Month: July 2026

Souls-like action game Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is getting a sequel. Publisher 505 Games has announced a new development team that helms the project, led by the series’ director. 

Less than a year after Wuchang’s release in July 2025, its development team, Lenzee Games, was reportedly disbanded in April due to a leadership dispute. The sequel will be led by Indolphinity, a new team founded by Wuchang creative director Xia Siyaun. 505 will once again serve as publisher. The announcement comes after 505’s parent company Digital Bros Group acquired the Wuchang IP in April.

“Through this partnership, 505 Games and Indolphinity reaffirm their shared belief in the long-term potential of the Wuchang franchise and their joint commitment to preserving the authenticity and cultural identity of the IP,” reads a press release. “All future creative development will remain firmly rooted in China through the close collaboration between the original creator and 505 Games, ensuring continuity of vision, quality, and execution.” 

Wuchang: Fallen Feathers

Digital Bros Group will establish a new Chinese subsidiary in Chengdu to work closely with Indolphinity on the project. The sequel has no formal title, gameplay details, or release window.

Wuchang: Fallen Feathers centers on a pirate named Bai Wuchang, who is afflicted with a supernatural disease giving her demonic abilities. Set during China’s Ming Dynasty, the action game scored a 7.75 out of 10 from Game Informer, writing in our review, “Wuchang: Fallen Feathers doesn’t reach the upper echelon of its stronger contemporaries, but it is a generally well-executed checklist of genre tropes with inventive ideas for combat customization and a unique form of dynamic difficulty scaling” 505 recently announced the game has reached over 5 million players in the year since launch.

Wuchang is far from the only Souls-inspired action game getting a sequel. Be sure to check out the announcements of Stellar Blade: Blood Rain, Wo Long 2: Wings of Ember, Lords of the Fallen II, and Mortal Shell II.

Nintendo has released an extended deep-dive video showcasing Pokémon Pokopia’s upcoming free Dive update and paid Bubbly Basin expansion. We also know both updates arrive on August 5.

As previously announced, a free update lets Ditto learn the new Dive ability from newcomer Manaphy. Dive lets players explore underwater indefinitely, allowing them to build just about anything below the waves, with various water Pokémon joining you along the way. Players will first need to complete the “Raise the Environmental Level” mission in Bleak Beach and learn the moves Jump and Surf to trigger the free update content. 

On the same day, Pokémon Pokopia’s Expansion Pass, a three-part paid DLC pack priced at $34.99, introduces Part 1 – Bubbly Basin, a new abandoned town lying beneath the ocean. Upon arrival, players meet Popplio and begin the usual process of building habitats to attract new Pokémon to restore the submerged village. New buoyant blocks allow you to construct floating houses (which can be decorated with new ocean-themed furniture) and other buildings. When it gets dark, Chinchou can use its electricity to power light sources and other electronics. Bubbly Basin features a deeper, pitch-black area you can only explore by relying on glowing coral. What lies at this depth remains a mystery for players to discover. 

The video also teases the second piece of Expansion Pass content. Part 2, arriving later this year, will add Pokémon accessories. The roadmap also shows Part 3, which introduces another town, to launch in 2027. These DLCs will not be sold separately, so you’ll need to purchase the full Expansion Pass to play them. Buying the Expansion Pass also gives owners the Dynamic Ditto print recipe, obtained by visiting the “Downloadable Content” option in the main menu, as well as 30 rare Pokémetal ingots. You can grab the ingots either by entering a serial code sent to the registered Nintendo Account email after buying the Expansion Pass or by using the in-game Mystery Gifts feature. Those using the code have until August 31 to claim it, and, once they have it, September 30 to redeem it. 

Pokémon Pokopia is now available on Switch 2. You can read our review of the game here. 

Psychonauts developer Double Fine Productions was among the five studios spun off from Xbox as part of its ongoing restructuring, and while it (thankfully) avoided closure, the divorce has forced the team to make cuts. Specifically, the studio has announced the departures of 23 staff members.

In a post shared on social media, Double Fine head/founder Tim Schafer writes,  “As a small, tightly-knit team, these actions are not taken lightly. Only the survival of our studio would ever make us consider such a painful action. Our transition to becoming an independent company also means becoming a size that we can sustain.” Double Fine states it is working with affected staff “as best we can” during their transition. 

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— Double Fine (@doublefine.com) July 28, 2026 at 3:01 PM

Double Fine was granted independence from Xbox alongside South of Midnight developer Compulsion Games earlier this month; both studios retained their IP and game catalogs as part of the split. Xbox also spun off three other studios; Ninja Theory and Undead Labs were sold to unspecified buyers, and Arkane Studios’ fate remains up in the air as it undergoes mandatory consultation in France. 

Double Fine’s most recent release is the pottery-themed multiplayer party game Kiln, which launched in April. Under Xbox’s ownership, the team shipped Psychonauts 2 in 2021 and Keeper in 2025. 

Onimusha: Way of the Sword is the latest game to grace the cover of Game Informer, and after traveling to Osaka, Japan, last month to visit Capcom’s HQ, play the game, and interview the team, I’m excited to bring you weeks of exclusive coverage. Subscribers can read my cover story right now, but you clicked on this link because you want to read about minigames.

Minigames were more abundant in previous generations of games, and considering all four previously released Onimusha games launched between 2001 and 2006, it’s no surprise they featured these gameplay tangents. Onimusha: Warlords featured Oni Spirits; Onimusha 2: Samurai’s Destiny featured the Puzzle Phantom Realm, The Man In Black, and Team Oni minigames; Players could play the Genma Puzzle Space, Oni Target Practice, and Adventures of Heihachi minigames in Onimusha 3: Demon Siege; and finally, Onimusha 4: Dawn of Dreams featured just one minigame in Arena. 

While these minigames might be relics of game development past, I was still curious if Onimusha: Way of the Sword would continue the lineage when it launches this September. Director Satoru Nihei quickly shattered my hopes and dreams, stating I won’t find any “minigames that you associate with” previous Onimusha games. “We really wanted to focus on the swordplay action there, so we didn’t put any extra time into minigames,” he says. 

Bummer, but, as any Onimusha fan knows, the Phantom Realm is a bit of a minigame itself in these games. As far back as Onimusha: Warlords, you start on a floor in the Phantom Realm and demons/Genma/Oni arrive to kill you – you must kill them all, collect the potential rewards that drop, and advance to the next floor. Reaching and completing the final floor comes with a powerful reward. 

When I ask Nihei if the Phantom Realm is in Onimusha: Way of the Sword in this capacity, he looks at producer Akihito Kadowaki beside him, they smile, and then he says, “Hmm, we’ll see.” 

While not confirmation, it’s exactly the kind of cheeky answer that tells me I might be onto something, so I’m choosing to let the copium flow through my veins. 

I’ll be diving deeper into Capcom’s return to Onimusha as part of Game Informer’s month of Way of the Sword coverage. We’ll be publishing exclusive gameplay and behind-the-scenes videos (including a Rapid-Fire Interview) on the Game Informer YouTube channel as well. Keep an eye on the Onimusha: Way of the Sword coverage hub so you don’t miss any of it. 

In the meantime, here’s some additional Onimusha: Way of the Sword reading for you:

• Puzzle Boxes Are Gone In Onimusha: Way Of The Sword, But Bigger Environmental Puzzles Have Taken Their Place
• Onimusha: Way Of The Sword Isn’t Connected To Previous Games, But There Are Homages
• How Capcom Decided On Miyamoto Musashi For Its Onimusha: Way Of The Sword Protagonist
• Why 2026 Was The Year To Bring Onimusha Back After A 20-Year Gap
• Why Kyoto Was The Perfect Setting For Onimusha: Way Of The Sword
• Onimusha: Way of the Sword Cover Reveal
• Onimusha: Way of the Sword Digital Issue
• Onimusha: Way of the Sword Summer Game Fest Hands-On Preview
• Onimusha: Way of the Sword Hub

What’s your favorite minigame in the Onimusha series? Let us know in the comments below!

The first major expansion for Nioh 3 has a release date and trailer. Titled Hell’s Rising, the expansion takes players to a new time period and landmass while introducing new weapons, abilities, and more.

Hell’s Rising arrives on August 19 and sees players travel to 1651 Edo during the Keian Era to deal with the fallout of the death of Takechiyo, Nioh 3’s protagonist and the future shogun. Players team up with Yagyu Jubei, a one-eyed swordsman, and Rodrigo, a Spanish envoy, to solve new mysteries centering on the Spirit Stones. 

The new Keian Era map features new human and yokai enemies and a fresh Crucible. Players can take them on using the new hoko and shield weapons for both the Samurai and Ninja styles, allowing them to attack using the short spear hoko and defend with the shield, which can also be tossed at threats. 

Additionally, Hell’s Rising adds the new equipment category called the Hundred Demon Realms Picture Scroll. Defeating enemies sometimes causes them to drop a picture scroll as rare loot; equipping it requires winning an automatically generated battle tied to that scroll. These battles are replayable and allow players to change the scroll’s special effects while strengthening it too. 

Hell’s Rising also adds a new extreme difficulty unlocked on the third playthrough called the Enlighted One’s Journey. This setting makes it so certain enemies receive a random curse buff that makes them stronger but rewards players with divine-rarity loot upon defeat. You can also improve character builds with divine-rarity Grace set bonuses and other special effects.

Hell’s Rising will be available for all versions of Nioh 3 on August 19. It is the first of two story expansions planned. The second DLC, Bloody Insurrection, is coming at a later date. For more on Nioh 3, be sure to read our review. 

Spider-Man: Brand New Day hits theaters this week, and Insomniac Games previously announced it would be adding Tom Holland’s new suit to Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 in a free update to mark the occasion. That update goes live today, and it also introduces a second new suit along with a couple of quality-of-life features.

In addition to Peter’s Brand New Day suit, the update adds Spider-Man’s costume from the upcoming tag-team fighting game Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls. Additionally, the game will receive support for Enhanced PSSR on PS5 Pro and a Power Saver mode. 

 

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is available on PlayStation 5 and PC. Check out our review of the game here. You can read more about Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls in this deep-dive feature.  

Xbox is currently suffering a major service outage, days after PlayStation was hit with a similar issue. Services such as booting up digital games, logging into your account, and browsing the Xbox Store are said to be affected.

The service was first reported last night, July 26, at 11:10 p.m. ET.  As of publishing, Xbox is still working to resolve these problems, according to the Xbox status page, which was last updated at 2:48 p.m. ET. 

Four features are affected across Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, Xbox 360, and backwards compatibility. We’ve listed them below along with the official descriptions of their issues.

Account & Profile: You may not be able to sign-in to your Xbox profile, may be disconnected while signed in, or have other related problems. Features that require sign-in like most games, apps and social activity won’t be available.

Store & Subscriptions: You might not see a game you’re looking for in the Store right now.

Games & Gaming: You may have problems playing your digital games right now.

Apps & Mobile: You may have problems launching apps.

These outages may not affect everyone equally; to test the outage for this story, I logged into my Xbox account on my Series X and booted up several games, both owned and downloaded from Game Pass, without problem. Still, this situation is worth keeping an eye on if you’re planning to jump into your Xbox over the next couple of hours.

For years, fans clamored for a modernized remake of Final Fantasy VII, which was at last announced in 2015. Now that the Final Fantasy VII Remake trilogy is finally set to conclude in 2027 with Final Fantasy VII Revelation, the fan community has begun looking at what other classic entries in the legendary RPG series could be the next to receive the remake treatment. While it has already received the Pixel Remaster treatment, Final Fantasy VI has emerged as the most-wanted candidate. However, over the last month and a half, two prominent Final Fantasy directors have spoken on the topic of a hypothetical Final Fantasy VI Remake, and they don’t sound particularly enthused about taking it on.

Naoki Hamaguchi has spent more than the last decade of his life directing the Final Fantasy VII Remake trilogy, which immediately put him at the top of the list in the minds of many fans. However, when I asked the director what he thinks is next for him and his career following the launch of Final Fantasy VII Revelation in 2027, he, unprompted, seemed to shoot down the notion that he’d take the reins on a remake of Final Fantasy VII’s beloved predecessor. 

“Right in this moment, I’m fully focused on completing FFVII Revelation and ensuring we’re delivering the FFVII Remake series in a perfect state, so that’s where I’m right now,” Hamaguchi told me in June. “At the same time, I do see a lot of fans and community asking me to take on the helm for a [hypothetical] FFVI remake. [laughs] So, I’m seeing a lot of that floating online, but, you know, a Final Fantasy VI Remake or any other remake, it could be me, or it could be someone else. Personally, I think that it might be in better hands if it went to another creator in Square Enix.”

During that same weekend, Bloomberg asked Hamaguchi a similar question about his next project, to which he replied, “It’s not going to be a remake! As a team, I do think there’s an opportunity to work on a smaller scale, like a double-A title, or a new Final Fantasy title or even a new triple-A franchise. I think all those would be good.”

Then, this past weekend at Final Fantasy XIV Fan Festival in Berlin, Germany, Hamaguchi was in conversation with Final Fantasy XIV director and Final Fantasy XVI producer Naoki Yoshida. Hamaguchi commented that Final Fantasy VI was the most influential game for him and the reason he wanted to work in games. “Every time I give that answer to a journalist or someone, the next day, there’s an article online saying, ‘Hamaguchi will be remaking Final Fantasy VI. So I also say, ‘No, I am not’ at the same time,’ Hamaguchi told the crowd with a laugh.

Yoshida also chimed in on that topic, claiming that a Final Fantasy VI Remake project would take an immense amount of work, and could end up being even more entries than the drawn-out Final Fantasy VII Remake series. “Of course, I understand the feelings of the players, but you’ve got to think about it,” he said on stage. “Look at Final Fantasy VI; it’s such an incredibly huge game. The scale is just immense, and the same applies for other titles like Final Fantasy VIII, Final Fantasy IX. So of course now, since you’re working on the Final Fantasy VII Remake series, I do get that people would be asking for remakes of other titles, but if we did remake those other titles, we’d probably end up having to release them in four installments, or maybe even five installments.” 

While neither explicitly came out and said Final Fantasy VI Remake isn’t happening, it does sound as though neither of the series’ most prominent current directors are overly enthusiastic about taking it on. However, as longtime Final Fantasy director and producer Yoshinori Kitase told me in 2023, the notion of Final Fantasy VII Remake was borne out of the Final Fantasy XIII U.S. media tour, when interviewers continually asked him about the existence of such a project. Once that idea was planted, he returned to Japan to discuss it with fellow Final Fantasy luminary Tetsuya Nomura. 

During that interview, Nomura also opened up about how motivated he and Kitase felt about taking charge with Final Fantasy VII Remake, as well as the current remake culture within Square Enix. “Within Square Enix, gradually, remakes were being made, and these ideas for remakes were coming up in other departments,” Nomura told me. “If we weren’t going to do Final Fantasy VII, others were going to do it, so we had to rise up and do it! We had the sense that we had to guard Final Fantasy VII and have to be the ones taking this on, or someone else is going to do it. I thought it may be a bit troublesome is other teams without us took on the project.”

Just like Final Fantasy VII, Kitase directed Final Fantasy VI, with Nomura working on the art of the classic RPG. Though Hamaguchi and Yoshida sound hesitant to take on the project, perhaps that same tenacity that Kitase and Nomura felt about Final Fantasy VII Remake, which resulted in the project getting made, could serve as a source of hope for those looking for a remake of Final Fantasy VI. Until such a day comes, Final Fantasy VII Revelation, the long-awaited conclusion to the Final Fantasy VII Remake trilogy, is set to arrive in 2027 across all major modern platforms simultaneously.

[via videogameschronicle]

Blood Dungeon, the next game by Nidhogg developer Messhof, has a release date of August 25. The game blends 2D platforming with the “bullet heaven” auto-attacking gameplay popularized by Vampire Survivors.

First revealed during Day of the Devs 2026, Blood Dungeon challenges players to survive platforming dungeons by jumping and climbing while automatically blasting over 100 different enemies. These mobs can be defeated by wielding dozens of weapons bolstered by unlockable upgrades. You can choose between nine playable characters sporting distinct traits and weapons and take on six survival arenas. Additionally, Blood Dungeon features online leaderboards and daily dungeons to conquer. 

Blood Dungeon launches on August 25 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Switch 2, Switch, and PC. You can listen to Game Informer staff and guests from around the industry gush about the game in our special Summer Game Fest episode of The Game Informer Show. 

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl’s first major story expansion, Cost of Hope, is coming on August 20. The expansion was first announced during the Xbox Partner Preview in March, and it will launch alongside Update 2.0, a massive overhaul to the entire post-apocalyptic adventure. 

In Cost of Hope, which is a paid expansion, players once again assume the role of protagonist Skif in a new narrative that unfolds in parallel to the events of the base campaign. A mysterious PDA signal draws Skif into a new storyline centered on rising tensions between the Duty and Freedom factions. Cost of Hope introduces two new regions, Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant and the Iron Forest, along with new weapons, gear, and, naturally, mutated enemies. Cost of Hope will be the first of several planned expansions for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2. 

Alongside Cost of Hope will be the arrival of Update 2.0, which upgrades S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 to a new version of Unreal Engine 5 to improve stability and performance. Additionally, this free update introduces new content and gameplay improvements for all owners of the game.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Cost of Hope will be available for all versions of the base game on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.  The price of the expansion is currently unlisted, but it will be included in the Deluxe and Ultimate Editions of the game.