My most anticipated fighting game has an awesome demo out now where you can brawl with a bunch of giant, scarily quick frogs who wreak havoc by slapping you across the face with their tongues or belly flopping onto you. But, it seems, those frogs are proving to be too much of a challenge for players.

The awkwardly titled BREKEKEKEX is a third-person, single-player anime fighting game "vaguely inspired by Smash Bros. and Naruto," according to developer nohost, and it's not hard to see how. All your slashes and special moves are governed by directional inputs rather than button combos, hence the Super Smash Bros. DNA.

Meanwhile, the deadly frogs are what made me exclaim 'holy Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm,' along with the game's anime-style characters and swaying third-person camera that looks absolutely sick in motion.

But BREKEKEKEX's new demo wasn't kind to everyone. "The difficulty curve is for sure too steep though it's encouraging that some people have said it becomes more fun with practice/experimentation," nohost tweets. "The 'tutorial' in the demo was admittedly kinda last minute."

After a handful of fights where you control an agile young guy wielding a spear that can keep enemies at a distance, the game suddenly puts you in the webbed-feet of another frog, which is the fight that's seemingly kicking everyone's butts. "This fight is giving a lot of people trouble," the dev writes. "Without a proper explanation of all the systems it's pretty hard to brute force" - but at least they left a tutorial down below.

Nohost says they'll be tweaking the game before its full launch, but that viral demo might not be up for long. You can download it on Steam if you're interested, then.

As for the rest of the game, there are apparently multiple playable characters outside of stabby anime man and chubby frog, each with their own movesets. "This isn't an RPG. There are no skill trees to grind and no stats to pad. There is only you, your skills, and the weight of your weapon." Or the weight of your croak.

Here are the best Steam Next Fest demos from this year's latest event.

Final Fantasy 14 expansion Evercold is on its way, so it's a great time to take a step back and look at what might just be one of the best raid tiers the MMO has seen to date: the Arcadion.

It's no secret that Dawntrail, as an expansion, left many of us a bit disappointed – I mean, they can't all be Shadowbringers, am I right? It has dipped in and out of a "Mostly Negative" rating on Steam (now sitting at "Mixed" reviews overall). But, still, it didn't go wrong in every delivery.

In fact, its raid series, the Arcadion, is widely regarded as one of the greatest… both for casual players and hardcore fans tackling the Savages.

As a dedicated raider myself, I'm interested to see what Evercold's own raids might bring – and what Square Enix learned from the Arcadion's solid reception. So I ask assistant director Tsuyoshi Yokozawa during a recent interview what the developers are considering carrying over into the next tier.

"Our experience with the Arcadion has served as a firm guideline for our future battle content development," he tells me… which, yeah, makes a lot of sense.

"We would like to strongly carry over the following three points in particular into the next raid series." The first is the "pursuit of unique experiences without fear of risk" – something I'm certainly a fan of.

"What this series has reaffirmed for me is that surprise and novelty are at the very heart of what makes content truly entertaining," Yokozawa explains. This means risk-taking while battle planning and "'prioritizing unprecedented experiences.'"

This might cost more resources, but it's clearly worked with the Arcadion. I don't think I'll soon forget the fight designs from Dawntrail's high-tier raiding, and I'm ready for more of that. I'm also ready for more of the lead's next point – the "creation of boss characters that players can genuinely connect with."

Is he low-key talking about Honey B. Lovely here and how she became a community icon? I'd like to think so.

"Instead of having them exist purely as enemies to defeat, we want to further emphasize portraying their individuality, background, and personality through the battles themselves," continues Yokozawa on raid bosses, "so that they can be appreciated and loved as characters over the long term." This approach is something Square Enix plans "to place even greater importance on" in Evercold.

The third point the assistant director brings up might have a greater effect on us hardcore raiders than anyone else: "designing gameplay that allows for flexible problem-solving."

According to Yokozawa, "Rather than forcing players to utilize a specific strategy, we value leaving in room for players to approach situations in their own way, using their creativity and judgment to overcome challenges." Comparing different statics' clears proves his point, honestly.

Square Enix "will continue to include mechanics where mistakes can lead directly to a full wipe," but the devs "want to be more deliberate about where those moments occur."

They'll do this "by expanding the opportunities for recovery" – think limit breaks, healing, and rezzes. It's all about the feeling "overcoming difficult situations through players' own resourcefulness" gives us as raiders, and I get it.

Just think about how much better a kill feels when you think you've truly contributed to the static's overall ability to get it – it's a feeling I know well as a healer main. It's nice to see devs acknowledge its power.

As Yokozawa concludes, they "always take our players' voices seriously" and are "committed to creating battles that deliver both excitement and a strong sense of accomplishment." The Arcadion serves as proof.

"Of course, we have much to learn from missteps and areas where we reflect and improve – but we take all of that forward as motivation to keep delivering experiences that can only be found in FF14," he admits, before signing off with a heartfelt message: "I look forward to seeing you all on the battlefield in the next challenge. We hope you will continue to look forward to FF14's battle content in the future!"

I know I already am – my fellow static members definitely are, too. All of these points, along with the upcoming job changes, have me at the edge of my seat.

Final Fantasy 14 fans make their own in-game Tinder, with gil-hungry bunny boys and modded cat girls galore.

Out of all the many speedy platformers out there starring Sega's blue blur, Takahashi Iizuka's favorite one is Sonic Adventure 2.

There are dozens upon dozens of Sonic the Hedgehog games out there, and Sonic Team's lead producer Takahashi Iizuka has been involved with several of them over the last three decades. But there's one game he feels was particularly memorable, and I'm not sure many series fans would disagree.

"I have fond memories of all of them, but if I had to pick one, it would be Sonic Adventure 2 from 2001," he says in an interview with Famitsu magazine (thanks, Genki!) "After finishing the previous game, Sonic Adventure, I took the staff with me to San Francisco to work on this game. While the previous project was a large-scale project involving over 100 people, development on Sonic Adventure 2 started with just 11 people."

"Just hearing this might make it sound like it was a tough development environment, but since we were a small team in a new location, I remember that we were all able to work together freely and enjoy the development while supporting each another both professionally and personally," Iizuka adds.

The head of Sonic Team thinks that smooth working environment also contributed to the game's quality because - surprise, surprise - people do better work when they're supported. Sonic Adventure 2 is now an absolute fan-favorite entry that's even inspired a few indie game love letters.

Sonic's 3D outing was so popular, in fact, it even provided the framework for the Sonic the Hedgehog 3 movie, something Iizuka was "really delighted" to see.

Thankfully, unlike many of the other best Sonic games of all time, Sonic Adventure 2 is pretty easily available on PC (Steam) and Xbox Series X|S consoles via backward compatibility.

On the topic of remakes that could potentially bring the beloved games to even more platforms, Iizuka recently said he would "love" to magically remake every Sonic game, but remakes would apparently take just as much time as developing an entirely new instalment.

Sonic fans couldn't wait for Sega's new alternate-reality game – until they spotted the AI training agreement

With ever increasing hardware prices, gamers might be more willing to drop $80 or $100 on GTA 6 than they otherwise would be, according to one analyst.

Fresh off the announcement of the GTA 6 price, we talked to a few gaming analysts about what an $80 Standard Edition and an $100 Ultimate Edition (that paywalls some crucial features) could mean for the Rockstar Games behemoth and the industry at large.

Joost Van Dreunen reckons the slightly higher asking price won't have an effect on how well the game sells. In fact, higher hardware prices across the board might help Grand Theft Auto's case.

"I expect that precisely because gaming hardware has become largely unaffordable for consumers, the existing player base will eagerly spend on those experiences they know will be worth their time," Van Dreunen tells GamesRadar+. "Why spend $1,000 on a new console when you can spend only a fraction on one of the best franchises around?"

Hardware prices are on the up and up. The Steam Machine launches with an eye-watering starting price of $1049, Xbox Series X|S consoles just saw another price bump, and PS5 price tags went up earlier in the year as well - and things aren't slowing down. Valve recently said it doesn't expect component costs to come down any time soon, while Xbox expects prices to multiply in the next year.

"Gaming is increasingly becoming a luxury category. Its economics have historically centered around a winner-takes-most model, and GTA 6 raises the bar again," Van Dreunen adds when asked if the game's price sets a precedent that other companies might follow. "Publishers who can clear it will pull further ahead, and those who cannot will have to compete on distribution instead, finding new channels, bundles, and pricing models to reach players the blockbusters don't."

Multiple retailers drop GTA 6 after physical version is confirmed to be a code in a box

No, it's nothing like the book. Enslaved may be based on a piece of classic Chinese literature (Wu Cheng'en's Journey To The West) but it takes substantial liberties with the source material. Rather, the original text serves as a starting point for a very different kind of adventure – one that, all these years later, might sound familiar. Stop us if you've played this one before: a taciturn, world-weary man reluctantly escorts a smart but naïve young woman across a ruined America. Pockets of human survivors eke out a miserable existence in this overgrown world, no longer the planet's dominant species. The pair's westward journey brings moments of tragedy and hope, as an uneasy alliance steadily blossoms into something more meaningful, before an ending that hangs upon a choice between living a blissful lie or confronting a horrifying truth.

To return to Enslaved after playing The Last Of Us is to be shocked at how many similarities there are between the two. Both feature strangely beautiful future dystopias; both deliberately subvert the traditional pioneer's journey across America; both feature odd-couple central relationships that endeavour to sidestep cliché (and mostly succeed). More pertinently, both display a rare commitment to ludonarrative consistency. Here are worlds that have been meticulously thought through, where every part is congruous to an internal logic.

Almost immediately, you can see the benefit of having your writer and lead actor involved from the start. After a whirlwind opening set-piece, scribe Alex Garland (The Beach, 28 Days Later, Ex Machina) establishes the setup with admirable economy: tech-savvy Trip frees herself from a slave ship, leaving via its final escape pod, before placing an electronic headband on fellow survivor and playable protagonist Monkey while he recovers from the crash. This device, as he learns in painful fashion, forces him to do as she says. Your mission is detailed in a single line: "Get me back to my home, and you can go back to yours."

There's a plausible narrative excuse for ensuring your partner's safety, too: we learn that the headband is tracking Trip's own biometrics, and will deliver a lethal jolt to Monkey should her heart stop beating. "If I die, you die," she says, simply. So in a single cutscene, we have our motivations for both joining Trip and keeping her alive. It's abundantly clear that Garland not only plays games but understands that players have limited patience for this sort of thing. Few story-led games cut to the chase this quickly, but then few story-led games involve the writer from the beginning. Enslaved offers evidence for the case that it's better to knock the story into shape while building the game than it is once most of the work has already been done.

Monkey Magic

Enslaved maintains this snappy pacing throughout its opening hours. Trip's skills as a hacker provide a credible reason for a HUD that allows the player to see Monkey's health bar and his shield, as well as Trip's vital signs. Soon afterward, you're tasked with catching a dragonfly mech that Trip then presses into service as a remote camera, swooping over environments to scan them in advance for hazards and enemies. Thus the game excuses the visual overlays that highlight the detection radii of dormant mechs in the area, as well as the sensor triggers for mines, and waypoints that mark your immediate destination.

Indeed, the sequence leading to its capture serves both useful narrative and mechanical purposes. It's an engaging bit of simple parkour that develops the central relationship, starting to defuse the hostility caused by Trip's coercion and to build a rapport between the leads, while also injecting some necessary levity. Nitin Sawhney's versatile soundtrack, meanwhile, adopts a whimsical, light-hearted tone as Monkey grows frustrated by the elusive bug.

Elsewhere, the first mech encounter highlights both Trip's vulnerability and Monkey's awareness of the dangerous world outside the gated enclaves of the remaining human population. Trip can set off an EMP to temporarily disable the robots that attack her, or create an electronic decoy as a temporary distraction, but Monkey's the only one strong enough to dismantle them. This leads to a neat reversal of the masterslave relationship: in Monkey's domain, it's as important that Trip listen to him as he to her, so explaining a radial command menu that lets Monkey tell Trip when to move and when to stay put. In a game assembled so intelligently, it's a pity developer Ninja Theory doesn't always credit its players with similar smarts. When Trip squeals and struggles to cling on after Monkey's thrown over a gap, it's obvious we need to quickly leap across and pull her up, though a text prompt pops up to spell it out. It's the game's most vexing trait.

Still, Garland's influence is immediately apparent – as, too, is that of Andy Serkis. Whatever it is that allows Serkis to tap so expertly into a simian mindset, it's powerfully evident here. Broad-shouldered and hunched, cloth 'tail' dangling from his belt, Monkey is clearly strong enough to beat seven shades of steel from mechanoid opponents, yet he's also athletic enough to swing easily between poles and vines. And that's before you see him move. He scampers up handholds with disarming speed, and has possibly the most satisfying ladder-climbing animation of its era, nimbly skipping several rungs to reach the top in an instant.

Many saw the game's sticky platforming as a flaw, but it's consistent with the character. Monkey's no Nathan Drake, no boulderer scrabbling desperately across conveniently crumbling rock faces. Sure, he suffers a small handful of scripted falls, but not one is his fault: under your command he's a capable – nay, fearless – climber. It wouldn't make much narrative sense if he was constantly struggling to retain his grip, even if this rather limits the sensation of immediate peril. Happily, there's often a good reason for making haste, whether it's a turret trained on your position or the fact that Trip's in imminent danger.

The same applies to combat. The ferocity with which Monkey smashes mechs to pieces is explained in one terse line – "My parents were killed by a mech attack when I was a kid" – and if his moveset initially seems worryingly simple, it expands over time, his staff doubling as a melee and projectile weapon. Ninja Theory would develop more malleable and responsive combat systems for DmC: Devil May Cry, but there's a thrillingly primal satisfaction to the way Monkey wields his staff. As he prepares for battle, he's a coiled spring; suddenly, that internalised rage bursts forth in every blow, accompanied by rumble feedback in the controller and a loud metallic clank. What it lacks in subtlety, it compensates for in sheer audiovisual force, heightened by slow-mo finishing moves as Monkey lets out a cathartic roar.

Nonetheless, Ninja Theory seems aware that perhaps neither the combat nor the platforming would stand up to long-term scrutiny. Thankfully, neither really has to. Light-but-engaging environmental puzzles present a welcome change of pace: a sequence where Monkey unfurls the sails of a windmill is an undoubted highlight. Later, an ostensibly straightforward climbing section is refashioned into a surprisingly challenging race. If some co-operative leverpulling sequences feel contrived in their arrangement and one or two ideas repeat themselves in the second half, there's usually a fresh context in each case – and even if not, Garland's dialogue is more than up to the metaphorical heavy lifting, while Monkey does the physical equivalent.

And when the pace does slacken, and Enslaved can't quite give us something new to keep our thumbs occupied, it usually finds a way to keep our eyes glued to the screen. When the camera's not pointing you in the right direction, it's providing artful framing for some exceptional environment design, proof that post-apocalyptic themes needn't result in palettes formed exclusively of greys, browns and sickly yellows. You get to climb twisted structures of rusted steel, intertwined with flourishing red and green flora. You can explore a mech graveyard, bounding over what looks like modernist sculpture, but at second glance appears to be a gigantic spinal column. If this is what the world looks like when nature and machinery have claimed co-ownership, perhaps we should leave them to it.

You get to cover a lot of ground in a relatively short time – such that by the time you reach your destination, a mere eight or so hours after the game began, it really feels like you've been on a journey.

It added up to positive reviews but, by most accepted metrics, a flop. A high-concept contemporary sci-fi title based on a literary classic from 16th-century China always felt like a tough sell, and so it proved. And yet its cultural legacy may well resonate longer than its limited initial impact. There are clear signs here of the design thrift that will serve Ninja Theory well in the forthcoming Hellblade – a blockbuster on a relative shoestring. And for all that Enslaved borrows from the Uncharted series, it's clear now that Naughty Dog owes Ninja Theory a debt in return. But then the notion of sharing ideas is rooted in a classic allegorical yarn that espouses the virtues of collaboration and mutual understanding – yes, that original Journey To The West. Who said it's nothing like the book?

This article was first published in issue 283 of Edge Magazine. If you're interested in receiving more just like this direct, subscribe to Edge Magazine.

A new report claims Rockstar Games has no plans to reverse its controversial digital-only GTA 6 release, either at launch or in the months after.

Physical collectors and anyone wanting to actually own the games they spend money on were irked this past Wednesday when Rockstar Games announced that GTA 6's release would be digital only. The developer is selling a physical box, but that simply comes with a digital download code instead of a disc containing the game - so, no reselling or lending it out to a friend.

A widely-circulated email then gave fans false hope. Rockstar Support replied to one worried player by saying, "You will be able to acquire a physical copy during the following months" - a response many misinterpreted as confirmation that a proper physical release would follow GTA 6's November 19 release date.

The Hollywood Reporter has now squashed that false hope and explained Rockstar was referring to the code-in-a-box case when it mentioned a "physical copy" that players could buy in the months leading up to launch, not in the months post-launch. THR claims the internet simply misread the support email and Rockstar Games doesn't have any plans to print discs of GTA 6, citing an anonymous source familiar with the company's plans.

There you have it, then. The most-anticipated game of all time may very well stay digital-only forever - a worrying sign for physical media and anyone concerned about game preservation.

Multiple retailers have said they aren't going to stock the game come November due to its physical edition not actually containing a physical copy, but games analyst Mat Piscatella recently said he doesn't think the lack of disc will hurt GTA 6's sales at all.

More GTA 6 features may have been leaked by Amazon: switchable protagonists, in-game social media, and more

Looking for something excellent to read this weekend? We published over 400 articles on GamesRadar+ this week, but here's our pick of the six stories that you absolutely need to read.

1. A match made in heaven: Star Wars, racing, and roguelikes combine in Galactic Racer

Star Wars has been in desperate need of something a little different ever since the Skywalker Saga collapsed. Perhaps it'll be Galactic Racer that reignites some energy into the franchise, a fast-paced racing game while blurs a development studio's expertise with Burnout and Need for Speed with the sort of lush, cinematic storytelling that Star Wars is known for delivering. We played the game ahead of its October 6, 2026, release date and the early signs are exceptionally promising.

2. Epic Games' CEO has a lot of opinions on Steam AI disclosures. None of them are good.

The use of generative artificial intelligence in video games continues to be exceptionally divisive, if not actively volatile. Recent comments from Epic Games' longtime CEO Tim Sweeney have only inflamed the conversation, as he simultaneously comes to the defense of Gen AI in certain cases and attacks Valve over its requirement that developers publicly flag when the tech has been used on Steam. This story has sparked a lot of discussion, so don't be afraid of adding your voice to the conversation.

3. "It's huge for us": Why Obsidian is finally ready to take Grounded 2 to PlayStation 5

If there's one thing that's clear from Xbox's somewhat messy approach to console exclusivity, it's that live service games will continue to be widely available – all in an effort to help build better, larger communities of players. Grounded 2 is a perfect example of this strategy in action. Obsidian legend Chris Parker walks you through all of it, the promise of the new Into the Abyss update coming this August, and the potential for the studio's survival game to grow to new heights on PS5.

4. What did we learn from the Grand Theft Auto 6 pre-order campaign starting? Rockstar is ready to change open-world games forever

The silence surrounding Grand Theft Auto 6 has been deafening. It's been over a year since the last trailer released, leaving nothing but space for rampant speculation. That's why it was so damn refreshing to see Rockstar come out this week ready to celebrate GTA 6 pre-orders going live. We got some controversial launch details, we got over 60 new screenshots, and even a bunch of new gameplay details. If anything, this is a time to remember that GTA 6 is not only real, but that it's actually coming November 19, 2026.

5. "Destiny 2 fell short of expectations": Understanding the crisis enveloping Bungie

It's been a difficult year for Bungie. The studio has enjoyed the highs of bringing Marathon online and the lows of having to abandon Destiny 2. This week, the crisis at the famed studio behind the creation of Halo hit another bump in the road, as PlayStation CEO Herman Hulst announced a restructure of the organization that has caused widespread layoffs and a massive shift in priorities. It's been disappointing to see the studio (responsible for revolutionizing the FPS genre twice over) impacted in this way, and it's difficult to see where it will go from here.

6. Shigeru Miyamoto created The Legend of Zelda. He has some things to say about the quality of its dungeon design

Shigeru Miyamoto is responsible for bringing some of the most iconic characters and worlds in the video game industry to life. It's rare for him to do interviews, which is why GR+ staff writer Dustin Bailey had to go all the way back to 1999 to find the legend commenting on The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Miyamoto had a revelation during the development of this iconic adventure game, and it's one that clearly reshaped all of the games that followed.

The big news this week in PC gaming was the reveal that Valve's Steam Machine PC-console hybrid costs $1049 for the cheapest model, a figure that sent shockwaves through the gaming community despite the fact that component and thus hardware prices have been historically high for quite some time.

The rapid proliferation of AI data centers has driven the cost of memory through the roof, and when you couple that with global economic instability and high inflation, well, you have both video game consoles and gaming PCs with exorbitant price tags both on store shelves and on the second-hand market. Still, $1049 for the entry level model in a lineup of PC-only gaming consoles is a tough pill to swallow no matter how much we've all got used to everything being ridiculously expensive, but don't expect Steam Machines to drop in price any time soon.

Talking to Digital Foundry, Valve engineer Pierre-Loup Griffais is asked if there's any chance Steam Machine costs will drop when the current RAM shortages are resolved, and he dodges the question but argues that from a business perspective, the current price doesn't make sense.

"There's no point for us to keep hardware at a high price," he says. "It's meant to be an enabler of a stronger connection between people and their games, and not something that we're trying to sell to people for other reasons... [For us], the cheaper the better."

Meanwhile, another Valve engineer on the Steam Machine's hardware team, Yazan Aldehayyat, straight-up downplays the idea of a price drop any time in the near future.

"It's obviously hard for us to predict the future, but we're not optimistic it's going to happen any time soon. Other people in the industry have said as much.

"Obviously, we would love to be able to make the Steam Machine more affordable and reach more people, but I don't want to promise to people that it's coming soon," adds Aldehayyat. "I wouldn't say that this is something that's going to resolve very soon."

If you want something slightly more concrete, or at the very least specific, Micron CEO Sanjay Mehrotra recently estimated that the ongoing RAM shortage will likely continue through 2027 before "gradually" improving in 2028. That doesn't help much if you're looking to lock in a Steam Machine pre-order soon, but it's good to have some idea of when things might start to normalize... well, in terms of the cost of gaming hardware anyway.

$1,049 Steam Machine is still a "good value," Valve engineer says, even though it was supposed to be $789 like the Steam Deck

Halo 3's final Warthog Run is one of the iconic FPS series' most memorable finale set-pieces ever, a thrilling and theatrical conclusion paying homage to Master Chief and Cortana's desperate escape from the exploding ringworld in the original Halo, Combat Evolved. It might surprise you to hear then that lead developers on Halo 3 once strongly disagreed on the direction of the game's finale, with some arguing for the Combat Evolved-inspired Warthog Run it ended up being, and others pushing for a flying mission and homage to Star Wars, of all things.

Don't get me wrong, being the ultimate space opera, Star Wars totally makes sense as an inspiration for Halo, and I wouldn't be at all surprised to hear other battles were inspired by George Lucas's magnum opus, but Halo 3's final mission is such a perfect conclusion and full-circle moment for Master Chief that it feels untouchable. But that wasn't always the case, with Halo 3 campaign design lead Robert Stokes telling FRVR, "one thing we did differently as compared to Halo 2 was to approach the design of the missions with an eye toward the 'fuck yeah!' moments and the 'oh shit…' moments."

That philosophy inspired many of Halo 3's most memorable missions purportedly without much friction, but when it came to the final Warthog Run, Stokes says "there was a bit of a battle over the finale," which is where the aforementioned disagreement needed to be solved.

Specifically, an unnamed lead developer was "really pushing for it to be a flying mission in a banshee," Stokes says, describing an alternate mission where instead of taking the wheel of a Warthog and racing your way through a collapsing Forerunner megastructure, you'd be escaping by flight in an homage to "the escape from the innards of the second Death Star in [Star Wars: Return of the Jedi]."

Coincidentally, or maybe not, the final mission in Halo 4 begins with a flying mission in which you captain the F-41 Broadsword inside a massive Forerunner warship, and that definitely seems like it could've been inspired by Star Wars. Although, I think it's safe to say Halo 3's final mission made more of a splash in the long run, suggesting paying homage to series past is always more reliable than branching off into other IP.

Halo Campaign Evolved's PS5 port has strict split-screen co-op requirements: both players need PSN memberships and Xbox accounts

With GTA 6's physical edition now confirmed to be nothing more than a code in a box, you'd be forgiven for fearing that every AAA game is set to follow suit. Well, it seems Marvel's Wolverine is at least safe from that particular mark of shame. In the wake of a new wave of concerns from game collectors, developer Insomniac Games has confirmed, thankfully, that the physical version is a real one.

"The physical version will include a disc in box," Insomniac says on Twitter, making its stance perfectly clear in response to a question from one concerned fan. In fairness, first-party, Sony-published PS5 games have shown no signs of ditching discs just yet, but here in 2026 you can never be perfectly certain.

GTA 6 (like Mario Kart World before it) has also seemingly opened the gates for $80 games, but that's another path Wolverine won't be following. In response to another player begging the studio not to charge more than $70 for Wolverine, Insomniac simply tweeted a link to the game's PlayStation Store page – where it is, of course, listed for $69.99. You can pay $80 if you really want the Deluxe Edition, though.

Rockstar's next game was likely always going to sell boatloads regardless of price, and it seems unlikely that what's effectively a digital-only launch will slow down GTA 6's momentum at all. Physical game sales are actually slightly up in 2026, but disc-buying hold-outs are still a far, far smaller audience than the one GTA 6 is courting.

Multiple retailers drop GTA 6 after physical version is confirmed to be a code in a box.

GTA 6 theories are like mice. Each time you discover one, you should remember there are about 800 more living in your walls. And they're persistent, as I'm learning now that new screenshots have brushed off GTA fans' half-buried suspicion that a Red Dead Redemption 2 crossover is waiting for them.

Generally, I don't find this idea impossible. Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption are two of developer Rockstar's favorite children, and despite the fact that the franchises take place about 120 years apart, they're narratively linked: rough guys in a rough open-world make morally grey decisions and are allowed to slap prostitutes. GTA has plenty of Red Dead easter eggs, too, like a red John Marston shirt some NPCs can stroll around with in GTA 5.

But this GTA 6 theory is much more substantial than a cute wink and a boardwalk T-shirt. Fans think GTA 6's criminal protagonist Jason is related to Red Dead 2 antihero Arthur Morgan because they both have freckles and kind of a squash-like nose.

The 63 new screenshots Rockstar revealed this week alongside its GTA 6 Ultimate Edition announcement are currently refueling comparisons between the two world-weary men. Rockstar content creator Synth Potato comments on Twitter about the way Jason and Arthur both frown a lot, "Jason could absolutely pass as a direct descendant of Arthur Morgan, he's the spitting image of him."

Twitter account TheCassiniGames agrees in a post with, as of writing, over 33,000 likes, saying "Jason Duval from GTA 6 looks a lot like Arthur Morgan." The accompanying screenshot comparison shows Jason looking like a pouty Calvin Klein model, with a pair of lucite sunglasses, while Arthur Morgan looks like a guy with sun damage who fell off his horse.

I'm sorry, but I just don't see it. There are some situations that make me think, "these are just two white guys" – I have that thought a lot while watching reality TV like Love Island. And I'm thinking it now, partner.

GTA 6 pre-orders live - stock is flying and bundles are hitting the shelves.

Dead or Alive is staging a comeback for the 30th anniversary of the fighting series, but judging by the response from players, the first stage of that return is dead on arrival. Dead or Alive 6: Last Round just launched with $1,700 worth of DLC and very few of the features fighting game fans have come to expect from the genre, and it's taking an absolute drubbing in the Steam reviews.

Dead or Alive 6 originally launched in 2019, and the new Last Round version is billed as the "definitive" edition of the game. It features a photo mode, new costumes, and… well, that's about it. It's otherwise identical to the original, right down to the lack of crossplay or rollback netcode – absences that were odd in 2019, and darn near unforgivable for fighting fans here in 2026.

Last Round will soon get new updates and DLC characters, offering a bit of new life to the original game, but even that's got caveats to annoy existing players. The previous version has been delisted, and there's no upgrade path to Last Round, which means that players who bought the old game will have to spend $40 for the privilege of paying to access the next round of DLC.

At least old DLC purchases transfer to the new game, but new players are going to have a major case of sticker shock when they see that Last Round is launching with 440 pieces of DLC which, according to IsThereAnyDeal, totals out to $1,707.60.

That total is a little unfair to Dead or Alive 6, since it includes both standalone costumes and bundle sets, as well as character unlocks for the free-to-play version of the game, but it's still downright galling to see all this years-old content being sold at its original price. In fact, the character unlocks have actually doubled in price – characters that once cost $4 apiece are now $8 each.

With all those factors in mind, you can probably start to see why the game's 709 Steam reviews are 79% negative. "im usually pretty resilient to koei tecmo greed but this is too far," as the top review puts it. "$40. No new content, just the privilege of being able to spend more money on unrevealed DLC later," another goes.

Dead or Alive 6 is an entertaining fighting game – but like every entry in the series since 5, it's also a vehicle to sell endless arrays of costumes for players trapped in their thirst for the series' cast of anime hotties. If there was any hope that Koei Tecmo would pull back on its aggressive DLC practices with a brand-new series entry on the way, I'm not sure how that hope is going to survive Last Round's launch.

These are the best fighting games you can play today.

The dusty, wet, and unfriendly grime of a survival game doesn't seem like the perfect place to meet a nice acquaintance, but Pocketpair head of publishing and communications John "Bucky" Buckley suggests it might be. Survival games aren't nearly as unwelcoming behind-the-scenes.

Buckley writes on Twitter, "So many people view survival games as competition to each other, and think there is bad blood." But he says that "actually, we all get along really well because we all have something in common! We love survival games!"

It seems Pocketpair developers particularly get along with the teams behind renowned survival games like Rust, Valheim, and Ark: Survival – 10 of these types of popular titles make up the Super Survival Summer bundle available now on Steam. The entire package costs $148.40 in total, which is a 25% discount from the $197.90 these 10 games would have originally cost together.

Still, the Super Survival Summer bundle isn't the most dramatic discount available during the Steam Summer Sale running now through July 9. After all, you can purchase the originally $50.96 Binding of Isaac: Rebirth Complete Bundle for $5.06, a price that should turn your eyeballs into a pair of lucky dice. But about $150 is nevertheless a sweet price to pay for 10 big deal games. In addition to the titles mentioned earlier, and others, the Super Survival Summer bundle contains Palworld, V Rising, and Windrose, and it seems like an ideal opportunity for survival game professionals to grab those games for an easy $15 each.

The Bundle is also the fruit of Buckley's own love for survival games, as he shares on Twitter, "This has been a personal side project of mine since the start of 2026." When a valiant survival game soldier then tells the developer that they already own every game found in the Bundle (it's understandable if this happens to you, too; most of the Bundle's games were cataclysmic internet phenomena at some point), Buckley advises them to "buy it again and gift it to the person you want to punish most in life."

Brutal, but good advice. It comes when we could use it. time. Between rampant layoffs and serious price increases in the video game industry, it's nice to remember our ability to survive.

I've spent 5 hours diving into the Steam Summer Sale with our features editor, and these are the 11 best games on discount I'd recommend.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance and its sequel are games that pride themselves on their historical realism, with a story rooted in 15th century Bohemia wartime, characters based on real-world history, and architecture that closely resembles the buildings that actually stood, and in some cases still do stand, in that region of the world. But if we're talking about the first game specifically, there's one key aspect of the story that developer Warhorse well and truly whiffed, and that's how much in-game time transpired over the course of the main story.

During the epilogue of the first Kingdom Come: Deliverance, Hans Capon asks Henry how long they've known each other, having met near the beginning of the game, when Henry arrives in Skalitz as a refugee. Capon suggests it's only been a couple of weeks since they met, implying the entire main story took place over a matter of some 14 days, meaning in that space of time Henry went from being an orphaned son of a blacksmith with no combat experience to a master swordsman with a body count to rival Nathan Drake's, earning him the trust of nobles to carry out high-stakes missions.

Now, this being a video game, I think most of us went, "Huh, that seems a little unlikely, but so does the premise of pretty much every video game ever made," but not one Twitter user going simply by Paul, who assigned himself the task of mapping out how long Henry's journey actually took, canonically. "Given the KCD saga's (hilariously) tight timeframe, I thought it would be fun to 'map out' just over how much time the main story actually takes place," he says before presenting a quite nifty calendar of events and how much time likely transpired between them.

Admittedly, the space in mind allotted to Kingdom Come: Deliverance is entirely occupied by the riveting events of the second game, and it's been about seven years since I touched the first one, but from what I can tell this calendar seems logical, organized, and well-researched. Paul estimates Henry would be bedridden from his combat injuries escaping Skalitz, not to mention fever likely from infection, for about two weeks, which sounds like a reasonable recovery time.

In Kingdom Come: Deliverance and its sequel, you can sleep in any bed or pile of hay you find around the map, although you'll likely get woken up if you don't own the bed, but that's not relevant to the canonical timeframe of the main story. So Paul maps out how long he reckons each quest takes Henry in terms of the in-game timer, and he does so meticulously ,with "a bunch" of self-imposed metrics accounting for side quests and travel time – not to mention detailed notes of Henry's daily activities. Ultimately, the character's calendar stretches out just beyond two months, which sounds a lot more logically consistent than two weeks, for sure.

"Obviously the results are incredibly subjective," Paul admits. "kcd is a brilliant game in that nearly no two playthroughs are exactly the same. i could've easily failed a skill check that set me back a day, or i could've been attacked by bandits and missed someone before they went to bed, etc.

"I mainly thought this was fun since the in-game world time counter is incredibly inaccurate. it doesn't account for henry's 2 week stint in bed and it skips forward by entire days A LOT (drinking with godwin, theresa's second date, jobst's meeting)."

I'm deeply impressed by Paul's studiousness when it comes to Kingdom Come: Deliverance's world and the illogical pace of its elusive clock, and apparently, so is Warhorse. "At this point you're possibly more organised than we are!" the studio's official Twitter account said in reply to Paul's work. Paul, as any self-motivated superfan would do, decided to then shoot his shot for employment at Warhorse. Henry would be proud.

Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 adds Balatro's Jimbo in a surprise new quest with a huge addition to the RPG's best minigame

Whenever I take a photo of my office and a friend catches a glimpse of the Asus TUF Gaming Hatsune Miku PC accessories spread across my desk, I always get asked about them. That's not surprising as they're absolutely adorable, and the bright turquoise and pink color palette combined with the Hatsune Miku imagery is hard to ignore if you have any semblance of Vocaloid-fandom in your bones.

The set, which includes a mouse, keyboard, wired headset, and a matching mousepad, does suffer from that "style over substance" problem as they typically come at a cost that's more than you'd expect and therefore hard to recommend. However, I have good news for my friends and fellow anime dweebs, as the entire set now starts from just $24.99 at Amazon, and it's all thanks to Prime Day.

The Asus TUF Gaming Hatsune Miku line isn't going to equip your desktop rig with the most high-end accessories, however, it will massively up the cute factor of your setup, especially if you're a Vocaloid fan. I'm literally using these very accessories as I type these very words, and the Hatsune Miku imagery never fails to bring a smile to my face, even during the most grueling of work days.

Every piece here feels like it was designed by fans, for fans, which is exactly what you want from an officially licensed collaboration. Yet if I were to pick a favorite piece from this set of PC gaming accessories, it'd undoubtedly be that wireless mouse.

It's a little small for my hands, but it's 134 hour battery has served me well as someone whose PC is constantly in use for both work and gaming. I often forget to turn it off after a long day, and yet it's still able to carry me through for weeks on end.

When it has ever died on me, it's fortunately equipped with tri-mode connectivity, so I just had to simply grab its accompanying charging cable and hook it up to the PC, and it was back in business. That happens pretty rarely however, as that flashing Hatsune Miku icon is always there to remind me when the mouse needs a little boost.

I'm also a massive fan of the mouse mat. Not just because I like having detailed original Hatsune Miku art sitting on my desk, but because it's really easy to clean and wipe away any spills or debris. I'm pretty clumsy and yet still drink many a cup of coffee at my desk, and yet the mousemat has managed to survive unscathed. To this day, the art looks just as vibrant as it did when I first unrolled it.

If these savings and Miku's adorable face have enticed you enough, do be aware that the Prime Day gaming deals are coming to an end, so the above savings won't be around for much longer. If you're as big a Vocaloid fan as I am, and want to inject your PC gaming setup with something more on-brand as you play through Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA Mega Mix+, I recommend you grab it all while you still can.

Want more last-minute savings? Check out the best Prime Day Nintendo Switch 2 deals, the best Newegg Prime Day deals, and the best Prime Day retro gaming deals before they're gone for good.

GTA 6 and a string of other high-profile games might be forgoing discs altogether, but US physical game sales actually grew ever so slightly for the first time in 17 years.

Rockstar Games recently caused a big online hullabaloo after announcing that physical copies of GTA 6 won't actually contain a disc come launch, just a code that lets people download a digital version. Multiple retailers began dropping what will eventually become the biggest game of the year over its code-in-a-box plan, although Circana senior director and prominent analyst Mat Piscatella predicted this won't actually have any impact on sales..

Curiously though, Piscatella also shares that physical game sales in the United States actually enjoyed a rare glimpse of hope – for the first time since 2009's feverish peak, dollars spent on physical game releases shot up year-on-year by 3%.

US new physical video game software spending. 12 months ending May 2007-2026:

— @matpiscatella.bsky.social (@matpiscatella.bsky.social.bsky.social) 2026-06-26T16:27:48.105Z

Physical game sales have been on a big decline since 2009's $11.5 billion record, but now "spending is up by 3% in the 12-month ending May 2026," according to Piscatella. Don't be too quick to celebrate now, collectors. This uptick is apparently not a sign of things to come, he says.

"The overwhelming majority of volume is done digitally now," Piscatella writes on social media. "The second hand market... doesn't really matter. More than half of all Xbox Series consoles in the US don't have a physical drive, while over a quarter of PS5s are the same. We likely have less than a decade left of physical software." Ominous indeed.

GTA 6 ignoring a real physical release is also worrying since the Rockstar Games behemoth is guaranteed to sell consoles, especially since it's not immediately coming out on PC, but many prospective console buyers might opt for hardware without disc drives thanks to the game's digital-only launch. I can only imagine that'll further snowball the death of boxed games, our ability to share them with people in our real lives, the preservation of art, and, you know, our ownership over the things we've paid for.

Analysts expect GTA 6 could sell up to 30 million copies at launch, but are unsure if it can "surpass the incredible longevity and massive sales of 5" in the long run.

With games seemingly getting bigger all of the time, speculation about the GTA 6 GB size is already starting to ramp up, with players wondering just how much of their hard drive space they'll need to clear out come November 2026 to accommodate Rockstar's magnum opus. While nothing is confirmed at this stage, we can look at previous releases and current trends to make an educated prediction, so here's what I think the GTA 6 file size will be.

To get yourself ready, we've broken down all of the GTA 6 weapons and GTA 6 cars identified so far, along with the GTA 6 locations you can visit.

How big will the GTA 6 download be?

While it's too early to definitively know any details, we can all agree that GTA 6 is going to be huge – and that will no doubt translate to a significant download and install size. If you've seen the elements of the GTA 6 map that have been pieced together so far then you'll know that an expansive setting is on the cards, and with a diverse range of locales from bustling city to mountain wilderness that means plenty of unique textures, sounds, and more to squeeze in.

To make some comparisons, the base file sizes for Grand Theft Auto 5 and Red Dead Redemption 2 are in the region of 100-110GB these days, though that does include years of accumulated updates and additions. To take a more recent example, Starfield will currently occupy around 125-140GB of your hard drive, depending on what extras you have installed.

Considering current trends, I would make a conservative estimate that the GTA 6 file size will be at least 120-130GB, and could easily be significantly more. A 2024 post from @GTA6Intel linking to a now-deleted story claimed the file size would be closer to 200GB, but take that with a pinch of salt.

Another consideration is that the physical edition will only include a code to be redeemed for a digital copy of the game, and while this is likely so Rockstar can continue development right up to launch day, there is a cap of 128GB on Blu-ray XL discs – no one wants to go back to the days of GTA 5 on Xbox 360 spanning multiple discs!

While the above thoughts apply to the PS5 and Xbox Series X versions of the game, there's also GTA 6 on PC to think about, as PC games traditionally take up even more hard drive space than their console counterparts. However big the file size is, the GTA 6 pre-load will be available a whole week before the game launches on November 19, which at least gives you a few days grace to upgrade your hard drive or delete other games to make room – you won't be playing anything else, right?

© GamesRadar+. Not to be reproduced without permission.

It's going to be a busy holiday season this year, since GTA 6 is actually coming out in November. While people rush to pick up what may very well go down in history as the biggest video game ever, people in the know on the retail side of things warn you might want to get a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X/S now if you're planning on getting one and haven't already.

This comes from a report in The Game Business, who spoke to a senior games buyer at a retail outlet operating under anonymity. "We’ve been informed that because of the ongoing issues around hardware component availability, we won’t be getting the units we want ahead of GTA," he says. "Demand will likely outstrip supply during the year end period."

As much really reflects the state of the industry. Stock supplies have been difficult for some time now, and it was always unlikely that'd change in time for Rockstar's new crime sim. Grand Theft Auto 6 is going to shift a lot of systems, and it's difficult to anticipate or prepare for the kind of demand the sequel's going to generate.

Microsoft, at least, is aware of the strain that's coming, per comments made to The Game Business by Matthew Ball, Xbox's chief strategy officer. "I can tell you definitively, demand for our console exceeds the supply. We are putting them in as many stores as possible," he explains.

"We are producing them as quickly as possible," Ball says. "There is a severe limitation to how quickly we can do that, but it’s not a question of appetite. We need to do more, but there are constraints here."

The race is already on between Sony and Microsoft right now for who gets people's money. PlayStation is going all in, having changed the PS5 dashboard to advertise the latest GTA, and even going so far as to alter the PS app to match the aesthetic of Rockstar's new game. Whoever wins, it seems the only losers will be those stuck waiting for a system to play-through Lucia and Jason's sordid journey.

Rockstar veteran says there's a good reason why GTA 6 is more expensive than most titles – it's "not an average AAA game"

The Steam Summer Sale features a massive discount on The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth and all of its expansions, bringing a game you can spend hundreds of hours in down to $5

Mewgenics is one of the best indie games of 2026, but its co-creator Edmund McMillen first earned renown for his previous roguelike, The Binding of Isaac. And despite McMillen saying Isaac was only made as a basic roguelike to test the genre out before moving on to Mewgenics, the game still earned a reputation as one of the best roguelikes of all time – one that defined the genre. After an expansion and a remake, which subsequently got four more expansions, The Binding of Isaac is ultimately a massive game that I've sunk hundreds of hours into throughout the 15 years it's been out.

So color me shocked when I log into Steam and see that The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth Complete Bundle – which includes the game, the Afterbirth expansion, Afterbirth +, and Repentance (as well as the free Repentance+ expansion) all of which typically costs $50.96 in total – is now sitting at 90% off, bringing what I'd call the greatest roguelike ever made down to $5.09.

Sales are common on Steam, but to put it into perspective, The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth Complete Bundle's last sale (according to SteamDB) priced it at $35.83. Then, the lowest price the bundle has ever received happened last January, when it dropped to $26.46 – so getting over $20 off of that now is a wild discount.

As someone who has spent close to 500 hours in The Binding of Isaac across both games and multiple consoles, I want you to know you really don't want to miss out on this Steam deal, even if you have only a passing interest in roguelikes.

Check out our full Mewgenics review to find out why it's "a worthy successor to The Binding of Isaac."

Creating a solid Darktide Skitarii build is essential as it can be quite a fragile class and has some added complexity with its unique Capacitance and Charge mechanics. However, it can still be very powerful thanks to its exclusive weaponry, Servo-Skull turret buddy, and some standout talents and abilities. Below, I've laid out two solid Skitarii builds that should serve you well in most missions.

And if you're still struggling to come up with a good Darktide Skitarii name, I can help you there too.

Darktide Skitarii Chordclaw melee build

• Ability: Chordclaw Strike with Satiated Steel + Axial Slash (good for hordes) or Slice and Dice + Probing Strikes (good for Ogryns and bosses)
• Blitz: Artificer Servo-Skull with Medicae and Purgator Servo-Skull upgrades
• Aura: Foe-Render Creed
• Keystone: Redline Capacitors with all four upgrades
• Other talents: Power Redistribution Uplink, Last Stand Relay, Flux Conduit Build-Up, Slaughter Protocol, Sustained Assault Doctrine, Sequenced Charge, Auto-Repair Doctrines, Augmented Power-Cycle, Moebian Conductor
• Weapons:
  • Paired Transonic Blades with Shred and Precognition
  • Phosphor Blast Pistol with Infernus or Man-Stopper and Crucian Roulette

The Chordclaw is arguably the Skitarius' best ability, capable of shredding some of the toughest Elite enemies in Darktide, so this melee-heavy build seeks to make the most of it. Talents like Slaughter Protocol and Sustained Assault Doctrine are going to give you the Toughness and Damage you need to fight up close with your Transonic Blades.

With Shred on your blades and Last Stand Relay, you should be scoring melee crits reasonably often which will then help you quickly gain charges for your Chordclaw thanks to Flux Conduit Build-Up. And every time you gain or spend a charge, you'll also benefit from Redline Capacitors, which will improve your melee attacks even more and let you use Chordclaw Strike up to five times.

Darktide Skitarii Voltaic Emitter electrocution build

• Ability: Voltaic Emitter with all three upgrades
• Blitz: Arc Grenades with Overcharged upgrade
• Aura: Foe-Render Creed
• Keystone: Flensing Protocols with all four upgrades
• Other important talents: Electro-Strike Conduit, Weakness Analysis Doctrine, Entropic Transfer, Retribution Conduit, Power Redistribution Uplink, Last Stand Relay, Augmented Power-Cycle, Flux Conduit Build-Up
• Weapons:
  • Branx Mk III Arc Maul with Enhanced Voltaic Arcs and Execution
  • Branx Mk IV Arc Rifle with Enchanced Voltaic Arcs and Cavalcade

This build's focus is on electrocuting the hordes of Tertium as much as possible, staggering and stunning them while still dealing lots of damage, particularly through critical hits. Flensing Protocols and several other talents mean you'll have a high critical hit chance most of the time which will make your Arc Maul and Arc Rifle deal hefty damage while also zapping enemies. Thanks to Flux Conduit Build-Up and Electro-Strike Conduit, crits will also help you charge up Voltaic Emitter quickly and electrocute even more enemies, especially in melee.

© GamesRadar+. Not to be reproduced without permission.

So, to recap, Destiny 2 studio Bungie was just smashed over the head with mass layoffs, certain Xbox Game Studios teams are reportedly moving toward the same fate, EA disposed of many Battlefield 6 devs despite selling over 20 million copies, and these are just some of the apocalyptic changes the video game industry has endured since spring. Naturally, even developers unaffected by layoffs are feeling the effects of all the carnage.

One such developer is Cyberpunk 2 associate game director and CD Projekt Red designer Paweł Sasko, who writes in a harrowing Twitter post, "Some days I feel our industry is imploding.

"Teams and game projects are getting slaughtered every second day," Sasko continues, "to the point it's hard to keep up. We are blessed to be still hiring, for all our games." The developer encourages others to browse CD Projekt Red's open job listings, which span multiple departments for titles like The Witcher 4 and the secretive, new IP Hadar.

CD Projekt Red began laying off about 9% of its staff in 2023, so it itself isn't impervious to the destructive past few years that gaming legend Brenda Romero described as "crashier" than the infamous video game crash of 1983. All the more reason, then, for CD Projekt Red developers to be as outspoken about the industry layoff trend as they have been; the studio's localization QA analyst Paula Mackiewicz-Armstrong also urged other devs this April to unionize in response to the "over 1,000" positions at Epic Games impacted by its recent, ruthless batch of layoffs.

Mackiewicz-Armstrong said at the time, "I've seen some hard times and some remarkable changes and improvements that make CDPR a great place to be right now. I just wish others in the industry could have the same." I'm sure many share that sentiment.

Bungie studio head reportedly leaves after 16 years with the company following mass layoffs and Destiny 2 death spiral.

Putting together an RPG is hard. Regardless of type, they're nebulous projects that require all sorts of creativity to get right. The Outer Worlds and Avowed studio Obsidian Entertainment would know, since the studio's released quite a few, and according to its findings, putting out a beta build first doesn't necessarily help, though there are exceptions.

At Summer Game Fest 2026, Chris Parker, game director for Grounded 2, explained to us that letting players in earlier can work in some instances, but not for sprawling role-playing adventures. "Obsidian got its first real taste for this with Pillars of Eternity, which was not an early access game per se, it was a Kickstarter, but we were constantly updating the community and letting them know about stuff," he tells GamesRadar+.

"I think we recognized that that sort of relationship with the community can't be replicated with just a bunch of devs hanging out," he continues. "No matter how hard you try, and how Socratic your philosophical discussions may be, you're never going to get that huge big picture."

He admits that "it worked out amazingly well" for the first Grounded, but on the large narrative sandboxes Obsidian also develops, like The Outer Worlds games, the approach is less enticing. "It's not going to make sense for every game we make," he starts. "When you're making a huge, super crunchy story-based RPG, I think that's probably pretty hard to put into early access."

There are exceptions, as Larian Studios managed to figure out, but Parker considers that an outlier. "Baldur's Gate 3 seems to have done it pretty well, so maybe there's room for that," he muses. "But when we're starting a game, it's like, 'Hey, does this make sense for this game,' and I think you're gonna see sometimes for us it does, and sometimes it doesn't."

But, as he sees it, "for Grounded 2, it's perfect." The sequel became available for Xbox Series X/S and PC players in July last year, and PlayStation 5 fans can join in come August.

Baldur's Gate 3 and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 show "RPGs are as vibrant" now as ever, Obsidian lead says, even if the genre can look "a little tired" sometimes.

Now that GTA 6 pre-orders are finally live and folks are spending their hard-earned money on Rockstar Games' next big hit, some of the community is sharing its dismay at the price… which, yeah, isn't exactly cheap.

In case you missed it, GTA 6 costs at least $80 – the Ultimate Edition, which controversially contains a lot of content people thought would be in the base game (you know, like certain customization shops and whatnot), is a whopping $100.

Unsurprisingly, this pricing has caused a bit of a stir within the community… but one Rockstar veteran doesn't think it's unfounded for the new Grand Theft Auto to cost so much.

Former Rockstar technical director Obbe Vermeij, who worked on GTA 3, 4, San Andreas, Vice City, and more, responds to a disappointed fan over on Twitter, who notes that the GTA 6 price is a good $20 more than "the average AAA game" in Canada. Vermeij writes, "GTA 6 is not an average AAA game."

Although he doesn't explicitly say that the game is priced reasonably here, the implication is evident: its cost makes sense.

After all, a solid 13 years have passed since GTA 5 graced us with its ever-chaotic presence on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 – it's been cookin' in fans' minds for over a decade, and they're ready for it… even if that means paying a hundred buckaroos or so.

Comments under the ex-developer's reply prove as much, too, with the original poster even saying, "That's true." Another person jokes, "Some might say it's [a] quadruple-A game."

Interestingly, though, Vermeij previously shared that GTA 6 likely won't cost $100 – and while it's admittedly only $80 in the United States ('only'… hahaha), the Ultimate Edition is $100. I personally just can't wait to see what the stats reveal about its sales, honestly.

More GTA 6 features may have been leaked by Amazon: switchable protagonists, in-game social media, and more.

There are 16 Mayan Stelae to find in Black Flag, and if you locate them all and solve their puzzles, you'll earn yourself a Mayan outfit that repels all gunfire. I repeat: repels all gunfire!

That is definitely a pretty handy thing to have and I can help you track down all their various locations. This list below has been compiled with story progression in mind to make it easier for you to find them. But I've also got all the coordinates you need for each stela so you can just go find them wherever you are.

Check out all the Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced changes if you want to know what's new in the remaster. And if you're one the hunt for collectibles then use our Assassins Creed Black Flag buried treasure guide to help you while you're exploring.

All Black Flag Mayan Stela locations

There are 16 Black Flag Stelae to be found, and here are all of the coordinates to find them:

1. Cat Island, coordinates: 734, 694
2. Great Inagua, coordinates: 845, 468
3. Misteriosa, coordinates: 303, 199
4. Misteriosa, coordinates: 296, 196
5. Santanillas, coordinates: 217, 245
6. Santanillas, coordinates: 221, 242
7. Tulum, coordinates: 70, 405
8. Cape Bonavista, coordinates: 179, 593
9. Matanzas, coordinates: 343, 642
10. Tortuga, coordinates: 875, 379
11. Pinos Isle, coordinates: 334, 476
12. Pinos Isle, coordinates: 342, 478
13. New Bone, coordinates: 431, 116
14. Isla Providencia, coordinates: 502, 44
15. Isla Providencia, coordinates: 502, 44
16. Long Bay, coordinates (525, 253)

The two Isla Providencia ones are very close together, hence the identical coordinates. Below we'll take a look at each one and how to find them in more detail.

Mayan Stela 1

Cat Island, coordinates: 734, 694

Technically the next stela on the list is the one that introduces the whole concept as a required part of the story. However, I've listed this one first because it's found on Cat Island where you'll play the mission Sugarcane and Its Yields here, so you'll spot it first. When you leave the ship, run up the hill to the south to find it.

Mayan Stela 2

Great Inagua, coordinates: 845, 468

You'll find this while playing the story as a required part of the This Old Cove mission. You'll also learn how to solve the brief puzzle each one presents, though if you grabbed the one on Cat Island first, you know the puzzles are quite simple.

Mayan Stela 3

Misteriosa, coordinates: 303, 199

We'll go after this one next, as it's not too far off course when heading to Tulum to meet James Kidd for the mission Nothing Is True - the first time you're asked to cross a large stretch of water. It's also the first of two you can find on Misteriosa, Head southwest to find this island, and be very careful of cliffs while navigating the restricted cove. Once you disembark, you'll find the stela on your way up the massive Mayan step pyramid.

Mayan Stela 4

Misteriosa, coordinates: 296, 196

This is the second Misteriosa Island Stela after the one above so you might as well grab it while you're there. Make your way to the western shore to find it.

Mayan Stela 5

Santanillas, coordinates: 217, 245

This is the last place we'll stop before meeting Kidd and you'll find two Stele here (the next one is directly below). Continue northwest, and be careful in the restricted waters as you approach the island. Look for it beyond the massive rock formation.

Mayan Stela 6

Santanillas, coordinates: 221, 242

This is the second Santanillas stelae after the one above. It's just to the east of the other one you can find here. Use the nearby trees and branches to reach it.

Mayan Stela 7

Tulum, coordinates: 70, 405

When you arrive at Tulum to meet with Kidd, you'll have several stelae under your belt. After completing Overrun and Outnumberd, you'll be able to explore the island and find another on the western edge of the ruins.

Mayan Stela 8

Cape Bonavista, coordinates: 179, 593

For the next stela, we'll loop back north then east on our way to the mission The Forts in Nassau. This route will take you right by Cape Bonavista, where the game began. You'll find it by a waterfall at the northern edge of the map, and yes, it is a bit of a hike.

Mayan Stela 9

Matanzas, coordinates: 343, 642

Like the stela above this is also on the way to the mission, The Forts in Nassau. Keep en route to this objective, and you'll pass by the Matanzas plantation. Dock here and head southeast from the pier. You'll have to sneak through a restricted area, but there's a path on the eastern edge of the plantation that takes you straight to the Stela.

Mayan Stela 10

Tortuga, coordinates: 875, 379

After completing The Forts in Nassau mission, you'll be just a bit northwest of Tortuga. This is probably the most heavily guarded area in the game, but it is possible to sneak in to reach the Stela. That being said, you may want to upgrade your ship - the Black Flag elite ship upgrades could help there. However you do it you'll find the stela in the northern area of the plantation.

Mayan Stela 11

Pinos Isle, coordinates: 334, 476

After The Forts in Nassau mission you'll be directed down south for your next objective. However, we're going to take a detour first. So instead, head west to Pinos Isle, which is restricted and guarded by two measly frigates, although taking them down to access the isle shouldn't be a challenge for you by now. Follow the path from the shore to find the first of two stela here, slightly southwest from the massive step pyramid.

Mayan Stela 12

Pinos Isle, coordinates: 342, 478

After finding the second Stela on Pinos Isle above, there's a second one you can find at the at the northeastern edge of the isle.

Mayan Stela 13

New Bone, coordinates: 431, 116

Southeast of Misteriosa is an island plantation called New Bone. Just like Tortuga, it is possible, though very difficult, to sneak in here. Be stealthy in the approach or strong on the attack, and you'll reach the shore. The stela is just outside the restricted area in the northwestern section of the island.

Mayan Stela 14

Isla Providencia, coordinates: 502, 44

You'll end up stranded on Isla Providencia during the mission Marooned and at a certain point you'll chase a character called Vane. When you do, make a left when you reach the ruins to spot the first of two stela you can grab here.

Mayan Stela 15

Isla Providencia, coordinates: 502, 44

There's another stela on Isla Providencia you can find once you've taken out Vane for the mission Marooned. At this point you can return to the island to explore a second set of ruins that are now a restricted area. You'll find the stela in the back of this area.

Mayan Stela 16

Long Bay, coordinates (525, 253)

You won't be able to access this Stela at Long Bay until the mission The Observatory. While on that mission, when you reach the last jungle in need of clearing, look in the southern area by the large black structures to find the game's final stela.

The Black Flag Mayan Stela reward

With all 16 Mayan Stelae puzzles solved and stones in pocket, return to Tulum. Head to the indicated spot on the mini-map (it's underneath the step pyramid) to place the stones. Grab the Mayan Outfit inside, and enjoy your new immunity to all ammunition!

© GamesRadar+. Not to be reproduced without permission.

Valve's latest big seasonal sales event is officially here, and there are already some great Steam Summer Sale games for 2026 to get your hands on. With massive discounts dropping some historically low prices on some of the best Steam games, it's a great to see what's currently on offer and add to your Steam library for less.

Since going live as of 10am PT / 6pm BST on June 25, I've been searching through the Steam Summer sales to find the best game discounts that I think are absolutely worth grabbing. From some of the best RPGs to the best horror games, the seasonal sale has low prices across all kinds of genres, and I've done the work to spy out the best games on discount so you can make the most of the Steam sales date.

All of the picks included here take these games down to the lowest prices we've seen them go for to date… and in this economy, that's most welcome. With some recommendations from our very own features editor Andy Brown, we've put our heads together to bring together the 10 best Steam Summer Sale game discounts. Be it some of the latest new games that have happily been reduced, to some older favorites that are going for an absolute steal.

The best Steam Summer Sale games 2026

Resident Evil Requiem

If you've been holding out on playing the latest Resident Evil entry, then now's a great time to consider meeting with Leon and Grace in Racoon City. Having only just been released back in February of this year, the 20% discount it now has in the Steam Summer sale is the lowest price we've seen Resident Evil Requiem's fall so far on Valve's storefront. As we explored in our Resident Evil Requiem review, it's worth having in your library if you're a Resi fan; it dials up the terror, delivers the action, and excellently explores the iconic character that is Leon Kennedy in more depth.

With two protagonists leading the charge who both offer distinctly different perspectives and experiences on its blend of survival horror, Resident Evil Requiem easily earns its place as one of the best Resident Evil games going. And with the recent addition of a roguelike mode, and yet more goodness to come from Capcom with the Resident Evil Veronica remake in 2027, the timing of this discount couldn't be better.

Get Resident Evil Requiem here.

Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition

As someone who's spent over 1000 hours playing CD Projekt Red's dystopian, futuristic RPG, I can't recommend Cyberpunk 2077 enough if you've yet to try it. From shaping your own customizable protagonist in V, to deciding how you want to navigate the many dangers and temptations of the neon-tined streets of Night City, it's a memorable ride from start to finish. I love the way it explores an action-packed story that examines what it means to survive and try to retain your identity in a world where cybernetic technology has taken over, and it's as easy to erase your personality as it is to shove a chip in your head.

V's fight to save themself is well worth your time, and now's a great opportunity to experience it thanks to the hefty discounted price of the Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition. You can snag yourself the base game and one of the best DLCs in the excellent Phantom Liberty expansion for its lowest price yet. The base game by itself is also discounted at just $17.99 / £14.99 (which is certainly worth the Eddies), but I'd absolutely recommend the Ultimate Edition so you don't miss out on Idris Elba, and the morally grey world of Dogtown.

Get Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition here.

Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era

Calling all strategy fans! Right now, you can get your hands on Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era for its lowest ever price on Steam. As a triumphant return of the beloved strategy RPG series that first made a name for itself in the '90s, Olden Era blends together RPG mechanics with real-time strategy and grid-based combat to deliver a satisfying tactical loop you'll want to keep coming back to.

First launching back in April, it's worth noting that Olden Era is still in Early Access, but don't let that stop you. As we said in our Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era Early Access review, "it's already packed with an essentially endless amount of content", with multiplayer, randomized matches, and a nice chunk of the campaign ready and waiting for you.

Get Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era here.

Kingdom Come Deliverance 2

Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 is one of the best first-person RPGs we've seen arrive in recent years, with a richly realized open world that draws you right into medieval Europe. Playing as intrepid adventurer Henry of Skalitz, who gets caught up in all kinds of ye olde shenanigans with companion (and possible love interest) Hans Capon, War Horse not only delivers a host of fantastic side quests, but it also draws you into a memorable main storyline as you set out to avenge your parents.

Staying true to its role-playing DNA, you can choose to shape Henry however you wish, whether you want to build him out to be a smooth talking sneaky so-and-so or a robust sword-fighting machine. Both myself and Andy have had many memorable experiences with this one, and if you're ready to go medieval, this Steam Summer Sale offer is calling your name: Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 is going for its lowest ever price right now.

Get Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 here.

Mewgenics

One of the best games of 2026 so far, Mewgenics has been hit with a notable discount which takes it down to the lowest price to date on Steam. From The Binding of Isaac and Super Meat Boy developer Edmund McMillen and The End is Nigh's Tyler Glaiel, Mewgencis brings to life a turn-based tactical adventure that's all about breeding and raising your very own army of cats. With different traits that can be passed down to other cats, you can work to make the ultimate mutant felines and send them off on runs in search of loot.

As we explored in our Mewgenics review, it's a "hugely varied" roguelike that has an imaginative and rewarding gameplay loop. With tons of replayability, and an excellent soundtrack, it's also packed with wonderfully whacky humor, and you can sink so many hours into this one if you're after something hearty to tuck into.

Get Mewgenics here.

Two Point Museum

One of the best simulation games has gotten a big discount right now, with the excellent Two Point Museum now down to its lowest price so far on Steam. As someone who loves history, I adored my time bringing to life my own museums. From sending my employees off on expeditions to find more fossils, to putting them on display just how I want, and creating gift shops to bring in more funds, I also enjoyed mapping out my own museum tours.

With a host of fun updates since it first launched in 2025 (including a fitting summer update), this is well worth getting if you enjoy management sims full of charm, humor, and easy-to-use tools. You can find out more of my thoughts in our Two Point Museum review if you're interested to learn more.

Get Two Point Museum here.

Inkonbini: One Store. Many Stories

First released back in April, this is a great 20% discount off the delightful indie game, Inkonbini: One Store. Many Stories – which is well worth having in your library if you're looking for something laidback to play. Set in the '90s in Japan, you play as college student Makoto Hayakawa, who works at a convenience store over the summer.

From stocking and arranging shelves, to preparing displays, and getting the store ready to open, I love the meditative quality of the organizing. But as I first found out by playing the demo ahead of release, part of its charm also comes from the customers you meet. As you help them find what they're looking for, or give them recommendations, you start to learn more about them and hear the stories of the locals. If I hadn't already snapped this game up, I would do so now at this price.

Get Inkonbini: One Store. Many Stories here.

Hollow Knight: Silksong

Hollow Knight: Silksong was years in the making and easily one of the most talked about games in the lead up to its eventual release in 2025. But as Team Cherry's sequel went on to prove, it was well worth the wait. Now considered to be one of the best Metroidvania games of recent years right alongside its predecessor, you can now get 25% shaved off the price tag, taking it down to its lowest price on Steam so far.

As we said in our Hollow Knight: Silksong review, it's a near-perfect follow-up that evolves many of the features of the original to deliver a rewarding world to explore. Playing as Hornet, her various abilities are satisfying to play around with, and there's plenty of challenges to overcome. If you've been holding off or want to give Silksong a try, then this is a good chance to do just that without paying the usual price.

Get Hollow Knight: Silksong here.

Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade

With the reveal of Final Fantasy 7 Revelation during Summer Game Fest Live 2026, which will conclude Cloud's journey, it feels almost serendipitous that the first part of the RPG series is discounted to its lowest price to date on Steam. Not only that, but the chunky discount is for the Intergrade version, which comes with the additional expansion Episode InterMission starring companion Yuffie. So, if you're looking to catch up before the upcoming RPG arrives in 2027, this could well be your sign to experience the opening of Cloud adventure in the city of Midgar.

Introducing iconic party members and setting what's to come in the sprawling open world scene of part 2 in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, Final Fantasy 7 Remake is a lovingly reimagined remake of the iconic JRPG on PS1. With an updated and modernized real-time combat system that calls back to the classic turn-based affair through its strategic ATB elements, longtime fans will get a kick out of its recreations of some classic moments, while newcomers get stuck right in with ease.

Get Final Fantasy 7 Intergrade here.

Dead Space Remake

If you've yet to try out Dead Space, or you're on the lookout for a chilling, atmospheric experience, then you can get your hands on the excellent Dead Space Remake for the incredibly low price of just under $6 / £5. As one of the best horror games, the 2023 remake of the classic 2008 survival horror succeeds at being even more unsettling than the original, and that's a huge compliment.

Taking on the role of Issaac Clarke, an engineer who finds himself on a mission to repair the USG Ishimura mining ship, things take a terrifying turn. With the ship's crew brutally killed, and your partner lost onboard, you have to navigate the Ishimura with only your engineering skills at your disposal. But, with horrific creatures known as necromorphs always in pursuit, you can expect plenty of scares in the sci-fi space setting. If you're after some horror goodness, this is worth adding to your library for a lot less.

Get Dead Space here.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt has made a name for itself as one of the best open world RPGs of the last decade, and you can now experience Geralt's sprawling adventure for an absolute steal if you've yet to snap up CD Projekt Red's gripping fantasy on Steam. Honestly, it's also the perfect excuse to replay The Witcher 3 on another platform if you've already experienced it elsewhere… because it's just that cheap.

Following Geralt, a mutant monster slayer known as a witcher, you set out across sprawling locations in search of your ward, Ciri, who's being pursued by the Wild Hunt. Delivering some of the most memorable side quests and a story that will keep you gripped, replaying or tucking into it for the first time will no doubt help set up the next game to come with The Witcher 4. And at a historically low price tag, the fact that it's set to get a new expansion next year in the Songs of the Past just gives you more reasons to grab this.

Get the Witcher 3: Wild Hunt here.

Keep track of future demo events with our Steam Next Fest guide. Or find some more recommendations with our pick of the best PC games.

Gaming is getting more expensive every day, and when I learned that Xbox was raising the price of its consoles (again), I started scanning all the Xbox gaming Prime Day deals that I could with a vengeance. After all, with how prices are going, we'll need as much cash as we can, and with GTA 6 also looming, there is no way I'll pay full price for games if I don't have to.

So if you are like me and want to make the most of Amazon's sale, don't worry, I've got you covered. Below, I have gathered a mix of record-low prices and discounts on newer Xbox Series X/S titles that haven't been on sale much yet. These include some of the best games of 2026, like the new Resident Evil, and some RPG goodness, like Diablo 4. Some of the Xbox games here are still around $50, though, while others are under $20. I've included both, so you have a clear view of the top offerings on display and can decide what you feel is personally worth spending your cash on.

If you want to expand your library further or add a few titles to watch for future sales, I highly recommend checking out the list of the best Xbox Series X games next. But for now, below are my picks of the top Xbox games you can pick up before Prime Day ends.

For more discounts, check out our guide on the best Prime Day gaming deals.

The news that The Witcher 3 is getting a brand-spanking new expansion pack in 2027 might seem bizarre at face value. This is a game that was, by all accounts, settled. But in Songs of the Past, we're going to take old Geralt out for one last spin before Ciri takes the reins in The Witcher 4. What a way to say goodbye to one of the most iconic games of the last few decades.

Over the past ten years or so, we've been seeing a lot more old games getting expansions long after their original release, and I am so here for it. Baldur's Gate got Siege of Dragonspear in 2016, Titan Quest got Ragnarok in 2017. Hell, even Doom 2 got Legacy of Rust in 2024, 30 years after its initial release. As trends go, this one can seem a little self indulgent at first glance. It's easy to write these types of gestures off as cash grabs, rather than fully-fledged works with artistic intent, but you'd be wrong to do that.

Geralt, or the Collapse and Fall of Tech Advances

There are two main reasons that we're seeing developers return to older titles, and neither are as selfish as a cash grab. The first is that the speed of tech advancements has plateaued in recent years, meaning 10-year old games today feel far more playable than those from 20 years ago. This applies to The Witcher 3 specifically, but also to Mario Kart 8's booster courses that massively spiked the number of tracks, and Borderlands 2: Commander Lilith & the Fight for Sanctuary.

Think about games from the 2010s. Do they really look that much worse than games released today? Do they make you wince and gasp at their visuals? Of course not, because the tech plateau means we're more tinkering around the edges rather than creating any grand upgrades, particularly as a lot of titles get significant post-release update support anyway.

The Witcher 3 came out 11 years ago. Think about games that released in 2005, and think if there were any that you'd think still looked almost new in 2016. The closest that you'd come would be maybe Call of Duty 2 for the Xbox 360, but it's still distinctly an older game. If you want to go back even further, and examine the tech plateau from the peak of Mount Build Engine, consider that there are only 11 years between Duke Nukem 3D and Bioshock.

You can go home again

This is only one of the reasons I think older games are getting delayed expansions, though. The second is that we're now seeing some degree of sentimentality emerge from within game development's often frosty heart.

The games that inspired us are still widely played. Diablo 2's recent Reign of the Warlock expansion was clearly a labor of love, made partly by those who grew up on Diablo 2. The same can be said for Baldur's Gate: Siege of Dragonspear, likewise for The Witcher 3: Songs of the Past – the expansion is being co-developed by Fool's Theory, the studio behind Witcher-inflected The Thaumaturge and headed by former CD Projekt Red dev Jakub Rokosz.

There is a clear throughline here, one that echoes how the games industry is maturing into something that allows for crosspollination: new games are being made, but studios still want to pay homage to the classics.

There's something special about games that allows for developers to pay their respects or build on the past without necessarily committing to a full reboot. Expansions and DLCs are unique to video games. Books can't release an additional chapter for you to enjoy decades later. You wouldn't see Quentin Tarantino adding another section to Pulp Fiction. Video games also have a leg-up on television and movies, as its characters don't age.

For all of the industry's flaws, the medium itself is flexible in a way that nothing else can be. I love that we're starting to see what happens when developers go back to their principles. Instead of decrying the idea that graphics aren't moving forward, let's appreciate that we are living through a golden age, where titles from a decade ago won't be shunned because they look rough: they hold up without any major touch-ups necessary. Let's appreciate, too, that even older games are having new life breathed into them by devs who grew up loving the original. Me? I'm holding out hope that we'll see a new expansion for Fallout: New Vegas.

The Witcher 3 is one of the best RPGs of all time, and there are plenty more like it.

The Nintendo Switch 2 could have some competition as the best gaming handheld with a potentially portable PS6, depending on how you interpret comments made by Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Hideaki Nishino about next-gen console development.

Whispers of a handheld PS6 console have been twirling in the wind for some while now. One recent rumor suggested the handheld could match the ROG Xbox Ally X when it comes to memory, while another told everyone to not bother thinking about the possibility of a PS6 Portable until at least 2028 – and Nishino has now poured fuel over all the gossip.

Speaking to Famitsu, in quotes translated by IGN, the PlayStation boss says today's consoles have to consider the importance of a "pick up and play" quality. The company will also be "leveraging technologies that can be used in various forms and locations" when making new game consoles in the future, according to him, which will lead to "something exciting."

"For example, although the PlayStation brand is strongly associated with playing on the TV in the living room, we're planning to release monitors and speakers so that people can play comfortably in other locations as well," he adds. "We developed the PlayStation Portal as part of this initiative."

Of course, PlayStation's tried to enter the handheld arena multiple times. It started with the very weird and also very cool Japan-exclusive PocketStation. The PSP then served as the company's biggest handheld statement yet, giving Nintendo a run for its money with over 70 million units sold, before the PS Vita subsequently crashed a generation later.

Since then, Sony's only dipped its toes into the market with the PlayStation Portal, a device that can stream games or enable remote play from a connected PS5. It's more an accessory than a standalone gaming handheld, but it's been pretty successful, all things considered. Nishino says the amount of people using cloud streaming on the PlayStation Portal "in January 2026 was 1.5 times that of December 2025."

Either way, streaming isn't the future for Sony. Consoles are. "My belief that a console is necessary for playing games hasn't changed,” he continues.

A portable PS6 device definitely isn't official – with the ongoing RAMpocalypse, nothing in the hardware space is certain – but it definitely sounds like something the console maker is at least thinking about.

Sony is considering pushing the PS6 to 2028 or 2029, "some analysts believe," according to Embracer Group.

It should come as little surprise that in the year that saw the launch of the Nintendo Switch 2, the house of Mario had multiple entries that made it into our list of the best games of 2025. If you didn't pick them up at the time, the good news is that you can do it right now - and at a discount price thanks to Amazon Prime Day.

The slightly less good news is that several of the best Switch 2 games are, somewhat unsurprisingly, made by Nintendo, which has long-since made its stance on discounts pretty clear. That stance, in case you weren't aware, is that reducing prices is something that other companies do, and that means that big first-party hits like Mario Kart World and Donkey Kong Bananza aren't likely to be reduced anywhere you look. Even for Pokemon Legends Z-A, which is an older game and technically came out on Switch 1, I had to look a bit further afield.

But either way, there's plenty to enjoy at some good prices, including multiple full-fledged GOTY candidates like Hollow Knight Silksong and Hades 2. You might want to move quick though - Amazon Prime Day draws to an end this evening, so these deals might not be hanging around for too much longer. You might have waited a long time to get your hands on the games, but maybe don't wait on the sales quite that long...

The next Terraria update is going to be a big one. Yo-yos are getting substantial attention, alongside a hearty rebalance to make sure every class feels good play. And to top it all off, there's a huge hotfix on the way - historically large, in fact.

Developer Re-Logic literally calls it the "largest hotfix type update in Terraria's history," in a brief overview of what's coming. "We are very ready to get what we hope will be the last (or darn close to it) hotfix update for Bigger and Boulder into your hands and then to get rolling on what comes next," the post reads.

There aren't any specific details given, but there's a lot of anticipation for this, since Bigger and Boulder arrived in January, and it certainly seems implied that the devs are attempting to tackle all the residual bugbears in one big sweep.

One fan in the official forum jokes that "at some point we'll need a hotfix for the hotfix if it keeps going," and why not? Time to start stacking hotfixes, it's only fitting for the survival game.

Ted "Loki" Murphy, the head of business strategy on Terraria, mentions that this will accompany more balance changes. "We have spent a lot of time this go-round looking into entire classes of weapons - making sure things feel fun, relevant, and worthwhile," he writes.

One key aspect of this will be yo-yos. Murphy points towards a video by YouTuber Chippy, who goes deep on the fan-favorite, but distinctly flawed, weapon. Essentially, while yo-yos feel great to use, servicing as mid-range offense, upgrading them is much less entertaining and unsatisfying.

Re-Logic is on the case, as it sounds like this is something that's been on the slate for a considerable amount of time now before moving into active development. "We've seen this feedback before and have decided to go ahead and finally take action on it," Murphy adds. "We're looking into making some yo-yos more interesting/unique."

Beyond these teases, Murphy says crossplay is still on the way, and the hope is to have it ready for when this patch is live, or close to it. "We are also doing all that we can on crossplay to have that ready to go as quickly as possible once 1.4.5.7 is out to all of you," he adds. "Trying to tighten down these timelines as much as we can!"

Lots coming, as Re-Logic enters another era with the game and eschews any notion of a "final update." Long may it continue - with cooler yo-yos and all.

Epic Games boss calls Steam AI disclosures "really irresponsible of Valve" as they make it "much, much, much harder for a game developer to have a chance of success"

Capcom has confirmed that Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen director Kento Kinoshita will be returning to the director's chair for Dragon's Dogma 2's expansion.

Dragon's Dogma was pretty liked when it launched back in 2012, but what really led to the game becoming the legendary title it is today was its expansion, Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen, which released a year later. Dragon's Dogma 2 then released a decade later and was seen as an all-timer by anyone who wasn't a coward, but 2025 came and went with no word of an expansion.

This, mixed with Dragon's Dogma series creator Hideaki Itsuno leaving Capcom in 2024, led some to believe a Dark Arisen-like expansion wouldn't be happening, but with Kinoshita still being at Capcom, there was a little bit of hope left. And during the Nintendo Direct earlier this month, we finally found out Dragon's Dogma 2: Dark Arisen is happening later this year.

During last night's Capcom Spotlight stream, it was revealed that Kinoshita is once again taking on the director's role for Dark Arisen as he hosted the segment about the game. The expansion is set to feature a new region for the game in the form of Norgan, which is a snowy area at the north of the map with a new relic system, which allows you to create fresh weapons with unique class skills. The base game's map is also set to be expanded with 12 dungeons.

The segment also introduced the Fallen Dragon, which is set to be a major enemy found in the expansion, alongside the NPC we saw in the trailer called Eir, who is seeking out the dragon. Details about this part remained fairly light, but it seems like the main quest of this expansion will focus on these two.

Former Devil May Cry and Dragon's Dogma 2 director says he can't make "the kind of games I'd most like to" as "they'd be too out there" and "probably wouldn't sell."

This is how my life goes. I use a new keyboard every two weeks, then at the end I have to take photos of it. We're all friends here, I'll tell you that after all that constant work and play it doesn't exactly look photo fresh by the time I come to write up my final review. Dust is the enemy here, but we all know these accessories aren't exactly impervious to crumbs and other grossness - that's not what you want to see from some of the best gaming keyboards on the market.

A while back I got tired of tiny brushes, or de-capping every keyboard before I took photos of it. I picked up a $7 tub of goop, and I haven't gone back since.

There's one problem - the only reason I'd mark ColorCoral down. It doesn't last much longer than around six months.

After that, the gel becomes too soft, sticking awkwardly where it previously would have lifted straight up and becoming a nightmare on the hands. So yes, you will have to replace it eventually - especially if you're using it as often as I am. For $8, though, it's earned a permanent spot on my shelf.

Simply take that crusty old keyboard, switch it off, slap the gel on top (I like to move fast here to avoid leaving the goop to nestle too deep in between the keycaps), give it a little shuggle around, and lift everything straight out. All that nastiness sticks to the gel, leaving your deck as fresh as the day it was set up.

Just don't try it on straight switches - I did that once, it was a bad move.

• See all PC cleaning accessories at Amazon

We're rounding up plenty more of the best Prime Day gaming deals, spanning everything from Prime Day PC deals to Prime Day Nintendo Switch deals.

There's a high chance GTA 6 will be the most absurdly detailed and densest among the best open-world games ever made when it releases on November 19. The long-awaited return to Vice City is at the centre of Rockstar Games' blockbuster, but we know we'll be getting more of the state of Leonida in the same way GTA 5 expanded its map beyond a very impressive refresh of Los Santos. Will it be shaped by DNA inherited from Red Dead Redemption 2 though?

As GTA 6 promises "more and better" of everything and to set a new bar for living and breathing sandboxes moving forward, I believe we shouldn't ignore the potential of the fictional American state of Leonida. Vice City may be the main attraction as the capital, but the thin marketing materials haven't shied away from showing us more about the natural environments and animals that inhabit the broader state itself. However, it's not enough to just have them; I hope GTA has learned from Red Dead's penchant for outdoor activities.

Lessons from the Wild West

Back in 2013, the larger San Andreas map wasn't particularly exciting. It wasn't until later updates came that more animal species and activities involving them like the GTA 5 wildlife photography challenge were added. Even then, Red Dead Redemption was where Rockstar paid more attention to nature outside crime-filled missions, and RDR2 took everything related to wildlife and its untamed areas to ridiculous levels – finding all the Red Dead Redemption 2 animal locations and completing that compendium was arguably the hardest thing in the entire game.

One of the funniest (and best if you ask me) things Rockstar did with Red Dead Redemption 2 was tricking everyone into playing what's essentially a "cowboy simulator" more often than not. Your mileage may vary, but I always felt the studio's obsession with details would lead to games with heavy simulation elements. More time and money has only enabled the developers to push things further, and while we might argue about how many details are too many details (more on that when GTA 6 releases), the truth is post-GTA 5 Rockstar has done a fine job of making its massive game worlds (including Los Santos over the years) fun to spend time in.

Not everyone was ready for the slow pace of RDR2's early hours or how meandering it can be at times, but those are signs of developers treating its world with respect and not just like a giant playground to fill with lots of content to grind through, an easy pitfall of many modern sandboxes. Though it might be argued Pearl Abyss' Crimson Desert ticks plenty of items off the Ubisoft school of design checklist, it's also managed to enchant millions with a truly dense continent full of surprises and opportunities, giving Arthur more to do more than fighting and looting – and nature is at the centre of much of it.

As memorable as RDR2's tale of criminals in a dying West is, I strongly believe most of it wouldn't have hit as hard without the time Arthur (and John) spend indulging in everyday mundanity. It's during those sections – enforced by the game or sought by the player – that we get a glimpse of normalcy amid all the senseless violence and betrayal. Go fishing, find some wild horses to tame, complete your massive compendium of odd animals for that guy you barely know... Tens of hours can be spent engaging with places that haven't been fully invaded by man, and there's space for that experience in GTA too. Swamps and glades needn't just be different scenarios for drug runners and those the wacky hillbilly encounters no doubt awaiting us.

Finding balance

There's always the danger of Take-Two and Rockstar choosing to overcorrect based on the complaints of a loud minority, but when RDR2's success continues to impress eight years later and vast but forgettable open worlds abound, a GTA 6 that's breezier and too focused on the "criminal life" we already know well would be a mistake.

Yes, the game is about Lucia and Jason's "new life" in Vice City first and foremost, but the sandbox bar has been raised several times since GTA 5 came out, and many other studios have almost caught up.

RDR2 still feels like a unique and special beast though. Having the chance to disconnect from criminal activities and visit confirmed natural locations like the Mount Kalaga National Park is the type of thing that can elevate GTA 6. Leaning on the brand of world-building and secondary content only Rockstar (and a few others) can afford to put out on such a scale, switching to totally different genres with ease, is a rare sight. With the past having told us players appreciate getting to live digital lives at their own pace without an urgent need to clear content, I hope that kayaking and off-road hiking aren't limited to NPCs waiting to be murdered, and that birdwatching is an actual hobby I can partake in and be rewarded for. Seriously.

The older I get and the more selective I have to be with my gaming time, the more I appreciate open worlds that put their size and depth to good use. I'm always down to explore new sandboxes, but I only stick around and revisit the ones that feel truly unpredictable and alive. This means I'd rather feed alligators and go diving with sea turtles in GTA 6 than clear a hundred gang hideouts after its credits have rolled.

In this case, I'm confident in Rockstar's ability to repeat (and improve on) RDR2's balancing act. It's the only way the studio can justify all those years in development and cutting-edge visuals; Grand Theft Auto 6 must be more than just GTA: Vice City in 2026.

Here are all the latest GTA 6 activities, customization, and gameplay details revealed now that pre-orders are live!

Developer Pocketpair's made no secret that its incoming Palworld 1.0 release is shaping up to be huge, but my backlog is now quivering after finding out the team currently has 27-pages worth of patch notes ready for launch.

Announced during this summer's marketing extravaganza, Palworld is ending its incredibly popular early access tenure on July 10, 2026 with all-new areas to explore, narrative meat to chew on, and Pals to tame. The creature-collecting survival game has already ballooned quite a bit in the last two years, but the studio's upcoming update sounds scarily large.

Pocketpair Publishing lead and communications manager John 'Bucky' Buckley recently tweeted about trying to wrestle down Palworld 1.0's patch notes. "Losing my mind trying to make nice patch notes for Palworld 1.0," he writes. "Who'd have thought that, *checks notes*, 27 pdf pages of changes and additions would be hard to make neat."

The team has practically shouted from the rooftops before about how the Palworld 1.0 update will have more new Pals and be "bigger in scale" than any previous content drop, and the changes are so deeply embedded that Pocketpair recommends starting fresh with a new save file. Next month's full launch hasn't exactly been shy about its size, then, but 27 pages really puts into perspective just how extensive these changes might be.

We won't need to wait too long to find out what's in those patch notes – Palworld leaves early access on PC, Xbox Series X|S, Game Pass, and PS5 next month.

Arc Raiders and Marathon aren't "dead" just because their concurrent player count has dropped, Palworld lead says – but he's "not denying that some games do 'die.'"

Amazon Prime Day Nintendo Switch 2 deals won't last forever. These offers are due to close out at midnight tonight, but if you've been scouring the sale to no avail, I've got you covered.

I'm sprinting through those digital aisles, grabbing all the last remaining offers on the Nintendo Switch games and gear we actually recommend on the daily. Only now, there's a twist.

I'm keeping my top picks under $50 for the final day of the sale. If you haven't already pulled the trigger on more expensive games and setup upgrades it's time to look in the bargain aisles. That means I'm bringing you the cases, games, headsets, memory cards, and other accessories the GamesRadar+ team uses every day.

This isn't bargain bucket fodder - it's the cheapest Prime Day Nintendo Switch 2 deals on tech we've tested and verified.

Quick links

• Nintendo Switch 2: bundles from $499.99
• Games: from $15.69
• Controllers: from $9.98
• Cases: from $4.99
• Screen protectors: from $6.47
• Storage: from $39.99
• Headsets: from $17.99

Best Amazon Prime Day Nintendo Switch 2 deals

Live updates

Super Mario Odyssey is still on sale, but you'll need to download it

Super Mario Odyssey still remains one of the best games you can throw on your system, and with a Switch 2 update it'll help the newer handheld shine as well. This one launched with the OG Switch, believe it or not, and it's still as stubborn as ever on price.

The $59.99 MSRP has given way to a $39.99 sales price in Amazon's Prime Day Nintendo Switch 2 deals, but physical stock has all been snapped up. You'll still find discounted digital codes on the site, though.

Super Mario Odyssey | $59.99 $39.99 at Amazon

I can personally recommend the red Supcase Unicorn Beetle Pro

I've recently slapped this chunkier grip shell onto my own Nintendo Switch 2 and that red-panelled back looks gorgeous in person. The casing is sturdy as anything as well - there's even little fold-outs for easy Joy-Con removal. It's dockable, but adds a little extra bulk to the unit as a whole so if you don't already have a screen protector on I'd add one as soon as possible. It slides nicely into the cradle, but there is more resistance to be aware of.

Supcase Unicorn Beetle Pro | $29.99 $25.49 at Amazon

Our favorite budget headset, no matter the sales

The Turtle Beach Airlite Fit is the best gaming headset we've tested in the budget category. Coming in at under $20 this Prime Day, it still packs surprisingly potent audio for its price, while offering a no-fuss wired setup that makes perfect sense for kids (and adults who forget to charge). There's no point in paying for features you don't need - don't break the bank if you don't have to.

Turtle Beach Airlite Fit | $27.99 $17.73 at Amazon

Annoyingly the case I use every day isn't included in Prime Day Nintendo Switch 2 deals

I grabbed the PowerA Slim Case as a cheap holdover when I first picked up my Switch 2, but this thing has stuck the course so far. It's well-priced already, at $19.99, but it's unfortunate that there are no Prime Day deals on here. I was all ready to start celebrating a $14.99 sale price, but we're only down 9% here today.

PSA: It also fits that Supcase shell - it's a squeeze, but it works

PowerA Slim Case | $19.99 $18.25 at Amazon

Bravely Default Flying Fairy HD Remaster is under $20 at Best Buy

We're heading over enemy lines now, into Best Buy territory. That's because you'll find the Switch 2 edition of the Bravely Default Flying Fairy HD Remaster available for just $19.99. We called this remake "secretly the Switch 2's must-play RPG" when we got our hands on a copy and for $19.99 it's among the cheapest titles for Ninty's latest system this Prime Day.

Bravely Default: Flying Fairy | $39.99 $19.99 at Best Buy

Sticking with Best Buy for a moment

I've also spotted Street Fighter 6 Years 1-2 going for its lowest price yet on Best Buy's competing Prime Day shelves. The store's Tech Fest sale has the Switch 2 version down to $29.99 right now, for a $30 discount on its $59.99 MSRP.

Listen, we'll level with you - the Switch 2 version is decent, but it's not going to beat the PS5 or PC for fighting game controls. If you've got either of those platforms to hand, Street Fighter is going to feel much more at home elsewhere. If you mainline your Switch 2 this is still perfectly fine.

Street Fighter 6 Years 1-2 | $59.99 $29.99 at Best Buy

Now over to Woot

Woot has the PowerA Advantage Wired Controller down to $14.99 right now - that beats Amazon's cheapest $17.99 sales price, and the black model is even more expensive. This is definitely a cheaper gamepad in the hands, but it's still the best Nintendo Switch 2 controller for those on a strict budget.

It feels far more hollow and its buttons aren't as satisfying as the Pro 2 Controller, but for a fraction of the price it makes for an excellent multiplayer pickup. Whether you just want a cheap option for a more traditional gamepad feel or you're stocking up on player 2s (and 3s and 4s), this is a price I can easily recommend for the wired model.

PowerA Advantage Wired Controller | $39.99 $14.99 at Woot

I'm still waiting for my favorite Switch 2 accessory to drop its price

The Genki Covert Dock 3 is one of my absolute go-tos for the Switch 2. It's a revitalized version of the original Covert Dock that allows for full new-gen compatibility with 65W of power and 4K resolutions supported. If you've never heard of it, it's essentially a tiny, pocket friendly dock.

Perfect for travel, all you need is an HDMI cable and you're good to go (with the included USB-C). It's the size of a regular outlet adapter, but allows for quick and easy docking wherever you are with the added bonus of a USB-A port for controllers and headsets.

Unfortunately, this one's difficult to get hold of. It's currently only sold via Genki's own site and hasn't yet hit Amazon. We're still at the full $69.99 price - but the previous generation regularly hit sub-$50 price points in Prime Day Nintendo Switch deals. It might be too soon for this one this year (it's still on backorder, after all), but it's definitely one to watch.

Alas, the 8BitDo Ultimate 2 is just out of budget

The 8BitDo Ultimate 2 has been around the Prime Day block a few times, but I was hoping for a sub-$50 price tag this time around. It's an excellent Switch 2 controller, but that $69.99 MSRP has only dropped to $51.29 this week. That's still a record-low price on a well established model, though. It's dropped to the low $50s only a handful of times in its life, and only in the last few months. For a TMR controller with a charging dock included (as well as haptics and motion controls) that's pretty solid.

8BitDo Ultimate 2 | $69.99 $51.29 at Amazon

One of the Switch 2's more recent controllers at a record-low price

The EasySMX S10C has a secret weapon; wake functionality.

That's tough to find in a budget Switch 2 controller - normally you're paying the Pro premium. We awarded this cheaper gamepad 4/5 stars in our review - it's a solid entry level model with a few extra frills you won't find even further up the price scale. Hall effect sticks, motion controls, rumble, and a comfortable design make this a must-see, especially at $29.99.

EasySMX S10C | $39.99 $29.99 at Amazon

Belkin's fancy charging cases are over $50, but the base model is $23

Belkin has three clamshell Nintendo Switch 2 cases on the market right now, and from our testing they're some of the best in the business. Unfortunately, the main draw of this brand is its charging - and to pick up one of the 10,000mAh power bank-equipped models you're looking at a minimum of $52.24 (and a maximum of $89.99).

However, the brand's simple Belkin Carrying Case is down to $23.74 in Amazon's Prime Day Nintendo Switch 2 deals, offering up a 21% discount on a still-sturdy case with the extra benefit of a built in AirTag holder. If you need a simple option and don't want to invest in the full charging model, the best price of the year so far is looking pretty solid right now.

Belkin Carry Case | $29.99 $23.74 at Amazon

Belkin Charging Case | $69.99 $52.24 at Amazon

Belkin Charging Case Pro | $99.99 $84.99 at Amazon

Another dockable shell case

The Fastsnail Dockable Case has a few key features that separate it from the Supcase model I highlighted earlier. This one's ready to go with its own kickstand and features a built-in cart storage system as well. That means you're sorted for storage and tabletop mode wherever you are, and the folding screen cover keeps that panel scratch-free as well. Slightly chunkier rear grips may also suit those looking for something more ergonomically minded.

This one's up for $19.99 at Amazon right now, a modest $4 off its original $23.99 MSRP, but still the cheapest it's ever been.

Fastsnail Dockable Case | $23.99 $19.99 at Amazon

Grab this OG Edition of Mario Party Jamboree and upgrade later

You're still saving about $20 if you grab this $37.99 copy of Super Mario Party Jamboree for the original Nintendo Switch and turn it into the full Switch 2 version via the $19.99 upgrade. All in, that's $57.98 spent, where Amazon is still charging $79 for the full cart in a Switch 2 box.

There are a ton of offers on Woot's site that this applies to, but this is one of the few dropping under $50 this Prime Day.

Super Mario Party Jamboree | $59.99 $37.99 at Woot

Two Mario games for less than $10?

Amazon has listed this double-feature of Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle and Sparks of Hope for just $9.99. These were heavy hitters back in their day - we called the first one an "unmissable Switch game" before giving its sequel 4.5/5 stars in our review.

There's no Switch 2 port in the works just yet, so you'll be running the older software. These are still well worth investigating, though - especially for less than $10.

Mario + Rabbids double-pack | $28.99 $9.99 at Amazon

PSA: Remember the Switch 2 price increases in September

Nintendo announced that the Switch 2 would increase in price from September earlier in the year. The $449.99 console will be jumping up to $499.99 in just a couple of months time. That's the exact same price you'll currently find the best bundle on the shelves, though. Jumping in now means you're paying the same rate, but scoring a free copy of either Pokemon Pokopia, Donkey Kong Bananza, or Mario Kart World at the same time.

Nintendo Switch 2 choose-your-game bundle | $499 at Amazon

Another Switch game with a free Switch 2 update

While you're a little limited if you only look at Switch 2 titles, there are plenty of original Switch games seeing hefty discounts in Amazon's Prime Day deals. The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom is another OG title with a free performance update for Switch 2 players. The clever dungeon puzzler swaps Link and Zelda out for some excellent logic adventures. It's not one for lovers of classic dungeon crawling, but it's still an excellent time.

At $39.99 this Switch download is just a few cents off its lowest ever price - and this one rarely drops on sale. The last time I saw savings on the digital download was back in January.

The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom | $59.99 $39.99 at Amazon

An actual discount on official Switch 2 hardware

Ninty hardware doesn't shed its price all too often, it holds its value for a serious amount of time. However, the Switch 2 Camera seems to be bucking that trend this Prime Day.

The first party lens has dropped down to $29.99 this week, a full $25 off the original launch price. That's the first time I've ever seen it on sale for more than a few cents off. If you've just picked up a Switch 2, or you're keen to finally try a more serious GameChat sessions, this is a must-see.

Nintendo Switch 2 Camera | $54.99 $29.99 at Amazon

Need a more versatile storage option?

Turtle Beach's PlayTrek 2-in-1 case is already seeing some solid discounts in Amazon's Prime Day deals. For the next 12 hours you can scoop up the larger travel buddy for $39.99 (down from $49.99) - a return to a record-low price we've only seen twice so far in its life.

This was a five-star review from Rosalie, with excellent adjustability, value for money, and versatility in offering both a simple clamshell case and an all-in-one bag.

Turtle Beach PlayTrek 2-in-1 case | $49.99 $39.99 at Amazon

A much cheaper Joy-Con grip

Nintendo's Joy-Con 2 Charging Grip will still run you $39.88. That's under our $50 budget, but we can do better.

We gave this JSAUX Switch 2 Charging Grip a full 5/5 stars in our review, for its extra chunky grip options, easy charging, and comfortable design. Really, what more could you ask for?

Oh maybe a Prime Day deal.

The $21.99 MSRP has tumbled down to $16.14 this week, the lowest price I've ever seen and more than half the rate of Ninty's own model.

JSAUX Charging Grip | $21.99 $16.14 at Amazon

Donkey Kong fans listen up!

Turtle Beach's PlayTrek Travel Case is available in a particularly slick Donkey Kong lenticular design, and it's $10 off in this week's Prime Day Nintendo Switch 2 deals. you'll need to add it to your cart to see the final price (spoilers, it's $19.99) but we're $5 cheaper than I've ever seen this clamshell design go for in the past.

There's a little extra flair in that design, but you're also getting a sturdy chassis with storage for up to 12 physical games. While that front cover can get a little scratched, the actual buffers still feel solid.

Turtle Beach PlayTrek Travel Case | $29.99 $19.99 at Amazon

PSA: This Ditto all-in-one carry case will soon exist

Hori announced this adorable Ditto all-in-one carry case last week, and I just needed to bring it to your attention. I mean look at it.

The whole thing is designed to hold your handheld, dock, controllers, and more in one purple Poke-themed package. It's not on sale this week, it's not even out yet - but I'll leave more details just below. It technically fits the brief, it is only $39.99.

Hori Ditto all-in-one case | $39.99 at Best Buy

Pokemon Legends Z-A is still on sale

The Nintendo Switch 2 version of Pokemon Legends Z-A is still 36% off for Prime Day, dropping the $69.99 title down to $44.99 for the first time ever. Whether you've been waiting for a discount or Pokopia has spurred that Poke-fever, this is a solid offer and the only discount I've seen at Amazon so far.

We gave Z-A four stars in our review, with a slick real-time combat system, memorable characters, and a fantastic soundtrack making up for the samey environment.

Pokemon Legeds: Z-A | $69.99 $44.99 at Amazon

Best Buy has Street Fighter 6 Amiibo for just $5

Well, technically less than $5.

You'll find a bunch of Street Fighter amiibo sitting at $4.99 in Best Buy's competing Prime Day Nintendo Switch 2 deals. That's a biggie for collectors - these are usually $39.99 a go.

It's not the first time these figures have seen rock-bottom prices on Best Buy's shelves, similar discounts have appeared a handful of times in the past, but it's still an impressive discount for the right player.

Street Fighter 6 amiibo | $39.99 $4.99 at Best Buy

Amazon doesn't have stock but Best Buy has Dragon Ball Sparking Zero for $30 off

Amazon has now run out of stock on the Switch 2 version of Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero, but Best Buy still has $30 off the $59.99 game. This is a Game Key Card but it is the cheapest way to pick up the title right now, even if Bezos was a dollar under this $29.99 sales price.

Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero | $59.99 $29.99 at Best Buy

Want to make the most of the Sega Genesis Collection on Switch 2?

Nintendo Switch Online members with the expansion pass can play a selection of Sega Genesis titles for free, but if you really want to make the most of that perk you'll want to have the right kit. Phil's been road testing the 8Bitdo M30, so far calling it "a near-perfect" gamepad for the system. The 2.4GHz connection keeps latencies low, the whole pad as a neat authentic look and feel, and it's even compatible with the original console if you're going old school.

At $17.49, we're just a buck off a record-low price here, with a 30% discount dropping that already impressive $24.99 MSRP.

8BitDo M30 | $24.99 $17.49 at Amazon

Amazon's Persona 3 Reload stock has run out

Thankfully Best Buy still has a record-low $29.99 sales price on the Nintendo Switch 2 Edition. With Prime Day Nintendo Switch 2 deals looking a little thin on Bezos's ground this late in the game, it's more important than ever to check around.

This is the second example of Best Buy still going strong on stock while Amazon suffers, giving you another chance to nab a classic JRPG giant for a great price.

Persona 3 Reload | $59.99 $29.99 at Best Buy

Oh hello 8Bitdo Ultimate 2

The 8Bitdo Ultimate 2 seems to have given way to a new sub-$50 price point in the late hours of Prime Day. This one was hovering just above our budget for most of the sale but I've just spotted it at $47.49 all of a sudden. That's a fantastic offer on the 2.4GHz model. While there's no wake functionality in here, this is one of the more robust third party options on the market.

8Bitdo Ultimate 2 | $59.99 $47.49 at Amazon

Head to Amazon for Assassin's Creed Shadows

While Best Buy is winning for stock in some areas right now, Amazon still has the upper hand for anyone looking to eagle dive into Assassin's Creed Shadows on Nintendo Switch 2. The latest instalment has hurtled down to $34.99 on the site (whereas Best Buy is still charging $44.99). That's a hefty 42% discount, even if we are still a couple of bucks away from a record low.

We gave Shadows four out of five stars at review, with a fresh take on dual protagonists allowing for a multitude of different gameplay styles while still allowing for that classic stealth and more modern RPG vibes to shine through together.

Assassin's Creed Shadows | $59.99 $34.99 at Amazon

A personal highlight here

Dragon Quest 7 Reimagined is a fantastic addition to any Switch 2 collection. Don't ask me why, but Dragon Quest is made to be played on a Nintendo handheld and I won't have any of this PS5 business getting involved. With a 25% discount at Amazon, the latest remake has just nestled itself neatly into our $50 budget, dropping from $59.99 to $44.99 for the first time.

This one's been discounted a little in its shorter life so far - but it's only ever hit $49.99 in previous sales. We're $5 cheaper in these final Prime Day Nintendo Switch 2 deals.

Dragon Quest 7 Reimagined | $59.99 $44.99 at Amazon

The Switch 2 controller for PS1 kids

The 8BitDo Pro 3 has a that classic symmetrical PS1 shape we all secretly yearn for. It's a strange gamepad, pairing ultra modern tech like TMR thumbsticks with a slightly outdated design that won't be comfortable for everyone. That charging dock and those extra buttons will certainly pair up for some old Sony fans, though.

8BitDo Pro 3 | $69.99 $45.59 at Amazon

I've actually been looking forward to a discount on this one for some time

I've been intrigued by Sonic Racing: Crossworlds for some time now, and Prime Day might be the day I finally pull the trigger. The Switch 2 Edition has jumped from $69.99 to $39.99 for the sale - a sturdy 43% discount and a brand new record-low price. I've only seen this one drop to $50 in the past, and as a relatively recently release today's offer is particularly impressive.

Sonic games like this don't hold their value for very long, so it's not completely out of the blue but still a sturdy discount nonetheless. With a little Mario Kart fatigue setting in, it might be time to try Sega's take.

Sonic Racing: Crossworlds | $69.99 $39.99 at Amazon

TomToc's new Switch 2 case is 24% off

The Switch 2 version of one of my favorite OG Switch cases is in business, with a 24% discount for the final few hours of Prime Day. If you hate bulking out your bag with chunky clamshells, this is the case for you.

It's super streamlined - there's no faffing around with an accessory pouch that will push against your thumbsticks, and the case itself manages to remain sturdy without requiring an unwieldy depth. Throw in a nice selection of color fades and you've got yourself a streamlined little Switch-saver.

At $28.11 you're spending a little more than you would a more budget-oriented PowerA or PDP model, but picking up a more luxurious feeling case as a result.

TomToc Nintendo Switch 2 case | $36.99 $28.11 at Amazon

Only a few hours left to grab Metroid Prime 4 for its lowest price yet

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond was a later addition to the Switch 2's lineup, but it's nevertheless seeing one of the system's strongest discounts this Prime Day. Amazon has the latest instalment for its lowest ever price here, a full $25 down from the original $69.99.

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond | $69.99 $44.99 at Amazon

Stardew Valley creator Eric "ConcernedApe" Barone is still hard at work on his next game, Haunted Chocolatier, even if it's taking a while – but he's not quite ready to share more sneak peeks of his exciting project just yet.

He'd rather perfect what he's working on first. The mastermind indie developer says so in a new update on the official Haunted Chocolatier website, amusingly dubbed "Still here, still grinding."

He begins by confirming what he's confirmed quite a few times in the past: "Yep. I'm still working on the game." He says it "feels kinda dumb posting this same thing over and over, but that's the reality." So it is, indeed.

ConcernedApe is well aware that Haunted Chocolatier is "taking a long time" – but he wants to be "very thoughtful about every aspect of the game." He feels the need to ensure that every feature is "perfect," or as close to perfect as features can be. "They need to be seamless, clear, intuitive, satisfying, aesthetic," in his own words.

Plus, "it's a big game. So there are many things for me to fuss over." Understandable… heck, Stardew Valley itself is massive.

The dev has said before that the "world of Haunted Chocolatier" will somehow be even "larger" than that of Stardew Valley and that "everything is cranked up" in the new sim. So, why isn't he sharing any more sneak peeks of it, when there's so much?

"I don't like to share too many screenshots or even talk about the systems in too much detail while the game is in development," ConcernedApe admits.

He likens it to baking: "Partly, it feels like I'm serving a half-baked bread. I would rather serve a fully baked bread. Also, I know that many parts of the game will likely evolve and change before release, so if I reveal them early, I risk disappointing players if the final product does not match their expectation. Fortunately, I'm in a position where I don't need to market the game, so I can take my preferred approach."

I'd certainly say so – Stardew Valley continues to stand the test of time as one of the most successful indie games… heck, games, of all time. ConcernedApe does not, in fact, need any marketing, something he acknowledges himself.

While I'd love to see more of Haunted Chocolatier myself, of course, I understand where he's coming from. He's got a lot on his plate between the new sim and Stardew Valley's own 1.7 update, and he wants to make sure his work is complete enough to show folks.

The legendary dev closes with a grateful message to us fans, writing, "As always, I really appreciate your patience" – and to that I'd respond that we really appreciate his work and transparency. Here's to more Haunted Chocolatier… whenever it may come.

ConcernedApe spends 5 days a week on Haunted Chocolatier and 2 on Stardew Valley, says the new game is "a lot harder" to make.

The Forza Horizon 6 Sky Lanterns are an elusive bunch of bright balloons that only appear near the stadium at night in the Autumn season. It's a very specific set of conditions to meet, but there are two ways you can get this Photography challenge done in Forza Horizon 6 to bag yourself 100 Discover Japan points – being in the right place at the right time or using an EventLab cheese. It doesn't matter which method you use, so I've explained both below, including the specific conditions and exact location of the Sky Lanterns in FH6.

Forza Horizon 6 Sky Lanterns location

Sky Lanterns can be found above a field just outside the Horizon Stadium, which is in the Shimanoyama Region on the most westerly point on the map. However, they will only appear at night during the in-game Autumn season.

Head over to the spot on the above map and wait until the sun sets. Eventually, a large cluster of sky lanterns will appear, at which point you just need to switch to Photo Mode and take a picture with the lanterns clearly in view.

However, if you (understandably) don't want to wait ages to for the in-game day/night cycle to do its thing, you can use an EventLab challenge to put you in the right spot at the right time.

Open the Creative Hub menu, then select the EventLab submenu. From here, choose 'Play Challenges', follow the button prompt to search, then type in 'sky lantern' in the Title slot. This will bring up many custom-made challenges that should help you get this challenge done – the one I tested had the share code '136 800 478' and it worked a treat!

During this autumn season, make sure you also know where to find the Forza Horizon 6 bamboo forest and the Forza Horizon 6 Evolving World Car Meet for different weekly challenges.

© GamesRadar+. Not to be reproduced without permission.

When is GTA 6 going to be on PC is a legitimate question to ask, as Rockstar have said nothing on that topic so far. While we know that Lucia and Jason's journey will begin on November 19, 2026 for PS5 and Xbox Series X owners, there has been conspicuous silence about if or when a PC release will be happening. However, we can use previous releases as a barometer for when more information is likely to be release, so here's what you need to know about GTA 6 on PC.

If you want to get prepared, then we've broken down all of the GTA 6 weapons and GTA 6 cars identified so far, along with the GTA 6 locations you can visit and what is currently known about the GTA 6 map.

Is GTA 6 coming to PC?

Look, we all know that GTA 6 is the hottest ticket in town, so it will definitely be coming to PC in the future. There's no way that Rockstar wouldn't tap into that market, especially given the massive investment of both time and money to get to the finished product. However, as we've seen with previous releases, there is always a notable gap between the initial console launch and arrival on PC, so let's dig into the history and see what we can learn from it.

When do we expect the GTA 6 PC release date to be?

Based on previous releases, it's unlikely the GTA 6 will release on PC before November 2027, and it could get pushed back into 2028. It's also likely that Rockstar will keep completely quiet about it until a while after the console release, as they have done with previous games.

To give that some context, GTA 4 came out on PC a little over 7 months after consoles, and while GTA 5 was originally due launch for PC alongside the PS4 and Xbox One enhanced versions 14 months after the original release, delays meant it was 19 months before GTA 5 arrived on PC. More recently, there was a 13 month delay between Red Dead Redemption 2 arriving on consoles and making the leap to PC.

The PC version of GTA 5 was announced at E3 2014, some 9 months after initial release, while Rockstar waited the best part of a year before confirming Red Dead Redemption 2 was heading to PC. So, while it is an inevitability, don't expect to hear anything official about GTA 6 on PC until at least 2027.

© GamesRadar+. Not to be reproduced without permission.

Pearl Abyss PR and marketing director Will Powers says that Crimson Desert's near-constant slate of updates hasn't been a ploy to sell more copies, instead it's about celebrating the game's success.

Obviously, GTA 6 is the big new game for 2026 that has and will continue to dominate the conversation, but outside of that absolute behemoth, Crimson Desert has certainly felt like the game people have been most into (alongside Resident Evil Requiem, of course). The massive open-world game released back in March, and has become an impressive success, especially for a new IP, with it selling over five million copies within its first month. That's on top of the positive Crimson Desert reviews.

However, one thing that has definitely kept Crimson Desert in the conversation is how much support the devs have given it following its launch, with post-launch updates turning the game into a full-blown pet sim in the weeks since release, for example, and even some more out there additions like a pinball mini-game, which I'm not sure anyone was asking for, but it's a welcome addition.

Speaking to CGMag, Powers says: "A new IP selling five million copies in a month should be celebrated. There's too many layoffs and studio closures, and bad news that I think that we all could benefit from spending some time around the good news."

He adds that because of this impressive feat, "this should be a celebration in general, because Pearl Abyss isn't taking a victory lap in the sense of 'All right, how can we sell more?' It's 'How can we give more back to the community?'"

Powers explains: "Their approach post launch has been mostly around what we can do in order to reward the players that have been there from day one and continue to make the game this living breathing experience." Pearl Abyss has said you can expect more free updates as long as the playerbase is interested, but the developer is also working on a "substantively different" DLC alongside it.

Still playing? Check out how to make money fast in Crimson Desert and how to unlock all Crimson Desert characters.

For a series all about jumping from one disjointed Disney world to the next (and maybe stopping to chat with Final Fantasy friends in between), Kingdom Hearts 4 has been pretty shy about which movies might be depicted in the upcoming game. But Sora's long-time voice actor and Oscar-nominated child star Haley Joel Osment has had his picks locked down for ages: Star Wars and Marvel.

Kingdom Hearts 4 recently popped out of the shadows with a surprise new trailer earlier this month. Perhaps more surprising than its mere appearance was the omission of any Disney worlds or characters – though, from previous looks at the game, we do know Donald, Goofy, King Mickey, and Hades will appear – which has left the fanbase to speculate wildly off on their own.

Ravenous Kingdom Hearts fans aren't the only ones theory crafting, however. Haley Joel Osment himself took a couple guesses at which Disney properties might show up in the sequel in a 2024 interview with TheMovieDweeb that recently resurfaced thanks to all the Kingdom Hearts 4 hype.

"Now we're linked up with Marvel and Star Wars, right? I don't know if they ever would connect those," Osment said at the time. "That might be a little too complicated, like connecting all that, but you know, I would never put it past them [Square Enix]. It's a bunch of really creative people."

As for his favorite worlds in the series, well, they might surprise you. "We've done a Tron one. I like the Steamboat Willie one," he added, "the animation in that was really cool. So, yeah, all these [worlds] that may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of a Disney video game. I love when they really stretch in that direction. I'm excited to see."

Any deeper cuts seem preferable for the Sora actor, but the recently-reposted clip has now seen fans get involved as well. Comments under the video has droves of people begging for Treasure Planet representation. Oh, how I'd like to shake all your hands! Coco, Zootopia, The Incredibles, and Atlantis are other common suggestions.

In the meantime, the only Kingdom Hearts 4 worlds we've seen so far are Quadratum, the life-like city shown off in trailers that's implied to be an afterlife of sorts, and the tiniest glimpse of a green forest with what looks like a Star Wars AT-ST foot stomping about. Endor-coded, much?

Disney now owns so many properties that it's pretty easy to come up with a dream wishlist. Mine would probably include Sora being stalked by a Xenomorph before engaging in an overly long chicken-fight with Peter Griffin.

After voicing Sora in 12 RPGs, Kingdom Hearts actor says maybe "the best thing to do" is let the long-running series end: "Even if you have something that you love."

And so it goes: Bungie is currently undergoing a large round of layoffs. Though expected after the final Destiny 2 update, it's still a gut punch that leaves many talented developers without work. Numerous people affected by the decision and previously associated with Bungie have commented on the situation on social media, as fans rally around the legendary studio.

"Despite everything it has been an honor to work on Destiny 2," Blaise Markley, now former activity designer at Bungie, says on Twitter. "Please know with deep sincerity that we wanted more than anything to make you smile. See you starside, Guardians."

Lyndon Willoughby was a senior artist at the company, and he calls the position "a dream" on Twitter. Mikey "TehMidge" Perfected, an activity, events and social QA at Bungie, tweets that "it was an honor" to work on his favorite game over an extended period.

According to Artem Sorokin, a now former senior VFX artist, "essentially the entire Destiny VFX team, leads and all," have been let go. As the news travels of the job losses at Bungie, there are calls for Sony to impact more of the leadership positions, a stance echoed by other former employees.

"Disastrous leadership continues to be rewarded, protected, and paid out with their golden toilets," Liana Ruppert, an ex-community manager at Bungie who was laid off from the company in 2023, posts on Twitter. "I hope they get everything they truly deserve, and that's guilt, shame, and hopefully some actual fucking reflection."

The layoffs run through the whole structure of Bungie. Studio head Justin Truman is also stepping down, according to reports. The belief was that once development on Destiny 2 wrapped, Sony intended to make substantial changes across the entire team. These job losses follow a disappointing reception to Marathon back in March, Bungie's first non-Destiny related game in over a decade.

At the moment, the future of the studio seems uncertain. Marathon "remains an important part of our portfolio," according to Sony in a statement made on the cuts, but only time will tell how true that winds up being.

Destiny 2 fans shouldn't "blame yourselves" as Bungie closes the door on its 9-year-old MMO, says community lead: "This is just the way it goes sometimes."

Nintendo CEO Shuntaro Furukawa was asked about the possibility of DS and 3DS games coming to Switch Online, and… he didn't say no, which is good enough for me!

Nintendo Switch Online has been an absolute highlight of the console since it was released, and while Virtual Console on the Wii may have given us all the consoles right away, the Switch has almost been on a rate of one a year since the service launched in 2018 (although 2021 and 2023 dropped two consoles at once to make up for missed years).

But now, we're at the point where… well, I mean, Nintendo put the Virtual Boy out – clearly things are a bit more difficult.

Nintendo's remaining consoles all have some form of gimmick that could potentially prevent them from working on Switch and Switch 2, be it touch controls and dual-screens on the DS and 3DS, motion controls on Wii, or the multi-screen Wii U (although that console already had almost its entire library released again on Switch).

However, that didn't stop an investor from asking if the DS and 3DS will be coming.

Twitter user NStyles covered the Q&A session from Nintendo's shareholders meeting (via machine translation), and Furukawa was reportedly asked if there are plans to bring DS and 3DS to Switch Online for Switch 2.

The Nintendo CEO responded, allegedly saying that while he can't answer specifics, the company is looking into making as many of its classic games playable on modern consoles as possible, citing the Switch Online library as a way for people to discover such titles and evoke nostalgia in those who played them at the time.

Obviously, without some compromise, the DS and 3DS are going to be difficult – but they also seem more realistic than the Wii or Wii U getting a Switch Online app (especially when Nintendo is selling Wii games like Mario Galaxy or Donkey Kong Country Returns as separate releases).

Personally, I'd like to see Nintendo team up with Sega again to follow up on the Mega Drive app and get Sega Saturn and Dreamcast games onto Switch 2.

Donkey Kong Bananza devs admit the blatantly OP elephant transformation "probably went too far," but "it's fun" and "that's what matters most."

If an Amazon Brazil description is to be believed, GTA 6 will have in-game social media and missions that have you switching between its two main characters. Neither is too surprising – GTA 5 had us ping-ponging across three guys and digital feeds absolutely littered GTA 6's first trailer – but the features are still notable since Rockstar Games has yet to say anything about them.

So, take everything from here on out with a grain of salt, but Amazon Brazil's store description for the GTA 6 pre-orders lists a bunch of features – some of which we've known about for a while (Vice City's here, for example), some of which we could've guessed (dynamic weather's also in), and some of which haven't actually been confirmed by Rockstar Games.

GTA 6's main difference from past titles is that this one's the kind-of love story of Jason and Lucia, so, naturally, both are playable, but the sequel's also seemingly borrowing from its older sibling with duo missions. Sounds like we'll be able to swap who we control in the middle of missions, if not the entire open world, similarly to GTA 5.

The other notable feature is the built-in social media. Amazon's listing mentions players can watch videos, follow influencers, and maybe even get clued in on open-world activities via Jason or Lucia's phone.

Grand Theft Auto's no stranger to dabbling in made-up internet spaces. GTA 4 had the very of-its-time internet cafes for browsing websites, and GTA 5 plopped the entire digital space onto our characters' phones, complete with a stock market and websites to purchase all types of goods. As the series often does, it sounds like GTA 6 is once again updating its satire for the modern era, only this time perhaps with interactive doomscrolling and brainrot content in case you need a break from doing that in real-life. The ultimate gaming power fantasy, eh?

Keep in mind Rockstar Games hasn't outright confirmed these features or really delved into the game at all, so don't get too attached to the idea of Grand Theft TikTok.

Analysts expect GTA 6 could sell up to 30 million copies at launch, but are unsure if it can "surpass the incredible longevity and massive sales of 5" in the long run.

Stardew Valley mastermind Eric "ConcernedApe" Barone has been chipping away at his new game, Haunted Chocolatier, since 2020 – and even though he's aware it's taking a while, it's all with good reason.

The legendary indie developer shares as much in a new update on the official Haunted Chocolatier website, aptly dubbed: "Still here, still grinding." He explains that yes, he is still working on his upcoming sim – and yes, he's said that many times.

"I know it's taking a long time. A big part of that is that I am being very thoughtful about every aspect of the game," he admits – and, yeah, that makes sense. Plenty of us are fellow perfectionists.

As ConcernedApe writes, "The things in the game which the player will be interacting with or using very often need to be 'perfect.' They need to be seamless, clear, intuitive, satisfying, aesthetic." He looks to the game's chocolate recipe book, as he adds: "I torture myself over every last detail."

I get it. The standards that Stardew Valley set – or should I say, expectations – likely don't help here… neither does the size of Haunted Chocolatier. "It's a big game," after all. "So there are many things for me to fuss over."

That checks out – especially with what he's said in the past, that the "world of Haunted Chocolatier" will somehow be even "larger" than that of Stardew Valley and that "everything is cranked up" in the new sim.

All in all, it's a lot to work with, "but this is what it will take to make a game I'm satisfied with," as per ConcernedApe's own words. That's not to mention Stardew Valley's own 1.7 update, which I'm sure will be massive.

As for why the dev hasn't shared more sneak peeks at his game-in-progress, he simply doesn't want to. "I don't like to share too many screenshots," says ConcernedApe, "or even talk about the systems in too much detail, while the game is in development." I'm certainly fine with that.

I'd rather he feel comfortable when he does post screencaps or teasers, rather than "risk disappointing players," as he puts it himself.

Not that I think he'd ever disappoint us – heck, I'd be happy with pretty much anything after the gem that Stardew Valley was (and continues to be). I'm certain that Haunted Chocolatier will step up to the plate and impress just as much… whenever that may be.

ConcernedApe spends 5 days a week on Haunted Chocolatier and 2 on Stardew Valley, says the new game is "a lot harder" to make.

When Rockstar announced that GTA 6 would launch in November 2026, seemingly every big game within a two-month orbit of that date began scrambling for a plan: release during the same general timeframe and risk being swallowed by the biggest game of the century, or get the heck out of the way. As you might expect, many developers and publishers chose the latter option, and coincidentally, September turned out to be a very popular alternative release month, apparently far enough away from GTA 6's tidal wake for them to feel comfortable launching their games.

Capcom was one of many companies who chose a September launch, earlier this month confirming at long last that Onimusha: Way of the Sword is coming out September 25. However, that date was thrown into question just last week when a retailer listing seemed to suggest Capcom was planning to shift the release date forward by a few weeks. The reasonable assumption was that so many games moved to late September due to a fear of GTA 6 that they inadvertently created a similarly challenging environment for themselves due to there now being such a crowded market for that specific window.

After three chunky paragraphs, I'm now realizing that was a very long setup just so say, Onimusha: Way of the Sword isn't getting a new release date, Capcom has confirmed. In the latest Capcom Spotlight, an unnamed English-speaking narrator seemingly responds to rumors of a release date shift, confirming, "Once more, Onimusha: Way of the Sword releases on September 25, 2026."

In case you're wondering about all of the games Capcom is going up against this September, I don't possibly have time to list them all, but some of the bigger ones include Marvel's Wolverine, Silent Hill: Townfall, Control Resonant, The Blood of Dawnwalker, and Shinobi Art of Vengeance. Needless to say, Onimusha has enough of a following to easily compete with those games, but we'll see which games emerge victorious when the dust settles, and more importantly, which will stand the test of time in a post-GTA 6 world.

Looking to lock in your copy early? You won't want to miss our guide to GTA 6 pre-orders.

Arc Raiders is about to kick off its fourth Expedition, and the developers at Embark have some major changes on the way. In short? You're no longer getting any skill points from completing the Expedition challenge this time around, as you'll instead be getting an array of "mystery rewards" made up of small Raider Token payouts and temporary blueprints. The apparent nerf to Expedition rewards seems to be part of an ongoing effort to make the system friendlier to new players.

When the new Arc Raiders Expedition kicks off on July 7, you'll still be dealing damage to earn rewards, in line with the changes the devs made to the system earlier this year. Each completed departure objective will reward you with blueprints from a list that Embark has detailed in its announcement. These rewards are "temporary and will reset when you depart on your next Expedition." On the permanent side, you'll also get 150 Raider Token payouts for each completed departure objective.

Neither of those rewards really compete with the bonus skill points players were able to earn in the first three expeditions, however. Those extra skill points offered players a nice leg up on reset, but that seems to be exactly the problem – veteran players with a bank of extra skill points always have an advantage over newer ones, and while new players can retroactively get those bonus skill points in subsequent expeditions, it's not fun to dive into a new game with a pile of catch-up work to do.

"We understand the frustration of new players that are only now starting to do their Expeditions," the devs explain. "We need to find the right balance of rewarding our veteran players but also give new players fair and fun ways to catch up and not feel like they are always behind. This is a continuous effort and we'll keep you updated as we have more to share."

Judging by the tone of the responses to the change on Reddit, it seems the balance isn't really hitting right for veteran players. Without a meaningful reward to grind for, there's little reason to engage with Expeditions at all, and I doubt that's the outcome Embark is looking for.

Arc Raiders and Marathon aren't "dead" just because their concurrent player count has dropped, Palworld lead says – but he's "not denying that some games do 'die.'"

Playing video games is rapidly becoming a much more expensive hobby than it was just a few years ago, as AI-driven memory shortages and economic instability fuel rising hardware prices, and the CEO of a leading RAM producer says things are unlikely to ease up until 2028, at the earliest.

The affordability crisis putting pressure on manufacturers to hike prices is the result of a perfect storm in which inflation, tariffs implemented by the US government, and memory shortages caused by the rapid development of AI data centers collide.

This year alone, Nintendo Switch 2 prices shot up by $50, a PlayStation price hike brought the premium PS5 Pro all the way up to $900, Valve increased the price of entry to the Steam Machine lineup to $1049, and just today, Microsoft raised Xbox prices up $100-$150 depending on the model. Meanwhile, building your own gaming machine via assembling PC components isn't a remotely affordable alternative, as RAM in particular remains exorbitantly pricey.

I genuinely wish I had more optimistic news to share on this front, and I'm sure eventually things will settle down, but according to Micron CEO Sanjay Mehrotra, that day won't be for many months.

"We expect tight conditions to persist beyond calendar 2027 as a result of AI-driven demand across all segments coupled with structural supply constraints," Mehrotra told investors in the company's Q3 earnings report (via IGN).

"Even as we expect industry supply to improve gradually in 2028, we currently do not have line of sight as to when memory supply will be able to catch up with increasing demand," he added.

Naturally, the implications for the price of future generations of gaming consoles, specifically the PS6 and Xbox Project Helix, are dire. Analysts have predicted the next-gen consoles to debut with 50% higher price tags than their current-gen counterparts, and $1000 base models aren't out of the question.

That said, Microsoft and Sony could decide to wait out the RAMpocalypse and simply delay the new consoles until the component shortages and related price elevations are in the rear-view. That could potentially push the next generation of consoles into the 2030s, with reports indicating Sony is already considering an internal delay.

As Xbox studios brace for a "reset," South of Midnight developers from Compulsion Games begin looking for work

Bungie studio head Justin Truman is reportedly leaving the company after nearly 17 total years across positions, including Destiny 2 design director and general manager.

Bloomberg News reporter Jason Schreier shares in a Bluesky post that "people familiar with the situation" say Truman is stepping down as studio lead after, according to his LinkedIn, 11 months. Truman took the position over from controversial ex-lead Pete Parsons, who a former Bungie writer Robert Brookes credited earlier this year with being "the real Destiny killer."

GamesRadar+ has reached out to Bungie for comment on Truman's current role at the company, but we did not receive an immediate response. At the moment, the studio has only made generalizations clear, in that it's undergoing huge layoffs. "Destiny 2 fell short of expectations," according to Bungie's statement posted on Bluesky, and "we unfortunately could not continue operating at our previous size."

Bungie claims it has "future projects still in early incubation," but Destiny 2 received its final live-service content update earlier this month, and since then, former devs been happy to share that their laboring on the MMO and other Bungie properties was "the most toxic, dysfunctional experience of my professional life," as Destiny 2 narrative lead Michael Zenke put it.

Destiny struggled throughout the 10 years Pete Parsons served as Bungie CEO, and though he'd once hoped "to transform the Destiny business" by 2025 – ultimately, the year he left Bungie – the former executive also lost fans' confidence after he apparently spent $2.3 million on old school cars around the same time Bungie laid off 220 people.

Sony initially purchased Bungie for $3.6 billion in 2022, while studio execs built Hollywood signs in their hearts and dreamed of making a Destiny 2 TV show. But dreams can either come true or dissolve into embarrassment, and, well – there aren't currently any production studios with plans to make a Destiny 2 TV show.

Ex-writer Brookes quipped in a Bluesky post this spring about Bungie leadership ahead of Destiny 2's last update, "Don't worry they're suffering in their *checks note on hand* multi-million dollar payouts."

As I wait on an official response regarding Justin Truman's job status, I'm choosing to find the silver lining anyway: at least someone can afford the $599 Xbox Series S 1TB.

Destiny 2 fans shouldn't "blame yourselves" as Bungie closes the door on its 9-year-old MMO, says community lead: "This is just the way it goes sometimes."

Decompilation projects continue to pay off with more and more native PC ports of classic games coming from fan developers. The Spyro fandom was already flying high with the announcement of a brand-new series entry earlier this month, and now the good times are continuing to roll with a PC port that promises to bring all sorts of modern bells and whistles to the OG PS1 classic.

I'll get the bad news out of the way first: this fanmade PC port is not yet available to the public. But according to lumilaura, a prodigious Spyro speedrunner who's been asked to put an early version of the port through its paces, a full release is coming "much sooner than we all think." As if to demonstrate how close that launch is, she's provided a minute of gameplay footage which you can see below, and it's looking sharp.

"You're not dreaming, this is Spyro 1 running natively on windows 11 with the brand new OpenPETE decomp + recomp hybrid by Amec/tyscorp," lumilaura explains. "60fps, true widescreen, no polygon wobble, perspective correct textures, the works."

While some fan projects along these lines have been marred by their use of AI-powered vibe coding, this one's being made with "no AI." Plus, the dev suggests that while the project only covers Spyro 1 for now, the two PS1 sequels could theoretically "be easily supported."

Of course, if you just want a modern-looking take on the original Spyro you could just dive into the Reignited Trilogy, but that's a fundamentally different experience to the actual OG. As lumilaura adds in a follow-up post, this port "runs 1:1 with console behind the scenes," right down to all the tricks and glitches that power the speedrun scene.

The devs behind the upcoming Spyro: A Realm Beyond credit the "loud and consistent" fans who bought 11 million copies of the remake with helping manifest the new game, and I'd say this kind of PC port only reinforces just how dedicated the Spyro fandom is. Now, after years of famine, they're finally getting the opportunity to feast.

Spyro: A Realm Beyond devs "hope that this is the first of many" new games in the series: "We want Spyro to live on for a long time."

Much as Steam may be the dominant marketplace on PC, it's far from a one-stop shop for all the most popular games available. Tim Sweeney, CEO of Epic Games, believes Valve is consistently shooting itself in the foot in ways Epic Games has managed to avoid - so far, at least.

According to him, a noted Steam disliker for reasons I'm sure are obvious, the fact that Steam isn't a more collaborative entity shuts out large swaths of PC gamers. "They have a nice thing going on on PC, but they reach what percentage of the PC audience?" he told PCGamer, when asked about Valve's place in the hierarchy.

"You know, they don't reach any of the Fortnite [audience], they don't have Fortnite and Riot's games and Genshin Impact, and many of the top games in the industry on Steam," he adds.

This much is true: there are massive communities Valve is actively closed off from. In the case of Riot Games, it's due to being active competitors, both in general and because League of Legends was started as a spiritual successor to the original DotA, and since Steam hosts Dota 2, they were never going to sit side-by-side.

Fortnite came out only a year before the Epic Games Store took off, making it unlikely the original version or the battle royale would ever be on Steam. The separation is frequently mutually assured, is what I'm saying here. But Sweeney looks at it differently.

"They're missing out on a lot of opportunity that I think they could have if they took the more forward-looking, open view that Epic has taken, and Microsoft has taken," he says, doubling down on what Microsoft charges devs to list games on its marketplace: "Microsoft Store charges 12% - really good deal. Google's now giving all developers a better deal, and has some really cool things coming for the future."

Valve could bring together "Team Open," Sweeney argues, and help the PC user base flourish. "Steam's got a pretty sweet business - a lot of gamers love Steam - but imagine if you could have Steam on all of the platforms?" he muses. "What if you could have it on iPhone, what if you could have it on Android? What if they carried a lot of games?"

What if, indeed. Valve has faced a lot of pushback over the years due to how it handles its market position. Steam was cited as part of Epic's legal battle against Apple over unfair practices, and more recent legal battles have brought to light reported instances of Valve being unhappy about other publishers selling games cheaper than on Steam as part of sales on their own stores.

Valve billionaire Gabe Newell spends $70 million on a new mansion to go with his $500 million yacht as the house of Steam fights monopoly lawsuits