Month: August 2019

Astral Chain is the latest from developer Platinum Games and it brings a fresh take on stylish action exclusively to the Nintendo Switch. Now that some of us have played through the entire game, we can share just how long it takes to finish. Of course, your mileage may vary since time to completion depends on your playstyle and the amount of optional content you engage with, but here we can give a general range.

As the reviewer of Astral Chain for GameSpot, I spent a total of 35 hours with the game to roll credits. This included a full playthrough on the Platinum Standard difficulty, an earnest effort to find and finish every side quest possible, and plenty of time spent exploring for leftover hidden missions–side quests also factor into your overall mission grade. I spent an extra five hours in an attempt to find the remaining content within the story chapters, and try out the hardest difficulty (Platinum Ultimate).

Astral Chain features an achievement list called “Orders” which act as challenges to complete throughout the game. There are 185 of them, and while they’re not essential, they grant you rewards like upgrade materials, items, or new cosmetic options for your character. Clearing out that list will add an inordinate amount of time to your playtime as some challenges require story completion on the hardest difficulty, S+ ranks on everything, among other things.

The game would be much shorter if you simply go through the main story questline without looking at anything else, to which I would estimate to around 15 hours–you would be doing the bare minimum, however.

As for install size, Astral Chain requires 9.8 GB of storage space on your Switch or SD card if you plan on purchasing the digital version of the game.

Astral Chain launches this Friday, August 30 exclusively on Nintendo Switch. To get up to speed on it, be sure to read my Astral Chain review in which I say, “Astral Chain’s shortcomings don’t overshadow what it does best. It’s an incredible execution of a fresh take on Platinum Games’ foundation, standing among the stylish-action greats. And its own anime-inspired swagger makes fights all the more exhilarating.”

Hopefully, you’re ready to get terrified again, because Midsommar–one of the best horror films of the year so far–is heading back to theaters. This time around, though, there’s even more of it. An unrated director’s cut of Midsommar opens in select theaters nationwide on Friday, August 30.

According to a press release, the new cut of the film includes additional scenes plus extended versions of scenes already in the movie. While no other details are given, GameSpot previously spoke with Midsommar and Hereditary director Ari Aster about a deleted scene he was sad to cut. “There [was] a very big argument between Dani and Christian in the middle. That was the only time that we see Dani fight back and argue with Christian, and that was a big debate in the edit room, about whether we keep that or lose that,” he explained. “If you told me that I would have cut that scene before we went into production, I would have told you that you were crazy.”

Thankfully, with the director’s cut, Aster has the chance to address that regret and work it back into the movie. Still, that’s merely one of the scenes that was cut from the film–which had a first cut running time of 3 hours, 45 minutes–and there’s no telling what else he’s added back in. Whatever winds up being added, the trailer for the film sure makes it look absolutely disturbing.

In his review of Midsommar, which initially released in July, GameSpot’s Michael Rougeau called the film, “an incredibly strong follow-up to Hereditary.” He concluded that, “for those who don’t mind a strange and terrifying trip, Midsommar is a movie to watch again and again and again.”

Now, thanks to the new cut, you’re going to have that chance before the film comes to Blu-ray. Midsommar: The Director’s Cut hits select theaters on August 30.