On September 17th, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, For the King 2, and Overthrown will be playable for Standard subscribers on September 17th. Deep Rock Galactic: Survivor is available on the same day for Ultimate and PC Game Pass, marking its exit from early access.

Frostpunk 2 debuts for Xbox Series X/S and cloud on September 18th alongside Wobbly Life. To prepare for Hades 2’s exit from early access, the original game will be playable on September 19th for Ultimate, Standard and PC Game Pass subscribers.

Endless Legend 2 is up next on September 22nd, which marks its entry into early access via Game Preview for PC. Another rogue-like, Sworn, will exit early access on September 23rd. September 25th sees the addition of Peppa Pig World Adventures and Visions of Mana, both releasing for cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X/S across all three subscription tiers.

Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light is available on September 30th, and Sopa – Tale of the Stolen Potato rounds it all off on October 7th. Check out the titles that will leave the service on September 30th below:

• Ninja Gaiden Sigma (Cloud, Console, and PC)
• Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 (Cloud, Console, and PC)
• Ninja Gaiden 3 Razor’s Edge (Cloud, Console, and PC)
• Terra Invicta (Game Preview) (PC)

On Twitter, Yoshida revealed that he left the NetEase Games-owned studio on October 31st. “We were a new studio, but we were able to release Visions of Mana. I am grateful to the development team and NetEase for their support. It was a very good experience. Thank you all. I am happy to announce that I joined Square Enix in December. I will do my best to make a game that many people can enjoy!”

Visions of Mana launched in August for PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC. It’s the first mainline title for the franchise in almost 18 years and focuses on Hinna and Val. The former must journey to the Mana Tree to serve as the Alm of Fire, while the latter acts as her bodyguard.

Players encounter others en route to the tree, who join their party and fight alongside them. Though each has set classes, they can change them (and corresponding elements) to unlock new abilities and playstyles. Head here for more details. A free demo is also available on all platforms. Whether Yoshida joining Square Enix means anything for the franchise’s future remains to be seen, so stay tuned.

On a personal note, I quit NetEase Ouka Studios on October 31st. We were a new studio, but we were able to release Visions of Mana. I am grateful to the development team and NetEase for their support.
It was a very good experience.
Thank you all.
I am happy to announce that I…

— Ryosuke Yoshida (@YoshidaBeer) December 2, 2024

EA Sports College Football 25 ranked second on the list, dropping one rank from its debut but remaining the best-selling title of the year (with Madden NFL 25 in 12th). Then there’s the EA Sports MVP Bundle, containing both football titles, which came in at fourth place but became the fourth best-selling game of the year thus far in dollar sales.

As for other releases during the month, Star Wars Outlaws debuted in third place, Visions of Mana ranked tenth, and Gundam Breaker 4 in 11th. Total projected spending on hardware, content, and accessories reached $4.1 billion, dropping by seven percent versus the same month last year. However, year-to-date spending topped $36.3 billion, a one percent increase.

August 2024 U.S. Video Game Market Highlights from Circana – Projected U.S. total spending on video game hardware, content and accessories fell 7% during August 2024 versus a year ago, to $4.1B. A 5% increase in Mobile content spending was offset by declines across other areas.

— Mat Piscatella (@matpiscatella.bsky.social) 2024-10-11T13:16:33.331Z

2024 year-to-date spending is now 1% higher than a year ago, at $36.3B. 4% growth in video game content spending (driven by Mobile), and an 8% increase in accessories has thus far offset a 28% drop in video game hardware spending.

— Mat Piscatella (@matpiscatella.bsky.social) 2024-10-11T13:16:52.412Z

August 2024 Top 20 Best-Selling Premium Games – U.S. (Dollar Sales, Physical and Digital from digital data sharing publishers, excludes add-on content)

— Mat Piscatella (@matpiscatella.bsky.social) 2024-10-11T13:17:07.902Z

Year-to-Date Ending August 2024 Top 20 Best-Selling Premium Games – U.S. (Dollar Sales, Physical and Digital from digital data sharing publishers, excludes add-on content)

— Mat Piscatella (@matpiscatella.bsky.social) 2024-10-11T13:17:27.712Z

Madden NFL 25 was the best-selling video game of August 2024 – the 25th consecutive year in which a new Madden NFL franchise release was the best-selling title in its release month. This streak began with the release of Madden NFL 2001 in August of 2000.

— Mat Piscatella (@matpiscatella.bsky.social) 2024-10-11T13:17:34.210Z

The EA Sports MVP Bundle, which includes both the EA Sports College Football 25 Deluxe Edition and Madden NFL 25 Deluxe Edition, ranked 4th in August after placing 2nd in July, and finished August as the #4 best-selling game in year-to-date dollar sales.

— Mat Piscatella (@matpiscatella.bsky.social) 2024-10-11T13:17:39.214Z

EA Sports College Football 25 remained the best-selling title of 2024 year-to-date after placing 2nd in August. Other new releases appearing among August’s top 20 best-sellers included Star Wars: Outlaws (3rd overall), Visions of Mana (10th) and Gundam Breaker 4 (11th).

— Mat Piscatella (@matpiscatella.bsky.social) 2024-10-11T13:17:48.811Z

Players control a new hero, Val, who acts as a Soul Guard for his childhood friend, Hiina, as they embark on a journey to the Mana Tree. Several other characters, like Careena, Palamena, Morley, and Junei, join them throughout, providing unique abilities. However, you can also discover Elemental Vessels to switch classes and stats while wielding different attacks.

The Vessels also grant exploration abilities like pushing heavy rocks with the Gnome Shovel, grappling via the Shade Sight, and illuminating routes thanks to the Lumina Lantern. Touted as having the highest volume of content in the series, Visions of Mana unfortunately doesn’t have co-op multiplayer (though this could change in the future). Stay tuned for more updates in the meantime.

This time, the focus is on Visions of Mana’s world and the environmental diversity that it will boast. From lush forests and grassy fields to icy locales and more, the vibrant world is touting some impressive environmental diversity. The trailer offers glimpses of a number of different locales that players will be exploring, including some of the towns, while also offering new looks at some of the enemies you will encounter. Check out the trailer below. 

Visions of Mana is due out on August 29 for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, Xbox One, and PC. Check out its PC requirements through here. A demo of the game is also currently available.

Some content differs from the game, so your progress won’t carry over. However, players can unlock three weapons for protagonist Val – a Gladius, Falx and Horn Lance. These will become available in Chapter 1 of the game, though you can eventually unlock them by playing.

Visions of Mana launches on August 29th worldwide and sees Val accompanying his childhood friend Hinna to the Mana Tree. They encounter various individuals, some becoming party members like Morley, Careena, Julei, and Palamena, and others providing support without directly participating in combat.

Players can also discover Elemental Vessels that unlock new classes and combat abilities. Head here for more details. You can also check out the PC requirements for the title here.

The Gnome Shovel activates the clay golems in environments to push heavy objects and destroy objects to progress. As an Earth-based Elemental Vessel, it can conjure a dome of rock to reduce damage taken and rain down boulders from the sky on enemies. The Lumina Lantern will reflect damage between linked enemies while illuminating new paths during exploration.

The Shade Sight is Darkness-based and pulls lighter enemies towards you for mid-air combos (or towards them if they’re heavier). It can also create a black hole to pull enemies towards a point, immobilizing them and dealing damage before exploding. Of course, it can also grapple in specific areas and unlock passages.

Check out the trailer for more details on the different classes that each Elemental Vessel confers. Visions of Mana launches on August 29th for Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5, and PC. Check out the PC requirements here.

Nothing too hefty, as revealed on the series’ official Twitter. Windows 10/11 64-bit, DirectX 12 and 45 GB of installation space are mandatory. The minimum requirements include an AMD Ryzen 3 1200 or Intel Core i5-6400, 16 GB RAM, and an AMD Radeon RX 580, Intel Arc A580 or Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 6GB VRAM. This is enough for 1080p/30 FPS on the Low preset.

Recommended requirements include a Ryzen 5 3500 or Core i5-8500, 16 GB RAM, and a Radeon RX 5700 XT, Intel Arc A580 or GeForce RTX 2070. It’s enough for 1080p/60 FPS on the High preset. The requirements for 4K or higher frame rates are unknown, but stay tuned for updates.

Visions of Mana launches on August 29th for Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5, and PC. Check out some more extensive gameplay here.

Presenting the PC specifications for #VisionsofMana.

See you August 29th! pic.twitter.com/63yAXOEYXK

— Mana Series (@ManaGame) July 26, 2024

This time, the hero is Val, who journeys with his friend Hinna to the Tree of Mana. They’ll encounter several other party members, including Careena, the Oracle of Wind, and Morley, the Radiant Sword, who employs a katana. Two new characters – Palamena, Queen of the Deep, and Julei, Woodland Custodian – are also revealed for five playable characters.

The Elementals allow each character to change to different classes, gaining new combat abilities. Characters like Hinna, Careena’s beast cub Ramcoh, and Aesh, curator of the Dark Archives, can also provide support during battle. Head here to check out more combat and exploration gameplay. Though it doesn’t have co-op at launch, series producer Masaru Oyamada promises “highest volume of content” in the series.

“Please look forward to an update on the release date and more information on this title soon.” The Summer Game Fest Showcase sounds like a good bet, but it’s also possible that an announcement will be made during the Xbox Games Showcase on June 9th. Visions of Mana appeared during the Xbox Developer_Direct 2024 last January, so Microsoft may have the marketing rights.

Visions of Mana is coming to Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5 and PC. The story revolves around Val and Careena as they journey to the Tree of Mana. They encounter other characters along the way, and players can equip different Elemental Vessels to change their classes while also gaining unique movement skills. Though it won’t have co-op multiplayer, it promises the highest content volume in the series. Stay tuned for more updates in the coming days.

New information for Visions of Mana will be revealed soon.

Please look forward to an update on the release date and more information on this title soon. pic.twitter.com/d9ffWbTJBA

— みどり (@MbKKssTBhz5) June 2, 2024