And the book’s still open.
25 years ago today, 11th August, Mario jumped into a whole new dimension.
Today marks the anniversary of the N64 turn-based RPG, Paper Mario — which is a pretty big deal, because that means the entire series is also celebrating its quarter-century anniversary. Feeling old yet?
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First revealed in State of Play, and recently playable at Evo Las Vegas 2025, MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls, brings a fundamental shift to the tag-fighting genre. Arc System Works, Marvel Games, and PlayStation Studios have assembled to create a vibrant, stylized world, and after an intense 30-minute play session this past weekend, I’m counting down the days until I’m a Tōkon fighter again.
“The reason we went with 4v4 is actually because it’s something that’s never been done before in fighting games where players can switch characters,” says Kazuto Sekine, Game Director and Lead Battle Designer, Arc System Works. “We wanted to challenge ourselves to create a new tag fighter.”
During my session, I had access to a set of all-star Heroes to create my team of four:
● Doctor Doom is slow but hits hard with magical and tricky range attacks.
● Ms. Marvel is quick with high-risk, high-reward attacks.
● Storm is an aerial threat with deadly crossovers.,
● Iron Man keeps enemies at bay with anti-air and other punishing moves.
● Star-Lord was the most technical with his ability to switch between firearms and insane juggles.
● Captain America is a versatile all-rounder and a great entry point for new players.
After some experimentation, I prioritized playing Storm and Star-Lord. I loved how their combos, personality, and flair were true to their characters (at one point, Storm sternly refers to Star-Lord as “Quill” when he’s goofing off, which I adored). Storm’s light and medium attacks are beginner-friendly and combo well into her Quick Skill, which is a character’s unique attack you activate by pressing R2. I also found success rushing in with Star-Lord, using quick blaster and melee combos right into his Ultimate, activated simply by pressing R1.
The control scheme is pretty straightforward. Square, Triangle, and Circle are your light, medium, and heavy attacks, respectively, while X is the assemble button. All of your special attacks and skills are reserved for the triggers. L1 enables a quick dash, L2 is a quick Assemble ability, and R1 and R2 provide your unique attack and quick skills.
Traditionally, in a tag fighter, you have to rotate through your entire team before the match is over, but in Tōkon your team shares one health bar. This means you don’t have to master the whole roster to be effective, and in that sense, can approach the game like a more traditional fighter if you choose to. At the start of the match, you can only control your lead character. As the skirmish progresses, you gain the ability to switch into your assist characters when you lose a round, performing a throw, or knocking your opponent into another section of the stage. It creates an interesting dance of being careful not to give your opponents more options to use against you while making sure you access your extended roster first, and who you would want as your first backup option.
“Previously for all [tag fighters] in order to play them, you had to be able to control multiple characters,” says Sekine, “However, for our game, it was important for us to design it so that you would only actually need to be able to take control of one character. You only need to learn to play as one character in order to enjoy the game, and you can still see your other teammates coming in and out of the battlefield.”
Where you would traditionally have a dedicated button to swap between your party, here you do it during assists. Once you successfully call in an assist you have a brief window to swap to them. This exchange creates a natural swap out in the chaos of battle and some stylish moments between characters. Tōkon cares about what is happening on screen at all times, so switching between characters in the middle of a combo, standing still, or even in the air creates unique animations, such as characters giving each other daps or quipping about needing to step in.
As I was studying my opponent’s moves, they took a different approach, focusing on supers and trying to bring out their team for full-screen spectacles. Where each character performs a quick combo, sending your opponent airborne while smashing them to the ground, ending in what I can only describe as a superhero pose-a-thon. The methodical vs manic approach created a fun back-and-forth between us, but the game was accommodating of both approaches and provided its own sense of satisfaction.
“When it comes to the game’s design, it was very important for us to make this something that’s easy to get into, but has depth beyond that initial entry,” says Sekine. “One thing that we were very careful about when designing the game was to ensure that there is not any kind of mechanic or attack that someone who’s just getting started would not be able to perform. It would impede on the experience of new players.”
“When you press the Assemble button, depending on the situation and what’s going on in the match, the Assist will come out and perform a different action that’s suitable for that particular moment,” says Sekine. “By designing it in that way that we’re able to clearly communicate to the player when they should be calling in their assists, and make it easier for them to play.”
“At Marvel games, it’s really important for us to allow developers to put their own unique stamp on the Marvel Universe,” says Michael Francisco, Sr. Product Development Manager, Marvel Games. “In the case of Arc, it’s that fusion of Marvel and American comics with Japanese anime and manga, and you can see that reflected in the art style and the character designs.”
All the characters ooze charm, but the backgrounds also pack a lot of exciting details. Eagle-eyed fans should keep an eye out for interesting signage referencing heroes and events, pedestrians reacting to on-screen action, and easter eggs scattered throughout. It’s obvious a lot of care was put into building this world.
“It was very important for us to be able to create the visual excitement that should be entailed with [tag fighters],” says Takeshi Yamanaka, Producer, Arc System Works. “Since this is a 4v4 game, that means that we can have up to eight characters out on the screen at one time altogether, so we were careful when creating the visual composition of the screen to ensure that we convey that excitement.”
MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls is set to release in 2026, and while I’m excited to see all the heroes, combinations, and worlds the game will take us to,o I asked the team how they felt about creating something new that has never been done before in the fighting genre.
“It’s both scary and exciting, exhilarating and terrifying, at the same time,” says Francisco. “From the beginning, we all want to honor and respect the rich history and legacy of Marvel, while also forging our own path forward to create something new and innovative. So, we just hope fans are excited to see what we’ve come up with as a collaboration between all three parties.”
Looking forward to Magic: The Gathering: Marvel’s Spider-Man on 26th September? Well Amazon has the Play Booster Box back in stock, so it’s a wise idea to get a preorder in before it does a Final Fantasy and disapears. If you’re like me and absolutley devistated at Courage the Cowardly Dog being taking off HBO, i’ve found the complete series on DVD for less than $20 too.
LEGO Preorders are still going strong from last week, but the two sales that have stood out to me this morning is the MSI Reconditioned Monitor Sale at Woot and the Higround gaming gear sale over at Best Buy. There’s some ridiculous bargains on top tear battlestation essentials here, even solid budget options. If you need a car battery charger, a brilliant deal on a USB power bank and more, let’s get into today’s daily deals:
I’m expecting this MTG Universes Beyond expansion to web zip off shelves when it drops at the end of Feburary, so if you see a preorder like I have, just secure it. The money won’t be taken from your bank until it ships either, so it’s a no brainer. I’ve also included the listings for the rest of the set from TCG Player incase you needed a massive ripping session.
These LEGO preorders and deals are still available from last week, so it’s 100% worth having a look through and grabbing a new project. They were amongst our best sellers last week, so make sure you’re not missing out on best selling preorders like the Spider-Man Across The Spider-Verse minifigure set.
Every look at your gaming setup and think “This needs more Pokémon and Apex”?, Higround make some of the best branded keyboard, mice and deskmats around. Better yet, their range in Best Buy has had some serious price cuts, so it’s worth scoreing something unique for your gaming rig. The full sale is here.
I’ve been running the MSI eSports 40″ gaming monitor since the start of this year, and it’s a fantastic monitor for the money. Getting it for $250 is an even sweeter deal, it’s a perfect 1440p monitor with no ghosting, great extra features and a lovely color balance. Fortnite and Oblivion Remastered at 140 FPS+ never looked so good. The full sale can be found here.
A Charlie Brown Christmas 60th Anniversary Zoetrope vinyl is a limited edition release that celebrates both the 75th anniversary of Peanuts and 60 years of the iconic holiday special.
Pressed onto a two-sided Zoetrope picture disc, this collectible vinyl transforms into a moving animation when played under the right lighting conditions, displaying classic scenes from the beloved Charlie Brown Christmas special. Featuring Vince Guaraldi Trio’s timeless jazz tracks like “Christmas Time is Here,” “O Tannenbaum,” and “Linus and Lucy,” it’s both a visual and musical throwback.
Baseus Laptop Portable Charger 100W 20000mAh in Cosmic Black is currently 50% off with code QR9CPGXL, dropping the price from $99.99 to just $49.99. This slim and FAA-compliant power bank is designed for travel, offering 100W USB-C PD fast charging—enough to charge a MacBook Pro to 50% in 30 minutes.
With two USB-C and two USB-A ports, it can handle laptops, tablets, phones, Steam Deck, and more all at once. A real-time display shows remaining power, and its 20,000mAh capacity delivers multiple charges on the go.
There’s also a buy one, get one free deal currently live on-site, making this one of the best portable charging deals available today.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Classic Sewer Playset is back in action as an Amazon exclusive for $74.99 and it’s already the #1 new release in play figure playsets.
This retro-inspired set features authentic 1989-style stickers, a working elevator that goes from street to sewer, and a high-voltage battle swing for dynamic action scenes.
Kids (and collectors) can drop figures down hidden passages, launch sewerballs, and stage surprise attacks, just like the old days.
No one wants to wait for the breakdown service to jump a car battery, so just keep one opf these bad boys in the trunk for emergencies. This is a life saver, making sure you can jump a battery to get the car to a safe location and take the headache out of gettin your car to your local garage for repairs. It isn’t going to fix your cars problems, but it’s peace of mind for a little bit more than a month of Netflix.
For a month of streaming, you could just own the complete series of Courage the Cowardly Dog forever on DVD. Assuming you still have a DVD player, if not, just buy one and thank me later.
Christian Wait is a contributing freelancer for IGN covering everything collectable and deals. Christian has over 7 years of experience in the Gaming and Tech industry with bylines at Mashable and Pocket-Tactics. Christian also makes hand-painted collectibles for Saber Miniatures. Christian is also the author of “Pokemon Ultimate Unofficial Gaming Guide by GamesWarrior”. Find Christian on X @ChrisReggieWait.
Wizards of the Coast has been putting out non-cardboard Magic: The Gathering merchandise for a while now, but it’s been a little while since we’ve had new Funko Pops based on the property to collect.
We’ve already seen iconic Planeswalkers like Liliana Vess, Chandra Nalaar, Garruk Wildspeaker, and Ajani Goldmane brought to life, but that was more than a decade ago. If you’ve been looking to add to your setup, though, two new characters have been remade in plastic.
Over at Amazon, two new listings have been added for Urza and Yawgmoth. Both are available to preorder for $14.99, with release planned for November 9.
The two have fought a long war between the former’s plane of Dominaria and the latter’s Phyrexian plane, but curiously, Mishra (Urza’s brother) is nowhere to be seen this time around.
As someone sat next to a few of the older Funkos from the Magic set, I must say I am somewhat tempted.
Away from Funkos, it’s been a busy year for Magic: The Gathering. The game’s fifth set of the year, Edge of Eternities, is currently in full flow, having launched on August 1.
The next set, focused on Marvel’s Spider-Man, will add new cards as well as a crossover with Marvel Legends figures. So, if Funko Pops aren’t your thing, they could be worth a look instead.
Lloyd Coombes is an experienced freelancer in tech, gaming and fitness seen at Polygon, Eurogamer, Macworld, TechRadar and many more. He’s a big fan of Magic: The Gathering and other collectible card games, much to his wife’s dismay.
Former Dragon Age executive producer Mark Darrah has discussed pitching remasters of the first three games in the series to EA, and made clear in the same interview that he’s encourage the developers of the next Mass Effect game to “scapegoat” Dragon Age: The Veilguard “as much as they need to”.
Darrah’s offered a lot of insight into life at BioWare since departing the studio back in 2022, with the veteran dev having done plenty of that via his own YouTube channel. This time, though, he was interviewed by YouTuber MrMattyPlays.
Faith revived.
I’m really beginning to wonder just how Nightdive Studios manages to fit in so many awesome projects. Last year, we had no less than five major releases from the team, including The Thing: Remastered, DOOM + DOOM II, and Star Wars: Dark Forces Remaster, and it’s clearly looking to achieve a similar degree of prolificacy in 2025. So far this year, we’ve had I Have No Mouth, And I Must Scream, System Shock 2: 25th Anniversary Remaster, and now – straight out of QuakeCon – Heretic + Hexen.
The latter, published by Bethesda Softworks, is a revamped bundle containing two ‘90s shooters from developer Raven Software (now one of the main studios cranking out Call of Duty titles for Activision). In addition to Heretic and Hexen, you’ve also got both games’ additional content, respectively titled ‘Shadow of the Serpent Riders’ and ‘Deathkings of the Dark Citadel’. Much like its work on DOOM + DOOM II in 2024, Nightdive Studios has also produced two completely new episodes with ‘Heretic: Faith Revived’ and ‘Hexen: Vestiges of Grandeur’.
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In the summer of 2017, I had the good fortune to be invited to take part in a collective brainstorming session at Myrkur Games, a brand-new game studio here in Reykjavík, Iceland. The goal was simple: to help develop the premise for a brand-new video game.
Every person in that room was passionate about video games, about stories and adventures, about characters and small moments that had stuck with us for years. We talked about the games that inspired us, about the kind of game we’d like to make, and in the end, we emerged from that conversation with a simple conviction I hadn’t expected. The belief that we could do it, too.
That belief is what kicked off the journey that would become Echoes of the End, a cinematic third-person action-adventure game set in Aema, a fantasy world of our own creation, inspired by the untamed beauty of our home.
Echoes of the End follows Ryn, a warrior and vestige, one born with an affinity for ancient, destructive magic, as she fights to free her brother from the clutches of a totalitarian empire and prevent a looming invasion. It features high-quality, motion-captured cinematics and gameplay animations, a visceral, fast-paced combat system, tight, reactive platforming and engaging puzzles, as well as a companion that is at your side the whole way through, offering invaluable aid in the face of every obstacle.
It’s a story that spans a wide variety of environments, all inspired by our home country of Iceland, from cavernous depths and glacial mountaintops, to ruined cities and bubbling lava fields. In short, it’s the sort of game that, until recently, a studio like ours could only have dreamed of making.
That meant finding creative ways of punching above our weight. Fortunately, the past decade has been revolutionary in terms of how accessible game development technology has become. Those environments I mentioned earlier? They’re not only inspired by Iceland, they’re largely recreated through photogrammetry, a process we’ve been practicing and iterating on for eight years now.
Take the glacier above. That’s Sólheimajökull, a stunning attraction found in the south of Iceland. It’s a perfect example of the beauty we wanted to capture for Echoes of the End, and so, armed with a single drone, we scanned the whole thing and placed it in our game world. It’s not the only notable landmark we’ve done this with either. Kirkjufell, a mountain that’s become a symbol of Iceland in recent years, can be seen in our announcement trailer, and in playing the game players may find many more. It’s a bit of an easter egg hunt, really!
We use a similar process for our character models. We started with one camera and a rotating stool that we used to spin the actor around and capture them from different angles. Later, that rig grew to nine cameras and a heavily modified cheese platter, and eventually a 360° solution that thankfully requires no spinning at all.
Motion capture, too, has become massively more accessible in recent years. It was once the exclusive domain of AAA studios with massive budgets, but we decided early on that we were going to build our own stage. I remember working with an actor who had done some motion capture back in 2007. At the time, that studio used 200 cameras. Our mocap studio today has sixteen, and has been crucial in enabling us to do what we do.
And that’s not even mentioning the game engine. It’s difficult to overstate how much of a gamechanger Unreal Engine 5 is for a studio like ours; how all of these advancements have allowed us to build a rich, immersive world without compromising on scope or fidelity. It’s what makes it possible for a small, passionate team to bring a big, ambitious game to life.
Echoes of the End is still the game we set out to make in 2017, but it’s grown and evolved alongside us through the years. We’ve poured our love into it for nearly a decade now, and we can’t wait for you to get a chance to experience it for yourself.
We recently released an announcement trailer, and the full game is available August 12 on Xbox Series X|S. We hope you’ll check it out, and that the next time you find yourself dreaming about that game you’d like to make one day, you’ll carry with you a simple conviction. The belief that you can do it, too.
Deep Silver
Echoes of the End is a cinematic third-person action-adventure game. It blends a deeply personal, character-driven story with thrilling magic and sword-based combat, engaging traversal and thought-provoking puzzles. Inspired by Iceland, this epic adventure offers a mature, rich and immersive experience in a breathtaking and original fantasy world.
A Heroine’s Journey
Step into the shoes of Ryn, a vestige wielding volatile yet powerful magic, as she battles to save her brother from a ruthless totalitarian empire. Partner with Abram Finlay – a scholar and explorer haunted by his past – to uncover a conspiracy that could reignite an ancient conflict and plunge Aema into chaos. Immerse yourself in a heartfelt tale of trust, redemption, and sacrifice in a world on the edge of war.
Dynamic Combat and Exploration
• Master Ryn’s prowess in magic and swordsmanship to defeat unique enemies and face epic boss battles.
• Harness a vast array of devastating powers as Ryn grows in strength and confidence throughout her journey.
• Team up with Abram to combine forces in both combat and traversal, unleashing creative combos and interactions.
• Explore breathtaking environments inspired by Icelandic landscapes, from fiery lava fields to icy mountain peaks.
Puzzles and Traversal Challenges
• Solve engaging puzzles with Ryn’s powers, including gravity manipulation, destruction, and illusions, through collaboration with your companion.
• Navigate the world with a diverse range of traversal mechanics, like double-jumping, dashing, and gravity control, with each chapter introducing fresh, unique challenges.
Cinematic Visuals and Realistic Fantasy
• Echoes of the End immerses players in an original, grounded fantasy world brimming with depth and detail.
• This character-driven adventure features motion-captured performances, intricately designed character models and stunningly crafted environments, delivering a truly unforgettable and heartfelt experience.
• Explore the hidden history of Aema, forge unbreakable bonds, and embrace your magical potential as you shape the destiny of a nation.
The post Echoes of the End: An Epic Fantasy Adventure Inspired By Iceland appeared first on Xbox Wire.
The latest season of Fortnite sees you and your squad fending off insectoid alien enemies nicknamed Bugs while levelling up your battle pass — and if that sounds familiar, well, you aren’t the first to notice.
Arrowhead Game Studios, developer of Helldivers 2, another shooter where you squad up against insectoid alien enemies nicknamed Bugs, has now commented on the similarities — and suggested it was a case of imitation being a form of flattery.
“Hmmm… it’s giving ‘we have Helldivers at home,'” community manager Katherine Baskin wrote on the game’s Discord (thanks, Videogamer), before adding: “I’m not worried.”
“Fortnite is Fortnite, Helldivers is Helldivers,” Baskin continued. “If the kings of video game drip think our drip is cool enough to… inspire them… then that’s super cool. But our games couldn’t be more different from one another. There’s room for us all at the king’s table.”
When asked for his thoughts, Arrowhead CEO Shams Jorjani simply replied that the new Fortnite season “feels very democratic,” a reference to Helldivers’ own setting, in an era of human expansion into space dubbed the ‘Great Democratization.’
In reality, Fortnite has riffed on numerous other games, movies and overall genres in the past, with little left that it has not either offered its own version of, or collaborated to include. And, because it is Fortnite, the new season of its blockbuster battle royale also involves you fighting alongside a humanoid panda, the Power Rangers and Spartan soldiers from Halo.
So far, at least, the new gameplay appears to be going down well. According to developer Epic Games, players have now squashed more than 250 million Bugs since their invasion into Fortnite began last week. Next up for Fortnite will be the addition of pet-like Companions, leaks suggest, which will include a turtle riding a skateboard.
Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
Some upsetting news from the past weekend: Bithell Games, the Mike Bithell-founded indie studio behind Thomas Was Alone, John Wick Hex, Tron: Identity and the just-released Tron: Catalyst, are laying off 11 developers. That’s “The majority of our full-time staff,” according to a post on Bithell’s personal Bluesky account.
But will they learn from their McSteaks?
McDonald’s restaurants in Japan seem to have got a little more than they bargained for over this past weekend, as a promotion between Pokémon and the company’s Happy Meals had to shut down early. The reason? “Higher-than-expected sales”. However, it appears there’s more going on here — and, as you can guess, scalpers seem to be involved.
Reported on by Yahoo Japan and as seen on social media (cheers, MyNintendoNews) customers have been showing off counters in stores that are lined with wasted food, purchased only for the Pokémon cards inside. The promotion was originally due to run between 9th and 11th August, but was pulled after just 24 hours.
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