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This Week (Sept 13 - Sept 19) |
Tokyo Game Show 2026 and BlizzCon dominated the headline space this week alongside collaborations and new upcoming titles. Kojima Productions turned heads during the Xbox TGS broadcast by revealing Bill Skarsgård (IT’s Pennywise) as the lead actor for PHYSINT, Netmarble debuted a dramatic early boss encounter in Solo Leveling KARMA, and Blizzard shared plans for a massive Overwatch crossover with Cyberpunk: Edgerunners coming in 2027. Persona 4 Revival highlights Naoto Shirogane, and Game Freak announces a new weather-related mobile game in the works.
On the review front, RPG fans were treated to Estelle's anticipated return in Trails in the Sky 2nd Chapter, then Pawprint Studio jumped into the open-world creature-collecting space with Aniimo, and Fire Emblem Fortune’s Weave proves itself to be an epic tale. With adventures about, players have a fun repertoire of releases to check out.
Here's a look at this week’s major gaming announcements and more.
Gaming News At A Glance
Bill Skarsgård Cast as PHYSINT Lead as Kojima and Xbox Detail Partnership
Solo Leveling KARMA Forces Players Into an Emotional Chairman Boss Fight
Persona 4 Revival Showcases Naoto Shirogane in Final Character Trailer
Game Freak Announces Weather-Based Mobile Title Ame Nochi Hare Onna
Overwatch Teases Cyberpunk: Edgerunners Crossover Coming in 2027
Other News and Developments This Week
Review Roundup:Sept 13 to Sept 19
A Wide Variety of Adventure
⚫︎ Trails in the Sky 2nd Chapter
⚫︎ Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave
⚫︎ Aniimo
⚫︎ Marvel's Wolverine Game Review
Other Reviews This Week
Gaming News At A Glance: Bill Skarsgård is PHYSINT Lead, Solo Leveling KARMA Shows Chairman Boss Fight, Persona 4 Revival Naoto Trailer Preview, Game Freak Makes a Weather Mobile Game, Overwatch x Cyberpunk: Edgerunners Collab Revealed
Bill Skarsgård Cast as PHYSINT Lead as Kojima and Xbox Detail Partnership
During the Xbox Tokyo Game Show 2026 Broadcast, Hideo Kojima revealed that Bill Skarsgård is starring as the main protagonist in PHYSINT, joining cast members Charlee Fraser, Don Lee, and Minami Hamabe. Initial scan sessions and camera tests with Skarsgård and Fraser were completed earlier in this year, with Kojima enthusiastic for the project's direction under Xbox's publishing umbrella.
Kojima also provided an update for OD - KNOCK, confirming that performance capture work with Sophia Lillis and Hunter Schafer has officially resumed following delays caused by the SAG-AFTRA strike. With development back on track across both titles, Kojima Productions is building strong momentum following its publisher transition earlier this month.
Solo Leveling KARMA Forces Players Into the Chairman Boss Fight
Netmarble showcased extended gameplay for Solo Leveling KARMA at TGS 2026, highlighting an intense Chapter 1 boss clash against a shadow-corrupted Chairman Go Gunhee. A story by series author Chugong, this isometric action-roguelite explores Sung Jinwoo’s 27-year campaign during the Monarchs War Arc and pits players against corrupted Hunter allies, including a teased fight against Cha Haein.
The preview also detailed real-time weapon swapping across four distinct combat styles, character switching, and a brand-new original character named Curly.
Mobile pre-registration is currently active on iOS and Android in Japan and Korea ahead of its planned late 2026 launch on PC and mobile.
Persona 4 Revival Showcases Naoto Shirogane in Final Character Trailer
Atlus debuted the final Investigation Team character showcase for Persona 4 Revival, highlighting Detective Prince, Naoto Shirogane. The trailer additionally offers a look at story sequences, specialized Baton Pass animations, All-Out Attacks, and gameplay featuring her iconic Persona, Sukuna-Hikona.
This confirmed Amber Lee Connors as Naoto's English voice performer, while Romi Park returns for the Japanese dub. Persona 4 Revival is slated to launch on February 18, 2027, for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC, followed by a much later Nintendo Switch 2 release on May 20, 2027.
Game Freak Announces Weather-Based Mobile Title Ame Nochi Hare Onna
Game Freak and Chronogate Inc. unveiled Ame Nochi Hare Onna, a free-to-play mobile title with laundry themes arriving on iOS and Android in Japan this winter. Led by veteran Pokémon director Shigeru Ohmori, the game follows magical girls called Hare-onna who draw combat power from real-world meteorological forecasts across Japan.
The gameplay loop follows how daily weather reports dictate household routines, turning live weather updates into interactive mechanics. The initial character showcase featured Haruwatari Himawari (voiced by Hiyori Kouno), though details on a global localized release remain unannounced.
Overwatch Teases Cyberpunk: Edgerunners Crossover Coming in 2027
At BlizzCon 2026, Blizzard announced an upcoming Overwatch event collaborating with Cyberpunk: Edgerunners scheduled for 2027. Content will be taking elements from both the original anime and its sequel, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 2, with David and new character Talia officially confirmed to appear.
While community reception to the announcement was enthusiastic, players raised concerns regarding pricing for high-tier cosmetic skins. Additionally, CD Projekt Red added that Cyberpunk 2077 and its Phantom Liberty expansion will be coming to the Battle.net library later this year.
Other News and Developments This Week
⚫︎ BanG Dream! Our Notes Releases Globally September 24 With 25 Characters and Free Gacha Rewards
⚫︎ MapleStory x Blue Archive Collab Arrives November 19 in Korea With New Crossover Story
⚫︎ P3P's Female MC Kotone Joins P5X This September
⚫︎ Diablo Finally Arrives in Diablo 4 After Three Years, Just Before Diablo 5 Comes
⚫︎ Pokémon Sleep x NOT A HOTEL Holds Raffle For Exclusive Pokéball Room Stay
⚫︎ Pragmata Wins Double Crown at the Japan Game Awards 2026
⚫︎ Donkey Kong Bananza Finally Wins Japan Game Awards' Excellence Award After 15 Years
⚫︎ Pokémon Sweeps Japan Game Awards 2026 With Prestigious Wins
⚫︎ Apex Legends x Street Fighter Collab Adds Ryu, Chun-Li, and Hadouken Melee this September
⚫︎ Wo Long 2: Wings of Ember Lets You Steal Enemy Officers Mid-Battle, and Its Demo Is Out Now
⚫︎ STRANGER THAN HEAVEN's Showbiz Mechanic Lets You Take Control of the Entire Show
⚫︎ STRANGER THAN HEAVEN Sees Makoto Daito Eat Garbage and Fight Police in Story Intro Reveal
⚫︎ Netflix Wanted Stranger Than Heaven Movie Before Knowing What It Was About
⚫︎ PRAGMATA's Mega Man Collab Dresses Diana and Hugh as Mega Man and Roll
⚫︎ MH Wilds: Ascendance's Boosted Actions Recall MHGU's Hunter Arts and Styles
⚫︎ Monster Hunter Wilds: Ascendance Reveals Teostra, Further Shutting Down the Elder Debate
⚫︎ Dragon's Dogma 2: Dark Arisen Main Trailer Introduces Norgan and New Official Pawns
⚫︎ Wo Long 2 Demo Confirms Lu Bu Hidden Boss and Other Returning Characters on Launch
⚫︎ Shangri-La Frontier: The Seven Colossi Presentation Showcases New Gameplay Footage and PV
⚫︎ GACHIAKUTA: BREAKOUT Unveils Jabber Boss Fight and 2027 Release Window
⚫︎ Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 Mads Mikkelsen Appearance Catches Fans By Surprise
⚫︎ Blizzard Spent Three Years Fixing Diablo 4 Just to Replace It
⚫︎ Fareidolia From Blue Archive Devs Lets You Call Characters by Name and Speak Your Dialogue Choices Out Loud
Review Roundup: Sept 13 to Sept 19
A Wide Variety of Adventure
From classic JRPG storytelling to open-world creature collecting and strategic action, this week’s review slate offers something for every type of gamer. Trails in the Sky 2nd Chapter modernizes a beloved adventure with great care, while Fortune’s Weave makes good on being a worthy Switch 2 exclusive, and Aniimo takes co-op and adventure mechanics to the open-world monster-taming formula.
Trails in the Sky 2nd Chapter
Picking up immediately from 1st Chapter's emotional conclusion, Trails in the Sky 2nd Chapter follows Estelle Bright on a journey across Liberl to track down Joshua. Estelle's personal mission grounds the narrative, nicely balancing small-town Bracer requests with an escalating threat from Ouroboros.
Combat retains the hybrid systems from the first chapter. Real-time Quick Battle allows players to clear minor encounters instantly on the field, while Command Battle shows deep turn-based tactics featuring seven-slot Orbment customization, new character Crafts, and the cooperative Brave Rush system. Though pacing lulls occur since mandatory side tasks stall the story, the 2nd Chapter still stands as a strong modernization of a classic JRPG.
Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave
Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave for the Nintendo Switch 2 takes on the series' best mechanics into a widely ambitious new strategy RPG. The story follows a hero named Eshmel, who travels back in time to recruit four hero warriors, each with their own perspective and storyline, to stop demon god Balor from destroying the world.
Gameplay combines classic tactical battles with JRPG dungeon crawling and hero-specific Blaze Arts skills that trade HP for powerful attacks. Between missions, a flexible Free Time system lets players build relationships, upgrade gear, or automate tasks, making it a worthy, top-tier title for the Switch 2.
Aniimo
Aniimo brings fresh ideas to the open-world creature-collecting genre, placing players inside the mysterious continent of Idyll as part of an Astraean research squad. The narrative centers on discovering forgotten ruins and wild creatures, giving players a front-row seat alongside an expedition group learning about the world in real time.
The primary highlight is its dynamic action-combat framework utilizing Twining.
Players can fight in tandem with their Aniimo, possess creatures directly to execute special abilities, or Untwine
to use player-specific skills on the fly. Although minor user interface stiffness and monetized evolution paths (such as Fulmintis's battle pass variant) exist, the creature visual variety, Alpha boss battles, and open exploration build a very promising base.
Other Reviews This Week
⚫︎ RuneScape: Dragonwilds - First Impressions Review | An Addictive Old-School Grind Made Even Better
⚫︎ Another Eden Begins Review | Proof That the Classics Still Work
