Destructoid

The second reveal at The Game Awards might end up being one of the most indescribable ones all night. The only way I can think to explain Tchia is through the lens of other games.

Like, it has majestic open-world exploration (and parachuting) that looks a lot like Breath of the Wild. There's sea-faring rafting like Wind Waker. Also though, you can inhabit any object like Everything. Oh yeah, and there's the acoustic guitar strumming just like The Last of Us Part II.

The official description reads "Climb, glide, swim, and sail your boat around a beautiful archipelago in this physics-driven sandbox. Use Tchia's special ability to take control of any animal or object, and Jam on your fully playable Ukulele."

Check it out on Steam if you're interested.

Devolver Digital kicked off the 2020 Game Awards pre-show with... its own game of the year award – for a game called Loop Hero that had, up until right that second, not yet been announced. Those rascals.

It's a retro strategy game with decks and base building, but you're gonna want to watch the trailer.

"The Lich has thrown the world into a timeless loop and plunged its inhabitants into never ending chaos. Wield an expanding deck of mystical cards to place enemies, buildings, and terrain along each unique expedition loop for the brave hero. Recover and equip powerful loot for each class of hero for their battles and expand the survivors' camp to reinforce each adventure through the loop. Unlock new classes, new cards, and devious guardians on your quest to shatter the endless cycle of despair."

I feel like I need to play this to fully grasp the inner workings, but I'm listening.

Tonight -- a night when people usually dress up all fancy and gather together for the most high-profile celebration of games -- won't see any tuxes or gowns or high heels or graphic tees underneath blazers. This year, which is the spiritual embodiment of wine in a can, will instead celebrate games from a racer-style chair with a bookshelf full of anime and Funko Pops behind it.

I mostly remember Double Dragon Neon for Jake Kaufman's firing-on-all-cylinders soundtrack that, at least in my mind, eclipsed the gameplay, but if you're in the brawler mood and you want to punch Abobo for old times' sake, a Nintendo Switch version is releasing in North America on December 21, 2020.

WayForward confirmed that co-op play is still local-only, so expect the Switch port to be in line with the original PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 releases. The UK eShop launch "shouldn't be too far off."

I'm happy to see more WayForward titles show up on Switch. Bring 'em all.

Last year at The Game Awards, we found out that The Wolf Among Us 2 was moving forward after Telltale Games went under and LCG Entertainment picked up the rights. Today, ahead of tonight's news-filled award ceremony, Telltale shared an update on the project. Season 2 is still happening.

"We know you're excited to hear more about TWAU2. And we look forward to telling you more when the time is right. What we can say is that we are developing the entire season at once and there is more to do before we're ready to share what's next for the Fabletown gang. It's just not time yet."

In a statement on Twitter, the company reiterated that Wallace & Gromit's Grand Adventures, Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People, and Telltale Texas Hold'Em were just re-released, to say nothing of the Batman adventure series and Tales from Monkey Island. "As for questions about other Telltale titles, some games reverted back to the IP owners and their fate is not currently in our hands."

Wolf was always my favorite Telltale series next to Tales from the Borderlands.

@TelltaleGames [Twitter]

We're in the habit of ducking into the Epic Games Store every Thursday for a free game or two – today it's Pillars of Eternity and Tyranny from Obsidian – but starting December 17, we'll need to check in daily for the rest of the month. Epic is planning to give out a free PC game every day for 15 days straight.

"Each game will be free to claim for just 24 hours, but they're yours to keep forever," says Epic. For reference, a similar 2019 holiday giveaway included titles like Into the Breach, Celeste, FTL, and Ape Out.

December 17 will also mark the start of the Epic Games Store Holiday Sale, and if last year was any indication, I hope we'll see the return of those ridiculous $10 coupons. They go such a long way.

As for next Thursday's freebie, it's a mystery. Grab those two CRPGs while you can.

December 23 will see the arrival of a major update in globally popular gacha title Genshin Impact. While this momentous occasion is still a fortnight out, publisher miHoYo is planning a live stream in order to reveal all of the juicy deets pertaining to the incoming patch.

Scheduled for tomorrow, the Genshin Impact Special Broadcast is keeping its lips sealed for now, spreading the good word on social media with the hashtag #TheChalkPrinceandtheDragon. Fans can more than likely expect a selection of new characters, various bug fixes, and some extra features - including private chat functions, auto-play dialogue options, a trackable pin system, and various U.I. streamlining tweaks.

Genshin Impact has seen incredible success since its launch on console and mobile platforms back in September, having raked in a stunning $400 million USD in its first two months of release - a figure that does not even include its sales on the Android platform in China. November has seen a minor drop-off in profit, with TiMi Studios' unstoppable Honor of Kings finally returning to the top of the mobile charts.

The Genshin Impact Special Broadcast will be available for viewing on the official Genshin Impact YouTube channel tomorrow, December 11, at 08:00 PT / 11:00 ET / 17:00 BST.

If I was a studio bigwig -- a promotion I've been passed over for many times now -- I would've been hesitant to greenlight a Sonic the Hedgehog series before 2020. Then, after the success of the movie, I would've tripped over myself rushing to greenlight it. Being a bigwig means you have to analyze market factors, and the people demand more Sonic in their markets.

Netflix is giving the people what they want. Sega is teaming up with kids' entertainment development companies Wild Brain HQ and Man of Action to create a 3D animated Sonic the Hedgehog show. However, it's at least a year away because it's not expected to premiere until 2022.

Now here's the annoying part (for me, probably not for you). Netflix deleted the tweet shortly after posting. Apparently this announcement was a little premature, a bit too fast if you will. Fortunately, @Wario64 caught a screenshot:

Focus Home Interactive has given its fans a heads-up that the publisher will have not one, but two new titles in attendance at The Game Awards 2020, which take place online this evening.

While the publisher offered no clues whatsoever as to what the two mystery titles will be, Focus is known to currently be busy beavering away with multiple developers and projects. Most recently, Focus announced it was working with Shadow Warrior studio Flying Wild Hog on a brand new IP, alongside various projects with A Plague Tale's Asobo Studios, Vampyr's Dontnod Entertainment, and Crysis Remastered's Saber Interactive. That's a lot of possibilities.

Personally, I'd love to see the reveal of a sequel to A Plague Tale: Innocence - a solid title that, with a little more polish and finesse, could spawn a five-star follow-up. Dontnod's Vampyr also performed better than expected when it initially launched back in 2018, suggesting that a sequel would not be unlikely. This is all speculation on my part, however, and we'll all have to tune in tonight to see what, in fact, Focus has up its sleeve.

The Game Awards 2020 goes live today at 16:00 PT / 19:00 ET / 01:00 BST

[Update: Success! The designer of the fuel cell got in touch with me and I was able to get the unit working. Images are in the gallery below: it alternates between red and blue lighting, triggered by a motion sensor.]

What are the odds of getting number 69 out of 77?

Well, one in 77. But it kind of rules when you hit the jackpot, right?

I've said it many times, but Nintendo's push holiday push for the Switch seemed to end with Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity. But that doesn't mean third parties are slouching.

Doom Eternal is probably the biggest release for the Switch, and it's out now. But it doesn't completely upstage the fact that Q-Games is still alive and kicking, making PixelJunk games like it was 2007 again. PixelJunk Eden 2 is out on Switch as well, and if you want more puzzles in your life, Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 is hitting Switch too.

There's a lot of stuff to choose from! Pretty much everyone should be happy at this point with how many publishers are porting and releasing things on the eShop.

Back in August Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered Edition was released and it had...a few problems!

In addition to some lingering quality of life issues and bugs, there was also the big holdup of wonky online play. While Square Enix has addressed a few of those things with a major post-launch patch, they still have more work to do. And now, we have a vague timeline of when the next set of fixes will arise: "mid-to-late December."

The gist is that all platforms will get a ton of bug fixes, as well as mechanical alterations like enhanced focus attack efficacy. But perhaps most importantly, a few lobby glitches are being patched, including a bug that could result in players getting disconnected if they enter a lobby at the same time.

You're also going to get a few more options in general, like the power to return to the world map after a boss defeats you if you just want to leave. Mobile devices are the only platforms getting specific fixes, as they will now sport an "improved reaction speed" when picking up items.

A few of these are so obvious and needed in 2020, and weren't there at launch. But alas, if you already bought the game and are holding out, you might find enough here to jump back in. You can find the full patch notes below!

Patch Notes [Square Enix]

This week sees Call of Duty: Modern Warfare's sixth season of content come to an end. And as the mission clock ticks down on the shooter's most recent Battle Pass, there is no word from publisher Activision or developer Treyarch of a Season 7, suggesting that the Modern Warfare DLC timeline might be going dark for the foreseeable future.

Launching back in November 2019, Modern Warfare essentially rebooted the blockbuster Call of Duty spin-off franchise (a "spin-off" that ultimately proved to be the most popular brand, no less). But since its launch, Call of Duty has gone all-in on its mega-popular battle royale title, Warzone, a project so huge in scope and so popular among the community, that it seems even the recently released Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War is fighting to stand against it.

However, speaking of Cold War, the latest update to Call of Duty's '80s adventure has implemented a new "dashboard-style" title menu, from where the player can launch Cold War, Warzone, or Modern Warfare - provided that respective titles are installed. From this, we can ascertain that Modern Warfare remains a relevant, mainstream member of the current Call of Duty family, even if Activision are, indeed, done with creating new content for it.

With a name like Cyberpunk 2077, you'd expect hacking, right?

Well, you've come to the right place! Here's a quick rundown of how hacking works and what it can generally do for you in-game.

In case you haven't heard the story of "Dad of Light," stop what you're doing and listen in for a moment.

Back in 2017, Square Enix worked with a production company to adapt the "Dad[dy] of Light" blogs into a live-action drama, based on the experiences of a player named "Maidy." In short, they were able to use the power of Final Fantasy XIV to heal a strained relationship with their father in secret; all while playing as the aforementioned avatar. Eventually, "Maidy" revealed themselves to their father, and they reconciled.

The events therein are beautifully portrayed in a 2017 television show, which is still airing on Netflix in the US, and it was also adapted into a full feature film two years later. Even if you don't play Final Fantasy XIV you should be able to follow along with the familial drama of it all. 

Unfortunately, the Twitter accounts for said film and the television show brought us some bad news this morning: the real-life Maidy and the inspiration for the adaptations has passed away: they announced a cancer diagnosis this year. A host of players who were inspired by Maidy (and Square Enix itself) have been expressing their sorrow, myself included.

Dad of Light was an inspirational story born out of a very loving community; a rarity in this increasingly hectic world. Our thoughts are with Maidy's family.

XSEED Games' sci-fi mech battler Daemon x Machina has just received a neat new update that allows for cross-saving between the PC and Nintendo Switch editions of the game.

Players can use Steam Cloud in order to seamlessly transfer save data back and forth, allowing fans to fire through machines in their custom Arsenal units on PC, before transferring to Nintendo Switch should they wish to continue their apocalyptic actions whilst on the go. The smart feature ensures that there is truly no rest for the domineering Immortals.

Having celebrated its first anniversary back in September, Daemon x Machina continues to entertain players with its fast-paced action and future-fantasy universe, alongside a steady string of drip-fed content and features. If you are yet to give the futuristic third-person shooter a spin, now might be just as good a time as any.

Smash Ultimate is still riding quite high, with weekly events, random online tournaments, and new characters. Steve from Minecraft was a huge reveal (and I think the salt dust has settled a bit now), and reinforced the fact that yes: Nintendo can get to anyone.

While nothing will probably top the Sonic or Solid Snake reveals in a lot of minds, we still have a few fighters left for Nintendo to show their stuff. We could get an explosive character tonight, in fact, as Nintendo just shared on Twitter that they'll be revealing the next Smash Ultimate fighter tonight at The Game Awards.

Here's the full tweet:

"A new Super #SmashBrosUltimate fighter will be revealed tonight at #TheGameAwards! Tune in to the show, beginning at 4pm PT, to be ready for the reveal!"

No specific time was given; so note that at any point, Nintendo could drop the news. Other publishers are going to be giving us rapid-fire info too, but this could be the one that breaks the internet if it's big enough.

Nintendo of America [Twitter]

So the My Nintendo rewards store has been pretty popular again, thanks to the addition of actual physical products. Now it's not nearly as sweet as Club Nintendo (you pay for shipping, and there aren't as many rewards), but it works.

Over the course of the last few weeks, a number of items have gone in and out of stock rather rapidly, including all of the Animal Crossing and Xenoblade items. Amazingly, the holiday cards and ornament are also all gone, and possibly won't be restocked given the seasonal nature of the items.

So what went back in stock? Well, the coveted Mario 3D All-Stars poster set (800 platinum), the Mario zipper case (800), and the Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit lanyard (800) are back. At the time of publication, the Xenoblade sticker sheets, Mario Kart Live decoration kit, and Origami King origami set and postcards, as well as the Pikmin 3 decals and coasters are still in stock.

It also looks like the Tom Nook keychain has been completely removed from the My Nintendo store; and doesn't even have a placeholder for "this item is temporarily out of stock." As the most expensive item to date at 1000 points, this thing went pretty fast.

As a reminder, we have a giant guide on all things My Nintendo here. Jump in and bookmark it if you want to bank some points. Remember, the art print for Age of Calamity still hasn't gone on sale yet: we expect it to be around 1000 points.

After years and years of development, CD Projekt RED's Cyberpunk 2077 is finally in the hands of the people. Almost immediately after launch, the dystopian RPG hit over one million concurrent players on PC, breaking all-time Steam records for the most players simultaneously engaged in a single-player title.

As reported by PC Gamer, this record was achieved within the first two hours of Cyberpunk 2077's launch, leveling out at a peak of 1,003,264 players - with a further one million people tuning into streams of the neo-noir adventure on Twitch. This almighty number doubles the previously held record of 472,962, achieved in 2015 by Bethesda RPG Fallout 4.

Based on your perspective, this news tidbit kind of shifts around -- much like The Oldest House in a sense. In a year since launch, Control has gone on to become Remedy's fastest-growing property to-date.

This comes out of Remedy's first Capital Markets Day presentation, as reported by GamesIndustry.biz. That's nothing but good, as Control joins the ranks of Max Payne in terms of games that were quickly adopted. However, it's less exceptional and more expected when framed with the context that Control is Remedy's first game in a long time that had a true multi-platform launch. 

For instance, Alan Wake was an Xbox 360 exclusive and then launched on Windows PC a couple years later. Quantum Break released simultaneously on Xbox One and PC. Control is the first since 2003's Max Payne 2 that launched on a Sony platform alongside PC and Microsoft's console.

If you're the hard data type, maybe this will be more useful: Control has racked up two million sales thus far. The player count is probably far higher, though. Control was added to Xbox Game Pass last week, meaning that subscribers can play it for free. And, as a very related side note, get crackin' if you're a Game Pass subscriber who hasn't checked out Control yet. It was my very favorite game of 2019.

Control has sold more than 2m units [GamesIndustry.biz]

Cyberpunk 2077 is no stranger to cameo appearances – some you'll instantly recognize, some you won't – and I'm still torn. Do they hurt the experience more than they help? How much is too much?

One thing I'm definitely happy to see is a fitting end to a certain will-they-won't-they guest spot.

(Spoilers below this unrelated trailer)

The country roads have taken us home, but they also lead away from home. That's how paths work. They connect two points. That's an urban planning lesson and also a geometry lesson.

Bethesda has plans for where those roads go. In an interview with RPS, the developer mentions that it wants to feature entirely new off-map areas in future expansions. Project lead Jeff Gardiner says "We are looking at Expeditions to be a way to maybe do something off map. […] We have a big list of locations. We're settling in on one right now. So we are looking at those to be the ways for people to experience different areas of the Fallout universe."

It's something that Bethesda has dabbled in before, but never in this MMO take on Fallout. Some beloved examples are the Point Lookout expansion for Fallout 3 and the Far Harbor DLC in Fallout 4. Gardiner explains "We know that those are some of our most successful expansions for our previous games and we want to be able to bring that experience to Fallout 76."

Don't expect to see Expeditions implemented anytime soon though. They were a planned feature for late 2020, but COVID-19 issues shifted everything back. Bethesda managed to get Wastelanders and Steel Dawn out the door this year and that's actually a pretty impressive output. Creating entirely new maps will take a long time, which means Expeditions isn't being formally talked about yet. You're stuck in Appalachia for the foreseeable future.

Fallout 76 is planning Fallout 4-style off map expansions [Rock Paper Shotgun]

Game Pass is arguably one the best deals in gaming, but saying the same about the Xbox Series X at the moment is pushing it. It's difficult to gloat about the Series X hardware when it really doesn't have much to show for it yet, aside from making last-gen games look and run a lot better.

However, that is also where Xbox Game Pass shines even more on the Series X. Today on Impulse, Justin and myself are breaking down what we think about the console so far and showcase the various games we've been playing in 4K HDR! We also take a stab at making some predictions on how this box named X could shake things up down the road.

So take a seat in your favorite chair and let the vapor chamber take you to the sights and sounds of the next-generation of two dudes talking about video games on the internet. Truly, exciting times ahead!

Geoff Keighley loves his limited-time demos for unreleased games, and so do we. Well, the unreleased part of it, anyway – the gotta-act-fast time constraint isn't all that fun. A handful of games, including Devolver Digital's Olija and 3D Realms' Graven, just released demos on Steam and GeForce Now.

Here's the current mostly-PC-only roster, with a caveat that more demos will show up later.

If you're a fan of classic games, fast-thinking and, well, tidying up, then you might want to take note that Sega has finally launched Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 on consoles in the west. The cartoonish puzzle sequel is available now on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and Nintendo Switch.

For the uninitiated, Puyo Puyo Tetris combines two of the greatest tile-shifting titles of all time, namely Puyo Puyo and Tetris - funnily enough. Gameplay is a well-fitting hybrid of both titles, as players mix-and-match modes across a selection of exhibition, Vs. and online battles, as well as a cutesy story campaign featuring a cast of adorable and colorful characters.

Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 is a nicely feature-packed release, offering fun for up to four players as well as a variety of online leagues and events. The new Skill Battle Mode allows players to form their own bespoke squad of avatars - chosen from a roster of 28 uniquely skilled characters - in order to form the ultimate Puyo Puyo Tetris team. Check out the action in the launch trailer below.

Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 will follow on PC via Steam in early 2021.

Nintendo's fan-favorite social sim Animal Crossing: New Horizons is getting geared up to celebrate its first Holiday season. As y'all know by now, the citizens of Nook Islands like to go all-in when it comes to seasonal activities, and the upcoming Christm- erm... "Toy Day" is no exception.

While some of you might have already noticed a wintry atmosphere and festive decorations appearing around your custom island, the coming weeks will see the holiday spirit ramp up, with the addition of new critters, holiday-themed items, clothing, and decorations, and new DIY recipes for the big day's feast. On December 24, be sure to look out for "Jingle the Black-Nosed Reindeer", who will arrive requiring your help to deliver a sackful of gifts to the locals. Delightful.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons has brought joy and spirit to many seasonal events - such as Halloween and Thanksgiving - during a difficult year where many were unable to celebrate with family and friends in the traditional sense. To see it round out 2020 with Toy Day and the inevitable New Year's Eve countdown will be a happy occasion indeed.

Yesterday saw Team Yakuza host its Ryu ga Gotoku anniversary stream, looking back on the myriad of mainline titles and spin-off releases in the dramatic/ridiculous RPG franchise, celebrating 15 years of back-alley brawls and hilariously off-tone mini-games.

Unfortunately the stream was, (once again), a bust in regards to new announcements, with series director Toshihiro Nagoshi reiterating his previous statement that the development team is currently working on a new title, but offering no new details regarding the mystery title's brand, platform, gameplay style, or release date.

Regardless, as translated by the folks over at DualShockers, there were some interesting tidbits discussed by Nagoshi and the stream's guests, which included producers Daisuke Satō and Masayoshi Yokoyama, alongside Kazuma Kiryu and Ichiban Kasugi's respective voice actors: Takaya Kuroda and Kazuhiro Nakaya.

You may be well aware, but in the unlikely event that you're somehow not: Cyberpunk 2077 releases tomorrow. Technically, that might only be a few hours from now if you're playing on PC, as there's a global launch that hits at 4pm Pacific. On consoles, it's midnight for every region.

We've played some of it. You should check out our Cyberpunk 2077 review-in-progress if you're interested in how it's shaping up. Or, you could just go in blind tomorrow. If you want the low-down on the achievements and trophies, we've got that too, courtesy of Xbox Achievements.

Surprisingly, for a game this big and detailed and long and full, Cyberpunk 2077's achievements don't look too overly complicated. There's nothing wild like necessitating a pacifist run for full completion. You only need to give it one playthrough. There's also nothing missable apart from using your lifepath dialogue option 10 times (and once you know that's a requirement, it'll be very easy to fulfill). For those of you looking for a low-stress time, you should be able to knock this all out on Easy, as there's nothing related to difficulties.

That doesn't mean it'll be quick, though. It kind of looks like you'll have to do everything in Night City to hit the 1000GS or Platinum trophy. Complete all gigs and NCPD Scanner Hustles in each region and then some collectible-seeming stuff adds up to a rather long game. The PowerPyx walkthrough estimates a 60-70 hour completion -- 20ish for critical path story and then another 40-50 for side content.

I'm starting to wish I hadn't burned through my New Game+ playthrough of Spider-Man: Miles Morales so quickly (and deleted the game to free up some precious storage space on my PS5). Insomniac Games updated Miles Morales with an alternate graphics mode – Performance RT – that ticks the right boxes.

If you wanted to see cool ray-traced reflections but you weren't willing to play Miles Morales at 30 frames per second, there's now an "alternate version of the 60 frames per second 'Performance' mode" that adds "ray tracing by adjusting the scene resolution, reflection quality, and pedestrian density."

In other words, Performance RT is trying to give the best of both worlds – fidelity and performance. If you can live without 4K (and I believe plenty of us easily can), this should be a great option.

There's no confirmation that Spider-Man Remastered will get a Performance RT update, but I hope so.

@InsomniacGames [Twitter]

So you read about our experience with Cyberpunk 2077 so far, right?

Well, now you can read about our hands-on experience. Let's dive right in!

World of Warcraft: Shadowlands just got a huge shot in the arm yesterday evening, as the first major patch arrived.

Alongside of the first raid, it also brought along some new weekly activities, like the Great Vault (a side menu you can earn rewards from through high-level play), arena quests (the first season just kicked off), and world bosses. The latter bit is probably what most of the playerbase is going to be interested in, as Shadowlands continues the trend of the last few expansions of cycling in new world quest-related bosses each week for easy rewards.

In short, all you need to do is log in and look at your Shadowlands world map. Scan for a more pronounced icon, generally of the epic (purple) variety. Head to that location to fight a world boss (along with a ton of other players): after defeating it, you'll earn the reward highlighted in the quest marker. Each world boss cycles over in the weekly Tuesday reset, so you have until then to get it done.

Don't forget to press the "i" key and look for a group! Just type in the name of the boss (in the case below, Mortanis) and you'll find a group in no time. Or just make your own and you'll have a giant raid party in seconds.

Geoff Keighley, producer and host of The Game Awards 2020 continues to reveal names for the online event's star-studded roster. Having already revealed the socially-distanced attendance of faces such as Tom Holland, Gal Gadot, Brie Larson, Josef Fares, Keanu Reeves, Pearl Jam, and even film director Christopher Nolan, Keighley has also announced that the pre-show will also feature the musical talents of Persona 5 vocalist Lyn.

Lyn Inaizumi (known by her stage name of simply "Lyn") is no stranger to the Persona faithful, having heard the Japanese jazz singer perform vocals for the Persona 5, Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth, and Persona 5 Strikers soundtracks. No details have been released regarding her TGA 2020 set, but I wouldn't be surprised if we hear Persona 5 Strikers' theme song "You Are Stronger", given that Atlus recently confirmed the release date for the musou-like spin-off.

While the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic will render this year's TGA a more low-key affair than usual, kudos to Keighley for promoting such a star-studded lineup of talent from across the spectrum of media. The "A-lister" vibe is no doubt helping to give the awards ceremony an Oscars-style buzz throughout the wider media industry.

Earlier this year Mojang rolled out a new program for Xbox Insiders on the Windows 10 platform that allowed users to test out new graphical enhancements for Minecraft.

Framed around NVIDIA RTX boosts, the update added in ray tracing and a suite of visual upgrades to specific worlds built around them; to great success. It seems like all of that testing is done (it took around eight months), as Mojang has just made the RTX upgrades available to everyone. All you need to do is own the Windows 10 version of Minecraft and you're good to go.

From there, search the main store for some free RTX levels so you can actually experience the update in all its splendor. The names generally have "RTX" in them so they're easy to find, but here's some options if you want specificity: "Colosseum RTX," and "Dungeon Bash RTX."

Once you're in, if the RTX mode isn't enabled, just hit the ";" key to toggle it. You can do it at will, over and over! And if your friends are in the same world via cross-play and don't have RTX capabilities (either on PC or on another platform), they'll just see the "regular" visual style.  It's pretty great.

Even if you don't play Minecraft, head to the official site and check out the handy RTX/not-RTX sliders on each of the pictures. It's fun!

Moon Studios - the indie outfit behind beautiful platform adventure  Ori and the Will of the Wisps - has announced that it is partnering with charity Rainforest Trust for a short-term drive to benefit the preservation of the planet's tropical rainforests.

From now until December 13, Moon Studios will donate 5% of all sales of Ori and the Will of the Wisps on Nintendo Switch to the non-profit organization. In addition, publisher and merchandiser iam8bit will be donating a lump sum of $25,000 to the charity, which works to purchase and protect acres upon acres of rainforest, as well as the endangered wildlife that resides within.

[Update: Rockstar just put up a new trailer for the Cayo Perico Heist update, now due out on December 15, which you can watch below. It looks pretty slick, crazy, and distinctively GTA. Wouldn't it be great if GTA V proper got this sort of DLC?]

As long as Grand Theft Auto Online has the population of a real-life city, Rockstar will continue to support and monetize it.

Years after the launch of the original the online component is still kicking; and regularly getting updates following a stalled rollout. Now, it's getting several big expansions each year, including this newest one called "Cayo Perico Heist." Rockstar calls it the "first major expansion of GTA Online's geography since launch," and "sets the scene for the biggest update in the game's seven-year history." It's hitting on December 15 on all platforms.

But the heist isn't the only thing that's getting added in, and it may not even be the main draw. Quietly over the weekend Rockstar showcased more of the expansion's content, including a new club called the "Music Locker," which is seated beneath the Diamond Casino and Resort. In short, there's going to be a new dance floor, with real featured DJs (Blessed Madonna, Solomun, Dixon, DJs Moodymann, Keinemusik, Palms Trax, and Tale of Us are name-dropped).

There's also a few mechanical upgrades coming that build upon the previous "After Hours" dance update from the game's past: like dancing with a partner and new dances in general. As a Second Life substitute, GTA Online can do the trick for a lot of people, with a large community and player count to boot. It's amazing what it's accomplished so far, and what it continues to accomplish.

In case you missed it, Fire Emblem Heroes just got a huge update that brings the story into "Book V."

If you haven't been following along, that's how Heroes breaks up bigger arcs in the game, all of which are tied to their own My Nintendo Platinum rewards. Each chapter you clear will you get 100 Platinum: a process that only takes around 10-15 minutes or so if you're quick.

The way "Books" work is that you can generally jump into them out of order, and without any prior need to severely level-up your characters. In other words if you want to see the new stuff right away, you can boot up the game and go right into Book V.  That's also great news for Platinum Point chasers, as you don't need to truly grind to clear out the last chapters of some of these books.

The only roadblock, in fact, is the energy system. As Books go on, it costs more energy to complete each mission. Simply turning off your device and farming more platinum later that day (or the next day) is the easiest solution.

As a reminder, we just published a comprehensive guide for earning as many My Nintendo Platinum Points as possible. Check it out!

Microsoft has been vague with numbers for many years now (and will continue to be with the new Series line), but they seem awful proud of how the new generational launch has gone so far.

In a new post on the official Xbox blog, the team notes that "over 40% of people joining Xbox for the first time" are playing on the Series S, which is the new gateway for the Xbox ecosystem. They also note that the Smart Delivery system has been working swimmingly (especially compared to how clunky the process can be on PS5), and that France, UK, and Germany saw "record sellouts" of the Series X/S consoles. Oh, and cloud gaming (Project xCloud) is coming to iOS tentatively in beta form in spring 2021. Once it hits and the exclusives start rolling out, it'll be a much smoother generation for Microsoft than the last one.

At the end of the blog Microsoft buries what might be the most important bit: a tease of what's to come on Xbox Game Pass. You can find a list of highlighted upcoming Xbox games below, as well as the more important list of what's confirmed for Game Pass. The latter bit also gives us a heads-up on timing for some games, like the fact that The Medium, The Gunk, Warhammer 40K: Darktide, Exomecha, and Shredders are console launch exclusives.

We all knew Halo Infinite would be included, but it's nice to be reminded of games like Psychonauts 2 and The Ascent. After all, it's easy to forget that Microsoft bought up a ton of studios and now owns Double Fine!

GameStop continues to struggle to find its place in a digital gaming world. Between the shift to online sales and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, GamesIndustry.biz reports that the retailer continues to see a year-on-year loss in profit, which has forced the closure of hundreds of stores within the past 24 months.

In a recent investor's presentation, GameStop announced that for the quarter ending October 31, 2020, the retailer posted net sales of $1 billion USD. While that figure is certainly not to be sniffed at, it represents a 30% drop in profit for the same period in 2019. Overall, the loss still remains a morbidly positive step for the company's ongoing debt struggles, as the figure is offset by the cost-cutting closure of some 462 stores that shuttered over the course of 2020.

GameStop CEO George Sherman spoke of his confidence that the new generation of gaming would help to boost GameStop and its profit margin into 2021 and beyond.

"We begin the fourth quarter with unprecedented demand in new video game consoles that launched in November, which drove a 16.5% increase in comparable store sales for the month, despite being closed on Thanksgiving Day and the impact of COVID-19 related store closures, which affected most of our European footprint," said Sherman in the presentation.

"We anticipate, for the first time in many quarters, that the fourth quarter will include positive year-on-year sales growth and profitability, reflecting the introduction of new gaming consoles, our elevated omni-channel capabilities and continued benefits from our cost and efficiency initiatives, even with the potential further negative impacts on our operations due to the global COVID-19 pandemic."

ZA/UM, the developer of 2019's mega-hit Disco Elysium has brought a little bit of mystery to your morning. As spotted by @Nibellion, if you head on over to the official Disco Elysium website, you will be greeted with a stark red banner, featuring a communist-style insignia and one simple word: "Soon."

There are zero further clues as to what this site is teasing, though the developer has made clear its desire to see the esoteric and dystopian RPG make the leap to console platforms. There is also the possibility that Disco Elysium has DLC or an expansion in the works, though that might just be wishful thinking. The console port seems a snugger suggestion.

Given that tomorrow will see the annual Game Awards come loaded-for-bear with brand new news and reveals, perhaps the curtain will be lifted on this mystery in the next 24 hours. Until then, there's not much else to do bar daring to dream.

Halo Infinite was sorely missed during the Xbox Series X launch (heck, it was even featured on the console packaging), but the decision to spend more time improving the game immediately felt like the right call. The question is, when's it coming out? 343 Industries is now aiming for fall 2021.

The new release window was announced in a wide-ranging progress update on Halo Infinite.

Joseph Staten, a former Halo series developer at Bungie who wore "many different hats over the years including writer, cinematic director, creative director—even a voice for the Grunts" was brought on-board "from the sidelines" to help get Infinite out the door. He joined 343 Industries "right as the team was wrestling with feedback from the July campaign demo," and says that conversation "boiled down to one fundamental truth: we needed more time to do things right." I hope it pays off. The series needs it.

Today's blog post goes into great detail about the team's progress since the last public showing – from improvements to the game's overall visual fidelity, to Craig's "significant makeover," to armor and weapon coatings. It's a lot of nitty-gritty stuff that Halo fans will want to dig into when they can.

As for what's next, Staten says "Insider flighting" will happen "later next year."

Director of art management Neill Harrison said 343 is "eager to show the progress the team has made in [Infinite's] Campaign as soon we can, but we want to make sure we have all the right pieces coming together and this can be tricky with a lot of moving parts and an expansive world of this scope. We know everyone is keen to see more and we look forward to sharing more in future updates in the months ahead."