Games

Fortnite Festival Season 5 kicks off this weekend, featuring a major shift from Metallica with Colombian pop and reggaeton star Karol G as the headliner. True to Festival tradition, Karol G will offer two skins: one in the Season 5 Festival Pass and one in the item shop, alongside a range of instruments, jam tracks, emotes, and other cosmetics. Additionally, Karol G will host her own Fortnite concert experience next weekend, and the new season introduces highly requested quality-of-life improvements. Season 5, running until November 2, introduces a new Festival Pass priced at 1800 V-Bucks, just like previous seasons. This pass includes both free and paid tracks. Purchasing it grants immediate access to the Bichota Season Karol G skin, while completing the pass unlocks a Karol G-themed mic stand, guitar, and four jam tracks: “Qlona” by Karol G, “My Oh My” by Ava Max, “The Nights” by Avicii, and “Take Over Control” by Afrojack and Eva Simons.

Bethesda Game Studios has revealed the official release date for The Elder Scrolls: Castles. The new entry in the Elder Scrolls series will be available globally on mobile devices starting September 10. A post on Bethesda’s official X/Twitter account shared the release date and included a video featuring Craig Lafferty, the director of mobile games, and Veronique Bruneau, the production director, discussing the game. Lafferty describes The Elder Scrolls: Castles as a “spiritual successor to Fallout Shelter.” Similar to Shelter, Castles involves players building and managing their castle, ensuring it operates efficiently and assigning the right tasks to the appropriate people. The Elder Scrolls: Castles has been available to play for a while, initially shadow-dropped last year as an early access title on the Google Play Store. Earlier this year, it was announced once more, accompanied by a link for players to pre-register.

The Squid Game Unleashed website reveals that the game is a multiplayer battle royale where you can customize your character and face familiar challenges from Squid Game and Netflix’s Squid Game: The Challenge. It also includes “new games inspired by classic childhood activities.” The game features a animated art style that softens the serious and tragic tone of the original series, leaning more towards a Fall Guys approach. However, a dark comedic element remains, as characters are still killed for their failures, adding an intriguing twist to the concept. Squid Game Unleashed will be available “soon” on Android and iOS via the Netflix app.

Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast aim to expand their presence in the gaming industry, especially following the success of Larian Studios’ Baldur’s Gate 3. To achieve this, the companies are investing nearly a billion dollars into their shared gaming ecosystem, which includes several studios. Some of these studios are developing more Dungeons & Dragons games, while others are focused on different Hasbro IPs—such as Atomic Arcade’s G.I. Joe Snake Eyes game—and some are even creating new IPs. One of these new IPs, Archetype Entertainment’s Exodus, was unveiled at last year’s The Game Awards.

Volkswagen EVs and other models will soon feature casual multiplayer games, controllable via your phone. VW has partnered with AirConsole to integrate this gaming platform into the ID.7, ID.5, ID.4, ID.3, and new Passat, Tiguan, Golf, and Golf Estate models. VW plans to introduce AirConsole in some European markets by mid-September, with further expansion and additional games to follow. Once the AirConsole app is launched on the VW Active Info Display, a smartphone can be connected by scanning a QR code. Rear passengers can also join in the multiplayer fun. However, AirConsole will only function when the vehicle is in park, making it a perfect option for passing time while waiting at a charging station. VW isn’t the first to integrate AirConsole; BMW started doing so last year. The platform is also available on desktop browsers, Android TV, Google TV, and Amazon Fire TV.

Genshin Impact has unveiled a new promotional code that players can use to claim free rewards, including valuable Primogems. In Genshin Impact, Primogems are highly prized as they enable players to make pulls on various gacha banners. The current phase 2 of the ongoing Genshin Impact update 4.8 features a double banner showcasing two popular five-star characters: the new Dendro user Emilie and Liyue’s Hydro user Yelan. Travelers interested in obtaining either of these characters have less than a week to do so, as their banner is set to end around August 28.

A fan of Baldur’s Gate 3 recently crafted a Dungeons & Dragons character sheet for their Tav. With an engaged fan base, players of Baldur’s Gate 3 frequently encounter unique fan creations inspired by the series. Released in 2023, Baldur’s Gate 3 is a fantasy RPG game rooted in the popular tabletop role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons, translating the tabletop world into a video game. Players can choose from several pre-designed characters or create their own from a diverse selection of races and classes. This flexibility has inspired some players to incorporate their original designs into the game.

Xbox Game Pass subscribers can anticipate five games in September 2024, but it’s likely that more titles will be added to the subscription service. Every month, Xbox Game Pass introduces a mix of older titles and brand-new, day-one releases. While the older titles are usually a surprise from month to month, day-one releases give subscribers a heads-up on what to expect. When a game is confirmed as a day-one Xbox Game Pass title, its release date announcement helps populate the service’s calendar. Thanks to these announcements, we know that the Xbox Game Pass lineup for October 2024 will include Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, while STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl is set to arrive in November. Release date announcements have also highlighted five games that subscribers can look forward to in September 2024.

A new set of four gameplay videos for Dragon Age: The Veilguard has been unveiled, highlighting nearly 11 minutes of intricate and strategically demanding combat. Dragon Age: The Veilguard, the fourth main installment in the series, has revealed numerous new features in its recent combat showcases. Scheduled for release on October 31, Dragon Age: The Veilguard has been generating a steady stream of new information since the announcement of its launch date. In this upcoming action RPG, players will assume the role of the Rook and team up with a nearly entirely new group of companions.

A Genshin Impact enthusiast has created an intriguing chart that shows the last time each character appeared in the game. When Genshin Impact first launched, it featured 21 characters, but that number has grown steadily over the years as players explored the continent of Teyvat. Recently, the addition of Fontaine brought 17 new characters, and despite the expanding roster, these newcomers have quickly become fan favorites. However, the major drawback of having such a large cast is that it can sometimes take over a year for certain Genshin Impact characters to reappear. This is especially true for Event Banners, as seen with characters like Eula (and more recently Nilou). The same issue applies to story appearances, where due to the linear progression of Genshin Impact’s main narrative, older characters are often limited to Flagship Events or occasional cameos.