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Just when I thought I couldn’t get more excited for stunning RPG Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, new information revealed during today’s Xbox Developer Direct set my hype to new heights. When it was first revealed last year, I was instantly excited about the game. It’s a turn-based RPG with real-time battle mechanics, a stunning visual style, and star-studded voice cast that includes Charlie Cox, Jennifer English, Andy Serkis, and Ben Starr. But after today’s presentation, the 1990s Final Fantasy fan in me is so much more excited because Sandfall Interactive revealed that Expedition 33 will utilize a world map. No, not just a map of the world, but a fully explorable overworld that you can travel through and interact with to go from area to area. View the full article For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

I finally finished Cyberpunk 2077 last night, and so today's 2.21 patch is just a wee little bit annoying because CD Projekt has finally fixed a small but irritating bug in the Phantom Liberty expansion that forced me into a fight I really didn't want... Read more.View the full article

The developer of Doom: The Dark Ages has revealed that it will have game speed and difficulty sliders for the first time in an id Software game. While previous id Software first-person shooters have offered a choice of difficulty options – such as Doom’s iconic “I’m Too Young to Die”, “Hurt Me Plenty” and “Nightmare” settings – Doom: The Dark Ages will feature a greater degree of customisation. “Under the hood, for the first time in an id game, we’ve made our combat more approachable and flexible than ever before,” executive producer Marty Stratton said in a video shown during the latest Xbox Developer Direct presentation. Read More... View the full article

Upcoming souls-like Metroidvania Crowsworn released a demo showcasing some of its gameplay and bosses, which we were able to try out. The demo gives us a glimpse into how the game’s exploration and combat will work out, featuring three different areas for players to move through, as well as multiple boss fights. So, is it […] Source View the full article

Valve updated Proton Experimental for January 22nd with a bunch more fixes for gamers on Linux, SteamOS and Steam Deck. Like the Battle.net update issue that came up recently that was fixed in a recent GE-Proton update too Read the full article here: [Hidden Content] View the full article

South of Midnight has a release date: April 8, 2025. As is the case with all first-party Microsoft games, South of Midnight will be available to PC Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers on day one—or even sooner for those who purchase its Premium Edition. View the full article

Call of Duty: ****** Ops 6 Zombies fans suddenly have good reason to be excited for January 24, as that's the day Treyarch will give them their best look yet at The Tomb map. Call of Duty: ****** Ops 6 Zombies has been praised for returning to the original round-based format, with fans currently having three Zombies maps to explore in the game. View the full article

The likes of Final Fantasy and Persona have long defined sprawling, story-driven RPGs. Their entries trade hard on ensemble casts, sweeping storylines, and universes you want to visit every inch of. Developer Sandfall Interactive is giving them a run for their money with some European flair in Clair Obcsur: Expedition 33, which has just locked in a release date for later this year. Read the rest of the story... RELATED LINKS: Clair Obscur Expedition 33 dev explains why the new RPG is so cheap Expedition 33 is a stunning surrealist RPG with a sublime parry system View the full article

The Tidebreaker can be a life changer if you intend to explore Fisch‘s underwater world. Although it’s counterintuitive to go underwater for a fishing game, there are hidden places that you can only access such as the Brine Pool by diving. How to get the Tidebreaker in Fisch You can dive in Fisch. Screenshot by Dot Esports The Tidebreaker is used to swim faster while diving in Fisch. When exploring the Desolate Deep, you’ll need to swim around a lot. With just your little Roblox arms and legs, that can take a while, but with the Tidebreaker or the Flippers, you can swim much faster and save a lot of time. View the full article

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 will be available as an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate day-one title on April 24. The beautiful turn-based French RPG is among the most promising games coming to Xbox Game Pass in 2025, and the release date is excellent news for gamers who want to try Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 for themselves soon. View the full article

Season Starfall introduced Hot Zone to Delta Force—a 3v3v3 round-based mode that plays somewhat similar to competitive tactical shooters like CS2 and VALORANT. It may also feel familiar if you ever played THE FINALS. Here’s everything you need to know to play Hot Zone in Delta Force and a couple of tips to get you started. View the full article

Image: id Software After revealing its next Doom game last summer, id Software is almost ready to release it: the studio announced that Doom: The Dark Ages is launching on May 15th. The news came as part of Xbox’s most recent Developer Direct livestream, which provided the best look yet at the prequel. As the name implies, The Dark Ages is set in a medieval fantasy realm and takes place long before the events of Doom Eternal and the franchise’s 2016 reboot. The developers say that the new game features a much ******* world with a larger emphasis on story — including plenty of cutscenes — but the most important changes appear to be with how The Dark Ages will play. A big focus this time around is on melee combat. Since this is a Doom set in medieval times, that means players will get access to brutal new melee weapons like a spiked mace and iron flail. The scale of battles also seems to have ramped up. We already knew that players would get a mount in the form of a cybernetic dragon, but today’s reveal also showed off a skyscraper-sized mech suit so that the Doomslayer can fight enemies the size of kaiju. [Hidden Content] Another big change is a greater emphasis on accessibility through a series of gameplay sliders. These let you adjust things like the game speed or parry timing, either ramping them up or down. Essentially, these options should give players the ability to really customize the experience, either making it more approachable or a whole lot harder. There are standard difficulty options as well. Doom: The Dark Ages is coming to the PS5, Xbox, and PC when it launches in May. View the full article

Divine Orbs are one of the most valuable types of currency in Path of Exile 2. You should want them because they are rare and crucial to the game's crafting system. The orbs help you craft better gear and are used as a form of high-value trade currency. The scarcity of Divine Orbs is a big reason they are so valuable in trades. Their main job is to re-roll the numerical values of existing stats on an item. View the full article

The final episode of Destiny 2’s current content calendar kicks off in less than two weeks, and Bungie has updated fans on what to expect from it. Episode: Heresy closes out the year of post-The Final Shape content with a calendar of three acts that will run from February through the end of May, potentially leading into a new, smaller-scale expansion than what Destiny 2 players have become accustomed to. And the way that the episode will be delivered is changing, too. View the full article

The Marvel Rivals hype train hasn't seemed to stop since its release, with each update adding more reason to try out the newest free-to-play hero shooter on the market. Aided by a unique art style with a fresh but familiar take over its competitors, Marvel Rivals has more than enough potential to become a new pillar of the genre. One of Marvel Rival's greatest strengths is its broad roster of iconic comic book characters with plenty more on the way, but there's one big problem with future releases. View the full article

Bethesda has announced the various physical and digital editions available for pre-order for Doom: The Dark Ages. The publisher announced today that the game will be released on May 15 on Xbox Series X/S, PS5 and PC, with a day one release on Xbox Game Pass. Players who pre-order any edition of the game will get a Void Doom Slayer skin at launch. Read More... View the full article

Warner Bros. Interactive’s president David Haddad is leaving his position, after 12 years at the division, the company has confirmed. The news was shared internally on Thursday, where it was confirmed the exec will continue with his role for the next three months until a successor is found. “David has thoughtfully and purposefully chosen a time when our release schedule is lighter which will help minimize disruption to our ongoing projects and strategic plans and allow this team to smoothly prepare for its next record-breaking title,” Warner Bros. Discovery Global Streaming and Games CEO JB Perrette told Variety. Read More... View the full article

Image: Microsoft Microsoft promised a new game announcement at its Xbox Developer Direct event, and that game turned out to be Ninja Gaiden 4. The new entry in the long-running franchise is being co-developed by Team Ninja along with Platinum Games, the team behind action games like Bayonetta and Nier: Automata. The game is launching in Fall 2025, and will be coming to Xbox, PC, and PS5 (it will also be available via Game Pass). While the Ninja Gaiden franchise has been around since the late ‘80s, it entered into a new era on the Xbox with the bloody, and tough-as-nails Ninja Gaiden on Xbox in 2004. That version, developed by Team Ninja, was ported to a handful of other consoles and also received a number of sequels. Based on the debut trailer, the new game looks to continue the dark action started with the 2004 release, but with even faster gameplay. In addition to the brand-new release, a remake of Ninja Gaiden II was also announced called Ninja Gaiden II ******. In a nice surprise: the game is available now on console, PC, and Game Pass. [Hidden Content] These aren’t the only returns to Ninja Gaiden in the works, however. Retro experts Dotemu are also developing a new throwback release called Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound. View the full article

The newest update for Cyberpunk 2077 brings in DLSS 4 support for RTX 50 series cards on PC, photo mode fixes, and more. View the full article

A prominent Marvel Rivals leaker surprised fans by claiming that Nightcrawler may be coming to the popular hero shooter as a Duelist. Marvel Rivals recently launched its Spring Festival event, which has added a new game mode, free rewards, and fresh challenges for players to enjoy. Fans looking to jump in on the action may want to act quickly, as the event runs from January 23 through February 14. View the full article

When this 18-year AC fan was told he’d be spending time in Shadows, that's exactly what happened. Literally, shadows. My preview build was set darker than an Abstergo CEO’s soul, and a unique quirk of it was a lack of brightness settings. Compounding the issue: my choice to use the nocturnal ninja deuteragonist, Naoe, exclusively. I was soon tested by bandit ronin, angry samurai, and those big-boned gits game designers love to roll out as Heavies. My greatest enemy, however, was the Stygian darkness around me. Trying to fight silhouetted foes by their UI flourishes and navigating intricate castle battlements using controller vibration braille? Challenging. It dawned on me that I’d simply have to wait until the sun came up, in-game, at which point my heroine would be less effective because she’d stand out like a tengu’s diamond-studded nose ring. Be that as it may, I'm glad I soldiered on. Though the overall experience still wasn’t perfect, in full daylight, the considerably delayed and controversy-stricken Shadows shone brighter than I figured it could. Mind you, my expectations were lower than one of Naoe’s underhanded sweep kick executions. In a minute, I’m going to dive into Shadows’ pros and cons as I see them so far. For now, though, I guess I should provide prices for the diehards willing to make a leap of faith preorder now. If you’re more the type to hang back, synchronise, and get a better lay of the land—like me—then click here to skip the window shopping and get to my continued thoughts. Assassin’s Creed Shadows (Standard Edition) PS5 Get it at Amazon - $89Get it at JB Hi-Fi - $89Get it at Big W - $89Get it at Harvey Norman - $88Get it at PS Store (digital) - $109.95 Xbox Series X Get it at Amazon - $89Get it at JB Hi-Fi - $89Get it at Big W - $89Get it at Harvey Norman - $88Get it at Xbox Store (digital) - $109.95 PC Get it at Ubisoft Store - $TBA Preorder any version of Assassin’s Creed Shadows and you’ll receive a bonus quest called “Thrown to the Dogs.” You'll also get the first expansion for free Assassin’s Creed Shadows Gold Edition PS5 Get it at Amazon - $159.95Get it at JB Hi-Fi - $158Get it at Big W - $139Get it at PS Store (digital) - $TBA Xbox Get it at Amazon - $159.95Get it at JB Hi-Fi - $158Get it at Big W - $139Get it at Xbox Store (digital) - $TBA PC Get it at Ubisoft Store - $TBA The gold edition comes with the base game, plus the following: Season PassAssassin’s Creed Shadows Ultimate Edition (Digital)Get it at PS Store - $TBAGet it at Xbox Store - $TBAGet it at Ubisoft Store - $TBA The digital-only ultimate edition comes with the game itself, plus the following: Season PassSekiryu character packSekiryu hideout pack5 skill pointsRed dragon filter in photo modeAssassin’s Creed Shadows Collector’s EditionGet it for PS5 - $329.95Get it for Xbox Series X - $329.95Get it for PC - $329.95 The collector’s edition comes with the ultimate edition game, plus the following: Diorama figurine with dual protagonistsUltimate Edition: Base game + Ultimate packSteelbookHardcover artbookShinobi's metal tsuba replica with standSilk creed kakemono rollSet of 3 sumi-e lithographsHands On Continued Let me reiterate that a lack of brightness settings was a work-in-progress flub that definitely won't affect you on day one. And, despite my extreme visibility issues, even I could see something about Naoe—she’s just incredibly spry and fun to use. And I mean like no assassin I’ve ever inhabited before (and I’ve Animused them all). She’s brilliant at displacing from bad situations and using her last known location, plus a variety of tricks, to turn any stealth error into the perfect bait-and-switch kill. The key skill to use for this has got to be her multi-tool rope. I’m introduced to it early on in a non-combat scenario first, which is basically me shooting the ***** by scaling Himeji Castle and stopping to pat the odd random tailless cat that I chance upon. Sadly, this isn’t a manually aimed grapple hook, which makes me miss the granddaddy of the genre, Tenchu: Stealth Assassins. What you get instead is a contextual LB icon that constantly flicks on and off in the upper middle of your screen to signify a no-looker attach opportunity. Again, this makes me miss a game—Ghost of Tsushima and its more or less HUD-less approach to everything. This isn’t a manually aimed grapple hook, which makes me miss the granddaddy of the genre, Tenchu. Zipping up castle ramparts with the grappling hook—about 30 feet per fling—is pretty intoxicating too. I wouldn’t say this game has the best climbing in the series, as I abhor how one-button and technique-less it’s been streamlined into, but I’m willing to admit that it’s the most visually impressive upward scrambling I’ve seen. Extremely complex hand grips and body contortions flow from animation to animation as Naoe scurries up things. She even does these nifty little contextual somersaults between rooftop eaves. All this being said, I did spot some frame rate chugs when I got to the highest altitudes. Presumably because the engine was girding itself to stream in some ridiculously commanding view at the end of my ascent. I expected the worst when I got up to the apex of this particular 152 foot castle and triggered the big synch point camera pan. To my relief, not a chug was there at all, so I believe it’s probably a tuning problem at this point. I also see no framerate issues when I chuck myself off that roof into a haybale roughly 100 ft below (truly the mechanic that never, ever gets old). Thanks to my Ubisoft demoers, I’m kitted out with what I believe is some of the best gear available. I’m rocking a “Dragon’s Edge” Legendary Katana, which provides two passive perks and very impressive Weapon DPS, Posture DPS, Ability Damage, and Adrenaline Gain numbers. I also have a Kusarigama (think: a fun-sized scythe with a chain attached to a chunk of metal) that goes by “Death Whisperer” and a Tanto (basically a short sword). Likewise, the clothes maketh the master assassin’s stats, so I’m decked out in an epic Silent Shinobi Hood and cuirass, which also have large numbers to embiggen my Health, Crit Chance, and Adrenaline Gain. I also have a Kusarigama (think: a fun-sized scythe with a chain attached to a chunk of metal). When it comes to personal growth, this particular Animus system doesn’t feel hugely unique when compared to the last high-tech sofa bed I lounged in. Like Valhalla, we’re grinding XP to earn levels that come with Knowledge Points to spend in Naoe’s six perk trees. They’re named Katana, Kusarigama, Tanto, Tools, Shinobi, and Assassin, and each of them has around 16 or so things to buy. I’ll start with the katana, my home slice favourite. You’ll want to invest early in the Tidal Wave strike that pings you forward a few metres, bites off 25% damage, staggers the recipient, and can be upgraded to include a second target. I also adore the pantsings provided by Eviscerate, a gutstab that ends with this lovely Spartan-kick-to-backlip hybrid move. Upgrading it to be used on larger foes is worth it, purely because the base animation will unintentionally look like you’re stabbing them in the groin instead of the stomach of a regular-sized grunt. Failing any of those techniques, the unimaginative swordsfolk among you can simply invest in Guard Breakers, Momentum Builders that reward comboing with damage, Repeat Dodges that achieve the same thing, Daze inflictions, and those good old-fashioned table-turning counter-attacks on your LB parry. The base animation will unintentionally look like you’re stabbing them in the groin instead of the stomach If crowd control isn’t your bag, I had great success with Quick Strikes. Basically, if you pause after any attack and then tap RB or RT, you can inject two additional strikes into your combo. They seem to cross-up most foes. Or you can just do a Cyclone Blast that lassoes your chain ball into multiple enemies around you. It’s low-damage stuff, admittedly, but the big-boy version of it knocks people back and even slices shrubs and small trees in half. (I’m a sucker for the little details.) When it comes to the Tanto, you shouldn’t let its diminutive size deceive you into thinking it can’t provide large damage and big fun opportunities. Case in point: the Shadow Piecer ability that turns a thrown Tanto to the face into a follow-up charge where you yank it out at an unpleasant angle. When I upgraded that to gift back 80% of my adrenaline bar, well, everybody got an express delivery Tanto to their melon. There’s also the highly effective Shadow Barrage ability, which turns a successful dodge into a 20-second, freeform combofest that ends after 7 hits dispensed (or one received). If you’re good enough to chain some kills in there, that’ll up the damage by 5% for more *******. I punch all those numbers into my calculator, and it makes a smiley face. You should also know that the Tanto is the Little Bread Knife That Could in terms of armour breaking. There are a bunch of perks that have Naoe inexplicably finding the gaps in armour for massive pain. Bonus buckets of blood can be yours if you can perform these ******-finding stabs from behind. Beyond the three main weapons, I invested an absurd amount of points in my actual Tools of the trade. As an entree, I highly recommend placing yourself atop some balcony edge and then hoiking a “stage 3 enhanced” kunai into somebody’s face for a 400% damage insta-kill. Hoiking a “stage 3 enhanced” kunai into somebody’s face for a 400% damage insta-kill. As you may have guessed, Naoe’s greatest strength is her insane mobility, and Shinobi arts can give her Spider-Man-level skills at doing Peter parkour. On the grappling hook side of things, I was more than up for an Ascension Boost perk for zippier rooftop escapes. Likewise, the Heightened Sense mode, which makes time go molasses for 8 seconds, is pretty ludicrous. It’ll cease when an enemy spots you, at which point the flow state ends and your beating probably begins. I also found great use in using the Vault technique after an attack deflection—you’ll use the enemy as a mini jumping castle and then capitalising on his discombobulated state that follows. I also saw huge success with a Shallow Water Breathing technique for basically staying underwater forever as a means to crocodile snatch anybody near the water’s edge. When my time came to an end with Assassin’s Creed Shadows, my impressions were of something familiar that's finally leaning hard into what has always been its most ideal and aspirational form. The original AC blueprint, from its very inception, was really just a Middle-Eastern-flavoured ninja sim. AC Shadows—well, half of it at least—feels like a stealth experience homecoming that’s been ages in the making. Naoe is my jam, and while this Japanese sandbox isn’t as painterly as the islands of Tsushima and Iki, Shadows has the edge in terms of interesting major metropolitan areas. They're all built around what I consider to be the most satisfying to climb jungle gyms ever built—multi-tier Edo-******* fortresses. I simply cannot wait to scale them for the purposes of springboarding into repeated death-from-above executions (or just insane haybale dives). The new release date of March 20th can't get here soon enough. Adam Mathew is our Aussie deals wrangler. He plays practically everything, often on YouTube. View the full article For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

The latest season in League of Legends introduced a number of features, including Atakhan. Despite it being in the game only for a few weeks, fans already think it’s making pro play dull. Major League competitions started throughout last week, including the 2025 LCK Cup and the 2025 LEC Winter Split, giving fans their first glimpses of the competitive meta. But many criticized one of Season 15’s additions on a Jan. 22 Reddit thread: Atakhan. Fans claim the pro play has become “a lot more stale” because of the neutral objective. “The revive Atakhan buff rewards stupid gameplay of just running head first into enemy knowing you’re not going to be punished” the original poster wrote. “In fact, you’re going to be rewarded for dying because it’s faster than recalling.” View the full article

Even to this day, a decade since it first arrived, Endless Legend remains a unique twist on the 4X genre. It borrows from Civilization, Age of Wonders, and even dedicated RPGs like Skyrim or Diablo, but between its colorful factions and the way it divides the map into individual territories, Endless Legend forges its own identity. Still one of the most beloved fantasy strategy games on PC (after 14,000 user reviews, its Steam rating is holding strong at 'very positive,') Endless Legend is finally coming back. Complete with a new world, fresh factions, and even an upcoming playtest, Endless Legend 2 is real, and it's on the way. Read the rest of the story... View the full article

Of the upcoming Xbox Game Studios slate, South of Midnight stands out as one of the most unique-looking projects in Microsoft's lineup. The single-player action-adventure game takes place in a mysterious reimagining of the American Deep South, and we've already seen plenty of gorgeous snippets of gameplay that highlight its world and characters. But in today's Xbox Developer Direct, we got a really good look at combat, which features satisfying combos and enormous, corrupted bosses. We've also got a confirmed South of Midnight release date, which is arriving sooner than I anticipated. Read the rest of the story... View the full article

Moving from traditional JRPG to action and MMOs, the Final Fantasy fanbase has seen it all and ate good for many years. While five through 10 remain the golden era for Final Fantasy, there’s still discourse on what’s the best and worst adventure from this franchise powerhouse. This list has looked over the mainline Final Fantasy games without bias. In an attempt to be as objective as possible, we’ve ranked the 16 mainline games based on their storytelling, worldbuilding, characters, and combat. Here is our ranking of all Final Fantasy games, from strongest to weakest. View the full article