Baldur's Gate 3's upcoming Patch 7 Closed Beta has been delayed.

The start of the Closed Beta for the long-awaited Patch 7 was set to begin on July 22, but unfortunately Larian Studios has been forced to push the release back to "later this week" due to an issue with dice rolls.

"Well, the Patch 7 Closed Beta was set to begin today, but while preparing the build for you, we were once more humbled by the classic lesson taught to every game dev while playing bug-fix whack-a-mole: if you fix one bug over here, another one might still pop up over there," Larian said in a Steam post.

The developer explained that this happened with one of the fixes it wanted to implement in Patch 7, which has caused passive rolls to stop working. 

It's currently trying to figure out how to resolve the issue, but there's some good news. For those who have yet to register to take part in the beta now have extra time to do so. 

Larian has also confirmed that this delay has not affected the full Patch 7 release, which is expected to roll out in September.

To tide players over until the Beta releases, Larian has also shared a lengthy list of highlights from the Patch 7 notes, which include over 1,000 fixes and improvements. You can read the full list below. 

The studio shared some of the new additions set to arrive with Patch 7 recently, including details on new Dark Urge evil endings, split screen updates, animation improvements, romance and dialogue fixes, as well as the previously announced official modding toolkit. 

Baldur's Gate 3 - Patch 7 Highlights:

• Introducing 'Evil Endings': Brand new cinematic endings for the truly villainous playthroughs.
• Added our very own Mod Manager, which lets you browse, install, and use mods created by the community.
• Revamped split screen gameplay: When playing on split screen, the two halves of the screen will now dynamically merge together when player characters come close to each other in-game, and dynamically split back up when the characters move apart. This revamp comes alongside many other improvements and polishes to improve the overall split screen experience.

Honour Mode Combat

• If Dror Ragzlin finds himself inside the spider pit, he'll try his best to befriend the spiders residing there with a new spell called Arachnid Compulsion so they can band together to fight the real enemy - you.
• The Bulette has a new condition called Diamond Scales and a new Legendary Action called Shredding Scales.
• Malus Thorm has a new Legendary Action called Grasping Appendage.
• Added a new aura and spell for Spectators: Panicked Sentinel and Ocular Nightmare, respectively.
• Ch'r'ai Tska'an, the leader of the githyanki ambush in Act II, has a new Legendary Action called Soul Sacrifice.
• Ch'r'ai Har'rak, the githyanki leader at the Knights of the Shield Hideout, has a new Legendary Action called Tu'narath's Embrace.
• Ptaris has a new Legendary Action called Ptarian Dogma.

UI

• Revised and reorganised the in-game video options to be more logical and robust. You now have an Upscaling Type drop-down, an Upscaling Mode drop-down, and an Upscaling Sharpness slider, followed immediately by the options that are affected by them.
• Updated the Reactions UI so that you only have to toggle the Reactions you want to use and then confirm them. (This saves you from having to select 'Do not react' multiple times!)
• Added a new Equipment Options menu to the Character Sheet on controller.
• The panel that opens to 'Donate' magic items to Gale will now also show items in your Traveller's Chest. It also now indicates which items are currently equipped.
• We noticed some of you hiccoughing bubbles, so the action for washing yourself with soap and sponges is now called 'Use' instead of 'Consume'.
• Fixed your player character's name getting reverted to 'Custom' during Character Creation if you moved on to create your Dream Guardian and then went back to edit the player character again.
• Fixed the wrong spell Ability showing up when selecting a Feat during Level Up.

Art

• Added a new loading screen in Act III, showing the busy streets of Baldur's Gate.
• Fixed the skirt part of the Adamantine Splint Armour missing for female dwarves.
• Fixed the Adamantine Scale Mail clipping on large male characters.

Gameplay

• You can now start Custom Mode games using Honour Mode mechanics when starting a new playthrough. You'll be able to do this via the 'Ruleset' dropdown.
• The kuo-toa that promised to build you an army will now support you in the final battle. Unless they all died in Act I.
• The help that the Gondians promised for the final battle will now arrive in the form of a friendly Steel Watcher. Apologies from Zanner Toobin for the delay.
• The hair colour options in Character Creation will now remain accessible after you choose the bald hairstyle, so that you can continue fiddling around with eyebrow colours.
• Overhead dialogues that support multiple player characters can now involve characters assigned to different players. (They were limited to characters controlled by a single player until now.) This means that there will be more banter among player characters in multiplayer games.
• Group Hide will no longer affect summons that aren't linked to the group in the Party Line.
• Changed the behaviour for selecting camp supplies for a Long Rest. When selecting camp supplies that are stacked, the game now only takes what it needs from the stack.
• You can no longer cheese the Leap of Faith trial at the Gauntlet of Shar by just clicking the final platform and letting your character pathfind their way there. Shar threatened to smite us if we didn't fix this one.
• Fixed a bug where resurrecting Lae'zel on the beach in Act I would cause her to appear in the Party Line but not in the world, preventing you from leaving Act I.
• Patched up some savegames where Gale still had his Necrotic Aura when he shouldn't on load.
• Fixed Minthara's body sometimes turning invisible on the Level Up screen. (We sorta liked the floating-head-and-hands look, but hey.)

Animation

• Astarion now has idle animations at camp that aren't just him reading a book.
• Added a new idle animation for Minsc at camp - Boo may or may not have taught him some tai chi.
• Karlach will no longer brush the shaved side of her head.
• Polished the appearance of neck kisses in lovey-dovey scenes with Shadowheart on the Sharran path for characters with large body types and dragonborn characters.

Writing and Flow

• Dotted some dialogue options and voiced lines into dialogues across the game to add some more overall reactivity, particularly to account for edge-case flows.
• Dotted more Dark Urge reactivity (dialogue options and Narrator lines) into dialogues across the game.
• Resolved an issue that had been rendering some romance party banters inaccessible while adventuring.
• Avatar Lae'zel can now decide what she wants to do at the end of the game even if she wasn't the avatar making the choices in the main dialogue.
• Added a dialogue option asking for a kiss in more paths of Wyll's epilogue dialogue.
• If you're in holographic form in the epilogue, Wyll won't automatically assume he's talking to Lae'zel.
• Gave Wyll a new greeting for romance partners in Act III and characters with really low approval.
• Companions should now be more sympathetic to Astarion fleeing from the sun.
• Added a new dialogue in which Karlach will react to Dammon if she finds him dead after he told her that he can help her.
• Minthara will now react if you knock her out in Act I.

Scripting

• Fixed several issues (related to resurrecting characters via Withers, restructuring the party at night, and automatic camp night scenes) that would trap you in an eternal slumber, unable to end a Long Rest.
• Fixed a bug causing Shadowheart to keep repeating one line when you talk to her after she's resurrected by Withers from the Shadowfell.
• Fixed a small flow issue preventing you from commenting on Gale's last name.
• Fixed several occurrences of Wyll still having an exclamation mark above his head when he already told you everything he had to say.
• When playing as the Dark Urge, Minthara will no longer act as though you accepted Bhaal when
• Fixed a broken kissing scene after you gave Shadowheart the Idol of Shar.
• Fixed an issue where Jaheira would stop following the party after spending a night outside of the party.
• Fixed the rune tablets on the nautiloid sometimes not triggering the Narrator's lines.
• Clerics of Lathander should now recognise his symbol on a Lathanderian amulet.
• Ensured the avatar is prioritised as the main speaker in dialogues related to the hag's Act I surrender.
• Minthara does, in fact, now have something to say about after you kill her.
• Made the romance scene at night with Wyll in Act III unskippable if it triggers to avoid accidentally skipping it and not being able to finish the romance arc.
• If Avatar Karlach and Wyll are partners and go to together, he'll now act accordingly during the epilogue.
• Fixed Karlach's scene not playing if you decided to go with her when playing as Wyll.
• A bug has been fixed so that Wyll will now talk to his father if after the pact with Mizora is broken but Ravengard is saved from despite this, to decide on his title.
• Lae'zel will now wait a little longer for you at the site of her recruitment if you tell her you'll be back.
• Improved Lae'zel's idle camp behaviours to align a bit better with the other companions'.
• Fixed the fade-to-black after Karlach's scene at the end of the game, which would give you a very brief glimpse of Game Developer Land.
• Breaking up with Karlach by speaking with another companion you're dating the morning after her romance scene won't block her dialogue anymore.
• Reinstated Gale's last line in his detailed explanation of ceremorphosis and tweaked a dialogue option to react to it.
• Now that you can give Gale magic items from the Traveller's Chest, he will leave again if you refuse to do so.
• Patched up some savegames that had a bug that would prevent the dialogue between Gale and at the end of the game from triggering.
• Fixed a bug that let you kiss Gale even if he was in a disguised form before confronting . Also fixed this dialogue with him cutting off before you could give him a smooch.
• Reworked the script that determines whether a character is too busy to talk. This will prevent bugs like Minthara's dialogue not triggering at Moonrise Towers after you rescue her, and knock-on effects as a result of this, like not being able to rest or fast travel.

Performance

• Continued to make performance and stability optimisations across the game and implemented many under-the-hood code fixes.
• Optimised performance. This will have a more noticeable impact in areas with large numbers of NPCs (like the Lower City) and will reduce peak memory usage when loading levels for the first time. It will also be noticeable when managing lots of loot (e.g. when transferring everything from a camp chest to a character's inventory).

Cinematics

• Reworked and revamped the cutscene that plays when you interact with
• Polished facial expressions and emotions across companion dialogues, including to the facial animations of your character during some kissing cinematics, including with the Astarion.

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Netflix currently has over 80 games in development and aims to release one title per month starting this month onwards.

During its latest earnings call on July 18, co-CEO and president Gregory K. Peters shared the company's ongoing plans for its gaming initiative and also said 

"We're getting close to three years into our gaming initiative, and we're happy with the progress that we've seen," Peters said. We've had set ourselves pretty aggressive engagement growth targets. And we've met those, exceeded those in many cases. In 2023, we tripled that engagement. We're looking good in our engagement growth in '24, and we've set even more aggressive growth goals for '25 and '26."

Netflix has launched "over 100 games so far" on the mobile app, but Peters did admit that engagement is "still quite small" - as well as content spend - compared to its other streaming services.

Peters said that the 80+ games set for release will be labelled as "interactive narrative games" - dubbed Netflix Stories - and will be based on existing Netflix IP, like the popular series Emily in Paris.

"We've seen what works, what doesn't work," Peters added. "We're refining our program to do more of what is working with the 80-plus games that we currently have in development. And one of those things that really is working is connecting our members with games based on specific Netflix IP that they love.

"And this is an area that we've been able to move in quickly in a particular space, which is interactive narrative games. These are easier to build. And we place those in a narrative hub that we call Netflix Stories."

Theodore A Sarandos, Co-CEO, president and director, also joined the discussion and said that Netflix's opportunity to "serve super fandom with games is really fun and remarkable."

"I think the idea of being able to take a show and give the superfan a place to be in between seasons and even beyond that, to be able to use the game platform to introduce new characters and new storylines or new plot twist events, now you could do those kind of things and then they can then materialize in the next season or in the sequel to the film," Sarandos said.

Netflix's current game library on the mobile app is available with every Netflix membership without ads, in-app purchases, or extra fees.

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Ubisoft has acknowledged the Japanese community's concerns about Assassin's Creed Shadows.

The next instalment in the Assassin's Creed franchise is set to arrive later this year, but ahead of its launch the development team has come out with a statement in response to some concerns from the Japanese fanbase.

"For many of our team, creating an Assassin's Creed game set in Feudal Japan has been a long-cherished dream," the post reads. "Since the announcement of Assassin's Creed Shadows, we have received many positive reactions, but also some criticism including from you, our Japanese players. We share your passion for history and deeply respect your care for the historical and cultural integrity of your rich heritage."

The studio goes on to explain that it has put great effort into ensuring an "immersive and respectful representation of Feudal Japan" by consulting with historians and researchers, but said it has never been its intention with any games in the series to base it as factual representation of history or historical characters.

However, it also acknowledged "that some elements in our promotional materials have caused concern within the Japanese community", and apologized, adding that the game will continue to evolve up until the game's release. 

"All game footage presented so far is in development and the game will keep evolving until launch," the post continued. "Based on the constructive criticism we have received, we will continue our efforts until we put this game into your hands - and beyond."

Ubisoft also addressed the ongoing backlash surrounding one of Shadows' playable protagonists, Yasuke.

Yasuke is based on the the real-life historical figure, a samurai of African origin who arrived in Japan in 1579, lived during the Sengoku period, and served the Japanese daimyō Oda Nobunaga. 

The origins of Yasuke has been a debated topic ever since his reveal, despite experts stating that he was in fact a samurai during this era.

Ubisoft explained that it has always taken historical figures and events and incorporated them with the series' fantasy elements "to craft engaging and immersive experiences" and said that its representation of Yasuke in Shadows is illustrative of this.

"His unique and mysterious life made him an ideal candidate to tell an Assassin's Creed story with the setting of Feudal Japan as a backdrop," it said, while also acknowledging that his samurai depiction is "a matter of debate and discussion".

Assassin's Creed Shadows launches on November 15 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Amazon Luna, and PC.

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BioWare has officially unveiled the cast behind Dragon Age: The Veilguard's seven companions and the playable hero, Rook.

In a new blog post, ahead of its San Diego Comic Con (SDCC) panel this week, the studio finally revealed the faces behind the The Veilguard's cast of core characters. 

"Featuring the most comprehensive character creator in Dragon Age yet, your character, nicknamed Rook, debuts with four different voice overs to make this story truly your own," BioWare explained. "Rook is Dragon Age: The Veilguard’s leader in the making who has to bring the Veilguard together to take down the threats on Thedas."

Players will be able to choose which voice they prefer, with two options from US/North American actors and two from the United Kingdom/EU. 

These voices have been provided by Alex Jordan, best known for Cyberpunk 2077 and The Amazing World of Gumball, Bryony Corrigan (Baldur's Gate 3) Erika Ishii, who voices Valkyrie in Apex Legends and Ana Bray in Destiny 2, as well as Jeff Berg, who has worked on Battlefield 1.

Along with the return of Gareth David-Lloyd, who is returning as Solas, and Brian Bloom as Varric, BioWare also shared the full cast list, which features some familiar faces known in the industry. You can read the list below: 

• Ali Hillis (Mass Effect 3, Naruto) returns to the fray as Harding, the dwarven scout, a Dragon Age: Inquisition hero with a big heart, a positive outlook, and a ready bow – as well as unexpected magical powers.
• Ike Amadi (Mass Effect 3, Halo 5: Guardians, Insomniac's Spider-Man) as Davrin, a bold and charming Grey Warden who has made a name for himself as a monster hunter.
• Jee Young Han (Perry Mason, Unprisoned) as Bellara, a creative and romantic Veil Jumper obsessed with uncovering ancient secrets.
• Jessica Clark (True Blood, Pocket Listing) as Neve, a cynic fighting for a better future, both as a private detective and a member of Tevinter's rebellious Shadow Dragons. 
• Jin Maley (Star Trek: Picard, Silicon Valley) as Taash, a dragon hunter allied with the Lords of Fortune who lives for adventure and doesn't mind taking risks. 
• Nick Boraine (Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Black Sails) as Emmrich, a necromancer of Nevarra's Mourn Watch who comes complete with a skeletal assistant, Manfred, voiced by Matthew Mercer (Critical Role, Fallout 4).
• Zach Mendez (Horizon Forbidden West, Married Alive) as Lucanis, a poised & pragmatic assassin who descends from the bloodline of the House of Crows, a criminal organization renowned throughout Thedas. 

"Each companion in Dragon Age: The Veilguard brings a unique personality and backstory, with some of the most compelling individual storylines in franchise history,” said Ashley Barlow, Creative Performance Director at BioWare. 

"The talent contributing to this next game in the series is tremendous - translating stellar writing from the BioWare team into performances fans will find worthy of the drama, fantasy and romance they come to expect from Dragon Age."

The studio is heading to SDCC this week where it will host its "Dragon Age - Meet The Heroic Companions of Thedas” panel. Those in attendance on July 26 will meet some of the actors bringing these characters to life and be provided a "glimpse at how bonds and connections will unfold through BioWare’s dynamic conversation system."

The Veilguard doesn't have a release date just yet, but BioWare has confirmed it will launch on PS5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and PC in "Fall 2024". 

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The next Xbox Wireless Controller design could be launching next month, featuring the return of a fan-favorite design concept.

That's according to French outlet Dealabs who, as reported by VGC, claim the next special edition Xbox Wireless Controller will be named 'Sky Cipher' and feature a blue translucent chassis not dissimilar to the gorgeous Forza Horizon 5 Xbox Wireless Controller that originally launched alongside the popular racing game.

Dealabs claims Microsoft will officially reveal the Sky Cipher Xbox Wireless Controller just over a week from now on July 31. This should also be when pre-orders open for the controller, which will "most likely" be available for purchase on August 13. As for pricing, Dealabs suggests it'll come in at $69.99 (around £64.99), which is pretty standard for special edition Xbox Wireless Controller designs.

The leak has no imagery to accompany it, so we don't have a visualization on what the alleged upcoming controller might look like. But if it is inspired by the Forza Horizon 5 model, then collectors (or those simply after a new, fancier design) could be in for a treat. The translucent yellow of this controller, paired with its vibrant splashings of pink and blue paint, make it an utterly gorgeous special edition that's still in demand to this day - three years after it originally launched.

In other news, Microsoft has once again landed in hot water with the FTC over its recent Xbox Game Pass price hike. With a new filing submitted, the FTC claims the move degrades the product, stating: "removing the most valuable games from Microsoft's new service - combined with price increases for existing users, is exactly the sort of consumer harm from the merger the FTC has alleged."

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Microsoft is reportedly considering adding more tiers to Xbox Game Pass.

That's according to Windows Central, who reports that the company is planning on introducing additional membership tiers to its subscription service, including an ad-based tier and a cloud-based tier, with the latter aimed at being "cheaper".

"I've heard that Microsoft is working towards a cloud-only version of its subscription that would be cheaper and more approachable to buy than Xbox Game Pass Ultimate," the publication said.

This new tier is said to be designed around users who don't want to buy an Xbox console and don't like upfront costs, but could also include the ability to "'double dip' by offering digital ownership of games within the service," - so they can play their games through the cloud and also own them digitally. 

As for the ad-based tier, this is something Microsoft is "currently actively working towards" and could potentially be aimed at those who prefer not pay anything on Xbox Game Pass at all.

This report comes after Microsoft implemented new changes to its Xbox subscription service earlier this month by increasing the prices of its membership tiers across the board. The changes affected the most expensive Ultimate tier, and also introduced a brand-new Standard tier that will replace the Console version. 

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) - who has been actively appealing Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard - recently submitted a new filing to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, calling the latest Game Pass price hike "consumer harm" and "product degradation".

These changes also arrive right before the apparent imminent launch of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 on Xbox Game Pass, which will be followed by the day-one Game Pass launch of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6.

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Guilty Gear Strive is set to get its first guest character - and the first in the series' history - and it's one hell of a choice. 

Lucy from the Cyberpunk Edgerunners anime is coming to the game in 2025 as the final character in Season Pass 4. Announced at EVO 2024, she'll be coming to the game in 'Summer 2025' - that's likely between the months of June and September. Before her, Season 4 will see the addition of returning characters Dizzy and Venom, as well as Unika - a new character from the upcoming Guilty Gear Strive: Dual Rulers anime.

Season 4, which officially kicks off today (July 22) with balance adjustments and a premium character color pack, will soon see the addition of a 3v3 team battle mode, even more character colors and two additional stages coming to the game next year.

While the Season 4 announcements unfortunately leaked ahead of time on developer Arc System Works' official channels, it's undoubtedly an incredibly exciting lineup of characters. Dizzy and Venom have been highly-requested characters for the game since its 2021 launch, so it's nice to see them finally make a return.

Though the biggest news here is certainly the addition of Lucy from Cyberpunk Edgerunners. As the deuteragonist of the hit Netflix anime, Lucy swiftly became a fan favorite and while her announcement for Guilty Gear Strive came as a huge surprise, I feel like she'd fit into that universe perfectly.

We don't yet know if Cyberpunk 2077 developer CD Projekt Red has any Guilty Gear Strive-related content in store for its open-world RPG - and there's no concrete release date for Lucy's addition as of yet - but I'm willing to bet a whole lot of Cyberpunk fans are going to be picking up Guilty Gear Strive in 2025 when she arrives.

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Ubisoft has come out in defence of the Star Wars Outlaws graphics criticism and said it won't delay the game.

IGN published 10 minutes of Star Wars Outlaws gameplay earlier this week ahead of its August 30 launch date, showcasing the game's playable protagonist Kay Vess on an expert mission on the desert planet Tatooine. 

However, the gameplay has since garnered some criticism, mainly for its graphics, frame-rate drops, animations, and effects, causing the video to gain over 13,000 dislikes in comparison to just 8,000 likes as per GamesRadar.

"The game itself seems cool but... doesn't it look awfully unpolished for something coming out in August?" one user asked in the comments. 

Another wrote, "Why do the graphics look so poor and the particle effect[s] to explosion, and Kays face?" 

In the latest Ubisoft Q1 FY2025 Sales call, when asked if the publisher would potentially delay the game following the gameplay criticism, Ubisoft chief financial officer Frederick Duguet said, "The game has gone gold, so the date is well confirmed for August 30."

"We'll shortly be seeing more content of very high quality and multiple hours that will really show the depths of the open world that is a key element of the promise to enjoy the exploration of the galaxy with multiple planets, so that should bode well for the game in terms of high-quality delivery."

Ubisoft chief executive officer Yves Guillemot then goes on to defend the footage and graphics, adding that he is sure of the final product's quality. 

"As we've said also for Star Wars, the level of quality of the world and the experience is really very high," he said. "We are really leveraging our engine, and I think people will love it."

Star Wars Outlaws launches next month on August 30, 2024, for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and PC.

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Developer 1047 Games has announced that Splitgate 2, the sequel to the 2021 first-person shooter Splitgate, will launch for free on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC in 2025.

The upcoming game is a 4v4 multiplayer shooter built in Unreal Engine 5 and boasts "fast-paced portal gunplay with objective-based game modes and distinctive futuristic maps", and features a faction system, customizable weapons, and, you guessed it, portals.

"In the summer of 2021, when we released Splitgate on PS4, we didn’t know what to expect," said 1047 CEO, Ian Proulx in a new interview with PlayStation Blog. "We certainly weren’t ready for the millions of people who hopped online wanting to play our take on a first-person shooter.

"With Splitgate, we made a game we loved and that our awesome community embraced, but we didn’t make the game of our dreams."

Proulx continued, saying that he believes that the upcoming sequel is "the game I dreamed of making when Nicholas Bagamian [CTO and Co-founder of 1047 Games] and I got together in a Stanford dorm and decided to put portals in a shooter."

The developer said that the team has been working on the game for so long and will be ready to share more about it next month, adding that while it was hard to halt the development of Splitgate in 2022, Proulx and the team knew that the right way forward was to develop a sequel.

"We had to start fresh, in some ways," Proulx explained. "That meant building from the ground up in Unreal Engine 5, with completely new character models, new maps, new weapons, and even new portal walls and portals."

Despite being a multiplayer shooter, a narrative writer was hired to work on the universe, creating rich lore for Splitgate 2 with digital comics and cinematics set to arrive in the future.

The game doesn't arrive until 2025, but Proulx already has plans for the future, and explained that in order to keep the fun, the goal, the key was to "build a game that can last a decade or more".

"It’s not just about making sure we have lots of content ready when we launch," Proulx added. "It starts from the very foundations of design. Though the first Splitgate was inspired by classic arena shooters, we realized that to make a modern game that lasts, we had to develop the tools for a deep and satisfying gameplay loop. "

The developer said this starts with Splitgate 2's faction-based multiplayer, and although the team isn't ready to share details just yet, there's "a lot of it on display in our announcement trailer."

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EA Sports has revealed the official release date for EA Sports FC 25, as well as its cover star.

EA Sports FC 25 is coming to Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, and PC on September 27, 2024. 

For this latest instalment, Real Madrid and England star Jude Bellingham will grace the cover of the Standard Edition, while the Ultimate Edition will feature Bellingham alongside other football stars like Aitana Bonmatí, David Beckham, Zinedine Zidane and Gianluigi Buffon.

Pre-orders are also available right now, but players will have until August 20 to pre-order the Ultimate Edition and receive limited-time rewards. These rewards include an untradeable Hero or ICON Player Item in EA Sports FC 24 Ultimate Team from the 'Greats of the Game' campaign, as well as an untradeable Hero Player Item in EA Sports FC 25 Ultimate Team with an upgraded 'Prime' version, which will arrive in November.

EA Sports FC 25 will introduce a bunch of new changes for the series. For starters, Career mode will feature women’s football for the first time ever. The game will also have several modes, which EA Sports has already provided details for. 

There's 5v5 Rush, which is described as "new way to play with friends in Football Ultimate Team, Clubs, and Kick-Off", and will replace Volta, with "fast-paced small-sided gameplay."

FC IQ has had an overhaul for greater strategic control and realism for team building, and will also utilize a new AI model "powered by real-world data" that will "influence player tactics through all-new Player Roles."

Ultimate Team is also getting changes, by introducing a way for players to employ Manager Items, customize Evolution items, and a way to duplicate items with a new duplicate storage mechanic.

Developer EA split with FIFA in 2022, meaning the continued use of the FIFA name in the company's video game series had to be rebranded. FIFA 23 was the final game in the thirty-year run of FIFA-branded EA titles, before EA Sports FC 24 was released last year, making it the first entry in the newly renamed series. 

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If you’ve been thinking of giving Nvidia GeForce Now a spin, then a new 50% off discount might just tempt you into finally making that commitment.

The game streaming service is currently half-price for the Priority and Ultimate subscription plans as part of Nvidia’s GeForce Now summer sale.

That means you can bag a Priority membership for $4.99 / £4.99 per month and an Ultimate membership for $9.99 / £9.99 per month. Normally, you'd be paying $10 / £10 or $20 / £20 respectively.

Or if you want to run with the six-month option, you’ll pay $24.99 / £24.99 and $49.99 / £49.99 respectively for Priority and Ultimate, rather than $50 / £50 or $100 / £100.

Priority is essentially the standard subscription (taking ‘priority’ over free users, extending game session length, and providing ray tracing to boot), whereas Ultimate offers all that and an extra range of goodies (4K support, or up to 240 fps for smoother frame rates).

The offer will run for a limited period, until August 18, 2024, so you’ve got a month to decide if you want to avail yourself of this sizeable discount.

Alongside this announcement, Nvidia revealed nine new games which are coming to GeForce Now this week.

The highlights picked out by Team Green include Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess, which by all accounts is a smart little outing in a similar vein to Orcs Must Die (a tower defense spin), but in a Japanese setting.

There’s also Dungeons of Hinterberg, an RPG with a ‘social twist’ and Persona-style elements (plus Zelda vibes) that sounds quite intriguing, too.

Here’s the full list of new games:

• The Crust (New release on Steam, July 15)
• Gestalt: Steam & Cinder (New release on Steam, July 16)
• Nobody Wants to Die (New release on Steam, July 17)
• Dungeons of Hinterberg (New release on Steam and Xbox, available on PC Game Pass, July 18)
• Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn (New release on Steam and Xbox, available on PC Game Pass, July 18)
• Norland (New release on Steam, July 18)
• Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess (New release on Steam, July 19)
• Content Warning (Steam)
• Crime Boss: Rockay City (Steam)

Analysis: Dream stream

This is a great deal on the streaming service, although to be fair, we have seen 50% off discounts before – though usually only on Black Friday, as far as we’re aware. Also, Nvidia generally offers the six-month plan at half-price, and here you can get the benefit on the monthly plan too.

So, this is well worth considering if you want to try game streaming. The thing to remember about GeForce Now is that you must own the games (on the supported platforms, like Steam or Epic) to be able to play them. In other words, it’s the hardware you’re paying for (Nvidia servers to play the games on, and stream them to your device), rather than the software.

The other important point is while Nvidia’s hardware is doing the heavy lifting rather than your device, the quality of your internet connection is obviously vital for any streaming duties, whether that’s watching TV shows or playing games online.

Nvidia notes that there are now over 1,900 games in the GeForce Now library.

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The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has called the recent Xbox Game Pass price changes "product degradation".

Earlier this month, Microsoft introduced new changes to its Xbox subscription service by increasing the prices of its membership tiers across the board, including Ultimate and a brand-new Standard tier that will replace the Console version. 

Now, in a bid to appeal Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard last year, the FTC has submitted a new filing to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, calling the latest move "consumer harm".

"Product degradation - removing the most valuable games from Microsoft's new service - combined with price increases for existing users, is exactly the sort of consumer harm from the merger the FTC has alleged," the latest filing reads, which refers to the FTC's attempt to block the deal before it was closed.

The FTC argues that the new Standard tier is "inconsistent" with what Microsoft promised, that being "the acquisition would benefit consumers" by making Call of Duty available on Microsoft’s Game Pass on the day it is released on console "with no price increase for the service based on the acquisition".

"Microsoft’s price increases and product degradation - combined with Microsoft’s reduced investments in output and product quality via employee layoffs, are the hallmarks of a firm exercising market power post-merger," the file continues.

The FTC adds that "Microsoft’s price increases coincide with adding Call of Duty to Game Pass’s most expensive tier, and discontinuing the Console tier will happen shortly before releasing CoD’s newest game."

Microsoft recently confirmed that Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 will arrive on Xbox Game Pass day one for all members when it launches later this year, which will make it the first new game in the series to be brought to the service.

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