This week, an official X-Files Lego set was revealed, the Xbox 360 got an update almost 20 years after its release, and players thrashed the latest Elden Ring Nightreign boss with the help of an overpowered relic. Also, Steam’s big summer sale arrived with some incredible deals, and Mario Kart 64 got a very impressive unofficial PC port. Read on for these stories and more.
Sometimes, an infectious digital virus can be a good thing, like when your brainrot spreads to all your friends’ video game consoles and they finally play a game you’ve been yelling about for a decade. Last week, after the previews went up for Digimon Story: Time Stranger, I looked on my shelf for my copy of Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth, the excellent, underrated 2016 RPG that marries monster-taming and a detective serial story. I was devastated to see that I no longer had the game, so I went to PlayStation Network to buy it there, only to find Bandai Namco had apparently delisted the game from PlayStation’s online stores in 2018! Thankfully, it’s been ported to PC and Switch, and I found the Switch Complete Edition that contains both the base game and its parallel story follow-up, Hacker’s Memory, was on sale on Amazon for $25, which is half off. Now I’m infecting all my friends with my same brainrot by gifting them copies, and others have been joining in on the collective playthrough because FOMO is a powerful influence. Even better, the Complete Edition is currently on sale for $4.49 through Fanatical. Join us in the Digital World, won’t you? - Kenneth Shepard Read More
My friends and I spent 10 hours dying to last week’s Everdark Sovereign overhaul of the Gaping Jaw before finally killing the lightning bird late one night, long past the point when we should have all gone to bed. Now Elden Ring Nightreign is back with a new boss for players to take on, but thankfully this one is a lot easier. It took us only two tries, in part due to a completely over-powered relic we unlocked from defeating last week’s terror. - Ethan Gach Read More
The classic ‘90s TV show The X-Files is coming back, but not via another so-so legacy season that everyone forgets about. Instead, the popular paranormal show is returning as an official Lego set, complete with aliens, flashlights, and a UFO. - Zack Zwiezen Read More
Joseph “Mang0" Marquez, a long-time Smash Bros. player and two-time Evo champion, isn’t getting invited back to the next Beerio Kart World Cup. The esports pro was banned for inappropriate behavior during the livestreamed event and subsequently dropped from his team, Cloud9. “I’m sorry everyone,” he wrote afterwards. “Wish I was better. I had it all and fucking tossed it in the trashcan.” - Ethan Gach Read More
Steam’s annual and massive summer sale is live! If you’ve been waiting to buy a copy of Schedule I, RoboCop: Rogue City, Borderlands 3, Anno 1800, Metro Exodus, or Dead By Daylight, this sale is for you. And if you wanted some other games instead, well, odds are they are on sale as well. It’s a pretty big sale. - Zack Zwiezen Read More
In the last couple of weeks, Adventure Gamers—a beloved game site dedicated to point-and-click adventure gaming since 1998—has become a cruel pastiche of its former self. The site, primarily run by volunteers and enthusiasts, has fought for the much-maligned adventure gaming genre through thick and thin for almost three decades, but visit today and you’ll find more “reviews” of gambling sites and slot machine games than the latest adventure releases. And for an extra kick in the shins, the new owners wiped twenty years of forum posts without warning. How did any of this happen? - John Walker Read More
Mario Kart 64 is now unofficially playable natively on your personal computer courtesy of some of the same people who’ve brought us similar Nintendo 64 PC ports. And so far, Nintendo seems unable or unwilling to legally challenge these reverse-engineered ports. - Zack Zwiezen Read More
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has an incredibly stacked voice cast. Final Fantasy XVI lead Ben Starr and Baldur’s Gate 3 star Jennifer English head the pack of expeditioners as Verso and Maelle, but perhaps the most recognizable voice among them all is Daredevil actor Charlie Cox. He plays Gustave, the swordsman and gunslinger, the first playable character you inhabit in the RPG. Notably, Cox hasn’t been that present in promoting the game, with Starr, English, and others in the cast making more appearances in trailers and panels. This isn’t too surprising, as Cox has been a bit preoccupied with his role in Daredevil: Born Again, but as Clair Obscur has risen in popularity, it seems Cox has been caught off guard by all the hype. - Kenneth Shepard Read More
