GamersHeroes Tuesday, January 6, 2026 6:09 PM Now available via the Steam Public Test Build, Dead by Daylight: Stranger Things Chapter 2 brings with it Jane "Eleven" Hopper, Dustin Henderson, and Vecna (aka "The First") himself. The post Dead by Daylight: Stranger Things Chapter 2 Public Test Build Live appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
GamersHeroes Tuesday, January 6, 2026 3:56 PM The team at Respawn Entertainment, together with EA, is bringing the heat this chilly season with the Apex Legends: Amped Winter Wipeout Event, now live through January 27. The post Apex Legends: Amped Winter Wipeout Event Live Through January 27 appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
GamersHeroes Tuesday, January 6, 2026 3:55 PM Just the thing for this chilly winter, players will be able to swing through forests, gather ingredients, and cook up joy when Pomshine and DANGEN Entertainment's Umami Grove launches for PSVR2 on January 27. The post Umami Grove Coming to PSVR2 January 27 appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
Kotaku Tuesday, January 6, 2026 5:45 PM
Sony registered a new patent for offering in-game help The post An AI 'Ghost' That Plays Games For You Is The Inevitable Endpoint Of Where This Is All Headed appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Tuesday, January 6, 2026 5:34 PM
You can grab movies like A Minecraft Movie, Wicked, and Superman for just $11 each The post Amazon's Very Good 4K UHD Blu-Ray Deal Is Back And Better appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Tuesday, January 6, 2026 5:26 PM
Newly discovered files found on an old dev kit show the agreeable robot taking a dramatic heel turn The post Cut <i>Fallout: New Vegas</i> Ending Shows Yes Man Was Even More Sinister Than He Appeared appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Tuesday, January 6, 2026 4:52 PM
FPS Quest is all about cheating and modding while making sure you don't tank the game's performance and die The post Fantasy FPS Where You Shoot Skeletons To Stop The Game From Crashing Looks Incredible appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Tuesday, January 6, 2026 3:10 PM
If you long for the days when music wasn't filtered by an algorithm and featured cool videos, this website is for you The post MTV Simulator Features 25,000+ Music Videos And Is Very Cool appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Tuesday, January 6, 2026 2:12 PM
The fan-favorite Dungeons & Dragons video game played a key role in the Netflix show's last boss battle The post <i>Stranger Things'</i> Big Finale Fight Was Inspired By <i>Baldur's Gate 3</i> appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Tuesday, January 6, 2026 1:54 PM
After player feedback said that the ending was too ruthless, developer Battlestate Games made it even more so The post <i>Escape From Tarkov</i> Dev Trolls Players By Making Its Impossible Ending Even More Brutal appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Tuesday, January 6, 2026 1:11 PM
'Guys, what if Game Freak remade the old games I played as a kid?' - every fairweather fan who stopped playing in the '90s The post Logan Paul's Pitch For A <em>Pokémon</em> Game Is Nostalgia Brain Poison appeared first on Kotaku. |
PCGamesN Tuesday, January 6, 2026 3:00 PM Better late than never, Code Vein 2 is finally releasing later this month, and you can pre-order the soulslike at a discount right now. |
Siliconera Tuesday, January 6, 2026 6:00 PM
Smiley dog announced it will release Don't Stop Smiling, a new horror game about exploring an abandoned, haunted school that also tracks if the player is smiling, in Q2 2026. The game will appear on PCs and require someone to play on a device with a camera. As such, a Steam Deck wouldn't be compatible. [Thanks, Famitsu!]
Don't Stop Smiling will be a short horror game, as the product page on Steam suggests it will last for an hour at most. Your character will go through a haunted school, needing to explore and investigate in order to survive and escape. However, as you do, you'll encounter various entities and situations. The game will use a camera to ensure the person playing has a smile showing. If someone stops smiling, due to shock or perhaps screaming, then their character will die and the run will end.
A first trailer is available. It shows what the exploration element is like and also highlights how an indicator in the upper left corner will monitor your current facial expression based on camera input. It also offers an example of what happens if the player's expression falters. It seems the on-screen indicator will also be of our avatar, so we'll see our character crying and hear their sobs as we play.
Don't Stop Smiling will come to PCs in Q2 2026 worldwide, and it will be playable in 10 other languages in addition to English and Japanese.
The post Don't Stop Smiling Horror Game Requires You to Smile appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Tuesday, January 6, 2026 5:00 PM
Final Fantasy XI Producer and Director Yoji Fujito announced details about the monthly January 13, 2026 update, and in it he also confirmed there will be major quality of life adjustments to the Besieged, Dynamis, and Limbus activities in FFXI. This builds on changes that started, in particular to Limbus, back in January 2025. Also, as usual, there will be a January Login Campaign with new Suzaku Cap reward, a teased return for Shami's Trove, and addition of Medusa (Volume 1) and Doll (Volume 2) to Ambuscade for the MMORPG this month too.
With Besieged, there will be an update in FFXI involving balancing. Fujito cited a concern that even after getting the beastmen enemies up to Content Level 119, the players who aren't extremely prepared who get to the spawn point won't be able to join in. As such, the Serpent General spheres abilities will be adjusted. Fujito didn't mention how, but it seems we could see a range adjustment since that influence will extend to the beastman battles.
The Dynamis FFXI adjustment will involve EXP loss. Yoji Fujito noted this is designed to assist people who might go into a shared area alone. Once enabled, you won't loss EXP if you are knocked out by enemies.
Finally, the Limbus adjustment in FFXI will give people opportunities to open more treasure chests. If you and your allies inflict damage on a notorious monster, you will get points for those successful actions. Fujito said these won't expire and can be put toward opening more chests. This, in turn, means more materials and higher Grace buffs.
Final Fantasy XI is available for PCs now, and the January update for FFXI is set to arrive and make the Beseiged, Dynamis, and Limbus changes and introduce typical monthly events on January 13, 2026.
The post FFXI Limbus, Dynamis, and Besieged Updates Arrive in January Update appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Tuesday, January 6, 2026 4:00 PM
The first character to join Pokemon Unite in 2026 will be Meowth, and there are now two videos to show exactly how the normal type cat fighter will work. It will debut in-game on January 9, 2026. Note that this is a situation in which it is based more on the anime adaptation of the character and will not evolve into Persian as you play.
The first video was a 34-second Character Spotlight. This started by showing Meowth running through the Legendary Pit and Central Area of the map, then attacking some wild Pokemon. Later, we see it fighting a Mew in the Legendary Pit and scoring points at a Goal Zone. It uses its Gold Coin Barrage Unite Move at the end.
The Meowth Moves Overview is more substantial and shows exactly what the cat is capable of in Pokemon Unite. It starts by citing it as a more mobile character who is best at scoring. Then it goes over each of the moves it knows, like the Pickup Ability that increases its movement speed. From there, we see additional ones like Pay Day, Fury Swipes, Feint Attack, Assurance, and Gold Coin Barrage.
Prior to this release, some of the last few characters added to Pokemon Unite were Megas in a nod to Pokemon Legends: Z-A. In December 2025, Mega Gyarados and Mega Charizard Y both appeared.
Pokemon Unite is available on the Switch and mobile devices, and the iconic cat character Meowth will join on January 9, 2026.
The post Pokemon Unite Meowth Gameplay Shared appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Tuesday, January 6, 2026 3:00 PM
Holostars Armis Vtuber Goldbullet announced an indefinite hiatus due to his health. He cited his heart condition and issues he's mentioned in past streams as the issue in an announcement the evening of January 5, 2026. He also noted, "Starting today and for… I don't know how long… I'm going to be taking a hiatus from my activities here on the [YouTube] channel, Twitter, and other platforms just for the sake of getting my heart in a place where it can do its thing." The Holostars member did mention he might be back by the end of February 2026.
Goldbullet noted that around April or June 2026, he noted his heart condition got worse. Specifically, he said, "Sometime in April or June my condition… noticeably started to get like worse. And not like worse as in 'it's manageable,' but worse in the sense that 'Oh shit, like something's wrong." He mentioned his condition affects sleep and workflow. He also noted discussing this break with his manager starting in about November 2025. Goldbullet also mentioned, "I just want you guys to know it's because of this illness that a lot of my streams have either been like rescheduled, repurposed, outright changed when it comes to the time and the date because of how often I would experience my condition's effects. And often, at times, I would experience the worst of the effects like midstream. …Which was and still very much is like a nightmare."
Later in the stream, Goldbullet did offer a tentative and hopeful window for his return from hiatus and suggested he might also attempt to join Holostars collab streams with other Vtubers when feeling up to it. This came up at about the 27 minute mark. He said, "I'm taking a big hiatus. I'd imagine that I will be active sometime mid-February [2026], maybe late February. …I'm not going to be gone for a long time, but just a good chunk of time."
Here is the full "Health Update + Important Things" stream from Goldbullet talking about his plans, and in it the Holostars Vtuber confirmed he is only taking a break and not graduating.
Goldbullet has been a Holostars Vtuber since November 2023, and he joined alongside Crimzon Ruze, Jurard T. Rexford, and Octavio. He's currently on an indefinite hiatus and hopes to return by the end of February 2026.
The post Holostars Vtuber Goldbullet Announced Indefinite Hiatus appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Tuesday, January 6, 2026 2:00 PM
Meiji Seika and Kodansha announced a new crossover that involves Sailor Moon characters appearing on different kinds of Meiji chocolates in Japan, and there will also be opportunities to get exclusive merchandise at certain stores if you buy certain amounts of qualifying products. Depending on the type of product, they will start appearing on either January 13, 2026 or January 20, 2026, according to the announcement on the official site, with Kinoko no Yama (Chocorooms) and Takenoko no Sato (Chococones) among them. While we could eventually see the special packaging worldwide at Asian grocery stores when products are imported, the special goods will be Japan exclusives.
In the case of the candies, a number of familiar products are part of the promotion. The first ones to appear roll out on January 13, 2026. These include Kinoko no Yama and Takenoko no Sato ones. The Kinoko no Yama designs have Sailor Moon and Sailor Chibi Moon on the strawberry chocolate ones, Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune on the chocolate variety, and Sailor Saturn and Pluto on the matcha flavor. The Takenoko no Sato packs put Sailor Mercury and Sailor Jupiter on the chocolate option and Sailor Mars and Sailor Venus on the strawberry chocolate ones. Only the Kinoko no Yama and Takenoko no Sato ones will also feature one of two cards inside each package with one of the two Sailor Scouts on the box on it.
The second part starts on January 20, 2026 and involve three more options. The Meiji Almond ones will feature either Sailor Moon with Chibi Moon or Sailor Mars with Sailor Venus. The Meiji Macadamia packages could have Sailor Mercury with Sailor Jupiter, Sailor Uranus with Sailor Neptune, or Sailor Saturn with Sailor Pluto. If you get the Meiji Milk Chocolate Big Pack of individually wrapped small bars, all 10 scouts will appear on the packages and it seems the "secret" wrapper will feature Sailor Chibi Chibi.
Here's how all the packages look:
A number of locations will feature exclusive Sailor Moon merchandise with purchases. Family Mart's offer involves one of five A5-size clear files if you buy two qualifying items. The options each feature two Sailor Scouts, with one on the front and back, and the pairs are Sailor Moon with Sailor Chibi Moon, Sailor Mercury with Sailor Jupiter, Sailor Mars with Sailor Venus, Sailor Uranus with Sailor Neptune, and Sailor Saturn with Sailor Pluto. The Lawson's one nets a person a hair tie with an acrylic chibi version of one of the 10 Sailor Scouts if a person buys three qualifying items. 7-Eleven Japanese branches give away one of 10 mirrors with the characters on them if you get three items.
Here's how all those look:
The Sailor Moon Meiji chocolate promotion with special packaging and merchandise opportunities will start to appear in some stores on January 13, 2026, with Kinoko no Yama (Chocorooms) and Takenoko no Sato (Chococones) options appearing first. The second part starts on January 20, 2026 and includes more products. Kodansha handles the Sailor Moon manga outside Japan, and you can see the anime adaptations on places like Netflix.
The post New Meiji Chocolates Crossover Involves Sailor Moon appeared first on Siliconera. |
Destructoid Tuesday, January 6, 2026 5:28 PM
Surviving on Arcadia-7 is no easy feat, and to do so, you're going to expand the size of your StarRupture inventory and storage as quickly as possible.
StarRupture treats inventory and storage spaces as separate entities. Inventory represents the number of items you can carry with you, while storage is where you store stuff in your base. Thankfully, you can increase the capacity of both items with the correct resources.
Table of contents
How to increase inventory size in StarRupture
The key to increasing inventory size in StarRupture is to raise your levels with the different available corporations. Every Corporation requires you to complete certain tasks to raise the level. When you level up, you'll get unique rewards. Some of these level-up rewards allow you to get inventory upgrades.
At the launch of the early access, you can get four inventory upgrades from the Corporation level-up rewards. Some of them are obtained relatively early, but the rest will require more time. Once you complete the required tasks and raise your level, you'll need to accept your reward from the Corporate Terminal.
All unlocked upgrades will be applied automatically, so there's no separate system for equipping them.
How to increase storage space in StarRupture
Storage space is your habitat inventory where you can store different items. These are items that you might not need immediately, but they will have some use in the future. To raise the storage space, you'll want to improve your relationship with Clever Robotics Corporation.
At level 2, you'll get a Personal Storage Container with 18 slots. The capacity will feel limited at first, but the higher levels will have several upgrades related to the storage space offered on the container. Once you level up, don't forget to claim your rewards.
The post How to increase inventory size and storage space in StarRupture appeared first on Destructoid. |
Destructoid Tuesday, January 6, 2026 4:01 PM
I generally don't like discussions surrounding daily active player counts, but the dev of one struggling title has responded to "recent Steam charts conversations," so here we are.
Remember Splitgate 2? It released in last year and made 2025 one to forget for those involved after making headlines for several unfortunate reasons. First, the game's studio's CEO appeared on stage at Summer Game Fest in June with a "Make FPS Great Again" hat and later apologized for it, attempting to also drum up hype for its 1.0 launch.
Not long after, on July 22, the studio announced that it was rolling Splitgate 2 back into its beta phase after a round of layoffs, and brought the game offline as the remaining team went "heads down" on rebuilding it.
And now, after re-launching on Dec. 17 as Splitgate: Arena Reloaded, things are looking bleak. According to Steam Charts, the game peaked at just over 2,200 players on Steam and has dropped to having just under 1,000 players on the game at any given time since.
And so, today, 1047 Games put out a new statement, remarking that "Steam Charts don't measure fun." And sure, I agree, but given the game's track record, it's just not looking all that positive at the minute. Still, the studio persists.
"[Steam charts] show one number, on one platform, at one given moment," the statement on Twitter/X said. "They don't show the full picture or what it feels like to actually play, and they definitely don't capture the community that's actively helping shape what Arena Reloaded is becoming (including upcoming content like Arena Royale). Over the past six months, we rebuilt Splitgate from the ground up because we believe in the game, our team, and our community. The 1047 team remains committed to delivering the best version of Splitgate possible."
I personally hadn't seen any discussion surrounding the game's Steam charts, but then again I didn't really see any discussion about the game at all since last month, so I suppose the statement is doing its job in garnering some attention.
Splitgate 2 topped out at over 25,000 players on Steam during its launch last June, and while I do agree that player count stuff is overblown and the discussion around it is annoying, it's hard to feel positive for the future of this current title.
I wish the team luck in bringing in the players and revenue it needs to keep the game going.
The post Splitgate devs say 'Steam charts don't measure fun' as less than 1,000 daily players log on for its re-launch effort appeared first on Destructoid. |
Destructoid Tuesday, January 6, 2026 3:58 PM
Ores are the backbone of constructions in StarRupture, and there are different types of them available on Arcadia-7.
You're introduced to ore pretty early in the game as part of the guided tutorial. Every ore has specific locations in the game, along with its own use. Some of them are more common to find, while the rest might be harder to get.
How to get all ores in StarRupture
The image below has approximate locations of all five ores.
Wolfram
Wolfram is the most common ore, and you'll find it pretty easily across the map. It's one of the two ores that are part of the tutorial. You can identify them from their brown-color and veins running through. They resemble copper very closely, and you can mine them with your mining tool. Alternatively, you can also extract it with an Ore Excavator built right on top of an ore.
Titanium
The second ore of the tutorial, Titanium, can also be mined with your mining tool or the Ore Excavator. They have a rocky structure and a gray color. You can find the deposits in the starting area, or also in the north and northeast areas of the map from the Orbital Lander.
Calcium
Finding Calcium will require you to either go north or east from the starting area. It's not part of the tutorial, and the ores have white-colored textures about them. You'll want to look into damp areas that appear white from the outside.
Helium-3
This ore item isn't required in the early game, and you identify it by the purple gas. They can be found within some meteorites, but their proper use lies later in the game. You can find some great sports north and east of the Orbital Lander. Helium-3 can't be extracted with an Ore Extractor, and your first job will be to get Selenian Corporation to level six.
Sulfur
While Sulfurs can't be found in the open, they're easy to locate. The air around them is corrosive and chips away at your health. You'll first need to start mining to find Sulfur, which stays buried under the outer surface. Sulfur requires a specialised extractor, which can only be placed after a rupture when the temperatures are low. Unlocking the Sulfur Extractor will require you to level up the Selenian Corporation to level 9.
The post All Ore locations in StarRupture appeared first on Destructoid. |
Destructoid Tuesday, January 6, 2026 1:27 PM
The Time Traveler Evolution is now live in FC 26, and it's an exciting upgrade option to consider if you're looking to improve one of your defensive units.
Since this is a training camp evolution, you won't have to complete any tasks. However, the card you pick will be locked for a period until the evolution requirements are met. Let's look at the best candidates for the evolution based on the offered upgrades and requirements.
Table of contents
FC 26 Time Traveler Evolution requirements
Here are the requirements for Time Traveler Evolution in FC 26.
FC 26 Time Traveler Evolution upgrades
The Time Traveler has only two levels of upgrades. To obtain the boosts, you'll need to complete specific tasks.
Level 1 upgrades
Level 2 upgrades
Level 1 upgrade requirements
Level 2 upgrade requirements
Best players for Time Traveler Evolution in FC 26
You can include a wide variety of items in this evolution. I have considered cards that will improve the most based on the offered upgrades.
These are arguably some of the best options you can include in this evolution. You don't need to include them in any previous evolutions; the final versions should be eligible for more upgrades in the future.
The post Best players for the Time Traveler Evolution FC 26 appeared first on Destructoid. |
Destructoid Tuesday, January 6, 2026 1:02 PM
Once the holiday season comes and goes, Call of Duty will be ready to ramp things back up when it comes to live service updates.
The midseason update for Black Ops 7 will kick off 2026 with new stuff for gamers to grind for, along with the traditional additions like maps, weapons, and more. You'll probably still be saying "Happy New Year" to people you meet on the street by the time the new BO7 update, Season 1 Reloaded, goes live.
Here's when and what to expect from the newest Reloaded update in CoD.
Table of contents
BO7 Season 1 Reloaded release date
The new Reloaded update for season one of BO7 is coming on Thursday, Jan. 8. Activision confirmed the news in a Jan. 6 announcement highlighting some of the update's new maps and other content.
With season two currently scheduled to begin on Feb. 5 (judging by the season one battle pass timer), this date lies almost directly in the middle of season one. This means that season two will likely begin about four weeks later on Feb. 5.
What's in BO7 Season One Reloaded?
The new midseason update for BO7 includes a bunch of new content, along with the expected balancing changes like weapon buffs and nerfs. But there's a lot more coming in addition to that, including:
The post When does Black Ops 7 Season 1 Reloaded come out? appeared first on Destructoid. |
WGB Tuesday, January 6, 2026 5:38 PM In 2025, the most played games on PlayStation and Xbox remained unchanged from 2024, highlighting the enduring popularity of titles like Fortnite, Call of Duty, and GTA V, indicating industry stagnation. |
Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Tuesday, January 6, 2026 4:24 PM Games for the first half of January. The post Xbox Game Pass Adds Star Wars Outlaws, Atomfall, And More appeared first on Gaming Instincts - Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism. |
Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Tuesday, January 6, 2026 3:57 PM Announced on social media. The post Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicle Sales Surpass One Million Units appeared first on Gaming Instincts - Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism. |
Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Tuesday, January 6, 2026 3:34 PM Gives a background for the protagonist. The post ROMEO IS A DEAD MAN Gets New Story Trailer appeared first on Gaming Instincts - Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism. |
Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Tuesday, January 6, 2026 3:09 PM Players will need 80GB of space. The post 007 First Light Minimum and Recommended PC Requirements Revealed appeared first on Gaming Instincts - Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism. |