u/Meri_Rookie

Two weeks in is the real test. Launch hype's gone, review cycle's done, you're just playing the game. My take: it holds up better than expected.

The parry system rework is what I keep coming back to. Original Black Flag had combat that was functional but never felt like the point. Resynced makes combat feel considered rather than tolerated. Stealth changes matter more than I thought, crouching anywhere instead of only in cover spots sounds small but changes how you approach every situation. The tailing mission changes got the most attention, and they earned it.

What I'm still thinking about is the missing content, no Freedom Cry DLC, no multiplayer. $59.99 is reasonable for what's here, but the gaps are real if you were expecting them.

General feeling from people who've played it: genuine remake worth your time if you loved the original. Not perfect, but neither was Black Flag, it was just really good.

Are you still playing it, and has anything changed since launch week?

My first reaction, this doesn't make sense. Hamieverse is a TCG, Moody Madness is kart racing, different genres, different mechanics, different audiences. The more I looked, the more it clicked, both are built on the Abstract network. That shared foundation matters more than the genre gap; the collab has something to build on, not just a logo swap.

Hamieverse has 83 cards across four factions, a deep lore system, and an engaged community. Moody Madness has 8-player kart racing with NFT kart parts affecting real stats, a guild system, and a competitive player base.

The overlap isn't in the games, it's in the type of player. Someone into Hamieverse is probably curious about a racing game where ownership affects racing. Someone in Moody Madness now has a reason to check out Hamieverse. This feels like it has more behind it than most Web3 cross-project collabs.

Has this changed how you think about either project?

This one genuinely surprised me. Switch 2 launched at $449.99 in June 2025. On September 1, 2026, it jumps to $499.99, a $50 increase Nintendo confirmed officially, citing memory costs, exchange rates, oil prices, and the AI-driven memory shortage as the biggest factor.

What stands out is the word permanent. This is the second price hike in three months on the world's most valuable game hardware line, and it caps a year where every major console maker raised prices at once, for the first time ever.

For context, Nintendo held the original Switch at $299.99 for nearly a decade. Price stability was core to how they operated. This is a different Nintendo.

The software argument is real, though, Ocarina of Time remake, Xenoblade Genesis, Splatoon Raiders, Fire Emblem Fortune's Weave, all coming through 2026–2027. Nintendo's essentially betting the games justify the price.

Does the lineup justify $499, or does the price make you think twice?

Four months out and I genuinely cannot give you a straight answer on this one.

Here's where my head is at. The game is real, the November 19 date is set, and everything coming out of Rockstar suggests this is going to be one of the most technically impressive open world games ever made. I have zero doubt it's going to be a landmark release, but I'm looking at $80 for Standard, probably 30fps at launch based on Rockstar's entire history with console releases, no physical disc in the box just a download code, and a GTA Online situation that still hasn't been explained. That's a lot of unknowns for a lot of money at day one.

The part that keeps stopping me is the pattern. GTA 5 at launch was not the best version of GTA 5. Red Dead 2 at launch was not the best version of Red Dead 2. Rockstar games famously get better over time through patches, PC releases, and performance updates. The people who waited 6 months for both of those games had a noticeably better experience than day one buyers.

So the question isn't really whether GTA 6 is going to be great. It almost certainly will be. The question is whether it's going to be $80 great on November 19 specifically or $50 great six months later when most of the launch issues are resolved... I keep going back and forth. One day I'm preordering. The next day I'm talking myself out of it LOL.

Where are you landing on this and has anything specific pushed you one way or the other?

This is the question I always ask about Web3 games because most of the time the honest answer is no. The blockchain layer is just there, it doesn't change how the game actually feels, it's just cosmetics with a price tag attached. Moody Madness is different enough that I want to give it a real answer, though.

The NFT kart parts aren't just visual. They affect your speed, handling, and special abilities, which means what you own directly changes how you race. That's the first time I've seen the ownership side connect to actual gameplay decisions rather than just aesthetics. The guild and farming system runs like any live service seasonal loop except the rewards exist on-chain and you actually own them. The difference between earning a seasonal skin that disappears next patch and earning an asset you can hold, or, trade is real, not just a pitch.

The gasless setup matters more than people think. Most Web3 games lose regular players not because the concept is bad but because the friction is unbearable. Moody Madness removes gas fees entirely and lets you start without a wallet. That's the onboarding problem being solved at the foundation level rather than papered over.

The part I'm still watching is whether the racing gameplay holds up on its own without any of the Web3 layer propping it up. That's always the real test. Does the Web3 side add something here? More than most games in this space. Is it enough to matter long term? Depends on the game underneath it.

What's your experience been with Web3 mechanics actually changing how you play versus just sitting in the background?

Look at what Nintendo has done in the last few months alone.

Switch 2 launched and sold out. Star Fox came back after years of silence. Ocarina of Time remake confirmed for Switch 2 this year. Xenoblade Genesis announced for 2027. Splatoon Raiders dropping July 23. Fire Emblem Fortune's Weave coming September. Switch 2 and Pokemon Pokopia bundle launching this month. The Duskbloods closed network test applications opening July 22. And somehow in the middle of all that they also raised the Switch 2 price to $499.99 in North America starting September and people are still buying it.

The catalogue is moving faster than anyone expected and the lineup through the rest of 2026 is legitimately stacked. Here's the thing though. Nintendo has always operated on a different logic from everyone else. They ignored the specs race for years, built a hybrid console nobody asked for, and it became the best selling console of its generation. Now they're doing it again with Switch 2 while Sony is navigating the disc announcement fallout and Microsoft is still trying to figure out what Xbox actually is.

So is Nintendo genuinely ahead of the curve or do they just keep accidentally being right at the right time? Because the Wii U existed, and that wasn't so long ago.Honestly, I can't tell and that's what makes them interesting to watch right now.

Not being dramatic when I say this. Just looking at what's actually happened in the last few weeks. GTA 6 ships in a physical box with a download code and no disc. Sony announces all new PlayStation releases will go digital only starting in 2028, and their own India office found out at the same time as the public while actively negotiating deals for 100 physical retail stores. Then LoL Classic drops because enough people wanted 2013 League back that Riot built an entire separate mode to recreate it.

Three different stories all point to the same thing. Nobody agrees on what gaming is supposed to be right now. One side of the industry is sprinting toward a future where you own nothing and your library exists only as long as a company keeps the lights on. The other side has a player base so burned out on what games have become that they're paying to go backwards and genuinely prefer a 13-year-old version of a game over the current one, and GTA 6 is sitting in the middle of all of it. Most hyped release in years, $80, 30fps, no disc, and people are still counting down the days because the game is too big to boycott, and everyone knows it.

The thing that gets me is that LoL Classic having a waitlist tells you more about where gaming is right now than any of the announcements did. People aren't excited about the future. They're trying to get back to the last time it felt right.

Where do you think this goes from here?

I want to be clear about what I mean by this before anyone comes in with the "the game is too complex to run at 60" argument because I've heard it and I don't fully buy it.

The technical side is real. GTA 6 is enormous. The crowd simulation, the real time reflections, the density of everything happening at once. Digital Foundry looked at the trailers and came out saying 60fps feels like a very difficult target on current hardware and I respect that analysis. The game is genuinely pushing what PS5 and Series X can do, but here's the thing. Rockstar has never shipped a 60fps open world game on console. Not GTA 4, not GTA 5, not Red Dead Redemption 2. RDR2 is eight years old and still hasn't gotten a performance patch. The pattern isn't technical limitation every single time, at some point it becomes a choice, and the choice makes business sense. Ship at 30fps at launch, let the conversation happen, then drop a 60fps performance mode six months later as a headline update that brings people back to the game. Then do it again for the PS5 Pro version. Then do it again for PC. Rockstar has turned "here's the better version of the game" into a release strategy that works multiple times on the same title.

That's honestly what bothers me. Not that the game runs at 30fps, but that 60fps is almost certainly achievable with tradeoffs they've chosen not to make yet because holding it back is worth more to them as a drip than giving it to everyone on day one. You're paying $80 for the version of GTA 6 that Rockstar decided you get to have right now. The version they actually built is coming later and it'll probably cost you again in some form.

LoL Classic drops July 29, and I've been going back and forth on how I actually feel about it since the MSI reveal.

What you're getting: Season 3 as the base with elements from surrounding seasons, 60 champions at launch with old kits, Deathfire Grasp back, AP Master Yi back, old runes and mastery pages, classic Summoner's Rift, original champion select music, separate progression from your main account, ranked queue, and its own Battle Pass. No second install needed, lives inside the existing client.

The community voting system is the part people aren't talking about enough. This isn't WoW Classic picking one patch and locking it. LoL Classic evolves based on player votes like Old School RuneScape, meaning the July 29 version is just the starting point. Could be the smartest decision Riot made here, or it completely defeats the purpose. I haven't decided yet.

The complaints coming out of the MSI showmatch are real though. Some models got modernized instead of restored. Ward trinkets made it in despite not existing in Season 3. The color palette looked more washed out than the old client actually felt. Small things that add up when people were expecting a more accurate recreation.

Here's the honest part, nostalgia is lying to most of us about what Season 3 actually was. AP Master Yi wasn't fun to play against. The old rune system at lower levels was borderline pay-to-win if you couldn't afford the right pages. What people actually miss is the community and how the game felt at that point in their lives, not necessarily the mechanics themselves.

Riot just fully revealed LoL Classic at the MSI Finals and it's more than I expected.

The separate progression track inside the current client, your main account is untouched. You start fresh at level 1 and go back to 30. Influence Points return as the currency, old rune pages and mastery trees are back, around 60 champions from the early seasons with old gameplay kits, a dedicated Battle Pass, ranked queue, and co-op vs AI. Meddler confirmed this is a structured permanent mode not a limited-time event.

The whole reveal wasn't even supposed to happen yet. Riot accidentally pushed a chunk of it onto the PBE weeks ago and the dataminers got everything almost immediately. The dev video they dropped to get ahead of it with Pabro playing a completely unhinged researcher with a pinboard and red string was one of the funniest pieces of gaming marketing this year TBH. What's still not confirmed is which exact season they're locking in. Meddler suggested they're pulling elements from multiple eras rather than one specific patch, which might actually be the smarter call even if it means no single era gets a perfect recreation

Launch is targeting Split 3 later this year. I've been waiting for something like this for a long time, and the fact that it has real progression and isn't just a nostalgia event for two weeks is what makes it actually matter.

The realistic answer based on everything we know is probably yes, 30fps at launch. Rockstar has never shipped a 60fps open world game on console. GTA 4, GTA 5, Red Dead 2, all 30fps at launch, and some of them never even got a performance patch after. Digital Foundry looked at the trailers and basically said the simulation density alone makes 60fps a very difficult target on current hardware. That's not hype, that's just what the footage suggests technically.

So the question is real. GTA 6 is launching on November 19 at $79.99 for Standard. You are paying close to $100 in a lot of markets for a game that, based on current evidence, will likely run at 30fps on your PS5 or Series X at launch, and here is the part I keep thinking about. A few years ago, 30 fps on console was just normal. Nobody had a choice, then this generation gave us quality and performance modes on almost everything, and now 60fps feels like the baseline for a lot of people. Going back to 30 after playing games like Spider-Man 2, FF7 Rebirth, or God of War at 60fps is a noticeable difference.

That said, this is GTA 6. The actual sequel after 13 years. The game people have been waiting for longer than some people in this community have been gaming. The idea that 30fps stops anyone from buying it is a little hard to believe when the preorder numbers are already what they are.

For me personally, I think I'd still buy it, but I'd be lying if I said the frame rate thing isn't in the back of my head when I look at that price tag.

Rockstar still hasn't confirmed anything officially, but the debate is already everywhere and honestly both sides have real points.

Here's where things actually stand. A Polish podcast called Rock and Borys, which has a solid track record, including correctly calling the Witcher 3 expansion, is claiming from a source close to Rockstar that GTA 6 will have both a 30fps Quality mode and a 60fps Performance mode on PS5 and Xbox Series X. Series S is reportedly locked at 30 for now but Rockstar is apparently trying to get it working there too. No official word from Rockstar, nothing confirmed, but this outlet has been right before.

Then there's Digital Foundry on the other side saying 60fps feels like a bridge too far. Their argument is based on what's actually visible in the trailers. The crowd density, the real-time reflections, the ray-traced lighting that looks like it's baked into the core rendering rather than an optional layer. Cutting enough to hit 60fps without the image visibly degrading would require tradeoffs that Rockstar may just not be willing to make. Their most optimistic take is a 40fps mode for people with 120hz displays.

The historical case against 60fps is also hard to ignore. GTA 4, GTA 5, and Red Dead Redemption 2 all launched on console at 30fps. RDR2 still hasn't gotten a 60fps update, and that game is eight years old. Rockstar has never shipped a 30fps to 60fps performance mode at launch for any open world title on console.

My honest take is that 30fps at launch is probably the realistic outcome, and 60fps comes later, either through a patch, a PS5 Pro update, or the PC version. The pattern with Rockstar is always that the best version of the game shows up years after the initial release.

What do you think is more likely: 60fps at launch, post-launch patch, or we're waiting until PC?

So the disc announcement was already bad, right? Then this came out and made it worse.

According to a report from High Chaos Run citing anonymous sources, Sony didn't tell anyone this was coming. Not publishers, not business partners, not even their own regional offices. An executive at a major AAA publisher said they found out at the same time as the public despite having what they described as a close working relationship with PlayStation. Their exact words were that jobs may be at risk sooner than expected

The India situation is the part that's hard to read without feeling bad for the people involved. PlayStation's India office was actively negotiating deals to set up around 100 exclusive PlayStation brick-and-mortar stores by 2028. Physical game sales were the entire basis of that plan. Investors were being asked to put in serious money, and PlayStation India themselves had no idea the disc announcement was coming because nobody told them either. They found out when it went public like everyone else.

So PlayStation's own people were out there asking investors to commit money to physical retail stores while corporate had already decided physical was done. That's not a miscommunication, a decision made at the top and deliberately kept from everyone below it until there was no going back.

Sony also went completely silent on social media for five days after the announcement, which at this point is just confirming they knew exactly how this was going to land

The disc thing on its own was a business decision you could at least argue about. This part is harder to defend TBH.

So Riot officially confirmed LoL Classic on June 26 after dataminers basically forced their hand by pulling assets straight from the PBE before anything was announced. The full reveal is happening at July 11 at MSI Finals in Daejeon, South Korea and here's everything the leaks and datamining have already told us before Riot says a word.

The mode is built around Season 3, roughly 2013 era League. Original Summoner's Rift, old rune and mastery pages, old champion kits, classic items that have been gone for years like Deathfire Grasp, Heart of Gold, Atma's Impaler, Force of Nature. Influence Points are coming back. Summoner leveling from 1 to 30. Separate shop, its own ranked queue, its own battle pass. It's not just a skin or a throwback event, this is a full featured mode with its own progression system.

Champion roster is confirmed to go beyond the original 40 but is currently sitting at around 60 based on what's been pulled from the files. Old kits confirmed, Riot Meddler specifically said on Reddit that yes they are doing old gameplay kits. He also said old Urgot mid is the one he's personally most excited to play which is either a great sign or a warning depending on how much you remember playing against old Urgot.

The question nobody has a clean answer on yet is which exact patch or snapshot they're targeting and whether it stays locked or shifts over time. Blizzard solved this by picking one fixed point for WoW Classic. League doesn't have an obvious equivalent because the game has changed so dramatically and so many times that there's no single era everyone agrees was peak LoL. Riot's own teaser video even asked "would it be a particular season trapped in amber" which suggests they might be going with something more fluid rather than one locked version.

So GTA 6 ships with a download code in a physical box instead of a disc. Then Sony announces that starting January 2028, all new PlayStation releases are digital only. Two major announcements back to back and the pattern is pretty hard to ignore at this point. The disc thing on its own is not new. Digital has been growing for years and most people already buy that way, but there's a difference between digital being the popular option and physical being eliminated entirely. One is a market preference, the other is a choice being made for you.

Here's the part that actually matters and doesn't get talked about enough. When you buy a disc you own that copy. You can resell it, lend it, keep it on your shelf for 20 years and it still works. When you buy a digital license you own access to something as long as the platform decides to keep it available. Sony has already shut down the PS3 and Vita stores. Microsoft has delisted games. Publishers have pulled titles from storefronts with no warning. That has happened and will keep happening. The PS1 literally helped make the disc the standard format for gaming back in 1994. PlayStation built its identity partly on physical media and now the same company is the one ending it

The second hand market, game preservation, library access, the ability to play something you paid for without needing a server to verify it. All of that quietly disappears when physical is gone. I'm not saying this ruins gaming. A lot of people won't feel this at all. But for a certain type of player this is the end of something real and the GTA 6 box with no disc in it is going to look like a pretty clear starting line in hindsight.

Are you bothered by this or have you already been fully digital for long enough that it doesn't change anything for you?

Koei Tecmo and Omega Force are back for the final game in the trilogy and this one is covering the full finale, the Rumbling, Eren's founding titan form, all of it. The trailer ended with "the fight for freedom begins and ends here," and if you know how the story ends you know exactly what that means. What's interesting about this one is that Geoff Keighley described it as a project that depicts the entire story of the anime from beginning to end, which sounds like it's not just picking up from where Attack on Titan 2 left off but covering the whole thing. So new players can jump straight into this without playing the first two games, which is a smart call given how much time has passed.

It is available on PS5, Xbox Series X, Switch 2, and PC via Steam. More details are supposed to be coming soon so we don't have the full picture yet on gameplay changes or how they're handling some of the more controversial parts of the ending. The previous two games were solid adaptations but the final arc is where everything hits differently. The Rumbling alone as a playable sequence is going to be something. How they handle Eren's character in this one is what I'm most curious about because that finale split the entire fanbase

Did you play the first two games and are you picking this up, or is the ending still too raw to revisit?

Palworld launched in January 2024 with over 2 million concurrent players on Steam, became one of the fastest selling games ever, survived a Nintendo lawsuit that has basically been reduced to nothing at this point, and somehow kept a consistent playerbase through all of it. Now 1.0 is dropping July 10 and I genuinely want to know if the full release is worth the wait.

Here's what's actually confirmed for 1.0. The World Tree is finally accessible and becomes the new endgame zone, which has been sitting on the horizon since day one. The map is getting a second major island added which apparently roughly doubles the playable area. Wing Pack is a new traversal system that finally lets you glide without sacrificing a party slot for a flying Pal. New Pals, new weapons, Genetic Recombination for breeding, PvP mode, Sky Islands, and a tower boss overhaul that Pocketpair says makes them more dynamic. The patch notes are 27 pages long. The head of communications literally said he was losing his mind formatting them.

Existing saves carry over but Pocketpair is recommending a fresh start to get the full experience, which makes sense given how much the mechanics are being overhauled.

The game is free for anyone who already owns it across PC, PS5, Xbox, and Game Pass.

My question is for the people who dropped off during early access, is the 1.0 the version that brings you back or did you move on at this point? And for the people still playing, does this feel like the game finally becoming what it was supposed to be or just another big update?