There are those Lovecraftian horrors to deal with, for starters. They’re nasty and surprisingly nimble, given their deformities. They’re also quite intelligent, responding to any sounds you make with fear-inducing ferocity. This one leaves little room for error, we’d say.

However, those errors seem to be inevitable, as it isn’t just monsters that are stalking you. Cthulhu looms large in the background, messing with your senses as you venture deeper into the forest. Your friends are going to be of little comfort if they happen to die at your hand, which is a very strong possibility given that you can’t trust your own eyes once the jungle’s corrupting influence takes hold.

This one could be one hell of a party if you’re into horror titles that make your hair stand on end. But we’re going to make sure we play in a brightly lit room when The Mount: Omen of Cthulhu launches on July 15th for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC.

The game’s allegedly been rated by the ESRB for the platform, according to Wario64 on BlueSky. That could mean a potential release date in the coming days, though as always, it’s best to wait until an official announcement is made. Nevertheless, it’s hard not to get excited at the prospect of playing this one again on a new platform, given how much fun we had with it when reviewing it last year.

However, our enthusiasm is a bit dampened by the numerous bugs and performance issues that have been plaguing it since then. You might say that it’s Bethesda being Bethesda, but that’s still no reason to abruptly drop support, especially when there’s such a dedicated fan base. Here’s to hoping that the new port irons out those issues, and perhaps even brings a patch for other platforms with it.

We’re wondering how it’s going to navigate a rather crowded calendar of releases this year, thanks to Grand Theft Auto 6’s release looming large over the gaming world, but we’re sure it could find more than a few takers despite that.

We’ve got a little more information about it after it was revealed last week, and it’s grim news for Low and Alone, who find themselves separated. Low must join hands with Dime, a new ally who brings a very handy Torch Hat that introduces some light-based mechanics in lieu of Alone’s arrows. The pair is going to have to use it well against the Puppeteer, a deadly enemy who’s looking for her next victim, who just happens to be Alone.

You could pick this one up right now, or dive right into it if you own the Secrets of the Spiral expansion pass for the base game.

Low and Dime seem capable of a daring rescue, but that’s easier said than done, if the launch trailer below is any indication. Little Nightmares 3 is available for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, Xbox One, PS4, PC, Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2. Check out our review of the base game here.

But not so in the remake. The news comes from none other than Naoki Hamaguchi, who told RPG Site that players weren’t going to be able to visit the place, although a few surrounding areas were still open for business. “Bone Village itself is not included, but North Wood and the Temple of Ancients, we’ll be able to revisit.” That, and Rocket Town, which didn’t make the cut in Rebirth.

Although that might be disappointing news to some of you, there’s still a lot to look forward to. There’s a world that’s more open to explore with a lot of side content, for starters, and a fair bit of narrative choice, although it won’t affect the game’s ending. We’re particularly happy about the Highwind unlocking early, letting you take to the skies and go just about anywhere.

All in all, Bone Village might be missed, but there’s a lot of cool stuff to help you cope when Final Fantasy 7 Revelation launches in Spring 2027 for the PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch 2.

At one point, we see the player unleash a frost wave that freezes an enemy, allowing for follow-up attacks with the weapon. If you prefer something with more reach, a larger blade is available, though we’re yet to see if it has a sick flourish animation as well.

Of course, other weapons exist, from two-handed axes and greatswords to good ‘ol fisticuffs. Weaving magic is highly encouraged, but nothing says that you’re here to protect the last kingdom like a solid dropkick to the face of any enemy. Dual-wielding, another notable new feature, also looks quite fast and fluid.

Lords of the Fallen 2 launches this Fall for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, PC, and Nintendo Switch 2. While an official release date is unconfirmed (a designer’s portfolio seemingly leaked that it’s in August), it will launch on day one for Steam. This is thanks to CI Games exiting its agreement with Epic Games, which would have exclusively handled distribution rights for the PC version.

According to a report memo, the military shooter apparently didn’t meet its internal alpha objectives due to “unrealistic deadlines and poor planning and management.” It also seems that the project’s directors aren’t responding to feedback, despite Ubisoft outlining how important its success is. It even praised the foundation as “strong,” but as one source noted, “If I were to receive this email on a production, it would generally mean things are in a bad way.”

Changes are seemingly coming, especially after the publisher reportedly rejected alternative arrangements. Whether this means layoffs, a development reboot, or the project’s cancellation remains to be seen, but in the wake of recent studio restructuring, it’s not looking great.

In the meantime, Bruno Galet will allegedly serve as senior producer while Jean-Baptiste Duval, VP of production, and Julien Sansalone, VP of the global creative office, are also involved. They’ll apparently be “more present on a day-to-day basis” and likely try to right the ship.

Assuming it’s pushed back internally, this could affect Ubisoft’s release schedule. Besides Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced in July and Rayman Legends Retold in October, the publisher doesn’t have much else in 2026, and 2027 remains a mystery (at least officially). Stay tuned for more updates in the meantime.

Like its predecessor, FOLLOW wastes no time in reintroducing us to Anne, who’s now a young adult with a little more maturity than she had when we first met her. She’s come to terms with the trauma she faced from her bullies at school and is a tad more confident and assertive as a result. It’s a welcome change that establishes continuity with the first game while taking the story in a sinister new direction.

You see, Anne may have buried the self-esteem issues from her high school bullies, or perhaps even healed through it. But the first game carried many hints about how her life at home was no walk in the park either. FOLLOW dives right into that side of her personality with very interesting results. This time around, it’s Anne’s mother who is the big bad, and I can tell you she cuts quite the scary figure thanks to some truly chilling design choices from Serafini Productions.

She lurks in the darkest corners of Anne’s mind, waiting to be let out the moment you uncover an important memory or piece of information pertaining to how she raised her daughter. The manner in which she’s characterized is sure to resonate with any of you who’ve faced similar situations in your own lives, and it’s easy to see how her actions have left lasting scars on Anne’s personality that she might never fully heal from.

Anne’s mother is the catalyst for the entire experience, with each level coming with a distinct theme and color to underline how her mind has interpreted her feelings toward her. She constantly declares that she’s tired of the ordeal she faces, which is presumably all in her head, but escape is never really presented as an option, even as you go further into the story. Instead, you only go from one memory to the next, with each one having its own puzzles to solve in order to proceed.

Of course, the giant monster from the first game, which I’m now convinced is a representation of Anne’s own lack of self-esteem, makes a comeback, often popping up when you least expect it to give you enough of a fright to justify taking a break. The jump scares and atmospheric horror from the first game also make a return, and like Anne, the game itself feels more confident than Serafini’s first outing with her.

"A personal highlight of all that was Little Annie, a truly unsettling doll that represents Anne’s youthful innocence and vigor, which looks so darn creepy, I was reminded of why I often avoid horror stories involving dolls in the first place."

With a story and design that’s so compelling, it’s a pity, then, that the levels themselves are nothing to write home about despite how well they’re presented visually. Most of my time with the game involved navigating each one, uncovering important information or items that would then unlock new paths and new puzzles for me to solve. I’m all for a game jealously guarding its secrets and forcing me to think out of the box, but I do believe FOLLOW could have done better to present a stronger path to progression than the one on offer.

You’re given little to no information about what you need to do to get past a locked door, and the little nuggets of knowledge you get feel disconnected from the actual solution in many instances. It’s a very strong effort, no arguments there, but I couldn’t help but think that I was spending way too long running around the same level until I managed to spot an interactable object that would open up a new path.

A personal highlight of all that was Little Annie, a truly unsettling doll that represents Anne’s youthful innocence and vigor, which looks so darn creepy, I was reminded of why I often avoid horror stories involving dolls in the first place. Her adorable voice and the childish sense of wonder she brings to the exposition she offers are a superb contrast that makes her a very welcome addition to the experience. She’s also the biggest indicator that something important is nearby, which makes her quite helpful when you’re trying to navigate the convoluted puzzles in each level.

Another thing I liked was that Anne was far more agile than in her previous outing, which made getting around a lot easier. I miss the chase sequences that the first game had, despite how clunky the controls could feel. Those are now relegated to side-scrolling sequences that bookmark the end of a chapter, with little Anne desperately trying to avoid the representation of her older version’s insecurities. You could skip these sequences entirely, though, if you find them tedious. That’s a possibility because of the way obstacles are a constant presence, and navigating them with a very short window for error can get annoying.

"The soundtrack balances silence and the sinister build-up to a scary moment so well, you’re bound to feel the tension when you’re navigating an area that’s designed to have you on edge."

The audio design continues to shine, just as it did in the first game. The soundtrack balances silence and the sinister build-up to a scary moment so well, you’re bound to feel the tension when you’re navigating an area that’s designed to have you on edge. There are helpful cues to tell you when you’ve unlocked something new on a level, and the voice acting does a very good job of bringing subtle, unspoken emotions to the forefront. That’s very important in a game that tackles the nuances of a parent-child relationship that hasn’t gone the way either party intended for it to go.

On the performance front, I found no issues on my base PS5 aside from minor frame drops that don’t really break the immersion. This one’s a polished effort from the developers, and it definitely outshines the first game in that area. The visuals are also noteworthy thanks to how they integrate each level’s themes and use light so much better than what was on offer in UNFOLLOW. They’re probably the best example I can find to demonstrate how the new game is a more confident, nuanced take on the issues it tries to present than the first one, which was already quite good to begin with.

So, with all that’s been said, would I recommend FOLLOW to you? If psychedelic horror is your jam, this one’s not going to disappoint. If you like games that give you chills and thrills in equal measures, you’re probably going to like it, although you might find the lack of combat or real danger in any form a tad boring. However, if you’re like me and enjoy stories that are nuanced and geared towards a slow burn, this one’s going to be right up your alley.

FOLLOW is a solid game, and continues the franchise’s traditions of insightful examinations of trauma through the eyes of a victim. It takes creative liberties that might seem like flights of fancy on the surface, but are very insightful takes on how the human mind processes negative emotions, and the dangers of leaving such thoughts to fester without seeking the help one needs to repair the damage. There’s a bit of Anne in all of us, and BrokenLore: FOLLOW does a great job as a game that makes you look inward and wonder about what the darkest corners of your own mind look like.

And that’s its biggest achievement.

This game was reviewed on PlayStation 5.

Imagine my surprise when I found out that I could now dive into the adventure, complete with a makeover from Alkimia that aimed to let it take the spotlight amongst a bevy of great RPGs in the current generation of gaming platforms. It’s been a mixed bag, with the joy of unbridled, unguided discovery being marred by technical issues that have no business being in a game that’s clearly aimed at a modern, very discerning audience.

I always pick the good news first, and that’s what we’re going to do with this one. From the very beginning of your time with the Nameless Hero, you’re more or less left to your own devices as you try to survive King Rhogar’s prison/mining colony, the magical barrier that keeps you there acting as a grim reminder of the circumstances that have unfolded since the mage’s botched attempt to create their own version of an electrified fence.

The game wastes no time in setting the stakes, tasking you with delivering a letter to a mage within the Old Camp, one of three major factions within The Colony. You get a small introduction to what life is like within its confines from a helpful member of the camp before you get to begin exploring a world that’s as brutal as they come.

I’m not kidding when I tell you that this one’s as hard as any of the games I’ve played over the years, and that’s counting a bunch of Soulslikes that have had me at my wit’s end with some enemies and bosses that they’ve thrown my way. Most hostiles in this one can take you down in one or two hits, while you don’t even get a starting weapon to take them on with.

An NPC you meet along the way did tell me that I was going to need weapons and armor before I was ready to explore the world, but they were less than helpful when I asked them where I could find them. That’s kind of a pattern in this one, and the lack of the usual markers and helpful indicators that point you in the right direction was a very refreshing change of pace.

"Quests are designed in a way that gives you multiple possible approaches, if you can sniff them all out."

This is old-school game design, and it’s a very enjoyable part of the experience on offer. Of course, I must concede that it could be a detail that puts you off the experience depending on your individual preferences, but I personally love games that allow me to put in the hard work to reap the rewards.

Quests are designed in a way that gives you multiple possible approaches, if you can sniff them all out. And each option comes with trade-offs that you’re going to have to live with. For instance, an NPC whose approval I desperately needed to get past the guards at a gate told me to deal with a member of the New Camp who had been running a bit of a scam. I dealt with the man in question by leading him out of the Old Camp under the pretence of wanting to sign up with his faction, only to turn on him when a group of scavengers attacked us. Problem solved.

I returned to camp, stopping to meet a weapons vendor along the way. He wasn’t too happy with what I’d done as I put an end to his supply chain. He assured me that he wasn’t going to vote in my favor if he was asked if I was going to be a good fit for the Old Camp. Details like that make this world feel alive, and it’s what has made Gothic memorable to me.

However, I’m also going to remember it for a lot of frustrations and heartbreaks. I’m not going to forget how I lost nearly three hours of progress thanks to the lack of an autosave system coupled with frequent crashes, a combination that soon had me manually saving my game at every turn. That’s an omission that I believe is a missed opportunity, and a way to truly let the game combine its welcome old-school vision with a bit of modern convenience.

However, the problems don’t stop there. I appreciate the effort to recreate the game’s visuals, and there’s certainly a lot to like about the new lighting system and upgraded textures. However, the lack of a performance mode is something I find very hard to ignore, especially in the face of a combat system that relies quite heavily on reading enemy animations and responding to them within windows that are far too narrow even on the easiest difficulty option there is.

"The XP thresholds you need to unlock levels are quite high when you think about how difficult it is to whittle away at enemy health bars, and getting your character’s stats to a place of comfort is going to be a steep climb up a hill that has danger at every turn."

Your hero’s combat prowess is almost negligible in the game’s early hours. Couple that with enemies whose animations aren’t telegraphed as well as they should, and you’ve got a recipe for needless frustrations that actively hinder your progress. That’s especially egregious when you consider that it takes a while for you to get your hands on some decent armor, although I will concede that getting your hands on a weapon is comparatively easier once you know where to look.

With that being said, the game’s melee combat is too clunky for my taste, and it often comes down to chugging healing items while dealing with attacks from enemies that can end you with just one badly-timed parry. Ranged weapons served me a lot better, and I found myself relying on my bow (and a bit of magic once you unlock it) over my sword for the most part, or getting NPCs to do the fighting for me.

The XP thresholds you need to unlock levels are quite high when you think about how difficult it is to whittle away at enemy health bars, and getting your character’s stats to a place of comfort is going to be a steep climb up a hill that has danger at every turn. There’s a lot of room for improvement on the combat front in this one.

That’s a pity, considering that human enemies that defeat you in combat don’t kill you outright, but loot all of the valuable stuff you’ve spent hours gathering to fill their own pockets. In a title where combat was more balanced, that’s an opportunity to go back for a rematch and regain your lost valuables. In Gothic Remake, it’s just better to take the loss and move on, and that’s a real shame.

Crashes and wonky combat animations aside, there were other issues such as NPCs randomly appearing out of thin air, while others would get stuck in their own animations without dialogue windows popping up when you interact with them. Both problems were frequent enough to be noticeable, and definitely took away from the impressive visuals.

"On the technical front, this one comes with too many annoyances that constantly interrupt the experience in ways that can have you giving up on it altogether."

The audio was similarly buggy, often cutting off into total silence at several points, or including the chatter from other characters in crowded spaces during a one-on-one dialogue that forced me to turn on subtitles just so I could keep up with what was being said. For a remake that was meant to usher this one into the modern age, there’s a lot of problems from an era of gaming I thought we’d left behind for good.

It’s now time to answer the question that I’m sure you’re all asking: would I recommend this one to you? Personally, I’m going to persist with the adventure and hope for updates that fix the issues that I’ve highlighted here. But I wouldn’t recommend paying full price for this one in its current state.

The story is absolutely riveting thanks to how well-written each character, and the world at large is. But on the technical front, this one comes with too many annoyances that constantly interrupt the experience in ways that can have you giving up on it altogether. There’s a lot to love about Gothic 1 Remake, but the game constantly works against itself in ways that make it hard to recommend.

If you’re a seasoned veteran of The Colony, you’re probably going to find its issues easier to ignore than a newcomer. But if this is your first time with this one, know that this remake is a superb visual overhaul that fails to hide a plethora of issues that make it hard to engage with. But for those of you who persist, you’re in for a look at what games used to be like back in the day which could have you quite immersed in a story that continues to pull its weight even today.

I’d wait for a sale on this one, as much as it pains me to say it. But like The Colony, modern gaming is an unforgiving place, and Gothic 1 Remake stumbles far too often for it to stand tall amongst its competition.

This game was reviewed on the PlayStation 5.

Of course, the franchise has seen many changes ever since the original Code: Veronica launched in 2000. The recent remakes have retconned a decent amount, and that’s not even getting into the events of Resident Evil Requiem. But don’t worry – producer Yoshiaki Hirabayashi told Famitsu (translation via IGN) that it’s accounting for all this in the remake.

“With Resident Evil Veronica, we are planning to restructure the story so that players can clearly feel how all of these titles are part of one cohesive series.” That includes changes made in Resident Evil 2 Remake, but he added that, “What’s most important for the development team at Capcom is putting the players’ memories first, and then rebuilding the game on top of that.”

If you haven’t played Code: Veronica, then it’s not exactly required for the remake. That said, Hirabayashi believes “you will enjoy it even more if you are familiar with the stories of other games in the Resident Evil series. So I highly recommend playing any past titles that you haven’t played yet.” So there’s your homework for the coming months.

Resident Evil Veronica is out in 2027 for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, PC, and Nintendo Switch 2. While it doesn’t have a release date yet, rumors claim it could arrive in the first half of the year. It’s directed by Yasuhiro Anpo with Kazunori Kadoi as the associate director – both familiar for their work on the Resident Evil 2 and 4 Remakes. And while it’s in third-person just like the original, you can expect the game to feel more like the former.

However, in the here and now, we celebrate a different occasion. It’s been eight years since Bethesda Game Studios revealed that The Elder Scrolls 6 was in development. Almost seven years after the release of Skyrim, the next chapter in the epic fantasy RPG series was finally upon us. That one teaser would be dissected for a good long while, as fans theorized and opined. Will we finally venture to Hammerfell? Maybe Highrock? Perhaps both or somewhere else entirely?

Eight years later, let’s check in on what XBOX chief content officer Matt Booty had to say about the game to Variety.

“Having visited Bethesda and sat with Todd and seen ‘Elder Scrolls‘ playing, it looks amazing, and it’s coming along well. And we’ll make sure to announce it and really reveal it at the right time.”

Now, there’s more context to be had from his overall answer. Before this, Booty said that, “One of the more challenging balancing acts of someone in a job like mine is balancing that you want to go show the world all the cool stuff you’re working on, and you want to get them excited early, but we also know that we want to wait till the right moment. And when you decide to show it, you want it to be the best you’ve got. And also that when you show the game, you’re also giving them a promise of, hey, it’s coming soon.”

That is all understandable and realistic on the surface, but it also discounts the fact that it was announced eight years ago. Eight years later, we still don’t know the official name. We haven’t seen any gameplay or learned when it’s releasing. Remember when former Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer said it was likely five-plus years away back in June 2023? More than halfway past that mark, and it’s looking like it could be another five years.

Where the hell is The Elder Scrolls 6? Why is it taking so long?

We’d be remiss not to mention that Bethesda has been busy with other things, like re-releasing Fallout 4 and Skyrim, and breaking their mods for the community. Or Starfield, which itself took an eye-watering eight years to develop, meaning it was in the works when the studio was busy wrapping up Fallout 4. Granted, it ultimately removed a lot in terms of combat and weapon options, but I digress. We’ve certainly dogpiled enough on Todd Howard’s radical space adventure for a good long while.

So what is happening with The Elder Scrolls 6? Well, Howard said last December that it’s “progressing really well,” though he wishes it could go faster (yes, this was last December). It definitely has more trees than Skyrim, which was confirmed a few days later. And before that in November, he revealed that it was still a long way off, though it passed the “quite playable milestone” in July 2025.

There has been more recent information, from the team confirming that it’s developed on Creation Engine 3 and that they’re “happy where it’s headed,” and that the “majority of this building” – referring to Bethesda’s HQ in Maryland – is working on it. But on the other hand, Howard is now only half-joking that you should “pretend that we didn’t announce it.”

Which is funny because if you go back to what former SVP of marketing Pete Hines said in 2018, the announcement was made (alongside Starfield) for the sake of transparency. Why would they need that, effectively defusing any “hysteria” around what was next? Well, because Bethesda had Fallout 76 coming up and it didn’t want fans thinking that it was just working on multiplayer games.

Yes, that’s really it.

All that aside, however, Howard and the rest of the development team have made it clear that they want to take their time with the game. When factoring in the new management at XBOX and their recent moves, there’s probably an incentive to present this as a major exclusive somewhere down the line. It may even have looked at Starfield and decided that Bethesda needs to move beyond it, delivering something comparable to its best work.

All of that is a noble endeavor indeed, but unless Creation Engine 3 is a massive leap over its predecessor, which is what Starfield is built on, more time spent means more risks of Bethesda’s design and technology becoming outdated. Look at Fallout 4 and how it felt archaic next to games like The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.

It’s also been made clear that Bethesda is operating with a different set of expectations. While immersion definitely formed much of Skyrim’s appeal, it was also several side quests and the overall world that helped it stand out. The studio’s writing has only gotten worse over the past eight years – the jury’s out on whether The Elder Scrolls 6 will really change that. So can Creation Engine 3 really carry the series forward in terms of gameplay or world design?

This probably isn’t even a question of the engine but what the developer wants to achieve. After all, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 offers a pretty immersive experience with branching quests and extensive depth on CryEngine. Fable offers 1,000 handcrafted NPCs and some pretty deep interactions with its Reputation system (based on what we’ve seen thus far). Crimson Desert has already showcased that you can have a world much larger than Skyrim with a strong amount of reactive elements while delivering higher visual fidelity, better combat, and a wider variety of side activities. And lest we forget, that began development in 2018. Add another one to the list, to say nothing of the incredible turnaround of fixes, changes, improvements and new features in just three months. How long did it take for Starfield “Not 2.0” to happen again?

Of course, as always, Bethesda is going to do what it wants to do, which is fully reveal The Elder Scrolls 6 several months out from release. This would be fine if it followed the Fallout 4 or even the Fallout 76 marketing cycle. Instead, due to some half-baked plan to keep its fans from panicking, it’s created an unfathomable set of expectations on top of what’s already there. And while it could – and should – focus on the essence of The Elder Scrolls, and deliver an unforgettable experience – one that fans will play for over a decade, as Howard hopes – it can’t ignore them entirely.

Sure, it’ll still sell millions of copies, and notch up an impressive 20 million or so Game Pass players (not necessarily in that order). But maybe Bethesda needs to change things up, and let fans in on the ground floor sooner. If not for the sake of keeping them in the loop and restoring some goodwill, then to simply gauge feedback on whether it’s going in the right direction.

Or it could just subsist in this no-win situation and try, as always, to do better with Fallout 5 or whatever else is next. And thus, the cycle repeats.

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.