Serenity’s crew reunites for Firefly Online, check out the first trailer

By Will Fulton July 25, 2014

The cast of Firefly. — Fox

Last night at their San Diego Comic-Con panel, the developers at Quantum Mechanix and Spark Plug Games announced that all of the original stars of Firefly (even Alan Tudyk) will reprise their roles in the upcoming massively multiplayer Firefly Online, coming summer 2014 to Android, iOS, and PC/Mac.

Veteran character actor Michael Fairman will also be returning as crime boss Adelai Niska, who players get to accept jobs from. The panel also brought the reveal of the first trailer, with looks at the gameplay framed around asking a group of fans: What kind of captain would you be?

Firefly Online, described as a strategic role-playing game, casts you as a spaceship captain, pursuing his or her destiny on the galactic frontier. After assembling a crew with various skills, players are free to take missions, trade, customize their ship, and carve out their own story in the ‘verse.

The trailer takes a look at piloting, Sims-esque ship decoration, exploration, and a bit of isometric tactical action reminiscent of the classic Infinity Engine RPGs.

Rumors of various abortive attempts to create a Firefly MMO have been around for nearly a decade after the beloved space Western’s all-too-brief run on TV in the early 2000s.

Getting the whole cast to sign on for the game marks the first time they have come together for a project in that universe since the 2005 film Serenity. Series creator Joss Whedon, understandably occupied with Avengers 2: Age of Ultron, is not involved in the project.

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Will Fulton is a New York-based writer and theater-maker. In 2011 he co-founded mythic theater company AntiMatter Collective…

Gaming

Nintendo Switch 2: release date rumors, features we want, and more

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Rumors of a Nintendo Switch 2 (or Switch Pro) have been circulating for years. Whispers of the next-gen Nintendo console first started when The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom was initially teased in 2019, gained steam when the Switch OLED launched in 2021, and are increasing now that the standard Switch has been out for six years.

There's no doubt that the Nintendo Switch is a fantastic console -- it has a unique and impressive game library (with more upcoming games slated for this year), the number of features included with Nintendo Switch Online is constantly improving, and it's still our favorite portable console -- but it isn't without its flaws. There's enough room for improvement to warrant an entirely new console in the near future. Nintendo recently announced that we wouldn't see a Switch upgrade in the next fiscal year, meaning the absolute earliest we get a look at a new Nintendo console would be in late 2024.

Gaming

Is Manor Lords cross-platform?

Two armies clash in Manor Lords.

Building and managing your own medieval utopia is a lonely job. Sure, you have a population of citizens to grow and order around, but they can't compare with another actual human player. At least at launch, Manor Lords is a PC exclusive, and it's also going to be coming to Xbox consoles as well so even more people can get in on the city-building fun. We can expect basically any modern game to allow for cross-platform play, but what if Manor Lords is stuck in the Middle Ages? Here's everything you need to know about cross-platform support for the latest and greatest management simulator.
Is Manor Lords cross-platform?
Without beating around the bush, no, Manor Lords has no cross-platform support. Even when the game is available on Steam, PC Game Pass, and Xbox consoles, there will be no way to play with others on different platforms. In fact, you can't play with people on the same platform, either. Manor Lords has no multiplayer component whatsoever -- either co-op or competitive -- so there's no reason for this feature to be included.

Sadly, you shouldn't expect any multiplayer to come to the game later. A developer released an FAQ prior to the game's launch and responded to a question regarding multiplayer, stating: "The focus is on a refined single-player experience, with no multiplayer or cooperative modes planned at the moment."

Gaming

How to increase your approval rating in Manor Lords

A medieval market in Manor Lords.

Building your population in Manor Lords is one thing, but making sure they want to stick around and continue to grow is the real challenge. You could have the ideal design for a village, or the perfect tactical mind for conquering the entire map, but if your approval rating is too low, you won't survive your first winter.

Happy people are the grease that makes your kingdom an efficient machine, but what is it that people value? It can be hard to tell at times why your approval rating isn't going up, or worse going down while playing your first few games. We've zoomed in on all our citizens to learn exactly what you need to do to increase your approval rating.