With the Switch 2 now available, Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pass owners now have access to GameCube games – rejoice! Alas, it’s only three for the time being, but they’re absolute bangers, and more will come.
For those particularly nostalgic for Nintendo’s adorable little box from the early ’00s, you might have been disappointed to learn that there’s no iconic startup screen when booting up the app on Switch 2. Fear not, however, because there’s a small trick you can do to view the enduring animation.
It’s one of many video apps currently not available.
Switch 2 supports existing apps and games, but out of the gate you might experience some issues. If you’ve been trying to access YouTube on your new Nintendo system you’ll receive a notice about how the software is unable to start.
In case you’re wondering if it will make a return, Nintendo has already flagged this in its backward compatibility tests, noting how the issue with YouTube is “being investigated”. In an update, a user of this app has reached out to YouTube via social media and received the following response.
Alongside debuting new gameplay, Sonic Team head Takashi Iizuka joined us at IGN Live to share more about Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds and why this is one big crossover kart racer you need to play.
We are just one day removed from Sonic Racing: CrossWorld’s big reveal at Summer Game Fest that Hatsune Miku, Like a Dragon’s Ichiban Kasuga, Persona 5’s Joker, and Minecraft’s Steve, Alex, and Creeper will all be guest characters, and Iizuka reflected on what the process was like in choosing who gets to join in on all the fun.
“We wanted to make sure the second lap around was going to be full of surprises as you’re going to a different world that you didn’t even think was possible,” Iizuka said. “So, when brainstorming what we could do to make that really fun and exciting, we knew it would be great to go to some of the Sega IP worlds, but we also wanted to go to other IP worlds and really surprise people with that second lap. As we got to thinking about what worlds be fun to explore, we really thought Minecraft and its characters could be very fun.”
For those unfamiliar, Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds has a very interesting three-lap formula thats starts with a pretty standard first lap. However, the racer in first place will then get to pick a new world everyone will race through via Travel Rings.
“The three Lap formula is really good for racers,” Iizuka said. “It’s really easy to understand, and we wanted to make things new and fresh so you’re not just racing around the same place over and over again. And that was where the idea of the Travel Ring formed, which is to bring you somewhere new and unknown in that second lap. That’s not all, as we wanted to keep the surprise and the racing really fresh and fun, so we added in some surprises for the third lap too.”
We then shifted our conversation to items, and Iizuka shared that he loved that Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is paying homage to Sonic Racing games with the addition of the Rocket Punch item and Team Sonic Racing with Wisp items, but he did admit that his favorite item in this new game is the Monster Truck power-up that “lets you turn your vehicle into a monster truck and just run over everyone in front of you.”
There’s a lot more to look forward to in Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds when it is released on September 25, 2025, including the return of Sonic Riders’ hoverboards, the ability for any character to ride in any vehicle, racing up to 12 players online, and even the most-welcome of features in cross-play.
Speaking of different platforms, Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds will be released on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PC, and Nintendo Switch. And yes, even though it may arrive a bit after, Switch 2 players will also soon be able to hit the road with the over 23 racers featured in this game.
“Mario Kart World is going to move a lot of Switch 2”.
Mario Kart World has the most graphical horsepower we’ve ever seen in the history of the Mario Kart series, and if you’re eager to know the exact details about how this game is performing on the Switch 2, Digital Foundry has now delivered its tech review.
In the Switch 2’s portable and tabletop mode, racers can expect a resolution of 1080p in handheld and 1440p in docked play:
With the release of MindsEye just days away, the game’s director, Leslie Benzies, paid a visit to IGN Live today to discuss the new third-person action-adventure game.
MindsEye is not an open world game and Benzies said he felt, “It’s often hard in an open world to keep the story clean,” before joking that “It might be strange to go and bowl for two days when you need to save the world.” However, he added, the game does include “an open world system through the Build MindsEye system.”
Benzies elaborated that a crucial component of the game for he and his collaborators was the ability it includes to add user-generated content, explaining “As you’re playing any mission, if you like a spot on the map, you can immediately start to create anything you want [right there].”
He said they’d purposely made it an uncomplicated system. “We want to keep this as simple as possible… So you can have something half-decent within a minute and a half. It’s putting the power of building into the hands of players.” He said that a general thought for the approach to MindsEye included “pushing it towards people who want to make games.”
Asked how they will curate these builds for other players to best find them, he explained “At launch, we will curate and pick the cream of the crop on a featured menu.” However, he added, “Eventually, we want players to choose what they want. We don’t want to dictate eventually how you earn money in the game or how you decide to play the game.”
The building tool that will be used by players was also used by those making the game, with Benzies saying “A lot of what you see now was built within the tool. A lot of the ambience… Anything we could build using the tool we would.” He also noted, “Our next game, we’ll use it more.” At the same time, he promised “Every tool we use to build the game we’ll give to players so they can use.”
Benzies indicated they had grand plans for MindsEye follow ups, stating “The MindsEye story, it’s a small part of a very big story that we intend to tell over however many years it takes.” He compared the larger world they were formulating to something like Star Wars, in that “We have many stories that take place over different time periods in the same universe.”
The game director also noted that “multiplayer will come at the end of this year and then we have a huge multiplayer world add on that will come next year.”
Circling back to the user generated content, Benzies said he was excited to see what becomes of it because he thinks when you give the tools to the public, they’ll often find “More interesting ways to use the tools and almost hack the tools.”
If you want to put your Switch 2 through its paces, there’s no shortage of options in its generous launch lineup. Whether it’s the candy-colored charm of Mario Kart World or the neon-drenched cityscape of Cyberpunk 2077, you’re spoiled for choice when it comes to visual powerhouses.
With such major titles on offer, it would be easy to overlook Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess. Released on other platforms in July 2024, it’s a game that, at first glance, might seem like just another Japanese action game, complete with unwieldy title and familiar feudal-era setting. Jumping into the adventure of the goddess Yoshiro and her faithful protector Soh, I was surprised to find that Capcom’s Shinto-inspired epic is a truly compelling blend of action and tower defence.
Gearbox Software has published a statement regarding the controversy surrounding changes to parent company Take-Two’s Terms of Service and fears that many Borderlands games now contain “spyware.”
Published directly on Steam, where outcry has materialized in the form of review-bombing campaigns for all major Borderlands titles, the statement’s aim is to address concerns while “maintaining transparency and confidence with the community.” That means tackling two key talking points that have taken over the Borderlands fanbase for months, including fears of spyware and modding crackdowns.
Gearbox makes its stance clear from the get-go: “Take-Two does not use spyware in its games.” While there are instances data will be collected, Gearbox doesn’t want players to fear that their private information is always up for grabs.
“Take-Two identifies these practices in its Privacy Policy to provide transparency to players and comply with its legal obligations,” Gearbox’s Steam statement says. “Take-Two collects this information to deliver its services to players, including to protect the game environment and player experience. You can read more about this in the Privacy Policy.”
The statement continues: “For example, player and device identifiers are collected in part to ensure the game is compatible with each player’s media, platform or website browser type. It allows us to better understand how players play games, and to personalize the user experience (like having usernames show up!). Account credentials are collected from users who choose to create accounts with Take-Two and its labels.”
It’s unclear if Gearbox’s explanation of Take-Two’s Terms of Service will be enough to calm those who took up arms after the agreement was altered back in February. Meanwhile, the studio’s explanation for its stance on the modding scene is fairly straightforward.
“Take-Two’s Terms of Service prohibit mods that allow users to gain an unfair advantage, negatively impact the ability of other users to enjoy the game as intended, or allow users to gain access to content that the user is not entitled to,” the statement clarifies. “We do this to protect the integrity of the game experience for all users.”
This is a direct response to fears that the modding community could face repercussions for any kind of modding activity, as Gearbox says Take-Two’s primary concern lies with cheaters who could dampen the experience for other players. The statement goes as far as to say Gearbox’s parent company “generally does not seek to take action against mods that are single-player only, non-commercial, and respect the intellectual property (IP) rights of its labels and third parties.”
Uproar began around May of this year when fans caught wind that Take-Two had updated its terms of service, affecting many of its existing titles. Rumor that the company was preying on user data quickly caught fire, resulting in a movement that saw the Recent Reviews sections for Borderlands 1, Borderlands 2, and Borderlands 3 tank into the “Mostly Negative” and “Overwhelmingly Negative” zones. While concerns subsided for the back half of May, fears kicked up once again when Borderlands 2 was made free to keep (for a limited time) on June 5.
Michael Cripe is a freelance contributor 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).
I’ve been excited about Roman Sands RE:Build since the moment I laid my eyes on it, particularly because it’s from the same studio behind the ever-haunting Paratopic. Roman Sands just has a ridiculously strong art direction to it, very much one that could easily be dubbed Y2K, but I think more accurately should be seen as an evolution of the aesthetic/ era. Almost as if this is the direction it could have gone in.
You might have seen an RPG with a swashbuckling theme before, but guaranteed you haven’t seen one that looks like Joker Studio’s Sea of Remnants. Think of a haunted toy box belonging to a deranged puppeteer, and then add a bit of glam rock for good measure. It’s the perfect vibe for the story of a sailor with no memories setting out to find a cursed location, and the adventure will arrive on PC and mobile in 2026.
“Our creative journey began with a spark of pure feeling—an emotional image that guided everything: ‘If a puppet’s mind is soaked in water, memories slip away into the ocean, yet they still choose to return and sail again.’ This early inspiration was both a playful nod to the Chinese saying “ 脑子进水” (‘brain soaked with water’) and a philosophical reflection seen in some of our favorite films,” Joker Studios told us.
“When it came time to build the actual framework, we drew on a wide range of influences—from JRPGs and CRPGs to open-world titles and even niche indie games that share a spirit of boundless exploration. At every step, we focused on how to let players experience these feelings themselves, not just watch them.”
When you dive into Sea of Remnants you’ll be focused on exploring the pirate city Orbtopia, talking to the rich cast of NPCs and – you’re a sailor after all – taking to the briny waves to find islands, treasures, and hidden ruins. You can raid the ships you meet on the sea or take on huge monsters, all while a dynamic weather system rages overhead. When you’re not doing that you’ll be focused on upgrading your vessel, learning new skills, or even kicking back with some fishing, cooking, and mahjong.
“You’ll challenge sea monsters, explore local cultures, and sense the deeper mystery of how memory and forgetting begin to intertwine between the ocean and Orbtopia, the pirate haven. Alongside your companions, you’ll begin a journey that’s equal parts unrestrained and romantic, charting a course as unique as each sailor who steps aboard,” says Joker Studio.
Joker Studio previously released Identity V, a survival horror game created in partnership with Dead by Daylight’s Behavior Interactive. Since its release in 2018, Identity V has collaborated with Edward Scissorhands, Sherlock Holmes, Personae and Deathnote. Just like Sea of Remnants it has a distinctive visual style – think Coraline but creepier. The game made a bigger impact in Asia than the US, but it still has a dedicated fandom.
“At their core, the two games exist in entirely separate worlds and storylines. That said, as a nod to fans and our shared studio DNA, you might find a few subtle Easter eggs or world-building hints here and there. But rest assured, any connections are handled with great care and won’t overshadow the unique stories of each game.”
IGN Live 2025 is packed with exclusive reveals, thousands of giveaways, 170 gaming stations, and tons of fun, the event is shaping up to be a huge celebration of everything fans of games, TV, movies, comics, and collectibles love, and here’s how to watch the event.
Rachel Weber is the Senior Editorial Director of Games at IGN and an elder millennial. She’s been a professional nerd since 2006 when she got her start on Official PlayStation Magazine in the UK, and has since worked for GamesIndustry.Biz, Rolling Stone and GamesRadar. She loves horror, horror movies, horror games, and French Bulldogs. Those extra wrinkles on her face are thanks to going time blind and staying up too late finishing every sidequest in RPGs like Fallout and Witcher 3.
I don’t think you can more easily sell me on a game than by saying it was made by one of the artists behind Celeste, and has music from Disasterpeace, i.e. the composer behind Fez, Hyper Light Drifter, and It Follows. But that’s exactly what Neverway is, a horror RPG in the vein of Stardew Valleyfirst announced back in April, back with a nice little look-in at yesterday’s Day of the Devs presentation.
