Launching on October 2nd, Update 1 adds Grausum RT: Ω and an unannounced foe as new bosses alongside a new cosmetic. Lapis Lacrima RT: Ω and Cybele RT: Ω will arrive on October 16th with two other unknown bosses and cosmetic items. November marks the launch of the paid Into the Abyss Expansion, while three more bosses will arrive in December.

In terms of free content, there’s a pretty extensive selection, enough to keep hardcore fans busy for a while. For more details on Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion, check out our review. We gave it a six out of ten, praising the customization, variety of weapon types, and music. However, the boss fights run a little too long, and the environments feel bland.

The biggest change from the first Daemon X Machina is the shift from a mission-based stage structure to a full-blown open-world. There are pretty much none of the typical open-world growing pains present here with one exception: how it looks. The Ground Below, or ‘Hel’ as the denizens like to refer to it, is basically a barren wasteland of PS3-era textures. There are some different biomes to vary up the look, but it’s all just different shades of uninspired crags and rock.

Some biomes have weather effects like rain or swamp acid that boosts or drains certain parameters of your mech. This is nifty on the gameplay front, but still doesn’t offset how bland and ‘samey’ the environments are in this game. The visuals in general look two generations stuck in the past. Even the anime-adjacent art style has trouble making up for the low quality textures, lack of environmental detail, and drab locations. At least the mechs look rad because hardly anything else does.

But beyond the bland open-world aesthetic, the studio has managed to more or less craft a functional open-world structure on its first large-scale attempt. Fast-travel in particular is expertly implemented. As you explore regions of the map, which are often separated by tunnel systems, you come across Byways overrun by enemies. Byways are your fast-travel points. Once liberated, these can be freely warped to anywhere on the map screen, providing instant fast-travel across the world. It’s a convenient way to encourage exploration while cutting down on needless travel time. Speaking of, the world map itself is more or less average in size by today’s standards. It doesn’t feel too overblown or too small. It’s just too bad the environmental design is so lacking. While the terrain doesn’t seem copy/pasted, it again lacks identity across its biomes, feeling like a giant barren wasteland with little to love about it. I guess they call it Hel for a reason.

"While the terrain doesn’t seem copy/pasted, it ends up feeling like a giant barren wasteland with little to admire."

Some of the activities you can engage with while roaming the overworld include world bosses, Stray skirmishes, Beacon signals, side missions, and my favorite of the bunch, mining. Ore is useful for its ability to craft various materials, but to mine it you need to engage with a fun little minigame. Lining up the circle in time with your ore strikes is a simple yet fun enough diversion from the usual mecha combat. But that’s not the only diversion in the game. There’s also a collectible card game called Overbullet that can be played with various NPCs around the Fort hub area, and there’s also bouts in the Coliseum to engage in too.

All of the various points of interest are very cleanly represented by icons on the map. One feature I wish more games adopted is infinite pin placement—this game has it, along with a handy function to delete all pins at once. The map also does a good job distinguishing different terrain types, which makes navigation even smoother.

One of the icons that sparked my curiosity was the outline of a horse. To my delight, the world has a number of wild horses that can be used as mounts. There’s not much to it considering your Arsenal (mech) is just as fast, if not faster, but hey, it’s something different to interact with. There’s also warthog-style vehicles that can be both driven and used for their mounted turret. By far the coolest mount is the transformer bike. Again, the function isn’t very practical considering your Arsenal packs more speed and firepower than the bike and its laser arms, but there’s a level of cool factor that I appreciate here.

Of course, your main mode of travel is your Arsenal suit. The vertical distance you can cover in such a short span of time is fun and liberating. Once you get used to the controls, dashing, flying, and decelerate to land again feels intuitive. Flying around feels almost too fluid at times, in a way I could categorize as floaty. Acceleration and stopping happen on a dime, with little transition, which can make movement feel imprecise. I can’t count the number of times I overshot a chest or loot pickup due to the sensitivity. In tight corridors like tunnels, the floatiness can lead to frustrating collisions. This isn’t a dealbreaker, but exploration and looting suffer because of it.

Speaking of, looting is more streamlined than one might expect. Players can only take one item for each downed enemy which encourages strategic planning and careful resource management. I like how this limitation forced me to weigh stats and utility of items as it developed a sense of familiarity with my equipment. The most rewarding and enjoyable open-world activity is finding new loot to add to your Arsenal.

"Ore is useful for its ability to craft various materials, but to mine it you need to engage with a fun little minigame."

Arsenals are this game’s main attraction, and perhaps the very best thing about it as a whole. There’s just a ton of depth involved in crafting the perfect arsenal mech build for combat and customizing how it looks. Customization is practically endless when it comes to your mech’s visual appearance.

Each part can be transmogged so that you don’t have to decide between looks and stats; just add your pieces in the customize exterior menu and you’ll see them on your mech regardless of your actual equipment. The coloring options are overwhelming (in a good way). Each part has three color sections, one luminous piece, and you can even add patterns and customize your own decals. This visual customization is well suited to the emphasis on loot within the open world and makes it worthwhile to explore.

Each mech is outfitted with a helm, cuirass, two vambraces, and greaves. These armor parts each contribute to a wealth of parameters ranging from weight, defense, health, resistances, ground speed, flinch resistance, etc. If that weren’t enough min/maxing for players, some parts also include attachments which further boost parameters. The range of weaponry at your disposal is no less daunting. Suffice to say, Titanic Scion features dozens of melee weapon types, dozens of gun types, as well as shields, auxiliary cannons, missiles, and even support airstrikes. These different types all feature unique gameplay functions as well as skills. Thankfully, the buffet of build options can be neatly organized and saved for posterity by setting up many loadouts.

"Customization is practically endless when it comes to your mech’s visual appearance."

Skills are acquired through a unique process called fusion. Defeating certain enemies drops genetic material that can then be absorbed resulting in new skills. It appears needlessly complex at the outset, but is quite simple in practice. Just farm enemies for the skills you want, though there is a caveat. Your character gets physically mutated in the process, so if you care about preserving your looks, you’ll need to pay a lot of credits to look normal again.

The skills themselves are numerous, ranging from unique weapon-based skills to general skills and passive enhancements. Suffice to say, between the hundreds upon hundreds of skills here, players aren’t wanting for variety when it comes to mech abilities. Among mecha titles, Titanic Scion ranks near the top when it comes to visual customization and combat variety; however, the feel of combat doesn’t quite live up to the depth of its various parts.

Like the general movement, combat feels rather light and arcady. There’s a noticeable lack of weight in punches and firearm shots. Bazookas and oversized shotguns don’t recoil when shot, and the sounds of the hundreds of different guns all sound unremarkable and generic. Further, the animations don’t have that extra level of polish and spectacle, but what can be expected with such a sizable roster of equipment? I hope this doesn’t come across as belittling, but I find the combat to feel like somewhere in between Earth Defense Force and Armored Core 6, with it leaning in the EDF camp more. That said, the sheer number of weapon types, skills, and options at your disposal make this a mecha game strategic. But in terms of viscerality, the game clearly emphasizes mobility and speed over realistic gun mechanics or intricate animations.

"In terms of viscerality, the game clearly emphasizes mobility and speed over realistic gun mechanics or intricate animations."

Even though movement can feel imprecise, combat doesn’t tend to suffer as a consequence. This is because the targeting system is more or less easy to use and is often preferable to free aim. Certain enemies have weak parts that limb targeting is especially useful for—allowing you to just instantly hit the enemy without worry of flight trajectory and whatnot. I just find that there’s often too much button mashing when relying on targeting like this. The best strategy for a lot of the common mobs is just to hold shoot or mash the melee attack as fast as you can while targeting them, which gets repetitive pretty quick.

Boss fights are where combat gets particularly interesting—or frustrating. Some bosses engage with all the mechanics and repertoire available to the player, resulting in an epic air and ground-based mecha battle. But others try a bit too hard to with gimmicks, resulting in an overtuned or boring fight. Some fights can drag on for 20 minutes at a time, such as the Colossus bosses roaming the overworld. This can be especially fun and engaging with a co-op partner. And since this game supports full co-op crossplay, it’s convenient to buddy up and take care of bosses. Though, I do lament the absence of local co-op.

But some bosses are truly unsalvageable. One story boss was particularly arduous and lopsided in its difficulty curve at that point in the campaign. The boss battle in question has a unique gimmick that isn’t even slightly hinted at. The game loves over-tutorializing every little thing that pops up—but the most important mechanic to overcome an overtuned boss fight? Nah, just let the player figure that out. The real problem is how padded boss health can be, especially with some of the lopsided difficulty cliffs that pop up here and there. Of course, given the game’s open world structure, grinding for power and farming materials can be a solution to difficulty walls.

At least the campaign isn’t as padded as some of the boss health bars. The story covers around 15 hours of playtime. Though of course, the wealth of open world activities can extend your time well up into 100 hours. The narrative here is a continuation of the first game, following a special group of Outers and their resistance to the their own government and its Axiom military. You begin being experimented on up in the Outer base referred to as ‘heaven’, and then escape to the surface world often referred to as ‘Hel’. There’s some satisfying, if predictable, plot twists and character arcs here, but it’s nothing spectacular.

"There’s some satisfying, if predictable, plot twists and character arcs here, but it’s nothing spectacular."

What I do like is the voice acting. Plenty of familiar anime and RPG voice talent are represented here and make the setting and story feel more lively and full of energy than it otherwise would. Unlike the first game, the narrative is structured with the open-world in mind. In practical terms, this results in dynamic party banter while exploring as well as datalog lore tidbits, and unfortunately no more of those cool mission briefings from the first game. As a result, the story feels slightly less epic and cinematic and more informal and seamless than the first, though the guitar-laden soundtrack certainly is as good as the original game.

All in all, Titanic Scion is a flawed mecha game with extraordinary customization elements. Combat can be hit or miss and the open world is a dull checklist of loot and places to go. The main draw isn’t the story, but the narrative is adequate. If you’re a big mecha fan, wait for a sale and you’ll have a lot of fun with this. For more casual players, try the demo first before committing—the best parts of the game are niche in nature and the rest of the game won’t make up for that.

This game was reviewed on the PlayStation 5.

The demo for Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion features the first nine chapters of the main story, while also giving players access to the open world so that they can take on some enemies and experience the high-speed combat for themselves. The demo also includes support for asynchronous multiplayer, where players can experience the game at their own pace while still being connected online and benefiting from other players spending time with the title.

For those that might be worried about having to replay these opening segments of Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion when the full game comes out on September 5, Marvelous has also confirmed that save data can be carried over from the demo into the full release as long as you play on the same platform.

For more details about Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion, check out the behind-the-scenes documentary that was released back in July.

The video was produced by documentary filmmaker Archipel, and features series producer Kenichiro Tsukuda. The subjects discussed in the video include Tsukuda’s experiences with the mecha genre at an early age and how they ultimately inspired the creation of the original Daemon X Machina, as well as insights into the studio’s approach to making Titanic Scion.

The documentary also features the producer and the development team discussing how they are making use of modern game development tools and techniques to help improve the visuals and gameplay. From a design perspective, it also discusses how the team made use of 3D printing technology to help them come up with the distinct visual look in Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion.

A follow-up to the original Daemon X Machina, Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion was first unveiled all the way back in May 2023. The game is under development for PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S and Nintendo Switch 2, and will be hitting store shelves on September 2. The release date was announced alongside the first gameplay showcase for the upcoming title back in April this year.

The trailer gave us a look at quite a few details about Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion, including the fact that players will once more get to customize their Arsenal to equip them with the gear they like. Over the course of gameplay, players will be able to take on enemies and collect their parts, which then can be used to improve their own Arsenal. As players get further into the game, they’ll start facing off against Titanic bosses, which can be taken on either solo or as part of a group.

May saw the release of another trailer for Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion, this time around giving us an in-depth look at the title’s combat basics. It explained various aspects of the combat in the game, including the ability to equip up to six different weapons, as well as how auxiliary gear can be equipped and used.

The original Daemon X Machina was released exclusively on the Nintendo Switch back in 2019. A year later, the title also made its way onto PC. The story of the game revolved around The Outers—mech pilots that make use of their well-equipped Arsenals to take on enemies known as the Arms of Immortals.

For more details about the original, check out our review, where we gave it a score of 7 out of 10. We praised the tight gameplay and impressive mission variety, while criticising other aspects, including how overwhelming it can feel for some players, as well as the slow, plodding pacing of its story.

For instance, it has slots for equipping up to six weapons, including swords, railguns, bazookas, mid-range rifles, missile launchers, and bows. You can also have auxiliary equipment for support skills, like generating damaging fields. While each weapon type is ideal in different scenarios, enemies usually have hard and soft exteriors.

Hard exteriors are weak to laser weapons, while soft exteriors take more damage from physical weapons. After an enemy is knocked down, you can grab it and either continue attacking, throw it onto other enemies or tear off their armor to expose weak points. If it’s a boss, rip out a body part and wield it as a weapon, as seen against the Grausam.

Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion launches on September 5th for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, PC, and Nintendo Switch 2 for $69.99.

There are few story details aside from players joining the Reclaimers to battle the Axiom, but once again, you can customize an Arsenal and lay waste to foes. Collecting their parts and weapons lets you use them in your set-up. It’s a straightforward progression loop, but eventually, you’ll go up against Titanic bosses, which can be fought alone or with another player. Interestingly, you can openly explore the world on horseback, on foot or in your Arsenal.

Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion retails for $69.99 digitally and physically. The Digital Deluxe Edition is $89.99, which includes an expansion pack with more story content and Arsenal customization items. A Super Digital Deluxe Edition is also available for $99.99 and offers the same content along with a digital art book and soundtrack.

Physical collectors can purchase the Limited Edition for $99.99. It includes a CD with 15 tracks, three flight tags and patches, an acrylic standee and an art book. Stay tuned for more details and gameplay in the coming months.

Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion is the follow-up to Marvelous First Studio’s 2019 mech action title. Despite the lack of new information, a press release noted that the company will announce platforms and a release window at a “later date.” Hopefully, it won’t take another year, so stay tuned for updates in the meantime.

Daemon X Machina is currently available for Nintendo Switch and PC – check out our review here. The story is about The Outers, who pilot mechs known as Arsenals and battle the Arms of Immortals or AIs. Players can customize their Arsenals with parts gained through single-player missions and even engage in online co-op.

It’s coming to Nintendo Switch and PC and features many new features. A new trailer is available, which highlights the different potential companions that protagonist Micah can engage with. There are 11 in total, the series’ highest, and include the somewhat standoffish Raven and the apprentice witch Marian to fishing enthusiast Carmen and the vain Sofia.

Thanks to Newlywed Mode, players can pursue new adventures after a wedding with a companion. There’s also a new Hell difficulty for veterans to spice things up.

Rune Factory 3 Special launches on September 5th for Nintendo Switch and PC. Stay tuned for more gameplay and details until then.

Developed by Marvelous First Studio, the reveal trailer didn’t provide many details besides confirming that there are indeed Arsenals. The developer didn’t announce any platforms but promised more information at a later date.

It’s unknown if this is one of the “high-end” games that the studio was hiring for in December 2020. If so, then the sequel could release for Xbox Series X/S and PS5. Stay tuned for more updates in the coming months.

Daemon X Machina was released in September 2019 for Nintendo Switch and made its way to PC in February 2020. It’s helmed by Kenichiro Tsukuda, who produced Armored Core 2, Armored Core 3, Armored Core: Nexus and more. You can check out our review here.

With a new trailer, Marvelous has confirmed that Rune Factory 3 Special will be releasing in the West on September 5. The publisher has also confirmed that unlike Japan, where it released exclusively for the Switch, in the West, it will also be available for PC day and date.

Rune Factory 3 Special features updated character models, remastered visuals, and various additional features and improvements over the original game, including the Newlywed Mode, a new Hell difficulty option, and new standalone chapters that are unlocked after marriage with each of the eleven available bachelorette characters in the game.

Stay tuned for more details on the game in the coming weeks and months.