Gaming News — 2026-04-02#

Top Story#

In a heartbreaking revelation, the game director behind the canceled The Last of Us Online confirmed the ambitious multiplayer spin-off was “almost 80% complete” when Sony pulled the plug. Vinit Agarwal described the cancellation as “soul crushing,” revealing he only found out 24 hours before the public announcement as Naughty Dog forcibly shifted all resources back to single-player titles like Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet.

News & Reviews#

Switch 2’s GameChat Gets Paywalled · IGN Remember the Switch 2’s mysterious “C Button”? Nintendo has officially moved its GameChat feature behind the paid Nintendo Switch Online subscription as of April 1, 2026. In a desperate bid to get players to actually use it, they are tossing out 100 Platinum Points if you boot it up before April 22, but locking basic voice chat behind a sub remains an archaic, anti-consumer Nintendo classic.

Capcom Drops OG Resident Evil Trilogy on Steam… With DRM · IGN Surprise! The original 1996 Resident Evil, Resident Evil 2, and Resident Evil 3: Nemesis are finally on Steam, currently bundled for just $14.97. Unfortunately, Capcom couldn’t help themselves and slapped the dreaded DRM on these decades-old classics, completely breaking Steam Deck compatibility and frustrating the modding community that has kept these games alive.

Dead by Daylight 2 Isn’t Happening · IGN If you’ve been waiting for a ground-up sequel to Dead by Daylight, don’t hold your breath. Behaviour Interactive’s executives stated they are absolutely “not going to do a DBD 2,” citing the risk of leaving dedicated players and their massive investments behind. Instead, they’ll keep updating the 10-year-old original to ensure it stays current and accessible.

PUBG Chases Fortnite’s Crown With New PvE Mode · IGN PUBG: Battlegrounds is desperate to become a massive entertainment platform rather than just a battle royale. Their latest swing is “Xeno Point,” a sci-fi co-op PvE roguelite where you fight alien bosses using your classic PUBG loadouts alongside an upcoming Payday mode. It’s a clear pivot to capture the expansive Fortnite audience, but diluting their pure, tense battle royale formula is a massive risk for the 9-year-old shooter.

Steam Gives Its Storefront a Face Lift · IGN Valve is currently beta-testing a much-needed visual refresh for the Steam storefront to pull everything together cohesively. Look forward to higher-resolution game art, infinite scrolling, and dedicated sections for discounted Wishlist titles and DLC. Not everyone is thrilled, however, with some developers complaining the interface feels far too much like a cluttered mobile app store.

Marvel MaXimum Collection Hits the Arcades · IGN Limited Run Games has successfully compiled iconic 90s Marvel arcade brawlers, preserving original difficulty spikes while modernizing the experience with cheats, rewind, and unlimited credits. Anchored by the legendary X-Men Arcade, it features responsive controls and excellent SNES/Sega Genesis side-by-side versions, but questions still linger over how well its rollback netcode will handle 6-player online co-op.

Songs of Glimmerwick Preview: A Magical Stardew · IGN If you want the cozy vibes of Stardew Valley set inside a magical academy, Songs of Glimmerwick is shaping up to be your next big obsession. The upcoming RPG swaps out generic tool use for an Ocarina of Time-style flute mechanic to cast spells and tend crops, all wrapped in breathtaking isometric art inspired by Cartoon Saloon films.

Free Games & Deals#

Epic Games Store is bringing the heat this week with two excellent freebies: the incredibly bizarre retro cult hit TOMAK: Save the Earth Regeneration (free until April 16) and the chaotic robot gladiator brawler Clone Drone in the Danger Zone (free until April 9). Over on the console side, Amazon UK is running an absolute steal on PS5 games, dropping Resident Evil 4 Remake to a jaw-dropping £14.99 and Assassin’s Creed Valhalla to £15. Lastly, if the new movie gave you space nostalgia, Woot has the Super Mario Galaxy + Super Mario Galaxy 2 bundle for Switch heavily discounted to just $58.99.

Also Worth Knowing#

Take-Two Nukes Leaked GTA 4 Beta (IGN): A recently discovered 2007 beta build of GTA 4 from a flea market Xbox 360 dev kit was swiftly hit with a DMCA takedown by Take-Two’s lawyers.
GTA 5 Exits Xbox Game Pass (IGN): Rockstar’s enduring juggernaut leaves PC and Xbox Game Pass on April 15, right before the rumored summer marketing rollout kicks off for GTA 6.
Peak Dev Claps Back at Fans (IGN): The team behind indie hit Peak shut down players complaining about a “lazy dev cycle,” reminding everyone that they are a small indie team, not a live service studio.
Pokémon Pokopia Player Drains the Ocean (IGN): In a terrifying display of sandbox dedication, one Pokémon Pokopia player spent over 25 hours literally deleting the game’s ocean to build an underwater citadel.
Nvidia Teases DLSS 5 (IGN): Nvidia’s upcoming DLSS 5 update looks to change the game entirely by fundamentally re-drawing frames based on scene geometry, marking a wild evolution from traditional AI upscaling.