While fans await the next mainline Hitman game, IO Interactive and Saber Interactive have announced that the original three games in the series are being remastered in a bundle called the Hitman Classic Trilogy Remastered.

Specifically, Hitman: Codename 47, Hitman 2: Silent Assassin, and Hitman: Contracts are included in the bundle.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4DnU7QV0Oi8

The game's have been "painstakingly rebuilt," according to the official announcement. The new versions of the original games include "upgraded character models, enhanced environments, and high-resolution textures."

The remaster bundle also includes the ability to toggle between classic and updated graphics and a photo mode.

An example of the improved graphics.

The Hitman Classic Trilogy Remastered bundle releases in 2027. It's coming to PC, Xbox Series X|S, and PlayStation 5.

It's just the latest project from Saber, as the company is also working on Jurassic Park: Survival, Stuntman: Hollywood, and a new John Wick game.

IO Interactive's latest release, meanwhile, was the popular James Bond game 007: First Light. The studio is eyeing multiple sequels, and has also pledged to return to Hitman someday.

In other Hitman news, IO Interactive announced at Summer Game Fest that the latest Elusive Target for Hitman: World of Assassination is the rapper Wiz Khalifa. The mission is available now through July 5.

Additionally, World of Assassination got a new update this week that added the "World Champions" DLC, which is themed around the World Cup.

When the Unknown Journey continues in Final Fantasy 7 Revelation, Cloud and his companions are going to embark on it while debuting some fashionable new combat gear. Revelation introduces a new gameplay mechanic called FITS (Function Integrated Tactical Suitware), which is inspired by the jobs system of classic Final Fantasy games. Using new suits, Cloud and the rest of the cast can wield new skills in battle that you might not normally associate with them.

Each character in Revelations has four FITS, and when they don one of these suits, they'll gain new skills while retaining their core stats. So far, Square Enix has shown off the Warrior (enhanced offensive abilities) and Black Mage (spell-focused combat) FITS suits, and series director Naoki Hamaguchi revealed a few more details on how this new gameplay mechanic was developed for Revelation.

"This was in discussions with Teruki Endo (Revelation's battle director)," Hamaguchi said to GameSpot (via a translator). "And when we were discussing what kind of combat system we wanted for the third title, we do think that completely omitting something and putting in something entirely new may not sit well, or it may not be fun for players who have really enjoyed the prior combat systems leading up to this title."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZ3KTw0ow1M

"From really early on, we didn't want to decide on building upon the existing foundation, but evolving on what we have currently created. We looked at characters like Cloud, characters that have a certain characteristic that the players are aware of. And then usually, we'll look to customize those abilities by adding Materia and such, but for Revelation, we really wanted the ability to customize and be able to play a character--as a player wishes--to be a large part of the game. And that would make the experience much more fun as well." 

"So in that way, the job system is included for players who want to be able to take a character like Cloud--for example, you may think of him as a warrior type--but he might not be able to be a black mage on top of that. With his action abilities in battle, that unleashes other possibilities."

In other Final Fantasy 7 Revelation news coming out of Summer Game Fest, Sephiroth has a new voice actor, and minigames won't be tied to crucial character development or items in the threequel. Final Fantasy Revelation launches in 2027 for PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and Switch 2.

Final Fantasy Revelation is the third game in the remake trilogy that kicked off with Final Fantasy Remake back in 2020, promising to conclude the epic tale that has been significantly added compared to its PlayStation original. But with Revelation capping off Cloud and company's adventure, is there space for more stories within this universe?

That's a question GameSpot posed to Final Fantasy Revelation director Naoki Hamaguchi, who confirmed that Revelation will definitively conclude the story. However, he did leave the door open to more character-specific stories in the future.

"So in terms of the Final Fantasy Remake series itself, it does conclude with Revelation," explained Hamaguchi via a translator. "We have had a lot of voices from fans wanting to explore the stories, or side stories, of other characters and other parts of the story as well. That is something that is interesting."

It doesn't seem, however, that those are projects that Hamaguchi and his team have actively started working on. "We did want to bring the third conclusion that everyone has been waiting for as soon as possible, so we really focused our efforts on bringing Revelation as soon as we could," he concluded.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fEhujmFOBDE&embeds_referring_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gamespot.com%2F

An expansive side story is something that Hamaguchi explored with Final Fantasy Intergrade, which featured an entirely new chapter focused exclusively on Yuffie and how she would eventually join the party in Final Fantasy Rebirth. The second entry in the series never received any similar DLC in order for the team to focus on fast-tracking Revelation, but with it behind them it would be great to see additional chapters focused on other members of the growing party.

Hamaguchi also explained how minigames in Revelation are being changed to become more optional based on feedback to Rebirth, as well as how the FITS system adds a job system to the game that will drastically change how progression and combat work.

Final Fantasy Revelation capped off a stacked Summer Game Fest Live presentation, which included reveals for Resident Evil Veronica, Alien Isolation 2, and many more. Catch up on any big announcements you might have missed in our roundup of the entire showcase.

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth's minigames were polarizing when they were first introduced, and for Final Fantasy 7 Revelation, Square Enix has reworked how it will "deliver" them to players. One of the main complaints with Rebirth's minigames was the sheer volume of them and how completing them was mandatory to unlock rare Materia or Gold Saucer dates with certain characters.

Speaking to GameSpot, series director Naoki Hamaguchi confirmed that while minigames will return, most of them will be optional and they'll offer items for character customization as rewards instead of items that buffed characters in combat, like in Rebirth.

"We did notice the variety of feedback that we received about the minigames and their quantity, and we were aware of that," Hamaguchi said via a translator. "At the same time, the remake series is a sort of homage to the original Final Fantasy 7 game. When we set upon creating Revelation, it was really never our intent to produce or decrease the number of minigames, and we were more so thinking how can we best deliver these games to the players today."

"And we felt that if the minigames were optional, yet they were heavily tied to character growth, and that you would have to play them in order to let your character grow some more, it would feel less optional. So in Revelation, we took care to lighten that necessity a bit more, to make it easier for players to play the minigames of their own will. So it might be tied more to characters, and players who want to customize the characters more--and are more interested in that part of the gaming experience--can feel free to engage more in the minigames. Whereas people that might want to kind of strengthen and delve more into the battle experience, we have more of that specifically tied to the battles."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fEhujmFOBDE

Not only was there a first look at Final Fantasy 7 Revelation at Summer Game Fest Live this week, but we also got to see plenty of the game in action when Hamaguchi and Vincent Valentine's voice actor, Matthew Mercer, showed off a preview of the game.

Square Enix has built on the foundation of Final Fantasy 7 Remake and Rebirth, but this time, players can experiment with the new FITS gear to unlock unique abilities and expand their strategic options when taking on powerful foes. One other big change is Sephiroth himself, as the primary antagonist of Final Fantasy 7 has a new actor breathing life into him.

Throughout the original God of War trilogy and its spin-offs, Kratos left a lot of dead gods in his wake. Some of those late deities may come back to haunt Kratos's wife, Faye, in the upcoming title, God of War Laufey. While Kratos is still among the living, Ariel Lawrence--the director of God of War Laufey--hinted that one of his first foes could return.

"We’ve been killing gods for a really long time," Lawrence told GameSpot. "So we’ve been thinking about this question. Since Ares died, we were like, 'Okay, great. Does he go to the underworld?' We asked that question. 'Where did he show up after Kratos killed him?' I think this has been really bubbling around for like 20 years."

Kratos killed Ares--the Greek god of war--in the first game in 2005, which marked the former's ascension to godhood. In the subsequent games, Kratos murdered several additional gods, including Zeus, Athena, and almost the entire Greek pantheon.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLMX2w3cwuE

Laufey's story will unfold in the Everywhen, which Lawrence describes as a place that "is a return for all magic. So it’s not just gods, but magical creatures and all sorts of things. Magic is pulled to this place."

Ares didn't appear in the game's debut footage, but the Mongolian and Egyptian gods of war--Begtse and Sekhmet--made their debut as a villainous duo. It remains to be seen which gods Faye will encounter as she explores this strange new land.

The good news for Faye is that she doesn't have to face these gods alone. She will be joined by a sentient ribbon companion called Rue and a talking gelatinous cube named Pharanque, who was our pick for the breakout character of State of Play.

God of War Laufey will be released on PlayStation 5, but it doesn't have a release date yet.

With Rockstar's GTA 6 set to "blot out the sun" when it arrives on November 19, numerous developers are purposefully avoiding releasing their games near it. In fact, there are basically no other major games set for release in November at all as of now.

Now, a report from the reputable leaker Dealabs Magazine says a remaster of Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters Melee is releasing on November 3, just ahead of GTA 6.

The report said Atari is bringing back the 2002 GameCube game for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and Switch 2, with original developer Pipeworks handling production. The game will reportedly have a new online multiplayer mode, better graphics, and other updates. A sequel, Godzilla: Save the Earth, was released in 2004.

Atari may not be the only company releasing a game near GTA 6's release, or on the same day, as Devolver has pledged to put out a new game alongside GTA 6.

With most developers steering clear of November 2026 for their new games, September 2026 is looking like an extremely stacked month for games. Some of the high-profile games set for release this September include The Blood of Dawnwalker, Marvel's Wolverine, Control Resonant, Silent Hill Townfall, Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War IV, and Dune Awakening for console.

This year's Call of Duty game, Modern Warfare 4, is set for release on October 23. One game no longer coming this year is the Fable reboot, which was delayed to February 2027. Microsoft's official word was that it wanted to give the game a window where it had the best chance to succeed. Prior to the delay being announced, a report said Microsoft had concerns about releasing close to GTA 6.

The new James Bond game, 007 First Light, has passed 3 million sales, according to IO Interactive CEO Hakan Abrak, who also pushed back against the claim that the game cost $200 million to develop.

He told IGN that it's true that First Light is "by far" the most expensive entertainment product to ever come out of IO's home country of Denmark. However, $200 million covers much more than the game's development budget, including returning some money to developers in the form of bonuses.

“We give big fat bonuses to our teams if they do hit a few goals,” Abrak said. “There's some bonuses in there to be paid out in the future. There's marketing in there and whatnot. So it's not the actual cost of the product. But we'll come up with all that. It's by far the most expensive one, but it's not like for the game itself, not $200 million.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOceRj8nR5A

In any event, Abrak said he feels "very confident" that First Light will make a profit, adding that the game is tracking "well above" internal forecasts.

"By all measures it’s freaking successful,” Abrak said.

Given the critical and commercial success of First Light, people are naturally wondering about the possibility of a sequel. IO's deal for First Light was made prior to Amazon buying MGM and the James Bond series, with IO handling both development and publishing for First Light.

Amazon will publish a potential sequel, and an executive's comments led some to believe IO might not be involved. It remains to be seen what will happen, but Abrak said "there will be information about" what comes next between IO and Amazon soon.

Should IO get to make a First Light sequel, Abrak said he expects costs to come down. He said 2016's Hitman cost $78 million to make, while its sequel cost $48 million and was made two years after. The third one, meanwhile, was developed in 20 months and cost $19 million. Abrak said some developers increase scope and ambition with sequels, but IO has a different plan in place.

"Ambition is not necessarily that it's more expensive. Ambition is, the platform you build, how do you keep giving amazing experiences from that and how do you iterate on a sequel from that in a smart way, where it's retroactively maybe lifting the first one as well, like we did with World of Assassination? Some of this approach to concept and ambition, one could think could be applied to Bond as well," he said.

In other news, First Light is set to expand further this year with a Switch 2 edition this summer and lots of new content.

Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra has not been seen or discussed in some time, prompting people to wonder about its fate. And while it remains in development, it's not coming out this year as was expected.

Shawn Kittelsen, a senior executive at the newly formed Paramount Games Studio, told IGN that the game is real ("it's on my hard drive right now") but it's taking so long because producer Amy Hennig is pushing for quality.

"We're continuing development on it, but Amy and the team have big ambitions for the level of quality that they want to hit. They are a relatively small team considering the AAA quality that they're delivering," he said. "What you've seen in previous footage is what the game looks like, and we're making it with a fraction of the resources that you see on other AAA games of the same type, and really trying to push a new development model that's a lot more responsible and sustainable.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_T0j_rKZhT0

The game is in development at Skydance New Media, but now that Paramount owns Skydance, the company is putting that studio under its new Paramount Games Studio umbrella.

Kittelsen said one of the challenges for Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra was building a studio and a game at the same time, and doing so during the pandemic.

"I think there were really ambitious timelines set for that game, but they didn't take into account all of the things that can disrupt production and that can make you spend more time working on it," he said.

He said the team chose to "focus on the quality" as opposed to attempting to "push the game out as quickly as possible."

"So we're giving them the time to cook. We believe in Amy and the whole team there and supporting them, and that game will come out when it's ready. But it is very real and we are continuing to invest in it," he said.

Hennig is also leading development on a new Star Wars game with Lucasfilm. This game remains in the works, but Kittelsen said the plan is to finish Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra first before talking about the Star Wars game.

Rise of Hydra takes place in Occupied Paris during World War II, featuring Captain America partnering with Black Panther to take down Hydra.

Hennig is an industry veteran, having worked on games for decades. She is perhaps best known for her time at Naughty Dog, where she worked on the Uncharted franchise.

Sephiroth is up to his old tricks in Final Fantasy 7 Revelation, but one thing that has changed about the enduring villain is his voice. Tyler Hoechlin previously voiced the One-Winged Angel in Final Fantasy 7 Remake and its first sequel, Rebirth, but Revelation features anime veteran Travis Willingham as the voice of the antagonist.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZ3KTw0ow1M&pp=0gcJCSgLAYcqIYzv

Following an interview with game director Naoki Hamaguchi, streamer Maximilian Dood confirmed that Willingham had stepped in to replace him. Due to a scheduling conflict, Hoechlin couldn't return to voice Sephiroth. As for Willingham, he has numerous credits in anime series, having provided the voices for fan-favorite characters like Roy Mustang in Fullmetal Alchemist and Portgas D. Ace in One Piece. Willingham has a long history in video games, having recently provided the voices for Thor and Dr. Doom in Marvel Rivals.

His name might also ring a bell for tabletop fans, as he has been a cast member of Critical Role since 2015, the Dungeons & Dragons web series that Vincent Valentine's voice actor, Matthew Mercer, served as Dungeon Master on for its first three campaigns.

Hoechlin's Sephiroth was a big hit during his appearances, as, similarly to George Newbern's spin on the character, he provided a calm, cool, and collected performance. Both actors have also portrayed Superman in various forms of media, with Newbern providing the voice of the character in various DC animated series and movies, while Hoechlin played the Man of Steel in the CW's live-action Supergirl series and Superman & Lois. Before either actor landed the role as Final Fantasy 7's big bad, NSync's Lance Bass was the original voice actor for Sephiroth.

After its reveal at Summer Game Fest Live this week, Square Enix confirmed that Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth won't be a PlayStation timed exclusive when it launches in 2027. It'll also be available on PC, Switch 2, and Xbox Series X|S the same day. The final chapter in the Remake saga picks up shortly after the events of Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth, and it follows Cloud Strife and his companions on their quest to stop Sephiroth from attaining godhood.

God of War Laufey marks the first time in the franchise that you'll be playing as anyone other than the Ghost of Sparta, Kratos. Instead, you'll play as Faye, his late wife whose death kicked off the events of the God of War reboot in 2018. It's a big change for the series that has rubbed some fans the wrong way, but Laufey's director sees that as a good thing.

GameSpot spoke to God of War Laufey's director, Ariel Lawrence, who explained why fans who are skeptical of the new direction, and even those angry with it, show that they care about the series deeply. And it's those people that Sony Santa Monica hope come along for this new ride.

https://youtu.be/upjpP54xDIc?si=deP9cGIx3gHclwJD

"I’m so thankful that we have the fans that we have. I’m so thankful that we have people who care," Lawrence explained. "And whether or not they care, they’re upset, or they think we should do something that’s different, I would rather they care. So we’re arms open, ready to show them Faye’s journey and have them fall in love with her like we have. That’s the exciting part for us."

Asked whether the negativity fueled the team in any way, Lawrence explained that the team instead felt challenged to show those who are skeptical what it was capable of, in the same way that it has in the past. And that, contrary to assumptions, this isn't the end for Kratos' story.

"I understand everybody’s reservations and hesitations and I know that it comes from a good place," Lawrence concluded. "They have been on that journey with Kratos as long as I have, right? And it means something to them and I hope that this is more of a 'yes and' for expanding. We’re not leaving anybody behind. We’ve got plenty more Kratos coming. This is really just a place for adventure to go beyond what we had."

You can read our full interview with Ariel Lawrence, which dives into the changes to God of War's combat, how it lines up with the timelines of previous games, and what fans might expect from Kratos and Atreus, should they appear.

Geoff Keighley's annual showcase of new game trailers and reveals has come to a close, and this year's edition of Summer Game Fest Live was easily one of the best so far. Focused purely on video games--we're hoping the Muppets Statler and Waldorf will return to heckle Keighley in December--Summer Game Fest Live was firing on all cylinders last night. If you missed out on the lengthy event and you want a highlight reel of its best trailers, we've compiled them into a digestible video below for you to watch, which boils it all down to 48 minutes. So grab a seat, a bowl of popcorn, and your remote and enjoy every big reveal, right below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F26g5SSslCU

If you're looking for specific trailers, we've also dropped a list below of them. Some of the standout reveals last night include a new Stellar Blade game that swaps swords for robo-knuckle action, a fresh look at the upcoming racing game Clutch, and the rumors were true because Final Fantasy 7's Tifa is indeed headed to Street Fighter 6. Speaking of Final Fantasy, SGF dropped a massive look at the final chapter of the remake trilogy, Final Fantasy 7 Revelation.

Not only did we get a closer look at how Cloud and the rest of the gang are doing following the events of Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, but there was also a deep dive into the gameplay and its new features, a preview of how new party members will synergize with the crew, and confirmation that the game won't be a timed exclusive for PS5 when it launches in 2027. There was also the first look at the Resident Evil Veronica remake, The Blood of Dawnwalker continues to look impressive in action, and we're going to be keeping an eye on the vents when Alien Isolation 2 arrives.

Don't forget, there's also the Xbox Games Showcase on June 7, which should have its own fair share of new gameplay trailers and reveals.

Summer Game Fest Live 2026 trailers

• Alien Isolation 2
• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin
• Gen Atlas
• Crossfire
• Gundam: Rogue Orbit
• Guild Wars 3
• Virtua Fighter Crossroads
• Stranger Than Heaven: Tupac and cast reveal
• Star Wars Zero Company
• The Blood of the Dawnwalker
• Among Us Story: On Guard
• Clutch
• Street Fighter 6: Year 4 Character Reveal feat. Tifa
• Final Fantasy 7: Revelation
• Final Fantasy 7: Revelation - Gameplay overview
• Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance
• Stellar Blade: Blood Rain
• Resident Evil Veronica