The Verge’s gaming section brings the latest video game news, reviews of the most exciting releases, and interviews with the industry’s biggest names. We cover everything from PlayStation and Xbox blockbusters, to quirky Nintendo games, to the cool indie gems on PC and Android that you might otherwise miss.
After releasing a buildable Xbox 360 in 2023, Mattel is back with a DIY recreation of Microsoft’s original console complete with a chonky replica of the Duke controller. The $324, 3,509-piece set is part of Mattel’s Lego-like Brick Shop line and includes gaming dioramas hidden inside plus interactive lighting and console sounds.
The changes are designed to get you playing the latest Call of Duty faster, though some of the details differ based on what platform you’re on. Activision’s blog post has the rundown.
Modern Warfare 4’s beta kicks off Friday for people who preordered, and an open beta starts the Friday after. The full game launches on October 23rd. A new multiplayer trailer debuted today ahead of the beginning of the beta.
Harvey Smith of Dishonored and Deus Ex fame has a new studio after Microsoft shuttered Arkane Austin in 2024, reports IGN. Called Black Pony Immersive, its members include fellow Arkane alum Ben Horne, and it’s continuing the tradition of Smith’s favorite genre:
I concluded by asking Smith if he felt a sense of responsibility to carry the torch for the immersive sim genre. “Always. Until I am dead,” he said.
For $189, you can upgrade one of Secretlab’s Titan Evo or Classic Series gaming chairs with the company’s new EasyFold Foldaway Armrest. As the name implies (multiple times), the upgraded armrests introduce a mechanism allowing them to be rotated backwards 90 degrees so they don’t get in the way while you’re playing an instrument or gaming.
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The Swedish flatpack furniture maker shared a video through its Instagram account today that seemingly reveals an upcoming collection inspired by the console. The video’s details are vague but it appears to show a piece of furniture inspired by an Xbox controller’s thumbstick as well as a bright green X-shaped cushion.
The company responded to Apple’s new App Store policies in a post on X, claiming the updated fees “do nothing to open up the mobile app ecosystem to competition” and “deliberately violate” the EU’s Digital Markets Act.
Few brand deals make more sense than the new Mean Girls and Clueless DLC coming to The Sims 4. The collection drops on August 27th and features a bunch of new fashion options, though sadly I don’t think Cher’s high-tech closet is included.
Spector, known for working on games like Deus Ex and System Shock, says he has three games he still wants to make. But “the game business has changed and it’s just not as much fun for me anymore” and there are new developers who “deserve their time in the sun.”
[LinkedIn]
Castlevania: Grimoire of Souls, which featured classic characters from the series and launched in 2021, will become unavailable to download on August 20th and will be fully shut down on September 3rd, Konami says.
Symphony of the Night composer Michiru Yamane worked on the game, and we interviewed her back when it came out.
[Castlevania -Grimoire of Souls- Official Website]
The digital version will still launch on September 24th, but the physical release has been moved to October 15th, Remedy says. The game has also gone gold.
Nvidia’s cloud gaming service can now stream more than 5,000 PC games directly in the Mozilla browser, joining existing support for Chrome, Safari, Edge, and Opera GX. It’s the latest effort to get GeForce Now onto as many screens as possible, following its expansions to Linux and Amazon Fire TV this year.
And Shadow, Sora, Mega Man, Pac-Man, Spyro, Crash Bandicoot, and even Joker from Persona 5. They’re joining Fortnite as part of a new gaming-themed season, Override, that launches on August 20th. You can get a preview of what’s to come in a new trailer and a slick video featuring what’s in the battle pass.
After saying to This Week in Videogames that he would have been “happy to replace her with AI,” Sacco says CEO Matthew Karch emailed her and “apologized unreservedly for the awful way he spoke about me in the press.” You can read her full statement below.
Sacco, a former lead writer on the recently-announced Rideshare “Stimulator”, had claimed that “Saber replaced me with ChatGPT midway through development.” CEO Matthew Karch denied that Saber “replaced any writers with AI.” The game uses AI for voices, music, and missions, according to its recently-updated Steam page.
From a Wall Street Journal profile of Sony CEO Hiroki Totoki: “Totoki said the company still hasn’t fixed a date for PS6’s launch.” RAM shortages are likely partly to blame, and a Bloomberg report from earlier this year said Sony has considered pushing back the launch to 2028 or 2029.
[The Wall Street Journal]
Panettiere was best known for her roles in the Heroes and Nashville television series, Scream films, and Kingdom Hearts video games. No cause of death has been announced. Her father, Skip Panettiere, gave the following statement to ABC News:
“It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden. She was an incredible light and a force of nature who brought immeasurable love and joy to all who knew her -- and to the millions who watched her onscreen.”
Square Enix and Disney Kids have teamed up to bring Sora’s adventures to the small screen with an all-new storyline as part of an anime series. Unfortunately, there are few details beyond that. Though, we do know that the game series’ creator, Tetsuya Nomura, is on board.
After denying that it replaced writers for Rideshare “Stimulator” with ChatGPT and admitting that the game has some AI-generated elements, Saber Interactive has added an AI content disclosure to the title’s Steam page.
While the main campaign is written by humans, AI tools are used for “voice generation and some localization.” Free ride mode, which is optional, includes “AI-generated passenger missions and localized dialogue.” There are also radio stations featuring AI-generated music, though they’ll be labeled in the game.
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“Roblox appears to prioritize revenue and engagement metrics over the safety and well-being of our children, and the alleged criminal activity on Roblox warrants congressional scrutiny,” Senators Josh Hawley (R-MO) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) wrote in a letter to Roblox CEO David Baszucki.
The online gaming platform has also been subject to state lawsuits regarding alleged child safety issues. Roblox has settled some of those lawsuits, and it recently launched dedicated accounts for younger users.
[Josh Hawley, U.S. Senator for Missouri]
A staff member in the official Epic Games Store community Discord confirmed a Linux app is in the works, but won’t be in the next preview release, VideoCardz reports. Linux users currently have to use third-party tools like the Heroic Games Launcher to run games from the Epic Games Store.
Gambit offers similar features for playing and learning poker online, like bot matches, live play, and tournaments, but without any real gambling. Like Chess.com, it also has an “Elo-style rating system.”
Nvidia says the app’s full release brings “a more polished experience, plus gameplay optimisation with better DLSS Frame Generation.” It initially launched in beta on Ubuntu earlier this year, and Nvidia said at the time that it plans to add support for more distributions in the future.
After announcing GameCube games were coming to Nintendo Switch Online over a year ago, Nintendo has added that console’s divisive Mario outing, Super Mario Sunshine. It joins other GameCube titles like The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker and Luigi’s Mansion, but keep in mind you’ll need to pay for the Expansion Pack to play them.
After denying replacing Rideshare Stimulator’s writers with ChatGPT following a claim from a former lead writer, Stella Sacco, Saber Interactive CEO Matthew Karch said this to This Week in Videogames:
As far as Stella is concerned, she was replaced by someone more talented and terminated for a variety of reasons a few months later. From what I can gather she enjoys controversy even more than I do. I would frankly in retrospect have been happy to replace her with AI. At least we would be dealing with someone programmed to be honest.
There’s more in the full article. Sacco: “Everything I said was true.”
