STACK #242 December 2024

GAMING PREVIEWS

DECEMBER

DONKEY KONG COUNTRY RETURNS HD When it first hit the Super Nintendo in 1994 it was a revelation and, since then, Donkey Kong Country has become a staple of platforming greatness. Now, the Wii iteration gets an update for the Switch that brings all of the jumping, rolling, and stomping fun of recovering your precious banana WHAT’S COMING IN JANUARY?

MULTIPLAYER INDIANA JONES AND THE GREAT CIRCLE The next big Indy adventure is a single player, first-person action-adventure game that’s set between the events of the movies Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Last Crusade . We’re in for a combination of action set pieces and puzzling riddles that will take us all over the world, from the Vatican, to Egypt, the Himalayas, and beyond. And, naturally, Indy’s legendary whip will get plenty of cracking in! RESIDENT EVIL 2, 3, 7: BIOHAZARD GOLD It’s an absolutely bumper month for fans of the Resident Evil games, with three separate red-hot physical editions to add to the collection. 1998’s Resident Evil 2 and 1999’s Resident Evil 3 have each been reimagined for the PS5, completely rebuilt in Capcom’s RE Engine with new puzzles and storylines added. Meanwhile, the Gold Edition of Resident Evil 7 includes the game, as well as four slices of DLC. FITNESS BOXING 3: YOUR PERSONAL TRAINER Why not have some fun while you keep fit? The latest in the Fitness Boxing series, which is much like a rhythm game that helps you keep healthy at the same time, brings 30 new songs to box along to, in a workout that fits your lifestyle. There are now six fully voiced trainers, and you can even customise their outfits and hairstyles. Plus, a new Quick Workout feature makes it even easier to boot up and get boxing. MULTIPLAYER TBC 9/12/24

MULTIPLAYER BLACK MYTH: WUKONG It’s one of the biggest games of 2024, and now it’s finally available in physical form, complete with Digital Deluxe Edition bonus DLC. The game is an action RPG with Soulslike overtones that’s rooted in Chinese mythology, based on the classic novel Journey to the West . If you ever saw the ace ‘70s TV show Monkey then you’ll have an idea of the story. You’re the Destined One, out to uncover the truth of a glorious past legend. WORMS ARMAGEDDON: ANNIVERSARY EDITION Back in 1999, we got Worms – the Armageddon variety. Now it’s back, bigger and squirmier than ever in this fabulous release for collectors, with added doco and museum. It really is a bonanza for fans of the often very silly game, for as well as the classic action-packed strategy puzzler, there’s also a double-sided collectible coin, stickers, a Weapons & Utilities Guide booklet, a double-sided poster, and three exclusive pins. FAIRY TALE 2 Hiro Mashima’s much-loved manga series comes alive in game form once again, with this sequel to 2020’s Fairy Tail promising even more spectacular RPG battles. Control Natsu and Lucy as main characters, but also other members of the Fairy Tail guild, in order to defeat their greatest enemy, Zeref, the Emperor Spriggan of the Alvarez Empire, who’s protected by the Spriggan 12 and the Black Dragon, Acnologia. MULTIPLAYER 12/12/24 12/12/24

hoard right up to date. As well as being visually enhanced, there’s adjustable difficulty, and the 3DS bonus levels are included, too!

PLATFORMER

16/1/25

MULTIPLAYER?

TALES OF GRACES F REMASTERED The twelfth main instalment from the Tales series was a smash in its day on Wii and PS3, and now it’s back in beautifully remastered form to enthral us either anew, or all over again! Thrill to the high-speed battles as you venture to the planet Ephinea, teaming up with friends – and the mysterious Sophie – as you’re drawn into a battle between three kingdoms that are vying for control of the entire planet.

ACTION ADVENTURE

ACTION RPG

ACTION RPG MULTIPLAYER?

17/1/25

CUISINEER Cooking combines with combat in this action roguelite meets restaurant simulator! As restaurateur Pom, bake up a storm as you venture to great lengths to earn your food - by fighting it in dungeons. Players will wield their trusty cooking utensils against such foes as giant chickens, artillery

shrimp, fire-breathing peppers, and many more comestibles gone wild, as well as customising their kitchens, dining halls, and recipe books.

SURVIVAL HORROR

ACTION STRATEGY

ACTION RPG MULTIPLAYER? SNIPER ELITE: RESISTANCE Prepare to return to the battlefield in an all-new Sniper Elite operation, deep inside the heart of occupied France. The story runs parallel with Sniper Elite 5 and sees SOE agent Harry Hawker take the lead in preventing the Reich from winning the war with a super-powerful weapon. All the franchise’s most popular mechanics return – including the x-ray kill cam – along with authentic WWII weaponry, extra missions, and more.

28/1/25

SHOOTER MULTIPLAYER?

30/1/25

MULTIPLAYER

MULTIPLAYER

FITNESS

RPG

5/12/24

13/12/24

Are you up to answering all eight of this month’s game related posers? 1. What was the name of the 1992 LucasArts adventure featuring an original Indiana Jones story? 2. What is Capcom’s Resident Evil series known as in Japan? 3. Which famous boxer’s name originally featured on the NES version of Punch-Out !! ? 4. Which 1991 strategy game saw you trying to prevent cute little green haired critters from plummeting to their deaths?

Answers: 1. Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis 2. Biohazard 3. Mike Tyson 4. Lemmings 5. Donkey Kong 6. Romance of the Three Kingdoms 7. neGcon 8. NiGHTS into Dreams

GAME EXAM

!

5. What was the first arcade game designed and directed by Nintendo legend Shigeru Miyamoto? 6. Which 14th century historical novel by Luo Guanzhong gives its name to a long-running RPG series? 7. What was the name of Namco’s 1995 analog controller designed for PlayStation racing games? 8. What’s the name of the classic SEGA Saturn game that spawned a special Christmas edition in 1996?

64 DECEMBER 2024

jbhifi.com.au