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Luna Abyss Locks May 21 Release as Kwalee’s Junji Ito-Inspired Bullet Hell FPS Targets 2026’s Indie Crown

An illustration for Luna Abyss showing futuristic characters with the text 'COMING MAY 21, 2026' against a dark background.

Yesterday, Kwalee announced the release date of Luna Abyss, the stylish bullet hell first-person shooter game in development at internal studio Kwalee Labs (previously known as Bonsai Collective). The single player title will be released on May 21, 2026 for Xbox Series S|X, Xbox on PC, Xbox Cloud Gaming (with Game Pass), PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store, and PlayStation 5. I previously interviewed Creative Director Benni Hill and Production Director Hollie Emery to discuss the game's intriguing visual style and gameplay influences. David played the updated demo (which is still available on Steam, if you want to […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/luna-abyss-release-date-may-21-2026/

Nagoshi’s Gang of Dragon Appears to Be Dead: The YouTube Channel and Trailers Are Gone

A character from 'Gang of Dragon' stands in front of a city street with Japanese signage.

Gang of Dragon, the new game by YAKUZA creator Toshihiro Nagoshi, might be in serious danger of being canceled. As spotted on Reddit, the official YouTube channel and trailers have been suddenly deleted. The Steam page is still up, though, the last flicker of hope that the game's development might continue. Gang of Dragon was unveiled just a few months ago, at The Game Awards 2025, but it was admittedly already in trouble. After his departure from SEGA in 2021, Nagoshi founded a new studio with NetEase's help the following year. However, in early 2025, reports began circulating that NetEase […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/gang-of-dragon-youtube-channel-deleted-canceled/

Xbox Game Pass Starter Edition Leaks Via Discord Datamine, Bundled Free With Nitro for $9.99 Monthly

The image shows a split-screen with an Xbox Game Pass logo on the left alongside various game covers and a Discord Nitro logo on a purple background on the right.

It looks like the rumored new Game Pass tier will be officially called Xbox Game Pass Starter Edition. The leak came from the Discord datamining GitHub, and that's because, apparently, this version of Game Pass will soon be bundled with the Discord Nitro subscription. The following lines were discovered by the dataminers: This is supposedly the Triton/Duet tier that was previously datamined via Xbox Cloud Gaming by @redphx, the author of Better xCloud, a free and open-source tool that improves the Xbox Cloud Gaming and Remote Play experiences. In fact, Redphx also spotted the Xbox Game Pass Starter Edition name […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/xbox-game-pass-starter-edition-discord-nitro-leak/

Eight Years Later, Conan Exiles Gets a Massive Free UE5 Overhaul — Here’s Everything That’s Changing

A player character stands on a rooftop overlooking a desert city with a distant fantasy landscape, while a large, winged creature flies overhead in the game Conan Exiles Enhanced.

Today, Funcom announced Conan Exiles Enhanced, a free upgrade that brings the game from Unreal Engine 4 to Unreal Engine 5. Conan Exiles Enhanced will launch on the game's eighth anniversary: May 5, 2026. The upgraded version was developed in collaboration with Inflexion Games, the studio behind the survival game Nightingale. Conan Exiles Enhanced introduces four specific rendering improvements: The Enhanced version targets smooth 60+ FPS across Low, Medium, High, and Ultra settings on most PCs, with Steam Deck support. Notably, despite the graphics improvements, the client size has been dramatically reduced from 120GB to just 40GB. But there's more: the Exiled Lands and […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/conan-exiles-enhanced-free-ue5-upgrade/

Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced Breathes New Life into the “Ultimate Pirate Fantasy” Game

Edward Kenway in 'Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced' stands on a pirate ship with a sword and pistol, surrounded by crew members and a distant ship on the ocean.

Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced can comfortably be described as the worst-kept secret in gaming history, with its long story of rumors and leaks of all kinds. The official reveal is here at last, though, and it's juicy. The presentation opened with Matt Ryan (who was among the "leakers" last year), the voice actor of protagonist Edward Kenway, confirming that Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced is a faithful remake, not a reinvention. It is entirely rebuilt from the ground up using the latest version of Ubisoft's Anvil engine while preserving the original story and character arc. Notably, the original game will remain available after the […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/assassins-creed-black-flag-resynced-reveal/

Embers of the Uncrowned Is an Isometric Dark Fantasy PC MMORPG from NEXON

A cloaked figure holding a torch on a stormy shore stands before a burning castle with the title 'Embers of the Uncrowned' below.

South Korean-Japanese developer NEXON has announced a new PC game called Embers of the Uncrowned. It's an isometric dark fantasy MMORPG developed by a team of self-described "hardcore MMORPG veterans" with a deep passion for the genre, set on a continent ravaged by an elven invasion. In the game, players take the role of the illegitimate heir to House Harborwell. They're a mercenary called back by destiny to reclaim their lost domain and restore their noble house. The players' character growth is directly tied to their House's growth. Constructing buildings in the settlement produces essential items for the journey, while upgrading […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/embers-of-the-uncrowned-isometric-dark-fantasy-mmorpg-nexon/

Critics Hate It, Audiences Don’t Care: Super Mario Galaxy Movie Is 2026’s Highest-Grossing Film

Princess Peach and Mario from the Super Mario Galaxy Movie stand side by side, looking surprised.

Earlier this month, we reported that The Super Mario Galaxy Movie by Nintendo and Universal's Illumination set the biggest theatrical debut of 2026 in the United States. However, maintaining momentum across all territories was far from a given, especially with the rather scathing reviews from film critics. Now, according to data collected by IMDbPro's Box Office Mojo, it appears that The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is the highest-grossing film released this year, with nearly $756 million grossed across all territories. It's an almost even split: $361,825,355 earned in the United States (47.9%) and $393,990,000 earned elsewhere (52.1%), with Mexico leading […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/super-mario-galaxy-movie-highest-grossing-2026/

Crimson Desert Patch 1.04 Adds Difficulty Settings, Improvements to Controls, Visuals and Much More

A promotional image for the game 'Crimson Desert Patch' featuring a heavily armored character looking to the side.

Today, South Korean developer Pearl Abyss released Crimson Desert patch 1.04 on nearly all platforms (Mac users will have to wait until a later time). This update adds most of the enhancements and features outlined a couple of weeks ago in the official roadmap, except for boss rematches, which will be released in a future patch. Three difficulty modes (Easy, Normal, and Hard) have been added under Settings > Play. Easy reduces damage taken, lowers enemy stats, and extends Parry/Dodge windows. Normal is unchanged from the existing gameplay experience. Hard arguably brings the most significant changes: food effects only apply after the full consumption animation completes, […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/crimson-desert-patch-1-04-difficulty-settings-controls-visuals/

Fallout: New Vegas Dev Pours Cold Water on Remaster Rumors: “They Have No Idea How to Reassemble It”

A character in 'Fallout: New Vegas' wearing armor and holding a revolver stands against a red sky, with the city's skyline in the background.

Fallout: New Vegas Senior Designer and Writer Chris Avellone talked extensively about the Fallout franchise in a recent interview with YouTuber TKs-Mantis. Avellone (who also worked as a designer on Fallout 2 and on the canceled Van Buren project) claimed that, to his knowledge, Obsidian never provided the full source code of Fallout: New Vegas to Bethesda. Furthermore, as far as he knows, they don't have the knowledge to reassemble it, which constitutes a major problem for the rumored remaster. I don't think Bethesda has the engineering know-how to make a remaster of Fallout: New Vegas at all. And the […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/fallout-new-vegas-remaster-avellone-bethesda-source-code/

My Hands-on with The Expanse: Osiris Reborn Beta Made Me Confident Owlcat Is on the Right Track

The image shows a promotional art for The Expanse: Osiris Reborn featuring various characters, including some wearing space suits and holding futuristic weapons, standing amidst icy blue crystals.

Owlcat's rather unusual tradition of holding Closed Beta tests for its single player roleplaying games continues with The Expanse: Osiris Reborn. Starting today, customers who have purchased the Miller's Pack (at €79.99) or the Collector's Edition (at €289) from the official website will be able to get a taste of the game via the Closed Beta, available across all platforms: PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series S and X. Owlcat kindly provided Wccftech with advanced access to the Closed Beta build, giving me the chance to preview this highly anticipated action RPG. The section of the game included in the […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/the-expanse-osiris-reborn-beta-hands-on/

Xbox Project Helix Could Be Worth Like a $3,000 Gaming PC, Says Leaker: “That’s Disruptive”

The image shows the logos of Xbox, AMD, and 'Project Helix' against a black background.

In the latest episode of the Broken Silicon podcast, leaker Moore's Law Is Dead claimed that the next Xbox console, codenamed Project Helix, could be as disruptive as Apple's new MacBook Neo due to its sheer value, which MLID likened to a two or even three-thousand-dollar gaming PC: Project Helix is basically a high-end PC, even using the same silicon as AMD's 70 or maybe 80 class RDNA5 GPU is. It isn't an ultra level of PC hardware, but still far more power than consoles usually have. It will have the biggest APU in console history. I think over 400 […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/xbox-project-helix-3000-gaming-pc-value/

Google Cloud’s Jack Buser: AI Is the “Iron Man Suit” Game Developers Need Right Now

Iron Man suit powered by AI with glowing chest arc reactor and illuminated eyes against a dark backdrop.

Over the past year or so, several game developers have started sharing thoughts on the potential benefits and downsides of using AI in game development. As with all things AI, the conversation is quite polarized at the moment: some have already embraced it, while others have sworn not to touch it with a tentpole, mainly for ethical reasons. Veteran industry executive Jack Buser sits firmly in the first camp. Buser, who worked at Dolby, then at Sony on PlayStation Home and PlayStation NOW, and finally at Google on Stadia first and as Google Cloud's Global Director for Games now, believes […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/google-cloud-jack-buser-ai-iron-man-suit-games-industry/

“The Ultimate Expression of Diablo IV” — Blizzard on Why Lord of Hatred Is the Best It’s Ever Been

A demonic figure with large horns stands against a fiery red background next to the 'Diablo IV' logo.

About midway through the review period for Diablo IV: Lord of Hatred, Blizzard organized a roundtable Q&A with a few key developers from the team: Game Director Zaven Haroutunian, Production Director Barry Morales, Lead System Designer Colin Finer, and Senior Composer Ted Reedy. The team answered questions on various topics, from the narrative and setting to world design and the music score, new gameplay systems like War Plans and the Horadric Cube, and an overall assessment of the game's state ahead of its second expansion's upcoming launch. You can find the full transcript below. As a reminder, Diablo IV: Lord […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/diablo-iv-lord-of-hatred-interview-ultimate-expression/

Diablo IV: Lord of Hatred Review – The Epic Conclusion to a Long Narrative Arc

A demonic character with large horns and glowing eyes is prominently featured against a red background, with the text 'Diablo IV Lord of Hatred'.

Diablo IV: Lord of Hatred lands almost three years after the launch of the base game. As you may recall, Blizzard initially committed to annual expansions, which they almost accomplished with the first one, Vessel of Hatred, launched sixteen months after Diablo IV. However, it later became clear that delivering high-quality expansions on an annual basis was impossible, especially as the developers were also busy with making seasonal content. Thus, Lord of Hatred launches a year and a half after the previous expansion, which seems to be the sweet spot in terms of development time. Ultimately, though, what matters is […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/review/diablo-iv-lord-of-hatred/

NC’s AION 2 Is Coming to Steam Globally in 2026 as a PC-Native Release

Two armored characters face each other in a celestial landscape with the title 'Aion 2' between them.

Today, NC America confirmed that the MMORPG AION 2 will launch later this year globally, following its original debut in South Korea on November 19, 2025. That version was made for mobile and accessible on PC only via NC's own Purple launcher. However, the global version has been built specifically for PC, according to the new press release, and it will also be distributed via Steam. In fact, you can already wishlist the game on Valve's store. The global servers will be hosted locally in North America, South America, Europe, and Japan, providing a latency-conscious gameplay experience for many users. […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/aion-2-global-steam-2026-pc/

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