New Zealand indie duo group, DUAL delight fans with the drop of new single ‘Magic’ today; a taste of their forthcoming EP (coming in 2022).

Hypnotising tune ‘Magic’ seduces listeners by exploring the complex dynamics of relationships. The track details the full circle that comes with a ‘push/pull’ relationship, from start to finish. Meeting, connecting, then suddenly vanishing into nothing and disappearing – just like magic.

The psychedelic duo made up of lead vocalist Maurice Miller and guitarist Jamie Pyne, explain the new single was drive by “some other force” when at a song writing camp that they visited to work on their craft.

“Each day we were randomly paired with different producers with the aim to write a song. One day we were paired with Henry Beasley (Balu Brigada) and Abi (Missy) whom we’d never meet or worked with before. ‘Magic’ flowed freely, it was one of those moments in music making where we all knew it was special and that we were on to something – we chased that spark right into the evening and left that night with a finished song,” DUAL explains of the track.

“We were given a studio that was filled with so many great instruments, so we knew from the get-go that we had to make use of them. Sonically everything was recorded using analog gear, upright piano, Rhodes, xylophone, mandolin, guitar, bass, gang vocals, there’s even the sound of a glass dropping on the floor in there!”

“We wanted it feel warm, live and organic – windows down on a sunny summers day on your way to your favourite spot”.

Warm, live, and organic track ‘Magic’ is available to stream and download now.

The post DUAL RELEASE NEW SINGLE ‘MAGIC’ appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

There are some games out there that are so good, that you can overlook every quirk, and every bug, other games get dragged down into the mud because of them.

And then there are games like Nine Parchments, that has so many things to love about it, but boy it will test your patience.

Take my first experiences with the game. When I first launched the game, getting through the opening screens, showing Frostbyte etc, took 5 minutes because it was chugging along. After a lot of testing I isolated it to the game, then after about an hour of playing around, for no reason it started working again.

I couldn’t replicate this issue again, so I was going to chalk it up to a freak incident, especially after the next few hours captivated me.

Nine Parchments is like many other twin-stick isometric shooters, yet so different. The obvious variance is that instead of shooting, it is based around magic. You choose a magician who goes venturing to power themselves up. Their adventure consists of killing a lot of monsters and finding collectables through a series of gorgeous linear Levels.

You learn new spells throughout the game and can assign them to your spell wheel. Switching between spells on the fly is easy and fun. This is when the game is at its best, when you are switching between spells to keep your attacks going as you slaughter hordes of enemies. Whether you are firing is beams, icicles, or thunder blasts, it is fluent, simple and fun like many other twin-stick games.

The biggest problem is the game is built around playing with others, whether local or online, the idea is you play with up to 4 players. With only one controller I could only play the game locally solo, and this was fine for many enjoyable hours. The problem came about half way in when after an hour of dying I gave up on the boss that was slaughtering me. Even on easy.

Not being able to get a partner to play locally, I thought I would try online. Big mistake.

The first game I jumped into, threw me into a Level late in the game with someone else. We died and had to start again, and that’s when the game decided to start testing me again. We got stuck in the Level, unable to advance the way we knew it should.

After some struggles I left the game and tried joining another one. Nine Parchments doesn’t let you just join any online match, you need to specify some things like difficulty, so if you just want to play you may need to bounce between these options depending on wait times. I got in the queue and it told me I had an estimated 8-minute wait, which would have been fine, if the next 10 minutes didn’t consist of slowly watching that wait time climb slowly up to 13 minutes.

Giving up, I thought I’d try another difficulty, and proceeded to have the same experience, multiple times. After failing that I tried a few nights at different times, and consistently had this experience.

It’s frustrating that these bugs exist, but even more so because the game itself is so fun and so beautiful. Enemy designs are intricate and amazing, and the environments are gorgeous. Especially stages with running water, with beautiful colours under the surface.

Coupled with its genuinely fun gameplay, the game is a treat, until you hit the difficulty spike.

If the online issues get fixed, or if you have a local co-op partner, Nine Parchments is worthy of a look. But if you want to do it solo, I would wait for some updates, as it is tough as nails, and online will test your patience.

The post Nine Parchments (Xbox One) Review appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

You’re a rogue apprentice who has abscondered from your training in order to retrieve the Nine Parchments.

From Frozenbyte, known for the beautifully artistic and highly playable Trine trilogy, Nine Parchments is an RPG in the same vein as Trine where as a inexperienced Wizard you will harness the powers of elements like Ice and Fire in order to wield magic in this mostly open world adventure title.

Your goal throughout is to fill up your spellbook with new magic abilities, but because you have not completed your training, there is many deadly mistakes made as you traverse the Nine Parchment’s world in search of the lost Parchments.

Playing the game is also a case of trial and error. Played in single player or in co-op you will get to grips with your elemental powers, and discover what magic you will need to use in order to defeat enemies who generally are derived from varying elements aswell.

This means that you need to figure out on the fly what resistances enemies may have.

Nine Parchments is not easy. Not at all. Expect to die many many times until you get familiar with your opponents’ weaknesses.

For example, a fire beast cannot be taken down by fire magic – you will need to use ice or similar. That’s a no brainer, for sure, but your powers are limited and do run out.

Magic can be switched on the fly via D-Pad hotkeys and as you progress your character will level up. Whatsmore, there is loot to be had, much like a dungeon crawler, scavenge around and you are likely to pick up new Wizard hats, better melee weapons and more.

Astoundingly rich and detailed in it’s visuals, Nine Parchments looks as though it is an extension of the Trine series.

Playing on Nintendo Switch allowed for a quick game here and there on the go. The Levels are not too long but can have an insane difficulty curve, especially if you encounter an enemy that is resistant to most magic. At times it is a case of thinking outside the square or trying out differing abilities or a combination of magic and melee to get through.

Nine Parchments is a game of self discovery, you the player will discover your abilities as the inexperienced character does aswell.

Also released on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC, Nine Parchments felt as though it was built for the Switch and could have easily been an exclusive portable game.

With a shortage of a substantial RPG on the Nintendo Switch (Skyrim being the exception) and if you are a patient gamer who likes titles where perseverance to progress keeps you engaged Nine Parchments will be the title for you.

The post Nine Parchments (Switch) Review appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

A wizard enters New York City in the late 1920’s with a suitcase…

A suitcase full of magical creatures, a doorway to another realm where the creatures live. Unfortunately some of the creatures escape.

Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne), a British (former) student of Hogwarts is on a quest to rescue a creature that has been terrorizing NYC. He is there to not only capture it but to rescue it from muggles (average, non-magical humans) who do not understand and most likely will kill or harm the beast, if they could see it. It’s invisible.

Soon he bumps into Jacob Kowalski (Dan Fogler, a lowly factory worker who has dreams of owning his own Bakery in the city. A chance meet where they literally bump into eachother at the Bank where Jacob had tried unsuccessfully to get a business loan Jacobs and Newts suitcases get swapped.

Also to throw into the mix of characters is Mary Lou Barebone (Samantha Morton). she is also a muggle (like Jacob) but she is aware that there are witches and wizards throughout the city and tries to warn the public, using the children from her Orphanage to educate citizens on the impending dangers.

Mary Lou is a dark and twisted lady who tends to be suspicious of everyone, including her children that she takes care of. Her Orphanage is much like a religious sect and very very strict. One of her actual children; Credence Barebone (Ezra Miller) receives regular abuse from his mother. Quiet and very subdued he tolerates the discipline while adhering to his mothers rhetoric.

While in NYC a Niffler escapes from Newts suitcase. Nifflers love shiny things and it is unfortunate that it escapes at the city Bank, where there are copious amounts of gold, silver and coins for the Niffler to steal.

Before Newt can recapture the Niffler he gets himself arrested by Tina Goldstein (Katherine Waterston) from the local Wizard council, as Newt is an unregistered Wizard in the city.

Eventually Tina gets herself caught up in the goings on with Newt and (at times) begrudgingly assists Newt in the retrieval of his suitcase and the creatures that escape from it.

With Jacob and Tina’s mind reading sister Queenie (Alison Sudol) the four of them witness sinister plans unfolding from one of the NYC Wizard Council members and discover that the quiet and shy Credence is not exactly what he appears to be.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them film from Warner Bros. is based of the novel penned by J.K. Rowling (Harry Potter books) and is based some years before the events at Hogwarts that we are already familiar with.

Fantastic Beasts, the film, retains the same flavour as the previous Harry Potter movies but has more adult appeal to it. Some areas may be a bit dark for younger audiences (or over their heads) but this does not mean that Fantastic Beasts is not a film for the entire family.

All characters make their mark on the story, with secondary characters having pivotal roles to the story. What I was also pleased with was the CGI was not overly done. Just the right amount to play out the narrative.

Slightly long at 133 minutes (over 2 hours) yet highly enjoyable.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is a definite for Harry Potter fans, even those that have read the books, (including the one that this film is based on) will not be disappointed.

If you are keen to get into the Harry Potter mytho – start with this one and work your way back. Fantastic Beasts although it is a major part of the Harry Potter lore, it is as equally a stand alone. A must see film for everyone.