GamersHeroes Friday, August 8, 2025 3:14 PM Battlefield 6's first Open Beta weekend is in full swing for those with an Early Access code, while regular players will need to wait until tomorrow. However, a Twitch Drop campaign is live, rewarding players with access after watching any Battlefield 6 streamer with Drops enabled. The post Battlefield 6 Twitch Drop Code Not Working – FIX! appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
Kotaku Friday, August 8, 2025 5:40 PM
This weekend we've got a game you can knock out in an hour, a brand new shmup, a classic RPG, and some more stealthy shenanigans The post <i>Kotaku</i>'s Weekend Guide: 4 Games We Can't Wait To Get Back To appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Friday, August 8, 2025 5:31 PM
Dropout CEO and Game Changer host Sam Reich told Kotaku that he has ideas for a video game The post We Are Likely Going To Get A <i>Game Changer</i> Or <i>Dimension 20</i> Video Game In The Future appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Friday, August 8, 2025 5:06 PM
The upcoming remake of Snake Eater is expected to receive an online mode later this year The post Remembering <i>Metal Gear Online</i>, A Silly And Wonderful Stealth Experience appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Friday, August 8, 2025 4:44 PM
An AI-generated clip of an old-school first-person RPG is too hard for AI to make into an actual game The post Guy Who Wants To Turn His Viral AI Art Into A Game Explains Why He's Not Using AI To Do It appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Friday, August 8, 2025 3:56 PM
Despite EA and Battlefield Studios requiring Secure Boot on PC, videos of people cheating are popping up online The post Yup, People Are Already Using Cheats In <i>Battlefield 6</i>'s Open Beta appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Friday, August 8, 2025 3:30 PM
Admission is free if you have a Sisyphean complex (and for everyone actually 'cause it's a free update) The post <i>Doom: The Dark Ages</i>' New Ripatorium Is A Great Way To Have Your Ass Handed To You appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Friday, August 8, 2025 2:53 PM
The industry veteran was in charge of Diablo IV The post <i>Diablo</i> Boss Rod Fergusson Leaving Blizzard After Five Years appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Friday, August 8, 2025 2:50 PM
A fan asked her to sing "Last Friday Night" in Simlish as it appeared in The Sims 3 The post Katy Perry Performed A Song In Simlish At A Recent Concert appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Friday, August 8, 2025 2:05 PM
The multiplayer mode has 50 percent more players this year, even with GTA 6 nowhere in sight The post <i>Grand Theft Auto Online</i> Just Won't Stop Adding New Players appeared first on Kotaku. |
PCGamesN Friday, August 8, 2025 5:14 PM The team behind FiveM, the GTA RP mod that was acquired by Rockstar Games, has released a statement confirming a "security issue" has resulted in "bad actors" stealing modders' assets, which should've been protected and encrypted. Cfx.re says that it will be suspending any servers running stolen FiveM content for two weeks, and from today onwards, any repeat offenders may see their GTA 5 RP servers shut down permanently. Continue reading GTA 5 RP mod FiveM threatens to shut down servers over stolen assets MORE FROM PCGAMESN: GTA 5 RP servers, GTA 6 release date estimate, GTA 5 cheats |
PCGamesN Friday, August 8, 2025 4:24 PM Rod Fergusson, the general manager of the Diablo franchise who has overseen the launch of Diablo 4 and its Vessel of Hatred expansion, has announced that he's leaving Blizzard. Renowned for his work leading the Gears of War series, he made the switch to Blizzard in 2020 to steer the Diablo ship, but after five years, he's leaving the company for a new challenge. Continue reading Diablo 4 boss leaves Blizzard after five-year stint MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Diablo 4 builds, Diablo 4: Vessel of Hatred review, Diablo 4 classes |
PCGamesN Friday, August 8, 2025 4:06 PM August 8, 2025: Kick off the weekend with two new free Bingo Blitz credits links. What are the new free Bingo Blitz credits? You won't be playing much bingo without them, that's for sure. Even if you've exhausted your usual free credits in Bingo Blitz through login rewards and premium subscriptions, the secret to playing another round is through our Bingo Blitz credits links. New Bingo Blitz free credits links work in much the same way as Monopoly Go dice links. One click and your account is automatically topped up with credits ready to be used on multiple rounds or one big blow-out session with multiple cards. The choice is yours. Continue reading Free Bingo Blitz credits August 2025 MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Bingo Blitz credits, Best card games, Best PC board games |
PCGamesN Friday, August 8, 2025 2:08 PM How do you make pie in Grow a Garden? Whether you have a varied garden or curate only the coolest crops, you'll have a way to farm Grow a Garden cooking event rewards with these Roblox Grow a Garden pie recipes. If you haven't managed to stock up on crops high up the Grow a Garden seeds tier list, you'll want to keep a close eye on the next Grow a Garden update for your next chance to do so. Not sure if the Gourmet eggs are even worth the trouble? Give the Grow a Garden pets tier list a read while you wait for your next meal. Continue reading How to make pie in Grow a Garden MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best Roblox games, Roblox promo codes, Roblox music codes |
Twinfinite Friday, August 8, 2025 6:15 PM  |
Twinfinite Friday, August 8, 2025 2:47 PM  |
Siliconera Friday, August 8, 2025 7:00 PM
The Japanese Square Enix store has updated to include new merchandise from Final Fantasy III to Final Fantasy VI. While you can purchase the merchandise from these earlier entries of Final Fantasy on the North American site, you cannot find these ones.
Here are the new Final Fantasy III to VI goods on the Japanese Square Enix store's website:
The T-shirts will come in a box that looks like the jacket art of the game they came from. Meanwhile, the flake stickers (III to VI) and miniature acrylics (IV to VI) come in collections grouped by their games. Square Enix isn't offering them separately. Even if you're only interested in one character per game, you'll still have to buy the entire set from the official website.
Despite the age of these games, players can still enjoy them on modern consoles and with newer-looking pixel artwork with the Pixel Remaster line of games. As a note, most merchandise use pixel artwork (either the original or remastered versions) or the logos of the respective games. However, the acrylic stands do not. They look more like 3D models.
The Final Fantasy goods are available from the Japanese Square Enix e-store, which does not offer international shipping.
The post New Final Fantasy Merchandise Includes FFVI Characters appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Friday, August 8, 2025 6:00 PM
Taito announced it is bringing back the Emil head room light prize figure as part of the NieR 15th anniversary celebratory merchandise. The company said on social media that it will show up in Japanese arcades starting on August 9, 2025. While no retailer that ships to the US is showing it yet, PlayAsia did sell the original.
As mentioned before, this is a returning product. It first appeared back in June 2022 as a NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139 item. It seems the NieR 15th anniversary version of the Emil head room light is identical. It is still about 15cm tall. When turned off, his head looks like the white spherical skull it does throughout most of both the original game and in his other appearances throughout the series. When turned on, there is a yellow glow to it. The one difference is that the base this time mentions the anniversary.
Here's the official photo from Taito that showed the lamp both when it is turned on and off.
Emil has become a mascot for the NieR series over the years. As a result, a lot of merchandise has, well, involved his skull. There have been plush replicas of it, and the NieR Dinner Show in Japan in December 2024 featured porcelain bottles that looked like him.
The NieR 15th anniversary Emil head room light will appear in Japanese arcades starting on August 9, 2025. NieR first appeared on the PS3 and Xbox 360, with the Replicant release showing up on the PS4, Xbox One, and PC.
The post Emil Head Room Light Returns for NieR 15th Anniversary appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Friday, August 8, 2025 5:00 PM
Cygames kicked off the Umamusume: Pretty Derby Golshi Week event, which features "Gold Ship" awarding players 564 free Carats every day for a limited time and up to 1,200,000 Monies total by choosing the Golshi Mode when starting a Career. As noted in the official schedule, all this runs until August 22, 2025.
The main giveaway is the daily login event that runs for ten days. Each day, someone gets 564 free Carats to use on one of the Umamusume: Pretty Derby banners or for other purposes. As a reminder, a full 10-pull on a banner is 1,500 Carats. An additional part of the giveaway involves one free pull each day on the current Support Card banner.
With the free 1,200,000 Monies, that is tied to completed Career runs in Umamusume: Pretty Derby. When you start the mode, you can choose Normal or Golshi Mode. The latter gives you some Monies depending on your achievements.
Finally, there are 56 Golshi Week Special Missions in Umamusume: Pretty Derby that are live until August 22, 2025. Again, these are tied to Career runs. Completing certain objectives in a single playthrough or cumulatively gives you various support items or other bonuses. Many of them involve Star Pieces for Gold Ship. One of the most notable is an SR+ Guaranteed Make Debut Ticket if you complete 200 Career goals total during the period. Another is a Two-Star Guaranteed Make Debut Ticket or getting through 30 Golshi Week Special Missions. You also can get 150 free Carats for getting through all 55 other Golshi Week Special Missions.
Cygames also planned to have a Golshi Only channel in the official English Discord server, but the Golshi Bot didn't work as expected. As a result, that Gold Ship-themed unit got pulled from the channel.
Umamusume: Pretty Derby is available for PCs and mobile devices.
The post Umamusume Golshi Week Gives Away 564 Free Carats Daily appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Friday, August 8, 2025 4:00 PM
Back at the start of July 2025, Square Enix announced a Final Fantasy IX 25th Anniversary Fan Art Project and put out a call for people's work. When it did, it suggested it would start sharing some of those pieces online under various circumstances. Now that August 2025 started, the first round appeared online.
The first batch is available on Square Enix's official Final Fantasy website. 65 works of fan art are part of this first Final Fantasy IX 25th Anniversary batch. While most of them are traditional hand-drawn or digitally painted pieces, there are a few unusual additions. One is a Vivi Ornitier figure from PascalL, and シータ団長 created perler bead sprites of Vivi, Zidane Tribal, Freya Crescent, Amarant Coral, Quina Quen, Eiko Carol, and a moogle. The general selection includes pieces from artists in every region.
As part of this announcement, Square Enix also confirmed that the submission process is still open. People can submit pieces of art until October 31, 2025. Folks will need to be from certain countries and over 13 in order to fill out the form. Also, the company noted that submitting the images for free is granting them a license to use it for promotional purposes.
This is one of many means of the company celebrating Final Fantasy IX. Merchandise is another. A Play Arts Shin Zidane figure is among the latest reveals, as is a kuji lottery of prizes that include a chiptune version of the soundtrack.
Final Fantasy IX is available on the PlayStation, PS4, Switch, Xbox One, PC, and mobile devices, and people can submit projects to the 25th Anniversary Fan Art Project until October 31, 2025.
The post Square Enix Started Sharing Final Fantasy IX Fan Art appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Friday, August 8, 2025 3:00 PM
Good Smile Company announced the next Fire Emblem: Three Houses figure is Hilda Goneril, and it is based on her appearance in the latter half of the Switch game. She'll show up first in Japan, as it is expected to debut there in September 2026. Then in Q1 2027, it will launch worldwide. She'll cost ￥29,700/$224.99.
This is going to be a static, 1/7 figure. So Hilda will stand at about 10 and a half inches tall (265mm). She wields the Freikugel axe in it, which is the Heroes' Relics weapon tied to her house.
Here's a closer look at the Fire Emblem: Three Houses Hilda figure:
To help provide a better idea of what to expect from this figure, Good Smile Company shared a video this time. It starts by showing a 360 degree view of it. After that, it zooms in to look more closely at the character.
This is the second figure of a heroine from this installment on the horizon. Good Smile Company confirmed its bringing back the Edelgard figma. That one is based on her appearance when attending the Garreg Mach Officers Academy.
The Fire Emblem: Three Houses Hilda Goneril figure comes to Japan in September 2026 and the US in Q1 2027. Pre-orders close on October 22, 2025. The game is available for the Nintendo Switch.
The post Fire Emblem: Three Houses Hilda Figure Based on Her Timeskip Look appeared first on Siliconera. |
Destructoid Friday, August 8, 2025 7:57 PM
This article is written in partnership with GIGABYTE AORUS. Experience the new MO32U QD OLED Gaming Monitor today on Amazon.
For gamers and multitaskers who demand uncompromised visual performance without breaking the bank, GIGABYTE has delivered something special: the new MO32U gaming monitor, a flagship entry in the brand's 2025 QD-OLED lineup. Designed to offer exceptional image quality, speed, and versatility at a highly competitive price tag of $799.99, the MO32U is not just a gaming monitor—it's a centerpiece for every scenario.
The power of QD-OLED, now more accessible
At the heart of the MO32U is its 32-inch 4K QD-OLED panel, combining the rich contrast and true blacks of OLED with the vivid colors and high brightness of Quantum Dot technology. This fusion brings elite-level visual fidelity into the hands of more gamers and creators alike. Supporting 99% DCI-P3 color gamut and 10-bit color, the MO32U delivers cinematic visuals that are factory calibrated to △E ≤ 2, ensuring out-of-the-box accuracy.
Unlike traditional OLEDs, GIGABYTE's QD-OLED panel features an anti-reflection coating that keeps visuals clear, even in brightly lit environments. Whether you're battling it out in competitive titles or editing HDR content, this monitor stands out with a 1.5M:1 contrast ratio and 1000-nit HDR brightness (APL 3%) that brings every detail to life.
Fast, fluid, and built for next-gen gaming
Visual fidelity is nothing without speed—and the MO32U brings it in spades. With an ultra-fast 165Hz refresh rate and an industry-leading 0.03ms GTG response time, the monitor is built for peak gaming performance. Say goodbye to ghosting and input lag, even in the most fast-paced FPS or action games.
Supporting HDMI 2.1, DisplayPort 1.4, and USB-C with DisplayPort Alt Mode, the MO32U is ready for both next-gen consoles and high-end gaming PCs. Console players can enjoy smooth 4K at high frame rates, while PC gamers can push the limits of competitive performance.
On top of that, GIGABYTE includes its suite of Tactical Features—from Black Equalizer 2.0 for improved shadow detail, to on-screen timers, crosshairs, and a customizable dashboard for performance tracking. Competitive players will feel right at home.
Not just for gaming—your all-in-one monitor
As part of the M-series of monitors, the MO32U is designed to fit seamlessly into all your daily scenarios—gaming, streaming, working, and creating. Its inclusion of a KVM switch allows you to control multiple devices with a single keyboard and mouse, perfect for streamers, creators, or remote workers with dual systems. The addition of PiP/PbP (Picture-in-Picture / Picture-by-Picture) means you can monitor content, chat, and edit—all at once.
Affordable excellence
At $799.99, the MO32U undercuts many competitors offering similar specs—without cutting corners. With VESA DisplayHDR True Black 400 certification and ClearMR 9000 clarity standard, it rivals professional-grade displays in visual precision and motion performance, while maintaining an accessible price point for the everyday gamer and creator.
Whether you're chasing leaderboard wins, rendering 4K video, or just watching your favorite series in HDR, the GIGABYTE MO32U offers elite performance at a mainstream price. As the first release in GIGABYTE's 2025 QD-OLED monitor line, it sets a bold new tone—one that proves premium visuals and versatility don't have to cost a fortune.
Experience the future of QD-OLED—affordable, powerful, and ready for everything, MO32U now available on Amazon.
The post A stunning new standard: GIGABYTE MO32U kicks off the 2025 QD-OLED lineup with power and precision appeared first on Destructoid. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Destructoid Friday, August 8, 2025 4:02 PM
Madden 26's Franchise mode once again offers you the chance to relocate your team to a new place and apply different uniforms.
There can be many reasons for you to relocate your franchise. This could be to potentially tap into a bigger market, or maybe you want to switch to a city that you like in real life. The list of options even includes locations outside the United States.
Let's take a look at all the available options.
Table of contents
All Madden 26 relocation cities
There are 34 options available in this year's game. Every city has a unique fan personality and market size that you should pay attention to.
All Madden 26 relocation uniforms
Once you relocate your team in Madden 26, you can choose to use a new set of kits. This activity isn't mandatory, but it's always nice and realistic to go for an alternate branding.
When selecting a new kit, always pay attention to your fan interest and how it might be affected with your decision.
How to relocate your team in Madden 26?
The process of relocating your team is pretty simple.
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Destructoid Friday, August 8, 2025 4:00 PM
It's Friday my dudes and dudettes, and that means the weekend is almost upon us. Video games certainly never sleep or wait, but we sometimes have to push through these grueling five days to be rewarded with them and 48 hours of uninterrupted gamin'.
Out there on the battlefield
With the Battlefield 6 open beta starting its early access window on Aug. 7, there are probably going to be a lot of folks out there duking it out in Egypt, Tajikistan, and Gibraltar. I would know, for I am folks, and have been pouring my heart and soul into this (potential) gem of a game.
I'll relegate the rest of my opinion on EA and DICE's last-ditch effort at making first-person shooters great again to another feature on Destructoid, so be sure to keep an eye out for that one; it'll probably either scare you away from the game or have you going head over heels to download it. I'm divisive like that.
Anyhow, Battlefield 6 probably won't be the only game on the plate this weekend. No, we're going to be dining a lot of indies as well, including Zephon my beloved and Abiotic Factor, as nothing scratches that special itch as good as a game where you can scream at your friends. All in the name of love, of course.
The staff's going to be busy this time, too
But enough about me and, as one reader would say, talking out of my ass. Let's hear it from the Destructoid crew as well.
Our fantastic editor-in-chief, Rachel Samples, has been returning to Pokémon GO and plans to see what exciting pocket monsters are waiting around every corner this weekend, and perhaps every other weekend if she loves what she sees. Being a hardcore fan of Battlefield 3, she'll also give EA's new game a chance to see if it won't reignite her love for the franchise that never really impressed her since the good ol' days.
Scott Duwe's repertoire is undisclosed for legal reasons, but what I can say is that he's playing anything he can get his hands on to keep his mind off Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater for the time being.
The lovely Madi's hopping onto Terra Nil following its new Heatwave update, adding a lot of new maps and content that warrant a fresh start, while the old-fashioned Hungarian editorial mastermind Luci Kelemen is keeping it traditional and sticking to chess this weekend (and every weekend at that).
But what we especially care about is you, Destructoid, as Destructoid is not Destructoid without its Destructoid readers. What will you be playing this weekend? Do tell us, we don't care if it's one of GOG's free adult games or an intricate mil-sim.
And most importantly, have a lovely weekend.
The post Whatcha playing this weekend, Destructoid? (Aug. 8-10) appeared first on Destructoid. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Destructoid Friday, August 8, 2025 3:53 PM
There are many ways you can play Madden 26's multiplayer modes, and it's a different type of fun when you're playing with your friends.
You can not only play against your friends in friendlies, but you can also be part of the same squad and play together. Let's find out what you need to do to play with your friends, and this option can be expanded further with crossplay.
How to play Madden 26 with your friends?
The easiest way to play with your friends in Madden 26 is the H2H mode.
Once you send the request, your friend will have to accept it to join the same lobby. You can change the default settings to enjoy more options. This includes fixing the game style in discussion with your friend. You can also change the quarter length, injuries, and more.
While all games happen with the default squad, you can use a custom squad with your friend. You can go with an alternate depth chart that is separate from the default list.
H2H friendlies are purely for bragging rights. There are no consequences of wins and losses, and no in-game rewards to obtain. However, it's fun and allows you to establish your virtual NFL supremacy in your friend circle.
It's always good to surprise your friends with some underrated tactics, and mastering the read option can be one such move. The ability to pull an unexpected move can trump even the most experienced players.
The post Madden 26 multiplayer guide – How to play Madden 26 with friends appeared first on Destructoid. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Destructoid Friday, August 8, 2025 2:44 PM
Marvel Rivals' Season 3.5 update has finally graced Steam with its shadowy, Blade The Daywalker-shaped presence. Unfortunately, some players, myself included, have encountered a one-of-a-kind technical issue that's making it tricky to download the ever-expanding hero shooter's latest add-on.
The Content File Locked error is a unique download bug that ruffled Marvel Rivals players' feathers last season. Few things in the gaming life are more frustrating than getting shut out of your favorite game's latest content drop by a glitch, but thankfully, this digital knot is easy to untangle.
Marvel Rivals Season 3.5 "Content File Locked" causes and fixes: explained
As far as I can tell, the Content File Locked issue is exclusive to Marvel Rivals. That's not where the weirdness stops, either: it appears that the issue only affects specific update files from the game. According to this post on Marvel Rivals' Steam Community page and another post on the game's primary Reddit thread, the Content File Locked issue first reared up in December of last year when Marvel Rivals made its record-breaking launch.
I'm not tech-savvy enough to explain what causes the Content File Locked glitch, and no one else online seems to know, either. Luckily, there are a few tried-and-true ways to resolve the issue.
One of the most reliable ways to fix the Content File Locked issue is to go into your computer's Task Manager and see if the Marvel Rivals launcher is running while the game is off. This issue sometimes occurs when you shut off the game, and it can cause lots of problems when you try to start it up again. If it is, right-click on the task and turn it off. This seems to be the best way to clear up the issue, but there are other ways to do it if it doesn't work.
Another way Marvel Rival players resolved the Content File Locked glitch was by uninstalling and reinstalling the game. If the Task Manager trick doesn't work, you might have to do this. To do this, open up your Steam Library, right-click on the Marvel Rivals tag, and open the Manage window. From there, hit the "Uninstall" option and confirm your intent on the window that pops up. After uninstalling the game, reinstall it, and the update patch should be available for download.
If you're a fan of Riot Games, you might need to employ a unique solution to fix the Content File Locked issue. I have no proof of this, but one Reddit poster claimed they couldn't download Marvel Rivals Season 3.5 while Valorant or League of Legends was running on their PC. According to them, something in the game's software affected Marvel Rivals, but it resolved itself after they shut down both games.
Speaking for myself, I resolved the Content File Locked issue by invoking the old reliable tech support: turning my PC on and off again. Once my laptop was up and running again, I could download the Season 3.5 patch without running into any issues. So far, everything seems to work fine, and I've already had the pleasure of playing Blade a few times. Any frustration still in me evaporated after a few crimson sword swings, and hopefully, the same will be true for you.
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Destructoid Friday, August 8, 2025 2:20 PM
I couldn't care less about Pokémon Masters EX when it released in 2019. That was when The Pokémon Company started to aggressively expand to mobile, one year after releasing Pokémon Quest and launching Pokémon Rumble Rush the same year.
I felt I was beyond those games. I had been playing Pokémon since Red and Blue and felt like these casual apps were made to sell the franchise to new people. For years, I didn't even know what Masters EX was about, let alone that it was a gacha. My anti-mobile bias now reminds me of the Diablo Immortal backlash, since, as a long-time Pokémon player, I didn't want to use my phone because I had the Nintendo 3DS and Switch anyway.
But six years later, I decided to give Pokémon Masters EX a try. In late July, I had just finished playing Jeanne d'Arc and wanted to try a game in the franchise I had never played, preferably a free one, and I decided it was time to test this one. How had I never played a game that had been lasting so long and was part of my favorite franchise ever?
I need some of these mechanics in mainline Pokémon games
A few days in, I realized it's a gacha game like any other, but with Pokémon trainers. You use these trainers and their Pokémon (or sync pairs) to complete missions, and more of them join your roster as you get new ones at random through free or paid Scouts, which is like opening surprise boxes.
You make trios of sync pairs to battle against other trios of computer trainers—until this point, the fact that triple battles ever existed in Pokémon Black and White had been completely erased from my mind. Then, it's all about the usual gacha grind: get stronger sync pairs, upgrade them, beat harder content, upgrade characters with the materials you just got, and beat even harder content. Repeat until you're bored.
Pokémon Masters EX still got me hooked. Making a strong trio relies heavily on synergy mechanics that would make sense in the mainline games, like Tyranitar, Lycanroc, and Coalossal boosting one another because they're all Rock-type Pokémon, or Brock, Blue, and Misty getting higher attack because they're all from the Kanto region. I would love to see this synergy mechanic in a future generation of Pokémon as secondary abilities exclusive to double battles, even if in a casual game mode.
Triple battles in Pokémon Masters EX are balanced, which was a huge surprise. They work because battles are slower than in the mainline games. While you can burst a Pokémon in doubles of Scarlet and Violet with a coordinated attack, it's really hard to do so in a single turn of triples in Masters EX. Pokémon stats are set so that both sides use dozens of moves per battle, and it doesn't get boring because of its mix of real-time and turn-based strategy. Most fights don't take more than two minutes to clear.
Most content isn't time-restricted by Stamina, a mechanic that limits how much you can play certain missions per day. Most events have several difficulty levels, which allow you to play cool fights versus Legendary Pokémon early on. I've already defeated Moltres and Raikou in Normal difficulty in Legendary Arena after only 10 days of play, which felt impressive since I don't have lots of six-star units and can't use Skill Gear yet. Now I want to clear harder content, so I'm hooked by the grind and optimization loop.
This loop, colored by hundreds of Pokémon characters I've grown up playing with, makes the game more meaningful to me than gachas like Zenless Zone Zero and Solo Leveling: Arise.
But the game always reminds me it's a gacha
Pokémon Masters EX is a cash grab. It has all the features of a cash-grabbing mobile game, like Stamina, sync pair Scouts exclusive to paid currency, and difficulty spikes like Champion Stadium that make you want to spend money instead of slowly grinding. But the game has no PvP, so there's no competitive pressure to put money into it.
It's a lot of information early on, too.
Pokémon Masters EX has 234 Trainers I can sync with, and all the 155 unique items in my bag can be used to upgrade them. If I want more sync pairs, I can choose to Scout from one of the 18 active banners, 10 of them with free gems. I already own 36 sync pairs without spending money, and each sync pair has up to five passive skills, five theme skills, four moves, and three lucky skills. To play with these pairs, I have to choose a mission from 13 co-op EX Challenges, seven events, seven training areas, four story arcs, three side areas, or two Champion stadiums. Each sync pair can receive upgrades to their level, level cap, potential, move level, EX role, sync grid, lucky skills, and super-awakening.
And I'm not even talking about the Lodge and content I haven't unlocked yet, like the Battle Rally and Pasio Towers.
While the auto-battle and auto-optimize buttons skip the mess early on and hopefully set up a strong team for you, I feel they're also Pokémon Masters EX admitting it's too complex for new players to handle.
It's really hard for a beginner to choose which banner to Scout for, so it's better to just go with whatever character or Pokémon you like the most, like I did rolling for Silver and his shiny Tyranitar.
In the end, Pokémon Masters EX is Pokémon All-Stars in gacha format. It's likely not a great experience as anyone's first Pokémon game because of all the limiting gacha mechanics. Since its roster has every interesting Pokémon character from the mainline games, it's much more fun if you already know who all these trainers are talking to you.
If you're a gacha but not a Pokémon fan, you're probably used to learning to like random characters you've never heard about before, so I think it's worth your time. The game is quite generous to free-to-play players.
As for myself, I know I'll probably get tired of Pokémon Masters EX when I reach the endgame and have to farm items instead of having them overflowing from my bag like I do now, so I'll enjoy my time being a noob for the next couple of weeks.
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Destructoid Friday, August 8, 2025 2:01 PM
FUTTIES Team 5 cards are live in EA FC 25, and we have the final set of promo cards in packs.
Before tonight, we have had four teams of FUTTIES items in packs. They have featured some amazing cards rated 98 and 99. The same trend should continue with Team 5. In fact, there are significantly higher number of 99-rated items than we have had in the previous weeks.
All EA FC 25 FUTTIES Team 5 players (leaks)
Aside from cards in packs, there should be more items being released as parts of SBCs, objectives, and cups.
EA FC 25 FUTTIES Team 5 release date
Every FUTTIES team so far has been a week-long affair. EA Sports was unlikely to alter that plan, and FUTTIES Team 5 went live on Friday, Aug. 8. It's the same day the FUTTIES Team 4 items were removed from the packs. Packing the items, then, will depend on luck.
Aside from FUTTIES cards, you can also find many older promo cards in packs. FUTTIES Best of Re-Release Batch 3 is currently active, and they should continue to be in packs when FUTTIES Team 5 items are released. There are over 200 special cards that you can use on your team or to complete SBCs.
The post All EA FC 25 FUTTIES Team 5 players (leaks) and release date appeared first on Destructoid. |
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