Entertainment News, Tips, Tricks & Ideas

Take-Two Interactive, which owns Grand Theft Auto 6 developer Rockstar Games, and Remedy Entertainment are doing more together than just making Max Payne and Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne remakes. Both companies are also in a trademark dispute, in the United Kingdom, over the use of the letter “R,” as first reported by gaming website RespawnFirst.

Grand Theft Auto V developer Rockstar Games and Alan Wake 2 studio Remedy Entertainment have a history that goes back years, namely due to the two's work on the Max Payne series. However, the companies are at the center of two trademark disputes filed by Rockstar's parent company, Take-Two Interactive, as first reported by RespawnFirst. In the disputes, Take-Two takes issue with Remedy's new logo it unveiled in April of last year, which features a stylized «R,» claiming it's too similar to Rockstar's own «R» logo. 

The organizers of the Game Developers Conference today revealed the nominees for the 24th annual Game Developers Choice Awards, which will be held at the conference on March 20.

Take-Two Interactive has filed an opposition to Remedy Entertainment’s newest logo, claiming the symbol infringes on Rockstar Games’ logo despite the two having little in common besides the letter “R” representing a video game publisher. First reported by RemedyFirst, the trademark dispute was filed against two versions of the Remedy logo (one with the company’s name, one without) in September with the UK’s Intellectual Property Office.

Diablo 4 season 3 starts Jan. 23, sending players deep beneath the desert sands of Kehjistan where they’ll face new mechanized menaces, including scorpion-like Constructs, deadly traps, and the demon Malphas. To balance the odds, players will get a mechanized ally of their own, known as a Seneschal, as part of Season of the Construct.

Welcome back to our weekly gaming news roundup.

As reported by RespawnFirst, Take-Two, the parent company of Rockstar Games, has filed a trademark dispute against Remedy Entertainment over the latter’s new logo.

Take-Two Interactive, the owner of Grand Theft Auto 6 developer Rockstar Games, and Remedy Entertainment, the studio behind Alan Wake 2, are locked in a trademark dispute over their R-depicting logos.

Ever since I got my hands on Persona 3 Reload over the summer, I've described it to folks as «Persona 3 redone in the form of Persona 5 Royal.» While that may be a gross oversimplification, it's also pretty high praise. Longtime fans of the Persona series point towards Persona 3 as the entry that changed the course of the series, pointing it down the path it's been on for nearly the last two decades. While Persona 3 may be the most important entry from a mechanical perspective, Persona 5 has the most mainstream relevance, particularly in 2024.

Rockstar Games' parent company, Take-Two Interactive, has filed a trademark dispute against Remedy Entertainment in the United Kingdom. 

Ubisoft has announced some major changes coming to its video game subscription service, Ubisoft+.

Nintendo has announced that it’s making a donation to the Japanese Red Cross Society to support those affected by the Noto Peninsula earthquake, which struck Japan on January 1.

Pokemon has been incredibly busy already in 2024 on the Funko Pop! front. What appears to be a Pearlescent Lucario has been teased, along with five other unrevealed figures coming soon, and Luxray, Grookey, and Wooloo have made their Pop! debuts. On top of all that, an image of a Deluxe Funko Pop! Moment recreating the very first decision trainers ever had to make in a Pokemon game surfaced online last week, and now that set is available to buy.

It’s tough to find a decent mobile game to really dig into and play every day. However, Solitaire Grand Harvest is an outstanding addition to anyone’s daily roster, especially when combined with the free daily coins that enhance it.

The most endearing aspect of the SteamWorld series is how each of its games relates to one another despite their disparate genres. From tower defense to turn-based RPG, each title offers a unique spin on a specific gameplay experience while adhering to a shared mythos, resulting in a fun collection of games that coalesce thematically. SteamWorld Build, Thunderful's city-builder/RTS hybrid, serves as the latest iteration of this formula. Sporting streamlined genre mechanics, intuitive controls, and charming visuals, many essential parts are in place. Unfortunately, despite a solid foundation, SteamWorld Build struggles to maintain an engaging experience throughout its campaign.

RoboCop: Rogue City is likely the best game the action hero has ever starred in. That bar isn’t tough to hurdle, but the adventure delivers plenty of thrills for fans to be excited about. This narrative-driven first-person shooter has a loving reverence for the films and a good understanding of its protagonist, swinging for the fences with a lengthy original story, fun references, and plenty of enjoyably cheesy humor. Unfortunately, like the franchise’s vision of Detroit, Rogue City is very rough around the edges, resulting in a flawed hero but one that’s ultimately entertaining to patrol with. 

Big changes are coming to Overwatch 2 in the game’s next season as Blizzard Entertainment experiments with ways to shake up its hero shooter. Some of those changes are being tested right now, thanks to a weekend-long event called Quick Play: Hacked, in which the rules of Quick Play mode have been altered to make games much, much faster.

The combined power of Barbie and Oppenheimer renewed the movie industry with a kind of zeitgeisty excitement for big-screen entertainment that was so palpable it was… a little scary. “Barbenheimer” felt like a once-in-a-generation moment — so how would the movie studios keep delivering? In the wake of WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes that all but halted the momentum, as studio executives waffled over details and their own existential content crisis, the answer, it seems, comes from 2022 instead of 2023: Tom Cruise.

Bandai Namco Entertainment shared a new teaser trailer for Sand Land: The Series this Friday. Based on the one-shot manga by Dragon Ball creator Akira Toriyama, the anime will consist of re-edited footage from the anime film, which premiered in Japan late last year, as well as a new story set after the events of the movie written by Toriyama himself.

Daedalic Entertainment and Core Engage have announced that the diesel punk city builder New Cycle will be available in Steam Early Access from January 18th. New Cycle takes place in a world that has seen its technology revert back after a catastrophic solar flare. This has led to the modern world collapsing, and the start of new era beginning. Players will need to grow from having a single shack to a bustling city.

By Andrew Webster, an entertainment editor covering streaming, virtual worlds, and every single Pokémon video game. Andrew joined The Verge in 2012, writing over 4,000 stories.

Daedalic Entertainment and Core Engage have announced that the diesel punk city builder New Cycle will be available in Steam Early Access from January 18th. New Cycle takes place in a world that has seen its technology revert back after a catastrophic solar flare. This has led to the modern world collapsing, and the start of new era beginning. Players will need to grow from having a single shack to a bustling city.

The 27th D.I.C.E. Awards return next month to Las Vegas, where the industry-only event celebrates the best games and achievements in games of 2023. Unlike The Game Awards, which are hosted and produced by Geoff Keighley, with votes from media outlets and the public in some instances, the D.I.C.E Awards are voted on exclusively by game developers. 

Industry veteran Shuji Utsumi has been appointed as the head of Sega's Western business.

Blizzard Entertainment has finally confirmed the launch date of Diablo IV Season 3. Fans have been wondering if it had been delayed since the developers haven't shared any details yet. However, the game's login screen has now been updated with the notice that Diablo IV Season 3 will begin on January 23rd. More information is certainly forthcoming, either this week or the next.

Hunger Games and Five Nights at Freddy’s star Josh Hutcherson has seen those “Whistle” edit videos people have been sharing online, featuring images of him edited over a cover of Flo Rida’s song “Whistle.” The Rickroll-like meme format went viral on platforms like TikTok in late November, and continues to inspire viral videos. Now, Hutcherson has responded: In an interview with Entertainment Tonight published on Tuesday, the actor said he’s seen the memes, and that while he doesn’t “get it,” he’s “here for it.”

Asymmetric horror game Dead by Daylight has added Alan Wake, the protagonist of Remedy Entertainment’s series of the same name, to its roster.

Sony Interactive Entertainment has announced January 2024’s PlayStation Plus Game Catalogue and Classics titles.

The products discussed here were independently chosen by our editors. GameSpot may get a share of the revenue if you buy anything featured on our site.

Shuji Utsumi has been appointed President and COO at Sega, as well as Representative Director CEO of Sega of America, and CEO of Sega Europe.

Sega has announced some significant restructuring at the top of its western business’ hierarchy. Shuji Utsumi, who had been serving as Sega of Japan’s co-COO and the head of its game contents and services umbrella, has been appointed as the new President, CEO, and COO of Sega America and Sega Europe. He will take on his new role on April 1.

Shuji Utsumi has been appointed as President/COO and CEO of Sega America and Europe.

Alan Wake and Control developer Remedy Entertainment has recently filed a trademark for FBC: Firebreak in Europe.

Streaming giant Twitch is set to lay off around 500 members of staff this week according to a new report.

Annual UK video game sales fell behind film revenues last year for the first time since 2012.

Warner Bros. Games has announced that the Harry Potter action-RPG Hogwarts Legacy sold over 22 million copies by the end of 2023, with roughly 2 million of those sales over the December festive period. «But it’s not just the units sold that I’m so proud of, it’s just that it delighted the fans so much,» Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment president David Haddad told Variety.

For a long time, video games have been the top dog when it comes to entertainment revenue, having been the most lucrative industry for well over 10 years. You'd have thought that with how good we had it with video game releases last year that this trend would continue, but it turns out revenue from video-based content was higher than that of video games in the United Kingdom for the first time in over a decade.

The next survivor to find himself stuffed in Dead by Daylight‘s fog is distressed horror writer Alan Wake from the Alan Wake series. Making his way over from a widely successful sequel, Alan Wake 2, players can use Alan Wake as their next survivor.

CD Projekt has deemed Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty a commercial success after revealing it hit similar numbers to The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt's expansions, Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine.

2023 saw the release of Alan Wake 2, the first full-on horror game from Remedy Entertainment, and if you have any success in the horror realm Dead by Daylight is going to hook you sooner or later. Today Montreal-based developer Behaviour Interactive announced Alan Wake himself is coming to Dead by Daylight later this month. You can check out a teaser trailer for Alan Wake’s DBD debut, below.

Behaviour Interactive has announced the release date for Dead by Daylight's Alan Wake crossover alongside a spooky new trailer.

Sony has announced the PC specifications for Arrowhead Game Studios’ upcoming Helldivers 2, and confirmed crossplay between PlayStation 5 and PC.

Nvidia has revealed a selection of games that will be joining its GeForce Now cloud gaming service. 

Sony showed off the latest prototype of its electronic vehicle collaboration with Honda by driving the car on stage using a PlayStation 5 controller.

There's no denying that Hogwarts Legacy was one of the biggest games of last year, with millions of Harry Potter fans jumping at the chance to enrol in that iconic wizarding school and unravel a mystery decades before The Boy Who Lived was even born.

A day after Apple announced the sale of its AR/VR headset, the Apple Vision Pro, in the US, Sony has previewed its own headset that competes against Apple's at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2024. Unlike other mixed reality headsets, the Sony headset is primarily not meant for consumers but for engineers and developers, much like the Apple Vision Pro. Sony plans to collaborate with developers of a variety of 3D production software, including in the entertainment and industrial design fields.

The the first time in over ten years, video games is not the UK's biggest entertainment medium.

The first footage of the currently in production Gravity Rush film has been shown.

Do you want to get the latest gaming industry news straight to your inbox? Sign up for our daily and weekly newsletters here .

Today, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment released new sales data on Hogwarts Legacy via an interview with Variety. The game has sold over 22 million copies in 2023, adding two million units just in the month of December, according to the publisher. Moreover, according to Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment president David Haddad, it is the best-selling game released last year.

January is a special time for horror fans. The holidays are over, the new year is just beginning, and the horror options at the box office are as much of a mixed bag as they’ll be all year. Some years, we get great conversation-starters like M3GAN, Missing,or Saint Maud. Other years, we suffer through another Grudge remake. But most of the time, January is a great spot for weird little curiosities like Gretel & Hansel, Underwater, or Infinity Pool — movies with tremendous bright spots that are a little too uneven to be great.

It’s funny how a few years can change things. At one point in time, the Harry Potter franchise was one of the biggest and most profitable media series in the entire world. Then, things started to change after the main series wrapped up its main book line and movie adaptations. First, they tried to do spinoff movies based on an entirely different wizarding period, which heavily backfired on them. That’s not even mentioning what happened with series creator J.K. Rowling. But then, in 2022, things changed with the arrival of a certain video game you might have heard of: Hogwarts Legacy.

Warner Bros. has teased plans to release more games based on in its Wizarding World franchise following Hogwarts Legacy’s success.

Do you want to get the latest gaming industry news straight to your inbox? Sign up for our daily and weekly newsletters here .

Harry Potter spinoff game Hogwarts Legacy managed to sell an astounding 22 million copies in 2023.

Some of the greatest stories about games are simply about how developers made the thing work. Ask any developer for their favourite workarounds and you'll get a full evening's worth of entertainment about how a giant tram is actually an NPC with a hat on, or how rabbits are actually what makes Azeroth work, and so on.

Marvel Snap developer Second Dinner has found new investment after TikTok owner ByteDance dropped the game’s former publisher, Nuverse. Griffin Gaming Partners will invest $100 million in Second Dinner; it has previously funded companies like Discord, developer Frost Giant Games, and mobile marketing platform AppLovin. Second Dinner “will continue to operate independently,” according to a news release. Griffin Gaming Partners will act as a minority investor alongside NetEase.

Do you want to get the latest gaming industry news straight to your inbox? Sign up for our daily and weekly newsletters here .

Do you want to get the latest gaming industry news straight to your inbox? Sign up for our daily and weekly newsletters here .

Samsung has unveiled its AI-enhanced Neo QLED 8K TV alongside a range of Micro-LED, and OLED options for its 2024 TV lineup.

Genre veterans have explained how retail companies (Best Buy, Walmart, GameStop, and more) contributed to the death of isometric role-playing games. 

By Wes Davis, a weekend editor who covers the latest in tech and entertainment. He has written news, reviews, and more as a tech journalist since 2020.

If Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio’s Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is going to be your entry point into the Like a Dragon series (formerly known as Yakuza), first of all, welcome. You’ll probably have a good time. However, I implore you to consider playing its predecessor, Yakuza: Like a Dragon, before moving on to the newer release. While you could certainly still enjoy Infinite Wealth without playing Like a Dragon, it lays the groundwork to get the most out of the latest entry in one of gaming’s most entertaining franchises, introducing you to delightful characters and a bizarre world where you’ll be asked to save people stranded without toilet paper in public restrooms and fight a tiger with your bare hands. And it’s also on Game Pass, which never hurts.

Welcome to Polygon’s first weekend special of the new year. The pickings are a bit slim as we kick off 2024, but we’ve still managed to scrounge up a couple of deals you should check out. For the uninitiated, every weekend at Polygon we present to you a roundup of our favorite deals from the past week in gaming and entertainment, along with some of the best-selling products that have recently graced our site.

VR isn’t in the best place at present, and studios like First Contact Entertainment have closed due to a lack of support in the industry. If you’re looking for something to pull you back into the VR world, Tiger Blade might be the most action-packed way to do it.

Obsidian Entertainment's beloved isometric RPG Pillars of Eternity just received an unexpected update, nine whole years after its initial release, and I have a sneaking suspicion that two other big games are responsible.

Exodus, an upcoming space RPG from genre veterans, will have multiple endings depending on your choices.

Late Nintendo president Satoru Iwata oversaw the launch of the DS and Wii, helping to usher in the company's modern era. In a recently unearthed 2004 interview, Iwata explained the philosophy that led to the creation of those two systems, and with the benefit of hindsight, it's clear that this all informed the last 20 years of Nintendo.

I’m sure we don’t have to tell you, but video games are expensive. It’s not a cheap hobby or form of entertainment. With the latest-generation consoles released into the marketplace, we saw a price in new AAA releases. Instead of paying the once-standard $59.99, we have to dig a bit deeper into our pockets. New AAA games are costing you $69.99. That’s not a small lump of change, and it’s not easy to swallow if you’ve got a few notable games on your radar releasing side by side. So, if you want to save money, you might be after some sales. Fortunately, several sale events are happening at any moment, such as this one found on the official Xbox storefront.

City of Heroes is making an official return as a fan server dedicated to keeping the superhero multiplayer game running has been granted an official license by publisher NCSOFT.

Publisher Game Source Entertainment updated plans on a handful of titles, including deck-building roguelite Lost in Fantaland (via Gematsu). The isometric strategy game is currently in Early Access on PC, and it’s coming to PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch this June. 

The VR gaming realm appears to be struggling to gain its footing as yet another studio experiences problems. This time around it’s Archiact which has announced it is going through layoffs.

Happy new year, everyone! The next 12 months will no doubt be stuffed with brilliant new games (just the first quarter is looking nuts), but if you missed some older titles, PS Plus Essential's monthly selection of games will keep you busy. Sony is kicking off 2024 with a strong lineup for January, and the trio is available right now.

Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden is out on PS5 next month, and despite being shown off at various gaming events last year, it feels like the intriguing action title is struggling to stand out. Publisher Focus Entertainment is trying its best to get some eyes on the game, and so it's pumping out these smaller gameplay trailers — each one of them sporting a release date reminder at the end.

In the video game world, the idea of someone making a name for themselves in the trade and then leaving is almost unheard of. After all, if you “love what you do,” you’re not going to be one to leave it willingly. Just look at Shigeru Miyamoto as an example of that, as he wants to keep doing this until he “falls over.” But for Masahiro Sakurai, the man who helped make Super Smash Bros the great franchise that it is, he has a more nuanced take on things. Albeit, one that ends with him saying he’s still making games.

It was teased at Blizzcon, we had time for preorders, and now it's finally here — the Blizzard and McFarlane Toys partnership has brought us their newest premium figure. The Blood Bishop boss in Diablo 4 is now available for purchase! This imposing crimson figure comes in at 10.42 inches (26.47 cm) in height, and features a gruesome amount of detail, with veins running down the length of its large tendrils used to fight. This figure comes with a base, a flight pole to attach them to the base, and unknown additional accessories — including a mystery weapon.

Konami’s remakes of Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater and Silent Hill 2 are coming to PlayStation 5 this year, according to a new hype reel released by Sony Interactive Entertainment on Thursday. Neither game had a confirmed release window from publisher Konami, but it appears both projects are now confirmed to arrive in 2024.

More than almost any other reality show from the mid-2000s, Hell’s Kitchen is regularly in the zeitgeist. Gordon Ramsay’s particularly entertaining brand of British yelling made the show a hit when it debuted in 2005, and continues to make it popular to this day. But, now that it’s been on for nearly two decades, there’s also a treasure trove of lore behind the series, including a mystery that gets rediscovered every once in a while about a secret contestant.