With Grand Theft Auto 6 a few months away from blowing up the entire industry on November 19, some retailers appear to be getting antsy, as a new leak floating around online is providing new details about the crime sim.

Posted to the notorious GamingLeaksAndRumors subreddit on June 25, gameplay details on GTA 6 appear to come from the Brazilian version of Amazon. Some of this information doesn't seem particularly new—like the dual-protagonist system or the higher graphical fidelity—but other parts sound kinda enticing ... if it's to be believed.

For example, the supposed leak mentions that this rendition of Vice City is "the most massive, dense, and insane map" developer Rockstar Games has ever created. There will be dangerous swamps, crowded beaches, and realistic suburbs "designed to deliver brutal immersion and total freedom."

The two protagonists—Lucia and Jason, who people speculate are either lovers or siblings—possess unique abilities that "directly influence the criminal ecosystem and the tactical intelligence of the missions." That doesn't sound too dissimilar from the roles the triple characters of Grand Theft Auto 5—Franklin Clinton, Michael Townley, and Trevor Philips—had, but with a bit more impact on the game's narrative development and gameplay interactivity.

What may be most fascinating, though, is the role social networks play in GTA 6. If this leak is true, your in-game phone will allow you to follow Vice City influencers, discover "secret side missions" and "world events," and watch viral videos. So, think TikTok, but in GTA. Maybe RobTok? TikCrime? We'll workshop those names.

This all comes together in a vibrant "living world controlled by artificial intelligence." Vice City, according to the leak, will pulsate in "a hyper-realistic way," with NPCs going about their lives based on advanced AI, creating a more immersive experience that allows you to participate in random events and walk into interactive establishments. It's giving Watch Dogs 2, but with what sounds like "a greater sense of immersion." Take it all with a grain of salt, though.

This leak comes right on the heels of Rockstar Games peeling back the curtain on how much GTA 6 will cost—$80, though there is a more expensive $100 Ultimate Edition—and the fact that you only get a download code in the box instead of a disc. Going download-only makes sense in theory in 2026, but while preorders are now live, people have thoughts about the price. This is especially true following Xbox's upcoming price increase, which now means you gotta be rich to buy GTA 6 and a console come November—if your retailer is even carrying the game, that is.

Ahead of its release next month, Ubisoft has released a playable part of Assassin's Creed Black Flag: Resynced online--playable sea shanties, that is. This is technically correct, which is the best kind of correct. Available online through various streaming platforms, the collection includes all the original shanties from the game, brand-new compositions, and the unreleased rendition of The Parting Glass by Sarah Greene. In total, that's 57 tracks to accompany you on your next voyage.

You can listen to it through the links below, but we all know that you're going to have "The Wellerman" on a loop:

https://open.spotify.com/album/59KZr80YaeZ6bT9Nt1sCY3

• Spotify
• YouTube Music
• Apple Music
• Deezer
• Amazon Music
• Qobuz
• Tidal

The original Black Flag's soundtrack required some work to completely unlock, as dozens of shanties had to be located and caught. Appearing in the game as glowing pieces of sheet music, players had to perform acrobatics to acquire each one, and once in their possession, protagonist Edward Kenway's crew would sing them while players were sailing. You could even take these seaworthy tunes on the go with you, as an Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag companion app synced to the game and downloaded the tracks to your smartphone. Sadly, the app has long been discontinued.

Recorded in Montreal by a group of contemporary folk singers and musicians, the Black Flag soundtrack's catchy collection of sailing songs predated the rise of ShantyTok on TikTok around 2021. Scottish musician Nathan Evans recorded a rendition of The Wellerman that quickly went viral, and it wasn't long before more users began to join in with their own performances. For Black Flag, Ubisoft hired musician and professor David Gossage to produce the in-world music, which was then adjusted to fit the game's time period.

Another interesting fact is that the singers recruited for the shanties had to dial back their singing so that they could sound like sailors, not a well-rehearsed choir.

Assassin's Creed Black Flag: Resynced launches on July 9 for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S. Preorders opened up for the game a few months back, and to kick off the marketing for the Black Flag remake, Red Bull Gaming tasked several athletes with recreating Edward Kenway's signature leaps of faith. 

Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced - Standard Edition (PS5, Xbox Series X)

$60 | Releases July 9

Preorder at Amazon View at other stores Preorder at Best Buy Preorder at Target Preorder at GameStop Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced Digital Deluxe Edition (PS5, Xbox Series X, PC)

$70 | Releases July 9

Preorder at Ubisoft Store Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced Collector's Edition (PS5, Xbox Series X, PC)

$200 | Releases July 9

Preorder at Amazon View at other stores Preorder at Best Buy Preorder at Target Preorder at GameStop Preorder at PS Direct

Opinions are mixed on some of the changes that the remake will introduce, but overall, it looks like fans can expect a mix of graphical overhauls and quality-of-life updates.

10 Ways Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced Differs From Ubisoft’s Original Pirate Adventure View Images

PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S saw a significant drop in unit sales in May, according to new data from Circana.

May's US Video Game Market Notes from Circana Senior Director Mat Piscatella detailed this slump, even as the month otherwise saw a 38% year-over-year increase in hardware spending. Sony sold 58% fewer PS5 units last month than in May 2025, as spending on the console dropped 43% year-over-year.

It was the fewest number of PlayStation consoles Sony has sold in May since May 2000, back when the original PlayStation was its only console on the market in the United States.

Meanwhile, Xbox's units sold fell by 12% between May 2025 and May 2026, making for the worst May performance since the Xbox debuted in November 2001. Oddly, Microsoft still saw hardware spending grow by 7% year-over-year despite the drop in units sold, likely due to the multiple price hikes Xbox consoles have received over the past year.

Generally, it seems the past year of price hikes is finally catching up to PlayStation and Xbox. Circana's data points out that the average price of PlayStation and Xbox hardware has increased by 33% and 22%, respectively. That's now clearly impacting how many people will go out and buy a new console, even in a month of high-profile releases like 007 First Light, Forza Horizon 6, and Lego Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight.

The continued success of the Nintendo Switch 2, which Circana estimates has sold 5.9 million units in North America, ultimately offset the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S' poor performance. Hardware spending increased by 37% between May 2025 and May 2026. When you also factor in video game sales and accessories, spending increased by 3% year over year.

On Bluesky, Piscatella posted that May 2026 "will be last month with HW growth for a… while. Pricing and Switch 2 launch comp will be a nasty combo."

With GTA 6 launching in a few months, Eric "ConcernedApe" Barone's Haunted Chocolatier is teeing up to be the next big "when the heck is it coming out" game. Announced five years ago, Barone has given a few updates and interviews on the status of the game, and in a new blog post, he wrote about the progress on his Stardew Valley follow-up.

"I know it's taking a long time. A big part of that is that I am being very thoughtful about every aspect of the game," Barone wrote. "The things in the game which the player will be interacting with or using very often need to be 'perfect.' They need to be seamless, clear, intuitive, satisfying, aesthetic."

Barone added that he'd spent time recently revisiting the recipe book for making chocolates, adding that this was one aspect of the game in particular he wanted to be flawless. Since this will be a major component in Haunted Chocolatier's gameplay, Barone wants it to present "just the right amount" of data to players that doesn't overwhelm. That's no easy task and a function that most players will likely take for granted, Barone wrote, saying that the process takes several rounds of iterations before he's finally satisfied.

Beyond that look behind the curtain, Barone explained that this process was also one of the reasons why he hadn't shown off much of Haunted Chocolatier at all. "Partly, it feels like I'm serving a half-baked bread. I would rather serve a fully baked bread. Also, I know that many parts of the game will likely evolve and change before release, so if I reveal them early, I risk disappointing players if the final product does not match their expectations," Barone concluded.

Haunted Chocolatier doesn't have a release date yet, but Barone is aiming for his tale of creating sweet treats and running a confectionery store to be a spooky experience. For now, Barone and the rest of his team remain "knee-deep" in development on it.

Best Cozy Games To Cuddle Up With In 2026 View Images

When Xbox Series S launched alongside Series X and PS5, it presented a compelling argument: Play all of the same games as elsewhere, albeit with lesser performance and visuals, for way cheaper. $300 felt surprisingly reasonable, giving you a way to save $100 compared to the cheapest PS5 and $200 compared to the more premium PS5 and Series X models. With the Series S turning six later this year, you'd expect it--like every other console--to get cheaper over time, as has always been the case. But this is 2026, baby. Welcome to hell.

Beginning August 1, Xbox Series S will cost as much as Xbox Series X did at launch in November 2020: $500. Almost six years after launch, the price will have increased 67%. We've already covered news of this Xbox price increase, and yet the reality of Series S now hitting the Series X's nearly six-year-old launch price is one of the most staggering facts of this entire saga. (For now, you can still grab one for $380 on Amazon or in this Best Buy deal, which is more than you would have previously paid but still a hell of a lot better than $500.)

It's the exact opposite direction the price should be going in based on historical precedent. Yet the Series S is, like virtually any piece of modern hardware that needs RAM and storage, faced with price increases due to the AI-driven chip storage--a shortage, it should be noted, that Microsoft has meaningfully contributed to as one of the biggest purveyors of AI products.

Much has been said about the way gaming consoles are arguably pricing themselves out of relevance. Major change is afoot in almost every way--how games are played, made, distributed, and engaged with over longer and longer periods of time. Series S at launch was a much more palatable option for those who are price-conscious, with Microsoft proudly declaring it "the smallest, most affordable next-generation console." 

That might still strictly be true at $500 with other consoles also going up in price, but the reality is, if you're an average person just looking for a cheap way to play something like GTA 6 this fall--or, frighteningly, any point in 2027 or beyond--you're pretty much screwed.

Lizzy Caplan (Masters of Sex, Mean Girls) has joined the cast for FX and Hulu's upcoming Far Cry anthology series. She is the second confirmed cast member for the show, joining It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia's Rob Mac.

Noah Hawley (Alien Earth, Fargo) is the showrunner and executive producer for the Far Cry TV show, while Mac is executive producing the show in addition to starring in it.

Caplan's most acclaimed roles came in Masters of Sex and Fleishman Is in Trouble, for which she earned Emmy Award nominations. She is also known for her role in the Now You See Me series, as well as the controversial movie The Interview.

https://twitter.com/FarCrygame/status/2070221967462928392

Hawley ruffled some feathers recently when he said the traditional gameplay structure of a video game–gameplay and skippable cutscenes--does not make for a compelling TV show story.

Hawley said his aim with the Far Cry show is to "have a dialog" with the franchise but not adapt any specific game or story from the series.

"Games are built in a way that doesn’t make for the best drama," he said.

The Far Cry show will feature a different cast and setting for each season, not unlike other anthology shows like True Detective or The White Lotus. Specific plot details for the show have not yet been confirmed, nor do we know when the show may release.

Following the start of preorders for GTA 6 and the confirmation of its $80 price point, stock analysts have weighed in with their price targets for shares of Rockstar's owner, Take-Two, and many see a bright future ahead.

Although Take-Two's stock price has actually gone down since GTA 6 preorders began, a number of analysts have issued, or reiterated, major gains.

Take-Two's stock is going to surge, analysts say.

Bank of America analyst Omar Dessouky, who said Rockstar should price GTA 6 at $80 to help convince other companies to hike prices as well, has raised his price target on Take-Two stock from $320 to $368. That would be a significant increase from the $233/share that Take-Two is trading at today.

BMO Capital analyst Brian Pitz, meanwhile, increased his target on Take-Two shares from $280 to $285. TD Cowen's Doug Creutz said he's reiterating his Buy rating for Take-Two and a $284 price target. Drew Crum of B. Riley Securities is forecasting a $300 price target, while BTIG's Clark Lampen reiterated his $290 price target. These price targets and related data were relayed by Tipranks.

Take-Two's stock price peaked in 2025 at more than $260 per share, but has fallen since. Year-to-date, Take-Two's stock is down 7% and over the past year, it's fallen by 3%. The stock nosedived all the way down to about $190 in February this year after Google released new AI-based game-making tools. The selloff was foolish, experts said at the time, because AI cannot make sophisticated games or anything that could legitimately compete with GTA 6 or disrupt Take-Two's business in a serious or significant way.

Preorder GTA 6 at Amazon

GTA 6 launches on November 19 for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. GTA 6 preorders are finally open on both consoles, and you can choose the $80 standard edition or $100 ultimate edition. There will be no disc-based version of the game, at least at launch.

If you thought today's Xbox price hike was jaw-dropping, it appears that Microsoft is preparing for another one in the next year.

Following the June 25 announcement that Xbox consoles will increase worldwide by $100 and $150 starting August 1 (depending on the model), the company confirmed that 2027 (or maybe 2028) could see the cost of Xbox consoles going up one more time.

"Last October, we increased Xbox console price by $20-$70 in the US." Microsoft wrote in a June 25 Xbox Wire blog. "We hoped another price increase would not be necessary, and we have spent the last several months working with suppliers on options. Unfortunately, console storage and memory prices have increased by more than 2.5x, and we expect another doubling by the fall of 2027."

This suggests that Microsoft could be planning to jack up the price of Xbox consoles as early as winter 2027. 2028 is entirely viable, too, and while we don't know how much the company plans to increase the cost of Xbox systems, there's the anticipation that another price hike may come in the next couple of years.

This comes not long after Microsoft already bumped the prices of its consoles. A price hike was implemented in May 2025, which saw Xbox consoles increase between $80 and $100 (depending on the model), and another came in October 2025, which pushed up the cost of Xboxes between $20 and $70 (though that was only in the US).

While the ongoing chip shortage is affecting almost every piece of technology--from consoles to laptops to phones--these frequent price hikes are starting to price game consoles out of relevance.

When Grand Theft Auto 6 arrives on November 19, 2026, it will undoubtedly be one of the biggest--if not the biggest--entertainment launches in history. The game will, at least initially, only launch on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S consoles, which have been available for nearly six years. Typically, consoles that have been available for such a long time would be priced significantly lower than they were at launch, letting the current-gen stragglers pick up a console for a nice bargain when it's time to play GTA 6. But nothing is "typical" anymore, and players face a very frustrating reality in 2026. Not only will you not get a discount as reward for your patience--you're going to have to pay much more for a system that's basically identical to the one released in 2020. 

Let's back up a little bit to examine what the situation was like in 2013, when Grand Theft Auto 5 arrived and became the most profitable entertainment product of all time. The Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 were on their last legs, with their successors scheduled to arrive just a few months after GTA 5's launch. When the Xbox 360 first arrived in 2005, it was priced at $300 for the cheaper Core version. The PS3 arrived the following year, priced at $500 for its cheaper 20GB model. 

These might as well be pictures of diamonds and gold bars.

But by 2013, both systems had received multiple redesigns that not only added more features and improvements, but came with reduced prices. A new model of Xbox 360 released in 2013 with a $200 price tag. Similarly, the PS3 "Super Slim" released in 2012 and its cheaper 250GB model retailed for $270. Both prices were drastically lower than the launch versions of either system, and in the case of the PS3, it was nearly half off. Sure, the new systems were due to arrive soon, but Grand Theft Auto 5 didn't require them, and this could feasibly be the only game someone played for months or even years at a time--especially with GTA Online. Anyone willing to wait that long before buying a console was rewarded with massive savings. 

In 2026, things look a whole lot different. Due almost entirely to the AI industry's never-ending need for chips, the price of computer hardware has gone through the roof. GPUs and RAM are exponentially more expensive, and the problem affects not just the cutting-edge components, but also standard, consumer-level chips. Rather than gradually lower in price--like we've seen video game consoles do for decades--both the PS5 and Xbox Series X have gotten dramatically pricier. Both standard systems were $500 back in 2020, and now sit at $650 (more on that a bit later). The PS5 Digital Edition is also more expensive than it was at launch--$600 versus $400--so anyone looking to capitalize on GTA 6 not launching with a physical disc isn't even going to be saving much money this way. 

There's been no cheaper redesigns this generation, even though a "slim" PS5 did release back in 2023. The console-makers went from the infrastructure nightmare that was launching a console during a worldwide pandemic almost directly into the AI-led chip shortage. With enough trouble already sourcing components for their existing SKUs, launching a new, cheaper model makes little sense. Launching a more expensive version for price-insensitive gamers with monocles and fancy tuxedos seemed to make sense, though. Regardless, if you want to play GTA 6 at its highest possible fidelity and performance come November 19, it'll cost you $900. If you want the Ultimate Edition of GTA 6, that's another $100 on top of that. And sure, you could save $20 and pick up the standard edition--but it is missing several missions. 

We've never seen such a high barrier to entry for playing a Rockstar game, unless you were just itching to get your hands on Rockstar Games Presents Table Tennis a few months after the Xbox 360 released. GTA 4 launched a few years into the 360/PS3 console generation, with prices starting to decline already. Red Dead Redemption followed in 2010, with the systems becoming even more affordable, and Red Dead Redemption 2 launched in 2018--again, years after the PS4 and Xbox One had launched, with their prices much lower than they were initially. 

It would be easier to remain optimistic about the future if it seemed like there was some glimmer of hope--some sign that we were eventually going to get over this hump and see the cost of gaming hardware start dropping again. Instead, the opposite is happening. As I was preparing to wrap up this piece, Microsoft announced yet another price increase on Xbox consoles, bringing the Xbox Series S 512GB console up to $500, which is what the 1TB Xbox Series X cost at launch back in 2020. Meanwhile, the aforementioned Xbox Series X 1TB will now be $800, and the 2TB version is being completely discontinued, likely so Microsoft doesn't have to price it at $1,000. How magnanimous. 

Video games aren't supposed to be a luxury hobby. Grand Theft Auto V would never have sold more than 200 million copies if they were. We're entering a dangerous period that could see the industry morph into something that only the wealthy can even afford to enjoy, and those aren't the people who need to be carjacking someone and stealing their Lamborghini in GTA. At this rate, the people buying an Xbox or a PlayStation will be the same ones buying a Lamborghini in real life.

It's no secret that Sony has been cleaning up the PlayStation Store, with the company removing thousands of so-called "shovelware" games from one developer. Now, though, we're learning that this removal is coming with "stricter guidelines" that are impacting some developers.

According to reports from GamesIndustry.biz and Push Square, the Brazil-based studio Afil Games' partnership with Sony has been terminated in the wake of these supposed "stricter guidelines." It's unclear just what these rules are, but in a June 23 X post, the Brazilian developer clarified that all of its games will be removed from the PlayStation Store.

https://twitter.com/AfilGames/status/2069431282660958413

"As a result of these new guidelines and their incompatibility with our business model, PlayStation has decided not to continue with Afil Games for future releases on the platform," the studio wrote. "We would like to sincerely thank all PlayStation players who supported us throughout this journey. Your enthusiasm and trust have played a significant role in our growth. We remain committed to bringing new experiences to our players through Xbox One, Xbox Series, Microsoft Store, and Nintendo Switch."

Afil Games has released several games on the PlayStation Store, including Chico's Delivery, Collie Call, and Damways--all of which are casual puzzle experiences. At the time of this writing, these games are still available to buy on the PlayStation Store.

Sony has really cracked down on shovelware in the past year. In February 2025, the company removed over 30 supposed "slop" games from the PlayStation Store, and in January 2026, it Thanos-snapped over 1,000 from German publisher ThiGames out of existence.

After hiking the price of Xbox consoles in October 2025, Microsoft is once again increasing the cost of Xbox consoles worldwide starting August 1.

In a June 25 Xbox Wire blog post, the company confirmed that the 512 GB model will jump up by $100 while the 1 TB model will go up by $150. This puts the Series S at $500 and the Series X at $800. As a result of the price increase, Microsoft is discontinuing the 2 TB Xbox consoles.

https://bsky.app/profile/wario64.bsky.social/post/3mp4uiqibdk2z

The company explained that although it spent "the last several months working with suppliers on options," it had to enact another price hike because "console storage and memory prices have increased by more than 2.5x." It also expects another doubling by fall 2027, which could mean we'll see another price hike not long after.

"The entire consumer electronics industry is struggling with the current components crisis, but the effects are particularly hard on consoles," the company said in its Xbox Wire post. "Unlike phones, computers, speakers, and other consumer devices, consoles are typically not sold at a profit, but instead for less than they cost to make."

To assuage the price hike, however, Microsoft is implementing several programs to make buying an Xbox "more accessible." This includes a Buy Now, Pay Later option; interest-free financing plans; a Certified Refurbished Consoles program for up to $100 off; and a "previously played consoles" option, which sounds a lot like buying a used console at GameStop.

This is the third price increase Microsoft has implemented following the two that came last year. In May 2025, the company jacked up the prices of Xbox consoles between $80 and $100 (depending on the model), and then again in October 2025 between $20 and $70 (though this increase only affected those buying consoles in the US). Game consoles are really pricing themselves out of relevancy.

While everyone is debating the disc-lessness of Grand Theft Auto 6, developer Insomniac Games has confirmed that it won't follow suit with its upcoming superhero sim, Marvel's Wolverine.

Responding to a fan on X who asked if the action-adventure game will "be physical or a code in a box," Insomniac Games gave a very simple, one-line reply: There's a disc.

"The physical version will include a disc in box," the studio wrote on X on June 24.

The post racked up tens of thousands of likes, a few thousand saves and reshares, and hundreds of comments, with most folks praising the developer for committing to physical media after Rockstar Games' disc-less announcement of GTA 6 on June 24.

While preorders of GTA 6 are now live, if you attempt to buy a physical version of Rockstar Games' highly anticipated crime sim, you'll be met with a download code in the box instead of an actual disc. There is a benefit: you can have the game pre-loaded on your PlayStation or Xbox console on November 12, one week ahead of its November 19 launch. There is a drawback, however, in that losing access to your license could mean losing access to the game entirely. The same is true of physical media, though. Scratching the disc, losing it, or having slow or no internet (to download the data on the disc) all make physical media difficult to consume.

Still, contrast this with a disc—which, again, Marvel's Wolverine will ship on—where you can play the game for as long as the disc actually works. That's the real win here, especially since some retailers are refusing to carry GTA 6's "physical" release. You'll have to contend with the likely day-one patch, though, which is basically essential to playing just about any game these days.

See at Amazon

Marvel's Wolverine launches as a PlayStation exclusive on September 15, which is a stacked month as almost every release tries to dodge the juggernaut that is Grand Theft Auto 6. There are some changes to this iteration of everyone's favorite berserker, including making Logan appear less sadistic and refusing to include the X-Men proper. But you may be wondering why Wolverine even looks like it does, and we may have an answer for you.

One of the running jokes with Razer is that the gaming company will put RGB lighting in any and all of its products eventually. For the last couple of years, its line of gaming chairs was seemingly exempt from that rule, but that's all about to change with the Razer Soma Chroma. It was inevitable, but for anyone who wants their shoulders to experience 16.8 million colors, this gamer chair will light up your back like a 2013 LAN party. The price for this illuminating throne? A cool $500 ahead of its launch in July.

Preorder at Razer Store

Razer describes the Soma Chroma as its first wireless RGB gaming chair, and it features reactive lighting at the top of the chair, situated around the shoulders and head. Currently, 300+ games can sync wirelessly over PC to the chair's RGB lighting--including Borderlands 4, Battlefield 6, and 007 First Light--and it also has 10 lighting presets. In case you're a little hesitant about having a swivel chair that's plugged into the wall, you can also run the fancy light effects through a standard power bank, as the seat has a built-in USB-C connection and pocket for the power supply to rest in. You can also fine-tune the illumination via an onboard control panel that switches lighting and brightness at the touch of a button.

Razer Soma Chroma gaming chair

As for the construction, it sounds like a solid throne for extended gaming sessions. The lumbar curve is meant to help you adopt a neutral sitting position, a reinforced steel frame gives the chair an added layer of durability, and it has a dual-density cold-cured foam seat cushion.

This week seems to be a big one for gamer furniture, as Virtuix also announced the "made for Meta" Omni One full-body movement system. It's a rig that holds you in place, and the omnidirectional treadmill should help you to physically walk, run, crouch, and jump in 360 degrees--without having to worry about knocking over a TV or tripping over a curious cat. Basically, it's the closest we've come to a replica of the Virtuosity VR rig.

To complement the Soma Chroma, you can also check out all the Prime Day deals on Razer. Amazon is currently offering some big discounts on various accessories, including mechanical keyboards, gaming mice, and headsets--and yes, most of them do have RGB lighting.

Grand Theft Auto 6 is releasing on November 19, 2026 for $80, and people won't be able to get it on a disc. There is a physical version, but it comes with a code in the box. Why is GTA 6 releasing without a disc-based version? According to industry analysts, there are a number of reasons why, and releasing as a digital-exclusive is going to further enrich Rockstar and won't hurt the game's sales.

Rhys Elliott of Alinea Analytics said the "biggest and most obvious reason" for not shipping on a disc is to block the resale market.

"The whole value proposition of a physical disc, from the player’s side, is the pre-owned and rental markets: more control over your library, the ability to sell a game on or rent it cheaply. But more control for consumers means less control for the publisher," he said. "A disc can be resold or rented a hundred times, and Rockstar earns nothing after that first sale. So the entire second-hand and rental economy is value flowing to players and retailers instead of to Rockstar."

There will be no disc-based version of GTA 6.

GTA 6 launching as a code-in-the-box prevents the game from being resold or rented, and that's a better scenario for Rockstar and owner Take-Two from a sales perspective. There is enormous, unprecedented demand for GTA 6, but even so, some people might hold out for a discount. Pricing for physical, disc-based games is "more elastic" than digital, Elliott pointed out, but that won't matter for GTA 6 since the game does not ship on a disc. Rockstar may eventually choose to discount GTA 6 after a period of time, but it will decide when this occurs, and to what extent, not a retailer.

"Remove the disc and Rockstar and the platforms own the entire price curve, including how high they hold the price and how much (and when) they ever discount it," he said.

Another reason GTA 6 isn't releasing on a disc is to help prevent spoilers, Elliott said. "This is the most leak-averse studio in the industry by my count, and it won’t want physical copies 'falling off the back of a truck' ahead of the street date, which, as we know, has always been a risk with discs," he said. "I suspect that’s part of the calculus here."

The download code inside GTA 6's physical edition allows people to preload the game starting November 12, but the game doesn't actually unlock until November 19. "So even a leaked physical copy reveals nothing before release," Elliott said.

"Commercially it just makes sense"

Piers Harding-Rolls of Ampere Analysis told IGN, meanwhile that releasing GTA 6 without a disc version is a plain and simple business decision.

"Commercially it just makes sense in terms of cost of goods to go digital code only in a physical case – it’s the best of both worlds to an extent – get exposure to the retail buyer but at a lower cost," Harding-Rolls said. "I'm sure that will be disappointing for some players, but it's possible there will be a Collector's Edition to come nearer to launch."

No impact on sales

People have made a lot of noise about GTA 6 not shipping on a disc, but the reality on the ground will be that the game will perform incredibly well regardless. Rockstar opting for a digital-only release is also part of a trend that began years ago for code-in-the-box physical game releases.

“Grand Theft Auto 6 will be far from the first or only code in box on retail shelves,” Circana analyst Mat Piscatella told VGC. “It’s been a pretty common practice for several years now."

He added that PS5 and Xbox Series X|S software sales are already "heavily weighted" to digital already, and GTA 6 skipping a disc version is "just another step in a trend that has been ongoing since the early 2010s," Piscatella said.

Many people love physical media and disc-based games, and want to see it continue, but Piscatella said Rockstar's choice to make GTA 6 digital only will not have a "meaningful impact on sales potential."

"It’s Grand Theft Auto VI, after all," he said.

Daniel Ahmad of Niko Partners, meanwhile, told Aftermath that digital adoption continues to grow, and publishers want to make more money, so skipping a disc version of GTA 6 only makes sense. He said GTA 6 may need to release on multiple discs, so the decision to go digital makes even more sense.

While digital adoption is growing, not every major game is bypassing discs. Insomniac Games recently confirmed that Marvel's Wolverine will include a disc in the box for its physical edition.

Rockstar and Take-Two are catching flak for releasing GTA 6 without a disc version, and Nintendo did as well when it debuted its Game-Key Card program that puts a code in a box for select Switch 2 games.

Data continues to show that game sales push further and further into digital. For example, Sony just recently announced a record-breaking high percentage of digital game sales.

Preorder GTA 6 at Amazon

GTA 6 launches on November 19 for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. GTA 6 preorders are finally open on both consoles, and you can choose the $80 standard edition or $100 ultimate edition.

Dead or Alive 6 Last Round launched on June 24 and is already receiving negative reviews on Steam for a lack of new content and for making players pay more for DLC they previously bought. We don't like it very much, either.

For the most part, players can transfer DLC purchased for the original version of Dead or Alive 6 to the new Last Round edition, which has both free and $40 versions. Unfortunately, even the $40 version of Dead or Alive 6 Last Round doesn't support any previous purchases relating to The King of Fighters crossover characters.

That means players who previously spent $8 on Mai Shiranui or Kula Diamond, and even more to buy their DLC costume packs, will have to purchase all that DLC again, no matter what. That stings even more because both Koei Tecmo has increased the price of both fighters and their costume DLC. The "Unlock Key" for each character now costs $11 rather than $8, while Mai and Kula's character and costume bundles now are $21 instead of $16.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqKxb-CSR0Y

Even if you spend $40 on this new version of Dead or Alive, you'll still need to pay $42 more to access DLC you may have previously purchased. Obviously, that is not being well-received by the core community of this fighting game, although Koei Tecmo has not indicated any plans to bring Mai and Kula's prices down.

Dead or Alive 6 Last Round is now available for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. A new Dead or Alive game is also in development.

A PlayStation Blog post co-authored by PlayStation and Rockstar Games said GTA 6 leverages the PS5's SSD to allow people to experience's the game's fictional version of Miami and wider Florida with "near-instant load times."

That sounds good and exciting, but it's also bumming people out. The original version of GTA 5 that came out in 2013 for PS3 and Xbox 360 was known for its lengthy load times when booting the game up that could be minutes long.

Nice artwork from GTA 5 would cycle through as the game loaded, and in cases where the loading took longer than expected, people might see character or environment art they hadn't before.

For the 2022 launch of GTA 5's PS5 and Xbox Series X|S edition, load times were improved. The loading screens have always been a distinct element of the GTA series.

GTA 6 artwork.

People online are saying they will miss this if GTA 6 does indeed have "near-instant" load times. That being said, this is all based off one line in a blog post, so it's unclear what "near-instant" even means or if it even pertains to the main loading page when the game boots up each time or something else.

A lot of the GTA 6 artwork hosted on the game's website bears a resemblance stylistically to the art from GTA 5's loading screens, so you can at least look at it there or download for yourself. But, again, that's not the same as sitting on your couch or in your chair looking at the artwork as the game loads.

Preorder GTA 6 at Amazon

The PlayStation Blog post is titled "GTA 6 plays best on PS5," a claim that has not been independently verified and comes as part of Sony's marketing arrangement with Rockstar, which is seeking to associate the game with PlayStation first and foremost.

The game is also coming to Xbox Series X, which has similar technical capabilities to the PS5, along with the relatively less powerful Xbox Series S. GTA 6 will also play on the PS5 Pro, but Rockstar has yet to confirm any specific enhancements.

GTA 6 launches on November 19 for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. GTA 6 preorders are finally, at long last, open on both consoles, and you can choose the $80 standard edition or $100 ultimate edition.

One month after a report revealed plans to lay off a "significant" number of employees, Bungie has confirmed these intentions as part of a company-wide reorganization.

In a June 25 X post, the Destiny developer announced a "reduction in force" that will have a "profound impact on the people affected, their families, friends, and teammates." PlayStation Studios head Hermen Hulst posted a lengthy blog post about the situation, confirming that "most of the Destiny team" is gone, as well as "some" members of the Marathon team and the Sony Interactive Entertainment teams that supported Bungie’s operations. Shortly after these posts went live, it was reported that Bungie studio head Justin Truman will also be leaving the studio.

https://twitter.com/Bungie/status/2070149689127973265

"As the leaders of Bungie, past and present, we recognize Destiny 2 fell short of expectations these past several years," the studio wrote. "Following our final content update to Destiny 2, and with our future projects still in early incubation, we unfortunately could not continue operating at our previous size."

In his June 25 post, Hulst said Bungie's latest project, the PvEvP extraction shooter Marathon, "remains an important part" of PlayStation's portfolio. The company will continue supporting Bungie as it works on new content for the game and incubates its "future projects," which Hulst said are "too early to discuss."

Hulst continued, admitting how "painful" this news was to deliver, particularly after the "extensive discussion and careful consideration" PlayStation went through before arriving at this workforce reduction.

"Over the past several months, together with Bungie leadership, we reviewed the studio’s long-term direction, development priorities, resource needs, and role within our broader portfolio strategy," Hulst wrote. "We explored multiple alternatives before concluding that a reduction was necessary to align the studio’s resources with its current priorities and long-term goals."

On X, Bungie said it will share more about the company's future, just not today.

"Today, we wish to extend our gratitude and compassion to every member of the Bungie team who has been impacted and to those who remain," Bungie wrote. "We hope you will do the same."

Despite indications that this news might be coming, it's a stunning reality to see play out for the Destiny team, which was responsible for creating one of the most influential games ever. It also highlights ongoing issues at Sony, which acquired Bungie in 2022 for $3.6 billion amidst the publisher's emphasis on live-service games, which Bungie had ample expertise in. That live-service push at Sony has seemingly been slowed, with multiple projects canceled and several studios shut down.

GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen is trying to buy the popular auction site eBay for $56 billion. He's now laid out a new angle of his vision, and it involves video games. In a recent interview, Cohen said one previously unannounced part of his plan to help eBay return to growth--if he can successfully take it over-is by creating a marketplace for digital gaming items. eBay has already flatly rejected Cohen's proposal to buy the company, saying it was "neither credible nor attractive."

He said on the All-In Interview podcast that eBay is currently a market-leader for physical collectibles, but not digital ones. He said he's identified a gap in the market, and he believes the returns could be massive.

"I would extend that into digital collectibles. If you look at all of these in-game items from AAA titles that people are accumulating--skins, weapons, all of these things--taking eBay and building a marketplace where you can provide liquidity for in-game digital items," he said. "Essentially, it's what NFTs could have ... people thought they were. But ultimately they had no real utility. In-game items actually have real utility."

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/PeNclyAl9N4

He said physical collectibles like art and trading cards are "ego" plays. The markets for these items are massive, he said, but the items have no utility beyond telling people that you have them and owning something rare.

Video game in-game items, meanwhile, have real utility, he said.

"There is no marketplace that is providing liquidity for them. I would use eBay to provide liquidity for in-game digital items. I believe that addressable market could be much larger than eBay's marketplace on physical items. No one is doing it. This should already exist. It's crazy that it doesn't exist," he said.

Existing marketplaces like Player Auctions and Gameflip offer some of these services, but eBay has significantly larger scale and brand recognition.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4j9RPGLENNI

Counter-Strike skins are known to sell for huge premiums online. Meanwhile, people have been selling their high-level World of Warcraft gaming accounts on eBay for a long time already, but Cohen is seemingly talking about something else here. In the case of Counter-Strike skins, these are sold within Steam (where Valve gets a cut). If Cohen is proposing something like a marketplace where people can sell Call of Duty or Fortnite skins, that would no doubt require developers to provide permission and infrastructure to support such a thing.

Cohen did not get into specifics regarding his plan to pull this off, but there does appear to be a significant market for digital skins. The state of New York sued Valve earlier this year, and in its case, it claimed the market for Counter-Strike skins was beyond $4 billion as of 2025. The lawsuit also brought up the very kind of idea that Cohen wants to address, as New York Attorney General Letitia James specifically called out the "ease of liquidating items through third-party marketplaces."

The other two parts of Cohen's plan for eBay, should he successfully take it over, is to cut costs massively to immediately improve earnings (like he did at GameStop) and to expand further into "live commerce." Popular in Asia and on TikTok, live commerce is the term for video where a content creator or store hosts a livestream to sell their products, giving viewers the ability to purchase items without leaving the video. eBay already owns and operates eBay Live, which does some of this, but Cohen said eBay has not properly managed or invested in it.

Also in the interview, Cohen said he came up with the idea to buy eBay while he was on the toilet (he did not elaborate further) and said buying GameStop was a bad idea in hindsight. Cohen said his original strategy for growing GameStop was to make it more like his previous company, the pet food company Chewy that he sold to Petsmart for $3.35 billion.

"That was the wrong strategy," he said, noting that when he became CEO, he changed plans and went into "maniacal cost-cutting mode" and doubling down on pre-owned and collectibles.

In other news, Cohen recently canceled his $35 billion pay plan to focus on the eBay takeover. Also in the interview, Cohen revealed that he's pouring $500 million of his own money into his bid for eBay.

It looks like layoffs at Xbox have started, with a number of developers at South of Midnight developer Compulsion Games now looking for new opportunities. The layoffs come as part of a massive shakeup at Xbox under new CEO Asha Sharma, which will reportedly see multiple Xbox Game Studios either closed or going independent once more.

The fate of Compulsion as a studio is still unclear. Reports from earlier in June suggested that Xbox was preparing to close the studio, though Compulsion leadership was said to be in discussions with Xbox over potentially spinning the studio off on its own.

News of the Compulsion layoffs comes from individual developers' posts on LinkedIn announcing that they are no longer with the studio, as compiled by reporter Mr Rebs.

https://twitter.com/mr_rebs_/status/2069959570877812839?s=46

Compulsion is based in Montreal and was founded in 2009. After developing Contrast and being at work on We Happy Few, it was acquired by Microsoft in 2018 as part of a flurry of studio purchases.

The Compulsion layoffs may be only the start for Xbox, with CEO Asha Sharma lining up big changes in an attempt to get Xbox "healthy" again, promising a "reset" on the business. Bloomberg reported that layoffs would likely occur after June 30, after the end of Microsoft's fiscal year.

Alongside Compulsion, multiple other studios including Double Fine and Ninja Theory are also reportedly in negotiations with Xbox to get their studios out from under Microsoft's ownership to avoid complete closure. There's been no recent update on how those talks are going--other than a single, not-so-promising emoji posted to Double Fine's X account.

After being announced in a Nintendo Direct two weeks ago, Deltarune Chapter 5 is live now and pushing Toby Fox's episodic RPG to new levels of hype. The update saw Deltarune's Steam concurrent player count jump to 291,816, more than double the game's previous peak.

As fans check out the new chapter, Deltarune has jumped into the top 10 most played games on Steam--an unusual feat for a single-player RPG with concurrent players normally in the low five figures. The game's previous all-time peak was 133,930 players last June, when the first four chapters were released as a paid game on Steam. The jump in popularity around the Chapter 5 release has also seen Deltarune reach number 13 on Steam's top sellers list.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5y22LUfetA

Of course the Steam numbers only give part of the story--Deltarune is also available on PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch, and Switch 2, meaning there's probably a whole lot more players getting stuck into the new chapter right now.

Deltarune's fanbase is going off on social media, as fans have been waiting a year for the new content to share their theories, secrets, guides and more. Plenty of players have also shared their praise of the new chapter through Steam reviews, where Deltarune enjoys a 98% positive rating.

Deltarune's first chapter was released for free back in 2018, with intermittent releases of new chapters in the years since. With just over a year since Chapter 3 and 4's joint release, the wait for Chapter 5 has been the shortest yet.

Toby Fox still has more chapters to release to complete Deltarune's story, signing off Chapter 5's release announcement with a promise that the team will return to to working on the next chapter. According to the game's Steam page, Chapter 6 is currently planned for a 2027 release.