual INDIE DEV NIGHT at @netherworldarcade with us from Zed Games, coming next week on Thursday August 15!