Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse is shaping up to be a good-looking entry in the franchise after a long hiatus, and by the sound of things, it has a pretty stacked voice cast as well. Konami has revealed the roster of actors bringing various characters to life in the Evil Empire-developed game, and when it comes to the franchise's biggest bad, Dracula, they've brought back someone with vast experience to play the lord of darkness: Graham McTavish.

While McTavish is a seasoned actor with voice roles in Killzone, Dragon Age: Origins, and Uncharted 2: Among Thieves--and made a damn good Doctor Doom in Marvel's Midnight Suns--he also voiced Dracula in Netflix's Castlevania animated adaptation. He was only around for two seasons, but McTavish's performance was praised for being nuanced as he flipped between the roles of monster, husband, and father in the show. He also popped up in the second season of Devil May Cry, voicing the main antagonist Arius von Enhrenberg.

It looks like a reunion of sorts for the Castlevania anime, as Alejandra Reynoso returns as Sypha Belnades, and Liam O'Brien, who previously played Isaac in Castlevania: Curse of Darkness, is once again cast as the character.

https://youtu.be/EpCS2VPsMd8

Beyond McTavish, the rest of the vocal talent in Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse features a talented lineup. Abby Trot has been active since 2013 and is a prolific voice actor in anime, with her biggest role currently being Momo Ayase in the wildly popular Dandadan. JB Blanc brings almost 40 years of experience to the role of Trevor Belmont, and he previously voiced Brauner in Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin, as well as several roles in Lords of Shadow. The always-reliable Aaron LaPlante rounds out the cast as Death--and he probably doesn't talk vulgar smack like Malcolm McDowell did in the Netflix series. Here's a closer look at the full cast:

• Abby Trott as Rose Belmont
• JB Blanc as Trevor Belmont
• Alejandra Reynoso as Sypha Belnades
• Graham McTavish as Dracula
• Ray Chase as The Fallen
• Erica Lindbeck as Joan of Arc
• Melique Berger as Medusa
• Liam O'Brien as Isaac
• Dawn M. Bennett as Carmilla
• Aaron LaPlante as Death

Launching on October 15 for PC and consoles, Castlevania: Belmont's Curse arrives just in time to celebrate 40 years of the whip-wielding franchise, and it's being developed by The Rogue Prince of Persia developer Evil Empire. The studio has also worked on Dead Cells in the past, and while some of that DNA is in Belmont's Curse, Evil Empire says the classic Castlevania formula of 2D action-exploration is what drives this adventure. 

"The upcoming entry in Konami's storied 2D sidescroller series makes use of good ideas from recent entries in the genre, while adding a bunch of its own," Phil Hornshaw wrote in GameSpot's Castlevania: Belmont's Curse preview.

There's something about September when it comes to Nintendo Direct events. The company behind Mario, Link, and Donkey Kong has held special livestreams during that month in nine out of the past 10 years. The only exception is 2024, but even then, there was a Nintendo Direct on August 27 (an Indie World Showcase alongside Partner Showcase).

With that sort of history, a Nintendo Direct seems very likely to occur next month. For starters, there are two big elephants in the room: release dates for The Duskbloods and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake. Both are slated to come out this year, so it's about time for more specifics on these hotly anticipated titles.

In addition, Nintendo also likes to pull back the curtain on the following year's lineup during September Direct events. For instance, last year's presentation saw the company reveal Mario Tennis Fever, Yoshi and the Mysterious Book, and Pokemon Pokopia. These are all Switch 2 exclusives that arrived in the first half of 2026. Before that, in the September 2023 Direct, Nintendo unveiled Princess Peach: Showtime (which launched in March 2024) and the remaster of Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (which arrived in May 2024).  

Here is a breakdown of dates for Nintendo Directs in September over the past decade: 

• September 12, 2025
• September 14, 2023
• September 13, 2022
• September 23, 2021
• September 17, 2020 (Mini Partner Showcase)
• September 4, 2019
• September 13, 2018
• September 13, 2017
• September 1, 2016

Early 2027 still seems fairly open for Switch 2, meaning Nintendo needs to fill out the calendar. Xenoblade Genesis could possibly be on the way during that timeframe, or maybe we'll be surprised with Pokemon Winds and Waves. As noted above, it's more than possible that totally new games are revealed, too.

Nothing is official yet, obviously, but looking at the past paints a clearer path for when Nintendo Directs happen. With that, it's safe to assume a new Direct is coming sooner than later. And there is plenty to talk about for Switch 2 this holiday season and into next year.

The Legend Of Zelda Movie–Here’s What We Know So Far View Images

Game designer Hideo Kojima celebrates his 63rd birthday today, August 24, and he does not plan to pack it up anytime soon.

Posting on social media, Kojima said he is aware he will not live forever--in fact he already knows how he wants to die--so he is being particularly thoughtful about how he spends his time.

"As I get older, the things I 'have to do' and the things I 'want to do' continue to increase. At the same time, the time I 'have to do them' continues to decrease," he said. "I constantly need to reassess how I use my time and how I live my life. That said, once you’ve taken something on, you can’t simply put it down and walk away."

Kojima also pointed out that 2026 marks his 40th anniversary of making games, having begun his professional career in 1986. Additionally, 2026 represents the 10th anniversary of Kojima Productions, the studio he founded after leaving Konami. At the latter, he ran an internal unit also called Kojima Productions.

Also in his post, Kojima said he wants to "remain focused on creating games," even though he is receiving "various opportunities and offers" to do other things. He didn't elaborate as to what these might be, but it was previously reported that Kojima was asked if he wanted to direct the Death Stranding movie before he opted to sit out and let Michael Sarnoski direct.

Kojima has a number of projects currently in the works, including the espionage game Physint and the horror game OD.

Kojima Productions seemingly updated Death Stranding 2's night sky scene to honor Kojima's birthday.

https://twitter.com/KojiPro2015_EN/status/2091542178581598674

What's more, Kojima's staff got him a pretty boss cake--check it out below, along with a photo of Kojima and his friend Geoff Keighley.

https://twitter.com/KojiPro2015_EN/status/2091800610727485665 https://twitter.com/geoffkeighley/status/2091548542426837361

Mortal Shell 2 has a lot of tough enemies waiting to knock you out of your shell and stuff your carcass into a coffin. Many of them are terrifying because of their difficulty, ugliness, or both. Still, nothing compares to the greatest enemy developer Cold Symmetry made for the souls-like action-RPG: those gosh-dang bear traps.

Danger lurks around every corner in this game. Walk here, and you might get ambushed by a rabid miner just itching to stab you with a pickaxe. Stand there, and you'll likely see a hulking beast sauntering over with death in their eyes. But the worst of it is when exploring--and more often when fighting--you get caught in a trap meant for beasts, not people.

https://www.reddit.com/r/MortalShell/comments/1vwuuro/bear_traps/

As showcased by Redditor Parcori in the above August 24 video, they died after beating the first open-world boss you encounter, the Great Arbiter of Flesh. This is a tough battle, especially because it occurs near the very first beacon in Fainweald, Mortal Shell 2's starting zone. Miss a parry once or twice, and you're likely dead. That's frustrating enough, but what makes it particularly aggravating are the bear traps littered around the arena.

These bear traps are literally everywhere! Sometimes in front of enemy camps. Sometimes in front of chests. Sometimes in front of NPCs. Sometimes they're just out in the world, lying in wait like a panther preparing to pounce on its prey. I hate them a lot, and I'm not the only one.

"The damn bear traps," Redditor mountainyoo posted on August 20 with a Robot Chicken video of a gummy bear screaming after stepping on a bear trap.

"Who else steps on absolutely every bear trap?" PurplePassenger7078 asked in an August 19 Reddit post. "I'm just so used to sprinting in games, and this game punishes me every single time lmao. I think it's a bit excessive in certain areas."

"I just started Mortal Shell and all I can say is: BEAR TRAPS," said Redditor Easy_Direction_6076 on August 22, sharing a video of Sideshow Bob from The Simpsons repeatedly stepping on a rake.

"Me whenever I spot a bear trap," posted Pointblankadvance on August 20, using a similar video as Easy_Direction_6076.

I can't tell you the number of times I've stepped on bear traps while exploring. And it always happens at the worst possible times: low health and mid-fight. Although I'm breezing through the game, there are a handful of bosses that've almost caused me to throw my controller through the TV. Still, what pisses me off more than, say, the Hexapod or Isaac, the Scholar Prince boss fights are ... you guessed it, bear traps. Ugh.

Mortal Shell 2 is available now on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. Cold Symmetry recently released a substantial update that nerfed a handful of bosses and made gold more plentiful so you can upgrade your equipment more often.

Everyone has heard of Call of Duty, and yet, a video game that you've probably never heard of is outperforming the first Modern Warfare 4 beta on Steam. How to Fish looks like a surprise hit with over 341,000 concurrent players today, per Steam. Plus, developer Dazed Games has announced the co-op title has already sold over 1 million copies after launching August 20. It's currently available for just under $5, with a regular $8 price tag.

That easily tops the early-access beta for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4, which hit just over 115,000 concurrent players Friday on Steam and has been declining since then. Keep in mind this first trial with the newest entry in the FPS franchise is for people who preordered Modern Warfare on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S. An open beta is set to begin this upcoming weekend, from August 28 to September 1.

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

Meanwhile, How to Fish is a physics-based game about reeling in cod and sharks, then beating them to death by any means necessary. That includes punching the water dwellers, stabbing them, and even no-scope shooting them for more money. So yes, it falls on the silly side compared to a more realistic simulator. 

Intriguingly, How to Fish has the support of Evil Landfall, the publishing and support side of Peak developer Landfall. That co-op climbing game was one of last year's biggest surprise hits on Steam. Both titles fall under the newish genre called friendslop.

Back to Call of Duty, Modern Warfare 4 is set to officially come out October 23. Playing the beta--which includes a campaign mission for the first time ever--can net you some special rewards for the full release. The FPS will be available on PC, PS5, Xbox Series X, and Switch 2.

CD Projekt Red has narrowed down the release timing for The Witcher 4, confirming the RPG is coming sometime in 2028. The company revealed this in a new video that sets the table for Gamescom this week.

There won't be any Witcher 4 news at Gamescom, but CD Projekt Red will highlight The Witcher 3's new Songs of the Past DLC at the showcase, while there will be "a surprise or two to share" during livestreams planned throughout Gamescom.

More than 500 people are working on The Witcher 4 now, CD Projekt Red joint-CEO Michal Nowakowski said in a newly released video. "This is our biggest, boldest, and most ambitious game to date," he said.

As for the 2028 release date for The Witcher 4, Nowakowski said, "I know it's a bit of a wait, and you'd love to play it sooner--but let the team cook. It will be worth the wait."

https://twitter.com/thewitcher/status/2091908890388541442

The Witcher 4 kicks off a new trilogy of The Witcher games, which will also include The Witcher 5 and The Witcher 6. These will all be released within a six-year window, so the whole new trilogy could be out by 2034.

Importantly, Nowakowski said CD Projekt Red is "targeting" a 2028 release for The Witcher 4, so it could be delayed like The Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk 2077 were before it.

In addition to the Songs of the Past expansion for The Witcher 3 and The Witcher 4, CD Projekt Red's teams are working on many other games. These include Cyberpunk 2, a new The Witcher game said to be focused on multiplayer, and a game made in partnership with Scopely.

A new clip showing leaked Grand Theft Auto 6 footage has made its way online, and it looks like you're going to be able to visit a nudist colony in Leonida.

The clip, which just runs for a few minutes, shows co-protagonist Jason walking near a pool and several hot tubs, with dozens of naked people hanging around and dancing.

Some of them seem relatively neutral to Jason's presence, while others are annoyed with the completely clothed man walking around and looking at them with binoculars. That seems like a reasonable reaction. One woman in particular notices Jason leering with binoculars and physically attacks him. Again, reasonable.

While we've seen a whole bunch of GTA 6 clips from a still-at-large leaker over the last week, they may not have a particularly negative effect on Rockstar. According to a former technical director at the studio, the vast majority of players don't care about the leaked footage, and it pales in comparison to the controversial Hot Coffee incident that affected Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. Still, Take-Two is actively subpoenaing information related to the leaks in an effort to uncover the leaker's identity.

We'll get our first official look at gameplay on August 27, exclusively on Netflix. Grand Theft Auto 6 launches for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S on November 19.

Former Rockstar North director Obbe Vermeij has commented on the many GTA 6 leaks that have emerged over the past week. Vermeij, who was the technical director for GTA 3, GTA: San Andreas, GTA 4, and other titles in the series, told everyone to "clam down" because "the leaks are a nothing burger."

He said Rockstar is intentionally staying quiet as part of the company's marketing strategy to generate as much hype as possible for GTA 6, and the leaks are not prompting Rockstar to amend its plans. That's no surprise, as a recent report specifically said Rockstar was not going to alter its marketing plans for GTA 6 due to the spate of leaks coming to light. The Netflix premiere of the game's "extended look" remains scheduled for August 27.

Vermeij said the leaks are no big deal in part because "90% of future players don't spend their time on the internet looking for video snippets." He added, "They don't have the time and don't want spoilers."

He went on to say the development teams working on GTA 6 are probably "a little annoyed about [the leaks] but not more than that."

https://twitter.com/ObbeVermeij/status/2091184776166113568

Vermeij pointed out that he was working at Rockstar the time of the infamous "Hot Coffee" situation surrounding GTA: San Andreas. He said this was a "nightmare" for Rockstar's management team in New York, but didn't affect the developers themselves in Edinburgh at Rockstar North.

"The current leaks are far less consequential than Hot Coffee was," he said. "It looks like GTA 6 will be phenomenal and sell for the next 15 years or so. The leaks are just a tiny blip."

One of gaming's biggest controversies ever, the Hot Coffee situation saw Rockstar owner Take-Two paying out money to settle suits related to a mod in GTA: San Andreas' PC edition that unlocked an interactive sex minigame.

Hillary Clinton, then a Senator from New York, called on the Federal Trade Commission to launch an inquiring into the Hot Coffee mod. Rockstar co-founder Dan Houser said the scandal was "draining and upsetting" for the company.

The latest batch of GTA 6 leaks began earlier this month, with gameplay footage claiming to be from the open-world game showing off all manner of characters, activities, and possible new features. One of the latest leaks shows main character Jason visiting what appears to be a nudist colony. Another leak showed that players may need to manually refill their cars with gas. Still other leaks suggested that GTA 6 may have a form of currency that can be traded IRL.

Rockstar and Take-Two have yet to identify the person or people responsible for the leak. Whoever they may be, they appear to have access to the game.

In 2022, GTA 6 suffered its first major leak of gameplay footage. The autistic 18-year-old suspect was apprehended and ordered to live in a secure hospital for life. In July this year, it was reported that the person, Arion Kurtaj, left the secure hospital and is now in a "normal prison" awaiting a new trial.

Ahead of its release in October, Square Enix has dropped several new details about Final Fantasy Resonance, its HD-2D reimagining of the mobile game Final Fantasy: Brave Exvius. Based on the first season of Brave Exvius, here's a closer look at the game's world, characters, gameplay, vision systems, and completionist content.

Empires strike back The Zoldaad Empire has a few defectors.

Two of the regions that players can explore include the powerful military nation of Zoldaad and the city of mages known as Mysidia. Just like in Brave Exvius, Zoldaad appears to be on the march as the home of the fabled Fire Crystal, and has secretly been building up a fleet of airships and mass-producing magitek as it expands its borders into neighboring countries. Considered to be a legend, the advanced magical civilization of Mysidia is home to some of the strongest magic-wielders in the world and is said to also house the Ice Crystal.

Characters

Previous trailers have already shown us the main cast of Final Fantasy Resonance--Rain, Laswell, Fina, Jake, and Lid--and if you played the mobile game, you can also expect to see a few more familiar faces like the Mysidian sage Sakura. Opposing the heroes are the Sworn Six of Paladia, the Veritas. Each Veritas represents an element, and their roster includes the brutish Veritas of Flame, the honorable Veritas of Earth, and the volatile Veritas of Light.

Gameplay Classic Final Fantasy gameplay meets retro-inspired visuals.

At its core, Final Fantasy Resonance is an old-school turn-based RPG, full of hard-hitting Limit Break attacks and chances to strategically outmaneuver enemies. One of the big draws in the game are the Visions of legendary Final Fantasy heroes, who can fight alongside Rain and his companions when they're summoned. Players may use the magic and abilities of Visions in combat, and the stronger your bond with them grows, the more abilities you'll unlock for these legends.

Staggering all enemies in one turn will even allow you to trigger a Resonance with a vision, resulting in them performing an exceptionally devastating attack--while your eyes get treated to a slick piece of CG animation. You can even make your Visions stronger, but there's a catch: You'll need magicite to grant them stronger abilities, but because the material is exceedingly rare, you'll have to choose which Vision you strengthen. Some of the Visions also include original characters that were first introduced in Brave Exvius:

• Amelia: A maid armed with Fire-aspected guns
• Camille: A mercenary who uses water and earth attacks
• Wilhelm: An imperial general who can act as a party's shield
• Victoria: A black mage who wields dark magic
• Ayaka: A white mage who can buff the party with support and healing magic

As mentioned above, heroes from previous Final Fantasy games can also be recruited to your party:

• Firion (Final Fantasy)
• Onion Knight (Final Fantasy 3)
• Vaan (Final Fantasy 12)
• Lightning (Final Fantasy 13)
• Noctis (Final Fantasy 15)
• Clive Rosfield (Final Fantasy 16)

Espers Don't mess with Espers.

For some extra firepower, you can also summon Espers. These powerful beings will join your battle for three turns, and once the timer is up, they'll drop a devastating attack before they vanish. The cuddly Carbuncle will cast Reflect magic on your party, the sea serpent Leviathan will deal water damage to enemies with a Tsunami, the armor-clad Odin can dish out a non-elemental attack that might instakill some enemies, and the mighty dragon Bahamut unleashes his signature Megaflare assault on foes.

Completionist content Ultima Weapon is going to kick butt...mostly yours.

Anyone looking to 100% Final Fantasy Resonance will want to make certain their party is ready to fight. Square Enix is teasing a battle with the mysterious bladesman Gilgamesh, and if you're feeling really confident, you can even challenge Ultima Weapon. A boss battle that has cropped up in several Final Fantasy games over the decades, Ultima Weapon demands perfect preparation, or you can expect your challenge to be over in just a few short turns.

Final Fantasy Resonance launches for PC and consoles on October 22.

If you wanted to play The Blood of Dawnwalker at 60fps, you'd originally need to get the PC version and hope your rig was up to scratch. Developer Rebel Wolves didn't initially list a 60fps mode for Xbox Series X, PS5, and PS5 Pro when it recently released a quick look at the graphical modes for those consoles, but the developer says it will now be added via a day-one patch when the game launches in September.

"Performance mode was already in the works, but it was still being tested. We simply weren’t ready to promise it yet," Rebel Wolves wrote on its The Blood of Dawnwalker X account. "We heard your feedback. It was clear how much this mattered to many of you, so we focused on finishing the next round of tests. Those results gave us the confidence we needed to confirm Performance Mode for Day one."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLMUp83HZKE

The Blood of Dawnwalker will have three modes to choose from on Xbox Series X, PS5, and PS5 Pro: Performance targets 60fps, Balanced targets 40fps, and Quality targets 30fps. Xbox Series S owners are only getting one mode, which targets 30fps on the lower-spec hardware. Rebel Wolves hasn't detailed the major differences between the modes either, but typically, Performance mode prioritizes a higher, smoother frame rate while cutting back on fancier lighting effects, simpler particle effects, and less detail compared to Quality mode. Balanced mode attempts to have the best of both worlds while targeting 40fps, while the PS5 Pro has proven to be a 4K 60fps powerhouse after the rollout of an upgraded PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution earlier this year.

Out on September 3, The Blood of Dawnwalker is the debut game from Rebel Wolves, a studio that features several former Witcher and Cyberpunk 2077 developers in its roster, including The Witcher 3 game director Konrad Tomaszkiewicz. Set in a dark medieval world full of vampires and grim fantasy, players will have to grapple with the consequences of their actions as they build up power for a final showdown against the vampire lord Brencis.

"Whether you're talking to your best friend, working to bandage an injured comrade, or battling opponents to save your father's life, when the hunger takes hold, your actions may suddenly be out of your control. Dawnwalker is a game all about making you live with the consequences," Phil Hornshaw wrote in GameSpot's The Blood of Dawnwalker preview.

One of the most infamous and controversial items in Call of Duty is the Riot Shield. Some love it. Some hate it. Well, it's back in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4, but with a few key changes.

With MW4's beta now live, we're seeing the game in action and learning more about it. This includes new details on the Riot Shield, including how it's now destructible. Not only that, but the new Riot Shield can be placed on the ground to allow players to create their own cover, wherever they are. What's more, the Riot Shield is now unlocked as a field upgrade as opposed to occupying a weapon slot.

https://twitter.com/InfinityWard/status/2090852829409763502

"In use, the shield provides frontal protection while advancing or holding a position. It can also be used offensively, with a new heavy melee attack that knocks enemies down and creates space in close quarters," Activision said.

When planted in the ground, players can mount their weapons to it for improved stability. The Riot Shield can also be used strategically in MW4's objective-based modes where players hunker down in one particular spot.

To balance things out, Activision made the Riot Shield destructible in MW4. In the past, it could soak up bullets like a sponge, and people loved and hated that. In MW4, it's "durable enough to support a push or cover a retreat." However, it will eventually break, and Activision said that should encourage players to use it strategically as opposed to opting for "sustained use."

The MW4 beta is going on now for people who preordered the game. An open beta, meanwhile, runs August 28-September 1, and that doesn't require any preorder. The beta includes not just multiplayer, but also a campaign mission, Entrenched, and a glimpse at the future of Call of Duty: Warzone.

MW4 launches in full on October 23 for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC, and Switch 2. It's the first game since 2013's Call of Duty: Ghosts to be released on a Nintendo platform.

One of the biggest stories in gaming this week has been the ongoing GTA 6 gameplay leaks, which are all about hyping up a memecoin for profit. A new report provides insight into how Rockstar is handling the situation internally.

Bloomberg reported that Rockstar has yet to identify the party responsible, or how such a breach happened. One top executive at Rockstar sent a memo to staff this week "denouncing the leaker and promising the incident wouldn't detract from the excellent work they've done," the report said.

Additionally, it was reported that Rockstar is not planning to change its marketing plans for GTA 6 due to the leak. Some had theorized that the leak might have some effect on the planned reveal on Netflix on August 27, but that's apparently not going to be the case.

After GTA 6's first trailer leaked in December 2023, Rockstar responded in real time and released the trailer ahead of schedule, so there is precedent to Rockstar altering plans based on leaks.

GTA 6 suffered a massive leak in 2022. At the time, Take-Two boss Strauss Zelnick said it was “really frustrating and upsetting,” but the leaks had no financial impact on the company. Take-Two lost more than $2 billion in its total value this week since the latest leaks began, but there could be any number of different reasons for that apart from the leaks.

It has also come to light that Take-Two, which owns Rockstar and the GTA franchise, subpoenaed Microsoft and Discord as part of its effort to hunt down the party or parties responsible for the leak.

GTA 6 is set for release on November 19 for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S.

Activision has announced that Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 will have day-one DLC, and like in years past, it will focus on a real-life military hero, with proceeds going to charity.

The Call of Duty Endowment Valor Pack, launching on October 23 alongside the game, adds the real-life Medal of Honor recipient Kyle Carpenter to the game as a playable character.

Carpenter was in Marjah, Afghanistan, when, on November 21, 2010, he put himself in front of a grenade to help save the life of his fellow Marine, Nick Eufrazio. Carpenter sustained serious injuries from the grenade blast. He was unconscious for five weeks, had his teeth stripped from his mouth, and lost an eye. He sustained numerous other life-threatening injuries in the blast.

Carpenter received the Medal of Honor from President Barack Obama in 2014. "No matter how wrecked your world gets, the world keeps spinning," Carpenter said in the video below.

https://twitter.com/CODE4Vets/status/2090856990872650127

The Call of Duty Endowment is Activision's charity that supports military veterans and specifically helping soldiers find jobs after leaving the service. Proceeds from this new Valor Pack will benefit the endowment.

There have been numerous other DLC packs for Call of Duty games supporting the endowment. A previous DLC pack for Black Ops 7 brought the real-life soldier Chris Cassidy to the game; he was among those hunting down Osama bin Laden immediately after 9/11, and then he became a NASA astronaut.

Modern Warfare 4 launches on October 23, but the game's beta is going on right now for those who preordered the game. An open beta for everyone will be held August 28-September 1.

Developer Cold Symmetry has released its latest souls-like action-RPG, Mortal Shell 2, on August 20 for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. And not even a day after launch, the studio already dropped a patch that makes some welcome tweaks, including addressing one of the game's most annoying issues: gold farming.

On August 20, Cold Symmetry shared a breakdown on the game's subreddit and Steam page of what Balance Patch 1 does.

A welcome adjustment is a refund of the Glimpses--a rare currency used to bond with and unlock memories of your shell--you might've spent to discover a shell's location. You get whatever you spent back, and now, instead of costing that rare currency, buying a shell map costs Gloom, this game's version of Runes or Souls.

A big change is a nerf to a handful of bosses and enemies. As Cold Symmetry put it, "all enemies featured in the beta were restored to their beta HP values." This means that the starting area of Mortal Shell 2 has been tuned down to match what was in the beta, which I found quite easy when compared to the full release.

Maybe the most major tweak, however, is an increase to the amount of gold you find now. As a result of this patch, gold drops from enemies have been "significantly increased," especially in the second zone. This lets you upgrade your weapons more often, as gold discovery should be in line with the materials you find everywhere.

There are a handful of other changes that came with Balance Patch 1. This includes Tarstones--items that grant passive bonuses or modify melee attacks--and weapons getting buffed, addressing crashes and fixing bugs, and reducing the cost to unlevel your weapons via smelting.

Balance Patch 1 is available now for PC. There's no release date for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S versions yet, but Cold Symmetry said it'll arrive on those platforms "shortly." For now, check out the update notes for Balance Patch 1 below.

Mortal Shell 2 Balance Patch 1

Economy

• Shell map locations now cost Gloom, and we’re refunding any Glimpses spent on shell maps. Refunded Glimpses are found in the Shell Keeper’s alcove in Blackmarrow. “Finding your favorite shell shouldn’t cost you the ability to bond with them.”
• Gold drops from enemies have been significantly increased. Notably, enemies in Mammon now drop double the gold. “This brings the gold economy more in line with the weapon crafting item discovery.”
• Smelting a weapon at the Tarforge costs 75% less gloom. “Our goal with the smelt capability was to enable switching weapons without the need to spend hours grinding through NG+ runs, but the Gloom costs were set exorbitantly high.”  

Enemies & Bosses

All enemies featured in the beta were restored to their beta HP values, except the Caerinid (Spider) in Magdalena’s area, which we wanted to retain its role as a threatening enemy which doesn’t respawn once defeated. 

• Bosses
  • The Lost Child
    • Base Damage: (-10%)
    • Max Health: (-15%)
  • Monolith
    • Base Damage: (-19%)
    • Max Health: (-10%)
    • Some Monolith Attacks were retimed to be more fair, as well.
• Enemies
  • Cultist (mace)
    • Max Health: (-21.1%)
  • Caerinid Spider
    • Max Health: (-33.3%)
  • Infested Stalker 
    • Max Health: (-52.4%)
  • Rusted Knave (Halberd)
    • Max Health: (-20.8%)
    • Fixed hit detection for overhead strike.

Weapons

• Great Martyr’s Blade Attack Damage +20%
• Troubadour's Lute Attack Damage +100% 
• Caged Hystrix and Triarch Repeater no longer have minimum resolve requirements to fire. 
• Improved tracking for Axatana, Black Needle, and Clockwork Scythe light attacks. 

Seals

• Guard can now be used while walking. 

Tarstones

• Parasitic Stone Buffed
• Grudge Stone Buffed
• Bulwark Stone Damage Reduction Increased Significantly
• Clerik's Stone Buffed
• Squall Stone Buffed

Miscellaneous

• Misc. Crash Fixes, Bug Fixes & Performance Updates

Another actor has joined the cast for Naughty Dog's upcoming new IP Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet.

Robin Atkin Downes, who played Robert in Naughty Dog's The Last of Us and multiple characters in the studio's Uncharted games, said on social media that he's set to appear in Intergalactic. He didn't say who he is playing, but as you can tell from the video below, he's obviously very excited about it.

https://twitter.com/Robin_A_Downes/status/2090646298718597618

Downes is a prolific video game actor, having lent his voice to dozens of games over the years. He also voiced the Medic in Team Fortress 2, Travis Touchdown in No More Heroes, and Spider in Destiny 2: Forsaken. Additionally, Downes voiced Ballistic in Apex Legends.

Intergalactic is in the works now for PS5, but we still don't know much about it, or when it may release. The game, which takes place thousands of years in the future, stars Tati Gabrielle as Jordan A. Mun, a bounty hunter who becomes stranded on a faraway planet called Sempira.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VLGy63pt9vA

The game has been in development since 2020, and also features Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross scoring the soundtrack. Some of the other actors confirmed for Intergalactic include Kumail Nanjiani, Tony Dalton, Troy Baker, and Merle Dandridge.

Cold Symmetry's Mortal Shell 2 is finally out on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. Maybe you've been bodying bosses while collecting shells and leveling up your character. Or maybe you've been getting bodied as bosses pummel you into the dirt and your weapons betray you. I can't help you with the former, but I do have some tips and tricks to alleviate the latter.

When you start your Mortal Shell 2 journey, a handful of settings are on by default. A couple of these settings make your weapons an enemy magnet, which is good since you want your bullets and your swings to hit your targets. However, when you go in shooting and swinging wantonly, you may find yourself blown to smitherens--just like Redditor xkukazu50, who posted a video on August 21 of their character getting burnt to a crisp.

https://www.reddit.com/r/MortalShell/comments/1vuddap/love_this_game_but_something_has_to_be_done_about/

The problem here, as xkukazu50 noted, is the weapon tracking. Whenever you pull out your sidearm or swing with your primary weapon, the game's technology pulls your attacks toward the nearest enemy like a vortex. But if you tweak some settings, your life will be made a lot easier.

Make your Mortal Shell 2 weapons fight for you.

Press pause, toggle over to "Game" in the Settings menu, and check out the "Target Steering" and "Enable Free Aim" options.

"Target Steering," which is set to "Default," makes your melee attacks prioritize the nearest enemy you're aiming at. Changing this setting to "Light" or "Off" makes your melee attacks much less sticky so that you can swing at whatever you want without getting sucked to the closest enemy--or environmental hazard--you're looking at.

"Enable Free Aim" is exactly what it sounds like. Set to "No" by default, it automatically locks your reticle onto the nearest enemy you point your gun at. If you change this to "Yes," then you can freely aim your gun without that snappy auto-lock on, but if you press the right trigger in with "Enable Free Aim" on, you can still lock onto a target and change your target's lock. That way, you won't accidentally shoot an explosive barrel or something like that.

Outside of this, there are two more settings I recommend you change in Mortal Shell 2.

The first is setting the "Auto Pick Up Gold" option to "Yes" to save your thumb from breaking the interact button--A on Xbox or X on PlayStation--on your controller, since you'll be picking up gold all the time. The second is changing the "Camera Style" from Immersive to Action, which pulls the camera farther back so you can see more on the screen. This gives you a greater field of view; that way, you know what's coming.

There are many more settings to test as you whoop ass or get your ass whooped in Mortal Shell 2. However, these are the handful of settings I suggest you change to make your combat feel more responsive as you tackle the game's very gross bosses.

Compulsion Games, the Canadian game developer behind South of Midnight and We Happy Few, has officially parted ways with Microsoft. After Microsoft confirmed that Compulsion was one of five Xbox studios it was divesting of, Compulsion boss Guillaume Provost has now confirmed it's a done deal.

This was hinted at recently when the Steam page for South of Midnight listed Compulsion as the developer and publisher. Now, it's official, with Provost confirming to Games Beat that its management team acquired the studio and staff, while Microsoft transferred the developer's IP back to the studio.

What this means in practice is that if you buy a Steam copy of South of Midnight--one of 2025's best games--the money goes to Compulsion, not Xbox. Provost said it will take some time before the change gets implemented on other storefronts.

Provost did not disclose the specific terms of the deal, but he said staffers at Compulsion really wanted to stick together.

“I did this deal for the team first and foremost. I asked the team, ‘Do you want to stay together?’ The team told me we would rather eat rocks and drink gasoline rather than be split up,” Provost said.

Some Compulsion developers opted to leave the studio after Provost warned staff that the company was at risk of closure. However, Provost said the majority of senior staff stayed on.

Provost went on to say that part of Compulsion's team is now working on an unannounced game that was already in the works before it split off from Xbox. Microsoft was the financial backer of Compulsion and its projects, so Provost is now taking meetings with various, unnamed parties to secure its financial future.

“I just want to make sure that we’re setting the team up for success,” Provost said. “We’re going to take things slow. We’re going to meet with everyone. Everything is relative. Compared to all of us losing our jobs on July 6, this is a pretty good deal. I would say the exit was gracious on Microsoft’s part."

The other four studios that Microsoft divested from included Double Fine, Ninja Theory, Undead Labs, and Arkane. Double Fine, led by Tim Schafer, regained its independence like Compulsion did, and Schafer will discuss the company's future outlook during a livestream today, April 21. Ninja Theory and Undead Labs, meanwhile, were sold to unnamed buyers. Arkane is entering a period of consultation with respect to its home country of France's local laws.

This all happened as part of a "reset" of the Xbox business under new CEO Asha Sharma. She also laid off 1,600 people in July, with another 1,600 set to lose their jobs this fiscal year.

Nintendo is doing what Nintendo does: issuing DMCA takedown notices to anyone who illegally offers access to any of the company's games. That's exactly what happened earlier this week, as Nintendo wiped out over 400 Switch emulators from GitHub.

According to an August 21 TorrentFreak report, the Mario maker sent the proprietary developer platform seven DMCA takedown notices targeting Nintendo Switch emulator repositories. This includes Suyu (the Yuzu successor that became popular after Yuzu shut down in March 2024), the Android emulator Skyline, and a few lingering Yuzu forks.

In total, some 401 repositories were nuked off GitHub, with 311 of them being Suyu. Now that they're removed, if you attempt to visit the repository on GitHub, you'll receive either a 404 error or a pop-up notification that it's been taken down.

In the DMCA pop-up notification, Nintendo states that the targeted repositories "offer, link to, or otherwise provide access to Nintendo Switch emulators." The company said these emulators violate Technological Protection Measures (TPMs), which act as digital locks controlled by copyright owners to prevent copying data illegally.

"Specifically, these Nintendo Switch emulators illegally circumvent Nintendo's TPMs in order to run illegal copies of Nintendo Switch games," the notice reads. "Nintendo Switch games are encrypted using proprietary cryptographic keys (prod.keys) which protect against unauthorized access to and copying of the copyrighted games. During operation, the emulators at the reported repositories necessarily use unauthorized copies of these cryptographic keys to decrypt unauthorized copies of Nintendo Switch games, or ROMs, at or immediately before runtime without Nintendo's authorization."

With Nintendo summoning the Eye of Mario on 401 repositories earlier this week, and over 8,500 repositories in May 2024, this brings the company's repository death count to almost 9,000 on GitHub alone. And with Nintendo filing a lawsuit against Yuzu creator Tropic Haze in February 2024, which resulted in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom being pirated over one million times before it launched, the company's war on emulators continues.

As Grand Theft Auto 6 continues to leak via small snippets of gameplay, you might be wondering why each video is plastered with watermarks for a meme coin? It turns out while you're enjoying the early look at Rockstar's latest project, others are literally profiting off of the virality.

Each of the leaked gameplay videos have advertised a meme coin called CYBERLEEK, named after the supposed leaker and hosted on the Solana blockchain. This coin seemingly appeared on August 16, just two days before the first gameplay leak occurred. It didn't take long for the price of the coin to skyrocket afterwards, as viewers curious enough to go looking started accumulating vast amounts of it.

In the space of a day, the price of the coin increased by more than 5,000%, allowing some early holders to quickly cash out before most were able to react. It's a textbook pump-and-dump scheme that is ongoing, with the price still swinging wildly with new drops of gameplay and new buyers being lured in. It's not uncommon for memecoins to be promoted by exploiting trending topics on X.

https://youtu.be/mwgi4ECJwic

The extent of this scheme is, however, probably smaller than you might imagine. According to tracking on CoinMarketCap, several buyers have made some modest profit, with the largest coming in at over $22,000 (a 2,000% profit over what was invested). There are similarly large losses as well, with several instances of duped buyers who have lost nearly $10,000 each.

This pales in comparison to far wider-reaching meme coins. Take MELANIA, a coin marketed by Melania Trump, which has profits and losses in the several millions as just one example of how quickly thousands of people are willing to bet on short-term investments,

Still, it shows an entirely different intent behind these leaks that contradicts the front-facing consumer-friendly goals of the group behind them. There are still a handful of accounts, holding the large majority of CYBERLEEK, that haven't made any sales. Perhaps they're just waiting for things to get really out of hand before walking away with their profits.

Grand Theft Auto 6 launches on November 12, with its first gameplay showcase debuting on Netflix on August 27.

Those reaching the end of Diablo 4 Season 14's seasonal storyline are being treated to some major teases about what's next for Blizzard's ARPG, though those eagerly anticipating the return of the Lord of Terror himself might be disappointed.

Spoilers for Diablo 4 Season 14 below.

Season 14, titled Death's Awakening, sees players combating a death cult looking to end Sanctuary's suffering in the wake of Mephisto's defeat. That eventually leads players to none other than the Pandemonium Fortress, previously seen in Diablo 2 and Diablo 3's Reaper of Souls expansion, where they encounter the corrupted angel Seraziel. Upon their defeat, Seraziel leaves players with an ominous warning: "He is coming."

That "he" in question is likely Malthael, whom Seraziel serves and players previously defeated in Reaper of Souls. That's not exactly a surprise given the "death" theme of the season, but the return of the Pandemonium Fortress (where Malthael was last seen and slain) and Seraziel does make it all the more explicit what Blizzard is setting up. 

But that's not all players have to go on. As broken down by Diablo content creator LoatheBurger, after Seraziel's defeat, players encounter a mysterious stranger who says there is nothing that can be done against Death itself. When asked who they are, the stranger simply replies "I am no one, brave child. And for all your might, neither are you." 

Talking to the questgiver Dannica about the odd encounter afterwards, players can select a dialogue option that states "There was something familiar about that old man," with the player character specifically saying their voice sounded familiar.

That seems to imply it's someone Diablo 4 players have previously encountered, but who this stranger is remains to be seen. Some long lost Horadrim? Lorath (somehow?) back from the dead? The triumphant return of Deckard Cain? Only time will tell.

All of this happening in a seasonal storyline is new territory for Diablo 4. Previous seasons were largely self-contained stories that had little to do with the overarching game's plot, and certainly weren't used to tee up possible future expansions.

In an interview with GameSpot ahead of Season 14, Dan Tanguay, Diablo 4's design director for live services, said it was an intentional choice to have the season relate more directly to the events of the game's main story. He also said the season was a chance to get more story-focused players involved.

"We know there's a group of players who are really invested in the lore, probably more so than resetting power chases," Tanguay said. "They don't tend to play seasons as much. Here, we said 'Well, they've gotten a really good conclusion to the Mephisto arc, and now it's an opportunity to see if we can take them along on this ride with us.'" 

Following the end of the Lord of Hatred expansion, many players assumed Blizzard would be building towards the return of villains like Baal, the Lord of Destruction, or Diablo himself. Now, it looks like Malthael is instead taking center stage, though Blizzard does at least have options when it comes to what major villain to bring back next.

Thankfully, players won't have to wait long to learn more about Diablo 4's future, as BlizzCon is right around the corner on September 12-13. A Switch 2 version of Diablo 4 could be announced at the show, and while Blizzard has already shared some information about what's in store for Diablo 4 Season 15 (like the ability to use the same character each season and the return of iconic items from past Diablo games), more details will be shared at BlizzCon.