South Park: Snow Day and everything else from today's THQ Nordic showcase
Titan Quest 2! Ninja Turtles! More!
THQ Nordic's annual digital showcase has been and gone for another year, and while there were plenty of familiar faces returning from 2022's outing, it did bring a couple of new reveals. The publisher's South Park game finally got a proper unveiling in the form of Snow Day, for instance, and was followed by announcements for the likes of Titan Quest 2 and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin. For a full recap of everything shown, do read on.
South Park: Snow Day!
Eschewing the cartoon's classic construction paper looks in favour of boring old 3D, South Park: Snow Day is a co-op adventure that sees up to four players - along with Cartman, Stan, Kyle, and Kenny, naturally - enjoying their day away from school by battling through the snow-blanketed South Park streets on a quest to save the world. There's no release date for this one yet (expect to read this a lot as the recap presses on), but it's coming to PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch some time next year.
Gothic 1 Remake
Developer Alkimia Interactive's remake of Piranha Bytes' cult-classic 2001 action-RPG, Gothic, first surfaced as a playable teaser back in 2019, generating enough interest among players that THQ Nordic eventually agreed to greenlight a complete remake. Unsurprisingly, the core remains the same in this new version - once again, players take control of a convicted prisoner who finds himself on a quest across a dangerous medieval fantasy realm - but there are plenty of modern-day niceties, some of which you'll see in Gothic's latest trailer. There's still no word of a release date for the remake, but it's coming to PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.
Outcast: A New Beginning
THQ Nordic's slate of rejuvenated oldies continues with Outcast: A New Beginning, the sequel to Appeal Studios' 1999 open-world sci-fi action-adventure. So far, we know it'll see the return of original protagonist Cutter Slade for another jaunt across the alien world of Adelpha, and today's digital showcase brought a fresh look at the game's action, highlighting the sights to be found in the new-look Adelpha and alongside some of its more explosive moments. Again, still no release date for this one, but it's coming to PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.
Space For Sale
Little Big Workshop developer Mirage Game Studios' Space for Sale, you might recall, is a "hands-on" management sim in which players attempt to flex their galactic property magnate muscles. The "hands-on" bit comes from the fact you're right there, down on the ground, roaming exotic, procedurally generated planets in an attempt to find the perfect spot to satisfy your alien clients' real estate demands. So far, this one's only confirmed for PC, and while there's no release date, you can sign up for Space for Sale's incoming closed beta now.
Tempest Rising
If you're a fan of Command & Conquer and other similarly styled real-time strategy games of the 90s, it's likely Tempest Rising has already caught your eye. Coming from developer Slipgate Ironworks, Tempest Rising unfolds in an alternative 1997 where Earth has been ravaged by nuclear war; it serves up a blend of base building and "hard hitting combat", all designed to capture the magic of those 90s classics, with three playable factions, plus skirmish and multiplayer modes all promised. If that has you curious, you can get involved in the Tempest Rising playtest on Steam from today, 11th August, until Monday, 28th August.
Titan Quest 2
Another bit of nostalgia bait for gamers of a certain age, Titan Quest 2 revives Iron Lore Entertainment's acclaimed action-RPG series for another bout of adventure in a mythological ancient Greece, as they this time attempt to stop Nemesis, the Goddess of Retribution, from weaving malevolence into the Threads of Fate. It's being developed by Grimlore Games and promises "unimaginable challenges", "exquisite loot", and "unique, powerful character builds". There's no release date, but it's heading to PC at some point in the future.
Trine 5: A Clockwork Conspiracy
Developer FrozenByte's physics-based co-op platform series Trine returns later this year for a fifth instalment - subtitled A Clockwork Conspiracy - featuring new skills for its returning trio of heroes, new elements to exploit during puzzle solving, "tactical and engaging" combat, a new upgrade system, typically sumptuous good looks, and more. It's out 31st August on PlayStation, Xbox, Switch, and PC, and there's a new co-op-focused trailer to scrutinise while you wait.
Alone in the Dark
THQ Nordic's reimagined version of Alone in the Dark - which is being handled by Swedish developer Pieces Interactive with Soma and Amnesia: The Dark Descent writer Mikael Hedberg at the helm - takes the basic premise of the 1992 survival horror classic, in which private detective Edward Carnby helps Emily Hartwood investigate her uncle's suicide at the gloomy Derceto Mansion, and attempts to filter the originals' blend of exploration, combat, puzzles, and story through a more modern lens. It stars Stranger Things' David Harbour as Carnby and Killing Eve's Jodie Comer as Hartwood, and if that appeals to you as much as it does to me, ready yourself for its Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC launch on 25th October.
Last Train Home
Ashborne Games's Last Train Home is a "epic survival strategy game inspired by real historical events" that sees players guiding a squad of Czechoslovak soldiers back home. Unfortunately, bleak and unforgiving landscape of Siberia lies between them and their ticked to safety - the armoured train of the title - and players will need to manage their scarce resources and engage in real-time tactical battles to survive. The Last Train home is due to release on PC later this year.
Way of the Hunter - Tikamoon Plains
One year after its release on Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC, Way of the hunter - developer Nine Rocks' game of striking open-world vistas and shooting wild, majestic animals dead - returns with a new DLC expansion. Tikamoon Plains, as it's known, whisks players to the African wilds, where there's a new landscape to explore, new animal species to hunt, plus expanded difficulty options and an arsenal of new weapons. It's out today, 11th August, for £7.99/€9.99/$9.99 USD.
Wreckreation
Three Field Studios, the team of ex-Criterion devs responsible for the likes of Dangerous Golf and Dangerous Driving, revealed their open-world racer Wreckreation last year. The emphasis here is on freedom and player-created content, with players, working together if they choose, able to whip up their own physics-defying courses on the fly for a quick bit of racing wherever they roam. We still don't have a release date for this one (it was originally due to launch this year for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC), but we do have a new trailer.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin
And finally, something new for your eyes, albeit only in minimally revealing teaser trailer form. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin, which is inspired by the comic book of the same name, unfolds in a battle-ravaged New York City, where a lone surviving Turtle - I'm assuming that'll be the Ronin of the title - embarks on a seemingly hopeless mission seeking, as THQ Nordic puts it, justice for the family he lost. Again no release date, but we do get that trailer, plus confirmation it's coming to PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.