Overwatch 2 Winter Wonderland returns next week with the fanciest holiday skins yet

The Epic Games Store has unveiled one of those «oh crap, what's my Epic account password again?» weekly free games: Eidos Montreal's excellent 2021 adaptation of Guardians of the Galaxy. The promotion started today, and runs through next Wednesday, January 10.

January 2023 saw Microsoft taking a swing at the Nintendo Direct formula with its own Xbox Developer Direct, where it showcased the likes of Redfall, Forza Motorsport, and Minecraft Legends, along with announcing and shadow dropping Hi-Fi Rush. Interestingly, it seems like the company might have something similar planned for 2024 as well.

Happy Holidays from Studio Wildcard! Today multiple gifts are delivered to the Survivors of ARK: Survival Ascended with the Winter Wonderland event commencing, the Survival of the Fittest beta launching, and 600+ official mods now available – all across PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. Spotlight trailer featuring the new Survival of the Fittest game mode, Winter Wonderland event, and the latest weekly cross-platform user-created Mods is HERE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNRPO8KjosU

New Blood shooter Ultrakill has released an exciting holiday update. The high-flying Doom Eternal come character action riff launched the first part of its third and final act: Layer 7, Violence.

By Steven Petite and Jon Bitner on

After a 32-year career, Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick is officially stepping down next week, with his last day at the company being Friday, December 29. Meanwhile, Microsoft has announced a series of key leadership changes as it works to bring Activision Blizzard into Xbox's fold.

Penny Dragon Games and IGN are teaming up to present Lost Odyssey: Shadows of Destiny, a one-shot set in Avatar Legends: The Roleplaying Game that will raise money for Extra Life and star the voices of Avatar: The Last Airbender's Aang and Toph and Yakuza: Like a Dragon's Ichiban Kasuga alongside professional Athena Palmer and Game Master TJ Storm.

Midwinter Blight is in full swing, and many players have proved they're on Father Winter's nice list by gathering, slaying the Red-Cloaked Horror, and upgrading their Midwinter Blight decorations in Kyovashad square. What players are reporting may have been missed, however, is a certain Midwinter Melody sung by our favorite Bard, Gileon. Upon upgrading the Midwinter Blight rewards to Tier 3, Gileon graces the player with a short Midwinter Melody — but some players have reported that both the decoration upgrades and this little ditty bugged for them, leaving them unable to see it. Fortunately, we've recorded the song for everyone to hear — stay a while, and listen! Those looking to hear this song for themselve in game are in luck — Gileon has an option in dialogue to replay the song if you missed it. We've also transcribed the lyrics below!

‘Tis the season to be an Overwatch 2 player, as the latest Winter Wonderland event will soon be underway! This latest event brings not only fun new arcade games but also loot boxes filled to the brim with items sure to bring the holiday spirit to the players. 

Players eager to see if they can survive the harsh landscape of Arrakis in Dune: Awakening might not have long to wait, as Funcom has revealed it's gearing up for a test in «early next year.» In fact, a test has already concluded in early December with a small number of players checking out the upcoming survival MMO.

Overwatch 2’s Christmas-themed seasonal event, Winter Wonderland, returns on December 19th. It features three Arcade modes – Mei’s Snowball Offensive, Yeti Hunt and Freeze-Flash Elimination – with new challenges to complete. The XP from these will go towards the Season 8 battle pass.

GOG’s Winter Sale has been updated with another free game.