Gaming News Week 22

Come on in, get yourself a nice cup of coffee or tea and pull up a chair.

Not enough gaming time for me this week, as I was busy with work. Well, work…if you can call it that. We had a celebration for the 50-year existence of our department, taking place at the seaside in Scheveningen. Now I hardly ever go to the sea, it’s quite a drive for us. But it was a nice outing, pity the sun fled an hour after we arrived!
Anyway, let’s take a look at the news that caught our eye this week; enjoy!

Roots of Pacha Back in the Steam Shop

Don’t know if you noticed, but there has been some trouble with Roots of Pacha which is out on Steam. We loved the game (our review is here) but it had been pulled from the Steam store for a couple of weeks. Fortunately, this has been resolved and it’s back in the shop. This is the official news statement:

Over the past two weeks, Crytivo and Soda Den have worked tirelessly to achieve the common goal of restoring Roots of Pacha on Steam. We are happy to share we have reached an agreement and that Roots of Pacha has been restored to Steam for all to purchase.

We also would like to share that Crytivo and Soda Den have made the decision to amicably part ways under terms that are mutually beneficial.

Soda Den sincerely thanks the Crytivo team for their efforts to support and market Roots of Pacha. Crytivo sincerely thanks Soda Den for their dedication and craft that went into the creation of Roots of Pacha.

Our collective priority has always been the fans. We hope that the restoration of the Steam store page brings you joy.

With Roots of Pacha’s return to Steam, the post-launch patches that Soda Den has continued to implement based on community feedback will be available to new players and existing ones. 

New Guide to Boost Understanding of Video Games

Recently the UK Government published a new guide to support research and enhance the understanding of video games. In April, representatives from the UK games industry, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, and the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport gathered together to celebrate the success of the UK’s video games sector at 10 Downing Street in London. 

Did you know that over half of British adults play video games? Furthermore, the industry is a rapidly growing sector in the UK, contributing a vast £2.8 billion to the economy and employing 27,000 people in 2019 alone.

Since the meeting, the UK’s Department for Culture, Media & Sport has published a new guide to boosting the understanding of video games. The guide is to help identify several priority areas needing more robust evidence to help academics and industry-focus research projects. In addition, they have also recommended a framework to include why people interact with games. And what impact gaming has on physical and mental health, and also the effect of in-game features like spending and advertising on players’ experiences. 

So, if your friends still ask you whether you have a gaming addiction just because you game now and then, just point them to that report!

Coral Island Console Backers Need Patience

Laid-back farming sim Coral Island has been out on Steam since October 2022 and doing well. The developers are still hard at work on updates and additions but haven’t forgotten the Kickstarter backers who wanted a key for other platforms. They assure us that they are actively working on it, so we need more patience.

Kickstarter For Book About Iwata

Most Nintendo gamers remember the former president of Nintendo, Satoru Iwata. He was the fourth president of the company, and under his guidance, Nintendo made major steps in innovation. Once, referring to his business card, he clearly stated the kind of man he was:

“On my business card,  I am a corporate president. In my mind, I am a game developer. But in my heart, I am a gamer”

Sadly, he passed away in 2015 at the much too young age of 55, but we will always remember him as he presented the Nintendo Direct videos, struck his famous pose and said “Directly to You!”

Nintendo Force Magazine now has a Kickstarter live to make a book called The Impact of Iwata. The 220 pages will feature his incredible career, covering all the well-known high points of his years at HAL and Nintendo. The book will blend text and artwork together, with quotes from Mr. Iwata himself and the colleagues who worked alongside him, spotlights on the games he helped create and the legacies they’ve inspired in the years since, and beautiful full-colour illustrations to introduce each of 16 different chapters.

Interested? You can find the Kickstarter campaign here.

The Kickstarter is live! Visit https://t.co/neJ4Ra5EVk to pledge your support and preorder your copy of "The Impact of Iwata," NF's first-ever book! pic.twitter.com/ZEVlTWaJn4

— Nintendo Force Magazine (@NintendoForce) May 30, 2023

It’s a Sticky Business

Coming to Steam later this summer, Sticky Business relishes in the wholesome fun and simplicity of childlike creativity: creating stickers! With thousands of design options at your fingertips, the task may seem daunting at first, but the game’s approachable interface and charming visuals create a totally serene experience for the would-be small business owner.

Of course, it can’t be all sticky, there’s also the tricky aspect of business management. Players must create an engaging, welcoming online storefront, allowing even more bursts of creativity and personal expression. From there, players can manage sales, pack orders, and even decide what sorts of goodies customers receive in their boxes. But even the tricky parts of business ownership prove rewarding, as what comes next is sitting back and watching the positive impact your stickers have on your customers’ lives.

Sounds nice and wholesome to me!

No Place Like Home is Heading to Other Consoles

After coming to the Switch, No Place Like Home is now heading to the PS5 and Xbox series X|S! Mina was very enthusiastic about this Cozy Apocalyptic Farming Sim (see her review here) and even made two guides. It’ll be there on July 28th.

Steam Next Fest is Coming

From June 19th (10 am PT) till June 26th the next Steam Next Fest will take place. In this multi-day celebration of upcoming games, you can explore and play hundreds of demos, choose from dozens of live streams to watch, and chat with developers about their games.

Cattails: Wildwood Story

Remember Cattails? Years ago we reviewed the game, and now a second game is coming. In this cozy life sim RPG, you’ll lead your colony into the mysterious Wildwood. Hunt prey, harvest herbs, collect magical treasures, & defend your new home from intruders. Build a thriving town to recruit new cats. Get to know the residents, fall in love, & raise a litter of kittens!

The second game was successfully funded in 2022, so it’s nice to see that there’s a demo available to play and have fun being a cat! You can find the demo here, and don’t forget to wishlist the game if you like what you see. The game is expected to release on Steam late 2023, and will come to the Switch later in 2024.

https://youtu.be/3CfvOboYIvk

Solarpunk on Kickstarter

We are really being spoiled by loads of farming games on offer. And now, there’s Kickstarter Solarpunk for you to look at. They asked for € 30,000 and they are already close to € 100,000 funded after just three days!

Solarpunk is a cosy survival game in a technically advanced world of floating islands. You can play alone or together with your friends, you can construct buildings, grow food, craft gadgets and explore distant islands with your own airship.

Use sunlight, wind and water to create an energy system and automate your processes like gathering resources and watering your plants to build your dream home in the sky.

Sounds good, but do keep in mind that it’s first person.

That’s it again for this week! Thanks for reading, and join me again for a cup of coffee or tea next week!