Last year, Chris Stockman--the original design director for Saints Row--told fans that he was working on a pitch to return the franchise to its roots. Now, Stockman isn't holding out much hope for a revival and believes the franchise is "dead."

Stockman made his original remarks on Discord, which have since been posted on X (via Eurogamer). "I think the franchise is dead, unfortunately," wrote Stockman. "I get the sense that Embracer has zero ability to do anything with it. I wish things were different. I tried my best to offer a path forward, but they've ghosted me."

The most recent game in the series was the 2022 Saints Row reboot, which under-performed compared to its predecessors. In 2023, Saints Row developer Volition was shut down by Embracer, and there's been no concrete news about the franchise since that time.

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It’s time once more for us to do our semi-sporadic peek into Persist Online, the PvPvE zombie-filled shooter MMO in pre-alpha development by Tibia studio CipSoft. And this time around we cast our eyes to the game thanks to its most recent major update, which introduces a new resource capturing mechanic known as nodes. In summary, nodes […]

Among other big releases like Resident Evil Requiem, Marathon, Pokémon Pokopia, and Slay the Spire 2, it’s easy for some games to get lost in the crowd. Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection is keeping its head above water, though, and Capcom has released not only a new trailer but a developer walkthrough to hype players up.

The former showcases even more new monsters, including Ibushi and Narwa (Monster Hunter Rise), Malzeno (Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak), and Ajaraka (Monster Hunter Wilds). However, arguably the most interesting tease is Lao-Shan Lung, who’s alive but crystalized. Surely the massive first-generation Elder Dragon wouldn’t suddenly come back to life and wreak havoc, right?

As for the walkthrough, it sees lead game designer Daisuke Wakahara outlining everything you need to know about the role-playing game, from the story and setting to the combat mechanics. While the traditional rock-paper-scissors approach returns, you also have the Wyvernsoul Gauge. Depleting it will stagger a monster, and once all stocks are gone, players can unleash a Syncho Rush for massive damage.

There’s plenty more to learn about, including Habitat Restoration, so it’s well worth the watch. Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection launches on March 13th, with a free trial available for Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch 2, PC, and Xbox Series X/S now.

Having spent decades at the company, working his way up the ranks to become CEO of Microsoft Gaming, Phil Spencer’s time has officially ended. Having announced his retirement, handing the reins over to Asha Sharma as Sarah Bond resigns from her role as Xbox president, one can’t help but wonder at the timing.

After all, this year is the 25th anniversary of Xbox, and it has four major titles coming up, so why now? According to Kinda Funny Games’ Greg Miller, who was recently “passed something,” Spencer’s retirement was allegedly not planned. “If you trust us, what I’m saying is this was not planned,” he added.

If true, what would motivate Spencer and Bond to bow out? It probably isn’t a coincidence that Sharma, former President of CoreAI at Microsoft, is his replacement, given the company’s growing investment in AI over the years. However, as noted by Tim Gettys, the farewell to Spencer could have been at something major like Summer Game Fest or even Halo’s anniversary.

It would have also made more sense if he announced that this would be his final year and then left before 2027 began. Instead, it’s this abrupt announcement that no one really saw coming.

If there’s any silver lining, it’s that the recent organizational changes at Microsoft won’t affect its game studios, according to Matt Booty, recently promoted to Chief Content Officer. And with games like Forza Horizon 6, Fable, Halo: Campaign Evolved and Gears of War: E-Day, Xbox could be looking at its best year to date. Ironic then, that it’s going to be without the man who brought them to the dance.

RuneScape is once again continuing to outline its series of overhauls and updates that are couched in its Road to Restoration efforts, and this time it’s talking about auras. Or more specifically, the elimination of them in the MMORPG’s next update. According to feedback from players, auras create more problems than they’re worth, imposing time pressure […]

Anna Sawai is previewing her role as Yoko Ono in filmmaker Sam Mendes’ quartet of Beatles films. Speaking to People in a new interview, the Emmy-winning Shōgun actress said it was “exciting” to portray the Japanese artist, whose marriage to co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist John Lennon catapulted her into another stratosphere of fame. “It’s […]