NEW YORK, June 15 — Stars of mixed martial arts step into the ring with “EA Sports UFC,” adorable block-based puzzling returns in “Pushmo World,” and “Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark” builds an action-based bridge between previous games and the upcoming film.
EA Sports UFC (PS4 XBO)
North America: June 17
European regions: June 19 (UK: Jun 20)
Making the jump to the newer consoles is EA’s first official UFC tie-in, with near enough 100 licensed fighters taken from across the MMA sport’s multiple divisions, a special Legends section, and arenas that include ten North American venues plus one in Brazil.
Pushmo World (Wii U)
International via eShop: June 19
Gentler, less frantic than “Tetris” but a mountain of engrossing block-based puzzling fun nonetheless. Also known as Pullblox World, a difference in naming conventions that extends back to 2011’s Pushmo/Pullblox via Crashmo/Fallblox.
Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark (360 3DS PS3 PS4 WiiU WinPC XBO)
North America: June 24
European regions: June 27 (AUS: Jun 25)
Intended to stand in the gap between the Transformers movies, particularly June’s “Age of Extinction,” and previous games “War for Cybertron” and “Fall of Cybertron,” with a single player story to weave the storylines together, and a multiplayer mode for online jollies. From the Edge of Reality studio, whose original output includes team-based shooter “Loadout” (2014) and “The Incredible Hulk” (2008).
GRID Autosport (360 PC PS3)
North America: June 24
European regions: June 27
Presenting itself as a comprehensive reworking of the “Grid” ethos in response to fan feedback after “Grid 2,” this multidisciplinary romp pulls from touring cars, endurance racing, open wheel, tuned, and even street racing, with a ton of licensed cars and real world locations designed to give the “Forza” franchise a run for its money.
Shovel Knight (3DS Linux Mac WinPC WiiU)
International: June 26
Drawing upon a diverse range of influences, from old school jump’n’run titles “Mega Man” and “Duck Tales” to “Dark Souls,” and the result of a successful Kickstarter, the game’s spade-wielding hero must make his way through a series of 2D levels with the ultimate goal of dispatching the evil Enchantress and her eight henchmen.
yachtclubgames.com/shovel-knight
Don Bradman Cricket 14 (PC)
International: June 26
Already available on 360 and PS3 but now coming to PC as a Steam download. It’s a relief to fans of wicket and willow that on consoles at least, “Don Bradman Cricket” isn’t terrible—in fact, it’s pretty good. Though most of its teams are unlicensed, the mechanics themselves are decent, with realistic ball and player physics, extensive customization, practice nets, a career mode and an option to engage in online multiplayer.
facebook.com/donbradmancricket14 — AFP-Relaxnews
