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Call Of Duty's Dave Chappelle Skin Shows Where Activision Really Stands On Inclusivity

Game News - Wed, 04/08/2026 - 02:37

It's almost that time of year again, when every corporate entity temporarily gives its logo a rainbow makeover and publicly reaffirms its commitment to inclusivity. But before we get to Pride Month, we have to get through 4/20, which Call of Duty is celebrating with a pair of skins depicting Thurgood Jenkins, the fictional character from 1998's Half Baked, played by comedian and noted transphobe Dave Chappelle.

"There's something going on at Frankencense & Burr Pharmaceutical, and Thurgood Jenkins is right in the middle of it," reads a recent Activision blog post announcing the upcoming collaboration. "The master of custodial arts takes his chance to have some fun and save a friend, memorialized in this Bundle inspired by the 1998 hit comedy, Half Baked."

I'm old enough to remember the days when Chappelle was known for being funny rather than being a bigot. I grew up watching Chappelle's Show, and like many comedy fans, genuinely enjoyed the guy's work until he started making unfunny jokes about the LGBTQ+ community, with a large amount of vitriol aimed at the trans community and female sexual assault victims specifically.

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Dropout's Game Changer Is Becoming A Board Game

Game News - Wed, 04/08/2026 - 02:36

Players who enjoy rule-bending chaos rejoice: Game Changer is becoming a board game. The cult-favorite series from Dropout--hosted by Sam Reich (was he here the whole time?)--has built a strong following online thanks to its deceptively simple premise: Players don't know the rules until the game is already underway. That unpredictability (and a steady stream of viral clips) has helped turn it into one of Dropout's breakout hits, and now it's getting a tabletop adaptation called Game Changer: Home Edition.

Dropout has dabbled in this space before with the Um, Actually game, which translated its nitpicky trivia format into something surprisingly party-friendly. Game Changer is a very different beast. Instead of testing knowledge, it thrives on pulling the rug out from under players. So expect shifting rules, weird prompts, and the kind of escalating absurdity that makes you question whether winning was ever the goal, so very much in vein with the show that's racked up millions of views across social media.

The game is launching on Kickstarter on May 5, 2026, and yeah--this could probably just go straight to stores, but the crowdfunding route gives the team room to adjust things based on fan response and avoid over- or under-printing what's easily their most chaotic concept yet. It also fits a show that's always thrived on audience energy and surprise.

Continue Reading at GameSpot

This Turn-Based RPG Musical Is Fun But Drags A Bit In Act 3 | People Of Note Review

Games Reviews - Wed, 04/08/2026 - 02:25

People of Note was clearly made with lots of love, but it is also a deeply silly game. Conflicts are resolved between musicians flinging music at each other, a simple country-wide road trip transforms into a battle to save all of reality, and somehow everyone is convinced that the power of friendship will somehow overcome an ancient eldritch-like power. If I didn't know any better, I'd think this game was an old-school role-playing game. And, to be fair, People of Note shares a lot of parallels with those games. While that means the strengths of those types of games are present in People of Note--notably the music and world design in its case--it also means that some of the shortcomings that can be found in the weaker installments of the genre are present in Iridium Studios' turn-based RPG too.

People of Note sees would-be pop star Cadence striving to fulfill her dream of winning a singing competition and getting propelled into fame. Worried that the pop song she's prepared isn't strong enough to sway the judges, she sets out through the land of Note in search of people who can add to her song. Her journey takes her to a desert where everyone is all about different kinds of rock music, a futuristic metropolis blanketed in perpetual night and inhabited by EDM-obsessed disc jockeys, a block-shaped party city that's all about rap and hip hop, and so much more. And all the while, repeated references to an event known as the Harmonic Convergence steel you for what will eventually be a sharp tonal shift away from road-trip comedy to dramatic high fantasy.

Your enjoyment of this story is really going to come down to how much you like puns and pop culture references--People of Note's humor is not unlike Borderlands 2 or Saints Row IV. The game rides the line between funny and corny well enough for me, save for one moment in the third act that made me cringe so hard, I contemplated simply not playing any more of the game that day. But I also enjoy games like Borderlands and Saints Row. If you're not a fan of the idea of a story that takes every single conceivable musical term and crafts a whole high-fantasy society and plotline with said terms, People of Note is probably going to grate.

Continue Reading at GameSpot

Pokemon Champions: The Beginner's Guide To Competitive Pokemon

Game News - Wed, 04/08/2026 - 01:32

EVs, natures, abilities, priority, secondary effects, damage rolls! Learning competitive Pokemon can be overwhelming. Pokemon Champions is the next phase of serious competitive play, and the free-to-play release on Switch and mobile will be used for competitive events going forward. While the core of Pokemon is meant to be approachable for all ages, competitive Pokemon has quite a bit going on under the hood for serious Pokemon masters. This will serve as a primer for getting into the serious competitive scene to take your Pokemon training to the next level.

Making A Monster Team

Competitive Pokemon can be divided into two phases: Team building and battling. Team building is primarily defined by optimizing your Pokemon's base stats. Every Pokemon has six stats: HP, Attack, Defense, Special Attack, Special Defense, and Speed. By looking at a Pokemon’s base stats you can get an idea of how they are played. For example, Charizard’s two highest stats are Speed and Special Attack, while Annihilape has high HP and Attack. Generally speaking, this means Charizard is a fast special attacker and Annihilape is a bulky attacker. Of course, players have found many other uses for these Pokemon, but for simplicity we’re going to treat them as such.

So what’s the difference between an Attacker and Special Attacker? It largely comes down to its move pool. Moves that deal damage in Pokemon are split into two attack types: Physical and Special. Physical Attacks calculate the users attack stat against the opponent’s Defense Stat. Special attacks calculate the users special attack stat against the opponent's special defense. There is a lot of math that happens here, but the general rule of thumb is that Pokemon with a high attack should only be using physical attacks and a Pokemon with high special attack should only use special attacks. This is denoted by symbols next to the move name. Ideally when team building you’d want to have a mix of attackers and special attackers to cover your bases.

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Super Mario Galaxy Movie Includes Disclaimer That It Cannot Be Used For AI Training

Game News - Wed, 04/08/2026 - 01:26

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is in theaters now, and it's putting up big numbers at the box office. It's also been discovered that the film ends with a disclaimer about AI.

The movie's credit sequences includes a line about how the movie "may not be used to train AI."

This wasn't specific to The Super Mario Galaxy Movie. The movie's distributor, Universal, started attaching this warning to the credits of its movies with June 2025's How to Train Your Dragon, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Continue Reading at GameSpot

You Could Be In A PlayStation Game If You Write Well, Love PlayStation, Play And Own A Lot, Have Anecdotes, And More

Game News - Wed, 04/08/2026 - 00:30

PlayStation has announced a new contest called The Playerbase, and it will allow winners to have their likenesses scanned to appear in PlayStation games.

This begins with Gran Turismo 7, but PlayStation said it will expand the program to include other titles from PlayStation Studios.

Here's how it works: You can visit the Playerbase website where you'll need to submit comments on why PlayStation is important to you. "Make it something from the heart," Sony said. The company will then review applications and choose a "limited" number of people for video interviews.

Continue Reading at GameSpot

Spark in the Dark

New Releases - Tue, 04/07/2026 - 17:00

Road to Vostok

New Releases - Tue, 04/07/2026 - 17:00

Narin: The Orange Room

New Releases - Tue, 04/07/2026 - 17:00
Narin: Orange Room is a third-person survival horror game. Play as 'Narin,' a 7th-grade primary school kid whose sister unexpectedly disappeared. One day, She got caught up in one of her school's secrets and ended herself in the mysterious world during the twilight hours. Narin had to fight, survive, and confront the terror. She need to locate all of the clues, solve the riddles, and delve further into the stories that had occurred at her school. Explore mystic stories in the school not only in Twilight Time, but also in Day Time. Inspect clues from Narin's friends, gain more evidence, to fill up the mysterious jigsaw and solve those mysteries to pave the way for the secret behind.

Eko and the Bewitched Lands

New Releases - Tue, 04/07/2026 - 17:00
Eko and the Bewitched Lands is a randomly generated action RPG with Rogue-like elements. Explore and find the castle where the Dark Queen has imprisoned your friend and princess of the realm. Gameplay is dynamic and fast paced. Dodge at the perfect time to be able to avoid enemy attacks or traps. Play very aggressive stopping enemies from hitting you or be a bit more strategic using your grenades or the environment. Customize your abilities and enhance your playstyle! Each run offers unique and powerful upgrades, letting you adapt, experiment, and evolve your strategies. Will you harness fire, water, or something entirely different?

KuloNiku: Bowl Up!

New Releases - Tue, 04/07/2026 - 17:00

Origament: A Paper Adventure

New Releases - Tue, 04/07/2026 - 17:00
A special letter, endowed with a soul, embarks on a journey. Change your form to move forward: fly, swim, overcome obstacles, and be ready for unexpected encounters! Each level is a unique adventure with multiple paths to discover. Choose your route, meet strange and charming characters, solve puzzles, uncover hidden locations, and stumble upon secrets in the most unexpected places.

Black Hole Fishing

New Releases - Tue, 04/07/2026 - 17:00

Unwanted Dungeon

New Releases - Tue, 04/07/2026 - 17:00

PURPLEARC

New Releases - Tue, 04/07/2026 - 17:00

People of Note

New Releases - Tue, 04/07/2026 - 17:00
In this bold turn-based RPG, where musical numbers meet thrilling combat, join pop singer Cadence on her quest for stardom. After being shut out of the Noteworthy Song Contest, Cadence realizes that her solo act might not be enough for the judges. As she travels across Note to the Rock City of Durandis, the EDM City of Lumina, and more, Cadence fills out her band with eclectic and powerful musicians from lands afar. But something’s brewing in the distance…the Harmonic Convergence is playing havoc with the world’s musical energies, and dark forces are working behind the scenes to disrupt Note’s natural harmonies. It wasn’t in the set list, but Cadence and the others need to step up and make sure music itself still has a future on stage. In People of Note, experience turn-based combat like never before: each battle is an interactive musical performance with evolving combat conditions, real-time rhythm-based attacks, and genre-bending mashup attacks!

The Spotter: Dig or Die

New Releases - Tue, 04/07/2026 - 17:00

Machine Child

New Releases - Tue, 04/07/2026 - 17:00

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