Gaming

Xbox Brings Backwards Compatibility To PC, Starting With Four Classics

• Xbox has introduced backwards compatibility for PC.
• Four original Xbox games are available initially.
• The games are purchasable or included with Game Pass.

Microsoft has launched an early-release Xbox Backward Compatibility programme for PC, allowing selected original Xbox games to run officially on Windows PCs and compatible handhelds for the first time. The move extends Xbox’s preservation efforts beyond consoles and could make more older, previously console-only games available on modern…

Hasbro’s The Legend Of Zelda Figures Have Been Revealed, And They Look Pretty Great

• Hasbro revealed its first Zelda action figures.
• Link and Zelda cost $28 each.
• Ganondorf is larger and costs $43.

Hasbro and Nintendo have revealed their first The Legend of Zelda action figures, expanding the franchise into a new toy line. The announcement matters because it marks the beginning of a multi-year licensing partnership between the companies and gives collectors merchandise based on Tears of the Kingdom. The…

Xbox launches PC backward compatibility despite ongoing layoffs and strategy doubts

• Xbox brings four classic console games to PC via new emulation programme
• Blinx, Conker, Crimson Skies and Fuzion Frenzy lead the launch line-up
• Comes amid layoffs, studio closures and an unsettled Xbox strategy

Xbox has launched Xbox Backward Compatibility on PC, a new emulation programme bringing classic Xbox titles to PC and handheld devices such as the ROG Xbox Ally for the first time. The announcement comes as Microsoft works to downplay the fallout from recent layoffs affecting 3,200 jobs and…

Nearly a Decade After Launch on PS4, the Original Darkest Dungeon Is Getting New DLC

• Darkest Dungeon getting first DLC in six years, out 18th August 2026
• New DLC adds two characters from Darkest Dungeon 2 and the Burn mechanic
• Also brings three new districts, new Trinkets and fresh writing/events

Red Hook Studios has announced The Fire's Edge, the first new DLC for the original Darkest Dungeon in over six years, arriving on PS4 and other platforms on 18th August 2026. The release marks nearly a decade since the acclaimed roguelike strategy RPG first launched, and gives long-time…

Microsoft Announces Xbox Backward Compatibility on PC, With New Features and Achievements

• Xbox Backward Compatibility on PC launches with four classic titles
• New PC features include upscaling, achievements coming later this year
• Follows major Xbox layoffs and studio closures this month

Microsoft has launched Xbox Backward Compatibility on PC, letting players run select classic console titles on Windows PCs and handhelds such as the Xbox Ally X for the first time. The early preview begins immediately with four games, and owners of the titles automatically receive a PC licence,…

“The goal is to provide what we can”: Elder Scrolls Online Crown Store undergoing changes due to “team bandwidth” in wake of Xbox layoffs

• ESO removes web-based Crown Store browsing after Xbox layoffs cut staff
• Players must now log into the game to view/buy store items
• Monthly Crown Store blog and screenshots also being scaled back

The Elder Scrolls Online's Crown Store is being scaled back after Microsoft's mass Xbox layoffs left the game's team with reduced staff to manage it. ZeniMax has removed the ability to browse the store via the official website, meaning players must now log into the game itself to…

OG Xbox classics are coming to PC via backwards compatibility, with 4 games starting today

• Original Xbox games are now playable on PC for the first time.
• Four launch titles cost $9.99 each, or free if already owned.
• Achievements coming to these games later this year.

Microsoft has launched a new Xbox Backward Compatibility programme that, for the first time, brings original Xbox console games to PC and handheld devices. The initiative kicks off today with four titles, and Microsoft has signalled it plans to expand the programme further, including adding achievements to these…

Bethesda reportedly canceled an unannounced PvP shooter, likely from Wolfenstein dev MachineGames

I wasn’t able to retrieve the actual article content — what was pasted into the conversation was just page CSS/boilerplate with no story text, and my attempt to fetch the live page also returned no usable body content (it appears to have been truncated). I can see from…

The State of Every PlayStation Studio – July 2026

• IGN reviews the status of every PlayStation first-party studio in July 2026
• Naughty Dog's Intergalactic and Santa Monica's God of War Laufey are in development
• Bluepoint Games has closed; discs end production from January 2028

IGN has published its regular check-in on Sony's PlayStation Studios, surveying what each first-party developer is working on roughly halfway through 2026. The overview matters because 2026 has been a quiet year for first-party output, with only Housemarque's shooter Saros released so far, and because the studio landscape…

Stalker 2 Turned a Profit Before It Came Out Thanks to Money Microsoft Paid for Xbox Exclusivity

• Stalker 2 was profitable pre-launch due to Microsoft's Xbox exclusivity payment
• Game later sold 1 million copies in two days, hit 6 million players
• Comes amid Xbox's major restructuring and Game Pass subscriber shortfalls

GSC Game World founder Sergiy Grygorovych has revealed that Stalker 2 was profitable before launch, thanks to the sum Microsoft paid for Xbox exclusivity, after being impressed by the huge viewership of the game's debut trailer. Microsoft secured timed console exclusivity and a day-one Xbox Game Pass launch,…