Key Note Gaming

I'm so, so glad I avoided the GTA 6 leaks . Grand Theft Auto has been one of my favorite franchises since GTA 3 convinced me to buy a PS2 with its paradigm-shifting open-world gameplay. That's continued with every major release since, most recently with 2013's Grand Theft Auto 5, which I personally regard as one of the ten greatest games ever made. So to say I've been hyped up for GTA 6 – and for today’s Extended Look – would be putting it mildly. Thirteen years is a long time between entries (for context, the previous longest wait between mainline entries was the five years between 4 and 5), and though Rockstar made a generationally incredible game in the intervening years in the form of Red Dead Redemption 2, I've always been more of a GTA guy. When the clock struck 12pm, I hit Play on Netflix. My jaw hit the floor very quickly, and I didn't pick it back up for 27 minutes. The first thing that jumped out at me was the lighting. The softness of the dynamic ligh...

Rockstar's hugely-impressive first look at GTA 6 is being celebrated online, as today's Grand Theft Auto 6: Extended Look presentation has now debuted via Netflix. Fans, streamers and game developers alike have heaped praise on the footage, with numerous comments calling out the game's highly-detailed character design and animation, as well as the sheer wealth of activities on display . If you're still waiting for the footage to drop more widely beyond Netflix, we have guide to when the Extended Look will debut more widely in your timezone . Or scroll downwards, and take in some of the reactions to it now to whet your appetite: GTA VI LOOKS INSANE pic.twitter.com/VV59nW4OmX — Jack “CouRage” Dunlop (@CouRageJD) August 27, 2026 IShowSpeed couldn’t believe GTA 6 added streamers into the game pic.twitter.com/HDkPHoRLOH — FearBuck (@FearedBuck) August 27, 2026 What did I just watch? That world looked so lived in, I almost don't want to know how it was made....

Silent Hill producer Motoi Okamoto says that Konami is gunning for annual releases of new games in its flagship horror franchise. Okamoto divulged this news in an interview with Gamesradar at Gamescom 2026, explaining that Konami is looking for fresh takes on the well-trodden beats of the Silent Hill series to keep it from stagnating. "Our aim is to, hopefully, have an annual release of new games," he told the outlet. “If we stay laser-focused on the same American setting, that would exhaust [narrative] possibilities, and also potentially cause fatigue for the playerbase." Okamoto also confirmed that several unannounced Silent Hill projects are currently in development. "There are still many projects that are still [in] the works and very unannounced titles. So obviously, we can't go into specifics. But there are still many projects that we are currently exploring and working on as we speak,” he said. "We would like to let players know that we have more ex...

An ex-Naughty Dog designer believes that Uncharted 2's success may have negatively impacted the way Uncharted 3 was developed. When speaking with FRVR , ex-Naughty Dog designer Benson Russell revealed that Uncharted 2's over-the-top setpieces may have negatively impacted Uncharted 3. He noted that the big set pieces, such as the train sequence, all came organically when producing the game, but that wasn't the case for Uncharted 3. Instead, the team came up with 10 or 12 set pieces, such as the cargo plane sequence, and came up with a plan to decide on a small handful that would actually make it into the game at a later date. Unfortunately, that never happened, and almost all of them made it into the final product. As a result, writer and director Amy Hennig was forced into a situation where she had to write all of these big set pieces into the game because the designers had already started working on them. “It also kind of corners Amy [Hennig] a bit, right?” he said. “Beca...

Auroch Digital and Big Fan Games have confirmed award-winning composer Mick Gordon has contributed a new track to its upcoming ’90s-inspired boomer shooter Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun 2. The first taste of the original track can be heard behind today’s new release date trailer for Boltgun 2, which is blasting its way onto PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S on October 14. It was additionally confirmed Boltgun 2 will also be coming to Switch 2 “shortly after” its debut on other platforms. The trailer showcases the first footage of the game’s chief antagonist, Vashtorr the Arkifane – described as the “daemonic demigod of inventors, engineers, scientists, and artisans.” IGN’s latest preview of Boltgun 2 found it “brings the grimy, oppressive reality of the 42nd Millennium to life with a readable, pixelated style that evokes the essence of it in a way that even the most hyperrealistic renditions like Space Marine 2 struggle to match”, and that it “feels like undiluted 40K.” Mick Gordon’s...

Pearl Abyss has announced Crimson Desert Enhanced , a new version of the game with additional story, available free to all players. Simply update the game to version 2.00.00 and Crimson Desert Enhanced will be yours, Pearl Abyss has aid. So, to be clear, it is just a fresh patch for the existing game — but one that Pearl Abyss feels is so substantial that it warrants an updated title for the full game. Crimson Desert Enhanced adds new cutscenes and story moments throughout the main questline, plus voiceover support so you can enjoy the game's narrative in German, French, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese and Japanese. Pearl Abyss previously promised a summer roadmap of content that includes improvements to the core narrative – a recurring criticism of the game at launch. And of course, the Enhanced edition will include all existing updates to the game — and there have been a lot, with new bits and pieces every few weeks. All of this comes ahead of the game's first paid DLC, due th...

CD Projekt Red has confirmed The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 's upcoming Songs of the Past expansion will come with more Gwent, and card game lovers are already celebrating. The Witcher 3 earned a lot of praise when it launched back in 2015. While Doug Cockle 's gravelly delivery as Geralt helped sell its story, and its RPG gameplay quickly hooked in every kind of fantasy fan, many would say Gwent was what truly kept them coming back for more. "In Gwent, gamers clash with friends in fast-paced duels that combine skill-based play with bluffing, and careful deck construction," an official description from CD Projekt Red says . "The game is played over a best-of-three series of rounds, as players unleash their hand by slinging spells and diverse units with special abilities, and use clever tricks to deceive their opponents." CD Projekt Red's in-universe card game first launched within the third installment in its Witcher series before being transformed into a sta...

Beard Papa’s is teaming up with Persona to celebrate the RPG series’ 30th anniversary with some special cream puffs. Beard Papa’s is a Japanese dessert chain with locations sprinkled across the US. It’s best known for its primary offering, cream puffs, which come in a variety of different flavors and combinations for customers to choose from. Starting September 4, participating Beard Papa’s locations within the United States will transform their interiors and offer up several new flavors of cream puffs in collaboration with Persona. These storefronts will feature Persona-themed digital menu boards, bakery case graphics, posters, television displays, and more, transforming them into a real-life Persona menu screen. And for mega-fans, the Beard Papa’s locations in Little Tokyo and Cerritos will include large-format anniversary murals specifically designed for photo opportunities. Limited-time cream puff flavors are also on offer: Original Cream Puff, Matcha Cream Puff, Ube S'mores Cr...

Alleged footage from Avalanche Studios' canceled Iron Man game has surfaced online. In the early 2010s, Just Cause and Mad Max developer Avalanche Studios was working on an Iron Man game . The project was never officially announced to the public, but Avalanche Studios co-founder Christofer Sundberg confirmed its development and cancellation during an interview in 2022. Now, gameplay for that title has popped up online via Reddit , reportedly sourced through a PS3 developer kit. The gameplay is extremely unfinished, but it shows Iron Man flying around in a large environment, fighting jets and attacking various facilities. One of the more in-depth videos appears to be an unfinished E3 demo which shows Iron Man in hand-to-hand combat with soldiers, using a heavy, Arkham-esque style of combat. Of course, he also boasts his repulsors, missiles, and other gadgets to help take down all of his targets. One of the more standout features is that the environments would've been at least s...

Games Workshop is famously anti-AI, but I was still caught by surprise when the narrator of my new favorite Warhammer 40,000 audiobook read out a warning about training AI systems on the novel itself. AI models training on books without permission has become one of the big topics in the tech space. Last week, a report by 404 Media alleged that Amazon was buying “massive quantities of books, scanning them for AI training data, and destroying them in the process.” Last summer, it emerged that Anthropic had shredded millions of physical books to train its Claude AI model. The secret initiative, called Project Panama, was unearthed in a lawsuit brought by a group of authors against Anthropic, which eventually agreed to settle for $1.5 billion despite the ruling largely siding with the AI company on fair use. And in October last year, a federal court advanced two new theories of infringement against ChatGPT-owner OpenAI in a lawsuit brought by authors including Game of Thrones’ George R.R....

The big PS5 exclusive this fall is Marvel’s Wolverine. It’s Insomniac Studios’ follow-up to the excellent (and massively successful) Spider-Man games, and it promises to be a bloody good time . To go along with the game, Sony is releasing a series of limited-edition Marvel’s Wolverine-themed PS5 hardware . Among IGN readers, by far the most popular item has been the Battle Yellow DualSense Wireless Controller. And while preorders have sold out at some retailers, it’s still available at most of them ( see it at Amazon ). It costs $89.99 and is set to release on September 15, the same day as the game. Marvel’s Wolverine Limited-Edition PS5 DualSense Controller Get it at Amazon Get it at Walmart Get it at Best Buy Get it at GameStop Get it at PS Direct Get it at Smyths Toys UK Get it at Target - SOLD OUT Functionally, Marvel’s Wolverine Limited-Edition PS5 DualSense Wireless Controller is a standard PS5 controller. What makes it stand out is the design, which makes it look like Wolverine...

The alleged GTA 6 leaker has released two further gameplay videos despite Rockstar owner Take-Two's subpoenas requesting identifying information from Microsoft and Discord. The ‘CyberLeek’ person or group released two new videos today, August 22, one showing more supercar gameplay and an armed robbery, the other strip club gameplay. The latter appears to taunt Take-Two and Rockstar by showing a snippet of a cutscene in which a character says they need to take "a leak." This is the second cutscene to emerge this week, and there is growing concern that the leaker has access to a build of the game and may post significant story spoilers. These new videos are the seventh and eighth to leak this week. And, like all the others , they advertise the ‘CyberLeek’ memecoin as part of what is widely considered to be a crypto scheme . On August 20, Take-Two issued Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) subpoenas in a federal court requesting information from both Microsoft and Disco...

A new weekend has arrived, and today, you can save on Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Nintendo Switch 2, Resident Evil Requiem, Civilization VII, select LEGO sets, AirPods Pro 3, and more. Check out our top picks for Saturday, August 22, below. Final Fantasy VII Rebirth with MTG Card for $34.99 Final Fantasy VII Rebirth for Nintendo Switch 2 is on sale today for $34.99 at Amazon. This physical version of the game includes an exclusive Zack Fair Magic: The Gathering - Final Fantasy card, which is perfect for fans and collectors alike. If you've yet to experience this massive RPG, take a chance and pick up a copy this weekend at a discount. It's pretty great exploring beyond Midgar on the Switch 2, just saying. Resident Evil Requiem for $53.99 Target has Resident Evil Requiem on sale this weekend for $53.99. If you've yet to play the latest RE game, this is a great time to do so. Grace Ashcroft and Leon S. Kennedy join forces to defeat a sinister new threat in a game that combine...

It was impossible for me to play The Sinking City 2 for more than 15 minutes without coming to the obvious realization that this is Resident Evil in a fedora. That might sound dismissive, but I really enjoy the recent Resident Evil games, so comparing Frogwares' Lovecraftian survival horror sequel to some of the best of them – which feels especially similar to 2019's Resident Evil 2 remake – is much more of a compliment than a put-down. What sets it apart begins with its unique, rich, 1920s New England setting flush with loving detail that instills a strong sense of personality over the top of the mechanics it so clearly imitates. You play as Calvin Rafferty, a likeable occultist waking up to an apocalyptic flood set to wipe out the entire city of Arkham, Massachusetts in 1929. He's definitely a little bit of a pulp fiction stock character: hard-chinned, two-fisted, and foolishly brave. But there are layers to him that rise to the surface here and there. Similar to the Res...

Embark Studios has announced that all future Arc Raiders Expeditions have been delayed until early 2027 as it aims to "return with major improvements" following community feedback. The developer behind the early 2026 extraction shooter hit announced the change in its post-launch schedule in an update on the Arc Raiders website today. It came with confirmation that Expedition 5 will launch when the window opens September 8 and close September 29, but after that, the Rust Belt will be quieter than normal. "We have been carefully reviewing your feedback on Expeditions," Embark's post said, "and while we've made ongoing improvements along the way, we've come to realize that some of the issues you've raised, like the tight departure windows, the reward structure, and accessibility for new players, need more than incremental fixes. They call for bigger changes." "In order to address those concerns, we need to pause the Expeditions for a w...

Psychonauts and Brutal Legend developer Double Fine Productions has confirmed it has regained the IP and publishing rights for all of its games released under Microsoft following its split from Xbox. CEO Tim Schafer cleared the air about the developer's future in the industry during a conversation with Kinda Funny Games today. Amid questions from fans hoping to support Double Fine as it enters a new chapter, he clarified that buying any of its previous releases will help it continue to flex the wildly creative muscles it's known for. "I saw a question, there, 'Do you guys make the money on games?' The transfer of the IP came back to us, and we get the publishing rights back to all our games," Schafer said. The one caveat to all of this is that it may still say Microsoft owns "some of them," but that will change in time. He went on, explaining, "it just takes a while for it to all process." The headline, though, is that "when people ...

At least 20 soldiers have chosen to reenlist after a United States Army base in Fort Stewart, Georgia, began offering time off for the launch of Grand Theft Auto 6 . According to CBS News , 20 soldiers of the 3rd Infantry Division's 9th Brigade Engineering Battalion have chosen to reenlist after being presented with the opportunity for some off-time to play Rockstar Games' latest. A flyer presenting the GTA 6 deal that was signed by commanding officer Lt. Col. Ryan D. Hodgson found its way online earlier this week. "The idea was to have a unique incentives program that connects to what soldiers are interested in," 3rd Infantry Division Lt. Col. Angel Tomko said in a statement. "The command team, in conjunction with the career counselor, wanted to get soldiers excited to reenlist." There are about 130 soldiers eligible to sign up, with the offer specifying that they must commit to a reenlistment period for at least two years to as long as six years. Dedicati...

Woot customers can use a new promo code to get Sonic x Shadow Generations for $1 on Switch or Xbox, and Sonic Racing Crossworlds for $8 today—provided they have never shopped with the Amazon-owned retailer before. While there are plenty of caveats, this is still a tremendous offering for anyone it applies to. Woot is effectively handing out copies of these critically acclaimed Sonic games for next to nothing. By applying the promotional code " HELLOTEN" at checkout, new Woot users (i.e., those who have never shopped there before) receive an instant $10 off their total order. This discount knocks the final cost of Sonic x Shadow Generations down to a single dollar on both Nintendo Switch and Xbox consoles. The same coupon code drops Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds on Switch to just $8 instead. Woot is seriously out here handing out pre-2020 style Black Friday deals like it's going out of fashion. Sure, this is contingent on you never having used Woot before, or maybe findi...

Halo: Reach designer Niles Sankey has revealed that the game was massively influenced by the first two Modern Warfare games. On Twitter, Halo: Reach designer Niles Sankey responded to a post about the infamous nuke scene in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. He noted that the first two Modern Warfare games were a "huge" inspiration for the campaign of Bungie's final Halo game. He noted that, although Bungie felt Halo was doing things better than Call of Duty in areas like enemy AI and vehicles, Infinity Ward was beating them at other things, and it made sense to pull from their games. "Many of the moments in Reach were inspired by the brilliant work of Infinity Ward, including the Nobel team squad interactions, and 'Objective Survive' was spiritually inspired by the Nuke sequence [in Call of Duty 4]. We just tried to push it one step further," he said. Modern Warfare 1 and 2 were huge influences on Halo Reach's campaign. The tonal execution in those ga...