One of the best things about my job is that I get to fly around the world and go to events, and while I’m off to Warframe’s TennoCon this week (and very excited about it) there’s always a bit of a panic about what to pack to keep oneself sane on a long flight.
Though how successful it will be remains to be seen.
Nintendo has seemingly taken steps to combat so-called ‘eSlop’ on the Switch 2 – at least in Japan and some regions in Asia.
In a report from IGN, Nintendo has implemented new guidelines for publishing on the Switch 2 eShop, most (if not all) of which appear to be targeting the relentless proliferation of low-quality ‘eSlop’ games. How successful this proves to be remains to be seen in these early days, but it at least sounds like Nintendo is trying to make the eShop a much better experience on Switch 2 than its predecessor.
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
Arrowhead’s Helldivers 2 updates continue with patch 01.003.200, which makes a big balance change and a number of fixes.
According to patch notes released by the developer, 01.003.200 reduces the time it takes for the Helldiver to regain control after ragdolling from 0.8 to 0.5 seconds.
This seemingly innocuous change will have big implications for how Helldivers 2 feels to play. It’s a game that leans heavily on its physics systems and the emergent gameplay that comes from them, and that includes being blasted around the map.
As any Helldivers 2 player will know, you spend a lot of time prone on the floor recovering after being smashed into a ragdolling status. There’s a panic that sets in as you slowly pick yourself up and dust yourself off while the forces of the Illuminate, the Automatons, and the Terminids continue their assault. Those precious few milliseconds may make all the difference, especially on harder difficulties.
Meanwhile, the flag can now be “proudly” planted directly into enemies — dead or alive — “ensuring the eternal colors of Super Earth are never tainted, only quenched by the blood of its foes.” So, if you want that Charger to be running around with your flag on its back, now you can make it happen.
There are a number of balance changes worth checking out in the patch notes below.
Things are hotting up in the world of Helldivers 2, with the PC and PS5 game set to become the first PlayStation Studios-published title ever on Xbox when it launches on Series X and S next month alongside crossplay.
Helldivers 2 update 01.003.200 patch notes:
AR-32 Pacifier
SMG-72 Pummeler
ARC-12 Blitzer
R-2124 Constitution
R-2 Amendment
P-92 Warrant
G-109 Urchin
G-10 Incendiary
G-13 Incendiary impact
A/FLAM-40 Flame sentry
GL-52 De-Escalator
Firebomb Hellpod
Stun Pods
Warrior
Scout strider
Overseer variants
Weapons Stratagems & Boosters
Enemies
Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
As part of their mass layoffs earlier this month, Microsoft cancelled an MMORPG that was in the works at The Elder Scrolls Online developers ZeniMax Online Studios. Now, the union that represents a number of devs left in limbo by that game’s canning have issued an update about the process of fighting for their futures.
ZOS’ MMO, codenamed Project Blackbird, wasn’t the only game Microsoft pulled the plug on as they let go of around 9k people. Rare’s Everwild and The Initiative’s Perfect Dark reboot were also wiped out, with the latter studio being shuttered to boot.
The only officially licensed John Wick video game is being removed from sale just six years after launch.
Bithell Games’ well-received John Wick Hex launched in October 2019. It’s a fast-paced, action-oriented strategy game “that makes you think and strike like John Wick.” John Wick, of course, is the hugely popular action hero made famous by Keanu Reeves.
Fast forward six years and John Wick Hex is set for the digital scrapheap. In an update directed at the game’s community, publisher Big Fan Games (which is part of Devolver Digital) said John Wick Hex will be removed from sale on all platforms beginning July 17, 2025.
After July 17, existing owners of John Wick Hex will still be able to access the game via their digital libraries across PC and console, and of course physical copies will continue to work on console. However, new purchases of John Wick Hex will not be possible, regardless of platform or storefront.
Big Fan Games failed to say why John Wick Hex was being removed from sale, but it seems likely it’s the result of the expiration of its licence with John Wick rights holder Lionsgate Entertainment. IGN has asked Big Fan for comment.
The expiration of a licence is one of the main reasons video games end up being pulled from storefronts; you see it most often with video games that have licensed music. It happened to Alan Wake, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic remake trailers, and Spec Ops: The Line, to name but a few. Video game preservationists often call for video game companies to do more to keep their products alive when this happens. Back in 2018, Rockstar replaced Grand Theft Auto IV song licenses that had expired after the end of a 10-year deal.
As for Bithell Games, it released Tron: Catalyst last month. The game was developed in collaboration with Disney and Pixar Games, and is set within the world of Tron.
And as for John Wick, he recently cameoed in spinoff Ballerina, and John Wick 5, once again starring Keanu Reeves, is in development, although we’re not sure when it will come out. Director Chad Stahelski recently said he’s still trying to work out how to make Keanu Reeves in John Wick 5 make sense given the ending of 4. Meanwhile, Keanu Reeves reportedly pays a company a few thousand dollars a month to get the likes of TikTok and Meta to take down imitators.
Lionsgate has confirmed it has a John Wick AAA video game in the works, although it has said nothing about it.
Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
The first thing that happened to me in the demo for The Little Tomb: The Maholova Club And The Search For A Dead Body was a stuffed horse on a spring telling me it knew when and how I’d die. Many such horses. You play as Kofun, a boy shaped like a keyhole tomb who is also sort of an actual keyhole tomb but also a boy who wants to fulfill his destiny as a keyhole tomb, namely by finding a dead body to bury inside of himself. He lives in a park with his mate Haniwa, who is a Haniwa. Haniwa’s secret is that he’s very good at calligraphy. Here’s some visual orientation in case you’re not caught up yet.
The Switch version “cannot be upgraded”.
Square Enix’s Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake is due out on the Switch and Switch 2 this October, and ahead of release, an official FAQ has shared an important detail.
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
Ready, set, go!
The weekly updates for the mobile app Nintendo Music continue this week with the arrival of Mario Kart 64‘s soundtrack.
Even if you haven’t played this game before, you’ve likely heard some of its music elsewhere over the years. This latest album, which originally debuted alongside the N64 release in 1996/97, features tracks such as Luigi’s Raceway, Rainbow Road and much more.
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
“Announcements are coming”.
As you’ve likely seen by now, there’s a new rumour from the latest Nate the Hate podcast about a Nintendo Direct potentially taking place some time after the launch of Donkey Kong Bananza.
In the same episode, the YouTuber and podcaster has touched on the subject of future third-party support for the Switch 2, and how although it might not look like there’s much on the way beyond the initial announcements, there are apparently multiple developers holding back reveals (potentially for Nintendo’s broadcast).
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
Bomb Busters was recently awarded the highest honor for board games as it was named the 2025 Spiel des Jahres in Germany, beating out Flip 7 and Krakel Orakel for the top honors this year.
The Spiel des Jahres may not be a household name in the U.S., but it’s the most prestigious and influential board game award in the world, similar to winning an Oscar for film. The Spiel des Jahres (literally “Game of the Year”) has been awarded to the best overall board game by an independent jury in Germany since 1979.
This year’s winner, Bomb Busters, is a strategic cooperative game for up to five players that requires everyone to work together to defuse a bomb by cutting the correct wires. It’s basically the tabletop equivalent of the video game Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes.
This is a great game for families as it’s not too difficult to learn and includes 66 unique scenarios to conquer together. Typical games take around 30 minutes, making it a quick board game to get to the table and play.
Following the news of its big win, Bomb Busters is currently out of stock in the U.S. at Amazon and at the Pegasus Spiele North America store with no anticipated restock date.
Despite not having a big ceremony, winning the Spiel des Jahres is still a massive achievement and helps many board games achieve worldwide recognition. Historically, some of the best modern board games have been awarded the Spiel des Jahres, including Azul, Cascadia, Ticket to Ride, Carcassonne, and Codenames, just to name a few.
In 1989, a second award was added, the Kinderspiel des Jahres, that recognized the best children’s game of the year. The most recent award, the Kennerspiel des Jahres, was added in 2011 to recognize the best “connoisseur,” or expert, game of the year.
This year, the cake-building game Topp die Torte! won the Kinderspiel des Jahres and the cooperative ocean exploration game Endeavor: Deep Sea won the Kennerspiel des Jahres.
For more board game coverage, check out our roundups of the best strategy board games, the best classic board games, and the best board games for adults to play in 2025.
Matthew Adler has written for IGN since 2019 covering all things gaming, tech, tabletop games, and more. You can follow him on the site formerly known as Twitter @MatthewAdler and watch him stream on Twitch.
