Square Enix Presents 2021 digital showcase recap
Square Enix just held its first digital showcase, “Square Enix Presents” on Thursday (Mar. 18), giving fans a glimpse of games coming this year.
Life is Strange: True Colors, the latest game in the visual narrative series, is coming later this year, while the first two games are getting remastered. The PS5 console-exclusive Project Athia also got a new trailer, official title and some new gameplay details. Fans also got updates on Tomb Raider projects, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year.
Here’s a quick recap of the trailers, gameplay videos, and announcements made during the 40-minute presentation which ran via Square's official Twitch and YouTube channels.
Life is Strange: True Colors
Life is Strange: True Colors, the sequel to Life is Strange 2 (2019) will launch on Sept. 10 on Google Stadia, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X. The upcoming game stars Erika Mori as Alex Chen, a young Asian American woman with psychic powers, who moves to Colorado to discover the truth behind what happened to her brother, Gabe.
The original graphic adventure, Life is Strange (2015), will also be remastered for new consoles, along with its three-episode prequel, Life is Strange: Before the Storm (2017). Both games will be included in an Ultimate Edition release of Life is Strange: True Colors on Sept. 10, and as stand-alone purchases later this year.
Project Athia/Forspoken
First announced at PlayStation’s June 2020 event under the working title Project Athia, the game has revealed its official title: Forspoken. The new narrative-driven adventure set in a beautiful yet cruel world will take players on a magical and perilous journey. The action-adventure will have players taking on the role of Frey Holland (played by Ella Balinska), an ordinary young woman who must harness her magical abilities to survive in the fantastical yet dangerous land of Athia, ruled by dragons and other colossal beasts. Forspoken will be coming to the PlayStation 5 console and Windows PC in 2022.
Outriders
Outriders, the high-intensity RPG co-op shooter from People Can Fly, set in an original dark and desperate sci-fi universe, is coming out on Apr. 1, 2021. Two new trailers were released, includiing one detailing the game’s story campaign, loot, and role-playing systems, called “Outriders 101,” and a CGI story trailer called “Appreciate Power.” The age-restricted videos are only available to watch directly on YouTube, but you can check out the cinematic trailer below for the game.
Balan Wonderland
Balan Wonderland, a 3D platformer coming from director Yuji Naka and artist Naoto Ohshima harkens back to the two’s works for Sega in the 1990s, is launching on March 26. Square Enix dropped a launch trailer that shows off the game’s main heroes, as well as dozens of costumes for them. A playable demo of Balan Wonderland has been available on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X since January.
Marvel’s Avengers: Black Panther and Hawkeye DLC
Black Panther and the War for Wakanda are coming to Marvel's Avengers along with Klaw, the Wakandan Jungle Biome, new enemies, and much more. Both Wakanda and its king, T’Challa, will join Crystal Dynamics’ superhero adventure later this year in the War for Wakanda expansion.
Marvel's Avengers Operation: Future Imperfect and next-gen versions are now also available. The newest DLC, Operation Hawkeye-Future Imperfect, got a close-up in a lengthier trailer highlighting the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X version of Marvel’s Avengers.
Tomb Raider: Definitive Survivor Trilogy & 25th Anniversary
With the Tomb Rider franchise celebrating its silver anniversary this year, Crystal Dynamics gave fans an update on Lara Croft projects in the works. A three-game Tomb Raider: Definitive Survivor Trilogy bundle, which contains Tomb Raider (2013), Rise of the Tomb Raider (2015) and Shadow of the Tomb Raider (2018) is available now on the PlayStation Store and Microsoft Store. This is the complete edition of the Tomb Raider origin collection, containing the definitive editions of all three award-winning prequel Tomb Raider titles.
Although the studio didn’t have a new game to announce, there is a new anime adaptation coming to Netflix and the studio says it is working to unify the storylines of the earlier (1996 to 2003) games, and the series since Crystal Dynamics took it over in 2006. Lara Croft will also be appearing in some game cross-overs, and there's even an upcoming Tomb Raider cookbook in the works, which will "allow adventurers to bring recipes back from Lara's global adventures back home."
Just Cause Mobile
Square Enix also shared a cinematic trailer for the mobile adaptation of its open-world, over-the-top adventure Just Cause. Just Cause: Mobile for iOS and Android features some familiar faces to fans of the franchise. As you start your journey as an agent, Rico Rodriguez and Annika Svensson will be among the mercenaries you’ll encounter, giving your player character missions and intel. Square Enix said that the top-down, action shooter will feature 4-player co-operative missions, 30-player competitive multiplayer, and an “action-packed story campaign” in a free-to-play package.
Space Invaders AR
Space Invaders are taking over reality! The adaptation of the 43-year old shooter Space Invaders game has crossed over to next generation technologies and is getting an exciting new AR experience for mobile devices. Developed by Square Enix Montréal in collaboration with TAITO, the game harkens to the series’ legacy of technical innovation to deliver an ambitious new vision for the franchise. Gamers can sign up at SpaceInvadersAR.square-enix-games.com for a chance to participate in playtests, when available in select countries and regions.
(Images via Square Enix)
