ConcernedApe has taken to Twitter to discuss the status of Stardew Valley console and mobile ports, as well as the development of Haunted Chocolatier. While there aren’t any details in the Tweet, he assures fans that they’ve been working on them and they’re the primary focus since Stardew Valley Version 1.6 appeared on PC.

To summarize it, he acknowledges that the console and mobile ports for Stardew Valley are taking a long time for various reasons he didn't get into. He accepts full responsibility for the delay. ConcernedApe also expresses gratitude to those who have been patiently waiting, as they reduce the amount of stress he has to deal with. As for Haunted Chocolatier, he has not worked on it in a while due to wanting to perfect and finalize Stardew Valley Version 1.6 first. Indeed, the last progress update ConcernedApe shared for Haunted Chocolatier was in 2021. The full statement is available via ConcernedApe’s Twitter account. Fans in the replies have been more than understanding for the delay. A lot of them thank ConcernedApe for all the work that he’s done in general. 

Stardew Valley Version 1.6 came out earlier this year on March 19, 2024. It features new festivals and events, a new farm type, a new mastery system, new NPC dialogue, updates to the world map, new outfits, new glamor items, balance changes, QoL improvements, and more. It was, all in all, a massive update to the game.

Stardew Valley is readily available on the Windows PC, PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and mobile devices. More information on when Version 1.6 for consoles and mobile, as well as Haunted Chocolatier, will come out will appear in the future.

The post ConcernedApe Gives Progress Update on Stardew Valley 1.6 And Haunted Chocolatier appeared first on Siliconera.

Konami detailed the Japanese limited editions for the upcoming Suikoden I & II HD Remaster, set to release on March 6, 2025. The remaster, titled Gensou Suikoden I&II HD Remaster Gate Rune and Dunan Unification Wars, will be available on PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch, with three special Famitsu DX Packs offered for pre-order through Ebiten. [Thanks, Famitsu!]

The Famitsu DX Packs come in three versions. DX Pack I and DX Pack II include 3D crystal art of the main characters from Suikoden I and II, along with 108 acrylic stands representing the stars of destiny. These packs also feature new artwork by Junko Kono, the original character designer for Suikoden I, and a hero symbol engraved glass that pays homage to the protagonists.

The third version, the "Luka-sama Cheering Set," focuses on the villain Luka Blight from Suikoden II. This set includes a T-shirt with Luka's famous line, "Pigs must die!", a wine glass engraved with the Beast Rune, and a 3D crystal of Luka himself.

In related news, Konami has announced three digital pre-order bonuses for the remaster, including early access to the Fortune Orb and Prosperity Orb, which double experience and in-game currency gains, and a head start with 57,300 potch. These bonuses are available on all platforms where the game will be released.

Suikoden I & II HD Remaster and their limited editions will be available on Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC, with the game set to launch on March 6, 2025.

The post Suikoden I and II Remastered Japanese Limited Editions Detailed  appeared first on Siliconera.

Demonschool, a tactical RPG with Persona influences, just had its September 13, 2024 release date delayed all the way back to early 2025. There’s no exact launch date for the game following this announcement, which is a move to add extra content to the game.

Necrosoft Games’ announcement went over the exact reasons for the Demonschool being delayed from September 2024 to sometime in 2025. The developer said the game, as it is now, is done. However, the goal behind this postponement is to add additional “things to do.” The announcement claimed if it had released as planned on September 13, 2024, players “would never have known” that there could have been more content.

Here’s the full Necrosoft Games statement about the game delay:

“You never want to delay a game, but Demonschool means a lot to us. We’ve really put everything we have into this project, and as we got closer to release we realized that meeting the Sept. 13th deadline would necessarily mean a game with less content than we originally envisioned.

After discussing with Ysbryd, we realized we have a couple of paths forward. We could:

• Ship the game in the state it’ll be in on Sept. 13. We’re proud of the game as it stands, but we want to make this world feel even livelier. 
• Ship the game in early 2025, which would allow us to manifest our bigger dreams into reality.

We believe the second option would be better for everyone for everyone who has followed our work so far. So we are delaying the game to make sure it’s as chock full of Things To Do as we had hoped. Realistically, the player would never have known. It still would’ve been a finished product. But we would have known that the game could have been more, and that’s the game we want to share. Ysbryd gave us the flexibility to do this, which is very unusual for a publisher these days, and we’re thankful for the opportunity to do this right. Since we’ll be taking extra time, we plan to create short dev diaries up until launch to offer more insight into the work we have ahead. We hope you look forward to these deeper dives into our process.

We’re sorry for those who are eagerly awaiting the game, but are very hopeful that all the extra content will be worth the wait. 2024 has been a very trying year for the team, so we appreciate your understanding.”

The official Necrosoft Games site hasn’t updated with the statement yet. 

While Demonschool is delayed out of 2024 and into 2025, people can still play it today. There is a demo on Steam for the PC version. The product listing still shows the September 13, 2024 

Demonschool will come to the Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X, and PC in 2025. 

The post Demonschool Release Date Delayed From September 2024 to 2025 appeared first on Siliconera.

The Official Konami Shop storefront opened pre-orders for both a Symphonic Poem from Suikoden concert Blu-ray bundle and the Suikoden I and II HD Remaster soundtrack set. Both are expected to ship in January 2025.

The Symphonic Poem from Suikoden concert Blu-ray set costs $99.99. The Blu-ray in it includes the full performance from October 16, 2022, in addition to a Suikoden II Animation Music Video featuring characters like Riou and Jowy. People also get a fabric map of the world from the first two games, a Soul Eater True Rune icon pendant in leather pouch, and six postcards from the Animation Music Video.

Suikoden I and II HD Remaster soundtrack costs $79.99. There are seven CDs in the set. The first two only cover songs from Suikoden I HD Remaster: Gate Rune War. Four of them feature music from Suikoden II HD Remaster: Dunan Unification War. The final bonus disc includes seven arrangements of existing songs and seven “music box” versions of tracks from both games. In total, 179 songs are included in the collection. People also get a booklet with information about the CDs and art.

Here’s how both of those items will look:

Suikoden I and II HD Remaster is in development and the new PS4, Xbox One, PC, and Nintendo Switch release date is March 6, 2025. There are three digital pre-order bonuses for it. The original games appeared on the PlayStation worldwide. They also appeared together in a collection on the PSP in Japan. The Symphonic Poem from Suikoden concert Blu-ray bundle and Suikoden I and II HD Remaster soundtrack set both will ship in January 2025.

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Bandai Namco has updated the official Tales of Graces f website to include details on the remastered version of the game, including changes to QOL and visuals. As a side note, the Nintendo Switch version will be the only one in which you can only play in 30 FPS, while the other consoles will be in 60 FPS at the minimum.

The whole list of changes is available via the official website. But the vast majority of them have to do with making the game easier to play. Here is a list of them all, as well as a short descriptor of each improvement or change:

• Auto-save
• Dash
  This is faster than the usual running and you’re able to toggle it on or off with the touch of a button.
• Removing enemy encounters
  If you turn off enemy encounters, you will not engage in battle even after you touch an enemy symbol on the overworld. This likely eliminates the need for Holy Bottles.
• Skipping events or Groovy Chats
  By holding down a button, you’ll be able to skip through events or Skits.
• Clicking through voice lines in Groovy Chats
  By pressing a button, you’ll be able to skip to the next line in Groovy Chats as if they were normal dialogue in the story.
• Accessing the Grade Shop from the very beginning
  Instead of needing to first beat the game to access the Grade Shop, you’ll be able to purchase bonuses from the start.
• Destination icon on the map
  An exclamation mark will denote where you need to go to advance the main story. As well, the remaining distance between you and that destination will appear on the screen.
• Cursor speed on the world map
  By pressing down a button, you’ll be able to speed up the cursor while you’re on the world map.
• Retry function in normal battles
  Even if you end up losing in a normal battle and get a game over, you’ll be able to retry from that battle instead of needing to load up a save file.
• Subtitles for dialogue in battle
  When characters talk to each other in battle or use their Mystic Artes, subtitles will appear at the bottom of the screen so you can better understand what they’re saying. You can toggle this on and off from the options.
• Making new Artes or Skills more obvious
  Newly acquired Artes, Skills, and such will be green.
• Color vision support
  Any dungeon gimmicks that required the usage of colors to solve will now be solvable using other clues. In other words, even if you can’t see certain colors, you’ll be able to clear dungeon puzzles on your own.
• The inclusion of certain DLC content
  While not every piece of DLC from the original version of f will be in the remastered version of the game, we’ll still get over 80 items. DLC includes unique Groovy Chats, Magic Karta cards, items, bonuses, and costumes (past Tales games, school uniforms, formal outfits, attachments).
• Dubbed versions of DLC Groovy Chats
  Since the DLC Groovy Chats were only in the original Japanese, the remastered edition will have dubbed versions of them in English
• Master volume adjustment
  You’ll be able to adjust the master volume of the entire game from the options, rather than having to individually lower the BGM, sound effects, voice lines, and cutscenes.
• Adjustment to certain sound effects
• Dual audio (Japanese and English)
• Button configuration for exploring and combat
• Addition of an hourglass icon for time-limited events
  Certain events in Tales of Graces are only available for a short period of time within the story, and they were hidden as well. The remastered version will add an hourglass icon to make it easier for people to find them.
• No online ranking in Challenge Battles

Tales of Graces f will come out on the PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and Windows PC on January 17, 2025.

The post Full List of Tales of Graces f Remastered Changes Detailed appeared first on Siliconera.

Koei Tecmo has updated its annual Tokyo Game Show webpage with details for its 2024 appearance. The company will set up playable demos of Dynasty Warriors Origins and Fairy Tail 2 as the primary highlights of the Koei Tecmo TGS 2024 booth.

In addition, the company announced that it will further decorate its booth with statues of key characters from both games. It will place a statue of the Dynasty Warriors Origins version of Lu Bu, as well as Natsu Dragneel and Lucy Heartfilia from the sequel to the game adaptation of Hiro Mashima's manga series.

As a reminder, Koei Tecmo has announced that it will release Fairy Tail 2 first for PCs worldwide on December 11, 2024. The console releases on the PS5, PS4, and Switch will appear in Japan and East Asia on December 12, 2024, and in North America and Europe on December 13, 2024. Meanwhile, Dynasty Warriors Origins is still only slated for release on the PS5, Xbox Series X, and PC in 2025.

Koei Tecmo has yet to confirm other titles it will showcase in TGS 2024 besides Dynasty Warriors Origins and Fairy Tail 2 as of the new webpage's opening. However, the company has confirmed that it will hold its own online program on Friday, September 27, 2024, at 5 PM JST.

Tokyo Game Show 2024 will take place at Makuhari Messe on September 26-29, 2024.

The post Koei Tecmo TGS 2024 Booth Will Have Fairy Tail 2 and DW Demos appeared first on Siliconera.

Yusuke Tomizawa, the producer for the Tales series, has released a video message on YouTube in regards to the Tales Remastered Project, as well as the 30th anniversary of the series. Bandai Namco plans to continue remastering past titles.

Here is the producer message from Tomizawa-P for the 30th anniversary of the Tales series:

The video is a little under four minutes and a half long. According to Tomizawa, the Remastered Project is part of the 30th anniversary commemorations. This means there may be more to come from the studio. The Remastered Project will focus on making past games accessible and easy to play on new consoles in an enjoyable way for both newcomers and veterans. We can see this in QoL improvements for Graces f. For example, the Grade Shop's accessibility from the start will make the game much easier. It's unclear if the Remastered Project will bring Japanese-exclusive titles to the west as well.

The rest of the video focuses on describing the general plot and worldview of Tales of Graces. It takes place in Ephinea, which has three major countries in it. Asbel Lhant, the future lord of Lhant, meets a mysterious amnesiac girl named Sophie, and befriends her and Prince Richard. Tragedy strikes and the children go their separate ways. When they reunite down the line, they're different people in a different political clilmate. The video mentions that reception to the game’s story and characters have been positive, and the combat system in particular received acclaim. These reasons, as well as constant requests, are why Graces f is the first game to receive a remaster as part of the Remastered Project.

Tales of Graces f Remastered will come out on the PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and Windows PC on January 17, 2025.

The post Bandai Namco Teases More Remastered Tales Games appeared first on Siliconera.

After getting a chance to watch an NIS America staff member play through the upcoming JRPG Reynatis, I was struck by the various forces at play in the game. In many ways, it seems like a player might need to balance certain elements, such as which mode to use in battle and their stress levels. While there’s still more to see and confirm, it seems like the sort of game where a player may need to pay attention.

During my hands-off preview session, I was able to watch an NIS America employee sample two sections. The first featured Magic Enforcement Administration (MEA) agent Sari Nishijima work alongside her team members Kiichiro Ukai and Masayoshi Dogo on a search for Wizarts, markings in the city enabling certain magical abilities and skills, around Shibuya. In the other portion, there was a briefer look at wizards Marin Kirizumi and Nika Meguro as the two happen upon each other in Shibuya and attempt to live freely as wizards. From there, brief glimpses of exploration and battle helped set the stage for the title.

One of the ways the balancing act in Reynatis came up in gameplay during the preview session involved actions wizards take. We quickly learned that Stress is a key factor. It’s caused by interactions with people in the city and around you, and reduced if you grab a drink. Petting cats around town was also mentioned as a way to calm someone down. 

It’s a critical element, since someone being stressed means they won’t be able to hide that they are a wizard. This will make them visible in the city, resulting in undue attention from people and the MEA and the inability to take on certain quests. Those additional enemy encounters can be dangerous, as if you’re stressed going into a fight, you will only be able to take advantage of Liberation Mode. This lets you use your magical abilities to slow down time, quickly attack, and deal major supernatural damage. However, you won’t be able to dodge like you do in Suppression Mode and enemies move faster. If your Stress is low, then you can switch between the two modes in a fight to more tactfully take advantage of each one to build up magical power and evade attacks before striking back hard.

There’s also the idea of some humans towing the fine line between safety and danger. This is due to the use of an illegal drug on the streets called Rubrum that allows someone without magical talent to see and use wizarts. During the Sari portion of the story on display in the hands-off preview, part of the mission involved her team of three investigating Wizarts and happening upon a human who had been regularly taking this drug. As a result, he’d hit his limit and, during the encounter, transformed into a monster because of that use.  

Part of that balance seems to be between real-world and fantasy elements too, from what I saw. The MEA building in one part of the preview seemed ordinary enough as Sari explored it, but there were also these magical Wizart and wizard elements. Their uniforms also stood out in a way normal governmental employees’ would. This doesn’t even get into the eventual NEO The World Ends with Youelements that NIS promised. But once someone heads out into the city, Shibuya looks as it would in the real world. While I watched the NIS America employee play and visit a store, familiar products showed up. There was C.C. Lemon, my favorite lemon-flavored soda and Yakuza series staple. BOSS coffee showed up as well. 

All of this makes me curious how difficult it will be to maintain these types of balances when I’m playing Reynatis firsthand. It seems like there’s a lot to manage here. Especially considering the penalties wizards can face if they get careless. 

Reynatis will come to the PS4, PS5, Switch, and PC in North America and Europe on September 27, 2024, and then in Australia on October 4, 2024. 

The post Preview: Reynatis Might Just Be a Balancing Act appeared first on Siliconera.

Good Smile Company announced its first Nendoroid based on a Suikoden series hero, and it is a Tir McDohl figure. He is the player avatar for the first game, and he also makes an appearance in the second.

As the Tir McDohl Nendoroid is very early in development, there’s no actual prototype figure of the Suikoden hero. However, concept art that teased what we can expect from it did show up in the reveal. While we are looking at him head-on, we can see the tails of the green bandana he wears on his head. His outfit also remains identical to the qipao he has on in-game. It seems his bo will be included as an accessory.

Here’s how that figure might look:

Good Smile Company didn't note if we can expect figures of Riou, Jowy, or Nanami, the three major characters in Suikoden II.

The announcement specifically cited this as being tied to the Suikoden I & II HD Remaster: Gate Rune and Dunan Unification Wars worldwide release. During the August 2024 Nintendo Direct Partner Showcase, Konami announced a final release date for the collection. That will come to the PS4, Switch, Xbox One, and PC on March 6, 2025. Pre-orders are open and net people access to in-game money and early unlocks for two pieces of equipment.

There’s no release window for the Suikoden Tir McDohl Nendoroid, though since only concept art appeared it could be a while before the figure of the hero appears.

The post First Suikoden Nendoroid Is a Figure of Hero Tir McDohl appeared first on Siliconera.

Konami announced three pre-order bonuses for those who grab a digital copy of Suikoden I & II HD Remaster on social media. Two of them are early unlocks for pieces of equipment you’d normally get access to later in the game, while the other offers a head start with a substantial amount of in-game money.

Calling dibs on a digital copy gets you 57,300 potch as the first Suikoden I & II HD Remaster bonus. This is the money you’d use to buy Runes, equipment, or other items in games. This would normally be acquired at a standard pace while going through fights and the adventure. 

The two pieces of equipment given as Suikoden I & II HD Remaster pre-order bonuses are the Fortune Orb and Prosperity Orb. Each one can be equipped on a character. The person who holds the Fortune Orb will get twice as much experience from every fight they participate in. Meanwhile, if the one with the Fortune Orb equipped is in a battle, you get twice as much potch currency from the fight.

Suikoden I & II HD Remaster: Gate Rune and Dunan Unification Wars will come to the Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC on March 6, 2024.

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After events in Final Fantasy XIV, Square Enix will sometimes add rewards from them to the official store a year later when the activity returns to the game. That just happened with The Rising 2023 Phoenix and its whistle, which debuted in the FFXIV Online Store as the Reborn Phoenix mount. 

The Reborn Phoenix mount costs $12 in the FFXIV Online Store. It nets you the Rising Phoenix Whistle, which summons the bird for your avatar to ride. It is identical to the one we could earn for free in August 2023. This is a single character item, and someone can use it once you gain the ability to ride a Chocobo in-game. There is also a fiery mount action tied to it.

Here’s how the Reborn Phoenix looks:

This Rising Phoenix Whistle tied to the Reborn Phoenix mount is one of multiple former The Rising items now available in the FFXIV Online Store. Here’s the list of the other items you can buy now:

• Authentic The Rising Advertisement - $5
• “The Land Reborn” Orchestrion Roll - $3
• “Pom from the Heavens” Orchestrion Roll - $3

You can also get an A Realm Reborn Poster Set or Heavensward Poster Set for $12.50 each.

Final Fantasy XIV is available for the PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X, and PC, and The Rising 2024 is available until September 11, 2024.

The post FFXIV The Rising 2023 Reborn Phoenix Mount Added to Store appeared first on Siliconera.

Koei Tecmo announced the release date for Fairy Tail 2, the newgame that follows the events of the 2020 one. It will appear this year. The PC version will show up first, with that coming to Steam on December 11, 2024. Then the console versions will launch a few days later on December 13, 2024.

A release date trailer accompanied the Fairy Tail 2 announcement. It began by confirming manga creator Hiro Mashima’s involvement. Then, we saw the two sides involved. One is the guild, with Natsu accompanied by all his allies. Then, as the Alvarez Empire events and final battle are teased, we see all their opponents. From there, it focuses on gameplay. We see Fiore, watch the crew in fights, and see special attacks. After that, parts of the story and appearances from Alvarez Empire characters are teased. At the very end, we see that pre-orders net us a Natsu of Edolas costume for him, and buying it at or immediately after launch lets us dress Lucy in her Miss Fairy Tail Contest outfit.

Prior to this Fairy Tail 2 reveal, we learned a bit more about what we can expect to see in the new game. There will be original story content in it. This will involve a new epilogue. Spoilers aside, expect to hear more about what happened after the guild got involved in the events in the Alvarez Empire Arc. 

The Fairy Tail 2 release date is December 11, 2024 for the PC version on Steam, with the PS4, PS5, and Switch versions arriving on December 13, 2024. 

The post Koei Tecmo Sets Fairy Tail 2 Game Release Date appeared first on Siliconera.

A new DLC for Sea of Stars titled Throes of the Watchmaker was announced at today's Nintendo Direct. This free DLC will launch sometime in Spring 2025, and feature a new story, companion, and classes for Valere and Zale.

The DLC will take place in a world menaced by an evil carnival, with the protagonists Zale and Valere getting new skills and abilities as Juggler and Acrobat respectively. A new playable companion will also join the group, who appears to be some kind of robot or perhaps a mech-suit. The presentation only announced the DLC for Nintendo Switch, since it was a Nintendo presentation after all, however a tweet from the developers confirms it will be available for all platforms.

You can watch the trailer from the Indie World Showcase via Youtube below:

Sea of Stars originally released back in August, 2023, with a Switch demo appearing earlier that February. Earlier this year, Sabotage Studio announced it was developing a potential co-op feature to add to the game, called Single Player+.

The Sea of Stars: Throes of the Watchmaker DLC will launch for free on Nintendo Switch in Spring 2025. The game itself is readily available on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch.

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During the latest Nintendo Direct August 2024 Partner Showcase, Koei Tecmo and Gust revealed Atelier Yumia: The Alchemist of Memories and the Envisioned Land. The new mainline title in the RPG alchemy series will be themed around the concept of "memories."

The reveal trailer of the game offered a brief look at the alchemy system, exploration, and combat in this new entry to the Atelier series. Additionally, Gust showcased the new protagonist Yumia and a wolf-like character that acts as her enemy or rival.

The Atelier Yumia reveal trailer is available in Japanese with English subtitles, and you can check it out here:

The previous mainline title in the Atelier series is Atelier Resleriana: Forgotten Alchemy and the Polar Night Liberator, a free-to-play gacha game available for mobile devices as well as PC via Steam. The English version of the game appeared on January 25, 2024.

Atelier Yumia: The Alchemist of Memories & the Envisioned Land will come out on early 2025 for the Nintendo Switch, PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Xbox One and PC via Steam.

The post Atelier Yumia Is the Next Title in the Alchemy RPG Series appeared first on Siliconera.

We finally got a release date for the Suikoden I and II HD Remaster during the August 2024 Nintendo Direct Partner Showcase. The collection, which bundles in the first two games in the series, will launch on March 6, 2025. 

Konami first announced this Suikoden remaster collection of games in September 2022. However, the company delayed it in August 2023. There was no explanation beyond quality concerns. No updated release window followed. However, prior to that happening, we did see lots of footage and in-game elements. 

The latest updated trailer reminded us of what we can expect from these rereleases. There will be 2x and 4x battle speeds. There will also be new auto battle options. 

Here’s the full Nintendo Direct Partner Showcase:

As a reminder, these two games are connected. The original Suikoden starts the Gate Rune and Dunan Unification Wars storyline, with many of the allies from the first game resurfacing and rejoining for the second adventure.

Suikoden I and II HD Remaster is in development and the new PS4, Xbox One, PC, and Nintendo Switch release date is March 6, 2025. The original games appeared on the PlayStation worldwide. They also appeared together in a collection on the PSP in Japan.

The post Suikoden I and II HD Remaster Release Date Set appeared first on Siliconera.