Latest news with #SecretMode
Forbes
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Forbes
‘NUTMEG!' Brings ‘Balatro'-Style Retro Football Manager To PC In 2026
Most football supporters of a certain age — those in their mid-30s and older — know the thrills of two things: collecting stickers, and losing years to football management games. NUTMEG!, landing on PC in 2026, promises a mixture of the two and elements of Balatro, so they can once again kiss goodbye to their free time. Developer Sumo Sheffield and publisher Secret Mode have pitched NUTMEG! as a card-based football management game that draws on the heady days of English league football from the 1980s and 1990s, long before the Premier League was even a thing — when you could park your car on the touchline, have a cigarette or five during the game, and don a replica of some of the most questionable kits in history. Who doesn't want WANG on their bright yellow shirt? NUTMEG! puts players in charge of a Fourth Division team, and you need to guide them through two decades of competition as you play for promotion to the top level, while securing legendary players before anyone realizes just how good they are. Success is a balancing act: management duties unsurprisingly include transfers, training, ticket pricing, and PR, but the meat on NUTMEG!'s bones is with its deck-building mechanics. Cards are earned through training and deployed in fast-paced, strategic battles at key moments on the pitch. Along the way, NUTMEG! promises to keep things exciting in the longer term, unlocking new teams, tactics, and abilities along the way. All the while, both die-hard football fans and newcomers alike will get the chance to relive the game's most iconic eras through classic kits. Who doesn't want PLEASURE ISLAND on their fever dream shirt? NUTMEG! also proudly follows in the footsteps of classic International Superstar Soccer games with its evident lack of licensing. All teams that aren't straightforward place names (e.g. Newcastle, Oxford) are a little more creative, meaning that Arsenal become Artillery, Nottingham Forest are Sherwood FC, Tottenham Hotspur transform into North London, and Everton are Mersey Blues. If anything, it gives it even more retro charm. This sideways glance at the soccer management sim may not arrive until next year, but fear not — Kevin Toms Football Star Manager, a faithful remake of the very first Football Manager game from 1982, lands on Steam in mid-August, and you'd better believe that I'll be taking Hartlepool United all the way to the top of the English football pyramid.
Engadget
22-07-2025
- Business
- Engadget
Still Wakes the Deep developer The Chinese Room regains its independence
The Chinese Room, maker of Still Wakes the Deep , has bought back its independence. The studio will continue developing new franchises after splitting from the Sumo Group. The latter said earlier this year that it's pivoting away from original games and toward co-development work. Tencent bought the British studio Sumo for $1.27 billion in 2021. Game Developer reported that VC firm Hiro Capital facilitated the Chinese Room's independence deal. Studio head Ed Daly told the publication on Monday that the company is open to partnering with other developers moving forward. Unfortunately, the studio's good news is tainted with an all-too-familiar story. The studio confirmed to Game Developer that it will lay off an undisclosed number of employees as part of the split. "Following the divestment process, a number of roles were regrettably made redundant," a company spokesperson said. "The specifics are confidential, but the studio is currently 55 developers. This was a very difficult process as we sought a future for the studio outside of Sumo. No more layoffs are planned as the studio moves forward." The Chinese Room / Secret Mode The "modern horror classic" Still Wakes the Deep isn't all the studio is known for. The Chinese Room also made Little Orpheus , Everybody's Gone to the Rapture and the OG walking simulator, Dear Esther . The UK-based developer is also working on Vampire: The Masquerade — Bloodlines 2 with Paradox Interactive. The long-delayed title is scheduled to launch in October. The Chinese Room is also developing two other unannounced titles. "This management buyout allows us to scratch the creative itch of continuing to work on new, original intellectual property but also to partner with other studios on other projects when they fit in with our vision," Daly told Game Developer . "This is what we are doing and we want to carry on doing it, so we're happy to carry on in this vein."
Web Release
03-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Web Release
NVIDIA DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation coming to Mecha BREAK, Diablo IV, and more – Plus New GeForce Game Ready Driver for GeForce RTX 5050
This week, DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation multiples performance in Mecha BREAK, while Diablo IV and Still Wakes the Deep are adding native support with new updates, further accelerating performance for GeForce RTX 50 Series gamers. Additionally, NTE (Neverness to Everness) Closed Beta begins July 3rd, featuring DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation. NVIDIA is also releasing a new GeForce Game Ready Driver with launch support for Mecha BREAK, as well as updates for Diablo IV and Monster Hunter Wilds. The new Driver supports all GeForce RTX 5050 GPUs on desktop and laptop, bringing NVIDIA Blackwell RTX to even more gamers this summer. Developed by Amazing Seasun Games, Mecha BREAK is a multiplayer mech third-person shooter game that allows players to choose from diverse mechs and battle colossal war machines on treacherous terrain in 3v3, 6v6, and PvPvE modes. Mecha BREAK launches on July 1st with day-one support for DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation, DLSS Frame Generation, and DLSS Super Resolution, giving GeForce RTX gamers the fastest experience possible. Using DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation and DLSS Super Resolution, GeForce RTX 50 Series players can multiply frame rates at 4K, max settings, by an average of 4.6X. Diablo IV: Season 9: Sins of the Horadrim also launches July 1st, introducing hidden Horadric Strongrooms deep within Nightmare Dungeons, concealing Blood Relics corrupted by Astaroth's influence. Additionally, the update adds native DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation support for Diablo IV, a feature previously enabled through the NVIDIA app . Using DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation in conjunction with DLSS Super Resolution, Diablo IV players can multiply frame rates by an average of 6.5X at 4K, with ray tracing enabled and every setting maxed out. Published by Secret Mode, Still Wakes the Deep is a return to the first-person narrative horror genre for The Chinese Room, creator of critically acclaimed games such as Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs, Everybody's Gone to the Rapture, and Dear Esther. At launch, the game included support for DLSS Frame Generation, DLSS Super Resolution, DLAA, and NVIDIA Reflex, giving GeForce RTX gamers the definitive gaming experience. A year after its release, a new update has added support for DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation, following the recent release of the Siren's Rest expansion . Now, GeForce RTX 50 Series owners can further accelerate frame rates, and all GeForce RTX gamers can upgrade DLSS Super Resolution to the newest transformer AI model via the NVIDIA app , enhancing image quality.
BBC News
09-04-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Karen Dunbar wins Bafta for Still Wakes the Deep video game role
Actor and comedian Karen Dunbar is celebrating winning a Bafta for her debut in the world of video games. The Chewin' The Fat star was named best performer in a supporting role for Still Wakes the Deep, a first-person horror set on a Scottish oil rig, at the 21st Bafta Game and fellow Scot Alec Newman won best performer in a leading role at the ceremony in London on told the audience: "I've been nominated for many a Scottish Bafta but never won. And yet here I am in the gaming community , thank you so much." Still Wakes the Deep follows offshore electrician Caz, played by Newman, and his co-worker Finlay, played by Dunbar, who are trapped on a damaged North Sea drilling platform in are pursued by mysterious monsters and have to deal with terrible weather conditions. Players must rely on stealth and puzzle-solving to stay developers - Brighton based games company The Chinese Room - cite classic horror and science fiction films and TV shows such as Annihilation, John Carpenter's The Thing and Sapphire and Steel as inspirations. The trailer for the game and its soundtrack features the Gaelic song 'Fath Mo Mhulaid A Bhith Ann' (Being Here Has Caused My Sorrow), performed by Maggie MacInnes, and the game has a Gaelic subtitles director John McCormack said this was an attempt to reflect its "uniquely Scottish story"."After listening to 'Fath Mo Mhulaid A Bhith Ann' for the first time, it was clear that the game experience wouldn't be complete without a full translation deeply connected to the history and people of Scotland," he Alec Newman is perhaps best known for playing head master Michael Byrne in the BBC series Waterloo Road from also played Paul Atreides in the 2000 mini-series of Dune, and has appeared in Outlander, Shetland and Call The Midwife.A prolific games actor, he thanked the makers of Still Wakes the Deep for giving him the role."Your attention to detail is phenomenal, and was an inspiration to me from the moment I first read for Caz McLeary," he Secret Mode said they were delighted with the awards."We're thrilled for Alec and Karen who played a huge part in bringing this wonderful game to life," the company's James Schall said. Dunbar told BBC Scotland News she was "gob-smacked" to have said she attended the awards with the hope of meeting one of her favourite actors Matt Berry - star of vampire comedy What We Do in the Shadows. "Part of the surprise is I was up against Matt Berry and I love him," she said. "I felt I had to go to possibly meet him and maybe mingle a bit."When they said my name I started clapping, thinking it was Matt Berry. Then I was like 'Oh my God, it's me'."This isn't false modesty," she added. "I know when I'm good and I know when I'm not and I was good in that game."This was her first video game acting role, an experience she enjoyed and compares to working on a radio play. Sonic the Hedgehog's mum Dunbar performed remotely from Glasgow while her co-stars and director were in a studio in London and she believes her relative lack of experience in the genre may have helped free her up to play the role."I didn't have any preconceptions, I just played the character. I was ignorant," she made the move into a new genre, she is now keen to continue working in games."Just to be in that world was so exciting. To see all those new people. I had no idea before and I really liked it, especially at my age when I have done most things," she said. And while the 54-year-old admits she has never been much of a gamer, the role of Finlay has opened up new opportunities for the future."The last game I played was Sonic the Hedgehog, so I would like to to play Sonic the Hedgehog's mum," she said.
