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Sifu on Switch Packs a Punch With its Last Update Today, Game Hits 2 Million Sold
You'll get a kick out of this
You thought you were done? It’s time to re-enter the Arenas for the ultimate Sifu update - available today for free on Nintendo Switch. The game’s final update enables the platform’s players to further test their Kung-Fu abilities with several hours of new content.
Get ready to deliver knockout blows to goons in six additional arenas with 27 new modifiers and cheats while donning an extra stylish outfit. Brace yourself for encounters with zombie-like enemies, doppelgangers and interactive environments that will test your reflexes and strategic prowess like never before.
To celebrate this major last update, Sifu will be available for purchase at 50% off until Dec. 3 for North American and European Switch owners.
Sifu is a highly stylized revenge story told through meticulously designed beat ‘em up Kung-Fu action. Players walk in the shoes of a young Pak Mei Kung-Fu student as they venture out into a fictional Chinese city to avenge their fallen master. The only things players have to defend themselves are their Kung-Fu abilities, mastered through years of training, and a magical pendant that prevents death, but causes rapid aging.
Sifu has sold more than 2 million copies worldwide to date, receiving global praise from critics and several award nominations. It is the second game from French development studio Sloclap, who is currently in development of the studio’s third title.
REVIEW: Double Dragon Gaiden might be the best of the series
Talk about a punch up!
I’m about to date myself quite a bit. I’ve been a fan of the Double Dragon franchise since I played the very first installment on the NES. That game released all the way back in 1987, so yeah…I’m an old man!
The original Double Dragon was one of those NES games that pretty much everyone had in their collection. This was a time when game boxes and word of mouth were the main ways we learned about games, and somehow those two factors resulted in Double Dragon being a title a ton of kids added to their game libraries. Long story short, if you owned an NES back in the day, the odds were very good that you owned, or at least played Double Dragon.
I stuck with the series from those early days through the decades that followed. I was there for the numbered sequels, spin-offs like Battletoads & Double Dragon, even the odd experiments like the one-on-one fighting game, confusingly titled Double Dragon. Sadly, after the original trilogy of games and early spin-offs, the Double Dragon franchise not only fell off in terms of popularity, but quality as well.
There was one bright spot in the series’ later years; Double Dragon Neon. The gang at WayForward took a crack at the Double Dragon franchise and came out with a mostly classic-style beat’em-up that was filled with goofy jokes, over-the-top moves, and an absolutely killer soundtrack. WayForward managed to find something that worked for the Double Dragon franchise, getting things back on track. There’s no doubt that success helped pave the way for their titles like River City Girls later on, which has plenty of ties to Double Dragon as well.
Knockout City 'Thanks for the KOs' video
Let's bounce
Knockout City is windin’ down with style! Public servers close on June 6th, so join us for two final weeks of dodgebrawlin’, new merch, giveaways, livestreams, a finale tournament, and more!
It’s the ultimate Knockout City sendoff! Hero up in Superpowers: Power Grab, finish Big Hugs Contracts for a last-minute XP and Holobux boost, buy up your final favorites in the Three Cheers Shop, and earn some killer new trophies for that sweet trophy case photo finish. And once the sun finally sets, you’ll always be welcome to dodgebrawl in the Private Hosted Server Edition of Knockout City, available as a free download on knockoutcity.com.
Root for your favorite EU and NA brawlers at the official end-of-the-Season Team KO Tournament, LIVE on Twitch on June 3rd and 4th! This one’s for all the marbles… and a sweet $25,000 prize pool!
How ‘bout some souvenirs to remember the celebration? Find every toe-tappin’ tune in one special set with the Knockout City Vinyl Soundtrack, featuring the full score plus surprise exclusives. Meanwhile, the Knockout City Art Book’s filled with colorful concepts and tell-all stories celebrating the city’s creation. Check it out at knockoutcity.com/merch!
We kicked off Knockout City with a Dev Stream, so we’re bringing it full circle! Join the Velan crew for heated dodgebrawls, hilarious antics, and awards aplenty during The Dodgems Community Awards show. Catch it live on twitch.tv/knockoutcity!
We’ve treasured every opportunity to hype up the highlights of every Season and brawl in the street right alongside you, the community. So long for now, brawlers… and thanks for all the KOs! From, the Knockout City Dev Crew.
Omega Strikers has been updated to Ver. 2.0.3. You can see the patch notes for this update below.
General
While it’s good to have Strikers who are behind to have some options of getting back into the game, the catch-up experience for knockouts provided too much of an XP Swing.
Catch-up experience for KOs and assists :: 60% of the difference between KO’ed and KO’er (30% for Assisters) → 40% of the difference (20% for Assisters)
STRIKERS
Juno
It’s been raining Cats and Blobs out there. Juno is excelling, so we’re hampering her ability to clog the alleys a bit.
Make it Rain [SPECIAL]
Cooldown :: 30s → 35s
Rune
Last time, Rune got the knockback buffs. We’re now giving him the damage to match.
Unstable Anomaly [PRIMARY]
- Fully formed Damage :: 220 (+110% Power) → 250 (+125% Power)
- Fully formed Core Knockback :: 1390 (+205% Power) → 1405 (+212.5% Power)
- Unformed damage and knockback unchanged
- Also applies to the Unstable Anomaly left by Shadow Walk [SECONDARY]
X
X has been nonchalantly kicking in goals after bashing heads. He can still do that, it just won’t be as X-cessive.
Bell Ringer
- PvP Damage and Knockback :: 200 (+100% Power) → 185 (+92.5% Power)
- Core Knockback :: 1380 (+200% Power) → 1350 (+185% Power)
X Maximus!
- Size gain :: 50% → 40%
- Cooldown :: 30s → 35s
- No longer has a minimum knockback duration per hit
Zentaro
Mastering the blade is no easy task, but we think Zentaro could use a little help from our end. Now, when he’s dashing, he might bring an enemy with him.
Iai Rush (SECONDARY)
- PvP Damage and Knockback :: 170 (+85% Power) → 180 (+90% Power)
- Core Knockback :: 1320 (+170% Power) → 1340 (+180% Power)
AWAKENINGS
- Sparkington City needs to boost its tourism revenue. Stop by sometime!
Spark of Focus
- 2 Cooldown Rate, plus 8 per Spark → 2 Cooldown Rate, plus 10 per Spark
Spark of Strength
- 4 Power, plus 16 per Spark → 4 Power, plus 20 per Spark
Big League Brawl comes to Knockout City on April 25th, 2023
Ready to have a ball?
Wanna be a legend? Then climb the ranks of League Play, brawler! It’s Big League Brawl!
Play like a pro with Classic Face-Off in Street Play, then bring your A-game to League Play where you’ll complete Big League Contracts to prove your dodgebrawl mastery. Once you’ve reached the top, the Bigger Boat Shop’s got everything you need to look like the GOAT.
Think you’re the best brawler around? Really hammer that point home with the fashionably lethal Sharkbait Bundle! Get chummy with a Legendary Outfit that’s sure to leave you with a toothy grin… Your opponents? Not so much.
Whether you’re a seasoned scrapper or a rookie on the rise, there’s never been a better time to jump into League Play. It’s all happening in Knockout City on April 25th. Come on, show us what you’ve got!
Z3R0 Returns to Knockout City on April 11th, 2023
PR3PAR3 YOUR531F
PR3PAR3 YOUR531F, because Z3R0 is back, baby! In the Z3R0 R3TURN5 Event, pal up to take on Z3R0’s plethora of PAL Bots in a radical PvPvE Playlist. Hack away at Overclocked Contracts to decode some robotic rewards and get the latest fashion downloads from the High Tech Shop!
Z3R0’s been watching and learning, and it’s time for them to show us their synthetic stuff! Battle a rival duo in a race to see who can delete the most Z3R0-controlled brawlers in the time limit. The H3R0 2 Z3R0 Bundle is back once again in the Brawl Shop to herald the triumphant return of everyone’s favorite rogue AI!
Be Z3R0’s number one when Z3R0 R3TURN5 Downloads into Knockout City on April 11th, 2023.
Knockout City Spring Fling Event 2023 sprouts up on March 28th, 2023
Get sprung on Spring
Spring into action, because Spring Fling is back again!
Catch some fresh air in a high-flying new Playlist, scrounge up some Easter Eggs to put some Choco-Coins in your basket through Eggsellent Contracts, Bag the fan-favorite Bunny Brawler Bundle from the Brawl Shop, and spend your sweets at the newly-hatched Spring Fling Shop.
Basketbrawl returns with extra points for Slam Dunking your hop-position, and Super Double Jump powers for every brawler to make bounding into baskets a breeze.
Ready to go for the gold in fields of green? Then hop to it, because Spring Fling sprouts up on March 28th, 2023.
Knockout City: Treasure Hunt Event Begins March 14th, 2023
Treasure this moment
A seafaring crew and a search for riches is a pairing on par with PB&J - that’s pirate brawlers and jewels! And you’ll get some glittery beauts to take home too, when you play a few rounds of Diamond Dash: Treasure Hunt, the featured Playlist of the Knockout City Season 9 Event: Treasure Hunt!
Treasure Hunt also features the brand-new Undersea Soirée Bundle, Scurvy Contracts, and the X Marks the Shop!
Find your fortune in Knockout City’s Tresure Hunt Event, sailing into port on March 14th, 2023.
The competitive online dodgeball game Knockout City was initially released as a paid title on Switch in in 2021, before going free-to-play in 2022. It’s now scheduled to shut down completely on June 6, 2023. Guha Bala, the co-founder of the game’s developer Velan Studios, recently spoke with GamesIndustry.biz about what caused Knockout City’s demise.
“A cosmetics-based, free-to-play game, while it’s really appealing to us as gamers, requires massive scale to be economically sustainable. It’s sort of an all-or-nothing thing, which is a dull view of the world in a sense because it’s like if you want to do something creatively new, it can’t be the right set up in that business model unless you can imagine it being enormous. So what do you do in that situation? Are there different ways of approaching a premium title with a service on top of that? Are there different types of user experiences that you can have where you can offer gameplay items but not pay-to-win?
“The cosmetics-led games that we know of today and are generally successful, many of them do have loot boxes. Most mobile titles on a global basis, outside of Western markets, also have loot boxes. It’s something that we’re not very fond of, and it’ll present a lot of challenges in an emerging sense from a regulatory standpoint as well. But you can’t have your cake and eat it too. We have to figure out the right economic balance to be able to do something new and provide something that’s of real value to players, and then have an economic system that works. This one didn’t.”
Bala cited a number of other factors that led to the end of Knockout City, but the audience’s financial status and their relationship with free-to-play games seems to be what he considers the primary cause.
“We found that inflation was hitting really hard around the world, especially in East Asia where free-to-play really rules. Inflation and currency devaluation was really crimping on discretionary spend and affecting all games that were free-to-play at the time. Your metrics for retention needed to be much higher to break even because both that and monetisation were moving in a negative direction.
“We also saw currency deflation affect our Western European audience as well where the monetization behavior… The savings rate had been higher during pandemic and so people were eating into their savings, even though inflation was dropping income, and we saw that around the economy.”
The sad reality is that it’s tough to make a successful game right now, and perhaps even tougher in the free-to-play format. Knockout City has its fans, but it unfortunately didn’t garner enough support to be truly long lasting. However, Bala does mention wanting to “come back with Knockout City in a sequel format sometime in the future”. How and when that might occur is still anyone’s guess.
Knockout City is still available on Switch until June of this year, so if you’re interested, check it out while you still can!
Sunset Showdown is Knockout City's final tournament
The sun sets with one more battle
As we covered earlier in the month, Valen Studios announced that the servers for Knockout City will be shutdown on June 6th of this year. Before that time comes, players will have a chance to get in on one more tournament; Sunset Showdown.
The sun may be setting on the live servers of Knockout City, but there’s one final score to settle in Knockout City: who’s the best, when all is said and done? Get ready, because it’s time to square up for a showdown… and this time, there’s no waiting for midnight.
Sunset Showdown is the epic conclusion to our Midnight Knockout tournament series, a celebrated staple of Knockout City’s competitive scene since Season 3! Brawlers will compete in fierce Team KO battles in North America or Europe to climb the bracket and battle for the biggest prize pool ever. Ready to battle? Read the full details here.
Knockout City Season 9: Legend of Gearbeard Sets Sail Feb. 28th!
Shipping out soon
Look alive, matey, because there’s an all-new adventure waiting for you! Join Captain Madeline “Mads” Ortiz on her quest for Gearbeard’s legendary treasure and prepare for high-seas surprises in Knockout City Season 9: Legend of Gearbeard, setting sail on February 28th, 2023!
Season 9 is the final season of Knockout City, and it’s packed to the gills with content! Legend of Gearbeard is a fully-realized final Season featuring the all-new Dueling Docks map, new cosmetics, a new Premium Brawl Pass for only 50 Holobux, new Deep Space Dispatches, back-to-back special Events, and plenty of surprises to celebrate until public servers close on June 6th, 2023.
Chart a course for fun in the Legend of Gearbeard Launch Event! Learn the rigging ropes with the Dockside Dustup Playlist, where Dueling Docks will be your port of call for every match. Storm along with your shipmates to clear Swashbucklin’ Contracts, each awarding thousands of Holobux and other treasures. Go drop some doubloons (Holobux) at the Ready For Battle Shop to grab some classic brawling garb at pirate-friendly discounted prices, and discover new Bundles filled with buccaneer-themed booty!
There be no better time for makin’ some treasured memories on the ocean than today, brawler! Set sail for Legend of Gearbeard, coming to Knockout City on February 28th!
Knockout City is coming to end after Season 9 on June 6th
The future is not too bright
The game studio behind Knockout City, Valen Studios, has just announced that the servers for their online free-to-play game will be shutdown on June 6th of this year, after their last season is released at the end this month. Some of the reasons given for this are how difficult it is for a smaller studio to retain new users to maintain the game active and how demanding it is to make the necessary changes to achieve that.
Very sad news for fans of this great innovative game. If you’d like to know more, don’t forget to watch the official video statement posted on the official Knockout City Youtube channel.
Season 9 is launching on february 28th and it will include:
- A new map
- A new Brawl Pass
- New events
- New Deep Space Dispatches
- And more
The Servers of the game will be shutdown on June 6th
Knockout City Chemical V-Day Event Arrives Feb. 7th, 2023
Getting to the heart of things
Hearts, hand-holding, and superhuman hugs – It’s Chemical V-Day in Knockout City, with sweet surprises that are sure to tug your heartstrings! Take a pal or plus one into the new Super Mutant: Power Couple Playlist to test your team chemistry! Every duo takes turns becoming a terrifying Super Mutant twosome to add some drama to the race for the most hits in the time limit!
Complete Lovely Contracts for Candy Heart rewards, and pick up some romantic pick-me-ups in the Sweetheart Shop! You’ll find Faces, Hairstyles, Brags, and Jukebox Tracks to set the mood from milquetoast to mushy in no time flat!
Whether you love or love-to-hate, show some love with the Heartbreaker Bundle, a swoonworthy ensemble available only during Chemical V-Day in the Brawl Shop!
Th-THUMP! Th-THUMP! Is that my heart pounding? Nope, it’s the sound of me getting beaned by dodgeballs! Chemical V-Day begins February 7th!
Knockout City TMNT Villains event trailer
The Foot Clan is fighting back!
A brand new trailer has been shared for the TMNT Villains event coming to Knockout City. This event will be available starting January 10, 2023, featuring new contracts, outfits, and rewards.
Didn’t you hear? The heinous henchmen of the Foot Clan are here! Bebop and Rocksteady are ready to rumble in Knockout City, and the TMNT Villains Bundle will set you up with Poses and Outfits to become the baddest mutants this side of the ooze! Better watch out, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles…or you’ll be turtle soup for sure!
In the TMNT Villains event, knock out the Foot Soldiers in the new Foot Clan Clash Playlist, where two pairs of brawlers will battle to see which team can kick the most ninja bad-guy booty in the time limit. Clear Black Belt Contracts to earn some despicably evil Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles rewards, including your very own Foot Soldier Outfit. Never been better to be bad!
The Foot Clan is fighting back! Grab a pizza and get ready to rock, when the TMNT Villains event takes over Knockout City on January 10th!
Snowbrawl Fight: Freeze Tag heading to Knockout City on Dec. 20th, 2022
Grab your mittens!
Holiday seasons grow ever so near, and the Snowbrawl Fight: Freeze Tag event is sure to bring cheer! Brawl with your crew in the snow and ice, but only for a limited time, so don’t think twice!
Snowballs are back to chill your hands and warm your heart! In the Snowbrawl Fight: Freeze Tag Playlist, pelt your opponents until they “freeze” in Ballform, then throw them into the stormy Danger Zone for an ice-cold KO! Win three Zones to put the WIN in Winter for the round!
Warmer than a mug o’ cocoa, you’re sure to find some snow-ready delights in the limited-time Winter Hat Shop. Stock up on Winter Tickets by brawling during the Snowbrawl Fight: Freeze Tag event and give yourself the gift of holiday-appropriate headwear!
It’s Season’s Beanings for all, and for all, a good fight! The Snowbrawl Fight season begins December 20th – Happy Brawlidays!
