Gaming

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• Latest news Twitch will train generative AI on livestreams and make participation opt-out

  Twitch announced it will start using livestream video and audio from its gaming and IRL platform to train generative AI models. The platform will enable this by default and give creators an opt-out option rather than requiring opt-in. Twitch justified the approach by saying "nobody would opt in," meaning creators' broadcasts will be used as training data unless they opt out.

• Latest news NetEase grants free Legendary upgrade to Storm’s Sacred Skies skin in Marvel Rivals

  NetEase Games announced a free Legendary upgrade for Storm’s Sacred Skies summer skin in Marvel Rivals that adds new animations and visual effects. Storm originally received an Epic-tier Sacred Skies skin in the latest summer skin batch and was the only character left without a Legendary option. NetEase made the change on Aug. 13 following player backlash, giving users the higher-tier cosmetic at no extra cost.

• Latest news Control Resonant: Standalone sequel turns Control into melee-focused action RPG

  Control Resonant is a standalone sequel to 2019’s Control that shifts the series from a third-person shooter to an action-adventure RPG emphasizing fast-paced melee combat similar to Devil May Cry. The game abandons the Oldest House setting for a sprawling, shape-shifting warped Manhattan. Narrative focus moves to Dylan Faden as the central protagonist while Jesse Faden remains a looming presence, marking a clear change in both gameplay and story direction for the franchise.

• Latest news Saber CEO denies AI wrote Rideshare Stimulator story, attacks ex-writer Stella Sacco

  Stella Sacco posted that she was the lead writer on the upcoming driving sim Rideshare Stimulator and was fired in favor of ChatGPT; Saber Interactive says the claim is false and that the game's story was written entirely by people. Saber confirms it used generative AI in parts of development but had not yet disclosed that on the game's Steam page and plans to update the page once features are finalized. CEO Matt Karch called Sacco a confidentiality violator, said he did not know her until consulting an AI chatbot, and asserted she was replaced by another writer; he framed AI use as a consumer benefit for the lower-priced title.

• Latest news Combolands blends Balatro-style roguelike combos with Cities: Skylines placement

  Crux Games released Combolands as a Steam demo, a roguelike city-builder that combines Balatro’s combo-driven mechanics with strategic placement and tile management reminiscent of Cities: Skylines. The demo delivers an absorbing, satisfying play loop and avoids the superficial or unethical design choices used by some Balatro imitators. This hybrid design creates a distinct gameplay niche by pairing combo-based roguelike progression with spatial city-planning.

• Latest news Pokémon Go gives free maxed Mewtwo, moon background and Mega Y boost for 10th anniversary

  Niantic is gifting all players a free Mewtwo with maxed-out stats and a moon-themed capture background for Pokémon Go’s 10th anniversary. The gift package also includes a major boost toward Mega Mewtwo Y. The event follows a summer that introduced Mega Mewtwo X and Y and a Times Square raid where more than 1,500 Trainers defeated Mega Mewtwo Y. This matters because the high-stat Mewtwo and Mega boost speed up players’ competitive strength and Mega Evolution progress.

• Latest news Big Walk maps Wilsons Promontory with LIDAR; devs embrace friends focus, reject 'slop'

  Big Walk is a co-op-only online puzzle game from House House that centers on hanging out with friends while solving environmental puzzles. The development team based the game's island directly on Wilsons Promontory National Park in south‑east Victoria, using a LIDAR heightmap and populating it with native plants and the park's granite. Developers welcome the emphasis on social play but object to the pejorative 'slop' in the term 'friendslop', arguing the label understates how thoughtfully the games are made.

• Latest news My Hero Academia creator Kohei Horikoshi publishes horror one-shot in Weekly Shonen Jump

  Kohei Horikoshi, the creator of best-selling My Hero Academia, released a new one-shot manga titled Quit Laughing, Shijima in the latest issue of Weekly Shonen Jump. The story is advertised as horror but reads as a supernatural adventure featuring teenage protagonists and unsettling creatures. The release marks Horikoshi’s return to original manga work and demonstrates his move into horror-adjacent material, though it does not reach the highest standards of manga horror.

• Latest news Twitch is using streamer content to train Amazon AI models and defaults users in

  Twitch is using live-stream content to train generative AI models across Amazon and has left the training program turned on for all streamers by default. The rollout was revealed indirectly via a Twitch Support post and the platform's chief product officer said on a livestream, "If it was opt-in, nobody would opt in." Streamers can disable the feature by toggling "Training for Generative AI" in Security & Privacy, but the change has sparked strong community backlash. This matters because streamers' content is being harvested for corporate AI training unless they take action to opt out.

• Latest news Scan Grounded 2's pond jockey drop to unlock an underwater weapon

  Players must find and scan the pond jockey's single drop in Grounded 2 to progress underwater exploration. The pond jockey NPC itself is not notable and only provides one drop. Scanning that drop unlocks a new weapon built specifically for underwater combat, making underwater encounters easier.

• Latest news Helldivers 2 adds wretch and crusher enemies in Devoid of Liberty update

  Arrowhead Game Studios released the Devoid of Liberty update for Helldivers 2, adding two new Illuminate melee enemies — the wretch and the crusher — while the previously teased Cultist unit did not appear. The update centers on a void opening in Illuminate space and introduces designs clearly inspired by Dead Space (wretch) and Silent Hill (crusher). Wretches sprint faster than players unless their legs are shot, pivot to avoid line of sight and try to flank from behind; they are vulnerable to head and limb shots and are often countered with shotguns. Crushers are large, slow brutes that wield clubs, wear a protective helmet that must be removed to expose the head, and have no ranged attacks, shifting how players must manage close-quarters threats.

• Latest news Paris Gentle Mates target Chris 'Simp' Lehr — multi-time CDL champion and MVP

  Paris Gentle Mates have identified Chris "Simp" Lehr as their primary target ahead of the upcoming Call of Duty League season. Simp is a United States player with multiple league championships and multiple MVP awards. His signing would significantly strengthen Paris Gentle Mates' roster and could alter the CDL's competitive balance.

• Latest news Ira Parker is working with George R.R. Martin and outlined hopes for future seasons

  Ira Parker, showrunner of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, is working directly with George R.R. Martin to develop future seasons. Parker discussed his hopes for those seasons and the show's creative direction. Martin's involvement keeps the original author's influence on the series' development.

• Latest news How to reach and hatch the Toe Biter buggy egg in Grounded 2

  Players must retrieve a Toe Biter egg from deep inside the Into the Abyss giant oak tree and then craft a nest to hatch it. Reaching the egg requires upgraded tools or spending several thousand Raw Science points to upgrade them. The task is a lengthy, late-game activity that requires significant preparation, exploration and resource investment.

• Latest news Ken Sugimori's 'Fat Pikachu' revealed for Pokémon TCG 30th anniversary

  Ken Sugimori produced a new 'Fat Pikachu' illustration for the Pokémon Trading Card Game's 30th anniversary, echoing his original chubbier Pikachu from three decades ago. Pikachu's design had slimmed over the years, and this anniversary artwork intentionally recalls the earlier look. Some fans reacted negatively to the new silhouette, making the reveal a focal point of community discussion.

• Latest news Sam Barlow and Brandon Cronenberg unveil Precognition, a sci‑fi horror FMV game

  Sam Barlow’s Half Mermaid Productions and director Brandon Cronenberg announced Precognition at the Kinetic Publishing Showcase. The FMV sci‑fi thriller stars Diana, who receives an experimental brain implant that gives her visions of the future but alters that future when those visions are committed to present memory. The game continues Barlow’s non‑linear, investigative approach from Immortality while emphasizing player agency and cause‑and‑effect storytelling.

• Latest news Sam Barlow and Brandon Cronenberg's sci-fi horror Precognition due Spring 2028

  Sam Barlow's Half Mermaid studio is making Precognition, a sci-fi horror game created in collaboration with filmmaker Brandon Cronenberg that lets players scour video footage to view and alter future events. The game is scheduled for release in spring 2028 and will be one of the debut titles for Kinetic's new publishing label. Barlow previously developed Her Story and Immortality, making this a high-profile narrative experiment blending film direction with interactive video mechanics.

• Latest news Liam Neeson’s 106-minute crime thriller ranks among Netflix’s biggest movies

  A 106-minute crime thriller starring Liam Neeson has become one of Netflix’s most-watched films. Neeson has spent the past two decades maintaining his commercial viability as an action lead. The movie’s streaming success underscores his continued draw for global audiences on the platform.

• Latest news The End of Oak Street: David Robert Mitchell’s suburban dinosaur thriller

  The End of Oak Street follows the Platt family, played by Ewan McGregor and Anne Hathaway, who wake to find their once-quaint neighborhood besieged by gigantic dinosaurs. The film is directed by David Robert Mitchell and blends suburban-home horror with large-scale creature spectacle. It explicitly draws on influences such as Gremlins, Poltergeist and Jurassic Park, representing a shift for Mitchell from intimate horror (It Follows) to broader blockbuster-style threats.

• Latest news Amazon exits MMO publishing: Throne & Liberty to NC in Q4 2026, Lost Ark to Smilegate

  Amazon Game Studios will transfer Western live-service operations and customer support for Throne and Liberty to NC (formerly NCSoft) in Q4 2026 and for Lost Ark to Smilegate in early 2027. Amazon published and ran these free-to-play MMOs in the West but did not develop them. Most player data and character progress will move to the new operators, though Throne and Liberty will lose Steam-console cross-progression and players can opt out of data transfer. The handovers effectively end Amazon’s role as a Western MMO operator and return long-term operational control to the games' South Korean creators.

• Latest news Christopher Judge urges hiring game creators for live-action adaptations

  Christopher Judge, the voice of Kratos, criticized live-action video game adaptations at a Fan Expo panel for routinely excluding original game actors and writers. He cited HBO’s The Last of Us—praising Pedro Pascal but arguing the game cast and writers could improve fidelity—and called on Amazon’s upcoming God of War series to bring game creators into the writer’s room. Judge’s comments push for greater creative continuity to preserve authenticity and better serve fans.

• Latest news Windows 11 KB5121003 adds 'low latency' CPU profile to speed app launches

  The Windows 11 update KB5121003 (build 26200.9168 / 26100.9168) extends the OS 'low latency profile' to cover user applications so they launch faster. The profile lets the CPU scheduler raise and lower clock speeds more quickly for short-burst tasks; the update applies automatically and can be checked by watching CPU boost behavior in tools like HWInfo. This change comes alongside recent Start menu refinements and the resolution of a brief monitor/display issue, and arrives as OEMs face higher Windows license costs.

• Latest news Dawn of War 4 delayed to late this year as King Art Games pursues extra polish

  Dawn of War 4 has been pushed back to the tail end of this year. Developer King Art Games announced the delay to give the team extra time to further refine and polish the experience before launch. The change moves the game's release window into the year's final months and extends its final development and testing period.

• Latest news Dawn of War 4 delayed to Dec. 3; Commander Edition gets Nov. 30 early access

  King Art Games has pushed Dawn of War 4’s launch from September 17 to December 3 to allow additional time for optimization, bug fixes and polish. Buyers of the Commander Edition receive three-day early access beginning November 30. The developer plans free post-launch updates including new maps, the return of Crusade mode, extra commanders and a mission editor, plus two story expansions.

• Latest news Alain Damasio’s La Horde du Contrevent gets first English translation, out Oct 2026

  The first English translation of Alain Damasio’s La Horde du Contrevent, under the title Horde of the Counterwind, will be published in hardback by Abrams Books in the US on 13 October 2026. The novel is a cult classic and provided key inspiration for the game Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, making the English edition notable for readers and gamers. A UK hardback release is listed on Amazon for 12 November 2026.

• Latest news Ghost of Yotei: Echoes of Sekigahara expansion, Most Wanted roguelike, $70 Complete Edition

  Sucker Punch announced Echoes of Sekigahara, a narrative expansion for Ghost of Yotei that adds new locations, enemies, weapons, armor sets, dyes and a new character, Nagato, with flashbacks to the Battle of Sekigahara. The studio also revealed Most Wanted, a single-player roguelike-style combat survival mode where players accept bounties to start runs, earn perks by defeating enemies, and unlock additional playable characters. A $70 Complete Edition bundling the base game, the expansion, Most Wanted, the online co-op Ghost of Yotei Legends and all digital deluxe content is available now; Echoes of Sekigahara and Most Wanted release October 1.

• Latest news Eurogamer writer misreads 'The King is Watching' as 'Hatching' due to font

  A Eurogamer writer initially read the game's title as 'The King is Hatching'. The mistake resulted from an unusual font combined with the writer's poor eyesight; the game's true title is 'The King is Watching'. The misreading affected the writer's first impression and underlines how typography can shape player expectations.

• Latest news Helldivers 2 raises level cap to 300 and adds 15 new titles in Devoid of Liberty

  Arrowhead released the Devoid of Liberty update, raising Helldivers 2's level cap from 150 to 300 and adding 15 new unlockable titles awarded every 10 levels. Any XP players earned above Level 150 was banked and applied, so many players may already have unlocked some of the new titles. The update also launched a Warhammer 40,000 warbond, expanding progression and cosmetic options for players.

• Latest news Aspyr shadowdrops War in the North 'Legacy Edition' and promises more LOTR re-releases

  Aspyr Media quietly released a 'Legacy Edition' of 2011's The Lord of the Rings: War in the North. The release is under a licensing deal with Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and marks Aspyr's first LOTR title; Aspyr also confirmed additional classic LOTR re-releases are planned. The activity coincides with new Lord of the Rings projects in development, including a flagship RPG from Warhorse and a separate project from Crystal Dynamics, signaling renewed investment in the franchise.

• Latest news Micron: AI HBM demand and slow fab builds mean no near-term fix for memory crunch

  Micron executive Sumit Sadana warned that surging demand for HBM used in AI servers is consuming wafer supply and squeezing availability for other memory products. Building the new leading-edge fabs needed to increase wafer output requires greenfield construction and long ramp-up times, far more complex than data centers. Micron has no timeline for when wafer supply will meet demand, creating continued uncertainty for device makers and consumers.