Square Enix shared the fourth and final character trailer forOctopath Traveler 2, this time focusing on Ochette and Castti. The Japanese publisher has been putting out elaborate hero introductions for the upcoming JRPG every month since October, having previouslyintroducedOctopath Traveler 2characters Throne and Temenos, as well as four others. Octopath Traveler 2was announced in September 2022, not long after the fourth anniversary of the first game. The original received largely favorable reviews and even picked up half a dozen awards the world over, with many genre veterans praising its consistently challenging boss fights and “HD2D” art style, which is a label that Square Enix even trademarked....

Summary APokemonfan created a futuristic mecha version of Skarmory. The Steel andFlying-type Pokemonis known for its armor-like body, which made the reimagining much more fitting. Skarmory is nicknamed the “Armor Bird Pokemon” because of its steel wings and razor-sharp feathers. Its Pokedex entries in variousPokemongames describe it as having an ironclad body. But despite its heavy armor, it still manages to fly at speeds over 180mph. Some entries also detail that Skarmory often battles viciously with Corviknight, another avian Pokemon, over territory....

Summary An artistically talentedPokemonfan has created several Paradox Pokemon figures entirely from LEGO, and is on the receiving end of attention from quite a few others online. While much of thePokemonfanbase seemed divided on the design of Paradox Pokemon, particularly withPokemon Violet’s Paradox Pokemon, the fan’s LEGO builds appear to be getting nearly-universal positive acclaim. Introduced with the latest franchise entries,Pokemon Scarlet and Violet’s Paradox Pokemonare a distinct group of Pokemon which are either futuristic or ancient relatives of contemporary Pokemon....

ThePokemonfranchise has a large and loyal fanbase that has continued to grow over the years, and many fans have made their share of fan creations inspired by the franchise. There has beenPokemonfan artof popular Pokemon like Charmander, Pikachu, Eevee, and others that have been redesigned or re-imagined in different styles, though the creations don’t stop with fan art. There have beenPokemonfan creations that extend into various accessories and items inspired by the franchise....

Summary Pokemon GOfans have noticed a pattern with Poke Ball throws in the game right now, which indicates that they might not be working as Niantic intends. Throwing Poke Balls is obviously a core mechanic inPokemon GO, so players tend to notice when a change has been made, no matter how small. Pokemon GOremains one of the most popular games in the world. Players in the millions continue to jump in to catch Pokemon while on the go, for one of the most unique mobile gaming experiences on the market....

It’s going to be a big year forPokemon ScarletandViolet.Pokemon GoandPokemon Homeintegration are rolling out, and the games are gradually receiving updates to fix their most pressing concerns. By the end of 2023, players could be looking at a different game with extra DLC areas to flesh out the post-game. Adding all of that to whatever contentScarletandVioletgain from the newPokemonanime season, it’s looking like a good time to be aPokemonfan. No one knows how the DLC episodes will unfold, but presumably, they will play out something likePokemon SwordandShield’s own....

One of the biggest criticisms of theRings of Powerseries is that it didn’t live up to the Peter Jackson movies in terms of its emotional resonance. Many feel that the seriesis struggling to have its characters connect, which is the one thing that the movie trilogies are known for. The films are still some of the most popular and loved of any franchise, over 20 years since they were first released, and that is due in large part to the heartfelt and uplifting nature that resides at their core....

Spoilers ahead for the original web series RWBY. RWBY’s cast of young monster hunters has been beloved by fans ever since their debut in 2012, but looking back, Weiss' early characterization had some issues. WithRWBY: Ice Queendom, Studio Shaft’s new take on the web series, an original story might be able to rectify some of those issues. Ice Queendom started as a retelling of Volume 1 of the original series, but after episode 3 has begun to focus solely on a new story written by Tow Ubukata (Ghost in the Shell: Arise)....

Summary A newly published patent fromSonymay support rumors and speculation of a new PlayStation handheld device in development. Unlike the PlayStation Portal,Sonyreferences the PlayStation Vita, PlayStation Portable, and PSP Go as predecessors for the new patent. This past February, tech YouTuber and insider Moore’s Law is Dead released a video that claimedSony is working on a new handheld gaming device. The video explains that AMD was already paid by Sony to produce the new handheld system, but it’s supposedly in the very early stages of production....

Star Trekgot off to a slow start as a nice science fiction television show in the 1960s, and it’s hard to believe the present franchise came from such a humble start. Before the writers could rely on action scenes or special effects to carry the show, it was the characters and their stories that made the plot interesting. RELATED:Star Trek: The Best Rules of Acquisition It’s tough to keep track of all the characters that Starfleet and their allies have encountered while boldly going where no one has gone before, but the dedication of the Trekker fandom has ensured that every single one is accounted for somewhere....

TheDark Soulstrilogy is one of the most influential franchises in gaming’s modern history. From Software’s trio of action RPGs have led to all manner of successors, all included under the now ubiquitous umbrella term “Souls-like.” Yet despite its popularity and influence,Dark Soulsitself hasn’t led to a significant amount of official spin-offs or cross-media promotions. That’s why it’s quite surprising to see a sudden announcement of an originalDark Soulsnovel in 2022.Thursday afternoon Yen Press publishing, best known for licensing manga from Japan for release in the United States, announced a partnership withFromSoftwareparent company Kadokawa Games....

Summary TheSith Orderinspired terror across the galaxy for thousands of years. As masters of the Dark Side of the Force, Sith Lords and Ladies have started dozens of wars and lain waste to entire planets in their quest for galactic domination. The Sith Empire reigned over a large swathe of the galaxy until the Jedi Order drove them to the brink of extinction. AfterDarth Bane created the Rule of Two, the Sith survived in secret....

Summary SomeStarfieldfans have recently taken to social media to bemoan the fact that so many kids in Bethesda’s space-faring RPG look alike. They perceive the problem as prevalent enough toreally ruin immersion inStarfield, having already produced several examples illustrating this child doppelganger phenomenon. Bethesda’s role-playing games have long been lauded for their immersive worldbuilding, which is a key part of the lifelike sandbox experience that the studio is known for. And though some of its titles were better at delivering NPC variety—or the illusion thereof—than others, child characters were generally handled with enough diversity so that they rarely looked like obvious clones of one another....