Latest Xbox Game News & Updates
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2011 The Lord Of The Rings Game Gets Surprise Re-Release Today
Out of nowhere, the Embracer-owned Aspyr Media announced and released a new edition of The Lord of the Rings: War in the North today across PlayStation, Xbox, Switch, and PC. The game was originally released in 2011 for PS3, Xbox 360, Switch 2, and PC, but now it's available on the latest generation of consoles for $20 (or $18 through August 25) as part of a "Legacy" edition. The new version features online or local split-screen co-op and "optimized" solo play, though further specifics about the updates and upgrades were not detailed. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GgZuaXTDEo War in the North was originally developed by Snowblind Studios, which closed in 2012. The game takes place in Middle-earth, but doesn't adapt the books or movies. It does, however, feature characters and story details from J.R.R. Tolkien's books and Peter Jackson's movie series, following EA's own games that only had the rights to elements of Jackson's movies specifically. The game has three different playable characters: the ranger Eradan(https://lotr.fandom.com/wiki/Eradan(Ranger)), the elf Andriel(https://lotr.fandom.com/wiki/Andriel), and the dwarf Farin.(https://lotr.fandom.com/wiki/Farin) Players can swap between each during battle. The characters have their own unique skills and abilities, and players can upgrade them over time with new weapons and powers. The game also incorporates the franchise's iconic eagles, with players able to call in Beleram(https://lotr.fandom.com/wiki/Beleram) to fight. Some of the characters players will meet in the game include Aragon, Gandalf, and Elrond, while the game also takes players to famous Middle-earth locations like Rivendell, Lorien, The Lonely Mountain, and Mirkwood. The Lord of the Rings might be set for a revival for video games, as Embacer--which now owns the rights to the series--has teased a renaissance for The Lord of the Rings games in the future(https://gamesbeat.com/a-new-generation-of-j-r-r-tolkien-games-is-coming-lee-guinchard-exclusive-interview/). Kingdom Come developer Warhorse is making a new The Lord of the Rings RPG(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/new-lord-of-the-rings-rpg-heres-everything-we-know/), while Crystal Dynamics is said to be developing one as well(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/new-the-lord-of-the-rings-game-coming-from-tomb-raider-studio-report/1100-6539137/). Both studios are owned by Embracer.
The Blood of Dawnwalker Is a Serious Witcher 3 Competitor, and It’s Launching Soon
Rebel Wolves' The Blood of Dawnwalker is a Witcher 3 sequel in all but name, and it's right around the corner.
Xbox Outage Bug Has Been Fixed, Microsoft Says
Xbox chief technology officer Scott Van Vliet has laid out Microsoft's response to the licensing problem that left players unable to play their games
2021 Game of the Year Could Be Coming to Nintendo Switch 2
Rumors indicate that Hazelight Studios' It Takes Two will get a Nintendo Switch 2 version this October.
id Software dev says mass layoffs like Microsoft's are weakening the games industry, because developers 'don't have the incentive to care anymore'
"A lot of gamers, even if they don't know it, they can feel it's not right. There's something wrong."
A Cult Favorite Marvel Character's Dominance Officially Continues in New Release
Magik to lead new X-Men team after a banner year in games like Marvel Rivals and Marvel Tokon
Blizzard Is Reportedly Xbox’s New Top Studio
Out of all of Xbox's studios (of which there are admittedly fewer now following mass layoffs and studio divestitures(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/xbox-layoffs-studio-closures-and-spin-offs-everything-announced-today/)), Blizzard is reportedly the "top performing." That's according to a new report from Windows Central(https://www.windowscentral.com/gaming/blizzard/blizzard-is-now-xboxs-top-performing-studio-as-the-division-ends-fy26-over-delivering-on-microsofts-projections-per-internal-emails) based on emails sent by Blizzard president Johanna Faries to staff last week. In the emails, Faries celebrated the studio's performance ahead of BlizzCon in September, an event she hopes will "serve as a powerful springboard into a new era of momentum and excitement." Faries went on to state Blizzard ended the 2026 fiscal year as the "top-performing studio in Xbox's studios division, and this past year has marked our third highest fiscal for top line revenue in Blizzard's history." Faries doesn't elaborate on what exactly "top performing" means, but Blizzard saw its first consecutive years of growth since fiscal year 2017. Faries attributed the growth to two games specifically. "Diablo 4: Lord of Hatred and Overwatch drove exceptional performance in particular, with Overwatch delivering its strongest quarter since 2022," Faries said. Both Diablo 4 and Overwatch have certainly had big years, as did World of Warcraft, which also released a new expansion earlier this year. Diablo 4's latest expansion was well-received(https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/diablo-4-lord-of-hatred-review-mother-knows-best/1900-6418484/), even if its latest season(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/diablo-4s-massive-mythic-item-changes-arent-finding-many-fans/) seemed to take two steps back. Even Diablo 2: Resurrected, a remaster of a 26-year-old game, received new content in the form of the Reign of the Warlock DLC(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/major-diablo-2-dlc-adds-features-fans-have-waited-decades-for-but-itll-cost-you/1100-6538086/). Overwatch, meanwhile, underwent a transformation of its own earlier this year, when it dropped the "2"(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/overwatch-is-dropping-the-2-and-launching-a-new-story-driven-era/1100-6537874/) from its name and introduced five new heroes at once(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/overwatch-is-getting-five-new-characters-heres-a-first-look-at-what-they-do/1100-6537890/). News that Blizzard is Xbox's top-performing studio of the last year isn't exactly a shock, especially considering the poor performance of last year's Call of Duty: Black Ops 7. But it's a little surprising Blizzard hasn't been Xbox's top performer ever since Microsoft's acquisition of the studio back in 2023. Not many studios are capable of operating multiple popular live-service games at once, and Blizzard has three big ones. Though WoW wasn't cited as a reason for growth, it alone has millions of players paying a monthly subscription fee, and both Overwatch and Diablo seem more popular (and more monetized) than ever. While one of Blizzard's games individually might not be able to compete toe-to-toe with juggernauts like Call of Duty or Minecraft, it's clear Blizzard's entire output combined is a powerful source of engagement and revenue for Microsoft. As for what's next for Blizzard, BlizzCon is right around the corner on September 12-13, where there will no doubt be plenty of reveals about the future of Warcraft, Overwatch, and Diablo. Persistent rumors also point towards a new StarCraft game(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/starcraft-shooter-likely-to-be-revealed-at-blizzcon-report-suggests/1100-6537249/) being revealed. Faries said last year 2026 will be Blizzard's "biggest year yet"(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/blizzards-biggest-year-yet-coming-in-2026-for-35th-anniversary-president-says/1100-6537061/) and that she wants Blizzard to be the "best gaming and entertainment company in the world." This year's BlizzCon will "reflect that ambition in a bigger way," she said.
All Anomalies in Keep The Door Locked
!(https://assetsio.gnwcdn.com/keep-the-door-locked-header.jpg?width=690&quality=85&format=jpg&auto=webp) Last updated: 10th August, 2026 - Added new Anomalies! The summer of Anomaly hunting (I'm coining that now) continues with one of the latest horror games to hit Roblox, Keep That Door Locked. This one is seemingly very inspired by last year's indie hit, No, I'm Not A Human. You're hanging out in a dingy hotel room that just can't seem to stop getting visitors. Unfortunately, some of them are spooky Anomalies who want to slurp down your soul, and your job is to prevent them from getting inside while letting in regular ol' guests who need a place to stay. And before you ask, yes, of course you have to let the weirdos roaming a hotel at 2 am in. Otherwise the demon living in your bathroom will chomp on your bones, duh! To help you sort the ghouls from the late-night cold callers, we've assembled a full list of all the Keep The Door Locked Anomalies below, so you can survive with knowledge on your side. Read more(https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/keep-the-door-locked-anomalies)
This Switch Game You Might Have Bought Is Now Totally Unplayable
The Nintendo Switch version of Aliens: Fireteam Elite is now completely removed from sale and impossible to play for people who bought it. Developer Cold Iron Studios announced earlier this year that Fireteam Elite, a game that runs in the cloud and not locally, would be shut down on August 5, and now that day has come. The game was delisted on the Switch's eShop earlier this year, along with other digital platforms. However, the game remains playable on other platforms in an offline state. Because the Switch version is streamed over the cloud, it's now totally unplayable. Fireteam Elite originally launched in August 2021 on PlayStation, Xbox, and PC, before coming to Switch in April 2013 via the cloud. A sequel, Fireteam Elite 2, is coming this August on PlayStation, Xbox, and PC, with the Switch 2 edition arriving later in the year. These kinds of issues, along with physical media going away, has prompted anger and frustration from fans, along with concerns about game preservation. Cloud gaming has been around for years, in various stages, and Take-Two boss Strauss Zelnick recently said he expects adoption to continue to grow. During an earnings call recently, Zelnick said he believes the industry will be in "commercial streaming mode"(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/take-two-ceo-says-streaming-could-soon-make-expensive-consoles-matter-less/) within three years. He and others have theorized that expanded access to cloud gaming could help bring in more revenue by way of reaching more people. With console prices continuing to go up, people might see cloud gaming as an increasingly attractive opportunity to play the latest games without needing to own expensive hardware. For this to work, though, there needs to be low latency, Zelnick said. People would also need steady and reliable connections, along with internet plans with generous data caps, or no caps at all. The road to cloud gaming has been paved with plenty of issues. Google's Stadia service previously shut down and the cloud versions of Kingdom Hearts games, like Fireteam Elite for Switch, will be shut down in the future(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/kingdom-hearts-cloud-versions-shut-down-today-and-youll-have-to-buy-new-versions-to-keep-playing/). These are issues that could engender mistrust with the entire concept of cloud gaming. In 2019, Zelnick said clouding gaming was not going to revolutionize the gaming industry(https://www.gamespot.com/articles/take-two-ceo-doesnt-think-cloud-gaming-is-the-futu/1100-6482172/), nor did he buy into the theory that cloud streaming would open up a whole new market of people who previously didn't play games.
You Can Play PS Plus Games Without Owning a PS5, but There’s a Catch
It's never been easier to stream your PlayStation games onto other devices thanks to the latest cloud-streaming app.
Dev at id Software says Microsoft 'burned a lot of bridges' in the industry: 'They fundamentally don't understand art, they don't understand games'
"The way they align their spreadsheets for their financial reports—is not the way we used to do it."
An Xbox Game With 50% One-Star Reviews Is Still the Top Game With a Million Players in Week 1
With lag, region locking, and spambots, can Mistfall Hunter survive the overwhelmingly negative reviews?