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'Fall Guys' brings mini-game battle royale to PS4 and Steam on August 4th
'Fall Guys' is coming to PS4 and Steam on August 4th, bringing the battle royale concept to kid-friendly mini-games.
'Fall Guys' is a mini-game battle royale with up to 100 jelly-bean dudes
Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout is what happens when indie developers watch too much reality TV. The new title from Mediatonic takes some of the most ridiculous network game-show obstacles courses, throws in some squishy alien creatures, and puts it all online. So far, Fall Guys features a "race through the right doors" mini game, a round where players have to steal and keep their tails, and a furious run up a mountainside filled with spinning and rolling obstacles. It's all incredibly cheerful, for a fiercely competitive game.
'Sailor Moon' in a post-apocalyptic pigeon-dating simulator
Hatoful Boyfriend is a pigeon-dating simulator. You read that correctly and, yes, it means exactly what it sounds like. However, Hatoful Boyfriend is also much more than a pigeon-dating simulator: It's a dark tale of science experiments gone awry and a formerly human world now run by birds. In Hatoful Boyfriend -- released on Steam in September and on its way to PlayStation 4 and Vita this year -- you play as a young (human) woman and uncover truly terrifying things about this strange new avian world. Hatoful Boyfriend: Holiday Star is a new game in the same pigeon-dating universe, due to hit PS4, Vita and PC this fall. As Mediatonic Producer Luke Borrett explains direct from E3 2015, Holiday Star features even wackier stories, including scenes reminiscent of Sailor Moon, a trip to a manga convention and birds in tanks. Watch a portion of our interview with Borrett below.
Hatoful Boyfriend released from its cage: PS4, Vita in 2015
Finally, you can go to the park and feed the pigeons while simultaneously dating a handful of pigeons and discovering their bird-brained plot to overtake the world and enslave humanity. Finally. Pigeon-dating simulator Hatoful Boyfriend is due out on PS4 and Vita in early 2015 from Devolver Digital and Mediatonic. It'll be $10 (£7 /€8), and "a launch party is currently being planned in front of a bench in Central Park with a bar serving a range of high-end breadcrumbs," according to the press release. The PC version of Hatoful Boyfriend launched in September, based on the visual novel by Hato Moa. "I never dreamt when I first made Hatoful Boyfriend I'd see it on PlayStation," Moa says. "Thanks to the amazing fans and Mediatonic, I hope now even more people will discover pigeon love. All you need is dove." Hatoful Boyfriend is a surprisingly deep game about dating pigeons – yes, you really date pigeons – and uncovering the dark secrets of a new avian world. Our review describes the drop as follows: "The larger narrative kicks in and everything is suddenly colored with an awareness that something has gone horribly awry." For those just diving in, make sure to play through all of your pigeon-suitor options. [Image: Devolver Digital]
Pigeon dating sim Hatoful Boyfriend snuggles up to Steam on August 21
Good news, fellow birdwatchers -- Hato Moa's bizarre avian dating sim Hatoful Boyfriend is hitting Windows, Mac, and Linux via Steam next month in a revamped port from Mediatonic and Devolver Digital. The Steam version of Hatoful Boyfriend boasts a branching narrative and multiple endings, including an all-new story path written by series creator Hato Moa. Bird fanatics may opt for the premium-priced Collector's Edition, which includes a copy of the original PC version of Hatoful Boyfriend, a digital soundtrack and comic, PC wallpapers, and a virtual yearbook to commemorate your collegiate years at the prestigious St. PigeoNation's Institute. Hatoful Boyfriend is available for pre-order at a 10 percent discount before it takes flight on August 21. [Image: Devolver Digital]
Foul Play to enter stage left on PS4, Vita
Mediatonic's theatrical side-scrolling brawler Foul Play is heading to PS4 and Vita, the developer announced in a recent post on PlayStation Blog. Players take on the role of Baron Dashforth, a mustachioed demon hunter who retells his tales in front of a live audience, defeating waves of extras in the one-night-only performance. The co-op enabled beat-em-up doesn't feature a traditional health bar, but rather gauges the audience's interest with each passing moment, and closes the curtains for boring actors that take too many hits from the combat-trained extras. Foul Play launched on PC and Xbox 360 in September 2013 before arriving on Mac and Linux in October. Our four-star review of the game deemed the story as "superb" and the fights "frantic and fast." Mediatonic did not offer a release date for the PS4 and Vita versions as of yet, but it will be Cross-Buy compatible, so owners of both platforms need only buy it once. [Image: Mediatonic]
Foul Play brings Vaudevillian brawling to Mac, Linux
Beware of Foul Play on Mac and Linux ... wait, scratch that, because we recommend you get nice and friendly with Mediatonic's eccentric beat-em-up. As our four-star review put it, Foul Play is "a stylized mix of the art of South Park, the witty back-and-forth of Sherlock Holmes, and the theatricality of Puppeteer, all layered on top of wonderful co-op brawling." If that sounds like your cup of tea, Foul Play is priced $15 on Steam, and it's SteamPlay compatible. That means a single purchase grants access to Windows PC, Mac, and Linux versions, and that applies to those who previously bought the PC version.
Vaudevillian beat-em-up Foul Play raises XBLA, PC curtains next month
> Foul Play, the Victorian era's answer to Castle Crashers, takes the stage on XBLA and PC on September 18. The game, which mixes two-player local and online co-op brawling with the revelry of a Vaudeville stage show, comes courtesy of suitably British studio Mediatonic, the team behind Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess and the Amateur Surgeon series. Foul Play features demon-hunter Baron Dashforth and his sidekick Scampwick as they put on a show chronicling the thrills and spills of the Baron's life. So, rather than survival, the aim is to keep the audience entertained. Messages of "ACCEPTABLE!" and "SPLENDID!" pop up as score multipliers are raised, rewarding players for thwacking enemies around the stage in creative ways. When we saw the game last year, creative director Paul Croft described it as "like a side-scrolling brawler meets Rock Band," because it eschewed traditional health bars and damage meters, allowing players to simply focus on putting on a jolly good show, what what. Mediatonic has yet to put a price on admission, although Croft suggested £10 as a possibility, which converts to around $15.
Sony completely revises list of PS4 EU studios, down from 53 to 30 [updates]
Sony made wholesale corrections to the list of European/PAL companies confirmed as PS4 developers and publishers, reducing the list of named studios from 53 to 28. Curiouser, not one of the developers and publishers named on the previous list makes an appearance on the new roll call. A spokesperson for Sony Computer Entertainment Europe confirmed to us the first list, sent out last week, was erroneous, and this new one is correct. There are no revisions for any other regions.The new list removes a number of significant names, including Mojang (Minecraft), Rovio (Angry Birds), Frozenbyte, Criterion Games, and City Interactive. In their stead are some new noteworthy studios, such as CD Projekt, who've confirmed The Witcher 3 as a PS4 game. Also included are Bohemia Interactive, Deep Silver, Ninja Theory, IO Interactive, Codemasters, 2K Games, and Sumo Digital. The full list can be found after the break.We've reached out to a number of studios for comment. Mojang's Daniel Kaplan reiterated to us the comments he gave to Gamasutra, saying his studio hasn't decided anything yet, and that the error is "confusion from Sony's side." Gamasutra's article also confirms Super Crate Box developer Vlambeer and Skulls of the Shogun creator 17-Bit, both included in the original list, as not currently working on anything for the PS4.A spokesperson for Monsters (probably) Stole My Princess developer Mediatonic, included in the original list but not in the corrected one, told us he couldn't make any comment on his studio and PS4 development. Meanwhile, Sumo Digital's inclusion adds weight to the rumor the British studio is working on LittleBigPlanet 3, but for the PS4. When approached previously about LBP3, a studio representative told Joystiq, "No comment." Update 1: A spokesperson for 505 Games tells us the Italian company is "definitely" planning to publish games on the PS4. 505 Games was in the original list of European/PAL PS4 developers and publishers, but not the revised list. The spokesperson noted the company's logo appears in the image showcasing PS4 partners, as shown during last week's event, as do many of the names in the revised list. Update 2: Sony Computer Entertainment Europe informs us the list of European PS4 studios has been further revised. Two more studios are now present in the form of Criterion Games and Ghost Games (an EA studio) - both were in the original list of 53. That takes the tally of confirmed European studios up to 30.
Foul Play brings Vaudeville and fisticuffs to XBLA in Q1 2013
Vaudevillian brawler Foul Play is coming to Xbox Live Arcade in Q1 2013, Mediatonic Games told Joystiq. Creative Director Paul Croft wouldn't confirm a final price point, but suggested it may be "£10," which could likely equate to 1200 Microsoft Points. It will support online and local two-player co-op.Foul Play is about Baron Dashforth, a Victorian demon-hunter who's recounting his epic life story in a stage show. It's on the stage that the gameplay takes place in the form of mock fights, with one player as Dashforth and the other his trusty sidekick Scampwick. As the top-hatted, monocle-sporting Dashforth bashes adversaries about with his cane, messages of 'ACCEPTABLE!' and 'GOOD SHOW!' light up the screen. "It's very, very British," mused Croft, before taking a long sip of his Earl Grey as he returned to his Times crossword*.%Gallery-169524%
Doctor Who author Oli Smith joins Mediatonic as Creative Writer/Producer
The Doctor is in, or at least, one of his writers is. Mediatonic, the London-based developer that gave us Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess, announced today that author Oli Smith has joined their ranks as a Creative Writer and Producer. Smith, who has penned two Doctor Who novels and four Doctor Who games, will be filling a "key position in the studio's design process" by creating characters and storylines for the company's proprietary IPs, as well as overseeing creative direction for licensed titles. When asked for a comment, Smith entered a large blue box which promptly disappeared before our very eyes.
Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess was almost The Waterfall of the Dirty Gods
On Gamasutra, Mediatonic's Jim Griffiths and Paul Croft wrote a postmortem for Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess, the amusingly-named jumping vampire game that started on PlayStation Minis before, yes, hopping to Xbox Live Indie Games. When the game was first conceived, there wasn't even the faint possibility of monsters having stolen any princesses. "The Waterfall of the Dirty Gods was our original concept pitch," the developers explained, "where the player needed to climb to the top of several different waterfalls and ring their bell to stop the gods from washing their filthy bodies in the water and polluting the waterfall." The player controlled a monkey with a bell that could be used as a grappling hook. Once the concept was in place, the team prototyped in Flash while simultaneously building the PSP game. After its launch, Mediatonic decided to rebuild it in XNA for release on the Indie Games platform. "A big benefit of doing a 360 version is that we could use HD assets and remain within the file footprint restriction, making it the "prettiest" version, Griffiths and Croft said. "Ultimately, though, the prime reason for the 360 version was simple curiosity in adding another platform to our portfolio." And now you (probably) know the rest of the story!
Mediatonic investing 300K Euros in new Housemarque game
Housemarque's still celebrating in the afterglow of its recently released, well-received PSN title Dead Nation -- but the Finnish developer isn't resting on its zombified laurels. The studio has secured a €300 thousand investment from fellow Finnish company Mediatonic. According to Arctic Startup, the investment will bankroll development on a whole new title: A downloadable "family game of skill and wits," due out sometime next year. That sounds like a far, far cry from Housemarque's current announced project, the Ubis Outland -- though it seems bizarre that the studio's 20-some-strong development team would be working on two projects simultaneously. We've contacted Housemarque to see if they'll comment on where that sweet, sweet cashflow is going.
Who's That Flying into a new release date?!
Mediatonic's quirky PlayStation Minis shmup, Who's That Flying?!, was originally supposed to hit PSN in October. In response to a freezing glitch, the developer scrapped the October release plans, putting a question mark (and an exclamation point, why not) on the expected date. Now, having resolved the issue, Mediatonic has announced new dates for the shooter's PSN release: November 16 in North America and November 17 in Europe. So, just a week until we get to definitively answer the question in the game's title -- oh, wait, it's the "Guardian of Earth" (we knew that who that!). Well, we still have playing the game to look forward to.
Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess now (definitely) on Xbox Live Indie Games
Mediatonic has announced that its PlayStation Mini, Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess, has finally made the move to Xbox Live Indie Games. The vertical platformer can be had for 240 MSP ($3). If you're squeamish about killing (likely) guilty monsters, a free trial version is also available. If you're unfamiliar with the Duke and his incredible jumping prowess, check out a trailer after the break.
Mediatonic's new PSN Mini asks: Who's That Flying?!
Mediatonic, developer of Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess, has announced the second PSP game to use "WTF" as an abbreviation: Who's That Flying?! (The first was Work Time Fun, of course!) This upcoming Minis game (playable on PSP and PS3) is a horizontal shmup in which the "Guardian of Earth" uses its "HYPER-POWERED LASER ARM" to protect the world from "Doom Beasts." The game also includes a tower defense element: rather than simply avoiding enemies and shooting what you can, you must limit the number of flying enemies that get past your invulnerable character, in order to stop them from destroying cities. We'll be able to play this bizarre hybrid-genre game ("with courtroom drama and intrigue!") in early September.
Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess jumping to Xbox Live Indie Games
If Mediatonic's platform-climbing Mini, Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess has turned the Xbox fanboy within you positively green with envy, you'll be pleased to learn the title will soon make the leap to the Xbox Live Indie Games storefront. This announcement came in the form of a subtle teaser on the game's official site, which states that it's "coming soon" to the indie-friendly platform. No more specific price or release date info accompanied the update. The Mini has received fairly good remarks from its critics on its native platform -- hopefully it won't lose any of its charm (or, more importantly, its uncertainty) in translation.
Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess hits PSN today
If you're a fan of platform jumping, uncertainty, and radical injustices, you might be a fan of the most recent addition to the PSP (and PS3) Minis platform: Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess. The game puts you in the shoes of the accusatory Duke, who spends his days climbing platforms while beating the crap out of his underlings whom he's positive have absconded with his soul mate. Probably. In all likelihood. Perhaps. The game's available to purchase on the PSN today for $4.99. Just be aware that with your purchase, you're supporting monster stereotyping. Are you really cool with that? %Gallery-82756%
Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess definitely being released Apr. 22
Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess, the PSP Mini about unfortunate anti-monster racial profiling, has been given a release date of April 22 -- which publisher Mediatonic has confirmed is worldwide. The game, playable on both PSP and PS3, stars the Duke, who goes on an ill-researched quest to rescue his princess, jumping endlessly upward through vertically scrolling levels, and beating up every presumed guilty monster he sees (hint: all of them). To see the game in (unfair) action, check out the trailer after the break. It features random wings, Castlevania-esque music, and monster piledrivers! You'll probably enjoy watching it. %Gallery-82756%
Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess coming soon to PSP Minis
While we personally believe that there's no room for uncertainty when it comes to royal kidnappings, we suppose it's appropriate in the case of Mediatonic's recently announced PSP Mini, Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess. Keep it straight -- there's no doubt whether a princess has been stolen. She definitely has. The parenthetical modifier in the middle of that title is referring to the Monsters, who may or may not have stolen said Princess. Even without any prior knowledge of the heist, we'd bet they were somehow involved. We digress! In M(P)SMP, you play as The Duke, who reacts unfavorably to the disappearance of his beloved princess, and begins pummeling random monsters in an attempt to rescue said heiress. We expect monster sympathizers worldwide to get their dander up when this one launches on the PSN sometime in February. %Gallery-82756%
