“Synonymous” is stretching it, though. After all, Wuthering Waves, Genshin Impact and even Hotta Studio’s own Tower of Fantasy – the proverbial three-headed dragon meme given shape – are known for packing their games with content. Sure, their themes still ring true, but far be it from the odd cooking, racing, hunting, rhythm, tower defense and whatnot to slip through in (mostly) noncanonical events.

That said, NTE: Neverness to Everness, for all its flippancy, does have a bent. Urban fantasy, but not post-apocalyptic like Zenless Zone Zero. Instead, it opts for a more paranormal/paranatural playground, where Anomalies run the gamut. It’s all the BAC’s CSU can do to ensure they things don’t end up FUBAR, and if the destruction is any more widespread (and foggy), it’d have to be called Hellsalem’s Lot. It’s a potent combination – one where nondescript, near futuristic tech can meet mystical abilities that defy expectation – but does it have staying power?

"For all these hiccups during the main story quest, however, I was surprised at the writing for the side activities, especially when investigating different Anomalies and how you can select different tones for your final report."

As someone who didn’t like pre-overhaul Tower of Fantasy (and outright laughed at hearing how the post-overhaul went), I have to credit NTE for hitting the ground running almost immediately. Summoned to the scene of a Class 7 Anomaly – which irreversibly transforms those who so much as sneak a glance – you immediately control three members of the CSU, getting a feel for the controls while unleashing all manner of destruction. However, the star of the show is you – or rather, the protagonist, Esper Zero – who suddenly shows up and helps to stabilize the Anomaly by looking at it. Things take a turn when another Anomaly shows up, seemingly hostile to our hero.

What happens ultimately forms the crux of the story because, Zero doesn’t remember anything aside from being at Ghroth Island, which is in charge of detention, before suddenly hanging off a building in the middle of this storm. With several weeks having passed, they accept a binding contract with the CSU to investigate in the hopes that it will lead to more answers. It’s a mutually beneficial arrangement – one that sees them sent to Hethereau for some groundwork at an antiques store that serves as a front.

As far as premises go, it’s surprisingly intriguing, especially when you get a front row seat to containing a relatively low-level Anomaly. The writing, however, has left me a bit torn. On the one hand, it leans into the over-the-top antics and habits you’ve seen in ZZZ without going all the way (the plucky Mint is the most standout example). It’s packed with jargon from the get-go, but it doesn’t feel too overwhelming, steadily easing you into the world and balancing the seriousness with enough levity. The presentation also mostly helps, as it flows from cinematic cutscenes to in-game dialogue exchanges without skipping a beat, to say nothing of the jumps between paranatural spaces.

That said, some characters aren’t as interesting as others, and there’s one that tends to be fairly grating, bordering on an active detriment to the story as a whole. Certain conversations also feel like they’re lost in translation – like Zero revealing they never visited Hethereau before, leading to Mint…insulting the city? Even the MC seemed confused at that response. Overall, it won’t blow your mind, but the storytelling, quirks and all, complements the experience more than you would think.

For all these hiccups during the main story quest, however, I was surprised at the writing for the side activities, especially when investigating different Anomalies and how you can select different tones for your final report. The latter doesn’t really affect the gameplay in any meaningful way, but it’s a nice little detail to everything else.

"Wandering around a city and investigating these occurrences is fun, and the generous amount of stamina ensures that you can scale entire skyscrapers without too much trouble (even if the climbing animations could use some more polish and less awkwardness)."

Speaking of details, Hethereau is brimming with them, though you shouldn’t expect anything on the level of a Grand Theft Auto. Yes, you can requisition cars from citizens and stop crimes, not to mention visit restaurants, earn passive income through businesses, buy properties, and even acquire different vehicles to cruise around in. But it’s all filtered through the usual game progression. Whether you’re investigating Anomalies, completing side quests, or maintaining the peace, everything awards currency and upgrade materials. Resolving Commissions contributes to your Hunter level, which offers even more rewards and subsequently allows for breaking past a character’s level cap.

It’s all standard fare – even the Console that every character carries, despite the Tetris-like method for arranging pieces, still relies on the set bonus system that you’ve seen many times over. This isn’t to say that NTE doesn’t offer its own unique twists (and I’m not just talking about screwing up, going to prison, and discovering all the ways to escape). Because Anomalies form such a core part of the gameplay loop, they can lead to some very interesting scenarios. You might wander into a floating object and fight off several enemies before claiming its prize. Street graffiti could transform into an attacker before bursting out of the wall for round 2. A box will constantly keep unboxing, building an impromptu tower that you need to scale to contain it.

Wandering around a city and investigating these occurrences is fun, and the generous amount of stamina ensures that you can scale entire skyscrapers without too much trouble (even if the climbing animations could use some more polish and less awkwardness). However, the “structured” side quests don’t really offer much depth – you’re kind of just going through the motions for the sake of rewards. It’s also admittedly odd to see the anime aesthetic collide with more realistic elements like cars, so much so that the latter feels out of place at times. Not that this is the most offensive thing about the aesthetics, but we’ll get to that. All in all, the open world, despite how gorgeous it can be at times, feels like it could do with some more cohesion and interactivity – the sheer degree of random NPC conversations and occasional events helps, but it’s only a start.

Combat is another core pillar of NTE, and on the surface, it can seemingly offer too much style and not enough substance. Which isn’t entirely accurate but also not completely wrong. You have the standard attack and combos, coupled with a special ability, an Ultimate, and a dodge. Perfect dodging ensures windows for counterattacks that can further break down an enemy’s stamina, and once fully broken, you have a brief window to pile on the damage. Parrying is performed by timing your blows as soon as an enemy’s glowing red attack lands, but simply using an ability while the red ring is active or swapping to an ally offers way more leeway. It’s pretty easy, admittedly, even if you’re working around cooldowns, but dodging everything else is still paramount.

"As responsive as it feels, the skill ceiling for combat is nowhere near the level of Wuthering Waves or ZZZ (or as exciting). Nevertheless, it more than gets the job done while offering enough additional depth for those who care."

Further adding to this mechanic are the Elemental Reactions, which combine elements to trigger different effects. Damage-over-time, bursts, and increased damage taken from certain types over a period are some of the more straightforward reactions. However, you can also slow a target or activate a temporary mini-turret that fires seeking projectiles. You can even stack reactions to achieve effects like Charge or Discord, which can grant Ultimate energy and further break an enemy, respectively. And if that wasn’t enough, characters have unique passives to bolster certain reactions even if they’re not on the field.

Will much of this matter except in end-game content (which isn’t all that much of a focus in the grand scheme of things) or for min-maxers? Probably not, and as responsive as it feels, the skill ceiling for combat is nowhere near the level of Wuthering Waves or ZZZ (or as exciting). Nevertheless, it more than gets the job done while offering enough additional depth for those who care.

Duplicates (known as Awakenings) are perhaps more valuable in NTE because of Resonance Effects. Collect three and suddenly, Nanally’s skill levels increase by one; nab all six and that’s an extra 15 percent damage for her. While I kind of like how the system makes lower-ranked units more potent, it feels like a trap to entice players to spend more on duplicates. It may seem all nice now with the freebies and limited roster, but once the meta shifts, as it always does in these types of games, you’re suddenly dealing with the prospect of having to obtain multiple copies of a character instead of just one and their signature weapon.

"The setting is unique and lends to some interesting activities; the overall visual fidelity and music are good (even with some very occasional performance hiccups); and the combat is solid."

As always, time will tell if Hotta Studio decides to lean in that direction. But if it needed to change anything, it’s probably better to focus more on its alleged AI-generated art, with at least one controversial billboard that feels less “inspired” by Weathering With You than outright AI-filtered. Various assets that appeared AI-generated were discovered during the closed beta, and even if the developer said it never used the tech for “core assets and character portraits” but rather for “atmospheric renderings” and “trial and error,” recent evidence isn’t too flattering. Even if it’s not outright confirmed, there are other issues and inconsistencies with the presentation, be it the lip-syncing for the English voices (which seems better in Japanese) or the choreography in certain combat scenes.

Despite all this, Neverness to Everness is far from the worst addition to the free-to-play action RPG genre. The setting is unique and lends to some interesting activities; the overall visual fidelity and music are good (even with some very occasional performance hiccups); and the combat is solid, even if it’s far from the biggest highlight. Notwithstanding Taygedo and potential AI-generated art – truly the two biggest hurdles in the history of gaming – it’s at least worth a try..

This game was reviewed on PlayStation 5.

After all, while gacha games have infiltrated several genres, from Arknights with its tower defense to Granblue Fantasy and Fate: Grand Order with their turn-based battles, very few games have had the budget or ambition to build an open-world action RPG. Bandai Namco’s Blue Protocol is still in the works. Wuthering Waves by the team that made Punishing Grey Raven is progressing steadily. However, one title got ahead of them all – Hotta Studio’s Tower of Fantasy.

"Perhaps worst of all is that despite its numerous faults, Tower of Fantasy looks like it has potential. "

On the surface, it sounded interesting. A sci-fi setting with deeper combat, a strong character creator that allowed for making one’s avatar, and activities like racing in futuristic vehicles – it definitely has some stuff going on. Unlike what Margin Call showcased, however, being first isn’t always ideal, especially when you’re trying to ape one of the very best in the genre.

Make no mistake – Tower of Fantasy is trying to be like Genshin. That’s apparent in some of its interface, which resembles miHoYo’s title when picking up items, the Synergies that result when equipping two weapons of the same element, or even the jetpack, which hovers more often than it boosts. Some of the “original” ideas it tries to push are from MMORPGs (like mounts and encountering other players in the wild), with many systems and mechanics seemingly existing to leverage the monetization model, bursting at the seams with stuff to sell you.

Perhaps worst of all is that despite its numerous faults, Tower of Fantasy looks like it has potential. However, even after a year of updates and new regions with their own extensive stories, it feels unpolished and haphazard, especially on PS5. It’s hard to remember a title, free to play or otherwise, which frustrated me this much to the extent of mentally checking out to progress forward.

The story starts with you, a wanderer, who arrives on Aida to explore and learn more about Omnium. Life on Earth isn’t going so great, and you’re part of a colony spacecraft run by the organization Hykros that seeks to establish life on the planet, with Omnium seemingly the ticket. After surviving an attack against mutated hounds and humans called Aberrants, the player separates from their companion (just like in Genshin Impact, where you choose either Lumine or Aether), their suppressor fails, and they fall unconscious.

"Even if no Paimon is doing all the talking for me, it still feels like my character is just a participant in this story rather than the focal point of it."

They eventually wake up in Astra Shelter to meet Zeke and his sister Shirli with their memory gone. Thus begins the journey to catch up on what happened while assisting Shirli with her various tasks in this small slice of the Aesperia region. You even have a Paimon-esque companion in Mi-A, though thankfully, she’s more of a supporting character than a substitute for your voice.

Of course, it’s not long before things hit the fan. Opposed to Hykros are the Heirs of Aida, who believe Onnium is a curse and humans should go without it. Their leader plans to sabotage the Towers in the landscape that provide Omnium to the main Tower of Fantasy (I think), thus causing a disaster. You want to stop that, but also Shirli has been infected and seems to be turning into an Aberrant, so she’s taken away eventually.

The story starts innocently enough, but goes in several directions almost immediately, as you’re pushed and pulled along with Shirli’s antics. Then suddenly, you deal with Astra Shelter’s crises, learn of mysterious individuals, witness sibling drama between Shirli and Zeke, and explore strange ruins. It’s a lot of back and forth that doesn’t incentivize you to explore the world, as much as learn about the various systems on hand. Which is fine, but I would have appreciated doing that at my own pace. Even if no Paimon is doing all the talking for me, it still feels like my character is just a participant in this story rather than the focal point of it.

Another issue is that after you discover the crazy-looking hub for Hykros, the game suddenly catches you up on the rest of the story. Shirli becomes Nemesis or something (though her new look was spoiled plenty beforehand), and the Heirs of Aida are thwarted – it’s essentially one long highlight reel of cutscenes at 8x the speed. You’re led to Vera, the new region which offers an admittedly cool-looking pyramid city with highways that are way too desolate and traverse its surrounding deserts.

"At least Vera, particularly the city of Mirroria, looks good with the sci-fi aesthetic coming to life with its gorgeous skylines and neon-lit highways."

You could go back to Aesperia and continue that story, which may end up happening anyway since you’ll be level-gated before long anyway. It all feels so slipshod and awkward to be downright annoying. I’m more than fine with the option to skip to the newest content, but a warning beforehand would have been nice.

While the characters aren’t too long-winded, their dialogue fails to captivate. The English cast does a decent job with the material (though Zeke sounds like he’s halfway to nodding off at any moment), but it’s nothing that pushes you to learn more, not even in Vera where things are happening at a rapid clip. The cutscenes and their direction, despite the overly wonky cinematography at times, are pretty good, even if one is seemingly ripped off a scene from Avengers: Age of Ultron (you’ll know it when you see it).

The art direction and music are also decent, though the former can be inconsistent. When first exploring Aesperia, everything looks enticing from a distance but is overtly shoddy and low detail up close. There’s also excessive pop-in for objects just a few feet in front of you and frame drops.

Some stuttering also occurred because the game may have been downloading content in the background, as indicated by a small blue line at the bottom of the screen during gameplay. Why doesn’t it do this before I start the game? Why is it just there, causing burn-in? Your guess is as good as mine. At least Vera, particularly the city of Mirroria, looks good with the sci-fi aesthetic coming to life with its gorgeous skylines and neon-lit highways.

"I didn’t get to the end-game of Tower of Fantasy, so I can’t say, and based on what I’ve played, it’s not looking like an enticing proposition."

When it comes to combat, Tower of Fantasy at least tries to do more than Genshin. You can equip three different weapons, from dual blades and firearms to staves and spears, each with different combos, charged attacks, plunging attacks and special abilities. They also build up charge over time to unleash powerful attacks when switching, and each has advantages and disadvantages against enemies of other elements.

While there doesn’t seem to be animation-cancelling at times, and the auto-aim with some abilities and ranged attacks is iffy, hits felt responsive, and the animations were on point. Enemies don’t feel all that threatening as you keep upgrading weapons (despite the game claiming your attack score, gear score, and whatnot is not up to snuff), but they at least have some variety. Shout out to Phantasia, the Witch Time-style dodge that slows down everything and seems a little too good at times.

You quickly learn about Simulacra, which is how the game handles gacha. These unlock weapons but also characters, with the latter serving as skins. You can equip the weapons as your default character and upgrade them without much trouble, with various improvements unlocking other functions and perks. So what’s the point of the Simulacra, besides effectively having another skin?

The character creator has enough options for changing your look, so why? If you view the weapons as their characters, their skill sets are a far cry from whatever Genshin Impact, let alone Honkai: Star Rail or even Arknights, has to offer. I didn’t get to the end-game of Tower of Fantasy, so I can’t say, and based on what I’ve played, it’s not looking like an enticing proposition.

"While the game does a decent job of offering some free pulls, it’s just so overwhelming to be assailed by so much from the get-go."

As for the activities, there is so much to do, and yet it’s laid out in such an unintuitive way (plus your mileage may vary on what looks appealing). Exploring the world is fine as your jetpack can launch you upwards in addition to hovering, and you get a double jump and air dash. Various Relics allow for functions like clearing away obstacles and unleashing a hail of missiles, which can be good for puzzle-solving or discovering hidden areas.

The Ruins are also interesting to explore, even if they’re not especially complicated, and their presentation is usually on point. Racing also seemed interesting, but despite having a bike as a mount, I was informed after a painstaking affair to reach the location that I didn’t have a car. How do I get one? Good question, and at this point, I’m getting annoyed with all the unanswered questions.

Don’t worry, because Tower of Fantasy will quickly inundate you with potential purchases. All the typical systems, from materials for weapons to outfits, mounts and so on (which surprisingly let you choose gear), are available for real money. You have a battle pass, newcomer events, Achievements, limited-time events, outfits, mounts, something with Dark Crystals, etc. Gacha games are inherently predatory and can play off those who can’t resist the urge to gamble. While the game does a decent job of offering some free pulls, it’s just so overwhelming to be assailed by so much from the get-go.

It also brings up one of the absolute worst things of the experience: The UI. Forget the art or text in various banners and loading screens not being scaled to bigger displays – the off-center corner menu looks horrible.

"Tower of Fantasy isn’t real life or fantasy, but more of a landslide and poor substitute for reality."

Swapping weapons in the left and right slots is tedious, as you need to select the central weapon for upgrading, press left or right on the D-pad, back out, and then press the button to switch. A free cursor activates by pressing Square and Triangle together, which is necessary to dismiss some pop-ups and access menus unavailable in the start menu.

You may not know this initially, which can lead to awkward moments where you’re stuck with the pop-up until the Skip function appears to dismiss it by pressing Circle. The D-pad, right stick and left stick can select different options, seemingly at random throughout the game, and having to activate the free cursor to claim certain things even within menus accessed only with the free cursor is some Inception-style torture.

Even if you could pick out some decent things in this whole mess, other titles offer way better experiences, whether in terms of combat, gacha mechanics, exploration, story-telling or world design, that too without an interface that’s actively fighting you at every turn. Tower of Fantasy isn’t real life or fantasy, but more of a landslide and poor substitute for reality.

This game was reviewed on PS5.

"One of our goals was to create all-new characters for the Neverwinter world that would be seen again in future content."

How was the process of bringing the “Descent Into Avernus” storyline into the game as a new campaign?

It is always exciting to work with new material from Wizards of the Coast! Given the nature of our action MMORPG, there’s not a one-to-one translation of the tabletop game, but we do our best to capture the spirit of the story.

When we started working on this module, we first read through the Baldur’s Gate: Descent Into Avernus book. We then got together and talked about the story, characters, locations, foes, and plotlines. We decided to craft our version of the story with new heroes and a stronghold tragically pulled down to Avernus. And because the story of Zariel is so epic, we decided to tell the tale in successive releases.

One of our goals was to create all-new characters for the Neverwinter world that would be seen again in future content, just like we have done in the past with Makos, Knox, Celeste, and Xuna. Our new heroes are Alric Vallenhas the Paladin and Etrien Sael the Bard, and their backstories unfold as the campaign progresses. Alric’s family stronghold and surrounding lands are pulled into Avernus, and players help defend the many innocent souls of the Vallenhas estate from the fiends of hell.

This story also gave us the chance to take a location familiar to many players and reimagine it in a hellish and chaotic landscape overrun by otherworldly monstrosities. And to keep players on their toes, we devised a new way to distribute the large number of new quests.

Do you have any immediate plans to host more events similar to the recent Hell Pits?

Yes, we are in the process of making more events like Hell Pit.  We really like the idea of running multi-week events that evolve over time.

"This attention to detail is particularly necessary for dungeons, as they are such a critical part of the Neverwinter experience and are often played many times. As such, we want to make sure it will be exciting every time it’s run."

Can you talk to us about the new endgame dungeon, and what the design philosophy was behind it when you came up with it?

Dungeon design comes from two main areas: first, the story we’re telling or the theme of the dungeon; and second, the mechanics we want players to face.

Infernal Descent has players coming to the aid of the Vallenhas family, who find their stronghold being pulled into the Nine Hells. Players end up trying to free the Vallenhas lands, which leads them to an infernal citadel, where they attempt to break the chains that are pulling the estate down to Avernus.

With that story in mind, we then went on to design the dungeon space. We knew we wanted a floating chunk of land with massive chains attached at different points, but we still needed a structure to shape the playable space. The idea of devils repurposing the buildings that end up in Avernus felt like an interesting angle to us. We went with a castle structure from a very different civilization that the devils were using as one of their fortresses. This provided the interesting contrast to the basalt rocks and reddish skies. The interior, which was originally fashioned by wealthy nobles, was now rebuilt to house a forge used to fuel the wars of devils.

At the same time that we were mapping out the flow through the dungeon, we were also brainstorming the dungeon bosses. Being a devil-focused dungeon, we decided to go with an all-new bone devil, a classic pit fiend and a hellfire engine. Over the course of several weeks, we refined the mechanics for each boss, the rotation of abilities, and how the space played into each boss fight. We tried to make sure that each boss had unique aspects to it, so that the experience felt exciting and different throughout the dungeon.

From there it was a matter of doing the work, running a lot of playtests, and layering on plenty of polish. This attention to detail is particularly necessary for dungeons, as they are such a critical part of the Neverwinter experience and are often played many times. As such, we want to make sure it will be exciting every time it’s run.

About how much content in total would you say Infernal Descent adds to Neverwinter, in terms of gameplay hours?

The amount of gameplay hours will depend on the player and how each approaches the content. As progress is made in the campaign, new content and new pieces of the story become available. Over time, players will be able to play through all that they have unlocked, content like the new dungeon, to collect new rewards.

For players who have been playing Neverwinter for a while, they will find that Infernal Descent adds a typical amount of content, similar to what they experienced with modules like Ravenloft and the Lost City of Omu.

"The main Neverwinter: Infernal Descent adventure zone is one of the larger maps we’ve created."

How large is the new zone introduced in Infernal Descent?

The main Neverwinter: Infernal Descent adventure zone is one of the larger maps we’ve created. There are some spectacular visuals, including the hellbound Vallenhas estate and nearby areas of Avernus. There are a lot of distinctive locations to visit as you quest around the map to help save the souls trapped there.

Do you have any plans to launch on the Switch?

This is something we would love to explore, but we don’t have any updates about launching Neverwinter on new platforms at this time.

In the midst of development troubles, departures and hurdles for Motiga’s action MOBA Gigantic, things seemed rather stable once it went free to play. Players received a new update several weeks ago which also added a new hero. Unfortunately, the end is near and Gigantic’s servers will be shut down on July 31st.

The developer has announced that purchasing Hero Packs (which includes Start, Ultimate and Founder’s Packs) and Rubies is no longer possible. All current heroes will be made free and the cost for unlocking anything with in-game currency has been reduced. You can also purchase any Ruby-exclusive items with Crowns and use any currency in the Shop. Avenues for gaining Rubies and Crowns will remain available.

Those who purchase the Founder’s Pack will receive two colour variants for each of the exclusives skins which will not be available to purchase anywhere else.
“We are grateful for the support of our players and hope everyone continues to enjoy Gigantic until the game servers are discontinued on July 31, 2018,” said the developer.

With Epic Games’ Paragon also seeking imminent closure, it’s a huge bummer for MOBAs in general right now. We’ll be waiting to see what comes next from Motiga and wish them luck in the process.

Perfect World Entertainment, a leading publisher of free to play massively multiplayer online role playing games, and the publisher of cult hit classics like Blacklight Retribution and Torchlight, has announced today its plans to expand into console development, targeting both current and next gen consoles, as well as any future hardware to hit the market.

“Perfect World Entertainment has long been the leader in free-to-play PC titles,” said Perfect World Entertainment CEO, Alan Chen. “Bringing our titles to consoles is a natural progression for us, and we can’t wait to set a new standard for console MMORPGs and other genres.”

“We are looking at this medium to better connect with gamers,” said General Manager of Publishing, Andrew Brown.  “The opportunity to work on new types of projects with developers from all over the world is really exciting for us as a company.  We are confident in our outlook entering into this new business, and you can expect Perfect World to be a major player in the console marketplace.”

Perfect World’s console MMORPGs will be announced next year.