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Hollow Knight hits new peak of over 71,000 concurrent players on Steam

by admin September 3, 2025

Hollow Knight hit a new peak of over 71,000 concurrent players on Steam yesterday ahead of the release of its long-awaited sequel.

As shown by data on SteamDB, Hollow Knight previously reached a peak of 56,192 players on August 29, 2025. The day after Silksong’s release announcement at Gamescom, it hit 21,000 concurrent players.

Prior to these new records, Hollow Knight’s highest concurrent player peak was 20,000 in May 2022. Of course, these numbers only represent players on Steam; Hollow Knight is available across multiple platforms, including Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, and Xbox.

Following Silksong’s announcement, almost five million people wishlisted the sequel on Steam according to data from Alinea Analytics.

Team Cherry co-founders Ari Gibson and William Pellen also spoke to Bloomberg about the game’s seven-year development cycle, confirming that Silksong was “never stuck or anything” and that “games take a lot of time” to make.

“The whole thing is just a vehicle for our creativity,” said Gibson. “It was never stuck or anything. It was always progressing. It’s just the case that we’re a small team, and games take a lot of time. There wasn’t any big controversial moment behind it.”

They also shared that Silksong was planned to be an expansion for Hollow Knight, but ended up becoming its own game as development progressed.

“You’re always working on a new idea, new area, new boss,” Pellen added. “That stuff’s so nice. It’s for the sake of completing the game that we’re stopping. We could’ve kept going.”

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September 3, 2025 0 comments

Esports

NFL MVP, players of year, to wear ‘Gold Shield’ uniform patch

by admin September 2, 2025

Alaina GetzenbergSep 2, 2025, 03:36 PM ET
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BUFFALO, N.Y. — Bills quarterback Josh Allen’s status as the league’s reigning Most Valuable Player will be visible in every game he plays during the 2025 season thanks to a gold patch on his jersey.

For the first time, the NFL will further recognize the achievements of some of football’s top performers from last season. Winners of five Associated Press awards from 2024 will wear a “Gold Shield” patch inspired by the NFL Honors logo, in place of the traditional NFL Shield match, on the collar of the players’ game jerseys.

The players wearing the patch are Allen (MVP), Philadelphia Eagles RB Saquon Barkley (Offensive Player of the Year), Denver Broncos CB Pat Surtain II (Defensive Player of the Year), Washington Commanders QB Jayden Daniels (Offensive Rookie of the Year) and Los Angeles Rams LB Jared Verse (Defensive Rookie of the Year).

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The gold shield patches will be on the five jerseys for the entirety of the 2025 regular season and playoffs, beginning with Thursday night’s season opener between the Eagles and Dallas Cowboys (8:20 p.m., NBC).

Allen will debut his patch on Sunday night against the Baltimore Ravens and quarterback Lamar Jackson, who finished second in MVP voting despite being named AP First Team All-Pro. The game will mark the first time the top-two players in MVP voting from the prior season meet in a season opener since at least 1970, per Elias Sports Bureau.

This program is anticipated to continue for these awards during subsequent NFL seasons.

Wearing a gold logo to recognize players’ achievements was also introduced by MLB earlier this year. Six MLB players have gold-embellished MLB logos on the backs of their game-issued jerseys. Some of the logos from those jerseys are being used to make Topps trading cards.

This adds to the league’s patches given out to winners of the Walter Payton Man of the Year award, with those winners wearing a special patch on their jerseys for the rest of their careers.

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September 2, 2025 0 comments

Product Reviews

Delays to escape the shadow of a launch like Silksong are about way more than just day 1 players: ‘Every game has to fight and use whatever edge they’ve got available to stay visible’

by admin September 2, 2025

The number of games that have scurried away from Silksong’s surprise September 4 launch date in the past week have given it the air of a mini GTA 6: an event seemingly so all-consuming that no game stands a chance of competing. But what does competing mean, exactly, when the game in question is a 2D platformer sequel with a cult-like following?

Of the delayed games, you can easily see why 2D adventure RPG Faeland would be sweating; same with metroidvania sequel Aeterna Lucis. But what about the games that are less obviously aimed at the same exact players? Shouldn’t they be fine even if Silksong’s a mega hit, considering there are more PC gamers than ever?

“You can go to the likes of GameDiscoverCo and look at data for past high-performing titles with similar release dates until your corneas crumple to try and discern the material effects of ‘audience overlap,'” says Brian Kwek, the head of Demonschool’s indie publisher Ysbryd Games. On Monday, Kwek was the one who posted that “after much anguished consideration,” Demonschool was being delayed to November 19 to give it a better shot at success. He elaborated on that decision-making process for PC Gamer to explain how much rides on getting a release date right beyond where players will dedicate their time first.

“With Demonschool and Silksong both being multi-platform simultaneous releases, we have to consider more than ‘just’ the Steam algorithm, so this ultimately requires us to consider the impact of Silksong on the console gamer audience and how they’re hearing about games like Demonschool through broader coverage from content creators and press,” Kwek says. Streamers are a key avenue for indie games like Demonschool to get noticed, and as with other Ysbryd published games like World of Horror, it’s more likely to be noticed by “variety” streamers who bounce between games rather than focusing on a particular genre or live service titan.

“Unless said creator is known to be a fiend for Shin Megami Tensei or tactics games, we would directly have to compete against Silksong for those creators’ time and attention,” Kwek says. “Ultimately, at least for the first week of Silksong’s release, we think a good majority of creators/streamers and press are going to feel incentivized to meet the demand for Silksong discourse. Even if it’s just a week, that’s a week that Demonschool—or any game still holding on to the September 3/4 release date—would have been cut off from building their own critical mass of discourse about their own game. I think that can be fatal in this saturated market, where every game has to fight and use whatever edge they’ve got available to stay visible.”

Ysbryd and Demonschool developer Necrosoft Games’ choice of September 3 was based on careful consideration of more than just competing games: it followed the news deluge of Gamescom and PAX West in late August, but predated an extremely busy October that includes the remastered Final Fantasy Tactics, a Steam Next Fest and loads of spooky stuff timed to Halloween.

(Image credit: Square Enix)

Despite Steam Next Fest being a prime opportunity for developers to get eyeballs on their upcoming games, it can be “a black hole of visibility for game launches,” Kwek says, “that is maybe almost as deadly (if not more deadly) than launching next to Silksong.”

Publishers like Ysbryd know that delays come with their own downsides, though, including disappointing or angering players who had their expectations upended; those reactions make him feel “miserable.” There’s also a load of stress that comes with reaching out to partners like PlayStation, Nintendo and Xbox to see if a last-minute delay is even feasible.

“I’ve spent the last week with my guts twisted up in anxiety when seeing notes from gatekeepers who were one step from telling us ‘no, the release date change actually can’t be done due to policy X,'” he says.

“Of course, marketing plans and activations have to be delayed; if you’ve arranged for streams from content creators who’ve blocked time for you, those all have to be rearranged on their schedules. As I mentioned in our public statement, review keys had gone out to press and creators, who all have to agree to reorganize their time with the game and when to file their stories and video coverage. This delay is a massive inconvenience for nearly everyone involved (and probably took a couple years off my life in the process); if we didn’t see value in pursuing it, we’d have just stayed put!”

(Image credit: Team Cherry)

Any time a game with a previously announced release date is delayed, you can bet a similar degree of hand-wringing went into the decision, says Adam Lieb, the founder and CEO of game marketing platform Gamesight.

“When I see backlash, I’m like—[the studio] sat in a room and sweated about this for two weeks,” he says. “This is a really important decision, could be the difference between success and failure, and oftentimes it’s a really expensive decision. I think that’s one thing that often isn’t considered by, like, Reddit: You build a game to launch on a certain date, and build to how much it costs to make that game. When I delay a game a month, I have to pay that entire team a whole extra month with zero revenue coming in the door. That’s really fucking expensive.”

And the bigger the game, the costlier the move: triple-A games that buy TV commercial slots or billboards in advance have to pay a fee to move those ads or even forfeit the money altogether.

But there is one more layer to the release-date-delay-decisionmaking dance, and that’s the potential benefit from launching in the afterglow of a big, eyeball-drawing launch.

(Image credit: Sandfall Interactive / Kepler Interactive)

“It’s a pretty well-known phenomenon that when the biggest games of the year launch on Steam everyone makes more money,” Lieb says. “There are just more people on Steam in that window; that’s eyeballs on your stuff, on all the algorithmic ranking pages, people in the desktop app, which can lead to more sales.”

To use a crude blast zone analogy, once you’re outside the ‘ground zero’ radius of a game like Silksong landing, a game going after the same target audience could stand to benefit from its impact.

“You’re getting people who are in the mood for this one thing… when Oblivion [Remastered] came out and Expedition 33 came out, you could say ‘Oblivion’s so huge, nobody’s going to play this other game’—I played them both basically at the same time,” he says. “Oblivion definitely is what got me in an RPG mood, and I stayed in that RPG mood. … Sometimes the competition helps you.”

Launching a game at just the right time seems like it’s about as easy as landing a space shuttle in a driveway while wearing oven mitts. Even when you do your best to plan ahead, there’s always a chance things will go comically wrong. Ysbryd and Necrosoft actually did try to account for the possibility of a Silksong surprise launch at Gamescom or a release date announcement, but figured the latter would be at least a month out.

“In this situation, it’s impossible to know what the ‘right’ answer is,” he says. “I just pray that we are able to do our best to get eyes onto Demonschool with the audiences who’ll dig it!”

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September 2, 2025 0 comments

Esports

Charlie Woods makes ace at TPC Sawgrass during Junior Players

by admin September 1, 2025

Aug 31, 2025, 04:34 PM ET

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Another year, another hole-in-one for the 16-year-old son of Tiger Woods.

Charlie Woods made an ace on the third hole at TPC Sawgrass on Sunday in the final round of the Junior Players Championship. Just like his hole-in-one in the final round of the PNC Championship last December, he wasn’t sure that it went in until he heard the gallery.

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Woods shot an even-par 72 to tie for 31st in the American Junior Golf Association event at the Stadium course, where his father won twice at The Players Championship.

He finished 16 shots behind Miles Russell, who shot 70 to win by two. Russell reached the semifinals of the U.S. Amateur earlier this month and is an alternate for the Walker Cup.

Woods didn’t have the only hole-in-one on Sunday. Guus Lafeber of the Netherlands had an ace on the par-3 eighth hole. He tied for 19th.

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September 1, 2025 0 comments

Game Reviews

Overwatch 2 takes action against 23,000 cheats, bringing total of banned accounts to over 1m players

by admin August 31, 2025

Overwatch 2 has “enacted” over 23,000 “actions” against cheaters after rolling out a new system to find and detect players who use mouse and keyboard in console lobbies, a practice known as ximming.

While “enacted” doesn’t necessarily mean all 23,000 accounts were banned outright, Blizzard says that brings the overall total of banned accounts to over 1m players.

Wuyang | New Hero Gameplay Trailer | Overwatch 2.Watch on YouTube

“The new Mouse and Keyboard support will impact how we action users who previously used unapproved third-party peripherals to gain an advantage over players in the Controller Pool,” Blizzard explained in a new blog post. “Bypassing the set restrictions in that pool with unapproved peripherals will be considered cheating and actions will be taken on your account.

“Previously, we deployed technology to help find and detect players who were using those peripherals on consoles. We enacted over 23,000 actions against players since that deployment. This included players who were directly using unapproved peripherals as well as players who grouped up with them to benefit from that unfair advantage.”

Blizzard then admitted that it had to “adapt to new workarounds” but was now ready to “take more aggressive actions against those who try to circumvent the competitive integrity of our console players.”

“We’ve rolled out new tech for Season 18 that should help us spot players that use unapproved peripherals faster and with more reliability,” the post added. “We’re also laying down harsher consequences on users of unapproved peripherals, since the legitimate opportunity to compete using Mouse and Keyboard on an even playing field is now available, regardless of whether you own a PC or console.”

Previously, the team would “warn and restrict” any offenders and send them to the PC Pool, especially for cheats playing at Competitive levels above Diamond.

Now, however, “continuing to use unapproved peripherals and devices in the Controller Pool will result in a full game account ban regardless of the player’s rank or mode”.

The recent action has resulted in over one million accounts being banned from playing Overwatch 2. This includes players who used aimbots, wallhacks, and other cheats, as well as those who grouped up with known cheaters.

“While the effort to stop cheaters and the cheats they use is an ongoing effort, we want to reiterate our commitment to ensuring the outcome of every Overwatch match is determined by skill and passion, and not through unfair advantages,” Blizzard added.

Aside from the Stadium update, Overwatch 2 Season 18 introduced significant changes, including heroes Wuyang, Pharah, Winston, and Brigitte, plus the Route 66 and London maps, new game modes, new All-Star rewards, Endorsements, and more.

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August 31, 2025 0 comments

Product Reviews

The combined fury of angry Overwatch players forced Blizzard to reverse a change it made less than 72 hours ago: ‘We’re grateful to everyone who tried it out and shared feedback’

by admin August 29, 2025

Countless Reddit threads and social media posts piled up this week strongly criticizing Blizzard’s decision to add a MOBA-style draft system to Overwatch 2’s popular Stadium mode. Specifically, players were against the removal of mirror matchups where both teams can play as the same heroes.

The response in the last few days, following the launch of the new season, has been so overwhelmingly negative that Blizzard has abandoned the system less than 72 hours after implementing it. The draft mode will stay, but mirror matchups are allowed again.

“We’re grateful to everyone who tried it out and shared feedback,” game director Aaron Keller wrote on X. “As a team, one of our goals is to make the game that you want to play. This involves listening, responding, and taking those desires into account.”

Keller says the team is “still invested in creating new and unique features” but acknowledges that “not everything is just right each time.” “That doesn’t mean we’ll stop trying to innovate,” he added, “but that we’ll adapt and iterate as quickly as we can when something doesn’t land the way we want.”

What was pitched as a system to help you strategically pick your heroes in a mode where you can’t swap mid-match quickly became a reason for people to not play it all. Players argued that Stadium’s limited hero pool (compared to normal OW modes) didn’t support such a severe restriction on your hero picks. It also seemed to defeat the purpose of the mode in the first place, which is to use a set of unique powers and items to build your character over the course of a match.

Hey everyone! We’ve just disabled the mirrored Hero restriction in Stadium Draft . You’ll be able to draft any Hero you’d like, even if the enemy team has already selected them. 1/4 August 28, 2025

MOBAs like League of Legends—where drafting is a common feature—work because they have over a hundred heroes to choose from. The point is to keep teams from playing the exact same heroes every single match once a popular meta forms. Stadium, however, only has 21 heroes available.

“We have six supports. SIX. You can lose access to half your role before you even get a turn,” Reddit user Pizzabro200 wrote.

“There is nothing to be gained from drafts,” Reddit user anarchistbuzzwords said. “It only serves to force counter picking and prevent you from playing the hero you went in wanting to play.”

By removing the mirror matchup restriction, counter-picking heroes is now optional—which is, frankly, how it should’ve been in the first place. Not everyone wants to make pivotal decisions on the hero selection screen, especially in a mode all about adapting on the fly.

To Blizzard’s credit, it’s repeatedly said Stadium will be a mode full of experiments. It’s been steadfast in regularly tweaking and replacing various aspects of the mode since it launched. Even if drafts were a miss, it’s at least nice that we didn’t have to put up with them for an entire season, and that it was willing to flip the switch in the same week it introduced it.

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August 29, 2025 0 comments

Esports

Fortnite ‘censors’ “freaky emotes” & players aren’t happy

by admin August 29, 2025

Fortnite players are upset over a new change that affects several emotes in the game, as they can no longer be used under certain conditions.

One of Fortnite’s well-known features is its massive list of emotes. These range from Epic’s original dance emotes to those from collaborations, and everything else in between.

Players often use these to express themselves, be it celebrating a win after eliminating the last player or simply taunting the enemies. While it’s long been a fan favorite feature, of course, things aren’t always sunshine and rainbows.

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The community is well aware that there are players who tend to use certain emotes for other, more suggestive purposes (looking at you, Party Hips.) Now, it appears that Epic has finally patched out the ability to use certain emotes this way, drawing the ire of the community.

Fortnite players are furious over new emote change

Through social media posts, players have started pointing out that some emotes, such as Bring It Around and Ride The Pony, can no longer be used when you’re too close to someone else, specifically if they’re doing the Poki and Party Hips emotes.

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Instead of having your character perform the selected emote when you pick it in the communication wheel, they’ll either just do nothing or shake their head. Previously, this wasn’t the case at all.

Epic has yet to speak up about the matter, but some players in a Reddit thread claimed “Freaky” emotes have been patched to no longer be usable next to other emotes.”

Many in the thread speculated that this sudden change may be a response to Roblox getting backlash over a similar matter with its own custom emotes.

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So far, many players aren’t too pleased with this kind of change, blasting it as a form of alleged ‘censorship’.

“I would be fine with this if it were for game modes rated E and E10. T-rated ones should be left alone,” said one user.

“Dumb change, was funny to do on my friends. And the fact they’ve made an initial change without announcing it means they’ll likely want to make more changes like this in the future, which isn’t good,” mentioned another.

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Meanwhile, several users are convinced this is merely a “band-aid fix”, as people will eventually figure out alternative ways to do something similar by using a combination of other emotes.

Some fans are hoping Epic will rethink this change, and only time will tell if they do.

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August 29, 2025 0 comments

Esports

25 under 25: Ranking the WNBA’s best young players

by admin August 29, 2025

Aug 27, 2025, 07:30 AM ET

An influx of young talent is helping to transform the WNBA. Rookie All-Stars Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese made an immediate impact last season, and 2025’s first-year players have followed suit. Paige Bueckers, Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen were named All-Stars this summer, while No. 2 pick Dominique Malonga has been setting WNBA production records as a teenager.

The six All-Stars younger than age 25 this year are the most since 2011, and the 2024 (two) and 2025 drafts (three) have already produced as many or more All-Stars as the total between 2021 and 2023 (Aliyah Boston and Rhyne Howard).

Ranking these young players required making some hard calls, particularly at the top, where Boston, Bueckers and Clark have all shown MVP potential. We’ve put them in order based on their expected peak value rather than current production — meaning Malonga, the league’s youngest player at age 19, gets extra credit for her upside relative to players whose performances are more consistent right now.

To be eligible for ESPN’s 25 under 25, players must have played in the WNBA already, so stashed draft picks such as Juste Jocyte — taken No. 5 by the Golden State Valkyries with their first rookie draft pick — aren’t eligible.

With that in mind, let’s run down the brightest young talent in the WNBA.

Due to injuries, she has been limited to 13 games this season, averaging 16.5 points, 8.8 assists and 5.0 rebounds. But when healthy, Clark’s impact is enormous: She stretches the floor with her shooting range, pushes the pace and picks defenses apart with her passing. The 23-year-old brings an unmatched excitement factor every time she’s on court, and her confidence spreads to the whole team. She is also the biggest draw on the road of any WNBA player, so her effect on the entire league is huge. — Michael Voepel

Expectations were high for Bueckers entering the pros, with one GM telling ESPN, “She’ll be a Hall of Famer.” In Year 1, she has largely lived up to the hype and is on pace to join Clark as the only players to average 19 points and 5 assists in their rookie season.

Bueckers’ efficiency has mostly carried over from UConn, with her 46.6% field goal shooting the best of any guard averaging at least 16 points in the league. She has shown the midrange game still has a place in modern basketball, even in 2025. Her crowning achievement came last week when she became the first player to drop 40-plus points in a game on 80% efficiency. — Alexa Philippou

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3. Aliyah Boston, Indiana Fever, C/F, 6-5

The Fever began their rebuild well before Clark arrived in Indianapolis. The 2024 No. 1 pick, Boston is just as crucial to the Fever’s success as Clark and has been a major factor in keeping the team afloat this season as it navigates injuries.

Boston is averaging a career-best 15.2 points — fourth best among players under 25 — and shooting an efficient 54.6% from the floor, third best in the same group. She has a franchise-record 15 double-doubles this season, fourth most in the league. Boston’s facilitating has always been a strength, especially in tandem with Clark.

And Boston can still level up. Her rookie year was focused on playing in the post. Last season was about evolving the pick-and-roll with Clark. During the offseason, Boston focused on conditioning, and this summer she has become a bigger part of the offense. Next up is taking more 3s and becoming more of a three-level scoring threat and floor spreader. — Kendra Andrews

There are no regrets about the Storm passing on a pair of rookie All-Stars to take Malonga. Growing over the course of her first season in the United States, the No. 2 pick has blossomed in August, averaging 13.5 PPG and 7.4 RPG on 60% shooting. Malonga’s athleticism allows her to make plays no other player her size can make, and she also displays incredible touch as a shooter.

Given Malonga would be entering her second college season if she were American, she has years of development ahead. That gives Malonga, whose three 20-point games are the most ever by a WNBA teenager, MVP potential. — Kevin Pelton

After shattering rebounding records as a rookie, the biggest question surrounding Reese was how she could evolve and grow in her sophomore year. She spent much of the Unrivaled season working on her shooting, and it shows: Her scoring and efficiency have improved this season in the W.

But Reese’s biggest offensive jump has come in her playmaking. She’s averaging 3.7 assists per game, top 5 among all forwards and the most among WNBA players under the age of 25. She excels at passing in the post, a nod to her chemistry with Kamilla Cardoso, and better understands how her presence down low opens up her teammates more.

On defense, her rebounding is as good as ever. She leads the league at 12.2 boards per game, and just 25 games in has already tied her rookie record as the fastest player in WNBA history to reach 300 rebounds in a single season. — Andrews

The No. 3 pick of this year’s draft has blown away expectations for her rookie season, emerging as Washington’s go-to scorer after the Brittney Sykes trade, as well as a legitimate perimeter stopper. More of a role player alongside the Notre Dame backcourt of Hannah Hidalgo and Olivia Miles, Citron is averaging more points (15.2) in the W than she did as a college senior (14.1) but has maintained her efficiency, shooting 42% on 3s and 88% from the line. Citron’s .608 true shooting percentage ranks in the WNBA’s top 10. And at 21, she’s younger than the typical college product. — Pelton

The No. 3 pick in the 2024 draft, Cardoso has improved her stats from her rookie season across the board, averaging 13.4 points, 8.4 rebounds and 2.3 assists. The 9-28 Sky have struggled and will miss the playoffs for the second year in a row. But at 24, Cardoso has shown the kind of progress a young post player needs, which bodes well for a long career. — Voepel

Onlookers were calling Jackson pro-ready since her days at Tennessee, and since arriving as the No. 4 pick in 2024, she has shown why. She can be a matchup nightmare for opposing defenders and at her best is a prolific bucket getter and stellar shot creator, already boasting eight 20-plus point games for the Sparks since mid-June. The more efficient and consistent she can be offensively, and if she can stay steady on defense, the more Jackson will further establish herself as one of the best young talents in the game. — Philippou

9. Cameron Brink, Los Angeles Sparks, F, 6-4

Brink was one of the more difficult players for our panel to assess given she has played in only 26 games over two years and is still making her way back to full form following a June 2024 ACL tear. But it was easy to see why she went No. 2 in the 2024 draft, particularly shining on the defensive end as an elite rim protector. While she’s still getting her feet back under her after returning to the floor in late July, her 3-point shooting (20-for-44, 45.5%) has excelled, a good sign for her offensive development. — Philippou

10. Kiki Iriafen, Washington Mystics, F, 6-3

The No. 4 draft pick in April, Iriafen turned 22 this week. She was an All-Star after showing how quickly she adapted to the pro game, especially her ability to rebound at an elite level. She is averaging 12.9 points and 8.7 rebounds and has started every game for Washington. She and rookie teammate Sonia Citron look to be the key factors for the Mystics in rebuilding. — Voepel

Lacan was the Sun’s 2024 first-round pick though she didn’t debut in the WNBA until this July. But 20 games in, she has been worth the wait. The 21-year-old Frenchwoman boasts an astounding plus-20.3 net rating for the Sun, and her two-way impact has revitalized a team that had just two wins prior to her arrival. (The Sun have won seven games since.) Her defensive prowess has translated immediately — her 2.4 steals per game are tied for the most in the league — and she’s a standout facilitator, already recording a 14-assist, 0-turnover game earlier this month. — Philippou

12. Saniya Rivers, Connecticut Sun, G, 6-1

The Sun have had a rocky year, but it’s easy to see the promise of their young core, including this 2025 first-rounder. The former NC State standout and No. 8 pick has established herself as a stellar defender (1.6 SPG, 0.9 BPG) with the potential to be a perennial All-Defensive Team selection. Her offensive game (8.3 PPG, 41.4% FG, 32.3 3FG%) has room for growth, but she has shown bright spots with her facilitating (including a handful of games with six or more assists) and scoring that the Sun can build off of. — Philippou

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Akoa Makani moved from Cameroon to France as a child and has played professionally there for several years. At 24, she made her WNBA debut this season and started 32 games as a key part of the new-look Mercury. Most WNBA fans didn’t know much about Akoa Makani but have watched as she has adjusted well to the league. She is averaging 8.4 points, 2.6 assists and 2.2 rebounds. — Voepel

When we last saw Horston in the WNBA — she tore her ACL during Athletes Unlimited play in April which has sidelined her this season — she had received votes for both Most Improved Player and Sixth Player in 2024. After playing heavily at power forward as a rookie in 2023, the versatile Horston shifted to the wing and shot 57% on her 2s. The Seattle bench has missed that punch, plus Horston’s ability to rack up steals and blocks. Whether she can improve on a 25% career 3-point shooting will define Horston’s upside. — Pelton

Andrea Cardani/NBAE via Getty Images

After averaging less than four points in her first two WNBA seasons with Las Vegas and Atlanta, Rupert is scoring 9.0 points per game on 46.3% 3-point shooting — the third-best mark among players under 25 — which gives the Valkyries a big body to stretch the floor. Part of her growth has come from more playing time with Golden State. But she also developed her finishing ability around the rim with the French national team for the 2024 Olympics. — Andrews

Paopao’s slide to the second round of this year’s draft has paid off for the Dream, who have plugged her into their guard rotation after trading away their first-round pick. A national champion at South Carolina in 2024, Paopao has contributed to Atlanta’s rise in the standings by shooting 42% from 3-point range. Only Citron has been more accurate among rookies this season. — Pelton

17. Janelle Salaun, Golden State Valkyries, F, 6-2

Salaun is another player whose impact and potential can be better measured by looking at her career overseas. In the 2024-25 season with Famila Schio in Italy, she helped the team win the domestic cup and the league championship and was named Finals MVP, averaging 13.2 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.2 steals over the five-game series for the league championship. With the Valkyries, she has been a staple in the starting lineup and a reliable scorer. Her dependability and availability have been two of her strongest attributes; aside from the three games she missed competing in EuroBasket, she has appeared in every WNBA contest this season and suited up for all 30 games with Famila Schio. — Andrews

18. Aneesah Morrow, Connecticut Sun, F, 6-1

She averaged a double-double (20.5 PPG, 12.3 RPG) in college, spending two years at DePaul and two at LSU. Undersized in the WNBA, she is now adjusting her skill set. Still, Morrow has started 16 games for the Sun and is averaging 7.5 points and 6.4 rebounds. Look for the 22-year-old to improve her perimeter shooting — she is at 26.7% from 3-point range — as she progresses as a pro. — Voepel

Edwards got buried in the rotation in Washington, but she had enough moments in her rookie season that should make the Sun excited about her potential. She averaged 7.6 points and 5.6 rebounds in 21.8 minutes and started 17 of 34 contests last year. Her averages are down this season, but she remains incredibly efficient. Playing time and usage haven’t boomed since her arrival in Connecticut, but it’s easy to believe she has more growth in her, given time and opportunity. — Andrews

Miller is another tricky player to assess since she hasn’t yet found a steady role in the league. She was drafted No. 2 in 2023, highly regarded for her athleticism and versatility, and averaged 12.1 points as a rookie with Minnesota. But she saw minimal time there the past two seasons, after being hampered by injuries and falling out of the rotation. After being traded last month, she has the opportunity to regain her footing in Dallas and brings a different look to the wing with her size compared to several of her undersized teammates. — Philippou

21. Aziaha James, Dallas Wings, G, 5-9

A fixture in the Wings’ rotation in July, James averaged 9.4 PPG to rank sixth among rookies that month. James has faded in August, in part because she has shot 28% from the 3-point line. A 34% 3-point shooter during her last two seasons at NC State, James has room for improvement. That and her superior size give her the nod over fellow Dallas rookie JJ Quinerly, whose season ended this week because of an ACL sprain. — Pelton

22. Carla Leite, Golden State Valkyries, G, 5-9

Leite averages just 7.3 points for the Valkyries, playing 17.8 minutes off the bench, but her play in Europe suggests she has a much higher offensive ceiling. This year she was named Finals MVP after leading French club Villeneuve d’Ascq to a EuroCup championship in April, averaging 20.5 points, 6.0 assists and 2.5 rebounds. — Andrews

23. Awak Kuier, Dallas Wings, F, 6-6

The No. 2 pick in 2021 has yet to make a big impression stateside, averaging 2.6 PPG in three seasons in Dallas. Since last appearing for the Wings in 2023 at age 22, however, Kuier has shown dramatic development in Europe. Kuier averaged 16.8 PPG and 6.3 RPG for Umana Reyer Venezia in EuroLeague play last year, ranking third in scoring behind WNBA All-Stars Brionna Jones and Emma Meesseman. — Pelton

She was the 19th pick in April out of Florida State and has been a good fit as a reserve for the injury-plagued Fever. Timpson has another former Seminoles star, Fever veteran forward Natasha Howard, to learn from. Timpson, 22, is averaging 2.7 points and 2.1 rebounds. Her playing time has fluctuated a lot, but she has shown promising moments. It will be a big offseason for her to grow her game. — Voepel

25. Laeticia Amihere, Golden State Valkyries, F, 6-3

After being drafted No. 8 in 2023 by Atlanta, Amihere has found a home with Golden State. She had her first stint with the team during training camp, where she averaged 12.5 points on 60% shooting in 17.4 minutes. She was waived but rejoined the team in June and has been a steady role player since. — Andrews

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August 29, 2025 0 comments

Game Reviews

Has Playtonic done enough to entice players back to the world of Yooka-Replaylee? I think it depends on the price

by admin August 29, 2025

If you cast your minds back to 2017, you will remember Playtonic’s Yooka-Laylee first making its way onto the scene. Players were given control of a bat and chameleon duo in an homage to Rare’s Banjo and Kazooie, who together could make their way through the 3D platform-riddled world collecting quills, pagies as such as they went. It was a charming little number, but it had its niggles. As our original Eurogamer review noted: “Playtonic’s tribute to Banjo is a gentle, irreverent platformer let down by spotty handling and a slight shortage of genius”.

Fast forward to 2025, though, and Playtonic is looking to address that by re-releasing Yooka-Laylee in a spruced up package known as Yooka-Replaylee, and I was able to take a quick look at it at Gamescom.

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As you would expect, the original’s whimsical and comic charm is still there. Characters such as Clara Lost of course pop up with her bony form, and during my time with Yooka-Replaylee I needed to liberate her from a cauldron to ensure no bandits attempt to make a meal out her calcium rich body (I mean, I can’t imagine it being all that tasty, anyway). This involved a spot of fire breathing and tail spinning to rid those blighters from the area. So far, so Yooka-Laylee. But, what the team has done this time, is given its cute and colourful platformer controls that allow for a much freer flow. Rolling and jumping melds into one more fluid and natural process, making those climbs up perilous platforms overall a much slicker experience. Roll, jump, flutter and away!

After freeing Clara, I climbed up to the top of a temple in Tribalstack Tropics to get Shovel Knight his treasure by doing just that. The mechanics were simple and easy to execute, with the duo performing small hops to larger powered up jumps effortlessly.

A more notable and welcome change for this remaster, though, is that rolling no longer drains stamina, again adding to the efficacy of getting around. Meanwhile, the bulbs that allow Yooka to breathe ice during this section were more readily placed to assist with the climb (though I did spend too long trying to negotiate one tilting platform, purely because I forgot I had the power to freeze it in place, but that was definitely a ‘me on too little sleep’ issue rather than the game itself).

Right now, and after only a short time with it, Yooka-Replaylee is something I can absolutely picture children perhaps a little younger than my own – who are 12 and 10 – whiling away some pleasurable hours with. There are items to collect, secrets to discover, baddies to bop and the colours are a kaleidoscope of joy. Even though overall it was relatively simple, it made me chuckle and smile.

Image credit: Playtonic

The question now is has Playtonic done enough to entice players back to the world of Yooka-Laylee? The team has added more pagies to collect, refined animations and of course made adjustments to its controls, and all of these make for a pleasing package. However, in a time when the likes of Nintendo has just released its bombastic, earth-shattering (quite literally) Donkey Kong Bananza, I am still unsure there is quite enough fresh meat here to allow Yooka-Replaylee to fully stand out from the platforming crowd.

That being said, if Playtonic prices it right, Yooka-Replaylee will surely be a welcome return for fans of the original, or even serve as a gentle entry into the world of solo platform gaming. And, there’s nothing wrong with that.

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August 29, 2025 0 comments

Game Reviews

Gears of War Reloaded Is A Mess On PC And Players Aren’t Happy

by admin August 27, 2025

Gears of War: Reloaded, the newly released remaster of the original Gears of War, has a low review score on Steam due to crashes and missing split-screen support. This follows a day-one patch that was supposed to fix a number of bugs and crashes on both console and PC.

On August 26, Xbox launched Gears of War: Reloaded–a remastered version of Gears of War: Ultimate Edition, itself a remaster of Gears of War--on Xbox Series X/S, PC, and for the first time in franchise history, PlayStation, a leap it made via a PS5 port. And the game is totally fine if you want to replay Gears of War again. But on PC, players are encountering some annoying issues and are upset about the lack of split-screen. Meanwhile, the Xbox port has a weird FPS bug, and I’ve experienced some issues on PS5, too.

Gears of War: Reloaded’s user review score on Steam sits at 49 percent as of 1 p.m. EST on August 27. That’s not great! Checking out the reviews, it seems a big issue with this new remastered shooter is that it crashes a lot for some folks. What’s odd is that some players claim that Gears of War: Reloaded was running fine shortly after launch, but has started crashing more since then. One fix floating around online involves deleting a specific folder and not connecting to Xbox Live, which seems to imply there might be some server shenanigans happening. Gamesradar reports that Gears of War: Reloaded works fine when downloaded and installed via the Xbox PC Game Store, suggesting that the version on Steam, or at least how it connects to Xbox servers, might not be working properly.

Other players report that changing the game’s graphical settings leads to frequent crashing. I’ll say that on PS5, I ran into two crashes and some weird performance problems as well. Digital Foundry also reports that there’s an odd FPS bug on Xbox Series X that causes the campaign to improperly run at a not-so-stable 120FPS. I also ran into weird FPS issues on PS5 and had to turn off VRR. The PC port also lacks an FOV slider and has some weird limits on keybinding.

The team is investigating crashes on Steam when launching the game and missing pre-order character skins for some users, as well as initial reports of matchmaking issues.

You can see all known issues by going to https://t.co/LNNEO2vf0H

Thank you for your patience.

— Gears Community (@Community_Gears) August 26, 2025

A day-one patch was supposed to iron a lot of this out, but it doesn’t seem to have completely worked. As a result, Xbox and The Coalition posted on social media on Tuesday that the team is currently “investigating” the PC crashes and reports of online matchmaking errors, as well as an issue in which people who pre-ordered did not receive the cosmetics they were promised for doing so. Keep in mind, this is a remaster of a 10-year-old remaster. It’s wild to me that Gears of War: Reloaded seemingly shipped in such a wonky state.

Another reason for the game’s low rating on Steam is that players thought Gears of War: Reloaded would support split-screen co-op on PC. Split-screen was reportedly listed on the game’s official Steam store page. There’s also evidence that split-screen co-op support was mentioned in Reloaded’s Steam page trailer. But it appears all mentions of split-screen support have since been removed. My guess is that this was a mistake and Xbox never intended to add split-screen to PC. Regardless, it’s just one more reason PC players are disappointed with Gears of War: Reloaded.

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August 27, 2025 0 comments