New Releases: June 23rd-29th, 2022

This week, Disgaea 6 arrives on PlayStation 4, 5, and PC, following yearlong exclusivity on Switch. Capcom Fighting Collection bundles ten of the developer’s pugilistic efforts (with a heaping helping of five DarkStalkers and Vampire Savior titles), while Pocky & Rocky Reshrined ‘s team of a shine maiden and tanuki still battle some of folklore’s most notable foes. Meanwhile, Serafina and the Key to the Egg (pictured) offers a dose of doujin-developed role-playing.

PlayStation 4
AI: THE SOMNIUM FILES – nirvanA Initiative (physical & digital, $59.99)
AI: THE SOMNIUM FILES – nirvanA Initiative (assorted DLC, Free)
Capcom Fighting Collection (physical & digital, $39.99)
Disgaea 6 Complete: Deluxe Edition (physical, $69.99)
DNF Duel (physical & digital, $49.99)
Escape Academy (digital, $TBA)
Fobia – St. Dinfna Hotel (physical & digital, $29.99)
MADiSON (digital, $TBA)
MX vs ATV Legends (physical & digital, $39.99)
Pocky & Rocky Reshrined (physical $29.99, digital, $24.99)
Song of Horror (physical, $39.99)
Sonic Origins (digital, $39.99-$44.99)
Sonic Origins: Classic Music Pack (DLC, $3.99)
Sonic Origins: Premium Fun Pack (DLC, $3.99)
Tour de France 2022 (physical & digital, $39.99)

PlayStation 5
Deliver Us to the Moon (physical, $24.99)
Disgaea 6 Complete: Deluxe Edition (physical, $69.99)
DNF Duel (physical, $49.99)
Fobia – St. Dinfna Hotel (physical, $29.99)
MX vs ATV Legends (physical, $39.99)
Tour de France 2022 (physical, $39.99)

Switch
AI: THE SOMNIUM FILES – nirvanA Initiative (physical & digital, $59.99)
AI: THE SOMNIUM FILES – nirvanA Initiative (assorted DLC, Free)
Archery Escape (digital, $2.99)
Birushana: Rising Flower of Genpei (digital, $39.99)
Blade Runner: Enhanced Edition (digital, $9.99)
Can Androids Survive (digital, $9.99)
Capcom Fighting Collection (physical & digital, $39.99)
Casual Gaming Bundle (digital, $14.99)
Corpse Factory (digital, $17.99)
Cube Decider (digital, $3.99)
ElecHead (digital, $9.99)
Family Bundle (digital, $17.99)
Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes (physical & digital, $59.99)
Hillbilly Doomsday (digital, $3.99)
Him & Her Collection (digital, $3.99)
Pachi Pachi 2 on a Roll (digital, $7.99)
Pancake Bar Tycoon Extended Edition (digital, $5.99)
Pocky & Rocky Reshrined (physical $29.99, digital, $24.99)
Pure Crosswords (digital, $14.99)
Ruggnar (digital, $11.19)
Sakura Spirit (digital, $9.99)
Snug Finger (digital, $7.99)
Sonic Origins (digital, $39.99-$44.99)
Sonic Origins: Classic Music Pack (DLC, $3.99)
Sonic Origins: Premium Fun Pack (DLC, $3.99)
Squish (physical, $34.99)
Steve Jackson’s Sorcery! (digital, $24.99)
Sudocats (digital, $2.99)
The Legend of Bum-Bo (digital, $19.99)
The Psychoduck (digital, $4.99)

Xbox One
A Winter’s Daydream (digital, $5.99)
AI: THE SOMNIUM FILES – nirvanA Initiative (physical & digital, $59.99)
AI: THE SOMNIUM FILES – nirvanA Initiative (assorted DLC, Free)
Capcom Fighting Collection (physical & digital, $39.99)
Escape Academy (digital, $TBA)
F1 22 (physical & digital, $TBA)
Fobia – St. Dinfna Hotel (physical, $29.99)
Hatsune Miku Jigsaw Puzzle (digital, $13.99)
Lumberjack Simulator (digital, $TBA)
MADiSON (digital, $TBA)
MX vs ATV Legends (physical, $39.99)
Sonic Origins (digital, $39.99-$44.99)
Sonic Origins: Classic Music Pack (DLC, $3.99)
Sonic Origins: Premium Fun Pack (DLC, $3.99)
Strategic Mind: The Pacific (digital, $29.99)
Urban Flow (digital, $12.99)

Xbox Series S/X
Tour de France 2022 (physical, $39.99)

PC
AI: THE SOMNIUM FILES – nirvanA Initiative ($59.99)
Blade Runner: Enhanced Edition ($9.99)
Capcom Fighting Collection ($39.99)
Disgaea 6 Complete ($TBA)
DNF Duel ($49.99)
F1 2022: Champions (Steam, Origin, $69.99)
Fobia – St. Dinfna Hotel ($29.99)
Goodbye World ($TBA)
Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak (DLC, $39.99)
MX vs ATV Legends ($39.99)
Rescuing You in the Infinite Loop ($TBA)
Ruggnar ($TBA)
Serafina and the Key to the Egg ($TBA)
Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands (Steam)

Rob’s Pick: I wasn’t a fan of Disgaea 6’s auto-batting system when the game premiered on Switch. Essentially, you could send a party to one of the game’s simpler maps, and characters would repeatedly fight until they all perished. Now, cheating has traditionally had its marketplace in the Netherworld, but I feel auto-battles devalued one of Disgaea’s signature traits. Worse, this led to a sense of level inflation when the cap was raised to 99,999,999. Grinding to cultivate a team of high-level characters produced a weird sense of gratification. Call me crazy but occasionally I’ll boot up my PS2, load up my old Hour of Darkness save, and reminisce about the halcyon summers I spent with Laharl, Etna, and Flonne.

Then I think that one person’s leisure is another person’s labor. There’s plenty of people who just don’t have the time or patience to squander in the Item World. If you’re one of those folks, then the PlayStation or PC versions of Disgaea 6 might be worth a go. Sure, the combat lacks some distinction and the polygonal visuals didn’t have the same charm as the series traditional spritework. But underneath it all was some fun character interaction that nearly held up to expectations that brewed since the last mainline entry.

Otherwise, AI: THE SOMNIUM FILES – nirvanA Initiative might be worth a look. I’m not the biggest fan of murder mystery titles, but the concept of venturing into people’s dreams and peering into their consciousness is a captivating concept (as well as pretty big ethical quandary). Point-and-click isn’t one of my favorite genres, but Akira Okada and the team at Spike Chunsoft inject the proceedings with surrealism and mechanics that keep the tempo taut. Plus, the writing is pretty amazing, as shown below:

Ryan’s Pick: The Capcom Fighting Collection is absolutely going to be my pick this week as there sure is a lot of content included with it. The game I’m most excited about is the Hyper Street Fighter II The Anniversary Edition, which is an excellent version of this classic game. On top of some other noteworthy fighters, I’m particularly interested in trying out Cyberbots: Full Metal Madness and a few of the other less-known fighters that are included in this game. There are other features built into each game like a training mode and quick saves. While it’s definitely not a dealbreaker, I am really happy to see that this game is available in physical form.

Speaking of awesome Capcom games, one final note is there was one other game that just released this past weekend on Steam that has some Final Fight flair. Developer Bitmap Bureau’s brawler Final Vendetta really seems to capture that same beat-em-up attitude and the nostalgic massive orange oil cans that endlessly roll on the ground until they are punched, so count me in. Each playable characters’ animations look great, and with four different game modes it appears there should be a few reasons to play it more than once. Here’s hoping for large turkey dinners and other delights carefully hidden in trash cans for consumption as you traverse your way through the slums while laying down some cold, hard justice.

Matt S’ pick (Editor, DigitallyDownloaded): A-Set! A-Set! A-Set! AI: The Somnium Files is right up there with my favourite visual novels of all (I mean, I know it’s got enough gameplay that it’s probably closer to a puzzle/adventure game, but I think of it as a VN). Smart, atmospheric, noirish and also very funny and surreal, it has some of the most on-point and nuanced writing we’ve ever seen in video games, and the sequel is exactly what you want from “more of it”.

Also, Iris. I love Iris. I love Iris so very much. I didn’t think she was going to be in this new game at all, but Spike Chunsoft did not let me down. A-Set!

But that’s not all for visual novel happy joy time this week! There’s Birushana: Rising Flower of Genpei. So many games set in Japanese history are either based in the Sengoku period or later eras, so we don’t get nearly enough of the drama that infused the epic conflict between the Taira and Minamoto clans through the Genpei war. But this is excellent history and features one of my all-time favourite figures in Japanese history, the rogue warrior-monk, Beinke (I’ve been to his memorial grave and everything!), so I’ve loved playing Birshana. It’s the same qualities as Idea Factory’s previous Hakuouki titles just set in a much earlier period of Japanese history.

And finally, there’s Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes. As an “alternative history” take on the same basic story and characters of the previous Fire Emblem Three Houses, this has been a delight as well, and once of Koei Tecmo’s finest Warriors games to date. It also features Hilda, or Pink Miku, the greatest axe warrior in the series’ history. Bam! Axe to the face. What a way to go. I love Hilda so very much.

Matt R’s pick (editor, Shindig): Red Earth is, by far, one of Capcom’s most unique fighting games. Between its narrative focus and elaborate RPG system, complete with password system to maintain your character level across multiple plays, it’s certainly not your typical arcade fighter, and it set the scene for a rather experimental phase for Capcom. It has also, until now, never been released for any platform other than arcade, but that changes with Capcom Fighting Collection. Red Earth is the highlight, but it’s just one of 10 games included, with the overall package focusing on Capcom’s less well-known fighters—though there is one iteration of Street Fighter II in there, for good measure.

I also have to show my love for Birushana: Rising Flower of Genpei. A new Otomate game is always cause for celebration, but one set around the Genpei war—a period well canvassed in other mediums, but less so in video games—is particularly exciting. Expect the studio’s usual commitment to stunning artwork and beautiful character designs, while also putting a fresh twist on a fascinating slice of history.