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This Week (Jul 19 - Jul 25) |
The middle of July is shaping up to be full of interesting news, from Palworld still reeling from an explosive 1.0 launch to The Duskblood's highly anticipated Network Test and the beginning of gacha game Silver Palace’s Dichotomy Beta Test. Disney is also making headlines for their new line of Disney character-inspired idol groups, and the fighting game sphere is soon to welcome Injustice 3—ah, not Injustice 3, DCKO.
Over on the reviews side, there’s a little bit of everything—from action-RPGs to fun and quirky co-op games to even a detective romance and games heavy on well-fleshed-out narratives. Halo: Campaign Evolved and DragonSword Awakening have caught the attention of many, as well as DOOM: The Dark Ages’ newest DLC, Revelations. Avatar Legends: The Fighting Game has also been released, alongside Splatoon Raiders.
Here’s a quick look at some of the week’s biggest gaming headlines.
Gaming News At A Glance
Palworld’s Fat Flying Bird Is All You Need To Beat A Giant Whale
The Duskbloods Network Test Is Finally Recruiting
Silver Palace Dichotomy Beta Test Full Speed Ahead
Disney Sparklink Stars Is The Disney Idol Game You Never Knew You Needed
DCKO Is Not The Injustice 3 Fans Want
Other News and Developments This Week
Review Roundup: July 19 to July 25
Guns, Swords, Phantom Thieves, and…Arcanists
⚫︎ Halo: Campaign Evolved
⚫︎ DragonSword Awakening
⚫︎ Persona 5: The Phantom X
⚫︎ Reverse: 1999 Story Review [Atomic Heart Collab]
Other Reviews This Week
Blood, Sweat, and Tears of Metal
⚫︎ DOOM: The Dark Ages - Revelations
⚫︎ Tears of Metal [Early Access]
Gaming News At A Glance: Fat Bird Takes It All, The Duskbloods Wants You, and DCKO Isn’t Looking Too Good
Palworld’s Fat Flying Bird Is All You Need To Beat A Giant Whale
Palworld’s 1.0 continues to sweep the internet with its plethora of new content, and one determined fat bird has become the game’s latest superstar. The "fat f*** bird," as it is most known for, is a new pal by the name of Dynamoff, seen frantically flapping its fluffy wings to the sky as it carries its player up and away from the giant whale boss, Panthalus, and its devastating wave attack.
The hilarious clip has made thousands across the internet double over into fits of laughter, even being voice-acted by some very convincing personalities. "FLY, FAT BIRD!" has also been recognized by Palworld itself. As amusing as it is, it has also highlighted the game’s extensive and immersive gameplay, attracting even more players to its audience.
The Duskbloods Network Test Is Finally Recruiting
The Duskbloods, after a long time of silence, has finally opened recruitment for their upcoming Network Test in August, running from the 21st to the 24th. Interested players can head to the game’s official recruitment website to register. One must have a Nintendo Switch 2 console and an active Nintendo Switch Online subscription to qualify for the test.
Silver Palace Dichotomy Beta Test Full Speed Ahead
Silver Palace’s second Closed Beta Test, Dichotomy, is now ongoing, starting from July 22nd up until August 12th (ET/PT) or August 13th (UTC+8). Lucky players have shared various gameplay snippets and experiences with the current build, praising its visuals and intriguing plot and cast.
Although, those who were not fortunate enough to snag a test slot through the first recruitment can still join a raffle for access through Twitch Drops. Linking a Silver Palace account to Twitch and watching any participating Silver Palace livestream for 30 minutes will net a Beta Test Raffle Ticket, another chance to jump into the world of Silvernia before its release.
Disney Sparklink Stars Is The Disney Idol Game You Never Knew You Needed
Disney Sparklink Stars has revealed its first four idol groups, namely Midveil, Endelore, aMazINC., and UPbeats!, each with their own theme centered around a familiar Disney IP. With Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, Monsters Inc., and Mickey and Friends on the roster, it’s gained attention for its colorful and interesting cast, whose inspirations did give a few people a shock.
A global release has yet to be announced, and actual snippets of gameplay have not been released either. Fans are also speculating that there are more groups to come, with two areas of the game’s map still shrouded in mystery.
DCKO Is Not The Injustice 3 Fans Want
DCKO is the new mobile DC fighting game set to release sometime in 2027, with pre-registrations already open on its official website. It has confirmed 19 playable characters, featuring Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and more.
However, the news was not as well-received as they would have expected, with the majority of DC fans asking for an Injustice 3 instead, a fighting game franchise based upon the DC Comics universe. Many have pointed out the all-too-similar naming to the League of Legends fighting game, 2XKO, as well as criticized the mobile exclusivity.
Other News and Developments This Week
⚫︎ Silver Palace Dichotomy Beta Test Invites Available Through Twitch Drop Raffle
⚫︎ Xenoblade Chronicles 2 – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition Adds New Pyra and Mythra Outfits, Battle Mode, Rare Blade, and More
⚫︎ Aether Gazer Global to Receive All CN Content Before Transitioning to Companion Server
⚫︎ PlayStation Won’t Back Down From Discontinuing Discs After Only 100K Physical Sales
⚫︎ Tides of Annihilation's Jennifer English Helps Cast New Gwendolyn VA
Review Roundup: July 19 to July 25
Guns, Swords, Phantom Thieves, and…Arcanists
This week, we’ve got quite a variety of genres. Shooting goodness in the form of Halo: Campaign Evolved and Splatoon Raiders; action-adventure RPGs in DragonSword Awakening and Persona 5: The Phantom X; quirky action in the form of Dinoblade; Pokemon classics in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet and Pokemon UNITE; whimsical tales from Moss: The Forgotten Relic, the latest Reverse: 1999 x Atomic Heart collaboration, and Hololive Dreams, and even detective romances in Tears of Themis. There’s a little bit of everything—check them out below!
Halo: Campaign Evolved
Halo: Campaign Evolved is exactly what it says on the tin—it’s the entire campaign of the original Halo, reimagined and remade to fit modern standards. It’s a strong title on its own, simultaneously a faithful recreation of the original while also trying to stand out from the rest, even the original. Nevertheless, it’s polished, visually pleasing (thank you, Unreal Engine), engaging, has perfect audio for the ears, and is insanely fun—just like the original. And all of that for the price of $50; it’s hard to beat.
DragonSword Awakening
DragonSword: Awakening is a game that was originally a live-service title that pivoted toward a full single-player adventure package, a spiritual successor to arguably one of the most known MMOs of old, Dragon Nest. So how does it fare against itself and its predecessor?
It manages to be a pretty good open-world action RPG, with high-quality audiovisuals and a gripping narrative, bogged down just a tad by the glaring weaknesses of its gameplay mechanics and systems that clash against each other. Nevertheless, at the price of $29.99 and a 100% pull rate (!!), it’s definitely worth a shot, especially if you’re a seasoned gacha game player or a big fan of Dragon Nest. Beware the grind though, it can get repetitive—but all worth it in the end.
Persona 5: The Phantom X (1st Anniversary)
Persona 5: The Phantom X (P5X for short) didn’t have the best launch back in 2025—it was buggy, had storylines that just wasn’t on par with the standard of its source material, and had a plethora of other complaints. However, how is it a year later? Is it worth a return or a brand new start?
Now at its first anniversary, the game has transformed for the better, now with plots that might very well rival the mainline games and fixed shoddy mechanics, making the game much more fun to play than it was a year ago. While it has some questionable decisions regarding collaborations and is still riddled with bugs on the most minor of things, the future is bright for P5X, and there’s no way for the game to go but up.
Reverse: 1999 [Atomic Heart Collab]
Reverse: 1999 is a time-travelling, narrative-heavy gacha game that follows Vertin, a Timekeeper, who sets out on journeys through time to investigate the Storm, a phenomenon that makes entire eras of history disappear. Along the way, she meets Arcanists who have powerful abilities and aid in her quest. Collaborations with other IPs are not new for the franchise, and its newest one is with Atomic Heart, placing Vertin into an alternative Soviet Union run by robots.
The Atomic Heart collaboration is a charming perspective into both Vertin and the crew, as well as the Atomic Heart-themed characters (not much of the main cast gets their laurels, instead focusing on two new characters). The story was just as significant and profound, a common trait in Reverse: 1999’s regular chapters. It could have had more in terms of more Atomic Heart references considering its rich history, but it’s good for what its worth.
Other Reviews This Week
⚫︎ Tears of Themis Review | A Timeless Detective Tale With Handsome Men
⚫︎ Dinoblade Review [First Impressions] | Needs More Time To Evolve
⚫︎ FixForce Review | Built Like a Well-Oiled Machine
⚫︎ Moss: The Forgotten Relic Review | Whimsical Storybook of Your Dreams
⚫︎ Avatar Legends: The Fighting Game Review | Finally, A Great Avatar Game!
⚫︎ Pokémon Scarlet & Violet Review | An Expansive World Held Back by Performance Issues
⚫︎ Splatoon Raiders Review [First Impressions] | Trades Turf Wars for a Surprisingly Addictive Solo Adventure
⚫︎ Hololive Dreams Review [First Impressions] | The Polish Goes Far Beyond the Performance
⚫︎ Pokemon UNITE Review | A MOBA on a Slow Decline
Blood, Sweat, and Tears of Metal
Over at the Early Access and DLC reviews, we were able to cover DOOM: The Dark Ages’ latest DLC, Revelations, a continuation of the Slayer’s journey—and also a look back into his past; as well as Tears of Metal, a take on the hack-and-slash-musou genre set in the backdrop of medieval Scotland.
DOOM: The Dark Ages - Revelations
DOOM: The Dark Ages has released its Revelations DLC, bringing in new content such as a new weapon and lore to the Slayer’s journey. While it’s not the perfect continuation of our protagonist’s story with some unnecessary bits and segments here and there, it still managed to fill in the missing pieces in a way.
Nevertheless, fans of the base game should still experience it for themselves for an imperfect, but enjoyable expansion of DOOM: The Dark Ages.
Tears of Metal
Tears of Metal blends the familiar hack-and-slash musou genre and roguelike elements and brings them to the shores of an alternate-universe Scotland, where you take on the shoes of one of three (soon to be five) warriors heading the charge of a small Scottish army, hoping to take back their home island overrun by invaders.
Even at its Early Access state, it’s got more than enough content for days, especially given that you’d need to grind and upgrade your units to get anywhere substantial. It’s challenging enough as it is and is for sure a treat to musou enthusiasts.
