Gaming News — 2026-06-18#

Top Story#

The agonizing wait for solid GTA 6 news is finally paying off, as Rockstar unveiled the stunning official cover art featuring protagonists Jason and Lucia alongside a definitive pre-order date of June 25. This surprise announcement not only gives us a fresh, highly detailed look at Vice City’s vibrant open world, but it also serves as the ultimate silencer to delay rumors, practically guaranteeing the blockbuster is locked in for its November 19, 2026 launch.

News & Reviews#

PlayStation Reportedly Pulled Out of PC Ports Due to ‘Inconsistent’ Releases and Lack of Revenue · IGN If you were hoping to play the upcoming Marvel’s Wolverine on your rig, you’re out of luck, as Sony is reportedly pulling the plug on single-player narrative PC ports. Internal townhall comments from SIE CEO Hermen Hulst point to inconsistent launch quality and inadequate revenue as the driving factors behind the decision to lock big single-player IPs strictly to PlayStation hardware, though live-service games will continue to see PC support.

Amid Concern Over Xbox Studio ‘Bloodbath,’ New Report Says Developers Are Being ‘Punished Today for Following Orders’ · IGN The situation at Xbox is looking increasingly grim, with a new report from Jason Schreier indicating a looming “bloodbath” of job losses and studio closures timed around Microsoft’s June 30 financial year-end. It’s a brutal reality for studios like Double Fine and Compulsion Games, who are allegedly facing punishment simply for fulfilling the Game Pass-focused mandates they were given years ago, all while the broader Xbox strategy flounders under intense financial pressure.

Mods Enable Bloodborne to Run on PS5 at 120 FPS and Super High Resolution · IGN Sony won’t give us a Bloodborne remaster, but the modding community is stepping up to the plate to deliver the upgrade we deserve. A modder named Christina has successfully uncapped the game on PS5, allowing FromSoftware’s gothic masterpiece to run at a buttery smooth 60 FPS at 1440p, or even up to 120 FPS at 1080p with VRR enabled, proving the console is more than capable of enhancing PS4 games if Sony would just unlock the limits.

Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced: Here’s What the Remake Looks (and Plays) Like Compared to the Original · IGN Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced is shaping up to be much more than a simple cosmetic facelift. Hands-on previews reveal that the remake introduces meaningful gameplay adjustments, modernized combat, and open-ended mission structures—like freeing captive pirates to create beach distractions—that make a return trip to the Caribbean highly recommended for stealth and action fans alike.

Vampire Survivors Developer ‘Reviewing’ Fortnite Crossover Plans, After Epic Details Unreal Engine 6 AI Usage · IGN Indie darling Poncle is pumping the brakes on a lucrative Vampire Survivors crossover with Fortnite. The hesitation comes directly on the heels of Epic Games confirming its aggressive integration of generative AI tools for 3D environments and character skins in Unreal Engine 6, prompting Poncle to publicly state they are actively “reviewing” their collaboration.

A New Free Steam Game Is Topping the Most-Played Charts, But It’s Also Leading to False Bans · IGN A bizarre passive RPG called TBH: Task Bar Hero has skyrocketed to become the third most-played game on Steam, but downloading it currently carries a massive risk. The game’s overly aggressive anti-cheat system is flagging harmless background programs, resulting in permanent Steam marketplace bans and big red “Cheater” labels permanently stamped on innocent players’ profiles.

Free Games & Deals#

Epic Games Store is absolutely delivering the goods this week with two fantastic freebies to claim before June 25: the stylish rhythm-shooter ROBOBEAT and the critically acclaimed cyberpunk tabletop-inspired RPG Citizen Sleeper. If you are a PC gamer looking for a massive hardware upgrade ahead of Prime Day, Dell is currently offering a monstrous $1,980 discount on the premium Alienware 16X Aurora laptop loaded with an RTX 5070, 64GB of RAM, and a 4TB SSD, dropping the price down to $2,999.99.

Also Worth Knowing#

• Call of Duty: Black Ops 1 and 2 Are Officially Being Ported to New Platforms Next Month: Classic Call of Duty: Black Ops 1 and 2 are finally escaping their PS3 confines with Iron Galaxy developing full-package ports for PlayStation platforms arriving in July.
• Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Is Adding New Suit from Brand New Day for Free: Insomniac Games is gifting Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 players a free update on July 28, adding a suit based on Tom Holland’s revised costume from the upcoming Brand New Day film.
• Final Fantasy Tactics Remaster Adds New Game+, but War of the Lions Content Still Missing: Square Enix dropped update 1.5.0 for the Final Fantasy Tactics remaster, adding a long-requested New Game+ mode, though fans remain disappointed by the continued absence of PSP-exclusive War of the Lions content.
• Final Fantasy 14 Rewards Japanese Players for Paying Their Real-Life Taxes With a Giant Dog: Japanese players can now earn exclusive Final Fantasy 14 cosmetics, including a giant Megashiba Mount, as a reward for directing their real-life residence tax to the Shibuya ward.