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War for Westeros is a real-time strategy game for real-time strategy enthusiasts, but the developers at PlaySide know they’re going to get inundated with Game of Thrones fans who have never played an RTS before when the game comes out — so they’re planning accordingly. The Game of Thrones franchise is, as everyone knows, incredibly popular, and that popularity is maintained by spinoff HBO shows such as House of the Dragon and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms years after Game of Thrones itself came to an end. And so, War for Westeros will surely find itself beset by players from two camps: RTS fans who are looking for their next strategy hit, and Game of Thrones fans who fancy playing a game set in Westeros. RTS games, though, can be pretty complex and hard to get into. RTS developers have for years tried to solve this problem with various systems and tutorials. War for Westeros will, obviously, have tutorials to help newcomers learn its systems, but PlaySide has built approachability into the very design of the game to help. “That's what we want!” game director Ryan McMahon told me in an interview at gamescom, when I asked if the studio was prepared for the flood or RTS-shy Game of Thrones fans to descend upon War for Westeros. “Approachable is the key word,” he continued. “So you've got accessibility and approachability. We kind of look at it more through the approachability lens. It's not trying to dumb down what makes a good RTS, but more so how we onboard players to that experience.” So, expect a “very robust” tutorial at launch to onboard new players to skirmish mode and teach players its various systems through campaign mode. But most interesting to me is that War for Westeros’s worker units do not require any high level micro mastery. In many RTS games, you need to assign workers to farm resources and construct buildings, then, once they’re done, you need to give them another job to do. And another. And another. In short, workers require constant attention. War for Westeros, however, employs a ‘set and forget’ system where buildings will farm resources on their own once they’re build, leaving you free to focus on other things, like killing super powerful dragons. “At the base top level of the game, there's no high level micro mastery required of your workers or your builders,” McMahon explained. “All they need to do is build a building and it's ‘set and forget.’ You don't have to assign workers to buildings to farm resources. The buildings will farm the resources on their own once they're built. So that reduces a lot of macro or mental overload of what you're trying to think about while you play the game, and allows you to focus more on the units you're building, the heroes you're fielding, what type of buildings you're placing, and creating the moments that you want to see.” Meanwhile, the AI is tuned to give players the breathing room to learn how War for Westeros works through single-player in the hope that they’ll come away considering giving multiplayer a chance. “If they ever want to dip their toes into multiplayer or play with their friends, there's enough layers of complexity that they've been onboarded to over time without having to master straight away to enjoy a game,” McMahon said. Certainly, War for Westeros will have plenty that is familiar for Game of Thrones fans. It has iconic characters complete with their likenesses from the HBO show — although soundalike voice actors were employed for dialogue ("Obviously choosing the actual actors would be a very expensive endeavor and also some of them aren't necessarily available to work with us on the timelines that we have"). Jon Snow, with his likeness approved by actor Kit Harington, is just one example. At gamescom, PlaySide announced Gregor ‘The Mountain’ Clegane and Arya Stark. The Mountain can be recruited by House Lannister, “utilising his massive size and strength to shock battlelines and strike fear into the hearts of those who stand against him.” Arya, on the other hand, “is a master assassin for House Stark, trained under the Faceless Men of the House of ****** and White.” I had suspected that Jon Snow would be the most popular pick in playtests because, well, it’s Jon Snow. But according to McMahon, as the game has evolved and staff have got to grips with it, other famous characters have risen to the top of the popularity tree — and with good reason. “Tywin [Lannister] and Robb [Stark] are actually the most popular,” McMahon revealed. “The cavalry definitely helps so they can get around the map really quickly. But they have a strong kit in how they buff units around them as commanders, which helps reinforce the army rather than being individual strength. “But it changes a lot. We do weekly play tests every Friday afternoon after lunch, we just play the game for the rest of the day. And at the end of every milestone we do an internal tournament as well where we basically play whatever the game is currently at, and we have a bracket system and whoever wins gets the trophy and that gets passed around desk to desk based on who won the last tournament. “So we get a lot of data from that because we've got data in the game that we're tracking and we can see win rates from different factions. We can see how many heroes get spawned. We get a heat map of where people build buildings on the map that informs our level design and informs our faction balance and informs how we basically gear up heroes in different factions against each other.” Currently, players are picking heroes based on what they believe will be most effective on the battlefield as opposed to going with their heart and their favorite character. That makes a lot of sense if you're running internal tournaments. “As the game gets more mature, it sort of moved that way,” McMahon said. “For a while it was Jon [Snow] and Jaime [Lannister] because they were very strong heroes. But now if we put more emphasis on the units being important, because the game needs to be grounded. You can't just have one hero fighting off hundreds of people. Commanders start to become more important because they're not that strong on their own, but they're also reinforcing the units they're paired with.” I suspect when War for Westeros comes out on PC next year, Jon Snow might rise to the top once again. View the full article

These Mech Arena codes help with the most important part of the game - your Mechs. Whether it's cosmetic skins or powerful weapon upgrades, you want to make sure your Mechs are looking and acting the part, and for that you need Credits, A-Coins, and Crates. Luckily, that's exactly what you'll get by redeeming the latest Mech Arena codes, which I've listed below. Just remember that you can't redeem too many codes in one day, so you'll have to keep checking back to claim them all. All Mech Arena codes (Image credit: Plarium) These are the current Mech Arena codes available right now: IMBACKBABY - 1x Prodigy Crate, 200x A-Coins, 1x Rank 3 BlockthornSPOOKYSHOT - 5x Epic SkinsMIDRUSHGAME - 100k Credits, 1x Gold Crate, 1x Amateur Crate, 1x Prodigy Crate As you can see from the list above, there are a variety of rewards available with these Mech Arena codes, but mostly you'll be looking at a combination of A-Coins and Credits. How to redeem Mech Arena codes (Image credit: Plarium) To redeem Mech Arena codes, you must have first completed the tutorial. Then you can hit the Inbox button at the top of the screen, indicated by an envelope icon, then the Promo Codes button in the bottom right of the inbox page. Here, enter a code as it appears above and hit Confirm. Expired Mecha Arena codes 2GTLOADOUT - 200x A-Coins, 50k Credits, 5x Fortune Keys, 1k Implant Parts, 500x Basic Mod Parts ENERGIZED - 1x Bouncecritter 8 HAPPY17PLARIUM - 170x A-Coins, 17k Credits, 17x Crates GRASSHOPPER - 1x Rank 3 Mech Lacewing, 200x A-Coins, 100k Credits, 1x Prodigy Crate Mech Arena has been going for some time now, so there have been lots of expired codes to date, including those listed above. Since codes can expire quite quickly, I'll be moving them down to this list as soon as they do to save you time redeeming invalid codes. © GamesRadar+. Not to be reproduced without permission. [/url]View the full article

The Arbiter Armor in The Blood of Dawnwalker is pretty clearly the best armor in the game, unlocked as part of the quest "A Bulwark Against Darkness". To craft the Arbiter Armor, you'll need to find four rare ingredients scattered around the map, then find a blacksmith to assemble them, finishing up with a ritual in which you have to kill a bear for some unclear reason. It's definitely worth the effort though, as this is undoubtedly the best armor available, so if you want to complete A Bulwark Against Darkness and get the Arbiter Armor, here's where to go and the locations of all the components. Want an offense to match your defense? Check out how to complete The Blood of Dawnwalker Forge It Anew quest and how to get the legendary Sword of St. Mihai. A Bulwark Against Darkness quest walkthrough for The Blood of Dawnwalker (Image credit: Bandai Namco) You'll get the quest A Bulwark Against Darkness in The Blood of Dawnwalker when you're suddenly given a Smuggler's Letter with the components needed to create the Arbiter Armor. There's a few ways that this can happen, but one is to reach Infamy Level 4 and speak to Anca at the Crossroads Inn. She'll tell you that a letter was sent, but this is only one way for it to happen. You can also simply be given the note by a smuggler while exploring Svartrau! Either way, once you read it, it'll outline the four components needed to create the Arbiter Armor, as well as explaining that you'll need to find a Blacksmith who can combine them. Where to find all the Components for Arbiter Armor in The Blood of Dawnwalker There are four ingredients, or components, needed to make the Arbiter Armor in The Blood of Dawnwalker. Some of them can be found in multiple locations, others appear to be unique. Below we've laid out the best places to get them, and will go into greater details for each one further down. [Hidden Content] (Image credit: Bandai Namco) Bundle of Silk Threads. Found inside a cavern with a Murohn boss during the "Come Hither" quest.Relic of a Saint. You can get two Relics - the Saint's Tibia and the Relic of St. Tyna - during Anca's quest "Echoes of the Silenced Bells" at St. Tyna's Monastery.Flask of Quicksilver. At the top of Aurelius' tower is a ritual room, inside of which you can find a Flask resting on a desk.Moult of a Large Lizard. On the border of Briar Sloughs and Maragir Wealds is an unmarked cave full of Tatselwurms, and the moult is at the back. We've also marked the location of the Uriashi Blacksmith, so you can have an NPC who can piece all this stuff together. Keep in mind that before you go about this quest, it might be worth investing in The Blood of Dawnwalker armor proficiency perks, as otherwise the Arbiter Armor may be a bit underwhelming. Bundle of Silk Threads (Image credit: Bandai Namco) There are two Bundles of Silk Threads in Vale Sangora, both found at different The Blood of Dawnwalker Sanzhana locations. One of the fairies, in the "Pearly and Precious" quest, will sell you the threads for 6,000 Denarius, but if you go to the "Come Hither" quest, you'll be tasked to kill a Murohn boss in a cave. In that same arena, resting on a rock, is a bundle of Silk Threads you can grab for free, with no consequences. Relic of a Saint (Image credit: Bandai Namco) There are multiple viable relics you can use for the Arbiter Armor throughout the game, but if you went through Anca's questline at St. Tyna's and did the choice about if you should throw the notes in the fire in The Blood of Dawnwalker, you might already have two of them. The Saint's Tibia is found on a body beside the building that the soldiers are hiding in (as shown above), and you can also use the Relic of St. Tyna that the soldiers ask you to get, though obviously you probably don't want to consume an amulet with an actual function. If you missed your chance there, you can also find another relic with Lacra in her quest "The Night of Horrors," and purchase relics from Vicho in Svartrau. Flask of Quicksilver (Image credit: Bandai Namco) There's only one flask we know of right now, found at the top of Aurelius' tower in the south of the map. If you've been pursuing the Rebel's questline, you'll eventually be sent here and have to complete The Blood of Dawnwalker Home Sweet Home quest. After doing this, in the topmost room of the tower, to the left of the hanging golem, you can find a flask of quicksilver on the table. Moult of a Large Lizard (Image credit: Bandai Namco) Like with the Flask, there appears to only be one viable item to serve this function that we know of so far. If you head to the area marked East of the Briar Sloughs bog, you can find an unmarked cave with multiple Tatselwurms inside. Kill them, and you can use Focus mode to find an abandoned moult at the back. How to craft the Arbiter Armor in The Blood of Dawnwalker (Image credit: Bandai Namco) After finding all four components, you need to find the Uriashi Blacksmith at the Northwest location marked above. If you've already done the quest for the best weapon in The Blood of Dawnwalker, you'll have already met her. (Image credit: Bandai Namco) Either way, come back with all four pieces and she'll begin a ritual wherein you have to kill some spirit wolves and a bear boss fight (at this point in the game you should comfortably know how to handle both). When it's done, the Blacksmith will give you the Arbiter Armor set, divided into the following: Enhanced Armor of the Arbiter (Chest)Enhanced Shin Guards of the Arbiter (Legs)Enhanced Bracers of the Arbiter (Arms)Enhanced Boots of the Arbiter (Feet) (Image credit: Bandai Namco) This armor is that from the game's cover and promotional artwork, and it's certainly very good for both day and night builds. It offers a wide array of buffs for both human and vampire selves, and is pretty clearly meant to be the game's best armor, with the flavor text practically admitting as such. Make sure you regularly upgrade it so it keeps pace with your own level! © GamesRadar+. Not to be reproduced without permission. [/url]View the full article

I went hands-on with Nodusfall, HoYoverse's big new action game, at Gamescom, and came away impressed by HoYo's take on Monster Hunter. Read the full story on PCGamesN: Nodusfall feels like Monster Hunter meets Elden Ring, and it's a new look for HoYoverse View the full article

As an asymmetrical multiplayer game, there's a lot to think about when diving into Halloween The Game, not least which side to play on. Playing as Michael pits you against a team of four players all on your own, while playing as a civilian leaves you vulnerable to a deadly killer - and the relative skill of your teammates. With that in mind, I've collated the main tips I wish I'd known when I first started playing Halloween The Game to help you get a head start no matter which team you play for. Tips for playing Halloween the Game as a civilian (Image credit: Illfonic) As survivor, your basic goal is to escape with your life, and if you can take some other Haddonfield residents with you, all the better. However, you can also try to take Michael down, and it's even possible to detain him, so ending you're after, here are my top tips for playing as a civilian. 1. Utilize Residents to do things for you (Image credit: Illfonic) Alongside the four-man civilian team, there are a few NPC residents dotted around Haddonfield - and even more when the police start to arrive. Don't underestimate these NPCs as they are incredibly useful to you. By triggering and completing a conversation with them, you can ask them to call the police, follow you, or head to an exit if there's one available. The latter will only increase your points at the end of the game. However, getting NPCs to call the police gets them to arrive much faster, and also helps if you're playing a civilian with a low personality trait, including those who rank highest on my Halloween the Game civilian tier list. You can also hand them weapons, and they'll fight back against Michael if it comes to it. The best option, though, is to get them to follow you, as they will do all of this off their own back. They're rummage through storage, pick up weapons, and call the police. Just beware that the more people you have with you, the more detectable you'll be to Michael. 2. Call for backup from police and Loomis (Image credit: Illfonic) As I've mentioned above, calling the police is useful, and you, your teammates, and NPCs call all do so from the many phones found around Haddonfield. You need to pass skill checks while you're own the phone, and the better you do, the more convincing your call will be, but the more calls placed means more police presence - and, eventually, a new exit option. However, help also comes in the form of Sam Loomis, a character as iconic as Michael and Laurie. Like Tommy from Friday the 13th, if you ever played it, Loomis is a player character, enabling one killed player to return to the game. To call Loomis, keep an eye on the top of the screen for the 'Reinforcements in...' countdown to appear. Once it reaches zero, it will say 'Reinforcements Available', and the message 'CB Radio Activated' also briefly appears on-screen. Now you must find a CB radio somewhere on the map - it'll be highlighted once you're near - from which you can call Loomis. The first player to have died will return immediately unless no one has died at this point. In this case, the first player to die from then will respawn as Loomis. Players who escaped successfully do not respawn. One more thing, be sure to pay attention to your map as a civilian. If you do respawn as Loomis, your map markers will reset, but you do spawn in with a gun and 12 bullets, so that's something. Explore the whole map to reveal locations (Image credit: Illfonic) Rather than staying where you spawned and meticulously searching every nook and cranny for items, it's best to try and quickly explore as much of the map as possible, as finding important locations, including all of the Halloween the Game escape methods like the car and hatches, will then cause them to show on your map. This way, when you do find the items you need to open the various exits, you'll know where to go. This is much better than getting your hopes up when you find a gas can, only to never find the car. Of course you should still have a bit of a look around as you go, but don't waste too much time opening every drawer. But do look for a weapon early (Image credit: Illfonic) While I've said don't take too much time to look around at first, you should keep your eye out for a weapon as soon as possible. If (and when) Michael does find you, you can try and wiggle free once you know how to complete the skill check, but you're guaranteed an extra chance at life if you're carrying a small weapon like a pocket or butterfly knife. You can use it when grabbed by Michael to briefly stun him. They also only take up on small inventory slot. Meanwhile, larger weapons like guns and axes take up their own slot, and can be used to fight back before Michael even grabs you. You can even down him with enough hits - but he won't stay down for long. Down him enough times with enough manpower to support you, and you can detain him for good. Well, until the next time he breaks out. Tips for playing Halloween the Game as Michael (Image credit: Illfonic) As Michael, your main goal of course is to kill everyone, which includes three 'special targets', five NPC residents, and the four player civilians. There are the policemen that are called to the scene, as well as Sam Loomis, if he's called in, but you don't have to kill them. Interestingly, though, and fairly faithful to Halloween lore, once you've killed the 12 main victims, Michael can escape. So, if you're picking up the mantle of the infamous fictional killer, here are my top tips. 1. Play single-player (Image credit: Illfonic) One of the greatest advantages you have as a Michael player is the single-player mode where you can home your skills against NPCs while completing various chapters based on the franchise's iconic movies. Here, you'll learn how to kill, how to use your skills, how Michael moves, and most other factors about the character that you can take into the multiplayer mode. 2. Use your skills well (Image credit: Illfonic) Naturally, Michael's powerful skills each have a cooldown, so you should get used to using them at the right time. For example, you might want to save his something ability for when you find a resident or are near police, as knocking out nearby lights will prevent you from being seen. Similarly, the something ability, which allows you to briefly reveal the location of civilians, wears off fast, so pair this with the something skill to get sneak up on players and NPCs quickly and efficiently. Remember, they'll be warned when they've been detected, so they'll move out of the area hastily. 3. Don't waste time on one civilian (Image credit: Illfonic) Speaking of civilians moving hastily, don't ever waste your time chasing one who's running away from you well. You can dedicate a bit of time to chasing them, but if it's clear they're giving you the run around, it's worth moving on. All the time you're chasing them, someone else is likely already opening another exit, so trigger that something skill and move out of the area, keeping the pressure up on the entire map instead of one localized zone. 4. Concentrate on kill skill checks and don't look for special kills (Image credit: Illfonic) When you have a victim in your grasp, you can find special environmental kills around you that trigger a unique kill animation. However, to do so, you'll have to be able to carry the writhing character to the marked destination. Trust me, I know it's tempting to try and find as many cool kills as you can, and you're more free to do so when killing an NPC, but if you've a player character at your mercy, concentrate on killing them as soon as possible with regular skill checks or a held weapon. Carried civilians are given skill checks when you have a hold of them, and they can wiggle free quickly if you give them the chance - so don't. With all of this in mind, you should have a slightly easier time getting to grips with Halloween the Game, allowing you to just enjoy the carnage and the recognizable locations a bit more. © GamesRadar+. Not to be reproduced without permission. [/url]View the full article

As a civilian, knowing all the ways to escape in Halloween the Game is the only way you're going to stand a chance to get away from Haddonfield before Michael Myers gets his hands on you. There are a few different Halloween the Game exits, and you need to find different elements to open them, so knowing which exits require which items and tools and how to find them is necessary to getting out alive. All Halloween the Game escapes (Image credit: Illfonic) There are four main ways to escape Haddonfield on any of the Halloween the Game maps. They are: Cellar hatchesThe SedanGate exitPolice ******* The easiest of these is the cellar hatch, as even the most difficult can be opened with the fewest items, followed by the powered gate. Getting away in the car, meanwhile, requires a few more things to come together in your favor, but is certainly possible, especially if you're working as a team. Finally, there's the police exit, which is simple in itself, but doesn't activate until later in the game. Here's each of them explained in more detail: Cellar hatch escape (Image credit: Illfonic) This is the easiest way to escape and, if you're lucky, you can even make it happen quite quickly. There are usually a couple of different hatches on each map, and they each have various requirements. While they're all locked, one might be covered with leaves while another can be blocked with wood you need to cut through. If you're really lucky, you may find a hatch that's only locked with no other requirements, and this is obviously the quickest and easiest escape of all. What's even better is that you can open the padlock with either a key or boltcutters, so the odds are really in your favor, as long as you can find the hatch itself. Sedan car escape (Image credit: Illfonic) To get out alive in the sedan car, you need to find a total of four things: the sedan key, a gas can, a repair kit, and the car itself, which is a big ask. As I've mentioned in my Halloween The Game tips guide, it's best to check out as much of the map as possible as quickly as possible, and the main reason for this is the car. At least once you've found it, if you are lucky enough to find all three of the other items, you'll know where to head with them. Gate escape (Image credit: Illfonic) On the outskirts of the town, you're able to find a powered gate, which lets you out once you have two things: a bolt cutter or exit key and a fuse. This was one of the hardest escapes due to the rarity of fuses, but they seem to be more common now. There is also a chance you'll need a hatchet to destroy boards blocking the gate, making this exit slightly more troublesome. Police escape (Image credit: Illfonic) There are a couple of ways to escape via the police, but the main one is to make enough successful calls to the cops that a police wagon turns up. Once on the map, you can simply head into the back of the van for a safe exit. This requires an additional phone call to the police once the full three-star alert level has been reached. The other method can be done much sooner but isn't as easy. You can escape in any of the police cars that appear throughout the match, but you'll need a police person's car key to do so, which can be found on a dead cop's corpse. ****. Something that plays heavily into getting out alive is which character you choose to play, so take a look at my Halloween civilian tier list if you want to pick the best. © GamesRadar+. Not to be reproduced without permission. [/url]View the full article

From developer caiys who made the excellent Boneraiser Minions, along with Voids Vigil and Xenosensory has another game out now with Deadzoned. Read the full article here: [Hidden Content] View the full article

A newly released Soulslike game on Steam called Withering Realms takes a page out of Bloodborne, Pragmata, and Lies of P's playbooks. In Withering Realms, Steam users play as an undead doll controlled by the ghost of a little girl who sits over the doll's shoulder. Together, they slay demonic creatures roaming a gothic city, using a combination of magic and long-range and melee weapons. View the full article

Xbox has confirmed that Forza Horizon 6 will still be coming to PlayStation 5 later this year. When the game was originally announced last year, Xbox confirmed that it would be coming to Xbox Series X/S and PC at launch, with a PS5 release coming “post-launch”. Since then, however, Xbox has undergone major changes in both management and strategy, ditching its apparent plan to make all future releases multi-platform and instead deciding exclusivity on a game-by-game basis. Read More... View the full article

Face off against the dealer with your random rolls in Dealer's Dice, which blends together tower defense and incrementals. Read the full article here: [Hidden Content] View the full article

For fans of cats and incremental games - Snap the Cat is a cute and fresh entry into the genre for fans of relaxing casual games. Read the full article here: [Hidden Content] View the full article

If you enjoy puzzle games you'll want to keep an eye on puzzlez - a shapez game, a spin-off from the shapez series from tobspr Games. Read the full article here: [Hidden Content] View the full article

A factory-building automation sim with a destructible world and simulated heat and fluids, FluxWerks sounds like it's going to stand out in the genre. Read the full article here: [Hidden Content] View the full article

BLIGHTEN was covered here on GamingOnLinux back in April, and recently it had a new teaser that really badly made me want to see a lot more. Read the full article here: [Hidden Content] View the full article

Apple TV's adaptation of Isaac Asimov's iconic Foundationsaga has become one of the most compelling series in modern sci-fi, with each season proving that a faithful retelling of the original work isn't dependent on sticking strictly to Asimov's structure. The Foundation series has introduced several major changes to the source material (out of necessity) while still preserving what made the original text so beloved. View the full article

After being in Beta for a while, Linux and macOS support has arrived for the clever Beam Eye Tracker app. Read the full article here: [Hidden Content] View the full article

Rogue Blight recently released with Linux support - a great looking 2D action souls-inspired side-scroller that's getting some good user reviews. Read the full article here: [Hidden Content] View the full article

Game of Thrones fans have a lot to look forward to in the coming months, with the newest season of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms on the way in 2027 and the final season of House of the Dragon following soon after. Further, with the Aegon's Conquest film in the works and The Mad King stage play getting new showtimes in London in 2027, George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire universe is as alive as it has ever been. View the full article

Star Trek's Captain Jean-Luc Picard has one of the most enduring legacies of any character in science fiction history, becoming the defining image of a Starfleet captain for an entire generation of fans. Brought to life by Patrick Stewart across seven seasons of Star Trek: The Next Generation, four feature films, and three seasons of Star Trek: Picard, he will always hold a special place in fans' hearts. View the full article

Game of Thrones fans were extremely curious about how the Sowing of the Seeds from George R.R. Martin's Fire & Blood would be interpreted on screen in HBO's House of the Dragon, and it's one scene that was widely hailed even by the show's harshest critics. It played out rather brutally, with several Dragonseeds suffering a devastating and morbid end in an onslaught of dragonfire. View the full article

The retro-style 2D platformer Hayfever has removed its price tag on Steam, becoming a free-to-play title for all users. Hayfever has been compared to popular platformers on Steam, such as Celeste and Super Meat Boy, thanks to its gameplay gimmicks. However, it has also been praised for having its own unique DNA. View the full article

Gundam is making a rather big splash at the moment with its popular TCG managing to break into the mainstream, its big-budget Western adaptation in full swing, and its upcoming projects getting showcased at major events. While the legendary mecha anime has always been incredibly popular, it is great to see it become infinitely more prevalent in circles where it was once an unfamiliar entity at best, especially as there is so much potential for excellent expanded media projects that fans and newcomers alike will enjoy. View the full article

While we're still quite a ways off from the release of Monster Hunter Wilds Ascension, Capcom has already offered several exciting sneak peeks at what we can expect from the upcoming expansion. While these reveals have teased several new areas, character changes, weapon enhancements, and even potential monster returns, there is one detail that has fans shaking over its implications. View the full article

Assassin's Creed has always enjoyed gorgeous, cutting-edge visuals, a facet of its design that has proven, in large part, to be the key to its success. Rendering its historic locations in gorgeous detail offers an experience that, even when tainted with Ubisoft's long-since antiquated approach to gameplay, is undeniably phenomenal and truly one-of-a-kind. Even should one detest the Assassin's Creed series as a whole, it is hard to deny that even the likes of Assassin's Creed: Unity aren't a delightful feast for the eyes. View the full article

If you were upset to hear that pop star Ariana Grande wouldn't return in Final Fantasy Resonance, a new mod is here to save the day. In case you were unaware, Square Enix's Final Fantasy Resonance will arrive as the long-running RPG franchise's first proper HD-2D game when it launches next month, and it also happens to be a bit of a remake. The game it's based on, Final Fantasy Brave Exvius, is a free-to-play game with turn-based gameplay that launched for iOS and Android devices in 2015 and shut down in 2025 – but what does that have to do with Ariana Grande? The performer behind hits like "break up with your girlfriend, i'm bored," who also played Galinda in the recent Wicked films, isn't a newcomer for the Final Fantasy series. Grande actually joined Final Fantasy Brave Exvius in the form of pixelated characters – including one fit with her Dangerous Woman era bunny outfit – in 2017. The announcement (below) even detailed some in-game love for the pop star's song "Touch It," but when it comes to Final Fantasy Resonance, Grande's contribution to the series will be lost to time. Producer Keisuke Nakashima recently confirmed to Kotaku that Grande "unfortunately" would not appear in the October Final Fantasy game. At the very least, it sounds like a decision Square Enix put some thought into. "It’s also part of the worldview, you know?" he told the site. "Ariana Grande’s character would not fit within the vibe that we’ve created for Final Fantasy Resonance." Modders, it seems, disagree. As spotlighted by the FFR Vision Studio mod (via Eurogamer), Grande can feel right at home back in Final Fantasy Resonance along with a collection of other guest characters. That means you can add other names like Sora from Kingdom Hearts and 2B from Nier Automata to join the fight with only a few clicks. FF Resonance Mods byu/NightWaIker inFinalFantasyResonance .reddit-embed-wrapper iframe { margin-left: 0 !important; } Keep in mind that this is all more than one month before the game actually comes out. From Grande to Sora, these characters are only available to join Final Fantasy Resonance as part of its recently released demo. The demo does, however, allow players to carry their progress over to the full release, so it wouldn't be a surprise to see former Final Fantasy Brave Exvius characters show up in the launch build, too. Final Fantasy Resonance launches for PC, Nintendo Switch, Switch 2, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S October 22, 2026. Until then, you can check out IGN's final preview for the game. Photo by Monica Schipper/Getty Images. View the full article