The video goes over different elements of things, starting by showing what the avatar character creator looks like. We select a body type and can work off of a few established faces to then alter things like skin color, hair color, hair style, eye color, facial features, and other appearance items. 

From there, we get to see the mapping feature. That sections starts by showing different parts of Aincrad. Our goal will be to find checkpoints in order to create a map of the area. Once we do that, we can find out where points of interest like arks, safe areas, standard and magical seals, side quest trinkets, treasure chests, warp terminals, and waypoints are. While we’re chronicling that though, we will run across enemies. When fighting, we could use axes, daggers, maces, rapiers, and one and two-handed swords. We also won’t necessarily be alone, as we can have one partner character that we’ve met alongside us. 

There will be peaceful spots too. Base Towns will appear for us to explore, rest, and restock. The Town of Beginnings is one of them. At an Inn, we could check the Chest Orb. This lets us handle Growth via growth points we invest into stats, change our equipment, change our items, and adjust our partner’s weapons. We can also visit an Item Seller to buy and sell things or craft consumables. The Smithy is also open for weapon enhancement, synthesis, and crafting.

Here’s the full Echoes of Aincrad trailer that shows how this Sword Art Online game will work. 

The Sword Art Online game Echoes of Aincrad will come to the PS5, Xbox Series X, and PC on July 10, 2026, the original anime series is on Crunchyroll, and Yen Press handles manga, audiobooks, and light novels based on the series.

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The heroine in the new FuRyu game is Reona Minazuki, a woman who herself was stuck inside an anomaly called Sarcophogus before being awoken by the Danger Zone Countermeasures Office and called upon to explore the Otherworlds and defeat the anomaly enemies inside of them. These are liminal spaces, and she’ll survive by gunning opponents down and using Demi-Humanization System to enhance herself with active and passive skills. Her appearance is also customizable, and weapons can gain abilities too.  

Here’s the first trailer for Anomalith. 

FuRyu confirmed two versions will be available. The standard copy is $49.99. There will also be a Digital Deluxe option for $69.99, though it didn’t note what additional items will be available in it.

This marks three new games on the way from the company. A remaster of Exstetrawill appear this year, making the JRPG available worldwide for the first time. There’s also a new roguelike on the way called Crymelight.

Anomalith will come to the Switch 2, PS5, and PC on October 29, 2026. 

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In the case of the 2B and 9S NieR: Automata skins in Killer Inn, these seem to change the appearance of two existing characters in the game. The 2B one is for Coromo the Cosplayer, a character with a Charming health regeneration buff and Agedama the Hedgehog pet that can get items. The Martial Artist Miao one is 9S. That’s the character whose Hand to Hand Expert trait means nobody can grapple them and that has -50% stamina dragin due to Controlled Breathing. The Battle Pass uses XP to earn cosmetics. Other items we can see include banners, emotes, and titles. 

Here’s another official photo showing the skins of 2B and 9S in-game.

As for the Killer Inn free trial, Square Enix explained that people who download that demo can play online and with others. However, they can not access the full roster or all types of matches. The announcement didn’t immediately explain the limitations and who will be available to use if someone decides to test it out. It did note that saves made with that will carry over to the full version of the game. 

Killer Inn is in Steam Early Access on PCs, and a free trial is now available. The NieR: Automata crossover is also live in-game. It launched in February 2026, and the 1.0 release is supposed to happen about eight months after that debut. 

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This roleplay involves Hololive English Vtubers roleplaying as amnesiac heroes who are called to Libestal to defend it. As they do, sometimes hint as to who they were come through and new storylines appear as they deal with the Stains and ward off an unknown calamity. As the third chapter begins, everyone’s betrayed by Libestal’s king and rescued by Fia. She sent them into the past to stop The Outsider, but things went wrong. Now, they have another chance as all of them are separated and in a new world, trying to set things right again.

Here’s the full Hololive ENigmatic Recollection Chapter 3 trailer:

As for merchandise, here’s what’s available:

• ENigmatic Acrylic Stand Mini Character Version (Fuwawa Abyssgard, Koseki Bijou, Mococo Abyssgard, Nerissa Ravencroft, or Shiori Novella options) – $9.
• ENigmatic Collection Card (Fuwawa Abyssgard, Koseki Bijou, Mococo Abyssgard, Nerissa Ravencroft, or Shiori Novella options) – $3.
• ENigmatic Recollection Liberal Cloak-style Blanket – $40.
• ENigmatic Recollection Plushie-size Mini Liberal Cloak – $15.
• ENigmatic Recollection Rubber Mat – $25. 

As for “Abyssal Hymn,” you can see the first teaser for the video for the track below.

The Hololive English Vtubers Minecraft RPG project Hololive ENigmatic Recollection Chapter 3 starts at 7pm PT/10pm ET on May 24, 2026. It will end on May 29, 2026. 

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The idea with U2U will be to be able to use new and old assets to create 3D games with a 2D appearance. In addition to new ones, the game can tap into Gotcha Gotcha Games’ back catalog for additional pieces to use for maps. Both new items can be created and shaped, or someone could use pre-made parts. This is all handled in Unity. At the moment, the site only mentions the U2U new features. The core features section is inaccessible and showcase isn’t updated yet. 

Here’s the first RPG Maker U2U overview trailer that shows how someone could make an HD-2D style map in the software with P2D. 

Gotcha Gotcha Game is well known for its game creation software. For example, prior to this announcement, it released Action Game Maker on PCs. That showed up in June 2025 and uses Godot to make things like platformers, Metroidvanias, and shoot’em ups. It’s also been behind tools like PiXel ScaLer to assist with asset creation. 

RPG Maker U2U is in development for PCs and will be at BitSummit Punch 2026. 

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The plushies will appear in two variants: Mega Raichu X and Mega Raichu Y. Both items were made in the Philippines with polyester and are being sold separately with the same price tag of ¥5,500 (~$34.60). However, these plushies are not life-sized, as their regular dimensions hover around 35 cm (~14 in) when the original Pokedex entries would put their actual heights at around 1 meter (~3 ft).

The Mega Raichu X plush also features a gimmick that allows its tails’ positions to be adjusted. The owner can even make Mega Raichu X stand on its tails when adjusted properly.

Here are the sample images for both plushies:

Mega Raichu X and Y are the Mega Evolutions of Raichu that made their debut in the Mega Dimension DLC for Pokemon Legends: Z-A, which was released in December 2025. The base game has been available worldwide on Nintendo Switch and Switch 2 since October 2025.

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Zero Parades follows Operant Bureau agent Hershel Will aka CASCADE, a highly trained spy for the communist republics of the Superbloc. She returns from “the freezer” five years after her last assignment, which ended in tragedy and left her alienated from her friends and allies. Upon arriving in the city-state of Portofiro, she finds her assignment is over before it even started and the Opera orders her return. Going against her superiors, Hershel sets her sights on figuring out the truth, reuniting with her squad, doing right by them, and finishing the assignment.

Despite existing “at the end of history” — an era of seeming peace and prosperity — the world of Zero Parades is one of surreptitious and ongoing world-changing events. It’s more suited for spies and secret agencies than politicians and armies. One theme is that of soft power, the way in which imperial powers shape the face of foreign cultures through the proliferation of cultural exports. I vastly prefer the way that Zero Parades engages with politics to Disco Elysium, particularly that of the role of fascism in the modern world.

I also found the writing in Zero Parades to be a lot more sensible and sensitive with regards to this topic. It avoids the casual misogyny, copaganda, and racism that permeated its predecessor. The same can be said for its characters and world. Everything you learn is related to CASCADE’s mission. Sometimes, the vast supporting text inspired by tabletop RPG settings can bloat and obscure more interesting aspects of a game. Fortunately, this is not the case here. The world of Zero Parades was built with surgical precision.

Instead of being a linear, widely branching narrative, the story is structured like a web. Hershel starts in the center, and the various quests and characters strewn in different directions serve as keys to complete the final assignment. As I approached the final hours and reckoned with my choices, I realized that I wouldn’t be able to help everyone. I was forced to make sacrifices and leave people behind. Worse, I had to decide who to bring with me for the final assignment, knowing I would selfishly risk their lives in the process.

CASCADE is a highly accomplished, but volatile, operant. She inhabits a weird world where the grounded and the impossible coexist, and her skills as a spy are tested during Dramatic Encounters, tense moments with rippling consequences. During one of these events, I managed to use a “spell” on an attackers, rendering them stunned with a single word. It’s during these encounters when more psychedelic and perilous elements shine through, while in others I achieved “practical invisibility” by blending in with the crowd.

Another system I enjoyed tremendously was Conditioning. Reinforcing thoughts acquired during play increases the level cap for certain skills and alters Hershel’s behavior to open new dialogue opportunities. However, every thought comes with a rule that can be violated. That will incur as a disadvantage on certain dice rolls. For instance, I reinforced the thought “The Wang Way.” I gained Coordination and Technoflex level up potential and made the word “wang” (a synonym for “kill” or “die”) part of Hershel’s vocabulary. However, I temporarily lost this thought’s bonuses if I showed any remorse. This shaped the way I roleplayed, leading to conflicting scenarios where I debated whether I should keep up my persona or be sincere and risk compromising my cover.

I didn’t find the Fatigue, Anxiety, and Delirium systems as compelling. In lieu of health, Hershel has those meters tied to her Action, Relation, and Intellect. Whenever a roll seemed challenging, I would exert myself to gain advantage at the cost of filling one of the meters considerably. If one of these meters is almost full, Hershel can’t exert that until it goes down again. What I’m not so keen on is the result for filling a bar. Once that happens, a random skill from the corresponding faculty must be leveled down. This only happened to me once, but it’s not fun and felt restrictive and counter to the philosophy of “fail forward.”

Zero Parades understands its position within gaming culture. Like the protagonist, Hershel Wilk, it’s weighted down by a complicated past, but willing to move forward. The game is at best when ZA/UM’s trying to do new things, both with its mechanics and its writing. With the latter, it triumphs. However, while I still deeply enjoy its mechanics, both new and familiar, a part of me wishes that the game was bolder and willing to differentiate itself even more from its predecessor.

Zero Parades: For Dead Spies is available for the PC via Steam, the Epic Games Store, and GOG. The game will come out on PlayStation 5 sometime in 2026.

The post Review: Zero Parades Understands the Assignment appeared first on Siliconera.

There are two changes to the new Persona 5: The Phantom X character now that the Persona 3 Reload event is bringing Makoto to the game worldwide. The first update from the presentation noted that “S.E.E.S. character coordination” will be better in the global version of the game. This is reflected in his Talent. That ability is called On-Site Leader, and it increases the attack of other characters from the group. In the Chinese and Asian version of the game, that offered a 20% boost. For the global release, it is 30%. 

The other adjustment affects his Scarlet Hades skill. When it first appeared, Moon Phase stacks could be spent for a 76.2% Fire damage boost and Full Moon stacks could be spent for a 134.6% increase. Both are increasing here. The Moon Phase stacks can be spent for a 91.5% buff, while Full Moon ones lead to a 150.7% assault. 

Here’s the full Persona 5: The Phantom X 4.1 stream:

Another major point here involves a new version of a Persona 3 Reload song available in the game. It’s a new take on the Atsushi Kitajoh song “It’s Going Down Now.” It, in addition to 16 other songs, will appear as part of this crossover.

Finally, the roadmap for May and June 2026 appeared for the game. Version 4.2 will launch at the end of the month and include a new event and the start of the Anniversary Special Daily Hoot-n-Loot with in-game currency. The first anniversary event will start in the second half of June 2026.

Persona 5: The Phantom X is on the PC and mobile devices, and the Makoto Yuki and Persona 3 Reload event is around alongside the 4.1 update. Persona 3 Reload is on the Switch 2, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC. 

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To help show what we can expect, there’s a new trailer. It highlights heroine Yolca, who works with Vy-xen as “living bait.” She’s trying to prove herself and make the world better for others. It also highlights other Vy-xen characters and love interests like Eugene, Heath, Kanoa, Orsem, and Tilkett. 

As a reminder, here are the voice actors for the five male leads that are love interests:

• Eugene: Takuya Sato
• Heath: Hikaru Midorikawa
• Kanoa: Kohei Amasaki
• Orsem: Tomoaki Maeno
• Tilkett: Nobuhiko Okamoto

This isn’t the only recent update on the Voltage and AmuLit otome game. Back in March 2026, the companies shared the opening movie for it. That featured the DUSTCELL theme song called “Gimme That.”

Sins of Kaleido will appear on the Switch worldwide on July 16, 2026, and the previous otome game set in that same world Even if Tempest is available worldwide now. 

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The collaboration’s key visual shows Haruhi, Mikuru, and Yuki wearing the uniforms of train workers. When taking JR Tokai trains, you’ll be able to hear an original voice drama portrayed by the cast of the SOS Brigade. This drama was written by Nagaru Tanigawa, who is the author of the original light novel series. You can also challenge some quizzes, and if you score over seventy in the beginner course, you’ll receive an exclusive smartphone wallpaper.

Nishinomiya, the setting of the Suzumiya Haruhi series, will also hold a stamp rally from June 20 to September 23, 2026. There will be six locations to visit. Visiting one will net you an AR photo frame, and visiting three will get you an original postcard. As a note, a high school will be one of the locations, and you will not be able to go onto school grounds.

The anime adaptation of Suzumiya Haruhi started airing in April 2006, and it’s currently licensed in English by Crunchyroll. It was highly impactful and influential at the time for reasons such as the popularity of the “Hare Hare Yukai” dance. It also made unique choices, such as the Endless Eight arc and airing the episodes out of order.

The collaboration campaign between JR Tokai and The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi, as well as the commemorative stamp rally in Nishinomiya, will start on June 20, 2026 in Japan. It will end on September 23, 2026. Yen Press handles the light novels, and the anime is streaming on Crunchyroll.

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With the FFXIV Growing Light Original Soundtrack, it covers music from various Endwalker patches. The announcement specifically referred to these as 6.X ones, and we know already that it covers music up through 6.5. 93 tracks total are included. 

As for the new FFXIV YouTube channel emojis, the banner announcing them teased some of the new characters that appear. From left to right, first we see Meteion, a character from Endwalker. Next to her is a locked-in Paissa Brat. After that, there’s an angry Giant Beaver. One referencing Shadowbringers’ Dwarves appears next to that, and it shows a character holding a mug of ale. Finally, The Echo status effect icon appears on the end. In order to use them, you must be a member of the channel. 

Here’s the official image showing all of those new icons.

As a reminder, the latest event live in-game is a Free Login Campaign. That lasts until June 2026. It allows people with inactive accounts to play for 96 hours for free. 

Final Fantasy XIV is available for the PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X, and PC, the Switch 2 version of the MMORPG will arrive in August 2026, and the FFXIV Growing Light soundtrack is streaming now. The Evercold expansion is due to arrive in January 2027, though there’s no exact release date for it yet.

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This collection involves a mix of characters from both the first, second, and third volumes of the original Animal Crossing: New Horizons toys. The returning first volume characters are Dom the sheep, Flurry the hamster, Isabelle, Marshall the squirrel, and Tom Nook. The second volume characters that will show up in this run are K.K. Slider, Raymond the cat, Timmy, and Tommy. The lone volume three character in the group is the villager Judy the bear. All of them come with a clear plastic stand to display them. They’re all under two inches tall, though ones like Flurry and Marshall are smaller. A piece of gum is also in each box. 

Here’s how all the characters in this line will look:

As a reminder, these figures first started appearing in early 2021 in Japan, with the third volume showing up in 2022. These will be identical to those, so you don’t need to double dip if you already own some of them.

The rerun of the Animal Crossing: New Horizons flocked figures of 10 characters will show up again in Japan in September 2026, likely followed by a worldwide release of the toys shortly after. The game is available on the Switch and Switch 2. 

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The site didn’t explain why there’s the difference in release dates. However, it did go over what we’ll find in the standard and Steelbook versions. All physical copies include the game and a sticker of Rintaro Okabe with Mayuri Shiina and Kurisu Makise. That’s about four and a half inches tall and water-resistant. The Steelbook edition comes with a case that has Rintaro, Mayuri, Kurisu, Daru, Moeka, Luka, Faris, and Suzuha on it. The preliminary art for the Switch 2 version don’t mention a game-key card, so it’s possible the full game will be on the cartridge. 

Here are the initial images for both of the editions of the game. 

Steins;Gate Re:Boot will be on the Xbox Series X and PC on August 20, 2026 in North America, with the Switch, Switch 2, and PS5 versions following on October 29, 2026. It will be on all platforms in Japan on August 20, 2026. 

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There is a teaser trailer that hinted at which titles will be represented in this crossover. The video begins by showing the logo for the original Dragon Quest. The Reebok logo appears alongside it in the same colors. All mainline entries up through Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age appear in order. There’s then a brief teaser for the shirts and shoes we’ll see. 

Here’s how that looks:

The eleven shirts will be Vintage Tee styles and unisex sizes. They will feature a slime outline with “Instapump Fury 94” across it and the logo for the clothing company and one of the 11 games below it. The shoes will all be Instapump Fury 94 styles in the color of different entries and with references to different installments and game logos. As official product pages aren’t live yet, we aren’t sure how much each will cost.

Here are the two official images showing off the Dragon Quest Reebok Instapump Fury 94 shoes and Vintage Tee shirts.

The Dragon Quest series Reebok shirts will first start to appear in Japan in May 27, 2026, and the shoes will launch in October 2026. Fascinate will also sell the shoes, which means we should see them worldwide once those do eventually appear.

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Since this is the full version of Tales of Arise, we’re getting both the base game and Beyond the Dawn expansion. The initial adventure takes place during the Crown Contest on the planet Dahna, with the Five Lords Balseph, Ganabelt, Dohalim, Almeidrea, and Vholran competing to collect the most astral energy in their Master Core to become Sovereign of Rena, the twin world to Dahna. When Alphen, a mysterious Dahnan in an iron mask enslaved under Balseph, meets Shionne, a Renan with a curse that creates thorns that hurt anyone who touches her and a Master Core that spawns a Blazing Sword only Alphen can wield due to being unable to feel any pain. The expansion takes place a year after the end of the original game and involves Alphen, Shionne, and their allies after they encounter a young woman named Nazamil who is both a Dahnan and Renan. While attempting to help the persecuted teenager, the group also ends up dealing with the aftermath of the original game.

So coming to Tales of Arise: Beyond the Dawn Edition on Switch 2, I’ve had quite a lot of time to think about the original game’s story and the follow-up expansion. I still feel this is a strong story for the series, especially once we get to the sort of trademark “reveal” that seems to be a staple for the series. I think my biggest critique coming back to it years later is how conveniently the party pairings sometimes read. (What with Alphen with Shionne, Dohalim with Kisara, and the hints of Law with Rinwell.) 

I do feel like the main campaign tells a stronger tale than the Beyond the Dawn plotline with Nazamil. There are some valuable insights there, such as explaining what happened with certain technologies, showing how people are adapting to the changes in the world, and addressing prejudices following the last Crown Contest and war. It is interesting and a fun playthrough, especially if someone did love the main campaign and cast. I feel it sometimes isn’t as compelling.

The mechanics remain strong and feel as comfortable in Tales of Arise on the Switch 2 as they did when first release. It’s still an active combat system with four players available at once, with buttons being used for Artes and Techniques, competent dodge mechanics, an Over Limit system that rewards skilled evasion, and Boost Strikes to power up attacks. Some characters can feel truly different when you play as them, such as Kisara coming across as a tank with her moveset and guarding and Rinwell playing as though she’s a true mage. The Emblem system also makes acquiring new Artes and Techniques feel more eventful.

In terms of performance, Tales of Arise: Beyond the Dawn Edition on the Switch 2 works wonderfully. It absolutely maintained its 30fps frame rate admirably during my battles and when exploring the overworld. If someone had told me sometimes it even did better than that, I’d believe it. The 1080p handheld view is great, and most of the textures looked spot-on. I know the PS4 version I played years ago also locked in at 30fps and 1080p. I hopped into an older save on that system while playing the Switch 2 version in handheld mode and I think it’s more impressive on Nintendo’s console considering it wasn’t docked when testing it out. Now, it isn’t going to be as good as the PS5 performance, since that could hit 60fps/1620p or around 30fps/4k. But what we have here looks well, runs well, and loads quickly.  

Even finding the owls somehow seems easier and less annoying in Tales of Arise on the Switch 2. I don’t know if there was a post-launch patch that I missed when going through the PS4 version of the game, but I sometimes had the most difficult time pinning them down and hearing the audio queues. Here? Not an issue. The Switch 2 speakers in handheld mode make it easy to pin them down and they’re very visible when you do find one in the field. 

Tales of Arise: Beyond the Dawn Edition is as strong of a JRPG on the Switch 2 as it was on the PS4, and the port works perfectly. It runs so well, and it’s a delight to play in handheld mode. This also being the full and complete version of the game with the expansion and cosmetic DLC also helps it feel like a strong new staple to the system’s RPG library.

Tales of Arise: Beyond the Dawn Edition will be available on the Switch 2 on March 22, 2026. It will be available physically, but as a game-key card release.

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