Latest news with #BluePrince
The National
17 hours ago
- Entertainment
- The National
How puzzle video games can improve brain health and focus
There's a reason Sherlock Holmes and his escapades haven't gone out of style since he made his debut in A Study in Scarlet back in 1887. That's the enduring popularity of a good puzzle. And who doesn't love to pit their wits and flex their powers of deduction against a powerful video game? Puzzles are having a major moment. This includes books, such as the popular Murdle series of mysteries; escape rooms where groups must solve the clues together to unlock the door; and even Wordle, which has maintained its pandemic-era popularity. Released this year, video game Blue Prince has proved wildly popular thanks to its mix of storytelling and puzzle-solving. Gamers play as Simon P Jones, a young man who is set to inherit the Mt Holly Estate from his grandfather, Herbert S Sinclair, but only if he can find the manor's hidden 46th room. Players need to build the interior of the estate to create a maze-like layout that leads to the hidden room. 'I'm at that age where a wild Friday night involves staying in and playing video games with my better half,' says Nathan Irvine, radio and podcast producer at Dubai Eye. ' Blue Prince is our current favourite. We play it together – one uses the controller to wander around the mansion, and the other takes notes on clues. Before Blue Prince, our evening's entertainment revolved around other multiplayer puzzle games, such as Tetris Effect, PixelJunk Monsters 2 and Lumines Remastered.' Are puzzle games good for the brain? While parents often lament the amount of time their children spend on their computers, not all video games are created equal. Puzzle-focused games can have an array of benefits. 'I've seen first-hand the cognitive and behavioural benefits of puzzle and logic games,' says Gayatri Govind Gajjam a clinical psychologist at Aster DYU Child Development Centre. 'These games offer far more than entertainment, they can be powerful tools for cognitive development and mental well-being. Puzzle and logic games are more than just a form of entertainment; they provide meaningful cognitive stimulation, and enhance critical thinking, working memory and mental flexibility.' Mental stimulation is a key component when choosing video games that aid growth. Structured challenges such as puzzle and clue-solving strengthen executive functioning and encourage sustained focus. Key brain health benefits can include improved problem-solving skills, enhanced working memory, improved cognitive flexibility and, interestingly for those with ADHD or other inattention disorders, increased attention and concentration. 'These games activate multiple regions of the brain,' says Gajjam. 'The prefrontal cortex is heavily engaged as players plan, strategise and solve problems. The hippocampus supports memory formation and recall, while the parietal lobes assist with spatial awareness and logical reasoning. Engaging these areas regularly promotes interconnectivity between brain regions, which enhances overall cognitive efficiency.' Benefits for young and old Video games are often considered the preserve of the young, but puzzle games are cross-generational, with benefits for younger and older brains alike. 'One of the most fascinating aspects of logic and puzzle gameplay is that their impact is age-specific, yet universally beneficial,' says Yasir Shafi, a homeopathy practitioner at Wellth. 'While the mechanisms of benefit may differ by age, the underlying principle remains the same: consistent, challenging mental activity is one of the most effective ways to support brain health across the lifespan.' Puzzle video games such as Blue Prince change on a daily basis, engaging you to constantly learn and take notes as you proceed, while the game Chants of Sennaar involves decoding fictional languages and writing to advance, enhancing critical thinking and improved cognitive processing speed. 'There have always been plenty of puzzle and logic games around,' says Irvine. ' Tetris is a great example that has stood the test of time. Originally released in 1984, its many iterations – but simple formula – make it one of the top-selling games of all time.' Four puzzle video games to download now The Case of the Golden Idol Available on: Nintendo Switch, MacOS, Xbox, Mobile, PlayStation and PC If murder puzzles are your thing, step into The Case of the Golden Idol in which you must find the murderer at each stage of the game. With clues and evidence all around, this is the ideal game to play with friends and family as you work to eliminate suspects and find connections between the deceased. Return of the Obra Dinn Available on: PlayStation, PC, MacOS, Xbox and Nintendo Switch Mystery fans will be in their element with this old-school game in which the merchant vessel Obra Dinn which disappeared in 1803 suddenly reappears off the coast of England five years later. Surprise, surprise, everyone on board is dead and it's up to you to discover how each person died using a pocket watch that allows you to see their final moments. Outer Wilds Available on: Xbox, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation and PC In Outer Wilds you'll find yourself stuck in a 22-minute time loop in a dying solar system trying to discover what is happening and how you can save everyone. Working out why the system is degenerating is the key, and you must visit nearby planets to try to escape the loop, solving mysteries along the way. Gorogoa Available on: Mobile, PC, Xbox, PlayStation and Nintendo Switch Simpler than many puzzle games on the market, Gorogoa 's gentle sketch-style scenes hold hidden meanings. It's reminiscent of hand-held sliding puzzles in which you move square tiles to complete the image. In this slow-paced game the screen is divided into four panels, each featuring a scene you can interact with and deconstruct to move the story along.
Business Mayor
11-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Business Mayor
Video game companies are lying to us about everything – Reader's Feature – Metro.co.uk
A reader is sceptical about the current leadership in the video games industry and worries that the needs of gamers are not the priority for publishers. The games industry is in such a strange place at the moment. On the one hand we have amazing games being released, with things like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Blue Prince, and Monster Hunter Wilds. And on the other we have publishers acting like monsters, cutting hundreds of jobs at a time, while making billions in profits. Not only that but making business decisions so stupid that its left ordinary gamers like me absolutely baffled. It's not just the obsession with live service games (which Sony proved this week they still can't shake) but the total refusal to deal with the rising cost of making games, with anything other than price rises. When even Nintendo sees that as the only answer you know they're not even trying to address the problems, and that's what got me to thinking. It seems to me that nobody high up in the games industry is in the slightest bit interested in being a custododian, as you might say, of gaming. Nobody is looking out for its long term health, nobody cares whether people lose their jobs or developers go under, and definitely nobody cares about art. You might call me naïve for even thinking any of these things were possible but whenever something bad happens in gaming I think back to that awful photo of Phil Spencer (the head of Xbox) and the head of Blizzard at the time, standing in front of hundreds of Blizzard employees, a huge number of which got laid off only a few days later. Read More GamesBeat Summit 24: USC Games' Jim Huntley on fledging game devs Both men must've known that at the time but they're both grinning away as if they're at a pop concert, soaking up the adulation from their 'fans'. Nobody in charge of a game publisher is in the role for anything other than themselves. They don't even care about the company, just their own money, bonuses, and eventual golden parachute. Remember when the head of Microsoft had Game Pass targets removed from the list of things he had to do to get a bonus? These people don't care about anything but their own bank balance. They're only human, I suppose you could say. I'm not sure I would be any different if I was earning $10 million a year. But then recently I was watching a video by Alanah Pearce, who used to work at Sony Santa Monica, about everything that's going on. It's very interesting, and only 20 minutes long, so I advise everyone to watch. A lot of it was familiar to me from things GC has said in the past, about publishers not being interested in what gamers want but instead what will please investors. They make money from selling games, obviously, but that takes time to filter through. Most of the actual cash flow, as I understand, comes from investors and venture capitalists. What this video makes clear, is that we ordinary people are not even the customers of these companies, of Microsoft, Nintendo, Sony, EA, Ubisoft and the rest. The investors are. Everything games publishers do they do for them. Once you realise that all the dumb decisions suddenly start to make sense. Read More Nintendo Switch Sports There's too many live service games and gamers want more single-player games, but it never happens. Why? Because investors know about Fortnite, Minecraft, and the rest and they want more of that. Even just the potential of a hit of that scale is far more important to them than just a modest profit from a normal game. Already sick of hearing about AI in games? Tough. Investors love it. Even if it doesn't work and it's going to ruin the economy by putting so many people out of work, if they find out AI is involved they're more likely to invest. And it'll be the same for whatever dumb buzzword is next in tech, just like it was for NFTs. Games are getting too expensive to make so maybe we should cut budgets and shorten games… that doesn't make sense to investors. They don't understand, or want to understand, gaming so the only logical thing to them is to put more money in to get more money out. If any publisher tries to pretend to you that they're doing it for the gamers or give a damn about what the game is or who's making it… they're lying. All they're interested in is what pleases investors. Even laying people off is part of that, because that's what investors expect any company to do, that isn't showing infinite growth. Everything bad that's happening to the games industry right now is because of greedy execs looking out for themselves and uncaring investors looking for easy money. Any good games that come out of that is purely a side product and no one that could make things better has any interest in doing so. Publishers don't care about games, and they definitely don't care about you. Read More Mario Strikers: Battle League Football By reader Grackle The reader's features do not necessarily represent the views of GameCentral or Metro. You can submit your own 500 to 600-word reader feature at any time, which if used will be published in the next appropriate weekend slot. Just contact us at gamecentral@ or use our Submit Stuff page and you won't need to send an email. MORE: Xbox is crazy if it thinks it can compete with Nintendo Switch 2 – Reader's Feature MORE: Why I tried to beat Oblivion Remastered without ever using fast travel – Reader's Feature MORE: GTA 6 and price rises are going to destroy gaming forever – Reader's Feature
Metro
11-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Metro
Video game companies are lying to us about everything - Reader's Feature
You are not their customer (ESRB) A reader is sceptical about the current leadership in the video games industry and worries that the needs of gamers are not the priority for publishers. The games industry is in such a strange place at the moment. On the one hand we have amazing games being released, with things like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Blue Prince, and Monster Hunter Wilds. And on the other we have publishers acting like monsters, cutting hundreds of jobs at a time, while making billions in profits. Not only that but making business decisions so stupid that its left ordinary gamers like me absolutely baffled. It's not just the obsession with live service games (which Sony proved this week they still can't shake) but the total refusal to deal with the rising cost of making games, with anything other than price rises. When even Nintendo sees that as the only answer you know they're not even trying to address the problems, and that's what got me to thinking. It seems to me that nobody high up in the games industry is in the slightest bit interested in being a custododian, as you might say, of gaming. Nobody is looking out for its long term health, nobody cares whether people lose their jobs or developers go under, and definitely nobody cares about art. You might call me naïve for even thinking any of these things were possible but whenever something bad happens in gaming I think back to that awful photo of Phil Spencer (the head of Xbox) and the head of Blizzard at the time, standing in front of hundreds of Blizzard employees, a huge number of which got laid off only a few days later. Both men must've known that at the time but they're both grinning away as if they're at a pop concert, soaking up the adulation from their 'fans'. Nobody in charge of a game publisher is in the role for anything other than themselves. They don't even care about the company, just their own money, bonuses, and eventual golden parachute. Remember when the head of Microsoft had Game Pass targets removed from the list of things he had to do to get a bonus? These people don't care about anything but their own bank balance. They're only human, I suppose you could say. I'm not sure I would be any different if I was earning $10 million a year. But then recently I was watching a video by Alanah Pearce, who used to work at Sony Santa Monica, about everything that's going on. It's very interesting, and only 20 minutes long, so I advise everyone to watch. A lot of it was familiar to me from things GC has said in the past, about publishers not being interested in what gamers want but instead what will please investors. They make money from selling games, obviously, but that takes time to filter through. Most of the actual cash flow, as I understand, comes from investors and venture capitalists. What this video makes clear, is that we ordinary people are not even the customers of these companies, of Microsoft, Nintendo, Sony, EA, Ubisoft and the rest. The investors are. Everything games publishers do they do for them. Once you realise that all the dumb decisions suddenly start to make sense. There's too many live service games and gamers want more single-player games, but it never happens. Why? Because investors know about Fortnite, Minecraft, and the rest and they want more of that. Even just the potential of a hit of that scale is far more important to them than just a modest profit from a normal game. Already sick of hearing about AI in games? Tough. Investors love it. Even if it doesn't work and it's going to ruin the economy by putting so many people out of work, if they find out AI is involved they're more likely to invest. And it'll be the same for whatever dumb buzzword is next in tech, just like it was for NFTs. Games are getting too expensive to make so maybe we should cut budgets and shorten games… that doesn't make sense to investors. They don't understand, or want to understand, gaming so the only logical thing to them is to put more money in to get more money out. If any publisher tries to pretend to you that they're doing it for the gamers or give a damn about what the game is or who's making it… they're lying. All they're interested in is what pleases investors. Even laying people off is part of that, because that's what investors expect any company to do, that isn't showing infinite growth. Everything bad that's happening to the games industry right now is because of greedy execs looking out for themselves and uncaring investors looking for easy money. Any good games that come out of that is purely a side product and no one that could make things better has any interest in doing so. Publishers don't care about games, and they definitely don't care about you. By reader Grackle Why are they smiling? (ResetEra) The reader's features do not necessarily represent the views of GameCentral or Metro. You can submit your own 500 to 600-word reader feature at any time, which if used will be published in the next appropriate weekend slot. Just contact us at gamecentral@ or use our Submit Stuff page and you won't need to send an email. Arrow MORE: Xbox is crazy if it thinks it can compete with Nintendo Switch 2 – Reader's Feature Arrow MORE: Why I tried to beat Oblivion Remastered without ever using fast travel - Reader's Feature Arrow MORE: GTA 6 and price rises are going to destroy gaming forever – Reader's Feature
Forbes
05-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
‘Clair Obscur: Expedition 33' Review: A 10 If There Ever Was One
Expedition 33 I've lost track of how many turn-based RPGs I've bounced off of over time, even some GOTY contenders, or winners, that I won't name here for risk of embarrassment. So when once again, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 was recommended as a 'must-play,' my gut instinct was 'here we go again.' Nope. Not this time. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is an epic work of art that fixed my turn-based issues and allowed me to experience what may in fact be one of the best RPG storylines in genre history. Possibly even in video game history, given how beautiful, sad and moving it is. But that's just one aspect in addition the acting, the atmosphere, the music and yes, the combat. It's hard to find practically any faults here. You don't need to skip to the end, this could not have been a more obvious 10/10 and it's easily my frontrunner for GOTY, even just a couple weeks after Blue Prince had that title on lock for me (don't get me wrong, I still love Blue Prince). Expedition 33 tells the story of Gustave, a man living in a badly broken version of Paris that has been devastated by a calamity that continues unfolding every year. Citizens only live to their 30s before being erased by a mysterious, giant figure in the horizon, The Paintress, who puts up a new number on a huge pillar as a countdown from 100. We're at 33. Expedition 33 That's the expedition number, as citizens are routinely sent out to attempt to kill The Paintress and stop this cycle. They've failed 77 times, but this time will work, right? Well, that's what you're going to find out, but things quickly go sideways and you're left with a core party of Gustave, his de-facto daughter Maelle, element-wielder Lune and then others you will pick up along the way, as is RPG tradition. FEATURED | Frase ByForbes™ Unscramble The Anagram To Reveal The Phrase Pinpoint By Linkedin Guess The Category Queens By Linkedin Crown Each Region Crossclimb By Linkedin Unlock A Trivia Ladder Charlie Cox, Daredevil himself, stands out in his first video game role, but the voice cast goes on to include legends like Andy Serkis and Ben Starr as characters I won't detail here. But the entire cast is excellent and between the voicework and the motion capture, convey emotion in a way we don't often see in the genre. RPG storylines are often a bit…over the top for my tastes, depending on the game, and while this wild world does require some brain-breaking processing, it's still a coherent tale and features some of the biggest, most stunning twists I've come across in gaming, ones that I was genuinely not expecting, and that the playerbase has been kind enough not to spoil. All you can say is…wait for Act 2. Wait for Act 3. Wait for the Epilogue. You'll understand when you get to each of them. The environment design here is out of this world. I've taken so many screenshots I've lost count, and just when you think you've seen the coolest area, there's another one around the corner. All of this is bolstered by an incredible score that is immediately something you'll want to add to your Spotify, if it doesn't give you PTSD from the emotional moments of the game or the most exhausting boss fights. Expedition 33 That brings us to combat, the thing that allowed me to push forward through the game due to its mix of turn-based strategy and real-time reactions, namely dodging and parrying with the necessary accompanying timing and reflexes. It's not the first game to do this, but it's the best, and for 30+ hours now, it has maintained its appeal, though perhaps even better is the 'Picos' build system to create some truly interesting and fun characters, be they DPS, tanks or support, with no one specific character locked into one of those roles, and enough flexibility to experiment. Even a 10 won't have nothing wrong with it. At some point, if you find a build that works, your rotations can get a little dull, and there are only a handful of encounters that really make you switch up your strategies dramatically (a guy who could only take damage from parry counters, for instance. And these damn Mimes. You'll see). And in some encounters, attempting to dodge or parry eight-hit combos every other turn or one-hit KO moves can be a little exhausting. I'm also not the biggest fan of navigation, especially in the open worlds when you want to get back to certain zones. I enjoy flying and swimming around on our personal Baymax, but it's pretty easy to waste time getting lost rather than zapping to a place you've already been. They're minor annoyances. It's a stunning game that only gets more and more stunning the further you get. It's an easy recommend to anyone, even people like me who have previously been allergic to turn-based combat. You may have to get used to it, but push past and learn the systems to experience once of the best games you may play in years. Follow me on Twitter, YouTube, Bluesky and Instagram. Pick up my sci-fi novels the Herokiller series and The Earthborn Trilogy.
Daily Mirror
04-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
8 best indie game releases in April 2025 – the best small gems from the year's strongest month yet
If you've still got room for great games after the likes of Oblivion: Remastered and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 releasing, there's plenty of indie games to choose from. A brief look at all the best indie games that released this past month, from anthropomorphic metroidvanias to survival horror throwbacks. May already? That's the first thing that came to mind as I put together this month's list of top indie game picks. But as we edge ever closer to this year's season of AAA summer blockbusters, it's nice to know that there's plenty of inventive smaller gems worth checking out between the usual gamut of huge, tentpole releases. April was an especially strong month for breakout indie games, with one particularly alluring roguelite explore-a-thon making waves thanks to good word of mouth. The following is an incomplete list of the 8 best indie game releases in April 2025 from what we were able to make time to play. So, if you're in the mood for an old-school action platformer with a skateboarding edge or a different kind of match-3 puzzler, you've come to the right place. Here are some indie games we'd recommend you check out from this past month. Blue Prince What Remains of Edith Finch gets a randomised, roguelike upgrade in the always surprising (and often head-scratching) Blue Prince. This is an exploratory first-person adventure where you must traverse a mysterious manor consisting of rooms that always shift, challenging you to find the mysterious 46th room over the course of multiple runs. Players have some a degree of control thanks to the ability to draft specific room types whenever they appear, yet for the most part you'll need to employ a good degree of cunning and strategy to undertake the most efficient run possible while trying not to run out of steps. Blue Prince is one of 2025's first true indie game hits, and rightly so. Once Upon a Puppet Bringing an appropriately theatrical twist to traditional puzzle-platformer, Once Upon a Puppet is the kind of indie game that definitely earns bonus points for its presentation. Casting you as both the puppet itself but also its floating stagehand, this mechanical twist doesn't do much to separate the game from its genre peers, but just about adds enough spice to make it worth a look for players seeking a fun thematic twist on the familiar. What Once Upon a Puppet does have, however, is a thick sense of atmosphere, which helps keep things interesting in this wonderfully macabre puppet show that doesn't outstay its welcome. Creepy Redneck Dinosaur Mansion 3 More than just a fast-paced puzzle adventure with a relatively basic art style and quirky name, Creepy Redneck Dinosaur Mansion 3 is in fact a critique on video games themselves – and more so their tropes. You play as a conventionally hunky hero who must explore a creaky mansion and do battle with mages, fences, and yes, dinosaurs by way of match-3 puzzles. It's a barmy prospect for a puzzle game on paper, true, but in practice proves to be incredibly hard to put down and painfully funny. Bumping into dead ends as part of the story is draining, yet it's another excuse to explore Creepy Redneck Dinosaur Mansion 3's increasingly unexpected narrative threads. A gem! Bionic Bay If you're seeking a game primed to scratch that mysterious itch previously established by Playdead's games, Limbo and Inside, there's a lot to love about Bionic Bay. Initially starting out as a minimalist 2D platformer within a dark, dilapidated world, it doesn't take long for the ways you must move through it to gradually evolve – be it through your own developing move set or new platforming challenges being introduced. Just when you think you've grasped proceedings, you'll hit a section that will let you control time or manipulate gravity, all of which makes chipping away at Bionic Bay's central mystery fulfilling for the short time it lasts. Sacre Bleu When playing as a 16th-century French musketeer comes to mind, one assumes the focus will primarily be on melee combat. However, Sacre Bleu is a distinctly French action-platformer that swiftly proves otherwise, tasking you to take down the zombified forces of the French aristocracy and the Bastille's forces using gun blasts. So intrinsic to Sacre Bleu's gameplay is running and gunning, blasting beneath you to reach great heights, serves as your main method of getting around. This makes for an incredibly unique and fast-paced shooting experience that has fun with its historical theme and makes blasting through stages as frantically as possible a fun time. Moroi Don't be fooled by the overtly grimdark stylings Moroi initially hits you with. Much more than just your typical top-down hack-and-slasher set in a fantasy kingdom, this is the type of gruesome fairytale that's heart is just as witty as it is sadistic. Taking on reams of the undead means continually slashing them down and solving environmental puzzles, true, but equally enticing is just how twisted this surprisingly macabre tale becomes the more you venture into it and how dark its humour is willing to go. Neither the world or combat is particularly revelatory, yet Moroi is a good example of what a cosmic horror fairytale can accomplish when it doesn't take itself completely seriously. Come for the hack-and-slashing, stay for the oddball characters and twisted brand of dark comedy. Post Trauma If you're still in the mood for retro-style survival horror in the vein of Silent Hill, Resident Evil, and Dead Space, the indie game sphere has got you covered with the equally chilling Post Trauma from Red Soul Games. Casting players as a train conductor trying to survive within a dark and otherworldly dimension, fixed camera angles combine with some pretty sharp visuals that work excellently to build tension and keep you on your toes. Puzzles can be a bit hit or miss sometimes, yet it's clear that the developers have a true affinity for this old-school genre, channelling it fully into a short but mysterious horror adventure that plays the hits and doesn't waste your time. Seafrog Easily one of April 2025's most underrated indie game surprises is Seafrog, an old-school platformer that sees you play as the titular amphibian. The twist comes in how you traverse each of the thematically unique boats you're charged with exploring and fixing. Equipped with a trusty wrench needed to restore the giant vessels, it also doubles up as a skateboard of sorts that makes grinding, wall sliding, and flipping a breeze. Movement is absolutely king in Seafrog, as the slickness of Tony Hawk is presented in a more digestible 2.5 view that controls beautifully. Throw in the ability to install mods and a handful of neat bosses, and Seafrog is well worth a look.
