Game Informer

Skull and Bones is finally out today. Let's play the opening hour and see if it is worth wait. Reportedly, the game began development as early as 2013 and spent a few years as an Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag spinoff before turning into Black Flag MMO, before finally emerging as a standalone game announcement in 2017. In the six years since its announcement we've seen teases of it here and there, had chances to play in various betas and alphas, and it even appeared on our cover in 2022. Skull and Bones has been a long time coming, but today everyone is finally able to play it. Our full review isn't ready quite yet, but you can  read Matt Miller's positive early impressions so far by heading here. You can also check out an hour of gameplay below.

To watch more of our livestreams, video podcasts, and series such as Super Replay, be sure to visit and subscribe to our second YouTube channel, Game Informer Shows. Head over to our flagship Game Informer YouTube channel for more previews, reviews, and discussions of new and upcoming games. 

This week on All Things Nintendo, Brian and Kyle start the show by covering news surrounding Splatoon 3, Princess Peach: Showtime!, Sonic Superstars, Xbox's "business update," and more. Then, Charles joins the show to share his review of Mario vs. Donkey Kong, while Kyle talks about his experience with the Tomb Raider I-III Remastered collection.

If you'd like to follow Brian on social media, you can do so on his Instagram/Threads @BrianPShea or Twitter @BrianPShea. You can follow Kyle on Twitter: @KyleMHilliard and BlueSky: @KyleHilliard. You can follow Charles on Twitter (@chuckduck365).

The All Things Nintendo podcast is a weekly show where we celebrate, discuss, and break down all the latest games, news, and announcements from the industry's most recognizable name. Each week, Brian is joined by different guests to talk about what's happening in the world of Nintendo. Along the way, they'll share personal stories, uncover hidden gems in the eShop, and even look back on the classics we all grew up with. A new episode hits every Friday!

The launch of 1997’s Final Fantasy VII on Playstation signaled a seismic shift in the video game landscape. The transition from pixel art to fully animated computer graphics was a massive enough leap ahead, but the beauty of this classic title was much more than skin deep. Featuring a stellar cast of beloved characters, a rock-solid combat system, and a story with the potential to instill emotions ranging from awe and joy to grief and anger, the legacy of Final Fantasy VII is well-established in the RPG genre and the games industry as a whole. Read more...

We know that Respawn Entertainment, the team behind Titanfall, Apex Legends, and the Star Wars: Jedi series, has a couple of unannounced Star Wars games in the works. It’s unclear what form those projects are taking, but according to one report, one of them may star a Mandalorian.

Insider Gaming reports that its sources have disclosed that Respawn is developing a first-person title in which players assume the mantle of a Mandalorian. For clarification, players do not play as the Mandalorian, as in Din Djarin from the hit Disney Plus series, but rather as a different bounty hunter. The game is reportedly set during the height of the Galactic Empire and will see players capturing or killing bounty targets.

Additionally, Insider Gaming’s sources claim the game is not an open-world title. Instead, it will feature more linear levels set across multiple planets. Gameplay is said to emphasize “mobility” and “style” while also being “very fast-paced.” Players will have access to Mandalorian gadgets such as a jetpack (used to execute a variety of aerial maneuvers), grapple hook, wrist rocket, and a visor for scanning and tagging enemies. The project is allegedly a year or two away from release. 

As an outgrowth of the naval combat experiences in the Assassin's Creed series, I've been curious about Skull and Bones since its announcement as a standalone title in 2017. Since then, the game has seen numerous delays and fundamental reworks on the development side. Our cover story on the game captured one moment in the evolving project’s life in the summer of 2022, and it has continued to change in the months that followed. In recent weeks, some sentiments on the internet and in gaming communities have concluded that, by this point, the game that is releasing must be a mess.

I’m happy to report that’s not the case; Skull and Bones is a lot of fun.

Review access only opened up a few days ago, and the game on offer is exceptionally dense and large, so we’re still working on pulling together a complete review. But in the meantime, as the game comes into full release for all players today, I wanted to share that you should consider setting aside your preconceptions about Skull and Bones, and evaluating it in its finished form.

The 27th annual D.I.C.E. Awards took place yesterday. While it doesn’t have the mainstream flashiness of the Game Awards, D.I.C.E. is a more industry-focused (and arguably more prestigious) event that honors the best games and creators of the last year. It is hosted and judged by the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences (AIAS) along with votes from over 30,000 industry experts, developers, and studios. 

You can view the full list of nominees here. The big winners were Baldur’s Gate 3, which won Game of the Year among other accolades, and Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, which walked away with six awards. Additionally, legendary Nintendo composer Koji Kondo was inducted into the AIAS Hall of Fame during the ceremony.

Here's the full list of award winners:

Game of the Year - Baldur’s Gate 3

Outstanding Achievement in Game Design - Baldur’s Gate 3 

Outstanding Achievement in Game Direction - Baldur’s Gate 3

Outstanding Achievement in Animation - Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 

Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction - Alan Wake 2 

Outstanding Achievement in Character - Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 – Miles Morales 

As promised earlier this week, Microsoft and Xbox executives Phil Spencer (head of Xbox), Sarah Bond (president, Xbox) and Matt Booty (Head of Xbox Game Studios) got together today to share some important "updates on the Xbox business." You can check out the full update below, but the headline is that four future formerly Xbox and PC exclusive games are coming to other consoles, but Spencer was not ready to reveal what those games are. They are games that are more than a year old that have been on Xbox and PC for awhile. A couple of the games, Spencer says, are community-driven and service-based games that have reached their full potential on Xbox and PC. They are franchises that Xbox wants to continue to invest in. Two are smaller games that were not built to be platform exclusives. Though he wasn't ready to share the game titles, he did confirm that Starfield and Indiana Jones are not in that group.

According to sources reported by The Verge, it seems the four titles may be Hi-Fi Rush, Pentiment, Sea of Thieves, and Grounded.

It’s been three years since EA announced it was making a new college football game after a years-long hiatus. Dubbed EA Sports College Football 25, not much has materialized about the game since its reveal in the way of updates, but the publisher has broken its silence with a new trailer confirming a release window and promising a bigger look at the title in the near future.

The video heavily leans into the skepticism fans have expressed over College Football’s existence, proudly expressing, “Yes, the game is real” while showing off snippets of behind-the-scenes development footage. The snazzy video doesn’t do much besides that, but it ends with a promise of a full reveal in May and a summer launch window. 

EA Sports College Football 25 is being developed by EA Orlando (formerly known as Tiburon), the team behind the Madden games. This will be the first college football game from the publisher since the demise of its NCAA Football series, the last entry of which was released in 2013. The franchise was shelved due to a 2014 federal lawsuit in which the judge ruled that the NCAA’s long-standing rule prohibiting college athletes from being compensated for their in-game likenesses was unlawful. 

A new trailer for Princess Peach: Showtime shows off some more outfits and abilities the Mushroom Kingdom’s pink monarch has up her royal sleeve. 

Princess Peach: Showtime pits Peach against the villainous Sour Bunch, who crashes a performance at the Sparkle Theater. Its guardian, Stella, grants Peach the ability to transform and gain powers based on the costumes she dons. Stages take the form of different theater plays with ever-changing sets. 

The video introduces Figure Skater Peach, which sees her gracefully skating across a winter-themed stage and performing spins to take out enemies. The Dashing Thief costume gives Peach a Carmen Sandiego-esque look and vibe as she uses a retractable grappling hook to zipline and swing across 2D levels while evading security bots. Mermaid Peach grants a siren-like singing voice used in what appears to be a type of musical mini-game. Mighty Peach basically turns the Princess into a Super Sentai-like hero battling aliens using super strength and a jetpack to take out foes mid-air.

Princess Peach: Showtime is coming to Switch on March 22. Nintendo is also launching pink rose-colored Joy-Cons for the occasion.

In this week's episode of The Game Informer Show, Kyle Hilliard takes over hosting duty with Alex Van Aken just being present to be part of the ride. Charles Harte is also in attendance, as is special guest Sarah Thwaites. We kick off the show discussing Helldivers 2 and Mario vs. Donkey Kong before jumping into a big discussion about a number of compelling indie games like Lysfanga: The Time Shift Warrior, Crow Country, Pepper Grinder, Helskate, Project O.R.C.S., and Nightingale. We also chat about the recent Tomb Raider Remaster collection before diving into the initial broadcast of our new recurring segment, The Lunch Break: Like A Dance Break but with Lunch (Working Title).

Watch Our Weekly Gaming Podcast:

Follow us on social media: Kyle Hilliard (@KyleMHilliard), Alex Van Aken (@itsVanAken), Charles Harte (@chuckduck365), Sarah Thwaites (@sarahathwaites).

The Fantastic Four finally arrive in the Marvel Cinematic Universe next year, and Marvel Studios has officially revealed who will don the team’s iconic blue suits.

The Fantastic Four was first announced in 2019 and is scheduled to premiere next year as the second film in Phase Six of the MCU. In a sweet Valentine's Day message, Marvel announced the following actors will portray Marvel’s First Family: 

Happy Valentine’s Day from Marvel’s First Family! Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Joseph Quinn are The Fantastic Four.

Marvel Studios' #TheFantasticFour, in theaters July 25, 2025. pic.twitter.com/dOmLG0m7ie

— Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) February 14, 2024

Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic - Pedro Pascal (The Last of Us, The Mandalorian)

Sue Storm/Invisible Woman - Vanessa Kirby (Napoleon, The Crown) 

Johnny Storm/Human Torch - Joseph Quinn (Stranger Things, Overlord)

Ben Grimm/The Thing - Ebon Moss-Bachrach (The Bear, The Punisher)

Ys X: Nordics, the latest entry in the long-running Ys series, is making its way to the West. Nordics stars a younger version of series hero Adol Christin embarking on an adventure in the Obelia Gulf, a collection of northern islands.

He finds himself thrown in the middle of a conflict between the islands’ residents and a seafaring tribe, as well as mysterious immortal monsters called the Griegers. Adol joins a Norman warrior named Karja to sail the seas aboard a ship, including exploring an open ocean and engaging in naval combat. 

Ys X: Nordics was first released in Japan last September and will come stateside this fall. It will be available for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Switch, and PC.

Have you always been curious about the Ys series but don’t know whether to jump in? Former editor John Carson explains in this feature why RPG fans shouldn’t sleep on Ys. You can also check out our 40-year retrospective on developer Nihon Falcom. 

Reviewed on: Switch
Platform: Switch
Release: February 16, 2024

A developer can take many different approaches when remaking a game, but its primary goal always remains the same: to create a new experience that honors the spirit of the original. With Mario vs Donkey Kong, a remake of the 2004 Game Boy Advance title of the same name, Nintendo succeeds in this goal. By combining new worlds and modern quality-of-life features with the game's classic, delightful puzzle design, Mario vs. Donkey Kong is a strong start to Nintendo's 2024.

In the game's opening, Donkey Kong raids a toy factory where they make Mini Marios, the hottest new product on the market. To get them back, Mario must chase him down through eight worlds, each with two distinct halves. In the first chunk, he has to carry a key to a locked door, and in the second, he has to reach the Mini Mario located somewhere in the level. On paper, it runs the risk of becoming repetitive, but in practice, there's so much variety from level to level that I was never bored. With only six standard levels in each world, there's a lot of room to play with mechanics and level design, and I was constantly impressed with how the game kept me engaged. It's nothing revolutionary – these are still puzzles from 20 years ago – but they hold up better than many games from the same year.

DC Universe Online developer Dimensional Ink Games and its publisher Daybreak Game Company have been hit with layoffs. 

According to Kotaku, Dimensional Ink lost an unknown number of senior staff, with Game Developer reporting reductions in the art, community, and narrative departments. The team is best known for developing the superhero MMO DC Universe Online. Daybreak Games (formerly Sony Online Entertainment) has worked on several multiplayer games, including EverQuest II, H1Z1, Star Wars Galaxies, and Planetside 2. The exact number of affected employees from both studios is currently unknown. 

This is, unfortunately, the latest of an alarming trend of game industry layoffs that plagued 2023 and have only intensified in 2024. Over 5,500 jobs have been cut within January alone. Last year, over 10,000 employees in the games industry or game-adjacent industries were laid off. 

WWE 2K24’s Showcase mode will let players relive some of the most iconic matches in WrestleMania history. A new trailer shows off a few of those bouts, and 2K has unveiled some of the matches the mode has to offer.

Like previous years, Showcase challenges players to play significant matches and recreate pivotal moments by fulfilling historical objectives. The matches occasionally transition to real footage of the match, letting you watch as well as engage. 2K24’s Showcase of the Immortals consists of 21 matches, and 2K has revealed 16 of them below. 

We’ve all been there. You see a chair in a game. It prompts you to sit. Curious, you oblige. 

Your digital butt meets the seat, and…nothing. You just sit and stare for a few seconds before rising and continuing your adventure. More often than not, sitting does not result in a cutscene, reward, character dialogue, or, in some cases, even a good view of your surroundings. You just sit. 

You could be slaying a mighty dragon.

You could be rescuing your captive friends.

You could be discovering the true meaning behind your existence and your place in the cosmos.

But instead, you sit. 

With some exceptions, taking a seat in games equates to a whole lot of nothing. And yet, it remains a regularly recurring mechanic. So why do we sit? Do you like to sit? How long do you sit? Should sitting still be a thing in games? Please take a seat and discuss your stance in the comments below.

Last week, amid rumors about Xbox exclusives coming to other platforms, Phil Spencer announced an event that would detail the future of Xbox. While we're no closer to knowing the exact details of the event, we now know the "where" and "when": the announcement will happen on the official Xbox podcast this Thursday, February 15. The episode will be posted at 12 PM Pacific/3 PM Eastern

Please join us for a special edition of the Official Xbox Podcast.

Hear from Phil Spencer, Sarah Bond and Matt Booty as they share updates on the Xbox business. pic.twitter.com/TxwWJVUbgx

— Xbox (@Xbox) February 12, 2024

The podcast in question will feature more than just Xbox head Phil Spencer, however. Sarah Bond and Matt Booty, the Presidents of Xbox and Xbox Game studios, respectively, will also give updates on the future of the brand. 

Last week, Xbox head Phil Spencer announced a “Future of Xbox” event, which we now know is taking place on Thursday, February 15. Speculation has run rampant about what the event entails amid rumors that several first-party Xbox title are making their way to other platforms, with some believing this event will confirm those reports. On the extreme end, others believe Spencer may announce the end of Xbox as a console platform altogether. According to one report, that may not be the case.

Inverse journalist Shannon Liao reported in her weekly gaming newsletter that Spencer held a company town hall last Tuesday and told employees there are no plans to stop making Xbox consoles. Furthermore, it was stated that “Xboxes would continue to be part of a strategy that involves multiple kinds of devices.” Microsoft did not respond to Liao’s request for comment.

The first Tomb Raider was released in 1996, nearly 30 years ago, and in a few days, developer/publisher Aspyr is bringing the original trilogy back with some much-needed upgrades. The controls have been modernized and the games look better, but thankfully, the original versions of the three games are available as part of the package as well. Join Brian Shea and me as we check out the first levels of the three games, discuss what works about them, and where there are some shortcomings.

Tomb Raider I-III Remastered releases for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PC, and Switch on February 14.

Head over to Game Informer's YouTube channel for more previews, reviews, and discussions of new and upcoming games. Watch other episodes of New Gameplay Today right here.

With the recent Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Volume 1 and the upcoming Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, Hideo Kojima's iconic tactical espionage action franchise has been on our minds. And miraculously, somehow, across approximately 588 episodes of Replay, we have never revisited Metal Gear Solid. This week I am happy to correct that monumental mistake.

We will get back to Majora's Mask soon (Marcus is out on assignment this week) but we took that opportunity to revisit one of, if not the, best PlayStation games with Metal Gear Solid. It just so happens that Alex Van Aken is playing through the game for fun, so I asked him if we could just jump into his save for an hour. And you know what? It just so happened to be one of the best hours of the whole game. Alex takes out Liquid Snake in the HIND, meets the invisible overweight soldiers, and defeats Sniper Wolf. It's a fantastic snapshot of a fantastic game.

Whenever a Mario Kart entry arrives, it immediately becomes a must-have on its respective platform, thanks to its universal appeal to gamers of all experience and ability levels. That widespread appeal has translated to sales, as nearly every Mario Kart game ranks near the top of its platform's sales chart. But it goes beyond mainstream success; Mario Kart is fun whether you're spending the evening alone perfecting a drift around a corner or gathering your closest friends for a marathon session. 

Sure, the rubberband A.I. and the randomization elements are enough to make us want to jump up and down in frustration, but it's never quite enough to deter us from driving up to the next starting line. Check out our ranking of the entire Mario Kart series below, and let us know how you would rank the series in the comments section!

This week on All Things Nintendo, we have a party for Mario Party! The long-running four-player party series starring everyone's favorite cast from the Mushroom Kingdom turned 25 this week, so Brian and guest Dom Mahoney from Wicked Good Gaming talk about the first game's development and legacy. Before that, the two get caught up on all the latest news from the world of Nintendo.

If you'd like to follow Brian on social media, you can do so on Instagram/Threads( @BrianPShea) or Twitter (@BrianPShea). You can also follow Dom on Twitter (@WGGPapaDom). You can find Not Another Gaming Podcast on Spotify or wherever else you get your podcasts.

The All Things Nintendo podcast is a weekly show where we celebrate, discuss, and break down all the latest games, news, and announcements from the industry's most recognizable name. Each week, Brian is joined by different guests to talk about what's happening in the world of Nintendo. Along the way, they'll share personal stories, uncover hidden gems in the eShop, and even look back on the classics we all grew up with. A new episode hits every Friday!

In the first four decades of the Super Mario series, Mario and his friends appeared in hundreds of titles, but in the core "Super Mario" series, the plumber was present in just 22 titles (if you include Lost Levels, Bowser's Fury, and Super Mario Run). While the series has some entries that are stronger than others, the Super Mario series doesn’t have a bad entry to date, so this list proved difficult to put together in an order we all felt comfortable with.

In 2018, we ranked the top 300 games of all time in our 300th issue. While that list was more about ranking games in terms of quality, importance to the industry, and cultural relevance, this list is just about our favorite games. So check out our rankings of the 22 core Super Mario games below!

Our Top 300 Games of All Time

In our  April 2018 issue, we ranked the top 300 games of all time. As you may have guessed, Mario’s core series made several appearances on that list. That list may have had different criteria than this one, but now you can check out where Mario fell on our list of the top 300 games of all time in 2018.

Developers Ludosity and Fair Play Labs announced today that Mr. Krabs from SpongeBob SquarePants will join the Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2 roster next week. The Bikini Bottom resident joins his neighbors SpongeBob, Patrick, Squidward, and Mecha Plankton, who were all part of the platform fighter's launch roster.

Mr. Krabs arrives on February 15 as the first character included in the Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2 Season Pass. That pass costs $25 and grants you access to four additional characters – Mr. Krabs from SpongeBob SquarePants, Zuko and Iroh from Avatar: The Last Airbender, and Rocksteady from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – throughout 2024, as well as "The Quickster" outfit for SpongeBob. 

Get ready, Mr. Krabs drops on 2.15!#NASB2 pic.twitter.com/p3RQmhxYKZ

— Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl (@NickBrawlGame) February 9, 2024

Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2 arrived on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC on November 7, 2023. For more on the platform fighter, check out our review here.

Every RPG faithful has that formative experience that turned them into a lifelong fan. But what if you could experience it again for the first time? Or if you could recommend it to those who haven’t played it without needing to explain away the parts that haven’t aged well? In today’s gaming landscape, remasters are common, but we’ve seen an influx of full-on remakes of classic role-playing games in recent years.

While 1990’s Ys I & II is likely the earliest example of remade role-playing games, perhaps the most prominent early examples came in the form of the Pokémon franchise. Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen, 2004 remakes of the series’ debut titles less than a decade after their initial release, showcased the technological leap from original Game Boy to Game Boy Advance. However, when those games were remade for a second time through Pokémon Let’s Go, Pikachu & Let’s Go, Eevee on Switch in 2018, it was an even bigger jump ahead.

Helskate is a rogue game where you are trying to escape Hell on a skateboard. The game is heavily inspired by the Tony Hawk series, which makes sense as its game director, Steve Swink, worked on Tony Hawk's Underground. Join me and Game Informer's resident Tony Hawk expert, Blake Hester, as we play a bit of the game, discuss its Tony Hawk overlap, and what sets it apart.

Helskate is entering early access on February 15.

Head over to Game Informer's YouTube channel for more previews, reviews, and discussions of new and upcoming games. Watch other episodes of New Gameplay Today right here.

Dead Cells was developed and released by Motion Twin in 2018, and in an atypical move in the world of game development, members of that team branched off to form Evil Empire, which in turn supported Dead Cells with new content for many years. Arguably its biggest and most notable expansion was the Return to Castlevania DLC, which added all kinds of Castlevania content to the game.

The developer announced this morning, however, that it is officially time to move on. You can see the developer's full statement below.

After 5 years of service, we're hanging up the Dead Cells coat. We're extremely proud of our work on countless updates & DLC, but now it's time for something shiny and new, or maybe more than one thing 😏 More on that very soon...
Read our full statement below👇 #deadcells https://t.co/CqbNvNXGu1 pic.twitter.com/RAz8OL1SCC

Overwatch 2 has had a rough road following the early success of the first game. That game, which easily earned Game Informer's Game of the Year in 2016, started with such promise and a massive, enthusiastic audience, but following the 2019 announcement of Overwatch 2, support for the original Overwatch floundered, and so, too, did the community. Last year's release of Overwatch 2's PvE elements in its Invasion update pushed the hero shooter back in the right direction, but it didn't make the splash Blizzard had hoped for. With Overwatch 2 Season 9, which kicks off next week, Blizzard is making a ton of sweeping behind-the-scenes changes to make the game more approachable for players.

Players of all modes will notice updates to how moment-to-moment gameplay, encounters, and matches as a whole play out. Hit consistency is being improved, with projectiles growing in size; those characters that don't have projectile-based weapons or abilities and, therefore, receive no benefits from this change will receive additional balance updates. Those changes to non-projectile heroes will happen at a later date so the development team can assess how significant the projectile changes are in a live environment.

In this week's episode of The Game Informer Show, the crew discusses Final Fantasy VII Rebirth one last time before it releases and then examines Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League against the three game design pillars: camera, controls, and character. Alex chats about playing Metal Gear Solid for the first time and what it's like playing a game made in 1998 on its own terms in 2024. Finally, Brian and Charles dive into Persona 3 Reload, now publisher Atlus's fastest-selling game of all time. 

Watch Our Weekly Gaming Podcast:

Follow us on social media: Alex Van Aken (@itsVanAken), Kyle Hilliard (@KyleMHilliard), Brian Shea (@BrianPShea), Charles Harte (@Chuckduck365)

Persona 3 Reload is finally here, and fans of the series have welcomed it with open arms, happily becoming reacquainted with the high schoolers who get magical powers from a shot to the head. Speaking of which, Persona 3 Reload has shot to the head of Atlus's ranking of fastest-selling games, shipping over a million copies worldwide in its first week.

Persona 3 Reload sold 1,000,000 copies worldwide within its first week, becoming the fastest selling game in ATLUS history! 🎉

A huge thank you to our community for your incredible support! We look forward to breaking more records with you. 💙 pic.twitter.com/C2abDAwCDs

Funimation and Crunchyroll, two competing anime streaming services, merged in 2021 and announced in 2022 that all of the content would eventually combine under the Crunchyroll banner. That event officially has a date, and it's April 2.

For Funimation subscribers, you will have to go through the process of merging your account before the April 2 date, and, frustratingly, any shows that were outright purchased through Funimation will not transfer to Crunchyroll. Just another reminder that when you purchase digital content, true ownership does not technically exist and you will always be at the mercy of the platform holders when it comes to access.

Crunchyroll subscribers do not need to make any changes, but the price of the subscription will rise to $100 a year soon. The merger officially going through does mean Crunchyroll will feature more content, but a price increase will always be frustrating.

Alongside this merger finally completing, Crunchyroll is also entering the video game space as a publisher. It remains to be seen what kind of video tames the anime company will help produce, but you can check out this package it sent over on Game Informer's TikTok account.

The Sonic the Hedgehog Movie spinoff series, Knuckles, is premiering April 26, and ahead of its streaming debut, Paramount has released a trailer. The series officially takes place between the second and third movie and will apparently follow Knuckles (Idris Elba) has he helps Wade (Adam Pally), Tom Wachowski's (James Marsden) bumbling police partner, become a true warrior. The trailer also reveals the antagonist will be played by Rory McCann, who is best known for playing Sandor 'The Hound' Clegane in Game of Thrones, and features a two-thirds Human Giant reunion cameo with Rob Huebel and Paul Scheer. Curiously, they're sitting at an ESPN8 The Ocho desk, a gag born from the 2004 film Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story that eventually became a real thing.

Other interesting details from the trailer? Jim Carrey does not appear, nor does James Marsden, but both Sonic and Tails appear and are played by film voice actors, Ben Schwarz and Colleen O'Shaughnessey.

The series, simply titled Knuckles, will be six episodes long and begins streaming on April 26 on Paramount+. For more on the Sonic the Hedgehog Movie universe, you can read our review of the second film here.

Epic Games and The Walt Disney Company have announced a new collaboration that will result in the joint creation of an all-new games and entertainment universe. Alongside the partnership, The Walt Disney Company is investing $1.5 billion to acquire an equity stake in Epic Games. 

The multi-year project aims to create an all-new universe that spans the various Disney properties, including Marvel, Star Wars, Pixar, Avatar, and more. Disney says players will be able to create their own stories and experiences, share content, and express their fandom in experiences powered by Unreal Engine.

"Our exciting relationship with Epic Games will bring together Disney's beloved brands and franchises with the hugely popular Fortnite in a transformational new games and entertainment universe," Disney CEO Bob Iger said in a press release. "This marks Disney's biggest entry ever into the world of games and offers significant opportunities for growth and expansion. We can't wait for fans to experience the Disney stories and worlds they love in groundbreaking new ways."

You can see the announcement trailer below.

After getting pushed into 2024, we have a release date for the game's next big update. New Game +, new suits, and other upgrades are on March 7. Along with those vague content promises, Insomniac also says it will have a proper list of new features in the future.

❗ OUR NEXT UPDATE IS COMING MARCH 7

Our title update for Marvel's #SpiderMan2PS5 arrives next month and adds highly requested features like New Game+, new suits, and more!

Watch our social media for a complete list of features closer to release. 🕸️🕷️ #BeGreaterTogether pic.twitter.com/qhncOPkUXY

— Insomniac Games (@insomniacgames) February 7, 2024

For more on Marvel's Spider-Man 2, you can read our review here.

Platform: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Publisher: Slow Bros.
Developer: Slow Bros.
Release: 2024

The first teaser trailer for Harold Halibut was released seven years ago and was only a minute and a half long, but it immediately grabbed my attention. The footage showed a stop-animated Harold (or what looked stop-animated) cleaning up graffiti in an underwater facility. The striking visuals inspired a thought I don’t often have – how did they do that? It was my first question for game director Ole Tillmann and art director Onat Hekimoglu when I recently spoke with them.

During today's PlayStation State of Play, Square Enix gave us new details for what to expect when Final Fantasy VII Rebirth arrives later this month. The game continues to impress with each passing look, earning its spot as the "Most Anticipated Game" at The Game Awards 2023.

The world of Final Fantasy VII Rebirth is broken into various regions, which seamlessly blend into one another. After the intro sequence, players enter into the Grasslands, a grassy area south of Midgar. From there, you travel to Junon, a vast open area in the shadow of Shinra's military; this area also features chocobos that can climb up cliffsides. The game also includes Corel, which features the touristy beach town of Costa del Sol, the massive playground known as Gold Saucer, and the dusty portion of the region to the south. The Gongaga region allows you to explore Zack's hometown and explore the Mako Reactor. The Cosmo Canyon region lets you learn more about Red XIII's roots and glide around on special chocobos. The Nibel region lets you relive Cloud and Tifa's younger days and visit Shinra Manner. Finally, Meridian Ocean allows you to explore the waters.

Platform: PlayStation 5
Publisher: Square Enix
Developer: Square Enix
Release: February 29, 2024
Rating: Teen

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth continues to look fantastic. During today's PlayStation State of Play devoted to the upcoming exclusive title, we got a new look at various impactful scenes set to take place in this retelling of the middle portion of the Final Fantasy VII Remake series. 

The footage in this trailer shows off various scenes we haven't yet witnessed and characters we've seen very little of. The main thrust is Sephiroth's quest for the Black Materia and the party's efforts to save the world. As you might imagine, it's all set to the amazing soundtrack fans have come to expect from the game.

You can check out this cinematic trailer below.

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth arrives on February 29 exclusively for PlayStation 5. For more, be sure to check out our in-depth coverage hub here.

Project Orion is still a deeply mysterious game. We know it is a follow-up to Cyberpunk 2077, we know CD Projekt Red is developing the game in North America (Boston, specifically) as opposed to Poland where the main studio is based, and eventually development will expand to Vancouver, with support from the main Polish headquarters. Beyond those details, we don't know much. Implications from CD Projekt point to it being a sequel, but it could be a spin-off, or something entirely different. Of note, Project Orion was a study from the 50s and 60s about the viability of nuclear power for space travel. Maybe that's what CD Projekt's Cyberpunk 2077 follow-up will be about.

Nintendo has released its latest quarterly sales numbers, and they are overall expectedly impressive considering 2023 saw the releases of new mainline Zelda and Mario games. But Pikmin 4 and Super Mario RPG, the remake of the 1996 Super Nintendo game, also delivered some notable sales numbers.

You can find the full report here, but here are the notable highlights: