Hit the button! The big red one. Over there. Fine, I’ll hit it. *LOUD MUSIC STARTS* Folks, it’s Friday! We made it to the weekend. But first, before you go off and enjoy the last work day of the week, please read today’s Morning Checkpoint. Today, we’re talking about The Last of Us TV show, looking at the future of Space Marine 2, checking out some sales data for Cyberpunk 2077, and learning what Kojima thinks of AI. Someone hit that button again. It’s too loud, I can’t think.
Hideo Kojima thinks AI is the next big gaming revolution
The Death Stranding 2 director was in the midst of his Saudi Arabia tour stop when he opined on how games are changing. “Gaming is always about technology,” he said during a panel discussion, Rolling Stone reports. “At first, the games were all 2D, about 16 colors, 16 bits…the biggest, first change was [that] games became 3D. The second is we [became] connected by [the] internet, and you could play [online]. The third is the trend right now that AI is now coming into game creation, and we have not just ChatGPT, but they learn from how the players control. And I think that you’ll take advantage of that.”
But Kojima seems more interested in going to the movies or visiting museums than chatting with bots and playing games. “I probably just play maybe one game a year,” he said.
Cyberpunk 2077 on Switch 2 sold far more physical copies than digital
As spotted by VGC, Cyberpunk 2077 developer CD Projekt revealed during the company’s latest financial results that its open-world sci-fi RPG featuring Keanu Reeves was a big hit on Switch 2. Interestingly, 75 percent of Cyberpunk 2077 copies sold on Switch 2 in June were physical game cards. This is notable as CD Projekt Red opted not to use the controversial game key card system, and instead, Cyberpunk 2077 was one of the biggest third-party Switch 2 launch window games to ship entirely on a physical game cart.
Considering Cyberpunk 2077 was reportedly the best-selling third-party game on Nintendo’s new console, it seems Switch 2 owners, at least for now, prefer a real physical copy over key card shenanigans.
Warhammer 40K: Space Marine 2 is getting a brand new class in 2026
Space Marine 2 launched a year ago this month. To celebrate the third-person shooter entering its second year, Saber Interactive has released a new roadmap for it that promises a lot of new content, including a new class: The Techmarine. The studio didn’t share many details about the new class, but did confirm that Techmarines will get to wield Omnissiah Axes, a new exclusive weapon. Beyond the new class, the next year of content includes new PVE missions, PVP maps, fresh cosmetic options, and more.
New report claims Sony is planning a Switch-like PS6 handheld
YouTube channel and reliable tech leaker and reporter Moore’s Law Is Dead claims in a new video to have seen multiple documents mentioning that Sony is working on a portable, handheld PlayStation 6 console that will launch alongside a more powerful, traditional machine. Notably, the channel claims that this PS6 handheld will support the ability to dock and connect to a TV, like the Switch, turning it into a more traditional home console. Moore’s Law Is Dead speculates that this PS6 portable console might cost around $500 and could ship sometime in 2027.
Bella Ramsey tells Last of Us TV show haters to go play the game
As reported by GameSpot and Culture Crave, Ellie actor Bella Ramsey talked about HBO’s The Last of Us and its already aired season two, as well as the upcoming season three. She discussed the death of Joel in season two and negative reactions to the show’s second year, saying:
“There is nothing I can do about it anyway. The show is out. There is nothing that can be changed or altered [for Season 2]. There is not really any point in reading or looking at anything. People are of course entitled to their opinions. It doesn’t affect the show, it doesn’t affect how the show continues or anything, in any way, so they’re very separate things to me. So no, I just don’t really engage.”
She also added that people who dislike the series can stop watching, explaining, “I would say, you don’t have to watch it. If you hate it that much, the game exists. You can just play the game again. You don’t have to watch [Season 3]. If you do want to watch it, I hope you enjoy it,”
