Black Book is Free on Epic

Monday, THQ Nordic did a showcase last week that was about as publicized as a nun’s undercrackers, and the author of The Metamorphosis joined Honkai Star Rail. Tuesday, everyone is sort of busy with Gamescom next week, including those who aren’t going but still create work for themselves, so no news. Wednesday, A games showcase you didn’t know was happening was announced and Edward covered it. Thursday, American Truck Simulator set its sight on Nebraska once it clears Kansas in the coming months.

Moving on to the Epic Games Store and what is on offer this week, we’ll start with the dark adventure drenched in Slavic mythology, Black Book. Last week while finishing the article up I got an ear full on how much I’d like Black Book. Though I was warned that select fonts and the lack of contrast in some sections would be off-putting. Taking on the role of Vasilisa, you’ll explore this dark world through point-and-click gameplay and Slay the Spire-like card combat as the young woman becomes a witch attempting to revive her dead husband. I haven’t even scratched the surface of Black Book.

Next up is a retro-style arcade platformer, Dodo Peak. Let’s be honest, no one is sitting on the edge of their seat for this one as it is the “you aren’t old enough for the other game” option. Alternately, if you’re German and the mature game is Wolfenstein, the nanny state doesn’t trust you. Originally released on Apple Arcade in 2019, the simple and Q*bert-like platformer also made its way to Switch in the summer of COVID, this being its PC debut. Though it might be entertaining enough for a few minutes on handheld platforms or on the couch, I fail to see the excitement for PC (at a desk) gameplay.

All this week, you can pick up Dodo Peak and Black Book on the Epic Games Store until Thursday, the 24th of August. Moving on to next week, so far (fingers crossed) it is a single title to enjoy and a follow on from something a couple of weeks ago, Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak. Blackbird Interactive’s prequel RTS to the classic of Homeworld games in the early 00s is mostly to build hype for (as I said the other week) the long-awaited upcoming sequel in Homeworld 3 next year.