Ukrainian developer GSC Game World is preparing to release Update 2.0 for STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl, delivering a substantial collection of free improvements for all players. The update launches on August 20, the same day as Cost of Hope, the game's first major expansion. Update 2.0 focuses on visual improvements, more dynamic Zone activity, expanded customization, and new weapons. When it comes to graphics, players can expect an enhanced environmental presentation across the Zone, thanks to more natural lighting, more realistic shadows, and improved reflections throughout the world, including inside buildings and in underground areas. GSC has also reportedly […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/stalker-2-update-2-0-new-weapons-smarter-a-life-cost-of-hope/

Amazon Game Studios is stepping away from direct operation of two of its biggest MMO investments in the West: Throne and Liberty will return to developer NC and its subsidiary FirstSpark Games in the fourth quarter of 2026, while Lost Ark will transition from Amazon to its original developer, Smilegate, in early 2027. The two announcements mark a significant retreat for Amazon’s MMO publishing strategy. Rather than continuing to operate the games itself, Amazon is handing responsibility back to the companies that created them, effectively shedding two major live-service commitments after years of regional publishing, community management, customer support, localization, […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/amazon-game-studios-exits-mmo-genre-lost-ark-throne-and-liberty/

After what was an explosive launch (selling over 10 million copies in its first month), interest in Capcom’s latest and greatest Monster Hunter: Wilds fell rather sharply, with the current-gen exclusive struggling to reach the highs of 2017’s Monster Hunter World. That said, the publisher still appears to be confident, claiming that they hope Wilds will surpass the sales of World “over the medium to long term.”

As part of a Q&A during Capcom’s latest fiscal earnings call, the publisher was asked about the current and future prospects of Monster Hunter Wilds, with one party stating: “How have sales been for Monster Hunter Wilds and what is its outlook going forward?”

Presenting a rather positive image, the publisher claimed that “Ongoing enhancements to the technical performance of Monster Hunter Wilds have led to sales for the game improving. We have also seen a response to the announcement of the upcoming massive expansion, Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance, and related pricing measures.”

In looking towards the future, Capcom have promised to continue to improve the game’s “technical performance” (a major controversy which carried through the game’s first year on the market.)

In Capcom’s eyes, these factors will hopefully help “to drive its total unit sales beyond those of Monster Hunter: World over the medium to long term.”

For the uninitiated, not only is Monster Hunter World the best selling entry in the franchise, it represents Capcom’s best selling game of all time – surpassing a total of 22 million copies (almost 30 million when including its various editions).

Given that Wilds is lagging far behind with ‘just’ 11.4 million units sold, Capcom still has a long way to go in order to reach the same level of success.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru says: What do you think of Monster Hunter Wilds in 2026? Is it an overall improved experience? Do you plan to pick up the expansion when it launches next year? Let us know down below.

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It would seem that there is a surprise new Palworld game coming out soon. Shortly after the main game's 1.0 launch, a new mobile spin-off called Palworld Online has been announced.

Palworld Online isn't made by PocketPair directly, but was instead handled by a Singapore-based studio and mobile game publisher, Garena. The game intends to bring the core parts of the Palworld experience to mobile platforms, including iOS and Android. It features an interconnected open world, creature-collecting, team-wide progression and more.

Palworld Online will also expand the narrative with new side stories created exclusively for this version. As this version is also an MMO, you'll be able to see other players and form groups out in the open world to take on tougher challenges. Crafting elements have also transferred over to Palworld Online.

Palworld Online is currently due to release sometime before the end of the year, according to an announcement post on Garena's website.

KitGuru Says: Palworld has had a lot of success on PC and consoles since its 1.0 launch. Now we'll have to see if that success can be replicated on mobile.

The post Palworld is getting a mobile MMO spin-off first appeared on KitGuru.

Nvidia has announced the next wave of games receiving DLSS updates this week, including Halo: Campaign Evolved, Mistfall Hunter, Corsair Cove and several recently released titles gaining access to DLSS 4.5 through the NVIDIA app.

Halo: Campaign Evolved officially launches today following its Early Access period. GeForce RTX users can boost performance with DLSS Super Resolution and Frame Generation, reduce latency with NVIDIA Reflex and force-enable DLSS 4.5 through the Nvidia app.

Later this week, Bellring Games’ Mistfall Hunter arrives with support for DLSS Super Resolution, Multi Frame Generation, Dynamic Multi Frame Generation, Reflex, as well as ray‑traced reflections and shadows. Corsair Cove also arrives this week with DLSS 4.5 Super Resolution, up to 4x Multi Frame Generation, Reflex and DLAA. Like other titles on the list this week, this game also supports DLSS 4.5 through the Nvidia App.

Several recently released titles can also be upgraded to DLSS 4.5 starting this week, including The Mound: Omen of Cthulhu, Killing Floor 3 and Palworld.

KitGuru Says: Plenty of games are gaining DLSS updates this week, with several titles now able to upgrade to DLSS 4.5 through the NVIDIA app. Will you be trying any of the new releases?

The post More games are upgrading to DLSS 4.5 this week first appeared on KitGuru.

Today, Ukrainian developer GSC Game World revealed the release date for the STALKER 2 expansion, STALKER 2: Cost of Hope. The DLC is coming to PC, Xbox Series S|X, and PlayStation 5 on Thursday, August 20, 2026. The enduring struggle between the Zone's dominant factions (Duty and Freedom) is about to take a significant turn in this new non-linear narrative arc. As tensions escalate and the delicate peace between them starts to disintegrate, the future of the Zone hangs precariously in the balance. In Cost of Hope, players will once again assume the role of Skif (the main character from […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/stalker-2-cost-of-hope-august-zone-duty-freedom/

Sam Altman's side project — which seeks to scan the world's eyeballs and turn them into unique digital identifiers — has raised some fresh cash through a crypto sale.

Sleeping Dogs is a highly underrated open-world GTA-like which released back in 2012 to overall solid reviews. In the years since, opinions on the title have only risen with time, owing to the game’s unique Hong Kong setting and fun melee-focused combat. While a sequel will likely never come to be, a film adaptation has been in the works for almost a decade in one form or another. Following a bout of silence, we have now gotten a positive update.

Sleeping Dogs publisher Square Enix has been trying to get a film adaptation made for years now, with the project originally said to be starring Donnie Yen. Announced back in 2017, we would see very little in the way of updates – up until early 2025 when it was confirmed that Yen was no longer attached to the project.

Fortunately, work on the project picked back up quite quickly, with Marvel’s Shang Chi actor Simu Liu confirming his involvement in the Sleeping Dogs adaptation.

Since then, work seemed to be progressing smoothly, with the film’s first draft script having been completed as of October 2025. Additionally, Director Timo Tjahjanto was announced to have joined the project in December of last year.

While we have not gotten any further updates since, Simu Liu recently took to Twitter to respond to one fan who wrote “replaying an all time favourite [Sleeping Dogs], @SimuLiu please do this game justice” stating: “hope to post some really positive updates soon. Stay tuned.”

So while we have not gotten any new concrete information, this latest post does lend some degree of confidence to the fact that Sleeping Dogs will one day turn into a hopefully-successful adaptation. We will have to wait and see whether Liu’s other dream – that being “a sequel game for everyone” also one day comes to fruition.

KitGuru says: What do you think of Sleeping Dogs? Is it the best non-GTA GTA-like? Would you like to see a sequel made, even though the original studio no longer exists? Let us know down below.

The post Sleeping Dogs film to get “some really positive updates soon” according to Simu Liu first appeared on KitGuru.

Earlier this week, a former GSC Game World founder claimed that Stalker 2 essentially paid for itself on day one thanks to a major timed exclusivity deal with Xbox. Now, the studio has issued a response pushing back on those comments.

GSC Game World clarified that the founder was not involved in negotiations or development during Stalker 2’s production. In a statement to Insider Gaming, the studio said his remarks “cannot be considered an accurate reflection of the actual state of affairs”.

The studio added that Sergiy Grygorovych “was not involved either in negotiations with partners regarding S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 or in the actual development of the game throughout its full production cycle”, stressing that GSC “always fully honoured these agreements”. As a result, the company says his statements should not be treated as representative of how the project was funded or managed.

GSC also described Stalker 2 as “one of the most challenging projects in the history of the video game industry”, emphasising that the story of the game “should be based on facts, not on assumptions or subjective opinions”. While the studio did not directly deny the possibility that the Xbox deal covered development costs, it is clear that GSC was unhappy with how the situation was characterised and is seeking to correct the narrative.

Stalker 2 is set to make headlines again pretty soon, as the game's first major expansion, The Cost of Hope, is set to release later this year.

KitGuru Says: I wasn't expecting Grygorovych's comments to be controversial but here we are. At any rate, we should all be looking forward to Stalker 2's upcoming expansion. The base game is already fantastic, especially now that a number of earlier bugs have been fixed. 

The post GSC pushes back on Stalker 2 funding claims first appeared on KitGuru.

STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl is among the few third-party Xbox Series X|S exclusive releases, which wasn't too surprising, considering the quality of the latest entry in the series and how unique the franchise generally is. What is surprising to learn, on the other hand, is how the exclusivity deal with Microsoft was reportedly decided. In a recent interview with OLDboi, GSC Game World founder Serhiy Hryhorovych revealed that Microsoft agreed to fund the game's console exclusivity primarily because of the overwhelming view count on one of the game's YouTube trailers. "We put out a STALKER 2 video, and when […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/stalker-2-xbox-exclusivity-sealed-views-stunned-microsoft/

Back when Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl was first announced, it was revealed as an Xbox console exclusive, as well as a day-one game for Xbox Game Pass. How much does a deal like that cost? Well it turns out it was enough to more than cover the development costs for the entire game.

In a recent interview with YouTube channel OLDboi, GSC Game World founder, Sergiy Grygorovych, spoke a little about their deal with Xbox for Stalker 2, saying that the timed exclusivity deal meant that the game “paid for itself before the first day”.

The deal was hashed out pretty quickly too, with the founder saying that it only took Microsoft around a week to send over the documents to sign. The extra money from the Xbox deal came at a good time too, as GSC Game World had to move its studio operations out of Ukraine in the middle of development due to Russia's invasion of the country.

Stalker 2 eventually launched in late 2024 after a couple of delays, but the day-one version of the game was not great. The game still sold millions of copies during its first few months on the market, but certain in-game systems were broken and there were various bugs and performance issues. Most of that was ironed out by late 2025, when the game's timed exclusivity window ran out and the game finally came to PS5.

Stalker 2 is in a much better state now than at launch. This year is a good time for those who skipped it to pick it up, as there is a major expansion coming later this year.

KitGuru Says: Have you played Stalker 2 since launch? Are you planning on jumping back in for the new expansion later this year? 

The post Stalker 2 ‘paid for itself’ thanks to Xbox Game Pass deal first appeared on KitGuru.

We already knew that Palworld was doing very well after launching V1.0 thanks to the surging player count on Steam, but new analysis shows the game is doing even better than expected. At this point, Palworld has sold an estimated 30 million copies. 

This number has not been confirmed by PocketPair, the studio behind Palworld. However, according to Alinea Analytics, Palworld has sold over 30 million copies since its Early Access launch. The platform split here is claimed to be 65% on Steam, 31% on Xbox (including Game Pass numbers) and 4% on PS5.

Based on these sales figures, Palworld is estimated to have generated over $700 million in revenue since its early access launch in 2024, all the way up to this month's V1.0 launch.

For a while there, it looked like PocketPair might be in some trouble as Nintendo targeted the studio with lawsuits in Japan and the US, claiming patent infringement for certain mechanics. Since then though, things have not gone Nintendo's way, with patent offices in both countries calling into question the validity of the patents.

Once the legal dispute is fully over with, it will be interesting to see if Nintendo allows Palworld on the Switch platform, where the game could reach millions of new players who don't own another console or gaming PC.

KitGuru Says: Palworld has been a huge success so far. It will be interesting to see if PocketPair releases official sales milestone figures at some point. 

The post Palworld has reportedly sold over 30M copies first appeared on KitGuru.

Palworld has officially launched out of early access and players have returned in huge numbers. The game first exploded in popularity back in early 2024, debuting with a peak of more than 2.1M concurrent players, but interest naturally declined as PocketPair shifted focus toward long‑term development. Now, with version 1.0 finally available, Palworld has surged back to near‑record heights once again.

According to Steam Charts, Palworld has seen a dramatic resurgence over the past month. The game reached a peak of 956,613 concurrent players in the last 30 days, representing a 733% increase compared to June.

This marks Palworld’s strongest performance since its early access launch, where major updates routinely pushed the game back into the hundreds of thousands before numbers settled again. Throughout 2024 and early 2025, player counts fluctuated significantly, dropping from the initial 2.1M peak to tens of thousands as players waited for the full release.

With version 1.0 now available, Palworld’s player base has rallied in a way few early access titles manage. The renewed momentum also arrives at a time when PocketPair appears to have navigated its legal dispute with Nintendo successfully. Despite accusations of patent infringement earlier in development, the situation has largely resolved in PocketPair’s favour, so the future looks bright for the game.

KitGuru Says: Have you returned to Palworld since the release of V1.0? 

The post Palworld surges in popularity following V1.0 launch first appeared on KitGuru.

Japanese developer PocketPair has just released version 1.0 of Palworld, the game that became an overnight sensation when it launched in early access in January 2024, breaking sales records left and right for a while. Judging by Steam data, it seems like the fever is back. While the game's full version did not go anywhere near the all-time peak of 2.1 million concurrent users registered at the early access launch (a figure that's still the third highest ever recorded on Valve's platform), Palworld nonetheless lured a lot of people back, with the weekend's peak reaching 855K concurrent users. Version 1.0 […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/palworld-1-0-855k-concurrent-players-world-tree/

Samsung just made a major move to debut its OLED panels in gaming laptops by introducing a brand dedicated to it. Samsung Unveils "OBLYX", a New OLED Branding Dedicated to Gaming Laptops at BW2026 in China Popular display maker, Samsung Display, has made its first-ever appearance at the Bilibili World 2026 event, which is one of China's largest gaming and anime conventions. The company unveiled OBLYX, which is a new OLED branding for gaming laptops. Apart from showcasing dozens of new products, including smartphones, laptops, and monitors featuring its OLED and QD-OLED displays, the company also introduced OBLYX. The OBLYX […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/samsung-display-launches-oblyx-oled-brand-for-gaming-laptops-at-bilibili-world-2026/

Several new GeForce RTX 5080 cards were showcased at the Bilibili World event in China, featuring distinguished aesthetics. NVIDIA Collaborates With AIBs to Bring Game-Themed RTX 5080 Graphics Cards at BW2026 The Bilibili World 2026 event has officially commenced at the Shanghai National Exhibition, which will run till July 12. This is where many vendors will showcase their new products, and we will get a good glimpse of new launches. NVIDIA being one of the major companies, has decided to launch new RTX 5080 cards at the event. It collaborated with several AIBs to release new GeForce RTX 5080 GPUs […]

Read full article at https://wccftech.com/nvidia-showcases-several-game-inspired-rtx-5080-gpus-at-bilibili-world-2026/

Palworld took the ‘world’ by storm when it first launched into Early Access back in 2024. While much of the initial discourse surrounded the fact that the game seemed to take heavy inspiration from the likes of Pokemon, the game itself is a different beast entirely, offering an interesting blend of open-world survival-crafting alongside monster collecting. 2 and a half years on from launch, Palworld is finally set to hit version 1.0, with the team revealing that the game has amassed over 40 million players during this time.

Releasing a video to celebrate the milestone, studio PocketPair officially revealed that since the game’s Early Access launch in January 2024, Palworld has amassed over 40 million players – just in time for its 1.0 release on the 10th of July (tomorrow).

Of course, 40 million players does not equate to 40 million copies sold, with Palworld being a day-one addition to Xbox Game Pass. Even so, the team reported shortly after launch that it had sold over 6 million copies in 4 days – meaning full sales numbers are likely far greater by now.

Regardless of sales however, this marks a major moment for Palworld, with the game finally set to leave Early Access. While we have yet to get full patch notes for the upcoming update, it looks to be rather meaty, with the team previously teasing over 27 pages worth of fixes and additions.

Discuss on our Facebook page HERE.

KitGuru says: Are you one of the 40 million players? Have you been keeping up with Palworld? Will you jump back in for its full launch? Let us know down below.

The post Palworld officially passes 40 million players as game leaves Early Access first appeared on KitGuru.

Being Nintendo’s most expensive game to date, many fans held high expectations for Mario Kart World, especially when it came to post-launch support. Unfortunately, Nintendo’s 10 million+ seller has seen very little in this regard, especially compared to some of its contemporaries. It seems Nintendo hasn’t completely abandoned the game however, with MK World having just gotten a small-yet-welcome update.

Announcing and releasing the free update simultaneously, Nintendo officially detailed Mario Kart World Update 1.7.0. As mentioned, the list of changes is rather small in nature. That said, it still does bring some new features, namely:

• Two new routes added to Knockout Tour
• Drill Rally
• Boomerang Rally
• More routes to be added in the future
• You can now use your collectible stickers in photo mode

Given the potential offered by Mario Kart World, it is disappointing to see Nintendo doing so very little with its updates. That being said, the console maker knows that MK World will continue to sell consistently for the rest of the Switch 2’s life, and so they’re likely just taking their time with drip feeding content.

KitGuru says: What do you think of this latest update? Has Nintendo been ignoring Mario Kart World? Did you expect to have gotten new/additional tracks by now? Let us know down below.

The post Mario Kart World gets a small-yet-surprising update first appeared on KitGuru.

Palworld has had an interesting existence ever since the survival crafter released into Early Access back in 2024. Pokemon comparisons aside, the game has garnered a ton of success thanks in part to the devs at Pockpair’s continued support with new and welcome additions. As they announced previously, Palworld is finally set to hit version 1.0 soon. Offering a tease of what to expect, the devs revealed that the update is coming with 27 pages worth of patch notes.

Taking to Twitter to tease the upcoming update, Bucky-cm – the head of publishing and communications at Pocketpair – revealed just how big patch 1.0 will be for the game, writing:

“Losing my mind trying to make nice patch notes for Palworld 1.0…who'd have thought that, *checks notes*, 27 pdf pages of changes and additions would be hard to make neat.”

Of course, while a solid portion of these pages are likely to consist of minor changes and bug fixes, this still represents a massive update for Palworld – especially with most major updates for games running a maximum of a couple pages in length.

We will have to wait for the patch notes to be released in order to gain a full understanding of everything being added. That said, some of 1.0’s features have already been announced, including new Pals to collect; an expansion to the World Tree; a new region; additional weapons and more.

Palworld was a massive success pretty much from the get-go. Even so, update 1.0 will mark a major milestone for this viral hit. It will be interesting to learn what these 27 pages worth of patch notes wind up consisting of when Palworld officially leaves Early Access on the 10th of July.

KitGuru says: What do you think of Palworld in its current state? Have you been waiting for update 1.0? Let us know down below.

The post Palworld Update 1.0 consists of 27 pages worth of patch notes first appeared on KitGuru.