Game News
Ex-Overwatch Director Says Tracer's Butt Was Never "Nerfed"
When the original Overwatch debuted almost a decade ago, the game encounter some pushback over Tracer's victory pose, which some claimed over-sexualized her and placed too much emphasis on her butt. Blizzard subsequently apologized and reworked Tracer's pose. Now, former Overwatch director Jeff Kaplan has weighed in on the issue and declared that Tracer's butt was never nerfed.
Kaplan was asked about the issue while streaming his new game, The Legend of California, via IGN. In response, Kaplan said "we actually didn't nerf Tracer's butt. It stayed exactly the same."
Blizzard recently ran into a similar issue and promised to rework the design of Anran, a new female hero whose face was met by a negative reaction from players because she looked too similar to other characters. Earlier this this month, Blizzard unveiled a new facial design for Anran, which emphasizes her maturity over youth and increased her resemblance to her brother, Wuyang.
Continue Reading at GameSpotAll Free Mystery Gifts In Pokemon Champions
Pokemon Champions has arrived on Nintendo Switch, and like many other Pokemon games before it, it's offering a handful of free Pokemon and other helpful items for players. In addition to free Mystery Gifts, you can receive elusive Mega Stones by transferring certain Pokemon over from the Pokemon Home service, and even get a free Gardevoir by participating in the game's first online competition.
Here are all of the free gifts available right now in Pokemon Champions. If you're new to the battle-focused game, be sure to also check out our beginner's guide to competitive Pokemon, as well as our guide on how to move Pokemon over from Pokemon Home.
Table of Contents [hide]- Free Mystery GiftsFree Mystery GiftsDragonite
- Available until August 31, 2026
As an extra incentive to jump into the game early, everyone who downloads and plays Pokemon Champions before August 31 can claim a free Dragonite. You'll find the dragon Pokemon in your in-game mailbox alongside 100 Quick Coupons, which reduce the amount of time you need to wait to recruit new Pokemon from the ranch.
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As Gaming Grows More Expensive, Investing In A PC Like This One Is A Great Way To Future-Proof Your Hobby
A common misconception about me is that, as someone who loves games, I must love all the cables and shiny bits of hardware needed to play them. Truth is, if you need someone to weigh in on which Baldur's Gate 3 romance is the most narratively satisfying, help you create a solid Diablo 4 build, or walk you through how to get the Master Sword in literally any Zelda game, I'm your girl. However, if your mic mysteriously stopped working mid-match or the PC you built won't turn on, I'd encourage you to ask literally anyone else to help you troubleshoot. Yes, I can navigate my way around a PC just fine and can install mods like the best of 'em, but by and large, I don't want to have to put too much thought or effort into whatever processes it takes to actually play my games.
Fortunately for me, companies like Quoted Tech are eager to pick up my slack. A couple weeks ago, the Canadian-based company generously sent me a custom-made gaming PC--the Horizon Professional--to help remedy my gaming woes, which have grown numerous in recent years. While my PC was great back when my partner first built it, time and increasingly demanding games with better graphics have taken their toll. The thought of upgrading my existing computer--or worse, rebuilding the entire thing--seemed daunting, and rising RAM and SSD costs left me feeling a bit resigned to my dated rig. With all that said, I was shocked by how much the Horizon PC improved my gaming experience with essentially zero setup or friction on my part, and at a reasonable price.
Upon opening the box, I was impressed by how carefully packed the unit was. On top of having thick styrofoam surrounding the entire PC, the interior of the case was filled with packaging moulded to its shape, preventing anything from shifting around. Assembly was just as easy, which is to say, required next to nothing from me. After pulling the PC out, I popped off the case's glass side panel, removed the packaging, closed it, then plugged it in. Done. So, let's move on to the specs.
Continue Reading at GameSpotA Love Letter To Gaming's Many Weird Moons
Can we all agree that space is both pretty amazing and terrifying? I've largely felt both awe and terror while the crew of the Artemis II, the latest manned space mission, has traveled the farthest any person has ever gone from Earth and broadcast images of our neighboring celestial body and the space beyond. It's got me thinking about a lot of things, like how small and insignificant we are in the grand scheme of the universe--let alone this solar system--as well as how little it feels like we know about the Moon despite its relative proximity! That last point really sticks out to me, because despite the Moon's many mysteries, knowing little about it hasn't stopped the world of games from imagining some pretty awesome, weird, and even terrifying visions of what it may contain.
Games are no stranger to the Moon. BJ Blazkowicz has shot Nazis up there. Chell has opened a portal on its surface--one that sucked the villainous Wheatley into the vacuum of space at Portal 2's conclusion and nearly took her with him. Later this month, players will be navigating an abandoned Moon base and simultaneously solving puzzles and shooting robots as Hugh and Diana in Pragmata. Plus, who can forget their first brush with gaming's most-iconic version of the Moon, the world-ending and seriously terrifying visage of one that cuts the sky above Clock Town in The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask. These are just the highlights; video games have a long, rich, and weird history with the Moon, be it ours or imagined ones.
When I think of the Moon in games, my mind wanders, as it often does, to Destiny. It is, perhaps, my single favorite instance of the Moon in any video game, and so much of that has to do with my first time stepping foot on it. During Destiny's beta, players were relegated to the game's starting zone on Earth as well as the game's first few missions and Strike. Near the end of the test though, Bungie did a cool thing and opened up the Moon for approximately two hours, making it feel like an exclusive instance and glimpse into the wider world that players might spend the next 10 years exploring. And so I touched down on its glistening surface and gave into the wonder of its vistas and the darkness (and Hive!) contained within its Hellmouth, a seemingly endless underground fortress filled with ritual sites, alien wizards, and at least one portal to another realm inside the soul of a dead god.
Continue Reading at GameSpotFortnite Adding An Arc Raiders-Style Game With Disney Characters - Report
Epic Games and Disney are working together on multiple upcoming games as part of the mysterious Disney x Fortnite project, and now one of them has seemingly been revealed early--it's probably not what you expect.
Bloomberg reported that the first new game to come from Disney's $1.5 billion investment into Epic Games will launch in November and it will be a shooter along the lines of the popular extraction game Arc Raiders. Players will be able to suit up as a Disney character and duke it out until they reach an extraction point, sources told the site. According to the report, internal reviews for the project have assessed it to be "not very original" in its current form, but other staffers said they feel optimistic that it will be in better shape come launch.
Disney's investment into Epic and Fortnite will span at least two more games, the sources added. An early version of the second game got "middling internal reviews," sources said. The report went on to say budget for the third game was shifted to the first two projects because "Disney was disappointed by Epic's release timeline."
Continue Reading at GameSpotAfter Years Of Nintendo Exclusivity, This Beloved Puzzle Franchise Is Going Multiplatform
Several years have passed since Professor Layton and the New World of Steam was first revealed, but at long last, developer Level-5 has lifted the lid on its long-in-development puzzle-solving game. A new trailer has provided a detailed look at the game and a release date window of 2026, but the biggest surprise is that the mystery-solving Professor will be looking to crack his latest case on more than just Nintendo hardware, as Professor Layton and the New World of Steam is also coming to PC--for Steam, of course--and PS5.
Previously confirmed for Switch consoles, this will be the first time that a Professor Layton game has been released on a non-Nintendo console and on PC. The series kicked off on Nintendo DS in 2008 and has continued on 3DS and Switch consoles since then, and while there have also been iOS and Android ports, those aren't technically considered to be consoles--and as well all know, technically correct is the best kind of correct.
Beyond that, the trailer also showed off the game's new art direction, which blends the traditional look of the series with 3D-animated visuals. We also got a closer look at Steam Bison, a US town fueled by invention and full of steampunk technology. On Switch 2, the game will offer mouse support, and Level-5 says that players can expect to meet a colorful cast of characters while working to solve the mystery that lies at the heart of Steam Bison.
Continue Reading at GameSpotPUBG Dev On Highguard And Concord Struggles: It's "Really Hard To Succeed Every Time"
PUBG franchise director Taeseok Jang has reflected on the string of shortcomings in the live-service multiplayer space, including high-profile examples like Concord and Highguard. He said in an interview that he has friends who worked on those games, and has tried to learn lessons from their struggles.
Jang told GamesRadar that it is "really hard to succeed every time," and for Concord and Highguard, he said he is trying put himself in the developers' shoes and think, "'What could I have done better in that situation?'"
He said he would "try to have that perspective, and try to learn from it."
Continue Reading at GameSpotThe FAA Wants To Recruit Gamers For Careers In Air Traffic Control
The Federal Aviation Administration is officially recruiting video game players to be part of the next generation of air traffic controllers. Part of that push has been accompanied by a new ad campaign aimed at gamers that uses video game footage and Xbox sound effects to make the pitch that players can earn a six-figure salary by applying their in-game skills to the real world.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy shared a statement about the campaign's outreach to a subset of people who may have some of the necessary skills to work in air traffic control.
"To reach the next generation of air traffic controllers, we need to adapt," said Duffy. "This campaign's innovative communication style and focus on gaming taps into a growing demographic of young adults who have many of the hard skills it takes to be a successful controller."
Continue Reading at GameSpotBattlefield 6 Update Makes A Major Change To Revives To Bring Them In Line With Classic Games
Developer Battlefield Studios has announced some impactful changes coming to its military shooter, Battlefield 6. This includes new content like an additional limited-time mode and weapon, as well as adjustments to how revives work so you can't spam them anymore.
In an update post on the official Battlefield 6 website, the developer outlined all the changes coming to the game on April 14. There are quite a few additions and adjustments in the works, but the one that's catching the most eyes within the patch notes is a tweak to Defibrillators. When Battlefield 6 launched, you could essentially spam the Defibrillator to revive your teammates without any risk. When Update 1.2.3.0 lands next week, this revive mechanic will be reverted to how it worked in previous Battlefield titles.
With Update 1.2.3.0, instead of unlimited Defibrillator charges, you'll start with three for quick revives before recharging the device. Depending on how long you charge your Defibrillator determines how much health is restored, with 50% giving you about half your health and 100% replenishing your entire health bar. There will be a UI indicator letting you know your charge progress, too; that way, you aren't just guessing or using it too early.
Continue Reading at GameSpotGet An ROG Xbox Ally For Only $500 Before The Inevitable Price Increase Arrives
PC gaming can be expensive these days, but there’s a great deal right now if you want a portable gaming PC. Amazon and Best Buy have dropped the price of the Asus ROG Xbox Ally to $500 (was $600). That’s about the same as a Switch 2, but since it runs on PC hardware, you get access to a wider range of games, often at lower prices.
Asus Xbox ROG Ally Handheld $500 (was $600)The ROG Xbox Ally improves on Asus’s first mobile gaming PC with some nice updates for comfort and usability. It has a sturdy white case, a seven-inch Full HD 120Hz screen, 16 GB of RAM, and an AMD Ryzen Z2 processor. You also get Xbox-style controls, a 60-watt-hour battery, a 512GB SSD, and the whole device weighs less than 1.5 pounds. The ROG Xbox Ally also includes three months of Xbox Game Pass Premium, so you’ll have plenty of games to play right away. While it’s not as powerful as the ROG Xbox Ally X, this model still handles gaming well. Indie games run smoothly, but for more demanding titles, you may need to adjust settings for the best performance. If you’re okay with making a few tweaks, you can still enjoy newer games on this device.
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One key feature is the device's operating system. Unlike the Steam Deck’s Linux system, Android-based handhelds like the AYANEO line, or the Switch 2’s custom software, the ROG Ally is one of a small handful of Windows 11-based handheld gaming devices, offering game compatibility and user interface experience akin to a Windows desktop or laptop. The ROG Xbox Ally also features an updated Xbox experience that makes it much easier to organize and launch all your games, even if you bought them from different storefronts like Steam or the Epic Games Store.
Continue Reading at GameSpotAfter Tough Launch, Samson Dev Promises More Polish And Refinements This Month
Samson: A Tyndalston Story launched on April 8, and it wasn't all that well received, due in part to the crime game's string of technical issues that players have complained about. Developer Liquid Swords, a team made up of former Just Cause developers, has now outlined what is to come in regards to updates this month to address issues and improve the experience.
Samson's first update arrived on April 9, addressing a number of issues, and the second update will come out on April 15. This will focus on improving stability and "refining" the gameplay. The update will also add more polish to the game and include other updates based on fan feedback. The full patch notes were not released for this upcoming update, however.
A third update will arrive on April 22, but there are no details yet on what it will include as of yet.
Continue Reading at GameSpotYouTube Premium's New Price Hike Is Bad News For Gamers Already Drowning In Subscriptions
Like everything else in life, the price of YouTube Premium is going up in the US. Google has announced that a YouTube Premium individual plan will increase from $14 to $16 per month, while a family plan that allows for up to six accounts to be connected will go up from $23 to $26 per month. The increases will also be hitting YouTube Music plans, with individual and family accounts rising an extra dollar to $12 and $19 per month, respectively. YouTube Premium Lite will also increase from $8 per month to $9.
This isn't the first time YouTube Premium prices have gone up. Google last raised prices in July 2023. In a statement to Variety, Google said it is "updating" YouTube Premium plans to provide a "high-quality experience that supports creators and artists" on the platform.
YouTube Premium and Music 2026 subscription prices- YouTube Premium Individual: $16 monthly (was $14)
- YouTube Premium Family: $26 monthly (was $23)
- YouTube Premium Lite: $9 monthly (was $8)
- YouTube Music Premium: $12 monthly (was $11)
The big draw to YouTube Premium is that it allows for ad-free viewing of videos, as well as other perks like background viewing, offline downloads for mobile, higher streaming quality, and full access to its music catalog. The free tier of YouTube is ad-supported, but in recent months, viewers have complained about how aggressive Google has become with adverts, as viewers often have to sit through at least two unskippable commercials before a video starts and mid-roll ads.
Continue Reading at GameSpotCrimson Desert Will Let You Choose Your Punishment
Pearl Abyss has teased some new features coming to Crimson Desert, its super-popular open-world action-adventure RPG. Alongside summonable mounts, the South Korean studio is working on adding difficulty settings to the game; that way, you can tailor your experience--and your death--to your skill level.
In a lengthy developer blog on the studio's official website, posted on April 9, Pearl Abyss outlined "some of the new features and content currently in development"--all of which have been shaped by community feedback. In the "New Content and Features" section, the developer shared that it's working on adding three difficulty options "so that everyone--from new Greymanes to the more advanced--can enjoy the adventure at the level that suits them best." Once added, you'll be able to select easy, normal, or hard options to tune Crimson Desert to your preferred playstyle.
While it's unclear if you'll be able to switch between these three difficulty options freely, Pearl Abyss said it's also working on "new combat-focused content." Maybe this will help alleviate just how punishing "hard" may be, while making "easy" as flashy as a Devil May Cry game.
Continue Reading at GameSpotRust 2? "Nope," Dev Says After Weird Steam Page Goes Up
Recently, a Steam page for "Rust 2" appeared, prompting people to understandably believe that Rust 2 was happening. But it is not.
Garry Newman, the head of Rust developer Facepunch, told PC Gamer, "Nope. We're not making Rust 2." A Steam page for Rust 2 was published recently, albeit with no images or details on it. As for what that page was all about, Newman said, "No idea at all."
The staff at SteamDB, a third-party website that monitors the Steam database, said the Rust 2 page has been flagged as "suspicious" and that it could be "malicious or impersonating another product."
Continue Reading at GameSpotWindrose Early Access Release Date And Launch Times Confirmed
A new age of piracy is almost here, as Windrose is setting sail for Early Access waters starting April 14. Revealed during the Triple-I Initiative Showcase this week, anyone looking to grab the game during this phase of its development can grab it for $30 and chart their own course across stranger tides at the following times:
Windrose Early Access launch timesApril 14US- 1 AM PT
- 4 AM ET
- 4 AM ET
- 5 AM BRT
- 9 AM BST
- 10 AM CEST
- 10 AM SAST
- 11 AM MSK
- 1 PM UZT
- 4 PM CST
- 5 PM KST
- 5 PM JST
- 6 PM AEST
Developer Windrose Crew has also announced a $40 Supporter Bundle that includes the game and a selection of jaunty sea shanties recorded by Seán Dagher. One of Steam's most-wishlisted games, Windrose looks like it'll scratch that itch for a Black Flag remaster with its combination of ship combat, crews to hire for your expeditions, and survival elements. Set during an alternate Age of Piracy, players can explore procedurally generated biomes filled with hidden mysteries and hand-crafted dungeons on their journey to conquer the seas.
Naval combat includes all the greatest hits from the genre--from trading cannon fire to sending boarding parties over--and the game is fully playable in solo offline or co-op modes. Windrose also focuses on customization, as players are free to shape the world around them with island strongholds, fine-tuned combat, and a selection of vessels to sail the oceans on. If you're interested in trying it out, you can grab a demo for Windrose on Steam.
Continue Reading at GameSpotAfter Johnny Cage, Karl Urban Wants To Play Red Dead's John Marston Some Day
The Lord of the Rings and The Boys star Karl Urban plays Johnny Cage in the upcoming Street Fighter movie, and now the actor has said he wants to play another John in a video game movie.
Urban told Square Mile that Rockstar's Red Dead Redemption is one of his favorite video games, and he would jump at the chance to play the first game's main character, John Marston, if there were ever an adaptation of the project for film or TV.
"I mean, come on, John Marston! I'd love to play that character," he said.
Continue Reading at GameSpotCrunchyroll's Newest Sale Is A Celebration Of The Year's Best Anime
The Crunchyroll Anime Awards are almost here, and to celebrate, the streaming platform is hosting a massive sale in its store. Highlighting the nominees of this year's awards show, fans can save big on anime Blu-rays, clothing, and merchandise. How it works is simple: Buy two items from the eligible list and get a 20% discount, buy three items and that discount increases to 30%, and four or more items will get you a 40% discount. That adds up pretty quickly to substantial savings, and to help you out, we've assembled some lists below for our top picks.
Crunchyroll Anime Awards SaleTo put this into perspective, if you were to update your summer wardrobe with four One Piece T-shirts priced at $35 each, that would normally cost you $140. But with the Crunchyroll Store 40% discount? That total would come to $84, a savings of $56.
Some of our top picks in the merchandise department include several SH Figurarts figures. These collectibles don't just look great, they're also highly posable thanks to the extreme amount of articulation in their design, and various swap-out parts allow you to truly fine-tune a pose for them. Uravity and Toga Himiko are great options here, while the Hashira Shinobu Kocho from Demon Slayer is another dynamic figure you can add to your collection.
Continue Reading at GameSpotCrimson Desert Is Finally Getting Summonable Mounts
Crimson Desert players can expect several improvements to roll out for the game in the coming months, as developer Pearl Abyss says that it's working on new content and feature updates. The studio says that these have been partially shaped by player feedback gathered from the first few weeks after Crimson Desert launched, and they'll be added to the game from April through June.
Some of the big updates include brand-new content aimed at players seeking to dial up--or lower--the game's challenge, like Boss Rematch and Re-blockading modes. These will allow previously defeated bosses and liberated locations to be tackled once again, and new easy, normal, and hard difficulty options are being added. There are also several quality-of-life upgrades on the way, including food storage with direct access to cooking ingredients, a wardrobe system for outfit and armor organization, expanded storage for materials, and specialized storage for quest items.
Gameplay improvements include additional abilities for characters Damiane and Oongka that will align them more closely with Kliff and his skillset, the option to hide back-mounted weapons, and new character outfits will be introduced. The best news is that new pets and summonable mounts will be added, addressing one of the major fan requests for Crimson Desert. Wrapping all this up is a series of system and graphical updates, including UI elements improvements, adjustable font sizes, customization options for certain controller inputs, expanded configurable keys, and improvements to the rendering of distant landscapes.
Continue Reading at GameSpotDoki Doki Literature Club Removed From Google Play Store After Already Being There For Months
Doki Doki Literature Club has been pulled from the Google Play Store, just a few months after its release on the mobile storefront back in December 2025. In a statement from Serenity Forge, the studio cites that Google chose to remove the game from the Google Play Store as its content violates the storefront's terms of service in "its depiction of sensitive themes."
"DDLC is available on many different major platforms, including iOS, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, and more," Serenity Forge writes. "We're continuing to do everything we can to find a path forward for getting DDLC reinstated on the Google Play Store. Meanwhile, we're also looking into potential options for alternate methods of distribution on Android devices."
At this point, it's no secret that Doki Doki Literature Club is a disturbing experience that touches on self-harm and emotional abuse, and uses graphic imagery to do so, but there's a big "This game is not suitable for children or those who are easily disturbed" warning on store pages for the game. Audiences are suitably warned that this is a horror game, despite marketing material and the game's first hour disguising the experience as a romantic-comedy visual novel.
Continue Reading at GameSpotAmazon Deal: Get 3 Board Games For The Price Of 2 For A Limited time
Amazon Board Games: Three For the Price Of Two Sale
Save big on popular board games
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The great thing about board games is that they're social, don't need electricity, and have a built-in offline mode. If you want to stock up on tabletop fun, head over to Amazon to take advantage of a Get Three For the Price Of Two deal. The deal is simple: pick three eligible items from the list, and the price of the lowest-priced item will be subtracted from your total. You don't have to pick only board games, as the promotion applies as long as you choose eligible items from the Amazon store page. So far, Amazon hasn't announced an end date for this promotion, so you might not want to dawdle in case anything catches your eye.
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