Kaser Focus: Resident Fantasy 6

Before I get to gaming news, you may have heard that my colleague Jeff Grubb is leaving GamesBeat after 10 years. I will miss him and wish him all the best for his future. In the meantime, all loyal GamesBeat readers, stay with me! (And Mike and Dean, but mostly me.)

In gaming news, this week we had our first official summer gaming event, Sony’s State of Play. As the company promised, these were mostly third-party titles and VR games. But unlike previous times when sticking to their own predetermined parameters resulted in some pretty disappointing chatter, this State of Play was actually pretty damn good. We got a quick look at Street Fighter 6, which seems to emphasize the “street” part of the title, and Final Fantasy XVI, which Mike was excited about.

I was particularly pleased with the long rumored remake of Resident Evil 4. Previously I would have said that remaking the best game in the series was a futile endeavor, but I like the new atmosphere. The trailer gives the game a slightly more village vibe, and the fact that Resident Evil 4 was more of an action title than a horror title is the only nitpick I’ve ever had with it. We’ll also fight Lady Dimitrescu in VR, which is either scary or . . . something else.

As a Bioware fan, I was somewhat mollified by this week’s announcement of the name of the next Dragon Age. It’ll be called Dreadwolf, which sounds in line with what they’ve been teasing about the lore so far. If only I could play the game now, before my hair turns gray, maybe I could see the climax of this story. That said, I do know that there are two games coming out this year (at the time of writing, at least): Pokemon Scarlet & Violet, which will be out on November 18th; and Stray, the cyberpunk kitty adventure, launching July 19.

What’s playing this week

What’s new:

• silt
• card shark
• Diablo immortal
• Unexplored 2: Legacy of the Wanderer
• soldiers
• Deathrun TV

New to Subscription Services:

• For Honor: Marching Fire Edition (Xbox Game Pass)
• Ninja Gaiden: Master Collection (Xbox Game Pass)
• Aven Colony (Xbox Gold)
• Super Meat Boy (Xbox Gold)
• Deliver the Moon (Stadia Pro)
• Lake (Stadia Pro)
• Through the Darkest of Times (Stadia Pro)
• Far Cry 4 (Prime Gaming)
• Escape from Monkey Island (Prime Gaming)
• Astrologer (Prime Gaming)
• Calico (Prime Gaming)
• Across the Grooves (Prime Gaming)
• WRC 8 FIA World Rally Championship (Prime Gaming)
• Jump (GeForce Now)
• Twilight Wars: Declassified (GeForce Now)
• Demolition – Build to Destroy (GeForce Now)
• Anno: Mutationem (GeForce Now)
• Kathy Rain: Director’s Cut (GeForce Now)
• Star Conflict (GeForce Now)