Assassin’s Creed Shadows ‘Claws Of Awaji’ Expansion Lands Switch 2 Release Date

Winter roadmap reveals all.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows arrived as an almost complete package on Switch 2 at the end of last year. The only content missing from this portable version was the Claws of Awaji expansion — which had landed on other systems back in September — for which Ubisoft provided a vague ‘coming later in 2026’ release window. Well, the big Ubi has today been a bit more specific.

As revealed in the new Shadows Winter Roadmap, the expansion will launch on Switch 2 on 10th March. This paid DLC includes a whole new area to explore and storyline to follow, as Naoe and Yasuke head to the island of Awaji to track down a lost treasure. There are also new weapons and skins to unlock in the DLC, all of which can be carried back over to the main game to use as you please.

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Back Page: The Best Horses On The Nintendo Switch

Have you herd the wonderfoal word of HORSE.

In the magazine business, the back page is where you’d find all the weird goofs that we couldn’t fit in anywhere else. Some may call it “filler”; we prefer “a whole page to make terrible jokes that are tangentially related to the content of the mag”.

We don’t have pages on the internet, but we still love terrible jokes — so welcome to our semi-regular feature, Back Page. Today, Kate celebrates the approaching Chinese New Year with a look at the finest equines in video games…

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13 Switch Emulators Hit By Latest Wave Of Nintendo Takedowns

“Our development will continue” says one defiant dev.

It was back in 2024 that Nintendo really kicked its emulator takedown requests into overdrive following the removal of Yuzu and 3DS emulator Citra, and a fresh wave came late last week.

As spotted by Reddit user Devile, Nintendo issued a new DMCA notice on Friday calling for the removal of 13 Switch emulators’ GitHub pages. Alongside any that still rely on Yuzu, the takedown targeted Citron, Eden, Kenji-NX, MeloNX, Pine, Pomelo, Ryubing, Ryujinx, Skyline, Sudachi, Sumi, and Suyu (the one formed in Yuzu’s wake).

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Forget The Talking Flower, This Is The Cutest Upcoming Mario Toy

Eggcelent.

There was never any doubt that the Super Mario Galaxy Movie would bring some heat in the merch department on the run-up to launch. Nintendo may have its Talking Flower primed and ready to go as a Mario Wonder Switch 2 tie-in (brand synergy, and all that), but we dare you to take one look at the ‘Nintendo The Super Mario Galaxy Movie: Hatchin’ Yoshi Interactive Toy’ (catchy, right?) and not tell us that it’s adorable.

The name is pretty self-explanatory on this one. Hatchin’ Yoshi is an interactive toy that sees our beloved dino ‘hatch’ from his eggshell casing and then respond to touch and voice commands. He can rock back and forth, shake his little head, say his name — come on, what else do you expect from the little fella?

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Poll: What’s Your Favourite Gen 2 Pokémon?

Head to Johto.

On 27th February, Pokémon turns 30, and in honour of this momentous anniversary, we’re running a series of polls leading up to the big day, asking you to vote for your favourite Pokémon from each generation. The nine winners will then go head-to-head in a final poll at the end of the month.

We’ll be covering a generation every day until we’ve covered all nine, leading up to the ultimate showdown. Each poll will be open for five days.

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Opinion: This Is The First Game That’s Come Close To Rivalling The Best Paper Mario

But how do they fare in a straight-up head-to-head?

Escape from Ever After is the heir apparent to the Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door throne. Sleepy Castle Studio released it on 23rd January to all major platforms with a simple promise – deliver Paper Mario fans the game they’ve been clamouring for ever since Nintendo chose to shift the series away from its RPG roots.

Other games have tried. Born of Bread and Bug Fables come to mind as two examples that accomplish some of their goals, but overall come down as lukewarm clones of the nostalgic blast of joy that TTYD delivers.

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Poll: Box Art Brawl – Rayman (GBC)

Give us a hand.

Howdy partners! It’s time for this week’s Box Art Brawl!

Last time, it was a one-on-one match-up for the SNES’ Super Bomberman 2 to celebrate its arrival in the Super Bomberman Collection, and it was a pretty tight contest. The Japanese cover just came out on top, in the end, winning 56% of the vote and leaving the Western variant with the remaining 44%.

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New Strategy RPG ‘Brigandine: Abyss’ Is Coming To Switch 2 In 2026

NIS America teams up with Happinet.

The Switch 2 is getting another strategy RPG, with NIS America this week announcing it’s teamed up with Happinet to publish Brigandine: Abyss – a “brand-new entry” in the storied franchise.

It’s due out at some point in 2026 and features a completely unique world that both new and experienced players can dive right into. Here’s a bit more about it from the official PR, and you can check out the announcement trailer above:

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Video: 007 First Light Official Story Trailer Revealed

Earn the number.

Although 007 First Light was delayed recently, his new mission is now back on track with a 27th May 2026 release.

With the target date in his sights, IO Interactive has now treated fans of Bond to a new trailer. This video originally popped up during this week’s PlayStation ‘State of Play’ broadcast and focuses on the story of this “re-imagined origin story” where Bond must “earn the number” in the 00 Programme.

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