Berserk game from Dynasty Warriors devs incoming

Long considered one of the greatest manga series ever written, Berserk has enraptured two generations of anime fans with its bloody action and shocking narrative twists and turns. Those same fans have often wondered if Berserk would ever return to the world of videogames. Well, it looks like Guts and co. are finally heading back to consoles, courtesy of Omega Force, the Japanese developer behind the Dynasty Warrior series.

For those of you who've never had the pleasure of reading Kentaro Miura's manga epic, Berserk is a gritty fantasy series which follows the exploits of Guts, a swordsman clad all in black, who hunts demons following a tragic event in his not-so distant past. It's gruesome, unspeakably violent but also filled with fantastic characters and some great storytelling beyond its awkward early chapters.

Given the popularity of  gritty and gruesome fantasy series like Game of Thrones and Dark Souls (whose aesthetics already borrow heavily from Miura's artwork), now seems like the perfect time to thrust Berserk back into the limelight.

According to publisher Tecmo Koei, the game will also be "the most lethal warrors game yet", confirming that the Guts' current-gen debut will stick to the musou formula which underpins their bestselling Dynasty Warriors series of titles.

No release date has been announced, but if has been confirmed that the game will be available in the West on PS4, PS Vita and PC.

Mighty No. 9 hit with yet another delay

Bet you didn't see that coming...

Side-scrolling Mega Man-alike Mighty No. 9 has been hit with another delay. Originally due to arrive on consoles and PC all the way back in September, this is the second time the troubled production has been pushed back due to problems with its online modes. 

Here's a run-down of what's holding the game back direct from the devs themselves: 

"The reason for the delay is rooted in bugs inside the network modes, and specifically problems with matchmaking. There are two large reasons for this problem, one of them being the large number of platforms supported (the solution for each platform is slightly different) and the other stems from the fact that the engine we are using is no longer being updated which means adjustments for matchmaking and online code are being made manually (actually reprogramming parts of the engine by the dev team themselves)."

On the one-hand, it's good that the developer is being upfront with its fans and making it clear that they are committed to releasing a game that is as polished and bug-free as possible. On the other, the online component behind the delay is something very few fans actually asked for; that its inclusion is holding up the release just adds insult to injury. 

Many early backers have called for the singleplayer portion of the game to be released ahead of the online features, but the developer claims this is a no-go due to the approval process on both Xbox and PS4. 

At present, the best fans can hope for is a Spring 2016 release. Start holding your breath now...

Mighty No.9 hit with lengthy delay

Between a Rockman and a hard place

Raising in excess of 3 million dollars, Mighty No. 9 was One of Kickstarter's earliest videogame-related success stories. Following development, the game was due to find its way into the hands of backers this September, but due to a litany of game-breaking technical issues it's been pushed back until early 2016. A vague and troubling development for anyone who pledged funds back when the game was first announced.

Word of the delay was posted on the game's official forum - a forum only people who have backed the game can view. This being the internet, the story didn't stay under wraps for long, finding its way onto the web ahead of the official announcement due to drop during this week's Gamescom conference.

"As we have communicated in the updates to our backers, all of the core content for the game is developed and in a complete state," reads the statement.

"However, there are still bugs and issues pertaining to the online features that are included in the game. These bugs and issues have a direct effect on enjoyment of the game, so a decision was made to work these issues out before release.

"Currently, Comcept and their partners are working at full capacity to resolve these issues and fix any remaining bugs."

While it's good the devs are making backers aware of the issue, it's still disheartening to hear about issues this severe so close to game's intended release date. What's more, the timing of the news has lead to speculation in various corners of the internet that Comcept kept the delay under wraps purposefully so it wouldn't damage their Red Ash kickstarter's chance of getting funded. I'm not one to subscribe to conspiracy theories, but I'll admit the timing's certainly a touch suspicious. 

The game's publisher, Deep Silver, has yet to issue a statement.