The Show Must Go On

And the Gears of War: E-Day Direct that follows.

Showa American Story succeeds in crafting an unforgettable, eccentric B-movie world. However, its deliberate jank and niche style mean its general polish still lags behind other modern AAA action games at this point. The sheer density of cultural parodies is impressive, but whether the game can sustain this tone over a dozens-of-hours-long campaign without exhausting players remains to be seen. Coupled with its current shortcomings in combat depth and mechanical feel, Showa American Story is shaping up to be an incredibly unique, highly flawed, yet undeniably fascinating ride.

Microsoft is the first among major games platforms to implement stricter age verification.

Atreus and Thrud are getting recast for the second season of Prime Video's God of War TV show, while Kratos is being recast for the first season

One of the world's biggest gaming shows, Gamescom, is now underway in Cologne, Germany, and hundreds of thousands of people are expected to attend. The organizers sold out the entire 233,000 square meter exhibition floor at the Koelnmesse exhibition center, with more than 1,600 exhibitors signing up to show off their games and products. In short, Gamescom is huge. It might not be the world's largest gaming event, as that title belongs to ChinaJoy, which had more than 438,000 attendees this year. But Gamescom is a bona fide juggernaut, and it's stayed strong, and grown, while other events have