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Sony Exec Expects Marathon To Launch By March 31, Says Bungie's "Independence is Getting Lighter"
After a disastrous debut for the live-service shooter earlier this year, Bungie and PlayStation made the decision to move Marathon out of its planned September 23 release date and into next year. During a Q&A session after the company's Q2 earnings call, Sony CFO Lin Tao fielded some questions about not only the game, but Bungie itself, and it seems the longtime development house will soon be fully integrated into the PlayStation Studios family.
As reported by VGC, when asked about Marathon's current status and whether or not it will launch in the fiscal year--which ends March 31, 2026--Tao said through an interpreter that the company "factored it in the forecast" and that it "expects the launch to happen within the fiscal year." However, she did also stress that her words were not a confirmation of that target, as "no official announcement has been given yet."
Tao added that Sony has stepped in to make "modifications in development," and that either Bungie or PlayStation will be able to announce Marathon's new launch date "in the autumn timeframe." Tao said the company, at this moment, does not expect the game to be canceled.
Continue Reading at GameSpotBattlefield 6 - Here's How AI Bots Work In The Open Beta
With the Battlefield 6 open beta now available, players are discovering that there are bots in some of their matches. Battlefield Studios has clarified how bots work, with the developer making it clear that AI soldiers only show up in the "Training Grounds" playlists for the open beta.
This week, the Training Grounds playlist is Breakthrough Initiation. The Training Grounds playlists aim to help players learn the ropes and should be a "smoother experience" compared to a full match populated with real humans. The Training Grounds playlist is only available for ranks 1-15.
None of this is major news, as Battlefield Studios already explained all of this days ago. But Battlefield Studios is reiterating things now that the open beta is live.
Continue Reading at GameSpotBattlefield 6 Open Beta Is Off To A Very Hot Start Amid Some Server Hiccups
Battlefield 6's open beta went live today, and it's putting up big numbers its early-access stage before the beta becomes more widely available this weekend and next.
On Steam alone, the Battlefield 6 open beta reached more than 314,000 peak concurrent players. The open beta is also available on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S, along with the EA App for PC, so the Steam numbers reflect just a portion of the beta's total audience.
Given the huge amount of people trying to play Battlefield 6's open beta, the servers are struggling somewhat. Some players have reported matchmaking issues, and the developers say players can restart the game client to help improve things. Battlefield 6's open beta is using server queues to help mitigate demand, with Battlefield Studios announcing it is working on a "substantial increase in server capacity" to help meet demand.
Continue Reading at GameSpotPS5 Sales Reach 80 Million Worldwide In Latest Milestone
Business is once again booming for Sony, as the company announced that lifetime sales of the PS5 console have reached 80.3 million units shipped as of June 30, 2025. This new figure comes from Sony's quarterly results for its current financial year, with the company adding that 2.5 million consoles were shipped during that three-month period, an increase of 100,000 when compared to the same period during the previous financial year.
The PlayStation Network has also grown, with Sony reporting that the subscriber number has increased to 123 million users. Compared to last year's numbers during the same quarter, this number has grown by 7 million subscribers. In the games department, PS5 and PS4 software reached a combined total of 65.9 million copies sold, an increase of 12,3 million units year-on-year.
First-party games counted for 6.9 million, a rise of 900,000 compared to last year. The future of game sales is also looking increasingly digital, as Sony says that 83% of software sales were digital downloads.
Continue Reading at GameSpotCastle Crashers' First New DLC In Over A Decade Is Live Now
Painter Boss Paradise, Castle Crashers' first new DLC since 2012, is out now, bringing with it custom characters, Steam Workshop integration, and an overall graphics refresh for the 17-year-old game.
Named after original Castle Crashers boss the Painter, the new DLC follows a pretty clear artistic theme. The DLC introduces Paint Junior as a new playable character, complete with a new weapon and unique magical moveset. Paint Junior is the first new addition to the Castle Crashers roster since Blacksmith and Pink Knight were added in 2011.
The meat of the DLC is the brand-new Painter Boss Toolkit--a feature that allows players to design their own custom characters and weapon skins. Players will be able to customize their character's head, body, weapon, shield, portrait, beefy form, and Back Off Barbarian art, by using a template provided by The Behemoth. The DLC also integrates Steam Workshop for the first time, allowing players to explore and enjoy other fans' custom creations.
Continue Reading at GameSpotCollege Football 26 Title Update Brings New Uniforms, Mascots, And Gameplay Improvements
One month after release, College Football 26 now has a major title update bringing improvements to visuals, realism, and gameplay, as well as plenty of post-launch bug fixes. Here's everything that's changing in the latest update.
Good news for players who want their College Football experience to be as close to the real thing as possible--the new update is bringing new or adjusted uniforms for over 20 teams, including Ohio, Notre Dame, Boston College, and more. The update is also bringing five new school mascots, adding to the game's existing stable of often fun and goofy mascots.
The updates to realism in CFB 26 also extend to game timing and time zones--now, teams outside of the ET time zone will have their games scheduled at the correct times locally, and the game's lighting will more correctly reflect the time of day. The update also adds two new awards--the Shaun Alexander award, and the Jet Award.
Continue Reading at GameSpotAtari 2600+ Pac-Man Edition Console Preorders Are Live At Amazon
Atari 2600+ Pac-Man Edition Console Bundle
Preorder at AmazonAtari CX40+ Wireless Joysticks: Pac-Man Collection
Preorder at AmazonBandai Namco Atari+ Cartridges
Preorder at Amazon See more Atari+ CartsThe Atari 2600+ Pac-Man Edition Console is up for preorder for $170 at Amazon. The eye-catching, bright yellow retro system was unveiled in July as part of Bandai Namco's year-long celebration of Pac-Man's 45th anniversary. The console comes with a matching CX40+ Wireless Joystick and the new Atari 7800 game Pac-Man: Double Feature on cartridge. The Pac-Man Edition Console releases October 31.
As the name suggests, Pac-Man: Double Feature comes with two games on one cartridge. Most notably, you'll get to play Pac-Man 7800, a brand-new arcade version of the classic game. The other game is the first edition of Pac-Man for console, Pac-Man 2600 (1982).
Atari 2600+ Pac-Man Edition ConsoleContinue Reading at GameSpot
Mafia: The Old Country Review - Look But Don't Touch
The Mafia series has always been an outlier in the open-world action genre. While the 2002 original could have easily been written off as another Grand Theft Auto clone, Mafia and subsequent titles in the franchise carved a niche for themselves by being narrative-driven experiences built around a specific time and place. Empire Bay from Mafia 1 and 2 is an amalgamation of Chicago and New York created to capture the feeling of 1930s and 50s gangster culture, while New Bordeaux from Mafia 3 attempted to depict the Vietnam-era in the south. Mafia: The Old Country successfully continues this trend with its depiction of Sicily in the early 1900s, but is ultimately held back by its shallow mechanics and dated design.
Mafia: The Old Country follows Enzo Favara as he falls in with the Torrisi Crime Family. After fleeing the sulfur mines, Enzo is saved by Don Torrisi, a soft-spoken and enigmatic mob boss that sounds like another very famous soft-spoken crime lord. Torrisi sees potential in Enzo and puts him to work at his vineyard where he meets Luca, a mentor-like figure to Enzo; Cesare, Don Torrisi’s hot-headed nephew; and Isabella, the Don’s daughter with whom Enzo has an instant connection. Throughout the course of the 12-hour story, Enzo sinks deeper and deeper into the criminal underworld. It’s a fairly predictable mobster story that’s elevated by strong characters, great performances, and thoughtful writing.
Protagonist Enzo staring down an adversaryThat said, Mafia: The Old Country’s cast doesn’t make the best first impression. Enzo is very quiet and standoffish in the early hours; Don Torissi, at times, sounds a little too much like Michael Corleone; and Luca--despite being one of my favorite characters by the end--comes across as just another rank-and-file mobster. Fortunately, after the first couple of chapters, their personalities start to come through more strongly. This is especially true for Luca, who helps guide Enzo through his new life within the Torrisi family. Meanwhile, Cesare develops beyond a simple hothead as he struggles to live up to his uncle’s lofty expectations. The only exception to the slow burn of character personalities is Tino, Don Torrisi consigliere. Portrayed by Anthony Skordi, Tino makes a chilling impression out of the gate and frequently steals whatever scene he’s in.
Continue Reading at GameSpotCo-op Roguelike Guntouchables Is Out Today, And Free To Keep For 24 Hours
Guntouchables, a co-op roguelike doomsday shooter, has just launched into 1.0 on Steam with a hefty discount. How hefty? Well, it's 100% off! Now, that does come with the catch that you have to pick it up within the first 24 hours of launch, which started at 12 AM PT / 3 AM PT / 8 AM BST / 9 AM CEST, so you'll have to figure out how many hours you've got left yourself. Once you've claimed the game, it's yours for life, but if you miss out after the 24 hours are up, it'll revert to the still-pretty-affordable price of $5.
For those that haven't heard of Guntouchables before, it's a roguelike where the "entire world has fallen and the surface has been overrun by a hostile and aggressively evolving horde of mutants. Well, not entirely." That last part is in reference to a group of preppers, i.e. the characters you play as, who are tasked with defending their doomsday residence from the mutants. You can either play solo, or with up to three of your friends.
Gallery Guntouchables.The game is mission based, and between missions you and the group you're playing with vote on a random selection of mutations the mutants can develop, making them harder to deal with--on the flipside, you also get some bonuses that also differ depending on your choice. There are also class-specific perks to upgrade throughout your runs, and the ability to mod your guns to suit how you like to play.
Continue Reading at GameSpot