Crimson Desert's sprawling world will feature voices performed by real people, according to Pearl Abyss' director of marketing Will Powers--though he wouldn't say whether that includes "100% of the NPCs" as well.

During an interview with YouTuber John "itmeJP" Paul McDaniel's Dropped Frames podcast on February 15, Powers sat down to discuss Crimson Desert. After chatting about the game's DNA, its evolution from a Black Desert Online prequel to a full-fledged project, and the density of the game's world for an hour, Powers was asked about whether the voices for the myriad characters you'll meet are performed by humans or not.

"I'm not going to criticize other games, but all of our voices are done by humans," he said. "I'm refraining from saying that 100% of the NPCs have human voices [...] because if that's not the case for even one NPC, I don't want the internet to accuse me of lying. But yes, all the main NPCs and those in side quests have actors' voices. The game features voice acting in different languages."

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A New York Pokemon Card store called The Poke Court made headlines earlier this year when it was robbed at gunpoint by thieves who stole over $100,000 in Pokemon cards and merch. Now, The Poke Court has lost its name as well after Nintendo's lawyers contacted the store.

On Instagram, the store formerly known as The Poke Court unveiled its new name, The Trainer Court, as well as the new logo. The post also explained that "Nintendo reached out to us with concerns about our name and logo. This means we're evolving! Same team, same ridiculous hit rate, and soon, even greater things coming your way."

The store also thanked fans for supporting it support "amidst the robbery and beyond." The Trainer Court wasn't the only high-profile victim of thieves. In December 2025, thieves hit LA Sports Cards in Burbank and escaped with $100,000 or more in Pokemon cards and other collectibles.

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The console edition of DayZ creator Dean Hall's next game, Icarus, is finally releasing in March after a delay--and Hall does not want you to preorder it. Also, he does want you to preorder it.

Writing on Reddit, Hall said his personal feeling is, "Don't preorder games, folks." But his commercial brain wants people to preorder it. "Please preorder games, as it's the only way PlayStation [and] Xbox notice us."

Hall is known for speaking his mind, and he's a big proponent of open and honest communication with fans, so it's not too surprising to hear him speak like this.

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Electronic Arts is using artificial intelligence to help build the commentary system in EA Sports FC 26, including replicating certain player names in commentator Guy Mowbray's voice with his permission. The technology reportedly helps deal with the huge scale of the modern game, but the main match commentary is still recorded by human broadcasters.

"AI has long been part of our development pipeline--from animation to gameplay systems--and continues to support our teams in making better, more responsive football experiences," EA said in a statement talking to BBC Sports. "But when it comes to commentary and content, it's always a collaboration with our talent--not a replacement.”

Commentary in sports games has changed dramatically over the past 30 years. In sports franchises, from Madden to WWE 2K games, players are now immersed in every move, even blunt criticism.

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It's been over half a decade since CD Projekt Red took players to Night City in Cyberpunk 2077, and the company unveiled a special anniversary collector's edition for the RPG that includes a replica of an important artifact from the game.

Available on CD Project Red's website, the 5th Anniversary Collector's Set consists of a steel case with Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition (physical copies for the console versions, or a digital code for Steam), a replica of the Relic Biochip, three tarot cards, a USB drive containing the game's soundtrack, and two pins--one with the Relic logo and the other with the branding of fictional corporation Arasaka.

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Players should be familiar with the Relic--it's the plot device that can store a digital human personality. In the case of Cyberpunk 2077's main plot, it's what leads Keanu Reeves' Johnny Silverhand character to occupy protagonist V's headspace. In real life, the Relic that comes with the Collector's Set is just a cool, light-up object to display on a magnetic stand.

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DayZ creator Dean Hall has commented on video game delays, saying they should be normalized and that consumers hold the power to show platform-holders that it's OK to delay a game.

Writing on Reddit, Hall said he believes developers have "target fixation" regarding launch timing for their games, and while some of this is due to "revenue pressures," it's also "wrapped up in perception."

"Failure to delay also leads to crunch culture," he said (via PC Gamer). "So I am here today on a mission--let us normalize delaying games. You as consumers have the power to make it clear to platform holders (Xbox, PlayStation) that delays are okay."

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Three months after it debuted on YouTube, a Call of Duty advertisement promoting Black Ops 7 has been banned in the UK for "alluding to non-consensual penetration."

The following contains descriptions of the advertisement in question that some readers may find upsetting.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), the UK's advertising regulator, issued the ban on February 16. In its ruling, the agency found that after careful review, the ad "generated humor by the humiliation and implied threat of painful, non-consensual penetration of the man, an act associated with sexual violence." The ASA continued, saying, "Because the ad alluded to non-consensual penetration, and framed it as an entertaining scenario, we considered that the ad trivialised sexual violence and was therefore irresponsible and offensive."

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If price increases for SSDs were already becoming difficult to stomach, things are potentially set to become a lot worse throughout the year.

Reported by German outlet Heise (and shared by RockPaperShotgun), two out of the three big hard drive manufacturers globally have revealed that all 2026 stock has been sold, and that remaining stock for 2027 and 2028 is currently being earmarked for enterprise clients. During their respective earnings calls in January, both Western Digital and Seagate announced that all manufacturing capacity for the coming year had been allocated, and that production expansion is not being planned.

Seagate CEO William Mosley says the company is already taking orders for the first half of 2027, and that "multiple cloud customers are discussing their demand growth projections for calendar 2028." Western Digital's CEO Tiang Yew Tan made similar remarks, stating that the company has "robust commercial agreements with three of our top five customers--two through calendar year 2027 and one through calendar year 2028."

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At some point in your life, you'll realize that you won the ultimate race, with the grand prize being your very existence. Wouldn't that make for an interesting video game? It's a concept that indie developer Valentin Wirth has run wild with, as they recently unveiled a first look at Become, a 3D platformer about the grand journey to be the fastest sperm alive. Here's the first trailer for Become, which is probably not safe for work, but it is adorable:

Described as a short single-player, third-person adventure, Become casts you as a sperm cell that is competing against millions of others in the game of life. To stand a chance at winning this race and fertilizing an egg cell, your little sperm will have to learn, adapt, and grow stronger as it explores the human reproductive system.

You can even outfit the wiggly fellow with outfits--like a stylish shark costume--and a skill-progression system will help you overcome immune cells, acidic traps, and break through membranes.

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Nintendo has rolled out a new update for The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild on Switch and Switch 2. The patch brings the open-world title up to version 1.9 on both platforms, with the focus on improving "the gameplay experience." Keep in mind that the nearly nine-year-old game won't be updated on Wii U, however.

On Switch 2, Breath of the Wild has received Thai text support, though the audio will be English. Meanwhile, the patch notes for Switch and Switch 2 stay vague about the adjustments to the game. This continues a trend dating back to when the title launched in 2017. For instance, for the version 1.1.2 update in April 2017, the company stated that "adjustments have been made to make for a more pleasant gaming experience."

Breath of the Wild went over six years without an update--from April 2019 to June 2025. The game got a paid Switch 2 Edition that was released alongside the new hybrid system, spurring the rekindled support of GameSpot's 2017 Game of the Year. It's one of the best Switch 2 games to play, too.

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Despite getting a release date last year after years in development, Replaced is being pushed back once again just a few weeks before its launch.

Thankfully, this latest delay for the cyberpunk thriller is just a few short weeks, with a new date of April 14. The team at Sad Cat Studios says it is addressing player feedback provided by the game's recently released demo, as well as taking the extra time to polish things up before launch. In a message announcing the delay, Sad Cat Studios recognized that it's been a long time since Replaced was announced, but that the team wants to ensure the best possible experience on day one.

"While the game is technically finished, reaching the final stretch has shown us that we need just a few more weeks to ensure the experience is exactly what you deserve," the message reads. "We want the version of Replaced you play on day one to be polished, stable, and true to the vision we've shared with you."

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Kirby creator Masahiro Sakurai recently posted some snaps of his meal at one of Japan's Kirby Cafes, and it wasn't long before he pulled a knife on his favorite child. Things started innocently enough, with a few pictures of what looks like a delicious meal themed around the adorable pink blob:

カービィカフェで、エアライダーフレンチトーストをいただきました。
隅々までよく出来ていること…！ しかもおいしい。 pic.twitter.com/9ohpS5T9EN

— 桜井 政博 / Masahiro Sakurai (@Sora_Sakurai) February 18, 2026

And then things quickly got morbid, as Sakurai took a stab at some dark humor. Alas, poor Kirby, we knew him well, a fellow of infinite appetite and of most excellent fancy.

きあああああああ！ https://t.co/EII0zpAuT3 pic.twitter.com/ZXfPLMACiQ

— 桜井 政博 / Masahiro Sakurai (@Sora_Sakurai) February 18, 2026

Before things turned dark, Sakurai's meal looked like a delicious tribute to his creation. An artistic piece of cuisine designed to fill a patron up--if they have the stomach to cut into it--it's one of several items on the menu, alongside soft pancakes, pizza, and milkshakes that all evoke sweet memories of Kirby and his world.

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Looking for a specific star to complete a quest? Chances are that you could be fishing in the wrong place, as some spots exclusively house certain types of star systems. This Roblox game isn’t a massively complex one to play, but it does require a lot of grinding for cash, quests, and other equipment to maximize your catch.

However, even though fishing is relatively painless, particularly if you opt to craft rings from Mythic and higher rarity stars, you may find that there are a handful of them that require one of the two temporary-spawning locations: The Eye and Negative Galaxy. You’ll see prompts when these areas appear, and, as of right now, they’re the hot spots for the rarest stars. Incidentally, potions can give you a bit of a boost, and our list of Star Fishing codes can give you a few gems to help you get started.

Star Fishing star locations

Here are all the spawning points for every rarity in Star Fishing. The odds of fishing labels are slightly misleading, but what it essentially means is that if you had a base rod with normal luck, these combine to give you the odds of retrieving that star. The higher your luck stat and the better the rod, the more likely you’ll discover Rare or Epic stars more frequently.

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During the recent State of Play, Bungie announced that its upcoming shooter Marathon will offer PlayStation users special weapon charms for taking part in the open beta. There will also be weapon charms for Xbox and PC players, Bungie has clarified.

"We'll have weapons charms for Steam and Xbox players as well, which we'll share more about in the future," the developer said.

This was actually confirmed back on February 12, but the news is making the rounds again after Marathon's social media account reiterated this.

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Earlier this month, a duplication glitch in Arc Raiders left the door open for cheaters to run wild and duplicate almost any item in the game. Now that the glitch has been patched out, developer Embark Studios has explained why it didn't immediately act and what the consequences will be for the players who exploited the glitch.

On the official Arc Raiders page, Embark noted that it took the time to validate what was happening before acting "with fairness and accuracy." The developer also wanted to confirm the scope of the exploit, while also separating players who accidentally used it from the ones who intentionally abused the glitch.

"We want to act once, with intention, and with confidence that we're doing the right thing," wrote Embark. "This is the first time we've handled an incident of this nature at such scale in Arc Raiders. Rather than rushing, we chose to take the time needed to fully understand the situation and make sure our response was consistent with our values and expectations."

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Ten years after it debuted, Dead by Daylight may be evolving beyond the video game realm. The live-action film recently took a major step forward, and now a new report indicates that Behaviour Interactive is planning to develop a Dead by Daylight anime.

According to Dread Central, Behaviour has partnered with Blumhouse and Atomic Monster for the potential Dead by Daylight animated series and the search is already underway for writers to work on it. Behaviour signed up with Blumhouse and Atomic Monster for the live-action film in 2023, and presumably the animated series will be an expansion of that relationship.

No story details have been shared about the Dead by Daylight anime, but it's likely to explore the core mythology behind The Entity, an otherworldly evil that demands sacrifices from various killers. The game casts players as four survivors who have to evade a killer before all four are sacrificed.

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The best thing Crisol: Theater of Idols has going for it is the world it is set in. The game clearly takes many cues from the likes of Resident Evil and BioShock in terms of cultivating a sense of mystique and atmosphere in its opening hour, with tension-building sound design, closed-off environments, and unnerving enemies that are visually human-like but move in an unnatural manner. Unlike those games, however, Crisol begins to lose its edge when the enemies become too numerous and easy to defeat, undermining the sense of danger that first built up its setting and undercutting the game's best mechanic. The first-person shooter gameplay grows increasingly dull as the layouts of different arenas become repetitive, keeping combat from evolving in exciting ways. And while the narrative framework of Crisol is interesting and immediately draws you in, the actual story is held back by another drag: its protagonist.

In Crisol: Theater of Idols, you play as Gabriel, a soldier of the god of the sun who has infiltrated the perpetually stormy island settlement of Tormentosa, a locale that is part of Hispania, a nightmarish version of Spain. Gabriel is waging war against the sea god for his master and receives his mission instructions through visions that the sun god sends him. He must make his way across the island, working alongside the remnants of a human resistance that is struggling to survive against statues that have been given some form of sentience and now move with murderous purpose. Throughout it all, he is dragged further and further into the history and politics of the ongoing war between the two deities.

The best part of Crisol is its blood-for-bullets mechanic. There is no ammo in Crisol--instead, you refill each firearm by injecting Gabriel's blood into them. This, obviously, hurts. As a result, Gabriel's health and firearm ammo both pull from the same resource bar. This is not too much of an issue on the easiest difficulty, but on the harder ones, this blood-for-bullets mechanic makes for an interesting risk-versus-reward gameplay loop. You have to carefully manage how much you reload your firearms.

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Need some extra gems in Star Fishing? There’s a good chance that you need that extra boost or a little more cash to afford the next tier of equipment. If so, you can type in the currently available codes to earn limited-time rewards. While cash is almost exclusively equipment or quest-related, the gems are the true treasure, as you can exchange them for either potions or tools to create perfect rings that greatly boost your stats.

After entering these Star Fishing codes, you’ll have enough gems and cash to get you started. However, to finish the various quests, you’ll likely need to learn which fishing spots have the Star Fishing star locations you require for that particular task. This Roblox game is constantly expanding, too, and with each update, a new code will appear that you can redeem for even more bonus cash and gems.

Getting enough cash and gems is needed to get better gear and fish in areas that have rarer stars.Active Star Fishing codes

Below are all of the active Star Fishing codes available for you to enter right this minute:

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Resident Evil Requiem looks set to end the month on a high note, and if you're looking to dig into the new mainline chapter's gory lore, now might be a good time to log off. Reports are coming in that physical editions of the new survival-horror game have made their way into the hands of players ahead of its planned February 27 release date. If history has proven anything, it's only a matter of time before footage is uploaded to various channels.

"I can personally verify there is at least one person out there who bought Resident Evil Requiem from a store selling early," reliable Resident Evil leaker Dusk Golem posted online. "If one person has been able to get it early, then some others will too, so officially, floodgates are open but it may take a couple days before anything starts leaking."

With Resident Evil celebrating its 30th anniversary this year and fan theories doing the rounds about how this instalment could have some big twists, now is probably a good time to start curating your social media feeds or take a sabbatical from them if you're looking to go into the game without it being spoiled for you.

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During Sony's recent State of Play, the company made a series of big announcements, including the reveal of the next game from PUBG owner Krafton. Project Windless, as it's known for now, is an open-world action RPG in the works for PC and PS5 (and possibly other console platforms) that is inspired by the Korean novel series The Bird That Drinks Tears. Some call the books the "Korean Lord of the Rings."

The game made an immediate splash thanks to its impressive and eye-catching trailer and the fact that the game puts you into the claws and beak of a Rekon, a warrior humanoid bird. The game's reveal prompted a number of memes and jokes, including the inevitable Peter Griffin vs. Ernie the Giant Chicken references.

Here's everything we know so far about Project Windless, which we assume is not the game's final title. Keep checking back, as we'll update this post with more information as it's announced.

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