Dec 16, 22:00


GamersHeroes Tuesday, December 16, 2025 7:26 PM
    

Octopath Traveler 0 provides the perfect JRPG comfort food this holiday season.

The post Octopath Traveler 0 Review appeared first on GamersHeroes.


GamersHeroes Tuesday, December 16, 2025 7:17 PM
    

Launching tomorrow, Amazon Games' Lost Ark and its "Winter's Wrath" December update is set to bring new Solo Mode Raids, the South Rimeria Event Powerpass, Freja Holiday event, Store updates, and progressions updates.

The post Lost Ark December Update Coming December 17 appeared first on GamersHeroes.


GamersHeroes Tuesday, December 16, 2025 6:19 PM
    

A gift for all gamers, Acclaim's 2025 holiday card is here, providing a glimpse of their upcoming Q1 2026 lineup.

The post Acclaim Holiday Card 2025 Released appeared first on GamersHeroes.


GamersHeroes Tuesday, December 16, 2025 5:56 PM
    

The Heroes in a Half Shell have made their way to the Nintendo Switch 2 with the release of Super Evil Megacorp's radical roguelike Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate for the platform.

The post Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate Now Available on Nintendo Switch 2 appeared first on GamersHeroes.


GamersHeroes Tuesday, December 16, 2025 4:28 PM
    

Built from real data and a JAXA-backed simulation, historia Inc.'s REAL MOON is now available for the PC via Steam.

The post REAL MOON Now Available on Steam appeared first on GamersHeroes.


Kotaku Tuesday, December 16, 2025 7:40 PM
    

Sonos Beam Soundbar

Experience Dolby Atmos height channels and crystal clear dialogue .

The post Ditch Your Old Soundbar for Good, Sonos Beam Hits Record Low One Week Before Christmas on Amazon appeared first on Kotaku.


Kotaku Tuesday, December 16, 2025 6:40 PM
    

Playstation Dualsense Edge Wireless Controller

Swap stick modules, remap back buttons, and adjust sensitivity curves instantly.

The post Sony Offloads DualSense Edge at Record Low, Pro Gamers Get Elite Controller at Casual Gamer Price appeared first on Kotaku.


Kotaku Tuesday, December 16, 2025 5:40 PM
    

Anker Solix C1000 V2

Recharge 1,024Wh in 49 minutes and power 10 devices at 2,000W output.

The post Anker SOLIX C1000 at Record Low for Christmas on Amazon, Charge 10 Devices With 2,000W Output at Once appeared first on Kotaku.


Kotaku Tuesday, December 16, 2025 3:22 PM
    

Fans and ex-Larian devs are not thrilled to hear the Divinity dev is implementing AI into its workflow

The post Larian's AI Use Has Even <em>Baldur's Gate 3</em> Diehards Speaking Out appeared first on Kotaku.


PCGamesN Tuesday, December 16, 2025 5:00 PM
    

Teenagers in Australia are now unable to access TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat, Reddit, YouTube, and other prominent social media sites - unless they have a VPN.


Siliconera Tuesday, December 16, 2025 7:00 PM
    

The Holy Horror Mansion website and Level-5 social media say we'll see a 2026 event for the

Holy Horror Mansion, bulled as a cross-media project and "Concept Next Yo-Kai Watch," will apparently be fully revealed during a 2026 Level-5 event. The company confirmed the planned Fall 2025 reveal is officially canceled on social media and updated the official English website to go over "merchandise and media developments." 

Like Yo-Kai Watch, Holy Horror Mansion will involve ghosts and spirits and be a JRPG, but the official site bills it as a "ghost craft RPG." The initial teaser trailer for it, which debuted in September 2024, and screenshots on the site also suggested that sort of approach. It follows Ten Lordland, a kid living in a mansion atop an apartment building that finds an unusual camera. After interacting with it, he ends up meeting the first of three ghosts. That green one can enter objects to bring them to life. The blue one can be used to combine objects to turn them into a single object. The pink ghost seems to be able to build worlds/dungeons. However, there's also a suggestion that the De Ville Corp company could exploit ghosts and the supernatural for money.

Here's that official teaser. It featured Santa, Pikotaro, and Avantgardey as the inspiration dancers for the three ghost dances. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDeVTergiQs

This game first came up during the Level-5 Vision 2024 showcase. At the time, a Spring 2025 Holy Horror Mansion cross-media project presentation going over the possible "Concept Next Yo-Kai Watch" game, anime, and merchandise came up. That got delayed to Fall 2025 in June 2025. Now in December 2025, the tentative date for the next event involves a general 2026 window.

Holy Horror Mansion is in development for unspecified consoles and devices, and we could see other media elements like an anime adaptation.

The post 2026 Holy Horror Mansion Cross-Media Event Planned by Level-5 appeared first on Siliconera.


Siliconera Tuesday, December 16, 2025 6:00 PM
    

Crunchyroll Winter 2025 Anime Include Trigun, Jujutsu Kaisen, Frieren

Crunchyroll announced the Winter 2025 anime lineup, and there are lots of seasons of returning shows like Frieren, Jujutsu Kaisen, Oshi no Ko, and Trigun Stargaze and new shows like Hana-Kimi, Tamon's B-Side, and Wash It All Away. Things kick off on December 20, 2025, with Blue Miburo season 2 being the first to show up. However, while we do know a number of new additions, it's also possible we'll still see more announcements and reveals leading up to the end of December 2025 and beginning of January 2026. Someone will need to subscribe to gain access to the simulcasts.  

Here's the full list of all the new and returning Crunchyroll shows that are part of the Winter 2025 anime season. The series are in alphabetical order, with their debut date following each one's name. I also noted if English dubs are confirmed.

  • An Adventurer's Daily Grind at Age 29 (English dub) - January 7, 2026
  • Anyway, I'm Falling in Love with You (English dub) - January 8, 2026
  • Blue Miburo season 2 - December 20, 2025
  • The Daily Life of a Part-time Torturer - January 4, 2026
  • Dark Moon: The Blood Altar (English dub) - January 9, 2026
  • Dead Account (English dub) - January 10, 2026
  • The Demon King's Daughter is too Kind - January 6, 2026
  • Easygoing Territory Defense by the Optimistic Lord - January 7, 2026
  • Fate/strange Fake - January 3, 2026
  • Fire Force season 3 part 2 (English dub) - January 9, 2026
  • Frieren season 2 (English dub) - January 16, 2026
  • Gentle Noble's Vacation Recommendation - January 7, 2026
  • Golden Kamuy final season (English dub) - January 5, 2026
  • Hana-Kimi (English dub) - January 4, 2026
  • Hell's Paradise season 2 (English dub) - January 11, 2026
  • The Holy Grail of Eris - January 8, 2026
  • In the Clear Moonlit Dusk - January 11, 2026
  • The Invisible Man and His Soon-to-be Wife - January 8, 2026
  • Isekai Office Worker: The Other World's Books Depend on the Bean Counter - January 6, 2026
  • Jack-of-All-Trades, Party of None (English dub) - December 31, 2025
  • Journal with Witch - January 4, 2026
  • Jujutsu Kaisen season 3 (English dub) - January 8, 2026
  • Kaya-chan Isn't Scary - January 11, 2026
  • Kunon the Sorcerer Can See - January 4, 2026
  • MF Ghost season 3 (English dub) - January 4, 2026
  • Misanthrope Teaches a Class for Demi-Humans (English dub) - January 10, 2026
  • My Hero Academia: Vigilantes season 2 (English dub) - January 5, 2026
  • Oshi no Ko season 3 (English dub) - January 14, 2026
  • The Outcast - January 2, 2026
  • Roll Over and Die (English dub) - January 8, 2026
  • Sentenced to Be a Hero (English dub) - January 3, 2026
  • Shiboyugi: Playing Death Games to Put Food on the Table (English dub) - January 7, 2026
  • Tamon's B-Side - December 31, 2025
  • There was a Cute Girl in the Hero's Party, so I Tried Confessing to Her - January 6, 2026
  • 'Tis Time for "Torture," Princess season 2 - January 12, 2026
  • Trigun Stargaze (English dub) - January 10, 2026
  • Tune in to the Midnight Heart (English dub) - January 6, 2026
  • The Villainess is Adored by the Prince of the Neighbor Kingdom (English dub) - January 11, 2026
  • Wash It All Away - January 5, 2026
  • You can't be in a Rom-Com with Your Childhood Friends (English dub) - January 5, 2026
  • You and I are Polar Opposites (English dub) - January 11, 2026

Noble Reincarnation: Born Blessed, so I'll Obtain Ultimate Power will also air this season, but Crunchyroll doesn't have an exact date for that yet. 

There are also six anime series that will continue to air throughout this season. Case Closed, aka Detective Conan, and You and Idol Precure are ongoing. Daily Life of the Immortal King season 5, Digimon Beatbreak, SI-VIS: The Sound of Heroes, and To Your Eternity season 3 will all air as usual.

The Winter 2025 anime season starts on Crunchyroll with season 2 of the show Blue Miburo on December 20, 2025.

The post Crunchyroll Winter 2025 Anime Includes Trigun, Jujutsu Kaisen, Frieren appeared first on Siliconera.


Siliconera Tuesday, December 16, 2025 5:00 PM
    

Next Love and Deepspace Nendoroid Is Sylus

Good Smile Company and Paper Games announced a Sylus Love and Deepspace Nendoroid is in the works on Weibo. It is expected to release in June 2026. It is not up for pre-order at Good Smile Company websites or Amazon, but Aitai Kuji is selling it for ¥8,800 (~$57). 

As is common with these figures, the Sylus one comes with three face plates and accessories based on his Love and Deepspace adventures. He also wears the standard Crimson Veil costume he starts with in-game. The three face plates include one in which he is smiling, another with him winking, a third where he's been cut by attacks. He comes with a ruby gem he can hold and a replica of Mephisto, his crow companion, that can perch on his wrist. 

Here is the official image from Weibo that offered a look at some possible poses for the figure.

Sylus is the fourth Love and Deepspace Nendoroid so far. The first was Xavier, and he's already available. Rafayel and Zayne ones are also in the works. This means Caleb is the only love interest to not get a figure yet.

The Sylus Love and Deepspace Nendoroid is in development and expected to launch in June 2026. The game is available on mobile devices.

The post Next Love and Deepspace Nendoroid Is Sylus appeared first on Siliconera.


Siliconera Tuesday, December 16, 2025 4:00 PM
    

Persona 5 Royal Protagonist Figure Includes Limited Edition Option

Good Smile Company opened up pre-orders for both standard and limited edition Pop Up Parade Persona 5 Royal protagonist figures of Ren "Joker" Amamiya. Both options will appear in July 2026 in Japan for ¥5,500 each. The US storefront only shows the limited edition option for $42.99, with a notice saying that will appear in Q4 2026. The previous Pop Up Parade figure of the character was in his Phantom Thief attire, and it is also out of print. 

The two figures feature very similar poses and designs. Each one features the Persona 5 Royal protagonist in his winter Shujin Academy uniform. In each, his left hand is straight at his side and his right one is holding something. In the case of the standard model, he is holding his black glasses in his right hand. For the limited edition, his glasses are on his face and he's holding a Phantom Thieves calling card in his left hand instead.

This is what the standard version of the figure looks like:

And here is the limited edition release:

A number of other Joker items appeared recently too. Bkub Okawa merchandise of the character showed up. A replica of his mask is in the works too.

The Persona 5 Royal protagonist Pop Up Parade standard and limited edition figures will first show up in Japan in July 2026, with the LE coming to the US in Q4 2026. Pre-orders close on January 14, 2026. The game is available on the PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC. 

The post Persona 5 Royal Protagonist Figure Includes Limited Edition Option appeared first on Siliconera.


Destructoid Tuesday, December 16, 2025 5:13 PM
    

Black Ops 7 Christmas skins

You better watch out, you better not die (in Call of Duty), you better not pout, I'm telling you why: Black Ops 7's Naughty and Nice event is here.

The latest seasonal holiday event for BO7 is bringing the gifts, or maybe the lumps of coal, depending on how bad you've been in CoD this year. But the Naughty & Nice event in BO7 is mostly nice, as it brings along a new free weapon and animated camo for gamers to unlock along the way.

Here's the full list of challenges and rewards you can get by playing Naughty & Nice.

Black Ops 7 Naughty & Nice event

BO7 Naughty and Nice event
Image via Activision

There are 10 total challenges to complete in Naughty and Nice, and the two main rewards are the Sokol 545 LMG and Snowfall animated camo. Five challenges are Naughty (sacks of coal) while five are Nice (holiday gifts), and completing the associated challenge allows you to open up whatever is inside (a mystery, for now).

Naughty challenges are for the naughtiest CoD players who only chase down kills and don't care about wins or objectives, while Nice challenges are for those of you who play for the team and not just the individual accolades. But hey, both are needed and necessary!

All 10 challenges can be completed in either BO7 multiplayer, Zombies, Endgame, or Warzone. Just finishing one of the tasks listed below will unlock the reward for it, including everything from emblems, weapon charms, and a blueprint like the Sweet Tooth Peacekeeper Mk1 blueprint and more.

Several of the challenges have to do with playing limited time modes like Snowfight in multiplayer or Holiday Rush in Warzone, so make sure to be in the holiday spirit before logging on.

Naughty challenges and rewards

BO7 Sokol 545 LMG
Image via Activision

Completing all five Naughty challenges unlocks the Sokol 545 LMG.

  • Naughty Challenge 1

    • Multiplayer: Get 200 eliminations
    • Zombies: Eliminate 500 zombies in holiday modes
    • Endgame: Get 500 eliminations
    • Warzone: Get 20 eliminations in Holiday Rush

  • Naughty Challenge 2

    • Multiplayer: Get 10 snowball kills in Snowfight
    • Zombies: Eliminate 500 zombies in holiday modes
    • Endgame: Use snowballs or Cryo-Freeze to freeze 25 zombies in holiday modes
    • Warzone: Get 3 kills with lethals in Holiday Rush

  • Naughty Challenge 3

    • Multiplayer: Get 10 kills with scorestreaks acquired from Care Packages
    • Zombies: Get 50 zombie kills using scorestreaks from present boxes in holiday modes
    • Endgame: Get 50 kills with scorestreaks
    • Warzone: Get 10 kills with killstreaks in Holiday Rush

  • Naughty Challenge 4

    • Multiplayer: Get 25 eliminations using weapons stolen from other players
    • Zombies: Steal Loose Change Essence by going prone in front of a Perk machine 5 times
    • Endgame: Use vehicles to run over and kill 25 enemies
    • Warzone: Get 2 eliminations without dying 5 times in Holiday Rush

  • Naughty Challenge 5

    • Multiplayer: Get 20 kills with fire damage
    • Zombies: Kill 50 zombies with fire damage
    • Endgame: Perform 5 finishing moves
    • Warzone: Get 5 eliminations in a single match 3 times in Holiday Rush

Nice challenges and rewards

Snowfall BO7 animated camo
Screenshot by Destructoid

Completing all five Nice challenges unlocks the Snowfall animated weapon camo.

  • Nice Challenge 1

    • Multiplayer: Earn 40,000 score in Sleighjacked
    • Zombies: Earn 100,000 Essence in holiday modes
    • Endgame: Earn 25,000 Power
    • Warzone: Pick up 4 regular presents in Holiday Rush

  • Nice Challenge 2

    • Multiplayer: Earn 25,000 Holiday Cheer score in Holiday Havoc
    • Zombies: Contribute to 25 Door Buys in holiday modes
    • Endgame: Complete 7 assignments
    • Warzone: Purchase a golden present in Holiday Rush

  • Nice Challenge 3

    • Multiplayer: Win a match in Sleighjacked and appear in the Winner's Circle
    • Zombies: Open 10 present boxes in Holiday Modes
    • Endgame: Clear 5 Guild Strongholds
    • Warzone: Purchase 5 Advanced UAV killstreaks from buy stations in Holiday Rush

  • Nice Challenge 4

    • Multiplayer: Get 25 objective kills in objective modes
    • Zombies: Drop a Mystery Box item for a teammate by meleeing it
    • Endgame: Use the Supply Link ability to resupply 15 armor plates for your squad
    • Warzone: Deploy 10 utility boxes in holiday modes

  • Nice Challenge 5

    • Multiplayer: Call in 10 UAV, Counter UAV, Care Package, or HARP scorestreaks
    • Zombies: Revive or heal yourself or a teammate 5 times
    • Endgame: Use the Crash Cart ability to revive yourself or a teammate 5 times
    • Warzone: Revive or buy back 5 squadmates

The post All challenges and rewards in Black Ops 7 Naughty and Nice event – New LMG and animated camo appeared first on Destructoid.


Destructoid Tuesday, December 16, 2025 5:13 PM
    

Fimbulwinter Stitch, a normal sidearm that uses a model similar to a rocket sidearm in Destiny 2. It has the Dawning logo on the side.

The Dawning's Fimbulwinter Stitch may look like a rocket sidearm, but it uses primary ammo. And though that may be enough to take some of the magic out of the Destiny 2 weapon, its god rolls may make you reconsider.

Though Destiny 2 had its share of Arc sidearms almost religiously before Renegades, the Star Wars-styled expansion brought a pistol with access to great perks for light-blue builds. Here are our god rolls for Fimbulwinter Stitch in Destiny 2, based on data from d2foundry.gg.

Fimbulwinter Stitch PvE god rolls in Destiny 2

The three weapons in Destiny 2's 2025 Dawning:  Fimbulwinter Stitch, Mistral Lift, and Permafrost
Dawning 2025 has three new weapons up for grabs. Image via Bungie

  • Barrel: Smallbore, Corkscrew Rifling, or Polygonal Rifling
  • Mag: High-Caliber Rounds, Flared Magwell, Appended Mag, or Light Mag
  • Third column: Rapid Hit, Trickle Charge, or Supercharged Magazine
  • Fourth column: Voltshot, Jolting Feedback, or Rolling Storm

    • Honorable mention: Kill Clip

This sidearm has quite a few good perks to pore over. In the third column, keep your eyes peeled for Rapid Hit, Trickle Charge, or Supercharged Magazine to help you with reloads. Each perk does it differently: Rapid Hit is a flat boost to reload speed and stability after landing precision hits, while Trickle Charge refills your magazine every time you get or unleash Bolt Charge, and Supercharged Magazine has the same effect while you're Amplified.

If you don't have Arc on your kit, however, Rapid Hit is universal, and you can get mileage out of Loose Change if the perk in your other column has elemental synergy.

The second perk column uses Fimbulwinter Stitch as a generator for your elemental keywords, which works much better if you're using Arc. Voltshot works perfectly to apply Jolt and get a little more add clear on a weapon used for red-bars. Rolling Storm lets you gather Bolt Charge on kills, and Jolting Feedback lets you proc Jolt after shooting an enemy enough times.

Kill Clip appears as a no-frills, universal option for a damage boost, which works even if you don't have anything Arc among your tools. Redirection would have been killer if this were a rocket sidearm, but as it stands, you're likely better off swapping to a different weapon when facing orange bars or above, even with a damage buff. That way, you can use a harder-hitting tool to take down sturdier foes.

All in all, your picks for this weapon will depend on your build and how much (or how little) you'd like to use Arc with it. Renegades brought strong contenders for your Energy slot—Psi Aeterna and Uncivil Discourse chief among them—so there are other items to work into a build, but it's worth keeping a copy of this weapon in your vault.

How to get Fimbulwinter Stitch in Destiny 2

Eva Levante in the Tower as a promotional image for the Dawning 2023.
Eva's little gift for you. Image via Bungie

Fimbulwinter Stitch is only available during The Dawning. It can drop from Distorted Engrams, select event activities, and by opening the gifts you receive after delivering cookies to NPCs, which should drop it at quite a high tier. In addition to the new weapons, this year's event brought two new cookie recipes: Dark Matter Drizzlers for the Dean of the Aionians and Peanut Butter Paw Prints for Archie, giving you two more cookies to bake—and more chances to grab this weapon.

The post Fimbulwinter Stitch god rolls and how to get them in Destiny 2 appeared first on Destructoid.


Destructoid Tuesday, December 16, 2025 5:11 PM
    

Eva Levante in the Tower as a promotional image for the Dawning 2023.

The Dawning is upon Destiny 2, bringing back the classic cookie-baking, recipe-collecting, ingredient-hoarding fun as usual (though without the beloved bounties this year). The tried-and-true tradition of gifting your favorite NPCs for loot remains, though, and this time, the goodies are high-end.

Baking cookies is at the heart of the Dawning. Delivering baked treats to any of the eligible NPCs has a chance of giving you an item called A Gift In Return, and if you're lucky, opening it may get you special versions of the new event weapons.

Opening gifts has been giving us Tier Five versions of the Dawning weapons, which include a returning linear fusion rifle and two powerful newcomers. Knowing the best goodies to make is vital, so here's a list of all ingredients and recipes for this year's Dawning.

All Dawning Ingredients in Destiny 2

Dean Rebecca of the Aionians with the Dawning symbol next to them.
This year, you can bake cookies for the Dean of the Aionians. Image via Bungie

Dawning ingredients come in two rarities: Uncommon and Rare. Uncommon materials drop depending on what enemy type you kill, while blue ones drop depending on how you got that kill. The uncommon elements are:

  • Vex Milk: Vex
  • Ether Cane: Fallen
  • Cabal Oil: Cabal
  • Chitin Powder: Hive
  • Taken Butter: Taken
  • Dark Ether Cane: Scorn

That said, there are no ingredients tied specifically to Dread enemies this year, and it may take a while to get there—if Bungie ever adds that to the fold. Until then, we can be happy we don't have to shoot Barrier Grims to bake treats for Ghost or something similar, and I hope I haven't just jinxed that into existence next year.

Archie from Destiny 2's Dawning event.
You can also give Archie cookies, even if he doesn't eat them. Image via Bungie

The list of Rare ingredients is longer, with a litany of different types depending on your weapon (or ability) of choice.

  • Delicious Explosion: Grenades, grenade launchers, and rocket launchers
  • Sharp Flavor: Swords
  • Impossible Heat: Solar damage
  • Electric Flavor: Arc damage
  • Null Taste: Void damage
  • Flash of Inspiration: Picking up orbs of power
  • Personal Touch: Melee abilities
  • Perfect Taste: Precision kills
  • Bullet Spray: Auto rifles, SMGs, and machine guns
  • Finishing Touch: Finishers
  • Balanced Flavors: Pulse rifles, scout rifles, snipers, and bows
  • Multifaceted Flavors: Getting multikills
  • Superb Texture: Super abilities
  • Dark Frosting: Stasis or Strand damage

All Dawning Recipes in Destiny 2

Eva Levante's holiday oven in the Tower, as seen in promotional art for the Dawning in Destiny 2.
Put those ingredients in Eva's oven to make the finest (or weirdest) cookies in the Sol System. Image via Bungie

There are 22 different cookie recipes in the Dawning this year, which we've listed below. All cookies in this list require 15 Essence of Dawning to make, though masterworking Eva Levante's oven brings that number down to 10. You only need to make each recipe once to get this effect, and any recipes from past years carry over.

Cookie Recipient First ingredient Second ingredient
Gjallardoodles Commander Zavala (Tower) Ether Cane Delicious Explosion
Traveler Donut Holes Ikora Rey (Tower) Cabal Oil Flash of Inspiration
Telemetry Tapioca Banshee-44 (Tower) Vex Milk Bullet Spray
Eliksni Birdseed Suraya Hawthorne (Tower) Ether Cane Personal Touch
Gentleman's Shortbread Devrim Kay (EDZ) Ether Cane Perfect Taste
Infinite Forest Cake Failsafe (Nessus) Vex Milk Impossible Heat
Vanilla Blades Lord Shaxx (Tower) Cabal Oil Sharp Flavor
Dark Chocolate Motes Drifter (Tower) Taken Butter Null Taste
Ill-Fortune Cookies Petra Venj (Dreaming City) Dark Ether Cane Impossible Heat
Strange Cookies Xûr (Eternity) Taken Butter Electric Flavor
Lavender Ribbon Cookies Saint-14 (Tower) Vex Milk Personal Touch
Hot Crossfire Buns Ada-1 (Tower) Ether Cane Balanced Flavors
Ascendant Oatmeal Raisin Cookies Eris Morn (Moon) Chitin Powder Finishing Touch
Etheric Coldsnaps Variks (Europa) Chitin Powder Electric Flavor
Blueberry Crumblers Shaw Han (Cosmodrome) Ether Cane Bullet Spray
Bright-Dusted Snowballs Tess Everis (Tower) Chitin Powder Multifaceted Flavors
Classic Butter Cookies Eva Levante (Tower) Taken Butter Superb Texture
Starwort Thins Elsie Bray/The Exo Stranger (Europa) Dark Ether Cane Dark Frosting
Lucent Crunch Fynch (Throne World) Chitin Powder Perfect Taste
Neomun-Pie Nimbus (Neomuna) Vex Milk Dark Frosting
Dark Matter Drizzlers Dean Rebecca (Kepler) Ether Cane Dark Frosting
Peanut Butter Paw Prints Archie (Tower) Dark Ether Cane Balanced Flavors

The Dawning doesn't require you to engage with the event activities (outside of one match of Snowball Fight for the event quest). Instead, it happens passively as you do any activity in Destiny 2. You should get enough ingredients for cookies just by playing, but if you have a special NPC in mind, you can also focus on baking their favorite recipe. And who knows, maybe by next Dawning, we can give treats to Ghost or Aunor.

The post All Dawning Recipes and ingredients in Destiny 2 appeared first on Destructoid.


Destructoid Tuesday, December 16, 2025 5:07 PM
    

The Cold Snap update in ARC Raiders has added a fair amount of new items, and you can add the Shaker to create new tunes in the freeze.

If you have been looking for something aside from the Flute to play in ARC Raiders, the Cold Snap update has good news. The Shaker is a peculiar-looking item that can be played to create musical tunes. To do so, you'll first have to find the item, and this guide will provide you with all the necessary information.

How to find the Shaker in ARC Raiders

Sadly, the Shaker doesn't appear to have a fixed location. It can pop up on any of the available maps, and its location will be random. Unlike items like Candleberries, you don't have to depend on the Cold Snap modifier.

Research and Administration building in ARC Raiders
Screenshot and remix by Destructoid

The item appears to be quite rare, and so far, I have only managed to find it once. I found it randomly in a container on one of the floors in the Research and Administration building. I have marked its location on the screenshot above, but it's a pretty popular spot.

The Research and Administration building offers some notable loot that will be immensely helpful to power up your character. It also frequently spawns plenty of keys that allow you to access locked locations on different maps. If you're lucky like me, you can also end up finding the Shaker.

Research and Administration building in ARC Raiders
Research and Administration building in ARC Raiders. Screenshot by Destructoid

Do remember that the Shaker can spawn at practically any location, and you'll mostly find them in different containers. Hence, make sure to breach and search as many containers as possible.

How to use a Shaker in ARC Raiders

The Shaker doesn't have much of a practical use. However, you can use it from the emote wheel if it's present in your inventory.

  • If you're on PC, press the Q button and then hover over to the Shaker.
  • If you're on consoles, you can do the same by pressing the LB (Xbox)/L1 (PlayStation) button.

Be careful since the additional noise can attract nearby ARCs and expose you to incoming heat. In simple words, it's used in the same way as a Flute, and it's not part of any additional quest.

The post How to get and use the Shaker in ARC Raiders appeared first on Destructoid.


Destructoid Tuesday, December 16, 2025 4:54 PM
    

Warzone Holiday Rush tree

CODMAS is here, Call of Duty gamers, and it means it's time for the Holiday Rush in Warzone.

This limited-time mode is all about being Naughty or Nice, and it's got some good potential for fun or just classic XP farming, whatever you're into. Either way, it's time to celebrate the holidays in Warzone by dropping in for a silly, respawn-enabled game mode.

Here's everything you need to know about Warzone Holiday Rush.

Warzone Holiday Rush

Warzone Holiday Rush
Screenshot by Destructoid

The Holiday Rush mode in Warzone is basically a massive version of capture the flag. One team is Naughty and the other team is Nice, with each team having 36 players. The mode is played on small POI sections of Verdansk like the Promenade area.

Periodically, gifts will spawn on the map and the teams have to fight over them. The Naughty team must bring the gifts back to ovens on the map to incinerate the gifts, while the Nice team must capture them to deliver them to Christmas trees. There are two of each of these goals on the map.

Holiday Rush takes place over matches that last 20 minutes long, but the first team to reach 15 presents will win. Whichever team has delivered or incinerated the most gifts wins the match if the goal of 15 is not reached.

Occasionally, a gold present will spawn on the map. Delivering or incinerating it will count as three points, so make sure to prioritize these. Or just sit on a rooftop and farm weapon XP and sniper headshots, it's really up to you. There's also loot caches you can farm for gear and buy stations for you to loot up further.

The mode is straightforward, but also necessary if you want to unlock specific event challenges before it comes to an end, so it's worth knowing what you're getting into when trying to unlock the Sokol 545 or free animated camo that's locked behind the LTM.

Screenshot by Destructoid

Due to the mode's length and play style, it's a great way to farm XP, camo challenges, and weapon levels, along with challenges for the Naughty & Nice limited time event. The mode also supports wall-jumping and grappling hooks, so get in there and have some fun.

The post What is Warzone Holiday Rush? New game mode explained appeared first on Destructoid.


Destructoid Tuesday, December 16, 2025 4:24 PM
    

Baldur's Gate 3 battle scene

The excitement for Larian Studios next title, the gory and visceral Divinity, was hijacked by some AI-related rage on social media today, because not even the Baldur's Gate 3 studio is immune from it.

Larian Studios CEO Swen Vincke was caught heat online earlier today after a Bloomberg interview was published this afternoon, stating how "Larian has been pushing hard on generative AI, although the CEO says the technology hasn't led to big gains in efficiency."

Baldur's Gate 3 Shadowheart
Image via Larian Studios

Bloomberg's Jason Schreier noted that "the use of generative AI has led to some pushback at Larian," but Vincke explained that "at this point everyone at the company is more or less OK with the way we're using it."

"Holy fuck guys we're not 'pushing hard' for or replacing concept artists with AI," he said in a post on X/Twitter several hours after the article went live. "We have a team of 72 artists of which 23 are concept artists and we are hiring more. The art they create is original and I'm very proud of what they do."

Vincke went further, saying how Larian uses generative AI "to explore things" in concept art, like "references, just like we use Google and art books," and "at the very early ideation stages we use it as a rough outline for composition which we replace with original concept art."

It feels like this is quickly becoming the norm in game dev. For example, Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 caught a lot of flak earlier this year for what many view as AI-generated art in cosmetics like calling cards. At that time, Activision put out a statement, and it sounds similar to this Larian situation.

"Like so many around the world, we use a variety of digital tools, including AI tools, to empower and support our teams to create the best gaming experiences possible for our players," Activision said. "Our creative process continues to be led by the talented individuals in our studios."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxzyVeAG00w

Honestly, it seems like this has become a standard in game development. And I don't think it's going anywhere. The demon has been let out of its cage and it's here to stay, for better or worse, since there's little to no regulation on it in general.

If GenAI is used to help creatives with mundane tasks rather than replace them, then it's likely going to continue for the foreseeable future. As it advances, however, the latter seems to become a potential issue, and that's what's scariest about all of this technology.

The post Baldur's Gate, Divinity CEO explains studio's usage of AI for concept art: 'We use AI tools to explore references' appeared first on Destructoid.


Destructoid Tuesday, December 16, 2025 4:15 PM
    

Cold Snap feature on a map in ARC Raiders

The Flickering Flames project has arrived in ARC Raiders along with the Cold Snap update, and there are five different levels to complete.

The Flickering Flames project has five different levels of tasks to complete. At first, you'll only have access to the first level. You'll have to complete one level to proceed to the next.

Completing every level will require you to submit certain items in a specific quantity. This guide will provide you a complete information on what you need to farm to finish the Flickering Flames project.

How to complete all Flickering Flame project levels in ARC Raiders

The tables below have the detailed information about all the tasks as applicable for every level, along with the rewards that you'll get for completing them.

Level 1: Candlelight

Item Req. Quantity Rewards
Empty Wine Bottle 1 5 Winter Crackers
Plastic Parts 25 1000 Creds
Durable Cloth 5 1000 Creds
Candleberries 20 50 Raider Tokens

Level 2: Decorations

Item Req. Quantity Rewards
Candle Holder 3 Blueprint
Light Bulb 3 1000 Creds
Industrial Battery 1 1000 Creds
Candleberries 50 50 Raider Tokens

Level 3: Presents

Item Req. Quantity Rewards
Snap Blast Grenade 5 Blueprint
Duct Tape 10 1000 Creds
Film Reel 1 1000 Creds
Candleberries 60 50 Raider Tokens

Level 4: Beverages

Item Req. Quantity Rewards
Coffe Pot 2 Heal Grenade
Fireball Burner 10 1000 Creds
Water Filter 2 1000 Creds
Candleberries 60 50 Raider Tokens

Level 5: Meals

Item Req. Quantity Rewards
Mushroom 7 Legendary Blueprint
Frying Pan 2 1000 Creds
Music Album 2 1000 Creds
Candleberries 70 50 Raider Tokens

All ARC Raiders Flickering Flames event rewards

The Flickering Flames project isn't your only source of rewards during the Cold Snap update. You can also get various rewards from the Flickering Flames event. To gain the rewards, you'll need to gain Merit. You gain one Merit from every 100XP gained from a raid.

There are 25 levels of rewards to grind for.

Reward Required Merit
Hi-Tech Hiker 600
10 Candleberries 1200
Scanner (Hi-Tech Hiker) 1800
10 Candleberries 2400
Check Compass 3000
10 Candleberries 3600
50 Raider Tokens 4200
Blue Camo (Hi-Tech Hiker) 4800
10 Candleberries 5400
Field Phone (Hi-Tech Hiker) 6000
10 Candleberries 6600
Sprayed Eyes Red 7200
50 Raider Tokens 7800
Orange (Hi-Tech Hiker Color) 8400
10 Candleberries 9000
Mask (Hi-Tech Hiker Variant) 9600
50 Raider Tokens 10200
Yellow Camo (Hi-Tech Hiker) 10800
10 Candleberries 11400
Headgear (Hi-Tech Hiker) 12000
50 Raider Tokens 12600
White (Hi-Tech Hiker Color) 13200
Goggles (Hi-Tech Hiker) 13800
50 Raider Tokens 14400
Space Wrench 15000

The post All ARC Raiders Flickering Flames project requirements and how to complete them appeared first on Destructoid.


Destructoid Tuesday, December 16, 2025 3:42 PM
    

Steam coffee break

December is a lovely time of year. It means cold weather, holiday cheer, game sales, and a whole bunch of recaps from your favorite nosy apps.

PC gamers know full well by now that Steam is the place to be when it comes to gaming. And every year since 2022, Valve has released Steam Replay, which is its version of "Spotify Wrapped" or any of the other year-long recaps that track your data every waking moment.

Steam Replay is coming back for 2025, and we've got the info on how to find yours so you can feel a deeper shame than you thought possible when it shows you just how many hours you spent playing games when you could've been touching grass or something.

What is Steam Replay?

Steam Replay
Screenshot by Destructoid

Steam Replay is a yearly recap of your activity on the PC gaming platform throughout the year. It recaps everything from how many games you played, achievements you unlocked, and even your longest streak of playing games.

How to view your 2025 Steam Replay

Steam Replay Marvel Snap
Screenshot by Destructoid

When it becomes available, you can check your Steam Replay on the official Steam Replay page here. Keep in mind that until the 2025 edition is online, you will see your 2024 version. But as of Dec. 16 at about 2:30pm CT, Steam Replay 2025 can be found on the Steam store home page.

Just make sure you're logged in to your account if you want to view it on web whenever the feature goes live, otherwise, it will eventually appear on the Store tab of the Steam app. And that's when the fun begins.

Stats tracked include playtime split between Windows or Steam Deck, if you participated in betas or play tests, and it gets so detailed that you can even see what games you played and when throughout the year, broken down by month. It's a good time every year to peruse the info.

So, let us know in the comments below what your top games of the year were.

The post How to get your Steam Replay recap for 2025 appeared first on Destructoid.


Destructoid Tuesday, December 16, 2025 3:27 PM
    

Eva Levante in the Tower as a promotional image for the Dawning 2023.

A Destiny 2 adagio says "the line between Light and Dark is so very thin," but the line between Ether Cane and Dark Ether Cane is a lot thicker. These two ingredients are available as part of the Dawning, and you must get at least one of each to get the full taste of the event.

These two are uncommon ingredients in Destiny 2, meaning you have a chance of dropping them whenever you defeat a specific type of enemy. They both appear in the event quest as well, which tasks you with baking Dark Matter Drizzlers and Peanut Butter Paw Prints. Here's how you can get this duo of materials in Destiny 2.

How to get Ether Cane in Destiny 2

The huge wall in The Divide in the Cosmodrome in Destiny 2.
The Cosmodrome is filled with Fallen enemies to take on. Image via Bungie

Ether Cane has a chance of dropping every time you take down a Fallen enemy in Destiny 2, regardless of where in the system you are. If you're just looking to grab a handful of those quickly, we recommend heading to a destination area with Fallen, such as the Steppes and the Divide in the Cosmodrome or Trostland in the EDZ.

If you'd like to farm the Portal while you're at it, however, some Solo Ops activities like K1 and Caldera can have Fallen as the opposing faction, though they rotate daily. You can also pick other activities that have them as your foes, such as Ketchcrash (Arena Ops). The faction modifiers can tell you what foes you're up against.

How to get Dark Ether Cane in Destiny 2

Fikrul the Fanatic in Destiny 2
Take down Fikrul's children for this ingredient. Image via Bungie

The Scorn are corrupted versions of the Fallen made with Dark Ether, so naturally, Dark Ether Cane drops by taking down those enemies. They're on the rarer side as an enemy faction, but you can find them in Nightmare Containment in the Arena Ops playlist or inside the Bay of Drowned Wishes Lost Sector in the Divalian Mists in the Dreaming City, which is our guaranteed spot to farm them.

After you've had enough of those ingredients, you can bake the required pastries for the NPCs. Delivering them has a chance of giving you a special item called A Gift In Return, which may contain event weapons and other goodies.

The post How to get Ether Cane and Dark Ether Cane in Destiny 2's Dawning appeared first on Destructoid.


Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Tuesday, December 16, 2025 3:16 PM