Welcome to the first week of July, which is yet another slow week of new releases, which might have something to do with this Friday being a major holiday in the US. This week's major release is a free to play mecha PvP game. This is followed by a relaxing trading game, some psychological horror, a fantasy MMORPG, a cat adventure and finally you get to relax in a tavern.

Mecha Break / This week's major release / Wednesday 2 July
After the Catastrophe, humanity harnessed the power of Corite—a mysterious carbon-silicon mineral driving rapid technological recovery. But its pathogenic nature and relentless spread threaten to consume Earth's last habitable spaces. In just decades, Corite is projected to engulf the globe. Humanity must find a way to preserve civilization before the countdown reaches zero. Resist. Adapt. Escape. Or follow Corite's call and forge a new path. Steam link

Welcome to the middle of June and to those that celebrate, happy midsummer. This week is jam crammed full of new releases, kicking off with a large-scale real-time modern warfare tactics game as our major release. If that's too complex for you, then maybe a spot of fishing is more your thing? Alternatively, we have some first-person shooter action from Finland or a new Diablo like game, if action is more of your thing. If that's not it, some 5v5 footie might be more of your cup of tea or how about a laid back MMORPG? Don't forget the other four games that might tickle your fancy, as some of them are quite big releases as well.

Broken Arrow / This week's major release / Thursday 19 June
Broken Arrow is a large-scale real-time modern warfare tactics game that combines the complexity of joint-forces wargaming with action-packed real-time tactics gameplay. Featuring over 300 realistic military units and technologies, each battle offers an immersive experience with endless replayability. Steam link

Razer, the leading global lifestyle brand for gamers, announced the integration of Razer Sensa HD Haptics and Razer Chroma RGB features into Dune: Awakening, the highly anticipated open-world, multiplayer survival MMO developed by Funcom. In the latest addition to the Dune franchise, players will do any and all things Dune-related, from building a fortress to mastering the power that lies within the planet of Arrakis for the taking.

Conquer the sands of Arrakis with Razer Sensa HD Haptics and Razer Chroma RGB
Step into the sands of Arrakis like never before with Razer Sensa HD Haptics, delivering over 230 specially curated haptic feedback effects that bring the harsh, immersive world of Dune: Awakening to life. Supported on Razer Sensa HD Haptics-enabled devices like the Razer Freyja gaming cushion, Razer Kraken V4 Pro gaming headset, and Razer Wolverine V3 Pro gaming controller, players can experience ultra-low latency, multi-directional haptic sensations that let them feel every pulse of combat. Whether it is the thunderous rumble of a sandworm erupting behind you to the sharp jolt of a lasgun blast striking from the left, Razer Sensa HD Haptics provides a directional sense of danger and terrain awareness—turning every encounter into a heightened sense of spatial awareness and instinctive experience.

Welcome to the second week of June and boy is it a crowded week of big new releases after a week of mainly Switch 2 games. It's almost as if every game publisher out there decided that this is the week to release a new game and it all kicks off with a dusty game full of worms for this week's major release. First out in the regular line-up is a retro top down arcade game, followed by a futuristic third-person shooter, an MMORPG, a long time coming Korean ARPG and a sci-fi survival game. Make sure to check out the additional release this week as well.

Dune: Awakening / This week's major release / Tuesday 10 June
Dune: Awakening is an open world, multiplayer survival game on a massive scale. More than just survival, Dune: Awakening offers a large-scale, persistent and highly immersive world with social hubs bustling with other players, server-wide politics and intrigue, and a cinematic storyline that will leave you at the edge of your seat. The Fremen have vanished. Paul Atreides was never born. Lady Jessica obeyed the Bene Gesserit and gave birth to a girl. Duke Leto Atreides survived the assault on Arrakeen and is now locked in a brutal conflict with the Harkonnen over Arrakis and its precious spice. Steam link

Greetings soon-to-be-awakened, today, just about 72 hours before the floodgates open, we can finally share with you that rentable private servers will be available from head start launch on June 5th! We've previously communicated that private servers are for post-launch, but we're happy to share that progress has been faster than expected. We do, however, want to manage expectations about how private servers work in Dune: Awakening. As you know, this is not your typical survival game.

Why private servers work differently in Dune: Awakening
Dune: Awakening is powered by a unique server and world structure, something we went in-depth on in a recent blog post. In short: each server belongs to a World consisting of several other servers, and each of those share the same social hubs and Deep Desert. This allows us to retain a neighborhood-like feel to the Hagga Basin and provide persistent, freeform building, and other server-demanding mechanics you typically see in survival games. We combine this with the large-scale multiplayer mechanics you would expect to find in MMOs where hundreds of players meet each other in social hubs and the Deep Desert to engage in social activities, trade, conflict, and more.

Greetings Sleepers, we're less than two weeks away from launch of Dune: Awakening (and head start is even closer!). It's time to grab your Fremkit, put on your stillsuit, and start getting ready. The first thing you need to know is exactly when you can start playing. Dune: Awakening will first be available in head start on June 5th for those who have pre-ordered either the Deluxe or Ultimate Edition. Pre-ordering either edition, or the base edition, will also unlock the Terrarium of Muad'Dib pre-order reward.

Official launch is June 10th, at which point pre-orders (and the Terrarium of Muad'Dib reward) will no longer be available for purchase. The base, Deluxe, and Ultimate Editions will be available for regular purchase from that point onwards. The game will unlock for play on Steam at 16:00 CEST / 10am EDT, both on June 5th and June 10th. For other regions, we've included a map above with some select locations to help you figure out when it will be available in your area. Pre-load will be available to all pre-order owners 24 hours before head start on June 4th, but please be aware that pre-ordering the base edition does not grant head start access.

An unlucky owner of a GIGABYTE AORUS GeForce RTX 5080 MASTER ICE 16 GB graphics card has reported a baffling instance of thermal gel leakage. A forum post—titled: "5080 oh my god thermal problem"—on the Quasar Zone BBS alerted the wider world to this bizarre fault. The South Korean MMORPG enthusiast described circumstances up until the point of critical liquefaction: "it's been exactly a month since I bought it. I use it for (Blizzard's) World of Warcraft. Two hours of use per day. I set up the card with a riser kit. Thermal (material) is crawling out?!" Early 2025 press coverage has largely focused on other types of unwanted high temperature events involving GeForce RTX 50-series cards, but the seeping out of "server-grade thermal conductive gel" compound is something new. As reported by several PC hardware news outlets, GIGABYTE has utilized fancy thermal conductive gel within flagship SKUs—instead of traditional/conventional thermal pads. This gel was placed over the card's VRAM and MOSFET sections; following fairly light usage (as described above) some of this material started to head down—getting ever closer to the unit's PCIe interface.

Assisted by the AORUS RTX 5080 MASTER ICE's vertical orientation, the (apparently) highly deformable, but non-fluid thermal gel was susceptible to the effects of gravity. JC Hyun System Co., Ltd.—GIGABYTE's official domestic importer (for South Korea)—weighed in with a separate bulletin: "we are aware of the thermal gel issue with the GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 50 series, which was first posted on Quasar Zone—(we) are currently discussing the thermal gel issue with GIGABYTE HQ and future customer service regulations. In addition, we sincerely apologize for the confusion caused to many customers who love and use GIGABYTE products due to inaccurate guidance provided to customers who received the products due to unclear customer service regulations regarding the issue that occurred this time. Lastly, when the manufacturer's customer service policy regarding this thermal gel issue is finalized, we will also forward the service policy to CS Innovation so that it can be processed smoothly in accordance with the service policy. We will also provide information through a separate post so that more customers can be aware of the information." As mentioned by Notebookcheck, GIGABYTE uses this special thermal gel solution on other highly expensive custom: "RTX 50-series cards like the GeForce RTX 5090 XTREME WATERFORCE 32G, RTX 5090 MASTER ICE, RTX 5070 Ti MASTER, and others."

Welcome to Easter week and this week kicks off with a dark ARPG that offers six unique classes. This is followed by an open world MMORPG with retro vibes, a photography sim, a cute retro RPG, an escape room that's an entire world and finally a co-op survival game that involves a lot of flying, just not in planes.

Mandragora: Whispers of the Witch Tree / This week's major release / Thursday 17 April
Create your Inquisitor from one of six unique Classes, and wield blades and magic to battle nightmarish creatures. Craft hundreds of weapons and items, and learn powerful Talents to define your combat style. Explore a vast, interconnected world and unearth its secrets across 60 quests that will push your skills to their limits. Steam link

Earlier today, ZOTAC unveiled a special edition spin-off of its relatively new GeForce RTX 5070 X-Gaming 12 GB design. The manufacturer's Weibo channel outlined the very exclusive nature of this MMORPG-themed offering (via machine translation): "watch the finals and get a graphics card! ZOTAC and the first 'Jian Wang 3' competitive group hero joint customized graphics card, fine customization, supports NVIDIA DLSS 4 and Reflex 2 technology, excellent performance. On April 12-13, Nanjing Ledongli Jiangning International E-sports Center, watch the heroes aiming for the top!" According to an ITHome report, the Chinese brand has redecorated its overclocked GeForce RTX 5070 X-Gaming model with Jian Wang 3 characters. ZOTAC's promotional shots showcase a customized backplate, and the same illustration of Jian Wang 3's main cast adorning the card's retail box.

Late last month, Kuroutoshikou Japan introduced a less impressive Blade and Soul NEO-themed rebadge of their standard Radeon RX 7600 SKU—essentially, PowerColor's Fighter RX 7600 design. ITHome noted that ZOTAC has a short-ish history of readying very limited edition designs for past Jian Wang 3 Masters Tournaments. 2024's prize was based on the manufacturer's GeForce RTX 4070 Ti SUPER TRINITY OC White SKU. 2023 finalists were gifted with customized GeForce RTX 4070 Ti X-Gaming OC cards. Both of the previous gen tie-in designs sported Jian Wang 3 graphics or symbols on their shrouds, while the latest entry simply reuses its base SKU's "youthful graffiti" aesthetic.

Kuroutoshikou—a Japanese PC hardware brand—has introduced a special Blade and Soul NEO collaboration Radeon RX 7600 8 GB model. The company's press release goes into great detail about their retail packaging being "decorated with the beautiful characters and gorgeous stages of Blade," but the card itself is not adorned with any fancy illustrations or markings. In fact, the bare black design seems to be borrowed almost directly from PowerColor's Fighter stable (minus two stickers). As pointed out by VideoCardz, Kuroutoshikou already offers a "normal edition" Radeon RX 7600 SKU—minus NCSoft-related material. An exclusive in-game bonus seems to be the main draw here—as disclosed in the company's marketing spiel: "if you purchase this product and apply on the special page, you will receive a campaign code for the limited costume 'Gentleness' that can be used in Blade and Soul NEO."

Kuroutoshikou will deliver their "RD-RX7600-8G/Blade & Soul NEO Collaboration" edition to market on April 4, which could place it in a similar release timeframe with natural successors—AMD and board partners are expected to launch Radeon RX 9060 Series graphics cards in the second quarter of 2025. Surprisingly, the lower end of RDNA 3 keeps generating news articles—PowerColor seems to be working on a "V2" Fighter Radeon RX 7600 SKU, while plenty of China market-exclusive Radeon RX 7650 GRE cards have appeared within the past month or two. A possible surplus of Navi 33 GPUs could explain the sudden "reemergence" of previous-gen hardware. Going back to Kuroutoshikou; their current graphics card portfolio seems to consist of slightly rebranded PowerColor designs for the AMD side of things, while NVIDIA GeForce offerings are rebadged GALAX IPs.

We're stepping up our multiplatform gaming offering with exciting news dropping at this year's Game Developers Conference (GDC). We're bringing users more games, more ways to play your games across devices, and improved gameplay. You can read all about the updates for users from The Keyword. At GDC, we'll be diving into all of the latest games coming to Play, plus new developer tools that'll help improve gameplay across the Android ecosystem.

We're sharing a closer look at what's new from Android. We're making Vulkan the official graphics API on Android, enabling you to build immersive visuals, and we're enhancing the Android Dynamic Performance Framework (ADPF) to help you deliver longer, more stable gameplays. Check out our video, or keep reading below.

BlizzCon is back! The ultimate celebration of our games and the community that unites us is returning to the Anaheim Convention Center Saturday, September 12, and Sunday, September 13, in 2026. One of our favorite traditions, BlizzCon brings us together over our shared passion for Blizzard's universes, but at its heart, BlizzCon has always been about so much more. It's about you, the communities you are a part of, and gives us the chance to connect, build friendships, and create unforgettable memories together.

We've come a long way since our first event in 2005. Over the past nearly 20 years since its inception, BlizzCon has inspired us to innovate, push the boundaries of creativity, and deliver once-in-a-lifetime moments. It's important that we put on an event worthy of our community. For 2026, alongside BlizzCon staples like Opening Ceremony, in-depth panels, the Darkmoon Faire, friendly competition, hands-on gameplay, and more, we aim to meaningfully elevate this iconic celebration and create an unforgettable experience for all who take part in it. We are building this event just like we build our games: with a deep commitment to our players, with respect for your connections to our universes, and as a celebration of the strength of the bonds formed through shared adventure.

As we enter the second to last week of January, we have another week packed to the brim full of new releases. The major release of this week allows you to walk around in 2016 km² of a mediaeval fantasy world with five different regions for some MMORPG action. This is followed by some 4X Roman strategy, a trip to Norse mythology hell or pretending to be one of King Arthur's knights. This is followed by a remake of another JPRG from a famous franchise and we end the week with an anime inspired PvP shooter.

The Quinfall / This week's major release / Friday 24 January / Early Access
Embark on an adventurous journey to explore the Quinfall universe. Be a part of unique battles and an immersive story with dozens of different professions in the depths of medieval times in an all-new MMORPG experience. Explore the world's largest MMORPG map with an area of 2016 km². Shape your adventure in five regions with their own unique, distinct climates. Steam link

NC America announced today Blade & Soul NEO, the modern reinterpretation of Blade & Soul's signature fantasy universe, is coming soon to PC in North America and Europe. Featuring a beautiful visually enhanced experience, the original, well-crafted storyline, Infinite Windwalk (the "glide" ability), and a handful of enticing gameplay features, Blade & Soul NEO fulfills players' desire to re-live that pure MMO action fantasy experience they once knew.

Offering an exclusive pre-registration package, available today -- including a cosmetically enhanced character outfit, in-game currency, and more -- NC America will actively roll out new information, community activities and more on its revamped website between today and launch. Pre-register here now.

Amazon Games recently launched the long-awaited free-to-play MMORPG, Throne and Liberty, in early access, and the game appears to have gone down quite well with the community. On Thursday, mere moments after the launch, Throne and Liberty already had a peak player count of 53,884—a figure it likely earned during its advanced access period in South East Asia and Korea, where it has been available since as early as December 2023.

Since then, Throne and Liberty has continued its success, rising to as many as 54,720 concurrent players on Saturday, September 28. While this only places it in third place for current top sellers on Steam, this player count is in spite of the free-to-play game's early access pass costing a minimum of $40 on Steam. Throne and Liberty has also garnered its significant following despite only 60% of its Steam user reviews being positive, making its success even more anomalous.

Welcome to week 40, which is also the beginning of October and another week packed full of new game releases. This week's major release is a F2P MMORPG by NCSoft, for those that are into those kinds of things. This is followed by an animal horror game, an open world zombie survival, an arcade inspired isometric action shooter of sorts, some roguelike magic, a remake of a 2015 adventure game and finally a Japanese co-op action RPG. In addition to this, the first DLC for Starfield is out this week.

Throne and Liberty / This week's major release / Tuesday 1 October
Welcome to Throne and Liberty, a free-to-play MMORPG that takes place in the vast open world of Solisium. You can scale expansive mountain ranges for new vantage points, scan open skies, traverse sprawling plains, explore a land full of depth and opportunity. Adapt your fight to survive and thrive through strategic decisions in PvP, PvE or both as you encounter evolving battlefields impacted by weather, time of day, and other players. There is no single path to victory as you seek to defeat Kazar and claim the throne while keeping rival guilds at bay. Steam link

Amazon Games and NCSOFT announced today that THRONE AND LIBERTY, a free-to-play MMORPG featuring massive-scale combat in a dynamic world, will launch in North and South America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan on Tuesday, September 17, 2024. The game will be available on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S, with cross-platform play enabled.

"On behalf of Amazon Games and NCSOFT, I'm proud to announce that THRONE AND LIBERTY will launch on September 17, 2024. We all know fans around the world have been eagerly waiting for news on when they can jump into the game," said Merv Lee Kwai, Head of Third-Party Publishing at Amazon Games. "We can't wait to show you what we've been working on, and invite you to experience it all for yourself when the game launches this September."

Welcome to the first week of summer, at least in the northern hemisphere. There are no AAA releases this week, which gives you all plenty of time to focus on our Computex content instead of playing a new blockbuster game. This week's major release involves aliens, but not as you know them and they're out to kill. The rest of this week's new releases involves a DLC for a major MMORPG, a politics, religion and war game, some really old stuff, a nuclear plant meltdown cleanup and a dead dragon.

Killer Klowns from Outer Space: The Game / This week's major release / Tuesday 4 June
Killer Klowns from Outer Space: The Game is an asymmetrical multiplayer horror based on the iconic '80s film. In the battle between Killer Klowns and citizens of Crescent Cove, team up and use your wits to harvest humans or save them from the alien invasion! Crescent Cove is a sprawling arena for unique 3v7 fights between Klowns and humans—boasting various locations and a multitude of tactical opportunities for both teams. Steam link

Level Infinite has today revealed the official launch date for Tarisland, the eagerly anticipated free-to-play fantasy MMORPG. With over 3 million pre-registered players, adventurers worldwide can mark their calendars for June 21st, 2024, when they can immerse themselves in the enchanting realms of Tarisland on both mobile and PC platforms. Alongside the launch date, key details of Tarisland's formidable final boss, the Blight Dragon, has been revealed. Covered in impenetrable scales, with a wingspan nearing 200 meters, this beast is the first dragon hatched in the universe and an unstoppable force on the battlefield. Alongside this reveal, a captivating CG trailer has been released showcasing the game's epic scale and stunning visuals.

Developed by Locojoy, a passionate team of MMORPG fans-turned-developers, Tarisland promises to deliver a visually stunning and deeply engaging gaming experience. Players will embark on an epic journey through a vast, ever-expanding world brimming with rich storytelling, challenging dungeons and raids, and a diverse array of classes and specializations to explore.(Official trailer below)

Welcome to the first full week of the month of May. It's another rather slow week of new game releases, or rather, there are no major game releases, as a few games that were supposed to be released this week, got pushed back to later in the year. As such, the biggest release this week is all about cats. As for the rest of this week's releases, we have an RPG where you beat up your enemies with plushies, an abyss full of knights, a pill eating yellow blob, a well full of animals and someone holding a gate closed. Next week will be a lot busier though.

Little Kitty, Big City / This week's major release / Thursday 9 May
A peaceful catnap turns into a whimsical adventure! Will you make your way home or will you explore what the big city has to offer first? I mean, getting home is obviously your main priority. Obviously. Well, it's one of your priorities. Maybe more of a guideline... It's definitely on your To-Do list somewhere! But first? Exploration. Steam Link

"Throne and Liberty" is Amazon's foray into big budget fantasy MMORPGs, and is being licensed to manufacturers of PC hardware and gaming peripherals. GIGABYTE unveiled two such pieces of hardware, the Z790 AORUS Elite X Throne and Liberty Edition; and the GeForce RTX 4070 WindForce OC Throne and Liberty Edition. Both products come in fancy Throne and Liberty co-branded boxes. The Z790 AORUS Elite X special edition gets Throne and Liberty decals on its large CPU VRM heatsinks. The RTX 4070 WindForce OC special edition gets such decals on its backplate, and has themed fan impeller hub stickers. The two products are otherwise identical to their originals. Throne and Liberty went live on December 7.

Washed ashore on the northern isle of Midrath, a new adventure begins...the Soulframe team debuted their latest gameplay demo during TennoLive, giving fans a brand-new look at gameplay and systems coming in the upcoming fantasy co-op action game from Digital Extremes. Discover what it means to be Alca's chosen hero, an Envoy, and draw the strength of your Ancestors long past to fight back against the oppressive Ode'n.

It began as song, pitched sweet and solemn…And they that heard, 'came, hollow, fallen…Gather round, Envoys. A new adventure begins. Soulframe is an upcoming game from Digital Extremes and the creative minds behind Warframe, with a heavy focus on themes of nature, restoration, and history in a brand-new world.

Gary McKay, General Manager at BioWare, states: "Hello, it's been a little while since I've checked in, and as you might have heard, there's a lot happening here at BioWare. Almost 12 years after launch, Star Wars: The Old Republic (SWTOR) remains a fantastic success, continuing to welcome new players to its vast galaxy and entertaining veteran players with its evolving content. It's the longest-running live service Star Wars game ever and we're enormously proud of the work the team has done in creating, expanding, and maintaining this incredible game. We're delighted to have grown such a dedicated and passionate community through all these years. The future of the game and the community continues to be very bright.

I've been working closely with Keith Kanneg, who leads the SWTOR team, to give the game and the team the best opportunity to grow and evolve. And so, while EA will remain SWTOR's publisher, development of the game will move to our partner and friends at Broadsword, a boutique studio with expertise in managing online games. Both the Broadsword studio and SWTOR team members will be joining forces and working tirelessly to support "every player, every day," ensuring that these worlds and these communities continue to thrive and grow. Their Founder and President, Rob Denton, even has direct experience with SWTOR, having helped lead the team during the development and launch of the game during his time at EA.

A BioWare Austin developer is openly discussing the transfer of their long-running "Star Wars: The Old Republic" MMORPG to an external studio—games news sites picked up on insider information earlier this month alleging that the studio and its parent company (EA) were holding meetings with Broadsword Online Games. An EA spokesperson responded to the leak (at the time) and explained: "We're evaluating how we give the game and the team the best opportunity to grow and evolve, which includes conversations with Broadsword, a boutique studio that specializes in delivering online, community-driven experiences. Our goal is to do what is best for the game and its players." It seems that the involved parties have agreed upon terms for "handing off" responsibilities, according to a developer's recent declarations.

Keith Kanneg - the Executive producer for Star Wars: The Old Republic (SWTOR) - has this week provided a comprehensive update about future plans on the game's discussion board: "Appreciate your patience with us as we continue to navigate the future shift of SWTOR's development team to a third party studio. We're working through the changes right now so I'll share with you the details I have. With 7.3 now live, our priority is continuing to prepare for Game Updates 7.3.1 and 7.4 along with planning for 2024 and 2025 with a focus on content and continued modernization initiatives." It is interesting that Broadsword is not named or directly referred to.

IGN has been informed by inside sources that Electronic Arts is in negotiations to "offload" ongoing development and support of BioWare's long running MMORPG "Star Wars: The Old Republic" to a third party studio. In a news article published yesterday speculation points to Broadsword Online Games being the prime candidate to takeover a franchise that has been kept alive since December 2011. Broadsword was established about a decade ago by Rob Denton - a former BioWare Vice President and co-founder of Mythic Entertainment - his team currently oversees the running of Ultima Online and Dark Age of Camelot. The IGN news piece notes that Denton previously worked on Star Wars: The Old Republic during its incubation period.

Electronic Arts has since caught wind of IGN's report and provided the news site with their own statement today: "Almost 12 years after launch, Star Wars: The Old Republic remains a success and continues to grow its dedicated and passionate community. We're so proud of the work the team has done, and the future of the game and the community continues to be very bright. We're evaluating how we give the game and the team the best opportunity to grow and evolve, which includes conversations with Broadsword, a boutique studio that specializes in delivering online, community-driven experiences. Our goal is to do what is best for the game and its players." The spokesperson's wording on the matter does not fully confirm that Broadsword is fully confirmed to takeover, but IGN's inside information posits that Electronic Arts will remain as the franchise publisher, while BioWare will concentrate on the development of its single-player intellectual properties (Dragon Age and Mass Effect).