June 29th marked the last showcase in partnership with Summer Game Fest: Annapurna Interactive. I was especially excited for this one as Annapurna Interactive is the publisher of Stray, a short game that I enjoyed immensely. Unfortunately, as Stray was released just under a year ago, there was no news of a sequel. The only news on Stray at all involved a port to Xbox, which will be available on August 10th. Since Stray was BlueTwelve Studio’s first game, and a massive hit at that, it might be a while before the studio regroups and has an update on a sequel (if there will be one.) No matter if a Stray sequel is developed or not, it was a special game with lots of character and fun worldbuilding.
In other news, the showcase had lots of other games and other updates to announce. The indie games show featured games like Flock, a game about exploring a vast world while on the back of a bird, and Ghost Bike, a seemingly peaceful bike ride through different vibrant landscapes, but with a twist. Then there was Lushfoil Photography Sim, another exploration-type game taking place in a gorgeously detailed world, with the player’s seemingly only mission to capture photography.
I was also intrigued by Bounty Star, a game about a bounty hunter who uses a mech that can be fitted with different weapons to get the job done. The trailer for the game included a detailed story, as the bounty hunter is an ex-soldier who is haunted by difficult situations during her service and aims to atone and improve as a person. Along with tracking down bounties, players will be able to tend to crops and craft items while at their home base located in a post-apocalyptic desert. As I love mechs and a good story that involves personal growth, I’ll be keeping an eye on this one. The biggest reveal of the day was Blade Runner 2033: Labyrinth, a game that takes place between the events of the Blade Runner and Blade Runner 2049 movies. As a fan of the movies and world of Blade Runner, I’m glad for more cyberpunk content.
The showcase also took a segment to announce a new developer partnership: Marumittu Games located in Kyoto, Japan. This small studio is run by a husband and wife team, and they convey passion for making games. They are currently at work on a sci-fi game project, and I’ll be interested to learn more.