Hideo Kojima's Physint has a leading man in Bill Skarsgård, and the Hollywood actor recently spoke more about his part in the game. Billed as a spiritual successor to Kojima's Metal Gear Solid franchise, Physint is an action-espionage game that features Skarsgård alongside several other actors, like Charlee Fraser, Don Lee, and Minami Hamabe. Skarsgård's love for the Metal Gear Solid franchise and a chance to work with Kojima proved to be the deciding factors in taking on the role of the unnamed Physint protagonist.

"I played every single one," Skarsgård said to Josh Horowitz on the Happy Sad Confused podcast. "Starting from the one on PlayStation One all the way to the last one. I was very enamored by him [Kojima], the mythology and the universes that he creates, but also the mystique and the allure about him, as well. He is an auteur, but he's a video game auteur. He's fluent in filmmaking, and film, and cinema."

https://youtu.be/7dyrwLAH6Mg?t=2819

Skarsgård believes that Kojima's cinematic video games are a new medium that he's pioneering, and with Physint, the developer is getting closer to "something that's photorealistic and also interactive," the actor said. "I think he's a pioneer, and he keeps going out to untreaded waters."

Kojima is also a fan of Skarsgård, and he recently spoke about how he was introduced to him through a mutual acquaintance, Death Stranding 2: On the Beach composer Yoann "Woodkid" Lemoine. After traveling to Sweden to meet Skarsgard and his family, Kojima pitched him the lead role in Physint, which Skarsgard accepted.

While it looks like production on Physint is starting to pick up steam, it's still early days for the project. Kojima previously revealed that the script for it is ready, but there's still work to be done on motion-capture and filming performances. Sony was originally funding development on it, but after the PlayStation company pulled support for it, Kojima found a new home at Xbox for Physint. The developer has described Physint as the "biggest-selling" game that he could possibly create, and Xbox is also funding development on his upcoming horror game, OD Knock.

Nier Automata is my favorite game of all time, and I've been telling everyone I know to play it for nearly a decade. On PC, however, Square Enix accidentally made that a little bit more difficult, because the game's latest patch ballooned the game's file size by more than 600%.

The update, tested by RPG Site, takes what was a pretty reasonable 50GB file size and raises it to 366GB. It appears to be incorrectly assigning a file size of more than 40GB to each piece of DLC. The patch itself was supposed to simply add three new languages to the Steam version: Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, and Korean.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIMZYgb85xg

"We are currently investigating the cause and working to resolve the issue. We apologize for the inconvenience," Square Enix said in a post on Steam.

Because the giant file size is linked to the different pieces of DLC, you can temporarily resolve the issue by going to "Properties" and "DLC" on Steam and unselecting them. Of course, this also means you won't be able to enjoy that DLC, so if you mostly want to fight the former CEO of Square Enix in the game, you're going to have to wait.

As for what's next for the Nier series, Square Enix and director Yoko Taro have been pretty hush-hush, but Automata has been an immense success. As of February 2026, it had sold more than 10 million units. An anime adaptation is also available now on Crunchyroll.

2024's Borderlands movie was a massive flop at the box office, and Take-Two's CEO has now reacted to this, readily acknowledging, "We failed."

Speaking at Business Insider Live, Strauss Zelnick said Take-Two's mission is to "make the best entertainment on Earth," and with the Borderlands film, the company failed to meet that mark.

He said the company "tried incredibly hard" on the Borderlands movie, and pointed out that Take-Two didn't actually lose any money on it because Lionsgate funded it. "But I am here to tell you, it was not the best entertainment on Earth. We failed," he said.

The Borderlands movie featured a stacked cast of big names, including Cate Blanchett as Lilith, Kevin Hart as Roland, Jack Black as the voice of Claptrap, Ariana Greenblatt as Tiny Tina, and Jamie Lee Curtis as Tannis. The film was directed by Eli Roth, with Tim Miller stepping in for reshoots.

The Borderlands movie made just $15.5 million in the US and $17.5 million internationally for a total of only about $33 million worldwide.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M42sC7MMGB0

Zelnick said this in response to a question about why Take-Two doesn't do more in terms of adapting its franchises for film, TV, theme parks, and live events. He said Take-Two is "very selective" when it comes to these kinds of projects. "If our mission is to make the best entertainment on Earth, we only want to make a movie if it's going to be the best entertainment on Earth," he said.

But with the Borderlands film, Zelnick said, "We failed across our mission."

"Culture, like character, is tested in the breach. When things are going well, it's convenient to say yes. But your test is when there is a challenge. And you either believe in your mission or you don't," he said. "So if we can be the best at something, and deliver a phenomenal experience, we still have to make money while we're at it. This is not a non-profit enterprise, and by the way, we're not curing cancer. I am charged by my shareholders to deliver a return, I just believe the best way to deliver a return is to do the best work you can."

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

While the Borderlands movie didn't work out, Take-Two isn't giving up with transmedia efforts, as a BioShock movie is now in the works at Netflix. The Hunger Games veteran Francis Lawrence is set to direct the movie ... if it ever happens.

We should acknowledge that Monolith Soft isn't just a Xenoblade developer, but also a major supporter of The Legend of Zelda franchise. The studio confirmed on X that it assisted with programming and graphics (per a machine translation) on the Ocarina of Time remake. This marks the fifth time the team has contributed to a mainline Zelda title, starting with 2011's Skyward Sword. 

There were a lot of theories in the past couple of months about what team was behind The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time on Switch 2--especially considering the visual overhaul and the Internet's reaction. Earlier this week, Nintendo revealed that its internal team responsible for Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom, Entertainment Planning & Development (EPD) Production Group No. 3, was responsible for the remake. We now know that Monolith Soft also pitched in, as the team did with the two Switch mainline entries, too.

In 2007, Nintendo acquired Monolith Soft from Bandai Namco, with the developer at the time working on Disaster: Day of Crisis for Wii. The studio was probably best known for the Xenosaga series, but it's doubtful anyone could predict how prolific Monolith Soft would become over the past 19 years. 

Just looking at Monolith Soft's portfolio, the developer has already contributed to three Switch 2 heavy hitters: Ocarina of Time, Splatoon Raiders, and Mario Kart World. This is all in addition to overseeing and creating the Xenoblade franchise, with Xenoblade Genesis planned for release next year. It's an impressive resume. 

Zelda: Ocarina of Time producers Eiji Aonuma and Hidemaro Fujibayashi recently chatted with GameSpot about the game's development. The Switch 2 exclusive released yesterday, November 5, and is already wearing out the screenshot button for Steve Watts. You can see how gorgeous the remake is compared to the Nintendo 64 original. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1DfD7B5oUM

There's no denying that Stellar Blade is one seriously good-looking game. On Switch 2, it runs surprisingly well on Nintendo's hybrid system, and it'd be a perfect port if it wasn't for one glaring issue that holds it back.

On the surface, Stellar Blade looks like a smooth port with few compromises, as it still offers plenty of graphical detail at a lower resolution. Stellar Blade on Switch 2 also targets 60fps, but in order to achieve that, it uses a very aggressive form of frame generation to create a smooth sense of action. The problem with this is that it makes the game harder to play, because your actions are delayed.

https://youtu.be/9zr4QK15BNs

Parries and dodges require perfect timing, and because the game is delayed, pressing a button right as an enemy hits you is often too late, causing you to take damage. This also means that controlling the protagonist Eve feels somewhat sluggish, navigating the environments feels sluggish, and during chaotic fights, the game can lag so badly that it feels like your controller is completely ignoring your inputs. This is at odds with how the game teaches you to master its gameplay, as the natural rhythm you're supposed to pick up alongside visual cues simply does not match up with the delicate timing needed to pull off counters and parries.

Because Stellar Blade is an action game that's tightly centered on strict frame windows for counters and dodges--think of it as being soulslike-adjacent with its combat--the disconnect between the 60fps visuals and the heavier 30fps input feel makes precise timing noticeably harder to hit.

Developer Shift Up was aware of this, as after it received player feedback from the Stellar Blade Switch 2 demo, it added a Frame Generation Toggle to the game's settings. Turning it off will make the game run at a visually native frame rate, and it removes the extra buffer, which goes a long way toward making controller responsiveness feel tighter. Your mileage may vary, and if you can overcome the unnatural timing behind defensive moves in Stellar Blade on Switch 2, there's plenty to love about it.

But if you have a decent PC or a PS5? Stellar Blade plays much better on those platforms, even if you can't take them on the go with you. The Switch 2 edition does include some nice extras like Bayonetta outfits and all of the post-launch content, so if you're eyeing a purchase of Stellar Blade on it, grab the demo and see if you can get to grips with how the game plays on that platform.

Shift Up is also working on a sequel, Stellar Blade: Blood Rain, which features a new pint-sized powerhouse of a protagonist.

Unity Software is reportedly being eyed as the next acquisition by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund and a consortium of investors, including US private equity firm Silver Lake Partners. According to Reuters, Unity is already in talks with interested parties, with the software company reportedly valued as high as $25 billion, a significant increase from its current public price of $21.5 billion following its latest earnings report.

Silver Lake already owns 8% of Unity, and talks are said to be in place as Unity considers the best options moving forward. If the company is sold, it'll represent another major investment by Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund and partners into the gaming industry, following the recent acquisition of Electronic Arts for $55 billion (that Silver Lake was also involved in). That takeover hasn't been without controversy, as the billions in leveraged debt that EA was saddled with has forced the company to make drastic cuts across the board, including the heavily criticized decision to shut down fan-favorite developer BioWare.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oxqys4Nm4Cs

Alongside its ownership of several studios--like mobile game developer Scopely--and stakes in gaming publishers like Nintendo and Capcom, a Unity acquisition could result in Saudi Arabia having an even bigger influence in the industry. Unity is the second-most popular game-development engine after Epic's Unreal, and it has been used to power multiple hit games, from indie hits like Hollow Knight and Among Us to live-service juggernauts like Genshin Impact. Unity is also used for far more than just game development, as the software is a popular choice for car designers, filmmakers, and architects.

While it's far from a done deal, the rumors have already had a positive effect on Unity as its shares rose nearly 15% following Reuters' report. This also comes after several controversial years for the company, as Unity planned to introduce a new fee for game developers based on game installs back in 2023. The move resulted in massive backlash, and in the aftermath, John Riccitiello stepped down as Unity president and CEO.

Electronic Arts recently killed off Mass Effect and closed developer BioWare entirely, but the publisher is still trying to make money from the franchise's fanbase.

Ahead of the annual Mass Effect holiday of N7 Day on November 7, EA is promoting Mass Effect via posts about what fans can buy on the BioWare Gear Store. A lot of people online are saying this is tone deaf and gross behavior.

The BioWare Gear Store's social media presence came back to life after a month of darkness today to start hawking Mass Effect merch. The post that kicked things off is the one below, in which fans are invited to "celebrate the legacy" of Mass Effect by giving EA money.

EA followed the post up with eight more, pushing people to visit the BioWare Gear Store to buy things like mugs, tote bags, clothing, and shoes, among other things.

https://twitter.com/BioWareGear/status/2118417071415476477

The replies under every one of the posts call out how cold and gross it is to promote the brand so soon after cancelling Mass Effect 5 and closing BioWare.

EA made the drastic changes as part of a big organizational shift and wider pullback that also included layoffs and other game cancellations, like a new The Sims game. These moves came after EA was taken private by an investor consortium led by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund in a deal that included billions of debt.

It subsequently was reported that EA chose to pursue a new Star Wars Battlefront game over funding the next Mass Effect and BioWare's continued operation.

A Change.org petition to "save Mass Effect" has drawn 300,000+ signatures, and Canadians are rallying their lawmakers to step in and fund the continued future of BioWare.

If you're among the millions of Amazon Prime subscribers--maybe you use the platform to buy games--you're getting a new perk in the form of free delivery with Uber Eats.

Amazon and Uber today announced a partnership where US Prime subscribers can get free delivery on orders of $25 or more. Orders can be placed on Amazon's website or through the app, as opposed to the Uber Eats app.

https://twitter.com/UberEats/status/2118334756274241547

The benefit works for Prime members in the US, including the cheaper Prime for Young Adults and Prime Access membership tiers. Additionally, Uber Eats is offering $20 off each of your first two orders of $25 or more through November 18.

With this added perk, you can order some wings or a burrito to enjoy after buying GTA 6, all within one app. And that's the whole idea: Amazon does these partnerships to help keep you subscribed.

Lucia and Jason in GTA 6.

It bears mentioning that Amazon is a good place to buy games, but it's not perfect or without issue. In fact, a lot of Nintendo fans are upset with the marketplace for delaying their Ocarina of Time remake deliveries.

Here are some more detailed instructions on how this works, as written by Amazon:

• Prime members can visit www.amazon.com/ubereats or open the Amazon Shopping app and search “Uber Eats” to get started in three simple steps.
• Log in with existing Amazon credentials, browse from nearby restaurants, and then place an order with existing Amazon payment methods.
• Once an order is placed, Amazon will send email and push notifications with delivery status updates, and Uber Eats will follow up with a final order confirmation.

As part of Nintendo's latest earnings briefing, the company said it has no plans to increase the Switch 2 price again, or at least not anytime soon.

VGC reported that management said Nintendo has enough memory stockpiled to shield itself and thus not need to implement another price hike.

Nintendo raised the price of the Switch 2 in September, bringing it up from $450 to $500. This followed price hikes for the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S consoles, meaning that all three major platforms have seen hikes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_xMM7L2XoMc

The price increases are the result of macroeconomic factors including tariffs and the demand for memory and components from AI companies. Following the US midterm elections, technology stocks--and specifically AI stocks--have massively sold off, at least temporarily. It remains to be seen when or if there would be any relief on the memory and component market, though.

Nintendo also reported in its earnings briefing that it received many millions in tariff refunds, but the company is keeping all of it for themselves, just like PlayStation and other companies are doing with their own refunds. Nintendo had a tone-deaf and cringey tariff sale.

Nintendo's latest big game release was The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time's remake for Switch 2, and it's the best-reviewed game of 2026 overall.

Compared to previous games in the series, Grand Theft Auto 6 looks like it'll only be a few steps removed from reality when it launches this month. Actions have consequences, working on a relationship requires more than just hitting a few button prompts, and bulking up means that you'll have to visit an in-game gym regularly. Will all of that add up to an experience that can give a little dude in green a run for his money as the best-reviewed game of the year? Who knows, but what I do know is that Rockstar Games better have some hygiene options in the game, because Jason's gym etiquette is disgusting.

Maybe I'm reading too much into this, but amongst the dozens of new GTA 6 screenshots released today, there's this one of Jason pumping iron:

GTA 6 has a gym hygiene problem, and I can't stop thinking about it.

While I keep telling myself that comparison is the thief of joy and that I shouldn't compare the few strands of muscle fiber I have next to a digital character who looks like he curls Jack Reacher actors for a morning routine, I also can't help but find myself repulsed by Jason's lack of hygiene.

I'm also told that Miami--the city that GTA 6's location of Vice City is inspired by--is hot as hell, but that's still no excuse to not be wearing any gym clothing up top. Hell, even if it's one of those gym tank tops with spaghetti straps, that's still better than nothing, because I cannot imagine how much disinfectant you'd need to clean up that rack when Jason is done with it.

There's no sign of a sweat towel either, so you just know there's going to be a rank puddle of perspiration waiting for the next unlucky person who uses it. Revolting. Maybe it's his home gym, but that's still no excuse to work out in this state. Sure, maybe he's the only person who uses that facility, but I bet you the nearby NPCs are going to smell it from across the block.

Am I reading too much into this? Absolutely. But if Rockstar can spend several years agonizing over the most minute details for its new Grand Theft Auto experience, then as someone who is potentially thinking of dropping $80 on it, I'm allowed to obsess over seeing a jacked-up protagonist turn the rack into a breeding ground of bacterial infections on par with a Resident Evil campaign. There are all kinds of escapism that I'm expecting from GTA 6, but poor gym hygiene certainly isn't one of them.

I was fine with weaponized dog poop, but bareback bench presses are where I draw the line.

Rockstar has released a big batch of new Grand Theft Auto 6 screenshots as part of what the developer is calling a "launch gallery."

The brand-new images show off main characters Jason and Lucia in a variety of settings, including a nightclub, the dive bar The Rusty Anchor, and the gym, where Jason is putting in some work on the bench.

A new look at GTA 6's dive bar, The Rusty Anchor.

There is also a shot of people on an airboat hunting alligators in the night, and another scene where police are closing in on a superyacht, presumably in pursuit of Jason and Lucia. Another image provides a close-up look at Jason as he leans out of a car window, wielding an automatic rifle while police helicopters chase him.

A new look at Jason in GTA 6.

Head to Rockstar's GTA 6 website to see all of the newly released images.

Rockstar released these images to celebrate the fact that GTA 6 is now under two weeks away from its release date of November 19. The game has reportedly already sold 8 million units, generating close to $1 billion.

The game’s file size is about 212GB, and thankfully, preloading begins more than a week before launch. The game unlocks on November 19 at midnight local time, and that means US players will be among the last in the world to get in.

People in New Zealand, meanwhile, will be the first in the world to play GTA 6. If you’re thinking about booking a flight to the land of Hobbits, here are some tips for packing your PS5 safely.

As the fate of Arkane Lyon hangs in the balance, a union representing workers from the French studio offered strong words toward Arkane's parent company, Microsoft. In short, the union blames Microsoft for "sabotaging" the production of its Blade game.

French trade union STJV (per VGC) claimed that development on Marvel's Blade is "going fine," but said that workers face the "harsh reality" that Microsoft may close the studio for financial reasons. But the union said that the onus for Arkane's tough financial situation is on Microsoft itself, claiming that a hiring freeze that lasted 19 months "artificially caused delay and additional cost."

STJV asserts that closing Arkane would be more costly than finishing Marvel's Blade, adding that a studio closure would be the result of Microsoft's "never-ending search for maximum profit optimization." The union argues that Arkane is profitable, but "not profitable enough for Microsoft."

The union's statement lists demands that include protections for employees and giving workers a say in a potential buyer for Arkane. In accordance with French labor laws, the studio has been in a "consultation period" since Xbox began its reset earlier this year, and it was recently granted an extra month to find a buyer before facing closure. A recent report suggests that three companies, including Ubisoft, submitted bids to acquire Arkane.

Arkane is perhaps best known for developing the Dishonored games. Its Arkane Lyon team is primarily responsible for Dishonored 2 and Deathloop, while its sister team in Austin developed Prey and Redfall before Microsoft closed Arkane Austin in 2024.

Bethesda and Arkane Lyon announced Marvel's Blade at The Game Awards 2023, but besides the release of official concept art showcasing the game's setting of Paris, practically nothing of the game has been shown since then. The title's future remains as unclear as the fate of its developer.

Marvel's Wolverine got off to a strong start when it launched in September, but since then, it looks like things have cooled off massively for the game. In its new earnings report, Sony finally dropped a sales number for Insomniac's new Marvel game, revealing that it has sold 2.4 million units so far.

Marvel's Wolverine, as it initially debuted as September's best-selling game, delivering the highest launch-month dollar sales for a Sony-published game since Helldivers 2 back in February 2024. While 2.4 million sales on its own sounds pretty impressive, compared to other Sony first-party titles, the numbers do not look good. In its report, Sony listed several more games that drastically outperformed Marvel's Wolverine, including Insomniac's previous release, Marvel's Spider-Man 2.

That game sold through 2.5 million units on its first day of release, while other titles like Ghost of Yotei outperformed Marvel's Wolverine in just a few days. The game also arrived during a busy time on the gaming calendar, as the last two months have seen multiple games launch ahead of GTA 6 on November 19.

https://youtu.be/7nGnaG7kVIA

Between Control Resonant, Onimusha: Way of the Sword, Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4, and live-service games jockeying for both attention and money, Marvel's Wolverine was facing an uphill battle--and that hill probably felt very steep amidst lukewarm reviews and negative online chatter.

Sony hasn't revealed how much it cost to develop Marvel's Wolverine either, but it probably wasn't cheap. The holiday season should see sales increase, and a Black Friday discount will always help shift more units, but for now, Marvel's Wolverine looks like a black mark on an otherwise-solid quarter for Sony. PS5 sales are closing in on 100 million units sold, development on the PlayStation 6 is picking up speed, and the company made a cool $3.95 billion in the last quarter across all of its divisions.

Grand Theft Auto 6 is the biggest game that Rockstar Games has ever made, and it was no doubt very expensive to produce. But just how much did it cost? We know it's not $1.5 billion, but Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick has now reacted to the discussion around the game's development costs.

He told The Wall Street Journal, "It was expensive and it took a long time."

The game has been in development for years, and was delayed multiple times. Zelnick said Take-Two's mission is to "make the best entertainment on Earth," and this takes time.

"Our strategy is to be the most creative, the most innovative, and the most efficient. Our cultural tenets are seek excellence in everything we do, work together as a team, and be kind. That approach sometimes is, in fact, really expensive," the executive said. "The good news is that we have a P&L and a balance sheet that supports that. And if we get it right--we don't always--but if we get it right, it actually pays for itself and then some."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=klc0fQmAL6k

Everyone expects GTA 6 to be a huge commercial success, but Zelnick said in the interview that he will not claim success before it occurs. "Arrogance is the enemy of continued success," he said.

Rockstar's ambition is to make the "most amazing entertainment experience of all time," Zelnick added. "They've done that before, and I'm hopeful that we will do that again. Like everyone else, I'm going to wait and see how it's received. I feel really good about it, but I'll wait and see," he said.

Also in the interview, Zelnick addressed GTA 6's latest delay to November 2026, saying it was "expensive and inconvenient" but was the right call for the game.

"There are a lot of companies who have a great mission statement, a stated strategy, and a culture, but then when push comes to shove, they do something that's at odds with that," he said. "My view is that culture, like character, is tested in the breach. It's a testing moment."

At the same time, Zelnick said he got a similar call from an executive asking for more time on a Take-Two project--and Zelnick said no. "I got a similar call and said, 'Actually, we're shipping,'" he said. "Thankfully, I was right, but imagine if I had been wrong?"

A dig at Cyberpunk 2077?

Also in the interview, Zelnick said other game companies can be too devoted to hitting deadlines, instead of taking more time, and spending more money, to get a game out in a better state. He didn't single any companies out, but he said a recent "high-profile" game that launched in such a rough state that it had to be pulled was an example of this--this could be a reference to CD Projekt Red and Cyberpunk 2077.

"That's the other piece that was left out of this discussion," he added. "What happens when people take the other approach? The other approach being, we're slavishly devoted to a schedule, and we're just going to ship despite what is going on. I am not going to throw any competitors under the bus, but if you know anything about the video game business, in the past few years, there was a very high-profile release that fell into this category. They shipped, and they had to pull the title after shipping, because it didn't work."

Cyberpunk 2077 had such a rough launch that it was pulled from the PlayStation Store; thousands of people separately sought refunds.

Despite releasing in such a rough state, Cyberpunk 2077 sold nearly 14 million copies in its first three weeks to become one of the most commercially successful RPG releases of all time. Executives at CD Projekt Red got gigantic bonuses, too.

CD Projekt joint-CEO Michał Nowakowski said it “was for sure wrong” to launch the game in that state, but he pushed back against the theory that the studio did so to appease investors who wanted to see financial returns.

Following Cyberpunk 2077’s rough launch, CD Projekt Red steadily supported the game with numerous updates and improvements over the years, culminating with a massive, game-changing 2.0 update in 2023 alongside the Phantom Liberty expansion. Today, the game has sold more than 40 million copies.

According to Sensor Tower, GTA 6 could reach 25 million pre-purchases by launch, and that would work out to around $2 billion in revenue. That would be enough to cover the game's development cost and most of the marketing spend.

GTA 6 releases on November 19 for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S.

Since its launch last year, the Switch 2 has proven itself to be a portable powerhouse, and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake may just be the best game to show off its capabilities. The upgraded version of the timeless adventure looks even better when compared to the original N64 game that first debuted in 1998, as Nintendo has leveraged the Switch 2 hardware to create the definitive version of the game, blending atmospheric design with imaginatively designed character models.

And if you want to see just how gorgeous that glow-up is, click the video below for a guided tour of Hyrule across two eras of Nintendo hardware. No commentary, just comparisons.

https://youtu.be/M1DfD7B5oUM

For this video, we captured footage using an original NTSC 1.0 N64 cartridge running on an Analogue 3D with de-blur enabled. While there are a couple of Nintendo 64 emulators on the market, the Analogue 3D is generally considered to be the best of the lot. It's designed to capture the essence of a CRT TV display through various effects and filters.

Ocarina of Time on the N64 was a game that had to work creatively around the limitations of the console and its cartridge system, at a time when the gaming industry was embracing CD-ROMs. Limitations do breed creativity, and the game is still fondly remembered for being a visual tour de force from an era when 3D games were making impressive strides. As for the Switch 2 version, the footage speaks for itself. It's crisp, the text is sharp, the extra effects are nice little touches, and the art direction has a Studio Ghibli feel to it.

For more on the technical wizardry behind it, you can read our big The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake interview with producers Eiji Aonuma and Hidemaro Fujibayashi, as they spoke to GameSpot about what it took to modernize a classic game and keep its soul intact. "The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is a reverent remake with stellar presentation, letting the original greatness shine through," Steve Watts wrote in GameSpot's Ocarina of Time remake review.

There's no shortage of dedicated video capture devices on the market, but if you're looking for something that cuts down on cable clutter and adds some cyberpunk vibes to your setup, you'll want to check out the Chizha Mount Ling 2 Pro. GameSpot recently went hands-on with it, and while it's a great capture device for PC handhelds like the Steam Deck and the Asus ROG Xbox Ally X, it's hard to recommend if you're planning to grab Switch 2 footage specifically.

See on Kickstarter

According to Chizha, the Mount Ling Pro 2can be used as a dock; it has a built-in capture card that can record gameplay at up to 4K 60fps, and you can install an NVMe solid-state drive (up to 4TB) in the bottom slot for your recording purposes. This essentially condenses multiple devices into one portable hub, and if that sounds good to you, you can check out the Kickstarter for it right now. If you pledge now, you can get the device for $150 for the version with a capture card, after which it will cost $250 at retail.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/m543mHe3bKU

One of the cool things about it is that it has a front display that will tell you what resolution your system is currently outputting as well as how much power you're drawing from it--useful information for content creators. In our testing, we found that it works very nicely with PC gaming handhelds, but there's still work to be done on the Switch 2 front.

"I noticed that the color being displayed was a lot more washed out than when using an official Switch 2 dock," senior video producer Jean-Luc Seipke explained. "This happened when testing on our Samsung TV. When we tested it again using a portable monitor, however, everything looked consistent. I did speak this concern to the creators, and they told me it might be a firmware issue, and they're currently trying to sort out and fix it. The other issue I noticed is with upscaling. When running games that are clearly not 4K and are upscaled, I noticed that the quality of the image looked significantly worse than on the official Switch 2 dock. When docked, the Switch 2 triggers an upscale method that kind of like smooths out the image and makes everything look nicer. For whatever reason, that is just not triggering correctly when plugged into this dock."

Another thing that Seipke pointed out is that the internal storage drive only works with PC handhelds, so again, it's not recommended to buy the dock purely for Switch 2 gaming at this time. Hopefully these issues can be addressed in time. But if you want to use this with a PC handheld and are looking to take advantage of the capture capabilities and additional storage? This is one device you'll want to check out.

During a briefing on its latest financial results, Sony revealed it sold 2.6 million PS5 consoles in its last quarter, which ended on September 30. This brings lifetime PS5 sales to 97.9 million, just months before the console enters its sixth year on the market. By comparison, the PS4 had shipped 103.0 million units at the same point in its lifecycle, but Sony's gaming ecosystem is performing much better thanks to higher digital revenue and a massive active user base.

This comes at a time when the PS5 has only gotten more expensive since launch, thanks to the global components shortage that has seen memory prices surge. Sony says it has been in discussions with manufacturers to secure enough memory for the next fiscal year and expects its hardware sales to remain profitable into the next year. The company has raised its forecast, as it expects sales of first- and third-party games--like GTA 6--to increase.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmKu9Uow-os&t=2s

GTA 6 is projected to have sold almost 8 million copies ahead of its November 19 launch, and PS5 sales are said to be dominating by a wide margin compared with Xbox Series X|S. Sony also keeps 30% of the revenue from the game through platform fees, so GTA 6's early success will only improve PlayStation's fortunes.

With manufacturing adjustments that make the PS5 cheaper to produce and monetization of its monthly active users--which peaked at 127 million in September--business looks solid for Sony's game division.

Sony also touched on plans for its next PlayStation console, saying it's making "solid progress" on development and will announce it at an "appropriate time" in the future.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time has been regarded as one of the best games ever made for nearly 30 years, and its new Switch 2 remake is seeing similar levels of acclaim. Part of the reason for its critical success seems to be its deep understanding of the source material, and that shouldn't be a surprise when considering how well Nintendo has retained staff over the years--something very few other game companies have managed to do.

Speaking to GameSpot, longtime Zelda producer Eiji Aonuma acknowledged the benefits of having developers on the team who have been working at Nintendo for decades.

"I think you see a real benefit to having some very long-term-tenured staff members around who have shared the same experiences over time, because every time you get to the next step, it's easier to discuss how to proceed, or if you're going to do something new," Aonuma said via an interpreter. "When you have new staff coming in, of course you want to make sure that you're bringing everyone up with a lot of discussion, explaining how to do things, why you're doing things certain ways, as well as the language that you're using. But that takes some more time, as well. So you need a bit of a balance."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_xMM7L2XoMc

Despite not having everyone move from one Zelda project to the next, enough developers have remained at Nintendo to provide a consistent throughline.

"And so you do see the Zelda team change over time, but there is a continuity of core staff--certainly at least from one project to the next--so that we have that base that we can build from and bring up new staff with it," Aonuma added. "And this is something that I think Nintendo has done for a very long time, even since Miyamoto [was] originally working on projects like this. And it contributes to some of the sense of continuity that you do feel in games in the Zelda franchise, for example."

"Continuity" might not be the first thing you think of when Zelda gets mentioned, but Nintendo certainly knows what it's doing with Zelda as of late. In our Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake review, Steve Watts said, "By approaching this remake with a degree of reverence and respect for the source material, Nintendo has shown that a true masterpiece can stand the test of time."

Remaking a game like The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time required Nintendo to nail a fine balance between staying faithful to the original and updating it where it mattered. The Ocarina of Time remake largely sticks to the original's foundations while adding features like a dedicated jump button and updated controls. That was one of several changes, as Nintendo's core design philosophy was to modernize execution and comfort while preserving the original emotional and narrative intent.

As Legend of Zelda producer Hidemaro Fujibayashi explained in an interview with GameSpot, early pre-production focused on setting clear boundaries for what would and wouldn't change in the remake. "One of the first discussions we had leading up to the full-blown development of the title was really clearly establishing what it is we were going to change and what it is that we weren't going to change," Fujibayashi said via a translator. "Starting with the kind of stuff that we wanted to change, was really focused on leveraging the capabilities of the Nintendo Switch 2 hardware because it was going to be developed for that hardware. Leveraging all that capability so that we can remove any stress from the gameplay experience so that people can enjoy the game, fully."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_xMM7L2XoMc

In addition to the changes in the game's controls, Fujibayashi added that the updated graphics also allowed the team to "provide a lot more information" to players, and the sound design also got a big upgrade: 5.1-channel surround sound for the background music.

To reduce friction, the team concluded that a dedicated jump action would give players more agency to explore the world without changing the core experience. "There was a lot of heavy discussion, as you mentioned, about the jump button," Fujibayashi said. "Ultimately, we ended up in the conclusion that being able to allow players to jump anywhere will make the gameplay experience a lot smoother and allow players to be really able to fully enjoy the experience that this game is trying to provide."

The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time launches for Switch 2 on November 5, and it's already one of the year's best-reviewed games.

"The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is a reverent remake with stellar presentation, letting the original greatness shine through," Steve Watts wrote in GameSpot's Ocarina of Time remake review.

World of Warcraft: Forever's launch hit some minor hiccups immediately upon release, but overall is going surprisingly well, much to the surprise of players who anticipated the worst.

As soon as the countdown timer clicked to zero at 3 PM PT, players began to encounter short login queues. Sitting through the queue would bring up the game's list of possible rulesets, but they were grayed out an unavailable. It took around 30 minutes of players requeuing and waiting with bated breath to see if the servers would come online or if they were out of luck, but lo and behold, eventually everything started working as intended.

In all previous versions of WoW, players picked a server to call home and create their character on, then logged in to that server to play. Servers generally ranged from anywhere between 3,000 to 10,000 or more players, with server sizes increasing in recent years as Blizzard experimented with larger, but fewer, servers. In the past, that approach to WoW Classic launches have seen their fair share of issues, from hours-long queues to login issues.

https://www.reddit.com/r/classicwow/comments/1xo3xzs/was_release_smooth_enough/

For Forever, Blizzard opted for a different, "realmless" approach. Instead of individual servers, players would instead pick their desired "ruleset," like player vs. environment, roleplaying, or player vs. player. All players on the same ruleset are then placed on essentially one giant mass of interconnected servers.

So far, that seems to have been a good call. Aside from the first 30 minutes, launch has been smooth, with minimal lag and few issues. Starting zones are crowded, but it's not impossible to make progress on quests. Some players on Reddit are calling it "possibly the best Blizzard launch ever," with another saying they've "never seen a smoother launch."

In other Forever news, Blizzard gave all classes a big damage boost ahead of launch, is teasing what looks to be a new legendary weapon players will be able to acquire, and even hinted at new class and race combos that could be coming to the game in the near future.