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It received a brand new, budget-priced collection of DLC content dubbed the CyberSec Pack last week, and playing the game again to try it out reminded us why we liked the game so much in the first place. One of our favorite Xbox titles this year is The Ascent, the gorgeously atmospheric isometric action-shooter from Neon Giant that was published by Curve Games. reason enough for fans of the game to dive back in. There is less exploration and adventuring to the new DLC chapter than there was in the base campaign, so you won’t be traveling to far reaches of the kingdom to see new sights, but the combat does tie in nicely to the story as you try to overcome these new foes in order to gain access to a locked room with mysterious contents…. It’s back just in time for the new year with additional content in the shape of extra DLC though – and in true holiday spirit, this Bloody Whispers expansion is completely free to those who already own the game.īloody Whiskers is set after the events of the base game, so Greenwart no longer poses a threat but the narrative picks up where we left off as Redgi is forced on a series of combat scenarios against a handful of new bosses. Not content to lean on its standout visuals and setting, it also features well developed game mechanics and is certain to make a few “best indies of 2021” lists. With its striking 2D visuals and hard-but-fair combat, it was a unique take on the challenging action RPG subgenre with a likeable protagonist in Redgi, heir to the throne of a rat kingdom that is at war with rival frogs. Tails of Iron gets new DLC chapter (for free!)ĭeveloped by Odd Bug Studio, Tails of Iron was extremely well received when published United Label launched the game back in September. The quality of life fixes that were added (for free) post-launch are more noteworthy in that sense, and we’d recommend going in and trying those out before grabbing the DLC. The new content on offer here is certainly welcome and also includes new weapons and building interiors, but in terms of adding anything game-changing it feels a little light for the asking price. Make It Count also features “20 new missions” according to the official text, but the bulk of these don’t amount to much more than simple objectives that follow the kind of progression through the game mechanics you’re already familiar with, so don’t go in expecting an exciting new narrative with surprising plot twists.
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The ability to use loan sharks adds a new racket to the game, as well as a new gangster type – the fixer, which lets you use bribes to resolve combat scenarios but are quite powerful without having to resolve to bribery as well. His special skill is to “Bolster the Ranks” in combat where he calls in extra guys mid-combat, but it feels like it’s there to make up for his own lack of standout strengths. Make It Count adds a number of new things into the mix, including a new boss in Maxim Zelnick, who feels heavily inspired by Meyer Lansky – whose life was turned into a movie with Harvey Keitel in the past year as well. It does showcase that, when you reach the later stages of the campaign, Empire of Sin can get repetitive though – so the new content in Make It Count was certainly welcome. A lot of the obvious bugs have been fixed, both visually and in the gameplay, making for a much smoother and more fun experience. From our time with the game this past week, it’s looking a lot better. When we reviewed Empire of Sin, we commented on a distinct lack of polish in places, so that alone was a reason to go back to the game as it has received a number of updates in the past 12 months. It’s been pretty much exactly a year since Empire of Sin was released by Paradox, and the mob-themed strategy game from Romero now has its first major expansion in “Make It Count” – which we saw as a reason to reinstall the game and see where it’s at after a year of extra development.
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We’re taking a look at four DLC expansions today, with new content for Empire of Sin, Tails of Iron, The Ascent and Titan Quest. Expansions might not get the same kind of attention as brand new game releases, but for fans they’re probably the best thing that can happen besides a full sequel.