No Rest for the Wicked is a cruel and beautiful action game

Although I enjoy a wide variety of games from different genres, there are still parts of the video game zeitgeist I have little knowledge of. One of those blind spots is Korean MMOs like Nexon’s Vindictus, which attracts lots of players in Asia, but has made less of an impact in the U.S. Thankfully, my lack of familiarity with that space didn’t make the playtest for Vindictus: Defying Fate any less enjoyable.

The Finals made a big splash when it launched at The Game Awards 2023, and it has maintained a healthy player base in the months since. Tomorrow, The Finals Season 2 begins and it brings new weapons and gadgets, another battle pass, a new map, and the Power Shift mode with it. Although I dropped from off playing The Finals a few weeks after its release, my early taste of Season 2’s new content was more than enticing enough to draw me back in.

Sony rolled out another beefy PlayStation 5 update today with the main goals of improving the speakers and mic on the DualSense and DualSense Edge controllers and deepening the number of Share Screen viewer interactions.

WB Games and Player First Games announced that MultiVersus, their free-to-play fighting game featuring characters from various Warner Bros.’ owned properties, will return on May 28.

Capcom has heavily discounted Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen across all of the platforms it’s available on ahead of the launch of Dragon’s Dogma 2.

Among its many highlights, FinalFantasy VII Rebirth makes simple sidequests a lot more engaging than I had expected. Take an early-game sidequest called When Words Won’t Do. On a surface level, it’s a simple escort mission where players must get a dog from Under Junon to Crow’s Nest unscathed. I did not initially have high hopes for this sidequest due to the poor reputation of escort missions; thankfully, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth defied that fate. To make this optional content more worthwhile, Square Enix gave it a strong narrative backbone.

Dune: Part Two has taken theaters by storm after a relatively quiet start to the 2024 box office. It’s getting even more people into this franchise, which is the grandfather of a lot of modern sci-fi stories. Dune also has a more storied history with video games than you may think. If you’re in the mood to return to Arrakis and experience more entertainment set within the Dune universe, you don’t have to wait for Dune: Awakening.

The second-ever Xbox Partner Preview just took place, and it gave us a deeper look at some of the third-party games coming to Xbox. It has been an odd year for the Xbox, as its first-party lineup is finally starting to take shape with titles like Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, while fans are also concerned about the future of its platform in the wake of the decision to bring some of its games to the Nintendo Switch and PS5. This showcase demonstrated that third-party studios are still in full support of Xbox and by showing off some of their games that are on the way to Xbox Game Pass.

Microsoft will air its second-ever Xbox Partner Preview showcase later this week. It established the format in 2023 as a Nintendo Direct-style presentation where Microsoft can highlight third-party titles coming soon to Xbox platforms. Last year’s show included titles like Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater and The Finals, while this March’s show will feature games like Tales of Kenzera: Zau and Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess.

If you’ve been looking for an excuse to revisit Pokémon X and Y, the announcement of Pokémon Legends: Z-A just gifted you a perfect excuse to do so.

Activision studio Toys for Bob — best known for its work on franchises like Crash Bandicoot, Skylanders, and Spyro — is separating from Microsoft and going independent. It isn’t completely leaving Xbox and Activision behind, though, as the studio is looking to form a partnership with those companies.

EA announced that it will lay off 5% of its workforce by the end of March as part of an initiative that will also see it move away from making a lot of externally licensed games in the future.