26th August video games round-up: Helldivers 2 releases on Xbox and indies delay games due to Silksong
All the news and events in the world of video games today.
UPDATE: That was the world of video games today on 26th August. A full transcript of everything that occurred today is available below if you wish to digest it all at your leisure.
It's 26th August, the day after a bank holiday in the UK - I hope you had a nice one - and we're back with another daily live report. We'll be catching all of today's news and events here while chatting merrily along with you, providing thrilling coverage about the world of video games. That's right - thrilling!
Note, Tom's on holiday this week so I've muscled in, which is why you're already seeing excited words like "thrilling" in the report. Expect a lot of Gamescom mop-up this week as our roving reporters return and share more about the games they've seen, and as the games industry takes a breath before September appears and the cascade of autumn releases begins.
Our live coverage of this event has finished.
Good morning, good morning. I hope you had a nice long weekend (assuming you live in the UK). How did you keep yourself busy? I watched Physical 100 on Netflix; the Korean algorithm has me. It's good. I also played a bit of last year's Dontnod game Banishers, which I didn't even realise existed. I was inspired to play by positive comments about the game in the Eurogamer Discord (which reminds me: there's a Eurogamer Discord) and thought it rather good. Has anyone else played it?
Looking for a Left4Deadlike? Toxic Commando is for you
Something you might have missed over the break is Ian's preview of John Carpenter's Toxic Commando. This is a team-based Left4Deadalike where you flatten hordes of zombies by driving over them in armoured SUVs - among other things. It's silly and gory and Ian liked it.
One of my favourite Left4Deadalikes (which probably isn't a word but I'm making it one now) was Saber Interactive's World War Z, thanks mainly to the sheer volume of zombies it throws at players during the span of a mission and the visual spectacles that its writhing piles of undead created. Saber followed that game up with another Left4Deadalike of sorts in Space Marine 2, and now it's is back with John Carpenter's Toxic Commando, a game that takes everything learned from those last two games, adds it to a semi-open world and then crams in a very unexpected but actually pretty cool idea from another game in its back catalogue; MudRunner.
Oh and incidentally, that picture of a cat you see, at the top of the article, is a giant mechanical Inzoi cat as photographed at Gamescom by Victoria. Creepy, isn't it? What happens if it becomes sentient? I wish inventors thought these things through.
Akuma says: I'll be the first to make the daily call for getting rid of infinite scroll. I hope you enjoyed your weekend, Bertie. I think Banishers might be sitting in my Steam pile of shame, waiting patiently. I ended up going to Brighton yesterday to see some friends. It was as busy as you'd imagine it would be on a sunny bank holiday.
Brighton on a sunny bank holiday weekend is frantic. Part of me loves that, part of me does not. And I'd urge you to give Banishers ago. It's slow, and I mean that in a nice way I think. It butts against my impatience but it also reminds me of older films in how it allows more time for things to play out, and the characterisation and voicing of the two main leads is fantastic. They're a pleasure to watch. I likethe tone of the game too and its different approach to setting and fantasy. It feels distinct and that's a powerful trait in a cluttered game-world such as we have.
Demonschool delayed due to Hollow Knight Silksong's surprise release
Demonschool has been delayed once again due to the surprise release of Hollow Knight Silksong.
Originally aiming for a release on 3rd September, Demonschool has been pushed back to 19th November. "With 11 years under our belt as an indie publisher, we at Ysbryd Games are reasonably qualified to say that any point of 2025 on balance, has been or will be as brutal as market conditions can get when it comes to releasing a game," the publisher said in a statement on social media. "Crueler still, that we should find out with such short notice that Hollow Knight Silksong will launch just one day after our planned release for Demonschool."
I described the forthcoming RPG as "Persona meets Buffy" when I played the demo last year.
Here's a release date trailer that's now out of date.
MrTomFTW says: I've just downloaded the Sonic Crossroads Racing playtest so that's at least part of my evening sorted I suppose
Gnort says: I still don't quite understand the abject terror that Silksong's release date has inspired in every other indie game developer, I always thought it was more of a meme, like expecting Sony to announce a remaster of Bloodborne, than an actual potential sales juggernaut. It does unfortunately reinforce the idea that there are simply too many games around now, and it's very easy even for good, well marketed games to simply disappear in the flood of games competing for the time and attention of the people who aren't just playing one of the big 5 live service games to the exclusion of anything else.
I'm with you, Gnort! It always had the feel of a meme to me. However, Hollow Knight has sold 15 million copies now, which is no joke. Its status means it'll be a big deal in a coverage sense when it arrives too. It'll suck the air out of the room.
Gears of War arrives on PlayStation today
Gears of War, one of the original Xbox exclusives, arrives on PlayStation today, in the Gears of War: Reloaded remaster. It's a strange pinch-me moment, considering the importance Gears has had for Xbox over the years. I remember playing with Eurogamer forumites (shh Bertie, don't mention the forum) and it being a lot of fun. Will PlayStationers care?
One person who seems to care is Cliff Bleszinski, the original creative director of Gears of War, because of course he would. We heard him talk endlessly about "destroyed beauty" as he attempted to justify why the game was so brown and grey.
Rogueywon says: Oh, I hadn't realised Gears of War Reloaded was today. That's on Game Pass as well, isn't it? Might have to give it a whirl. A 6 hour corridor shooter might be just what I'm after ahead of the release of Super Robot Wars Y at the end of the week.
It is indeed on Game Pass! A blast from the past. I am quite excited.
Helldivers 2 comes to Xbox today
It's a trade-off: Gears of War comes to PlayStation as Helldivers 2 comes to Xbox. Last year's unexpected co-op shooter smash attempts to make it on Microsoft's machine. There's Halo ODST-themed armour and weaponry for the occasion, and Helldivers 2 has full crossplay for playing with friends on PC and PlayStation. Will it drive a Helldivers 2 resurgence?
2XKO's next character revealed early on Riot Games support website
Riot has accidentally leaked the next character to arrive in its upcoming 2v2 fighting game 2XKO via its support website.
Connor's got all the details, though I won't spoil them here just in case. Either way, 2XKO will launch into closed beta on 9th September after a lengthy development journey.
Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot summoned to court in relation to previous harassment trial against former employees
Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot has been summoned to French court in relation to the allegations of harassment at the company reported back in 2020.
Back in June, three former employees received suspended sentences and fines after being found guilty of harassment. Now, Guillemot will appear in court in October in relation to that same court case as summoned by the Solidaires Informatiques union.
Today's Blast from the Past: Boxart memes and remake candidates
We've got a handful of milestone gaming anniversaries here for the 26th. Remember any of these?
- Dragon Quest VII turns 25 today, having first hit PS2 in 2000. A year and a bit later it made its way to North America, but Europe had to wait until 2016, when the 3DS remake landed. My main memory of it is that the Class System is ambitious, but nowhere near as good as some other RPGs of that era. With Square Enix on a Dragon Quest remake spree, one could certainly be forgiven for suggesting that this would be an entry ripe for the treatment... and the rumour mill is indeed churning on that front.
- Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow is 20 today. I bet you know this one, even if you didn't play it. It became famous for a 'Konami's Best' greatest hits cover that had the air of some sort of optical illusion, rocketing it to the top of the 'CrappyDesign' reddit page on two separate occasions. This was also when Konami's Castlevania subtitles always had additional meanings - it's the first Castlevania for DS, and is called Dawn of Sorrow. DoS. DS. Geddit?! Oh, and memes aside - it's very good too, by the way.
- Lost in Blue is also 20 today, based on its first Japanese release. A charming Eurogamer 6/10 DS-exclusive where you have to survive on a deserted island. I remember a lot of DS-centric stuff in this, like using the mic to blow onto a campfire in order to help it light - stuff like that. They made three of these, plus a truly rubbish Wii version. The three DS ones had their charm, though, and it's a series I wouldn't mind seeing again.
FondantMining says: Is there going to be a “thank you and good luck” post for Digital Foundry? Tom O said yes, but it didn’t seem to materialise. Again - a big shame considering it introduced many of us to EG.
I'm sorry this hasn't materialised. We certainly do wish Digital Foundry all the best. They've a staggering amount of history here. I remember Rich Leadbetter coming into the fold all of those many years ago, and how excited Tom Bramwell was to welcome him. The "Digital Blacksmith" Tom used to call him. What a brand he built!
I hope we can get that fuller wave-off for you at some point.
Mario grooms moustache in first Nintendo stop-motion video
Here's an answer we never thought we needed: Mario grooms his moustache like this. Nintendo has given us a glimpse at the plumber's lip-based hair routine in episode one of new video series It's a Me, Mario! Stop Motion Shorts.
In the video we see a slightly teddy-skinned Mario combing his lip-slug until he achieves the desired effect: the bobbly nose-hugger we know him for. But he can't seem to get it right. We watch as he cycles through handlebar moustaches and pointy Wario 'taches until he finally lands on the one he wants. All while making many Mario reaction noises.
It's a cute and wordless animation aimed at entrancing babies and toddlers, and it arrives as part of a push for that market that includes a dizzying array of Mario toy and clothing lines. Still, it's got a long way to go until it ousts Paw Patrol.
PlayStation CEO wants first party studios to "fail early and cheaply"
PlayStation CEO Hermen Hulst has reflected on the failure of Concord in comparison to Astro Bot's huge success. "I don't want teams to always play it safe, but I would like for us, when we fail, to fail early and cheaply," he told the Financial Times in a new interview.
Now, there's more supervision of Sony's first party games to ensure Concord's fate isn't repeated, suggesting the company is less focused on live-service games.
Herdling is good - our review proves it
Have you ever considered life as a shepherd? Not a Shepard - as in the galaxy-going kind who fights giant sentient spaceships - but an actual shepherd who encourages animals around. Is that what they do - encourage? "Go on, sheepy, you can do it! That's right, cow, you're on course! Great work everyone!" Well, now you can, in Herdling.
Video Jim has just reviewed it, and he likes it. Herdling is a lot like the Far games from the same studio, Okomotive, and is only a few hours long. Here's what Jim says:
Personally I would urge you to treat it as a one-and-done, as it’s far more poignant if you have to live with a mistake or two. Those who need some sort of skill challenge to stay engaged may find Herdling a disappointing experience that never quite spools up, but if you just love being absorbed in a world, and throwing yourself into the kind of narrative that only video games can provide – powerful, memorable stories told not with dialogue but with interaction, movement, and art, wordless conversations between game and player that reach far deeper places than you expect – Herdling is a must play.
We've played the new Lumines!
There's a new Lumines! And do you know who the person most excited about this in the world would be? Christian Donlan. Well, maybe Donlan and Martin Robinson, but Donlan at a minimum. How fortunate for us we've had him write about it!
Here's a snippet of what Donlan has to say about Lumines Arise.
I hope it goes without saying, but I absolutely love this. With the chain block, Lumines has always been the most geologically minded of puzzle games - a game that’s all about drilling down into the earth, laying seams of dynamite and then touching them off. But now there’s this anti-gravity component where detritus is sorted and flung into the aire and just waits there while you create the perfect environment for it to return to. I’m still getting my head around it. I’m still trying to bring Burst mode into focus with the way I lay out the grid to get the most from that chain block. I’m still trying to rumble the secrets of this strange physical universe, one delicious puddle galaxy at a time.
Sony removes chat bot to streamline PlayStation refund process
Sony has removed chat bots from its refund easier, making it easier to get your money back if you're yet to start playing a game. Hoorah!
Helldivers 2 newly unveiled major update takes battle to the alien Hive Worlds
A new major update for Helldivers 2 has been unveiled, arriving next month, that will take the battle to the alien Hive Worlds. There's a fancy new Warbond too, of course.
News of the update arrives as the game hits Xbox Series X/S, along with some Halo-themed cosmetics.
Anyone here checking out Helldivers 2 on Xbox?
Capcom reveals new official art to replace disqualified art contest winner
Capcom has revealed some new Kimberly art, that'll be added to the game as part of a recent art contest. This piece will replace a prior winner, who was disqualified following AI allegations.
This piece will be available to players, alongside the other community-created winners, for use in online matches within Capcom's popular fighting game.
