Author: Zach Barbieri

Project Orion, the codename for the Sequel to Cyberpunk 2077, still remains relatively unknown at this point in time. Thankfully, Mike Pondsmith, the creator of Cyberpunk, has let slip some details for the game that should wet players’ appetites. Pondsmith, who developed the Cyberpunk 2020 Tabletop RPG, worked closely on the CD Projekt Red game that was released in 2020 and has sold over 30 million units since its release. During the Digital Dragons 2025 Conference, Mike was asked about the scope of his involvement this time around, with Project Orion. Responding to the question, he stated he wasn’t involved…

Duck Detective: The Ghost of Glamping, despite its name being anything but, commits to its bit of playing it straight. A duck that is a hard-boiled, self-narrating detective is a premise that could easily go awry, but it manages to entertain thoroughly throughout. In fact, this latest outing of Duck Detective succeeds heavily on the back of its characters and voice acting, making each interaction with the quirky cast of campers that have fallen under suspicion as the mystery continues to deepen. This is a testament to the writing that Happy Broccoli Games brings to the experience. At the start…

It is hard to put the full experience with Spellcaster University into one box. Starting up, it appears to be a straightforward Management sim, and who has never wanted to manage a magical school that trains wizards against the forces of darkness. Especially if you are a 90s kid. There was enjoyment in this, but also some mixed messages when you begin to pile genres on top of this. Following a trend in indie titles, we get a card mechanic to control the management part of the simulator, and a roguelike to diversify it further. All three of these genres…

Lost in Random: Eternal Die, the sequel to the 2021 indie game from Zoink, has received a release date. It was announced that the title will be released on June 17th for the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, Nintendo Switch, and PC. It will also be released as a day one game with Xbox Game Pass, similar to the first title. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3djJR5sd3Q While the original title was an action man action adventure game featuring a dice roll mechanic during combat, this follow-up will instead be Roguelite, focusing on fast-paced combat across each field from an isometric viewpoint. It will also be…

Jade Raymond, founder of Haven Studios, has departed the studio, with reports suggesting their debut game, Fairgames, has been delayed following an external test, marking another hurdle to PlayStation when it comes to their live-service titles. According to Bloomberg, Raymond exited the company several weeks after the external test, which has been reported not to have been received positively, seeing the title that was due out in the fall of 2025, but is now planned for Spring 2026. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1Jp4K02L1I According to Bloomberg: PlayStation leadership didn’t give Haven staff a reason for her departure, but it came several weeks after an…

Altus has announced that the upcoming free-to-play spinoff of their popular JRPG, Persona 5: The Phantom x, is coming to mobile and PC on June 26, 2025. The studio made the announcement with an hour-long breakdown video, released today. It is being developed in collaboration between Atlus, Sega, and Perfect World. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQsdIWTGn_Y Japanese and English versions of the game will launch simultaneously, though the game had been released previously. Announced in 2023, the title initially saw release in China in 2024. The developer has continued to update the game in that region, addressing bugs and issues, before now porting it…

Microsoft’s multiplatform strategy did not have a clear roadmap. First, it was on a case-by-case basis, then it was not the major releases, then it was everything. The flood gates that rumors have suggested would open finally did this year with Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, Forza Horizon 5 releasing across party lines to PlayStation, and Gears of War Reloaded set to do so later this year. It’s understandable, given how hardware began a slow decline, I would argue, right around the time Microsoft announced DRM for the Xbox One, something that backtracking couldn’t even help recover. It’s hard…

Yuji Horii has reaffirmed that Dragon Quest XII, the next entry in the long-running Japanese RPG series, is indeed not canceled and still in development. The was announced as part of the 35th anniversary of the Dragon Quest franchise all the way back in 2021, four years after the last mainline entry, Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age, was released. Since then, however, the game has remained mostly silent outside of a reference or two in interviews. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUAmVLMjGQw The last time Horii mentioned the title was back in February when he made a point to say that the…

GSC Game World has announced that S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Legends of the Zone Trilogy will be receiving an enhanced edition that will release on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, and PC. Releasing on May 20th, the trilogy includes upgraded versions of Shadow of Chernobyl (2007), Clear Sky (2008), and Call of Prypiat (2009). All of these titles will include upgraded visuals, optimization for current hardware, as well as mod support. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AVWkOx4Cj6g GSC Game World has also stated that players who already own the trilogy, released on PlayStation 4 or Xbox, will receive this upgrade for the corresponding games for free. PC players should…

When I first started my cop journey, The Precinct reminded me in part of ABC’s The Rookie. There is a basis to the game that grounds itself in some form of reality before you get involved in a bank robbery gone wrong on your first day, blasting from behind the cover of your car, trying to take down armed attackers. It feels weird to begin your first foot patrol the day after that, handing out parking tickets and stopping a vandal, but to my understanding, that’s just how life goes on the mean streets of Averno City in the 1980s,…