It’s now been five years since Ubisoft’s beleaguered Prince of Persia: Sands of Time remake was originally revealed, and a little over a year since the publisher last popped up to remind us all the project was still alive. But here we are again, 12 months on, with another brief update, this time letting fans know the remake remains “deep” in development.
Ubisoft’s Sands of Time remake was initially unveiled back in September 2020, when it was expected to arrive in January the following year. However, after its announcement trailer was met with a less than positive reception, Ubisoft kicked off what would prove to be a succession of delays. Eventually, the project moved from its original developers Ubisoft Pune and Mumbai to Ubisoft Montreal, where it was seemingly rebooted from scratch, and last year brought the news it wouldn’t be ready for release until 2026.
But while it seemed like Ubisoft might opt for radio silence until its remake was finally ready for its big re-reveal, the publisher has instead shared the briefest of updates today on social media, a little over a year since its last one. “Yep, we’re still deep in the game,” it wrote, “exploring, building, and ensuring the sands move with purpose.”
Here’s what the Sands of Time remake looked like before it was rebooted from scratch.Watch on YouTube
“This game is being crafted by a team that truly cares,” it continued, “and they’re pouring their hearts (and a lot of coffee) into every step. Thank you for sticking with us.” And that’s pretty much all we’re getting for now, aside from an accompanying bit of art showing a glass palace against a pink sky. Ubisoft also pointed fans in the direction of series spin-off The Rogue Prince of Persia, from Dead Cells studio Evil Empire, which is set to leave early access this August.
Ubisoft’s Sands of Time remake woes have continued to a tumultuous few years for the publisher, which has faced tumbling share prices and a number of high-profile flops in recent times, resulting in a string of layoffs and studio closures. As part of its attempts to right the ship, Ubisoft announced it was launching a new subsidiary dedicated to its big three IPs – Assassin’s Creed, Rainbow Six, and Far Cry – earlier this year. With those game under a new banner, Ubisoft itself will concentrate on a number of key areas, including “nurturing the development of iconic franchises”, including – presumably – Prince of Persia.
Since it launched in 2021, Vampire Survivors cannot be stopped. Poncle’s phenomenal bullet hell roguelike is one of the most successful indies on Steam, amassing a 98% positive user rating from nearly 240,000 reviews across its lifetime. That’s for good reason, too, as not only is the core experience infinitely replayable, but a collection of updates and DLC have vastly expanded what’s on offer. Vampire Survivors is easily one of the best value propositions available on PC today, and now Poncle has another one for you. The studio is publishing the incredibly vibrant and kinetic Berserk or Die, which has a truly bizarre control scheme, and it’s available right now.
You’re the last soldier left on the battlefield, and with enemies approaching from all sides, you’ve got one job: survive. Set on a gorgeous 2D plane, that’s the core premise of Berserk or Die from Nao Games, a new action indie game all about chaining together flashy moves.
This isn’t like Castlevania, Contra, Ninja Gaiden, or any manner of classic platformer, though, because in Berserk or Die, you can only move by attacking. Hitting the left or right side of your keyboard attacks in that direction, and the more keys you press at once, the wilder and more powerful your moves. That’s right, you’re encouraged to smash your keyboard to bits with as big a strike as possible. Once you’ve obliterated enough enemies your special gauge will fill up, and you can then shake your mouse and unleash a move that’ll wipe through all the enemies on the screen.
With multiple characters to choose from, and an array of weapons to equip them with, you’ll have more than enough ways to keep gameplay feeling fresh. If you manage to survive until nightfall, you can then visit a lone peddler to sell your wares, heal your wounds, and buy upgrades. You’ll do all this to a soundtrack from Vampire Survivors composer Filippo Vicarelli, too, so you just know it’s going to get your blood pumping.
“Nao Games shares the Poncle spirit of making games that are immediately accessible, affordable, and a bit out of the ordinary; for fun.” Poncle’s Luca Galante says. “When I first met Shibata-san and played Berserk or Die, I knew this was a game that deserved to be seen and played by more people. I’m really happy we got to support Shibata-san and hopefully make that happen.”
Berserk or Die is available on Steam right now, for $3.99 / £2.99. Just head here.
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This new and updated version includes new systems such as Item Merging and a complete Talent Tree to unlock and discover. Also many Quality of Life and visual improvements have been added.
Discover more than 40 weapons and over 180 items, equipment and relics.
Is Dune Awakening down? While we still love single-player games, but there’s also something to be said for the chaotic joy to be had in multiplayer experiences – especially massively multiplayer ones.
One of the few downsides that comes with playing with friends and strangers around the world is the instability of online servers. As a survival MMO, Dune Awakening could be victim to severe server downtime, so if you’re struggling to get into Arrakis, that could be why. Here, we’ve got the latest on maintenance in the crafting game, and the current Dune Awakening server status.
Dune Awakening server status
The Dune Awakening servers will be down for maintenance on Sunday June 8 from 1am PDT / 4am EDT / 9am BST / 10am CEST. The downtime is expected to last for two hours, but develop Funcom says it will bring servers back online as soon as the patching process is complete.
Funcom adds, “Please note that, for the first few days, we may patch daily and will try to stick to a similar maintenance time.” While the game launched into early access on Thursday June 5 at 7am PDT / 10am EDT / 3pm BST / 4am CEST, some players are having trouble finding any available servers.
If this is the case for you, the game’s official X profile has shared some suggestions. The first is that Steam may have incorrectly loaded the day one patch. In this case, simply try restarting your game.
Meanwhile, if you played the beta, you could still be connecting to beta regions, so click ‘Change Region’ to double-check you’re in the right place.
Early access is available ahead of the Dune Awakening release date on Tuesday, June 10 for players who have preordered the Deluxe or Ultimate Edition of the game. If you want to get online early, you can upgrade your standard edition copy, or purchase one of these editions if you don’t already own the game.
So, that’s the latest on the Dune Awakening server status. If you can’t get online right now, you could try a Dune Awakening private server. Alternatively, you can always have a go at some of our other favorite survival games, or peruse our list of upcoming PC games on the horizon.
Get ready for an action-packed, cinematic zombie horror experience—straight out of the 1980s!
Step into a gritty, analog film-style world where three survivors must battle their way through a planet overrun by the undead. From the dark alleys of a crumbling city to eerie forests, an abandoned military outpost, and a blood-soaked shopping mall, every step is a fight for survival.
Man has fallen. As the day sets, the dead shall rise!
——————————————————————————–
Features:
Use a wide range of firearms, melee weapons, and explosives to stay alive
Dive into a lengthy and challenging campaign—fully immersive and loaded with cinematic moments
Face off against varied zombie types and terrifying bosses
Randomized weapons and enemy counts keep each playthrough fresh and unpredictable
Optimized to run on low-end PCs
Partial gamepad support (Xbox controllers)
Customize your visuals: go full analog film, modern digital cinema, or strip away effects for a raw experience
Thrempshs npmopw apnn Oblmpmphon Rmphstrpmshrd mphd aphmt etmphing rshks. Sorry, I’ve finished chewing. There’s now an Oblivion Remastered mod that lets you, the almighty Hero of Kvatch and saviour of the empire (well, in the short-term), eat rocks. Leave room for dessert – there are gemstones too.
Yes, those of you currently shouting at your screen at home/on the train/in the car park of a supermarket, just like you could in Morrowind, the Elder Scrolls game that’s very good and also an endless source of interesting mechanics/quirks Bethesda should maybe bring back. Some people just like spears or having to search for key locations based on the kind of vague directions you get if you’re on holiday and ask a stranger who hates the fact you exist.
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Modder CephalonImp’s ‘Edible Gems‘ is one of those ‘does what it says on the tin’ sorts of mods. Inside that tin in this case are a variety of rocks, gems, and ores you’ll pick up as you roam around Cyrodiil like the fantasy equivalent of a gang of rambunctious teenagers on bikes.
It turns 14 miscellaneous items into alchemy ingredients, meaning you can eat them to find out the new alchemical properties the modder’s added to them. Chow down on a gold nugget, and marvel at the aftertaste that’s a bit silency, a bit burdeny, a pinch weakness to shocky, and also packs just a hint of personality fortification. Then, ask Sheogorath to ring up Jamie Oliver, burp, and shout the words ‘Now that’s what I call real cuisine’ down the receiver.
Maybe have three course meal of pearls as a starter, madness and iron ore with a sapphire garnish, then for dessert – for something a bit different – shove a bear pelt down your gullet, because the mod’ll let you eat raw animal hides too. Think of all the nutrition.
CephalonImp’s even given several of these divine dishes the same cocktail of alchemical effects they had in Morrowind, because you can’t eat rocks in a fashion that isn’t lore-friendly (won’t somebody think of the immersion?).
“Flawless and Flawed gem variants have also been removed, but all gems are now worth their Flawless values,” the modder added. See, you’re only getting top-draw grub here and also probably eating something you could have sold for a pretty penny – now that’s RPG choice and consequence, even if we’re not quite at the point of getting mods that make the pointy stuff you ingest inflict health damage a day later, to properly simulate the inevitable chaser to your ill-advised shot.
Anyway, make sure you clean all the gravel off your plate, and check out the interviews we’ve been doing with Oblivion Remastered modders who’ve been pushing the boundaries and working on interesting stuff.
If there’s one thing us folks who love a good RPG can never have enough of, it’s quests. Oblivion Remastered has plenty in its base form – The Elder Scrolls 4 not being short on stuff to do – but of course modders were always going to add to that.
We’re still at a pretty early stage in terms of folks digging underneath the Unreal Engine second skin Virtuos has cocooned the classic game in and seeing what they can accomplish by pushing the boundaries. However, there’ve been plenty of mods that have already come out and had everyone going full Uriel Septim ‘I’ve seen you in my dreams’ mode.
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The latest of these, in my case, had been modder ColdTyrant’s “Infinitum” series, a bunch of mods released in rapid succession that overhaul Oblivion’s already pretty stellar faction questlines by adding in new infinitely accessible radiant quests and systems. They offer nice rewards in return for your character doing more of the job they signed up for – be it assassin, warrior, thief, gladiator, or mage – in a way that’s perfect for roleplaying.
So, having also been intrigued by his earliest works that made it possible to join the Mythic Dawn and become a necromancer in Oblivion Remastered, I decided earlier this week to reach out to ColdTyrant. We chatted about how the quest mods he’s created so far came together, what the next steps in Oblivion Remastered modding might require, and what his future modding plans are. Here’s that conversation:
VG247: What drew you to modding Oblivion Remastered, and has your previous modding experience come in handy when getting up to speed with it?
ColdTyrant: I’ve been playing Oblivion since I was a kid, in 2007 on the PS3. At that age I was absolutely astounded that I could do whatever I wanted, go wherever I wanted, fight, kill, or help whoever I wanted – the game absolutely blew me away and had a fundamental effect on myself and my creativity. I’ve been modding Bethesda games ever since my dad first let me play on his PC, and I was able to download the Construction Set for Oblivion and start poking around to see how things work and what I could make.
I had been following the rumors of an ‘Oblivion Remake’ since January of this year leading up to its eventual shadow drop, and was absolutely floored by the incredible visuals and gameplay overhauls made by the extremely talented team at Virtuos. They breathed new life into one of my all-time favorite video games, and it’s been so exciting to see everyone playing and talking about Oblivion again just like when I was a kid.
Naturally, after I’d already sunken about 100 or so hours into Remaster, I started feeling that itch to get back into the Construction Set. People were (and still are) pumping out mods, tweaks, and tools for Oblivion Remastered like crazy, and I really wanted to sort of get on that wave and see if I could contribute my own content to help enrich players’ experiences further.
Being back in Cyrodiil can do that to a guy. | Image credit: Bethesda/VG247
VG247: How did you go about creating your first couple of quest/faction expansion mods, Mythic Dawn Rising and Dark Path of The Necromancer? Was it a case of wanting more evil options and finding out what was possible, or did you go in with a set vision?
ColdTyrant: When I decided it was time to start modding Remastered, I really wasn’t sure where to start. I’ve always been fascinated with the villains Bethesda has created, and I know many players (including myself) have a desire to explore the idea – what if *I* was the bad guy?
I started re-learning Oblivion’s scripting and quest system, and ultimately decided I wanted to create an alternate path to the Main Quest, where the player could decide to explore what it would be like to actually be a member of Mehrunes Dagon’s Mythic Dawn cult. This mod was sort of a test of what I could get away with mechanically – a proof of concept to myself, and it’s a bit light on content and needs a big update (I’m working on this!).
After I released Mythic Dawn Rising, I just kept playing around with scripts and variables and seeing what could be done. When I discovered the different types of systems I’d be able to create with what I’d discovered, my ideas really began to run wild.
Dark Path of the Necromancer started as just a mod that would add an alternative way for players to create Black Soul Gems, but as I’d finish one feature I’d think of another, then get to work on it – then another, then another. It quickly sort of snowballed into this big project with multiple necromantic-centered systems, and I really love how it turned out. Sort of accidentally, I’d wound up creating another mod that allowed the player to explore membership with another previously forbidden faction.
Who wouldn’t want to join a group of folks who can cast armour illusions this cool? | Image credit: Bethesda/VG247
VG247: I’ve noticed that in both of those mods’ descriptions you note that you’re hoping to add more to them once more advanced Oblivion Remastered modding tools are out there. What kinds of tools are you most keen to see emerge going forwards and can you paint me a picture of what the ‘ideal versions’ of those mods might look like?
ColdTyrant: So, with modding the original Oblivion, it’s a lot simpler – anything you put into the game world will just be there when you load up the mod. No requirements, no difficult installation instructions, just plug and play. If I dropped a new NPC named Bob the Mage into Anvil, he’d just be there!
Oblivion Remastered is a bit more complicated. Virtuos has created an incredibly remarkable hybrid engine that combines both Gamebryo (an earlier version of Creation Engine) and Unreal Engine 5. Gamebryo handles the scripts, quests, and gameplay mechanics, while Unreal Engine 5 handles all rendering – meshes, textures, menus, lighting, shadows, effects, lines of text, pretty much anything and everything the player sees on their screen.
What this means in layman’s terms is that if I dropped Bob the Mage into Anvil in Remastered using the Gamebryo Oblivion Construction Set, well… that’s not enough to make him show up. At best, a visit to Anvil will result in him being completely invisible, and at worst, a game crash. This is because Gamebryo no longer handles rendering.
Unreal Engine needs to be told by Gamebryo via strings what actually exists and what to render into the game. Everything needs a table string entry that connects back to Unreal, or you’ll have problems.
Fortunately, some incredibly talented modders (I like referring to them as engineers) have created tools like TesSyncMapInjector or the Fix & Port Script for xEdit that do this job for us – so Bob the Mage can exist in Oblivion Remastered.
Ok, so this particular mage isn’t called Bob, but you get the picture. | Image credit: Bethesda/VG247
However, this means players will be required to install these tools on their end to experience mods that add new items and systems to Oblivion Remastered, and it can be frustrating for new people that want to get into modding their games, but feel intimidated by all these requirements and specific installation instructions.
So ideally, we’ll get to a point where either Bethesda/Virtuos release official modding tools for the remaster or talented mod engineers are able to create tool(s) that make mods fully compatible with Unreal, without the end user needing to install extra requirements. For the ‘Oldblivion’ versions of my mods, they are all plug and play – no requirements. But for Remastered – for now – you’ll always need UE4SS and TesSyncMapInjector.
VG247: What inspired you to take on your Infinitum series, how was it putting together each of the radiant quest systems and deciding on the unique twists you were going to give each faction’s system? One of the things I found most interesting about the Dark Brotherhood one was the gacha-style Dark Token reward system, so how did the idea for that specifically come about?
ColdTyrant: The ‘radiant quest system’ I’ve designed was actually initially a side feature in another currently unnamed mod project regarding the Blackwood Company, as my original intention was to continue the ‘join and play evil factions’ genre of mods I’d released so far.
When I discovered during testing how much fun I was having just doing infinite quests, I thought to myself – I need to adapt this to the main factions. From there, once again, my ideas started to kind of run wild.
I ‘extracted’ the radiant quest system from my Blackwood project, ported it into a new project, and reworked it for the Dark Brotherhood. I think a lot of people feel this way, but Oblivion’s Dark Brotherhood is by far my favorite questline in the game, and I say that while really loving all of the major factions. I wanted to be able to take contracts to assassinate people forever, and I hoped others would too. In the end, Dark Brotherhood – Infinitum was born, and the series kicked off.
Creeper, gacha master of the Dark Brotherhood. | Image credit: Bethesda/ColdTyrant
As far as the ‘gacha reward system’, I wanted to create a unique way for the player to get random rewards, but also be able to choose what type of reward they’re interested in. Creating a gacha that may or may not give the player something good for their Dark Tokens I thought would be a fantastic way to motivate the player to keep doing infinite contracts besides just the fun of sneak killing and gold.
If the popularity of certain gacha games is any indicator, people really love being able to take their chances and roll for rewards, even if the odds are stacked against them. Fortunately, however, Creeper does NOT charge the player any real-world money!
Some players complained that Creeper being in the Cheydinhal Sanctuary is not immersive (hence my ‘No Creeper’ optional version), and I totally get it – but I love Morrowind just as much as Oblivion and Skyrim, and I’m sure any Morrowind player is aware of the “meme” of selling Creeper hundreds of sets of Dark Brotherhood armor. Why wouldn’t he show up? He wants more of that stuff! It was just a fun reference in the end, and I was hoping people would get a kick out of it!
VG247: What are your personal plans and general hopes for Oblivion Remastered modding going forwards, especially when it comes to quest mods – are there any complex ideas you’ve not tried yet that you’re keen to give a go once the tech’s there and do you think there’s a high ceiling in terms of what people might eventually pull off?
ColdTyrant: Similar to what I mentioned earlier, the ideal situation for Oblivion Remastered modding will be the release of official modding tools to ‘grease the wheels’ on the mod development process – but given the complexity of the hybrid engine, I’m not sure if this will happen. It would be really nice, though, so our friends playing on console can hop on the hype wave of Remastered modding too.
As far as my plans – the next (and final, for the major factions) mod in the Infinitum series will be Mages Guild – Infinitum. This mod will feature an endless Creature Research system, a brand new Elixir-crafting system separate from regular Alchemy, and radiant quests to deliver those Elixirs to the various Mages Guild Halls. Additionally there will be an endlessly-available staff-crafting system.
Since we had our chat, ColdTyrant’s released his Mages Guild mod, so you can try it right after you’re done reading. | Image credit: Bethesda/ColdTyrant
Since the Mages Guild is a bit different, and focused more on scholarly endeavors and magical power, I’m hoping people really enjoy it!
Once the main Infinitum Series is complete, I’ll likely shift my focus to a big Mythic Dawn Rising update, and a secret project I’ve been writing up, that I think people will really love!
As far as whether or not I’ve tried certain ideas due to current limitations (I consider Remastered modding to currently be in its infancy), there are certainly a few. I try not to lean *too* heavily into NPC dialogue, for example, since we can’t use custom voice files yet, or have an elegant solution like ‘Elys Universal Silent Voice’ which exists for Oldblivion.
I think there is a high ceiling for learning and getting into more complex scripting if you’ve never done it before, but really, the sky is the limit when it comes to Bethesda modding – there are hundreds and hundreds of mod authors far more talented than myself that have created incredible content for all of Bethesda’s single-player masterpieces.
As time marches on, I’m really excited to see the things people continue to pump out for Oblivion Remastered. It’s really exciting to see what people can come up with!
The final Dune Awakening beta is now live, which will allow thousands of fresh-faced players to hop into Funcom’s open world survival MMO for the first time. This beta, which is running over the weekend, will cover the first two major zones of the game, giving folks a peek at the early game experience.
The beta, announced following the release date of the game being pushed back to June 10, is running a few days before the previous date of May 15. A balm to those still burned by the delay, and the last opportunity people will get to check out the game for free.
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This is also the first time your average gamer will get a chance to learn about the game. Our own preview of the early game went live last month, and was largely positive overall. However this preview – which covers the same scope of content that’ll be available in this weekend’s beta – still left us with many questions on what the game will ultimately be building up to in its end-game – a portion that has been discussed by the team, but not shown off to a great extent.
In order to get into this beta, players will have to either wishlist the game on Steam and wait for access to be sent their way via email, or get access via developer giveaways. Access has already been handed out to folks, but it’s not out of the question that more people will be let in over the weekend. So keep an eye out if you’re keen to give it a try, and maybe throw a wishlist on the game for a chance. You never know, you may get lucky!
Are you going to try the game out this weekend? Let us know below, as well as whether or not you’re excited for Dune Awakening!
“We are still enjoying online games with friends and family, including improvised Just One using pen and paper; a little rough and ready homemade web version of Telestrations coded by a friend; a phone-based version of Cards Against Humanity called All Bad Cards, and most of the Jackbox games (repeat faves are Quiplash, Drawful, Fibbage and Trivia Murder Party). We’ve also been meeting our friends in Board Game Arena to play Hanabi which is nice because they live in Hamburg.
I’m lucky enough to be researching design fictions on my PhD so I’ve been able spend time playing some old and not so old text based adventures and narrative games (in the name of research!) on Steam and Itch.io, some of which I grabbed in the latter’s ‘Bundle for Racial Justice and Equality’ a while back.
We’ve had a few breaks in play, but when we can get everyone together we continue roleplaying using Discord and Foundry Virtual Tabletop. We are about six sessions into the Enemy Within Campaign from Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay.
We’ve also recently discovered that Airbnb now offers online experience tours, so we can finally realise our literal board game name location challenge: we’ve been saving two bottles of Jaipur IPA so that we can play Jaipur while drinking Jaipur, and now we can have a complete date night of that plus an online tour of Jaipur, India!”
Patrick:
“In our house we’ve been enjoying online card games like Magic: the Gathering Arena and Legends of Runeterra. They’re not quite the same as sitting opposite an opponent to duke it out, but they both scratch a strategic itch! Magic in particular is in a good place right now, and it’s great to just drop a game or two over the course of an afternoon.”
Then, last but very definitely not least… Ella:
“I’ve been making board games into drinking games (Cobra Paw) and I’m going to make a huge Battleships board to put drinks on in place of ships, then if your opponent hits your boat you neck whatever drink is on that square 🤪”
Quinns: Hello! Is everybody ready for a three dayboard game party? We don’t have cake, gifts or music, but we do have board games, card games and (checks notes) even more board games!
Through that link you’ll find an Aladdin’s cave of content. There are treacherous piles of upcoming games, plenty of shiny new features, and even glimmering giveaways. Here’s a helpful list of what not to miss:
Over on our YouTube channel we have just this moment UNLEASHED six videos, each containing a bundle of previews of upcoming games, presented by Tom, Matt and myself. It’s ridiculous. Seriously, there are now hours of new SU&SD content for you to check out.
More than 30 hours’ of programming will soon start on our Twitch channel, which for the duration of AwSHUX resembles a SU&SD television channel! We’ve got panels, special guests, game shows, and an absolute boatload of programming where you can watch team SU&SD play unreleased games. Find the schedule in the above header image!
But SHUX isn’t just about looking at games, pawing at your monitor like a kitten at a window. This weekend you can play games free on Tabletopia – use the code SHUX2021AGAIN to get 7 days of free Gold Access! Here’s how to apply your coupon code.
Can’t find the game you want on Tabletopia? Try these other options: BGA (free), Sovranti (Platinum access through to Nov 30th 2021 with code SHUXfall21), Yucata (free), Boîte à Jeux (free), TTS (buy on steam).
Can’t find people to play with? This weekend, you can! If you just head over to the official AwSHUX Discord server you’ll find plenty of “open gaming” channels where you can find people just like you who are looking to set up a game. Alternatively, you can even have games taught to you by the publishers themselves in the #looking-for-demo channel!
Finally (and you can expect to hear a lot more about this on the site in the coming days), we’ve only gone and made another official stand alone SU&SD expansion for a game, this time the superb MonsDRAWsity with the fine folks at Deep Water Games. Here’s Tom announcing the project and the KS Notify Me page which I believe goes live on the 26th of this month, but if you’re just totally uncertain as to why you should be excited, you’ll find our podcast chat about Monsdrawsity on episode #123.
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