The Last FOLKS Tabletop Game Soon Is Coming

Reviewed on: PC Platform: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch, PC Publisher: Studio MDHR Developer: Studio MDHR Release: June 30, 2022 Rating: Everyone 10+ Cuphead’s long-awaited and aptly named The Delicious Last Course serves up a wonderful final dish that acts more like a satisfying dessert than a full second helping. Though not long, it offers an enjoyable batch of devilish boss battles and a welcomed addition in the now playable Ms. Chalice. Ms. Chalice sports a unique moveset such as a double-jump, a dodge roll that can safely bypass hazards, and even one extra health point. She’s a blast to use, and I loved taking advantage of her added maneuverability. Does she make Cuphead an easier experience? Somewhat, but she doesn’t turn the game into a cakewalk. Rather, she gives players more options to work with, which in a way makes her a more advanced character because of how I had to alter my playstyle to account for her new tricks.  I like that she subtly encourages aggression by having a dash parry instead of the jumping version, meaning I had to hurtle towards danger to repel offense skillfully. Her ultimate attack, a vertical energy column, requires getting up close and personal with foes, rewarding boldness with big hits. I also enjoyed taking Ms. Chalice through the base game and tackling familiar bosses with her unique traits. She provides newcomers a great alternative from the get-go while giving veterans a new way to topple familiar baddies. Ms. Chalice also makes the base game’s polarizing run-and-gun stages more tolerable.  It doesn’t matter how many jumps or hit points you have if you don’t know how to use them. The Delicious Last Course presents a platter of delightful yet demanding boss battles that, in most cases, pushed my skills to the brink. I highly recommend returning players warm up by replaying a boss or two in the base game before jumping into this expansion. Since you can access the DLC early, first-timers should at least complete the first island before tackling the new content.  From evading tennis balls and laser fire atop an airplane in a topsy-turvy dogfight to fending off sentient ice pops while fighting a snow wizard, these entertaining new foes relish in throwing everything everywhere all at once. I’d say they rank with the battles from Cuphead’s final third in terms of difficulty, as the challenge comes in parsing multiple projectiles and weaving between them while unleashing hell yourself. Design-wise, these adversaries match the whimsy of the original rogues gallery, and it’s just as fun (and stress-inducing) watching, for example, a gangster spider take on multiple new forms.  Only one boss has a final twist that felt more cheap than fun since it remaps the controls with little time to adjust. Skill matters most, but trial and error remains an occasionally frustrating element of the experience. Taking damage from a new attack I couldn’t have expected, like having a bad guy drop on my head without any indication on where it could arrive, is still annoying. But each opponent feels conquerable, no matter if you’re Ms. Chalice or Cuphead/Mugman. Surprisingly, the revamped parry challenges became my favorite encounters of The Delicious Last Course. An evolution of the base game’s mausoleum mini-games, which were decent but one-note, this new take pits players against five unique bosses that can only be defeated by utilizing the parry move in increasingly creative ways. I loved flexing my platforming prowess and timing by carefully bouncing on the weak point of a horse knight or repelling severed heads back at an executioner. Most importantly, these levels forced me to think about how to attack. Any enemy in Cuphead can be dropped by holding down the fire button but figuring out different methods of using a defensive maneuver offensively became an exciting combat puzzle. Since The Delicious Last Course ditches platforming levels, these arena battles offer an awesome break from the primary confrontations. I’d love to see more of them.  Our heroes can outfit themselves with new powers, such as a lightning-flavored version of the spread shot or tornados that fire upwards, ideal for hitting airborne targets. My hands-down favorite became the Crackshot, powerful projectiles that break into smaller bullets that nail the nearest target. They fit well with the existing arsenal. I’d be remiss not to mention the soundtrack. Cuphead has one of the best scores in modern gaming, and The Delicious Last Course carries that banner with some finger-wagging new tunes. The new main menu theme manages to top the original intro song by a mile. The Delicious Last Course sends our jolly beverage containers off on a high note. It offers an entertaining final exam of your skills while also freshening up the original adventure by giving players a cool new character to enjoy. It’s more Cuphead at the end of the day, but I had a great time revisiting Studio MDHR’s wonderful animated universe, testing my mettle against its villains, and feeling fist-pumping triumph all over again.  How To Access The DLC: To play The Delicious Last Course, you’ll need to have completed at least one mausoleum stage. You’ll find a new character outside of each isle's mausoleum who takes players to the DLC’s new area. Those playing Cuphead for the first time or with a new save who want to play the new content immediately will need to beat two bosses in Isle 1 (“Botanic Panic” and “Clip Joint Calamity”) to reach the first Mausoleum and, in turn, The Delicious Last Couse. Score: 8.75 About Game Informer's review system Purchase

Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin is getting an expansion called Trials of the Dragon King. The DLC includes new gear, jobs, and enemies to fight. Check out the short trailer below; it's as deliciously chaotic as you'd expect.  There was once a group of warriors who attempted to defeat the darkness. This is the story of what came next. Stranger of Paradise @FinalFantasy Origin's first expansion Trials of the Dragon King launches July 20th. pic.twitter.com/YvGEwGh1ux — STRANGER OF PARADISE FINAL FANTASY ORIGIN (@fforigin) June 30, 2022 In Stranger of Paradise fashion, it's hard to parse through what's happening in the footage, but we see Jack and co. cleaving their way through armored adversaries ranging from shield-holding knights to winged beasts with dazzling blades of their own. In one scene, a kingly figure sits upon a throne – is it safe to assume this is the Dragon King? – and says, "You will die here, and I will live forever." We're sure Jack will make him eat his words.  Stranger of Paradise is as bizarre as Final Fantasy gets. Andrew Reiner gave the game a 7 out of 10 and concluded his review by saying, "Stranger of Paradise is the strangest Final Fantasy game yet, bounding wildly between awful and fantastic. If you can tolerate Jack (and that's a big ask), the excellently crafted combat is worth a look. You may be coming to this game for the story and Final Fantasy experience, but it's all about combat and little else." Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin's first DLC expansion, Trials of the Dragon King, drops on July 20 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.

The June 2022 PlayStation Plus lineup of free games has arrived and it’s quite a good one, featuring Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time, The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man of Medan, and Arcadegeddon.  All three of these games will be available to download for free for all three tiers of subscribers to the newly revamped PlayStation Plus – Premium, Extra, and Essential. You can add each to your library starting July 5 and they’ll be available until Aug. 1. That means you have until July 4 (next Monday) to download last month’s free games: God of War (2018), Naruto to Boruto: Shinobi Striker, and Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl. You can read more about the June 2022 PlayStation Plus lineup here.  Enough about June, though – it’s old news! Onto July 2022! Here’s what PlayStation has to say about each of this month’s free games:  Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time (PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4) “An all-new Crash adventure awaits! Dr. Neo Cortex and N. Tropy are back at it again and launching an all-out assault on not just this universe, but the entire multiverse. Wield four powerful guardians of space and time that give Crash and Coco the power to bend the rules of reality and conquer dangerous obstacles in exciting new ways. And you’ll not only play as the wumping, jumping, marsupial duo: experience things from different perspectives with the one and only Dr. Neo Cortex. Play as Crash, Coco, Tawna, Dingodile, or Dr. Neo Cortex and battle bosses such as N. Gin, Louise, Nitrus Brio, and Nefarious Tropy.” The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man of Medan (PlayStation 4) “In this branching, cinematic horror game from the creator of Until Dawn and The Quarry, five friends set sail on a holiday diving trip that soon changes into something much more sinister. All playable characters can live or die, with the choices you make deciding their fate. Experience your terrifying story alone, with a friend online* or go for safety in numbers with up to five players offline.” Arcadegeddon (PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4) “Gilly, the owner of a local arcade, is trying to save his business from a faceless mega-corporation, Fun Fun Co. …and what better way to stick it to the man than with a brand-spanking-new super game. Unfortunately, the corp gets wind of Gilly’s plan and launches a cyberattack, injecting a virus into the game. Now it’s up to you to rise up and save both the game and the last remaining local arcade in this ever-evolving co-op multiplayer shooter. Offering a mix of PvE and PvP gameplay, you and up to 3 friends online* to explore multiple biomes, compete in mini games, find hidden chests, and battle a crazy cast of enemies and bosses.” While waiting for these games to go live, be sure to download last month’s games – God of War, Naruto to Boruto: Shinobi Striker, and Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl – and then read about the revamped PlayStation Plus subscription service to find out which new tier is right for you.  Are you excited about this July lineup of games? Let us know in the comments below!

On this episode of From Panel to Podcast we dive into last week's books, giving you a rundown of the best stories that you should add to your pull list. We also highlight the comics that are releasing this week and provide insight into why you may want to pick them up. If you would like to follow us on Twitter: Andrew Reiner (@Andrew_Reiner) and Philip Hoff (@bnow23). From Panel to Podcast is a weekly show created by two lifelong comic book readers who offer suggestions on which comic books you should be reading each week. Each episode also dives into the latest developments for comics in video games, movies, and television shows. We'll even discuss comic book collectibles and anything we think you should know about that pertains to this entertainment medium. Be sure to subscribe to From Panel to Podcast on your favorite podcast platform. The show is available on Google Podcasts, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.

Round two of the Overwatch 2 beta is finally here, but what can fans look forward to with this latest tech test? Join us on this fresh episode of New Gameplay Today as we check out the title's latest tank and show off the new map players can get their hands on later this year. It is important to keep in mind what is going on within Activision Blizzard at this time regarding ongoing allegations about the work culture. The ongoing lawsuit from the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) against the company is over-reported toxic workplace culture. The bulk of the suit focuses on "violations of the state's civil rights and equal pay laws," specifically regarding the treatment of women and other marginalized groups. To learn more about the proceedings thus far, including details listed in the lawsuit against Activision Blizzard, please check out our previous coverage here. The Junker Queen is here, and she means business. The leader of the Junkers is more of an offensive tank than some of her other colleagues within the category. She comes strapped with a shotgun that maybe doesn't have the power of Roadhog's but has plenty of damage to dismantle the opposing team. She also comes equipped with a handy throwing knife that can cause quite the commotion. If players land a hit with an electrified weapon, enemy health drops over time. If she misses, the knife can still help as you can call it back, similar to the Leviathan Axe from God of War (2018), and actually pull enemies closer. Pair those abilities with her deadly charge up and a devastating ultimate attack, and she has a chance to really make some waves. On top of a deep dive into Junker Queen and her moveset, we're also showing off the Push game type and Colleseo, a brand new map for Overwatch players to explore and dominate in. Is all this enough to get players to jump back into Overwatch? You'll just have to watch for yourself to find out!