Diablo 2 celebrated its 25th anniversary on June 29, and developer Blizzard celebrated the occasion with a cryptic tweet that has fans of the classic ARPG speculating wildly about what it could mean.

The tweet states, "Happy Birthday Diablo 2. Twenty-five years have passed since our first foray into the Burning Hells." It's the second part of the tweet, however, that has fans excited.

Happy Birthday Diablo 2.
25 years have passed since our first foray into the Burning Hells.
If you think you've seen and done it all, just wait for the chaos we've yet to unleash. pic.twitter.com/zqXTzc4mOL

— Diablo (@Diablo) June 28, 2025

"If you think you've seen and done it all, just wait for the chaos we've yet to unleash," the tweet concludes.

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Remasters and ports are big business, and when Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine Master Crafted Edition was announced, hardcore fans who played the original 2011 version were excited. That excitement quickly turned to frustration as the PC release contained a number of bugs, and Sega is now offering refunds to everyone who bought it.

Over on Steam, there are almost 100 "mostly negative" reviews citing buggy loads, ugly UI changes, and constant crashing, leaving fans disappointed. "Decided to pick up a copy after the price was reduced for Anniversary Edition owners as some goodwill was returned," one player wrote. "Have played less than an hour and got sent into bugsplat just navigating the menus, all of which are a downgrade compared to the original. No idea why Relic have decided to fix what's not broken here."

Sega dropped the price to $20 for anyone who already owns the Anniversary Edition, and as Kotaku is reporting, letting fans who already purchased it on PC get a refund through July 10. Sega also laid out improvements that Patch 3 was to implement, including "fixed softlocks, graphical glitches, and input issues in various screens" and more technical fixes like moving local user profile data to a different location to prevent certain crashes.

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Mecha Break is the mecha shooter game by Kingsoft subsidiary Amazing Seasun Games. After initially being announced at The Game Awards 2023, the third-person shooter is finally in beta and open to the public, with Mecha Break cross-play enabled so you can play with your friends no matter the platform. While there have been Mecha Break codes available throughout the demo periods, we've got all you need to know on codes for the full release.

You'll take on the role of a mech pilot dealing with the fallout of a dystopian catastrophe in the year 2082, which led to an energy crisis on earth. You'll deal with polluted areas known as Fading Zones, where only mechs can operate. Throughout these zones, mech pilots need to clear the pollution.

Working in teams, you'll blast through different game modes. There are several different mech roles to take on: Attacker, Defender, Supporter, Brawler, and Sniper. Of course, the inclusion of Mecha Break codes is invaluable in a free-to-play game, so we've got all of them listed here, as well as how to find more codes, and other free rewards including free Corite and more.

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Red Dead Online, the multiplayer mode for Red Dead Redemption II, just got a big update that adds a series of "Strange Tales from the West" missions, including ones where you fight zombies and weird little robot guys.

The "Strange Tales of the Plague" mission has players fighting against "shambling undead" who have been affected by a mysterious malady infecting the people of Armadillo. Players must take them down and retrieve their corpses and return them for scientific research to find out what happened.

The "Strange Tales of Modern Science" mission, meanwhile, has players investigating a nearby "man of science" who claims he created artificial life near Braithwaite Manor. "Bring the strange experiment to life by discovering its secrets and destroying any automata that put up a fight," reads a line from the mission's description.

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System Shock 2's 25th-anniversary remaster recently launched for PC, and console owners won't have to wait too much longer to get their hands on it. Developer Nightdive Studios has announced that it'll land on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and Switch on July 10, following its short delay for those platforms.

First released in 1999, Nightdive first teased that it was remastering System Shock 2 back in 2019. Since then, the first System Shock got a massive remake that blended the aesthetics and gameplay of the '90s with modern design features, creating a unique blend of old-school gaming with high-definition visuals. Essentially, it was System Shock almost exactly as you remembered it, but with sharper visuals, better sound, and some nice tweaks under the hood.

Nightdive's remaster of System Shock 2--previously known as System Shock 2: Enhanced Edition--proved to be a challenging project. The developer didn't have access to the game's complete source code, and piecing everything back together required "extensive reverse-engineering," the studio said.

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Earlier this month, developers Surgent Studios and publisher Pocketpair shared an early look at the upcoming first-person psychological-horror game Dead Take. Now, Surgent and Pocketpair have revealed that the game will incorporate live-action footage and announced the first two members of the cast, both of whom are award-winning video game voice actors.

Baldur’s Gate 3 and Resident Evil Village's Neil Newbon will play Vinny Monroe, while Final Fantasy XVI and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33's Ben Starr will step into the part of Chase Lowrey. In the game, Vinny and Chase are actors, and the teaser video announcement mysteriously indicates that both of them are playing a character named Willie.

At the beginning of the game, Vinny has gone missing after attending a decadent party in Hollywood. Players assume the role of Vinny's friend and fellow actor as they explore the mysteriously abandoned Hollywood Hills mansion that was booming with life the night before.

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Dead Take is not at all what I was expecting from the sophomore effort from Surgent Studios, the developer behind Tales of Kenzera: Zau. Whereas the studio's first title was a great search-action game with an emotional tale about grief set in a Bantu myth-inspired world, Dead Take is a first-person psychological horror game that delves into the untold stories and disconcerting truths that actors face day-to-day in the entertainment industry.

"So, to give you an idea of what this kind of game is, it's a psychological horror escape room, but it's like a reverse escape room. It's not necessarily [about] coming out of the space, but going in," Dead Take creative director Abubakar Salim told me. "[And] the deeper you go, the further in [protagonist Chase] goes into this mansion, the more the secrets are unwrapped and the darker reality [gets]. And that's sort of where I'm playing into [the horror]. There is almost a sense of understanding, but also a sense of disgust."

"[Dead Take is a reaction to] just things that are happening within the industry and what I've kind of experienced, what I've gone through. [While] also pulling from friends' experiences in the industry and talking about it," he continued. "This shift [in genre] is really a reaction, not only tied to what's going on in the world and in the industry, but also with the conversations I've been having with other actors, with other people in the world, both in film as well as in games, and being like, 'Yeah, let's tell this story. Let's do something here. I love horror, we love luring people down a rabbit hole. We flexed that muscle a bit with the Sabulana storyline [in] Zau and so we were like, 'Let's just go full force [in the next game].'"

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It's been nearly six years since Borderlands 3 debuted during the previous console generation. This fall, Borderlands 4 is taking advantage of the power of the current consoles by thrusting players into a large "seamless world" that doesn't need many loading screens during the long hours it will take to explore it all. That's a major improvement over Borderlands 3's Pandora, which had enough loading screens to test the players' patience.

While speaking with Game Informer, senior project producer Anthony Nicholson noted that the Borderlands 4 team didn't initially set out to make Kairos an open-world environment. However, the power of Unreal Engine 5 "gave us other advantages to be able to do things and kind of went into being able to make a seamless world and things of that nature."

World-building director Jason Reiss added that there are "a lot more 360 combat areas where players can enter into spaces from any direction, including from the air--and we have to account for that now with all these crazy movement abilities. It's been all about, 'Let's create a large, dynamic, awesome place where players can feel like badasses.'"

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It's almost the first weekend in July, and as has now become tradition, this marks the start of another week-long speedrunning marathon in the form of Summer Games Done Quick. There are plenty of exciting runs on the table, all in the name of charity, so here's how to watch it, and some highlights we've found in the schedule.

How to watch Summer Games Done Quick 2025

SGDQ, which is livestreamed 24 hours a day on the GDQ Twitch channel, will be hosted in Minneapolis. While you can watch live at any point through the marathon, the GDQ Youtube channel will regularly upload each run shortly after its completion, for any that you might miss.

Summer Games Done Quick will start on July 6 at 8:30AM PT / 11:30AM CT / 12:30PM ET, and kicks off with the pre-show, which introduces the event, its goals, and highlights prizes and incentives for viewers.

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The Alters developer 11 Bit Studios has found itself in hot water after players discovered evidence of generative AI in the game. The studio has now released a statement to explain why AI chatbot prompts can be found in multiple parts of the introspective survival game.

After The Alters was released in mid-June, screenshots started to emerge on social media showing evidence that certain content had been generated by AI chatbots--despite the game lacking the AI disclosure that Steam now requires from developers.

One Reddit user shared an image of an in-game data screen where the text appears to have an AI prompt included, reading: "Sure, here's a revised version focusing purely on scientific and astronomical data." Another player posted a more egregious example where the chatbot prompt agreeing to translate text to Brazilian Portugese was left visible in the subtitles.

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Wizards of the Coast is banning a whopping seven cards in Magic: The Gathering Standard as part of its mid-year banned and restricted update for 2025, setting the format up for a dramatic change. While one dominant card tops the list, another six have been banned for fear of them taking a similar role.

The main offender being banned is Cori-Steel Cutter, a card that has become so dominant in the Standard meta that Wizards says the card would meet the threshold for banning even outside its once-per-year window for Standard. The card made up the backbone of the Izzet Prowess deck, which has noticeably dominated the metagame since the release of Tarkir: Dragonstorm in April, making up a whopping 40% of Standard play at the recent Pro Tour MTG--Final Fantasy tournament.

While Cori-Steel Cutter is a no-brainer for the ban list, Wizards explains that it is trying to avoid seeing another card rise up and take its place at the top, which is why there are six other cards joining it on the ban list.

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Sonic the Hedgehog Tubbz Duck Plush (9 Inches)

$18.60 (was $25)

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Doctor Eggman Tubbz Duck Plush (9 Inches)

$21.10 (was $25)

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Sonic the Hedgehog fans can save on two of the cutest and silliest collectibles featuring Sega's iconic mascot and his archenemy Doctor Eggman. Amazon has the Sonic the Hedgehog Rubber Duck Plush discounted to a new all-time low of $18.60 (was $25). Meanwhile, Doctor Eggman's Rubber Duck Plush is up for grabs for $21.10 (was $25), which is also the best price yet for this arguably zanier plushie.

Check out both Sonic characters and more popular heroes and villains as rubber duck plushies below.

See more Rubber Duck Plushies Sonic the Hedgehog Tubbz Duck Plush (9 Inches) $18.60 (was $25)

This 9-inch Sonic the Hedgehog-Duck plush is officially licensed by Sega and modeled after the hero's classic appearance.

Each Tubbz duck has a weighted base, so that it can be displayed upright as shown above. But while Sonic makes for a funny display piece, it's also soft enough to cuddle like any other plush. If you're buying this as a gift for a younger Sonic fan, you'll be pleased to learn that it's machine washable.

Amazon doesn't have an end date listed for the Sonic deal, but this model has only received a few price cuts since its launch last November. It was also sold out for several months after launch and wasn't readily available again until April.

See at Amazon Doctor Eggman Tubbz Duck Plush (9 Inches) $21.10 (was $25)

This is the first time the Doctor Eggman Rubber Duck Plush has been priced lower than its $25 MSRP. Amazon has this one marked as a limited-time deal with a set number of units available.

Like Sonic, Doctor Eggman was sold out for a few months following its launch last holiday before being restocked in March.

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Batman and Joker Rubber Duck Plushies by Tubbz

$25 each

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Collectible company Tubbz has made a name for itself with its zany lineup of vinyl rubber ducks featuring characters like Gandalf from Lord of the Rings, Lara Croft from Tomb Raider, Solid Snake from Metal Gear Solid, Jack Torrance (with an axe) from The Shining, Hannibal Lecter from The Silence of the Lambs, multiple Mortal Kombat fighters, and even Solaire of Astora from Dark Souls, who is, of course, praising the sun.

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Death Stranding: The Official Novelization Part 1

$16.39 (was $17)

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Death Stranding: The Official Novelization Part 2

$15.34

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Death Stranding is a fascinating game about connection, post-apocalyptic society, and finding meaning in the face of extinction. It's also a long game to play through, so if you'd prefer to take a shortcut, you can always read the official novelization instead. Split into two volumes, the books retell the story of Sam Porter Bridges and his mission to reconnect North America following a devastating event that saw the worlds of the living and the dead collide. Both volumes are available in paperback and Kindle format at Amazon, or as audiobooks narrated by actor Bronson Pinchot (Perfect Strangers, Beverly Hills Cop). The audiobook versions are included in the Audible Premium library available to Audible Premium and Premium Plus subscribers.

Death Stranding: The Official Novelization Part 1 $16.39 (was $17)

The two-part Death Stranding: The Official Novelization was written by Hitori Nojima. The books faithfully follow Death Stranding's plot, but offer more insight into the characters and their motivations that the game didn't cover and provide more context on Death Stranding and its intricate worldbuilding.

The first book covers the beginning of Sam's journey to reunite the scattered cities of post-apocalyptic North America in the wake of the Death Stranding--a strange supernatural event where the spirits of the dead make physical contact with the world of the living, triggering cataclysms on par with nuclear explosions.

See at Amazon Death Stranding: The Official Novelization Part 2 $15.34

Death Stranding: The Official Novelization Part 2 follows Sam on the second half of his journey, while also investigating a conspiracy involving his dead mother, estranged sister, and eventually uncovering the truth behind the Death Stranding and the world's ultimate fate.

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As mentioned above, the Death Stranding novelization is also available in audiobook format at Audible. The books are included in the Audible Premium Library, meaning Audible Premium and Premium Plus subscribers can access them immediately at no additional cost. Audible Premium normally costs $8 per month, while Premium Plus is $15--however, if you're a new subscriber, you can join now and get three months of Audible Premium Plus for $0 if you sign up before July 31.

Death Stranding audiobooks at Audible

Along with access to the Audible Premium Library, Audible Premium Plus memberships also include a monthly credit to redeem one free audiobook that's yours to keep forever, even if you cancel, plus access to member-exclusive discounts, all for $15 per month. And if you're already a Prime subscriber and sign up using this deal, you'll get an additional two Audible credits. You can use this deal to listen to the Death Stranding audiobook for free--not to mention thousands of other audiobooks. Note that after the free trial ends, your membership will automatically roll over to the full $15/month subscription unless you cancel before the three months are up.

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Humble Bundle just launched a massive new tabletop RPG deal that includes up to 57 TTRPG books and supplements from games based on popular video games, movies, and animated series. The full Roll Big Or Go Home Megabundle is $40, but there are smaller tiers that cost less in case you only want to grab a few of the books on offer. Humble donates a portion of all proceeds from the bundle to Extra Life charity, which raises money for children's hospitals.

See bundle at Humble

Each tier in the Roll Big Or Go Home Megabundle includes rulebooks for official TTRPGs based on video games like Dishonored, Cyberpunk, Rhe Witcher, and Homeworld, or classic TV series like Power Rangers, Doctor Who, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Transformers, and G.I. Joe. You can also grab the official Warhammer fantasy RPG, plus a bevy of original games and supplements compatible with other tabletop games.

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While getting review-bombed likely felt terrible at the time, Helldivers 2 developer Arrowhead has apparently reached the point where it can laugh about the situation. After a long wait, it has finally sent all players a free in-game cape to commemorate the time when the community turned hard against the otherwise very popular game.

In what might be a first, the cape literally depicts a frequency graph of postive vs. negative reviews during the review-bombing campaign. If you squint at the image in the embed below, you can see that there are small light blue bars at the top of the cape; these are the bars for positive reviews, which are clearly and massively outweighed by the red bars representing the negative reviews. While it was announced over a year ago, the cape is finally out and available for free for all Helldivers 2 players.

COMMEMORATIVE CAPE ISSUED
In honor of their unquestioning commitment to the defense of Managed Democracy, the Helldivers have been awarded a commemorative cape. The new uniform piece will be available in all Super Destroyer Armories as soon as the rollout is complete.
This… pic.twitter.com/DOWaFHU40N

— HELLDIVERS™ 2 (@helldivers2) June 27, 2025

If you don't quite remember why so many people were furious at Arrowhead (for about a week), it all had to do with issues caused by the interactions between publisher Sony, Arrowhead, and the PC version of the game. In essence, not long after the game launched in early 2024, Sony attempted to require that PC players create or link a PlayStation Network account to keep playing. As the PC gaming culture tends to look unfavorably on efforts to mandate new accounts or launchers, players were outraged and eventually managed to convince Sony and Arrowhead to reverse course.

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The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim has been a favorite in the modding community for years, and it looks like The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered may become one as well. Now, a fan has released a new Oblivion Remastered mod that gives players a Glock they use to shoot up Cyrodiil's creatures. You can see it in action in the video below.

A user going by CosmicBoogaloo posted the Oblivion Remastered Glock mod on Nexus Mods, and humorously added, "Mehrunes Dagon owes me some money and I'm gonna get it one way or another."

CosmicBoogaloo went on to explain that the mod was created by making changes to the game's archery system to mold the shape of the weapon. But it took a second mod--Dicene's SlickArchery--to reproduce the rapid fire of a gun. From there, bullets were swapped in for arrows, gun sound effects were added, and there's even a holster for the gun.

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Dan Houser - A Better Paradise Volume One: An Aftermath

$29 for Hardcover | Releases October 14

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Rockstar Studios co-founder Dan Houser is branching out into the world of books this fall. Houser's novel A Better Paradise Volume One: An Aftermath will be published October 14. The 464-page hardcover edition is up for preorder for $29 at Amazon. The novel will also be available in ebook and audiobook formats at launch.

A Better Paradise is adapted from an audio fiction series that aired in 2024 and revolves around video game development. Houser is best known for his work as head writer and creative director on the Grand Theft Auto and Red Redemption franchises. Houser's debut novel is an expanded adaptation of the 2024 audio fiction series produced by Absurd Ventures, the company he founded in 2021 after leaving Rockstar the year prior.

Dan Houser - A Better Paradise Volume One: An Aftermath $29 for Hardcover | Releases October 14

Simon & Schuster, one of the Big Four publishing houses, will distribute the physical edition of A Better Paradise. With Amazon's preorder price guarantee, you will be eligible for any discounts offered between the time you order and when the book ships.

A Better Paradise takes place in the near future and revolves around Daisy's Ark, an advanced video game world developed by tech startup Tyburn Industria. Conceived by visionary psychologist Mark Tyburn, Daisy's Ark was eventually canceled following a pattern of "unexpected and disturbing results." A decade later, the project is unearthed and development resumes.

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As mentioned, the book is adapted from the narrative audio series of the same name. The series debuted last June and ran for 12 episodes. Each episode features an ensemble cast of performers, including The Walking Dead's Andrew Lincoln, Shamier Anderson, and Paterson Joseph. You can listen to the audio series for free on podcast services.

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We finally know what College Football 26 looks like. On the heels of several extensive written overviews of the game's changes and additions, EA Sports has published a first look at CFB 26's gameplay.

In a new 17-minute video, EA gives an overview of some of the core mechanics updates that are coming to CFB 26. Among the highlights is a discussion of dynamic substitution, which allows you to substitute players on the fly, providing more flexibility in between plays and reducing the need to go into main menus. On defense, you can also now adjust safety alignments right before the snap, providing the ability to temporarily change to more of a "prevent" defense (to take away deep passes) or play more aggressively, closer to the line of scrimmage.

EA also provides more depth about how it is overhauling quarterback play from last year's game. The developer is emphasizing more realism and accuracy in how it represents different throwing motions; as many quarterbacks have quite distinctive mechanics in the real world, EA explains that enhancing the accuracy was crucial in improving the game's presentation. Additionally, quarterback height is now taken into account; shorter quarterbacks will need to more carefully throw through lanes, while taller quarterbacks can more safely throw over the top of linemen.

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Nintendo has given a number of Switch 1 games some extensive upgrades on the Switch 2, but none more so than The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and its sequel, Tears of the Kingdom. Not only do both titles look and run much better on the new hardware, with crisper visuals and smoother frame rates, they can also sync up with a brand-new companion service called Zelda Notes. But as novel as some of its features can be, the service often contradicts the games' most captivating qualities--their sense of discovery.

Accessed through the Nintendo Switch mobile app, Zelda Notes offers a suite of features to supplement your adventure in Hyrule. You can view detailed records of your own playthrough, including the number of enemies you've slain and materials you've collected, as well as global stats to see how you stack up with the wider player base. The service also has its own achievements system in the form of medals, which are awarded when you hit different milestones (such as using Zonai powers 1,000 times), along with a function to share items and autobuild designs with other players.

All of this is neat, but inessential; you can play through either title without once consulting the app and your adventure would not feel any less fulfilling. However, one feature that does have an appreciable impact on the experience is Navigation. On top of being a repository of personal stats, Zelda Notes can effectively act as a GPS for your game, leading you to a specific point of interest or collectible. As you're exploring Hyrule, the service displays your current location on the map along with an extensive list of things to discover around the kingdom, from shrines and cave entrances to different treasures and enemies. Select a destination--such as a Korok you've yet to find--and the app will guide you there with audio directions, helping you mop up any collectibles you've missed or had trouble locating.

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Microsoft is working on multiple new Halo projects, but what are they and when will we learn about them? It might not be a whole lot longer until Halo's future comes into focus. Halo Studios has announced that it will share more information about what's next for Halo at the Halo World Championships event this October.

In a blog post, Halo Studios said it's observed "a fair amount of speculation about when and where more details might emerge" about the next Halo projects currently underway. "We don't usually comment on such matters, but this time we want to enter the chat and share a little more perspective for Halo fans who might be on the fence about whether to attend this year's event," the developer said.

It was at last year's Halo World Championships that Microsoft revealed the "A New Dawn" trailer that showed off concepts for new Halo projects in the Unreal Engine, including Project Foundry. This was also when Microsoft announced that 343 Industries was rebranding as Halo Studios.

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