GamersHeroes Wednesday, August 6, 2025 7:22 PM For those in the PlayStation ecosystem, Bohemia Interactive's open-world survival horror hybrid MMO DayZ has made its way to the PlayStation Plus service. The post DayZ Available Now on PlayStation Plus appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
GamersHeroes Wednesday, August 6, 2025 6:24 PM Back from September 16-19 for its tenth annual celebration (a decade of excellence!), the Game Devs of Color Expo 2025 official schedule has been released. The post Game Devs of Color Expo 2025 Full Schedule Released appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
GamersHeroes Wednesday, August 6, 2025 5:17 PM Proving to be elemental devastation incarnate, see Amon in action with the latest official gameplay trailer for Gearbox and 2K Games' Borderlands 4. The post Borderlands 4 Amon Official Gameplay Overview Released appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
GamersHeroes Wednesday, August 6, 2025 2:08 PM The high-octane world of Reikon Games and Deep Silver's FPS METAL EDEN is set to launch for PC and consoles September 2. The post METAL EDEN Launching September 2 appeared first on GamersHeroes. |
Kotaku Wednesday, August 6, 2025 5:33 PM
You can save big on games like Doom, Dishonored, Quake, Prey, Fallout and many more The post QuakeCon 2025's Steam Sale Is Packed With Big Deals On Great PC Games appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Wednesday, August 6, 2025 4:48 PM
When does the BF6 open beta start? How much is the game? Is there skill-based matchmaking? We have all the answers and more The post 7 New Things We've Learned About <i>Battlefield 6</i> Multiplayer appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Wednesday, August 6, 2025 4:10 PM
Min-maxers should know that the main characters of Bravely Default have slight differences The post These Are The Best Jobs For Each <i>Bravely Default HD</i> Character appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Wednesday, August 6, 2025 3:43 PM
A decades-old interview with The Pokémon Company's CEO has put a fan dispute to rest The post Nintendo Of America Once Suggested Pokémon Company Should Give Pikachu Big Naturals, It's Claimed appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Wednesday, August 6, 2025 3:05 PM
Put your luck and skill to the test for these bonafide bragging rights The post Everything You Need To Know About Getting Three-Star Gold Trophies In <i>Mario Kart World</i> appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Wednesday, August 6, 2025 2:56 PM
InXile Entertainment's Brian Fargo talks about the controversial tech spearheaded by his parent company The post Xbox Studio Head Weighs In On Ethical AI Use appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Wednesday, August 6, 2025 1:30 PM
RedOctane is back from the dead and working on multiple 'innovative rhythm-based experiences' The post Original <i>Guitar Hero</i> Devs Are Back With A New Game appeared first on Kotaku. |
Kotaku Wednesday, August 6, 2025 1:12 PM
The dystopian young adult novels pit poor people against one another for rich people's amusement The post MrBeast Wants To Recreate <em>Hunger Games</em> In Real Life: 'I Think That Would Crush' appeared first on Kotaku. |
PCGamesN Wednesday, August 6, 2025 6:10 PM I still don't think it'll happen, but if there was ever a year where Battlefield could finally eat Call of Duty's lunch, it's this year. The excitement levels for Battlefield 6 are super high - at a time where Black Ops 6 lets you execute enemies with a unicorn fart while cosplaying as the alien from American Dad, FPS players are desperate for the more grounded, gritty, large-scale warfare BF6 promises to bring. To give you an idea of just how eager people are to give it a go, more than 50,000 players have been spotted sitting in a server queue for Battlefield 6's beta, which at the time of writing isn't even live yet. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Battlefield 6 preview, Battlefield 6 release date, Battlefield 6 weapons |
PCGamesN Wednesday, August 6, 2025 5:17 PM Call of Duty has just published its latest progress report for its Ricochet anti-cheat program, which is receiving some more upgrades with the release of Black Ops 6 and Warzone Season 5. Activision has also announced that some new security measures are being put in place for PC gamers wanting to play Black Ops 7 when it launches later this year. Two anti-cheat tools, TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot, will be required to play the new COD. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best FPS games, Best multiplayer games, Best single-player games |
PCGamesN Wednesday, August 6, 2025 5:07 PM Lighthouses are bad news, everybody knows that. Just ask Jack from Bioshock. Or Robert Pattinson and Willem Dafoe in The Lighthouse. Or Lena from Annihilation. Across all media—just take those mainstream examples from games, films, and literature respectively—lighthouses are creepy and filled with incomprehensible horror. Static Dread The Lighthouse follows in the eerie footsteps of Bioshock and Dredge with its own spin on the creepy lighthouse genre, mixing Papers, Please style gameplay with old school graphics and that eldritch Lovecraftian horror. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best horror games, Best indie games, Best simulation games |
PCGamesN Wednesday, August 6, 2025 6:16 PM When players hear the words 'Owlcat RPG,' many immediately think of one word: romance. In fact, developers have told me in the past that no game they produced would be a true Owlcat RPG if romance wasn't involved. Warhammer 40k: Rogue Trader is no different. Despite the inability to romance our mechadendrite-endowed friend Pasqal, players have thrown themselves at nearly every other companion possible. However, there was a pretty major bug with Yrliet's romance, and thankfully it's now been squashed. Beware, as major spoilers for romancing the Aeldari ranger follow. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best Warhammer 40K games, Best RPGs, Best space games |
PCGamesN Wednesday, August 6, 2025 3:21 PM How do you make pie in Grow a Garden? We've found some Roblox Grow a Garden pie recipes that focus on just one or two different ingredients. So whether you have a varied garden or curate only the coolest crops, you'll have a way to farm Grow a Garden cooking event rewards whenever the big pig decides to chow down on a tin. If you haven't managed to stock up on crops high up the Grow a Garden seeds tier list, you'll want to keep a close eye on the next Grow a Garden update for your next chance to do so. And if you're wondering what the Gourmet Egg rewards can get you, give the Grow a Garden pets tier list a read while you wait for your next meal to cook. Continue reading How to make pie in Grow a Garden MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best Roblox games, Roblox promo codes, Roblox music codes |
PCGamesN Wednesday, August 6, 2025 3:14 PM How do you make a burger in Grow a Garden? Given it's a game all about growing fruits and vegetables, who can blame you for getting confused? After all, you can't cook up the pets you let roam around your farm. Nevertheless, there are Grow a Garden burger recipes you can follow to get a juicy sandwich for the insatiable pig during the cooking event. Almost every Roblox Grow a Garden burger recipe requires crops high on the Grow a Garden seeds tier list to complete. If you don't have what you need, use the best Grow a Garden stock tracker to be alerted when said seed appears in the shop. Continue reading How to make a burger in Grow a Garden MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best Roblox games, Roblox promo codes, Roblox music codes |
PCGamesN Wednesday, August 6, 2025 3:01 PM Thanks to technological advancements in recent years, new RTS games can offer a truly eyewatering number of units on screen at any given time. If large-scale battles are your thing, you're now well catered for. One of the 2010s' biggest boundary pushers when it comes to unit density was Ashes of the Singularity - a sci-fi strategy game that follows the struggles between a hyperintelligent AI and the heightened 'Post Humans.' Over nine years on from its initial launch, developer Oxide Games has just announced a sequel. Destined to launch next year, Ashes of the Singularity 2 not only introduces a third faction, but it'll aim to be just as technically progressive as its predecessor. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best strategy games, Best RTS games, Best multiplayer games |
PCGamesN Wednesday, August 6, 2025 2:41 PM August 6, 2025: A fresh new Basketball Zero code just landed. What are the new Basketball Zero codes? Stemming from a collaboration with the original owner of smash-hit Roblox sports game Blue Lock Rivals, the legendary developer is now letting you shoot hoops with anime icons big and small. If Roblox is your main source of play, do consider checking out our Blue Lock Rivals codes, Volleyball Legends codes, or Anime Rangers X codes guides. We check more than 100 of the most popular Roblox games for new codes constantly, helping to ensure there's always a steady stream of freebies to grab while you wait for your favorite titles to update. Continue reading Basketball Zero codes August 2025 MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best Roblox games, Roblox promo codes, Roblox music codes |
PCGamesN Wednesday, August 6, 2025 2:06 PM Cheaters are the scourge of any multiplayer game. Whether you're teaming up with your paints or launching a solo mission against the world, coming across a cheater will put a stop to your fun like a wallhacking bullet to your skull. Even worse is team killing, where your teammates get mad for no discernible reason and throw your entire match by killing you or another teammate. Thankfully, PUBG Battlegrounds is taking swift and decisive action against cheaters, team killers, and more online degenerates, banning over 22,000 accounts last week alone. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best battle royale games, PUBG 2 release date, Best multiplayer games |
PCGamesN Wednesday, August 6, 2025 12:49 PM Even though gaming PCs have yet to make the leap to the new PCIe 6.0 interface, work is already underway on not just PCIe 7.0, but now also PCIe 8.0, which looks set to put current PC interfaces to shame. A 16x PCIe 8.0 slot will offer an enormous 1TB/s of bidirectional bandwidth, according to the PCI Special Interest Group (PCI-SIG). To put that figure into perspective, a 16x PCIe 4.0 interface, as used by the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090, peaks at 64GB/s, which is just 1/16 of the bandwidth of PCIe 8.0. It's going to be a long time before we see any of the Nvidia gaming GPUs on our best graphics card buying guide sporting high-speed PCIe 8.0 interfaces, of course, but the performance potential here is immense. In fact, even a basic, single-lane PCIe 8.0 slot would offer as much bandwidth as a 16x PCIe 4.0 slot. Not only that, but a 4x PCIe 8.0 connector, which could be used for an M.2 SSD slot, would offer a peak of 256GB/s of bandwidth, meaning we could be looking at SSDs that can read at 120GB/s in the future, if you can find big enough heatsinks for them, naturally. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 review, Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 review, Best graphics cards |
PCGamesN Wednesday, August 6, 2025 12:37 PM The only thing better than piloting a space ship is being able to build it from the ground up. Luckily, this is exactly what Era One, a brand new adventure set amongst the stars, offers. Something of a spiritual successor to Homeworld, Era One blends base building with resource management and tactical space battles. That's not all, it's coming from the team behind the popular Homeworld 2 mod, The Complex, and it's taking off into early access today. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best RTS games, Best space games, Bets strategy games |
PCGamesN Wednesday, August 6, 2025 12:36 PM When is the Black Ops 6 Season 5 release date? Following up Season 3 was a tough one: huge changes came into play, and the Call of Duty team had quite the job on trying to keep the pace and keep things interesting. Season three brought us a new Zombies map, Shattered Veil, and the final map didn't arrive with Season 4. We got Grief mode instead, with a bunch of new multiplayer and Warzone content to boot. As we get ever closer to Black Ops 7, here's what we expect in the closing chapters of Black Ops 6, including new game modes, maps, and guns. Continue reading Black Ops 6 Season 5 release date and latest news MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Black Ops 6 guns, Black Ops 6 review, Black Ops 6 loadouts |
PCGamesN Wednesday, August 6, 2025 12:09 PM How do you make sushi in Grow a Garden? If Chris. P the gourmand is craving the traditional rice and fish cuisine, you may be wondering how you're expected to appease the big pig. After all, there's no fishing in the Roblox Grow a Garden phenomenon. Not yet, anyway. Fortunately, we have multiple vegetarian Grow a Garden sushi recipes below to help you out. So long as you've been keeping a close eye on the Grow a Garden seeds tier list with each update, you should have what you need for GaG Sushi without needing to set up a Grow a Garden stock tracker. If not, use new Grow a Garden codes, and you might get something worth trading for the correct crops. Continue reading How to make sushi in Grow a Garden MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best Roblox games, Roblox promo codes, Roblox music codes |
PCGamesN Wednesday, August 6, 2025 12:04 PM What are some cool Minecraft build ideas? The sandbox game remains one of the best of all time over a decade on from its release, but such a long time in one game means you might be running out of ideas. We've been there: you've already built a city, a castle, or even a Wild West outpost, so what's next? Luckily, there are plenty of unique builds, farms, and creations out there to inspire your next Minecraft project. Unlike our favorite Minecraft house ideas or Minecraft castles, for example, this list is more varied and contains plenty of inspiration. From a stylish Minecraft Nether Portal to automated farms, from massive decorative builds to homely aquariums, these ideas can be copied directly or simply used to inspire your future Minecraft ideas. Continue reading The best Minecraft build ideas for 1.21.8 MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Minecraft seeds, Minecraft skins, Minecraft mods |
PCGamesN Wednesday, August 6, 2025 12:10 PM How do you make ice cream in Grow a Garden? With no cows in sight, making any sort of creamy dessert for greedy gourmand Chris. P in the premium Roblox offering can be confusing. But where there's a will, there's a way. And we have some easy Grow a Garden ice cream recipes you can follow for some quick rewards. While you're waiting for your cold ice cream to fly out of the bubbling vat, check out the Grow a Garden pets tier list to see if any new eggs are worth picking up. And if you're wondering why your crops look like you, you might need to look into the latest Grow a Garden mutations. Eager for what's coming? Here's what the next Grow a Garden update may bring. Continue reading How to make ice cream in Grow a Garden MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best Roblox games, Roblox promo codes, Roblox music codes |
PCGamesN Wednesday, August 6, 2025 12:09 PM August 6, 2025: We checked for new Mecha Break codes. What are the latest Mecha Break codes? There aren't too many places you can go to get fast-paced, cinematic multiplayer action these days, especially for free. Mecha Break looks to bring everyone's anime dreams to life with its blend of tactical combat and a frankly dizzying array of customization options. As with much in the way of free-to-play, you'll need to grind a bit if you want to reach the apex - we're here to help with that, with Mecha Break codes. The multiplayer game proved extremely popular with its Steam demo earlier this year, and players are lining up to jump back into the action, so check out whether there are free Mecha Break codes below. Continue reading Mecha Break codes August 2025 MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best multiplayer games , Best co-op games, Best upcoming PC games |
Rock Paper Shotgun Latest Articles Feed Wednesday, August 6, 2025 4:00 PM  Lenovo's Legion 5 lineup has been getting consistently better in the last few years since James took a look at the 2022 model, and it's now an OLED gaming laptop that packs a Blackwell GPU. |
Rock Paper Shotgun Latest Articles Feed Wednesday, August 6, 2025 2:27 PM  If you failed to swipe an early access key for this week's Battlefield 6 beta, because you neither signed up via the Battlefield Labs programme before 31st July nor watched Your Favourite Creators play the game during the recent multiplayer reveal, then Don't Sweat It, Soldier, because Drill Sergeant EA Have Your Back in the shape of a last-gasp code giveaway. |
Rock Paper Shotgun Latest Articles Feed Wednesday, August 6, 2025 1:00 PM  We've already shown you how you can save almost $400 on the Lenovo Legion 5 Gen 10, but if you're looking for a little more from your gaming laptop then there's a saving on the Legion Pro, too. |
Rock Paper Shotgun Latest Articles Feed Wednesday, August 6, 2025 12:59 PM  Former Dragon Age executive producer Mark Darrah has posted a sprawling video about the development of Anthem, EA and BioWare's ill-fated mech RPG shoot-me-do. We've heard about this remarkably torrid period in the RPG developer's existence from other ex-BioWare honchos and anonymous sources, but perhaps never quite this extensively: the video tops out at an hour long, and this is just part one. |
Rock Paper Shotgun Latest Articles Feed Wednesday, August 6, 2025 12:31 PM  Look, I know there's an anime fan in a top hat at the top of this tower. I know he'll chuck ninja stars at me if I go up there and disturb him, but that's why I've downed fifteen cups of coffee. I'll just show him this chainsaw and these mail bombs, then we'll get on famously. Oh, come on. I'm the reason this building has water coolers, you know. Fine, I'll wait in the lobby. Right, is anyone sitting here? Good. You here to see the giant purple mecha-execs that loom over the building too? Ah, you're in for a treat. I've had the pleasure a few times now, after first opting to enter their corporate servitude the other day. They'd already lightninged me off the roof the first time, because I told them to stick their offer up their stick-bottoms. Let's just say it was a persuasive recruitment tactic. |
Rock Paper Shotgun Latest Articles Feed Wednesday, August 6, 2025 12:00 PM  It's a good month to be subscribed to Humble Choice, and not just because you get eight Steam keys for the price of one lukewarm Deliveroo. August's headliner is Persona 5 Royal, and honestly, that's enough on its own. |
Siliconera Wednesday, August 6, 2025 6:00 PM
Kadokawa Ascii Research Laboratories will release the Famitsu Game Hakusho 2025, which is a record of domestic and international gaming data. Prices start from 48,400 JPY ($329.05) for a CD that contains the PDF version of the book. [Thanks, Famitsu!]
Famitsu Game Hakusho 2025 will be the 20th anniversary edition of the book, focusing on data and rankings of the Japanese, North American, European, and Asian game markets. It will also include a list of the top 200 best-selling games within Japan from 2005 to 2024. The top three, in order, are: Animal Crossing: New Horizons, New Super Mario Bros. U, and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. All three games are available on the Nintendo Switch.
The book has 382 pages in total, making it rather hefty. As mentioned earlier, the price of the PDF (which comes on a CD) is 48,400 JPY ($329.05). If you want the physical version of the book, that will cost 53,900 JPY ($366.45). For collectors, you can purchase a set of both the physical book and the CD with the PDF, and that will set you back 96,800 JPY ($658.10).
Famitsu Game Hakusho 2025 will come out on August 7, 2025 in Japan. You can buy it via Amazon or Rakuten.
The post Famitsu Game Hakusho 2025 Debuts in August appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Wednesday, August 6, 2025 5:00 PM
Marvelous and XSEED released the first trailers for Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar bachelors and bachelorettes, and they highlight the romance options Sophie and Jules. Both are returning characters from Harvest Moon DS: Grand Bazaar, though the love interests were named Sherry and Ivan in that release.
The Sophie trailer looked at the Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar returning bachelorette first. As before, she's the daughter of Zephyr Town's mayor. As such, she also helps a lot with managing the town's events and socializing with citizens. Two of her heart events are teased in the video.
In the case of Jules, he's a teacher in Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar and the older brother of the other bachelor named Derek. As such, he'll sometimes be gone for parts of the day due to working in other villages with additional students. His heart events reference his work and also feature him talking about his younger brother.
Since these are rolling out one day at a time, we should start seeing the other returning and new characters over the next few weeks leading up to launch.
Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar will come to the Switch, Switch 2, and PC on August 27, 2025, and Harvest Moon: Grand Bazaar is on the DS.
The post First Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar Bachelor and Bachelorette Trailers Appear appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Wednesday, August 6, 2025 4:00 PM
Bandai Namco confirmed the SH Figuarts Super Mario Bros series figures of Mario, Luigi, Bowser, and Yoshi will all return to both Japan and the US in 2026. The Mario, Luigi, and playset with extra accessories will show up first in Japan in February 2026. Bowser and Yoshi will debut in March 2026. The American social media account said these will appear in the US in March 2026. The previous versions are out of print, though they can sometimes be found on stores like Amazon.
In the case of Mario and Luigi, each one comes with a stand with their initial on them and extra hand parts. There are no spare face plates. You get a question block, mushroom, and coin with Mario, and Luigi comes with a brick and red Koopa shell. These are 4,400円 (~$27) each.
The Bowser, Yoshi, and accessory set are more expensive due their extra parts. Yoshi costs 6,600円 (~$45), and he comes with extra eyes, extra saddle parts so Mario or Luigi can ride on his back, a tongue part for his mouth, a hand holding an egg, and an extra spare hand. His stand has a Yoshi egg on it. The Bowser one is 7,700円 (~$52). That comes with two extra mouth parts, one of which includes a fireball, and a spare pair of hands. Finally, the set with extra parts is 6,050円 (~$41). That comes with two Goombas, two green pipes of different heights, two green grass stands, two brick blocks, one question block, two gold coins, and a green Koopa shell.
Here's how all of four of those SH Figuarts Super Mario Bros Mario, Luigi, Bowser, and Yoshi figures look:
And these are the five photos that show what each set comes with.
The SH Figuarts Super Mario Bros Mario, Luigi, Bowser, and Yoshi figures and accessory set will return to the US in March 2026. The Mario, Luigi, and accessories playset will show up in Japan in February 2026, ahead of Bowser and Yoshi.
The post SH Figuarts Super Mario Bros Figures Return in 2026 appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Wednesday, August 6, 2025 3:00 PM
Bandai Namco announced its one of its next Banpresto Crane Game prizes inspired by One Piece will be a Sofvimates figure of Tony Tony Chopper with no hat. It will begin to appear in Japanese arcades on August 26, 2025. It's unknown when we might see it in other regions. However, the Crunchyroll Store already put up a product listing for it with a November 2025 launch window and says it will cost $29.99 there.
This Sofvimates figure of Chopper has no hat on because it's designed to show him after he took a bath. As such, he's got a towel around his neck and is holding a drink. It's based on his appearance from the Whole Cake Island Arc of the series.
Here's a closer look at him.
Like all releases in the Sofvimates line, it is made of soft vinyl. It will also be about the same size. It stands at just about five inches tall (~11cm), though that is mostly due to Chopper's antlers.
While this is one unusual way to see Chopper, another one is coming up in 2026. Season 2 of the live-action adaptation of One Piece will include the character. We've already seen some video clips and teasers. More details may appear during One Piece Day 2025, which will happen August 9-10, 2025.
The One Piece Sofvimates figure of Tony Tony Chopper with no hat will come to Japan on August 26, 2025, with a US release following in November 2025. The anime is streaming on services like Crunchyroll and Netflix, the live-action is on Netflix, and Viz Media handles the manga.
The post New One Piece Sofvimates Figure Shows Chopper With No Hat appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Wednesday, August 6, 2025 2:00 PM
MegaHouse shared release dates and prices for the Hatsune Miku and Meiko figures in its Look Up series. Both will debut in Japan in late February 2026. Neither one is showing up on the US site for the series yet, though some of the storefronts like Amazon and Crunchyroll are showing other recent releases like the Gundam GQuuuuuuX ones. They'll be 4,620円(~$31) each in Japan. AmiAmi is also selling each one for about $26.56.
Like all figures in the line, both Hatsune Miku and Meiko are posed like they're sitting. Their neck is articulated, so you can change the pose a bit. This means you can adjust the sitting position, or make it look like the characters are looking up at you.
Here's how the two MegaHouse Hatsune Miku and Meiko figures will look. First, here's Miku:
And here's what Meiko will look like:
The Look Up figure line often features anime characters, stars of games, and mascots like Vocaloids. For example, Evangelionand Gundam ones appeared in the past. Pokemon ones were only sold at the Pokemon Center.
The MegaHouse Hatsune Miku and Meiko Look Up figures will debut in Japan in late February 2026. We should see them worldwide after that.
The post MegaHouse Hatsune Miku and Meiko Look Up Figures Debut in 2026 appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Wednesday, August 6, 2025 1:00 PM
Poncle announced on social media that the latest Steam public beta for PC players allows Vampire Survivors players to test out online co-op multiplayer. Currently, all live versions of the game only allow local co-op. The beta-devlog channel on the official Discord also offered patch notes for v1.14 going over what to expect from the build.
If someone goes through Steam to access the Vampire Survivors public beta with online co-op multiplayer, they'll need to find the PC version of the game and in their library and head into properties. When there, go to beta. You can opt into v1.14 there. However, before doing so Poncle did recommend backing up your save file so it isn't affected by any negative effects. Once you back up the save and opt into the beta, the developer said to ensure the game and DLC update to get started.
Once you follow those steps, a new "Online" option will appear on the Vampire Survivors PC menu between "Start" and "Adventures" that will let you take part in co-op multiplayer with other Steam players over the internet. The other participants will also need to be taking part in the beta, of course. The other notes about the included confirmation everyone needs to own the DLC to use it, Free Roam is allowed so you aren't all locked onto the same screen unless someone goes to the boss room, you can spectate other players if you die, and there will be Batch level up.
The update also features two new characters, which are spoilers if you want to avoid them ahead of the official announcement. Chula-Reh rolls a dice when you get Rerolls or every 30 seconds. Depending on what you get, you can get a Luck boost (2,3,4, or 5), 77% Curse paired with -777% Luck for 10 seconds (1), or +777% Luck and +77% Speed for 30 seconds (6). Zi'Appunta Belpaese will drop props that can explode and, in rare instances, be a Golden Treasure Chest with a new weapon that you can choose to grab.
Vampire Survivors is available for the Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, PC, and mobile devices. The online co-op multiplayer public beta is on Steam now. The last major update was a free expansion based on Square Enix's SaGa series.
The post Vampire Survivors Online Co-op Public Beta Live on Steam appeared first on Siliconera. |
Destructoid Wednesday, August 6, 2025 4:03 PM
In the never-ending war against hackers in PC gaming, top publishers are enforcing whatever tools they have at their disposal to keep games fair. Call of Duty will soon be joining Battlefield in this regard.
Activision announced today that Black Ops 7 will enforce Secure Boot on PC, in tandem with Trusted Platform Module (TPM 2.0) and its RICOCHET Anti-Cheat system, to hopefully curb the rampant cheating that's been happening in CoD for many years now.
"When you play multiplayer, your PC connects to our servers to enable online play," Activision explained. "If TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot are on, Windows runs a security check at startup. The results of that check are passed to us when you connect, confirming your system hasn't been tampered with. The final check happens on our servers, making it harder to spoof and ensuring the process is secure from start to finish."
Activision was quick to assuage concerns by saying "this process doesn't give us access to your personal files or information," but that it "only verifies that your system booted cleanly."
Some PC FPS players were greeted with a Secure Boot error when attempting to launch the Battlefield 6 open beta client earlier this week, so this may become the industry standard moving forward. Enabling Secure Boot requires entering your PC's BIOS and changing a setting, and it's left many confounded and annoyed.
Personally? I'm good on this Secure Boot stuff, because I can't really be bothered to tinker with my computer's settings. Games like Battlefield 6, and now BO7, will be console purchases for me from now on. I have to use that PS5 Pro for something, anyway.
"Protecting the Call of Duty experience is Team RICOCHET's highest priority," Activision said. "Cheating and hacking are challenges affecting all major games, and we're fully engaged in the industry-wide fight against unfair play. Our goal is clear: to be best-in-class in anti-cheat innovation and effectiveness. It's an ongoing battle, but we're in it for the long haul – and we're not backing down."
The post Just like Battlefield 6, Black Ops 7 will now require an extra security setting on PC to combat hackers appeared first on Destructoid. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Destructoid Wednesday, August 6, 2025 3:56 PM
Madden 26 goes live worldwide on Aug. 14 after a week-long early access, and you can play the game for free during that period if you have a functional EA Play membership.
The only sustained way of playing the early access is to get the Digital Deluxe Edition, which costs notably more than the Standard Edition. This allows you to play seven extra days, which begins on Aug. 7. However, there's an alternate way to play the game (for a limited playtime) for a reasonable amount or for free.
How to play Madden 26 with EA Play trial?
The EA Play trial doesn't allow you to endlessly play Madden 26. That should be possible later in the year if EA Sports follows the same trend of the last few Madden games and adds this to the EA Play catalog, too (making them free to play with the subscription).
While you might not be able to play as much as you want, your EA Play trial guarantees ten hours of gameplay. This includes all game modes available in Madden 26, and you can progress as much as you want (in that time frame).
You can access the trial on your consoles or on PC. If you're on console, complete the following steps.
The process is pretty much the same if you're on a PC.
An important point: the trial version can't be pre-downloaded on any platform. You can download and play it only after early access goes live.
You can choose to convert your trial to a full version. You can do so by upgrading to the Digital Deluxe or Standard Edition. You'll also get a discount on your purchase, which applies to your EA Play membership. In that case, the price of your membership is automatically refunded (indirectly via the discount on your purchase).
If you have purchased the Standard Edition, you can use your trial to play up to 10 hours, and then continue when the full launch happens.
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Destructoid Wednesday, August 6, 2025 3:56 PM
Roblox title Grow a Garden has a fresh cooking event for players to participate in and unlock different rewards, and there's a host of recipes to choose from.
The event caters to Chris P. Bacon's requests, who has a list of 12 different recipes. The recipes use different resources to make, which makes it crucial for players to know the exact details. This will help them make all the required food items and maximize their rewards from the new event.
All Grow a Garden cooking recipes
Grow a Garden already offers a vast array of vegetables and fruits for you to grow. You can mix and match your products to prepare new items and complete Bacon's wishes. You'll find all the required details in the table below. Most of the recipes have different tiers, and higher ones will need more recipes.
The table above is a work in progress, and we will be adding new rarities when we find them. As you prepare the food for Chef Bacon, you unlock various rewards. Common offerings include Watering Cans, Fork Fence, and Mutation Spray Burn, while rarer items like Medium Toy and Gourmet Seed Packs are also on offer.
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Destructoid Wednesday, August 6, 2025 3:50 PM
Co-op PvP shooter Mage Arena is quickly gaining popularity among PC gamers, and players can find their teammates on the game's official Discord.
While it might not be common knowledge for most, there's an official Discord created by developer jrsjams. The Discord server is free and acts as your best go-to place for everything related to Mage Arena.
How to join the official Mage Arena Discord server
Joining the official server is free, but you must create your account (Discord) first. If you already have one, log in to it. Next, click on this link to get the invite, allowing you to join the server.
You can browse through different channels once you're in the Discord servers. All the available channels can be found on the left, serving various purposes. You can use the general channel to discuss the game with the community. This can be about general tips or something you'd like to discuss.
The Find a Party channel is the best place to get new teammates. Mage Arena's primary game mode is Capture the Flag, where two teams of four players battle against each other. You can join random lobbies, but communication is key. You can use Discord to find new allies if you don't have three other friends to team up with. You can also find a sparring partner to contest against in the Colosseum mode.
The channels under the Support section are also helpful, as Mage Arena is in early access. You can report a bug or leave a suggestion for the developers. You'll also find the patch notes for all updates under this section.
Multiple voice channels are also available. If you have teamed up with other players on Discord, you can use these channels to communicate with your allies. Communication is key to winning games in Mage Arena, as is learning the basics.
Always check out the FAQ section to learn more about concepts like spells, game modes, and more. There are 10 spells to learn and master to get one over your opponents. You'll explore different areas of the map to get more resources, but the main objective is to capture your enemy's base.
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Destructoid Wednesday, August 6, 2025 3:44 PM
Roblox title Forsaken lovers has a new MLG Chance skin for players to obtain, and everyone has a fair chance to add the cosmetic to their collection.
This skin is tied to an in-game achievement that has to be completed if you want to earn it. The new skin is available for Chance, one of the many characters available in Forsaken. Let's take a look at how you can get this cosmetic.
How to obtain the MLG Chance in Forsaken
While the skin is obtainable for free, the task is complex. You'll need to complete the Ohh, Baby A Triple! achievement, which involves killing the Killer and his two minions. However, here's the catch: you must kill all three with the same shot.
You can complete the task against any Killer, but your character of choice will also matter. Ideally, the task is to use a character who can skillshot all three simultaneously. As for the map, I've found out it doesn't matter as much. The Killer, on the other hand, has a say.
Of all possible killers to complete the task, Cook Kid is the easiest one (due to how his minions spawn around him). To make matters easier for you, you can play with friends, raising your chances of success.
Having friends will also prevent you from being killed, as the Killer will have multiple targets. Ensure that one of you focuses on the boss and its minions, while others distract him. Once you eliminate all three, the Ohh, Baby A Triple! will be complete. Every member in your party will get the skin.
The skin looks terrific, and so are its animations. It is an amazing item to add for free. Sure, it will take some time, but the job is doable. Having friends will also make the task a lot easier.
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Destructoid Wednesday, August 6, 2025 3:39 PM
Titan Quest 2's early-access build allows you to inflict passive damage on enemies with the help of Ailments, which add status effects on the unfortunate enemies.
Unlike skills that always do direct damage, Ailments function directly. All of them apply different status effects to the enemy. While some of them deal damage over time, others are more focused on debuffs. Additionally, Ailments can also be inflicted on you by an enemy.
Table of contents
All damage-dealing Ailments in Titan Quest 2
Ailments that deal damage function via different status effects in Titan Quest 2. If inflicted, you'll have to clear the status effects or keep taking (or doing) damage.
All non-damage dealing Ailments in Titan Quest 2
These Ailments might not affect the enemy's health, but they allow you to survive longer by disrupting the enemy.
There are a few essential points to keep in mind about Ailments and the status effects they inflict.
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Destructoid Wednesday, August 6, 2025 3:29 PM
Feeling like playing an old game, but not from the times when we talked about video games as "8-bit" or "16-bit"? I have some solid recommendations of great titles released on Steam in 2015 that are not as obvious as The Witcher 3 or Fallout 4. These ones I'll suggest are easy to pick up, cheap, and were decent hits when they released, with two of them becoming long-term franchises years later.
Crypt of the Necrodancer
In 2015, Crypt of the Necrodancer sounded like the perfect mix for a fan of Guitar Hero and Spelunky like myself. It mixes the fast pace of electronic music with rogue-like elements and real-time tactics, forcing you to move around the map and attack monsters matching the beat of dark yet upbeat techno. The music builds up, and you get a damage boost as you stay in the rhythm, kill skeletons and slimes, and get close to running out of time on a stage.
Necrodancer forces you to react in its own timing, which is what makes it fun. It removes the planning during stages that some rogue-like players enjoy, but it's a nice challenge and twist on the genre. I was often caught by surprise by a massive red dragon spitting fire and coming out of my field of vision, which forced me to find the exact position I needed to be to attack it without getting roasted. Getting kills without missing a beat in a packed room is always rewarding.
All enemies have their own movement and attack patterns, so if you're a Souls-like nerd, you'll enjoy Necrodancer even more.
If you feel like you've heard about this game or played it before with another name, it's because it's from the same creators of Cadence of Hyrule, a spinoff themed after The Legend of Zelda and exclusive to the Nintendo Switch. It's essentially the same game as Crypt of the Necrodancer, but with a Zelda skin.
Also, Vocaloid fans will enjoy the original game's Hatsune Miku DLC.
Life is Strange
The game that defined the "story-rich" tag for me, the original Life is Strange is a masterpiece. It received a remaster in 2022, so you can play it today with improvements.
You control Max, an aspiring photographer in school, who learns she can rewind time and change what she just witnessed. Life is Strange is mostly a narrative game where you watch the story unfold and make choices. It's unique because you can rewind time and undo your choices on the spot if you don't like the immediate consequences, so you don't need to save and reload the game if you're curious about more than one outcome. Since the game is about the conflict in the long-term consequences of your choices, which you can't undo, this time rewind mechanic doesn't spoil the story.
While the game is a teenage drama—with bullies, love, and identity as some of its main themes—the gameplay twist makes the plot more interesting even if you're well past your teenage years. The game's first episode is free on Steam, so there's no reason not to give it a try.
Life is Strange got sequels in Before the Storm, Life is Strange 2, Double Exposure, and True Colors, some with worse reviews than others. Luckily for you all new to the series, the original one I'm recommending is the highest-rated on Steam and Metacritic, so you don't need to worry about skipping the story to play the best game in the franchise.
Downwell
I actually stopped writing for a bit to play this one again. Downwell combines everything I love about rogue-likes: it's fast-paced, low stakes, has easy controls, and a difficult progression system with upgrades.
It's an action game where you progress by falling through a well with a white character wearing gun boots. If you shoot the boots, you damage enemies and destroy structures along the way while also slowing down your fall. Your goal is to survive the path to the bottom of each stage.
It's a super lightweight and cheap game on Steam. You'll see it looks like a great game to play on your phone, and you're right. It's also on Android and iOS, which always seemed like the perfect platforms to play Downwell. Not surprisingly, Destructoid gave the game the Best Mobile Game Award in 2015. The simple twist of falling down at high speed to win is enough to make the game interesting, and the randomized upgrades and maps make it timeless and worth spending a few hours on.
Despite being a great game and part of Devolver Digital's celebrated catalog, Downwell never got a sequel.
All the other games listed here are either much cheaper than titles released in 2025 or are constantly on sale. They'll remind you that 10 years wasn't so long ago and that this period had great games you might have missed.
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Destructoid Wednesday, August 6, 2025 2:34 PM
Black Ops 6 still has some juice left in the tank ahead of the next Call of Duty launching this fall, and season five is quite juicy.
With new weapons, maps, and modes coming to multiplayer, along with the final Zombies map launching on day one, season five is a good excuse to get the gang back together for some matches to beat the heat outside.
Here's everything coming in BO6's season five, likely its penultimate season, when it begins on Aug. 7.
Table of contents
BO6 season 5 patch notes
Before all eyes turn to Black Ops 7's full reveal and beta later in August, BO6's season five drops on Aug. 7 and rounds out the Zombies storyline while also bringing a plethora of other additions to multiplayer.
New multiplayer maps and modes
Three new maps arrive at launch in season five, with one coming later at midseason. Runway (medium-sized), Exchange (small-sized), and Black Ops 1 remake W.M.D. are available at launch, while Jackpot (medium-sized) comes later on.
For those looking to try something a little different, new game modes Aim High, Snipers Only, and Cranked Demolition will refresh the fun. Cranked Moshpit, Ransack, and Blueprint Gunfight are returning modes that will appear throughout the season.
Four new weapons
Three new weapons come to BO6 at the launch of season five, including the PML 5.56 light machine gun, ABR A1 assault rifle, and Boxing Gloves melee weapon, while the Gravemark .357 Revolver pistol will be added to the game during the mid-season event. Special new weapon attachments are also coming as part of event rewards.
New Scorestreak
Coming at mid-season, the Combat Bow will offer a new lethal Scorestreak option, returning for the first time since Black Ops Cold War.
Weapon buffs and nerfs
Sick of the same old meta? Me too! Season five's patch has some changes for the multiplayer side of things, like buffs for the Goblin Mk2 and several shotguns, marksman rifles, sniper rifles, and pistols.
To see the full list of buffs, check out the CoD website for more.
New Zombies map
The BO6 Zombies content comes to an end with the final map, Reckoning, on season five launch. The fun adventures of the Zombies crew finish up at the Project Janus Headquarters and will be available to play on Aug. 7 at 11am CT when season five begins.
The new map includes a new Elite enemy, Uber Klaus, which is a zombie in a giant mech suit. But there's also a new Wonder Weapon called Gorgofex, a hand cannon that fires "a slug of Aether-based energy."
Of course, there's a new main quest, special rewards, and other kinds of zombies to deal with. Grief mode and Directed Mode for Reckoning will be coming at mid-season, along with the new Mister Peeks Field Upgrade.
New events
Free rewards are up for grabs throughout August and beyond in season five as part of playable limited-time events.
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Destructoid Wednesday, August 6, 2025 2:34 PM
When Black Ops 6 fades into the past, I think it will go down as a memorable Zombies game in the Call of Duty franchise. And there's one more ride left to take before it's gone.
Here's everything we know so far about the final BO6 Zombies map, "Reckoning," and everything else coming in BO6 Zombies season five on Aug. 7.
Table of contents
BO6 Zombies season 5 patch notes
New map: Reckoning
Take the fight to Janus Towers in BO6 Zombies' final map, Reckoning. The team arrives and all hell breaks loose, leaving the foursome to save the day once more as part of the ongoing CoD Dark Aether storyline.
"The towers' systems appear to be critically damaged, and total failure is imminent," Activision said. "Stabilizing the Aether Reactors seems to be the initial overriding goal, before even greater threats must be faced."
The main quest for Reckoning goes live on Aug. 7 at 11am CT.
New Wonder Weapon: Gorgofex
Reckoning's Wonder Weapon, Gorgofex, is a powerful hand cannon that has some unique capabilities.
"Combining fungal, floral, and insectile traits to deliver precise impact damage and gravity-defying disruption in close quarters, glowing membranes on the weapon show hints of motion and circulation under the surface," Activision said. "The weapon seems to pulse and breathe, with a beating central heart-like organ that 'pumps' energy through the weapon. Due to the saturation of Dark Aether and other unknown energies, the weapon is said to emit faint psychic vibrations."
Shooting Gorgofex will create an area-of-effect damage field that dissipates outward and inflicts damage in a wider area.
New Elite enemy: Uber Klaus
The robot Klaus got a big upgrade for this final mission. Uber Klaus comes equipped with a giant mech suit as the map's new elite enemy, sure to throw a wrinkle in the team's plans.
"The secret Research and Development program of Project Janus appears to have been more evolved than originally thought, developing many more robots in the Klaus Assembly Lab than first anticipated," Activision explained. "The greatest of these threats is the Uber Klaus – a murderous automaton encased in a toughened, bulky exoskeleton – that maintains a cocky attitude, lethal efficiency, and super strength, all directed at newly-programmed threats"
New Field Upgrade: Mister Peeks
Everyone's favorite demented plush bunny is a reward from an in-season event, and is a throwable Field Upgrade that "gleefully attracts normal and Special enemies and attacks any undead within his wandering radius, savaging foes until they explode in a shower of bright confetti. "
New weapons
Four new weapons in season five of BO6 include the PML 5.56 LMG, ABR A1 assault rifle, Boxing Gloves melee weapon, and Gravemark .357 Revolver (mid-season), all with their own camo challenges to unlock.
Reckoning: Grief and Directed Mode incoming
Both Grief and Directed Mode for Reckoning will be coming later on in season five, Activision confirmed.
For the full patch notes, including a large number of bug fixes, visit the CoD website for more info.
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Destructoid Wednesday, August 6, 2025 2:31 PM
The battle royale rages on in Call of Duty: Warzone, alongside Black Ops 6's season five, including an all-new contract that may be building up to something big.
Here's what Warzone fans can expect to play when season five goes live on Aug. 7.
Table of contents
Warzone BO6 season 5 patch notes
Season five for Warzone is a bit light on new content, but the build-up to Black Ops 7 should make things interesting over the coming months, including the opening of the Stadium POI with a new contract.
New contract: Satellite Hijack
This new contract will only be available for the first week of the season, and due to its odd nature, it likely has a lot to do with BO7's reveal. Warzone events and gameplay have been used to unveil new CoD stuff over the past few years, so this year is no different.
"Breach the stadium in possibly the most impressively explosive way possible as you and other enemy squads attempt race (sic) to complete the multi-step Satellite Hijack Contract," Activision said. "Infiltrate the Stadium by any means necessary, confirming the nefarious operations and hidden compound within."
The contract includes some kind of special reward, which will be "available to every member of your squad and usable during the rest of the match as well as permanently placed in your Gunsmith."
New guns
The PML 5.56 LMG, ABR A1 assault rifle, Boxing Gloves melee weapon, and Gravemark .357 Revolver (mid-season) will be entering loadouts all over Verdansk in season five.
New limited time modes
Two new LTMs grace season five, including Stadium Resurgence and Deadline.
Stadium Resurgence is available in week two and includes 36 players dropping into the Stadium POI in short, 12-minute matches. Deadline is built for groups of four and includes both other players and bots in a unique new game type.
"Jump in with your squad and amass as many points as you can between each Circle Collapse," Activision said of the mode. "Naturally, racking up eliminations—by dispatching both human and Bot Hostile Agents— is a key method of increasing your points total, but you're also rewarded with points by completing Contracts, looting supplies, and spending cash at Buy Stations."
Weapon nerfs and buffs
The meta should shift in the new season once weapons are tweaked to shake things up, including buffs for guns like the AK-74, AMES 85, AS VAL, C9, and Jackal PDW, with a nerf to the often-used LC 10.
For the full list of changes, visit the CoD website.
New Ranked Play rewards
Ranked Play continues in season five, with new rewards to be earned by completing the following objectives:
Solos return, but only for NA and EU
Solo BR is coming back in season five, but with a catch. Core Solos will only be available worldwide for 48 hours, and after that, the mode will only be available in the NA and EU regions. Casual BR Solos will be available permanently.
"In North America and Europe, Core Solos was marginally more sustainable than other regions in both phases of testing; however, the mode still suffered from match quality concerns (connection, match times) due to players preferring other available playlists," Activision explained. "In other regions, Core Solos was unable to deliver acceptable match quality. Casual Solos has proven itself to be the more approachable and globally sustainable mode. Keeping this mode live worldwide ensures that solo players everywhere have a healthy, high-quality match experience."
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Destructoid Wednesday, August 6, 2025 2:07 PM
As a life-long Metal Gear Solid fan since I first beat MGS1 as a nine-year-old, I'm a little bit of a purist when it comes to the franchise.
I don't like spinoffs, I don't like the Twin Snakes remake on GameCube, and usually anything without Hideo Kojima's involvement isn't worth my time. Thankfully, Konami's new remake of the iconic MGS3, Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, seems to be worth every second and cent thus far, judging from what I played today.
I got about 40 minutes of hands-on gameplay time with MGS Delta at a special pop-up event in New York City today, and other than the obvious note that the game is gorgeous on Unreal Engine 5, I came away from the experience more excited for the full game than I thought possible.
We were unable to record any pictures or videos, but I got to play the opening moments of the game, which have been faithfully recreated in nearly every way when it comes to cutscenes and presentation. It's the same exact voiceovers and same cutscenes from 2004, but with an unreal coat of 2025 paint that shines with every detail down to the chin hairs on Snake's beard or mud remaining on his suit in cutscenes. And thankfully, the facial motions and mouth movements match up perfectly to the English voiceover, which is a lovely departure from the original title.
Starting out, you get to make the choice of which MGS is your favorite, just like in the original. This time, you can choose anything from MGS1 through MGS5, and each choice gives you unique starting items, such as specific camos or face paints. But then I got into the thick of it, with the clock ticking and little time to play.
Gameplay-wise, the controls have been overhauled and modernized, and they are very different from the original game, but for the better. You can choose between a new over-the-shoulder perspective or stick with the classic camera angles from the OG game, but the new controls are a bit wonky in that regard. Unfortunately, I did not have time to check if you can swap to a classic control scheme.
Playing on PS5 Pro, the new scheme uses L2 to aim (third-person view with an aiming reticle, but you can swap to first-person), R2 to shoot or attack, left and right on the d-pad for items and weapons respectively, and right analog stick to scroll through the options.
Snake can crouch with O, roll with triangle, reload with square, and interact with X. Holding down L1 will make Snake walk very slowly and stealthily to sneak up on foes, and R1 switches Snake into first-person view, just like in the original.
The most intuitive and fun change, for me, is the ability to change uniforms and face paint on the fly, utilizing MGS3's famous Camo Index feature to swap your colors near-instantly (hold up on the d-pad to bring up the on-screen menu as shown above) to blend into the different environments. Snake's health, stamina, and camouflage percentage are at the bottom of the screen at all times, and swapping your camos is not only encouraged but necessary, especially on higher difficulties, as enemies seem to be able to see you from further away.
You can still open up the main menu to select your camouflages manually like in the original, but it's just so simple and easy to swap on the fly The enemy guards are reminiscent of those in Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, which is not all that surprising, and they seem to be a bit more lethal when it comes to combat now, too.
I breezed through the Virtuous Mission portion of the game, saving those cutscenes for my big screen TV at home, but also because I wanted to play the game as much as I could. I messed around with sneaking through cover, using the camo index liberally, and fighting enemies where I could. The tranquilizer pistol has some serious bullet drop-off this time around, and CQC attacks can be done with one tap of the R2 button when you get in close, but I was only playing on Normal difficulty, so I would assume things are tougher on higher ones.
Playing with the new controls and camera angle makes MGS Delta feel like a different but familiar game. Snake feels weightier than before, moving methodically through the battlefield. I also think that tweaking things like the color filter to give it the same hues as the original, or even changing it up to one titled Action Movie, could make for many unique-feeling playthroughs, along with camera angle swaps, different masks and uniforms, and other silly changes.
As I skipped some cutscenes, the new opening credits played, including a newly-recorded version of the classic Snake Eater theme song, with singer Cynthia Harrell returning to put a different spin on it. It was as lovely as ever.
I was able to get to the end of the Ocelot Unit fight when someone in the venue turned on the lights and signified that my time was up, but I can't wait to play more as soon as possible. My main takeaway from my playtime, though, is that this is a very, very faithful remake of MGS3, but with enhancements to the gameplay that better the experience for all players.
I'm sure the mega-purists will find stuff to take issue with (they always do), but for those of us looking to re-live MGS3 with some incredible new visuals, or new gamers who haven't played the original title from 2004, this is looking like a must-play for 2025.
Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater launches on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC on Aug. 28.
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Destructoid Wednesday, August 6, 2025 1:44 PM
The Hybrid Core evolution is now live in EA FC 25, and you have yet another chance to upgrade a lower-rated item for free.
The evolution lets you increase any item rated up to 95, and offers stat upgrades, new playstyles, roles, and more. With so many fantastic options, let's take a look at which card you should pick to include.
Table of contents
EA FC 25 Hybrid Core evolution requirements
Here are the requirements of the Hybrid Core evolution in EA FC 25.
EA FC 25 Hybrid Core evolution upgrades
There are five levels of upgrades, and here are the requirements.
Level 1 upgrades
Level 2 upgrades
Level 3 upgrades
Level 4 upgrades
Level 5 upgrades
Level 1 upgrade conditions
Level 2 upgrade conditions
Level 3 upgrade conditions
Level 4 upgrade conditions
Level 5 upgrade conditions
Best players to use in Hybrid Core evolution
Here are some of the best players to use in this evolution.
Your club's evo chain candidates can provide unique solutions exclusive to your Ultimate Team squad.
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Destructoid Wednesday, August 6, 2025 1:41 PM
Fortnite Chapter Six, season four is bringing a massive wave of bugs and fresh content to the island. Many of the most exciting additions are those featured on the shiny new battle pass.
This season's battle pass has quite a few collaborations featured on it, much more than there usually are, which means there are plenty of epic items you can unlock. If you aren't sure whether this pass is worth getting, reviewing everything it includes will make your choice much easier. Here are all the rewards featured in the Fortnite Chapter Six, season four Shock N' Awesome battle pass.
Table of contents
Fortnite Shock N' Awesome battle pass
Chapter Six, season four is a regular season in Fortnite, which means there are eight skins you can unlock throughout the battle pass. These skins span across 14 pages, and you need 100 levels and to finish a few bonus quests for the secret skin to earn all of them. All of the outfits featured throughout this pass are as follows.
Battle pass pages also always feature an array of accessory items, including Back Blings, Pickaxes, Emotes, and more. Once the pass is live, we'll add all other rewards you can earn here.
Fortnite Shock N' Awesome battle pass secret skin
The Dino Megazord outfit, an amalgam of all the Power Rangers, is the secret skin featured in Chapter Six, season four. Unlike all of the other styles, this one won't be obtainable until Sept. 16, when quests to unlock it will become available.
Are Power Rangers on the battle pass in Fortnite?
Not all Power Rangers are included on the battle pass in Fortnite, but the Green Ranger and the Dino Megazord outfit, which is an amalgam of all the Rangers, are. The rest of the team, including the Red Ranger, Black Ranger, Pink Ranger, Yellow Ranger, and Blue Ranger, will arrive in the Mighty Morphin shop bundle sometime later in August.
How long is the Shock N' Awesome battle pass available in Fortnite?
The Shock N' Awesome battle pass is available to complete from Aug. 7 to Nov. 1. After this date, the battle pass will be removed and replaced by a new one. All items featured on the pass may be added to the shop later, but not until at least eight months have passed, and no items are guaranteed to show up.
If you're not sure what to do after reviewing this season's battle bass, you may want to learn how to favorite a creator, work on earning all Music Pass rewards, and learn how to jam alone using all instruments at once.
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Destructoid Wednesday, August 6, 2025 1:40 PM
2XKO is back at Evo once again for 2025, and thankfully, we were able to talk to the game's director, Shaun Rivera, on all topics big and small, including one of the game's biggest questions—Yordle characters.
Yordles have been a sticking point for me in this game, as I even asked Shaun about it last year at Evo 2024. Back then, their height was still a difficulty, and he talked about how it would be frustrating losing to a character due to something the players were not doing at all, such as having to get over a height difference.
So, talking with him again, I needed to see if his mind has changed since last year regarding the future inclusion of Yordles in-game, and how the team could look at doing it. And it seems like he had a change of heart regarding the small creatures since our initial discussion.
"I'll say that one of the things we're not as excited about is when you're fighting against a character just because of their size, like, oh, man, they're so small that my combos drop, and I have to learn a whole new set of combos just for this one character, right?" Rivera told Destructoid. "And so I think there are tons of ways that we can make a small character work in our game, and we see this in all other kinds of fighting games as well (such as Granblue Fantasy Versus). There are all kinds of ways you can make them work in less frustrating ways."
When I pushed for more information, I touched on a lot of fascinating topics I had seen from my previous interview a year ago on how the team could get around Yordles. One of those was the idea of using Lulu's ultimate to make Yordles bigger, but we both agreed that having larger-than-life Yordles for the sake of including them in-game wouldn't exactly look great visually. I also bought up the two Yordles in a trench coat, which Rivera could only laugh about.
"I think the topic of Yordles comes up a lot because they're really unique to the IP. You know, you love them or you hate them. They're very polarizing, too. And I think there's a real ask for this kind of weird character that people want to play." Rivera continued. "And again, like I mentioned before about the roster, we really want to deliver."
Once again, I had to press Rivera about adding Yordles into the game because of how much of a request there was, including simple ideas like Rumble in his mech. Rivera was coy in his answers, but he left me with a bit of hope.
"If people are like—we really want this type of gameplay or this character—we're gonna find a way."
So maybe there are hopes for Yordles after all, in all shapes and sizes.
Fingers crossed, my fellow Bandle City enjoyers.
The post 2XKO's director is aware players want Yordles and hopes to find a way to include them if we really want them appeared first on Destructoid. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Destructoid Wednesday, August 6, 2025 1:27 PM
Living in New York is expensive as hell, no matter where in the state you are, but being in proximity to Manhattan has its perks, like being able to visit the Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater pop-up in Midtown today.
A few weeks ahead of the release of the MGS3: Snake Eater remake, fans were invited to come try out the game and enjoy some seriously awesome photo ops. I could not say no. I went as a fan, and I lived out a bit of a decades-long dream for an hour or so.
Walking down West 37th street, I immediately spotted an awning with the MGS3 logo from a distance, with a queue of people standing outside, including several in cosplay of Naked Snake, The Boss, EVA, and Ocelot. I felt immediately at home.
Stepping inside, a merch area was set up with exclusive on-site merchandise to pick up. Well, I needed to pre-order it to be shipped later, but the only way to buy them was to have location services turned on for your mobile device and place the orders there. I got a replica FOX unit beret, just like Snake/Big Boss wears at the end of the game. I had to!
Other exclusive merch included an OST vinyl variant, a camo jacket, a t-shirt, socks, and a fanny pack, and only those who showed up today were able to pick it up, or so we were told.
There were some additional items available, like an exclusive pin and a poster that was being signed live by the Konami artist who designed it, for about $85. I abstained, having already spent $25 on the beret and $29 on the train ticket.
Stepping into the next room is when the fun really began. The rectangular room had the iconic scene of Snake and The Boss meeting up in the flower fields before the final battle playing on a loop, projected onto the walls. In the middle of the room were some more flowers to make it feel like you were there, with 10 minutes left until MiGs come to bomb the hell out of the place.
As we waited to be told when our time to play the game was coming up, I was shocked to see none other than Lori Alan, voice actress for The Boss and many other iconic characters (Pearl in Spongebob, news anchor Diane Simmons in Family Guy, many more), step out from behind a curtain in full cosplay. She was greeting and taking pictures with fans, and I made sure to grab my own.
I thanked her for her sacrifice, told her she made me cry my eyes out at 15 years old when I beat MGS3 at launch in 2004, and she said it makes her cry too, but at least she was alive today. I grabbed a picture and then went downstairs to play some MGS Delta, and that capped off what was a whirlwind of a Wednesday morning in Manhattan.
As a lifelong fan of the franchise, it doesn't get much better than that, and I know this for a fact because I saw several people who were there to play the game and pick up some merch getting emotional for a game that clearly means a ton to us.
Although I do believe Snake actor David Hayter was actually on hand, as well. But in true Snake fashion, he kept us all waiting. Damn! I guess I'll have to reintroduce myself to him when the game drops on Aug. 28.
The post The Metal Gear Solid 3 remake pop-up in NYC was every fan's dream mission appeared first on Destructoid. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Destructoid Wednesday, August 6, 2025 1:12 PM
I'm treating Metroid Prime: Remastered as a boring task like washing the dishes or doing paperwork.
The game released over two years ago on the Nintendo Switch, and there's nothing forcing me to play it except my curiosity.
Reddit threads about playing video games and keeping up with your backlog as an adult always end up with someone karma-farming in the comments with a reply like "Games aren't homework. If you don't want to play or are not having fun, don't play it." I could agree with these people, but then I'd also be wrong.
I'm not having fun with Metroid Prime: Remastered. I bought the game because I expected to feel excited about the masterpiece it supposedly is, since the original is the best-rated Game Cube title ever on Metacritic and this Switch remaster has a solid score of 93. On Destructoid, we gave it an 8.5 review score, saying it's "worth your time and cash."
Turns out Metroid Prime: Remastered is as fun as feeling sick during a swing ride. Its narrow passages make me feel claustrophobic. I feel trapped by Samus' suit. The first-person controls on a console are something I'll never get used to. And the non-linear exploration isn't my favorite way of playing any video game. I'll still force myself to play and finish it, though.
What makes me stick to the game isn't peer pressure or avoiding the feeling that I've wasted money on it. It's just curiosity.
Playing with a different mindset
Behind the endlessly respawning swarms of War Wasps and long corridors that lead to early dead ends, there's something in this game a lot of people love. My hope is that he empathy of trying to look at the game through someone else's point of view will make me see Metroid Prime: Remastered in a way I haven't yet. Maybe the fun is in getting lost because I will be happy when I find the right passage. Or despite all the optional content, the fun is in blitzing through rooms of enemies and getting to the main areas quickly. I don't know yet.
I want to explore the game and discover what makes people have fun with it, even if I don't feel the fun. I also like building that empathic connection with things like listening to death metal albums my friends send me, or watching movies I'd never pick if other people didn't tell me it's good.
That empathic connection is buried in what's a mostly unfun game for me, yes, but it's probably worth the price. I'll figure it out. It's not like Metroid Prime: Remastered is a painful experience. It's just boring and sometimes annoying, but I can handle being bored.
We all play boring games
While we think we should have fun all the time with video games, it doesn't happen. There are a lot of unfun moments in games that still keep us playing, and we do that because we know there will be a bigger payoff down the road.
If you've ever played a sixth ranked match of Dota 2 or LoL after a five-loss streak, you know it's not fun, but you still want to play it for mastery or to challenge yourself. I've played the arena brawler Battlerite with friends just to get together online, despite thinking the game is mid. I've farmed PVE maps for countless hours in Guild Wars 2 because I wanted legendary gear, and it wasn't fun at all. You surely had similar experiences farming gear in World of Warcraft, gathering materials in Genshin Impact, and completing the battle pass in Fortnite.
Playing because it's a habit is also incredibly powerful. That's how some people get to the tens of thousands in Candy Crush levels.
Chasing fun when in a video game is a trap. If we, as busy adults with family duties and jobs, think a game is only worth it if it's fun, we're setting ourselves up to be disappointed because not every game comes with that quick dopamine hit. This mindset can get us quickly into a spiral of questioning, "Ok, is this fun? Am I having fun? What is fun? Am I supposed to have fun now? Why am I not having fun? If I'm not having fun, are video games not for me anymore?"
How about games that are boring before they're fun? Veteran players of Diablo, Path of Exile, Pokémon, and many RPGs hate the campaigns and stories that block the endgame. But if everything was always maxed out and unlocked by default, would it be fun for new players to jump into the endgame with no experience or effort at all?
My curiosity with Metroid Prime: Remastered is paying off. Killing enemies and navigating the map will always be an annoying obstacle instead of fun, but I like figuring out the game like a puzzle and realizing where I have to go next to progress in the game. When I finally get to the right room and get a power-up, I understand why some people like playing it.
I also feel like it only happens because Metroid Prime: Remastered is a great game. I don't think I'd force myself to complete a bad game. Or maybe I would just like to learn what makes it so bad.
So, don't start a game or keep playing it, chasing fun. Instead, be open to the experience and think about whether there's anything else you value while playing. It can be getting together with friends despite playing an online game you suck at, or reliving the past by playing your favorite childhood game, or even exploring a complex RPG plot like a book.
The post Metroid Prime: Remastered reminded me fun isn't the only reason to play a game appeared first on Destructoid. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Destructoid Wednesday, August 6, 2025 12:55 PM
TEKKEN 8 had a bunch of new reveals at this year's Evo, including the first gameplay trailer for Armor King, and the reveal of the final season two DLC Character, Miary Zo, who brings a distinct look, a stage, and a milestone for the TEKKEN series.
Before Miary Zo's official reveal, though, we at Destructoid got a sneak peek of the trailer at Evo 2025 and got to talk to multiple members of the TEKKEN 8 development team. This included Kohei Ikeda (Nakatsu), the chief producer and game director, and Katsuhiro Harada, producer and executive game Director on the TEKKEN Project. Producer Michael Murray translated for both Nakatsu and Harada during our interview.
The character's reveal over the weekend has been making headlines in Africa for helping to keep a centuries-old material art from Madagascar alive. Harada and the team told us at Destructoid that the team wanted to keep the authenticity of the region in TEKKEN 8.
"So we actually went to Madagascar, and Madagascar as a whole actually has a very vibrant TEKKEN community who are actively doing like tournaments. And so we, ahead of time, got in contact with some of the people in the community." Harada told Destructoid. "Once we went there, we got to talk to people on the ground, and then also even go to a school, to meet the students and faculty and ask questions about the local culture. At the time, no one knew that they were doing research for a new character."
Murray then went on to further explain Harada and Nakatsu's trip to the region (one which he said he couldn't sadly attend but wished he had), saying that Madagascar is a unique country because of its influences.
"They tried to make it authentic by working with some advisors in the community there to make sure that they're creating something that looks like it would be from that area," Murray told Destructoid. Harada then joined in, saying that "It was quite challenging, but we were able to create something pretty unique, because we actually had someone from the country do the voiceover for it, which was challenging, because it seems that in Madagascar, they don't have a huge industry for voice acting. It's mainly a few people who do voice dubs."
After Harada and the team discussed their process for creating the character and their trip, I wanted to understand the origin of the idea and why they chose Madagascar as the basis for a new original character. Harada and the team were quick in explaining their decisions, as well as how they went about creating characters as a whole.
"Sometimes it's a particular fighting style that we choose, or maybe a certain concept sketch from an artist that starts it off," Harada said. "But for this time, it was more locking in on that region first and deciding that we've never done someone from Africa, so we would like to try it. But then, even within that African area, Madagascar is itself quite unique. So although it's somewhere where most people have heard of before, no one knows a whole lot about it. So we thought that would be a really unique starting point, and that if they go there, they would get some kind of inspiration on a concept to flesh out."
Harada also continued to express his ideas on adding new characters to the game each season and what the team looks to do to make as many people as happy.
"We start off with a roster initially. And although there are many characters that we wanted to put in—we just couldn't, because of the amount of time and resources." Harada told us. "For Season One, the theme was story-based with [things like] the return of Heihachi, but then also, kind of the support characters, story-wise... But for season two, it was more trying to get those fan favorites that still weren't in the game yet, plus doing a new original character no one had seen before. Because we wanted to make something new for a change, but while also trying to please fans who are waiting for their favorite."
Harada also touched on the wider Tekken story when deciding DLC and new characters, considering the game is the longest-running story in video games. And while the story is quite important, it's not the "be-all end-all" when deciding which characters to make.
"The character has to feel unique and stand out, and then we find a way to make it work." Harada told us, but when I asked him further if we can trust his work moving forward considering for the longest time he said Heihachi was dead and would never come back to the game, only for him to appear as a season one DLC character, Harada only said he was "sorry that he did it on purpose" that it was "planned for a bit" to make it a surprise, and for how far we can trust him moving forward?
"It's hard to tell."
The post Harada on creating Miary Zo— TEKKEN's first Madagascar representative appeared first on Destructoid. |
WGB Wednesday, August 6, 2025 5:00 PM Feeling stressed? Put down the lavender oil and pick up a controller. From farming in Stardew Valley to power-washing filth in PowerWash Simulator, I've rounded up 20 scientifically soothing games to help you chill out, zone in, and maybe cry a little (looking at you, Spiritfarer). Whether you need gentle puzzles, cozy vibes, or just something with zero yelling, I've got your digital escape covered. |
Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Wednesday, August 6, 2025 6:02 PM According to the publisher. The post Genshin Impact Will Be Delisted on PS4 appeared first on Gaming Instincts - Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism. |
Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Wednesday, August 6, 2025 5:16 PM A trailer was also released. The post METAL EDEN Release Date Officially Announced appeared first on Gaming Instincts - Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism. |
Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Wednesday, August 6, 2025 5:00 PM Showcases several locations. The post Mafia: The Old Country Gets New 'Vehicles and Villas' Trailer appeared first on Gaming Instincts - Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism. |
Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Wednesday, August 6, 2025 4:41 PM As spotted online. The post Lost Soul Aside Has Officially Gone Gold appeared first on Gaming Instincts - Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism. |
MonsterVine Wednesday, August 6, 2025 1:00 PM Arc Games and Snapshot Games have revealed new details about Chip 'n Clawz vs. The Brainioids, the upcoming action-strategy hybrid from X-COM creator Julian Gollop. The studio announced a Friends Pass feature and full cross-platform play for PlayStation, Xbox, and PC, ensuring that teaming up with friends will be easier than ever. Friend's Pass will […] |