Remedy has posted a candid statement acknowledging "not everything has gone well" at the launch of its multiplayer Control spin-off FBC: Firebreak, and outlined how it hopes to improve the game in the coming weeks. FBC: Firebreak launched on June 17, but already sits on a "mixed" user score on Steam. Calling the launch an "exciting and nerve-wracking time," developer Remedy told players it had heard feedback "loudly and clearly," and admitted "it's clear there are features that need to improve, and they will improve." "We are improving some features starting now. While we can improve some features today and in the near term, some others will take longer and require more thinking from us. We will keep you informed every step of the way. "But you’re not here for platitudes," the statement added. "You want to know how we will improve your player experience in FBC: Firebreak, so let’s get into it." The team has immediately identified a problem with "the first hour experience," saying that FBC: Firebreak's opening gameplay was not "a great experience due to a combination of things," including issues with onboarding, poorly explained systems and tools, and "a lack of clarity as to what to do in the Jobs and how to do the work effectively." The developer also said: "the power fantasy isn't great in the first hours of the game as starting weapons feel weak, and unlocking higher-tier weapons requires a bit too much grinding." Perhaps unsurprisingly, then, Remedy wants better onboarding and user-interface clarity, as well as making Jobs easier to access. This means you'll no longer need to play the first two Clearance Levels of each Job, and new players start off with a "full three-zone Hot Fix Job run." There are also plans to speed up progression and gear unlocks. Remedy says these changes are just the beginning, and represent the most "immediate changes" coming to the game. It is also actively discussing broader improvements based on player feedback. "Right now, despite how sparse the story can seem in moments, there’s a lot of fun to be had wrangling erratic monsters in Remedy’s spectacularly absurd bureaucratic setting," we wrote in IGN's FBC: Firebreak review in progress. "I’ll be playing more this week and wrap up this review as soon as I’ve tested the limits of Remedy’s chaotic cooperative job simulator." Remedy also recently confirmed its plans for ongoing support post-launch, including two new Jobs (missions) coming in 2025. More updates will arrive in 2026, the developer said. All playable content released post launch, such as Jobs, will be free to all players. Players have the option to buy cosmetics, but none of these items will affect gameplay, and there will be no limited-time rotations or daily log-ins, Remedy insisted. It's a busy time for Alan Wake developer Remedy, which has a number of projects on the go. As well as FBC: Firebreak, it's working on Control 2 and the Max Payne and Max Payne 2 remake compilation. Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, as well as a critic, columnist, and consultant with 15+ years experience working with some of the world's biggest gaming sites and publications. She's also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky. View the full article
Borderlands 4 will have an optional combat radar when it launches in September. The latest entry in the looter shooter franchise has faced quite a few ups and downs over the past few months as fans have rejoiced over some announced changes and criticized others. It seems Gearbox is listening to the feedback, though, as it is adding the radar to Borderlands 4 after seeing enough demand from its fanbase. View the full article
The OXS Storm G2 wireless gaming headset is hard to recommend at full price, but this current deal price feels just right.View the full article
For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]
Borderlands fans, you won. Gearbox Software heard the feedback about Borderlands 4's lack of a minimap loud and clear, and has been working behind the scenes on fixing things. When Gearbox revealed there'd be no minimap in Borderlands 4, opting for a compass with red markers indicating enemies instead, fans were not thrilled. After playing the game last month, I got used to the minimap-less gameplay, but Gearbox was quietly working on adding something new to address concerns. [Hidden Content] Yesterday, Gearbox CEO ****** Pitchford revealed that the team has been working hard on a combat radar option for the game. The radar will sit top right on the screen, but will be off by default, so players can choose to add it to their experience if they want it. And I think that's an excellent compromise. When I visited Gearbox to play Borderlands 4 early last month, senior project producer Anthony Nicholson defended the game's decision not to have a minimap, but also stated that everything they do is for the fans and what players will find fun. BL4's lack of a minimap was "more of a philosophy based on the design of the game,” Nicholson told me on May 14, "because we want you to be able to go out and explore more." The new Destiny 2 Ghost-like ECHO-4 bot that follows you around and scans the environment is meant to replace the mini map, but the player complaints were apparently loud enough to find a middle ground. The combat radar isn't as detailed as a minimap in the past, and the game's map can still be seen from a separate menu. It shows enemies in your vicinity as red dots, showing their locations nearby and indicating if they are above and below you. Gearbox's willingness to listen to feedback was already apparent based on what I played, but this decision only hammers that point home further. I'm looking forward to playing more when Borderlands 4 launches on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S on Sept. 12. The post Borderlands 4 will have a radar option after all, as Gearbox doubles down on listening to community feedback appeared first on Destructoid. View the full article
The wholesale changes and reworks keep on coming in Destiny 2 for its Edge of Fate expansion next month, including how melee attacks and their effects work. Starting in Edge of Fate, melee effects will be additive instead of multiplicative, meaning the effects will be added together instead of creating a multiplier. For example, two 50 percent damage increases now create a 2.25x multiplier, but in Edge of Fate they will combine to make a 100 percent increase. Image via Bungie Bungie says that the change "does result in a lower damage ceiling for melee abilities, and it is unlikely that most bosses will ever be one-shot with melee abilities going forward," which will disappoint some. But the changes will buff "almost all" of the effects that increase melee damage, and in PvE, melee damage-increasing effects will "always stack at full value." Armor 3.0 is also introducing a new stat, Melee, which is basically what Strength is now, so players looking to create a melee-centric build will want to find armor with high Melee stats to keep themselves swinging fists and knives. "Our goal with these changes is to make it much easier to create a personalized build that works the way you want," Bungie said. "Many, many potential combinations of melee abilities and buildcrafting atoms are now much stronger than they were. We are very excited to see what melee builds y'all cook up in The Edge of Fate with these new changes!" It's all just a confusing bunch of numbers right right now, and it will be tough to understand how this all works until players get to play the expansion on July 15. Before that, though, Bungie will host a live stream on June 24 to further detail what to expect, including new ability stats, new weapons, Armor 3.0, and the new destination Kepler. As a long-time player who feels little excitement for this DLC thus far, I'm hoping that some of the changes coming will reinvigorate my love of the looter shooter that has been steadily waning for years. The post Destiny 2 is totally changing melee attacks in Edge of Fate, and I can’t wait to punch and slap everyone to try them out appeared first on Destructoid. View the full article
During Letter From the Producer LIVE Part 87, Final Fantasy 14 producer and director Naoki Yoshida gave players the first glimpses of Patch 7.3, titled The Promise of Tomorrow. The upcoming Final Fantasy 14 patch will be the climax of Dawntrail's main story and will include some callbacks to two past Final Fantasy franchise entries. View the full article
Rematch, a multiplayer-focused soccer-sim from the developer of Sifu, is wiping the floor with the competition. This five-a-side footie game launched just a day ago and it's already hit a peak of 92,841 concurrent Steam players. That's 30,000 more than are playing EA Sports FC 25, the game's closest competitor. And between Steam, Game Pass and console, it'****** over one million unique players. Read the rest of the story... RELATED LINKS: Rematch tips and tricks - how to win matches Does Rematch have crossplay? Rematch dev says there'll be no crossplay at launch, but it's a "top priority" View the full article
Log into Fortnite right now and you'll find that the game's most-played mode is, very unusually, not its main Battle Royale option. Instead the new Blitz Royale is currently ruling the roost — but what is it? And why is this fresh offering from Epic Games so popular? Blitz Royale launched this week in Fortnite's latest update, alongside Expeditions, a new story-infused PVE Lego experience, and a Bruno Mars-starring new season of Guitar Hero-like Fortnite Festival. But, as has continually been the case, it is the mode closest to Fortnite's classic Battle Royale that has broken out — and, for now, Blitz Royale feels like it has found a fresh niche for players keen to try something faster-paced and more quickfire. As its name suggests, Blitz Royale matches are meant to take less time overall and power-up players much faster than in a classic Battle Royale offering. The mode's map, currently based on Fortnite's classic OG Island, is a fraction of its size, building is disabled, and there's an in-match levelling system to grant weapons and power-ups, meaning there's no need to spend time scrounging for loot. That said, other Battle Royale staples remain: a fast moving storm circle, limited inventory and need to be the last player standing. Over the next four weeks (Epic Games is yet to specifically state that Blitz Royale will be a permanent addition), various loot pools will be offered — including items and power-granting medallions from various classic Fortnite eras. Blitz Royale is playable within Fortnite on every platform, but is the first mode designed with a specific piece of hardware in mind: your phone. Timed to hit shortly after Fortnite's triumphant return to the iPhone App Store in the US, following years of legal wrangling with Apple, Blitz Royale is meant to appeal to those wanting a bite-size battle royale, perfect for a quick bus journey or coffee break. Even the Battle Bus flies in faster at the start of games. A suitably quick trailer for Blitz Royale claims you can secure victory within five minutes — around a quarter of the time usually necessary to secure a Victory Royale in Fortnite's regular Battle Royale and Zero Build modes. Right now, Fortnite stats show around 240,000 players in Blitz Royale, making it the game's biggest mode by some margin, aftr hitting 443,000 players during peak hours last night. Battle Royale currently has half this count — 119,000 players at the time of writing. "Blitz Royale is the s**t," wrote one fan on reddit. "Seriously, Epic - love the mode, y’all cooked. I am seriously blown away and having so much fun." "The mode is surprising myself," wrote another. "I’m playing far more aggressively than I would in normal mode and honestly it’s pretty cool." Epic Games will likely be watching Blitz Royale and other new additions carefully to see how well they perform over the coming days, and whether any of them are actually drawing in new players to Fortnite, as well as offering existing users new ways to play. Fortnite's average player numbers have generally fallen this year, according to publicly-available numbers from [Hidden Content]. Following growth and significant player spikes last year, particularly around September 2024's Doctor Doom global boss battle, and November live events including a concert held in Times Square and an in-game extravaganza featuring Eminem, Snoop Dogg, Ice Spice and Juice Wrld. 2025 has seen Fortnite run a limited-time Star Wars mini-season that removed all regular ammo from the game, replacing the usual guns in Battle Royale mode with sci-fi energy weapons. The game's recent season, which features a return to the game's semi-regular focus on superheroes has seen numbers begin to bounce back. Next step, beating current Roblox hit Grow a Garden? One thing at a time, perhaps. Tom Phillips is IGN's News Editor. You can reach Tom at [email protected] or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social View the full article
During the 87th Letter From the Producer LIVE broadcast, Final Fantasy 14 director and producer Naoki Yoshida announced that some changes and new features in Patch 7.3 will be made after rounds of player feedback. Along with changes to the Occult Crescent and Cosmic Exploration instances, the next Final Fantasy 14 patch will add more hat options for Viera and Hrothgar characters and the long-awaited Chat Bubbles feature. View the full article
Rematchdrew over 92,000 concurrent players on its first day, despite some stiff competition from larger studios. Sloclap's first foray into sports generated a good deal of hype leading up to its release, thanks to a strong reputation for games like Sifu and a successful beta. That excitement seems to have carried over into its full release, with Rematch surpassing its biggest competitor in the soccer game space by a wide margin. View the full article
For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]
A cryptic social media post from a Marvel Rivals developer suggests that Blade could finally be added to the game in Season 3. NetEase Games has been expanding Marvel Rivals’ roster of playable heroes and villains with post-launch content releases, with the latest introducing the AI menace Ultron to threaten the Hellfire Gala on Krakoa Island at the tail end of Marvel RivalsSeason 2. View the full article
Ahead of the next major update for Assassin's Creed Shadows, Ubisoft teases new content with Robbie Daymond from Critical Role, arriving on June 25. Despite a rough development with delays and controversies,Assassin's Creed Shadows has gone on to be a big hit for Ubisoft, thanks to strong reviews and positive word of mouth from players. View the full article
Ever since developer Heart Machine burst onto the scene with its hyper-stylized 2D action game Hyper Light Drifter, every effort from the studio comes with the promise of visual splendor and tight gameplay, and Possessor(s) is no different. If Hyper Light Drifter is Zelda-like, then Possessor(s) is the team’s take on the Metroidvania. Although their dev team will probably get mad at me for calling it that, as they prefer the original genre term of “search-action.” Regardless of which label you prefer, you’ll find the genre’s familiar hallmarks here. Possessor(s) drops you in a big open map full of powerful ****** enemies and branching paths that aren’t all open to you just yet. Unlike Heart Machine’s past games with stylized, but masked or hooded, heroes, Possessor(s) is led by a cast of beautifully hand-drawn characters whose stories I’m curious to learn more of. Set in a fictional, Japan-inspired, city, the player controls Luca, who survives a devastating, apocalyptic event. But only just barely. She awakens to find herself without her legs, which were damaged during the attack. Luckily (or not), she makes contact with a ****** named Rehm, who offers her the classic ******’s bargain. She can get her legs back, but only if she helps him get revenge on some unnamed but powerful demonic forces. Similarly, Possessor(s) feels heavily inspired by urban fantasy anime. Shows like Jujutsu Kaisen come quickly to mind as Luca and Rehm explore a ruined metropolitan city and fight off ******-possessed everyday objects like haunted searchlights and ****** fridges. This extends to Luca as well. While she’s now powered by ******-magic legs, her weapons are also everyday objects. Things like kitchen knives or even a computer mouse she can wield like a whip. All of this combines into a fast-paced action-adventure. Combat feels rapid-fast, which is great because there are a lot of enemies to cut through. And running through the devastated city, or jumping and grappling over obstacles, also feels fast and great, which is a plus because I get the sense this is a pretty big game. The portion of the map I played already felt quite large and I only played a 20-minute demo. Mechanically, I wouldn’t say Possessor(s) upends the search-action genre, or at the very least not in the early portion of the game I saw. But both narratively and in the design there’s tons more that I’m interested in learning more of. Possessor(s) has moments where the camera pans out into the ruined city, highlighting a cinematic sense of scale that Heart Machine has explored before in games like Solar Ash. And even in my short hands-on time there was a lot of dialogue and exposition between Luca and Rehm. There’s also likely more to the RPG element that I haven’t discovered yet. Luca’s character menu seemed to show empty slots for a variety of weapons and upgrades – way more than the couple I found during my demo. And having only been given a glimpse of the map, which was primarily a lot of abandoned and destroyed office buildings, there’s clearly a lot more under the hood in Possessor(s) than what I saw. I’ll be keeping an eye on this one. Matt Kim is IGN's Senior Features Editor. View the full article
To suddenly make a leviathan 4X strategy game like Victoria 3 free to play the day before the weekend is either an act of historic generosity or a masterstroke of cruelty. My dear friends at Paradox Interactive, I have literally just sent Nic my contributions to this weekend's What Are We All Playing round-up. And now, sirs and madams, you would have me reckon with approximately a century's worth of densely tabulated imperialism, optional child labour and people called Leopold. Not only have I popped my monocle, sirs and madams, but my top hat has gone off like a volcano and my handlebar mustache has twisted itself into a pair of propellers, which are now flying me away into the sunset. I bid you good evening, sirs and madams! I say again: good evening and good night! Read more View the full article
Privacy Notice: We utilize cookies to optimize your browsing experience and analyze website traffic. By consenting, you acknowledge and agree to our Cookie Policy, ensuring your privacy preferences are respected.
Here's "where the power of a proper remake comes from"View the full article