Month: October 2024

Slitherine Software’s intense tactical dogfighting title Scramble: Battle of Britain has now soared into Steam Early Access. Set in the chaotic 1940 summer skies, this turn-based strategy game puts players in command of RAF and Luftwaffe squadrons, leading intense aerial battles in a dynamic 3D airspace. Through realistic physics simulations and detailed planning, players will manage pilot traits and plan tactical manoeuvres, with the Early Access version laying the groundwork for a full campaign in the final release.

Watch the Scramble: Battle of Britain Early Access Launch Trailer HERE.

The Early Access version of Scramble offers a Skirmish Generator, allowing players to rapidly create missions and fight as either the RAF or Luftwaffe. The game’s cinematic tools enable players to view the action from multiple angles and share game replays, while a comprehensive single-player mode puts them in the role of an RAF squadron leader to engage in strategic combat missions. Aircraft like the Supermarine Spitfire, Hawker Hurricane, and Messerschmitt 109 are available to pilot in detailed aerial battles.

Watch the Scramble: Battle of Britain Early Access Gameplay Trailer HERE.

Aircraft in Scramble are simulated down to the subcomponent level, allowing for realistic damage and strategic depth. Players can experience the impact of bullets tearing through fuel tanks, engines, and radiators, or face the challenge of handling fatigued and blacked-out pilots. Each mission offers intense, historically accurate combat, while the planning, simulation, and review phases give players full control to manage manoeuvres and analyse battle outcomes in detail.

As Scramble: Battle of Britain enters Early Access, player feedback will be key in shaping its development. The team is committed to open communication, encouraging players to share content, suggestions, and feedback through forums and Discord. Regular updates will incorporate player-driven improvements, with community playtests and livestreams planned to engage directly with players. This collaborative approach will ensure that the final game reflects the needs and desires of the community.

Slitherine Software plans to keep Scramble in Early Access for approximately one year, during which several major updates will be rolled out. These updates will include the full Battle of Britain campaign, additional aircraft, enhanced AI behaviours, and more player-driven features such as multiplayer mode. This will all ensure that the full release delivers a comprehensive and polished experience for all players.

Click here for more game information.

Armored Warfare, the realistic free-to-play tactical tank MMO which has amassed more than 12 million downloads from developer Wishlist Games, provides exciting new challenges with today’s free content update. The Shockwave Update is the largest expansion in the past three years, setting a new standard for armored vehicle combat with a new game mode alongside a range of added features and gameplay improvements.

Check out the Launch Trailer for the Shockwave Update featuring intense strategic battles, high-stakes moments, and epic rewards.

Shockwave Update Key Features

SHOCKWAVE MODE

Engage in an intense showdown in the relentless new game mode – SHOCKWAVE! Join forces with up to four allies to protect a production plant from an onslaught of ruthless adversaries, and survival against an ever-escalating enemy threat — no respawns, no retreat.

GAMEPLAY ENHANCEMENTS

DRONES (Coming End of November!)

Bring a new dimension to the battlefield! Look forward to deploying Recon and Attack Drones at the end of November. Experience strategic advantages like never before with mechanics similar to mechanized infantry:

Opponents won’t sit idle—weaponize machine guns, autocannons, Airburst rounds, or the Jammer ability to take out these airborne threats.

To find out more about Armored Warfare and download the game for free, visit the games official website, or visit the games Steam page.

Gaijin Entertainment announces that the online military shooter War Thunder will receive the “Firebirds” major content update in early November. Its main stars are the American F-117 stealth attack aircraft, the Russian Su-34 fighter-bomber and its American competitor – the F-15E Strike Eagle. In addition, dozens of other military vehicles will debut in it, such as the British FV107 Scimitar light tank and the French battleship Dunkerque.

Watch the ‘Firebirds’ Update Trailer HERE.

The F-117A Nighthawk is the first aircraft in War Thunder to implement stealth technology. As in reality, it will have reduced IR and radar signatures, which makes interception much more difficult (but, as practice has shown, does not make it impossible). The aircraft looks futuristic, and the design is dictated precisely by reducing visibility: the geometry of the fuselage and wing is designed to reflect electromagnetic waves away from the radiation source. In addition, the F-117 uses radar-absorbing materials and ferromagnetic paint, and the engine nozzles are hidden by complex shielding mechanisms. Today, the aircraft has already been withdrawn from service, but during Operation Desert Storm, the F-117As made more than 1,200 combat sorties and did not suffer a single loss.

The F-15E Strike Eagle is a strike version of the F-15 fighter. The payload has increased by almost 50%, a ground target detection radar has been added, and the arsenal of available weapons has expanded. The F-15E Strike Eagle can use AGM-65 Maverick missiles, various types of laser and conventional guided bombs, bombs with navigation and guidance modules (JDAM), and new GBU-39 satellite-guided bombs (up to 20 at a time!). The F-15E remains one of the main strike aircraft of the US Air Force to this day.

You can learn more about the new content and other features of the “Firebirds” update from the devblogs on the official website of the game, or on its Steam page.

Fall in, Soldiers! Fulqrum Publishing and Ukrainian studio Best Way are delighted to announce that the latest update to their popular real-time strategy game Men of War II, the Steel Rain update, is finally available for all players!

This update includes a host of new units, new gameplay mechanics and general improvements – but perhaps most excitingly, the long-awaited Offline Mode is finally here, allowing players to experience Men of War II without an internet connection.

Watch the Men of War II Steel Rain Update Trailer HERE.

Thanks to the Steel Rain update, there’s more to enjoy in Men of War II than ever before! Here’s just a quick taster of the new features to join the game today…

Offline Mode

Men of War II’s Offline Mode is the flagship feature of this update and has been heavily requested by the game’s community since its launch. Players can now switch between playing the game online (default setting) and offline, and of course, if they start the game without an Internet connection, it will run in offline mode automatically. Just move the cursor to the cog wheel “Settings” icon in the upper-left corner, where players will find an indicator telling them which version they are playing at the moment – green for online, red for offline.

The Offline Mode features any single-player mission or campaign (including Conquest and Raid), and players can set up a “multiplayer” lobby to play custom matches with AI bots. Currently, progress made in a campaign while playing offline cannot carry over to the online mode (and vice versa). Players have voted in a community poll to release the update in this state, while the developers continue to work on enabling the progress to be shared.

New Content and Gameplay Mechanics

But that’s not all! A whole host of new content has been added to the game – including 8 new units, all focused on rockets and missile launchers. To make the best use of the new units, each nation has received a new battalion: the 3rd Mortar Regiment. These have zero logistic timers for mortars and Rocket artillery, and -50% Battle rank Modifier for Mortar units, and -25% for Rocket Artillery units.

Another addition to Men of War II is the ability to control the game’s speed in a single-player. This feature is available in any game where the player is alone. Including in Conquest, Raids, and even a custom lobby with bots.

There has also been the addition of a “turbo mode” in single-player games, in which the game world will be calculated as quickly as the computer’s performance allows, significantly improving the quality of simulation, especially on powerful PCs.

And, of course, that still isn’t all – with this update bringing a range of multiplayer and match-making improvements, visual and audio improvements, and more! For the full list of updates, check out the game’s news hub on Steam.

Men of War II, the new chapter in the evolution of the top-rated RTS franchise, brings you an unprecedented number of units with different specializations to command, unyielding attention to historical fidelity, new levels of visual and audio excellence, as well as advanced enemy AI. Lead your troops in intense real-time battles on the Western and Eastern Fronts and overwhelm your opponents in epic narrative single-player campaigns and skirmish modes before diving deep into the multiplayer action.

Men of War II is available to purchase via Steam and the Epic Games Store – at the special price of 25% off starting 10AM PT/5PM GMT/6PM CET October 28th.

Matrix Games today announced that update v1.07 for Command: Modern Operations is now live. In addition to a mountain of bugfixes, tweaks, and scenario updates – there are a few key new features to mention. First off is true altitude/pin-cushion view. Aerospace units can displayed at their true altitude on the map. This is by default off but can be turned on by going to “Game Options –> Map Display –> Draw units at true altitude”. This will hopefully help players visualize just where their aircraft are relative to one-another.

They have also revised the HTML-rendering backend using Microsoft’s new WebView2 rendering engine, added contrails and wakes to aircraft and submarines, and added new fuel flow rate restrictions in air-to-air refueling.

These features are covered in more detail in the changelog HERE, so give that a good read if any of these new options and game rules strike your fancy.

Source: Blue’s News

The Call of Duty Website has the news that Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 is now available for PC and consoles, offering the latest installment in the annual military shooter series. You can pick up the Windows edition through Battle.net, Steam, or the Xbox Store. The previous PC Launch Trailer takes a look, and here’s your mission briefing:

Developed by Treyarch and Raven, Black Ops 6 is a spy action thriller set in the early 90s, a period of transition and upheaval in global politics, characterized by the end of the Cold War and the rise of the United States as a single superpower. With a mind-bending narrative, and unbound by the rules of engagement, this is signature Black Ops.

Black Ops 6 also marks the epic return of Round-Based Zombies, the fan-favorite mode where players will take down hordes of the undead in two brand-new maps at launch. Post-launch, players can look forward to even more exciting maps and groundbreaking experiences dropping into both Multiplayer and Zombies.

Source: Blue’s News

Unity of Command II – Berlin is now available on Steam, adding new content to Unity of Command II, the World War II strategy game for Windows and macOS. As the title suggests, this recreates the final assault on the German capital which preceded the end of the war in Europe. Here are some details on this chance to relive this bit of history:

In early 1944, the Soviets squeezed German forces in the Korsun Pocket, a brutal winter encirclement battle and a major victory that chipped away at German strength. They also finally lifted the long Siege of Leningrad in January.

The summer of 1944 saw the massive Operation Bagration, a surprise attack that shattered German Army Group Center. By the fall, Soviet forces were on the offensive all along the Eastern Front, setting the stage for the final push into Germany in 1945. By February, the Soviets stood on the Oder River, just east of Berlin.

Rebellion, one of the world’s most successful independent video game developers and publishers, has today announced that Sniper Elite: Resistance will launch on January 30th, 2025 and is now available to pre-order. Sniper Elite: Resistance is coming day one to Game Pass and will be available both digitally and physically (with the boxed edition published by Fireshine Games) on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4, Windows PC and PC via Steam and Epic Games Store.

A new release date trailer for Sniper Elite: Resistance has just been launched and is available to watch HERE.

Rebellion has also announced Sniper Elite: Resistance Deluxe Edition, which will include additional Season Pass content when that launches later in the year.

Gamers who pre-order Sniper Elite: Resistance receive a bonus new Target Führer campaign mission, an additional weapon skin, and the powerful Karabiner 98 Rifle. In addition to the bonuses included with the Standard Edition, pre-ordering the Deluxe Edition will also offer fans the classic M1911 Pistol and two days early access to the game.

In Sniper Elite: Resistance, Harry Hawker, agent of the Special Operations Executive (SOE), takes the lead role for the first time in the series as he discovers an insidious new Wunderwaffe – something so powerful, it guarantees the Nazis would win the war. This new standalone story runs in parallel to the events of Sniper Elite 5 and turns the attention towards the hidden war, far from the front lines, deep within the heart of occupied France.

As you would expect from the Sniper Elite franchise, the game offers unparalleled sniping mechanics, stealth and tactical third-person combat. Players can also expect huge agency on how to complete your mission, with optional kill List targets, multiple infiltration and extractions points, and side missions. Sniper Elite Resistance also introduces Propaganda Missions, a brand-new style of side mission to the series. Locate a unique Propaganda poster in each of the main campaign’s levels to unlock a Propaganda Mission where you become a Resistance Fighter.

Game features:

More details will be revealed about Sniper Elite: Resistance in the coming months. For the latest news and updates, please visit sniper.com.

MicroProse, the iconic publisher renowned for its deep portfolio of strategy and simulation titles, is proud to announce the return of one of the most revered naval warfare simulations of all time—Harpoon Classic ’97. The game builds on the legacy of the original Harpoon, offering modern players a fresh opportunity to command naval forces across some of the most challenging and dynamic theatres of war in history.

Originally released in the late 1980s, Harpoon set the gold standard for naval warfare simulations, and now, Harpoon Classic ’97 carries that torch forward. With meticulously redesigned features, new missions and improved gameplay mechanics, this version will offer players an experience that is both nostalgic and innovative.

Watch the Harpoon Classic ’97 Announcement Trailer HERE.

A Timeless Naval Combat Experience
In Harpoon Classic ’97, players will take command of naval forces—including ships, submarines, and aircraft—across four major global theaters: the North Atlantic, Greenland & Iceland, the Indian Ocean & Persian Gulf, and the Mediterranean. Strategic prowess will be paramount as players plan large-scale naval assaults and defend vital coastlines against formidable enemies.

With over 250 scenarios, including 50 new missions, players will find themselves facing dynamic challenges that push their tactical expertise to the limit. From detecting stealthy submarines to engaging enemy fleets with powerful weapons, Harpoon Classic ’97 delivers an immersive and intense simulation of modern naval warfare.

Key Features Include:

MicroProse’s commitment to delivering strategic depth and realism to simulation games is fully realized with Harpoon Classic ’97. Fans of the original will find much to love, while new players will be introduced to the timeless excitement of naval command, where every decision can be the difference between victory and defeat.

Harpoon Classic ’97 will be available soon on PC, with more details to be announced in the coming weeks.

For more information and to stay updated on all future announcements, please visit MicroProse Official Website and the Harpoon Classic 97 Steam page.

Wandering Nobles Adds New Lifestyles and Travel Events

Roam the highways and hidden paths of the medieval world in Wandering Nobles, a new Event Pack for Crusader Kings III. This pack adds new events and lifestyles centered on the theme of travel, with new ways to engage in the game’s travel system. Wandering Nobles is scheduled for release on November 4.

Inspect your realm, see famous sites or simply explore the great outdoors for health and glory. After all, no one can achieve true wisdom locked up in a castle keep.

Features of Crusader Kings III: Wandering Nobles include:

New Wandering Lifestyle with three new branches:

New Activities designed for the new Lifestyle branches:

New Events connected to travel, the new lifestyles and the associated activities.

Crusader Kings III: Wandering Nobles will be available on 04 November 2024 for the suggested retail price of $4.99/£4.29GBP/€4.99. It is also a part of the Crusader Kings III Chapter III bundle.

More game information is available on the official Crusader Kings III website, or via Steam.