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Sweet Release! Mortal Kombat X, Titan Souls, Grand Theft Auto V PC, Teslagrad

By Jared Cornelius

Welcome back to Sweet Release!  Bleeding Cool's look at the new games coming to PC and consoles this week.  As April rolls on it seems that this is actually the month of downloadable games.  With a ton of great smaller titles hitting the PlayStation Network, like Monster Bag and Tower of Guns, April's big boxed releases are getting passed over for the most part.  Retail's best effort so far has been the sports-tastic MLB The Show and the Dark Souls II re-release giving fans little reason to leave the house.  While I'm sure MLB has its dedicated fans, the Dark Souls community at large seems to be more interested in last month's PlayStation 4 exclusive, Bloodborne.   However this week I'd put money down on our first title being the number one seller for the month, as well as the only new retail product most people will care about for the rest of April.
MKXThe long history of the Mortal Kombat series is almost a bizarre and crazy as its contemporary,  Mortal Kombat X.  It was over 20 years ago that overprotective parents and politicians rallied to keep the 2D fighter away from the hands of poor innocent children.  With its buckets of blood, dime store Kung-Fu aesthetic, and haunting dialog the series made a huge impact and left a lasting impression on gamers.  Its strange journey also included two movies, an animated series, an often referenced dance track, action figures, and spin off games.  The strangest thing about Mortal Kombat though was its slide into irrelevance and the phoenix like accent back to the public eye.  After a string of fair to mediocre games on the PlayStation 2 and Xbox, developer Nether Realms took some time, retooled the franchise and revived it with 2011's Mortal Kombat.

Now in 2015 they're prepared to expand on their work with Mortal Kombat X.  A direct sequel to the 2011 game, X takes place 25 years in the future with some familiar faces returning as well as new characters and some mash ups between fan favorite characters.  The 2.5D fighter has more of the same absurd brutality and is coming back with Fatalities, X-Ray Attacks, and more over the top violence.  MK X includes an all new story mode, to go along with its new generation graphical upgrade, and adds a new dynamic of each character having three different fighting styles which changes up special moves and techniques.  While I'm very excited for Mortal Kombat X, this game will almost certainly see a ton of downloadable content, including characters and costume packs, so you may want to wait for the inevitable "Game of The Year" edition down the line.  Mortal Kombat X released Tuesday on PlayStation 4Xbox One, and PC.  PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions are also available Tuesday but keep your expectations in check.
TITANIf you crossed Shadow of The ColossusLink To The Past, and Dark Souls you'd get our next title, Titan Souls from developer Acid Nerve.  The overhead action puzzle game, has an 8-bit look and sprawling ruins that ape the classic NES Legend of Zelda, but the combat is what makes it special.  The hero will not be tested by hordes of smaller enemies or fodder foes, but only battle the games titular titans with a single arrow.  That's right, one arrow that you'll need to retrieve after firing.  If you remember the battle with the giant centipede Moldorm or the Armos Knights from Link To The Past, you'll know what you're in for.  Titan Souls doesn't quite have the friendlier learning curve of the Zelda series but is more in line with a difficulty level skewed towards fans of hardcore action games like Dark Souls and Bloodborne, so prepare to die…a lot.  Titan Souls released Tuesday on PlayStation 4PlayStation Vita, and PC.
GTAVAnother week, another re-release.  This time it's the upgraded version of Grand Theft Auto V for PC.  The open world crime series set the standard for sandbox games, and is finally releasing its long awaited PC version on Tuesday.  GTA V PC, contains all the upgrades from the new generation version including Heist Mode, first person game play, and a more active world.  The PC version will also see some brand new tweaks including the much loved ability to mod the game, (check out GTA IV Iron-Man) will run at 60 frames a second, and features denser vehicle and foot traffic, and more lush forests.  Small tweaks I know, but the ability to mod will no doubt bring some interesting creations.  Grand Theft Auto V PC released Tuesday and is currently available upgraded on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
TESLAFinally this week, indie platform puzzler Teslagrad comes to PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 3.  The electro-punk platformer has been featured twice before on Sweet Release! and I'm only mentioning it because it's cross-buy if you own the PlayStation Vita version.

That's all for this week folks.  Check out my other regular column, Typing on The Dead, where I break down the latest issue of The Walking Dead.  Why not go check out other cool stuff on Bleeding Cool, Like Geek Shopping from fellow Jersey native Christine Marie.

Jared Cornelius is some guy from the Jersey coast whose head feels like it weighs 1000 lbs.  Send well wishes on Twitter @John_Laryngitis.


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Hannah Means ShannonAbout Hannah Means Shannon

Editor-in-Chief at Bleeding Cool. Independent comics scholar and former English Professor. Writing books on magic in the works of Alan Moore and the early works of Neil Gaiman.
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