Kotaku Friday, January 10, 2025 5:30 PM  I'm nearly dead. Health is basically zero. I need help. So I step past a demonic dog and enter a dark, ominous bathroom. I quickly knock on the lone stall inside. It creaks open, I hear...something inside and then a single soda can rolls out. Instead of drinking it, however, I gamble, and knock again. And once again… |
PCGamesN Friday, January 10, 2025 7:32 PM  For any emerging live service game, the key to cementing yourself as a mainstay (or, if I'm being brutally honest, simply surviving the first couple of months) is to have enough content and variety to keep players sticking around. Free-to-play shooter Delta Force has done just that since it launched in open beta last month. Even though its debut season is a scaled down, shorter affair, it has still bombarded fans with new maps, modes, weapons, events, and more. Well, for Delta Force Season 2, the pace shows absolutely no signs of slowing down. Continue reading Delta Force Season 2 is going new map crazy and adding a 3v3v3 mode MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Delta Force guns, Delta Force operators, Delta Force loadouts |
PCGamesN Friday, January 10, 2025 6:29 PM  I still can't quite believe just how well Path of Exile 2 has done. Hundreds of thousands of players log on each day to grind the action RPG, despite it being in early access. Well, if 2024 was Path of Exile 2's year, maybe 2025 will be the year of Dragonkin The Banished, an upcoming ARPG similar to PoE 2 that's hitting early access in just a couple of months' time. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best fantasy games, Best RPGs, Best games like Diablo |
PCGamesN Friday, January 10, 2025 7:13 PM  This article contains themes that may be distressing for some readers. Discretion is advised. Square Enix has something of a "don't ask, don't tell" policy for the Final Fantasy 14 community in regards to mods. The use of third-party plugins is outlawed and against the MMO's terms of service, but modders still continue to create them for FF14 and their use is fairly well known. Now PlayerScope, a troubling new mod that was made public recently, is causing panic among the community and is being dubbed "a stalker's wet dream." Continue reading This problematic FF14 mod poses huge stalking and privacy risks MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best MMOs, FF14 Dawntrail review, FF14 Island Sanctuary guide |
Siliconera Friday, January 10, 2025 8:00 PM
Good Smile Company revealed new Persona 5 Royal merchandise goods including bags that look like Joker and Akechi's school uniforms. Pre-orders for the items will open on January 20, 2025 from the Good Smile Company online store.
The Akechi and Joker cosbags (or cosplay bags) cost 4,180 yen (or about $26.51) each. Additionally, the other goods announced include a Morgana-shaped pouch that costs 2,200 yen (~$13.95) and a set of soft and fluffy hairpins for 1,760 yen (~$11.16.) The hairpins are available in 2 different versions, one designed after Joker and the other one after Morgana.
You can check out the items in more detail here:
Joker and Akechi have been featured wearing their regular clothes and school uniforms in a variety of merchandise, including the recently announced P5R Nendoroid of Goro Akechi in his uniform. A similar P5R Nendoroid of Joker in his school uniform previously released in October 2024.
Good Smile Company will open pre-orders for the new Persona 5 Royal Joker and Akechi school uniform bags, Joker and Morgana soft hairpins, and the Morgana pouch on January 20, 2025. Persona 5 Royal is available for the PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Switch, and PC.
The post New Persona 5 Bags Look Like Joker and Akechi's Uniforms appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Friday, January 10, 2025 7:30 PM
Square Enix has put out a customer harassment policy that focuses on protecting its employees. As a quick summary, it will no longer provide customer service to those who engage in this sort of harassment, nor will it allow them to continue enjoying their games or products.
Customer harassment, according to Square Enix, is when customers (the players) target Square Enix staff with malicious behavior. Examples of such include physical violence, hateful speech (racism, prejudice, et cetera), threats, defamation, slander, trespassing, stalking, sexual harassment, and more. Acts that prevent staff from performing their duties, such as calling and keeping them on the phone for long periods of time, also count.
While not harassment, Square Enix is also taking a stand against undue demand. This includes unreasonable exchanges or requests for monetary compensation, or unreasonable and excessive demands for punishment. For example, you can't demand that Square Enix fire someone just because they didn't offer you a refund.
Square Enix also states that it will pursue legal action against particularly extreme acts of customer harassment. So in the worst case scenario, not only will you lose access to certain products or services from Square Enix, you will also get in trouble with the authorities and the law. Like streaming guidelines, though, a lot of the malicious behavior listed in the policy is socially unacceptable in any country. Most people shouldn't need to worry about infringing on it.
You can read the new harassment policy in Japanese and in English on the Square Enix website.
The post Square Enix Outlines New Customer Harassment Policy appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Friday, January 10, 2025 7:00 PM
Cover announced on its website the measures it's been taking against defamation, slander, and libel directed at its hololive talents. You can also make your own reports if you witness distressing or malicious behavior online.
The news on Cover's website covers its actions from January to December 2024. According to Cover, it addressed 252 cases last year. Its actions mostly focus on removing posts and accounts on social media that infringe upon its rights. It also took legal action against websites, such as aggregator or "matome" sites, that might post personal information about a talent (whether the information is legitimate or not).
Malicious posts, or posts that infringe on Cover or hololive's rights, usually entails content like impersonation, misinformation, slander, or libel. Direct harassment towards the talents or their fanbase also counts. For years, Cover (and other major VTuber agencies like Anycolor) has worked to keep its VTubers and other talents safe from online slander, defamation, and harassment. As it mentioned in its post in January 2025, this also includes disclosure requests. Disclosure requests only occur in the most malicious cases, though.
You can read the full details of Cover's 2024 measures against defamation and harassment via its website. It's available in English and in Japanese.
The post Cover Announces Measures Taken Against Hololive Defamation appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Friday, January 10, 2025 6:30 PM
Various Sony Stores throughout Japan are currently holding a new collaboration with the popular action-adventure game Infinity Nikki featuring Sony's Grid Scent. The Grid Scent will allow players to experience floral and forest scents inspired by the environments of the world of the game.
The collaboration will be available until February 3, 2025 at the Ginza (Tokyo,) Sapporo, Nagoya, Osaka, and Fukuoka Tenjin Sony stores. As part of the event, the stores will also be decorated with Infinity Nikki ornaments, and will offer trials of the PS5 version of the game. The Grid Scent experience will be offered via a demo video of Infinity Nikki, and will not be available during gameplay.
The Grid Scent is a new prototype technology being tested and developed by Sony with its Tensor Valve odorant control technology. The system allows people to experience digital spatial aromatherapy while engaging in other activities, such as gaming. Infinity Nikki is an action-adventure game with dress-up elements. It is the fifth title in the series and the first open-world entry.
As a reminder, developer Infold Games recently revealed some of the changes and quality of life additions that are planned for Infinity Nikki.
Infinity Nikki is available on the PS5, PC, and mobile Android and Apple iOS devices.
The post Sony Grid Scent Being Used With Infinity Nikki appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Friday, January 10, 2025 6:00 PM
One of the next Idea Factory International Switch otome games won't appear when we expected it to debut, as Temirana: The Lucky Princess now has a 2026 release window. When the game was announced at Anime Expo 2024, the company was saying it would appear in English in 2025. The delay was accompanied by a reveal that both Day One and Limited Editions will show up when the title does release.
Idea Factory International didn't explain why Temirana is delayed. The game is already immediately available in Japan. It debuted on the Switch in April 2023 there. The digital and physical release is still planned.
As for those physical copies, details about them are slim. Only the official Idea Factory International stores will offer a trading card with a purchase as part of the company's typical promotion. That will also be the only place where the Limited Edition is sold. However, we don't know what sets a Day One version apart from the standard one, and the inclusions with the collector's release weren't mentioned. A product page is live for wishlisting.
Idea Factory International does have a Switch otome game coming out in 2025 as planned. That is Battlefield Waltz, which is set to launch in April 2025.
Temirana: The Lucky Princess will come to the Nintendo Switch outside Japan in 2026, rather than 2025.
The post Idea Factory Switch Otome Temirana Delayed appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Friday, January 10, 2025 5:30 PM
"Crystal Snow," the theme song for the 2025 Snow Miku design, is now available on YouTube. Aqu3ra composed the song, while TomoboP handled the mastering. As usual, the Hatsune Miku Vocaloid software is used for the music.
You can listen to "Crystal Snow" here:
Aqu3ra is a newer Vocaloid producer; he made his debut in 2018. Some examples of his compositions include "Supernova," "Ghost Dance," and "Lonely Universe." TomoboP (Tomodachi BoshuuP) debuted in 2009. Though he started out as a composer, he's more prominent nowadays for his audio mastering and engineering work. Illustrator Yuribou handled the artwork and animation for the "Crystal Snow" music video. Mono-Devoid edited it as well.
In the description for "Crystal Snow," Piapro described it as a lovely song that conveys the warmth inside the cold feeling of ice. Piapro revealed this year's design back in August 2024. The theme for this year was "Kira Kira Snow Material," which is why there are snowflakes and ice shards in Miku's hair and outfit. This theme might've also served as inspiration for Aqu3ra and TomoboP when working on the song.
Snow Miku is a seasonal version of Miku, with a design that changes every year depending on Piapro's theme. Design contests for Snow Miku started in 2012 and the look with the most votes at the end would be the "official" one to receive merchandise or appear in music videos. The first time a theme song appeared for a Snow Miku was in 2014, though.
Good Smile Company will open up pre-orders for the Snow Miku 2025 Nendoroid later this year.
The post Snow Miku 2025 Theme Song is "Crystal Snow" appeared first on Siliconera. |
WGB Friday, January 10, 2025 5:13 PM Microsoft is reportedly expanding its multiplatform strategy, planning to support Switch 2 and PS5 with titles like Microsoft Flight Simulator and Halo: The Master Chief Collection launching this year. |
Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Friday, January 10, 2025 5:46 PM Features several game elements. The post Atomfall Gets New Gameplay Overview Trailer appeared first on Gaming Instincts - Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism. |