PROMISE MASCOT AGENCY
Developer/publisher Kaizen Game Works Format PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series Origin UK Release 2025
Following Paradise Killer, one of the most striking debuts of recent years, is no easy task: for its second game, Kaizen Game Works is doubling down on its Japanese influences. In this esoteric combination of sandbox adventure, management sim and crime drama, you play a former yakuza lieutenant tasked with reviving the fortunes of a rundown mascot agency. The mascots in question are living beings, like outsized Pokémon; recruiting them involves deployment of cards to help them achieve their aims. Some are as mundane as squeezing through a narrow door, while others want to watch the world burn. More next issue.
EUROPA
Developer Helder Pinto Publisher Future Friends Games Format PC, Switch Origin Portugal Release TBA 2024
Helder Pinto’s pastoral sci-fi adventure seems to have been on the verge of launching for a while – odd for a game in which you spend so much time in the air. An Indie World reappearance suggests it isn’t far off. That sci-fi author (and onetime Edge contributor) Grace Curtis is involved adds to the appeal.
ANTONBLAST
Developer/publisher Summitsphere Format PC, Switch Origin US Release November 12
Enough indie studios have been inspired by Mario over the years that it stands to reason that others would be drawn to his avaricious counterpart. This ferociously paced platformer is like Wario Land on fast-forward, its angry hero smashing his way through colourful stages with an outsized hammer.
