Summer! It’s hot. It’s ‘close’, as they say round here. And when you’re already hot and bothered, sometimes turning on your Switch 2 console in portable mode for a quick session, well, it’s not gonna make you any cooler, let’s put it like that.
Unfinished Business sees RoboCop heading to the OmniTower, the latest OCP project turned deathtrap, after a group of mercenaries has seized control and turned it into a fortress.
I’m going to do that thing people don’t like, where I remind you about the inevitable passage of time. If that’s the sort of thing that does about as much damage to you as failing to comply when ordered by ED-209, then look away now. Today marks 38 years since RoboCop’s debut and what better way to celebrate than with a double feature.
On the surface, “RoboCop” might feel like a gratuitous action flick, but that would be ignoring the deep worldbuilding, themes, and characterization explored across these movies. It’s also deeply satirical and not afraid to have fun, with some iconic jokes, gags, and one-liners.
These were a must when it came to building RoboCop: Rogue City, a first-person shooter that launched at the end of 2023 and is available today with Game Pass for Xbox Series X|S and Xbox PC! As RoboCop, you can hit the streets, interrogate witnesses, and complete objectives in alignment with your moral compass. If you’ve still not checked out Rogue City, now’s the perfect time.
Rogue City was a fantastic success for us, and that’s down to the passionate fans. Their support also gave us the opportunity to work on a follow-up, RoboCop: Rogue City – Unfinished Business. If Rogue City is a little more about downtime, exploring Old Detroit, and experiencing the life of RoboCop, then Unfinished Business can be considered playing a high intensity RoboCop movie.
Unfinished Business begins with a group of mercenaries tearing through the Metro West Precinct, bodies and bullets left in their wake. With components stolen from RoboCop’s chair, their objective is clear: the OmniTower. Combine these with the technology at the top, and they can seize control of all OCP technology, including RoboCop. The stakes are high and since the OmniTower is outside the Detroit Police Department’s jurisdiction, it means RoboCop is going in alone.
Unfinished Business follows on from Rogue City, and both games sit between “RoboCop 2” and “RoboCop 3” on the timeline. This gives us a lot of lore to draw from, it means we can introduce new enemies, like the katana wielding androids (those don’t look like OCP tech), or jetpack users, who rain fire down from above. These threats turn each level of the OnniTower into a puzzle that needs to be solved. How will you navigate the turrets, drones, and the small army of heavily armored mercs standing between you and the summit.
One of the most important things for players is that they feel the power of being RoboCop, we’ve kept the option to toss enemies and objects with ease, but we’ve also added powerful environmental finishers where the camera pulls back and see RoboCop in action. This was in response to feedback from our players who wanted to see more of the iconic hero.
Another thing we wanted to do with Unfinished Business is to dive deeper into the man in the machine. Humanity has always been a core theme in this series, and while the bulk of the story takes place in the OmniTower, levels that put you into the shoes of different characters present new gameplay styles that serve as a change of pace throughout the campaign.
When playing as Alex Murphy back when he was a beat cop, players will need to alter their playstyle without RoboCop’s powerful armor serving as a shield. Ammo counts become important when you can’t fall back on the Auto-9, but more than that, it’s an opportunity for us to build on Murphy’s story. The link between Murphy and RoboCop was a crux in the films, something that Peter Weller was known for doing so well, and the reason we needed to get him back for the standalone — welcome back to Old Detroit, Murphy.
ROBOCOP IS BACK ON DUTY TO SETTLE UNFINISHED BUSINESS
FIGHT YOUR WAY TO THE TOP FLOOR
Following RoboCop’s decisive victory over Detroit’s gangs, a new chapter unfolds in this standalone extension set after the events of RoboCop: Rogue City.
The New Guy in Town has been defeated, but the streets are still riddled with crime. A spark of hope comes from OCP’s latest project: OmniTower – a massive housing complex designed specifically to provide for the needs of the residents of Old Detroit.
But when a group of highly trained mercenaries armed with cutting-edge weapons takes control of the building and turns it into their deadly fortress, RoboCop must take action to put a stop to their plans and uphold the law.
FACE A DEADLIER CLASS OF CRIMINALS
Prepare to take on a new breed of enemies: OmniTower is packed with high-tech threats.
From flying drones to exploding bots and anti-personnel turrets, every floor is riddled with deadly traps, and heavily armed elite troops. Expect to face minigun-toting armoured squads, special forces equipped with jet packs or even katana-wielding foes who look more machine than man.
RESTORE ORDER WITH JUSTICE SERVED COLD
When it’s too late to shout “freeze”, you can rely on RoboCop’s arsenal to to cool down enemies’ ambitions. Choose from a wide range of powerful weapons to serve Justice, including the iconic Auto-9 or the all-new Cryo Cannon.
Unleash RoboCop’s unmatched strength to deliver devastating finishing moves – whether smashing an opponent’s skull against a concrete wall or into the nearest drinks vending machine.
PLAY AS ALEX MURPHY AND ED-209
Experience unique missions with familiar faces which reveal more of the storyline of Unfinished Business.
Before becoming RoboCop, he was plain old police officer Alex Murphy, brave and resolute, but all too vulnerable on the beat in Old Detroit. Discover a different side of the legendary law enforcer, voiced by Peter Weller.
Step into the big boots of ED-209 and make the mercs know the efficiency of the iconic urban pacifier in action. This time, criminals won’t have 20 seconds to comply.
Become the legendary part man, part machine, all cop hero and bring justice to the dangerous, crime-ridden streets of Old Detroit.
Uphold the law by any means necessary:
With your powerful Auto-9 or one of the other 20 weapons available, eradicate criminals throughout this explosive first-person adventure. Your cyborg strength and cybernetic abilities can be upgraded as you progress, to make you an even more formidable law enforcement officer.
It’s up to you to decide how to fulfil your prime directives:
Explore open areas and complete your objectives according to your own sense of justice. Finding evidence, interrogating suspects and maintaining public order are just some of your daily tasks as a police officer. But don’t take decisions lightly: your choices can determine the fate of citizens and the result of your mission.
An original story set in the world of RoboCop:
The city of Old Detroit has been hit by a crime wave, with a new enemy threatening the peace and order. Your investigation leads you right into the heart of a shadowy conspiracy in an original story that takes place between RoboCop 2 and 3, with striking locations to explore and familiar faces to meet. Peter Weller, the original RoboCop actor, is even back on duty to voice the cybercop.
The ”Alex Murphy” Edition throws you into the thick of the action for an even more exhilarating experience. It includes:
– The base game
– The ”OCP Shotgun” side arm
– The hero’s damaged armour, taken from the first RoboCop film (cosmetic)
– The ”Prototype” version of the Auto-9 gun (cosmetic)
– Early access to the game, 48 hours before the official launch
– The digital artbook containing 100 pages of images, with comments from the game developers
Julian LeFay, former chief engineer at Bethesda and co-founder of OnceLost Games, is stepping back from game development due to his ongoing battle with cancer, the company announced yesterday.
In a video from OnceLost Games, producer Victor Villareal announced the news. “Our technical producer Julian LeFay, who I’m sure needs no introduction, has been fighting a battle with cancer for the last several years,” said Villareal. “He’s fought bravely and strongly, but it seems he doesn’t have very much time left. He has stepped away from the project to spend that remaining time with his family and loved ones.”
LeFay is often referred to as the “father of the Elder Scrolls” series, as he joined Bethesda Softworks after its founding in 1987 and led the company as Chief Engineer through games like The Elders Scrolls: Arena, The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall, and Battlespire. Julianos, the God of Wisdom and Logic, and one of the Nine Divines in The Elder Scrolls, is named after LeFay.
Dabbling in various projects over the years, LeFay co-founded the studio OnceLost Games in 2019 with former Bethesda colleagues Ted Peterson and Vijay Lakshman, to work on a Daggerfall spiritual successor called The Wayward Realms.
Peterson penned a statement, released in the description of the announcement video from OnceLost games, tracing his history with LeFay.
“I could talk stories about our friendship and how we’ve worked together recently with our team on Wayward Realms as creative and technical directors, but I need to come to the point of this,” wrote Peterson. “Julian has been courageously battling cancer. His doctors have informed us that his time with us is limited, and we are preparing to say goodbye to a true legend of the industry.”
Peterson invited fans to share thoughts, prayers, well-wishes, memories, or simply the impact LeFay’s life and work has had on them.
“To me, this is deeply personal, and I regret every second I didn’t spend with one of the most charming, smart, funny, and interesting people I’ve ever met,” wrote Peterson. “It’s also a spur to action for me: I will not let down his legacy.
“That said, a final quote from the eminently quotable Julian LeFay,” he continued. “He said this at our last team meeting, and I believe it represents him and his beliefs well. ‘It is personal. And if it’s not personal, then you’re just doing work for hire and you’ll never have the motivation to accomplish a significant goal.'”
Mixtape isn’t entirely the retro 90s nostalgia piece you might be expecting from trailers – it’s also a playable job application. Protagonist Stacy Rockford is enjoying one last night in their east US hometown with childhood friends Slater and Cassandra, before Rockford sets off to chase a music supervisor gig in New York City. Mixtape is both a going-away celebration and, on some level, Rockford’s portfolio project, edited together from teenage flashbacks and waiting to be thrust into the hands of a distant producer.
Fantastical football sim Rematch has, we’re told, a passing problem. Specifically, no-one is doing it. While I suspect this dearth of teamplay is exaggerated in the darkness of upset Steam forum posts, I definitely remember a lot of ballhogging going on in the third person booter’s open beta.
It sounds to me, then, that Rematch is suffering from the same issue you get in low-ranked Dota 2 lobbies: everyone wants to be the superstar, the one who ends the match with the biggest numbers next to their name, oblivious to how few instances of the letter ‘I’ occur in the word ‘Team’. It’s very few, people. Clearly, what’s needed is someone willing to do the dirty work as a passing-focused support character, and today, that would be me. I’d score no goals and seek no glory, only defending, distracting, and most importantly, promoting the redistribution of stitched leather orbs.
In a statement today, Virtuous said it was “evolving to meet the changing needs” of its partners and the wider video games industry by cutting several hundred staff members, predominantly from its Asian workforce.
Describing the job losses as a “rebalancing of roles across our studios and geographies,” Virtuos said its changes would impact 200 roles in Asia and a further 70 roles in Europe.
Still, the company has made clear that its team behind the recent, well-received Oblivion Remastered is not among those hardest hit. “Fewer than 10” roles will be impacted in France, Virtuos continued, “where the core team working on Oblivion Remastered is located.” Oblivion Remastered update 1.2 will soon be released widely.
Ongoing work on Cyberpunk 2077 — which only today received its latest patch — will continue, Virtuos assured. The same is also true of its team working on Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, due out on August 28.
Discussing its staffing changes in more detail, Virtuos said the company’s focus had shifted over the past 12 months after acquisitions of teams in North America and Europe, and it was now “selectively exiting service segments where demand is weakening.”
“We are grateful for the contributions of those impacted,” Virtuos concluded. “We are providing separation packages, career transition assistance, and opportunities for redeployment across our global network where possible. The company’s immediate focus is on managing this transition with care, transparency, and respect.”
Headquarted in Singapore but with studios across the world, Virtuos employed 4,200 staff before these latest layoffs. The company is a renowned co-development partner that has contributed to a laundry list of recent blockbuster games, from Hogwarts Legacy to Call of Duty, and Horizon Zero Dawn to Mortal Kombat 1.
The Drifter is sometimes quite silly in ways I don’t think are intentional, and it managed to yank me right out of the experience more than once. You obviously have to be in a thing to get yanked out of it though, which is my way of saying that The Drifter is good, although I will be taking the piss out of it later. It’s stylish, moody, and pulls off the point n’ click adventure game two-for-one: characters worth caring about, and also characters worth irritating by fiddling with their stuff.
Mostly though, it’s just got a great eye for an arresting scene or setpiece. Some of my favourite parts did end up being its more complex multi-scene puzzles, but mainly because these are used sparingly in a story with bloody-minded dedication to anxious forward momentum.
Pac-Man, as iconic as he is, has felt like he’s been in a bit of a rut in recent years. The rather delightful PAC-MAN 99 aside, there’s an undeniable sense that the series has simply been unable to break away from its core concepts. So, regardless of what gimmicks are chucked in to justify a new entry — Battle Royale in Chomp Champs, endless runner in Pac-Man 256, co-op in Championship Edition 2 Plus — I often come away thinking, ‘Yep, it’s definitely Pac-Man.’ This might be enough for some, but more than 40 years after its arcade debut, many are hoping for a bit of a shake-up.
Enter Shadow Labyrinth. Developed at Bandai Namco Studios, this side-scrolling adventure is worlds apart from what you’ve likely come to expect from the pill-muncher. Set in a quiet, foreboding landscape with various biomes, the closest comparison that came to mind was Hollow Knight. Indeed, Shadow Labyrinth takes many cues from Team Cherry’s masterpiece, including the precise way that currency scatters on the ground from fallen enemies, hot springs to recover health, an eccentric merchant lurking underground, and a stylish, almost hand-crafted art style.
A deep dive into the physics behind this chaotic couch co-op.
Learn how to customize your warships and heat up the competition.
Ahoy, Captains!
Ruizhao Chen here, designer of BattleCap– the naval combat party game that transforms your living room into a bottle cap battleground. After years of sweat, laughter, and way too many “last rounds” with our dev team, I’m thrilled to announce: BattleCap launches today on Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One!
Why our Team Couldn’t Stop Playing
During development, our golden standard was simple: If our team didn’t get hooked during testing, players wouldn’t either. We’d promise “one last match” only to keep hitting “Start Game.” This obsession shaped every decision:
Team-wide enjoyment: We refined mechanics until programmers and artists loved them – not just designers.
Accessible depth: Simple controls hide strategic depth. Kids to grandparents can enjoy it.
Perfect session length: Matches fit a lunch break but deliver maximum laughter.
Social chaos: Backstabs and comeback victories make players “scream, laugh, and stomp.”
Physics: our Biggest Challenge and Triumph
BattleCap’s soul is its real-time physics simulation. Every interaction follows physical rules:
Elastic Warships: Connect bottle caps with bubblegum adhesive. Attacks make ships wobble and deform. Clever players exploit this to steal enemy caps mid-battle by breaking connections.
Environmental Strategy:
Ride wind currents to dodge or chase.
Avoid deadly whirlpools that pull ships toward destruction.
True Projectile Physics:
Cannonballs arc with gravity.
Lasers pierce targets.
Flamethrowers have short range.
Smart Enemies: Foes use line-of-sight physics. Hide behind obstacles to ambush them!
Months of tuning ensured these systems feel intuitive yet strategically rich.
What Awaits on the High Seas
Build Custom Warships
Collect scattered bottle caps to assemble multi-functional warships that deform, extend, or split apart. Adapt your strategy on the fly!
Conquer three Battle Zones
Mysterious Ruins: Navigate ancient hazards.
Stormbreaker Bay: Harness tactical winds.
Devil’s Whirlpool: Lure enemies into the maelstrom.
Choose Your Combat
Four-Player Local PVP: Compete in chaotic “triple-match championships” across dynamic maps.
Roguelite PVE: Team up against sea monsters! Collect random blessings and relics (like Tidal Shields) to upgrade your ship each run.
Set Sail Today!
BattleCap delivers fresh naval combat where physics rules and bottle caps reign. Perfect for:
Chaotic couch co-op nights.
Strategic shipbuilders.
Players seeking “easy to learn, hard to master” depth.
The naval combat party game “BattleCap” is now available! This innovative party game, supporting 1-4 players, will take you into an exciting naval battle. Here, you can use various bottle cap modules to create your own unique warship, engage in intense battles with friends, or team up to challenge powerful sea monsters. The unique flexible physics engine makes every ship collision dynamic and fun, offering a refreshing combat experience!
In the game, players will find themselves in three major themed combat zones, ranging from mysterious ruins to the devil’s whirlpool. Each map is filled with tactical changes and mechanical challenges. By collecting scattered bottle cap modules, you can assemble multi-functional warships that can deform, extend, or even break apart. Adapt your strategy flexibly in battle and enjoy the unique fun of ship assembly. The game also features rich Roguelite elements, allowing you to strengthen your warship with randomly dropped blessings and relics.
Whether you want to compete with friends in party mode or team up to fend off angry sea monsters in cooperative mode,”BattleCap” has something for you. The local PVP mode offers a tense and exciting triple-match championship, while the PVE mode is filled with strategy and teamwork, challenging your operational and tactical limits.
Join BattleCap: Clashing Wars now and embark on a new and fun naval battle experience with your friends! Build your custom warship and face endless adventure and challenges!
It’s almost Zed Time again. The gore-drenched co-op FPS, Killing Floor 3, isexploding its way onto PS5 on July 24. In preparation for launch, Studio Creative Director Bryan Wynia and Design Director Leland Scali from Tripwire Interactive took me through what to expect in this big, brutal and bloody sequel to one of the best blasters on the block.
PlayStation Blog: In terms of gameplay, what was the main focus for Killing Floor 3? And what sets it apart from its previous titles?
Leland: It really was adding depth to existing systems. So, in Killing Floor 1 and 2, you could progress the player and add skills. You essentially have passive, throwable, and gadget skill sets. It’s much more robust and there’s more choices the player can make. Depending on what you choose, you could end up synergizing early skills with later skills, or you could find better mixes later.
Bryan: There’s also the new player hub, where you can adjust those skills, weapon mods, and other elements. But we wanted to find ways to keep it as immersive as possible. So these skill trees aren’t just numbers under the hood, but things you can actually see and feel when you play the game.
Leland: And we’ve modernized player movement. You can now do things like slide and clamber. But once we did that, we knew we needed to improve how the enemies moved, too. So instead of them walking around objects to get to you, they jump and climb over things. No matter where you go, they can go too.
How has the Zed Time mechanic been reworked?
Leland: When we started testing KF3, some of the early feedback we got was that this feature is cool, but what causes it? So there’s a bar at the top of the screen that you’re filling by doing different actions like destroying Critical Zones or killing enemies. And once it’s about to trigger, the whole team can take advantage at the same time. Also each Perk has two unique skills that increase as the player increases their proficiency level. This increases the effectiveness of the Perk during Zed Time as the player progresses. These are just some ways in which we’ve enhanced Zed time to be more of a meaningful tool in the player’s arsenal, rather than a random event.
Bryan: We hired a former SWAT team leader and weapons expert, and I remember him saying that in combat there’s this clarity that becomes present. That’s a huge source of inspiration for Zed Time. You can feel overwhelmed in the moment, but when it kicks in we put the power in your hands.
Can you tell us more about the new Critical Zone system?
Leland: So when you damage certain enemies enough, their armor breaks off and exposes a Critical Zone. Destroying that puts them in a state where you can perform this gory [explosive] execution on them, and by using Zed Time you can get them in that state quickly.
Bryan: I think players enjoy communicating that they’re skillful at something, so that was one of the biggest driving factors for implementing the Critical Zone system. You have multiple ways of killing enemies: you can unload rounds, go for headshots or you can look for Critical Zones to really take advantage.
Leland: For example, the Impaler boss has a ton of Critical Zones. If you destroy the ones on his arms, you’ll be able to disable him from firing rockets, while destroying the Zones on his back stops him from firing smoke grenades. Being able to disable abilities is really cool because you quickly realize if we fight him in a certain way at the beginning of the match, it’ll benefit us later in the following phases.
Are there any new updates to the weapon mods system that you can reveal?
Bryan: With a first-person shooter you experience and interact with the world through your weapons, so it was important to give players more than cosmetic ways of customizing their guns. For example, in the sharpshooter class I keep my distance and do really precise high damage. So, I’m going to craft weapon mods that are various types of sights and grips for when I aim down the sights. I can then combo those with skills, like taking a knee when I shoot does increased damage. We still want the identity of these weapons to be kept – we’re not turning a shotgun into a sniper rifle – but you can use mods to play with it the way that you like.
Leland: And you can modify ammo. So you can craft something like fire ammunition for a gun that’s not normally fire based. Which is useful for a new system called Wave Mutations, which randomly changes certain properties of the upcoming wave. A certain enemy may be more susceptible to freeze damage, for example, and instead of normally having to focus on a different enemy if you’re not a suitable class, you can craft a modded weapon to deal that freeze damage.
Are there any particular things you want players to pay attention to when they boot it up for the first time? And do you have any tips for them?
Bryan: I’d love for players to dive into some of our outer loops, looking at skill trees and weapon mods, and learning about Critical Zones. It’s about showcasing your skill and taking advantage of new features like movement and dynamically fighting your way through a wave to show you’re the best Zed hunter on the internet.
In terms of tips, the biggest thing that helps you survive is prioritizing targets. Just because that Zed is the closest one to you doesn’t necessarily mean that’s the one you should shoot first. There could be a Husk or a Siren at the back of the battlefield that’s lining up a shot that can take you out.
Leland: And when you hit the Critical Zone of some of the bigger Zeds they essentially turn into a bomb, which is super useful when you’re surrounded by low-level enemies – that big guy’s explosion will take out all the little guys. So even if you take a bit of damage focusing on that Critical Zone, that’s tactically a better move.
Build Custom Warships
Conquer three Battle Zones
Choose Your Combat
Grab your crew. Fair winds, Captains!
