The video game TV series Twisted Metal from Sony Pictures TV returns this week on Peacock, and according to showrunner MJ Smith, viewers can look forward to a "more cinematic" season.

Speaking at a roundtable interview with press at the show's set in Toronto, Smith discussed feedback from Season 1 and what he hopes to achieve with Season 2. He said the feedback from Season 1 was that the show was "doing something right," which he thought was no small achievement given the difficulties during production. The show premiered in July 2023 amid multiple Hollywood strikes, which meant neither Smith nor the show's cast--including big names like Anthony Mackie, Stephanie Beatriz, Will Arnett, and Samoa Joe--could promote it.

"I think considering that, it was really nice to see people get it and connect," Smith said. "And I think, looking at the feedback, my whole vibe coming into Season 2 is what we did was right. We did something right. Now, let's just make it bigger. Let's make the car action bigger. Let's make the comedy bigger. Let's make the sets feel even more lived in. Let's, like, really take it up a notch in terms of what we can do with the show and what the show's tone is."

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One of the standout elements of Peacock's Twisted Metal TV series is the character Sweet Tooth. Portrayed physically by wrestler and actor Samoa Joe and voiced by comedian Will Arnett, Sweet Tooth is an "agent of chaos" in the show who shows up to turn things upside down in all manner of unexpected and violent ways. To Samoa Joe, Sweet Tooth's actions might be heinous, but his personality is a fit for Hollywood.

"Growing up in the entertainment industry ... I know people like Sweet Tooth," Samoa Joe told GameSpot during a visit to the Twisted Metal set in Toronto. "People who are, by hook or by crook, no matter what, [trying] to make it. That energy has always been kind of present around me. I've known these people my entire life, ... and I try to bring aspects of that mania to what he's doing, because, you know, it is something that I've seen so many people get lost in. It's interesting to portray that."

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Twisted Metal star Stephanie Beatriz will carry scars from making the show forever--both literal scars, and personal heartbreak she was going through in Season 1.

During a roundtable interview at the Twisted Metal set in Toronto attended by GameSpot, Beatriz revealed that she has a "huge scar" on her left ankle from Season 1. She said she was moving across the front of a car too fast and one of the "big, huge spikes" got her good.

It "ate the shit out of my leg," Beatriz said. The scar that it left behind will be there forever. "I'll always remember this show."

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Twisted Metal Season 2 debuts this week on Peacock, and while Season 1 contained a number of high-octane action set pieces, Season 2 goes even further. Stephanie Beatriz, who plays Quiet, said fans can expect "really insane" action befitting the Twisted Metal name for Season 2. She also teased a Season 2 heist episode in which she was naked for a day.

"Season one, we had ... maybe three big, big action episodes," Beatriz said in a roundtable interview attended by GameSpot during a trip to the Twisted Metal set in Toronto "And I would say there are maybe five or six action episodes [in Season 2]. The stunts are really insane. It's a lot of practical stunts this time around. It's a lot more time spent in cars and and it's a lot of time seeing Quiet as a driver."

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Anthony Mackie returns to the world of vehicle combat in Season 2 of Twisted Metal, the streaming series adaptation of Sony's video game franchise, premiering this week on Peacock. His role as John Doe might give him a unique perspective on game adaptations: He said there is a "shortage" of new ideas in Hollywood. which is why some companies are leveraging established intellectual property with built-in audiences for the best chance at getting a return on investment.

"To be honest, I think there's a shortage of fresh and new ideas [in Hollywood]," Mackie told GameSpot during a trip to Twisted Metal's set ahead of Season 2. "I think there's so many people who are unwilling to go out on a limb and try something different and creative. So now it's just like, 'We need established IP.' So the IP part of it, I think, is a big sell.

"You know, people in this business, we don't want to see if something works. We want something with an already built-in audience. So if it doesn't work, we can go to our boss and say, 'Hey, it was justified,' so the Mouse [Disney] can't fire you. So it's kind of ... it's just what the business has turned into."

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When it comes to video games, Twisted Metal and Captain America actor Anthony Mackie prefers the classics over newer titles.

During a visit to the Twisted Metal set in Toronto, Mackie told GameSpot he doesn't enjoy modern games that involve running and gunning. Instead, he goes for games like Ms. Pac Man and The Simpsons Arcade Game.

In fact, when GameSpot spoke to Mackie in August 2024, he'd recently bought an original Simpsons Arcade Game machine.

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Two years after Season 1, the second season of Twisted Metal, Peacock and Sony Pictures' streaming series adapted from Sony's Twisted Metal video game series, debuts this week. A lot happened in Season 1, and the main characters John Doe (Anthony Mackie) and Quiet (Stephanie Beatriz) are facing new challenges in Season 2. It puts a lot of focus on a vehicular-combat tournament--which will be known to people who played the games--organized by Anthony Carrigan's Calypso

GameSpot visited the Twisted Metal Season 2 set in Toronto and caught up with Mackie, Beatriz, and other members of the cast and crew to find out everything we could about what's on tap. Plenty of details remain under wraps for Season 2, but Mackie and Beatriz outlined some of what to expect. This story contains spoilers for Twisted Metal.

In Season 2, John successfully delivers the package from Raven (Neve Campbell), which earns him citizenship in New San Francisco. No longer is John getting his hands dirty and running dangerous missions--he's now in the safe and sterile confines of the city.

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As announced yesterday during the Middle-earth: The Adventure Ahead panel at San Diego Comic Con, the survival crafting game The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria is getting a brand new expansion. This new expansion, titled Durin's Folk, is very light on details though. It's currently slated for release in Q4, 2025, and a Steam post explains that you'll "continue the fight to restore Moria with an expanded end-game story, exciting new game mechanics, plus many unrevealed secrets!"

A small teaser trailer was also released, showing off a big empty hallway with a massive door being opened by a group of dwarves. Various characters speak over the trailer too, with one notably saying "Khazad-dum is the home of Durin's Folk." For some context, Khazad-dum is another name for Moria, so it sounds like this end-game focused expansion might actually be living up to the base game's subtitles. Durin is also one of the seven fathers of the dwarves, the original group of dwarves that founded the dwarven race, for any non-Lord of the Rings loreheads out there.

Return to Moria didn't receive an outstanding reception when it launched back in 2023, averaging a critics' score of 59 on Metacritic, and a user score of 6.8. The game appears to be doing better on Steam these days, with a very positive rating across all of its reviews.

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EA's upcoming Skate reboot was announced just over five years ago, but the long wait apparently hasn't diminished interest in the game. Over 1 million players have signed up for the latest Skate playtest, and that's a milestone for EA.

According to EA, the eye-popping represents the biggest playtest sign-up in the history of the company. Although sign-ups are currently closed, EA indicated that everyone who registered for the current playtest will get their invitation by the end of July.

The original Skate was released in 2007, but the series had been on ice since Skate 3 in 2010. In 2020, EA announced that a Skate reboot was in development. The new title isn't following the same single-player path as the original trilogy. Instead, Skate will be a free-to-play game with live-service elements. Developer Full Circle recently revealed that Skate will require a constant internet connection because it was developed as a multiplayer sandbox title.

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Better Call Saul and Mr. Show actor Bob Odenkirk usually comes off as a mild-mannered person in real life, but in an interview, Odenkirk spoke about just how his character of Hutch Mansell from the Nobody movies would fight, maim, and kill Nintendo's mascot Mario.

"I'll kill Mario, I'll tear that mustache off his face, jam it down his throat, take his swimming goggles, rip them to pieces, and stab him with those. It's gonna be bloody," Odenkirk said to IGN during San Diego Comic-Con.

Other pop-culture icons that would face the wrath of Hutch include most of the Brady Bunch family and--rightfully--Alvin and the Chipmunks. "I will step on them and crush them under my foot," Odenkirk said about the cinematic vermin. You'll hear the bones and the gush inside their bodies. And you're going to cheer."

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MegaRacer QuantumRush sets a new standard for VR racing games, offering an immersive open-world kart racing experience. Set in the massive futuristic city Mega City, players can drive unique karts with charming animated characters through various modes. Race through the streets of Mega City, take on diverse challenges, and create your unique racing style. MegaRacer QuantumRush delivers a racing experience unlike anything you've seen before.