Month: October 2024

Microsoft is reportedly laying off 650 staff from its gaming division, according to an internal memo sent by Xbox CEO Phil Spencer to to staff, which has been published by both IGN and Game File.This latest round of cuts would follow the company laying off 1,900 staff from its video game division back in January this year, and come amid what’s been an incredibly torrid year games industry-wide on the layoff front.To see this content please enable targeting cookies.Manage cookie settings In the memo, Spencer wrote: “As part of aligning our post-acquisition team structure and managing our business, we have made the decision to eliminate approximately 650 roles across Microsoft Gaming — mostly corporate and supporting functions — to organize our business for long term success.”He …

Xbox has announced another batch of Game Pass arrivals – the titles which’ll be hitting the service during the second half of September – and this time the main people who’ll be happy are those who like ordering virtual folks about and building stuff.This wave of Game Pass titles follows up on one from earlier this month which was largely aimed at lovably boring simulated commuters, and is the first to arrive following all of Microsoft’s price rejigging and standard tier introducing properly coming into force on September 12.To see this content please enable targeting cookies.Manage cookie settings September’s second list of Game Pass arrivals includes three main new additions, all of which will be very much in the court of people who like toiling away the hours making decrees and buildin…

Not long after Larian released its official modding toolkit for Baldur’s Gate 3, it took next to no time for modders to find out how to unlock a developer mode in it that gives folks the chance to try a bunch of advanced stuff. Now, one modder’s busy swapping out the game’s turn-based fights for real-time ones, and they’re making some decent progress so far.With some cool custom maps already starting to take shape, in addition all the other interesting work that continues to rock up on the Nexus with and without help from its tools, BG3’s Patch 7 has definitely helped bring a lot of eyes back to the game’s flourishing modding scene.To see this content please enable targeting cookies.Manage cookie settings The latest interesting thing that you’ll find if you do some digging (thanks, PC Game…

It’s been a little while since Fallout: London last got a fresh patch, but Team FOLON’s now offered an update explaining what it’s been working on with regards to Patch 1.02. Long story short, some extra help’s been drafted in to help improve how it performs, and you shoudn’t have to wait too much longer to check the fixes out in-game.If you’ve not already, Fallout: London is well worth checking out for its fun take on post-apocalyptic British culture, as well as the fact it’s a damn good Fallout game in its own right, when it’s playing ball bug-wise.To see this content please enable targeting cookies.Manage cookie settings “For those eagerly awaiting news about the upcoming patch, we’re happy to share that it should be out before [London MCM] Comic Con,” project manager Dean ‘Prilla…

Do you enjoy treating Elden Ring’s bosses to the power of your fists? Don’t worry, you can admit it, we’re all friends here. Especially since the latyest patch to hit the Shadow of the Erdtree-enhanced game is partly aimed at making sure you can have a good time practicing your hobby .Hey, at least this update shouldn’t spark too much chatter about nerfs and whether or not they’re a good thing – as its predecessor – Patch 1.14 – risked doing via its tweaks to Promised Consort Radahn.To see this content please enable targeting cookies.Manage cookie settings As detailed in its notes, Patch 1.15 is all about bug fixes and stuff that might help you to avoid experiencing unstable performance on PC or console.But where, pray tell, are the fisting boons? Right here, chill out. FromSoft’s fixed a …

Nearly five years since the game launched, Disco Elysium has something of a rotten legacy. One of the most acclaimed games of the modern era, the ground-breaking RPG was adored by critics and consumers alike at launch, lauded for its deep RPG systems, its exemplary writing, and for how completely and utterly well-conceived its bleak, miserable world was. I also really, really liked the music.Tensions between development staff and the publishing arm of the company, and apparently rancid in-studio vibes, have lead to many of us thinking that we’ll never get another game like Disco Elysium ever again. Or will we?To see this content please enable targeting cookies.Manage cookie settings Though it’s missing some key staff that made DE as memorable as it was, new indie developer Long…

Sony has picked a release date for its live-action Until Dawn film, and it’s picked the incredibly scary month of… April!Earlier this month, Until Dawn director David F. Sandberg confirmed that filming has been finished on the upcoming Until Dawn movie, and now, as reported by Deadline, it seems that Sony’s Screen Gems has locked in a release date: April 25, 2025. That’s a little over six months away now, so you don’t have all that long to wait, and in the meantime you could always debate with people on Reddit about which ending they’re definitely going to go for and whether that means that’s the canon one or not. Or maybe they’ll do an Across the Spider-Verse and release different versions in cinemas to try and replicate that feeling of getting different endings like in the origina…

VariousThere are so many ways to be a Dungeons & Dragons fan these days. The tabletop RPG mainstay has been synonymous with pen-and-paper adventuring for 50 years now, and 2024 marks a major reworking of its core rulebooks to make the game more approachable. Anyone who’s played even just a couple of sessions knows how easy it can be to covet a friend’s set of custom dice, appreciate the care a Dungeon Master has taken in setting the right ambience for a crafted campaign, or even obsess over their choice of pen and notebook — after all, it’s what you’ll be spending a large chunk of time staring into as you ponder your character’s next heroic action.But what’s amazing is that you can be a huge D&D fan without ever touching a character sheet. D&D and the Forgotten R…

Traveller’s TalesAlice Jovanée (she/her) is a commerce writer, and she has been writing about gaming and tech since 2005. Prior to Polygon, she worked at publications such as The Verge.Regardless of how you feel about the current season of Rings of Power, if you’re looking for another way to satiate your Tolkien love you’ll definitely want to check out the current catalog of free games available to Amazon Prime members. Earlier this month, both Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor GOTY Edition, and Lego The Lord of the Rings were made available to Amazon Prime members for free through Sept. 30. However, you can now also pick up Lego The Hobbit for free through Oct. 23. Just head to the corresponding Prime Gaming page and you’ll be presented with a code that you can redeem on GOG.com fo…

Nintendo of AmericaCameron Faulkner (he/him) is Polygon’s commerce editor. He began writing about tech and gaming in 2013, and migrated from The Verge in 2023.One of the best unofficial October Prime Day deals has come early at Woot, where you can get a new Nintendo Switch OLED with either white or neon blue/red Joy-Con for $299.99 ($50 off). It’s not typical for this console to receive any kind of discount, so we’re usually skeptical that there’s something amiss when one pops up, like an iffy warranty, or that it isn’t the U.S. version, which includes a different power adapter. However, there are no strings attached; you’re just getting a great deal.Nintendo Switch OLED$300$35014% off$300Nintendo’s hybrid console still has plenty of staying power, especially with this year�…