GamersHeroes Tuesday, October 7, 2025 5:44 PM Fans of My Hero Academia can go PLUS ULTRA!! This November at FAN EXPO San Francisco 2025 with a wealth of professional voice actors and actresses from the megapopular anime series. The post My Hero Academia Voice Actors Special Guests at FAN EXPO San Francisco 2025 appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
GamersHeroes Tuesday, October 7, 2025 4:36 PM Game Collector, Nintendo Master, and Content Creator CakeHoarder will be a Guest of Honor at Sac Gamers Expo 2025 this December. The post Sac Gamers Expo 2025 Welcomes Special Guest CakeHoarder appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
GamersHeroes Tuesday, October 7, 2025 2:11 PM For those packing a killer retro gaming collection (and the backlog to match!), one can track and sell their retro games, consoles, and accessories with the new retro gaming community Sumthings. The post Retro Game Community Sumthings Live appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
GamersHeroes Tuesday, October 7, 2025 1:54 PM Just in time for fall, the team at Singularity 6 has released Palia's latest update, rightfully dubbed "Palia Fall Fantasy: The Spiritfest Spectacle." The post Palia Fall Fantasy: The Spiritfest Spectacle Update Now Available appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
GamersHeroes Tuesday, October 7, 2025 12:44 PM War may never change, but mischief, contests, and more are sure to make Bethesda's Fallout 76 interesting throughout October. The post Fallout 76 October Events Revealed appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
GamersHeroes Tuesday, October 7, 2025 12:03 PM Based on the acclaimed board game, the world of Arc Games, Asmodee, and Cephalofair Games' dark fantasy tactical RPG Frosthaven is getting that much bigger with the release of its free "Awakening Protocol" update October 23. The post Dark Fantasy Tactical RPG Frosthaven "Awakening Protocol" Update Launching October 23 appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
Kotaku Tuesday, October 7, 2025 6:20 PM
Thanks to Amazon's Prime Big Deal Day, AirPods 4 are now almost budget earbuds. The post AirPods 4 Are Now 3x Cheaper Than AirPods Pro, Amazon Is Offering Entry-Level Clearance Prices appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Tuesday, October 7, 2025 5:20 PM
It's the oldest Dyson cordless vacuum still available, yet it meets today's standards with ease. The post Dyson Is Offloading Its V8 Plus Model, Now Cheaper Than Entry-Level Cordless Vacuums appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Tuesday, October 7, 2025 4:58 PM
The Tonight Show host is looking to expand his portfolio of NBC shows The post Jimmy Fallon Is Trying To Make <em>Wordle</em> Into A Game Show appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Tuesday, October 7, 2025 4:23 PM
That friend who only buys Call of Duty and Madden is the average gamer The post New Report Finds Most People Barely Buy Two Games A Year appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Tuesday, October 7, 2025 3:41 PM
Musk claims his AI studio will release an AI-generated game in 2026 The post <em>Baldur's Gate 3</em> Dev Calls Out Elon Musk's AI Game Promise appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Tuesday, October 7, 2025 3:31 PM
The upcoming sequel features a new protagonist and an emphasis on fear The post Everything We Know About <i>Resident Evil: Requiem</i> appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Tuesday, October 7, 2025 2:53 PM
Discrepancies in Xbox's rollout of the changes left some players confused The post Some Xbox Fans Can Skip The Game Pass Price Hike For Now appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Tuesday, October 7, 2025 2:40 PM
This 4-pack of AirTags costs about as much as two at regular price, thanks to the Prime Big Deal Day. The post If You Have an iPhone, You Can Get Two Free AirTags on Amazon appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Tuesday, October 7, 2025 2:26 PM
The sci-fi sequel apparently sounds great but looks quite boring The post Jared Leto's <i>Tron: Ares</i> Is Getting Demolished In Some Early Reviews appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Tuesday, October 7, 2025 2:16 PM
Matt Murdock has one of the most interesting kits in the hero shooter The post Daredevil Looks Cool Enough To Bring Me Back To <em>Marvel Rivals</em> appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Tuesday, October 7, 2025 2:10 PM Sony WH-CH520 Headphones Already Had Value, Prime Day Makes Them Almost 15× Cheaper Than AirPods Max
Amazon has the Sony WH-CH520 Bluetooth headphones on sale for more than half off for a limited time. The post Sony WH-CH520 Headphones Already Had Value, Prime Day Makes Them Almost 15× Cheaper Than AirPods Max appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Tuesday, October 7, 2025 1:40 PM
Save $22 on the Lego Marvel: The Avengers Assemble: Age of Ultron set for a limited time at Amazon. The post LEGO Marvel Avengers Age of Ultron Set Drops Below Black Friday, Feels Like a Freebie With 6 Minifigures appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Tuesday, October 7, 2025 1:10 PM
The ASUS ROG Strix G16 is among the best gaming laptops available right now. The post After a Second Price Drop in Three Days, the 2025 ROG Strix G15 Has Just Reached a New Record Low appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Tuesday, October 7, 2025 12:40 PM
Save up to $37 on a SanDisk 1TB or 2TB Creator Phone SSD for Prime Big Deals Day. The post SanDisk MagSafe SSD Feels Practically Free at $0.10 per GB With Prime Day Discount, Works With iPhone appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Tuesday, October 7, 2025 12:10 PM
Enjoy better in-game sound without breaking the bank. The post No Lower to Go, SteelSeries ANC Gaming Headset Crashes to Its Lowest Price After Multiple Drops on Amazon appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Tuesday, October 7, 2025 12:02 PM
This TV speaker also works via Bluetooth and lets you stream audio directly from your smartphone. The post Bose Is Clearing Out Its TV Soundbar, Now Selling for 4x Cheaper Than Any Direct Competitor appeared first on Kotaku. |
PCGamesN Tuesday, October 7, 2025 2:00 PM Don't Stop Girlypop is an assault on the senses, and the forces of capitalism, which you can play now thanks to a free demo on Steam. |
PCGamesN Tuesday, October 7, 2025 12:27 PM Find out whether you're stuck waiting for the 2XKO servers to turn back online, and learn how you can access the 2XKO offline mode. |
PCGamesN Tuesday, October 7, 2025 12:27 PM It is one of the best SMGs in Black Ops 7, whether you're playing multiplayer or Zombies, so here's the best Razor 9mm loadout to use. |
PCGamesN Tuesday, October 7, 2025 12:12 PM Our pick of the top MMO and MMORPGs you can play on PC right now, from the fantastical World of Warcraft to sandy sci-fi hit Dune Awakening. |
Rock Paper Shotgun Latest Articles Feed Tuesday, October 7, 2025 12:16 PM  The world is insufficiently clean and sparkly, so here comes Futurlab with Powerwash Simulator 2. The floor-mopping bonanza will release on 23rd October, a few short weeks from now. The release date announcement accompanies one of those satirical "corporate training" videos, commonly used by videogame creators to sneer indirectly at the sad unfortunates trapped in their Skinner boxes. The trailer comments of the sequel's new cleaning tools, for example, that "it all does basically the same thing, but it gives you a false sense of progression, even though you've really achieved nothing". Fine then, Futurlab. I was looking forward to your glorified adult colouring book. I was modestly anticipating the opportunity to absent myself from my personal squalor and while away some hours in your pseudo-therapeutic tribute to Mr Muscles. But now that you've ripped off the mask and explicitly told me that I'm an addled hamster, deserving only of contempt, I guess I'll buy this game about pissing on people instead. |
Rock Paper Shotgun Latest Articles Feed Tuesday, October 7, 2025 12:12 PM  This year's Amazon Prime Big Deal Days has been pretty rubbish for graphics card savings. Unfortunate, as if there's one type of PC component that needs to get down the affordability gym and lose some money weight, it's GPUs. Nevertheless, a spot of search bar digging has revealed one halfway decent discount on Amazon US, and it just so happens to be on one of the better cards of the current generation: the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 16GB. An 11% slashing brings this relatively VRAM rich model – in the form of a triple-fanned Gigabyte design – from $470 to $420, which further research confirms to be scraping the bottom end of 16GB RTX 5060 Ti prices. |
Twinfinite Tuesday, October 7, 2025 7:53 PM  |
Siliconera Tuesday, October 7, 2025 7:00 PM
Netflix shared a number of photos taken from season 2 of the One Piece live-action adaptation, and this time the focus is on Laboon the whale and the Twin Cape lighthouse keeper Crocus. The latest piece of key art also shows off the whale and offers a sense of scale comparing it to the Going Merry. The social media announcements also confirmed again that the new season will debut on the streaming service in 2026.
The key art with live-action Laboon shows how the One Piece character looks after previously appearing in the August 2025 trailer. In that footage, we only got to see the inside of the whale's mouth as the Going Merry sailed inside of it. Here we see the whale from the outside, head-on, and many of the scars the creature picked up over the years.
As for the photos, they highlight both Crocus and Laboon in One Piece. One picture shows Monkey D. Luffy, played by Inaki Godoy, seeing the whale from a distance. Another shows Crocus, portrayed by Clive Russell, inside the lighthouse reading a newspaper with a headline mentioning the Alabasta princess Nefertari Vivi is missing. The final photo shows all of the current Straw Hat crew meeting with Crocus outside of his home in Twin Cape.
Here's how all of the newly released One Piece season 2 photos look, as well as the latest key art.
The One Piece season 2 live-action adaptation will appear on Netflix in 2026, and season 1 is available now. The original anime is on Crunchyroll and Netflix. Viz Media handles the manga in English.
The post One Piece Season 2 Live-Action Shots Show Laboon, Crocus appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Tuesday, October 7, 2025 6:00 PM
Cygames shared details about the Umamusume: Pretty Derby new Trainee character Gold City and Main Story Chapter 4 update. Both arrive in-game on October 7, 2025, with the update happening in North America at about 3pm PT/6pm ET. They're the latest additions to the October 2025 schedule for the game.
Each of the Main Story sections in Umamusume: Pretty Derby deal with specific characters, and the Chapter 4 one's focus is on Narita Brian. This means her older sister Biwa Hayahide will also be prominently featured, and it will go over the two of their individual dreams and goals. If someone already pulled one or both of them on the Trainee banner, we sort of already got teasers for their relationship and backstory. This also means a new song and concert called "Blaze," with Narita Brian as the main singer.
Here's how "Blaze" looks and sounds:
In the case of Gold City, she's another Mile runner who focuses on Turf. However, her initial stats put Medium and Long races at B, which are easy to boost to A. She also has a D in Dirt, which means that could be boosted to make her a viable Dirt racer too. Her Keep It Real Unique Skill prioritizes her role as a Pace Chaser or Late Surger, since it increases her acceleration at the halfway point when she moves from the middle to the front.
While her English Tracen Academy spotlight trailer isn't live yet, you can see the Japanese one below.
There is still another Umamusume: Pretty Derby Trainee banner live in the game. Fuji Kiseki debuted on October 2, 2025. Her focus banner ends on October 10, 2025. Due to the nature of the game, she's now in the general pool and it will be possible to get her on the Gold City banner too.
As for the new Support Cards banner, that's less exciting. It's a rerun banner. So if someone didn't already get SSR Nishino Flower Speed or SSR Vodka Power cards, those will be the focus items.
Umamusume: Pretty Derby is available for PCs and mobile devices, and the Gold City Trainee banner and Main Story Chapter 4 update arrive on October 7, 2025.
The post Umamusume Gets Gold City and Main Story Chapter 4 Today appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Tuesday, October 7, 2025 5:00 PM
Sanrio and Allone announced another game accessory collection, and this time it involves analog thumb grip covers of four characters for Switch 2, PS4, and PS5 controllers. All of them are available in Japan now. Each pair is 968円 (~$7). There's no sign of the sets appearing worldwide yet, but other ones from Allone appeared on Amazon after launch.
Each of the four sets consists of one Sanrio analog cover that looks like a character and a second thumb grip that looks like an item associated with them. In the Hello Kitty set, someone gets one of her face and another of an apple. The Kuromi one features her face and the pink skull that appears on her forehead. The My Melody set features her and a pink strawberry. Pochacco's pairs him with a yellow ice cream cone. While the some images show them on a Switch 2 Joy-Con 2 and PS5 DualSense, the size of the original Switch and its Joy-Con analog sticks mean they would likely work with those controllers too.
Here's a closer look at all of the pairs. Each one shows the Sanrio character accessories on standard Switch 2 Joy-Con 2 controllers.
These aren't the only Sanrio Switch 2 Allone accessories to start showing up following the console's launch. The companies also released some cases. Those featured Cinnamoroll, Hello Kitty, Kuromi, My Melody, Pochacco, and Pompompurin.
The Sanrio and Allone analog thumb grip covers featuring Hello Kitty, Kuromi, My Melody, and Pochacco are available for Switch 2, PS4, and PS5 controllers in Japan now.
The post Sanrio Analog Thumb Grip Covers Work on Switch 2, PS5, PS4 Controllers appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Tuesday, October 7, 2025 4:00 PM
It looks like Idea Factory International might be behind the first Switch otome game of 2026, as it shared an updated release date for Temirana: The Lucky Princess and the Tragic Knights. Following a delay out of 2025, it will now debut on January 13, 2026.
However, that release date doesn't cover every version. In the US and Canada, Temirana: The Lucky Princess and the Tragic Knights will be available both digitally and physically on January 13, 2026. In Europe, there's a slight delay. While it will be on the eShop on that date, the physical copies won't show up until two weeks later on January 27, 2026.
As a reminder, Temirana: The Lucky Princess and the Tragic Knights is a visual novel otome game that involves a princess with the ability to sense when she might be about to die. She sees the love interests Adel, Josephy, Kiya, Milan, and Tobias glow when she meets them, and so invites them to become her knights knowing they might help protect her from death at some point. As we play, this also means we'll see response options that will glow and suggest danger lies ahead and can be avoided.
Temirana: The Lucky Princess and the Tragic Knights will come to the Switch in English on January 13, 2026, and the otome game has been available in Japan since April 2023.
The post First Switch Otome Game of 2026 May be Temirana appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Tuesday, October 7, 2025 3:00 PM
Back in June 2025, Good Smile Company shared unpainted prototype Persona 3: Dancing in Moonlight and Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight protagonist figures with "hero" stands. Now the photos of painted versions of Makoto Yuki and Ren "Joker" Amamiya are live and have release dates. Both will first show up in Japan in November 2026 for ￥18,000 each. They will then show up in Q2 2027, between March and June, in North America for $121.99 each.
Each of these is a static figure, and both Makoto Yuki and Ren "Joker" Amamiya are about the same height. So both are 1/7 scale items that are almost 10 and a half inches tall. (Ren is slightly taller at 268mm, while Makoto is 265mm.) Each one is locked in a single pose with only one face plate option. They wear their outfits from the rhythm games. Also, while they can be displayed separately, they are designed in such a way that their bases match and can fit together and the two will look like they are bumping forearms if matched up.
Here are the initial photos for the figures:
And here's the photo Good Smile Company shared showing both of them together:
In the past, Persona 5 Dancing Ann Takamaki and Morgana figures also appeared.
The Persona 3: Dancing in Moonlight and Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight figures of the protagonists Makoto Yuki and Ren "Joker" Amamiya will launch in Japan in November 2026 and worldwide in Q2 2027. Pre-orders are open until December 10, 2025. Both games appeared on the PS4 and Vita worldwide.
The post Persona 3 and 5 Dancing Protagonist Figures Debut in 2026 appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Tuesday, October 7, 2025 2:00 PM
Poncle will share five Vampire Survivors announcements over the next few days and weeks, and the first is a Fall 2025 launch window for online co-op multiplayer. The update will be available on the Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC. A first teaser trailer appeared to show how that will function, and it teased the patch will arrive "soon." This comes after the PC public beta for the multiplayer feature appeared in August 2025.
The announcement confirmed this will support four players. It will allow free roam, so you aren't limited to the same screen as your allies. The initial footage in the trailer noted that when everyone isn't on the same screen, there will be arrow icons in different colors with their names above them pointing where the other people you are playing with are.
Here's the Vampire Survivors online multiplayer trailer.
While online co-op multiplayer is new for Vampire Survivors, local has been an option for a while. That debuted in 1.6 back in August 2023. As you might imagine, it featured limitations as a result, like all characters needing to stay in the same space.
The second of the five reveals will arrive the week of October 12, 2025. It is unknown what it could be. However, it has been quite some time since Poncle released an original expansion or shared a crossover. The Ode to Castlevania DLC appeared in October 2024, and the Emerald Diorama Saga expansion appeared in April 2025.
Vampire Survivors is available on the Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, PC, and mobile devices, and the online co-op update arrives in Fall 2025.
The post Vampire Survivors Online Co-op Multiplayer Is First of Four Reveals appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Tuesday, October 7, 2025 1:00 PM
HoYoVerse confirmed a new Elysia Battlesuit called Hi Love Elf will appear in the Honkai Impact 3rd 8.5 update. As the name suggests, it has an ELF style appearance. A YouTube Short appeared showing how the S-Rank alt for the character will look.
Since the Battlesuit is playable in Honkai Impact 3rd betas in Asia, we do have some details about it. It is apparently a Stardust attribute one. It also looks like she deals Ice damage to opponents. She allegedly has the Grail of Infinitude Astral Ring Specialization. It seems like she'll use a bow as a weapon, just like her past alts.
Here's the first official English look at Hi Love Elf:
This will be the third Battlesuit for the character in the game. Her other two are Miss Pink Elf and Herrscher of Human: Ego. Both of those are also S-rank suits.
Honkai Impact 3rd isn't the only HoYoVerse game getting a form of Elysia in the next few weeks, as it is happening in Honkai: Star Rail too. A version of her is known as Cyrene in that title. While she isn't playable yet, she will be after 3.6.
Meanwhile, 8.4 marked the debut of another new Battlesuit for Honkai Impact 3rd. People could get Behold! Fate-Defying Dragon for Coralie in 8.4. That debuted in August 2025.
Honkai Impact 3rd is available for the PC and mobile devices, and the Elysia Hi Love Elf Battlesuit will be added in 8.5.
The post Elysia Gets New Honkai Impact 3rd Battlesuit in 8.5 appeared first on Siliconera. |
Destructoid Tuesday, October 7, 2025 4:31 PM
Matt Murdock is here, in case you lose so bad in Marvel Rivals that you need a good lawyer.
The newest hero in the hero shooter arrives very soon, and the variant is bringing a unique twist on the hero Daredevil that many comic book fans may know. This version has some demon-like powers to back up his sonic hearing and hand-to-hand combat prowess as he goes head-to-head with Angela in season four's lore.
Here's exactly when you can expect to play Daredevil as the latest hero in Marvel Rivals.
Table of contents
When is Marvel Rivals season 4.5?
Daredevil launches in Marvel Rivals as part of the season 4.5 update, which launches on Oct. 10, 2025. The new season should go live at around 3am CT that morning, which is when new seasons usually go live.
The countdown below shows exactly how much time is left until the season 4.5 launch and Daredevil's availability:
Daredevil abilities in Marvel Rivals
Daredevil is a melee Duelist in Marvel Rivals, utilizing his billy clubs to deal damage, his agility to get in close, and his sonar-like hearing ability to locate vulnerable enemies. Full details on his kit are coming soon.
Season 4.5 of Marvel Rivals will also include a Halloween event, new hero team-up abilities, and balancing changes to go along with the arrival of Daredevil. It all begins on Oct. 10.
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The post When is Daredevil coming to Marvel Rivals? Release date and countdown appeared first on Destructoid. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Destructoid Tuesday, October 7, 2025 4:23 PM
A new month means a new major update for Marvel Rivals. October 2025 is about to get real scary.
The Man Without Fear, Daredevil, is just a fraction of what's coming to Marvel Rivals in season 4.5. Quality of life changes, balancing updates, new and different hero team-ups, and, of course, new skins are all a part of the patch.
We've got the details in the patch notes ahead of its release on Oct. 10.
Table of contents
Marvel Rivals - Season 4.5 patch notes
New hero: Daredevil
Daredevil, yet another Duelist, is the new hero in the midseason update. Matt Murdock's devilish appearance looks to add yet another nightmare for Strategist players to deal with in the backline as he's able to quickly close the gap on fleeing foes and beat them down with his billy clubs.
New and changed Team-Up Abilities
Cross Progression testing
Finally! Cross Progression is coming to Marvel Rivals, allowing players to link their PC and console accounts to use the same skins and unlocks across platforms. It will roll out in limited testing form in season 4.5, but it will come to all players in November for season five.
Everything besides leaderboards, ranked play ranks, and stats will carry over between the platforms, so the feature will mainly be for unlocking and using skins and items.
Buffs and nerfs
Vanguards
Angela (buff)
Venom (buff)
Duelists
Blade (buff)
Hela (buff)
Human Torch (nerf)
Iron Fist (buff)
Mister Fantastic (buff)
Phoenix (nerf)
Psylocke (buff)
Strategists
Cloak & Dagger (nerf)
Jeff the Land Shark (nerf)
Rocket Raccoon (buff)
Ultron (nerf)
New game mode
A special new mode is coming after the season 4.5 update, but not much is known just yet. More will be revealed at the Thailand Game Show on Oct. 17.
Halloween event
For the first time ever, Marvel Rivals will celebrate Halloween with a spooky event that will bring new skins to the game, including the ones shown above for Peni Parker, Jeff the Landshark, Namor, Scarlet Witch, Blade, and Spider-Man. Details about the Halloween event, including what's paid and what's free, are coming soon.
This article will be updated with more info on the patch notes as they become available.
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The post Marvel Rivals season 4.5 patch notes – Daredevil, nerfs and buffs, new team-ups, and more appeared first on Destructoid. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Destructoid Tuesday, October 7, 2025 3:30 PM
I'll admit: I'm a sucker for creature collectors. From Pokémon to Moonstone Island, I've played quite a few in my many gaming years. There's nothing quite like bonding with a series of pixels and then using them to beat the ever-living snot out of other pixels. And as a certified adult gamer™, I also love roguelikes and roguelites due to their replayable nature. It's tough to commit to an 80-hour narrative-driven RPG, but a roguelike where a single run can take 30 minutes and each playthrough is its own experience? Sign me up.
Now take both of these genres and smash them into one, and you get Aethermancer, a gorgeous new title that launched in early access on Sept. 23. Aethermancer is the little sibling to Monster Sanctuary, a creature-collecting metroidvania out of indie developer Moi Rai Games. It's very clear that the team has taken lessons from its first title and expanded on them to craft what's an enjoyable adventure for fans of both roguelites and monster-tamers.
Aethermancer is a beautiful representation of the two genres in one, and it's got a lot to offer for those who enjoy the nuance and difficulty roguelites can be known for. It's worth picking up for anyone looking for their next adventure, though it's not without its flaws.
Mastering monsters and mechanics
The premise of Aethermancer is simple: You play as Siriux, a mage-like being called an Aethermancer who enters the dark world of the void to "catch" and battle monsters. Monsters fight in teams of three with a mana system in turn-based combat, with five different types of mana based on various elements. These creatures serve different roles; you've got tanks, supports, and damage-dealers. Sprinkle in poison, stagger, and crit systems; mana-control skills, and other debuffs, and you've got a variety of nuanced archetypes to build a team around.
There are three main biomes to explore in a run, and you'll need to make your way through three to four different rooms per biome. At the end of each room, you have an option of which type of room you want to enter next. Some harbor a merchant where you can buy items and experience points for your monsters. Others feature rare item drops that benefit your beasties in each combat. But every room has gold and Aether Crystals to collect and hordes of monsters to fight to train your team up. As your monsters level up, you can pick from a set of randomized traits or abilities that further shape your team's strengths and weaknesses.
Each biome is home to around eight different monsters you can catch and add to your team, totaling over 50 monsters in the game. You aren't guaranteed to see every type of monster in one run. It took me several runs before I saw every monster species the first biome had to offer. Similarly, monsters can come in "Shifted" variations, like Shinies in Pokémon. This feature adds to the replayability of the game, further rewarding you for starting new runs and keeping the gameplay experience new and exciting each time.
At the end of each run, you respawn in Pilgrim's Rest, a town of personable NPCs who grant boons for future runs. From upgrading usable items to unlocking new paths that house different creatures, these friendly NPCs make future runs easier—if you pay them enough Aether Crystals, that is. You'll also find new NPCs throughout your runs who will appear in Pilgrim's Rest the next time you return to the town. NPCs come with their own dynamic dialogues as well, offering story and world-building elements to add to the game's overall appeal.
That's about where Aethermancer's simplicity ends. There's a lot to the roguelite, and it took me a few runs before I began to grasp most of the gameplay mechanics. And I'm someone who loves roguelikes like Slay the Spire or Wildfrost, both of which have their fair share of archetypes, mechanics, and combat effects. This nuance would normally make it difficult to recommend the game to newbies to the genre or players who want gameplay loops that are easier to understand. But there are accessibility options that disable the game's Corruption system or make enemies weaker, opening the door for those who seek a more forgiving gameplay experience.
Growing pains: Early-access wobbles
Games in early access often end up looking quite different when they launch in full. Most gamers who've been with a title in their early development cycles know to expect bugs or future balancing changes as the developer polishes the edges. In my nearly 15 hours with Aethermancer, though, I only encountered one bug and a few other minor shortcomings.
At the beginning of a save, the game allows you to choose one of four starter monsters. But after I selected my starter in my very first run, I tried to name it and was then able to select a second after the selection menu glitched back in. These initial starters are very rare and can be quite powerful, and because I had two of these beasts, I got to the third biome on my first try. This bug only happened in my initial save file, but I ended up restarting my journey through the void in a separate save to play the game as intended.
The game's biggest challenge, though, came from its own combat interface. Certain symbols are small and hard to decipher, causing abilities to occasionally look different in combat than they do when you inspect them in a monster's menu. The game indicates what attack your opponent is about to use by showing an ability symbol over their head—and this information is crucial to making decisions about how you will respond during your turn. On occasion, I'd inspect the monster through its ability menu to decide whether I wanted to block the attack, but because I couldn't easily decipher which ability was being used, I had to open and close the menu multiple times to try to figure it out.
One of the great aspects of early access, though, is that developers often listen to player feedback and will frequently release plans for bug fixes or incoming features. As of Sept. 26, just three days after Aethermancer launched in early access, Moi Rai released a Reddit post with an ample list of bug fixes and indicated to players that a roadmap with future updates would be released in the near future.
Is Aethermancer worth its price tag?
Aethermancer is currently listed at roughly $20, a comparable price to similar titles like Wildfrost. It's also already reached a "Very Positive" score on Steam with nearly 900 ratings, showing most players enjoyed their time with the game. And I, myself, am one of those players. I found Aethermancer to be challenging and intriguing in its gameplay. The monster designs are unique and several archetypes are fun to build around, leaving me excited to discover new creatures and pick from the list of randomized abilities as my team level up. My only complaints are that I wish the biomes offered more diversity and there was more to the NPC system; a friendship system or multiple dialogue options would improve interactions with characters greatly.
We've yet to see the roadmap and what Moi Rai has planned for the future of Aethermancer, so we could see improvements to these systems as the game approaches its full release. Despite this, I'm quite pleased with what we currently have. Aethermancer isn't free of flaws, but it's got an enjoyable gameplay loop that offers a challenge any roguelite or creature-collector fan is sure to appreciate.
The post Aethermancer early access review – A magical mashup of roguelites and monster taming appeared first on Destructoid. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Destructoid Tuesday, October 7, 2025 3:25 PM
Ratings Reloaded is speculated to be the next promo for the FC 26 Ultimate Team, and it could be an exciting campaign for all.
When it goes live, the promo will debut on Ultimate Team. It will feature special cards of footballers who might have received lower ratings than the community had expected. So far, EA Sports has remained tight-lipped about the upcoming cards.
However, we can make some bold predictions ahead of the leaks appearing on social media.
FC 26 Ratings Reloaded players (predictions)
So far, we have yet to get any leaks regarding the upcoming promo. Here's my team of predictions on superstars who could feature in it.
It will be interesting to see if Ratings Reloaded will have one team or two. Additionally, we can expect leaks to appear closer to the release date. More cards will also be added as SBCs and objectives, so make sure to be on the lookout for them.
FC 26 Ratings Reloaded release date
The Ratings Reloaded promo is expected to go live after the Cornerstones promo expires. If the rumors are true, it will go live on Friday, Oct. 10. The release, as always, should happen at 12pm CT (6pm BST).
Once added, you can find the cards in packs if you have the luck. You can also complete various objectives and SBCs to add the promo cards to your squad. Unlike pack items, you won't have to rely on luck to get these cards.
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Destructoid Tuesday, October 7, 2025 2:44 PM
PowerWash Simulator 2's release date has been announced. It will be available on PC and console this year before the holiday season.
Many gamers, including myself, have been eager for the next title in the franchise. Thankfully, developers FuturLab have announced the date, and the sequel will go live in October. If you're as excited as we are for the launch, here's your handy countdown timer.
PowerWash Simulator 2 release countdown
Earlier today, Oct. 7, FuturLab gave us the dates we had been waiting for. We already knew that the release would take place sometime in 2025, but we now finally have the confirmation.
PowerWash Simulator 2 will be released worldwide on Oct. 23 across PC and console. The countdown above will help you keep track of the exact launch moment and when the game should be ready for you to dive in. Just in case, here's when it goes live in time zones around the world.
There's no advanced access, so everyone starts playing at the exact moment. The times above are applicable to both PC and console, since PowerWash Simulator 2 won't have a regional launch timetable. As a result, you can't use the New Zealand trick to get extra hours of gameplay.
What to expect from PowerWash Simulator 2
You'll be in familiar surroundings if you have played the first PowerWash Sim. The core gameplay remains the same, but there's a new campaign and locations to explore. You'll find new job types as well, which include multi-stage projects.
You're not alone in your work as you get ready to explore a wide range of new tools. This includes every item you can think of in the power washing line. Grind through the dirt and mud to design your new home base and spruce it up with trinkets and furniture.
You can join a friend to go through a shared campaign online and split-screen co-op. It will be exciting to find out what FuturLabs has planned for us all with the upcoming sequel.
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Destructoid Tuesday, October 7, 2025 2:07 PM
Manor Lords had a legendary launch last year but has since faded from the memory a bit, I'll admit. A new patch may bring it right back to the forefront of many minds, though. I recently played the game again, and now I can't wait for the new update.
Is this an update or an overhaul?
There's a lot coming with the next patch, and it honestly feels like a full-on overhaul mod rather than a patch. I mean, for one, enemy settlements are coming to Manor Lords. So yeah, want to go claim a neighboring territory? You'll need to lay siege to a keep, most likely.
This mechanic definitely still needs some work, but by the time this update reaches the stable branch, it's going to change the game quite a bit.
Food and resources are also changing, becoming far more detailed. Meat is getting split into mutton, beef, game, etc. There are a lot more veggies on the way, too, so we can finally feed our citizens something other than carrots, the poor souls.
Pigs also actually produce decent meat now; it used to be two per 150 days, which is not worth it and definitely strange. After the update, they'll produce two meat per month, so it's a really nice passive income we can finally actually use.
Villager AI has also been updated, so hopefully I've found my hunter absent and on the literal other side of the map for now reason for the last time (yeah, this happened to me very recently).
How to play the Manor Lords update early?
If you'd like to experience the patch, even if it is unfinished for now, you can follow this guide to get started. Just be aware that you may experience bugs, and you'll most likely need to remove your mods, which could cause the game to crash.
It's also a good idea to back up your saves, which you can find using the filepath:
Just be sure to replace the bit in the block brackets with your Windows Username, of course.
If the game doesn't update, try restarting Steam, which should work.
If you'd like to see the full patch notes, check out Slavic Magic's post on Steam. Hopefully, we won't have too much longer to wait until it reaches the stable branch!
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Destructoid Tuesday, October 7, 2025 1:42 PM
Valor Mortis is running its first playtest, and I was lucky to have been invited to try the game out early and see what it's all about. We gave it our Best Gamescom 2025 Announcement award this summer, and were thus excited to see more. And we certainly aren't disappointed.
Hopping into this pre-alpha build of the game, I didn't really know what to expect. Most of my excitement came from its stunning visuals and art direction, though its advertised Soulslike vibes piqued my interest as well. Yes, yes, I've written about Soulslike fatigue and all that, and I stand by what I said, but I still believe the formula can be improved, expanded, and upgraded, which Valor Mortis is certainly trying to do.
Transporting the perspective from the traditional third-person or side-scroller, Valor Mortis puts you in medias res from the first-person, fighting gruesome undead and corrupted Napoleonic soldiers in the aftermath of massive early 19th-century battles. You yourself are a soldier who perished during one encounter, thrown into a mass grave with many others.
But you were saved by a strange presence and a substance stranger still, which instills you with great powers, and corrupts the world around you.
The game unfolds much like a traditional Soulslike: parries, dodges, and stamina management are key in each fight; bonfires act as checkpoints in disguise; mini-bosses and items reward exploration; and a final boss marks the end of a stage. It's all very recognizable, but Valor Mortis' perspective shift adds a lot of depth to the overall combat and has you experience the horrifying nature of war from up close.
Leveling comes from picking up Souls, which are then spent at Bonfires. Healing is essentially an Estus Flask, of which you gain extra charges via gameplay and refill them at Bonfires. The Dark Souls influence is immense here, which is by no means a bad thing.
Enemies are varied, from melee to ranged and from human-looking to outright Lovecraftian. Each fight plays out rather differently, and the game forces you to think on your feet and choose to either parry or dodge, whichever is more beneficial in any given fight. Naturally, you can do either all the time, but adapting seems to be the name of the game here.
The preview build is rather short and doesn't give off all the nuances of the game's combat, but it does betray a smart and crafty system that is rather satisfying when it clicks. I will note a lot of floatiness in the movement, both of the player and the enemies, though much more in the latter.
Enemies sometimes just outright teleport your way, lunging in their attacks far more than they seem like they should, but I'll relegate that to pre-alpha bugs and lack of polish rather than core issues with the game.
It's also rather difficult, because that first-person perspective significantly changes how everything unfolds, meaning the game takes a little while longer to get used to compared to the average Souls game. However, when things start clicking and you finally overcome your fear of approaching enemies, even if they're four times your size, the combat becomes incredibly satisfying and fun.
Other than the interesting take on combat via first-person gameplay, Valor Mortis certainly stands out the most with its visuals, both in terms of graphics, art direction, and enemy design.
All three are near-perfect, with the game performing well while running at satisfactory framerates, all while ray tracing is turned on. I didn't experience many hitches or problems, and definitely not during active combat. The art direction, drawing from late-18th and early-19th century Napoleonic aesthetics, is downright perfect for the Gothic horror vibes, which, mixed with Eldritch beings, Lovecraftian body horror, and a bit of Resident Evil's DNA, produces an amazing result.
It achieves the atmosphere, feel, and uneasiness it's striving for, while that first-person perspective, as I've noted above, brings you closer to the terror unfolding on the battlefield.
Though brief, the demo really has me excited about the full release of the game, which should be sometime in 2026. If the floaty bits are polished off, we're standing to get one of the best Soulslike experiences in recent memory, and I cannot wait to see more.
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Destructoid Tuesday, October 7, 2025 1:26 PM
You ready for one final go-round in Black Ops 6? Let's get spooky, then.
The Haunting returns in BO6's season six, which is launching just a little over a month before Black Ops 7. Sporting horror icons like the Predator, Chucky, and Jason Voorhees, The Haunting turns out the lights and turns up the scares with new weapons, modes, and unlockables across multiplayer, Zombies, and even Warzone.
Here's what to play when season six of BO6 drops on Oct. 9.
Table of contents
BO6 season 6 patch notes
The Haunting
The seasonal event The Haunting comes to BO6, Zombies, and Warzone, introducing spooks and scares throughout, like the Chucky Event Pass, where you can unlock the doll and his wife Tiffany as a playable operator.
Three new maps
Gravity (six-vs-six), Rig (six-vs-six), and Mothball (two-vs-two or six-vs-six) will round out the year of maps in BO6, while a seasonally spooky variant of Nuketown called Bootown will add spiders, skeletons, and Jack-o-lanterns around the classic map.
New battle pass
The Predator's Jungle Hunter skin, along with a slew of other rewards, skins, blueprints, and more, will be unlockable in the season six battle pass.
Four new weapons
The Dresden 9mm SMG, Merrick 556 assault rifle, Chainsaw melee weapon, and X52 Resonator special weapon are joining BO6's massive list of loadout options. The SMG is clearly the MP40 under a different name, and it, along with the AR, will be available for free in the battle pass, while the other two will come in-season.
New LTM: Slasher Deathmatch
Special seasonal limited-time mode Slasher Deathmatch will join the fray for season six, with two special variants: Jason (Friday the 13th) and Chucky (Child's Play). Both of the iconic horror slashers will be available and playable inside the modes where you hunt down unsuspecting victims.
Warzone season 6 patch notes
Nighttime Verdansk and Rebirth Island
Who turned out the lights?! Spooky, dark versions of the Warzone maps will be playable during the seasonal event.
Zombie Royale
The classic Haunting event, Zombie Royale, is back in-season, featuring Zombies all over the battle royale map that you have to kill. If you die, you can turn into a zombie and revive yourself to get back in the game.
Casual Z
A casual version of Zombie Royale will feature weaker zombies along with bots that fill up the game with enemy players for a more laid-back experience.
BO6 Zombies season 6 patch notes
The BO6 Zombies story is over, but there's still fun to be had.
New LTM: Haunted Havoc
"Haunted Havoc throws you into a relentless nightmare with lurking Mimics, treat-filled Jack-o'-Lanterns, and the chaos of a forced Rampage Inducer, making zombies faster and more aggressive right from the start," Activision explained. "The undead are getting into the Halloween spirit, too, donning pumpkin heads in place of their usual rotting features, their eyes glowing right up to the end as they go down in a fit of evil laughter."
New GobbleGum
Leaderboard events
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The post BO6 season 6 patch notes – The Haunting, Zombie Royale, new Zombies mode, Jason, Chucky, and more appeared first on Destructoid. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Destructoid Tuesday, October 7, 2025 12:50 PM
The 2nd Anniversary event in FC Mobile introduced special cards for icons and current superstars in the Gallery, which you can get by exchanging your shards.
As of writing on Oct. 7, there are two special teams of promo cards. Two more will be added in the next couple of weeks. The highest price for a card is 1500 shards, while the lowest is 200. As with any event, you can't obtain them all, and this guide will narrow down the best choices as per your budget.
Best FC Mobile 2nd Anniversary players tier list
I have used four tiers to separate the cards. B and C tiers have cards that are 110 and 111-rated, and their stats are inferior compared to 112 and 113-rated cards. However, some of them are great budget choices if you don't have lots of shards. Also, a few exceptions might be 111-rated, but have been placed higher.
S-tier
A-tier
B-tier
C-tier
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Destructoid Tuesday, October 7, 2025 12:50 PM
Having trouble logging in to Steam to play any of Tuesday's new games? It's not just you, and it's not weekly maintenance, either.
Steam is suffering from massive outages right now, as evidenced by users reporting problems on DownDetector and reports all across various social media. And according to CyberNews, it appears to be due to a massive DDoS attack that's targeting several services, including Steam, AWS, Riot Games, and even OpenAI.
Steam usually goes offline or has issues around 5pm CT on Tuesdays, which is when Valve runs weekly maintenance. But this sort of widespread outage definitely seems to be DDoS-related as it looks to be a targeted attack on web service providers and it's affecting many worldwide.
The outages first began at around 7pm CT on Oct. 6, there was another wave in the early morning hours. But this latest one that hit around 11:30am CT feels larger and more serious than the others, with many users unable to sign into Steam at all.
When I try to log in, I'm met with the "Who's Playing?" screen on Steam, and after inputting my credentials, I'm unable to connect to the game at all. If the DDoS attack continues to hit providers like AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Cloudflare, issues may persist for some time.
Either way, gamers looking to play some new titles or favorite classics all the same are unable to at this point in time while Steam struggles with the attack. For now, gamers will have to touch grass for a bit and hope the problem subsides soon.
This is a developing story that we're following in real time, so stay tuned for updates. Destructoid has reached out to Valve for comment about the outage.
Update on Oct. 7 at 12:40pm CT: Steam issues appear to be subsiding for many as they are able to log back in to the service, but your results may vary for the time being.
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Destructoid Tuesday, October 7, 2025 12:41 PM
Many 2XKO players are currently encountering the Vanguard Error, aka code VAN-81, which is preventing them from enjoying the early access.
If you have played the closed beta, you'll be well aware of this issue. The error is typically related to the anti-cheat that powers the 2XKO client. You won't be able to play until you can fix the error and stop it from appearing.
While we wait for a permanent fix, there's a workaround to try in the meantime.
How to fix the Vanguard-VAN-81 error in 2XKO
To solve the problem, we will first need to understand its source. The Vanguard-VAN-81 error typically happens when the anti-cheat fails to load correctly. It should load when you start 2XKO for the first time.
If you can't get it to load correctly, go to the base directory where 2XKO is installed. From there, search for the anti-cheat executable file and delete it. Clear your recycle bin, and start the game. When you begin the Riot launcher and try to start 2XKO, the anti-cheat will install again. You'll need to restart your PC for the process to complete, and this should ideally fix the problem.
If you're still getting the error, the only other solution is to clean install 2XKO and the Riot launcher. To do this, you'll first have to uninstall the game and then the launcher. Then, reinstall the launcher first, and proceed with reinstalling the required files for 2XKO. You'll also notice that Vanguard is being reinstalled as well.
This should solve all the issues you could potentially get with 2XKO's anti-cheat while trying to run the game. There's also a chance for you to encounter problems trying to log in to the server, and try out the solution in that case.
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The post How to fix Vanguard Error in 2XKO – Error code VAN-81 appeared first on Destructoid. |
WGB Tuesday, October 7, 2025 6:40 PM The new Skate game's Early Access has attracted 15 million players, averaging $3 million in revenue. Opinions are split, with veterans critical of the design, while newcomers enjoy its casual fun. |
Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Tuesday, October 7, 2025 5:55 PM A trailer was also released. The post PowerWash Simulator 2 Release Date Announced appeared first on Gaming Instincts - Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism. |
Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Tuesday, October 7, 2025 5:34 PM A trailer was also released. The post Vampire Survivors Update 1.14 Announced appeared first on Gaming Instincts - Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism. |
Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Tuesday, October 7, 2025 5:09 PM According to prominent and reliable leaker billbil-kun on Dealabs. The post Silent Hill 2 Will Reportedly Be Added to PlayStation Plus Extra appeared first on Gaming Instincts - Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism. |
Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Tuesday, October 7, 2025 4:46 PM Announced in a recent blogpost. The post Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 Beta Period Extended appeared first on Gaming Instincts - Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism. |
MonsterVine Tuesday, October 7, 2025 3:00 PM LEGO Party is a rather enjoyable party game that takes the best parts of Mario Party and mixes them with some neat new additions. The way that luck can completely flip a game isn't my favorite thing, but if you don't mind the silliness that comes with this sort of game, there's plenty to do […] |
MonsterVine Tuesday, October 7, 2025 2:00 PM FuturLab is getting ready to spray away the grime once more as PowerWash Simulator 2 officially launches on October 23, 2025, on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC. The studio announced the release date today, accompanied by a brand-new "mandatory training video," which prepares players for their first day on the […] |
MonsterVine Tuesday, October 7, 2025 1:00 PM Developer Singularity 6 is kicking off spooky season in style with Palia's latest major update, Fall Fantasy: The Spiritfest Spectacle (Patch 0.196), bringing a cauldron full of new content, features, and Halloween-themed fun to Kilima Village. The update introduces a gooey new ranching companion, multiplayer ranching, limited-time quests, festive decor, and plenty of treats for players […] |
MonsterVine Tuesday, October 7, 2025 12:00 PM Arc Games and Snapshot Games have announced Frosthaven: Awakening Protocol, the first-ever major content update for the acclaimed Early Access strategy RPG based on Isaac Childres' award-winning board game. Launching October 23 on Steam and the Epic Games Store, the free update introduces an all-new story arc, new heroes, bosses, and more just in time […] |
Level Up Tuesday, October 7, 2025 1:09 PM  Nintendo has unexpectedly released an animated short film on its YouTube channel. The film, titled <em>Close… |