Gaming News

Darkest Dungeon 2 Review

With the whole world dissolving into an apocalyptic, primordial abyss, your band of misfits sets out into a nightmarish land to save everything by destroying corrupted pieces of reality beneath an ancient mountain. They'll probably fail, taken down by ambush, infighting, bad luck – but maybe, just maybe, fortune favors them and they destroy some unspeakable horror… and then gear up for the next run. That's the routine in Darkest Dungeon 2, where I was never sure if I'd journey from desperate despair to delicious delight, or from frolicking fun to futile frustration, every time I booted it up. Enjoying it for the dozens of hours it demands to complete takes the spirit of a gambler, someone always willing to hold out hope that the dice...

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Jack Black's Infectious Video Game Song Features God of War, Red Dead Redemption 2 and Yes, Mario

Jack Black has created yet another catchy song - and this time, it's a love letter to video games. Following up on his song "Peaches" for The Super Mario Bros. Movie, his band Tenacious D released "Video Games" with an accompanying music video that sports more game references than you can count on two hands. You can watch the full video here. It opens up with an animated version of Jack Black singing about how he doesn't play video games (we all know that's not true) with bandmate Kyle Gass playing guitar. As the video goes on, Black begins to name a bunch of video games he's played... while Gass gets killed by various video game creatures and characters. Throughout the song, he references God of War, Fallout 4, Sonic the Hedgehog...

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You'll Soon Be Able to Go Fast in Sonic the Hedgehog Crocs

If you ever wanted to go fast like Sonic - but in Crocs - now is your chance. SEGA has teamed up with Crocs to release a new line of Sonic-themed Clogs and Jibbitz charms. The upcoming collaboration takes notes from the world of Sonic, which includes Gold Rings that you can collect throughout the game, Chaos Emeralds, chili dogs, and of course, Sonic's red shoes. The Jibbitz charms will include fan-favorite characters such as Tails, Amy Rose, Knuckles, and Shadow. You can pick yourself a pair on May 23 if you're in the U.S. and May 24 for everyone else. If you want to purchase the Classic Sonic the Hedgehog Clog, they'll cost $59.99; the Kids' Classic Sonic the Hedgehog Clog will cost $49.99; and the Toddlers' Classic the Hedgehog...

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Riot Global President A. Dylan Jadeja to Become CEO

IGN can reveal that Riot Games global president A. Dylan Jadeja will succeed Nicolo Laurent as the company's CEO later this year. Jadeja joined Riot in 2011 as Chief Financial Officer and became Chief Operating Officer in 2014 before being named president in 2017. He is credited as being an advocate of several Riot initiatives include the expansion of its global publishing footprint, eSport investment, the creation of Valorant, and the launch of Arcane. "What drew me to Riot all those years ago was the authenticity of our mission, the enthusiasm of the global player community, and the passion in every corner of the company," said Jadeja. "This is still true today. The creative heart at Riot is so inspiring — there’s real joy in what...

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Fallout's Vaults Originally Had a Purpose Straight Out of Starfield

Tim Cain, one of the original creators of the Fallout series, has revealed on his YouTube channel (watch the full video here) that the vaults initially had a much grander purpose. They were initially meant to send people to space, he said, hoping they would find a new planet to live on. This, of course, harkens the upcoming Starfield's plot to mind, where humans have already begun space exploration and colonizing planets. In the Fallout series, the entire world has been affected by nuclear missiles, leaving some people and creatures to mutate while those lucky enough not to be affected by the radiation fend for themselves. The nuclear war was something that the Enclave (Fallout faction) and the U.S. government saw coming, so to...

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One Piece: Odyssey's Reunion of Memories DLC Arrives in May

Bandai Namco announced that One Piece: Odyssey’s Reunion of Memories DLC will release on May 25. In this upcoming expansion, the Straw Hats are approached by a girl resembling Lim and they are sent into another world. Over on the PlayStation Blog, Bandai Namco explained how the Reunion of Memories has a new battle system called Limited Order Battles that emphasizes a more strategic way of fighting. In a battle with Rear Admiral Barricade, the Straw Hats must defeat him while avoiding knocking out his sailor allies. Defeating the sailors isn’t necessary to win the battle, and each sailor knocked out only makes Rear Admiral Barricade stronger. While the Straw Hats can stun and confuse the sailors, the DLC adds an NPC ally that will try...

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ROG Ally vs Steam Deck: Here's How They Compare

It’s starting to look like the Asus ROG Ally and Valve’s Steam Deck will be battling it out in the handheld PC gaming space for the foreseeable future. The comparisons were inevitable and seemingly not surprising since most new gaming handhelds were either the “Switch-killer” or are now inevitably looking to dethrone King Steam Deck. This begs the question, will the Steam Deck be in any trouble? It’s hard to say for now, but it’s still worth taking the time to compare these impressive devices nevertheless. Generally, as a handheld device, the ROG Ally is not as initially intuitive as the likes of the Steam Deck. There’s still plenty to love, and the Ally has a clear ambition to be a jack-of-all-trades handheld device, while in...

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Last Chance Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and Mother's Day Bargains & More Aussie Deals!

Finally! It's almost Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom game time. Have you got your sick day excuse ready for tomorrow? Personally, I'm going with lime disease. Haven't even Googled what that is (or how it's spelled) yet. Plan is to just tell my boss I've contracted it from drinking an inordinate amount of mojitos at work. Swish! Also, here's my Mother's Day Gift Guide. This Day in Gaming - Me & My Katamari (PSP) launch, 2006. Alt - Starhawk (PS3) launch, 2012. - Ninja Gaiden 3 (WiiU) launch, 2013. Remaster Table of Contents Nintendo Switch PC Xbox PlayStation Notable Sales for Nintendo Switch Expiring recent deals Back to top Purchase Cheaply for PC Expiring recent deals Back to top Exciting Offers for XO/XS Expiring...

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Xbox Games Showcase Predictions, Round 1 – Unlocked 594

Phil Spencer's recent comments about Xbox's third-place standing in the video game marketplace have created quite a stir in the Xbox community. We play Phil's quote and then spend a LOT of time reacting to and discussing it. Plus: it's the First Annual Xbox Games Showcase Draft! We compile a list of the games we think are most likely to make an appearance at next month's Showcase. Some of our choices might surprise you! Subscribe on any of your favorite podcast feeds, to our YouTube channel, or grab an MP3 of this week's episode. For more awesome content, check out our interview with Todd Howard, who answered all of our Starfield questions after the big reveal at the Xbox Showcase: For more next-gen coverage, make sure to check out...

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Diablo 4 Battle Pass Pricing and Season Details Revealed

As Diablo IV inches closer to its June launch date, Blizzard has revealed battle pass pricing and how the RPG will handle its seasonal content. As detailed in its latest livestream developer blog, Blizzard outlined the Diablo IV season basics with a breakdown on rewards and progression. The first season begins in mid to late July, with four seasons planned per year–one per quarter, each set to last for three months. Seasons aren't meant to expand upon Diablo IV's main narrative; that's being left to its expansions. Instead, it'll focus on separate, themed content iterating on the base game and introducing "fresh concepts and ideas into the world of Sanctuary." Those concepts include new gameplay mechanics, characters, questlines...

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Ubisoft Hit by More Layoffs in Customer Service and Elsewhere

Ubisoft has laid off 60 people from its North Carolina and Newcastle, UK offices. The cuts seemed to have impacted Ubisoft’s customer service department the most. "Ubisoft’s Customer Relation Center team is evolving its organization to focus on where we can have a significant impact while remaining steadfast in our commitment to consistently support our players anywhere in the world." the company said in a statement. Ubisoft continued: “We estimate that, due to organizational changes, 60 team members from our offices in Cary, North Carolina in the US and Newcastle in the UK could be impacted.” Several now former employees have already taken to Twitter to confirm that they’ve been laid off by the company. According to these...

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Mortal Kombat 12's Official Reveal Is Almost Here

In recent months, Netherrealm Studios has been slowly teasing another installment in the Mortal Kombat series. But now, we've gotten a more firm confirmation that the next game is on the horizon.On social media, the official Mortal Kombat Twitter account and MK co-creator Ed Boon shared a video of a ticking clock counting up to the number 12, only for it to pause and then skip over it and back to the number 1. This tease aligns it with a previous video focusing on a 30th-anniversary tribute to the series. At the end of that video, we saw a short animation of an hourglass, with the sand inside freezing. No doubt, this is a reference to Mortal Kombat 11's time-traveling antagonist Kronika, who manipulated the sands of time to disrupt...

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PlayStation Plus Games Catalogue Additions for May 2023 Revealed

Sony has revealed that the PlayStation Plus Games Catalog line-up for May 2023 includes Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart, Watch Dogs Legion, Humanity, and more. Revealed on the PlayStation Blog, a total of 23 games will join the service on May 16, meaning they're available at no extra charge to PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium members. PlayStation 5 exclusive Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart headlines May's offering, bringing the interdimensional adventure to even more players. What we called "a fantastic showpiece for the PS5's power" in our 9/10 review is classic gaming fun full of wild and wonderful characters, levels, and weapons. Watch Dogs Legion is another new game but quite different in tone to Ratchet and Clank, taking players...

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The Lamplighters League Blends Stealth, XCOM Combat, and a Ritzy 1930’s Aesthetic

After Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope and Marvel’s Midnight Suns last year, I’m champing at the bit for more of the fantastic and challenging turn-based tactics that not enough games offer. So when I recently went hands-on with Shadowrun developer Hairbrained Schemes’ The Lamplighters League, it was like stepping into a warm bath. The alternate-history 1930’s setting evokes an Indiana Jones-like adventurer’s charm filled with fedoras and tommy guns, and that felt like the perfect backdrop for the mix of diabolical stealth and strategic combat I overwhelmingly enjoyed in this admittedly small taste. The Lamplighters League’s killer feature is how it blends realtime stealth hijinks with turn-based combat in the same vein as XCOM. Before...

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Guardians of the Galaxy is Now 70% Off and Steam Deck Verified

If you've come away from Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3 and you're looking for even more time with the beloved heroes, then look no further than the 2021 game. Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy (2021) is a certified underrated gem, and well worth your time and money. It's not connected to the MCU, but it's still got some of the best video game writing and voice work of the current (and even the last) generation. GotG is the perfect companion piece to the new movie if you're looking for even more action, laughs, and emotional vulnerability from your favorite space-based heroes. Not only that, but that game is now 100% Verified on Steam Deck, so you can rest assured it'll run perfectly on the magnificent PC gaming handheld. To top it...

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Starship Troopers: Extermination – Early Access Preview

The 1997 cult classic movie Starship Troopers by director Paul Verhoeven is a relentless war film that leans heavily into the spectacle and over-the-top nature of intergalactic warfare. With the upcoming Starship Troopers: Extermination from Beyond the Wire developer Offworld Industries, the video game adaptation seeks to expand upon the film's chaotic and gory combat sequences for its focus on co-op squad-based action. I got an early look at Extermination ahead of its early access release on May 17th and saw its unique blend of large-scale combat and tower defense-style gameplay firsthand. And so far, it has the makings for a compelling twist on the original film's concept of soldiers out of their depth being thrust head-first into a...

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Honkai: Star Rail Review

Honkai: Star Rail starts with a bang, serenading you with a symphony and blowing up a space station. You quickly ground yourself in a world with code-locked chrome doors, mech-like invaders with bladed arms, and rooms with monitors spread across the walls. Its hook of a prologue gives just enough that you can see why the story and gameplay are worth sticking around for without grinding. Charming characters, engaging combat, and carefully crafted worlds blend together into a game with enough content to keep you entertained for well over 50 hours, using polished versions of the progression systems from Honkai Impact 3rd and Genshin Impact to create HoYoverse’s best RPG yet. HoYo has a reputation for crafting gacha games with a strong...

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Fall Guys Getting Creative Mode and Other New Features Today

Epic Games has announced a creative mode for Fall Guys that lets players build and create their own competitive stages. Available today, May 10, the mode promises to bring "a comprehensive and full-featured level editor" that puts the developers' tools into the hands of the players. Fans can sample other players' creations in a dedicated mode but the most-loved levels will often be included in the main Fall Guys show selector too. Other changes are coming to the game in the Creative Construction update too, including the Season Pass changing to the Fame Pass. Epic Games this change will bring "more regular and better value content drops" thanks to the new system, as each season now contains multiple consecutive Fame Passes lasting...

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Hollow Knight: Silksong: Team Cherry Provides Release Date Update

Team Cherry has announced that Hollow Knight: Silksong has been delayed past the first half of 2023 and that more details will come as the game nears its release date. Over on Twitter, Team Cherry’s marketing and publishing lead Matthew Griffin said: “We had planned to release in the 1st half of 2023, but development is still continuing. We're excited by how the game is shaping up, and it's gotten quite big, so we want to take the time to make the game as good as we can.” He continued: “Expect more details from us once we get closer to release.” Hollow Knight: Silksong was first revealed back in February 2019 and was later confirmed to release sometime in the first half of 2023. However, it looks like that won't be the case...

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EA CEO: Video Games Will Be 'One of the Greatest Beneficiaries' of AI

Amidst a recent new wave of interest in AI technology, a number of gaming companies have lately been addressing what this means for them and their businesses. Count EA among them now, as CEO Andrew Wilson and COO Laura Miele addressed the future of games, AI, and EA on the company's Q4 earnings call. Addressing a question about AI, Wilson began by saying that the games industry would probably be "one of the greatest beneficiaries of AI." He described AI as an "augment" to EA's teams, as well as a way to allow players to create content within EA's worlds. However, he also addressed some fears about AI in...not the most reassuring way. "The fear of displacement of the workforce is something we read a lot about and we talk a lot...

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Apex Legends Content Crossovers Are Not 'Off The Table’

No, you’re not seeing things – Apex Legends could eventually include Overwatch-style crossovers, bringing pop-culture content to Kings Canyon. “I don’t think anything is off the table,” said EA CEO Andrew Wilson during an investor call today. “I think that as we think about game IP today, it's kind of like comic book IP of 20 or 30 years ago. This is the IP that Gen Z and Jen Alpha perhaps identify mostly with.” “I think the opportunity for us to continue to grow and expand and stretch the nature of the experiences that we're able to offer to our global player base over the next decade and beyond is unfettered,” he added. Overwatch 2 recently made headlines when it featured its first-ever major brand crossover, adding One-Punch...

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EA CEO: Activision Blizzard Deal Is 'Not Really Material to Us'

Xbox's nascent Activision Blizzard acquisition remains a hot topic following the decision by the UK Competition and Markets Authority [CMA] to block the deal, but Electronic Arts CEO Andrew doesn't seem too worried one way or another whether it goes through. Speaking on a call following EA's most recent round of earnings, Wilson said EA is "Microsoft's biggest partner" while claiming that it is "the number one publisher on their platform." "So whether that deal goes through or not is not really material to us, broadly," Wilson finished. "We think we have the scale, again back to our network, our IP and our talent, to continue to navigate the future and lead the future of entertainment and compete in a marketplace regardless of...

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FIFA 23: EA's Live Service Games Remain a Money Machine in a Record Fourth Quarter

While blockbuster single-player titles like Dead Space make the news headlines, massive live service games continue to sustain industry giants like EA for another year running. The publisher just reported a record Q4, nearing $2 billion in net bookings, with FIFA 23 taking the crown as the most successful in the series to date as its handoff to EA Sports FC looms. In a press release, EA reported record net bookings of $1.95 billion for the quarter ending March 31, 2023, up 11% year-over-year. This was largely thanks to record live service game performance, especially from the FIFA franchise. In particular, EA reports that FIFA 23 is now the most successful game in franchise history, surpassing the sales of FIFA 22, and the FIFA...

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Starfield's ESRB Rating Reveals Drugs, In-Game Purchases, and Jetpack Sex

Potential minor spoilers ahead for Starfield. While we may have to wait until June to get our next big look at Starfield, the game's ESRB rating has appeared online and confirms it will include drugs, in-game purchases, and... jetpack sex. The ESRB, or Entertainment Software Rating Board, has given Starfield an M for Mature 17+ for "blood, strong language, suggestive themes, use of drugs, and violence." Many of these classifications are pretty standard for an M-rated game, but the rating summary is filled with some very interesting details. First off, it confirms Starfield is an "open-world role-playing game in which players assume the role of a miner tasked with finding Artifacts across the galaxy." The next bit of text describes...

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7 Games Like God of War Worth Playing in 2023

God of War (2018) and God of War Ragnarok raised the bar for immersive, narrative-rich action-adventure games. It's only the fifth time IGN has awarded consecutive mainline games in a series review scores of 10, putting God of War in the company of The Legend of Zelda, Grand Theft Auto, Metal Gear Solid, and The Last of Us. Naturally, comparing a game to God of War sets it up for failure, and in turn, sets you up for disappointment. These games don't necessarily exceed the bar set by Santa Monica Studio, rather they share and successfully implement notable design and/or gameplay characteristics found in the recent God of War games. So as we await news on the future of Kratos and Atreus, these are 7 games God of War fans may enjoy...

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Best Guardians of the Galaxy Gift and Merch Ideas

The release of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 may mark the end of an era for the original team, but it’s an era that will stand the test of time. James Gunn's trilogy of Marvel films will always be adored, along with that beloved bunch of A-holes we've grown to love over the years. It's true, this team fooled around and we fell in love. And with all of that comes a desire to show off that love, which is why we've collected a variety of Guardians of the Galaxy-themed gifts and merch for you to enjoy. Whether you want to have the Awesome Mixes to play around the house or some excellent LEGO sets to build, we've got you covered in our Guardians of the Galaxy gift guide. Best Guardians of the Galaxy Gifts and Merch Below, you can find...

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Bungie Wins Another Lawsuit Against Destiny 2 Cheat-Makers

Bungie has been awarded $6.7 million in damages and legal fees after winning yet another anti-cheating lawsuit, this time against the defendant LaviCheats. The Destiny 2 developer was awarded a total of $6,700,973, and 34 cents in a default ruling handed down by U.S. district judge Tana Lin, according to a legal document tweeted by Axios’ Stephen Totilo, and reported on by GameSpot. “NEWS: Bungie wins another cheating lawsuit: a $6.7 million award against Lavicheats, which it sued in 2021”, read Totilo’s tweet. “Defendant never responded to the suit. Was a default judgement. Bungie said the cheats had been downloaded more than 1,700 times, says it spent $2m battling cheat-makers.” More specifically, the judgment punished LaviCheats...

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Star Wars Jedi: Survivor Gets Further Bug Fixes This Week on PS5, Xbox, and PC

Respawn Entertainment is releasing another patch for Star Wars Jedi: Survivor this week that includes further bug fixes on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and PC. The patch, which is available on console May 9 and PC "as soon as possible this week", promises to improve performance across all platforms. The full patch notes were released on EA's website and shared in a tweet (below). Alongside a range of improvements being made in this fourth patch, however, Respawn has made clear that it isn't done fixing issues found in Jedi: Survivor. Improvements coming exclusively to the PC version, which was slammed at launch for its poor performance, include updated occlusion behaviour for raytracing, alleviated traversal hitching, performance...

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Evercore Heroes Is a Fun Change of Pace from the Usual MOBA

It may look like a MOBA, but Evercore Heroes isn’t like League of Legends or Dota 2. It’s not an RTS or an MMO, either. It’s a competitive, objective based multiplayer game that doesn’t involve player-versus-player combat. That means no wrangling your enemies into the dumpster with your own two hands. Instead, you and your teammates win by tackling PvE challenges - like boss battles, or defending your base from waves of enemies - more effectively than the other three teams you’re facing in a match. I recently had the opportunity to preview a pre-beta build of Evercore Heroes, and discover exactly how a match plays out. As a MOBA fan, I do enjoy wrangling my enemies into the dumpster, so I was curious to find out what a less...

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Mother's Day Gift Guide and Other Mad May 2023 Discounts!

Fair warning to all children: M-Day lands on Sunday, May 14th this year. That means your status of 'golden child' now hangs in the balance. One bad gift, and you're going to get demoted to 'incidental offspring' or worse. Fortunately, there are tons of deals on great presents for mum that will arrive before then. Amazon AU, in particular, are offering some decent discounts on games, accessories, and LEGO. Stuff that may just buy you a year of non-doghouse accommodation. Fancy Coloured Accessories Mother's Day Gift Idea When in doubt, just buy something that is excessively pink and/or purple. LEGO Botanical Sets When you think about a Mother's Day gift, perhaps a LEGO set isn't the first thing that comes to mind. But the...

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