Rather than expanding on the survival crafting elements of the original, STARSEEKER instead largely leaves those gameplay systems behind. Rather, it jumps into an entirely different genre altogether, with more similarities with extraction shooters than anything else. The title puts you in the role of an Astroneer on the ESS Starseeker—a spaceship tasked with exploring the far reaches of space and conducting scientific experiments. You’re not alone in this, however. The ESS Starseeker, which essentially acts as the central hub where you can do things like take on missions or change gear, is filled with other Astroneers as well. Right from the get go, STARSEEKER makes its emphasis on multiplayer quite clear.

"Rather than expanding on the survival crafting elements of the original, STARSEEKER instead largely leaves those gameplay systems behind."

While the core game loop is quite simple, setting you up to take drop pods to strange alien planets where you can explore, gather resources, complete objectives for more rewards, and get science points by scanning flora and fauna, the general structure of the whole experience revolves around completing simple missions, which task you with, for example, scanning a certain number of alien plants, or gathering a certain amount of Resin. Each expedition allows you to team up with up to three other Astroneers, and even if you jump in alone, you will often get thrown into expeditions that already have other players running around.

Once on the planet itself, you also have to deal with a strict time limit. You have a limited amount of oxygen, after all, and you need to complete all of your objectives in 30 minutes. Dying has severe penalties as well, denying you all of the resources you may have gathered. Once you’ve accomplished everything you wanted on a given run, you then have to make your way to one of the many launchpads all over the map, and call in a drop pod to take you back to the ESS Starseeker.

Much like other extraction-styled games, each expedition in STARSEEKER: Astroneer Expeditions also has other players and teams running around completing their own objectives. Thanks to a complete lack of any PvP mechanics in the entire game, players are instead incentivized to work together to complete the many objectives on the map. To help you accomplish this without having to worry about potential language barriers that are bound to pop up in a typical multiplayer game, STARSEEKER also features a simple pinging system where, on pinging something on the map, other Astroneers can acknowledge your objective and offer to help by pinging back. The entire system works quite well, and is context-sensitive, changing the meaning of a ping depending on what you’re looking at.

"Thanks to a complete lack of any PvP mechanics in the entire game, players are instead incentivized to work together to complete the many objectives on the map."

Unfortunately, one of the biggest issues with STARSEEKER: Astroneer Expeditions is its poor tutorialization. While it encourages trial-and-error, letting you learn from mistakes you might make throughout your time with the game, it doesn’t really teach you much about how its many systems work, and even its UI can often be incredibly clunky. When you first get to the ESS Starseeker, for example, it can be difficult to figure out how you’re even supposed to start an expedition, and it took me around 15 minutes of running around the place and interacting with just about every in-game terminal I could find to finally get to the one that let me start missions. The “map” you get in the hub area is also quite possibly the most useless thing I’ve ever seen in the game. Aside from the position of a few of the NPCs, this map doesn’t really tell you anything, including your own position in the starship.

The expedition menu also certainly needs further development. While other co-op games give you options to create a party before you start a mission, and STARSEEKER: Astroneer Expeditions certainly has menu elements that imply that you could do so here as well, there just isn’t any menu option, or even a confirmation dialogue box about if you’re sure you want to start your journey solo. You can also only track up to three of your missions at a time, which, combined with the inability to get the full mission list while on an expedition, makes attempts at knocking out more missions in a single go all the more frustrating.

Progression also feels incredibly opaque throughout STARSEEKER: Astroneer Expeditions. There isn’t really any skill tree to speak of, and new outfits are just cosmetic choices. That’s not to say there aren’t some progression systems in the game; you can upgrade some of your capabilities by crafting and installing new modules in your suit. These boosts tend to be quite simple, like raising your maximum stamina, for example. Each of the major NPCs also has their own distinct reputation track which you can progress through by completing the missions they give you. Making it further up these reputation tracks will reward you with more items, like new modules or extra resources to use in crafting.

"Progression also feels incredibly opaque throughout STARSEEKER: Astroneer Expeditions."

Visually, STARSEELER: Astroneer Expeditions certainly has a lot of charm. Just about every character, despite being covered head-to-toe in their Astroneer suits, oozes plenty of charm thanks to simple things, like how they stand around. Mission descriptions also do quite a bit to help flesh out some characters, letting their quirky personalities shine through. Even the game’s various regions can often be quite fun to explore thanks to a plethora of strange flora and fauna that look equal parts interesting and gross, depending on the scenario. All of this was combined with great performance on the PS5 version, where I didn’t suffer a single hitch or slowdown despite how chaotic things could sometimes get.

Generally speaking, STARSEEKER: Astroneer Expeditions feels quite half-baked in its current incarnation. However, it is worth noting that it is an Early Access release, and System Era Softworks has confirmed that it will continue to work on the title for at least a whole year. The studio’s roadmap has also outlined how it plans to expand on the game’s content over the coming year with additions like biomes, regions, and points of interest. Thankfully, STARSEEKER: Astroneer Expeditions’ problems aren’t foundational ones, and many of my biggest complaints largely come down to the fact that the title simply needs more time in the oven.

As it currently stands, STARSEEKER: Astroneer Expeditions is a difficult game to recommend. While the core loop can certainly be quite fun, especially if you jump into an expedition with a full party of friends, it just doesn’t offer enough in the way of gameplay depth or variety right now to be worth more than an evening of fun. Combined with an incredible number of rough edges all over the title, I would say that you should give STARSEEKER a few months before jumping in.

This game was reviewed on PlayStation 5.

It’s quite the list, and we’re sure that you share our excitement for a majority of them. Without further ado, let’s get started!

1. Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced

Getting to return to the Caribbean to join Edward Kenway on his epic journey from a callous pirate to a noble Assassin is definitely something we’re very excited about. A revamped combat system, some extra story cutscenes, and those delightful visuals are just icing on the cake. This one comes out on July 9, 2026, for the PS5, XBOX Series X|S, and PC.

2. EA Sports College Football 27

The College Football franchise has been doing quite well for itself in recent years, and we don’t see why this year should be any different. We already know it’s bringing quite the roster for us to enjoy, with some very attractive goodies for those who pre-order any of its editions. Once again, it releases on July 9, 026, for the PS5, XBOX Series X|S, and PC.

3. Palworld 1.0 Release

We were blown away by the cinematic trailer that this one dropped recently, and it showcases stunning new locations with fascinating creatures for us to collect over the course of our adventure. It’s touted to be the game’s biggest update yet, and is sure to bring a lot of exciting new additions to the table as it brings us to the story’s finale when it drops on July 10, 2026, for all available platforms.

4. Splatoon Raiders

Getting to join a pirate musician group that’s raiding the Spirhalite Islands for treasure? Sign us up! Yesterday’s Direct showcase gave us quite a good look at this one, and it only made us all the more excited to try out its paint-based weapons, great progression systems, and of course, the Exploration Bot. Talk about the efficient use of tech. It’s slated for a June 30 release on the Switch 2.

5. Halo: Campaign Evolved

We’re still not over that awesome trailer that showed off the new Covenant faction, some very interesting footage from the new prequel missions, and of course, the return of Master Chief. The new weapons are equally intriguing, and we can’t wait to dive in and get blasting when this one releases for the XBOX Series X|S, PC, and PS5 on July 28 this year.

6. Beast of Reincarnation

Any journey that gives you a furry friend for company is definitely worth undertaking, in our book. When you combine that with some parry-focused Soulslike action and a very cool set of powers for Emma, the game’s protagonist, you get the recipe for a game that’s sure to have us grinding our teeth in frustration but determined to end whatever the Hush throws at us. It’s slated to release on August 4 for the PS5, PC, and XBOX Series X|S.

7. Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls

With a starting roster that brings some of Marvel’s best to the table for an action-packed gameplay loop, this one is definitely going to keep us occupied for quite a while. We’re particularly interested in the Episode Mode, where you participate against the enigmatic Champion in a Tournament where you’re surely going to have to bring your best skills to the table. Look our for this one on August 6 on your PC or PS5.

8. Mafia: The Old Country – Man of Honour

An expansion that doubles up on the nostalgia factor that put this one on the map in the first place is certainly welcome. It’s even better when it gives us a look at Don Salieri’s early days before his time in America that set the entire franchise in motion. The trailer was pretty interesting despite being a little to stingy with details, but it did tell us that this one’s releasing on August 14, 2026, on all available platforms.

9. The Sinking City 2

Lovecraftian adventures are always a great combination of thrills and chills, and the Slither is looking like a foe you don’t want to tangle with unless you’re Calvin Rafferty. Of course, the Deep Ones and Shadows are equally credible threats, and we’re quite curious to see how this one has us dealing with them when it comes out on August 18 for the PS5, PC, and XBOX Series X|S. There’s even a playable demo on Steam if you want to try it before buying it.

10. Hell Let Loose: Vietnam

We were pretty bummed about this one getting delayed to August 13 but do appreciate Team 17 taking player feedback and the results from its own playtests seriously enough to ask for more time to further polish this one before releasing it for all of us. We’re hoping it builds on everything that was good about its predecessor while adding interesting new twists to the table.

11. Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2

If you’ve been with us for a while, you probably already guessed that this one is definitely something we’re eager to dive into. The chance to revisit two titles that cemented our love for the franchise is very welcome, and Solid Snake’s final chapter is the one that has us as excited as we are. Of course, Peace Walker is also something we’re eager to play again, and it’s going to be a difficult choice between them then this one drops on August 27 this year for the PS5, PC, XBOX Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, and the Switch 2.

12. Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy

Sophie was among the more interesting characters in Requiem, and her role in Amicia and Hugo’s adventure in that one presented her as a complex and nuanced character. It’s only logical, then, that a look into her early days as a headstrong young smuggler exploring Minotaur Island has us itching to get started with it already. Fortunately, we don’t have to wait too long until this one drops on August 27, 2026, for the PC, PS5, and XBOX Series.

13. Star Wars Zero Company

A ragtag group of mercenaries that include a Jedi, a noble, a droid, and a former Separatist embarking on an adventure set during the Clone Wars is music to the ears of any Star Wars fan, and we’re no exception. The addition of Anakin Skywalker before his turn to the Dark Side is another interesting twist that makes this one a very compelling addition to this list. It’s out on August 27 this year for the PC, PS5, and XBOX Series X|S.

14. Elden Ring Tarnished Edition

The wait for this one has been a long one, but it’s finally coming out on August 28 this year on all available platforms and the Nintendo Switch 2. There’s new weapons, armor, and a very welcome option to customize Torrent being added to the base game and its DLC, and it’s as good a reason as any for us to begin a new playthrough in the run-up to its release. We’re pretty excited, even if that means taking on the Blade of Miquella yet again.

15. EA Sports Madden NFL 27

We were already looking forward to this one before EA highlighted how the Persona Engine is gearing up to make each athlete feel quite unique when they step onto the pitch, aside from the Superstar GOAT progression path giving us a reason to keep coming back to it for more. And that’s only the beginning of all the cool stuff this one’s bringing to the franchise when it releases on August 13, 2026, for the PC, PS5, and XBOX Series X|S.

16. The Blood of Dawnwalker

We’ve been very eager to play this one ever since it was first announced, and the wait for its September 3 release has been tantalizing at best, and agonizing every time we’ve got a new glimpse of its gameplay. Of course, the latest trailer has only exacerbated those feelings as we got to see Coen and Brencis’s fight transcend the passage of time, just as vampires should, making this one a game we’re going to be diving head-first into as soon as we get the chance.

17. Valheim 1.0 Release

The Deep North update and the end of this one’s Early Access period as it makes its PS5 and Switch 2 debut has us very interested in learning what new additions it’s bringing to the table in a survival crafting gameplay loop that’s also a great take on norse mythology. The snowy weather isn’t the only thing to look forward to, as there are going to be new enemies, places, and faces to engage with when it drops on September 9, 2026.

18. Marvel’s Wolverine

Boy, oh boy, was that look that we got into this one at the recent State of Play a good one. Insomniac made a lot of good choices in its take on Logan, and the inclusion of Jean Grey and some very high stakes for the cast make this one a very engaging title indeed. Wolverine looks like a fresh take on a very familiar character, and the mechanics look like they weave his unique powers into the gameplay loop quite well. It’s out on September 15, 2026, and is exclusive to the PS5.

19.Trials In The Sky Second Chapter

We’ve known that this one is coming for a while, and although a concrete release date is yet to be announced, it’s probably going to be out in late September. Its predecessor ended on quite the cliffhanger and it’s quite a tempting title to consider even in the midst of a very crowded release calendar thanks to one of the big names on our list. We’re definitely keeping an eye out for this one.

20. Trine 6: Together in Time

This puzzle platformer brings a vibrant color palette to a world that’s full of mysteries waiting to be explored, and a charming cast aimed at being memorable by virtue of their unique abilities and the synergies they build based off of them.You get to play it with upto three of your buddies, with a bunch of common abilities and a combat system that lets you make the most of them all thrown in. It’s releasing for the PC, PS5, Switch, Switch 2 and XBOX Series X|S on 17 September, 2026.

21. Control Resonant

How did Remedy choose to build on what made the predecessor to this one great? Well, it’s opened up the doors of the FBC and let its protagonist loose in a version of Manhattan that’s been warped beyond recognition. There are enemy designs that range from bizarre to surreal, while the combat takes a more hands-on approach this time around. This one’s out on September 24 for the PC, PS5, and XBOX Series X|S,

22. Hot Wheels Infinite Rush

Based on Mattel’s popular line of collectibles, this one is an open-world arcade racer that ditches photorealism in favor of a more amusing take on Hot Wheels, allowing it to bring its own version of the track sets we’ve always wanted to build to life. It also brings full cross-play compatibility to the table, allowing you to set up evenings of racing that could have you very entertained indeed. It’s coming to the PS5, PC, XBOX Series, and the Switch 2 on September 24, 2026.

23. Silent Hill: Townfall

Simon Ordell’s time in St. Amelia is vastly different from Hinako’s adventure in Silent Hill f, but that doesn’t make it any less unsettling in the limited glimpses we’ve got of this one. It has all the staples of the franchise, such as nasty monsters and an intense, moody setting, coupled with new additions that make this one a game to look forward to if you’ve got nerves of steel. It’s coming out for the PS5 and PC on September 24.

24. Valor Mortis

The chance to play as an undead soldier in a story set during the Napoleonic Wars is definitely something that made us sit up and pay attention, and everything we’ve seen of this one so far points to an experience that’s sure to test our skills and our patience in this first-person Soulslike. Once again, this one’s hitting the shelves on September 24 for the PC and PS5.

25. Onimusha: Way of the Sword

Miyamoto Musashi is back, and he’s bringing the Oni Gauntlet back in all its glory in a title that’s as brutal as they come on the gameplay front. The fight against Shuten-dōji in the recently released trailer was reason enough for us to be interested in this one, but the playable demo now has us itching to get into it in earnest. We’re going to have to wait until September 25 for that chance, though, and it’s coming to the PS5, PC, and XBOX Series X|S.

26. Minecraft Dungeons II

A new evil, two new worlds, and the chance of a closer look at The Nether are all factors that contribute to our enthusiasm for this one. There’s also the new combat that was shown off in a recent trailer to look forward to, alongside the potential for some very cool DLC being added to it after its September 29 release for both iterations of the Switch, PS5, PC, and XBOX Series X|S.

27. Phantom Blade Zero

We’ve got high hopes for this one, and a lot of confidence that it isn’t going to disappoint when it comes out on October 29 after a delay that’s using the extra time for some polishing. It’s combat and traversal mechanics all point to a title that’s slick, fast, and challenging, all of which are very attractive features for any game to have. The premise is equally engaging, and we can’t wait to dive into this one when it comes out for the PS5 and PC.

28. Rayman Legends Retold

It’s always great to see Rayman again, and this time around, the classic character is coming back to the spotlight in style. There’s a fully-3D art style that brings a colorful world to life with aplomb, while the story might be familiar to those of you who’ve played through Rayman Legends. This platformer is definitely worth looking out for, and is coming out October 1, 2026, for the PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S.

29. Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve

Taking to the skies in fighter jets is always going to be an exhilarating experience, and the addition of superweapons and the ability to send enemy fighters crashing into one another are all facets that add to the allure of this game. It’s out on October 2 for the PS5, PC, and XBOX Series X|S and there’s an attractive bunch of content for those of you who pre-order it.

30. Gears of War: E-Day

This one’s been a long time coming and we can’t wait to rejoin Marcus Fenix on an adventure that’s going to take us back to the beginning of the war between mankind and The Locusts. Despite the lack of a PS5 version on its October 6 launch date, you’re still going to get to play it on XBOX and PC. It’s also going to be on Game Pass from day one, so there’s that. It’s as action-packed as you’d expect, going by the trailer from the XBOX Games Showcase.

31. Star Wars: Galactic Racer

Pod racing in a galaxy far, far, away sounds like the perfect way to unwind after a long day, doesn’t it? We doubt we’re going to be doing a lot of relaxing after seeing this one in action at the 2026 edition of Summer Game Fest, though. It comes with a lot of tension both on and off the tracks as you race to become the new champion of the Galactic Racing League. This one’s ready to go on October 6 for the PS5, PC, and XBOX Series X|S.

32. Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse

This 2D side-scrolling Metroidvania puts the Belmont family whip in the hands of a nimble new protagonist who must use it to take on Dracula’s forces in Paris, hitting them where it hurts while getting more powerful in the process. Trailers indicate that exploration is a crucial part of it, along with the potential integration of RPG mechanics into its progression loop. It’s coming to the PS5, PC, XBOX Series X|S, and Switch 2 on October 15, 2026.

33. Grand Theft Auto 6

This one’s certainly one that we’ve all been waiting for with patience (and a fair bit of impatience after last year’s delay), and is sure to take over the discourse around gaming when it arrives. It’s been imposing enough that other developers have done their best to give it a wide berth with some interesting effects on the year’s release calendar that you might have already noticed, even on this list. It’s out on November 19 for the PS5 and XBOX Series X|S, with no news of a PC release at the time of writing.

34. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Remake

One of the Zelda franchise’s heavy hitters getting a remake is obviously good news. However, Nintendo has been quite cryptic when it comes to details about its gameplay and potential improvements to the Ocarina of Time remake, and there’s no official release date at this time other than a rumored November-December release window. It’s exclusive to the Switch and Switch 2.

35. The Duskbloods

FromSoft has been rather quiet since Nightreign came out, and that’s because it has been hard at work on this PvEvP Switch 2 exclusive that lets you take control of the Bloodsworn, fierce warriors who are competing against each other for possession of the First Blood, although they might find themselves working together when the situation demands it. There are over 12 unique characters to engage with, although we’re yet to get an official release date on it.

And that’s about it for this one. It’s quite a crowded calendar for the second half of the year, but we’re sure a lot of you share our excitement for all the great titles that it’s set to bring. More games, more memories, and more fun is how we’re choosing to look at it.

But at its core lies something heartfelt: a gritty, tightly-focused undertaking where facing harsh, inescapable reality is the only route to survival.

Studio Liquid Swords acknowledged the game’s shortcomings on day one, admitting that performance issues were unacceptable before vowing to improve quality, gameplay, and content. While Samson McCray may be trapped in a downward spiral, the developers behind him are facing a different test – whether they can channel that pressure into meaningful change.

And they got off to a flying start, showing they’ve got the steel to earn their second chance. The first day after launch saw a sizeable update, focused on mending a suite of immersion-breaking problems. Performance and crashes were the most immediate concerns, accompanied by fixes for glitching animation, inconsistent AI behaviour, and malfunctioning saves.

Yet, even in moments when the game held together technically, mechanical friction persisted in that first update’s wake. Combat, while functional, was hampered by awkward camera work and limited readability, making encounters clumsy and disruptive rather than a defining feature. Missions followed familiar tropes, with an air of repetition dulling the game’s loop.

"Even in moments when the game held together technically, mechanical friction persisted in that first update’s wake."

Individually, these issues were manageable. As a collective, they made it impossible to see Samson for what it was trying to be. Underneath all those rough edges was a diamond; a game with a focused identity that was simply overshadowed by its shortcomings.

On a macro level, Samson: A Tyndalston Story is defined by pressure, the sum of its systems revolving around debt, daily quotas, and the constant threat from egregious power. It’s less about exploratory freedom and more about doing what you need to do to survive, setting it apart from more conventional open world design.

This tension isn’t for everyone. Indeed, the studio acknowledged as such in our recent interview; while some players embrace the urgency and momentum, others find it restrictive or even stressful. That divide, however, is precisely what needs preserving. See, in an increasingly risk-averse industry, Samson’s commitment to a finely-tuned, demanding structure is refreshing.

There are foundational elements which stand out; the city of Tyndalston itself, for example. It’s a dense, hostile, characterful setting, replete in atmosphere and detail. And those familiar, if underbaked systems – combat, missions, vehicular traversal – all serve a functional role within the larger environment. It is this existence of a solid blueprint that made Samson’s launch so frustrating. The ideas are there, and the game ostensibly works, but it didn’t feel good to play.

So, this begs the question why the game was released when it did. Surely a few more weeks in development wouldn’t have forced the studio to undergo a campaign of redemption. Well, the answer is found in external financial pressure. See, regardless of scope – narrow when compared to big-budget triple-A experiences, but wide-ranging for Liquid Swords’ tight-knit team – tradeoffs had to be made. Some systems received more attention than others, while diagnosed issues were unresolved before launch. Ultimately, the game needed to ship, but the irony of the studio’s situation is hard to ignore. Samson, in-game, forces you to act with urgency, and in a way that’s exactly how the game itself arrived.

But, to the studio’s credit, they have taken ownership of the game’s shortcomings, levied its criticism, and are forging ahead with an aggressive, sustained rebuild. Following Samson’s first post-launch update, five more followed to address the game’s myriad issues.

"Surely a few more weeks in development wouldn’t have forced the studio to undergo a campaign of redemption. "

Coming in phases, crashes and overall performance were the team’s biggest concern, swiftly followed by functionality fixes. Vital AI reworks, from how the city’s police force escalate their response, to how smoothly enemies move through combat zones have seen notable revision. That cumbersome camera work – a considerable bugbear amongst the game’s community – has been overhauled, with perspectives now shifting dynamically during encounters to ensure a clearer read on incoming threats.

Vehicular traversal is another element to be significantly reworked, the mechanic itself encapsulating Liquid Swords’ course-correcting workflow. First came physics, performance, and animation fixes, then expansions to vehicle functionality. Improved controls, adjusted impact damage, plus tweaks to city-wide traffic and navigation. Now, the focus shifts to cosmetic, with vehicle customisation options included in the game’s most recent content update.

As the update roadmap progresses, so too does the impact of the changes. A substantial content update arrived mid-May, delivering three new difficulty modes, new jobs, and, crucially, the most immersive addition yet: debt collectors who can turn up unexpectedly across more locations throughout the city, expanding the game’s central tension across the whole experience.

Then most recently it received The Pit update, adding the Lowline Circuit Race Track, vehicle customization, and a new area in the map. The new taxi gigs and jobs should give the world extra life beyond racing.

What Liquid Swords is delivering isn’t just a game that performs more stably, but they’re shrinking the gap between vision and reality. Samson: A Tyndalston Story is becoming the game it was always intended to be. Still a diamond in the rough, but as the studio puts it to us in our recent interview: “there’s value in games that are a bit rougher.”

And that roughness, they go on to define, imbues the game’s personality and focus. You could interpret this as a statement on triple-A game production at large – games which cater to all tastes invariably end up forgettable. The challenge for Samson was to make sure that its jagged edges – its personality and focus; its distinctness – didn’t undermine the core experience.

"What Liquid Swords is delivering isn’t just a game that performs more stably, but they’re shrinking the gap between vision and reality."

Unfortunately, however, that’s exactly what happened. In our candid post-launch interview, the studio acknowledged that they underestimated the impact of the game’s technical shortcomings. But, just as importantly, they admitted to a failure in communication. Samson’s players weren’t prepared for what the game actually was, in design and playable condition alike.

Going back to the dichotomous viewpoint among Samson’s players – some embracing urgency, others pushing back against it – the game isn’t designed to be comfortable. But, in lieu of clear pre-release messaging, that tension risked feeling like needless friction rather than intentional design. Alongside their decision to deprioritise technical issues in favour of getting the game shipped, the studio recognises that these problems should have been addressed earlier.

Still, regardless of Liquid Swords taking ownership of their shortcomings, the game remains divisive. Some players are rallying behind it, supporting a smaller studio by praising their ambition to fully realise their vision, while others are less forgiving, arguing that no amount of post-launch fixes – small team or not – excuses the game launching in such a compromised state. In many ways, the surrounding conversation mirrors the game itself, where tension proves difficult to fully agree on.

So, back to the original question: is Samson: A Tyndalston Story fixed? Well, technically, yes, in large parts. It’s stable, far more playable, and freshly shined with newfound polish. But, if we’re talking fundamentally, then the game is getting close. There’s still room to evolve, where limitations in mission variety still persist, for instance.

The bottom line: Samson is now a good, distinctive, still slightly rough game, but it’s no longer broken. And, most importantly, it’s worth supporting if you buy into its core idea – that of pressure being an all-encompassing motivator, no matter the cost. And, for the first time, it feels like a game no longer crushed by external pressure either, but beginning to be shaped by it.

Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, GamingBolt as an organization.

An Open World, Survival-Driven RPG Sequel

If you wanted a punishing, systems-heavy survival experience back in 2019 then Outward was your masochistic go-to. Despite its technical shortcomings and a lack of polish, the original has grown into something of a cult favourite. Now, a bolder, more unforgiving, yet just as rewarding sequel is on the horizon. Outward 2 is set to revitalise hardship, with more consequential RPG choices, unique playstyles, overhauled combat, and a roster of tough-as-nails enemies making survival across this beautiful open world a sterner test than its predecessor.

A Relatable, Human Journey

Beginning Outward 2, you’re just a regular human; a commoner, not innately powerful, without magic or combat skill. Outside the relative safety of city walls, in the unfettered wilds, is where you earn your growth, with distinct classes and playstyles emerging as you become more adept at making it through the night. Developer Nine Dots Studio is positioning this sequel as “the ultimate simulation of an adventurer’s life” – rising from zero to hero, with the satisfaction this brings, is where Outward 2 portrays its believable, relatable, deeply human themes.

Survival is Your First Concern

Before you can even think about dabbling in heroics, however, Outward 2 thrusts upon you a slate of survival concerns – hunger, thirst, exhaustion, even harsh weather will kill the most careful explorer long-before encountering any of the game’s gamut of deadly creatures. Whilst the sequel refuses to hold your hand, the adverse effects of these survival mechanics – sickness, fatigue, and so on – aren’t designed to punish you but to teach the importance of preparation. You’ll need that skill as you venture further, and the stakes grow higher.

Your Backpack Can Be a Source of Friction

Embodying the relatability of Outward 2’s human endeavour more than most is the game’s backpack mechanics. You’ll need to load it up with food, weapons, potions, and camping gear, but how much should you take? Overloading slows your movement to a snail’s pace, but leaving a provision behind, something you may need later, could spell certain doom should an inopportune moment emerge. More so, heavy bag or not, you’re best dropping it when encountering a foe; it’ll enable you to barrel-roll out of harm’s way, if only for a second.

Fully Playable Online and Co-op

Completing Outward 2 is possible as a solo player, but if you wish to share the burden of staying alive long enough to see the end then good news – the sequel is fully playable in both online and split-screen co-op, with partners able to seamlessly drop in and out. At launch, at least, there’s no matchmaking system for finding online companions, so if you fancy teaming up but don’t have a mate to join you then you can check out the studio’s dedicated Discord server.

Aurai is a Dynamic Open World

While the sequel is undeniably gorgeous, the open world of Aurai is a hostile place. And, without fast travel or mounts, route planning and preparation is paramount. With four distinct regions to discover, each containing unique biomes, environmental threat, and gameplay constraints, venturing from one area to the next forces you to adapt your gear and your approach. See, while heavy armour will keep you protected in a monster-filled forest, it’ll cause deadly hyperthermia in a sun-scorched desert. In short: you’ll need to prep accordingly.

Cycling Seasonal Shifts

Biome diversity isn’t the only reason you’ll be rethinking your tactics, but each of Aurai’s regions are affected by seasonal shifts and weather patterns too. That monster-filled forest we mentioned? It’ll be a balmy place to explore during Springtime, but previously accessible paths will be frozen come Winter. Freezing temperatures may open other routes, of course, but learning how to manage extreme heat and cold alike will be crucial to surviving the game’s seasonal shifts.

Character Creation Includes Starting Scenarios

One of Outward 2’s defining character creation tools is the ability to choose your avatar’s starting scenario. Alongside familial backgrounds and traits, how your character begins their journey is up to you – are you a mountain-dwelling miner, or a denizen of a subterranean realm? How your choice of starting location intertwines with the wider story – if each permanently diverges or coalesces at the same point – is unclear, but they give stronger reasons to get out of the comfort of your home village than picking just your likeness or stats.

Exercises is a New Progression System

Up to this point, many of Outward 2’s improvements revolve around refining already existing systems, but the all-new Exercise system is something else entirely: a redefinition of how character progression works. Performing tasks built around survival, crafting, combat, and more, completes an ‘exercise’ which you can then choose to adapt into your build, unlocking permanent stat boosts and passive abilities. There are five attribute branches to follow, but you won’t be able to max out every exercise. This means long-term character planning is essential, with the sequel encouraging you to follow a path toward a specialised playstyle.

The Reading System Synergises with Exercises

Exercises, however, are only one half of the coin. While they encourage you to learn by physically doing certain actions, Outward 2’s Reading system provides foundational knowledge which you’ll need to dedicate time to studying. After tracking down specific books, you’ll be given the opportunity to read them at camp, but the information contained within their pages isn’t gleaned immediately. Reading is a time investment, just like Exercises, and you’ll need to hit certain criteria for both before a specialised trainer – of which numerous are scattered throughout the open world – will teach you an advanced skill.

Combat Has Been Refined

While the weighty feel and fundamental need to drop your bag remains, Outward 2 expands its predecessor’s combat by introducing the ability to dual-wield any weapon combination freely. Two pistols, a sword and an axe, even two shields if you think there’s payoff in such a strategy. Meanwhile, the mechanical clunkiness of the original has been refined with smoother, more responsive animation, with swift dodges, rolls, and seamless transitions between attacks, parries, dodges, and more.

Spellcasting Remains an Involved Process

While combat receives a quiet overhaul, magic wielding in Outward 2 remains a deliberate, involved, near-sacrificial process. See, in order to build your mana, you’ll need to permanently sacrifice some of your health, and if you pursue a pure-magelike build you’ll be brittle to the touch. Elsewhere, casting spells still follows a ritualistic procedure, where you’ll need physical stones which act as catalysts to create sigils. New Willpower attributes, reading magic spellbooks, and hybridising magic with the sequel’s new dual-weapon mechanics give spellcasting some distinction over the first game.

Defeat Leads to Unique Situations

Similar to its forebear, defeat in Outward 2 doesn’t mean death. What actually happens is you’ll be carried, unconscious, to parts unknown. A cave, perhaps a bandit camp, and you’ll either have your backpack with you or you’ll need to scope it out amidst an uncertain backdrop. Maps in Outward 2 don’t include a marker; it’s just a map, so losing your gear could prove quite an annoyance. Still, you could wake up in worse condition – injured, robbed, or both.

Hardcode Mode Negates Frequent Auto-Saves

As the game auto-saves frequently in Outward 2, your decisions carry extra weight. In other words: you’re forced to live with the outcome of your choices, both good and bad. However, if this loop isn’t tough enough for you, the sequel ships with a Hardcode Mode. Here, there’s a 20% chance that defeat will wipe your save file, permadeath-style. That ever-present risk adds a layer of tension to every encounter, turning even routine fights into high-stakes gambles where continuing is never guaranteed.

Early Access Comes With the Usual Caveats

Releasing to early access means Outward 2 will arrive as a work in progress. On PC only, you can expect ongoing balance changes, system refinements, and bug fixes as development rolls on. A broader roadmap will shape community feedback into meaningful iterations before more biomes, classes, and events unlock. A beta is available to play right now, with studio Nine Dots recently publishing a list of fixes to the game’s Steam page, arising from player feedback.

Better Than Dead has an incredibly serious premise. The player is put into the shoes of an unnamed girl that some criminals kidnapped. This awakens a hunger for revenge in the girl, and she decides that it’s time for her to stop being a victim. The first level essentially acts as her escape attempt after finding a pistol, and the core gameplay kicks off in full swing right away. As another layer of her revenge, the girl also wears a bodycam—which acts as the player’s perspective—to film the criminals that had dared to torture her.

There isn’t really much more to the story of Better Than Dead; the narrative almost entirely takes place through the environment and the various mission objectives you get. The girl seemingly has a list of people against whom she wants revenge, and each level acts as an escalation in her attempts to get at these people. There are also a few twists thrown your way, like one mission where you have to rescue another girl that was going to be victimized by the criminals, or an escape mission where the gangs you’ve been hunting down have found out where you live.

What makes Better Than Dead a truly interesting experience from a gameplay standpoint is how its gunplay works. The girl isn’t a trained fighter, and as such, you don’t get any form of a HUD to keep track of things like your health, stamina, or even a crosshair with which to aim your shots. Her overall lack of training also means that early levels will largely have you wildly flailing your arms around while firing, hoping that you hit an enemy rather than an innocent civilian. Aiming down sights doesn’t really help either, since the pistol has quite a bit of recoil.

However, the girl’s general incompetence doesn’t really last too long. As you make your way through the game’s 14 levels, you’ll find your shots hitting the right targets way more often. Her improvements are shown in-game in quite subtle ways, like her hands having better control over the gun’s recoil, and even her overall movement speed getting better and sliding on the ground feeling less clumsy.

"The girl isn’t a trained fighter, and as such, you don’t get any form of a HUD to keep track of things like your health, stamina, or even a crosshair with which to aim your shots."

Speaking of which, sliding on the floor is the only other ability you have aside from shooting your gun, and it will undoubtedly end up being your best friend. Pulling off a slide out of a sprint kicks off slow-motion, which helps quite a bit when dealing with the manic pace of combat throughout Better Than Dead. Once the girl’s accuracy improves, the slow motion also helps quite a bit in rooms that are crowded with innocent people, giving you more time to aim for the correct targets.

Better Than Dead also has a hidden scoring system with which it grades your performance. While you don’t get to see how well you might be doing during a level, you get a ranking at the end depending on how much time you took, how many enemies you killed, and how many innocents got caught in the crossfire.

It is worth noting that Better Than Dead is an incredibly fast-paced game, and the title even goes out of its way at times to remind you that trying to take cover and exchanging shots with enemies will likely result in your death. Rather, you’re supposed to be running and gunning, and making full use of your slide to kick off slow motion. Either way, death has the tendency to come quite quickly, and as a result, you’ll find yourself restarting entire levels often. Unfortunately, this was one of my major complaints about the shooter – the complete lack of any checkpoints.

While this wouldn’t really be an issue in most circumstances, Better Than Dead tends to have long levels with plenty of enemies, so the difficulty can often feel quite high, at least until you’ve repeated a level a few times. This trial-and-error gameplay loop works quite well in something faster paced, like the classic Hotline Miami titles, but Better Than Dead takes just a bit too long to get you back into the game following a death. This can make death feel more frustrating than it should.

As for the levels themselves, Better Than Dead opts for a photo-realistic perspective that has been heavily stylized thanks to the fish-eye lens and other distortions offered by the bodycam perspective. Generally speaking, the grounded, dirty levels that take you through the shady underworld of the unnamed city have been realized quite well, which is an impressive feat since it was made by a solo developer. The visual style of the game also pulls off a neat trick where just about everyone’s face has been pixelated, making the game look like a brutal news story you might catch in the evening.

"Better Than Dead opts for a photo-realistic perspective that has been heavily stylized thanks to the fish-eye lens and other distortions offered by the bodycam perspective."

When it comes to performance, Better Than Dead runs quite well. I had essentially zero performance issues throughout my time with the shooter, running it on an AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D CPU, a Radeon RX 7800 XT GPU, and 32 GB of RAM. The title was able to maintain a rock-solid frame rate of over 80 FPS the entire time, and even when new levels were loading in, I never felt any stutters or hitches. The fact that the performance is this good right off the bat despite it being an Early Access release bodes quite well for the game in the longer term.

I also have to give a special shout out to the clever use of music throughout Better Than Dead. While there isn’t really any music when most levels start, with the game instead focusing on the environmental sounds of busy streets or quiet ground floors of an old residential building, Once you’ve faced a couple of criminals, the music starts slowly kicking in, putting you in the necessary flow state that you’ll need to take on the game’s challenging levels. The music is also chosen quite well; a hideout, for example, will have a bass-thumping track, while a shootout in the slums will feature more guitars.

My only major complaint with Better Than Dead comes down to the fact that it is an incredibly short game that is packed with strong gameplay elements that could be used quite well with different game modes. While it is an Early Access game, and developer MONTE GALLO has also noted that there are plans to bring in an entirely new game mode that will be a “larger extension” of the core experience, in its current state, you won’t really get much more than an evening’s play time out of it. This is a shame, since the core gameplay is surprisingly addictive, and even just adding an arcade-styled mode where the scoring is more visible could boost its replayability quite a bit.

This game was reviewed on PC.

Developed by 24 Entertainment Lin’an and published by the innumerably wealthy NetEase, Blood Message appears to be reaching for something more specific: a grounded, cinematic take on action-adventure that favours weight, desperation, and immersion over mechanical complexity. If this early look is anything to go by, the game appears less about what you can do, and more about how convincingly it’ll make you feel throughout every perilous step.

Set in the late Tang Dynasty in 848 AD, Blood Message frames its story around a nameless messenger tasked with delivering a fateful communication across a treacherous, thousand mile-long landscape. Watching the Official Story Intro preview which premiered at Summer Games Fest, Blood Message immediately grounds you in its specific history, showcasing cultural and environmental texture of the era, from war-torn settlements to harsh deserts and vast wildernesses stretching across East and Central Asia.

There are personal stakes to our messenger’s mission too – reuniting with and protecting his son – giving his journey an emotional weight beyond securing the future of his homeland.

Crucially, though, Blood Message isn’t a stylised, Wuxia-infused take on this period. Instead, the overriding experience draws from history rather than embellishing it with fantasy. And in doing so, its narrative themes match the action’s grounded tone.

Yet, despite this groundedness, Blood Message’s cinematics sell an illusion. See, at a glance, exploration treads familiar paths – squeeze-through gaps, leg-ups, contextual traversal – feeling instantly recognisable to anyone who’s spent time with Uncharted or The Last of Us. But Blood Message distinguishes itself from Naughty Dog’s output in how its cameras frame exploration. It’s rarely static, instead responding to and shifting with movement and character proximity in a way that evokes a handheld intimacy rather than a traditional cinematic perspective.

And this approach to camerawork pays off in smaller, easily missable details. In one early moment of the gameplay reveal, our protagonist drops to a knee following a surprise encounter. The camera pushes in close, hovering for a brief pause as danger emerges ahead. It only lasts a few seconds, and it may appear like simple direction, but this vanguard style underlines something remarkable – whilst these moments are undoubtedly choreographed, the camerawork makes them feel improvised. Capturing the rawness and minutiae as it happens, Blood Message’s presentation is paradoxical; every frame is meaningfully composed, yet seeming without a thought to composition at all.

And this paradox feeds into the game’s combat too, which appears systemically dense on first read but plays out stragglingly, forcing an element of improvisation which mirrors the unsteady cameras. You’ve access to the usual core manoeuvres: light and heavy attacks, dodges, blocks, parries, and counters, and while not mechanically novel, intrigue comes in laboured movement and animation variety.

In the gameplay reveal’s first multi-man skirmish, our protagonist is knocked off balance after parrying; the consequence, it seems, of having his feet unset following a brutal takedown. Executions are visceral, diverse, and dynamic, our protagonist plunging his blade into chests, slicing limbs, and breaking necks without hesitation. In one specifically grisly execution, our protagonist is interrupted mid-strike, with an extra on-screen input prompting you to continue his killing action. See, even the most conclusive actions can present strong reactions, and this is one of Blood Message’s standout combat features, demanding constant situational awareness.

Enemies won’t necessarily wait for you to finish off their ally either, swinging into the fray to create two-on-one pressure. Another one of the gameplay reveal’s emergent moments comes in a second, more chaotic fight. As our protagonist grapples an assailant, his comrade impatiently steps in, accidentally sinking a blade into his ally’s bicep.

The environment plays a role in how battles play out, too. Clay pots can smash an opponent’s face, enemies can be hoofed into storage shelves which then shatter and collapse around them, and troughs can be used as pools for disorientating opponents, dunking their head underwater before landing the killing blow.

And when the bout is over, our protagonist shows fatigue. He’s not a superhero, nor mage or acrobat, but a regular soldier thrust into a vulnerable situation, and the toll shows in his laboured movement. Fights aren’t necessarily about maintaining momentum, but grit and determination.

Between battle arenas, however, are stealth sections, and these follow the standard tropes too: tall grass, dark shadows, silent takedowns, including an Assassin’s Creed-like aerial assault. You’re likely familiar with Blood Message’s subterfuge stylings already, but there is a distinction found once-again in presentation. See, the gameplay reveal’s stealth sections showcase numerous takedown animations, and it’s here, away from multi-enemy chaos, that a question arises: how are these animations assigned? Are they contextual, systems-driven, chosen by proximity and direction of approach, or completely random?

"He’s not a superhero, nor mage or acrobat, but a regular soldier thrust into a vulnerable situation, and the toll shows in his laboured movement."

It’s an interesting thought, sure, but the bottom line is this level of variety prevents the stealth sections from feeling too formulaic, at least during the footage’s 19-minute runtime. Another differentiator, perhaps, are environmental triggers, and we see two in the gameplay reveal: a flock of birds who alert a guard when disturbed, and a caged dog which draws an enemy’s attention as our protagonist passes its line of sight. The takeaway here, then, is that Blood Message’s stealth isn’t just about remaining invisible but maintaining situational awareness.

If you’ve any doubt Blood Message is a cinema-first experience, the reveal’s closing set-piece chase should convince you. Mechanically, the sequence can be broken down into a series of jumps, vaults, and QTEs, with lots of running in-between. The transition between gameplay and scripted events is seamless, lending the feeling of playing a movie over interacting with a defined system. The low input complexity ensures the chase’s dynamic design – the collapsing structures, clinging on by fingertips, leaping from rooftops – is meant to be experienced in one go, first time, rather than a sequence to be memorised and mastered. Combat and exploration aren’t quite as basic, but they share the same philosophy.

Visually, Blood Message impresses through texture and detail as much as spectacle. Weathered brickwork, worn fabrics, and dirt-streaked skin all carry a tangible sense of place, reinforced by enveloping illumination. Sound design follows suit, with subtle notes, like the countless creaks of aging wood, adding to the tactile immersion. And voice acting, despite the language barrier for English speakers, reinforces the game’s grounded tone, where feelings of confidence and desperation transcend borders.

While reaction is indeed positive, there is some criticism levied against Blood Message’s simplicity, with its over-familiarity luring it closely to Naughty Dog’s established formula. But there is a key question you can ask at this juncture: does simplicity matter when the story and execution are on point?

Look – while broader narrative details are currently unknown, Blood Message’s ‘cinematic-first, systems-second’ approach could deliver something genuinely special. Combat is visceral yet it isn’t deep, stealth is familiar but reactive, and set-pieces are guided and thrilling. The game is set to bring a cohesive cinematic vision where player expression takes a backseat for grounded action. Again, it’s less about what you can do, but more about how you feel when doing it.

Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, GamingBolt as an organization.

1. Register More Pets

The number of pets you can register has been raised to a hundred, although you can only have fifty of them running around your camp at any given time. As for the rest, we’re going to assume that our fellow Greymanes are caring for them even if they’re not close at hand. Additionally, any rewards from existing pet challenges you’ve completed are going to be granted to you retroactively, which is a good thing, as you don’t have to worry about taking extra steps to track them down.

This one’s going to be quite popular with those of you who’ve made it your life’s mission to bring as many of Pywel’s fauna as you can find to your camp, or at least get them off the streets.

2. Find Baby Wyverns More Easily

Baby wyverns are now getting their own map icons, which means that those among you looking to take to the skies on a fearsome Wyvern of your own can get started with that process much more seamlessly than before. Mind you, you’re still going to have to feed the little ones and help them grow to their full size, but it’s nice to know where to find them. If you’ve missed out on the last few updates, know that wyverns are now usable as mounts, and there’s no cooldown on summoning them, unlike Blackstar.

We were already sold on wyverns after the last update, and they continue to be our personal favorite amongst all the options for a mount that we now have at our disposal. You might be interested to know that Kuku Bird eggs and Wyvern eggs are no longer stackable.

3. Mounting Issues Have Been Fixed

For those of you who’ve been having trouble getting on your wyverns once you summon them, things should be a lot better now, while the issue of mounts getting summoned into immediate danger is now remedied across the board. That’s a very helpful change that could help you keep your beloved travel companions a bit safer in a world where everything might feel like it’s out to get them. Additionally, if you’ve been remounting your wyverns when you try a spectacular dive to the ground off their backs, that’s now gone, and you can now hurtle down to that interesting sight you’ve seen whenever you like. You can also mount wyverns using Axiom Force without learning Back Hang now, and both Blackstar and wyverns aren’t going to walk into water anymore.

We will say that taking to the skies has made spotting interesting things on the ground a tad harder. We recommend using them to cover large distances in a pinch, but it’s best to have another one for the ground when you want to sniff out hidden secrets and mysteries.

4. Pets Keep Their Names When They Grow

We had a wyvern we called Toothless when it was little, despite the little one coming with quite a nasty set of chompers. Unfortunately, getting it to full size saw the name vanish into thin air. Well, that’s now a thing of the past, and it immediately makes the entire process of raising pets you can use as mounts feel more personal. It may not seem like a big deal, but it’s these little details that make Pywel such an interesting place to lead a second life in.

It’s always nice to have pets with names, after all.

5. Buy Back Lost Rare Equipment from Shopkeepers

Managing your inventory can get a little overwhelming at times, and it’s highly possible you’ve discarded a rare item without realizing you did so. That’s fixed now, as lost items that you find yourself needing long after you’ve forgotten about them can now be repurchased from shops, albeit at a higher price. We’re calling it a recovery fee, which makes sense, given that it can take up to 7 in-game days for such items to show up in the shopkeeper’s inventory. At least the “finders, keepers” rule isn’t in play.

This one should make managing your inventory better, although we’d still recommend a bit of caution when you’re disposing of items.

6. Pinball Is Now Easier

If you were finding the Pinball mini-game added in the last update a tad too difficult for you to actually relax while playing it, as was intended, you’ll be pleased to know that there have been a bunch of changes to make things easier for you. The ball is going to be a little weightier, for starters, while the annoying clipping issues it faced when you hit walls are now addressed. Pin positions have been adjusted to make things smoother, while some fixed pins have been taken out.

Additionally, if you’ve had the ball getting stuck in the top-left corner of your board, that’s a thing of the past, as is the one where the ball just drops off the launcher. Oh, and the launch angle and force have been adjusted, too.

7. Damiane and Oongka Get Access To Useful Tools

It was baffling that two out of the three playable protagonists had to mine valuable ores and timber the old-fashioned way, using a pickaxe or a logging axe when they needed them to upgrade their gear. Well, both Damiane and Oongka can now equip the mining drill and chainsaw, which is going to make resource gathering go a whole lot faster, letting you focus on letting them take on anything that Pywel throws at them with gear that’s now easier to upgrade. You’re also going to see correct yield amounts if you attempt to harvest ores when you’re clinging to a wall.

It’s yet another improvement in a long list aimed at making the duo more accessible than they were when the game first launched, and we must say that they’ve come a long way since then.

8. Expanded Controller Mapping

If you’re taking on Pywel’s expansive world with a controller, the mapping options you have are now expanded, letting you quickly access your inventory, map, skills, photo mode, and the journal when you need to. Of course, holding down your touchpad is still our favorite way to get to the map now, but it’s sure nice to see the developer giving players so many options to make navigating the game’s menus so much easier.

We imagine this one’s going to make those of you using Pro versions of controllers with extra buttons quite happy, as well as you Greymanes who still can’t get enough of all the beautiful sights Pywel has to offer.

9. Minor Improvements and Fixes To Combat

If you’ve noticed that your Spirit isn’t recovering as well as it should when you’re in control of Damiane and Oongka despite upgrading their Focus, that’s been fixed, and your gains should be improved as a result. You’re going to see changes to the attack patterns of Golem enemies if you’ve left any alive during your time in Pywel. You bow users out there are going to appreciate the additional effects added to Explosive Evasive Shot and Multishot when you’re using special arrows, a change that we suspect is going to have many Greymanes pondering a shift to ranged builds.

Oongka’s Scatter Shot ability has also been fixed to reduce the appropriate number of cannonballs if you use it while clinging to a wall.

10. Miscellaneous Changes

If you’ve been as annoyed at that glitch where the XP UI wouldn’t show up when you feed a pet as we’ve been, that’s now been remedied. Animal names at the Racher’s shop now display correctly instead of those question marks that turned up prior to this update. There are also improved images for animals in the Knowledge and Guides sections of your glossary, a small but much-needed change to lend polish to the overall UI quality.

There are also localization fixes, a remedy to the Depth of Field issue in Photo Mode that lets you disable it now, and the addition of a Flower Basket to the Hernand Contribution Shop, and the addition of the first volume of Ranged Weapons of the World to the equipment vendor’s inventory in Hernand.

And that’s about it for this one. We’re quite happy to see how managing your pets has been made so seamless and easy in the past few updates, but we do think that it’s about time the rest of the roadmap begins to get some much-needed attention from the developers. We can’t wait to see how they try to address the story’s continuity, after all. But all in all, things continue to look up for Crimson Desert, and we’re certain the rest of the year is going to see Pywel become even better than it is now.

And while the developer wants the next info drop to be a surprise, it sat down with various media outlets during Summer Game Fest to answer questions and clarify several aspects. Let’s dive into the ten biggest new details, starting with…

The Dream Team

As rumored and confirmed, Yasuhiro Anpo and Kazunori Kadoi of Resident Evil 2 Remake fame are heading up the project. However, the former is the director while the latter serves as associate director this time around. They’re not the only ones returning – those who worked on the remakes in the series are also along for the ride, and we’ll learn more about them leading up to release.

Third-Person Perspective

The other biggest – and most obvious confirmation – is that Resident Evil Veronica is a third-person game. Despite the trailer being in first-person before showing Claire’s face, it was intended more for dramatic effect than to reflect how the game actually plays (which we noted immediately after the reveal). However, that doesn’t mean you can expect the exact same camera angles as the original. Game producer Yoshiaki Hirabayashi told Polygon that, “It’s going to be very much in line with the game feel of Resident Evil 2 remake.” In other words, if you enjoy the over-the-shoulder aiming of that game, and those that came after, you’ll be right at home in Veronica. Speaking of which…

Resource Management

Resident Evil titles have no shortage of item juggling in your inventory and planning for how you’ll approach certain encounters or use resources. But Code: Veronica was perhaps the most demanding in that vein, pushing you to think very far ahead about what you would use. So if you enjoyed the approach, great news – it’s coming back. Hirabayashi says the team believes it to be a “core concept” – this idea of thinking “for yourself to explore and manage resources to face the horror in your own way. There is a lot of room for you to strategize on how you want to handle things to survive.” However, he also noted that it’s being treated “very carefully” in the remake, which could mean sanding off some of the more frustrating parts.

Changing the Opening

If you’re one of the 1,795,639 (and counting) views on the announcement trailer, and played the original, then you likely immediately noticed something off about the intro. Why isn’t Claire imitating the Matrix as she shoots through Umbrella’s Paris HQ? Is the original’s iconic intro gone?

Speaking to Denfamico Gamer, Hirabayashi said the team wanted to stick to exploring characters with “greater dramatic depth.” “I do remember the dramatic opening of the original game, but when I considered where a sister searching for her brother would go first, I thought that, in a realistic context, she would head to her brother’s home rather than to the evil pharmaceutical company.” He did repeat that the trailer is just for dramatic effect, perhaps hinting that the sequence could play out differently in-game. However, it seems there won’t be any…

Cut Content

As reported by AestheticGamer aka Dusk Golem – an ever-reliable source of Resident Evil and Silent Hill leaks and news – Hirabayashi seemingly told journalists that the remake won’t cut any scenes. Instead, a lot will be “shifted, moved around, reimagined, and transformed,” even more than we’ve seen in other remakes. In fact, this may very well be the most “aggressive” in terms of revamping the story and characters.

Why Return to Claire?

If you’re wondering why the team chose to return to Claire Redfield after so long, it’s because of how Leon’s story has played out over the years. While the team isn’t saying his arc is effectively complete, they did ask, “What is the next character we want everyone to experience their character arc or next step in the story?” Claire was the answer, and Veronica is “the ultimate way to experience” her journey, Hirabayashi told WCCF Tech. Besides, the team also really wanted to tell her story after what happened in Raccoon City.

Claire’s Character

Of course, since the story is set three months after the Raccoon City Destruction Incident from Resident Evil 2, you shouldn’t expect Claire to have the same level of combat prowess as Leon. Instead, as the producer notes, “She relies on her own tough mentality and the survival techniques her brother taught her,” resulting in an experience that’s “essentially a mashed-up, enhanced version of what we did with RE2.”

But that doesn’t mean she won’t get any character development. As Hirabayashi told VGC, there’s a “lot more about her that we haven’t shared” which players will learn – a “lot more untold.” Perhaps we’ll see more sibling bonding moments between Claire and Chris, and learn about how they grew up.

Alfred Ashford’s Portrayal

Speaking of sibling bonding, there’s Alfred Ashford. The original depiction of the character wasn’t the most…tasteful thing about Code: Veronica. While things are still subject to change since Veronica is still in development, the team wants to focus on the “darkness inside people’s hearts and minds”, which suits the remake since it’s more focused on emotion and when “love is pushed too far.” It’s seemingly looking to explore the “darkness in Alfred’s heart” as a result, but again, nothing has been confirmed. Either way, given how this particular team has handled character updates for the other remakes, we’d say they know what they’re doing.

A Numbered Entry

If you’ll remember back in the day, Code: Veronica, despite its extensive acclaim, played second fiddle to the likes of Resident Evil 3: Nemesis and was mostly relegated to history. Former Nintendo of America public relations managers Kit Ellis and Krysta Yang, who also attended the SGF presentation, noted Hirabayashi saying the lack of a number came down to “a lot of internal politics” back in the day. But that’s not the case anymore, as the producer told VGC, “Code: Veronica is just as vital and important as a numbered Resident Evil entry. So, the discussion that arose in the development team was, ‘ What’s something we can do to communicate that to our audience?’”

This is why “Code” was removed from the title. It essentially brings the remake – and the game as a whole – closer to the modern titles like Resident Evil Village and Requiem. A “one-word subtitle that encapsulates a very important part of the game,” per Hirabayashi. “So, aligning with that title convention that we’re taking in our recent mainline numbered entries, we followed a similar alignment.”

Requiem Learnings and Connections

But perhaps even more intriguing is that the team has looked at Resident Evil Requiem, not just in terms of feedback, but also “where the universe is in that game, and finding ways to reflect that and connect that to the remake and the story there as well,” Hirabayashi told VGC. A possible connection to The Connections, perhaps?

As for game quality, he admitted that the developer does this for every title, especially in areas like usability. “We’ve gained a lot of knowledge as we’ve created games, including Requiem, and so we’re taking all that knowledge that we’ve accumulated and using it for Veronica as well.” Again, the gameplay is where we’ll see that for ourselves.

However, in terms of understanding and the respect that this team has for the original, this quote via VGC really says it all: “We, the development team, think the original Code: Veronica is a title that’s just as important and significant as any other numbered title in the series.” And that’s more than enough for us.

A Bigger (and More Connected) Rockfort Island

The claustrophobia of Rockfort Island, even in more spacious areas, really added to the atmosphere of the original. And while Veronica doesn’t need to increase the size (though it’s confirmed that you’ll discover more backstories for the island’s residents before the outbreak), we wouldn’t mind if it added more, whether it’s terrifying sights to discover, areas with additional resources, or ways to return to previously explored locations. There’s a fine balance to all this, but given how well the development team handled it in Resident Evil 2 Remake, they’ve likely already thought ten steps ahead.

Amplify the Survival Horror

Contrary to the opening cutscene of Claire smashing through Umbrella’s Paris facility, this isn’t a run-and-gun action game. It’s not one where amazing acrobatics and limitless ammo will save the day, because Code: Veronica is a survival horror through and through. So instead, the team should focus on enhancing everything that made the original so memorable, whether it’s the tension and atmosphere, or the attention to detail in the environments (which blew our minds back in the day). With the stated goal being to focus more on horror first and foremost while delving deeper into the characters, we’d say they’re on the right track.

Adjust the Inventory and Character-Switching Challenges

Maybe it’s the lack of a number and the company wanting to separate Code: Veronica from the mainline series, but it’s much more challenging than the other Resident Evil games at the time. I still remember all the times when failing to avoid an enemy at an opportune moment, or unloading too much ammo on a specific boss, would leave me with less than enough for later on, raising the difficulty exponentially. And then there’s that one puzzle that requires storing an empty fire extinguisher as Claire in an item box – NOT the security box – so that Chris can take it, refill it, and use it to access a powerful weapon. While the development team has confirmed that inventory management will be important, here’s hoping for less frustration.

Revamp the Puzzles

On that note – puzzle design. Yes, it’s important to respect the original’s ideas, but you can also acknowledge that some of them were just a little too opaque. Instead of relying on thoroughly studying documents for some hints, implementing them better into the actual environments would go a long way. Again, it doesn’t need to become a cakewalk, but sanding off some of the friction – or even adding easier puzzles that could teach certain concepts before ramping up – would go a long way.

Make Steve Less Annoying

Listen, Steve – it’s not us. It’s never been us. It’s you, and no amount of time can ever make that whiny nasally voice or creepy attitude any more palatable. So aside from changing his entire personality and how he approaches Claire, make Steve actually come across as naive but still reliable. He can survive on the zombie-ridden Rockfort Island after all, and shows plenty of skill with dual-wielding weapons. Just make him less annoying. It’s the easiest of fixes.

Funnily enough, the development team hasn’t even confirmed that he’s in the game, saying that if he’s “hypothetically” present, then “Like we do in every remake title, we’re always looking for ways to dig deeper into characters to give them more dimension. That goes for Claire, and might include Steve. We’ll have to wait and see.”

Address The Ashford Twins

Maybe it’s because of Alfred’s general demeanor or Alexia not really saying anything during the final battle, but the Ashford twins could use a bit of fine-tuning. Remember that scene from when they were children, plucking a dragonfly’s wings and leaving ants to consume it as they gazed at each other? Take the essence of that, and distill it through the game. Both of their more dramatic mannerisms can be made more genuinely disturbing, and Alexia could desperately use some more dialogue (and opportunities to showcase her power). For now, though, exploring the “darkness” in Alfred’s heart is a good start.

Claire Going From Strength to Strength

Claire has always been more emotional, and not in a weak way. Reaching out to Sherry, always showing concern for her (especially since Resident Evil 2 Remake effectively undid any connection the former would have with Leon), and fighting to her last breath to keep her alive. That’s not changing in Veronica, especially since she’s now chasing after her brother, who’s been missing for months. But after Raccoon City, Claire is confirmed to be more “mentally resilient” even if she isn’t “physically stronger,” per the developer.

Develop the Rivalry of Chris and Wesker

If the rumors and actual marketing weren’t indication enough, this is Claire’s campaign. Which isn’t to say that Chris, Wesker and the HCF won’t have bigger roles, but even if their time on screen is only slightly longer, it needs to matter more. Why? Because Veronica is also the next chapter in their story – their latest encounter after the Arklay Laboratory outbreak. There needs to be more bad blood, but not so much that it overpowers Claire’s story, especially since it would serve as a strong escalation heading into Resident Evil 5 (if it still exists within this new canon).

Scarier Enemies and Bosses

Resident Evil – Code: Veronica sports some pretty nasty foes, from the Bandersnatch to Nosferatu, but they can be made even scarier with today’s technology. And judging by the trailer, the developer understands the assignment when it comes to making its baseline zombies actually terrifying, going from individual entities that would slowly pursue Claire and Chris to more aggressively seeking their flesh. Do I think it could throw some hordes at players? Probably not, but it would be a nice surprise.

Expand on the Ashfords and Umbrella Europe

Something that’s been kind of lacking with the franchise – and we would know, after that lengthy retrospective from before Requiem’s launch – is information on Umbrella Europe. We know that it created the Nemesis Project and the Gamma and Beta versions of the Hunter, and that Chris was investigating the same. But that’s more or less it, and there’s so much more that the development team could do with it, not to mention expanding on the history of the Ashford family. Fortunately, it seems the team is going even further by adding a new “throughline” that ties into Resident Evil Requiem. Again, we’ll need to wait and see what that means, but maybe it could shed more light on a certain mysterious character in a dapper suit.

Aside from all that, perhaps one of the most important things that Veronica needs to do: Not cut any content. It’s one thing to remove familiar plot elements from Resident Evil 2 Remake – the core is still intact, just reimagined and at times, rearranged. It’s another to take out some of the most memorable sequences, like the fight in the clock tower from Resident Evil 3 Remake.

And while the lack of Claire blasting through Umbrella’s facility has some concerned about cut content, the developer has confirmed that you should prepare for many things to have been shifted, reimagined, and so on – much more so than previous titles. With Resident Evil 2 Remake developers at the helm, Veronica could be more than just a revival of a cult classic when it launches in 2027.

Sweeping Fighter Animation Overhaul

Beyond simply upgrading fidelity, in UFC 6, EA Sports want to entrench the identity of each individual fighter into their combat style, ensuring no-two bouts flow the same way. Instead, through sweeping animation overhauls – movement, striking, blocking, and idle stances, captured directly from UFC athletes – events inside the Octagon will now closer-reflect the fighters you’ve loaded in. Furthermore, Signature Movement gives every member of UFC 6’s roster renewed strategic purpose, whilst bringing grounded, real-world authenticity.

Fighter Likeness Enhances Readability

And, a fighter’s anatomical accuracy – their distinct reach length, how they pace, their frame size, footwork, and more – means that choosing your character informs the strategies you’ll be able to deploy throughout a fight. Likewise, subtle behaviours like the way they reset after throwing a combination or how they set their body up before striking are precisely animated, enhancing your ability to read your opponent’s next move, how you build attacks, and how secure you should feel when managing distance.

Visual Revamp Includes Realistic Character Definition

That anatomical accuracy is the result of SAPIEN Technology’s 3D character modelling capability, a toolkit EA Sports has been using in their more physical annual sports titles like Madden, NHL, and UFC since 2023. For UFC 6, the tech maps individual fighters’ bodies, providing frame size, reach, and overall silhouette which we mentioned already, but it also brings realistic character definition too. Details like hair, beard, skin, and muscle bulk are closely reminiscent of their real-world counterparts. Furthermore, a fighter’s definition shifts throughout a fight; hair dampens through sweat, blood trickles out of cuts, and their bodies, overall, respond meaningfully to movement, strikes, and damage.

Foundational Attacks Bring More Strategic Interplay

SAPIEN Tech also enables EA Sports to introduce multiple variations of foundational attack for each fighter, meaning – as per EA’s words – “a hook is no longer just a hook.” See, a fighter’s long arms will mean their hook loops, extending the distance it travels to perhaps open up opportunities for distance control from unusual positions. In contrast, another fighter who wields a shorter, sharper hook, can unleash a more efficient form of punishment and control.

Four New Blocking Styles

UFC 6’s defensive capabilities also mirror EA’s goal of bringing more expressive fighting to this year’s iteration. Central to this are four new blocking styles: Balanced is the all-rounder, bringing dependable defence without major trade-offs; Sturdy is stronger than Balanced, but comes at the cost of mobility; Evasive is the most nimble option, focusing on agile footwork and stamina recovery instead of strengthening blocks. Philly Shell is the most precise blocking style, giving protection to both the body and head no matter the position of your guard, but it’s weak over your lead shoulder. Ultimately, the defensive style you choose will need to complement the body type, frame, and fighting style of your selected character beyond just matching the playstyle you’re most comfortable with.

Real-Time Contact Ensures Believable Brutality

Adding another layer to UFC 6’s renewed focus on authenticity are Real-Time Contact systems, whereby every strike lands exactly where it should, and with purpose to boot. Behind the system’s purported precision are refined contact windows – now up to four-frames – to ensure every punch, kick, and elbow registers consistently. Supporting this are more believable ragdoll physics – powered by the Frostbite physics engine – bringing realistic momentum and force transfer, leading to more natural recoils and believable knockdowns.

New Mechanic: Flow State

Described as those moments where “everything clicks” in the ring, the all-new Flow State mechanic is designed to reward momentum by replicating the sharper focus that comes with controlling the fight. Working in three layers, the first are base effects which give passive bonuses to your fighter’s individual strengths. Then Flow Boosts supercharge your Flow Meter when you execute moves in-line with your fighter’s real-life counterpart. Finally, when momentum peaks, you’ll be able to activate Flow State, creating decisive opportunities to finish your opponent. Enabling you to replicate your fighter’s real identity, you assign them five perks from a pool of thirty. Think of these like techniques, and your pre-match choices are determined by how you plan to gain momentum and, ultimately, how you want to win a fight.

Ratings Integrated Into Deeper Ecosystem

Rather than relying solely on stats and numbers, fighter ratings in UFC 6 are now integrated into a deeper ecosystem, whereby fighter-specific manoeuvres, body types, perks, and Flow State now have direct influence on how you play. In other words: you’re rewarded for fighting true to an athlete’s real-life style. Furthermore, competitiveness is rebalanced across weight divisions, fine-tuned around a fighter’s MMA prime rather than where they land currently.

Upgraded Arena Presentation

As is increasingly prevalent among periodic sports titles, UFC 6 echoes EA Sports College Football, NHL, even WWE 2K26, in upgrading its arena atmosphere and overall presentation. Through detailed colour grading, venue-specific lighting, plus site-specific visuals and crowd behaviours, every arena in the game should feel authentically distinct from each other.

Refined Sound Elevates Auditory Immersion

Sound design is being treated to a substantial upgrade too. UFC 6 brings 3D spatial crowd audio and ambisonic sound, ensuring that every arena feels present, reactive, and electric. From inside the Octagon, you’ll hear crowd chants swell from supporters as momentum swings, while a roar could erupt from the opposite side of the arena entirely. UFC announcer Bruce Buffer’s voice carries overhead too, making every encounter feel breathless, intense, and dramatic.

All-New Onboarding and Learning Tools

UFC 6 isn’t an easy game; its difficulty is supposed to elicit the feeling that every victory is hard fought and earned. That said, this year’s iteration comes with a suite of onboarding tools to give newcomers and veterans alike the best chance of fighting with confidence. Time Dilation slows down key moments, giving you a chance to recognise and react. Stand-Up Assist gives AI support, making it easier to compete without fully mastering every input. And, striking controls can be fine-tuned based on your preferred stance.

Practice Mode Enhancements

Practice Mode is also receiving a slate of enhancements too, with the all-new frame timing HUD being this year’s biggest addition. In this display, you’ll see timing information in real time, making it easier to understand attack wind-up and recovery times, hopefully giving you clarity on where you can take advantage of the brief moments your opponent is vulnerable. Your training setup itself can be customised too, dialling in specific situations and drills for you to work on your timing, reactions, or vulnerability with minimal friction.

Pre-Order Bonuses and Ultimate Edition

Pre-ordering the game’s Standard Edition gives you the Iconic Moments Bundle, with Fighter Skins for 2023 Leon Edwards, 2016 Meisha Tate, and Chan Sung Jung’s appearance from UFC Fight Night 225 contained inside. The game’s Ultimate Edition, however, brings much more: seven days early access, beginning June 12th, a UFC Legends Fighter Pass which includes eight iconic athletes, and an Expansion Pass which grants you access to two post-launch DLCs.

More Ultimate Edition Inclusions: VIP Pass and Rivalry Bundle

UFC 6’s VIP Pass gives you access to 5 additional fighter skins, 6 VIP cosmetics, 3 VIP emojis, plus VIP Create A Fighter items and exclusive perks which refresh every week. The Rivalry Bundle gives you fighter skins for Israel Adesanya and Paulo Costa, plus 500 UFC points.

Community Concern

Whilst this all sounds positive, the community has shown meaningful concern in a handful of areas, the most damning of which undermine UFC 6’s focus on authenticity. First, the game’s sound effects are over-blown; more slapstick than realistic. Next, the UI appears under-developed and more in-line with arcade titles than sports simulations. The biggest problem, however, is with Flow State itself. Let’s be honest: Flow State’s supercharged invulnerability is over-powered at best, and downright fighting game magic at worst. It’ll be interesting to see whether Flow State evolves if the community pushback gathers momentum.