2XKO, Riot’s League of Legends fighting spin-off, is having its development team significantly cut back not long after release. Game Developer report a Riot spokesperson as stating the publishers have put plans in motion to lay off around 80 developers on the game, about half of the global team who’ve been working on it, with the potential for some of the affected workers to land in new posts at Riot.
Less than a month after the launch of its free-to-play 2v2 tag-team fighting game, 2XKO, Riot Games is scaling back its development team.
Admitting the news was “difficult to share,” producer Tom Cannon said that despite securing a “passionate core audience,” the new game “hasn’t reached the level needed to support a team of this size long term.”
“With a smaller, focused team, we’re going to dig in and make key improvements to the game, including some of the things we’ve already heard you asking for. We’ll share some of our plans soon,” Cannon added. “Our plans for the 2026 Competitive Series are unchanged. We remain committed to partnering with tournament organizers and local communities. Our focus will continue to be on supporting the events and organizers that already power the [fighting game community].”
Cannon stressed that the team that built 2XKO “poured years of creativity, care, and belief into this game. Taking creative risks like this is hard, and the work they did is real and meaningful.”
“We’re committed to supporting impacted Rioters through this transition — including helping them explore opportunities within Riot where possible, and providing a minimum of 6 months of notice pay and severance where it’s not,” he explained.
Cannon closed on promising more information would come in time, and thanked players for playing 2XKO and “caring enough to ask hard questions.”
Riot has also confirmed to IGN that the cuts will affect approximately 80 roles globally, representing less than half of the total team. Figures are not final, however, as some staff may find roles elsewhere within the company.
IGN thought 2XKO was ‘Great.’ It returned an 8/10 in our review in which we wrote: “2XKO has found a way to distill what’s fun about tag fighters while mitigating a lot of the pain points that typically come with the territory.” It was announced back in The Game Awards 2025.
Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, as well as a critic, columnist, and consultant with 15+ years experience working with some of the world’s biggest gaming sites and publications. She’s also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.
Tune in live this Friday for 60+ minutes of news, gameplay updates, and announcements from game studios across the globe. February’s State of Play will spotlight eye-catching third-party and indie games headed to PS5, along with the latest from teams at PlayStation Studios.
State of Play broadcasts live February 13 5:00AM at Bangkok/Jakarta | 6:00AM Singapore/Kuala Lumpur/Manila on YouTube and Twitch, and will be broadcast in English with Japanese subtitles also available. We’ll see you then!
Please note that this broadcast may include copyrighted content (e.g. licensed music) that PlayStation does not control. We welcome and celebrate our amazing co-streamers and creators, but licensing agreements outside our control could interfere with co-streams or VOD archives of this broadcast. If you’re planning to save this broadcast as a VOD to create recap videos, or to repost clips or segments from the show, we advise omitting any copyrighted music.
“I think there’s a kind of remake planned”.
Although Ubisoft has only just done a major organisational restructure, it’s already been confirmed the mascot Rayman is part of the company’s future plans.
Now, following a rating for a Rayman 30th Anniversary Edition last month, the series creator Michel Ancel has made some comments about a new project to Retro Gamer Magazine, which would apparently see the return of the first Rayman game.
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
No, not the TTYD remake.
It’s a new week, and it means Nintendo has updated its mobile music application with another video game soundtrack. This time, it’s the album from the 2020 Switch release Paper Mario: The Origami King.
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
It’s been nearly one year since the launch of Monster Hunter Wilds! Thank you to all of the hunters out there for your support. Today, we’re sharing details on our Ver 1.041 update arriving on February 18, as well as details on the first anniversary in-game event.
After the update arrives on February 18, we’ll be kicking off a series of events to celebrate the first anniversary. Log in between February 18 and March 19 to receive a free special item pack. We’ll also be giving everyone one free Character and Palico Edit Voucher as well.
If you missed one of the previous Festival of Accord seasonal events or just want to revisit their good vibes, you’re in luck. During the anniversary event, we’ll be re-releasing past seasonal events on a weekly rotation. Get special equipment, login bonuses, and more from each event.
Here’s a look at the upcoming schedule:
Starting February 18, Arch-tempered Arkveld will appear as a permanent Event Quest. Additionally, the four apex predators of each locale will also appear as ★10 Arch-tempered monsters (Rey Dau, Uth Duna, Nu Udra, Jin Dahaad).
Besting all ★10 Arch-tempered Arkveld Event Quest and special environment quests will unlock a high-difficulty Free Challenge Quest: the ★10 Arch-tempered monsters Hunt-a-thon quest. All these quests offer a significant challenge that’s sure to test the skills of even the most seasoned hunters, so be sure to give them a try.
This update introduces the winning community-created weapon and pendant designs from the Original Weapon and Pendant Design Contest that was held last year. Take on the permanent Event Quest, Every Hunter’s Dream, to obtain both the weapon and pendant.
Thank you again to many community members who submitted their amazing designs for the contest.
To commemorate the release of Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection, we’re introducing a special collaboration where you can obtain a one-of-a-kind Royal Palico Rudy Costume α Palico equipment and special Monstie-themed pendants.
Make your way through the new side missions to unlock special free quests focused on egg transport. Some eggs are highly potent, and delivering these increases your additional rewards. Good luck delivering those Monstie Eggs to camp for Rudy.
New event quests will continue to come to Monster Hunter Wilds. These include unique quests where you can obtain special pendants, quests featuring the least hunted monster, and quests where you can obtain the dazzling armor sets Gala Suit α and Felyne Star α.
And finally, the final Free Challenge Quest, Arch-tempered Arkveld, will be available from March 19 to March 31, so stay tuned.
Nearly all event quests, with some exceptions, will become permanently available beyond February 18. There are more event quests beyond those introduced here, so stay tuned.
That wraps up the info for the February update. We hope you continue to enjoy your adventures in Monster Hunter Wilds. Happy hunting.
Control and Alan Wake developer Remedy Entertainment has named Jean-Charles Gaudechon as its new CEO.
The company’s board of directors announced the news with a post on its website today. Co-founder Markus Mäki will continue to serve as interim CEO until the leadership change takes effect March 1, 2026.
“I’m excited and honored to join Remedy at a pivotal time,” Gaudechon said in a statement. “The studio has a unique creative identity and a strong pipeline. My commitment is to protect what makes it special, deliver exceptional games, and scale Remedy in a way that builds lasting value.”
Mäki took over as interim CEO after former Remedy CEO, Tero Virtala, resigned from his position in October 2025. It was a sudden shakeup that arrived after the studio’s summer multiplayer FPS and its first self-published game, FBC: Firebreak, failed to impress on a commercial and critical level (we gave it a 6/10). Virtala was with Remedy for just over nine years, leaving the Espoo, Finland-based game company to search for a long-term replacement.
We now know Gaudechon has been picked to fill the role. His experience in the industry has seen him serve at EA as a studio head and executive producer over titles like Battlefield Heroes, as well as a general manager and executive producer for Eve Online developer CCP Games. Now, he’ll oversee a company he says “has the voice and the ambition to be a pillar of the industry’s future.”
“We will stay close to players, earn their time and trust, and strengthen our independence in how we build and publish our games, while continuing to work closely with the partners who have supported us along the way,” the soon-to-be CEO added. “I will be moving to Finland with my family and I’m incredibly excited about getting to work directly with the team at the studio.”
Meanwhile, fans of Remedy’s work are looking forward to its mind-bending sequel, Control: Resonant. Announced at the 2025 Game Awards, the follow-up is expected to launch sometime this year for PC and consoles. Max Payne 1 and 2 remakes are also in development and expected to launch at an unspecified point in the future.
Michael Cripe is a freelance writer with IGN. He’s best known for his work at sites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP. Be sure to give him a follow on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).
Update: Digital release is out on Friday.
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Limited Run Games has announced a very exciting enhanced version of 1987’s NES “classic”, Jaws – and they’ve got their signature offering of flashy physical editions ready to devour and everything.
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
The post Hearthstone Spotlight Announces the Next Expansion Coming, and More! appeared first on Xbox Wire.
PlayStation users can stock up and save on some new games for their library through Amazon right now. The retailer is offering some excellent deals on a selection of PS5 games, including Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater (down to $30), Silent Hill f (down to $40), Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds (which is down to $25.24 after clipping a coupon), and more.
These are just the start of what’s available. Have a look through more of our favorite PS5 games that are currently on sale at Amazon below.
What makes these deals even better is that some of the games above have hit their lowest prices yet at the retailer. Price tracker camelcamelcamel shows that this is the lowest price Silent Hill f, Civ VII, Double Dragon Revive, and Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds (with its coupon) have all hit at Amazon so far. Similar to Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds, with the help of the coupon on its store page, this also marks a new low price for Space Marine 2 at the retailer.
And while it’s not the lowest price point it has ever hit at Amazon, Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater has matched its Black Friday price, which is certainly still a deal to celebrate. If you haven’t added it to your library yet, now is a great time while it’s still on sale for $30.
That applies to all of the available games: This is a great opportunity to scoop them up and save while they’re still on sale. They’re not the only game deals worth taking advantage of right now, though. If you’re looking for more outside of PlayStation, February’s Humble Choice lineup has dropped for PC players as well, offering the chance to add 8 games to your digital library for just $15 when you sign up for a Humble Choice membership. This month leads with Resident Evil Village, which is definitely worth grabbing ahead of Resident Evil: Requiem.
Hannah Hoolihan is a freelancer who writes with the guides and commerce teams here at IGN.
