Video Games
‘Ray’s The Dead’ Rises From Its Grave For an October 22 Release For PS4, PC
Way back in 2013, indie dev Ragtag Studio had shown off a little game at E3 that year called Ray’s The Dead. Ragtag Studio is the same group of folks behind the cult favourite Stubbs The Zombie, by the way. Well, flash forward to 2020, and the devs have announced that the game is finally seeing the light of day. In fact, the game is hitting Steam and PlayStation 4 later this month!
The “zombie raising, narrative-driven, puzzle-solving, action-packed, stealth-sneaking, 1980s-inspired, multiple timeline-having, meticulously illustrated, surprisingly-touching, dark comedy adventure” will launch on October 22nd. Currently, the game also has a free demo via Steam for you to check out.
It’s been a long journey for the title, which has seen a Kickstarter campaign raise $51,700 to cover development costs, as well as the unfortunate cancellation of a previously-planned PlayStation Vita version. In its place, however, is a Nintendo Switch version, which is to be released at a later 2021 date.
It’s been a long while, so here’s the synopsis: in the year 1989, Ray LaMorte is dead. Well actually, he’s a zombie. Ray isn’t sure how he died, so he sets out to find out how this came to pass. Ray hopes to accomplish this by using his new ability of raising an zombie army, which he’s able to control. Think Pikmin, but with a nice horror twist.
Players will have to lumber their way through a 8-10 hour story campaign across 40 levels rich with 1980s Americana and “dense with pop culture cameos”. So yes, we more than likely will be seeing “Thriller” references.
Torn Banner Studios and Green Man Gaming have announced that their 8-player zombie co-op shooter No More Room In Hell 2 will see an August 11 exit from Early Access on Steam and the Epic Games Store, launching in full. The game will also be launching on the Xbox Series and PlayStation 5, with pre-orders kicking off on July 28 for Xbox Series (with a 20% discount), with launch-day offers available from August 11 with 35% off on Steam and the Epic Games Store, and 20% off on Xbox and PlayStation Stores.
This milestone release delivers a wealth of new content and gameplay overhauls, capping off two years of continuous Early Access refinements. Along with community-driven bug fixes and performance optimisations, 1.0 introduces vital quality-of-life upgrades including overhauled difficulty tiers, match reconnect, an ‘Unstuck’ button, an improved UI and more.
Fans of the permadeath co-op can expect the permanent addition of the action-packed Survival Mode. Originally previewed during the Free Weekend event earlier this year, this deadly new game mode pushes squads to their limits as they defend strategic speaker towers from an ever-growing horde of the undead, buying precious time for civilian evacuations.
Designed to offer a smoother onboarding experience, new tutorial grounds and re-tuned difficulty tiers give first-time players room to learn the ropes. The update also introduces an all-new Solo Mode, providing opportunities for veterans and newcomers alike to master map layouts at their own pace – completely free from the brutal threat of permadeath – before braving the high-stakes co-op progression.
“Reaching 1.0 is a monumental milestone for No More Room in Hell 2,” says Steve Piggott, CEO & Creative Director at Torn Banner Studios. “Throughout Early Access, we’ve worked hand-in-hand with our community to refine, polish, and expand the game into the ultimate high-stakes co-op horror experience. This launch brings the definitive version of the game we always envisioned. We are so excited to finally bring the brutal, 8-player survival nightmare to life, and we can’t wait to see how squads handle the horror when they step into the zone.”
Designed with feature parity at its core, the title’s console debut ensures PlayStation and Xbox players will experience the exact same gameplay systems, survival mechanics, and in-game achievements as PC players. Full cross-play integration unites PC, PlayStation, and Xbox into one shared player pool, delivering faster matchmaking and total freedom to team up on any platform.
“We are incredibly proud to support the debut console launch of No More Room in Hell 2,” says Chris Jones, EVP of Publishing at Green Man Gaming. “Hardcore, tactical horror has traditionally been a PC-dominated space, leaving console players largely underserved when it comes to high-stakes survival. But with this launch, we are thrilled to finally open the quarantine zone to console audiences and offer them a truly uncompromising survival horror challenge.”