News and Reviews

Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora - From the Ashes is a bigger deal than we initially thought. The third paid DLC for Massive Entertainment’s 2023 movie tie-in offers up a 25-hour campaign, a new region, and the highly requested third-person mode. But what really struck us was a greater sense of what was described as “brand synergy”. That’s what Lightstorm Entertainment’s executive vice president of multimedia development, Joshua Izzo, said when we flew out to Lightstorm’s HQ in LA. There, we got a sneak peek at James Cameron’s upcoming Avatar: Fire And Ash, which was about as visually mindblowing as you’d expect, as well as some hands-on time with this new DLC. The standalon…

Michael, one of the three main characters from the single player story in GTA 5, will return to the GTA Online part of the experience next week in a free update. You can get a bit of visual context in the trailer above. Across a new series of missions featuring the protagonist, you shall work towards earning your very own mansion. "For those who have reached the highest rungs of the criminal ladder, celebrate your triumph with a painstakingly crafted palace in one of Los Santos’ most exclusive neighborhoods, complete with breathtaking views, the finest amenities, and countless ways to customize and make it your own." The free update is called A Safehouse in the Hills, and…

Tiny Bookshop, a highly acclaimed indie title that released earlier this year on PC and Switch, is confirmed for release on PS5. The cute and cozy adventure trundles onto Sony's console on 10th April 2026, both physically and digitally. In the game, you run a mobile bookshop you can take to different areas, setting up shop and recommending books to your customers. It's a stress-free management game about stocking different genres to satisfy different people, getting to know characters through interactions, and making your little bookshop your own with all kinds of decorations. Tiny Bookshop has garnered very positive player feedback, and did very well critically too, so i…

Earlier this week saw the announcement of Postal: Bullet Paradise, a Vampire Survivors-esque "bullet heaven" title based on the longstanding shooter franchise. However, before you get too excited, know that the PS5/PS4 game has been cancelled — just two days following its official announcement. This is because the game saw an "overwhelmingly negative" response from the community, all revolving around accusations of heavy generative AI usage. For reference, here's the announce trailer: The video does appear to have some AI elements — the voice work is suspect, as is the art in the non-gameplay segments. The game was due to be published by Running with Scissors and develope…

Satirical sci-fi is in at the moment, with Helldivers 2 taking off massively last year, and its direct inspiration, Starship Troopers, is getting in on the action. Starship Troopers: Ultimate Bug War is a freshly announced single player first-person shooter set within the universe of the much-loved sci-fi action movie. It's not exactly what you might expect; it winds back the clock to 1997 — the year of the film's release — and presents us with a retro FPS, as you can see in this trailer: We reckon this looks more like a PS2-era shooter than a PS1 one, but the effect is the same; it's intentionally old school, with low poly counts and flat textures everywhere. The game ev…

Netflix has entered into an agreement to acquire Warner Bros Discovery for $82.7 billion, which includes the publisher's video game developers and IPs. This means that, should the deal go through, the ownership of Mortal Kombat team NetherRealm Studios, the Hogwarts Legacy developer Avalanche, and other outfits like TT Games and Rocksteady will be transferred to Netflix. IPs such as Harry Potter, DC, and Game of Thrones are all included in the deal. In a statement posted to the Netflix website, it is said the acquisition will bring "together two pioneering entertainment businesses, combining Netflix’s innovation, global reach and best-in-class streaming service with Warne…

Update [Fri 5th Dec 2025, 7:45am]: We have an update on this coming from Game Developer, where a Warner Bros. spokesperson confirms that its video game division will be included in the sale to Netflix. We'll throw a quick quote from the site on this confirmation down below: Original Story: In an announcement that's sending shockwaves throughout the entertainment world, streaming giant Netflix has announced its intentions to buy Warner Bros. - for a whopping $72 billion (or $82.7 billion as a "total enterprise value"). Going off Netflix's statement on this, the move doesn't mention Warner Bros.' gaming studios - although the finer detail on this deal is still a little haz…

Apparently, something is happening over in Nintendo land this week. There's some kind of long-awaited sequel that's been in the works for 18 years? "Metroid"..."Prime"... they call it? That's a new one to us! Seriously though, the new release of Metroid Prime 4: Beyond actually has a connection to Xbox, and specifically the Halo series. When the reviews and latest gameplay footage started doing the rounds this week, many people were making the comparison to Halo, and it seems there's a very good reason for that. Taking to social media, VGC's Andy Robinson confirmed that there are "lots" of former 343 Industries developers on the Retro Studios team (studio behind Metroid P…

Clockwork Revolution has a bit of hype behind it within the Xbox fanbase - heck, even boss Phil Spencer sounds pretty excited about what inXile is cooking up. And, while info on the title remains scarce, the team has delivered a new message about the game as part of the latest PC Gaming Show. The upcoming Xbox RPG was named amongst the showcase's 'Most Wanted' titles, and so, Brian Fargo & co. gave us a quick update on how it's progressing over at Microsoft HQ. We'll share the video message down below: Everything the team is saying sounds rather exciting, from this being Fargo's "most complex game" to date, to the Clockwork Revolution dev "taking visual reactivity t…

While Mario Kart World may have just received a rather hefty update, fans of the Switch 2 launch game have been eagerly anticipating any potential DLC that will come to the racer. And a recent datamine of Nintendo Today! has brought all of those hopes and dreams to the surface (thanks, IGN!). So, some context: earlier this week, Nintendo updated its news app with a suite of Donkey Kong themes, with many of them seemingly inspired by Donkey Kong Bananza. Fans decided to datamine the themes and see which Kong characters would be appearing in the future and over on Famiboards, user MondoMega shared the results, and there were a few surprises. Now, beyond this point, we'll be…

3Goo, which has previously published the likes of Gear.Club series and WRC Generations on Nintendo consoles, has announced a brand new multiplayer grand-prix racer. 4PGP: Four-Player Grand Prix, which releases on 5th February 2026, has a phenomenally straight-forward moniker, and we reckon that suits its aims as a no-nonsense 90s-style racer just fine, as the keyword here is "simplicity" in being able to pick up and play, with easy to grasp controls. That extends to the visuals too, in the clean and simplistic graphical style adopted to bring this arcade speeding to life with 4K and 120fps on Switch 2. The game also features track "design contributions" from Kenji Sasaki,…

In a staggering piece of news this Friday, streaming giant Netflix has announced that it has entered an agreement with Warner Bros. Discovery to acquire Warner Bros. in a deal that's valued at roughly $82.7 billion — an equity value of $72 billion. Netflix is specifically acquiring Warner Bros.' Streaming & Studios company, which it created in June 2025 and includes including Game of Thrones, the DC Universe, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, and platforms such as HBO and HBO Max and Warner Bros. Games. The media company doesn't mention WB's gaming division at all in its press release. However, Game Developer has confirmed with a WB spokesperson that "the recently-rest…

Kirby Air Riders arrived on Switch 2 just a few weeks ago and, for the most part, it has proven to be a pretty polished experience. Of course, that isn't to say the odd bug didn't slip through the net, but don't worry, Nintendo knows about 'em. A new post on X from @nintendo_cs (translated by @Oatmealdome on Bluesky), Nintendo stated that it is aware of two bugs in particular, and it's working on a fix. First, there's the City Trial 'Dyna Blade' event, which Nintendo has noticed isn't showing up as often as it should. There's also a glitch in the Free Run timer, where it stops counting if the mode is used for too long. It seems that the latter of these two bugs only appli…

While rivals such as Electronic Arts and Ubisoft have jumped into the world of Generative AI development with both feet, not every company in the games industry is willing to throw caution to the wind. During a Q&A session following its recent Q2 financial results, Sega‘s top brass addressed the use of AI when it comes to making games (thanks, VGC) and how it will help tackle the increasing costs of development. Sega's response was as follows: So, while Sega certainly isn't against turning to AI to streamline production, it doesn't look like it will be embracing it with quite the same vigour as other companies. While Generative AI models are powerful tools, they are …

New Blood Interactive's Dungeons of Dusk wasn't only the promising game announcement to come out of last night's PC Gaming Show, with Freshly Baked Games and Future Friends Games also revealing an exciting new retro-inspired action-RPG, which is set to come to Steam next year. Queen's Domain, as you might have guessed from its title, is a homage to From Software's classic PlayStation series King's Field, and is said to combine "brutal combat and a super stylish retro-fantasy aesthetic", as well as "traversal-focused exploration" set on an interconnected island filled with secrets. The game starts with the player washing up on the shores of the Isle of Neasied, where they …

At last night's PC Gaming Show, New Blood Interactive announced that its modern FPS classic Dusk will be getting an RPG spin-off next year, in 2026. Dungeons of Dusk is described as a "classic turn-based dungeon crawling RPG that takes place canonically between the episodes of the cult classic FPS" and is being developed by 68K Studios, the company behind indie RPGs like The 7th Circle: Endless Nightmare, Inferno - Beyond the 7th Circle, and Ludus Mortis. It is scheduled to be released on PC (Steam & GOG), PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, Switch 2, iOS, and Android, and seems to not only be a homage to both '80s and '90s cRPGs, but also Fountainhead Entertainmen…

Look, Data East's Bad Dudes Vs. Dragon Ninja isn't a great game – we all know it. However, it seems to have had a disproportionate impact on the world of video games thanks to its cool premise, amusing dialogue with "President Ronnie", and the fact that it came at a time when the entire world seemed to be utterly crazy about ninjas. A hit in arcades and on the NES, Bad Dudes was never ported to a Sega system back in the day – but don't worry, because Andrea Baldiraghi is fixing that particular oversight with an unofficial port to the Genesis / Mega Drive. Baldiraghi, as you may or may not be aware, is the person behind the upcoming Sega port of R-Type. The footage shown s…

If you are interested at all in the history of MSX shoot 'em ups, next week's EGGCONSOLE title for the Nintendo Switch, Super Laydock Mission Striker, might be of some interest to you. Released in 1987, the vertically-scrolling shoot 'em up from the Hydlide developer T&E Soft is the second title in the Laydock series of games for Japanese home computers, and was launched between the original 1986 game for the MSX2 and its 1988 sequel Laydock 2: Last Attack for the MSX2+. It follows on from the events of the first game, with players once again taking control of a Federal Space Force pilot who is, this time, given orders to destroy a newly-built, Death Star-like base, c…

If you're a fan of retro-style first-person shooters and want to eradicate swarms of alien bugs, you might want to check out this new game when it arrives in early 2026. Starship Troopers: Ultimate Bug War! is developed by Auroch Digital (Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun) and published by Dotemu (Marvel Cosmic Invasion), and will be coming to the Switch 2 and multiple other platforms. Here's some additional information, and you can listen to General Johnny Rico's recruitment message in the video above. Images: via Steam / Dotemu, Auroch Digital View full article

We're not done with showcases in 2025 yet! The PC Gaming Show: Most Wanted 2025 showcase has just concluded this evening, and it included a few Xbox reveals as part of the event. Everything that featured an Xbox logo can be found down below, which includes some brand-new announcements for the likes of Starship Troopers: Ultimate Bug War! and Carmageddon: Rogue Shift. You'll also find some more generic stuff though, like a launch trailer for Blood: Refreshed Supply - a game we highlighted earlier this week. Here are all the Xbox-related reveals from the PC Gaming Show: Most Wanted 2025 showcase: Blood: Refreshed Supply - Launch Trailer (December 4, 2025) Carmageddon: Rogue…

The Total War series has long been at the centre of all things strategic in gaming — but the franchise has always maintained a PC focus. That's going to change with future titles, however. During the property's 25th anniversary showcase, British developer Creative Assembly basically confirmed the new direction, stating that Total War's new engine — delightfully named the Warcore engine — should allow the studio to account for console releases going forward. "In a franchise first, [the Warcore engine] enables future games to be released on PlayStation and Xbox, welcoming a new generation of commanders to the scale, immersion, and tactical mastery that defines Total War," t…

Silent Hill 2 finally came to Xbox last month after a year-long wait, and its release was quickly followed up with some brief Xbox Series X|S comparisons. Now though, the tech experts over at Digital Foundry have delivered their verdict - and despite the Series S version being "noticeably cut back", both Xbox ports are present and well here. In short, Xbox Series X is basically a match to the base PS5 version from 2024, which isn't entirely surprising given how closely matched the two systems are. As usual, Series S presents its own challenges - and developer Bloober Team has opted to cut the 60FPS mode and par back the 30FPS quality mode to bring a decent version of the …

At least some of the work, ideas, and inspiration that went into the now-cancelled PS5 game from shuttered PlayStation developer London Studio have found their way into Cast Outs, a newly announced game from a team containing eight former London Studio developers. Cast Outs is an online co-op game set in an urban fantasy-inspired London that's "intertwined with fantastical wonder, delivering a sense of newness and nostalgia, discovery and familiar favourites. It’s fantasy in a modern jacket." You use magic and spells to get around and defeat enemies, which is a similar concept to what London Studio was working on before it was closed down. Twisted Works, the developer mak…

DMM Games, Tookyo Games and Spike Chunsoft are releasing a physical version of SHUTEN ORDER on both Switch 1 and Switch 2 in Spring 2026, the companies have announced. Both the Switch 1 and Nintendo Switch 2 Edition will be getting a physical in the US courtesy of PM Studios, with Reef Entertainment's European release sticking with just the Switch 2 version. And for those physical collectors out there, yes, the Switch 2 physical will have the full game on the cartridge. That's a nice little announcement, given that the Switch 2 upgrade just came out last week. So, if you're on the fence about grabbing the game on the newer console and are reluctant to dive into a digital …

It's been announced today that Xbox has joined forces with ESPN to become the title sponsor of December 18th's college football bowl game between Missouri State and Arkansas State. The entire event is getting some major Xbox branding as a result, with the logo being a big Xbox controller as seen above, and it's all going to be broadcast on ESPN2 from 9pm ET on Thursday the 18th. Here's what Chris Lee, vice president of Xbox marketing had to say about the partnership today: If you're interested in actually attending the event at Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas, tickets will soon be available via www.XboxBowl.com — although that website isn't leading anywhere at t…