GTA 6 will feature a bunch of in-game websites with real-world URLs, going by various domain registrations spotted by an active and efficient dataminer. The site URLs offer potential clues about the businesses and organisations you might patronise, during your time in Vice City. They include what sound like parody versions of ride-sharing app Uber and communication network WhatsApp, together with a government website for Leonida, the fictional US state and parody of Florida in which Rockstar’s new Grand Theft Auto takes place.
One of the other rumoured GTA 6 websites appears to feature “hookers galore”. I give odds of 6-4 that this will prove to be an in-game fishing supplier, ho ho. And then there’s “myboyhasacreepycorndog.com”. I give odds of 3-2 that “corndog” means “penis”, har har. It’s GTA, isn’t it. There’s absolutely a dick joke in there somewhere.
Years before Animal Crossing became a global success, Nintendo warned its localisation team how “difficult” it would be to make the game work outside of its native Japan.
Speaking to Time Extension, Nintendo localization manager Leslie Swann said bosses cautioned that the English-language launch of Animal Crossing, then titled Animal Forest, would be a huge job due to the sheer amount of in-game text within the title, as well as its numerous Japan-specific cultural references and items.
Indeed, Swan remembered then-Nintendo president Satoru Iwata discovering her team was working on bringing the notoriously odd and text-heavy game would be launched outside of Japan — something that left him in disbelief.
“We knew of Animal Forest, but we hadn’t really dinked around with it — we usually would get the Japanese versions of games and play through them,” Swann recalled. “But we hadn’t really messed around with that one very much. So, anyway, [Takashi Tezuka, Nintendo executive officer] basically said to me, ‘We’d like to have you localize it’ and I said, ‘Sure.’
“But then he said, ‘No, Leslie, I’m not sure you understand, it’s going to be difficult.’ And I kept having to assure him that we would make it happen.”
Animal Crossing’s earliest incarnation, known as Animal Forest, launched for N64 in April 2001 and never made it outside of Japan. It was only when the game was given an expanded GameCube launch that the decision was made to localise the title elsewhere — and even then, its arrival around the world took years.
“A month or two later, I was in a meeting with Mr. Iwata and some other heads of the development group,” Swan recalled, “and we were just kind of going around saying, ‘Here’s what we’re going to be working on,’ and I just said, ‘Well, Mr. Tezuka is asking us to work on Animal Forest’ and he just burst out in laughter. He just laughed and said, ‘I don’t know how you’re going to do this.’ And it’s true, just everything in that game was so specific to Japan.”
Swann’s team had to rename every character, determine each character’s catchphrase and localise the game’s calendar of in-game events to make sense to a more global audience. Other work involved sifting through the game’s inventory of items to ensure everything made sense for players outside of Japan.
“I can’t tell you the number of hours we spent on that game, all hands on deck,” Swann continued. “We were so lucky at that point that we didn’t have other big projects, as we pretty much had the entire staff dedicated to that game.
“Everybody would get together in a room and we would say, ‘Okay, today we’re going to rename all the furniture in this set,’ or ‘Today we’re going to work on names for these characters and their catchphrases.’ Then, after this, we would submit all this stuff to our legal department who had to clear everything because our thought from the beginning was if this is big, then we’re going to want to make merchandise.”
Even the game’s name, Animal Crossing, went through various changes before launch — with some suggestion it might include ‘Forest’ in the title before it was ultimately dropped.
“It must have been at least six months or maybe a year for us to clear the name Animal Crossing,” Swan concluded. “I remember we had so many other names that we were in love with and then we would be crushed when they would be rejected. My favourite was ‘Animal Acres,’ because the grids of the town lent themselves to being called acres. But again, that didn’t clear.”
For more from Swann on her career, including her work on Nintendo Power magazine and how she ended up voicing Princess Peach for years, the full Time Extension interview is well worth a read.
Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
The notes for Hollow Knight: Silksong‘s first proper post-release patch have arrived. Team Cherry have been busy fixing bugs and making some “slight balance adjustments in the early game”, which you can now give a go early via beta branches on Steam and GOG.
That’ll mean you’re testing the changes ahead of the update’s planned full deployment next week, with Team Cherry aiming for a mid-week arrival “barring any unforeseen issues”. Now you know that, let’s get into the changes, which the studio have outlined in a post on the Steamy platform.
Due for launch “mid next week”, one key aspect of the patch is that it will actually nerf the game’s difficulty in certain areas – primarily relating to two early boss encounters and a reduction in damage from the ‘Sandcarver’ enemy.
Xbox Cloud Gaming (Beta) Coming to Select Vehicles in Partnership with LG
Christopher LeeVice President of Xbox Marketing
We’re committed to meeting players wherever they are, bringing the joy of gaming into even more places and experiences. That’s why we’re excited to announce our latest expansion for Xbox Cloud Gaming (Beta). Through our collaboration with LG Electronics, we are working to integrate the Xbox experience into select internet-connected vehicles, introducing a new way to bring more of what players love about Xbox into more places.
Gaming On the Move: Entertainment for Every Journey
With the Xbox built into LG’s webOS Automotive Content Platform (ACP), passengers in internet-connected vehicles will be able to stream and play games directly from the Xbox app. Game Pass Ultimate members will soon have instant access to hundreds of games including popular titles like Gears of War: Reloaded, Forza Horizon 5, and upcoming releases like Obsidian Entertainment’s The Outer Worlds 2 (an automotive data plan is required to access streaming services. All services operate in compliance with driving safety regulations).
Already have some favorite Xbox titles in your library? Game Pass Ultimate subscribers can also stream select games they already own, such as Bugsnax, Don’t Starve, Mafia: The Old Country, and more, giving you even more flexibility in the gaming experience. You can find the full list here.
Whether you’re jumping back into an old favorite or discovering something completely new, Xbox Cloud Gaming and LG Electronics transforms your vehicle’s infotainment system into more than just music and movies – it becomes a full entertainment hub. Whether you’re waiting at an EV charging station or trying to entertain your passengers on an extended road trip, pass the time by playing games keeping everyone entertained and making the journey feel more fun.
More Ways to Play, Anywhere You Go
If you’re new to gaming, Xbox Cloud Gaming is a great way to get started. All you need to do is connect a compatible Bluetooth controller, launch the Xbox app from your internet-connected in-vehicle infotainment system, log in to your Xbox Game Pass subscription, and start playing.
Our work with LG is the latest example of Xbox expanding to new places, building on partnerships that already bring Xbox Cloud Gaming to mobile devices, PCs, and TVs. By adding vehicles to the mix, we’re giving players more choice than ever in how they enjoy their games.
To learn more about Xbox Cloud Gaming and how you can play across TVs and browsers on supported devices like smartphones, PCs, and tablets, visit xbox.com/cloudgaming.
Okami and Bayonetta creator Hideki Kamiya recently weighed in on Hideo Kojima’s “lost” horror game demo P.T., and its lasting legacy.
A collaboration between Hideo Kojima and film director Guillermo del Toro, P.T. was released in 2014 on the PS4 as a free demo for their upcoming game Silent Hills. However, when series publisher Konami cancelled the game in 2015, they also delisted the demo from the PlayStation Store, making it impossible to redownload. This led to second-hand PS4 consoles with the critically acclaimed demo commanding high prices on auction sites like Ebay.
On X, where he regularly responds to (and blocks/unblocks) fans, Hideki Kamiya recently talked about P.T in response to a user expressing hope that either Kamiya or Kojima would try making another P.T.-style game. On September 5, Kamiya tweeted, “if it’s impossible to resurrect P.T., Kojima should make a new game in the same style,” adding: “if Kojima doesn’t do it, maybe I’ll give it a go. I hate horror though, so it wouldn’t be horror… plus, I have no ideas.”
It seems that Kojima’s upcoming experimental horror game OD might go some way to plugging the P.T.-shaped hole. First teased back in 2023 via a mysterious trailer, OD promises to “explore the concept of testing your fear threshold, and what it means to overdose on fear.”
Like P.T., OD is also a collaboration with a filmmaker, this time with Jordan Peele of Get Out fame. Hideo Kojima previously promised that OD will be something that “no one has seen before,” although details still remain scarce. Kojima will be holding a special event in Tokyo later this month to celebrate 10 years since his break with Konami, where he is likely to reveal more info about future projects (possibly including more about OD).
Although Devil May Cry and Bayonetta creator Hideki Kamiya kicked off his career at Capcom working on the original Resident Evil and its sequel, he has never made a modern, photorealistic horror game akin to P.T. In a series of tweets last October, Kamiya observed that P.T.’s delisting left a gap in the market, which Japanese indie hit The Exit 8 stepped into. “The Exit 8 went viral, but it’s basically just a watered-down P.T.,” Kamiya opined.
The Exit 8 is far less gory and objectively less scary than P.T., however it does share the delisted demo’s looping corridor mechanic, building a sense of dread in the player as they try to spot anomalies in its subway passage. Selling fast on Steam upon its release in November 2023, The Exit 8 has grown into such a phenomenon that it has even spawned a film adaptation (which recently generated some controversy in Japan).
Despite saying that he can’t play P.T. alone because it is “too scary,” Hideki Kamiya is full of praise for Kojima and del Toro’s demo. He even went so far as to say that the ‘8-like’ sub-genre (games with similar settings and mechanics to The Exit 8, which proliferated in the wake of its meteoric success) should really be called ‘P.T.-like.’ “P.T. was really that revolutionary – with an unparalleled uniqueness, and I think it has strongly influenced subsequent game creators,” said Kamiya.
Verity Townsend is a Japan-based freelance writer who previously served as editor, contributor and translator for the game news site Automaton West. She has also written about Japanese culture and movies for various publications.
Ok, that was quick. Hollow Knight: Silksong has been out less than a week, and no less than two modders have already had a crack at getting multiplayer working in it, so you can take on those pesky bosses with some co-op aid or moral support.
Maybe I shouldn’t be surprised. After all, the Skong modding scene has exploded out of the gates with the same level of gusto folks have had for just playing the base version of the long-awaited metroidvania. Then again, it’s one thing for folks to be putting out a bunch of smaller scale tweaks that can help make things easier, and another for them to turn a one player game into a more than one player game.
Hollow Knight: Silksong developer Team Cherry has revealed details on the game’s first post-release patch, which it said mostly makes bug fixes and “slight” balance adjustments in the early game.
In a post on Steam, the developer said patch 1.0.28470 is set for all players mid-next week, so around September 17. However, PC players can access this version right now via the public-beta branch on Steam or GOG.
In terms of balance changes, it looks like the patch makes Silksong slightly easier, which will be welcome news to those who are struggling with the game. Silksong is one of the biggest launches of the year, hitting huge player concurrent numbers on Steam alongside a positive reception from critics. But amid the excitement over Team Cherry’s long awaited sequel is a debate within the community about whether the game is too hard — perhaps even unfairly so. It comes as no surprise to see Silksong’s early days mods dominated by those which make the game easier.
“Is it just me, or are some of the things that make Silksong ‘difficult’ just cruel?” wondered redditor Machi-Ato. “The game has artificially inflated difficulty and playtime due to overtuned numbers and menial tasks/runback,” reads a post on Steam.
Fixed situation where players could remain cloakless after Slab escape sequence.
Fixed wish Infestation Operation often not being completable during the late game.
Fixed wish Beast in the Bells not being completable when Bell Beast is summoned at the Bilewater Bellway during the late game.
Fixed getting stuck floating after down-bouncing on certain projectiles.
Fixed courier deliveries sometimes being inaccessible in Act 3.
Fixed craft bind behaving incorrectly when in memories.
Fixed Lace tool deflect soft-lock at start of battle in Deep Docks.
Fixed Silk Snippers in Chapel of the Reaper sometimes getting stuck out of bounds.
Fixed Claw Mirrors leaving Hornet inverted if taking damage during a specific moment while binding.
Fixed Snitch Pick not giving rosaries and shell shards as intended.
Removed float override input (down + jump, after player has Faydown Cloak).
Slight difficulty reduction in early game bosses Moorwing and Sister Splinter.
Reduction in damage from Sandcarvers.
Slight increase in pea pod collider scale.
Slight reduction in mid-game Bellway and Bell Bench prices.
Slight increase in rosary rewards from relics and psalm cylinders.
Increase in rosary rewards for courier deliveries.
Various additional fixes and tweaks.
All fixes will apply retroactively, so players who’ve hit a significant bug that prevents progress may want to switch over to public-beta to receive the fix, Team Cherry said.
“Further fixes are already being worked on for a second patch. If you have an issue and you don’t see the solution in the list above, we may be working on 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.
Helldivers 3, or whatever they call the follow-up to Helldivers 2, may have a social hub in the style of Destiny’s Tower, Arrowhead CEO Shams Jorjani has told the Helldiverati in a new Q&A.
Single-player, story-based DLC that gives me an excuse to return to an impeccable single-player, story-based adventure that I adored the first time around? Unlike an out-of-his-depth Marcus Brody, MachineGames really knows how to speak my language. The Order of Giants is a roughly four-hour side quest for Indiana Jones and the Great Circle that’s heavy on puzzles and features a string of tremendously atmospheric caves, catacombs, and canals to explore through the belly of Rome. After not having visited The Great Circle for many months, I was quickly hooked all over again. Even if it’s just for an afternoon, The Order of Giants is an effective refresher on most of the things I love about MachineGames’ take on the finest fascist-hater to ever find himself under a fedora. However, I have to concede that its presentation as a belated quest from early in The Great Circle’s story does make it feel noticeably less special and crucial to play than a more overtly separate adventure could have been, and the final fight falls a little flat.
Slipping The Order of Giants directly into what’s basically the first act of The Great Circle’s story obviously spoke to the MachineGames team in an irresistible way and, to a degree, I can see the elegance of blending it into the existing game in this fashion. Accessing the mission actually happens from within the Vatican level itself – it isn’t an individual mode or level you can directly hop into via the main menu. It’s an interesting approach, since it makes The Order of Giants feel like a segment that was left on the cutting room floor. If you’re playing for the first time it’ll just be there from the outset, and for returning players it’s a little like watching a familiar film with a lengthy deleted scene re-inserted. It’s a neat and tidy solution, but it does have the unfortunate side effect of making the DLC feel a little inessential overall. That is, it wasn’t here initially, and it doesn’t change anything now that it is – whether you play it or not.
Troy Baker’s performance as Indy remains hard to fault, and the music is again outstandingly faithful to the films.
While The Order of Giants kicks off within the existing Vatican level, the mission quickly distinguishes itself by placing Indy into a previously unseen interior – and subsequently whisking him out of the Vatican entirely, and into Rome. Troy Baker’s performance as Indy remains hard to fault, and the music is again outstandingly faithful to the films. There are some really stunning underground locations throughout The Order of Giants, and I regularly found myself poring over the details of its crusty catacombs.
The action, meanwhile, is typical of The Great Circle itself: a mix of light first-person platforming, some puzzle solving, and some scattered stealth and brawling against Italian soldiers and a group of mysterious and violent red-robed cult members. This isn’t the sort of DLC that adds a radically different new layer of combat, so don’t expect them to display any new tricks.
The puzzles, though, are absolutely the highlight. I liked two of them in particular more than any in The Great Circle itself. One is a well-crafted water puzzle, and the other is essentially a giant marble maze you need to solve without losing your flaming ball and starting over. There is one particular text-based brainteaser where the link to the physical puzzle pieces seemed a little obtuse initially, but shortly afterwards made me feel like a mild idiot for not figuring it out sooner. Sometimes that’s the best kind of puzzle.
There aren’t any dramatic action sequences in The Order of Giants akin to the fighter plane skyjack in The Great Circle – or tobogganing down the Himalayas on a huge, Nazi battleship. It’s a slower-paced affair overall, but I don’t mind this since it’s seemed to have resulted in a pumped-up amount of puzzles to mull over. It does crescendo to a slightly unexpected miniboss fight in a very neat location, but it’s not a particularly inventive battle – it’s just run, ranged attack, run, ranged attack, run, etcetera. It probably went on a little long considering how repetitive it ended up being, wrapping up just as I’d started wondering whether what I was doing was even the right thing.
