After an 11-year journey and a transition from solo development to an entire team, Lost Soul Aside is finally here and it's … not doing so hot. It only launched today and it's already sitting at a Mixed rating on Steam, with even positive reviews having their fair share of complaints. These include poor audio mixing and English dubbing, a bland story, and an odd checkpoint system, but also some annoying performance issues in certain places. While the official Lost Soul Aside X account hasn't addressed all of those complaints, it did share a statement on the matter.

As it stands, some cutscenes in the prologue are pre-rendered as 4K, 30-frames-per-second videos, which in some cases are causing stuttering during playback. The Lost Soul Team apologised for this, noting that it is "actively working on optimizations, and future updates will address this to deliver a smoother gameplay experience. Thank you for your continued support and patience!"

Lost Soul Aside initially started development as a project inspired by Final Fantasy--namely Final Fantasy 15--from solo developer Yang Bing, but in 2017 he formed Ultizero Games with support from Sony. The action game was delayed multiple times over the years, and was even supposed to launch in May of this year, before eventually arriving today.

Continue Reading at GameSpot

This week, the Communications Workers of America (CWA) announced that more than 450 developers of Blizzard Entertainment's Diablo team have voted to unionize under the CWA. The successful outcome of this effort means workers will now be represented by CWA Local 9510 in Irvine, California; Local 1118 in Albany, New York; and Local 6215 in Austin, Texas.

The newly formed union will represent a wide range of jobs across Blizzard, including designers, engineers, artists, and support staff. Microsoft, Blizzard's parent company, has officially recognized the union. This unionization campaign is not an isolated event at Blizzard, as earlier this month, the studio's Story and Franchise Development team also voted to unionize.

"With every subsequent round of mass layoffs, I've witnessed the dread in my coworkers grow stronger because it feels like no amount of hard work is enough to protect us," said Diablo producer and organizing committee member Kelly Yeo (via Game Developer). "This is just the first step for us joining a movement spreading across an industry that is tired of living in fear."

Continue Reading at GameSpot

Pokemon Legends: Z-A launches for Switch consoles soon, and to celebrate, the Pokemon Company has announced a special event for the game that will feature live lucha libre wrestling. Also known as the best form of wrestling by people of quality, the event will kick off on September 25 at Arena Mexico in Mexico City.

The Pokemon Company says the showcase will feature four exhibition matches, with one of the confirmed performers being Mistico--who performed in the WWE during the early 2010s under the ring name of Sin Cara. The Pokemon Company added that tickets for the event will go on sale soon, but if you can't make it, the matches will be streamed via the official Pokemon and Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre YouTube channels.

The announcement was made shortly after the reveal of a brand-new Mega Evolution for Pokemon Legends: Z-A. Fittingly, the Pokemon getting the power-up in the game is Hawlucha, a Luchador-themed Pokemon with unique high-flying moves in its arsenal. Hawlucha's Mega Evolution doubles down on its wrestling inspiration, giving it ornate plumage and making it look ready for a main event match at the next Wrestlemania.

Continue Reading at GameSpot

Microsoft wants to ensure it's easier to return to recently played games no matter what device you pick up. Your Xbox play history should now start syncing across consoles, PC, and eventually the ROG Xbox Ally, thanks to an August update rolling out now.

In other words, if you start playing Gears of War: Reloaded on your Xbox Series X|S, but then decide to move to your PC another day, the cover-based shooter should be ready to roll from your play history. Cloud-enabled games should also start appearing in your recently played list, according to Microsoft. That includes if you checked out a Game Pass title via the cloud or actually own it, such as an original Xbox game like The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind.

This cross-device play history will obviously be a boon for the ROG Xbox Ally handhelds when they launch this October. Picking up where you left off in a game on the portable device while on the go is one of the system's main selling points, though that title will have to be compatible with the ROG Xbox Ally and ROG Xbox Ally X. While still in preview, Xbox is making it easier to track your owned games, too.

Continue Reading at GameSpot

High on Life launched on the original Nintendo Switch earlier this year, but now the game is getting a bit of a console upgrade. As announced by developer Squanch Games, High on Life is now available on the Nintendo Switch 2, and it comes with several small but welcome improvements. That isn't even mentioning the very agreeable upgrade path.

First of all, you can use the Joy-Con 2's mouse controls if you like playing your first-person shooters as if you're on a PC--a nifty use of the feature we'll surely see in other FPS releases further down the line. There's also improved VFX and texture quality, a higher frame rate, and an enhanced resolution while docked that brings the game up to 1080p and 30 frames per second.

The good news for those of you who already own the game on the original Switch and have also picked up a Switch 2 is that you can upgrade the game completely for free. Or, if you're buying it for the first time, it'll set you back $40 digitally.

Continue Reading at GameSpot

The second incarnation of Final Fantasy 14 debuted in 2013, and it's proven to be far more resilient than the version that arrived in 2010. However, there's been discontent in the FF14 community lately over the removal of a popular mod, which led to the game's subsequent review-bombing on Steam. Now, director Naoki Yoshida has addressed the mod controversy with an appeal to players.

Yoshida's complete remarks were posted on FF14's official site, and he requested that excerpts from his statement not be used by media outlets. But since his response was nearly 2,000 words, a concise recap is unavoidable. The issue started when Square Enix's lawyers sent a letter to modder DarkArchon regarding Mare Synchronos, a mod that allowed players' customized avatars to be visible outside of their own game. Once Mare Synchronos was removed at Square Enix's request, some fans shared their fury in the form of negative Steam reviews.

Although Yoshida notes that he tolerates mods and has admiration for some fan-made creations, he's against mods that violate the game's intent or design in a negative manner. As a potential example, Yoshida noted that Square Enix could face legal consequences in some countries over nude character mods on display in the game. He also cited customized appearances that mimic paid content from from the game as an example of devaluing the services and collectibles that Square Enix sells to provide the revenue the game needs to remain financially viable.

Continue Reading at GameSpot

Nintendo has a friendly public image thanks to its line of family-friendly games, but Cronos: The New Dawn developer Bloober Team wants to start a second golden age of horror on Switch 2. During the GameCube era, Nintendo's console was home to numerous cult-classic horror games, and Bloober Team CEO Piotr Babieno wants to see more spine-tingling games released for Nintendo hardware.

"I'm trying to make my personal dreams come true," Babieno said to The Game Business. "I am a huge Nintendo fan. I grew up with Nintendo consoles. The most important horrors, like Eternal Darkness, Resident Evil 0, Resident Evil 4--were available on Nintendo GameCube. It was a golden time for Nintendo fans. In some ways, we would like to be the ones to open a new chapter for Nintendo right now. We have some plans. We are not able to share our vision for the future yet. But definitely Nintendo fans could take a look at Bloober Team."

Babieno added that Luigi's Mansion could be a good indicator of what fans can expect from the studio, as it gave players a cozy horror experience. The CEO says that there is a "huge possibility to repeat such an idea" in the future.

Continue Reading at GameSpot

Madden NFL 26 has only been out for two weeks, but EA has already prepared the first update for this year's edition. Most of the changes address bugs or other issues that have come up since the game officially launched on August 14. It's also introducing Nike Rivalries, a new feature that will bring "community pride" to some of the most famous rivalries in the league.

According to EA, Nike Rivalries is part of a new four-year deal between Nike and the NFL that will "celebrate football's most storied rivalries" with customized uniforms that represent their respective cities. Each iteration of Nike Rivalries will focus on teams from two different divisions, and this year's subjects are the AFC East and NFC West.

Players from the NFC West and AFC East show off their custom looks in Nike Rivalries.

EA also announced that the Madden NFL 26 update will introduce a customized playbook that was created in collaboration with retired quarterback Kurt Benkert. The playbook is called Benkert's Dimes, and it's available in Play Now when selecting playbooks.

Continue Reading at GameSpot

Earlier in 2025, Square Enix executives shared their desire to "reboot" the company over the next three years. However, not every game will make it out to the other side of that time frame. Two mobile games from Square Enix's top franchises are set to be shut down in Japan at the end of October.

The impending ends of Final Fantasy: Brave Exvius and Dragon Quest of the Stars were confirmed in Square Enix's social media posts (via GamesIndustry.Biz). Both titles originally launched in 2015, although Final Fantasy: Brave Exvius was shut down outside of Japan last year and Dragon Quest of the Stars was closed internationally in 2021. Now, both games are getting delisted on October 31. In-app purchases for each title have also been suspended.

Before the final shutdown goes into effect, Dragon Quest of the Stars will reach its 10th anniversary on October 15, followed by Final Fantasy: Brave Exvius on October 22.

Continue Reading at GameSpot

A Lost Soul Aside demo has been released alongside the Final Fantasy-inspired action game's launch today, allowing curious players to get a taste of the gameplay before committing to purchase.

According to its listing on the PlayStation store, the free demo will include two of the game's boss battles. Both battles appear to be from different parts of the game, allowing you to try out both basic and advanced abilities. The first fight is against the Rose Queen, a quick enemy who deals out "flurries of rapid strikes." You can try out some late-game abilities and a two-handed greatsword in the second boss battle against Holy Knight Commander Victor and the Ancient Mecha. Keep in mind that your progress in the demo will not transfer to the full game.

Lost Soul Aside started as the solo project of Chinese developer Yang Bing, who started building it from Unreal Engine assets back in 2016. The project gained visibility and traction through trailers. Eventually, thanks to the Sony program China Hero Project, a full dev team joined Bing, founding the studio UltiZero Games.

Continue Reading at GameSpot

Run the gauntlet of formidable enemies and colossal bosses in this breathtakingly stylish single player action-adventure RPG; chaining weapon and spectacular attack combos in high-octane, dynamic combat. Adapt your fighting style, solve puzzles, and evolve incredible abilities on a truly heroic quest.