This comes via TimeExtension, which asked an unnamed source who previously worked at Rockstar for clarification on references to GTA Tokyo that were found by data miners in December 2023 following the leak of GTA 5's source code. The source confirmed that Rockstar was indeed considering a GTA game based in Tokyo after Rockstar co-founder Sam Houser found himself visiting Japan frequently during GTA 3's promotional run. Ultimately, Rockstar decided it would be better to stick with what they know.

"He had just released GTA 3 back then and they were doing a lot of travel to Tokyo back then to promote the game," TimeExtension's source said. "It seemed like a cool, interesting city to do it in, but at the end of the day, it just came down to logistics. Getting the research team out there long enough to map the city and just the cultural satire in terms of what could possibly work in a fitting narrative way in that city. Making those things connect was a little tough and we thought it was just cooler to stick with the cities that were introduced in Grand Theft Auto 1."

Rockstar ended up releasing one of the best games ever made with GTA San Andreas in 2004, but I still can't help but wonder what could've been in a GTA Tokyo. We have the wonderful Yakuza series as a reference point for what an open-world game in Tokyo looks like when done right, but the two series really aren't all that comparable. Maybe one day. Maybe one day.

Meanwhile, we have GTA 6 on the way to take us back to the sun-soaked streets of Vice City.

Barone said as much in an interaction on Discord (thanks, Panedwards), revealing he's "been trying to" collaborate with Epic Games for Fortnite x Stardew Valley crossover content. Epic has yet to acknowledge Barone's request publicly, and as far as we know they haven't said anything to Barone privately either, but that hasn't stopped the Stardew creator from throwing out a few ideas.

"I want Pam in Fortnite," Barone said to Panedwards. "I'm open to doing a collab."

This might not need saying, but a crossover between these two certified giants of their respective genres would break the internet into a million pieces. It seems right now Barone is mostly interested in bringing Stardew Valley content to Fortnite instead of the other way around, but he also sounds fairly eager to just make something happen.

"It doesn't have to be Pam though," he added. "I would be open to anything. Abigail & Sebastian could be good. Stardrop or Joja Cola item? Galaxy sword or slingshot?"

Fortnite is of course the king of video game crossovers, featuring characters, items, skins, and events themed around hundreds of the most popular IP across games, movies, TV, comics, and music. A Stardew Valley collab would be a big one, for sure, but certainly nothing Epic isn't already used to.

In the meantime, here are some games like Stardew Valley we recommend for when you need a little extra chill in your life.

The latest volume, Powder Decima, tells two stories of brutal, bloody murder (of the kind to which Assassin's Creed fans are well accustomed). First there's 'Powder' by writer Fred Kennedy and artist Nick Marinkovich, creators of the Image Comics title Dead Roman, which tells the tale of two Assassins attacking a fleet of Templar ships. And then there's 'Decima' by longtime Marvel writer Ed Brisson and artist Chris Johnson, in which a young girl seeks to claim vengeance for her murdered family.

Here's a preview of both stories, Powder first, followed by Decima, along with the main cover for Assassin's Creed: Visionaries - Powder Decima #1 by Nick Marinkovich, as well as variants by Chris Johnson, Patrick Boutin Gagne, Moy R. Marco, and Eric Allard:

"In our first tale DECIMA, one bloody night, before recorded time, a young warrior watches as her family and the rest of their village are brutally slaughtered," reads the official solicitation text for Assassin's Creed: Visionaries - Powder Decima #1. "The only hope of saving her tribe is to pick up an ax, steel her nerves, and join the fray. DECIMA is a tale of loss, respect, and valor, stepping into the far reaches of human history, further than previously ventured in the Assassin's Creed universe. By writer ED BRISSON and artist CHRIS JOHNSON."

"Then in POWDER, the Templars expand their influence around the globe, while expanding their coffers at home, flooding China with opium," it continues. "And while the brotherhood is slow to act, a pair of Assassins from separate guilds sow chaos amid the Templar fleet. By writer FRED KENNEDY and artist NICK MARINKOVICH, the team behind the IMAGE COMICS hit series DEAD ROMAN!"

Assassin's Creed: Visionaries - Powder Decima #1 goes on sale October 2.

Each companion in The Veilguard has five abilities, but you can only select three of them to bring into combat at a time. Building your relationship with a given companion will increase your Relationship Level with them, and each level will get you a skill point that you can use to improve that companion's abilities. This info was all reported in a now sadly defunct Game Informer article, but you can still view an archived version thanks to the Wayback Machine.

Now BioWare has just updated the official Veilguard website with new companion profiles, each of which includes a brief bio, a full list of abilities, and a brief overview of that character's role in combat. Personally, it'll take a lot to keep me away from Taash, the Qunari dragon hunter, who both dual-wields axes and literally breathes fire. What better tool for a dragon hunter than that? 

• Harding
  • Harding's skills with the bow are unmatched - her arrows can stagger enemies and shred armor.
    • Seismic Shot
    • Heavy Draw
    • Shred
    • Adrenaline Rush
    • Soothing Potion
• Davrin
  • Fiercely loyal, Davrin brings his enemies down hard with a combination of mighty attacks, teaming with Assan to keep their companions out of danger.
    • Battle Cry
    • Death from Above
    • Heroic Strike
    • Assan Strike
    • In War, Victory
• Bellara
  • Bellara manipulates the Fade and uses electricity and control magic to support her Companions and diminish the powers of their foes.
    • Fade Bolts
    • Enfeebling Shot
    • Replenish
    • Time Slow
    • Galvanized Tear
• Taash
  • Blunt and straightforward, Taash is a mighty warrior, who wields dual-axes and breathes out flames, igniting enemies with draconic fury.
    • Fire Breath
    • Dragon's Roar
    • Dragonfire Strike
    • Spitfire
    • Fortune's Favor
• Lucanis
  • Lucanis stylishly deals necrotic damage in battle with his dual-daggers, whilst supporting his companions with potions and buffs.
    • Eviscerate
    • Abominate
    • Soothing Potion
    • Debilitate
    • Adrenaline Rush
• Emmrich
  • Emmrich summons forth spirits of the dead to both entangle and hinder his enemies and heal his companions.
    • Final Rites
    • Replenish
    • Entangling Spirits
    • The Bell Tolls
    • Time Slow
• Neve
  • Neve uses her talents as an ice mage to freeze and slow enemies, stopping them in their tracks.
    • Icebreaker
    • Blizzard
    • Glacial Pace
    • Time Slow
    • Replenish

BioWare noted that August 26 would be the kickoff of Companion Week for The Veilguard back when it revealed the promotional roadmap earlier in August. The week is just getting started, so it's safe to expect some more info drops on the game's companions in the days to come.

BioWare says it spent 200,000 hours testing Dragon Age: The Veilguard - and that's just for the RPG's PC version.

Ebenger, who worked as a cinematic designer on multiple Dragon Age and Mass Effect games and also handled cinematics in the likes of Assassin's Creed Odyssey and Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order – and is now, you guessed it, cinematic lead at Concord developer Firewalk – waded into some classic Developer Discussion earlier this month. Amidst a rash of anti-recycling asset naysayers seemingly spurred by the new Assassin's Creed having the audacity to reuse a fine jump animation which brings character and consistency to the series – but I digress – Ebenger said, in so many words, sequels rule. 

"I love working on a new project, but the sequel is when a team has its tech, people, and processes together and can make the game they really wanted to make the first time around," he said in a tweet. "Working on Mass Effect 2 hammered that home for me early in my career. Long live the second game!" 

From Ebenger's resumé, Mass Effect 2 and Assassin's Creed 2 are probably the strongest examples of sequels stealing the show. Dragon Age 2, to put it mildly, is more divisive, and I don't have time to put it any less mildly than that. Ebenger wasn't alone, either. Paul Marino, another Bioware cinematic vet, agreed with his post. Here's hoping Dragon Age: The Veilguard becomes the next sequel to point to. 

Fellow Mass Effect and Dragon Age veteran John Epler says people join BioWare "to build a story-focused, single-player RPG" - so we probably won't see a repeat of Anthem. 

Yamaoka very sensibly explained in a recent tweet that in the 25 years since he sat down and formulated the iconic score for Silent Hill 2, his approach toward making music has changed dramatically.

"Remade all the original tracks and added new ones," Yamaoka said. "After 25 years, my approach to music has evolved. This work reflects that change, blending past passion with today’s sound, challenging me like never before."

If I was sitting in front of Yamaoka right now, I'd ask where he draws the line between respecting such a beloved video game score and making sure the music has evolved along with his artistry after so many years. It must be somewhat daunting tinkering with something so universally treasured but also finding ways to modernize it and respect his own vision, but alas, this isn't an interview.

Our Silent Hill 2 Remake hands-on preview is just one of many that recently surfaced daring to flip on its head the whole narrative around Bloober Team's ability to pull this thing off. Bloober has a few hits in the bag, namely Layers of Fear and Observer, but it's also released a few duds, *cough* Blair Witch *cough*, leaving some Silent Hill fans in doubt about whether the studio can do justice to one of the most iconic horror games of all time. However, with hands-on impressions being near universally positive, it's possible those fears have been unwarranted all along.

Is there any question which entry tops our list of the best Silent Hill games?

Kojima was assistant producer on Monster Hunter Tri and had been on the series in some capacity since the original PS2 cult classic, ending his run with Monster Hunter Generations. As Automaton spotted, with underwater discourse resurfacing yet again in the lead-up to Monster Hunter Wilds, he discussed the challenges of recreating the fighting style, likening it to "making a separate game."

"If the game already has ground-based battles, then [adding underwater combat] is like making a separate game," he said in a tweet (translated by Automaton). "It’s difficult. It’s really super hard."

Underwater fights functioned a bit like the dramatic set piece encounters in World in the sense that they totally upended normal combat, but instead of gimmicks and tools they came with a whole new suite of movement and attack animations for your character. Moving, gathering, and especially fighting underwater looked and felt totally different, and even though there are only a few water fights relative to the whole monster roster of Tri, these sections had a big impact on the feel and flow of the game. 

Naturally, as Kojima says, this created a lot of extra work for the dev team. In a 2017 interview with GameSpot, OG Monster Hunter director Kaname Fujioka said the underwater sections were an immense challenge, and "for the amount of time and effort it takes to make underwater action work, we felt that in [Monster Hunter] World we're better off focusing on other things." 

Monster Hunter Wilds, which is notably adding at least one of the leviathan-type monsters previously featured in underwater combat, is evidently following a similar route: focusing on what it's best at rather than trying out game-warping experiments. But hey, at least we can swim and gather things underwater in Wilds. 

Monster Hunter World turned a cult classic into a phenomenon, and Capcom wants Monster Hunter Wilds to go even further beyond: "There are certain things you have to have in place to be a global level hit." 

Buff, tough, and wielding a giant bullet-shooting lance, Clef is the very embodiment of Reignbreaker's 'medievalpunk' vibe. If you're wondering what that means, think of Arthurian legends and add fluorescent spray paint, glam rock makeup, and stylishly disheveled half-plate armor. This fast-paced roguelike already sounded like my exact brand of kooky when I'd read the press release, but playing 35 minutes of Reignbreaker at Gamescom 2024 revealed it to be even better than I'd hoped.

Anarchy to a T

It’s a no-brainer: Studio Fizbin clearly made this game for me. This is something I know the moment I sit down to watch the action-packed trailer, all isometric angles and lurid neon colors splashed against the dungeon’s rusted metal locks and chipped brickwork. 

Playing as Clef, it’s my sworn anarchic duty to take my trusty lance and have at thee, o villainous fiends (aka, padlocks) that would keep me from my quarry. Said quarry is the queen herself, whose twisted bastion I now find myself trapped in. Formed of interlocked dungeons that can only be opened by seeking out guardians, trading witty barbs, and defeating them to retrieve all-important keys, the Queen's Bastion covers a lot of ground. Its twists and turns are marked with helpful spray painted arrows, helping guide me through stony caverns to defeat small waves of enemies before coming face to face with one of many big bosses.

I only got a small taste of Reignbreaker's procedurally generated expanse during my hands-on session at Gamescom 2024, but it's more than enough to pique my interest. Underscored by an aggressive punk rock soundtrack, Clef races through the Queen's Bastion at breakneck speed. I'm quickly introduced to her weapon of choice: the lance, and she has a fair few in her inventory to choose from. Swapping lances out mid-run is as easy as hitting the left trigger on my Xbox controller, allowing me to chain melee and punch attacks with my Peashooter before swapping to a different lance that specializes in devastating ranged projectiles. I soon settle into a rhythm, much as I would in Hades 2 or Lysfanga: The Time Shift Warrior, experiencing the fluid synergy of Clef's combat arsenal. 

I discover environmental traps are also great ways to keep things fresh and lively as a member of Studio Fizbin points out the "stomp" interaction when I pass over a metal grate in the floor. Electricity starts shooting up from the smashed panel, and as soon as I head to the key lock to trigger the next attack wave, I'm sure to use the electrical trap to its full advantage against my metallic – and therefore highly conductive – enemies.

By the time I reach the boss battle, newly tooled up with epic power-ups and lance upgrades akin to the Hades boons system, I'm feeling more confident than ever. A new dash upgrade drops a can of explosive paint in Clef's wake, though I barely register whether it does anything because I'm having far too much fun aiming and firing lances at the hulking church bell-shaped enemy in my path. It doesn't take long to whittle its health down considerably, and before I know it, my Reignbreaker demo has come to an unfortunate end.

Clef feels like a one-woman power house already, and I adored experiencing a slice of her world. The stunning art style is the cherry on top of it all; the studio has teased "relationships" of varying kinds that Clef might have with the Queen's guardians, ranging from romantic to friendly to rivalry, meaning that there's plenty more to this dynamic action roguelike than stabbing steampunk enemies with lances. This is one upcoming PC game I'll be keeping on my radar – I mean, where else can I shoot bullets out of a medieval weapon as a punk rock muscle mommy?

GamesRadar+ was in Cologne playing the most anticipated new games of 2024, and speaking to the developers bringing them to life. For more of our hands-on previews and exclusive interviews, visit the Gamescom 2024 coverage hub.

Making an appearance on The Boss Rush Podcast (timestamped here), Gardiner explained how public perception toward video games has changed since his early days as a game designer back in the early-2000s, a time when people thought of the medium as "the red-headed stepchild of entertainment."

Gardiner said he would attend parties in Los Angeles, presumably amongst people working in TV and film, and he was seen as a "passing curiosity" due to his involvement in video games. Today, however, Gardiner said the bigwigs in Hollywood will talk to video game developers "more than some TV runners and other things, because video games have taken so much of the mindshare and consumer spending."

This bodes well for the Fallout series, of course, which uncoincidentally spawned a critically acclaimed TV series at Amazon Prime earlier this year with Fallout season 2 already in the works. Meanwhile, Fallout 5 has only fairly recently been confirmed and will be releasing after the highly anticipated Elder Scrolls 6 - which is likely still several years away from launching.

"It's great to see that the stories and worlds we create are as respected as - I'm not comparing it to Star Wars or Lord of the Rings, please don't take this out of context - but they're in the conversation," Gardiner says. "There could be Fallout shows for 50 years, just like Lord of the Rings. I'm not saying there will or won't be, I'm not a prognosticator. But it could be an IP that your grandkids are playing. We're still talking about Lord of the Rings and that was written in the 40s, so you just don't know."

It certainly isn't inconceivable that a video game series as beloved and enduring as Fallout could still be popular many decades from now. After all, Fallout itself is already 27 years old, while Elder Scrolls just passed its 30th birthday earlier this year. Not to mention even older video game series like Mario and Donkey Kong, which are more than 40 years old. What's another 40?

In the meantime, here are the best RPGs to get lost in today.

Ospreay's entrance featured branding for Assassin's Creed Shadows, and you'd be forgiven if you initially dismissed this as a marketing stunt for an upcoming Ubisoft game. But Ospreay has been showing his Assassin's Creed fandom for years, often wearing an AC-inspired hood to the ring and taking opponents out with a finishing move called the Hidden Blade.

The centerpiece of Ospreay's All In entrance was a montage of wrestling and video game footage featuring voiceover from Assassin's Creed 2's Ezio Auditore, performed by original voice actor Roger Craig Smith himself, where Ospreay is more or less inducted into the assassin's brotherhood. You can check it out in full below.

"You have no idea how much your role in Assassins Creed played a huge impact in my career," Ospreay tweeted to Smith in the aftermath of the event. "Thank you so much for being part of the biggest night of my life. We are assassins."

"Thanks, Will! Flattered and honored to have been a part of this," Smith responded. "That a game character could impact folks to the point where THE Aerial Assassin would want me involved in such a massive moment…I’m immensely fortunate! Congrats on your victory! VITTORIA AGLI ASSASSINI!"

While Ezio's mainline appearances in the Assassin's Creed series ended with Revelations in 2011, the fan-favorite assassin has continued to cameo in the games and appear in various spin-offs ever since, with Smith occasionally returning to voice the character along the way. I'm fairly confident Wembley constitutes a whole new arena for the character, however.

Like a Dragon Gaiden's pro wrestling debut was a shockingly entertaining tribute to Yakuza's goofy violence.