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Clockwork Revolution: Key details and latest news, summarized by humans

by admin June 24, 2025

We’ve still got time before Clockwork Revolution, the steampunk FPS RPG from InXile Entertainment, is here. Following a quiet few years since its announcement in 2023, it resurfaced during the summer Xbox Games Showcase. It’s no Bioshock Infinite clone, but a full-on RPG in the style of Fallout 4 with a character creator, dialogue trees, and weapon customization.

Just like the original trailer, the new one ended without a concrete release date.

But comparing the two trailers shows signs of Clockwork Revolution coming a long way over the last few years. It’s starting to look like a real playable videogame that will hopefully channel the choice-driven depth of InXile’s past work on the Wasteland series and Torment: Tides of Numenera.

Here are all the details we know about Clockwork Revolution so far.

Clockwork Revolution release details

(Image credit: inXile Entertainment)

Clockwork Revolution doesn’t currently have a release date, but we know it’ll eventually come out on PC and Xbox Series X|S. We first heard about it during the 2023 Xbox Games Showcase with a trailer teasing its steampunk setting and overall tone. At this year’s Xbox Games Showcase, we got a trailer more than twice as long with actual gameplay footage, suggesting that it won’t be super far off. Microsoft’s refusal to even put a release window on it makes me think the earliest we could see it is in the latter half of 2026, though.

Clockwork Revolution trailers and gameplay footage

Clockwork Revolution | Xbox Games Showcase 2025 – YouTube

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The most recent trailer for Clockwork Revolution is stuffed with aspects of the game we’ve never seen before. Notable characters—one of whom is an irate talking doll—take the spotlight as the insufferable aristocracy who will presumably be our primary targets as our character tries to overthrow the city of Avalon’s monarchy. Character creation happens as one of them describes your character’s features to a robot cop, showing off the variety of backgrounds, builds, and mustaches you can choose from.

Like any good RPG, there are dialogue options and pivotal decisions, like choosing whether or not to spare the life of a character, that will shape how the story plays out. The trailer shows how your choices affect the combat too: Weapon crafting will let you swap out gun barrels, stocks, and other parts to specialize your approach to its first-person combat. And on top of that you’ll have a glove that can manipulate time, giving you the ability to freeze enemies in place, rewind, and suck the bullets back into your gun after firing them—not even Bioshock Infinite had that.

Clockwork Revolution – Official Reveal Trailer – YouTube

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The original reveal trailer for Clockwork Revolution is kind of like a mood piece for what would eventually be in the 2025 trailer. We get an early look at the cobbled streets of Avalon and some teasers on the time-manipulating powers we’ll be able to play with. Street signs and newspapers shift to reveal different outcomes for our choices as we try to end the tyrannical rule of Lady Ironwood.

Clockwork Revolution story and setting details

(Image credit: inXile Entertainment)

The title makes it pretty obvious what your goal will be in the story, but the most recent trailer starts to fill in how we’ll become revolutionaries (or maybe time bandits?). Your character is from the slums of Avalon and is part of the Rotten Row Hooligans. Somehow they got their hands on a glove that can manipulate time, a technology previously reserved for the city’s ruler, Lady Ironwood. Although the game takes place in 1895, there are several hints that we’ll be jumping forward and backward in time as the story progresses. In the trailer we can see entire districts in Avalon change to reflect your choices and I’m going to bet they’re not all for the better.

Snippets of scenes also hint at different factions in the game that you’ll run into as well as quests that deal with bigger issues, like the position of the robot people in Avalon’s society. InXile isn’t in the business of telling straightforward stories and the trailer heavily suggests there are multiple ways things can play out.

Clockwork Revolution gameplay features

(Image credit: inXile Entertainment)

Everything in the summer Xbox Games Showcase trailer for Clockwork Revolution makes it seem like it could be a steampunk alternative to games like Avowed and Fallout 4. Its first-person combat has a mix of shooting and time-bending abilities that can manipulate the environment and enemies around you. At one point, the main character tosses a stopwatch at an enemy’s feet, sending them flying into the air for a follow-up shot that pops them like a bloody firework.

In the brief peek at character customization, we can see that there will be RPG attributes, like agility and social, that will influence your character’s strengths and weaknesses in both combat and non-combat scenarios. While there were no obvious dialogue checks that involved them, I think we can safely assume they’ll come into play eventually. There are also traits with names like “Street Stalker” and “Scrap Savvy,” which sound similar to Fallout’s perks.

Weapon customization and crafting seems to be a big deal as well. Every weapon has a number of stats that dictate things like damage output, rate of fire, and accuracy. Using crafting materials to craft barrels and stocks, you can tailor your guns to your playstyle. One of the rifles we see shoots explosive bullets that sets enemies on fire. The trailer also shows a grenade that shocks enemies, which might mean you’ll have to utilize the weapon crafting to exploit elemental weaknesses on tougher foes.

Clockwork Revolution took more inspiration from a 2001 RPG than Bioshock Infinite

Project director Chad Moore made it explicit in a post on X around the game’s announcement: “I’ve always described [Clockwork Revolution] as the love child of [Arcanum] and [Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines].”

Moore used to work at now-defunct developer Troika Games and worked on cult hit RPG Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura. Arcanum was an isometric RPG set in a fantasy world of elves and magic that also mixed in elements of steampunk. It came out not that long after Fallout 2 and offered an even bigger world to explore and make decisions in. Arcanum never took off like Fallout did (we named it an underrated RPG still worth playing years later), but Clockwork Revolution carries its spirit forward.

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June 24, 2025 0 comments

Gaming Gear

Grounded 2: Key details and latest news, summarized by humans

by admin June 20, 2025

Grounded 2 is just around the corner, and it’s looking like you can expect big things from this tiny survival-crafter.

Five years after its predecessor entered early access, Grounded 2 was announced at the recent Xbox Games Showcase and promised to deliver even wilder miniaturised adventures for fans of the original game. Hey, we’re even wandering beyond the confines of the back yard this time.

I’ve brought together all the need-to-know info on Grounded 2, so you can stay up to date with all the key details on the upcoming sequel. Whether you’re looking to be filled in on Grounded 2’s early release date, gameplay, story, or story, it’s all here.

Grounded 2 release date and platforms

Early access for Grounded 2 begins July 29 on PC and Xbox Series X|S, meaning it really won’t be long until you’re ant-sized and battling bugs once again. That said, it’s difficult to say exactly how long the game will be in this early access period.

Grounded spent about two years in Xbox Game Preview before the full version’s release in 2022, if that’s anything to go by. However, what’ll really be the deciding factors behind when the 1.0 release drops are how the development team’s early access roadmap pans out, and how the existing build is received by players.

Will Grounded 2 be available on Xbox Game Pass?

(Image credit: Obsidian Entertainment)

Grounded 2 will be available on PC and Xbox Game Pass during early access. Given that the small print doesn’t specify a particular Xbox Game Pass tier, it’s safe to assume that all subscribers (from Core to Ultimate) will be able to play Grounded 2 as part of their subscription.

When is Grounded 2 coming to Playstation and Switch?

As of yet, there hasn’t been any indication of Grounded 2 coming to Playstation 5 or Nintendo Switch 2. For reference, it took two years after Grounded’s full release for the game to come to a platform other than PC and Xbox. It wouldn’t be surprising to see Grounded 2 receive a similar timed exclusive treatment.

Grounded 2 trailers

Grounded 2 – Official Announce Trailer – YouTube

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Grounded 2 was the big surprise during Xbox’s Summer Showcase this year. We got our first look at the Grounded sequel just over a month prior to its early access release.

The announcement trailer opened with an in-universe TV commercial for a new Yoked Girth toy (Grounded’s silly, muscle-bound parody of He-Man) before cutting into a breaking news segment. Here, we learn that—two years after their original ordeal at the hands of Ominent—the four teens from Grounded have mysteriously vanished.

What the authorities don’t realise is that the teens are still in the park where they went ‘missing’; they’ve just been shrunken to approximately the size of an ant… again. The rest of the trailer shows the teens fighting and exploring through the abandoned park, taking on everything from battling scorpions to climbing giant mountains of ice cream.

Grounded 2 story

(Image credit: Obsidian Entertainment)

Grounded 2 takes place in 1992, two years after the events of Grounded. As far as the public are concerned, Ominent—the malevolent corporation behind the events of the first game—is undergoing a bit of a redemption arc, as the company dedicates a statue to the four teen heroes that turned Dalton Schmector into the authorities. However, the reality of the situation is a bit more complicated than that.

During the unveiling ceremony in Brookhollow Park, an explosion erupts (a distraction or a malfunctioning SPAC.R?) leading to the apparent disappearance of the kids and Dr. Tully.

In actuality, the teenagers have been shrunken down and are fighting for survival in the grass below everyone’s feet. You take up the role of one of these puny protagonists and work to embiggen yourself once more, all while taking on the deadly threats found within the park and discovering who exactly is behind the plot to shrink you in the first place.

Yeah, yeah. That’s cool and all but will Grounded 2 finally reveal the identity of the fifth teen?

Grounded isn’t all base building and figuring out how to perfect block; there’s a surprising bit of lore too. A lingering question that has bugged players since the release of the first game is who exactly emerged from that fifth slot in the kid case. While the remains of a camp that seemingly belonged to the fifth teen in the first game, their fate is unknown. We don’t even know if they survived the challenges of the backyard.

That said, there are some clues that suggest the missing fifth kid might play a role in Grounded 2. For one, the Steam page for the game reads, “something else is out there, and it hasn’t forgotten you,” which leaves room to theorise that the fifth kid could’ve survived to hold a grudge against the other four for leaving them behind. So, we might see the fifth teen in Grounded 2… but they could be a friend or a foe.

Grounded 2 gameplay

(Image credit: Obsidian Entertainment)

While Grounded 2’s gameplay will feature the same mix of building, exploration, combat, and survival, there are a couple of key changes in the sequel that we’ve already gotten a glimpse at.

For starters, Grounded 2’s map is three times bigger than the first game’s. With such a big world to explore, your little legs can only take you so far before your stamina starts to take a hit. To help lighten the load and get you where you need to go faster, Grounded 2 introduces a new variety of insect mounts called buggies.

Alongside helping you to get from A to B(ee), buggies also offer support with exploration, building, and combat, with each species having its one set of unique abilities. We haven’t gotten a full picture of every kind of buggy the game will include, but we do know you definitely can pop a saddle on a red ant or opt to ride an orb weaver spider for some hardcore arachnophobia exposure therapy.

Another new addition in Grounded 2 is the Omni-tool. While inventory management may be some folks’ idea of meditation, it can also be an unwelcome distraction from the real business of surviving and/or crafting. To save you the hassle of juggling a shovel, an axe, a hammer, and a wrench in your backpack all at once, Grounded 2 graces players with the Omni-tool, which does the job of all four tools in one.

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June 20, 2025 0 comments

A close-up shot of James Bone in 007 First Light wearing dark sunglasses and a pink shirt in a tropical location

Product Reviews

007 First Light: Key details and latest news, summarized by humans

by admin June 20, 2025

The cover’s blown on 007 First Light, IO Interactive’s stealth action game starring a young James Bond. After some teasing and years of quiet work on “Project 007,” we finally know what kind of game the Hitman developer has been cooking up for the iconic character. A short trailer that debuted during Sony’s June State of Play gave us a look at 007 First Light’s original version of Bond, the many locations the story will take us to, and a release date. Well, okay, a release year.

First Light’s announcement trailer has moments that look quite a lot like Hitman as Bond ducks behind cover and tosses objects at enemies, but it also seems to have the kind of explosive action setpieces ripped right out of the films. Unlike Agent 47, though, this baby-faced Bond has a lot to learn before he can truly take on the role of MI6’s spy extraordinaire.

Here are all the details we’ve been able to decode from Bond’s dossier so far.

007 First Light release details

(Image credit: IO Interactive)

007 First Light will be released sometime in 2026 for PC, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and Nintendo Switch 2. IO Interactive didn’t give an exact date at the end of the announcement trailer during Sony’s June State of Play, but it did promise to reveal more about it later this summer. The trailer also mentions that signing up for an IO Interactive account on the website will unlock the “On Duty” skin for Bond and the “Gilded Wraith” golden weapon skin—which are the kind of concrete in-game bonuses that make me think it’s far enough along that it’ll drop earlier, rather than later, in the year.

007 Fight Light trailers and gameplay footage

007 First Light – Announcement Trailer – YouTube

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A lot of details are packed into the opening conversation in 007 First Light’s announcement trailer. We not only get a sense of the tone IO Interactive is going for, but a broad picture of its version of Bond through the eyes of his handlers. They describe him as a “bullet without a target,” much like how creator Ian Fleming conceptualized the character back in 1953 as a blunt instrument wielded by the government. This Bond is young, naive, reckless, and unbelievably lucky when things go awry—a perfect lump of clay for MI6 to mold into a dashing killer.

The rest of the trailer plants the seeds for what kind of gadgets and weapons we’ll be able to use as we chase our target, rogue agent 009, across the globe. There’s a watch that sparks a jet engine in a dirt bike, detective vision for highlighting nearby enemies, some kind of pocket tranquilizer dart, a wristwatch laser beam, cars, boats, and a whole arsenal of guns.

Exclusive interview with IO Interactive

007 First Light: Exclusive behind the scenes developer interview – PC Gaming Show 2025 – YouTube

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We visited IO Interactive for an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the development of 007 First Light. Check it out!

007 First Light story and setting details

(Image credit: IO Interactive)

We only have the announcement trailer to work off of, but thankfully it’s packed with hints at what we can expect as Bond earns his numbers in 007 First Light. MI6 recruits Bond after making a surprisingly heroic act on a mission in Iceland and fires him directly at rogue agent 009. The trailer shows several brief shots of all the places Bond will visit as he tracks his target down.

Here’s everything about 007 First Light’s story we know so far:

After losing his parents on a climbing expedition when he was 11, this version of Bond rabble roused through several boarding schools before ending up in the royal navy
The story is set in the modern day and begins with a 26-year-old Bond who’s picked up by MI6 after a heroic act during an Iceland mission
His mentor, Greenway, thinks he’s a risk, but reluctantly agrees to train him
Rogue agent 009 is his target and is described as a “master manipulator”
Bond will travel to several locations, including what looks like Slovakia and Vietnam
Familiar characters from the franchise will return, including M, Q, and Moneypenny
At some point Bond and Greenway will be tied up in a pit full of crocodiles

007 First Light gameplay features

(Image credit: IO Interactive)

The announcement trailer made it pretty clear that 007 First Light will be a third-person stealth action game that leans more toward the action. There will be a variety of levels set around the world with objectives to chase after. And once you finish the campaign, you’ll be able to revisit each mission with “additional modifiers,” much like Escalations in Hitman.

IO Interactive has been clear about one thing though: 007 First Light isn’t Hitman with James Bond. Agent 47 may be a trained killer like Bond, but his speciality is getting the job done completely undetected. Bond’s approach “has a lot more forward momentum,” narrative and cinematic director Martin Emborg told told PC Gamer in an exclusive interview.

“You need a lot of patience to play Hitman,” Emborg said. “You need to be sitting there seeing the patrol—he goes over there, and he likes wine, and you overhear that thing. But Bond, he can also just walk through the front door. ‘I’m actually just going to go and talk to them. I’m just going to go punch him right now’.”

IO Interactive CEO Hakan Abrak told PC Gamer that there are “elements in the game that you would expect from IO Interactive—with the freedom of approach, solving puzzles in different ways, and social spaces that are very deep with rich crowds.” But despite having some major differences from Hitman, Abrak said that, for the team, 007 First Light is “all that skill, all that practice coming together and finally seeing the ultimate spy fantasy come to life.”

It’s frighteningly possible Bond knows what TikTok is

(Image credit: IO Interactive)

Look at him: He’s a barely-out-of-school twenty-something who probably grew up with an iPad. There’s no way he knows what a cassette tape is—which has me convinced he’s got TikTok installed on his phone. I just need one mission to involve Rainbolting the location of a target via someone doing a viral dance on a fake TikTok video.

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June 20, 2025 0 comments

Rematch screen - two kneeling soccer players celebrating a goal as other teammates run in behind them

Product Reviews

Rematch: Key details and latest news, summarized by humans

by admin May 30, 2025

Sloclap is known for creating the Kung-Fu brawler Absolver, which was then followed up by a partnership with Kelper Interactive for another Kung-Fu brawler, Sifu. So, as you would expect, the next game from the studio is an online multiplayer five-a-side football showdown (that being real football, not whatever the Yanks play), called Rematch—Fifu was right there.

Now, being the kid who was bad at sports (and thus always put in goals) but loved watching wrestling and kung fu movies, this felt like a bit of a betrayal. But Sloclap’s signature style and heaping helping of arcadey gameplay have me following a footy game with an interest I haven’t had since Mario Strikers Charged launched for the Wii back in 2007. Not the Switch sequel, though; the less said about that one, the better.

What is Rematch’s release date?

Rematch is making its way onto the pitch on June 19, 2025. However, the game also offers the dreaded “pay for a more expensive version to play early” option, so if you have some extra coffers to hand over, you can play it on June 16, 2025. The game will release on Steam and the Xbox Store, while Xbox Game Pass subscribers can play day one.

When is the next Rematch Beta?

Rematch’s next and final beta test begins May 28, 2025, and runs through May 31, 2025 (5 am PT / 8 am ET / 12 pm GMT on both days). The beta’s first day was closed to players accepted into previous tests, but starting on May 29, everyone who requests access through the Rematch Steam page will be let in.

Rematch trailers and gameplay footage

The latest Rematch trailer debuted during the Future Games Show at Gamescom Latam. It’s a lesson on the “golden rules” of arcade football that also shows off a bunch of sick tekkers and other football terms I totally understand.

Rematch gameplay and features

(Image credit: Sloclap)

How does Rematch play?

Rematch is a five vs five online multiplayer football game, though instead of playing as a whole team, you’ll control one player on the pitch. There are no set positions; the goalie is whoever happens to be in the box at a given time. Plus, unlike FIFA, whatever Pro Evolution Soccer is called now, and EA FC, there are no stats to worry about; if you want to win, you’ll have to do so through sheer skill.

While not as ridiculous as the likes of Rocket League or Mario Strikers, Rematch takes a more arcadey approach to football, with “no fouls, no offsides, no pauses… no time to rest.”

And since you’re in an enclosed arena, you’ll be able to use the walls to your advantage, too. Maneuver around opponents by launching the ball at the barrier, then catch it on the rebound. It’s rather effecient for being that asshole who doesn’t play as a team in team-based games—a win-win for everyone!

How much does Rematch cost?

Rematch will cost you $30 / £21 for the base game, with the ‘Pro Edition’ and ‘Elite Edition’ bumping that price up to $40 / £30 and $50 / £39, respectively.

Both editions come with the 72-hour early access window, a number of cosmetics, and a “Captain’s Pass Upgrade Ticket” for the in-game battlepass (with the Elite version adding extra cosmetic items and a second upgrade ticket).

What is the Rematch Captain Pass?

Rematch’s Captain Pass is just a battlepass, with the developers promising “Seasonal Content” on the game’s Steam page. So far, there’s not much out there about what those passes entail, we don’t know how much they’ll cost or what’s included.

From beta footage, we can see it’s mostly cosmetic items and the Blocks in-game currency, but it feels unlikely this is indicative of the real game since a majority of the rewards were currency.

Can you fight in Rematch?

Despite the developer’s pedigree in top-tier scrapping games, Rematch does not appear to have any brawling. This is a football simulator, not an “average football fan” simulator.

Rematch recommended specs

(Image credit: Sloclap)

At a minimum, you can play Rematch with an RTX 1060 and i5-9400. The recommended setup calls for an Nvidia RTX 3050 and an Intel Core 11600k, so it’s not the most demanding game in the world. Couple that with an SSD and DirectX 12 Shader Model 5 support, and you’re good to go.

Rematch minimum specs

OS: Windows 10 / Windows 11
Processor: AMD Ryzen 5 3400G / Intel Core i5-9400, or better
Memory: 8 GB RAM
Graphics: AMD Radeon RX 5500 (4GB) / NVIDIA GeForce RTX 1060 (4GB), or better
DirectX: Version 12
Network: Broadband Internet connection
Storage: 20 GB available space

Rematch recommended specs

OS: Windows 10 / Windows 11
Processor: AMD Ryzen 3700x / Intel Core 11600k or better
Memory: 8 GB RAM
Graphics: AMD Radeon RX 5600 XT (6GB) / NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 (6GB), or better
DirectX: Version 12
Network: Broadband Internet connection
Storage: 20 GB available space

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May 30, 2025 0 comments

An explorer in the Subnautica 2 teaser trailer, her expression looks scared and in awe of something out in the dark ocean. We can't see what she's looking at.

Gaming Gear

Subnautica 2: Key details and latest news, summarized by humans

by admin May 20, 2025

It’s been a while since Subnautica 2 first pinged the radar back in 2022, but we know there’s a return voyage from developer Unknown Worlds in the works, and it’s out sometime this year. We’ve seen a slow and steady trickle of details on the next dive—teasers from showcases, Discord updates, and even screenshots hidden within time capsules in the original Subnautica.

I played dozens of hours of Subnautica and loved building my undersea base, so I’ve been anxiously scanning for more on the next journey. But just like adventuring in Subnautica 2, I won’t have to explore alone. I’ve been scavenging the ocean floor for anything and everything on the survival-crafting sequel, whether it be a shrimpy tidbit or a Leviathian-sized lore drop.

Is there a Subnautica 2 early access release date?

Subnautica 2 early access begins sometime in 2025, but there’s no specific release date yet. Whenever we do make the dive, the sequel’s early access period will be available on Steam, Epic Games, and the Windows Store.

Subnautica 2 trailers and footage

Subnautica 2 Dev Vlog – Road to Early Access – YouTube

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The first Subnautica 2 teaser stirred up more hype for its big ol crabs, but the 2024 Xbox presentation didn’t reveal any gameplay footage. This developer vlog dives a little deeper, offering a look at building in the new alien ocean and outlining the exploration game’s early access plans.

Subnautica 2 gameplay and features

(Image credit: Unknown Worlds Entertainment)

Is Subnautica 2 multiplayer?

Yes, Subnautica 2 has a multiplayer mode in the works, so those of us too terrified to gaze into the deep sea abyss alone can coordinate in groups of four. Co-op was one of those things everyone wanted in the first game, but only ever existed as a Subnautica mod.

There’s a whole PC Gamer write-up recalling encounters with Leviathans in Subnautica as part of our Great Moments in PC Gaming series, and I can’t tell you if my giddy terror emphatically agrees or disagrees. But what I can say is, it wouldn’t have taken me days to conquer the beginning of Subnautica had I brought a friend to hide behind.

(Image credit: Unknown Worlds Entertainment)

What else do we know about the Subnautica 2 early access?

There’s not much out there about Subnautica 2, but we’ve gotten a few vague teases around what to expect in the sequel. Unknown Worlds confirmed it’s off to greener pastures bluer oceans on a new alien world, and from how it sounds, there’s no planet safe from a disastrously wrong AI:

“You are a pioneer traveling to a distant world, but something is amiss. The ship’s AI insists you carry on the mission. This world is too dangerous for humans to survive… Unless you change what it means to be human. What creatures, intelligent or otherwise, await your arrival?”

With regards to the rest of that list, we know about a few more features Unknown Worlds has planned for the Subnautica 2 early access:

Both co-op and singleplayer adventures
An “overhauled” building system
Additional vehicles and craftables
More Leviathans, with one briefly teased in Subnautica 2’s roadmap
New creatures and biomes

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May 20, 2025 0 comments