The Sims is turning 25 this year, and EA has announced that a trio of new Kits are scheduled to hit The Sims 4 later this week to celebrate the franchise's 25th anniversary.

The news was announced via a livestreamed episode of Behind The Sims, which was posted to the official Sims YouTube channel. The stream featured a number of well-known "Simmers": players who stream their Sims 4 gameplay on Twitch or YouTube. In fact, one of the upcoming Kits was created in collaboration with LilSimsie, a popular Sims 4 content creator known for her elaborate house builds.

As for the new Kits, all three of will be available for purchase on January 16, and although their price has yet to be confirmed, Sims 4 Kits normally cost $5 USD, so it's likely that players will be able to get their hands on all three of the new Kits for a total of $15. The Kits launching on January 16 are the Casanova Cave Kit, the Secret Sanctuary Kit, and the Cozy Gamer Kit. The Cozy Gamer Kit was created in collaboration with LilSimsie.

GungHo Entertainment has announced that Lunar Remastered Collection will launch on April 18 for PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.

The digital edition will cost $50 and physical copies will be $55. In North America, physical copies will be distributed exclusively through Amazon, while Clear River Games will handle physical copies in Europe. It comes with reversible covers that show two new key artworks, illustrated by Toshiyuki Kubooka, who worked on the original first two games.

There have been countless post-apocalyptic video games before, and nature rarely behaves the same way that it does in our world. In Forest Reigns, nature appears to not only be alive in the new world, but also aware and thinking. In the game's announcement trailer below, a human makes the mistake of accidentally damaging a tree, which invites immediate retaliation from the plants.

Forest Reigns is a first-person shooter that is being developed by VG Entertainment Studio--the Ukrainian developer behind Survarium and Fear the Wolves. The new game takes place in Paris after the City of Light has been reclaimed by nature and transformed into a jungle. Even the wildlife seem to have evolved, as the errant gunshot in the video above ricocheted off the skull of a mutated warthog. If that's any indication of how the other animals have changed, then humanity may be in some serious trouble.

However, nature is the great equalizer in this game. It can turn against you if you harm it, but nature can also be harnessed against your enemies if you set them up for it. Regardless, it would be a mistake to let your guard down, as nature can just as easily turn against the player if they make the wrong move. The player's choices will also determine the events of the story.

In addition to all the other previously confirmed titles coming to Game Pass in January, developer Megagon Industries has announced that its next game, Lonely Mountains: Snow Riders, is hitting Game Pass for Xbox and PC as a day one launch title on January 21.

Snow Riders is a sequel to Lonely Mountains: Downhill, which was in the Game Pass library until the end of October 2024. Snow Riders is described as a "ski-quel" because it's all about skiing down a mountain.

The game supports solo play or multiplayer for up to eight people online, featuring multiplatform cross-play support. Players can casually ski down a mountain or take part in challenges with the aim of performing daredevil tricks or going for the best time. Players unlock new equipment and outfits as they progress.

If you were hoping to see more Guitar Hero-inspired boss encounters, you're in luck. Everhood 2, a trippy RPG inspired by rhythm games and the likes of Undertale, is releasing on March 4 for PC and Switch.

First announced in 2024, the sequel tells a new story in the existing universe. You'll play as a hero who is guided by a mysterious figure beyond the river of death, with the task of confronting the Mind Dragon. In order to achieve this, you'll once again take part in rhythm game battles, in which you dodge and counterattack music notes, as if you were a small character on a Guitar Hero grid.

There'll be over 100 songs available in the game, although not all of them will be for battles--developer Foreign Gnomes estimates an 8-to-10-hour playthrough. Combat is also being revamped with the option to upgrade weapons.

Multiple fires continue to devastate the Los Angeles area, and with dry conditions and strong winds on tap for the coming week, firefighters are expecting difficult times ahead. Sony has now donated $5 million to Los Angeles relief efforts.

The company said in a release that the money is being donated to help support first responders, community relief and rebuilding efforts, and assistance programs. Sony's film and TV divisions are based in Los Angeles. Sony Santa Monica, which makes the God of War games, is based in the area as well.

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Sony is not the only corporation or individual to donate to the relief efforts, as Netflix and NBC Universal have each announced $10 million donations. Singer Beyonce, meanwhile, has donated $2.5 million.

One of the impressive things about Marvel Rivals on launch day was its massive roster of heroes and supervillains. From Spider-Man to Hela, each character looked and felt great to play as, and developer NetEase has ambitious plans to expand its cast of characters regularly. The studio aims to add two new characters in every future season, alongside updates, new maps, and more story content.

"Every season we'll be rolling out fresh seasonal stories, new maps, and new heroes. We'll actually be breaking down each season into two halves," game director Guangyun Chen said to Metro. "The length of one season is three months. And for each half of the season, we will introduce a new hero. We just eventually want to continue to enhance the experience, and, you know, keep everyone excited in our community."

The first Dracula-themed season of Marvel Rivals has kicked off and will see the Fantastic Four added to the game. Two members of Marvel's first family, Mister Fantastic and Susan "The Invisible Woman" Storm, are already available, and the Human Torch and The Thing will join them at a later date.

The first look at Sony's Until Dawn movie has arrived, providing a glimpse at the video game adaptation. This is not a trailer, though, but instead the key creatives appear in the video to discuss their ambitions for the project, with footage from the film cut in between the quotes.

One of the first things that is apparent is that the Until Dawn movie does not re-tell the story of the game, but instead tells a new, original story within the universe. Peter Stormare's character, Dr. Hill, from the game appears in the movie as the connective tissue, however. The original game featured Hollywood actors like Rami Malek and Hayden Panettiere, but they will apparently not show up in the film.

The Until Dawn movie cast includes Odessa A'zion, Michael Cimino, Maia Mitchell, Ella Rubin, Belmont Cameli, Ji-young Yoo, and Willem van der Vegt, in addition to Stormare.

The newly announced ARPG Project Pantheon is looking to bring a fresh twist to the genre by combining the gameplay and loot of Diablo with the high-stakes survival of extraction shooters.

Developed by Wolcen Studio (whose previous game, Wolcen: Lords of Mayhem, is also an ARPG) and described as an "ExtrAction RPG," Project Pantheon will be free-to-play and see players transported to a mysterious afterlife where they are tasked by Death to battle through realms inspired by different mythologies. Along the way, players will upgrade their base of operations and battle through maps featuring PvPvE combat, where those who escape will bring home valuable loot while those slain in battle may lose their gear for good. Wolcen says the game will also feature a player-driven economy where players can trade with one another.

Though the game's first revealed environment is a "fantastical reinterpretation" of Norse mythology, Wolcen states in a press release that Project Pantheon's dark fantasy world will draw "inspiration from a vast and diverse array of traditional tales and cultures from around the world."

2024's Warhammer: Space Marine 2 was a big success, and the company that owns the franchise, Games Workshop, is now looking to expand its reach in video games and create another hit title. At least that's the ambition, and it's something the company says is "not a given."

Games Workshop CEO Kevin Rountree said in the company's latest earnings report that video game revenue for the company came from "established games" and royalty income from the launches of Space Marine 2 and Warhammer 40,000: Speed Freeks.

"We recognize that successes like these for Warhammer are not a given in the world of video games. Clearly we are looking for the next one. We remain cautious when forecasting royalty income," Rountree said.

Minecraft is chock-full of dark and dreary locations, but the environment doesn't always have to stay that way. You can easily craft torches to light your way through a dark cave or install some ambiance in your base. While torches are among the easier items to make in Minecraft, you still need a recipe guide if you're crafting a torch for the first time.

Torches only require two simple resources to make, both of which can be added to your inventory within the first 30 minutes of a playthrough. You can see how to make a simple torch below:

• At a crafting table, place a Stick in the bottom middle box
• Next, put a piece of Coal or Charcoal in the middle box

You're able to swap the charcoal and coal interchangeably when crafting a torch, but you'll always need a stick for the recipe to work. Sticks are crafted by placing a single plank in a crafting table while coal is mined throughout caves, mountains, and other locations with a good amount of stone. Charcoal is crafted by placing wood and coal in a furnace together. Once you have all of your resources, head to a crafting table and craft some torches. For every one stick and charcoal/coal you place in the crafting table, you'll receive four torches. It's wise to make as many torches as possible, as you need them quite often in Minecraft.

While most of a player's protection from enemies comes from regular armor in Minecraft, you can also protect yourself with a shield. A shield can stop arrows from hitting and block melee attacks, making it a powerful and underrated addition to your gear set. To find out how to make a shield in Minecraft, check out the guide below.

A shield only requires two resources to craft, but the way those resources are structured at a crafting table is slightly strange. The full crafting recipe for a shield is as follows:

• At a crafting table, place an Iron Ingot in the top middle box
• Next, place six planks around the Iron Ingot. Two to the side of it on the top row, three across the middle row, and one in the bottom middle box.

The planks and Iron Ingots are among the easiest items to acquire in Minecraft. Planks are gathered by placing regular wood logs in a crafting table and stripping them while Iron Ingots are acquired by smelting iron ore in a furnace. Iron ore can be mined wherever there is stone present and all it takes is a stone pickaxe. Once you have your resources, go to a crafting table to craft yourself a shield. Then, from your inventory, right-click on the shield to equip it.

Aside from a crafting table, you won't use any other utility block more in the early-mid game of Minecraft than a furnace. The furnace is used to smelt items using a fuel source, which creates different items that you might not be able to find anywhere else. To see how to craft your own furnace, check out the guide below.

A furnace only requires a single crafting ingredient and you can acquire that material within your first few minutes in Minecraft. You can see the full crafting recipe for the furnace below:

• At a crafting table, place eight stone blocks (cobblestone is easiest) in every box but the middle one.
• This is all that's needed to create a furnace. You can interchangeably use stone blocks, so you don't have to have eight of the same kind.

And that's all there is to crafting a furnace in Minecraft. You need a wood pickaxe to mine the stone from any nearby source and a crafting table to place the blocks in. It's perhaps the easiest utility block to make in Minecraft aside from the crafting table. It's strongly recommended to make more than one furnace, however, as you can place different materials in separate furnaces to make more materials you may need.

A bookshelf is a multi-functional block that's used far more in the mid-late game of Minecraft. However, even if you're building your first base, you still need to know how to make one so you can take full advantage of its purposes. To see how to make a bookshelf in Minecraft, keep reading the guide below.

There are two primary ingredients in the crafting recipe for the bookshelf. One of the resources needed is extremely common, while the other will take some time to add to your inventory.

• At a crafting table, place six wood planks of any kind across the top and bottom rows.
• In the middle row of the table, place three regular books to complete the bookshelf recipe.

Obviously, the most difficult aspect of the bookshelf recipe is the books required. Wood planks can be crafted within the first two minutes of Minecraft, but the books are a different story.

Dynasty Warriors: Origins features the Wanderer, a lone soul who has no memory of his past. Still, his journey leads him to meet a memorable cast of characters, from cunning officials and wise strategists to sworn brothers and mighty generals. This is the era of the Three Kingdoms of China, one where the land is constantly ravaged by internecine conflict and where regional lords are hungry for power. This is the next entry in Koei Tecmo's hack-and-slash video game franchise, where bold changes and bigger battles await. Here's our Dynasty Warriors: Origins guides hub to help you on your adventure.

• Dynasty Warriors: Origins guides hub

Our Dynasty Warriors: Origins guides hub is divided into multiple categories. First, we look at a few general mechanics, followed by tips regarding officers and progression. We then discuss weapons and items that you can obtain during your playthrough.

PS5 and Xbox Series X owners can snag a copy of EA Sports College Football 25 at Best Buy right now for just $25 (down from $70). Best Buy does not say how long this limited-time discount will last, so it's worth picking up the game while it's still available.

EA Sports College Football 25 marks the return of EA's college football video game series, which hadn't seen a new entry since EA Sports College Football FC 14 in 2013. Given the length in time between releases, it's fair to say fans had high expectations. Luckily, it launched to positive reviews, with GameSpot's Andrew MacMahon scoring the game an 8/10, saying, "EA Sports College Football 25 perfectly encapsulates what attending a college football game is like. Vibrant and viciously loud crowds, hundreds of university-specific walkouts and traditions, and uniquely designed stadiums make each school's ambiance give off its own air of distinct excitement."

Street Fighter 6 marks the first time that Fatal Fury characters like Mai Shiranui have appeared in Capcom's mainline series, but not the first encounter between the two fighting game franchises. Capcom vs. SNK: Millennium Fight 2000 brought them together 25 years ago, but their last crossover was in 2003's SNK vs. Capcom: SVC Chaos. So it's high time for a rematch between Fatal Fury's icon and her counterpart, Chun Li, in Street Fighter 6's first gameplay trailer for Mai.

Many of Mai's classic moves remain in her arsenal, but she also seems to have greater control of her fire-infused moves, as well. Mai is so powerful here that she trounces both Chun Li and Ryu when she unleashes her full power. Mai also has a new outfit in addition to her famous red costume.

As glimpsed in Mai's teaser trailer last month, her Fatal Fury stage looks like it got an update for her appearance in this game. Although Smash Bros. creator Masahiro Sakurai felt that it was inappropriate to add Mai to Nintendo's Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, she previously made a guest appearance in Namco's Dead or Alive 6.

In February 2022, The Witcher 3 director Konrad Tomaszkiewicz founded Rebel Wolves alongside some other veteran developers. The first tease for the studio's inaugural game, The Blood of Dawnwalker, arrived last month. But now, Rebel Wolves has debuted the opening moments of the game, which establish how a valley in medieval Europe fell under control of vampires.

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The trailer introduces the game's main character, Coen, as he attempts to save his plague-stricken sister, Lunka, from the human authorities who intend to execute her. Their lives are spared by the arrival of Brencis and his vampires, who quickly dispatch the guards. Brencis then heals Lunka and tells Coen that they are seizing control of the valley.

That scene takes place before the beginning of the game. When the main story begins, Coen and his fellow villagers have been living under the vampire regime for two years. Coen is also the titular Dawnwalker, because his silver poisoning prevented him from turning into a full vampire. Instead, Coen remains human during the day, and he transforms into a powerful vampire at night.

Emails are about to be way more interesting. A developer has created a Doom port that can be played within a PDF file on a web browser. Aptly named "doom.pdf," the file allows you to boot up the original game and control the character using your keyboard, following the usual WASD movement scheme, the space bar to shoot, and the numbers one to seven to circle between weapons.

The developer, who goes by ading.dev, shared some details about the process behind the hilarious project via Bluesky. It's a bit on the technical side of things, but the port was possible thanks to PDFs supporting JavaScript. Using Emscripten, a compiler that compiles C and C++ source code to WebAssembly, they compiled Doom to asm.js, a subset of JavaScript. In short, it's how ading.dev got Doom running in a PDF.

Both input and output are done by manipulating text input fields. If you aren't tech-savvy, don't worry, as you don't need to manually input commands. In order to play the game, all you need is to open doom.pdf and follow the instructions. You can either click on the control layout on screen, or type inside a box to mimick the keyboard controls. If the game doesn't work, make sure that you're opening the PDF in Chromium-based browsers (such as Google Chrome.)

Hyper Light Breaker drops into early access on PC on January 14 (tomorrow!) and now it's got a trailer to match. The game is a 3D, open-world, co-op, rogue-lite sequel to Hyper Light Drifter.

Up to three players can explore the randomly generated worlds of Hyper Light Breaker. In that world they'll find bosses called Crowns, and, of course, plenty of weapons and loot to augment each player's build. This new entry is a departure from the series' past. Hyper Light Drifter was a single-player, pixelated, isometric action game. However, both share a neon-drenched color scheme, an emphasis on fast-paced action, and a story communicated mostly through gesture and aesthetic.

The trailer shows most of this off. It follows a party of three "Breakers," who all have their own unique builds, as they explore the world. One wields a blue laser swords with a rifle. Another has a giant hammer. Special abilities also play a role, as one character drops a giant cube onto an enemy. The trio share movement abilities, including wall runs, hang-gliders, and hoverboards. The trailer also features footage from multiple boss battles, including one with a giant sword-wielding wolf and another against a glowing, armored warrior in a coliseum. Hyper Light Breaker was originally set to release in early access in Spring 2023. It got delayed to Fall 2023 and then further delayed into early 2025. You can wishlist it on Steam now.