Three new trademarks which very much look to be related to Larian’s Divinity RPG series have been unearthed, with one closely mirroring the design of a desert monolith Geoff Keighley’s posted a picture of in advance of The Geoff Awards. That monolith teaser, which Keoff captioned “regal.inspiring.thickness” has been the subject of much chatter for the past week or so, as the big showcase hype machine churns.
Is Larian’s popular role-playing series back?
We’re just days out from The Game Awards, and one marketing stunt that’s got a lot of attention in the lead up to the show is a mysterious statue located in the middle of the Mojave Desert.
It’s ignited plenty of speculation online, and now a trio of Divinity trademarks, which were filed in Europe on 9th December 2025, appear to confirm it’s an announcement related to Larian’s popular role-playing series. As you can see below, the symbols match the statue:
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
“Our strategy going forward is changing”.
As we wait for something to come of the 10-year deal between Microsoft and Nintendo, the Call of Duty team at Activision has today announced its strategy “going forward” is changing.
From here on out, the team will “no longer do back-to-back releases” of Modern Warfare or Black Ops games. The aim is to provide a truly “unique experience” in each entry and “drive innovation that is meaningful, not incremental”.
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
Seeing red.
Nintendo shared a massive surprise in September, revealing it would be reviving the Virtual Boy for ‘Nintendo Classics’.
This library will be joining the Switch Online + Expansion Pack service next year on 17th February 2026, and if you haven’t already made up your mind, here’s your reminder that the headset (and the cardboard model) is now available on the My Nintendo Store in select regions.
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
Call of Duty will no longer release multiple Black Ops or Modern Warfare games back-to-back, after two Modern Warfare releases in 2022 and 2023, and two Black Ops releases in 2024 and 2025, respectively, and negative feedback and concerning sales reports for the most recent release, Black Ops 7.
This news was delivered from “the Call of Duty team” (encompassing studios Treyarch, Sledgehammer, Infinity Ward, and Raven Software) on the official website, in a post that acknowledged the criticism of Black Ops 7 as well as broader criticism of the franchise in recent years. As the post opens:
First off, thank you for all for the feedback we have received over the last few months. Call of Duty has enjoyed long-standing success because of all of you, a passionate community that demands excellence and deserves nothing less. We also know that for some of you, the Franchise has not met your expectations fully. To be very clear, we know what you expect and rest assured we will deliver, and overdeliver, on those expectations as we move forward.
The post goes on to state a number of changes the Call of Duty studios will be making going forward. For starters, they’re opening up Black Ops 7’s multiplayer zombies mode for a free trial and Double XP weekend next week, in an effort to get those who have hesitated on Black Ops 7 to “experience the game firsthand and decide for yourselves.” They also are committing to “unprecedented season support,” saying that they “won’t rest until Black Ops 7 earns its place as one of the best Black Ops games we’ve ever made.”
Then, the team had this to say about future Call of Duty releases:
We will no longer do back-to-back releases of Modern Warfare or Black Ops games. The reasons are many, but the main one is to ensure we provide an absolutely unique experience each and every year.
We will drive innovation that is meaningful, not incremental. While we aren’t sharing those plans today, we look forward to doing so when the time is right.
The note concludes by saying the team believes Call of Duty’s “best days are ahead of us” and that the next era of Call of Duty will “deliver precisely on what you want along with some surprises that push the Franchise and the genre forward.”
These changes come amidst, and likely in response to, a rough couple of years for the Call of Duty franchise. The most recent entry, Black Ops 7, debuted last month to middling reviews, including our own 6/10 campaign review, 6/10 Zombies review, and significantly better 8/10 multiplayer review. This is also in the context of both Black Ops 7 and Modern Warfare 3 receiving poor reviews in comparison to their immediate series predecessors the year before, with Black Ops 6 and Modern Warfare 2 being received generally favorably. This likely accounts, at least in part, for the decision to stop the back-to-back releases.
For Black Ops 7, that lukewarm reception has also been reflected in the game’s sales numbers, especially in relation to another recent major multiplayer shooter release, Battlefield 6. The game had a “terrible” launch in Europe, down 63% versus Battlefield 6 and down by more than 50% versus last year’s Black Ops 6 in the equivalent periods.
It is worth noting that we don’t have full visibility into Black Ops 7’s sales data, as it launched day one on Game Pass, and a number of people likely played the game through the subscription service and didn’t count as unit sales.
But nonetheless, the announcement today feels like an admission that something has gone wrong here. Whether or not the Call of Duty team can fix it will take a few years to truly comprehend.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.
The world’s ended, but doesn’t it look pretty? That seems to be the central premise of Verdant, a game in which a young bloke dirt bikes around the plant-filled remains of post-apocalyptic 1980s Germany, figuring out the conundrums all young dirt bikers face.
It’s been a while since we’ve had to answer this question. What is Dome Keeper?
To keep it simple, Dome Keeper is a roguelike action game where you explore an alien planet through mining; collect resources and gadgets, and upgrade your dome to keep it safe from the monsters which will relentlessly attack it in waves. Sounds simple, right? But anyone who has played it before, or even watched someone else play, may raise an eyebrow reading this, because Dome Keeper is way more than that.
Since its release on Steam back in September 2022, Dome Keeper has become one of Raw Fury’s most popular titles, gathering more than two million players. It started as a tiny, passion game jam project from René and Anne Habermann, co-founders of the German studio Bippinbits. As their idea started to grow and become more ambitious, they defined some of the core pillars of the game. It wouldn’t be just another roguelike, but deliver a very clear and unique player experience:
The fact that Dome Keeper relies on a minimalist visual style doesn’t mean it can’t have the thing everybody loves in games: Pets! These lovable cosmetics companions will stay at the dome and wait for your return. In addition to the three you can unlock in-game, here are two more available in the paid DLCs:
We have a special gift for all of you: Some advice, tips and tricks to become a pro keeper, coming from the master himself: René Habermann, Dome Keeper’s Game Director.
Dome Keeper is available to play with Game Pass, and both DLCs can be purchased separately or as part of the Deluxe Bundle on Xbox Series S|X and Windows. We can’t wait for you to discover what lies in the depths of our planet!
Raw Fury
But it won’t be long until the relentless monsters return – do you risk delving deeper into the mine? Or return to base and prepare for imminent attack? The choice is yours, but make it quickly!
Dig
Use your drill and keeper equipment to quickly dig out tunnels and explore the depths beneath your dome. Each run has its own unique, procedurally generated map filled with resources and caves to discover, along with additional gadgets to obtain.
Defend
Protect your dome by operating its powerful weaponry to defend against waves of monster attacks. Upgrade, repair and repel a variety of enemy types that approach across air and ground, each with their own unique attack methods and movement patterns.
Develop
Spend resources to unlock useful upgrades. Improve dome defences, enhance the impact of your drill, or increase movement speed – choose carefully and strategise to increase odds of survival.
Discover
Customise your setup and find a playstyle that works for you by choosing from two unique keeper types, four different domes, and four primary gadgets. Pick a run modifier, adjust difficulty settings and discover dozens of secondary gadgets while you dig through the earth.
The post A Deep-Dive Into Dome Keeper: A Fan Favourite Now on Xbox appeared first on Xbox Wire.
Earlier this month, a large, demonic-looking monolith appeared in the Mojave Desert, and Geoff Keighley tweeted a photo of it. The monolith featured figures of all sorts of strange creators: skeletons, alligators, soldiers, a wolf, and more. In the time since, online gaming enthusiasts have been eagerly speculating as to what the monolith and Keighley were teasing ahead of The Game Awards. Diablo 4? The Elder Scrolls 6? God of War? Bloodborne 2? Altered Beast?
Well, the mystery may have been solved in advance of The Game Awards on Thursday. As spotted by MP1st, some newly registered trademarks reveal a game and a logo that looks essentially identical to a symbol on the monolith. And those trademarks appear to be for a new Divinity game, from Larian Studios.
How do we know? Well, let’s take a look at one of the trademarks. It’s for an image, and it looks like this:
Now compare that to the big symbol at the center of the statue:
So yeah, that’s definitely the same symbol, so we’re in the right place. Now, how do we know it’s Divinity? Let’s look at the next trademark registered at the same time by the same company, simply for “Divinity”, with a logo attached.
Now we’re getting somewhere! It’s not exact, but it’s quite comparable to past Divinity: Original Sin logos:
And even closer to the older Divinity games, slashed through “i” and all.
Okay, maybe it’s all just a big coincidence? Sure, I guess. But there’s one more clue. All three trademarks were filed by Ihde & Partner Rechtsanwälte, a legal firm that, among other things, has previously filed trademarks for Larian Studios, including past Divinity: Original Sin trademarks.
So that’s pretty cut and dry. But what about that third trademark? This is where things get a bit more mysterious. This trademark is also just for an image, this one here:
What’s that? I have no idea. But it’s probably related, given it was filed on the same day by the same firm and is in a similar style to the other trademarks. Maybe we’ll find out on Thursday.
Critically, this seems to be for a new Divinity…NOT a Divinity: Original Sin game. Director of publishing at Larian Studios Michael Douse was on Twitter/X today shutting down any rumors of a Divinity: Original Sin 3, but his language was very specific:
There aren’t currently any plans for a new Divinity Original Sin 3 game but once we are ready to show what we’ve been working on we will 🙏
— Very AFK (@Cromwelp) December 9, 2025
If this is indeed Divinity, that’s good news for Larian fans, as Divinity: Original Sin 2 was fantastic. We gave it a 9.6/10, saying, “Divinity: Original Sin 2 may have been designed in the spirit of decades-old RPGs like Baldur’s Gate 2, but that legacy serves only as a foundation for the expansive game Larian has built on top of it.”
Speaking of Baldur’s Gate, Baldur’s Gate 3 is Larian’s most recent work, and that got an impressive 10/10 from us. We said, “I don’t want to say every CRPG going forward should aspire to be like Baldur’s Gate 3. Not everything needs to be nearly this big and ambitious, or even this dense. But it is a landmark moment in the genre, and if I had to point to one paragon that I would like everyone else making these to take inspiration from, this is absolutely it.”
While some may have clamored for Larian to immediately get to work on DLC or Baldur’s Gate 4, Larian explicitly said over a year ago that it wouldn’t be continuing with another D&D game. However, Larian CEO Swen Vincke has been teasing a new project for a while now, and based on past timelines, this year’s Game Awards would be a perfect time for an unveiling.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.
Notorious Battlefield 6 skin Wicked Grin has had its colors toned down once again, but this time, players are celebrating the removal of, well, its Wicked Grin.
Battlefield Studios launched update 1.1.3.0 alongside its Season 1 finale, Winter Offensive, today. Although patch notes covered sweeping changes to Breakthrough, hit registration, and the overall audio experience, much of the online community was pleased to see the update tackle one of the EA FPS’s biggest controversies.
You may recognize the above Support cosmetic as the Wicked Grin skin. While the clothing items themselves seem to be largely unchanged (minus one new bright yellow armband), the outfit’s standout features have been almost completely reworked. Where there were once bright blue colors highlighting the infantry class, players will now find muted tones and the complete removal of the toothy smile the skin originally earned its name from.
The Wicked Grin changes exist as what many in the Battlefield 6 community are calling another victory what has become a massive push against goofy skins. Players began fighting against fears that Fortnite and Call of Duty-esque skins would eventually infiltrate Battlefield 6 when the System Override skin, not-so-lovingly called the “Monster Energy drink skin,” was unveiled weeks before launch. With technical director Christian Buhl previously telling IGN that BF Studios would stick to realistic, grounded visuals “for a while,” players worried the developers could change course sooner rather than later.
Wicked Grin emerged weeks after launch as a prime example of what many believed was the beginning of the end for grounded infantry skins. Backlash related to the Support skin got out of hand so quickly that some players threatened to not revive any player seen wearing it.
Word of player dissatisfaction got back to BF Studios and resulted in changes to System Override. Now, Wicked Grin, which had already been tweaked with lighter colors with the November 18 launch of California Resistance, is almost unrecognizable in Winter Offensive. There is almost certainly a group of players disappointed to see those bright blues leave, but for the more vocal players online, they’re mostly happy BF Studios is listening.
“They fixed him,” one popular Reddit post says. “They fixed this skin, super muted blues and removed the ugly mask design. Big W on lostening to the people.”
“Props to the community for standing up,” one comment adds, “props to the devs for listening and acting accordingly.”
Battlefield 6 launched October 10 for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X | S, and BF Studios has been doing a balancing act since. A few updates targeting glitches, aim assist, gameplay balance, hit registration, and more have arrived in the last month alone, with content updates adding new maps as Season 1 rolls on. Today, Winter Offensive added snowy terrain to some familiar locations while handing players access to the new Ice Climbing Axe melee weapon.
For more, you can read our 8/10 Battlefield 6 multiplayer review. You can also see how some players are using Portal to cope with what they feel is a lack of large Conquest map options, and why others weren’t sure how to feel about some pricey new skins.
Michael Cripe is a freelance writer with IGN. He’s best known for his work at sites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP. Be sure to give him a follow on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).
A game where music is illegal and you do crimes. It’s the perfect tone-setting tagline for Unbeatable, a rhythm game about a bunch of young adults (and one child) rebelling against an oppressive regime by playing raucous garage rock.
