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The hardest part about finding games like Hollow Knight is knowing where to start. The overwhelming success of Team Cherry's award-winning 2017 game--and anticipation of its long-awaited sequel, Silksong--prompted a flood of similar games all looking to capture the magic of combining soulslike combat with deep exploration. Some are more inventive than others, building on Hollow Knight's foundations to push that style of game forward in new or unexpected ways. Others take a specific aspect, such as grueling boss fights, and run with it. We've combed through the lot and picked out 15 of the best games like Hollow Knight to get you started in this impressively varied sub-genre.If you're not as excited about combat and want puzzles and exploration instead, head over to our list of the best metroidvania games. Nine Sols Platforms: PC, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5Release Date: May 29, 2024Developer: Red Candle GamesIf Hollow Knight is the Dark Souls of metroidvanias, then Nine Sols is the genre's Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. Parrying is at the core of almost everything you do in Nine Sols, from dealing with standard enemies to wearing down some of its relentless bosses. Among games like Hollow Knight, it's also one of the most thematically and visually distinct. Developer Red Candle Games call Nine Sols a "Taopunk," a blend of sci-fi punk with traditional Taoist architecture and symbolism. Most protagonists in games like these are blank slates, but Nine Sols adds a personal touch by making the personality of its hero, Yi, an important part of the story. Yi starts out seeking revenge, and ends up on a journey to save the world and himself, becoming a reluctant hero in the process. See at Humble Animal Well Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5Release Date: May 9, 2024Developer: Billy Basso, Shared Memory LLCAnimal Well is a puzzle, or more accurately, a lot of puzzles. There's a bit of combat and some platforming, but mostly, it's about trying to unravel dozens of mysteries big and small as you delve ever further into a maze that wouldn't be out of place in Lewis Carrol's Wonderland stories. Explaining too much about what's going on would spoil what makes Animal Well special, but the most interesting and even subversive parts of it is that you have almost nothing to guide you and can make discoveries in any order. That freedom creates a sense of discovery and wonder that's often absent from the procedural methods inherent in these kinds of games.Read our Animal Well review. See at Steam Ultros Platforms: PC, PlayStation 5Release Date: February 13, 2024Developer: HadoqueOf all the games like Hollow Knight, Ultros takes the most organic approach to metroidvanias, and we mean that literally. You, an intergalactic explorer, arrive on a psychedelic space colony called The Sarcophagus and find it teeming with exotic life and mysterious spiritual energies. You use the life force and remains of enemies to nourish your mind and unlock new abilities, and there's a scoring system that ranks how efficiently you defeat your foes. That determines the quality of the loot they drop, so if you want to unlock and improve your skills, you have to plan each encounter carefully. Ultros is also absolutely beautiful, a dream-like blend of esoteric architecture and wild ecosystems with closer ties to the Sarcophagus' secrets than Ultros initially suggests. Read our Ultros review. See at Fanatical Blasphemous 2 Platforms: PlayStation 5, PC, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo SwitchRelease Date: August 24, 2023Developer: The Game KitchenBlasphemous 2's big addition over its predecessor--apart from even more ghoulish and gory moments--is the inclusion of more platforming. The first Blasphemous is a bit one-note, which is great if you're just here for the combat, but not so much if you want, well, anything else. Blasphemous 2 throws in some challenging and smartly-designed platforming as well, bringing it closer to the likes of Hollow Knight. Better still, developer The Game Kitchen was more ambitious with its environment design as well, with more complex layouts, better backgrounds and lighting, and even colors that aren't brown, grey, and blood.Read our Blasphemous 2 review. See at Fanatical Elden Ring Platforms: PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PCRelease Date: February 25, 2022Developer: FromSoftwareOkay, so Elden Ring doesn't have the exploration style of Hollow Knight, but it does have the kind of grueling combat that inspired Team Cherry's spectacular boss fights, and lots of it. It's FromSoftware's first open-world game, one that follows a lone, nameless warrior in their bid to bring salvation to a shattered land--or make its ruin everlasting. Mostly, though, it's a giant playground for dozens of exceptionally well-designed and challenging bosses to stomp (you) around in, with enemies ranging from fire-spewing land dragons to the spirits of an ancient civilization and a gigantic, greatsword-wielding prince on his favorite little horsey. Read our Elden Ring review. See at Fanatical Cuphead Platforms: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PCRelease Date: September 29, 2017Developer: Studio MDHRIf you really like boss fights and are less bothered about exploration and all the other Hollow Knight-y bits, Cuphead is definitely worth checking out. Don't let Studio MDHR's retro cartoon style give you the wrong impression, either. Cuphead's cutesy bosses demand careful planning, precise execution, and a lot of patience. The battles aren't the only thing Cuphead has going for it, though. Studio MDHR's exquisite animation, the soundtrack, even period-specific cartoon-style sound effects--the entire game is a spectacle in the best way. Read our Cuphead review. See at Fanatical Castlevania Advance Collection Platforms: Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, PCRelease Date: September 23, 2021Developer: KonamiAny of the Castlevania bundles are strong picks, but the Castlevania Advance Collection should be your go-to choice for the kind of classic action that Hollow Knight builds on. The collection includes Circle of the Moon--low on our list of the best Castlevania games only on account of it not really doing anything that Symphony of the Night didn't--the excellent Harmony of Dissonance, and the even better Aria of Sorrow. Sorrow is the standout inclusion, one that radically shook up the Castlevania formula by removing the Belmonts from the equation, telling an entirely new story set in the distant (at the time) future, and giving the protagonist, Soma, an ability that absorbed enemy souls for use in combat. It helps that Sorrow, as well as Harmony, have an excellent selection of bosses and some fantastically moody settings, too. See at Humble Ori and the Blind Forest Platforms: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PCRelease Date: March 11, 2015Developer: Moon StudiosOri and the Blind Forest starts like the end of a Disney movie. A cute little creature finds a family in the middle of a dream-like forest, and that family gets taken away from them. Your job is to figure out why and find a way to save the woods. Ori takes Hollow Knight's demanding platforming even further with some segments that wouldn't feel out of place in something like Celeste, but the real stand-out feature is the map. In addition to being a well-designed metroidvania world, it's absolutely gorgeous and a delight to explore. Blind Forest is a modern classic, and its sequel, Ori and the Will of the Wisps manages to improve it even further.Read our Ori and the Blind Forest review and Ori and the Will of the Wisps review. See at Fanatical Ender Magnolia: Bloom in the Mist Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PC, Nintendo SwitchRelease Date: March 25, 2024Developer: AdiglobeIn the onslaught of games like Hollow Knight that released following Team Cherry's success, developer Adiglobe decided to shake up the formula first with Ender Lilies and then with the more refined Ender Magnolia. You've got your standard elements, such as gigantic bosses that force you to learn their patterns and a puzzle-like map that unfolds as you gain more powers. Those powers, however, are the spirits of fallen friends who also aid you in combat. You find several, but can only recruit a handful at a time, which adds a layer of strategy to exploration and combat. There's also a strong sense of emotional attachment, since you and your ghostly allies have history and connection of a kind that's often missing in these games when you just play as an outside observer. See at Steam Metroid Dread Platforms: Nintendo SwitchRelease Date: October 8, 2021Developer: Nintendo EADAny Metroid game is going to have something of that Hollow Knight feel, since the sci-fi series is a big part of where the genre and Hollow Knight in particular came from. However, the easiest to get your hands on without having to pay for a subscription is Metroid Dread. It's the culmination of the 2D Metroid saga that started in 1986, but you can get by just fine if this is your first. Dread follows bounty hunter Samus Aran as she searches for evidence of a deadly parasite, only to find herself hunted by rogue robots--sometimes. The stealth segments that have you hiding from your metal hunters only take place in specific areas. The rest of Metroid Dread takes you across sprawling subterranean research labs, sunken testing stations, and extravagant dwellings, featuring the series' biggest map ever, stuffed with secrets and formidable bosses. If you really enjoy those bosses, Dread has a boss rush mode you can test yourself against as well.Read our Metroid Dread review. See at Amazon Lone Fungus Platforms: PCRelease Date: September 21, 2021Developer: Basti GamesThese types of games tend to lean more toward the edgy, dark, and broody side of things, which makes Lone Fungus a gem in the genre. You're the last mushroom on Earth, exploring a vast network of tunnels and temples in search of treasure and using magic skills that change form depending on how you swing your sword. A ball of energy is damaging to one enemy, for example, but you can smack it and shatter it into several projectiles to clear out lots of foes at once. Best of all, though, Lone Fungus has a robust Assist Mode that lets people of all skill levels enjoy the game and just makes it more relaxed in general, with features such as extra platforms, no costs for spells, slower platforms, and invincibility so your little fungus won't die. See at Humble Dead Cells Platforms: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PCRelease Date: May 10, 2027Developer: Motion TwinDead Cells throws roguelite randomness into the metroidvania mix and ratchets up the challenge as well. You're a spirit determined to figure out why you died, and in the absence of a tangible vessel for your ethereal self, you pilot shambling corpses in a bid to make it through streets, swamps, dungeons, and horrors untold. These corpses aren't the sturdiest, so when you fail, they fall apart and you start again. Eventually, you can unlock permanent upgrades, but with no checkpoints at any stage of the journey, you'll have to rely on your skill with weapons and knowledge of enemy behavior to make it through. If you enjoy Dead Cells, you can pick up DLC packs that add new locations, weapons, and enemies, and there's even a Castlevania-themed expansion as well. Read our Dead Cells review. See at Fanatical Monster Sanctuary Platforms: Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series One, PCRelease Date: August 28, 2019Developer: DeveloperIf you like a bit of Pokemon with your Hollow Knight, Monster Sanctuary might be for you. You play as a fledgling monster tamer out to explore the vast world with just a single critter by your side. You'll find and tame more, training them into the best versions of themselves and using their abilities not just to deal with threats in the sanctuary, but to explore its secrets and hidden areas as well. Monster Sanctuary is lighter and breezier than some games on this list, but if something more intense is to your liking, there's a robust PvP element where you can challenge other players and their monster teams too. See at Fanatical Salt and Sanctuary Platforms: PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo SwitchRelease Date: March 15, 2016Developer: Ska StudiosUpgrades and customization are usually rather limited in games like Hollow Knight, which makes Salt and Sanctuary, with its more in-depth RPG components, something special. You play as a sailor, washed up on some evil-looking, godforsaken island and foolish enough to go exploring the mysterious labyrinth underneath. What you find is a parade of nightmares and some spectacular, bone-crunchingly hard 2D boss fights that are among the best Soulslike challenges out there. Read our Salt and Sanctuary review. See at Humble Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus Platforms: PC, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5, Nintendo SwitchRelease Date: July 17, 2024Developer: Squid Shock StudiosMovement is often a means to an end in video games--a double jump that propels you higher, for example, or a dash that lets you avoid dangerous terrain. In Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus, it's no exaggeration to say movement is everything. Bouncing, flying, gliding, moving with magical speed, and navigating the hand-drawn world is just as important as battling the myths and monsters inspired by Japanese folklore. Path of the Teal Lotus is one of the most elegant platformers around, and it even has a reset system where you can pause or rewind a failed jump to try again, perfect for learning some of the more difficult segments. Read our Path of the Teal Lotus review. See at Fanatical

Sandfall Interactive’s smash-hit debut game, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, is still making waves across the game industry, and its momentum shows no signs of slowing. As a French love letter to the JRPG genre, this action-infused turn-based title has impressed many with its customizable and potentially execution-heavy gameplay, stunning visuals and music, and heart-wrenching story. It doesn't hurt that Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 represents a rare AA success story predicated on sustainable development practices, a trait that is becoming increasingly more desirable as layoffs continue to hit the industry.

In the face of growing labor shortages and need for sustainability, European manufacturers are racing to reinvent their processes to become software-defined and AI-driven. To achieve this, robot developers and industrial digitalization solution providers are working with NVIDIA to build safe, AI-driven robots and industrial technologies to drive modern, sustainable manufacturing. At NVIDIA GTC Paris at VivaTech, Europe’s leading robotics companies including Agile Robots, Extend Robotics, Humanoid, idealworks, Neura Robotics, SICK, Universal Robots, Vorwerk and Wandelbots are showcasing their latest AI-driven robots and automation breakthroughs, all accelerated by NVIDIA technologies. In addition, NVIDIA is releasing new models and tools to support the entire robotics ecosystem. NVIDIA Releases Tools for Accelerating Robot Development and Safety NVIDIA Isaac GR00T N1.5, an open foundation model for humanoid robot reasoning and skills, is now available for download on Hugging Face. This update enhances the model’s adaptability and ability to follow instructions, significantly improving its performance in material handling and manufacturing tasks. The NVIDIA Isaac Sim 5.0 and Isaac Lab 2.2 open-source robotics simulation and learning frameworks, optimized for NVIDIA RTX PRO 6000 workstations, are available on GitHub for developer preview. In addition, NVIDIA announced that NVIDIA Halos — a full-stack, comprehensive safety system that unifies hardware architecture, AI models, software, tools and services — now expands to robotics, promoting safety across the entire development lifecycle of AI-driven robots. The NVIDIA Halos AI Systems Inspection Lab has earned accreditation from the ANSI National Accreditation Board (ANAB) to perform inspections across functional safety for robotics, in addition to automotive vehicles. “NVIDIA’s latest evaluation with ANAB verifies the demonstration of competence and compliance with internationally recognized standards, helping ensure that developers of autonomous machines — from automotive to robotics — can meet the highest benchmarks for functional safety,” said R. Douglas Leonard Jr., executive director of ANAB. Arcbest, Advantech, Bluewhite, Boston Dynamics, FORT, Inxpect, KION, NexCobot — a NEXCOM company, and Synapticon are among the first robotics companies to join the Halos Inspection Lab, ensuring their products meet NVIDIA safety and cybersecurity requirements. To support robotics leaders in strengthening safety across the entire development lifecycle of AI-driven robots, Halos will now provide: Safety extension packages for the NVIDIA IGX platform, enabling manufacturers to easily program safety functions into their robots, supported by TÜV Rheinland’s inspection of NVIDIA IGX. A robotic safety platform, which includes IGX and NVIDIA Holoscan Sensor Bridge for a unified approach to designing sensor-to-compute architecture with built-in AI safety. An outside-in safety AI inspector — an AI-powered agent for monitoring robot operations, helping improve worker safety. Europe’s Robotics Ecosystem Builds on NVIDIA’s Three Computers Europe’s leading robotics developers and solution providers are integrating the NVIDIA Isaac robotics platform to train, simulate and deploy robots across different embodiments. Agile Robots is post-training the GR00T N1 model in Isaac Lab to train its dual-arm manipulator robots, which run on NVIDIA Jetson hardware, to execute a variety of tasks in industrial environments. Meanwhile, idealworks has adopted the Mega NVIDIA Omniverse Blueprint for robotic fleet simulation to extend the blueprint’s capabilities to humanoids. Building on the VDA 5050 framework, idealworks contributes to the development of guidance that supports tasks uniquely enabled by humanoid robots, such as picking, moving and placing objects. Neura Robotics is integrating NVIDIA Isaac to further enhance its robot development workflows. The company is using GR00T-Mimic to post-train the Isaac GR00T N1 robot foundation model for its service robot MiPA. Neura is also collaborating with SAP and NVIDIA to integrate SAP’s Joule agents with its robots, using the Mega NVIDIA Omniverse Blueprint to simulate and refine robot behavior in complex, realistic operational scenarios before deployment. Vorwerk is using NVIDIA technologies to power its AI-driven collaborative robots. The company is post-training GR00T N1 models in Isaac Lab with its custom synthetic data pipeline, which is built on Isaac GR00T-Mimic and powered by the NVIDIA Omniverse platform. The enhanced models are then deployed on NVIDIA Jetson AGX, Jetson Orin or Jetson Thor modules for advanced, real-time home robotics. Humanoid is using NVIDIA’s full robotics stack, including Isaac Sim and Isaac Lab, to cut its prototyping time down by six weeks. The company is training its vision language action models on NVIDIA DGX B200 systems to boost the cognitive abilities of its robots, allowing them to operate autonomously in complex environments using Jetson Thor onboard computing. Universal Robots is introducing UR15, its fastest collaborative robot yet, to the European market. Using UR’s AI Accelerator — developed on NVIDIA Isaac’s CUDA-accelerated libraries and AI models, as well as NVIDIA Jetson AGX Orin — manufacturers can build AI applications to embed intelligence into the company’s new cobots. Wandelbots is showcasing its NOVA Operating System, now integrated with Omniverse, to simulate, validate and optimize robotic behaviors virtually before deploying them to physical robots. Wandelbots also announced a collaboration with EY and EDAG to offer manufacturers a scalable automation platform on Omniverse that speeds up the transition from proof of concept to full-scale deployment. Extend Robotics is using the Isaac GR00T platform to enable customers to control and train robots for industrial tasks like visual inspection and handling radioactive materials. The company’s Advanced Mechanics Assistance System lets users collect demonstration data and generate diverse synthetic datasets with NVIDIA GR00T-Mimic and GR00T-Gen to train the GR00T N1 foundation model. SICK is enhancing its autonomous perception solutions by integrating new certified sensor models — as well as 2D and 3D lidars, safety scanners and cameras — into NVIDIA Isaac Sim. This enables engineers to virtually design, test and validate machines using SICK’s sensing models within Omniverse, supporting processes spanning product development to large-scale robotic fleet management. Toyota Material Handling Europe is working with SoftServe to simulate its autonomous mobile robots working alongside human workers, using the Mega NVIDIA Omniverse Blueprint. Toyota Material Handling Europe is testing and simulating a multitude of traffic scenarios — allowing the company to refine its AI algorithms before real-world deployment. NVIDIA’s partner ecosystem is enabling European industries to tap into intelligent, AI-powered robotics. By harnessing advanced simulation, digital twins and generative AI, manufacturers are rapidly developing and deploying safe, adaptable robot fleets that address labor shortages, boost sustainability and drive operational efficiency. Watch the NVIDIA GTC Paris keynote from NVIDIA founder and CEO Jensen Huang at VivaTech, and explore GTC Paris sessions. See notice regarding software product information.

EA has confirmed the salary of its 'median employee' fell last year, but its top executives are earning more.

Telecom companies last year spent nearly $295 billion in capital expenditures and over $1 trillion in operating expenditures. These large expenses are due in part to laborious manual processes that telcos face when operating networks that require continuous optimizations. For example, telcos must constantly tune network parameters for tasks — such as transferring calls from one network to another or distributing network traffic across multiple servers — based on the time of day, user behavior, mobility and traffic type. These factors directly affect network performance, user experience and energy consumption. To automate these optimization processes and save costs for telcos across the globe, NVIDIA today unveiled at GTC Paris its first AI Blueprint for telco network configuration. At the blueprint’s core are customized large language models trained specifically on telco network data — as well as the full technical and operational architecture for turning the LLMs into an autonomous, goal-driven AI agent for telcos. Automate Network Configuration With the AI Blueprint NVIDIA AI Blueprints — available on build.nvidia.com — are customizable AI workflow examples. They include reference code, documentation and deployment tools that show enterprise developers how to deliver business value with NVIDIA NIM microservices. The AI Blueprint for telco network configuration — built with BubbleRAN 5G solutions and datasets — enables developers, network engineers and telecom providers to automatically optimize the configuration of network parameters using agentic AI. This can streamline operations, reduce costs and significantly improve service quality by embedding continuous learning and adaptability directly into network infrastructures. Traditionally, network configurations required manual intervention or followed rigid rules to adapt to dynamic network conditions. These approaches limited adaptability and increased operational complexities, costs and inefficiencies. The new blueprint helps shift telco operations from relying on static, rules-based systems to operations based on dynamic, AI-driven automation. It enables developers to build advanced, telco-specific AI agents that make real-time, intelligent decisions and autonomously balance trade-offs — such as network speed versus interference, or energy savings versus utilization — without human input. Powered and Deployed by Industry Leaders Trained on 5G data generated by BubbleRAN, and deployed on the BubbleRAN 5G O-RAN platform, the blueprint provides telcos with insight on how to set various parameters to reach performance goals, like achieving a certain bitrate while choosing an acceptable signal-to-noise ratio — a measure that impacts voice quality and thus user experience. With the new AI Blueprint, network engineers can confidently set initial parameter values and update them as demanded by continuous network changes. Norway-based Telenor Group, which serves over 200 million customers globally, is the first telco to integrate the AI Blueprint for telco network configuration as part of its initiative to deploy intelligent, autonomous networks that meet the performance and agility demands of 5G and beyond. “The blueprint is helping us address configuration challenges and enhance quality of service during network installation,” said Knut Fjellheim, chief technology innovation officer at Telenor Maritime. “Implementing it is part of our push toward network automation and follows the successful deployment of agentic AI for real-time network slicing in a private 5G maritime use case.” Industry Partners Deploy Other NVIDIA-Powered Autonomous Network Technologies The AI Blueprint for telco network configuration is just one of many announcements at NVIDIA GTC Paris showcasing how the telecom industry is using agentic AI to make autonomous networks a reality. Beyond the blueprint, leading telecom companies and solutions providers are tapping into NVIDIA accelerated computing, software and microservices to provide breakthrough innovations poised to vastly improve networks and communications services — accelerating the progress to autonomous networks and improving customer experiences. NTT DATA is powering its agentic platform for telcos with NVIDIA accelerated compute and the NVIDIA AI Enterprise software platform. Its first agentic use case is focused on network alarms management, where NVIDIA NIM microservices help automate and power observability, troubleshooting, anomaly detection and resolution with closed loop ticketing. Tata Consultancy Services is delivering agentic AI solutions for telcos built on NVIDIA DGX Cloud and using NVIDIA AI Enterprise to develop, fine-tune and integrate large telco models into AI agent workflows. These range from billing and revenue assurance, autonomous network management to hybrid edge-cloud distributed inference. For example, the company’s anomaly management agentic AI model includes real-time detection and resolution of network anomalies and service performance optimization. This increases business agility and improves operational efficiencies by up to 40% by eliminating human intensive toils, overheads and cross-departmental silos. Prodapt has introduced an autonomous operations workflow for networks, powered by NVIDIA AI Enterprise, that offers agentic AI capabilities to support autonomous telecom networks. AI agents can autonomously monitor networks, detect anomalies in real time, initiate diagnostics, analyze root causes of issues using historical data and correlation techniques, automatically execute corrective actions, and generate, enrich and assign incident tickets through integrated ticketing systems. Accenture announced its new portfolio of agentic AI solutions for telecommunications through its AI Refinery platform, built on NVIDIA AI Enterprise software and accelerated computing. The first available solution, the NOC Agentic App, boosts network operations center tasks by using a generative AI-driven, nonlinear agentic framework to automate processes such as incident and fault management, root cause analysis and configuration planning. Using the Llama 3.1 70B NVIDIA NIM microservice and the AI Refinery Distiller Framework, the NOC Agentic App orchestrates networks of intelligent agents for faster, more efficient decision-making. Infosys is announcing its agentic autonomous operations platform, called Infosys Smart Network Assurance (ISNA), designed to accelerate telecom operators’ journeys toward fully autonomous network operations. ISNA helps address long-standing operational challenges for telcos — such as limited automation and high average time to repair — with an integrated, AI-driven platform that reduces operational costs by up to 40% and shortens fault resolution times by up to 30%. NVIDIA NIM and NeMo microservices enhance the platform’s reasoning and hallucination-detection capabilities, reduce latency and increase accuracy. Get started with the new blueprint today. Learn more about the latest AI advancements for telecom and other industries at NVIDIA GTC Paris, running through Thursday, June 12, at VivaTech, including a keynote from NVIDIA founder and CEO Jensen Huang and a special address from Ronnie Vasishta, senior vice president of telecom at NVIDIA. Plus, hear from industry leaders in a panel session with Orange, Swisscom, Telenor and NVIDIA.

Riot Games has announced that it will begin officially sanctioning sports-betting sponsorships for esports teams in its Tier 1 League of Legends and Valorant leagues. While the company states that it still won't allow advertisements in its official broadcasts, teams themselves will be able to take money from sports-betting companies for advertising through their own channels.In a blog post, President of Publishing and Esports John Needham writes that the move is designed to take advantage of the rapidly growing sports-betting industry and to make esports-related betting more regulated. Seemingly to address concerns and head off potential criticism, Needham explains that the company is authorizing sports-betting sponsorships under a "guardrails first" strategy.These "guardrails," Needham states, are essentially the rules by which any sponsorship must be executed. First, sports-betting companies need to be vetted and approved by Riot itself, although the company has not shared the criteria on which this vetting is done. Second, to ensure that sports-betting companies are on a level playing field, Riot is mandating that official partners all use GRID, the officially sanctioned data platform for League of Legends and Valorant. Third, esports teams must launch and maintain internal integrity programs to protect against violations of league rules due to the influence of sports betting. Fourth and last, Riot will use some of the revenue from these sponsorships to support its Tier 2 (lower division) esports leagues.Continue Reading at GameSpot

Project G-Assist — available through the NVIDIA App — is an experimental AI assistant that helps tune, control and optimize NVIDIA GeForce RTX systems. NVIDIA’s Plug and Play: Project G-Assist Plug-In Hackathon — running virtually through Wednesday, July 16 — invites the community to explore AI and build custom G-Assist plug-ins for a chance to win prizes and be featured on NVIDIA social media channels. G-Assist allows users to control their RTX GPU and other system settings using natural language, thanks to a small language model that runs on device. It can be used from the NVIDIA Overlay in the NVIDIA App without needing to tab out or switch programs. Users can expand its capabilities via plug-ins and even connect it to agentic frameworks such as Langflow. Below, find popular G-Assist plug-ins, hackathon details and tips to get started. Plug-In and Win Join the hackathon by registering and checking out the curated technical resources. G-Assist plug-ins can be built in several ways, including with Python for rapid development, with C++ for performance-critical apps and with custom system interactions for hardware and operating system automation. For those that prefer vibe coding, the G-Assist Plug-In Builder — a ChatGPT-based app that allows no-code or low-code development with natural language commands — makes it easy for enthusiasts to start creating plug-ins. To submit an entry, participants must provide a GitHub repository, including source code file (plugin.py), requirements.txt, manifest.json, config.json (if applicable), a plug-in executable file and READme code. Then, submit a video — between 30 seconds and two minutes — showcasing the plug-in in action. Finally, hackathoners must promote their plug-in using #AIonRTXHackathon on a social media channel: Instagram, TikTok or X. Submit projects via this form by Wednesday, July 16. Judges will assess plug-ins based on three main criteria: 1) innovation and creativity, 2) technical execution and integration, reviewing technical depth, G-Assist integration and scalability, and 3) usability and community impact, aka how easy it is to use the plug-in. Winners will be selected on Wednesday, Aug. 20. First place will receive a GeForce RTX 5090 laptop, second place a GeForce RTX 5080 GPU and third a GeForce RTX 5070 GPU. These top three will also be featured on NVIDIA’s social media channels, get the opportunity to meet the NVIDIA G-Assist team and earn an NVIDIA Deep Learning Institute self-paced course credit. Project G-Assist requires a GeForce RTX 50, 40 or 30 Series Desktop GPU with at least 12GB of VRAM, Windows 11 or 10 operating system, a compatible CPU (Intel Pentium G Series, Core i3, i5, i7 or higher; AMD FX, Ryzen 3, 5, 7, 9, Threadripper or higher), specific disk space requirements and a recent GeForce Game Ready Driver or NVIDIA Studio Driver. Plug-In(spiration) Explore open-source plug-in samples available on GitHub, which showcase the diverse ways on-device AI can enhance PC and gaming workflows. Popular plug-ins include: Google Gemini: Enables search-based queries using Google Search integration and large language model-based queries using Gemini capabilities in real time without needing to switch programs from the convenience of the NVIDIA App Overlay. Discord: Enables users to easily share game highlights or messages directly to Discord servers without disrupting gameplay. IFTTT: Lets users create automations across hundreds of compatible endpoints to trigger IoT routines — such as adjusting room lights and smart shades, or pushing the latest gaming news to a mobile device. Spotify: Lets users control Spotify using simple voice commands or the G-Assist interface to play favorite tracks and manage playlists. Twitch: Checks if any Twitch streamer is currently live and can access detailed stream information such as titles, games, view counts and more. Get G-Assist(ance)  Join the NVIDIA Developer Discord channel to collaborate, share creations and gain support from fellow AI enthusiasts and NVIDIA staff. Save the date for NVIDIA’s How to Build a G-Assist Plug-In webinar on Wednesday, July 9, from 10-11 a.m. PT, to learn more about Project G-Assist capabilities, discover the fundamentals of building, testing and deploying Project G-Assist plug-ins, and participate in a live Q&A session. Explore NVIDIA’s GitHub repository, which provides everything needed to get started developing with G-Assist, including sample plug-ins, step-by-step instructions and documentation for building custom functionalities. Learn more about the ChatGPT Plug-In Builder to transform ideas into functional G-Assist plug-ins with minimal coding. The tool uses OpenAI’s custom GPT builder to generate plug-in code and streamline the development process. NVIDIA’s technical blog walks through the architecture of a G-Assist plug-in, using a Twitch integration as an example. Discover how plug-ins work, how they communicate with G-Assist and how to build them from scratch. Each week, the RTX AI Garage blog series features community-driven AI innovations and content for those looking to learn more about NVIDIA NIM microservices and AI Blueprints, as well as building AI agents, creative workflows, digital humans, productivity apps and more on AI PCs and workstations.  Plug in to NVIDIA AI PC on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and X — and stay informed by subscribing to the RTX AI PC newsletter. Follow NVIDIA Workstation on LinkedIn and X.  See notice regarding software product information.

The best roguelike games offer a serious but rewarding commitment, inviting you to lose time and time again until you reach new heights. And then you get to repeat the process while retaining knowledge that shapes your future sessions, improving your skills with each subsequent run.The best roguelike games follow the philosophy of randomizing existing game elements and providing a different experience every time you start a new run, with the condition that a game over screen means restarting from scratch. The roguelite distinction is similar, but it involves permanent progression, be it in the form of story, unlockable paths, items, and so on.Our selection of the best roguelike games has something for every player, regardless of platform and subgenre of choice. Our picks intersect with rhythm, deckbuilding, platforming, puzzle, and shooter games, to name a few. The roguelike and roguelite genres keep gaining more ground as pillars for design choices, meaning that some of the games on this list will ring familiar with the selections in our best PS5 games and best PC game lists. You'll also find some overlap with our recommendations for the best indie games to play right now.As the middle of 2025 draws near, choosing the best roguelike games becomes tougher with each passing day. The likes of Nuclear Throne, The Binding of Isaac, and Enter the Gungeon progressively marked their place in the genre years ago. Now, roguelikes and roguelites are in abundance, with game developers coming up with novel spins and pushing the genre forward.Whether you're looking for something more traditional or a unique take on a genre that is brimming with creativity, our best roguelike games list is bound to add a few new experiences to have on your radar. BalatroDeveloper: LocalThunkRelease Date: February 20, 2024Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS, PCIf you've seen your loved ones spending way too much time on their phones during the past year, it's likely due to LocalThunk's engrossing take on poker. Balatro is deceptively simple: Look at your hand, think of the combination that will net you the most points, and see the numbers go up.As you slowly make your way to tougher levels, gaining additional cards that multiply said score while granting an array of often absurd bonuses, you'll immediately understand the appeal. Balatro is not about poker, nor is it just a roguelike. It's a numbers game where you can rig the rules in your favor. Its challenges are hypnotizing, but once you achieve victory for the first time, it'll take you a while to play anything else. See at Amazon Pacific DriveDeveloper: Ironwood StudiosRelease Date: February 22, 2024Platforms: PlayStation 5, PCPacific Drive is not technically a roguelite, even if it shares quite a few similarities in how you navigate its world, picking up key items and tackling objectives as you escape from weather anomalies from the inside of your car. The Endless Expeditions update, however, does push the game toward that direction.Released on April 3 of this year, Expeditions takes you outside of the campaign and into a randomized map with modifiers and rewards, the latter including cosmetics and unique tools. The trick is that you won't be able to stock up on resources, as you're forced to scavenge and build your inventory from scratch each time.Expeditions only end once you've collected enough anchors on a map. The longer this takes, however, the harder the task will become, with anomalies gearing up in difficulty. If you're looking for an extra challenge or an interesting twist on the Pacific Drive formula, Expeditions is the answer.Fanatical and GameSpot are both owned by Fandom. See at Fanatical Dead CellsDeveloper: Motion TwinRelease Date: August 6, 2018Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS, PCDead Cells is one of the pioneers of the new wave of roguelites of the past few years. Ever since its conception, developer Motion Twin set out to build an ambitious foundation--prioritizing a breakneck rhythm and flow in movement and attacks, rewarding fast reflexes and improvisation on the spot.The team continued to work on the game over the years, delivering a total of 35 major updates, expanding and ironing out possibly every element inside out. If at some point you think the base game doesn't have enough to offer, there are five DLCs (one of them free), including the Return to Castlevania expansion. As it stands, there might never be another game like Dead Cells, and that's okay. We'll still be playing it for years to come, while also witnessing the team trying out new ideas, such as the co-op roguelite Windblown, which is an early access game to watch. See at Fanatical Deep Rock Galactic: SurvivorDeveloper: Funday GamesRelease Date: February 14, 2024Platforms: PCIf you're a Left 4 Dead 2 fan, chances are that you've heard of Deep Rock Galactic, which takes the structure of the zombie-driven shooter and takes it in a different direction, featuring dwarves in space, alien monsters, and destructible environments. Deep Rock Galactic: Survivor, however, takes things even further.Released in Steam early access back on February 14, 2024, you're taken onto increasingly harder levels where your dwarf of choice attacks automatically. The Survivor-like is presented in a top-down perspective, with the mining mechanic taking center stage to unlock upgrades during runs and improve your chances.There have been four sizable updates, but even in its infancy, developer Funday Games struck gold when mining for resources. The combination of its existing setting with the roguelike genre is an enticing one. See at Steam Hades 2Developer: Supergiant GamesRelease Date: May 6, 2024Platforms: PCDeveloper Supergiant Games has famously never done sequels before--until Hades 2. The sequel follows the events of the first game, in which Zagreus, son of the Greek god of the underworld, fought his way to the surface. Now, his sister Melinöe is tasked with defeating Chronos, the god of time itself, who's posing a threat unknown to everyone to this point.The roguelite is similar in nature to its predecessor, advancing the story with each victorious or failed run, gradually uncovering layer upon layer of new characters, powers to combine and grow stronger with, and even more features to further customize your experience. Hades 2 is still in early access, but there's a ridiculous amount of story and challenges to go through. Plus, the sequel is one of the first games confirmed for the Nintendo Switch 2. The 1.0 release date is yet to be confirmed, but Supergiant is targeting 2025. See at Steam Darkest Dungeon 2Developer: Red Hook StudiosRelease Date: May 8, 2024Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, PCDarkest Dungeon 2 entered early access in October 2021, with the full launch taking place on May 8. It had a tall order--surpassing the inimitable Darkest Dungeon, a tough roguelike centered around stress as a mechanic, with characters being driven mad or, on occasion, becoming inspired by the embrace of darkness and presence of heinous monsters.The sequel moves away from the structure of its predecessor, where you explored different biomes while managing resources and upgrading a home base. Now, it follows a structure similar to modern roguelite conventions, where you choose from different paths that are labeled with the rewards and challenges awaiting on the roads.While the combat shares some similarities, many new features shake up previous foundations, from playable origin stories for each hero to the affinity system, which takes the stress mechanic of the first game and adds a communal element to it by leading to different relationship archetypes between party members. Despite the change in presentation with more bells and whistles, Darkest Dungeon 2 retains the spirit of the first game--it's a visceral, tough-as-nails adventure that demands patience to overcome. See at Fanatical Rogue Legacy 2Developer: Cellar Door GamesRelease Date: April 28, 2022Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, PCWhen the original Rogue Legacy launched in 2013, its combination of metroidvania with roguelite elements was already promising. Yet, it pushed things further with a genius feature where, each time you die, one of your children succeeds you. The trick? Everybody has unique traits, from gigantism and baldness to color blindness and dyslexia, which would have gameplay impacts from the beneficial to the hilarious.Rogue Legacy 2 pushes the novelty with even more traits and classes, including a bard and a dragon lancer. The metroidvania aspect has also been improved with the addition of unique items that permanently unlock abilities to further explore the world and unveil its secrets. It's a sequel that successfully ticks every box a sequel must, and does so with a familiar grace and humor that still has a lot to offer over a decade later. See at Steam Spelunky 2Developer: Mossmouth and BlitWorksRelease Date: September 29, 2020Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, PCSpelunky is the classic go-to recommendation for a roguelike with ironclad design. The platformer with an Indiana Jones spirit made for one of the most challenging roguelites out there, requiring patience and the willingness to study every possible enemy pattern, trap, and miscalculation that can end your run, and then memorize it all for the next attempt.Spelunky 2 is a showcase of refinement upon refinement. Sure, it's touted with a bigger world with new areas to study, multiple routes to find and take advantage of, and an assortment of features meant to subvert long-standing fans' expectations. The sequel's greatest trick, however, is once again proving that meticulously thought design can elevate good ideas to admirable heights. The only way to improve is to keep trying, over and over, until surpassing the obstacles in your way becomes second nature. And then you get to do it all over again in the following area. See at Steam Slay the SpireDeveloper: Mega CritRelease Date: January 23, 2019Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS, PCDeck-building has become a popular marriage candidate for roguelites, and Slay the Spire might be one of the games responsible for its popularity. The premise is simple: You pick a character who has a predefined card deck and jump into a procedurally generated run. The rewards, obstacles, and challenges roaming your chosen paths are always different, demanding different strategies.As you make your way through a game session, you'll collect more cards for your deck, slowly customizing the options available to fit different playstyles and adapt yourself to the danger at hand. Do you invest in dealing as much damage as possible, neglecting your defense? Do you try to come up with different synergies to create a jack-of-all-trades card deck? There's always something to learn and discover, and the number of combinations available to experiment with is seducingly daunting. The best part? There's a sequel in the works, slated for 2025. See at Steam Risk of Rain 2Developer: Hopoo GamesRelease Date: August 11, 2020Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, PCRisk of Rain 2 is one of the few roguelites that explored the idea of taking the often pixel art, 2D-driven presentations of the genre and experimenting with 3D instead. Taking the elements that made its predecessor great, from enemy design to the different survivors you control, the change of perspective led to a breath of fresh air in the genre, and one of the most entertaining online games out there.The 1.0 release on August 11, 2020 has been followed up with hefty updates and paid DLC since. You can spend hours just fooling around with friends and seeing how far you can go. Once you get invested in the game's most intricate secrets and mechanics, however, you'll find out that the thrill comes down to becoming an unstoppable force challenged by a dynamic difficulty meter that's constantly keeping you on your toes. The use of 3D, then, isn't a mere novelty--it literally shines a new light on what roguelites can achieve when looked at from a different perspective, adding a different sense of movement and scale to the usual roguelite chaos. See at Steam Crypt of the NecrodancerDeveloper: Brace Yourself GamesRelease Date: April 23, 2015Platforms: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS, PCCrypt of the Necrodancer might be one of the oldest picks of our best roguelike games list, but the reason is simple: No other roguelite has managed to combine the genre conventions with the mechanics of a rhythm game to such success. Every movement and action in the game is tied to the beat of the soundtrack blasting in the background.Enemies have different patterns that you must learn, all while carefully moving on tiles as if you were tapping the floor with your foot following a song. Even if you're not rhythm game savvy, the mix of both genres is accommodating enough to make you a believer--right until you meet a dragon for the first time, that is. After the original release, Cadence of Hyrule followed up on the concept, with the studio collaborating with Nintendo for a different take on The Legend of Zelda. But Crypt of the Necrodancer remains a worthy rogue classic. See at Steam Into the BreachDeveloper: Subset GamesRelease Date: February 27, 2018Platforms: Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS, PCThe alien invasion grows in numbers. You must assemble a squad of a handful of units and try to beat the odds. When you inevitably meet your demise, the last person standing creates a rift and travels to a different timeline. Time to start again.Into the Breach has a steep learning curve. Its design conventions, however, make it worth the effort to learn how to best use the space given to you and how your units can counterattack the alien push. The game is clear about the consequences of your movements on each map grid--whether or not you'll be able to land an attack, if one of your mechs will be caught in a tidal wave or an enemy projectile, and so on.Often, playing the strategy roguelike feels like a series of elaborate board games, where you carefully move pieces and spend your time thinking of the best possible plan. When it all comes together, the satisfaction is unparalleled. But even when you fail and you're sent to another timeline to commence anew, there's a thrill in knowing that next time might be the one if you take the time to analyze your movements and execute with care.Into the Breach is also the rare game to receive a 10/10 from GameSpot. See at Steam Loop HeroDeveloper: Four QuartersRelease Date: March 4, 2021Platforms: Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS, PCThe concept of loops and the repetitive nature of roguelites are a natural pairing. Loop Hero not only understands it, but extends it further by turning you into a dungeon master of sorts. You're given the choice of a hero and a map layout, as well as a deck of cards. You can place different types of terrain and structures, each having its own pros and cons. But you also need to place enemies, slowly making each loop--where the character walks a full cycle of the map--more intricate to navigate.The randomized nature of roguelites is heightened by giving you agency over the dangers that your hero will have to overcome. With a large number of unlockables to pursue after each session, as well as a captivating presentation, Loop Hero is one of the most inventive roguelites out there. See at Fanatical ReturnalDeveloper: HousemarqueRelease Date: April 30, 2021Platforms: PlayStation 5, PCHousemarque's expertise lies in games with an arcade nature, from Resogun to Nex Machina. At first glance, Returnal seems different--its presentation is powered by a level of production that screams AAA game. Initially introduced as a PlayStation 5 exclusive, the third-person shooter makes an interesting use of the roguelite concept, intertwining story events with each death. Similarly to Hades, meeting your demise rarely means taking a step back.Don't let its prestigious look deceive you, though--Returnal is the living proof of a modern arcade game, taking cues from the bullet hell genre. This means that you must be in constant movement, carefully timing dodges and narrow jumps to avoid a barrage of projectiles coming your way from all directions. A sequel is slated for 2026, but the first game deserves all of your attention. It's one of the best games in the PlayStation catalog, and a thrilling showcase of how a roguelite structure can inform a story, blending into one coexisting vehicle for a narrative that wouldn't work elsewhere. See at Fanatical Shogun ShowdownDeveloper: RoboatinoRelease Date: September 5, 2024Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, PCDeveloper Roboatino saw the synergy of roguelike and deck-building elements and decided to add turn-based combat to the mix. You command a lone hero who must take positioning and time into consideration to defeat multiple enemies and make it out unscathed.Using an inventive mechanic regarding the tiles you set foot on, Shogun Showdown hides a surprising level of depth, which you gradually uncover the more time you spend with it. You can upgrade and sacrifice different movements and skills in between battles, and as you die, you'll unlock new characters and attacks to experiment with. If you want to test the game's combat by yourself, there's a free prologue available on PC. See at Fanatical Blue PrinceDeveloper: DogubombRelease Date: April 10, 2025Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PCIn Blue Prince, you're a fourteen-year-old boy next in line for an inheritance. The catch is that you first need to explore a manor that changes its inner structure each day, hiding access to the elusive room 46 somewhere within its bowels. Dogubomb's title is part puzzle game, part roguelite, part investigative game.When you start a new day, you're given a number of steps that you can take inside the manor. Upon interacting with a door, the game grants you a random selection of rooms, each containing a puzzle, resource items, or a clue to a larger mystery. Sometimes all three of them. The deeper you plunge into Blue Prince, the higher the chances of becoming engrossed by the sheer amount of layers upon layers of puzzles to solve. See at Fanatical Caves of QudDeveloper: Freehold GamesRelease Date: December 5, 2024Platforms: PCDevelopment for Caves of Qud began back in 2007, with the first public beta being released to the world in 2010. Then, after almost a decade in Steam early access, the game was fully launched on December 5, 2024. The science-fantasy roguelike is brimming with emergent stories, offering a deeply simulated world where you can shape the environment as you see fit, join one of over 70 factions, or simply get lost in the overwhelming number of possible actions and outcomes available.In Caves of Qud, every NPC and monster is as fully simulated as you, meaning that they all have their own skills, equipment, body parts, and levels. The body parts are important, as there are multiple mutations at play, from two heads to the power of cloning oneself. The sandbox nature and painstaking level of detail have added an unmatched identity to the roguelike over its long lifespan. Now, there's never been a better time to take a plunge and become a part of its labyrinthine systems and intricate synergies that are happening in the game without your input. See at Steam FTL: Faster Than LightDeveloper: Subset GamesRelease Date: September 14, 2021Platforms: iOS, PCCommanding a party is a classic go-to for roguelites. Being the captain of a spaceship where you must attend to your crew and rooms individually, however, is an idea that is still novel to this day. Before Into the Breach, developer Subset Games came up with a different adventure in outer space.Presented with randomly generated galaxies, you must pick different paths to warp to, taking care and managing your spaceship in your ventures. Everything from the state of the hull to the level of oxygen must be accounted for. While you might be lucky with the galaxy destinations you pick, your crew will inevitably have to confront other ships.It's during these moments that FTL: Faster Than Light showcases its exhilarating mix of mechanics, forcing you to act fast by putting up fires, deciding which rooms to open and which ones to close, and sending crew members to repair the ship, all while using similar strategies on the enemy at hand. There's no other game like FTL. See at Steam InscryptionDeveloper: Daniel Mullins GamesRelease Date: October 19, 2021Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, PCThe creator of the eerie Pony Island took a stab at the roguelike genre in 2021 with Inscryption. At first, you don't know where you are--all you can see is the inside of a dark cabin, and a strange figure that invites you to play a card game. The creepiness sets in more and more over time, as you use cards depicting animals that seem to be alive, trying to make progress in the game while also looking for an opportunity to try and figure out how to escape the cabin.Inscription has multiple twists that are best left as a secret. If you want a general indication of what to expect, however, this roguelike pulls you into an obscure setting that becomes darker the more time you spend with it, subverting existing genre conventions and familiar mechanics with a horror twist. See at Fanatical Dome KeeperDeveloper: BippinbitsRelease Date: September 27, 2022Platforms: PCDome Keeper is a great game for people who enjoy multitasking. As the name implies, you must protect a dome from enemy attacks. In order to do so, you must dig underneath the surface to search for resources and artifacts, which are used to choose upgrades and different ways to defend your base.Enemies won't just sit and wait, however. You only have a limited time to dig in between attack waves. Picking your upgrades carefully will make or break your chances of survival to gain another chance at plunging through the surface and build better defenses. Dome Keeper is an ambitious survival game that takes cue from roguelikes and tower defense games to create a different kind of challenge to overcome. See at Fanatical Monster TrainDeveloper: Shiny ShoeRelease Date: May 20, 2020Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, iOS, PCMonster Train is the distant cousin of Slay the Spire. You're given a deck of cards that you slowly grow during runs, as well as different paths to choose from. The twist is how combat encounters are structured, turning elements like positioning and card strategies on their head.Whenever you face enemies, you're presented with a large vertical structure that has three play fields. You must carefully plan where to place your cards to defend the train's core. It's an idea that's pushed to its limit time and time again with the cards available and the ways in which enemies can also strategize around your defenses. Monster Train is a prime example of how much innovation is still in the genre. See at Fanatical Vampire SurvivorsDeveloper: PoncleRelease Date: October 20, 2022Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS, PCTaking inspiration from a mobile game called Magic Survival, in which the main character attacked automatically without the player's input, developer Poncle leaned on a fascination for Castlevania's aesthetic to iterate on the concept. The simple idea led to an absurd amount of characters, levels, and items to unlock--including, of course, an official collaboration with Konami to include more than just indirect references to the Castlevania series.Playing a Vampire Survivors stage can last anything from 15 to 20 or 30 minutes--if you can survive long enough with the items you've acquired. Even if you fail, however, you're constantly unlocking items, characters, and stages to explore in subsequent runs. It's a game that's best described as a Pandora's Box equivalent. Especially considering the chaos that it will likely inflict on your schedule. See at Steam Hitman World of Assassination: Freelancer ModeDeveloper: IO InteractiveRelease Date: January 26, 2023Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PCThe Hitman series has always excelled in presenting puzzle boxes that double down as playgrounds to blend in, follow your target, and take them down in increasingly ridiculous ways. Freelancer Mode, introduced to Hitman World of Assassination on January 26, 2023, adds a different spin to the premise with a persistent and highly replayable experience.In this mode, targets are always random, and you're given access to different bonus objectives. Making use of a hub exclusive to Freelancer, Agent 47 must choose a crime syndicate to pursue, which sets the mood of the campaign, and then get started without any equipment or weapons. If you've already mastered the classic Hitman levels or you just want a different, ridiculously polished roguelike experience, Freelancer Mode is a distinct and ambitious take on the genre. Worth mentioning that Hitman World of Assassination is also slated to launch on Nintendo Switch 2. See at Steam InkboundDeveloper: Shiny ShoeRelease Date: April 9, 2024Platforms: PCFrom the makers of Monster Train comes Inkbound, a turn-based tactical roguelike that offers co-op, and synergies that are heightened by coordinating with others online. Players can move freely and act simultaneously in multiplayer, picking from eight different classes to try out different combinations.There's also a deck-building element of sorts involved in the vein of draftable abilities, upgrades, and an array of items to use in-game. It's an intriguing blend of genres that might take some time to get used to. Once things click, however, you and the rest of the party will be working in tandem to see how far you can push your strategies. See at Steam God of War Ragnarok: ValhallaDeveloper: Santa Monica StudiosRelease Date: December 12, 2023Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, PCGod of War Ragnarok is a behemoth of an action-RPG, featuring a lengthy campaign across open areas with side quests, collectibles, and dozens of corners to explore. If you're looking for a break from the main story or just want to try a new roguelite that elevates some of the game's strengths in a different structure, the free Valhalla DLC is a must play.Taking place after the events of the main story (although you can jump into it at any point from the main menu without worrying about spoilers of the main campaign), Valhalla has Kratos going through a series of punishing trials, which slowly serve as a therapy session of sorts as he reminiscences of the events that happened during the original trilogy of God of War games.The bite-sized rendition of combat encounters shines a different light on combat mechanics that you may already be familiar with. And, taking cues from the likes of Hades and Returnal, each death pushes the story forward in meaningful ways. Valhalla is a rare combination of genres that shouldn't work as well as they do, and it deserves your time before the next adventure of Kratos inevitably rolls in. See at Fanatical NoitaDeveloper: Nolla GamesRelease Date: October 15, 2020Platforms: PCAfter a short early access period in 2019, Noita was fully released in October 2020, and provided an escape from the horrors of that year with, well, more horrors. Its punishing difficulty and procedurally-generated worlds provide deep and engaging gameplay. Noita places you in the shoes of a wand-wielding alchemist navigating a deadly, destructible world. The seemingly simple pixel art style leads to complexity where water flows, acid burns, fire spreads, and cave-ins can be triggered by a single misplaced explosive.Unlike many roguelikes that focus on stat-based progression, Noita appeals to player creativity and experimentation. The game's wand crafting system is a particular highlight, allowing you to mix and match spells, modifiers, and triggers to create devastating effects or strange contraptions that alter the way the game plays with every decision. The fun of Noita is learning how to break it in delightfully chaotic ways. This customization means each run feels unique, not just because of the randomized levels, but because the tools at your disposal and the way you choose to implement them define each playthrough. Noita is deeper than it first appears, with plenty of secrets and mysteries to uncover. Its expansive hidden world and lore begs to be uncovered, and the community engagement and conversation around it continues even half a decade on from its release. Experiment with fire, mess around with slime, and Noita will reward your curiosity. You'll find that, most of the time, death in Noita stems from your own creation, giving the game a cruel sense of irony and punishment. Despite that, or perhaps even because of that, Noita is a beautiful experience. See at Steam

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