#Gollum #Steelrising #WRC #Generations #anticipated #games #Bigben #Week
Three years ago, Nacon became the gaming branch of Bigben with the program of publishing and marketing a large catalog of games on the one hand, and accessories such as controllers, of course, but also headsets on the other. Currently, Nacon already has 16 development studios and according to the head of the French group, this expansion is not going to stop.
After two editions postponed due to the health crisis, Bigben Week #5 was organized last week in the center of Paris. The opportunity to discover upcoming Nacon games and meet the developers. Here are three games to keep an eye on.
Accustomed to cute little games but not always for the general public, the Germans from Daedalic have been working for almost three years on a license known to all: The Lord of the Rings, and more specifically Gollum. Coincidence of the calendar (or not), the premiere of The Lord of the Rings: Gollum is scheduled for September 1, one day before the premiere of the long-awaited series The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power on Amazon Prime Video. The studio obtained the right to license Tolkien’s books, but not the films. Therefore, Daedalic’s Gollum is a slightly different character from the movies and he is also voiced by another comedian.
The game is a mix of stealth and environmental puzzle solving. There are no weapons here. Discretion is key. Therefore, it is possible to complete the game without killing any enemies. Golum wants to be accessible to everyone, really to everyone, even to those who do not know the universe of The Lord of the Rings, with three levels of difficulty but also the “Golum Sens” that guides the players. Graphically we should not expect a lightning bolt and the developers will have to take advantage of the next few months to polish everything. Golum will be available on all platforms, including Switch. Its life should be between 20 and 30 hours.
Steelrising is an ambitious project developed by Spiders. It stands out with a very original universe. The game immerses players in 18th century Paris with iconic characters and locations such as Marie Antoinette, Louis XVI, and the Louvre Palace. The writers took some liberties with the story by envisioning a world overrun by robots (but still with an 18th-century twist!). The result is truly original and successful. Also, from the start of the project, the developers designed Steelrising to be a PS5, Xbox Series, and PC game. Graphically, it looks very accomplished.
At first glance, with its open world and many side quests, it might make you think of Assassin’s Creed Unity, but on closer inspection, with its boss fights, it looks more like Souls. The developers also announce the color directly: SteelRising was designed to be a demanding game and the player must expect to die many times before understanding the pattern of the bosses. However, they have done their best to make the experience accessible to everyone and it will be possible to configure the game to be easier and more suitable for beginners. Therefore, everyone must find their account and they will be able to discover this fascinating universe. Launch scheduled for September 8 for a useful life of between 15 and 20 hours in a row.
This fall, a page will turn for KT Racing. Since 2015, the French studio has been developing WRC licensed rally games with increasingly compelling gameplay. But starting next year, EA/Codemasters will take over the license. Expected for October 13, WRC Generations will therefore be the last WRC rally game from the studio, which is already working, in addition to Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown, the release of which has been postponed until 2023, on new projects. WRC Generations will include all stages and cars, hybrids, from the current season. The title will be a kind of maxi best-of of the last years with a total of 37 legendary cars and 15 specials in 22 countries, including the return of Finland to the snowy tracks.
It is the will of the developers, the game will always be as technical as it is demanding. Even with all the driving aids activated, players accustomed to arcade games will have a hard time finding their account. To get the most out of it, it’s also best played behind the wheel. It is in this configuration that we have completed a few laps in WRC Generations, in Croatia and Finland. True to previous works, the game will be even more beautiful with an improvement in the level of vegetation on the edge of the track. The release is scheduled for October 13.