Rocket League released back in 2015, but it's still performing exceptionally well and just recently surged to new heights not seen in years, at least in terms of concurrent players.

Developer Psyonix announced that Rocket League reached more than 900,000 concurrent players across platforms on Friday, January 23. "Today has been a wild ride," the studio said of the achievement. Rocket League apparently surpassed 1 million concurrents over the weekend, and that's the highest concurrent-player count for the free-to-play game in five years.

It's not immediately clear what drove the recent surge in Rocket League players. People are pointing to streamer Jynxzi playing the game recently, but there could be any number of factors contributing to Rocket League's popularity.

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Resident Evil players have been dodging chainsaws for decades now, but at long last, the tables have turned. While Leon Kennedy returns to Raccoon City with a pistol in one hand and a hatchet in the other, he can finally do some vicious DIY with a chainsaw of his own. And as Resident Evil Requiem director Koshi Nakanishi explained to GameSpot, that new addition to Leon's arsenal brings a few pros and cons with it.

"Leon, he's an experienced combatant of close to 30 years by the time of Resident Evil Requiem. Leon's actually gone up against so many chainsaws in his history here," Nakanishi said (via a translator). "Isn't it about time that he, himself, used a chainsaw? And so, that's where things started."

Nakanishi did caution that enemies will still be using chainsaws of their own in Requiem, but in surprising ways. "Zombies can use the chainsaws in different ways. They might attack you with it. They might throw it at you," Nakanishi teased. "The zombies do retain some nature of themselves before they became a zombie, and so you see doctor zombies, you see nurse zombies. Actually, depending on the zombie, they might use the chainsaw in slightly different ways."

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Recent Resident Evil games have experimented with giving players more freedom, and while they weren't technically open-world games, they did offer more space to engage in both survival horror and action. Resident Evil Village is the notable example here with its interconnected hub areas, but for Resident Evil Requiem, Capcom has gone in a different direction.

Speaking to GameSpot (via a translator), game producer Masato Kumazawa confirmed that Resident Evil Requiem is not an open-world game, but it does have a different direction that the development team considers to be the best fit for it. This direction has led to a game that's heavily inspired by two of the best entries in the series, Resident Evil 2 and 4, and applies the knowledge from modern-day Resident Evil games to evolve them. Resident Evil Requiem features two protagonists--Grace Ashcroft and Leon Kennedy--and their respective gameplay leans hard into classic Resident Evil survival-horror and survival-action.

"Grace's game plays very close to Resident Evil 2, and Leon's gameplay is very close to Resident Evil 4, but when talking about the technical side of things, the portrayal of characters, environments, and things like that, they've taken basically what they learned through 7 and 8, and of course, used that here," game director Koshi Nakanishi said. "Again, the idea was basically to evolve the gameplay that was in [Resident Evil] 2 and 4. Beyond that, expression and artistic direction, a lot of the know-how from Resident 7 and 8 came into play.

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Between hulking bioweapon super-soldiers and mutated wildlife, your run-of-the-mill zombie in Resident Evil games is mostly regarded as cannon fodder. But in Resident Evil Requiem, Capcom is aiming to put a fresh twist on its rank-and-file zombies, transforming them into an unpredictable menace that you'll have to approach with caution. Speaking to GameSpot, Resident Evil Requiem director Koshi Nakanishi said that this new breed of infected--who recently succumbed to their viral infection--retain some of their lingering personalities.

"When making a Resident Evil title, the question of how to present zombies is always something that comes up in discussions," Nakanishi said (via a translator). You want to have some variety, but at the same time, if you make too many changes, it doesn't feel like a zombie anymore, so there's always that element or that challenge of designing enemies for a Resident Evil title. In this setting, you're dealing with a lot of zombies who literally just became zombies momentarily or a while ago. It's pretty fresh."

Capcom expanded on that idea, creating zombies with behavior patterns players could exploit, especially when playing as Grace Ashcroft, whose segments are more focused on the classic Resident Evil survival-horror experience. "Part of that fear experience is not knowing what the enemy is going to do when they approach you or when you see them, and so if you just had a standard zombie, you probably by now have an idea of what a zombie's going to do," Nakanishi explained. "But if you had these zombies here that retained some of their memories or behavior from their previous life, then there's more of a mystery element. You're not exactly sure what they're going to do."

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With Resident Evil's ninth mainline entry, Capcom finds itself at something of a crossroads. In recent years, Resident Evil games have flitted between nail-biting horror and enjoyably explosive thrills, leaving fans split between wanting the all-out action of Resident Evil 4 and VII's more unsettling brand of survival horror.

When I played Requiem last year, it seemed pretty clear to me which spooky path players were being led down. As junior FBI agent Grace Ashcroft was relentlessly pursued, scrambling to survive while defenseless and alone in a dark asylum, I assumed that Requiem would merely be re-treading the same PT-esque ground it did with Resident Evil VII. After spending another three engrossing hours with Requiem more recently, however, it turns out that I couldn't have been more wrong. Capcom's long-awaited sequel manages to channel both the action-packed thrills of Resident Evil 4 and the raw, disquieting tension that made Resident Evil VII so captivating. Where Resident Evil Village felt like an uneven compromise between action and horror, Capcom does not seem worried about Resident Evil Requiem being either too scary or too trigger-happy--it's just giving players the best of both.

Requiem's final preview kicks off by putting me in the dust-coated boots of the internet's favourite Unc', Leon Kennedy. After pulling into Rhodes Hill hospital in the dead of night, he's met by a nurse who wearily answers the door before showing Leon around the dimly lit facility. As we roam the deathly quiet corridors, she explains that Rhodes Hill is a chronic pain treatment center under the control of one Dr. Gideon, a renowned surgeon who administers "experimental therapies" to patients. We can all guess where this is going. Sure enough, as I'm led up the eerily silent and half-illuminated halls moments later, I come face-to-face with a staff doctor--but he's wielding a blood-soaked chainsaw.

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The Head of Xbox Game Studios said the long-in-development State of Decay 3 is "coming on really well," in a recent interview, affirming Xbox's continued backing of the zombie game first announced in 2020.

Craig Duncan, who was previously the Studio Head at Rare and now runs Xbox Game Studios, had a lengthy interview with GamesRadar+ after last week's Developer Direct showcase. To close out the interview, Duncan was asked if we'll see more of State of Decay 3 this year, and said the following in response:

"I think the [PR] in this room will murder me if I give you the answer to that. So here's what I'll say: I have done a number of visits to that studio in the last six to eight months. I have sat and played the game with the team a bunch of times. It's coming on really well. We're very excited about the franchises and its potential. So I will certainly see a lot more of it in the coming year."

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A teenage boy has been missing for two weeks after allegedly rushing from his Long Island, New York prep school into Manhattan to meet someone he met on Roblox, according to a statement from the boy's family.

Thomas Medlin left the Stony Brook School on Friday, January 9, at around 3:30 PM ET to reportedly catch a train from the Long Island Rail Road station to Grand Central, where surveillance footage spotted him at about 5:30 PM ET. In an interview with Long Island news outlet News 12, his mother, Eva Yan, said this is uncharacteristic of her son, who excels in school.

"He has never left us," Yan said. "Everyone loves him. With the weather coming [in] cold, you know, we have checked the homeless shelter, looking for the locations."

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Ashly Burch, the actor who voiced Chloe Price in the original Life Is Strange, has confirmed that she wasn't approached to reprise her role for Life Is Strange: Reunion.

Last week, developer Deck Nine and Square Enix announced the next game in its long-running Life Is Strange series: Life Is Strange: Reunion. Like with the most recent title, Life Is Strange: Double Exposure, Reunion will once again star Max Caulfield, and this time, she'll be joined by Chloe Price.

Reunion is expected to be the finale in the pair's decade-plus story, and Chloe, who hasn't been featured in the series since Life is Strange's 2017 prequel, Before the Storm, will be a playable character alongside Max.

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While Xbox games landing on competing platforms is becoming a regular and unsurprising phenomenon, the actual release dates for these other versions aren't so consistent. Speaking in an interview, Xbox Game Studios head Craig Duncan chalked these variabilities up to development resources.

Speaking to GamesRadar, Duncan addressed the difference between Forza Horizon 6 and the upcoming Fable reboot; both titles are from Playground Games, though Forza is releasing on PS5 after the Xbox launch, while Fable will be on both platforms day-and-date.

"There's always development realities about when these projects start--how big a team is, and what plans we have at the start of development," Duncan said; he also admitted that the Xbox team is somewhat "inconsistent" with its release strategy. "You see some games in one place, some games in multiple places. Just know that we're going to work on that, and we're going to try and be more consistent with what we do."

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Return to Silent Hill hit the big screen on the weekend, but this adaptation of the beloved Silent Hill 2 video game isn't doing too well critically or commercially in the US. At the domestic box office, the film opened in seventh place and earned just $3.2 million, the lowest to date for the film franchise. In comparison, it's far below the $20.1 million US opening weekend of 2006's Silent Hill and the reviled Silent Hill: Revelation, which earned $8 million during its domestic opening.

Opening on 2,000 screens across the US, reviews for Return to Silent Hill haven't been flattering. It currently has a Metascore of 33 on GameSpot's sister site Metacritic--based on 13 reviews--while the user score sits at a slightly higher 4.4. While some outlets consider it an average film at best, others say it doesn't do anything new or better than the original video game or its acclaimed remake, and other critics have lambasted it for over-the-top acting, poor special effects, and a chaotic plot.

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Quantic Dream is mostly known for its single-player, narrative-heavy games like Detroit: Become Human and Heavy Rain, so it was a surprise when the studio announced a 3v3 arena multiplayer game called Spellcasters Chronicles. Now, the studio has revealed a new NPC named Ozdam Devam, the Chronicler of Ashkenon, who seems to be set up as the keeper of the game's narrative elements.

When Spellcasters Chronicles was first announced last October, Quantic Dream said that it would still maintain its signature story focus through a "community-driven narrative." The Chronicler seems to be another piece of that puzzle, with a press release referring to him as a "mysterious in-world narrator" and an "intermediary between the community of Spellcasters and the world of mortals."

Quantic Dream has released a video to introduce Ozdam and his role, in which the wizened Chronicler addresses player feedback from the first open beta without breaking from his character or the in-game lore. While the video is a cute way to address player feedback and deliver patch notes, it seems to be setting up Ozdam as a character who can translate player feedback or actions in-game into decisions that will impact the ongoing story of Spellcaster Chronicles.

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Highguard, the free-to-play PvP raid shooter announced during The Game Awards in December, is out today. However, developer Wildlight Entertainment hasn't officially announced the exact time you can get involved in the action.

Luckily, thanks to SteamDB, we know that--at least on PC--the game will have a singular global launch time. There's no reason to believe that the console launch times will differ, but at this time, we can't verify them.

Highguard global release times

The Highguard release times in each region are:

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Earlier this month, Nintendo announced a Super Mario Galaxy Movie Direct for today, and it was one of the shortest Directs that the publisher has ever had. But the new trailer for The Super Mario Galaxy Movie may be worth it, because it introduces everyone's favorite dinosaur, Yoshi.

The beginning of the trailer features Mario and Luigi's first encounter with Yoshi. By the time the Mario brothers introduce him to Toad, they're very attached to their new pal. But Yoshi wasn't the only familiar face to show up in the movie-verse for the first time. Birdo--an enemy from Super Mario Bros. 2--appeared to be fighting Princess Peach with her signature flying egg attack.

Luigi was also glimpsed in the frog suit from Super Mario Bros. 3, while Yoshi brought an SNES-style Super Scope to a confrontation with Super Mario Odyssey's T-Rex... and he was still outgunned.

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My Arcade Sonic The Hedgehog Mighty Player

$85.89 (was $120)

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A traditional arcade cabinet can be quite expensive, but for something cute and compact, you'll want to check out this Sonic the Hedgehog Mighty Player from My Arcade. The little cabinet is on sale at Amazon for a limited time, and you can pick one up for just $85.89 (was $120).

My Arcade Sonic The Hedgehog Mighty Player $85.89 (was $120)

Officially licensed by Sega, the mini Sonic arcade cabinet features a 3.5-inch color display, wood construction, an illuminated Sega logo marquee, and a control panel with a working joystick and buttons. It comes preloaded with Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Sonic Spinball, and Sonic 3D Blast, and the cabinet features retro-inspired images and colors. It's powered by a rechargeable battery that offers up to five hours of play and there's a 3.5mm jack for headphones.

The cabinet is 12 inches tall, 7.4 inches wide, and 5.9 inches deep, making it the perfect size for a desk or shelf. User reviews have been mostly positive, with people noting that the units feature highly responsive controls and a vibrant screen for its size.

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My Arcade also sells several more mini-arcade devices, like the Pac-Man Mighty Player for $120. This has a very similar construction to the Sonic Mighty player, but with Pac-Man branding and a preloaded collection of games starring the iconic pellet-chomper: Pac-Man Classic, Pac-Man Speed-Up, Pac-Man Plus, Super Pac-Man, and Pac & Pal. For something even smaller, there are the Ms. Pac-Man and Galaga Joystick Players for $50-$60, and Micro Players based on Capcom IP like Street Fighter and Mega Man.

You can also grab one of My Arcade's popular retro handhelds at a great price. These are themed around classic video game franchises, and they pack a ton of games into a pocket-friendly device that are equipped with 2.75-inch color displays. The Pocket Player Pro can be recharged via USB-C or powered by four AA batteries, and one of the best value-for-money models here is the Atari Pocket Player Pro that comes preloaded with 100 classic games.

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Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds (Switch 2)

$70 | Releases March 26

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After launching last September for most other consoles, Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is gearing up for a Switch 2 release on March 26. Offering enhanced frame rates and resolution compared to the existing Switch version, you'll get to race around two dozen tracks, play as 23 classic Sonic characters, and customize your kart to fit your playstyle. Our Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds review from last year gave it a 7/10, noting its almost overwhelming number of customization options and its good variety of tracks and environments, making it a fun alternative to Mario Kart. Preorders are now open for the Switch 2 version ahead of its March 26 release.

Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds (Switch 2) $70 | Releases March 26

Along with the enhanced performance over the Switch edition, the physical Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds Switch 2 release is--thankfully--not Game Key-Card. You'll find the original Switch game on the cartridge plus the Switch 2 upgrade patch. As a bonus, you'll also get the Werehog Bonus Pack filled with cosmetics--though you'll need internet access to download this content. The game is available for preorder at Amazon, Best Buy, Target, and GameStop.

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Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds offers a variety of solo and multiplayer modes, including both offline and online gameplay. It features the largest roster of characters in franchise history at an impressive 23, and you'll have even more vehicles to choose from at 45 (plus 70 different gadgets for further customization). If you're looking for some serious chaos, jump online into World Match, where 12 players hit the track and compete to be the first across the finish line.

If you can't wait until the end of March to start playing, Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is already available on most other platforms. In fact, the Xbox version is currently on sale for just $53 (was $70), and both the standard edition and Digital Deluxe for PC are on sale at Fanatical.

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For a decade, Dead by Daylight has let players into the world of the Entity as they faced original killers as well as some of the most evil monsters from film, TV shows, and video games. Now, Behaviour Interactive is calling on fans to help it complete a crowd-sourced Dead by Daylight chapter called The Grimoire.

As explained by senior creative director David Richard, players can visit Dead by Daylight's Grimoire site and cast their votes to decide the face of the game's new hero. Fans will also choose the outline of the new killer: a divine being from another world.

There's only a short voting period--it started today, January 23, and runs through 12 PM ET on Monday, January 26. Players previously helped define the new killer as a God-like being that laid waste to its own reality. That makes it sound more like a rival to the Entity, the force behind Dead by Daylight's story, rather than an ally. This currently unnamed murderer draws its powers from "hunting sinners and delivering punishment."

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Dinkum: Day One Edition (GameStop Exclusive)

$30 | Releases January 30

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Dinkum Standard Edition

$30 | Releases January 30

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Need a cozy game to get you through these last few months of winter? Take a look at the Australian Outback-inspired world of Dinkum. It lets you and some friends explore a vibrant, cartoon version of the Outback as you gather resources, upgrade your town, and discover all sorts of secrets embedded within the landscape. Currently available in digital format, the game is getting a physical Nintendo Switch release on January 30. Preorders are now open at a variety of retailers, and you'll find an exclusive Day One Edition at GameStop that gets you a few bonuses for free.

Dinkum: Day One Edition (GameStop Exclusive) $30 | Releases January 30

Dinkum is available in two versions, including a special Day One Edition. This is exclusive to GameStop, getting you not just a physical copy of the game, but also a collectible Jackaroo Keyring. It also comes with the Battlegrounds Costume Set, offering in-game cosmetics (hat, shirt, pants, and shoes). Best of all, it's the same price as the standard edition, making it worth checking out if you're looking for the best value.

Preorder at GameStop Dinkum Standard Edition $30 | Releases January 30

This version of Dinkum includes only the base game--none of the Day One Edition bonuses are included. The upshot is this version is available at most retailers, whereas the Day One Edition is a GameStop exclusive. You'll find it for just $30 at Amazon, Walmart, and Best Buy.

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Dinkum follows a formula that's pretty close to that of Stardew Valley and Animal Crossing. You'll start with little more than a campfire and a sleeping bag on your property, before growing your land into something more impressive. From adding shops in town to beautifying your land with flowers and windmills, there are countless ways to develop your version of the Outback. You'll also get to hunt wild animals, venture out to gather rare resources, and greet new visitors as they visit your ever-expanding home.

While the game doesn't have many critic reviews, it has over 15,000 user reviews on Steam and a rating of "Very Positive." Speaking of Steam, the game is only $20 on Valve's online shop--so give it a look if you want to save a few bucks. It's listed as "Playable" on Steam Deck, too.

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World of Warcraft transmog prices are about to get slashed, with Blizzard announcing a 50% cost reduction to outfit creation prices.

The pre-patch for WoW's Midnight expansion arrived on January 20 and brought major system updates to Blizzard's MMORPG, including an overhaul of its transmog system. In theory, the update makes the system more convenient with persistent looks, more outfit slots, and cheaper costs in the long term for those who frequently change the look of their gear.

Transmog mains: save your gold with 50% reduced outfit prices AND one free xmog in new changes coming soon! https://t.co/XA9VhRqd4w

— World of Warcraft (@Warcraft) January 23, 2026

However, ever since the pre-patch dropped and brought new changes to the system, players who want a large number of possible outfits have faced major gold costs. In fact, those high costs that have been a point of contention as far back as the Midnight beta.

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Late last year, Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, Jared Kushner's Affinity Partners, and the private equity firm Silver Lake made a $55 billion deal to purchase Electronic Arts and take the video game publisher private. Now, the Communication Workers of America's United Video Games union has approached the US Federal Trade Commission to share its opposition to the deal.

According to Eurogamer, the UVG's letter calls out EA for its plans to cut down on its staff by calling the cuts "a choice, not a necessity, made to pad investors' pockets--not to strengthen the company." Since EA is one of the biggest video game publishers in the world, the letter also notes that it's not "a struggling company."

The UVG asked the FTC members to "scrutinize this deal and ensure that any path forward protects jobs, and preserves creative freedom."

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The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings Boxed Set 25th Anniversary Box Set

$80 | Releases March 24

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The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring 25th Anniversary Movie Tie-in

$20 | Releases March 24

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The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers 25th Anniversary Movie Tie-in

$20 | Releases March 24

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The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King 25th Anniversary Movie Tie-in

$20 | Releases March 24

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It's hard to believe, but Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings film trilogy is now a quarter of a century old--and to coincide with the momentous occasion, a new 25th anniversary box set of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings books is launching this year. The movie tie-in collection features new paperback printings of each book, all with new covers and spine art, and packaged in a new new slipcase. The four-book collection releases March 24 and is available to preorder for $80 on Amazon.

Alternatively, fans can also preorder standalone versions of these new 25th Anniversary printings of The Fellowship of the RIng, The Two Towers, and Return of the King, if you prefer skipping the box set. These are also set to release on March 24.

The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings Boxed Set 25th Anniversary Box Set $80 | Releases March 24

This 4-book box set comes with all four of J.R.R. Tolkien's primary Middle-Earth sagas. The 25th anniversary movie tie-in books come with great new covers in paperback featuring images from Peter Jackson's iconic films and are held together in a slipcase for easy shelf display. Here's what you get:

• The Hobbit
• The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings
• The Lord of the Rings: The Two Tower
• The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Preorder at Amazon The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring 25th Anniversary Movie Tie-in $20 | Releases March 24

The first book of the Lord of the Rings trilogy introduces us to Frodo Baggins, Samwise Gamgee, Gandalf the Grey, and the rest of the Fellowship. It's 432 pages.

Preorder at Amazon The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers 25th Anniversary Movie Tie-in $20 | Releases March 24

The 352-page second book, the Two Towers, is the shortest of all four books overall. After a harrowing escape from the Mines of Moria, Frodo and the Fellowship press on their journey.

Preorder at Amazon The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King 25th Anniversary Movie Tie-in $20 | Releases March 24

At 448 pages, The Return of the King is the final book in the trilogy and concludes Frodo's epic quest to destroy the One Ring.

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If you're somehow unfamiliar with J.R.R. Tolkien's epic The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, the books take place in the fantasy world of Middle-Earth and center on peaceful, unassuming Hobbits who embark on epic quests, meeting a massive, colorful cast of iconic characters along the way. These new printings of the books celebrate Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings film trilogy, which collectively earned 30 Academy Award nominations and won 17. The extended editions of the films are generally accepted as the definitive way to experience these movies, which add new scenes and moments that didn't make the original theatrical cuts.

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