Tron is a world that I feel constantly surprised by its perseverance in just flat out still being a thing all these years later. And yet, I never feel upset about it given that the vibes of Tron just absolutely rule no matter the context in which they’re being delivered, the upcoming Jared Leto led film notwithstanding because of that guy’s whole vibe. In terms of what’s actually next for the fictitious video game world, there’s Tron: Catalyst from the folks over Bithell Games, and as it so happens, there’s a demo out for it today!
Last week, I questioned whether MindsEye was a real game or not. This week, that question lingers. Why, you ask? Well, as spotted by our good friends over at Eurogamer, two executives at the studio behind the game, Build a Rocket Boy, have now departed the company. Let me just check when MindsEye is coming out… oh, that’s right, literally one week from today. Surely this is only good news!
I don’t think I’ve hungered for a game this year as much as Holstin. This survival-horror immediately caught my eye with its gorgeous pixel art, perspective-shifting gameplay, and eerie Polish setting.
So I felt super lucky to get hands-on with an all-new, two-hour PC demo, sliced right out of Holstin’s ominous beginnings. While the previous Steam demo captured Holstin’s “feel” through mocked-up puzzles and a firing-range weapons tutorial, this new build puts it all together with a meaty (pun intended) story.
My friends, you’ve gotta keep an eye on Holstin – here are a few reasons why.
#1: “Disgusting” Has Never Looked So Good
It’s the first thing you’ll notice – Holstin is really, really good-looking, right from your sudden drop into a dilapidated train station overgrown with some weird, pulsing yellow substance. The art looks already great in screenshots, but you need to see and feel Holstin in motion to truly understand what an accomplishment these graphics are. Even the title screen is amazing.
Even the title screen is amazing.
What looks like 2D top-down pixel art becomes truly impressive 3D once you learn that you can move the camera around, with slick, seamless transitions through eight different angles. Even if you’re aware of this before you begin playing, swinging around for the first time is honestly one of Holstin’s most surprising moments – yes, right up there with enemy encounters!
(As a side note, the top-down movement in Holstin lends itself really well to twin-stick action on a controller, but it plays perfectly on mouse and keyboard as well.)
While most players won’t necessarily be choosing Holstin because of its technical proficiency, it’s what really makes this aesthetic work. There’s a reason why graphics like this aren’t manifold in the industry – it’s built on the studio’s custom in-house technology, which makes it likely to cement Holstin as a standout game graphically.
#2: Mind-Blowing Perspectives
Okay, so you can spin that third-person, top-down camera around and view the world from multiple angles – but that’s not just an awesome-looking gimmick. Those angles go hand-in-hand with Holstin’s environmental puzzles. If you’re not looking behind boxes or checking around corners to find alleys, you may – and probably will – miss things that will help you find your path forward in Holstin’s strange world.
But wait! There’s more!
There are aggressive mutated people everywhere. That means you need to shoot them. But unlike other twin-stick shooters, you won’t be staying in that fixed-camera view to ready your sights. Entering aim mode transitions you into an over-the-shoulder third-person view, freeing your camera to enable pinpoint precision for your headshots.
These two very different views really add to the suspense – for instance, while in top-down view, you might miss the enemy lurking quietly around a corner. I found myself constantly on my guard, switching between both viewpoints even out of combat. (And sometimes even that didn’t save me from being pounced on and grappled down by some grisly horror of a human.) The only part of combat that initially confused me was melee, as that isn’t in aim mode – but I got used to it quickly.
Holstin plays with other camera perspectives too, though more for atmosphere than for gameplay reasons. Think: a god’s-eye view in an eerily silent, unpopulated area. Your cursor disappears, suddenly removing your primary sense of defense. You might not be switching into aim mode here, but you’ll sure feel like some ominous force is watching your every move.
#3: Meat, Tentacles, and Gore Galore
Survival horror fans will want to know how gruesome the strange environment can get, but don’t worry – the squelchy mainstays of the genre are definitely represented in Holstin. The overall goal in this demo is to find your way to a slaughterhouse, after all.
The town’s dissolution into its kind of otherworld first emerges in the form of “Plasmodium,” the aforementioned yellow substance. At first, it looks like someone went wild with foam spray – but when you approach, tentacles will rise and wiggle at you. Are they saying hi or taunting you? Either way, it’s suitably icky and adds to a pervading sense of unease.
And then there are the mutant enemies. Imagine glowing orange orbs taking over your body, their tendrils taking the place of your tendons. Imagine those same orbs buried in the Plasmodium, which slowly spreads through streets and parks like an aggressive, menacing fungus.
Something I also found unsettling was the implied gore. While you don’t see the actual slaughterhouse in this demo, you will learn how it figures into the overall narrative through conversational dialogue and scribbled scraps scattered through the world. Something wicked is going on in that place, and you know it’s not going to be pretty when you finally get there.
#4: Adventure Gaming Puzzles That Don’t Suck
As a gamer who grew up with classic point-and-click adventures, I was very impressed by Holstin’s approach to its puzzles. Maybe I’m getting old and crotchety, but I’ve been disappointed in recent years with how linear puzzling has become in adventure-adjacent games. Receive an objective, figure out how to solve the objective, then receive the next objective.
Figuring out which are solvable in any given moment is almost a puzzle in itself.
Though Holstin is strongly narrative-driven, it never feels like a linear story with disparate puzzles slapped on top. In fact, I’d almost forgotten how challenging a well-designed puzzle tree can be. In Holstin, you won’t be completing objectives in the order they’re listed. You can work on multiple objectives at once, and figuring out which are solvable in any given moment is almost a puzzle in itself. You might have to retrace your steps, which feels realistic (like searching your house thrice for your car keys).
And as for the puzzles themselves – they make sense (well, as much as something can make sense in this mad world). Survival horror fans are all familiar with some of the genre’s most inane challenges – ranging from the dreaded sliding puzzle through to needing an intimate knowledge of Shakespeare to shelve books correctly in order to obtain a door code (*cough* Silent Hill *cough*).
None of that nonsense here. Holstin’s asks of you are simple: How are you going to get this trapdoor open? What twisting path through town will you need to forge in order to reach the playground? How you solve these problems feels organic, and really encourages you to explore your environs thoroughly.
#5: 1990s Poland Is a Trip
The Polish setting forms the bones of quite a specific – and unique – narrative. It’s not exactly a great tourism ad for Poland, but even covered with the weird tentacled Plasmodium, the town of Jeziorne-Kolonia still feels like a distinctly foreign experience compared to other games set in more vague locations.
This demo only has Polish voiceover, and as an English speaker myself, I found that this added to the believability and atmosphere – like watching a foreign flick. Though I don’t have the context of how the Polish language is structured, the voice acting sounded dead-on.
There’s the suicidal woman, her voice filled with defeat as she hands her gun over to you. The large, childlike man, squealing, talking in riddles, and just one plot twist away from losing it entirely. The cast of weirdos here is a lot wider than your usual survival-horror game – but their convincing creepiness doesn’t detract from the suspense at all. (I sure wished they would help me out in combat, though.)
And while Holstin set in the 1990s, it’s not exactly boy bands and GeoCities. For instance, your save checkpoints are decrepit-looking phone booths – and you’ll need to find physical telephone cards to actually make your save (just like the real-life anachronism of digging for change to do your laundry). Our hero Tomasz definitely does not have a cell phone for tracking objectives. Expect all the inconveniences in the pre-internet era – yet another stumbling block in your strange journey through this horrifying town.
All in all, this demo honestly blew me away – and I say that very rarely of any game. If the rest of Holstin is as polished and carefully crafted, it will be considered a survival horror classic in a decade’s time. I’m that impressed by what I’ve seen and played of it so far.
Section 13 Brings Twin-stick Action, Co-Op Chaos, and Roguelite Replayability
Hyun Joo Kim, Communications Director, Ocean Drive
Summary
Now available on Xbox Series X|S.
Battle through the twisted lab of Section 13, blasting enemies with lead or lasers.
Unlock perks with each run to survive longer next time.
Get ready for precise, fast-paced action, ever-evolving challenges, and a dash of mystery. Section 13 is now live on Xbox Series X|S!
A World of Secrets
What exactly turned a top-tier facility into a paranormal creature-infested zoo? Section 13’s story takes inspiration from SCP-style lore, immersing you in a world of classified experiments, scientific anomalies, and monstrous boss creatures lurking in the depths. Playing as different S2P agents, you’ll not only uncover what happened to Section 13 but also piece together fragments of each character’s past, their connection to the facility, and the ties that bind them together.
Precision Combat Meets Roguelite Mayhem
At its core, Section 13 is all about precise twin-stick controls and fast, responsive combat. The action is quick and chaotic, rewarding sharp reflexes and strategic positioning.
Thanks to procedurally generated map layouts and randomized encounters, no two sessions play out the same way. And when you inevitably fall? Embrace death as an opportunity. Every failure in Section 13 helps to build up permanent rewards such as new weapons, upgrades, and more that make your next run even stronger.
Stay in the Light, Stay in Control
With the facility’s power offline and lighting scarce, the Fear System introduces a new kind of threat: your own panic.
Darkness isn’t just an aesthetic choice in Section 13—it’s a mechanic. Stay in the darkness too long, and you’ll enter a state of panic and accuracy takes a hit as your vision distorts, heart thumps louder, and the walls seem to close in. That’s not all, of course. You also take more damage, reload slower, and can’t regain HP.
To shake off the panic, find a strong light source—not some flickering flashlight, but something bright enough to make your interior designer wince. Step into the glow and get back in control.
Co-Op Mode: Team Up, Watch Your Fire
Fighting through Section 13 alone is thrilling—but bringing a friend (or two) kicks up the action to another level. Teammates boost your firepower but co-op mode plays differently from solo mode, so you’ll need to think twice before spraying bullets.
Online co-op is on the way, with couch co-op to follow. Here are some key changes you’ll be able to find in the updates:
All characters will be unlocked from the get-go.
Friendly fire and ammo limits will be toggleable.
Enemies will be even tougher!
Key resources such as Medkits won’t be shared—anyone can grab them.
No narrative progression will be unlocked.
Whether you’re here for action or the intrigue, there’s always something waiting to be discovered.
Are you ready to face the darkness and uncover the secrets of Section 13?
Section 13 is a roguelite twin-stick shooter packed with action and challenges. As an Agent of the S2P Corporation, it’s up to you to investigate a crisis at the most top-secret facility of a company whose whole thing is keeping secrets.
NOTE: Planned feature updates will bring online and couch co-op modes*, with optional friendly fire for maximum madness in the narrow corridors of Section 13!
CONSPIRACIES TO UNCOVER
When an Omega-level containment breach puts an off-the-books company black-site on lockdown, it’s up to expendable peons like you to get to the bottom of it. Literally.
Step into the shoes of Agents Red, Boy Scout, Beaker, and Scalpel, as they fight to unearth the buried secrets of Section 13… and solve a few personal mysteries of their own. Collect data on paranormal entities running amok and find out what it all has to do with you.
TENSE TWIN-STICK ACTION IN THE WEIRDEST WORKPLACE EVER
As a Tier-1 paranormal containment facility, Section 13 is full of unique hazards, and it’s up to you to overcome them with quick wits and reflexes.
Time your dodge-rolls and reloads to stay one step ahead of a horde of hungry monsters. Back against the wall? Pop off with a special ability… or grab a melee weapon and smash your way out.
But keep an eye on your Fear level, or risk a debilitating mid-mission panic attack!
CUTTING-EDGE TOOLS TO MASTER
Add some spice to every run with unlockable (and customizable) weapons, gameplay-altering Synaptic Enhancements, and of course, recreational genetic modification. (Some side effects may apply).
Utilize special abilities and unique tactical items to outsmart pissed-off cryptids, navigate a series of shifting levels, and push deeper into the base with every attempt.
Between deaths, you’ll also unlock persistent upgrades that change how you play and radically alter your chances of success.
* Co-op modes will be added as feature updates (online co-op in June 2025 and couch co-op in September 2025).
Let’s start this one with a definition: Lethal Company is “one of those kinda games.” By that I mean it’s a four player co-op title that doesn’t really adhere to a particular genre, predominantly prioritising mechanics that allow you and some friends to get up to some shenanigans. Like Content Warning, or REPO, you know, one of those kinda games! Now we’ve got that out of the way, let me introduce you to Roadside Research, one of those kinda games, except this time you are an incredibly poorly disguised alien running a gas station in order to research humans. See what I mean?
Resolution Games has revealed a debut gameplay trailer for Demeo x Dungeons & Dragons: Battlemarked, and confirmed a late 2025 release window and launch platforms.
Resolution Games, best known for digital fantasy tabletop adventure Demeo, is working with Wizards of the Coast on the first virtual reality game set in the Dungeons & Dragons universe, called Demeo x Dungeons & Dragons: Battlemarked. It’s due out on PC via Steam, and PlayStation 5, with a VR version available on PlayStation VR2, Steam VR, and Meta Quest 3.
Battlemarked adapts D&D classes, actions, and lore to Resolution Games’ Demeo action role-playing system, which is DM-less and focuses on social strategy rather than social roleplay. This, Resolution Games said, encourages group tabletalk focused on tactics and decision-making.
“While the world of Demeo is rich with lore, our previous titles focus primarily on tactical action over motivation and narrative,” said Tommy Palm, founder and CEO of Resolution Games.
Resolution Games is working with story designer Matt Sernett as the project’s narrative lead. Sernett previously worked as a designer of the Dungeons & Dragons tabletop game and contributed to Dungeons & Dragons video games including Baldur’s Gate, Baldur’s Gate 2, and Icewind Dale.
“When Dungeons & Dragons launched fifth edition back in 2014, the first adventure that many players went on ventured into Neverwinter Wood, and I can think of no place better for Battlemarked players to begin their journey,” said Sernett.
“The first adventure in Demeo x Dungeons & Dragons: Battlemarked will take players to familiar locations including Cragmaw Castle and Mount Hotenow. The world of D&D is just as much a part of the story as its characters, and we can’t wait for players to immerse themselves in its dangers and delights.”
Battlemarked’s second adventure, which will be included at launch, will be revealed later this year.
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.
How do you follow up a game like Umurangi Generation? Maybe move from photography to videography, or go full shooter (which developer Origame Digital do appear to be making too, that one’s just not had a full reveal yet). Perhaps instead of either of those things, you’ll make a game about penguins, which, yeah, no more beating around the bush, that’s exactly what they’ve done. Introducing: Penguin Colony, a narrative adventure game based on H.P. Lovecraft’s At the Mountains of Madness.
When Nintendo properly revealed the Switch 2 back in April, it also confirmed that a new Pro Controller would be accompanying the console as an optional peripheral.
Now, most of us here have gone hands-on with the new controller at some point or another, but the lovely Alex has spent quite a bit of time with the ruddy thing playing the likes of Mario Kart World and Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour. In his latest video, he has a good ol’ natter with Felix about whether or not the new Pro Controller is actually a necessity.
This mystery sets the stage for Destiny 2: The Edge of Fate, Bungie’s upcoming expansion to the FPS looter shooter launching July 19. Guardians receive an invite to new planetoid Kepler via a time-displaced train car, seemingly from modern-day Earth. Kepler is precariously held together by a black hole, which threatens the entire solar system if destabilized. The resulting quest introduces time distortions, new enemies, and novel abilities unique to Kepler.
I spent hours with Bungie’s upcoming expansion, which includes a robust single-player campaign and other game-changing updates. I adventured across Kepler testing out a powerful new arsenal, transformed into a nimble ball of energy, teleported through traps, and much more. I also tinkered with Destiny 2’s new Portal system, SoloOps, and Arms Week updates, which will be available to all players (no The Edge of Fate purchase necessary).
Let’s dig into some of the highlights.
Kepler’s unusual terrain: The new planet’s exterior is rocky and dusty, overgrown with a yellow webbing and bulbous growths evocative of alien fungus. Time distortions affect the environment, features abandoned facilities and technology. Trains seemingly from Earth have mysteriously crashed on Kepler, hosting portals into unknown realms.
New friend Lodi: This fresh face greets players on Kepler, who seems mighty interested in the Guardian’s ties to Earth and a possible path back. Consistent with Kepler’s time distortions, Lodi looks and talks more like someone more from our time, dear reader, rather than the world of Destiny. He also serves as a handy narrative device for Bungie to introduce the universe of Destiny 2 to new players.
Explore with Matterspark orb: Guardians can tap new energy reservoirs and hold Square button to morph into a crackling Matterspark orb. This new contextual ability lets you zip around the battlefield, blast enemies with electricity, and explore nooks and crannies. During one combat encounter I disabled a miniboss’s shields by overcharging generator pylons hidden in the battlefield. It’s an energizing and novel change of pace. Guardians can eventually summon this power at will for even more combat and exploration options.
Teleport with the Relocator: This new piece of tech lets you take aim in third-person on distant nodes and create a temporary portal. This transportation tool lets you squeeze through narrow openings or traps, and cross vast distances to continue the quest. Bungie combines this new device with the Matterspark to create fun, inventive environmental puzzles to change up the pace.
Change the environment with Mattermorph: Pluck a chunk of potent fungus to imbue yourself with a curious Dark Matter ability – Mattermorph. Hit R1 (melee) to throw strand projectiles at glowing environmental objects like rocks and wall panels, which morphs them into new pathways through the air and across the environment. Players eventually combine these abilities to assemble craft paths through complex environments.
Potent new Exotic weapons: I experimented with three of The Edge of Fate’s intoxicating new exotics:
Graviton Spike: A hand cannon with arc and stasis modes – one charging the other as you shoot.
New Land Beyond: Stack up precision hits with this sniper rifle to stack up massive damage multipliers.
Third Iteration: My favorite. A heat-vete scout rifle that rewards precision by erupting fallen enemies in a blast of energy and making you temporarily invisible.
Desperate mission to restore power: The “Charge” mission is the latest campaign mission I played, and it was also my favorite. The quest to restore generators is sprinkled with a mix of environmental puzzles and intense fights. Stitching together Matterspark, Mattermorph, and Relocator abilities to power generators resulted in some tricky-yet-satisfying obstacles. The mission culminates in a battle against two bosses with shields that can only be destroyed by the Matterspark’s powered-up overcharge ability, activated with L1 + R1 buttons.
Power Plant siege: The “Transient” campaign mission tasks players to disable the House of Exile’s power plant. This cavernous facility hosts tech drawing energy from the planet’s fungal colonies. At one point in the mission enemies rig explosives that must be defused by defending a radius for a set time period. The ultimate goal is to overload the station’s core to disable an enemy warship with an immense power surge.
Portal menu: This new menu offers all players a new option to dive quickly into Destiny 2’s most popular content. Bungie’s goal is to spotlight modes with guaranteed paths to growing Guardians’ power and arsenal. This quick-play shortcut highlights modes like SoloOps, Fireteam, Pinnacles, and Crucible. The World map still provides the traditional interactive galaxy map Guardians are used to.
SoloOps: These new single-player challenges let players customize challenge modifiers (e.g. enemy melee attacks slow you, you take more damage in mid-air, enemies drop fire hazards, etc.) to increase chances for valuable rewards. Below are three of the Solo Ops I played:
The Salt Mines: Hunt and destroy Splinter targets throughout a cavern and blast through a gauntlet of bosses in the final stretch.
The Conflux: Clear entrenched enemies from a cave network, then fight a shielded boss across floating platforms in the final section. Disable its shield by throwing fallen energy orbs at it.
K1 Logistics: Venture beneath the Moon’s surface to exterminate old enemies. Deactivate a series of shielded control panels to carve a path to the end boss.
Armor set bonuses: New set bonuses entice all players to collect matching gear for extra benefits. For example, the Aion Renewal armor characteristic rewards two matching set pieces with a weapon-based speed boost, and four matching set pieces with a reactive speed boost when afflicted with slow or stasis.
Arms Week and the Shooting Range: This event launches shortly after The Edge of Fate, available to all players. The marquee feature is a new Shooting Range on The Tower that lets one to six players test their arsenal, calculating damage numbers as individuals and as a team. Arms Week also features new weapons and mods to chase, events to complete, and more.
Set your Fireteam’s course for Kepler when Destiny 2: The Edge of Fate launches on July 19.
