There are few feelings as satisfying as smashing a monster into a stagger in the Monster Hunter series. A close second is the hit-stop effect you get when slicing through a monster, also in the Monster Hunter series. What I’m trying to say is that Monster Hunter makes hunting giant creatures with an equally giant weapon satisfying and fun. Landing a True Charged Slash with a Great Sword to get those two-three freeze frames is something that everyone looks forward to during a hunt....

Summary If you have not locked down aNintendo Switchat this point, or you have been itching to upgrade to the Switch OLED, now is the time, just in time for the release of the highly anticipatedThe Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdomcoming in just a few days on September 26. For an extremely limited time, the Switch OLED is on sale for $299.99, a $50 saving which is pretty darn good considering it’s almost the lowest the console has ever been since its release....

Once upon a time,Overwatchwas ahead of the curve. Overwatch was the curve. While there were other early birds in the race to monetise every second of our time spent gaming (Fortnite,Ultimate Team, the gacha trend), I would suggest that the main cause of the live-service nightmare we currently endure is Overwatch.BlizzardhasConcord’sblood on its hands. But recent news that Blizzard is developing a mobile game based on Overwatch shows how far it has fallen....

Summary PlayStation’s most recent State Of Play appears to have gone over pretty well. Not the most groundbreaking show it has ever put on, butkicking it off with Astro Bot DLCand closing witha first look at Ghost Of Yoteiwere very smart decisions. There were a few other exciting announcements sprinkled between them too, includingthe reveal of PlayStation’s Chroma Collectionwhich introduces three newDualSenseand console cover options. The three new color options for thePS5accessories introduced via the Chroma Collection are Teal, Pearl, and Indigo, and pre-orders for the controllers are now open....

Summary Pokemon Gomade a splash this weekend byreleasing Gigantamax Battles. These events can see up to 40 different players group up in teams of four to take on a Max Battle, with the reward of their very own Gigantamax Pokemon waiting for those that actually manage to overcome the trial. Just like most updates with Pokemon Go, this was designed to get the community to meet up and work together, but the end result has been a bit mixed....

Everyone loves anime with complex stories and emotionally compelling character dynamics. However, sometimes, you just want to watch a bunch of extremely strong characters fight it out in a battle royale. Fate/Stay Night is a story about the fifth Holy Grail War, a competition in which mages summon heroic spirits to get a chance at winning the Holy Grail, a relic said to be able to grant any wish. In the narrative of the story, a number of factors and circumstances play into one’s strengths, making winning the Grail a lot more difficult than simply being strong....

Summary Even as gaming hardware continues to accelerate forward,with the recently announced PlayStation 5 Pro, along withrumors of an Xbox Series successor, as well asNintendo’s upcoming Switch successor, don’t expectSonic Teamto forget about last gen. In an interview with IGN, producer Takashi Iizuka shared that he wants “as many people as possible to play” Sonic games, which means supporting thePS4, as well as the baseNintendo Switch. For reference, the upcomingSonic x Shadow Generationstitle will be playable onPS5,PS4 (digitally only),Nintendo Switch,Xbox Series and Xbox One at launch....

Summary Stellar BladeandNier: Automatashare an awful lot of DNA, which is understandable, since we know Stellar Blade takes heavy inspiration from Yoko Taro’s masterpiece. That means it shouldn’t be too surprising to see the two games teaming up, as it was announced during PlayStation’s new State of Play thatStellar Blade is getting a Nier: Automata collaboration later this year. Unfortunately, a date for the collaboration wasn’t announced, but the trailer description for the announcement claims it will be happening at some point later this year....

Summary When it was revealed thatTekken 8would bebringing back Heihachi Mishima following his ‘death’ in the last game, my first reaction was a long sigh. I love Heihachi, but Tekken 8’s story worked so well because itfocused on other characters and offered up Reina as a perfect successor. Initial disappointment aside,it was hardly a surprise that the face of the franchise was returning for its biggest game ever, even if it did undermine the point of Tekken 7....

There are dozens of different resources inSatisfactory, all waiting for you to start digging them up. By exploiting the natural beauty of the alien planet, you can instead convert it into a utopia of efficiency, with machines, conveyor belts, trains, and much more covering the surface of the planet. One type of important resource you’ll unlock early on is fluids. These differ greatly from normal solid objects you’ve dealt with thus far, and efficiently producing and handling fluids can be a bit confusing at first....

Summary Within 90 seconds, an opening encapsulates an anime’s essence: its tone, its themes, and its characters. It represents the entire show. Openings are also a symbiotic relationship between animators and musicians: an iconic opening can bring a band new fans, while a theme song by an established artist can raise interest in an anime. Withso many incredible animeswith iconic openings, it’s difficult to choose just a dozen. For newcomers, openings mark the moment they become fully invested in a new show or season....

In gaming, few experiences hit as hard as those where you are not just the hero of a story but the final remnant of something fading away - a species, a way of life, or a legacy. These games cast you as “the last of your kind,” and it’s isolated, profound, and irrevocable. Whether you’re fighting for survival, completing a task that only you can accomplish, or representing the last remnant of a species, these titles place a unique weight on your shoulders....

Summary There are a lot of ways for Commander players to jump ahead in turns inMagic: The Gathering. From ramp spells to mana-producing creatures to artifacts that generate bonus mana, you have a wide range of cards to pick from. Fast mana refers to a special type of card that produces more mana on the turn you play it than it costs to play. If that’s a bit confusing, don’t worry, we gathered up the best of the best for you to take a look at and determine if you want to run in your deck....