A major shakeup is taking place at the top of Microsoft’s gaming business, as long-time Xbox and Microsoft Gaming boss Phil Spencer is retiring, effective from Monday 23rd February, with current President of Microsoft’s CoreAI, Asha Sharma is set to take over as the new CEO of Microsoft Gaming.

Xbox President Sarah Bond, who was easy to view as Spencer’s eventual successor, has resigned, while Xbox Game Studios head Matt Booty is being promoted to Chief Content Officer.

Messages from all (except Bond) have been published by Microsoft. Spencer said that he had been thinking about retiring for a little while, and that this handover has seen him work with his successor for several months now.

“Last fall, I shared with Satya that I was thinking about stepping back and starting the next chapter of my life. From that moment, we aligned on approaching this transition with intention, ensuring stability, and strengthening the foundation we’ve built. Xbox has always been more than a business. It’s a vibrant community of players, creators, and teams who care deeply about what we build and how we build it. And it deserves a thoughtful, deliberate plan for the road ahead.

“Today marks an exciting new chapter for Microsoft Gaming as Asha Sharma steps into the role of CEO, and I want to be the first to welcome her to this incredible team. Working with her over the past several months has given me tremendous confidence. She brings genuine curiosity, clarity and a deep commitment to understanding players, creators, and the decisions that shape our future. We know this is an important moment for our fans, partners, and team, and we’re committed to getting it right. I’ll remain in an advisory role through the summer to support a smooth handoff.”

Sharma might not have been the most obvious choice from the outside, and coming from an AI background will certainly be a cause for concern to many gamers, where generative AI is viewed very negatively.

“My first job is simple: understand what makes this work and protect it. That starts with three commitments. First, great games. Everything begins here. We must have great games beloved by players before we do anything. Unforgettable characters, stories that make us feel, innovative game play, and creative excellence. We will empower our studios, invest in iconic franchises, and back bold new ideas. We will take risks. We will enter new categories and markets where we can add real value, grounded in what players care about most. I promoted Matt Booty in honor of this commitment. He understands the craft and the challenges of building great games, has led teams that deliver award-winning work, and has earned the trust of game developers across the industry.

“Second, the return of Xbox. We will recommit to our core Xbox fans and players, those who have invested with us for the past 25 years, and to the developers who build the expansive universes and experiences that are embraced by players across the world. We will celebrate our roots with a renewed commitment to Xbox starting with console which has shaped who we are. It connects us to the players and fans who invest in Xbox, and to the developers who build ambitious experiences for it.

“Gaming now lives across devices, not within the limits of any single piece of hardware. As we expand across PC, mobile, and cloud, Xbox should feel seamless, instant, and worthy of the communities we serve. We will break down barriers so developers can build once and reach players everywhere without compromise.

“Third, future of play. We are witnessing the reinvention of play. To meet the moment, we will invent new business models and new ways to play by leaning into what we already have: iconic teams, characters, and worlds that people love. But we will not treat those worlds as static IP to milk and monetize. We will build a shared platform and tools that empower developers and players to create and share their own stories.

“As monetization and AI evolve and influence this future, we will not chase short-term efficiency or flood our ecosystem with soulless AI slop. Games are and always will be art, crafted by humans, and created with the most innovative technology provided by us.”

There’s definitely some reassuring sentiments within that, though I would argue that saying your first job is to understand what’s going on makes this sound more of a hurried appointment. We will have to see how much institutional change follows.

Phil Spencer had been at the helm of Microsoft’s gaming efforts for over a decade, taking over in 2014 and setting about steading the suddenly floundering console gaming business. He moved quickly to cut the price of the Xbox One by removing the Kinect from the bundle, made gamer-positive moves like championing backwards compatibility, and enacted major changes to the Xbox business model by promising day-and-date PC releases for Xbox games (and releasing them on Steam), as well as introducing Xbox Game Pass. He also saw Xbox exclusives start to come to PlayStation, breaking down traditional barriers.

However, he’s also been at the helm more recent difficult times for the brand. The Xbox Series X|S launch did not go as successfully as planned, not least with significant game delays for the likes of Halo Infinite, studio acquisitions took a long time to bear fruit, Xbox Game Pass started to see market saturation, and then successive price increases to both consoles and services.

With an eye to the future, now might be the best time for him to step aside, but Xbox as a brand feels somewhat nebulous right now. There’s a lot of rumours about what their next console might be like, whether it’s more PC-like than console and with rival storefronts, or traditional. Microsoft will inevitably be very keen to see AI used in some fashion, having demoed AI helpers with Minecraft in recent years (and that was before the current madness). But with a new CEO all of that could change. We’ll have to wait and see.

Source: Microsoft

EA and Battlefield Studios have launched the delayed Battlefield 6 Season 2, bringing a new map, reams of new cosmetics and unlocks through the Battle Pass, and promise of limited-time events and match effects.

The new map is a large scale battle set around a German airbase, catering to all combat sizes and the main game modes of Conquest, Breakthrough and Escalation, and featuring both land vehicles and helicopters. It’s another pleasing step towards the kind of large scale maps that were largely missing for Battlefield 6’s launch.

It’s the first of two maps that will be included in Battlefield Season 2, when fans have been clamouring for more variety. Why aren’t they making more, when that’s what people want? DICE’s Producer Alexia Christofi says “In terms of cadence, we would love to create way more maps. But we’re just trying to kind of bring things to players as we can and as quickly as we can build them.”

They’re balancing map making with running limited time events, in other words. This will see a limited time mode added to multiplayer and REDSEC in season 2 with the VL-7 Strike meaning that psychoactive smoke will drop onto the map, forcing you to quickly put on a gas mask and manage your filters to avoid being affected. The battle royale map has been modified with smoke engulfing Fort Lyndon, and the Gauntlet mode has returned, also with this smoke affecting the fights.

Here’s the full patch notes for Battlefield 6 Update 1.2.1.0 and Season 2’s launch:

New Map: Contaminated

A large-scale European mountainside battlefield set around a strategic German airbase.

• Supports all combat sizes
• Includes land vehicles and helicopters
• Available across Conquest, Breakthrough, Escalation, Squad Death Match, and Strikepoint

New Limited-Time Modes

Season 2 introduces a set of limited-time experiences built around VL-7, a new psychoactive smoke weapon spreading across multiple battlefields. As contaminated zones emerge, squads must adapt their tactics, manage masks and filters, and fight for control in increasingly hostile environments across multiplayer, Battle Royale, and Gauntlet.

VL-7 Strike: A limited-time mode where the psychoactive smoke VL-7 spreads across select areas in multiplayer and REDSEC. Players must use masks and manage their filters carefully, as running out will leave them exposed to VL-7’s disorienting effects.

Battle Royale – Synthesis: Smoke engulfs Fort Lyndon, transforming the battleground. Fight and loot within contaminated zones while securing masks and filters to survive the smoke’s effects.

Gauntlet: Altered State: Gauntlet returns with a new twist. Squads compete in a knockout-style elimination format while navigating psychoactive smoke and racing to complete missions under pressure.

New Vehicle

• AH-6 Little Bird: The iconic attack helicopter returns for NATO forces, offering high mobility and lethal firepower in skilled hands.

New Weapons

• M121 A2: A belt-fed machine gun delivering high damage, especially effective at close range.
• GRT-CPS: A semi-automatic designated marksman rifle designed for mid- to long-range engagements, featuring a high-capacity magazine for sustained fire.
• VCR-2: A short-range assault rifle with a rapid rate of fire, built for intense close-quarters combat.

New Gadgets

• 9K38 IGLA: A lock-on, anti-air missile launcher that requires active guidance from engineers to stay on target. Provides  superior missile maneuverability to adept users.
• HTI-Mk2: A short- to medium-range Recon device that can detect and reveal enemy gadgets, overload recon drones, and neutralise incoming rockets.
• Protective Mask: Essential equipment for contaminated zones, protecting players from psychoactive smoke. Additional filters can be acquired and equipped to extend protection time.

Battle Pass & Progression

• Season 2 Battle Pass: Instantly unlock 6 rewards and progress through 4 themed paths featuring new hardware, weapon packages, soldier skins, XP boosts, and more. Complete all paths to unlock the Ultimate Path.
• BF Pro: In addition to the regular Battle Pass, BF Pro includes 6 instant unlocks, 25 tier skips, BF Radio, Portal Server Hosting, and access to an exclusive bonus path with additional tactical rewards

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Game Update 1.2.1.0 delivers over 240 gameplay improvements and quality-of-life fixes across nearly every part of Battlefield 6. These changes are shaped by community feedback and real match data, with a focus on improving weapon handling, movement, vehicles, gadgets, UI, audio, and overall gameplay reliability. This update continues our ongoing commitment to improve consistency and reliability across the core Battlefield experience.

Major Updates for 1.2.1.0

• Weapon Balance and Recoil Improvements: Delivered a broad recoil tuning pass across automatic weapons, alongside targeted balance fixes to improve consistency, role clarity, and long-term weapon handling.
• Movement and Traversal Fixes: Improved soldier movement predictability with refined acceleration, slide and jump behaviour, smoother vaulting logic, and improved ladder animations in both first- and third-person. Vehicle and Gadget Reliability: Resolved multiple issues affecting vehicles and gadgets, including anti-vehicle interactions, drone behaviour, deployables, and vehicle damage feedback.
• Maps and Mode Fixes: Addressed numerous map exploits, traversal issues, capture logic problems, and world reset bugs across Conquest, Breakthrough, Strikepoint, Gauntlet, and other modes.
• UI, HUD and Progression Polish: Introducing a new stat screen in the Player Profile, as well as Improved clarity and reliability across the HUD, Battle Pass, challenges, End of Round flow, matchmaking, and party systems.
• Portal Stability and Tooling Updates: Fixed a wide range of issues affecting Portal creation tools, scripting, mutators, assets, exploits, and server stability.
• Audio, Visual and Stability Improvements: Improved audio reliability, visual consistency, cosmetic presentation, and overall game stability across platforms.

AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT

As part of Update 1.2.1.0, we’ve made improvements to both how recoil behaves at a system level and how recoil is used to balance automatic weapons.

Since launch, recoil compensation could feel inconsistent in certain situations. In some cases, the amount of aim input required to counter recoil did not reliably match the recoil being applied, which could make weapons feel harder to control than expected. While improvements were made during Season 1 to reduce the most extreme cases, some inconsistency could still be noticeable during regular gameplay. With this update, recoil compensation has been made fully consistent, ensuring that the aim input required to counter recoil now correctly matches the recoil applied. This results in more predictable and reliable weapon handling.

Separately from this systemic fix, we’ve also made a broad recoil tuning pass across automatic weapons. Recoil is one of the main ways we balance weapons across different engagement distances: higher-damage weapons are intentionally harder to control, while lighter weapons trade raw power for ease of use and consistency. Over time, we saw this balance starting to drift once we looked at how these weapons were actually being used in live matches across common combat ranges.

This tuning pass brings recoil behaviour back in line with each weapon’s intended role. You should expect automatic weapons to feel more consistent and better differentiated across ranges, with higher-impact weapons demanding more control and positioning, while others remain reliable and forgiving in closer engagements.

CHANGELOG

PLAYER:

• Adjusted the acceleration curve of slide and jumps to better account for the player’s speed when entering a slide or a jump.
• All squad members now display animated health icons when downed, clearly indicating who is able to revive you.
• Fixed a matchmaking error that could occur when a player left the party while the party leader was already in a match.
• Fixed a movement extrapolation issue that could cause other soldiers to appear jittery when traversing uneven terrain or changing states.
• Fixed a rare issue where melee could become unusable if switched to immediately after being revived.
• Fixed an issue where a player’s legs could clip through thin walls or objects when backpedalling into them.
• Fixed an issue where a soldier could become invisible and continue moving after dying in a swimming pool.
• Fixed an issue where a victim’s facing direction could be briefly incorrect when starting a melee takedown on a prone target.
• Fixed an issue where accepting a squad invite on Xbox could unintentionally select a highlighted tile in the main menu.
• Fixed an issue where Battle Pickups would sometimes be dropped after being revived.
• Fixed an issue where deployable Gadgets could be used while on a zipline.
• Fixed an issue where equipping a camo skin on one vehicle could cause vehicle thumbnails or icons to incorrectly appear camouflaged across all vehicles.
• Fixed an issue where melee animations could break when initiated immediately after exiting a vehicle in first-person.
• Fixed an issue where revived players could occasionally receive an unintended weapon state.
• Fixed an issue where soldiers could be launched unexpectedly when entering a ladder positioned above the camera.
• Fixed an issue where stickers were not applied correctly on the War Wolf Legendary weapon package for the L85A3.
• Fixed an issue where the left hand could be seen floating while doing a takedown with the knife equipped.
• Fixed an issue where the selected player patch could appear duplicated and incorrectly placed on the backpack when using the Veritas Epic skin.
• Fixed an issue where the Spiteful Mirage skin was missing hair during the End of Round flow.
• Fixed an issue where the Thunder Engineer skin did not focus the camera on the correct uniform patch location.
• Fixed an issue where the uniform patch appeared twice on the Peregrine Sniper Epic skin.
• Fixed an issue where the Wraith Recon skin could become partially transparent in first-person view when starting a match in King of the Hill.
• Fixed an issue where unlocking characters via the Battle Pass deeplink would not correctly unlock the character.
• Fixed an issue where unlocking the Brodie character via the Battle Pass deeplink would not correctly unlock the character.
• Fixed an issue where vaulting onto a vehicle could sometimes destroy it and launch the player unexpectedly.
• Fixed an issue where weapon pose could fail to update correctly when firing while sprint-jumping.
• Fixed an issue where weapon switching after being revived could leave players without a usable weapon. The game now prioritises equipping a weapon with available ammunition.
• Fixed case scenarios where it would sometimes be possible to grab ledges much higher than intended with vault grab
• Fixed duplicate naming for some of the weapon charms.
• Fixed excessive mud weathering on the Two-Faced Epic skin’s character model.
• Improved first-person ladder animations for entering, climbing, and exiting.
• Improved foot placement when climbing ladders.
• Improved predictability and consistency of player movement with new acceleration curves instead of linear accelerations. Those updated accelerations retain responsive movement while allowing micro-adjustments of movement (i.e. to peek corners) and ensure that other players’ movement looks more correct to improve the quality and predictability of gunfights.
• Improved the transition of the soldier’s lower body in first-person view when stopping movement.
• Improved third-person ladder animations, including hand and foot placement on ladders.
• Improved vault detection near overhangs while airborne.
• Made animation and logic improvements to vaulting over medium-sized obstacles, refining momentum and smoothing transitions into movement.
• Prevented players from vaulting back onto the same ladder when jumping down backwards from it.
• Reduced the intensity of hit reactions while on fire to improve visual clarity during combat.
• Reduced the maximum slide impulse length by 25% to improve balance and readability during fast movement.
• Updated the Winter Warning cosmetic to better align with Battlefield’s visual identity.

VEHICLES:

• Disabled angle-based damage mitigation on the Traverser Mark II to better reflect its lighter armour profile. It now takes consistent damage from all directions.
• Fixed an issue where attack helicopter rocket trails could disappear when firing at long distances.
• Fixed an issue where helicopter rotary cannon tracers could sometimes originate behind the muzzle.
• Fixed an issue where jet throttle input could remain active after ejecting from the aircraft.
• Fixed an issue where tank turret aiming speeds differed between first-person and third-person zoom views.
• Fixed unreliable bullet collision on Anti-Air vehicle radar dishes.
• Reduced muzzle flash intensity on Anti-Air Tanks and stationary Anti-Air weapons when zoomed in.
• You can no longer move vehicles forward or backward while the Big Map is open, preventing input conflicts with map zoom controls on controllers.

GADGETS:

• Fixed an issue where Anti-Tank Mines could fail to deploy correctly in first-person view.
• Fixed an issue where attached M4A1 SLAM AV Mine explosives on the XFGM-6D Recon Drone did not correctly affect battery life or top speed. Attached explosives now behave consistently and detonate when the XFGM-6D Recon Drone is destroyed.
• Fixed an issue where the RPG-7 and the MBT-LAW launchers would be inaccurate if fired right after the zoom transition is completed.
• Fixed an issue where the Smoke Grenade was missing from the Support class Loadout #2.
• Fixed an issue where the XFGM-6D Recon Drone could be destroyed when its operating soldier was downed.
• Fixed an issue where the CSB IV EOD Bot could instantly regain an ammo charge when destroyed.
• Fixed an issue where the LTLM II Portable Laser Designator could prioritise already-painted targets instead of the vehicle being aimed at.
• Fixed an issue where the Repair Tool torch flame video effect was misaligned in third-person view using non-default FOV values.
• Fixed an issue where the Repair Tool would not repair vehicles when targeting glass components.
• Fixed an issue where the RPG-7 could fire unintentionally when switching weapons after releasing the trigger.
• Fixed a bug that prevent the player from returning properly to the previous weapon after throwing a supply pouch and would keep throwing more supply pouches
• Improved consistency when destroying Anti-Tank Mines and M4 SLAM AV Mines with explosives. Clearing out minefields should be easier and more consistent using a tank.
• Improved consistency of Defibrillator revives detection on stairs and uneven terrain.

WEAPONS:

• Adjusted in-world spotting range when firing a weapon without a suppressor or flash hider, reducing it from 75 to 54 metres.
• Adjusted minimap spotting range when firing suppressed weapons, increasing it from 15 to 21 metres to better align with intended balance.
• Fixed consistency with recoil compensation, making sure that the amount of aim input needed to compensate for recoil matches the amount of recoil.
• Fixed a visual issue with the standard fire mode on the SL9 being incorrectly set to safe; it is now set to full auto by default.
• Fixed an issue where locked weapon skins could be used in the Firing Range.
• Fixed an issue where shooting the first target dummy could generate particle effects at the player’s position.
• Fixed an issue where the 5 mW Green Laser was too expensive to equip on the DRS-IAR.
• Fixed an issue where the Flashlight could appear slightly misaligned when equipped on the MP5.
• Fixed an issue where the LA-23 Laser pad could appear floating when equipped on the RPKM.
• Fixed an issue where Scope glints and laser sight lens flares would be visible through the cover of smoke grenades.
• Fixed inconsistent knife melee timing to improve reliability during close-quarters combat.
• Fixed multiple weapon attachment visual issues, including lasers, flashlights, and optic alignment.
• Fixed the LMR27s Fast 15- and 20-round magazines not reducing reload time as intended.
• Fixed the SGX RO-M 1.75x sight to function consistently with other weapons.
• Fixed visual issues with bolt-action rifle animations, including intrusive ADS motion and incorrect finger placement.
• Improved scope glint orientation at long distances so enemy aim direction is more accurately telegraphed.
• Knife takedowns against enemies who are prone on their back now correctly connect with the defender.
• Reduced the Mini Scout muzzle velocity from 880 to 800 m/s.
• Reduced the Mini Scout limb damage to better align with lower-torso damage values.
• Updated the M433 Level 50 Mastery Package to use the correct magazine mesh.
• Updated the Range Finder custom zeroing to not apply its effect instantly; it now requires a short delay before taking effect.
• Updated player-facing descriptions for non-sniper grippod attachments to better reflect their gameplay effects.
• Updated player-facing name of the TR-7’s fluted barrel to match the formatting of its other barrels.
• Weapon Recoil Tuning: Adjusted recoil behaviour across automatic weapons to better reflect real combat ranges and ease-of-use expectations, improving ranged consistency while preserving intended weapon roles.
  • AK-205: Adjusted recoil behaviour to better match expectations for a 5.45×39mm weapon, with minimal impact on overall handling.
  • B36A4, L85A3, M433, SOR-555 MK2: Reduced recoil randomness, improving consistency and effectiveness at longer ranges.
  • DB-12: Increased rate of fire and faster pump action to improve reliability in close-quarters combat.
  • L110: Reduced recoil to reinforce the handling differences between belt-fed Machine Guns and Assault Rifles.
  • LMR27: Increased damage at close to mid ranges to better reward accurate headshots.
  • M123K: Reduced recoil to improve sustained-fire control and reinforce its role as a belt-fed Machine Gun.
  • M277: Reduced recoil, improving effectiveness at range.
  • M417 A2, QBZ-192: Reduced recoil randomness to ensure they remain competitive relative to updated Assault Rifles.
  • PW5A3, SGX: Increased recoil, making them slightly harder to control and less precise at longer distances.
  • PW7A2, USG-90: Adjusted recoil behaviour to improve effectiveness at range while slightly increasing handling difficulty up close.
  • SCW-10: Increased recoil to reduce effectiveness at range and reinforce its close-quarters role.
  • SG 553R: Increased recoil to limit effectiveness at range and better align with its strong close-range performance.
  • SOR-300SC: Adjusted recoil to ensure it remains competitive alongside updated Assault Rifles.

MAPS & MODES:

• Added Rush as a new mode to Mirak Valley.
• Fixed an issue in Escalation on Operation Firestorm where vehicles would not spawn at HQ as intended.
• Fixed an issue in Squad Deathmatch where locked squads could cause the scoreboard to appear partially empty.
• Fixed an issue in Sabotage where attackers could reach elevated positions and spawn-camp the defending team on Blackwell Fields.
• Fixed an issue in Sabotage where attackers could spawn within direct line of sight of defenders when deploying at HQ on Blackwell Fields.
• Fixed an issue on Siege of Cairo where players could reach the top of buildings in Sector D3 using the Deployable Cover gadget.
• Fixed missing water and visual issues in several swimming pools across Eastwood.

Manhattan Bridge

• Fixed an issue where destroying a garage by D objective could trigger a whiteout effect across the map.
• Fixed an issue where destroying an office building by F objective could incorrectly trigger a blackout and cause other players to see random colors and bright lights across the map.
• Fixed an issue where destroying parts of a plaster ridge at C objective could expose occlusion problems, causing large sections of the map to disappear when viewed from certain positions.
• Fixed an issue where players could stand on top of the bridge, creating unintended gameplay advantages.
• Fixed an issue where points of interest on the minimap were incorrectly labelled as “Dumbo” instead of Manhattan Bridge.

Empire State

• Fixed an issue where players could capture Point B (Sector 2) on Breakthrough from an unintended upper floor.
• Fixed an issue where players could place the Assault Ladder on invisible collision near the NATO HQ.
• Fixed an issue where players could reach unintended areas above the D flag after being launched into the air.

Strikepoint

• Fixed an issue on Liberation Peak, Operation Firestorm, and Iberian Offensive where multiple world and vehicle assets would not restore correctly after the halftime world reset.
• Fixed an issue where matches could end prematurely when teams were tied at 5:5.
• Fixed an issue where players joining a match late could spawn under the map.
• Fixed a rare issue where a wiped team could be incorrectly awarded a point.

Added the Scout Helicopter to the following maps and modes:

Conquest

• Manhattan Bridge
• Operation Firestorm
• New Sobek City
• Mirak Valley

Escalation

• Manhattan Bridge
• Eastwood
• Operation Firestorm
• New Sobek City
• Mirak Valley

PROGRESSION:

• Battle Pass Tokens are now earned more quickly through Career XP and Weekly Challenges, allowing for faster progression through regular gameplay.
• Fixed an issue where rerolling challenges could become unavailable when switching between the Battle Pass and Daily Challenges.
• Fixed an issue where the assignment tracker did not correctly track missions from the Unit page.
• Fixed incorrect tracking for multiple weekly and assignment-based challenges.
• Fixed multiple issues with challenge criteria displaying or progressing incorrectly across REDSEC Gauntlet and Weekly Challenges.
• Fixed incorrect progress display for Week 2 challenges.
• Fixed an issue where exploration assignments could complete with fewer actions than intended.

UI & HUD:

• Engineer icon changed to improve readability and make role more clear based on community feedback.
• Fixed a localisation issue where the Loadout Zeroing and Attachment prompts could overlap in several languages.
• Fixed an incorrect icon for the M3A3 Bradley.
• Fixed an issue causing Field XP UI animations to trigger too frequently.
• Fixed an issue causing low minimap shadow quality and rendering artefacts on some multiplayer maps.
• Fixed an issue on PC where the Big Map displayed keyboard and mouse icons even when using a controller.
• Fixed an issue where Battle Pass points earned from weekly missions were not reflected correctly on the End of Round screen.
• Fixed an issue where Battle Pass progression tokens were not updating correctly on the End of Round screen after completing Bonus Paths.
• Fixed an issue where closing the pause menu from the Deploy Screen using a controller could immediately reopen it.
• Fixed an issue where completed assignments could appear incorrectly sorted as completed on the End of Round screen.
• Fixed an issue where equipping or previewing gadgets and melee weapons could cause them to appear under the vehicle section in the Loadouts screen.
• Fixed an issue where locked Battle Pass rewards could appear stuck in the Loadout screen after navigating back from the Battle Pass.
• Fixed an issue where mortar hit indicators and damage numbers were not displayed correctly.
• Fixed an issue where the Big Map and scoreboard button prompts were missing in Gauntlet End of Round screens.
• Fixed an issue where the crosshair could briefly display incorrect spacing when switching weapons.
• Fixed an issue where the gunner seat aiming indicators on attack helicopters remained static while the helicopter was moving, leading to incorrect aiming feedback.
• Fixed an issue where the “Go to Store” button prompt was not functional for vehicle customization on PlayStation 5.
• Fixed an issue where item previews could persist after exiting Store bundles.
• Fixed an issue where item rotation and zoom could shift to other items when rapidly switching during inspection.
• Fixed an issue where the Free-to-Play tutorial for custom loadout access did not trigger correctly under certain conditions.
• Fixed an issue where the map could flip back and forth when rolling an aircraft.
• Fixed an issue where the resupply message was not visible even when resource indicators were enabled in settings.
• Fixed an issue where the revive in-world icon for squadmates could disappear too early. The icon now remains visible until the player is fully dead and no longer revivable.
• Fixed an issue where the “Show Game Mode Events” option did not function correctly when disabled.
• Fixed an issue where the “Stay with Squad” option was missing from the End of Round screen.
• Fixed an issue where the “Steady Aim” prompt unintentionally appeared on Designated Marksman Rifles; it is now shown only on bolt-action rifles.
• Fixed an issue where the tank damage screen effect would not properly cancel when exiting the vehicle.
• Fixed an issue where the “Tracked” section could display an incorrect number of tracked missions.
• Fixed an issue where UI elements could overlap or misalign during fast menu navigation.
• Fixed an issue where weapon package deeplinks did not navigate to the correct challenge tile.
• Fixed duplicate ladder indicators appearing on the jet HUD.
• Fixed enemy lock-on in-world icons displaying incorrect state colours when targeting vehicles.
• Fixed missing deeplinks for Dog Tags unlocked via challenges or through the Store.
• Fixed missing or incorrect icon art for several assignment and unit challenge rewards.
• Fixed inconsistencies between Battle Pass progression shown on the End of Round screen and the Battle Pass menu.
• Fixed incorrect unit descriptions for select NATO and Pax Armata forces.
• Fixed missing high-definition feedback when the Phalanx HQ Defence destroyed incoming projectiles in Conquest.
• Fixed missing or incorrect game mode tiles appearing on launch or after finishing a match.
• Fixed multiple issues causing in-world icons to flicker, including look-at, occlusion, and delayed occlusion updates.
• Fixed new reward markers not resetting correctly when switching between Season and Bonus Paths.
• Fixed player pickup request icons not displaying correctly.
• Improved readability of missile intercepted indicators.
• Improved the revive in-world progress bar to more closely match the downed player’s screen, reducing the gap where a revive was no longer possible but still appeared active.
• Reduced delay of UI hit indicators showing up when a hit has been confirmed.
• Reorganised killer information on the kill card to improve readability.
• Season 2 introduces a new stat screen in the Player Profile, featuring Career Total, Career Best, and Accolade stats. Each of these three screens showcases a variety of detailed statistics. The Career Total stats header includes both overall totals and breakdowns by game mode, while Career Best stats are tracked for both “In a Match” and “In a Life” categories.

SETTINGS:

• Added an accessibility option for flash and stun grenades that replaces the white flash effect with a black screen effect, reducing sudden brightness while preserving gameplay impact. This option can be enabled in the Accessibility settings.

PORTAL:

• Fixed a memory leak that could occur when specific scripting events were triggered repeatedly.
• Fixed an exploit that allowed players to farm excessive XP by repeatedly destroying AI-spawned vehicles.
• Fixed an issue where Battle Pickups spawned via Loot Spawners were missing minimap and big map icons.
• Fixed an issue where certain rules events triggered at incorrect times, including capture point enter/exit events.
• Fixed an issue where experiences in the “In Review” state could not be edited or deleted.
• Fixed an issue where modifying reinforcement multipliers could cause incorrect ticket counts to be displayed during sector progression.
• Fixed an issue where players could be reassigned incorrectly or prevented from deploying when squads reached maximum size.
• Fixed an issue where players could create AFK farming experiences that bypassed intended progression limits.
• Fixed an issue where players could not report a server while in the redeploy screen.
• Fixed an issue where Portal Sandbox displayed an incorrect map size in map rotation.
• Fixed an issue where removing all maps from a map rotation could cause the editor panel to disappear.
• Fixed an issue where spawning ammo via Loot Spawners had no effect.
• Fixed an issue where the Export button displayed a placeholder icon.
• Fixed an issue where users could bypass editor limits by importing modified workspaces.
• Fixed asset conflicts and errors that could appear when uploading or editing certain maps.
• Fixed incorrect Front End indicators related to limited-time events.
• Fixed incorrect map availability and categorisation for Custom Portal modes.
• Fixed incorrect or lingering UI elements related to respawning, squad reassignment, and mission flow.
• Fixed incorrect or missing tooltips, placeholder text, and untranslated labels in the Web Editor.
• Fixed issues that could lead to very long loading times for some Portal experiences.
• Fixed issues where certain assets could cause players to be returned to the Front End when hosting experiences.
• Fixed issues where certain gadgets, weapons, vehicles, and Battle Pickups were missing from restriction settings or did not respect configured restrictions.
• Fixed issues where strike package markers, beacon indicators, and objective icons could behave incorrectly across sessions.
• Fixed issues where values entered for certain seasonal and environmental mutators were not saved correctly.
• Fixed issues with Rules Editor lists being scrambled or inaccurate when selecting weapons, gadgets, or ammo.
• Fixed issues with scripting functions and nodes, including incorrect vector calculations, squad lookup limits, and long-running player events stopping unexpectedly.
• Fixed missing maps, assets, and set dressing in the Portal SDK, including Season 2 content and winter environment assets.
• Fixed missing or incorrect indicators for heat warnings, second chance states, and beacon pulses.
• Fixed multiple issues in the Portal Web Editor where weapons, gadgets, vehicles, and maps were missing, incorrectly categorised, or displayed with placeholder names, images, or meshes.
• Fixed multiple mutators that had no functionality or incorrect default values, including reinforcement, health regeneration, zoom snap, passenger seat, and verification-related settings.
• Fixed multiple placeholder or low-resolution vehicle and object meshes appearing when placed in Portal experiences.
• Fixed rare server hangs affecting Linux-based Portal servers.
• Fixed server log spam related to loot physics and proximity systems.
• Updated and replaced several Battle Royale and Portal-related challenges that were no longer functioning as intended.

AUDIO:

• Fixed an issue where pinging a Vehicle Supply Crate did not trigger the correct supply voice-over line.
• Fixed audio stuttering when vehicles are sabotaged using the Repair Tool.
• Improved audibility of enemy ziplines and parachutes, as well as friendly blowtorches, when many sounds are playing.
• Improved audio obstruction for vehicles, weapons, and soldier footsteps by refining sound source positioning.
• Improved clarity of distant enemy footsteps by better aligning layered audio content.
• Improved panning for close non-player footsteps at very short distances.
• Improved reliability of multiple sound effects under heavy load, including defibrillators, blowtorches, ziplines, and parachutes.

NETWORK:

• Fixed rare cases where the game could become unresponsive after reconnecting network cables during gameplay or while accepting invitations on Xbox Series consoles.

REDSEC

PLAYER:

• Fixed an issue where dying with a Data Drive could prevent the Extraction mission from progressing.
• Fixed an issue where in rare cases soldiers could take higher than intended damage when wearing armor.
• Fixed an issue where mission completion rewards could fail to drop correctly if the player initiating the mission was killed just before completion.
• Fixed an issue where the deploy input during Battle Royale insertion was not triggering consistently.
• Fixed an issue where the party leader would be returned to the Front End after selecting Stay with Squad in Battle Royale Duos.

VEHICLES:

• Added the Traverser Mark II to select Large, Medium, and Small Gauntlet layouts.
• Fixed an issue where the weapon could rotate incorrectly in first-person view when using the Traverser Mark II Remote Weapon Station.
• Fixed an issue where incorrect or missing crosshairs could appear for side passengers in the Traverse Mark II.

WEAPONS:

• Improved attachment setups for M4A1, M277, SVDM, Mini Scout, UMG-40, and 18.5KS-K, ensuring these weapons use their intended attachments and are better balanced when found as loot.

CALL-INS:

• Fixed an issue where the UAV call-in sound effect could continue playing if the action was cancelled by vaulting.
• Increased the drop speed of Custom Weapon Drops, Supply Drops, and Mission Rewards after being spawned in the air.
• Introducing a new, limited, tactical Strike Package, allowing players to call in a volley of gas discharging artillery shells on a targeted location of the map. This Strike offers a unique way to disrupt and deny key areas to enemies.

MAP:

• Fixed an issue where tanker container ramps could clip through large deployables; ramps now correctly damage or destroy objects and vehicles when lowering.
• Fixed multiple terrain and object placement issues.

PROGRESSION:

• Fixed an issue where Battle Royale “Special Forces Operator“ Challenge rewards were not granted correctly.

UI & HUD:

• Fixed an issue where strike package map markers would not disappear when joining a Gauntlet session right after playing a Battle Royale match.
• Fixed an issue where the Clear Ping action did not work with default controller bindings.

Battle Royale

• Fixed an issue where helicopter insertion flight paths on the Big Map could become misaligned when the helicopter or endpoint icons were off-screen.
• Fixed an issue where the Decryption Beacon displayed an incorrect texture.
• Fixed an issue where the loot feed could incorrectly increment the number looted when picking up the same item repeatedly.
• Fixed an issue where players could toggle flashlight and laser attachments while navigating the inventory.
• Fixed an issue where the UAV icon was too small on the minimap and big map.
• Fixed multiple issues with the Second Chance UI, including incorrect timers, widgets persisting after squad wipes, and incorrect visibility when players left the match.
• Removed outdated soldier voice-over lines referencing “supply drops” when pinging crates or supply vehicles.

Gauntlet

• Fixed an issue where the Beacon Pulse icon could appear too far away when first picked up by an enemy.
• Fixed an issue where the countdown icon on the Mobile Respawn gadget could disappear too early.
• Fixed overlapping UI elements when rapidly exiting the Edit Loadout menu.
• Fixed overlapping UI elements where “Random Deploy” could appear behind class selection buttons on the redeploy screen.

AUDIO:

• Fixed an issue where dropped items would not correctly play pickup sound effects.
• Fixed missing collision sounds for dropped ammunition.
• Improved reliability of audio feedback for UAV call-ins and mission-related interactions.

via Reddit

Bungie have announced that their next large update to Destiny 2,  titled Shadow and Order, has been delayed.

“Our next Major Update, Destiny 2: Shadow and Order, is undergoing large revisions and will be delayed. This update is being changed and expanded to include sizable quality-of-life updates and as a result, will also be renamed. This update will now launch on June 9, 2026.

We will provide exact details closer to release covering previously announced Weapon Tier Upgrading, but also additions like expanding Tiered Gear to all Raid and Dungeon activities, Pantheon 2.0, Tier 5 stats for Exotic Armors, and more. Through June, we will continue to have routine bug fixes and stability improvements, continued portal modifiers, Guardian Games (March), and the return of a more frequent Iron Banner cadence

In terms of communications, we will be focusing on providing you with updates about our live game content, community activations, and general upkeep through the TWID and our Destiny social channels. Thank you for your continued patience and support. We will have more information on our next major update and future plans for Destiny 2 closer to launch.

See You Starside.”

The Shadow and Order update had been due to arrive just after the Marathon Server Slam and just before Marathon itself launched, so it seemed inevitable that it would be moved to allow Bungie some space for that.

Bungie have not released a roadmap for future updates but if Shadow and Order – or whatever it gets called – is delayed by three months then there is a very good chance that the next expansion, Shattered Cycle, will also get pushed back.

Bungie are clearly prioritising Marathon, and they really have to as they need another big hit. Destiny 2 is a shadow(keep) of its former self, and delaying big updates for months on end is not going to incentivise the players left.

Source: BlueSky

Marking the first birthday of Obsidian’s Avowed, the game is out now for PlayStation 5, and a meaty anniversary update has been released for the game on PC and Xbox Series X|S. The game is also now available through the regular Xbox Game Pass tier, having originally been tied to ‘Day One’ elligible tiers.*

On a high level, the anniversary update has added three new races that you can create your character as – dwarves, orlan and aumaua – and there’s a new quarterstaff weapon that you can adopt.

While the game wasn’t designed with it in mind, New Game Plus has also been added for anyone that has a save that’s passed the point of no return and beaten the game. Starting over, the only real caveat is that weapon levelling will not persist, but that’s fine because you’ll be nice and mighty in other ways.

And you can show off how mighty you are with a photo mode to capture specific moments while you’re playing.

Avowed was one of the highlights for Xbox and PC gamers last year, though one a little overlooked for launching in February and perhaps not being as broad as some might have liked, following on from the PIllars of Eternity games. “Avowed is an incredible RPG,” we said in our review. “Its vibrant world and stellar cast make every moment a joy to take part in, enhanced by a script that gives equal measure to drama, action and humour. Coming hot on the heels of Indiana Jones and The Great Circle, Microsoft’s software revival is well underway.”

Features and Improvements

New Game+

New Game Plus is now available after completing the main story. This mode is designed to reward mastery, experimentation, and making the all-powerful build. 
When starting a New Game Plus save, players will bring along with them: 

• All unlocked abilities (with the exception of godlike abilities which are gained through story progression/world exploration) 
• All spent attribute points 
• All unique weapons and armors—but they are reset to level 1 
• All unlocked enchantments remain 
• All unique gloves and boots 
• All necklaces, all rings, and all trinkets 
• Any equipped Common Weapons or Armor items are kept, but they are reset to level 1 

The following are removed from the player at the start of a New Game Plus: 

• All common weapons and armor that aren’t equipped 
• Companions must be picked up via story progression 
• Companions keep their talent points and start at level 1 
• All resources that had been collected 
  • Gold 
  • Upgrade materials 
  • Enchanting materials 
  • Food ingredients 
• All consumables that had been collected 
  • All potions 
  • All food 
• All quest items 
• All god totems/trinkets 
• Fast travel points/fog of war 
• The aforementioned godlike abilities 
• To ensure challenge scales alongside player power: 
• Enemy stats are increased across the board 
• Enemies now have a chance to have modifiers applied to them 

Elemental Modifiers 

• Fire: Immune to Fire damage and accumulation. Attacks also now deal Fire damage. 
• Frost: Immune to Frost damage and accumulation. Attacks also now deal Frost damage. 
• Shock: Immune to Shock damage and accumulation. Attacks also now deal Shock damage. 
• Poison: Immune to Poison damage and accumulation. Attacks also now deal Poison damage. 
• Bleed: Immune to Bleed damage and accumulation. Attacks also now deal Bleed damage. 

Physical Modifiers 

• Haste: Increased movement speed, attack speed, and reduced cooldown timers
• Glass Cannon: Increased damage dealt and damage received 
• Colossal: Increased maximum health 
• Life Steal: Attacks restore the enemy’s health by a percentage of the damage dealt 
• Crippled: Reduced movement speed and attack speed 
• Sturdy: Increased stability  making it harder for them to be stunned
• Natural Immunity: Immune to all status accumulations 
• Forceful: Increased impact on attacks 
• Vindictive: Increased damage dealt based on the amount of health lost 
• Attribute stat cap rises from 15 to 30 

An important note for those who have already completed Avowed: Since New Game Plus is being added post release and the game was not initially designed with it in mind, a completion save will be necessary in order to take advantage of the mode. You will need to load a point of no return save or later and beat the game to make a proper New Game Plus save. 

New Playable Species

Included in the anniversary update is a major expansion to character creation: three new playable species join the existing Humans and Elves. 

• Dwarves – The most well-traveled species in Eora, the stout dwarves are known for their great strength and tenacity. 
• Orlans – Their two-toned skin, prominent ears, and hirsute bodies all in the smallest size of Kith make them stand outs in Eora. 
• Aumaua – Towering, powerfully built, and physically imposing. 

Not only do the different species change how you look, the team has also added in stat bonuses for all species adding another layer to character creation. 

• Humans 
  • +1 Might 
  • +1 Resolve 
• Elves 
  • +1 Dexterity 
  • +1 Perception 
• Aumaua 
  • +2 Might 
• Dwarves 
  • +1 Might 
  • +1 Constitution 
• Orlans 
  • +1 Perception 
  • +1 Resolve 

Additionally, players will receive stat bonuses depending on their chosen background.

• Arcane Scholar – +2 to Intellect
• Court Augur – +2 to Resolve
• Noble Scion – +2 to Perception
• Vanguard Scout – +2 to Dexterity
• War Hero – +2 to Constitution

Improved Character Creation
Added new Godlike features, color variants, and presets

Custom Difficulty

For players who want even finer control, Avowed now includes custom difficulty modifiers, allowing you to tune the game’s systems to your preferred experience. These new options are found by scrolling down through the “Game” tab of the settings menu.
Adjust player: 

• Damage dealt 
• Health, stamina, and essence resources 
• Elemental status effect threshold 
• Health and essence regeneration rates 
• Potion and food restoration rates 
• Interrupt or knockdown ease 
• Second Wind cooldown time 
• Carry capacity 
• Parry window 

Adjust enemy: 

• Damage output 
• Health pool 
• Stun, interrupt, or knockdown ease 
• Attack speed 
• Elemental status effect threshold 
• Aggro threshold 

Adjust companion: 

• Damage dealt 
• Health max 
• Elemental status effect threshold 
• Aggro threshold 

As well as general adjustments: 

• Merchant prices 
• Equipment upgrade material costs 
• Fall damage 
• Trap damage 
• Item quality damage reduction 

Important note: While changing these options will not negate most achievements that you may be hunting down, they will invalidate a Path of the Damned achievement. That achievement must be done without use of the custom game options. 

• Photo Mode
  Capture your envoy, companions, and the Living Lands from any angle and share your journey. Includes a free or fixed camera, filters, character rotation and toggle, post-process effects, and gradients. Photo Mode is accessed from the pause menu.
  
• New Weapon
  A brand new weapon type is joining the arsenal with the quarterstaff. Designed with the archmage fantasy in mind, the quarterstaff is a new bludgeoning weapon that comes complete with wand style stun finishers. Unleash brutal physical combos along with a fury of spells that would make even Concelhaut jealous.
  
• New Stun Finishers
  New stun finishers added for One-Handed Weapons and Two-Handed Weapons.
  
• Respawning Encounters
  Respawning encounters have been added to Dawnshore, Emerald Stair, Shatterscarp, and Galawain’s Tusks.

New Quality of Life Features

• Players can now change their Envoy’s appearance after character creation via the mirror in the party camp.
• Newly placed workbenches allow players to upgrade gear without returning to party camp.
• All player Backgrounds now have an added attribute bonus. 
• Added option to end dream conversations early.
• Powder keg chain reactions now occur with a short delay, instead of all exploding simultaneously.
• Increased max Controller Vibration Intensity (in the Controller Settings menu) from 1.0 to 2.0.
• Added keyboard-based turning in accessibility options.

Improvements to Lighting

• The lighting has been improved across all regions.
• Improved the lighting in conversations.

Graphics

• Updated XeSS to 2.1. Xe Frame Generation, Xe Super Resolution, and Xe Low-Latency mode are now available to more GPUs.

All Bug Fixes

Crashes and stability

• The game should now longer crash after Fog of War has been cleared.
• Addressed an issue causing Barbaric Smash killing blow VFX to remain on the player indefinitely
• Fixed an issue when creating save games that could cause NPCs to be stuck when reloading

Performance and Optimizations

• Resolved an issue where NVIDIA Reflex Low Latency was missing “Off” option while upscaling is disabled.
• Ray tracing is now off by default on Handheld PCs.
• Added Mid Luminance values to HDR settings.
• Various performance improvements.

Animation

• Fixed an issue with the Two-Handed Axe special attack not being aligned while in third person view.
• Companion animations no longer stutter during conversations and exploration.

Audio

• All audio should now play properly when cooking.

Quests & Conversations

• Decals for puzzle in Sallow Steppe should now render properly.
• The camera should behave normally during conversation with Tazaraak.

UI/UX

• Ability and Grimoire Cost Discounts are now shown in the Character tab of the Ledger, as well as the maximum (-90%) available.
• Fixed Tanglefoot’s icon on Player’s and enemy’s HUD.
• New Icon added to help distinguish Flurry of Blows on enemy’s HUD.
• Text should no longer overlap tabs in certain languages.
• Fixed description for several active abilities that were incorrectly labeled as passive.
• Resolved an issue where “confirm override” pop-up was not showing while switching presets in the Extras tab.
• Fixed an issue where Marius’ Hunter Sense disappeared from hotbar after leaving Party Camp.
• Vital bars are showing proper preview values for some skills when upgraded.
• Fixed an issue where “Survivalist” ability did not reflect additional bonuses in UI.
• Blunted hits no longer include blood VFX when “Combat Blood” is disabled.

Combat/Systems Fixes

• Fixed issue where various Area of Effect sources like Arcane Veil interfered with aiming player spells.
• Swinging guillotines in the Garden remain disabled after loading a save.
• Fixed an issue where Yatzli’s Explosive Blast did not break destructibles.
• Some unique weapon enchantments now work properly while Dual Wield Mastery is active.
• Already broken destructibles no longer receive damage numbers.
• Loot now directly drops at the feet of a shattered frozen enemy.

* If you need Xbox Game Pass tiers to be explained for being too complicated, then I suggest writing to your MP and Satya Nadella to complain.

via Steam

CyberConnect2 is celebrating its 30th anniversary in style by announcing the reveal of .hack//Z.E.R.O., the first original .hack console game in over a decade. There is not too much detail about what to expect with .hack//Z.E.R.O., but CyberConnect 2 is taking full control of the development of the game including publishing. Bandai Namco has been the main publisher of the series previously.

On the official website CyberConnect2 wrote, “The .hack series has always been developed by CyberConnect2 and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment, but for .hack//Z.E.R.O., Bandai Namco Entertainment has given CyberConnect2 permission to manage the entirety of the project from planning and development to release. It will be a title that is fully self-published by CyberConnect2. World-renowned violinist Taro Hakase has penned the music, kick-starting the project to the dexterous tune of his violin. .hack//Z.E.R.O. will be a novel RPG experience that blends the series’ trademark duality of fantasy (game world) and reality (real world) with modern expectations, infused with 100% pure CyberConnect2 spirit. The game will be enjoyable for both veteran fans and new players alike. Please look forward to this newest iteration of .hack.”

Platforms and release dates are yet to be confirmed as .hack//Z.E.R.O. has only just entered development, so it may be a couple of years away from release.

Source: .hack//Z.E.R.O. Official Website – CyberConnect2

A major shakeup is taking place at the top of Microsoft’s gaming business, as long-time Xbox and Microsoft Gaming boss Phil Spencer is retiring, effective from Monday 23rd February, with current President of Microsoft’s CoreAI, Asha Sharma is set to take over as the new CEO of Microsoft Gaming.

Xbox President Sarah Bond, who was easy to view as Spencer’s eventual successor, has resigned, while Xbox Game Studios head Matt Booty is being promoted to Chief Content Officer.

Messages from all (except Bond) have been published by Microsoft. Spencer said that he had been thinking about retiring for a little while, and that this handover has seen him work with his successor for several months now.

“Last fall, I shared with Satya that I was thinking about stepping back and starting the next chapter of my life. From that moment, we aligned on approaching this transition with intention, ensuring stability, and strengthening the foundation we’ve built. Xbox has always been more than a business. It’s a vibrant community of players, creators, and teams who care deeply about what we build and how we build it. And it deserves a thoughtful, deliberate plan for the road ahead.

“Today marks an exciting new chapter for Microsoft Gaming as Asha Sharma steps into the role of CEO, and I want to be the first to welcome her to this incredible team. Working with her over the past several months has given me tremendous confidence. She brings genuine curiosity, clarity and a deep commitment to understanding players, creators, and the decisions that shape our future. We know this is an important moment for our fans, partners, and team, and we’re committed to getting it right. I’ll remain in an advisory role through the summer to support a smooth handoff.”

Sharma might not have been the most obvious choice from the outside, and coming from an AI background will certainly be a cause for concern to many gamers, where generative AI is viewed very negatively.

“My first job is simple: understand what makes this work and protect it. That starts with three commitments. First, great games. Everything begins here. We must have great games beloved by players before we do anything. Unforgettable characters, stories that make us feel, innovative game play, and creative excellence. We will empower our studios, invest in iconic franchises, and back bold new ideas. We will take risks. We will enter new categories and markets where we can add real value, grounded in what players care about most. I promoted Matt Booty in honor of this commitment. He understands the craft and the challenges of building great games, has led teams that deliver award-winning work, and has earned the trust of game developers across the industry.

“Second, the return of Xbox. We will recommit to our core Xbox fans and players, those who have invested with us for the past 25 years, and to the developers who build the expansive universes and experiences that are embraced by players across the world. We will celebrate our roots with a renewed commitment to Xbox starting with console which has shaped who we are. It connects us to the players and fans who invest in Xbox, and to the developers who build ambitious experiences for it.

“Gaming now lives across devices, not within the limits of any single piece of hardware. As we expand across PC, mobile, and cloud, Xbox should feel seamless, instant, and worthy of the communities we serve. We will break down barriers so developers can build once and reach players everywhere without compromise.

“Third, future of play. We are witnessing the reinvention of play. To meet the moment, we will invent new business models and new ways to play by leaning into what we already have: iconic teams, characters, and worlds that people love. But we will not treat those worlds as static IP to milk and monetize. We will build a shared platform and tools that empower developers and players to create and share their own stories.

“As monetization and AI evolve and influence this future, we will not chase short-term efficiency or flood our ecosystem with soulless AI slop. Games are and always will be art, crafted by humans, and created with the most innovative technology provided by us.”

There’s definitely some reassuring sentiments within that, though I would argue that saying your first job is to understand what’s going on makes this sound more of a hurried appointment. We will have to see how much institutional change follows.

Phil Spencer had been at the helm of Microsoft’s gaming efforts for over a decade, taking over in 2014 and setting about steading the suddenly floundering console gaming business. He moved quickly to cut the price of the Xbox One by removing the Kinect from the bundle, made gamer-positive moves like championing backwards compatibility, and enacted major changes to the Xbox business model by promising day-and-date PC releases for Xbox games (and releasing them on Steam), as well as introducing Xbox Game Pass. He also saw Xbox exclusives start to come to PlayStation, breaking down traditional barriers.

However, he’s also been at the helm more recent difficult times for the brand. The Xbox Series X|S launch did not go as successfully as planned, not least with significant game delays for the likes of Halo Infinite, studio acquisitions took a long time to bear fruit, Xbox Game Pass started to see market saturation, and then successive price increases to both consoles and services.

With an eye to the future, now might be the best time for him to step aside, but Xbox as a brand feels somewhat nebulous right now. There’s a lot of rumours about what their next console might be like, whether it’s more PC-like than console and with rival storefronts, or traditional. Microsoft will inevitably be very keen to see AI used in some fashion, having demoed AI helpers with Minecraft in recent years (and that was before the current madness). But with a new CEO all of that could change. We’ll have to wait and see.

Source: Microsoft

EA and Battlefield Studios have launched the delayed Battlefield 6 Season 2, bringing a new map, reams of new cosmetics and unlocks through the Battle Pass, and promise of limited-time events and match effects.

The new map is a large scale battle set around a German airbase, catering to all combat sizes and the main game modes of Conquest, Breakthrough and Escalation, and featuring both land vehicles and helicopters. It’s another pleasing step towards the kind of large scale maps that were largely missing for Battlefield 6’s launch.

It’s the first of two maps that will be included in Battlefield Season 2, when fans have been clamouring for more variety. Why aren’t they making more, when that’s what people want? DICE’s Producer Alexia Christofi says “In terms of cadence, we would love to create way more maps. But we’re just trying to kind of bring things to players as we can and as quickly as we can build them.”

They’re balancing map making with running limited time events, in other words. This will see a limited time mode added to multiplayer and REDSEC in season 2 with the VL-7 Strike meaning that psychoactive smoke will drop onto the map, forcing you to quickly put on a gas mask and manage your filters to avoid being affected. The battle royale map has been modified with smoke engulfing Fort Lyndon, and the Gauntlet mode has returned, also with this smoke affecting the fights.

Here’s the full patch notes for Battlefield 6 Update 1.2.1.0 and Season 2’s launch:

New Map: Contaminated

A large-scale European mountainside battlefield set around a strategic German airbase.

• Supports all combat sizes
• Includes land vehicles and helicopters
• Available across Conquest, Breakthrough, Escalation, Squad Death Match, and Strikepoint

New Limited-Time Modes

Season 2 introduces a set of limited-time experiences built around VL-7, a new psychoactive smoke weapon spreading across multiple battlefields. As contaminated zones emerge, squads must adapt their tactics, manage masks and filters, and fight for control in increasingly hostile environments across multiplayer, Battle Royale, and Gauntlet.

VL-7 Strike: A limited-time mode where the psychoactive smoke VL-7 spreads across select areas in multiplayer and REDSEC. Players must use masks and manage their filters carefully, as running out will leave them exposed to VL-7’s disorienting effects.

Battle Royale – Synthesis: Smoke engulfs Fort Lyndon, transforming the battleground. Fight and loot within contaminated zones while securing masks and filters to survive the smoke’s effects.

Gauntlet: Altered State: Gauntlet returns with a new twist. Squads compete in a knockout-style elimination format while navigating psychoactive smoke and racing to complete missions under pressure.

New Vehicle

• AH-6 Little Bird: The iconic attack helicopter returns for NATO forces, offering high mobility and lethal firepower in skilled hands.

New Weapons

• M121 A2: A belt-fed machine gun delivering high damage, especially effective at close range.
• GRT-CPS: A semi-automatic designated marksman rifle designed for mid- to long-range engagements, featuring a high-capacity magazine for sustained fire.
• VCR-2: A short-range assault rifle with a rapid rate of fire, built for intense close-quarters combat.

New Gadgets

• 9K38 IGLA: A lock-on, anti-air missile launcher that requires active guidance from engineers to stay on target. Provides  superior missile maneuverability to adept users.
• HTI-Mk2: A short- to medium-range Recon device that can detect and reveal enemy gadgets, overload recon drones, and neutralise incoming rockets.
• Protective Mask: Essential equipment for contaminated zones, protecting players from psychoactive smoke. Additional filters can be acquired and equipped to extend protection time.

Battle Pass & Progression

• Season 2 Battle Pass: Instantly unlock 6 rewards and progress through 4 themed paths featuring new hardware, weapon packages, soldier skins, XP boosts, and more. Complete all paths to unlock the Ultimate Path.
• BF Pro: In addition to the regular Battle Pass, BF Pro includes 6 instant unlocks, 25 tier skips, BF Radio, Portal Server Hosting, and access to an exclusive bonus path with additional tactical rewards

https://preview.redd.it/ncsu8sg68ajg1.png?width=1280&format=png&auto=webp&s=4eeb872c67c2697ae5426a15ab2c70553f1b1fdd

Game Update 1.2.1.0 delivers over 240 gameplay improvements and quality-of-life fixes across nearly every part of Battlefield 6. These changes are shaped by community feedback and real match data, with a focus on improving weapon handling, movement, vehicles, gadgets, UI, audio, and overall gameplay reliability. This update continues our ongoing commitment to improve consistency and reliability across the core Battlefield experience.

Major Updates for 1.2.1.0

• Weapon Balance and Recoil Improvements: Delivered a broad recoil tuning pass across automatic weapons, alongside targeted balance fixes to improve consistency, role clarity, and long-term weapon handling.
• Movement and Traversal Fixes: Improved soldier movement predictability with refined acceleration, slide and jump behaviour, smoother vaulting logic, and improved ladder animations in both first- and third-person. Vehicle and Gadget Reliability: Resolved multiple issues affecting vehicles and gadgets, including anti-vehicle interactions, drone behaviour, deployables, and vehicle damage feedback.
• Maps and Mode Fixes: Addressed numerous map exploits, traversal issues, capture logic problems, and world reset bugs across Conquest, Breakthrough, Strikepoint, Gauntlet, and other modes.
• UI, HUD and Progression Polish: Introducing a new stat screen in the Player Profile, as well as Improved clarity and reliability across the HUD, Battle Pass, challenges, End of Round flow, matchmaking, and party systems.
• Portal Stability and Tooling Updates: Fixed a wide range of issues affecting Portal creation tools, scripting, mutators, assets, exploits, and server stability.
• Audio, Visual and Stability Improvements: Improved audio reliability, visual consistency, cosmetic presentation, and overall game stability across platforms.

AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT

As part of Update 1.2.1.0, we’ve made improvements to both how recoil behaves at a system level and how recoil is used to balance automatic weapons.

Since launch, recoil compensation could feel inconsistent in certain situations. In some cases, the amount of aim input required to counter recoil did not reliably match the recoil being applied, which could make weapons feel harder to control than expected. While improvements were made during Season 1 to reduce the most extreme cases, some inconsistency could still be noticeable during regular gameplay. With this update, recoil compensation has been made fully consistent, ensuring that the aim input required to counter recoil now correctly matches the recoil applied. This results in more predictable and reliable weapon handling.

Separately from this systemic fix, we’ve also made a broad recoil tuning pass across automatic weapons. Recoil is one of the main ways we balance weapons across different engagement distances: higher-damage weapons are intentionally harder to control, while lighter weapons trade raw power for ease of use and consistency. Over time, we saw this balance starting to drift once we looked at how these weapons were actually being used in live matches across common combat ranges.

This tuning pass brings recoil behaviour back in line with each weapon’s intended role. You should expect automatic weapons to feel more consistent and better differentiated across ranges, with higher-impact weapons demanding more control and positioning, while others remain reliable and forgiving in closer engagements.

CHANGELOG

PLAYER:

• Adjusted the acceleration curve of slide and jumps to better account for the player’s speed when entering a slide or a jump.
• All squad members now display animated health icons when downed, clearly indicating who is able to revive you.
• Fixed a matchmaking error that could occur when a player left the party while the party leader was already in a match.
• Fixed a movement extrapolation issue that could cause other soldiers to appear jittery when traversing uneven terrain or changing states.
• Fixed a rare issue where melee could become unusable if switched to immediately after being revived.
• Fixed an issue where a player’s legs could clip through thin walls or objects when backpedalling into them.
• Fixed an issue where a soldier could become invisible and continue moving after dying in a swimming pool.
• Fixed an issue where a victim’s facing direction could be briefly incorrect when starting a melee takedown on a prone target.
• Fixed an issue where accepting a squad invite on Xbox could unintentionally select a highlighted tile in the main menu.
• Fixed an issue where Battle Pickups would sometimes be dropped after being revived.
• Fixed an issue where deployable Gadgets could be used while on a zipline.
• Fixed an issue where equipping a camo skin on one vehicle could cause vehicle thumbnails or icons to incorrectly appear camouflaged across all vehicles.
• Fixed an issue where melee animations could break when initiated immediately after exiting a vehicle in first-person.
• Fixed an issue where revived players could occasionally receive an unintended weapon state.
• Fixed an issue where soldiers could be launched unexpectedly when entering a ladder positioned above the camera.
• Fixed an issue where stickers were not applied correctly on the War Wolf Legendary weapon package for the L85A3.
• Fixed an issue where the left hand could be seen floating while doing a takedown with the knife equipped.
• Fixed an issue where the selected player patch could appear duplicated and incorrectly placed on the backpack when using the Veritas Epic skin.
• Fixed an issue where the Spiteful Mirage skin was missing hair during the End of Round flow.
• Fixed an issue where the Thunder Engineer skin did not focus the camera on the correct uniform patch location.
• Fixed an issue where the uniform patch appeared twice on the Peregrine Sniper Epic skin.
• Fixed an issue where the Wraith Recon skin could become partially transparent in first-person view when starting a match in King of the Hill.
• Fixed an issue where unlocking characters via the Battle Pass deeplink would not correctly unlock the character.
• Fixed an issue where unlocking the Brodie character via the Battle Pass deeplink would not correctly unlock the character.
• Fixed an issue where vaulting onto a vehicle could sometimes destroy it and launch the player unexpectedly.
• Fixed an issue where weapon pose could fail to update correctly when firing while sprint-jumping.
• Fixed an issue where weapon switching after being revived could leave players without a usable weapon. The game now prioritises equipping a weapon with available ammunition.
• Fixed case scenarios where it would sometimes be possible to grab ledges much higher than intended with vault grab
• Fixed duplicate naming for some of the weapon charms.
• Fixed excessive mud weathering on the Two-Faced Epic skin’s character model.
• Improved first-person ladder animations for entering, climbing, and exiting.
• Improved foot placement when climbing ladders.
• Improved predictability and consistency of player movement with new acceleration curves instead of linear accelerations. Those updated accelerations retain responsive movement while allowing micro-adjustments of movement (i.e. to peek corners) and ensure that other players’ movement looks more correct to improve the quality and predictability of gunfights.
• Improved the transition of the soldier’s lower body in first-person view when stopping movement.
• Improved third-person ladder animations, including hand and foot placement on ladders.
• Improved vault detection near overhangs while airborne.
• Made animation and logic improvements to vaulting over medium-sized obstacles, refining momentum and smoothing transitions into movement.
• Prevented players from vaulting back onto the same ladder when jumping down backwards from it.
• Reduced the intensity of hit reactions while on fire to improve visual clarity during combat.
• Reduced the maximum slide impulse length by 25% to improve balance and readability during fast movement.
• Updated the Winter Warning cosmetic to better align with Battlefield’s visual identity.

VEHICLES:

• Disabled angle-based damage mitigation on the Traverser Mark II to better reflect its lighter armour profile. It now takes consistent damage from all directions.
• Fixed an issue where attack helicopter rocket trails could disappear when firing at long distances.
• Fixed an issue where helicopter rotary cannon tracers could sometimes originate behind the muzzle.
• Fixed an issue where jet throttle input could remain active after ejecting from the aircraft.
• Fixed an issue where tank turret aiming speeds differed between first-person and third-person zoom views.
• Fixed unreliable bullet collision on Anti-Air vehicle radar dishes.
• Reduced muzzle flash intensity on Anti-Air Tanks and stationary Anti-Air weapons when zoomed in.
• You can no longer move vehicles forward or backward while the Big Map is open, preventing input conflicts with map zoom controls on controllers.

GADGETS:

• Fixed an issue where Anti-Tank Mines could fail to deploy correctly in first-person view.
• Fixed an issue where attached M4A1 SLAM AV Mine explosives on the XFGM-6D Recon Drone did not correctly affect battery life or top speed. Attached explosives now behave consistently and detonate when the XFGM-6D Recon Drone is destroyed.
• Fixed an issue where the RPG-7 and the MBT-LAW launchers would be inaccurate if fired right after the zoom transition is completed.
• Fixed an issue where the Smoke Grenade was missing from the Support class Loadout #2.
• Fixed an issue where the XFGM-6D Recon Drone could be destroyed when its operating soldier was downed.
• Fixed an issue where the CSB IV EOD Bot could instantly regain an ammo charge when destroyed.
• Fixed an issue where the LTLM II Portable Laser Designator could prioritise already-painted targets instead of the vehicle being aimed at.
• Fixed an issue where the Repair Tool torch flame video effect was misaligned in third-person view using non-default FOV values.
• Fixed an issue where the Repair Tool would not repair vehicles when targeting glass components.
• Fixed an issue where the RPG-7 could fire unintentionally when switching weapons after releasing the trigger.
• Fixed a bug that prevent the player from returning properly to the previous weapon after throwing a supply pouch and would keep throwing more supply pouches
• Improved consistency when destroying Anti-Tank Mines and M4 SLAM AV Mines with explosives. Clearing out minefields should be easier and more consistent using a tank.
• Improved consistency of Defibrillator revives detection on stairs and uneven terrain.

WEAPONS:

• Adjusted in-world spotting range when firing a weapon without a suppressor or flash hider, reducing it from 75 to 54 metres.
• Adjusted minimap spotting range when firing suppressed weapons, increasing it from 15 to 21 metres to better align with intended balance.
• Fixed consistency with recoil compensation, making sure that the amount of aim input needed to compensate for recoil matches the amount of recoil.
• Fixed a visual issue with the standard fire mode on the SL9 being incorrectly set to safe; it is now set to full auto by default.
• Fixed an issue where locked weapon skins could be used in the Firing Range.
• Fixed an issue where shooting the first target dummy could generate particle effects at the player’s position.
• Fixed an issue where the 5 mW Green Laser was too expensive to equip on the DRS-IAR.
• Fixed an issue where the Flashlight could appear slightly misaligned when equipped on the MP5.
• Fixed an issue where the LA-23 Laser pad could appear floating when equipped on the RPKM.
• Fixed an issue where Scope glints and laser sight lens flares would be visible through the cover of smoke grenades.
• Fixed inconsistent knife melee timing to improve reliability during close-quarters combat.
• Fixed multiple weapon attachment visual issues, including lasers, flashlights, and optic alignment.
• Fixed the LMR27s Fast 15- and 20-round magazines not reducing reload time as intended.
• Fixed the SGX RO-M 1.75x sight to function consistently with other weapons.
• Fixed visual issues with bolt-action rifle animations, including intrusive ADS motion and incorrect finger placement.
• Improved scope glint orientation at long distances so enemy aim direction is more accurately telegraphed.
• Knife takedowns against enemies who are prone on their back now correctly connect with the defender.
• Reduced the Mini Scout muzzle velocity from 880 to 800 m/s.
• Reduced the Mini Scout limb damage to better align with lower-torso damage values.
• Updated the M433 Level 50 Mastery Package to use the correct magazine mesh.
• Updated the Range Finder custom zeroing to not apply its effect instantly; it now requires a short delay before taking effect.
• Updated player-facing descriptions for non-sniper grippod attachments to better reflect their gameplay effects.
• Updated player-facing name of the TR-7’s fluted barrel to match the formatting of its other barrels.
• Weapon Recoil Tuning: Adjusted recoil behaviour across automatic weapons to better reflect real combat ranges and ease-of-use expectations, improving ranged consistency while preserving intended weapon roles.
  • AK-205: Adjusted recoil behaviour to better match expectations for a 5.45×39mm weapon, with minimal impact on overall handling.
  • B36A4, L85A3, M433, SOR-555 MK2: Reduced recoil randomness, improving consistency and effectiveness at longer ranges.
  • DB-12: Increased rate of fire and faster pump action to improve reliability in close-quarters combat.
  • L110: Reduced recoil to reinforce the handling differences between belt-fed Machine Guns and Assault Rifles.
  • LMR27: Increased damage at close to mid ranges to better reward accurate headshots.
  • M123K: Reduced recoil to improve sustained-fire control and reinforce its role as a belt-fed Machine Gun.
  • M277: Reduced recoil, improving effectiveness at range.
  • M417 A2, QBZ-192: Reduced recoil randomness to ensure they remain competitive relative to updated Assault Rifles.
  • PW5A3, SGX: Increased recoil, making them slightly harder to control and less precise at longer distances.
  • PW7A2, USG-90: Adjusted recoil behaviour to improve effectiveness at range while slightly increasing handling difficulty up close.
  • SCW-10: Increased recoil to reduce effectiveness at range and reinforce its close-quarters role.
  • SG 553R: Increased recoil to limit effectiveness at range and better align with its strong close-range performance.
  • SOR-300SC: Adjusted recoil to ensure it remains competitive alongside updated Assault Rifles.

MAPS & MODES:

• Added Rush as a new mode to Mirak Valley.
• Fixed an issue in Escalation on Operation Firestorm where vehicles would not spawn at HQ as intended.
• Fixed an issue in Squad Deathmatch where locked squads could cause the scoreboard to appear partially empty.
• Fixed an issue in Sabotage where attackers could reach elevated positions and spawn-camp the defending team on Blackwell Fields.
• Fixed an issue in Sabotage where attackers could spawn within direct line of sight of defenders when deploying at HQ on Blackwell Fields.
• Fixed an issue on Siege of Cairo where players could reach the top of buildings in Sector D3 using the Deployable Cover gadget.
• Fixed missing water and visual issues in several swimming pools across Eastwood.

Manhattan Bridge

• Fixed an issue where destroying a garage by D objective could trigger a whiteout effect across the map.
• Fixed an issue where destroying an office building by F objective could incorrectly trigger a blackout and cause other players to see random colors and bright lights across the map.
• Fixed an issue where destroying parts of a plaster ridge at C objective could expose occlusion problems, causing large sections of the map to disappear when viewed from certain positions.
• Fixed an issue where players could stand on top of the bridge, creating unintended gameplay advantages.
• Fixed an issue where points of interest on the minimap were incorrectly labelled as “Dumbo” instead of Manhattan Bridge.

Empire State

• Fixed an issue where players could capture Point B (Sector 2) on Breakthrough from an unintended upper floor.
• Fixed an issue where players could place the Assault Ladder on invisible collision near the NATO HQ.
• Fixed an issue where players could reach unintended areas above the D flag after being launched into the air.

Strikepoint

• Fixed an issue on Liberation Peak, Operation Firestorm, and Iberian Offensive where multiple world and vehicle assets would not restore correctly after the halftime world reset.
• Fixed an issue where matches could end prematurely when teams were tied at 5:5.
• Fixed an issue where players joining a match late could spawn under the map.
• Fixed a rare issue where a wiped team could be incorrectly awarded a point.

Added the Scout Helicopter to the following maps and modes:

Conquest

• Manhattan Bridge
• Operation Firestorm
• New Sobek City
• Mirak Valley

Escalation

• Manhattan Bridge
• Eastwood
• Operation Firestorm
• New Sobek City
• Mirak Valley

PROGRESSION:

• Battle Pass Tokens are now earned more quickly through Career XP and Weekly Challenges, allowing for faster progression through regular gameplay.
• Fixed an issue where rerolling challenges could become unavailable when switching between the Battle Pass and Daily Challenges.
• Fixed an issue where the assignment tracker did not correctly track missions from the Unit page.
• Fixed incorrect tracking for multiple weekly and assignment-based challenges.
• Fixed multiple issues with challenge criteria displaying or progressing incorrectly across REDSEC Gauntlet and Weekly Challenges.
• Fixed incorrect progress display for Week 2 challenges.
• Fixed an issue where exploration assignments could complete with fewer actions than intended.

UI & HUD:

• Engineer icon changed to improve readability and make role more clear based on community feedback.
• Fixed a localisation issue where the Loadout Zeroing and Attachment prompts could overlap in several languages.
• Fixed an incorrect icon for the M3A3 Bradley.
• Fixed an issue causing Field XP UI animations to trigger too frequently.
• Fixed an issue causing low minimap shadow quality and rendering artefacts on some multiplayer maps.
• Fixed an issue on PC where the Big Map displayed keyboard and mouse icons even when using a controller.
• Fixed an issue where Battle Pass points earned from weekly missions were not reflected correctly on the End of Round screen.
• Fixed an issue where Battle Pass progression tokens were not updating correctly on the End of Round screen after completing Bonus Paths.
• Fixed an issue where closing the pause menu from the Deploy Screen using a controller could immediately reopen it.
• Fixed an issue where completed assignments could appear incorrectly sorted as completed on the End of Round screen.
• Fixed an issue where equipping or previewing gadgets and melee weapons could cause them to appear under the vehicle section in the Loadouts screen.
• Fixed an issue where locked Battle Pass rewards could appear stuck in the Loadout screen after navigating back from the Battle Pass.
• Fixed an issue where mortar hit indicators and damage numbers were not displayed correctly.
• Fixed an issue where the Big Map and scoreboard button prompts were missing in Gauntlet End of Round screens.
• Fixed an issue where the crosshair could briefly display incorrect spacing when switching weapons.
• Fixed an issue where the gunner seat aiming indicators on attack helicopters remained static while the helicopter was moving, leading to incorrect aiming feedback.
• Fixed an issue where the “Go to Store” button prompt was not functional for vehicle customization on PlayStation 5.
• Fixed an issue where item previews could persist after exiting Store bundles.
• Fixed an issue where item rotation and zoom could shift to other items when rapidly switching during inspection.
• Fixed an issue where the Free-to-Play tutorial for custom loadout access did not trigger correctly under certain conditions.
• Fixed an issue where the map could flip back and forth when rolling an aircraft.
• Fixed an issue where the resupply message was not visible even when resource indicators were enabled in settings.
• Fixed an issue where the revive in-world icon for squadmates could disappear too early. The icon now remains visible until the player is fully dead and no longer revivable.
• Fixed an issue where the “Show Game Mode Events” option did not function correctly when disabled.
• Fixed an issue where the “Stay with Squad” option was missing from the End of Round screen.
• Fixed an issue where the “Steady Aim” prompt unintentionally appeared on Designated Marksman Rifles; it is now shown only on bolt-action rifles.
• Fixed an issue where the tank damage screen effect would not properly cancel when exiting the vehicle.
• Fixed an issue where the “Tracked” section could display an incorrect number of tracked missions.
• Fixed an issue where UI elements could overlap or misalign during fast menu navigation.
• Fixed an issue where weapon package deeplinks did not navigate to the correct challenge tile.
• Fixed duplicate ladder indicators appearing on the jet HUD.
• Fixed enemy lock-on in-world icons displaying incorrect state colours when targeting vehicles.
• Fixed missing deeplinks for Dog Tags unlocked via challenges or through the Store.
• Fixed missing or incorrect icon art for several assignment and unit challenge rewards.
• Fixed inconsistencies between Battle Pass progression shown on the End of Round screen and the Battle Pass menu.
• Fixed incorrect unit descriptions for select NATO and Pax Armata forces.
• Fixed missing high-definition feedback when the Phalanx HQ Defence destroyed incoming projectiles in Conquest.
• Fixed missing or incorrect game mode tiles appearing on launch or after finishing a match.
• Fixed multiple issues causing in-world icons to flicker, including look-at, occlusion, and delayed occlusion updates.
• Fixed new reward markers not resetting correctly when switching between Season and Bonus Paths.
• Fixed player pickup request icons not displaying correctly.
• Improved readability of missile intercepted indicators.
• Improved the revive in-world progress bar to more closely match the downed player’s screen, reducing the gap where a revive was no longer possible but still appeared active.
• Reduced delay of UI hit indicators showing up when a hit has been confirmed.
• Reorganised killer information on the kill card to improve readability.
• Season 2 introduces a new stat screen in the Player Profile, featuring Career Total, Career Best, and Accolade stats. Each of these three screens showcases a variety of detailed statistics. The Career Total stats header includes both overall totals and breakdowns by game mode, while Career Best stats are tracked for both “In a Match” and “In a Life” categories.

SETTINGS:

• Added an accessibility option for flash and stun grenades that replaces the white flash effect with a black screen effect, reducing sudden brightness while preserving gameplay impact. This option can be enabled in the Accessibility settings.

PORTAL:

• Fixed a memory leak that could occur when specific scripting events were triggered repeatedly.
• Fixed an exploit that allowed players to farm excessive XP by repeatedly destroying AI-spawned vehicles.
• Fixed an issue where Battle Pickups spawned via Loot Spawners were missing minimap and big map icons.
• Fixed an issue where certain rules events triggered at incorrect times, including capture point enter/exit events.
• Fixed an issue where experiences in the “In Review” state could not be edited or deleted.
• Fixed an issue where modifying reinforcement multipliers could cause incorrect ticket counts to be displayed during sector progression.
• Fixed an issue where players could be reassigned incorrectly or prevented from deploying when squads reached maximum size.
• Fixed an issue where players could create AFK farming experiences that bypassed intended progression limits.
• Fixed an issue where players could not report a server while in the redeploy screen.
• Fixed an issue where Portal Sandbox displayed an incorrect map size in map rotation.
• Fixed an issue where removing all maps from a map rotation could cause the editor panel to disappear.
• Fixed an issue where spawning ammo via Loot Spawners had no effect.
• Fixed an issue where the Export button displayed a placeholder icon.
• Fixed an issue where users could bypass editor limits by importing modified workspaces.
• Fixed asset conflicts and errors that could appear when uploading or editing certain maps.
• Fixed incorrect Front End indicators related to limited-time events.
• Fixed incorrect map availability and categorisation for Custom Portal modes.
• Fixed incorrect or lingering UI elements related to respawning, squad reassignment, and mission flow.
• Fixed incorrect or missing tooltips, placeholder text, and untranslated labels in the Web Editor.
• Fixed issues that could lead to very long loading times for some Portal experiences.
• Fixed issues where certain assets could cause players to be returned to the Front End when hosting experiences.
• Fixed issues where certain gadgets, weapons, vehicles, and Battle Pickups were missing from restriction settings or did not respect configured restrictions.
• Fixed issues where strike package markers, beacon indicators, and objective icons could behave incorrectly across sessions.
• Fixed issues where values entered for certain seasonal and environmental mutators were not saved correctly.
• Fixed issues with Rules Editor lists being scrambled or inaccurate when selecting weapons, gadgets, or ammo.
• Fixed issues with scripting functions and nodes, including incorrect vector calculations, squad lookup limits, and long-running player events stopping unexpectedly.
• Fixed missing maps, assets, and set dressing in the Portal SDK, including Season 2 content and winter environment assets.
• Fixed missing or incorrect indicators for heat warnings, second chance states, and beacon pulses.
• Fixed multiple issues in the Portal Web Editor where weapons, gadgets, vehicles, and maps were missing, incorrectly categorised, or displayed with placeholder names, images, or meshes.
• Fixed multiple mutators that had no functionality or incorrect default values, including reinforcement, health regeneration, zoom snap, passenger seat, and verification-related settings.
• Fixed multiple placeholder or low-resolution vehicle and object meshes appearing when placed in Portal experiences.
• Fixed rare server hangs affecting Linux-based Portal servers.
• Fixed server log spam related to loot physics and proximity systems.
• Updated and replaced several Battle Royale and Portal-related challenges that were no longer functioning as intended.

AUDIO:

• Fixed an issue where pinging a Vehicle Supply Crate did not trigger the correct supply voice-over line.
• Fixed audio stuttering when vehicles are sabotaged using the Repair Tool.
• Improved audibility of enemy ziplines and parachutes, as well as friendly blowtorches, when many sounds are playing.
• Improved audio obstruction for vehicles, weapons, and soldier footsteps by refining sound source positioning.
• Improved clarity of distant enemy footsteps by better aligning layered audio content.
• Improved panning for close non-player footsteps at very short distances.
• Improved reliability of multiple sound effects under heavy load, including defibrillators, blowtorches, ziplines, and parachutes.

NETWORK:

• Fixed rare cases where the game could become unresponsive after reconnecting network cables during gameplay or while accepting invitations on Xbox Series consoles.

REDSEC

PLAYER:

• Fixed an issue where dying with a Data Drive could prevent the Extraction mission from progressing.
• Fixed an issue where in rare cases soldiers could take higher than intended damage when wearing armor.
• Fixed an issue where mission completion rewards could fail to drop correctly if the player initiating the mission was killed just before completion.
• Fixed an issue where the deploy input during Battle Royale insertion was not triggering consistently.
• Fixed an issue where the party leader would be returned to the Front End after selecting Stay with Squad in Battle Royale Duos.

VEHICLES:

• Added the Traverser Mark II to select Large, Medium, and Small Gauntlet layouts.
• Fixed an issue where the weapon could rotate incorrectly in first-person view when using the Traverser Mark II Remote Weapon Station.
• Fixed an issue where incorrect or missing crosshairs could appear for side passengers in the Traverse Mark II.

WEAPONS:

• Improved attachment setups for M4A1, M277, SVDM, Mini Scout, UMG-40, and 18.5KS-K, ensuring these weapons use their intended attachments and are better balanced when found as loot.

CALL-INS:

• Fixed an issue where the UAV call-in sound effect could continue playing if the action was cancelled by vaulting.
• Increased the drop speed of Custom Weapon Drops, Supply Drops, and Mission Rewards after being spawned in the air.
• Introducing a new, limited, tactical Strike Package, allowing players to call in a volley of gas discharging artillery shells on a targeted location of the map. This Strike offers a unique way to disrupt and deny key areas to enemies.

MAP:

• Fixed an issue where tanker container ramps could clip through large deployables; ramps now correctly damage or destroy objects and vehicles when lowering.
• Fixed multiple terrain and object placement issues.

PROGRESSION:

• Fixed an issue where Battle Royale “Special Forces Operator“ Challenge rewards were not granted correctly.

UI & HUD:

• Fixed an issue where strike package map markers would not disappear when joining a Gauntlet session right after playing a Battle Royale match.
• Fixed an issue where the Clear Ping action did not work with default controller bindings.

Battle Royale

• Fixed an issue where helicopter insertion flight paths on the Big Map could become misaligned when the helicopter or endpoint icons were off-screen.
• Fixed an issue where the Decryption Beacon displayed an incorrect texture.
• Fixed an issue where the loot feed could incorrectly increment the number looted when picking up the same item repeatedly.
• Fixed an issue where players could toggle flashlight and laser attachments while navigating the inventory.
• Fixed an issue where the UAV icon was too small on the minimap and big map.
• Fixed multiple issues with the Second Chance UI, including incorrect timers, widgets persisting after squad wipes, and incorrect visibility when players left the match.
• Removed outdated soldier voice-over lines referencing “supply drops” when pinging crates or supply vehicles.

Gauntlet

• Fixed an issue where the Beacon Pulse icon could appear too far away when first picked up by an enemy.
• Fixed an issue where the countdown icon on the Mobile Respawn gadget could disappear too early.
• Fixed overlapping UI elements when rapidly exiting the Edit Loadout menu.
• Fixed overlapping UI elements where “Random Deploy” could appear behind class selection buttons on the redeploy screen.

AUDIO:

• Fixed an issue where dropped items would not correctly play pickup sound effects.
• Fixed missing collision sounds for dropped ammunition.
• Improved reliability of audio feedback for UAV call-ins and mission-related interactions.

via Reddit

Bungie have announced that their next large update to Destiny 2,  titled Shadow and Order, has been delayed.

“Our next Major Update, Destiny 2: Shadow and Order, is undergoing large revisions and will be delayed. This update is being changed and expanded to include sizable quality-of-life updates and as a result, will also be renamed. This update will now launch on June 9, 2026.

We will provide exact details closer to release covering previously announced Weapon Tier Upgrading, but also additions like expanding Tiered Gear to all Raid and Dungeon activities, Pantheon 2.0, Tier 5 stats for Exotic Armors, and more. Through June, we will continue to have routine bug fixes and stability improvements, continued portal modifiers, Guardian Games (March), and the return of a more frequent Iron Banner cadence

In terms of communications, we will be focusing on providing you with updates about our live game content, community activations, and general upkeep through the TWID and our Destiny social channels. Thank you for your continued patience and support. We will have more information on our next major update and future plans for Destiny 2 closer to launch.

See You Starside.”

The Shadow and Order update had been due to arrive just after the Marathon Server Slam and just before Marathon itself launched, so it seemed inevitable that it would be moved to allow Bungie some space for that.

Bungie have not released a roadmap for future updates but if Shadow and Order – or whatever it gets called – is delayed by three months then there is a very good chance that the next expansion, Shattered Cycle, will also get pushed back.

Bungie are clearly prioritising Marathon, and they really have to as they need another big hit. Destiny 2 is a shadow(keep) of its former self, and delaying big updates for months on end is not going to incentivise the players left.

Source: BlueSky

Marking the first birthday of Obsidian’s Avowed, the game is out now for PlayStation 5, and a meaty anniversary update has been released for the game on PC and Xbox Series X|S. The game is also now available through the regular Xbox Game Pass tier, having originally been tied to ‘Day One’ elligible tiers.*

On a high level, the anniversary update has added three new races that you can create your character as – dwarves, orlan and aumaua – and there’s a new quarterstaff weapon that you can adopt.

While the game wasn’t designed with it in mind, New Game Plus has also been added for anyone that has a save that’s passed the point of no return and beaten the game. Starting over, the only real caveat is that weapon levelling will not persist, but that’s fine because you’ll be nice and mighty in other ways.

And you can show off how mighty you are with a photo mode to capture specific moments while you’re playing.

Avowed was one of the highlights for Xbox and PC gamers last year, though one a little overlooked for launching in February and perhaps not being as broad as some might have liked, following on from the PIllars of Eternity games. “Avowed is an incredible RPG,” we said in our review. “Its vibrant world and stellar cast make every moment a joy to take part in, enhanced by a script that gives equal measure to drama, action and humour. Coming hot on the heels of Indiana Jones and The Great Circle, Microsoft’s software revival is well underway.”

Features and Improvements

New Game+

New Game Plus is now available after completing the main story. This mode is designed to reward mastery, experimentation, and making the all-powerful build. 
When starting a New Game Plus save, players will bring along with them: 

• All unlocked abilities (with the exception of godlike abilities which are gained through story progression/world exploration) 
• All spent attribute points 
• All unique weapons and armors—but they are reset to level 1 
• All unlocked enchantments remain 
• All unique gloves and boots 
• All necklaces, all rings, and all trinkets 
• Any equipped Common Weapons or Armor items are kept, but they are reset to level 1 

The following are removed from the player at the start of a New Game Plus: 

• All common weapons and armor that aren’t equipped 
• Companions must be picked up via story progression 
• Companions keep their talent points and start at level 1 
• All resources that had been collected 
  • Gold 
  • Upgrade materials 
  • Enchanting materials 
  • Food ingredients 
• All consumables that had been collected 
  • All potions 
  • All food 
• All quest items 
• All god totems/trinkets 
• Fast travel points/fog of war 
• The aforementioned godlike abilities 
• To ensure challenge scales alongside player power: 
• Enemy stats are increased across the board 
• Enemies now have a chance to have modifiers applied to them 

Elemental Modifiers 

• Fire: Immune to Fire damage and accumulation. Attacks also now deal Fire damage. 
• Frost: Immune to Frost damage and accumulation. Attacks also now deal Frost damage. 
• Shock: Immune to Shock damage and accumulation. Attacks also now deal Shock damage. 
• Poison: Immune to Poison damage and accumulation. Attacks also now deal Poison damage. 
• Bleed: Immune to Bleed damage and accumulation. Attacks also now deal Bleed damage. 

Physical Modifiers 

• Haste: Increased movement speed, attack speed, and reduced cooldown timers
• Glass Cannon: Increased damage dealt and damage received 
• Colossal: Increased maximum health 
• Life Steal: Attacks restore the enemy’s health by a percentage of the damage dealt 
• Crippled: Reduced movement speed and attack speed 
• Sturdy: Increased stability  making it harder for them to be stunned
• Natural Immunity: Immune to all status accumulations 
• Forceful: Increased impact on attacks 
• Vindictive: Increased damage dealt based on the amount of health lost 
• Attribute stat cap rises from 15 to 30 

An important note for those who have already completed Avowed: Since New Game Plus is being added post release and the game was not initially designed with it in mind, a completion save will be necessary in order to take advantage of the mode. You will need to load a point of no return save or later and beat the game to make a proper New Game Plus save. 

New Playable Species

Included in the anniversary update is a major expansion to character creation: three new playable species join the existing Humans and Elves. 

• Dwarves – The most well-traveled species in Eora, the stout dwarves are known for their great strength and tenacity. 
• Orlans – Their two-toned skin, prominent ears, and hirsute bodies all in the smallest size of Kith make them stand outs in Eora. 
• Aumaua – Towering, powerfully built, and physically imposing. 

Not only do the different species change how you look, the team has also added in stat bonuses for all species adding another layer to character creation. 

• Humans 
  • +1 Might 
  • +1 Resolve 
• Elves 
  • +1 Dexterity 
  • +1 Perception 
• Aumaua 
  • +2 Might 
• Dwarves 
  • +1 Might 
  • +1 Constitution 
• Orlans 
  • +1 Perception 
  • +1 Resolve 

Additionally, players will receive stat bonuses depending on their chosen background.

• Arcane Scholar – +2 to Intellect
• Court Augur – +2 to Resolve
• Noble Scion – +2 to Perception
• Vanguard Scout – +2 to Dexterity
• War Hero – +2 to Constitution

Improved Character Creation
Added new Godlike features, color variants, and presets

Custom Difficulty

For players who want even finer control, Avowed now includes custom difficulty modifiers, allowing you to tune the game’s systems to your preferred experience. These new options are found by scrolling down through the “Game” tab of the settings menu.
Adjust player: 

• Damage dealt 
• Health, stamina, and essence resources 
• Elemental status effect threshold 
• Health and essence regeneration rates 
• Potion and food restoration rates 
• Interrupt or knockdown ease 
• Second Wind cooldown time 
• Carry capacity 
• Parry window 

Adjust enemy: 

• Damage output 
• Health pool 
• Stun, interrupt, or knockdown ease 
• Attack speed 
• Elemental status effect threshold 
• Aggro threshold 

Adjust companion: 

• Damage dealt 
• Health max 
• Elemental status effect threshold 
• Aggro threshold 

As well as general adjustments: 

• Merchant prices 
• Equipment upgrade material costs 
• Fall damage 
• Trap damage 
• Item quality damage reduction 

Important note: While changing these options will not negate most achievements that you may be hunting down, they will invalidate a Path of the Damned achievement. That achievement must be done without use of the custom game options. 

• Photo Mode
  Capture your envoy, companions, and the Living Lands from any angle and share your journey. Includes a free or fixed camera, filters, character rotation and toggle, post-process effects, and gradients. Photo Mode is accessed from the pause menu.
  
• New Weapon
  A brand new weapon type is joining the arsenal with the quarterstaff. Designed with the archmage fantasy in mind, the quarterstaff is a new bludgeoning weapon that comes complete with wand style stun finishers. Unleash brutal physical combos along with a fury of spells that would make even Concelhaut jealous.
  
• New Stun Finishers
  New stun finishers added for One-Handed Weapons and Two-Handed Weapons.
  
• Respawning Encounters
  Respawning encounters have been added to Dawnshore, Emerald Stair, Shatterscarp, and Galawain’s Tusks.

New Quality of Life Features

• Players can now change their Envoy’s appearance after character creation via the mirror in the party camp.
• Newly placed workbenches allow players to upgrade gear without returning to party camp.
• All player Backgrounds now have an added attribute bonus. 
• Added option to end dream conversations early.
• Powder keg chain reactions now occur with a short delay, instead of all exploding simultaneously.
• Increased max Controller Vibration Intensity (in the Controller Settings menu) from 1.0 to 2.0.
• Added keyboard-based turning in accessibility options.

Improvements to Lighting

• The lighting has been improved across all regions.
• Improved the lighting in conversations.

Graphics

• Updated XeSS to 2.1. Xe Frame Generation, Xe Super Resolution, and Xe Low-Latency mode are now available to more GPUs.

All Bug Fixes

Crashes and stability

• The game should now longer crash after Fog of War has been cleared.
• Addressed an issue causing Barbaric Smash killing blow VFX to remain on the player indefinitely
• Fixed an issue when creating save games that could cause NPCs to be stuck when reloading

Performance and Optimizations

• Resolved an issue where NVIDIA Reflex Low Latency was missing “Off” option while upscaling is disabled.
• Ray tracing is now off by default on Handheld PCs.
• Added Mid Luminance values to HDR settings.
• Various performance improvements.

Animation

• Fixed an issue with the Two-Handed Axe special attack not being aligned while in third person view.
• Companion animations no longer stutter during conversations and exploration.

Audio

• All audio should now play properly when cooking.

Quests & Conversations

• Decals for puzzle in Sallow Steppe should now render properly.
• The camera should behave normally during conversation with Tazaraak.

UI/UX

• Ability and Grimoire Cost Discounts are now shown in the Character tab of the Ledger, as well as the maximum (-90%) available.
• Fixed Tanglefoot’s icon on Player’s and enemy’s HUD.
• New Icon added to help distinguish Flurry of Blows on enemy’s HUD.
• Text should no longer overlap tabs in certain languages.
• Fixed description for several active abilities that were incorrectly labeled as passive.
• Resolved an issue where “confirm override” pop-up was not showing while switching presets in the Extras tab.
• Fixed an issue where Marius’ Hunter Sense disappeared from hotbar after leaving Party Camp.
• Vital bars are showing proper preview values for some skills when upgraded.
• Fixed an issue where “Survivalist” ability did not reflect additional bonuses in UI.
• Blunted hits no longer include blood VFX when “Combat Blood” is disabled.

Combat/Systems Fixes

• Fixed issue where various Area of Effect sources like Arcane Veil interfered with aiming player spells.
• Swinging guillotines in the Garden remain disabled after loading a save.
• Fixed an issue where Yatzli’s Explosive Blast did not break destructibles.
• Some unique weapon enchantments now work properly while Dual Wield Mastery is active.
• Already broken destructibles no longer receive damage numbers.
• Loot now directly drops at the feet of a shattered frozen enemy.

* If you need Xbox Game Pass tiers to be explained for being too complicated, then I suggest writing to your MP and Satya Nadella to complain.

via Steam

CyberConnect2 is celebrating its 30th anniversary in style by announcing the reveal of .hack//Z.E.R.O., the first original .hack console game in over a decade. There is not too much detail about what to expect with .hack//Z.E.R.O., but CyberConnect 2 is taking full control of the development of the game including publishing. Bandai Namco has been the main publisher of the series previously.

On the official website CyberConnect2 wrote, “The .hack series has always been developed by CyberConnect2 and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment, but for .hack//Z.E.R.O., Bandai Namco Entertainment has given CyberConnect2 permission to manage the entirety of the project from planning and development to release. It will be a title that is fully self-published by CyberConnect2. World-renowned violinist Taro Hakase has penned the music, kick-starting the project to the dexterous tune of his violin. .hack//Z.E.R.O. will be a novel RPG experience that blends the series’ trademark duality of fantasy (game world) and reality (real world) with modern expectations, infused with 100% pure CyberConnect2 spirit. The game will be enjoyable for both veteran fans and new players alike. Please look forward to this newest iteration of .hack.”

Platforms and release dates are yet to be confirmed as .hack//Z.E.R.O. has only just entered development, so it may be a couple of years away from release.

Source: .hack//Z.E.R.O. Official Website – CyberConnect2

Warhorse Studios has announced that Kingdom Come: Deliverance is getting an upgrade for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, free for existing PS4 and Xbox One owners, and that it’s out today.

The current gen upgrade for the original game comes as an anniversary treat for its sequel, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, which is celebrating having sold 5 million copies in the past year.

This could be a great way to draw more players into the game because, while Warhorse were keen to make sure that you didn’t need to have played the first to enjoy the story told in the second, there is always that compulsion amongst gamers to start at the very beginning, isn’t there?

Playing Kingdom Come: Deliverance on PS5 and Xbox Series will now mean enjoying the title at 60fps, helping to make the game more responsive on console than before. Additionally, visual fidelity has been enhanced with improved graphical features. This update has been made with assistance from Saber Interactive.

Warhorse CEO, Martin Frývaldský, said, “I’m incredibly proud to see Kingdom Come: Deliverance II reach this monumental milestone. I want to thank everyone at Warhorse Studios, our publishing partners at PLAION and of course, it wouldn’t be possible without our amazing and ever growing community. Thank you for being part of this journey and making this a reality!”

Source: press release

Konami, Evil Empire and Motion Twin have announced Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse, an all-new 2D side-scrolling metroidvania that will release this year for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Switch and PC.

Set more than two decades after Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse, Belmont’s Curse is set in 15th century Paris. The whip has been passed on to Trevor Belmont’s successor, who must head out into the city and battle monstrous creatures, heading into a mystical castle and threatens to doom Paris to eternal darkness.

It’s the 40th anniversary of the Castlevania series, and so it’s a massively fan-pleasing announcement to see a new 2D game announced, and then to have such highly regarded developers behind it. Original Dead Cells studio Motion Twin is here in an advisory role, while their successor studio at Evil Empire are the main developers alongside Konami on Belmont’s Curse. Evil Empire was founded in 2019 to continue to support Dead Cells, but since wrapping up that game’s DLC in 2023, moved on to adapt The Rogue Prince of Persia as a roguelite, which hit its full release last year.

Evil Empire are no strangers to Castlevania, though. The fourth and final expansion for Dead Cells was Return to Castlevania, arriving in 2023 with characters, weapons and enemies licensed from the Castlevania series. With a working relationship already established, and that DLC well-received, they’re getting a second crack of the whip at the franchise. What’s interesting is that, where Dead Cells and TRPOP were both rougelites, this is described as a “2D Action-Exploration”, implying a more traditional metroidvania. One to keep an eye on, that’s for sure.

Hot on the heels of the announcement of the Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection 2, Konami have released a patch across all formats for the Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1. It is mostly bug issues but those playing on Nintendo get a free update that adds compatibility with the Nintendo Switch 2.

Here are the full patch notes:

Master Collection

• Screen Settings Expanded

“Resolution” has been added to the Screen settings in the Options menu.
In “Resolution”, you will be able to select between “Original”, “High Resolution”, and “Max Resolution”. *
* On the PlayStation®4 and Nintendo Switch versions, only “Original” and “High Resolution” will be available.

• Fixed an issue where sound would not play for certain codecs (Nintendo Switch version)
• Fixed some other minor issues and made other adjustments

---

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty

• Support for the Nintendo Switch 2

There will be a free update for the Nintendo Switch version to add compatibility with the Nintendo Switch 2. The contents of the free update are listed below.

Screen settings added

Screen settings have been added to the Options menu.
From the “Resolution” menu found under Screen settings, you can choose from either 2 types of presets or use custom settings.
These settings cannot be changed after starting the game.
Some setups may experience some instability if these settings are changed.
Consider reverting back to the default settings or try TV mode if you experience any instability.

“Original Mode” Preset

Display at the game’s original resolution.
Upon selecting “Original Mode”, the following settings will be applied.

“Adjusted Mode” Preset

Displays the game at your current monitor’s highest possible resolution. Has sharper visuals compared to Original Mode.
Upon selecting “Adjusted Mode”, the following settings will be applied.

Internal resolution	FHD (1080p)
Internal Upscaling	FHD (1080p)
Movie	High Resolution

“Custom” Preset

“Internal Resolution”, “Internal Upscaling”, and “Movie” can be adjusted to suit your current specs.

(A) Internal Resolution

Under “Internal Resolution”, you can now choose to have the game render in FHD or at its original resolution.

Original	Renders the game at its original resolution.
FHD*1	Increases the game’s internal resolution to FHD when rendering.

(B) Internal Upscaling

This option will utilize upscaling technology in addition to the upscaling method in the original Master Collection release, allowing you to display the game at a higher resolution.
Changing this setting will result in sharper visuals.

Default	Displays the game at the same resolution as the original Master Collection release.
FHD	Displays the game in FHD using an upscaling method different to the original Master Collection release. *1 *2

*1 Results in sharp visuals.
*2 If your monitor can support a resolution that is higher than the resolution selected, then the game will be displayed using the original Master Collection release’s upscaling method at the highest possible resolution available.

(C) Movie

You can choose to set in-game movies to their original or higher resolution versions.
When selected, some movies will be displayed at a higher resolution.

(2)Supports smoother motion relative to the Nintendo Switch version

Fixed an issue where sound would not play for certain codecs (Nintendo Switch version)

Fixed some other minor issues and made other adjustments

---

Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater

• Nintendo Switch 2 Support

A free update will be released to make the Nintendo Switch version compatible with the Nintendo Switch 2.
The contents of the free update are listed below.

(1) Screen Settings Added

Screen settings have been added to the Options menu.
From the “Resolution” menu found under Screen settings, you can choose from either 2 types of presets or use custom settings.
These settings cannot be changed after starting the game.
Some setups may experience some instability if these settings are changed.
Consider reverting back to the default settings or try TV mode if you experience any instability.

“Original Mode” Preset

Display at the game’s original resolution.
Upon selecting “Original Mode”, the following settings will be applied.

Internal Resolution	Original
Internal Upscaling	Default
Movie	Original

“Adjusted Mode” Preset

Displays the game at your current monitor’s highest possible resolution. Has sharper visuals compared to Original Mode.
Upon selecting “Adjusted Mode”, the following settings will be applied.

Internal resolution	FHD (1080p)
Internal Upscaling	FHD (1080p)
Movie:	High Resolution

“Custom” Preset

“Internal Resolution”, “Internal Upscaling”, and “Movie” can be adjusted to suit your current specs.

(A) Internal Resolution

Under “Internal Resolution”, you can now choose to have the game render in FHD or at its original resolution.

Original	Renders the game at its original resolution.
FHD *1	Increases the game’s internal resolution to FHD when rendering.

(B) Internal Upscaling

This option will utilize upscaling technology in addition to the upscaling method in the original Master Collection release allowing you to display the game at a higher resolution.
Changing this setting will result in sharper visuals.

Default	Displays the game at the same resolution as the original Master Collection release.
FHD	Displays the game in FHD using an upscaling method different to the original Master Collection release. *1 *2

*1 Results in sharp visuals.
*2 If your monitor can support a resolution that is higher than the resolution selected, then the game will be displayed using the original Master Collection release’s upscaling method at the highest possible resolution available

(C) Movie

You can choose to set in-game movies to their original or higher resolution versions. When selected, some movies will be displayed at a higher resolution.

(2) Supports smoother motion relative to the Nintendo Switch version

• Fixed an issue where sound would not play for certain codecs (Nintendo Switch version)
• Fixed some other minor issues and made other adjustments

---

Metal Gear & Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake

• Fixed some other minor issues

Bonus Content

• Fixed some other minor issues

Source: NintendoLife

Beast of Reincarnation, the upcoming action role-playing game created by Pokémon series developers Game Freak, has been given a release date of August 4th 2026.

Set in the post-apocalyptic ruins of Japan in the year 4026, the game follows Emma the Sealer and her dog Koo as they battle to restore their homeland from a blight that has ravaged the land.

Emma is infused by the Blight in an interesting way, able to sprout vines from her hair, while Koo also has foliage growing on their back. They battle against ‘malefacts’ who also have these nature-based powers, with Emma able to defeat and then seal their essence within herself. There’s also Golems, the mechanical bodies inhabited by human minds that transferred themselves millennia ago.

The combat looks pretty engaging, with Emma landing blows and parrying incoming attacks, building up to be able to freeze the action and then unleash an ability from Koo. Both Emma and Koo have separate skill trees. There are different approaches you could take, like fighting exclusively from long range, using stealth, or having Koo lead in to strike first.

Beast of Reincarnation is coming to PS5 and Xbox Series X|S and will also be available on Xbox Game Pass from day one.

Source: YouTube

Last night’s State of Play stream felt like E3 in February, absolutely stuffed with fan-pleasing announcements and games coming to PlayStation 5.

Let’s not waste any time and round up all of the announcements starting with…

Kena: Scars of Kosmora has been revealed for PS5 and PC

Ghost of Yotei Legends release date has been set for March

Death Stranding 2 is coming to PC in March

Sony shared a 4:Loop gameplay deep dive for the co-op shooter

Pragmata had a “World View” trailer, and Resident Evil Requiem got another new Leon trailer.

Legacy of Kain Defiance Remastered is coming in March with a new game, Legacy of Kain: Ascendance, also announced

Brigandine Abyss, the latest in the fantasy war strategy RPG series, is coming in 2026.

Dead or Alive 6 Last Round announced, but there’s also a new Dead or Alive project in the works!

 

Remedy shared a Control Resonant gameplay reveal

The Nephilim are fighting to save humanity in Crimson Moon, coming Fall 2026

Beast of Reincarnation release date has been set for 4th August

Neva: Prologue reveals how Alba met her wolf friend in DLC next week

Yakoh Shinobi Ops announced, a 4-player co-op stealth ’em up with top-down tactical gameplay. Coming in 2027.

Project Windless revealed

Star Wars: Galactic Racer gameplay shared in the new trailer

IO share a fresh 007 First Light story trailer

Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Volume 2 features MGS4 and Peace Walker. Huzzah!

Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse announced, in partnership with Evil Empire and Motion Twin

Silent Hill: Townfall takes the psychological horror series to the cold isolated backdrop of Scotland

Rev. Noir teased by Konami, an all-new RPG in development for PlayStation 5

There’s an untitled John Wick game in development

Marathon’s launch trailer is here, with server slam announced

Big Walk is strolling to PS5 as well as PC later this year

Saros gets a new gameplay overview trailer

Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls brings the Unbreakable X-Men into the fight and it has a release date

God of War’s original trilogy is getting a remake!

And here’s a surprise: a side-scrolling God of War spin-off Sons of Sparta.

Koeie Tecmo are polishing off a new version of Dead or Alive 6 for release on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and Windows PC via Steam this June, while also teasing Dead or Alive New Project, which we’re just going to assume will eventually be called Dead or Alive 7.

Originally released in 2019, we were promised the “definitive version” of the game, which has been “optimised for the latest hardware”, but no specifics were provided as to what that means. Fans will be pleased to know there will be a dedicated photo mode “enabling players the ability to capture every angle of their favourite fighters by exploring brand-new features such as ‘character position’ and ‘pose selection'”.

The game will feature the original roster of 24 players, plus Nyotengu, Phase 4, Momiji, Rachel, and Tamaki who were DLC characters.  If you own the 2019 game your saves and DLC purchases will carry over to the new version, and there will be new DLC inspired by Ninja Gaiden 3 and other titles.

There will also be a free-to-play version Dead or Alive 6 Last Round Core Fighters edition, which will include three fighters, Marie Rose, Honoka, and NiCO.

Dead or Alive 6 continued the series tradition of having improbable boob physics, with jiggles and perving over scantily clad female characters, but did try and balance things out a little…. by putting some of the male characters in tiny shorts.

You can read our review of the 2019 game here.

Along with all that we have news of a brand new Dead or Alive game that is currently being developed, and has been introduced with a gratuitous lingering shot of boobs. Classy as ever.

Source: YouTube / Press release

Nomada Studio and Devolver Digital have announced Neva: Prologue, a DLC expansion for the gorgeous side-scrolling adventure that will be coming to PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PS4, Switch and PC on 19th February. Oh, and it’s just £2.49.

If you wondered just how it was that Alba met her wolf companion Neva in the 2024 game, then Neva: Prologue is set to answer that. It will start as Alba follows white butterflies into a corrupted swamp, only to find a frightened wolf cub, lost and alone. Alba will have to earn the wolf’s trust, fight new enemies together and overcome monsters that are stalking them.

While it is a prequel story, it’s designed to be played after completing the main game. It will come with three new locations, each with new gameplay mechanics, new challenges, enemies and boss encounters. Completionists will also have five hidden challenge flowers to seek out.

The platforming icon Rayman is marking his thirtieth birthday (last year) with Rayman 30th Anniversary Edition, launching… well, today, at the time of writing. 13th February.

Developed by Digital Eclipse, this is a love letter to the arm-less helicoptering wonder and his debut game. There’s actually five versions of this game included in the bundle – PlayStation, Atari Jaguar, MS-DOS, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance –  all of which have been reformatted for modern consoles and screens. There’s also 120 additional levels from the Rayman’s New Levels pack, Rayman 60 Levels and Rayman by His Fans, and you can step back even further with early prototypes of the game that have been spruced up to be playable.

Throughout, the originals have been enhanced in the way many remakes and remasters are with a reimagined soundtrack by composer Christophe Héral alongside optional gameplay features, like a 60 second rewind, instant level unlocks and infinite lives.

And then there’s the documentary features that include 50 minutes of interviews with the original Ubisoft Montpellier team, concept art, sketches, design documents and more.

Rayman 30th Anniversary Edition is out 13th February digitally, across PS5, Xbox Series X|S, NIntendo Switch and PC, with a physical edition coming to certain regions in June.

Source: Ubisoft

Remedy Entertainment has shared a gameplay reveal trailer for Control Resonant, their highly anticipated sequel to the 2019 hit Control. The video runs for a few minutes, showcasing some of Dylan’s growing abilities, the game’s combat style and the twisted world you’ll be battling through.

The trailer picks up with Dylan on the trail of a Resonant, heading through an Inception-like folded rendition of Manhattan. He revcently acquired Shift as an ability, which allows him to defy the already broken gravity. His weapon is another transforming tool, but compared to the multi-tool gun of Control, this is all about melee. He also has more supernatural abilities for range, and the game looks to encourage you to switch between range and melee

The trailer builds up to snippets of a crazy battle against a giant laser-spewing whale or something, but that’s not the Resonant. No, that seems to be a kind of hammer-wielding ballet dancer?

Clearly there’s plenty more that Remedy don’t want to show just yet, but we’re excited for this one – Control Resonant was right up there on our Most Wanted Games of 2026.

Control Resonant is expected to release for PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC sometime in 2026.

With less than a month to go before release, Bungie has announced that a Marathon open preview weekend – a “server slam” – will take place the weekend before the full launch on 5th March. From 26th February to 2nd March, all platforms will be able to jump in and get an introduction to the game’s take on the extraction shooter.

This will be just an introduction to Marathon’s content, with additional maps, factions, contracts and more coming in the full game and then through Season 1. However, it will serve the main purposes for the game, being a bit of a demo for players, and a test for the game’s servers.

The Server Slam will include:

• Infil into two zones:
  • Perimeter
  • Dire Marsh
• Take on the opening contracts for five of Marathon’s factions
• Try out all six Runner Shells, plus Rook in scavenger mode
• Solo queue, proximity chat, and more

Season 1 will then bring:

• Two more zones
  • Outpost
  • Cryo Archive
• Full contract and progression trees unlocked for all six factions
• Ranked mode
• And more

Importantly, rewards can be earned during the test that will roll through to your profile at release. There will be a special emblem and banner to show you were first, and you’ll be able to earn a launch bundle with weapons, body implants, and more.

Oh, and PS Plus players will be able to claim a trio of weapon charms for:

• Ghost of Yōtei – Onryō Weapon Charm
• Death Stranding 2 – Battle Guitar Weapon Charm
• Helldivers 2 – For Freedom Weapon Charm

So, are you going to give it a go later this month?

via PS Blog