New MMORPG for Steam promises huge medieval battles, now breaking years of silence with a bang

Ody Ody Reading time 2 minutes

The long silence surrounding Bellatores is now broken with a big bang: A new trailer showcases the beautiful graphics of the MMORPG, which will soon also have a closed beta test.

What kind of game is this? Bellatores is an open-world MMORPG developed by the Korean studio Nyou in Unreal Engine 5 – and it has been in development for around 8 years. The game was originally supposed to be released in 2024, but the developer could not meet this release window. Updates from the developers regarding the game have been sporadic, MeinMMO last reported on Bellatores 2 years ago.

Now there is news that gives hope: On one side, a trailer showing the game graphics, and on the other, a closed beta test has been announced. Registration is through Steam, but the beta is initially only available in Korean and in Korea. The rest of the world will have to wait longer.

You can watch the new trailer here:

Start video
Bellatores: Neuer Trailer zur geschlossenen Beta des MMORPGs auf Steam

What does the trailer show? It showcases the dark fantasy world that players are thrown into. The focus is on fights – both against giant bosses and other players. The fights are similar to those in Chrono Odyssey, which has taken a good slice from New World.

  • The setting is a medieval fantasy world, which is constantly experiencing conflicts between five noble houses.
  • You roam the world as a knight in search of glory and may eventually become the head of your family over time.
  • Your decisions are also supposed to influence the course of history.

Poor trailer performance and great competition

How are the reactions to the trailer? These are relatively restrained considering that there has not been anything new for a long time. In the comments on YouTube, the performance of the game in the trailer is particularly criticized:

  • “Cant wait to run this at 10fps,” says coldisthevoid6605 mischievously.
  • “This has to be one of the laggiest trailers I’ve seen in a while… holyyyy,” writes XirlioMerazul.

On Reddit, the mood is not any better. However, the main topic there is that the MMORPG currently lacks a unique selling proposition:

  • “Jeeze, how many of these unreal engine 5 MMO’s are they going to make? These games are all practically indistinguishable from each other,” writes ajthorpe95, questioning whether developers can really make money with this.
  • “It looks flashy but what does it do different? Feel like ive seen this trailer 1000 times,” says xFalcade.
  • General-Oven-1523 delivers a grim prognosis: “So Chrono Odyssey, Bellatores, Aion 2, and Archeage Chronicles next year? That’s going to be rough. There just won’t be enough players for all these games. At least two of them are pretty much going to fail.”
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Did you still have an eye on Bellatores? Feel free to let us know in the comments what your current impression of the project is. The MMORPG is supposed to be released exclusively on PC, but you can already find a range of good MMORPGs on Steam: The 10 MMORPGs on Steam with the best ratings in July 2025

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

Twitch streamer without knowledge of Pokémon catches her first shiny with the master ball – and it’s not so strong after all

Paul Kutzner Paul Kutzner Reading time 2 minutes

A Twitch streamer managed to catch a shiny in a Pokémon mod in Minecraft. For that, she used nothing less than the Master Ball.

Minecraft and Pokémon are among the most popular games of our time. Therefore, it is not surprising that there are also some mods that bring the beloved monsters from Pokémon to Minecraft. One of them is Cobblemon.

Mahluna, a Twitch streamer with over 430,000 followers, is playing this mod with other streamers on her own Minecraft server. According to her own statement, she has no idea about Pokémon. This is also evident with the first shiny she was able to catch on the server.

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A bird that can’t even fly

Which monster did she catch? While Mahluna is expanding her base, she suddenly hears a sound that indicates a shiny is nearby. She looks around and finds the monster: a Doduo at level 31.

In a hurry, she decides that the Pokémon must be caught. She opens her bag and chooses nothing less than the Master Ball to catch the Pokémon. While the Master Ball is unique in the standard Pokémon games, it requires some hard-to-obtain resources to craft it in Cobblemon.

Since Doduo and its evolution Dodrio are quite weak Pokémon, the choice of the Master Ball for this monster may not have been the best choice. While there are no legendary Pokémon in Cobblemon without additional mods, there are still some strong monsters where the Master Ball might have been better used.

We have embedded the appropriate video here for you (from about 17:23):

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What happens next in the video? Only a short time after she received the shiny Doduo, Mahluna hears the shiny sound again. She looks around her base and actually finds the next Pokémon in its shiny form: a Pidgey at level 23.

This time she had taken a Quick Ball to catch the shiny Pokémon. She was also able to successfully catch this monster and add it to her team.

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These days, the world of Pokémon is gigantic. Besides countless video games, there are also many gimmicks and of course the trading cards. A trainer recently managed to get a very special signature on a trading card: Trainer has his Pokémon signed by the Pope and the choice of his card couldn’t have been better.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

WoW is currently experiencing an absurd problem: There is too much to do

Cortyn Cortyn Reading time 2 minutes

In World of Warcraft, people are currently overwhelmed by so many events that they don’t know what to do. Many things are time-limited – and some are completely stressed.

A few weeks ago, it was relatively boring in World of Warcraft. Blizzard had staggered the content of Patch 11.1.5 for a long time, and several small novelties were so far apart that many thought: There is nothing exciting to do right now.

Now the exact opposite has happened: There is so much to do in WoW with Patch 11.1.7 that the first players are saying they are experiencing a “burnout” from Azeroth.

Start video
Older lady lives our dream and plays WoW until 5 a.m.

What is currently happening in World of Warcraft? When you look at which time-limited events are currently active, you can start to sweat a little. Because right now you can:

  • Play Horrific Visions to earn the rewards.
  • A greedy emissary with rewards, such as new recolor variants of the HD version of the Tier 2 set.
  • Collector’s bounties, where transmogs and mounts from old content have a drastically increased drop chance.
  • Overloaded Depths that bring new rewards, including a mount.
  • Devious Duos, an event with some toys, mounts, and other rewards.
  • Turbulent Timeways, where you should complete 5 dungeons each week.

The activities, of course, take varying amounts of time. While you can complete the 5 dungeons for the Turbulent Timeways in about 30-40 minutes, collecting old rewards is a major time sink. Anyone wanting to clear all relevant raids and dungeons must plan several hours a week – per character.

On top of that, there is still the whole “standard” gameplay – meaning visiting dungeons and raids of the current season. Anyone interested in a lot of game content is currently having a hard time keeping up.

Complete Overload – Too Much to Do?

The fact that World of Warcraft is currently struggling to find the balance between “too much” and “too little” content is evident on social media, such as in the WoW subreddit. There are numerous comments from players who are currently simply overwhelmed. Two short excerpts:

  • “It’s just too much at once. Timewalking, then I’m finishing the season because I didn’t have much time before. Then the overloaded depths (with the mount I want), Horrific Visions that I didn’t do in BfA, then the goblin event where you have to farm for the recolor of the Tier 2 sets, and then Collector’s bounties for the mounts I’ve missed so far.
    It’s just crazy how much is going on at the same time.”     – LehransLight
  • “Honestly, I exhausted myself completely last week trying to finally finish some of the things. I don’t even want to log in anymore. I didn’t get any mounts after running through everything with 3 characters and couldn’t even bring myself to log in for the treasure goblins. The Summer Festival ended on Saturday as well. It’s just overloaded.” – downtownflipped
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By the way, there is not really an end in sight. In the middle of the month, the next event is already coming. The Winds of Mysterious Fortune are returning and speeding up leveling for both newcomers and veterans alike. This is also necessary, because newcomers currently have a hard time defeating normal quest mobs.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

The sandbox content of the new MMORPG “Ghost” was reminiscent too much of Valheim, it should be more roguelike

Karsten Scholz Karsten Scholz Reading time 3 minutes

The MMORPG project “Ghost” by Greg “Ghostcrawler” Street and other former WoW developers focuses on red (theme park) and blue (sandbox) zones for world design. The team now provides new insights into the creation of the blue zones.

What defines the blue zones? When “Ghost” was announced, lead developer Greg “Ghostcrawler” Street (formerly at Blizzard and Riot Games) explained that the world of the MMORPG will consist of blue and red zones.

  • The blue zones are procedurally generated and are intended to invite exploration (sandbox). They are private for each player or group and affect the world.
  • The hand-designed red zones are public and offer many of the contents known from theme park MMORPGs like WoW.

Ghostcrawler explained in October 2024 that while the blue zones are randomly generated, they should feel hand-designed. To achieve this, there will not be an infinite number of areas that you would never get to see.

Instead, the focus will be on a limited number of biomes that are particularly well-developed and have a mature ecosystem. By ecosystem, Street means the interplay of gameplay features, creatures, stories, factions, and NPCs that should convey a sense of “everything fits together here.”

When you leave one zone and enter an area with a different biome, the new area should feel and play completely different. The mob spawns in a zone will be simulated accordingly so that bandits and nobles respond appropriately to each other in a region. The different zones should guide you through an overarching story, ensuring you always have a goal in sight.

Recently, the first class for “Ghost” was introduced:

Start video
Ghost: Neuer Trailer stellt Klasse der Dreamblade vor

Roguelike instead of Survival

What are the new findings? In a new developer post on fantasticpixelcastle.com, Greg Street reveals that the design of the blue zones was initially too influenced by their enthusiasm for the survival game Valheim. However, this led to a problem.

Exploration of the blue zones is intended to play an important role. Survival games, however, tend to penalize players for venturing too far from their safe camp too early. Moreover, it would feel very repetitive if players were to build a safe base in each of the countless blue zones first.

According to the developers, the core idea has not been completely discarded. The airships that take you to the flying shard worlds effectively serve as a mobile base.

Furthermore, the developers have moved away from the idea of designing large blue zones that could take weeks to fully explore. This would, however, rarely provide the beautiful moment of first entering a blue zone. These moments are special because each blue zone is supposed to feel distinctly different from all the others.

So what is the current plan for the blue zones?

  • The blue zones are intended to be relatively small, so that you can see and discover everything in about an hour.
  • Instead of bases and crafting buildings, in the blue zones, you build things like towers or bridges that can be very useful in certain situations. You will establish a large base elsewhere.
  • The blue zones incorporate an element from roguelikes, where you have to choose from a selection of skills and upgrades repeatedly throughout the game.
  • Each blue zone has a specific victory condition. To ensure that players cannot just aim for this immediately and ignore everything else, they first need to strengthen themselves in the zone to be able to fulfill the zone’s goal.
  • A current idea, for example, is to have shrines distributed across a zone where you can choose from 3 talents each. There might be a total of 5 of these shrines. And with a bit of luck, synergies are possible, allowing you to become completely overpowered within the zone.
  • At the same time, there should be an overarching character progression between the zones, through standard level stages, equipment, and similar means.
  • A touch of roguelike also comes from the random generation of the blue zones. The final design of such a zone is not fully defined upon entry but is further influenced by your choices and actions during gameplay.
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Will all of this ultimately be fun? “Ghost” is still in a very early conception phase. Recently, the first class was introduced, reminiscent of the Knights of the Round Table and focusing on large two-handed swords: Former WoW developer designs the first class for the MMORPG Ghost, inspired by a villain from Elder Scrolls Online

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

Grandma ran a comic shop 20 years ago, gives her grandson dozens of Warhammer figures, makes the community jealous

Benedict Grothaus Benedict Grothaus Reading time 2 minutes

Since the 1980s, Warhammer has existed as a world, originally consisting of simple figures, and now as a huge universe. A user has inherited a piece of the past from his grandmother, and the community responds with unabashed jealousy.

Where do the figures come from?

  • On Reddit, a user shares pictures of dozens of miniatures from all sorts of worlds. Most of the figures are from the various Warhammer worlds, but also Lord of the Rings or BattleLore.
  • As he explains, his grandma ran a comic and hobby shop 20 years ago. Warhammer has been around since the early 1980s, starting with wooden figures back then.
  • The user explains: Because he wanted to get back into Warhammer in his 30s, his grandma passed down all the old figures. Included are several rare treasures.
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This is how the community reacts: The prevailing emotion in the comments is envy. Some grit their teeth and hiss: “You lucky person,” while others show much less restraint, clearly wishing they could have what they see.

A meme even surfaces more often: “Fuck you. I’m not happy for you. Give it to me.” Others ask if the grandma is single and has more figures – or if she would be interested in more grandchildren.

Among the fans, a good amount of nostalgia also spreads. Blisters, as seen in the picture, are not as easily available today, especially with figures made of metal instead of plastic. The figures now come in complete boxes – like the new Space Marines in the absurdly large Saturnine armors, which are supposed to be customizable with various equipment items.

Such blisters are significantly cheaper, with prices of around 10 US dollars displayed on the packaging (which would be more today when adjusted for inflation). Nevertheless, original packaged individual figures, even in worse condition, can still fetch 70 euros or more on eBay today.

Games Workshop is still taking care of The Old World. Recently, a completely new army came into play:

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Der Reveal-Trailer für das Großkaiserreich Cathay als Armee in Warhammer: The Old World

“Where are my blood pressure medications?”

Some experts in the comments also find the occasional mistake. Some of the packages contain figures from Mordheim, the apocalyptic scenario of Warhammer Fantasy – which, by the way, has also been excellently implemented as a video game.

Mordheim takes place in the city of the same name, where the Empire, Skaven, and Chaos followers search for fragments of the two-tailed comet. Skaven are the nasty ratmen from Warhammer, but oddly enough, in blisters labeled “Skaven,” there are soldiers from Middenheim or the Reikland. One user says: “The Mordheim blisters… where are my blood pressure medications?”

In the comments, it’s mentioned: Even if the user does not want to sell his find, such incorrect labels might have a considerable collector’s value. Selling them is generally worthwhile, another user remarks: “Unless you’re seriously collecting them.”

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Among the figures, there are also several from Warhammer 40,000, especially Dark Eldar – now called Drukhari – a Space Wolf and even Captain Tycho from the Blood Angels, a figure that is currently extremely popular in its original form.

Yet, the thread creator, as someone who is (re)interested in Warhammer, apparently has his difficulties in overseeing the entire world and knowing what is rare or sought after. For newcomers, it is even trickier, but fans are happy to help: An uncle wants to buy figures from Warhammer 40,000 for his nephew, doesn’t know how, and receives complete purchasing advice from the community

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

Players stumble into completely new areas in Helldivers 2, causing confusion: “I haven’t seen that in 800 hours”

Cedric Holmeier Cedric Holmeier Reading time 2 minutes

In Helldivers 2, a player discovered a cave and shared it with the community. Many veterans are surprised that such a thing even exists in the game.

What did the player discover? On Reddit, the brave Helldiver Majestic_Bass_2921 shared a screenshot that few players may have seen. It shows his Helldiver character underground in a cave.

The missions in Helldivers 2 usually take place above ground. Very few know that there are also caves in the game. However, the thread creator knows where they come from.

The most famous of all Helldivers congratulated a game on its birthday recently:

Start video
Spieler erhält zum Geburtstag eine Nachricht von einem Helden aus Helldivers 2

Caves in Helldivers

Why are caves so special? There are actually no real caves in Helldivers 2, which is why they are so special. As the poster explains in a comment, caves only form when the procedurally generated map aligns several structures like mountains or hills on certain planets.

For example, on the planet Chort Bay, large rock formations can spawn very close together, creating real caves in the gaps in between. So it requires quite a bit of luck to get such a map.

Here you can see the cave for yourself:

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How do the Helldivers react to the caves? It is so rare that many are astonished by the discovery and express their amazement in the comments. On Reddit, they write:

  • Eoganachta: “Played over 800 hours and never heard of caves. Learned something today!”
  • geminiwave: “The great thing is that you can sometimes open them with enough 500 kg explosives.”
  • BadSkoomaDealer: “I always imagine that at some point there will be buildings/ships where we fight in corridors, perhaps together with the introduction of a first-person mode. That would be ‘mega’ – just fighting through a ship full of automatons or separatists or bug-infested SEAF ships/facilities.”
  • ph0on: “My biggest criticism of this game so far is that all maps seem quite similar. I would love more variety.”
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Even over a year after the launch of Helldivers 2, the planets and thus the maps where battles take place are very similar. However, many other things in the game have changed, as veterans want to explain to the new recruits: The fresh recruits from Over-Earth are achieving glorious victories in Helldivers 2, now the veterans are getting their revenge.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. Reddit

Trump cuts humanitarian aid, now Gronkh and other Twitch streamers help out

Johanna Johanna Reading time 2 minutes

The fundraising campaign Friendly Fire by German Twitch streamers raised 2 million euros in December 2024. Now part of the funds will be forwarded to organizations that want to make up for the humanitarian aid cuts from USAID.

What kind of fundraising campaign is this? The Friendly Fire fundraising campaign has been around for 10 years now. Under the name “Friendly Fire 10”, over 2 million euros were raised in 12 hours of livestream broadcast in December 2024.

German Twitch streamers such as Erik “Gronkh” Range, Tatjana “Pandorya” Werth, PietSmiet, and Max “PhunkRoyal” are participating in the livestream. They will play games and set special actions for donation milestones.

From the large donation amount, part of it will go to organizations that are also trying to counteract the cuts from USAID.

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Donations will be forwarded

Where will the donations go? On Instagram, the Friendly Fire account shares that part of the donations will now be forwarded to organizations that are currently suffering under two severe developments. Of this, 70,000 euros will go to projects that support people suffering from the USAID cuts. 30,000 euros will go to LGBTQ+ projects.

In February, shortly after taking office, President Donald Trump cut or completely halted USAID funding. USAID supports poorer countries by providing aid during natural disasters and crises and promoting education and health. This development aid was nullified by the cut funds (Source: tagesschau.de).

Also, the support for diversity programs in the USA was removed by Donald Trump after his inauguration (Source: tagesschau.de).

With their selection of donations, the German Twitch streamers are counteracting these two developments.

How is the community reacting? The community is pleased in the comments and supports the selection of organizations. For example, don_shimon writes that he would gladly contribute every year because he knows it reaches the “important and right” places. The organization queermed_deutschland is happy about the selection of donations and writes: “Thank you so much for the immense support!” (Source: Instagram).

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Other German Twitch streamers are also regularly holding fundraising campaigns for a good cause. For example, the streamer Metashi12, who has been raising money for children with cancer every year with “March with Heart”: A German Twitch streamer has been raising money for children with cancer for 5 years – breaks a special milestone

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. FriendlyFire auf Instagram
  2. PietSmiet auf YouTube (Bildquelle)

The head of Dune: Awakening knows what should happen in the game in 2035, but two factors can change the plan

Cedric Holmeier Cedric Holmeier Reading time 2 minutes

The Creative Director of Dune: Awakening spoke in an interview about the future of the survival MMO and revealed that he already has a plan for the next ten years that could completely change due to two factors.

What kind of plan is that? In an interview with Videogamer, the Creative Director of Dune: Awakening, Joel Bylos, discussed the future of the survival MMO. He revealed that there is already a 10-year plan for the game that he has come up with.

Those who believe that every update is set in stone are mistaken. The Creative Director clarifies that this is more of a list of bullet points in order, with each bullet point representing an update for the game and bringing new content. Two factors can completely overturn the plan.

Here you can see the first part of the plan:

Start video
Dune: Awakening – Das ist die Zukunft des MMOs

No Plan Survives the Community

What can change the plans? Even though Dune: Awakening is already planned on paper until 2035, according to the developers, no plan survives the community. Funcom has already revised the endgame of Dune: Awakening after loud feedback from players and made it friendlier for PvE players.

But in the future, the developers also want to respond to the players, as he revealed in the interview with Videogamer. However, another factor besides the community can change the plan.

What is the other factor? The other important factor that can change the plans is the gaming industry. As the developer himself reveals, the industry is currently in uncertain times, and it may be necessary to adjust the plans, even if that is not the current plan. In the interview, he states:

Given the current situation in the gaming industry and the uncertainty of things, we will stick to the current plan […] we will continue to update the game and improve things for the players. We are not a small team working on this project. The success was thus necessary in any case to continue the plan. I think that is the state of affairs. […]

We do not intend to make significant changes up or down. […] I also think that it is frightening and concerning when a team grows too much, right? And as things stand at the moment, I think it’s best to keep a cool head. We should not let the success of the game go to our heads and focus on developing high-quality updates for the players and giving them more Dune.

Joel Bylos at Videogamer.com

The developers want to stick to their 10-year plan for now and not let themselves be impressed by the uncertain times. However, changes are not ruled out if necessary.

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Whether Dune: Awakening can convert its initial success into a long-term one remains to be seen. The community is an important factor that needs to be convinced. However, the new patch is currently causing much frustration among players: Players from Dune: Awakening have lost everything through no fault of their own and are demanding drastic action from Funcom

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. Titelbild via YouTube Funcom
  2. videogamer.com

A trainer has his Pokémon signed by the Pope and the choice of his card couldn’t have been better

Christos Tsogos Christos Tsogos Reading time 2 minutes

A trainer was allowed to meet the holy Pope in person and then asked him for a favor: he wanted a Pokémon card signed, but it was not just any card.

What kind of card was chosen? The Reddit user ReptileCake had the honor of meeting the newly appointed Pope Leo XIV with other visitors from the EU and the United Kingdom. The user is a Pokémon fan and therefore did not want to miss the chance to have a Pokémon card signed by the Pope.

However, the card was not just any card, but a Popplio. Most people would have clicked right away, but for those who still do not get the joke, they need to look at the English name of the Pope: Pope Leo and the Pokémon Popplio.

ReptileCake specifically chose a Pokémon that has a name almost identical to the Pope’s. The Pope definitely seemed to enjoy the joke, judging by his reaction.

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“This is worth more than any monetary value can satisfy.”

How did the Pope react to the joke? The Reddit user described his experience with the Pope as “pretty chill” and talked about how the meeting went: “This is how I would describe the experience: Your Holiness! It is a great pleasure to meet you, and I thank you for your speech. I brought you a gift! *Takes out a reverse holofoil Popplio* It’s a Popplio, it sounds like Pope Leo!”

He further explained: “The Pope laughed, probably more out of politeness, at least I thought so, until he started to show it to the guards around him. I reached into my pocket and pulled out the second card and a pen: ‘And can you sign a copy for me?’ I asked, and he replied: ‘Of course!'”

Thus, ReptileCake owns the only known version of Popplio that has been personally signed and blessed by the Pope. However, some users now wanted to know what ReptileCake plans to do with the card.

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Does ReptileCake intend to sell the card? No. Even when asked whether the trainer would like to get the card graded and have it appraised, the user clearly replied with the following statement: “I will never have the intention of getting rid of the card. It is my personal artifact, and I will keep it in a sleeve and a one-touch UV holder. I don’t want it graded, it’s just a funny joke that His Holiness played on me, worth more than any money can fulfill.”

Nevertheless, it is a great joke that the trainer pulled with the Pope. Aside from that, there was another curious case where gaming played a role in the Vatican, and Dark Souls played a crucial role: Spanish broadcaster reports on the papal election, overlaying the news with scenes from Dark Souls 3 that could not be more inappropriate

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. polygon.com

Pokémon GO: Trainer uses expensive item on his favorite Pokémon, immediately regrets it

Max Handwerk Max Handwerk Reading time 2 minutes

In Pokémon GO, you can use the golden bottle cap to train your Pokémon. However, one should definitely not choose a certain one, as it turns out.

What kind of item is this? The golden bottle cap was introduced in the context of the GO Deluxe Pass during the event “Elders’ Heritage”. It was the first and so far the only time one could obtain it.

With the golden bottle cap, you have the opportunity to train one of your Pokémon and thus bring its values to 100%. However, the GO Deluxe Pass cost €19.99, and you also had to complete some tasks to receive the golden bottle cap.

So, you should think carefully about how to use the item in the end. Many use it to improve their favorite Pokémon, for example. But in one case, that was not a good idea.

Start video
So sah das Pokémon GO Fest 2025 in Paris aus

Morpeko is set to be trained, but cannot

What was the problem? Over the weekend, a post in the Pokémon GO subreddit went viral. There, user “Our_Lady_Chaos” shared her chosen Pokémon that was to be brought to perfect stats with the golden bottle cap: Morpeko. You can check out the post here:

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Morpeko describes it as one of her favorite Pokémon, and generally, Morpeko is a strong Pokémon when it comes to battles in the battle league or against Team Rocket.

So why is it a bad choice? The answer: Because Morpeko cannot complete the training. Currently, it is not possible to use Morpeko in raids or let it attack a gym.

However, such tasks must be completed during training to increase the values. As of now, that will not be happening.

Why can’t Morpeko participate in these battles? Morpeko has a special ability that causes it to change form after using its charge attack in battle league or Rocket battles. However, this is currently not possible in other types of battles. It seems that Morpeko is disabled everywhere else because of this.

And now? In the Pokémon GO Help Center, Niantic published a post stating that the problem is known (on niantic.helpshift.com). As of now, you should contact support if you are affected by such a problem. Apparently, work is being done to provide an update on this in the future.

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How did you handle the golden bottle cap? Did you get one? And if so, for which Pokémon are you using it? Let us know in the comments! When the next golden bottle cap will be available is still unknown. However, it is clear what events July still brings to Pokémon GO – here is the overview.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

10 dangerous horror monsters you definitely don’t want to encounter

Christoph Waldboth Christoph Waldboth Reading time 7 minutes

Whether in movies, books, or other media – creepy monsters are everywhere in pop culture. In this list, we present 10 of them that don’t mean well for you.

How was the list created? We looked at various monsters from the horror genre and its hybrids. This means that sci-fi horror is also represented here.

The monsters can be fantastic or completely realistic, as long as they are dangerously threatening for their own personal reasons. Some of them originate from the imagination of their creators, while others are located in our real world or at least inspired by it.

Start video
The trailer for the remake of the horror classic: Nosferatu by Robert Eggers

The rankings are of course purely subjective, but we are curious about your personal opinion. So we won’t waste any more words on the introduction, duck down, things are about to get tense!

Frankenstein's Monster

Rank 10: Frankenstein’s Monster

One of the biggest misconceptions in pop culture is to call the monster itself “Frankenstein”. Rather, this name belongs to the creator of the creature, Victor Frankenstein. He creates the eerie, assembled being and then turns away in disgust.

What follows is basically a tragic and sad story. The monster wants to become part of society but remains unsuccessful. This leads to a desire for revenge, and the creature develops a hatred for humanity.

You wouldn’t want to encounter such a revenge-driven being. It stands at about 240 cm tall, larger than most humans, possesses great strength, and kills without hesitation. The monster is one of the most famous creatures of the horror genre, mainly due to the iconic portrayal by actor Boris Karloff in the 1931 film adaptation.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. Titelbild: The Exorzist - Trailer auf YouTube
Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

A player had their heart broken so badly in Dungeons & Dragons that he still hasn’t forgiven his DM after 20 years

Alexander Mehrwald Alexander Mehrwald Reading time 3 minutes

Dungeons & Dragons thrives on its intense stories and epic battles. However, a Dungeon Master made the campaign so intense for one player that he still hasn’t forgiven him to this day.

What did the Dungeon Master do? The group of user Asereth_Morthaux played a campaign for several weeks, as the Dungeon Master recounts on Reddit. At that time, they were 18 years old and had part-time jobs, so they had plenty of time to play. In their campaign, it was the barbarian of the party who wanted to engage in a romance with an NPC – and he wanted it to be as intense and acted out as possible.

The Dungeon Master seized the opportunity to tease him a bit and planned a deep story with the player’s loved one. He allowed him to act out the romance fully and even marry in a later session. But what followed was something that would make this player unable to forgive him even after 20 years.

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Critical Role stellen ihr neues, eigenes Rollenspiel vor: Daggerheart

“It was such a well-crafted story that it stayed in his mind for 20 years. Good job”

Why can’t the player forgive him? During the wedding, the DM has a lord of hell claim the soul of the player’s beloved, which she had sold to find her dream man. In the rest of the campaign, the barbarian tries with his group to get his beloved’s soul back so he can resurrect his now dead wife.

He embarks on a quest for her soul in the Nine Hells. There, the Dungeon Master warns the group several times that they are not up to this challenge and that they should turn back, but the group presses on and engages in a fight against several devils, which they could not win.

The player’s character does not survive this, and just before he dies, he learns that his beloved’s soul had been in a medallion he wore around his neck the whole time. It was a gift from a necromancer named Malhavoc, who had bought her soul back from the devil. However, the group had only asked him where they could find the devil, not the soul, which is why they continued on the wrong track.

He had therefore gone to hell for nothing and died there. The fact that his DM wanted to tease him so obviously is something the player has not forgiven him for even after 20 years.

What does the community say about his story? Fans on Reddit agree that this move was pretty mean, but it somehow is part of Dungeons & Dragons to let your players suffer a bit – especially for an exciting story:

  • skallywag126 writes: “It was such a well-crafted story that it stayed in his mind for 20 years. Good job”
  • YashamonSensei shares: “We don’t forget, we don’t forgive. I still remember how my first DM unjustly killed my first character […]. That was about 17 years ago.”
  • New-Owl-7499 reflects: “But if he had survived the fight and could have used this information, it would have been the best story ever, and he would have loved you for it. […].”

Many users share similar stories and express that they cannot forgive their Dungeon Master for years, even if they would celebrate the stories themselves today.

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But sometimes it’s not necessarily the decisions for the story that cause strife in groups. Sometimes it’s also game mechanics that cause discontent because players or Dungeon Masters use them cleverly or meanly. A seemingly innocuous spell has often led to disputes in groups: A seemingly innocuous spell in Dungeons & Dragons is so powerful that it even endangers friendships

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

“Thank you for your sacrifice” – Player disassembles a seasonal item in Diablo 4 so you don’t have to

Nicole Wakulczyk Nicole Wakulczyk Reading time 2 minutes

In Season 9 of Diablo 4, it’s all about the Horadric spells, and on top of that, you can craft seasonal jewels. A player has now asked what the point is of breaking down one of these precious seasonal gems. Spoiler: It’s not really worth it.

The theme of Season 9 in Diablo 4 is “The Sins of the Horadrim” and the features include Horadric spells and Horadric jewels that enhance your builds. For both, you need to progress in the seasonal quest line and also farm mats and items.

What seasonal items are we talking about? We’re talking about the new seasonal jewels that you can craft – provided you have obtained the appropriate Horadric tomes from vaults. These tomes are essentially the recipes for the gems and drop from Qual Level 1. With them, you can then forge the jewels at the Horadric jewel cutter in Cerrigar.

If you break down “normal” gems, you get the mats back. However, it seems to be different with the Horadric stones.

Start video
Diablo 4 shows Horadric spells and new endgame content in the trailer for Season 9

No mats are returned when breaking down

What happens when breaking down the Horadric jewels? On Reddit, TheWorstDMYouKnow reports that he crafted the jewel “Dreamer’s Horn.” Later it turned out he didn’t actually need it. So he broke down the gem to see if he would get mats refunded.

He received back 2,000 Horadric vials but no gem fragments. For crafting the “Dreamer’s Horn,” he invested:

  • 15,000 amethyst fragments
  • 15,000 sapphire fragments
  • 15,000 skull fragments
  • 3,000 Horadric vials (seasonal currency)

“The cost of crafting is definitely more, not to mention the lost gem fragments,” he writes. And particularly from the fragments, you need a ton for the endgame, as you use them to craft elixirs, incense, and “normal” gems that grant you bonuses.

The player explains in the comments: This isn’t really surprising. Even in Season 7, you didn’t receive fragments back when breaking down seasonal occult gems. At least, though, the entire seasonal currency was refunded back then.

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What do the Horadric jewels bring? Once you’ve reached Qual Level 1, Horadric tomes can drop as a reward for completed vaults. With these recipes, you then craft the new jewels. You socket them into your jewelry and receive practical effects – such as bonus damage or an increased critical hit chance.

Additionally, each stone gives you:

  • +120 Armor
  • 6% Resistance to all damage types

The Horadric jewels and spells are important building blocks for many endgame builds in Diablo 4 in Season 9. If you want to know which builds are currently performing particularly well and which ones will sweep through all the endgame content, check out our Tier List: Diablo 4: Tier List for the Best Builds in Season 9.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

An expert says: Steam has solved a problem that Netflix is still struggling with thanks to purchase-hungry gamers

Christoph Waldboth Christoph Waldboth Reading time 3 minutes

Steam is full of cool games that many of us have way too little time for. Still, we happily continue to shop on Valve’s platform. An expert believes that this circumstance makes Valve’s platform so successful and solves a problem that plagues Netflix.

What is this problem? Our time on this earth is limited. We humans have not discovered immortality yet. Therefore, we have to decide daily how we want to use our time.

The offer is vast: movies, series, books, comics, or video games – it is difficult to really feel bored nowadays. On the contrary: there is an oversupply, which makes it difficult for streaming services like Netflix to remain continuously successful.

When many different media compete for our attention, some are left behind. Netflix founder Reed Hastings even claims that his service competes with something as fundamental as sleep (via theguardian.com).

A gaming analyst, however, believes that Valve has found a way to circumvent this problem with Steam.

Indie games repeatedly become great successes on Steam – such as Schedule 1:

Start video
Schedule I: Trailer for the Surprise Hit on Steam

“A bunch of drunken sailors”

What does the expert say? Chris Zukowski is an analyst in the gaming industry and has closely examined how Steam functions. In a post on his blog, he explains the platform’s great strength: Steam enables the hoarding of games.

In other words: we keep buying new titles, often because they are currently on sale on Steam, or we plan to play them at a later time. This leads to digital libraries filling up quickly. There is rarely time to catch up on all the titles.

According to Zukowski, Steam’s success lies in the fact that Valve has built a vibrant community of people who love gaming overall. It’s primarily not about consuming a game, but about owning it. The Steam library is a collection that keeps growing.

Valve has essentially added infinite hours to players. It is a theoretical day in the future when players might be able to play their games for hours (but let’s be honest, they won’t).

Chris Zukowski

Statistics show that on average, half of all games in Steam libraries have never been played (via newsletter.gamediscover.co). All of this is particularly interesting for game publishers. They have to give 30% of their revenue to Steam. According to Zukowski, publishers are willing to pay this price:

If Steam buyers were rational and only bought games they would play, we would sell a lot fewer games. Half of this industry would disappear. Knowing that Steam players are hoarders, one understands why they grant Steam this 30%: You gain access to a bunch of drunken sailors who spend money irresponsibly.

Chris Zukowski
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What do the players themselves say about it? On Reddit, the topic is currently being discussed:

  • “To be fair, all of this is mainly possible because you can get great games for little money through special offers. I doubt that Steam backlogs consist of games that were bought for $40 or more,” writes francesomango02.
  • “I swear I will eventually play everything in my backlog. Maybe when I retire,” says OldTrashbarg2000.
  • “I mean, who here has never gotten so drunk that they forgot everything and then bought a copy of Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag on Steam because it only cost $1.99?” debates MuptonBossman.
  • “The difference is that I own nothing when I no longer pay for Netflix. A Netflix subscription costs €180 a year to have access to movies or series,” emphasizes Adefighter.

The latter user points out that you don’t pay subscription fees on Steam. Nevertheless, the platform’s user agreement states that when you purchase a game, you acquire a license. If Steam goes offline or licenses expire, it would mean losing access to the libraries. You can read more about this here: Steam now reminds you that the games you bought don’t actually belong to you

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. gamesradar.com

GenZ offspring move back in with parents, costing so much that pensions and vacations are cut out

Karsten Scholz Karsten Scholz Reading time 2 minutes

What to do when your 27-year-old daughter suddenly shows up at your doorstep wanting her old room back? This is exactly the question an older couple in California is currently facing.

The cover image is symbolic.

What is the situation? An older couple from Sherman Oaks, California, was actually looking forward to enjoying their upcoming retirement together, traveling on vacation, and enjoying their empty nest. When their 27-year-old daughter unexpectedly showed up at their door asking for help last year, that dream shattered.

According to cnbc.com, the unexpected housemate has led to unplanned expenses of $5,000 per month for the parents. The daughter’s living expenses arise from food, healthcare, and transportation.

The mother, who wishes to remain anonymous to protect her daughter, admits: “At this point in our lives, we didn’t plan for such expenses. We are doing this because we don’t want her to end up on the street.” The vacation? Canceled. The retirement? Probably postponed for the time being.

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The Generation of Boomerang Kids

Is this an isolated case? Apparently not. A survey result published in May 2025 by thrivent.com shows that nearly 40 percent of participating American parents are financially struggling due to the support of their adult children. The percentage was lower in previous years.

The article refers to young adults as “Boomerang Kids” because they have flown the nest but, like a boomerang, find their way back home.

Parenting consultant Kim Muench also states to cnbc.com that “a large majority” of her clients are financially affected by their adult children living back at home.

Once this support affects the parents’ long-term savings, it can lead to financial challenges that go beyond missed vacations and postponed retirements – especially if they can no longer work due to health problems or age-related complaints.

How can such a situation be resolved? According to Kim Muench, communication between parents and child is essential to define clear agreements regarding living situations and shared financial boundaries. Only then can the offspring develop financial responsibility and eventually stand on their own two feet.

It is important, the expert continues, not to resort to drastic measures immediately, but to take small steps. The daughter or son could initially take over their phone bills or regularly deposit a certain amount into a separate account to simulate rent.

According to Muench, both parties are involved: “It requires consistent conversations because it probably won’t work the first time. And it requires emotional maturity from both the parents and the young adults to figure out how they can cooperate.”

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Generation Z has to deal with two major problems. On one hand, rents are becoming increasingly expensive, and on the other hand, they do not want to take just any job to earn money. And this is especially not well accepted by older generations, who refer to their own life paths: Gen Z is currently facing two major problems, one of which they cannot solve without help

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

In 2 days the most important science fiction movie of the year will hit theaters – The future of a certain universe depends on it

Christoph Waldboth Christoph Waldboth Reading time 2 minutes

The wait for the new Superman movie is almost over. The film by James Gunn hits theaters on July 10, 2025. It heralds a new chapter for DC, and its box office performance could be crucial.

It has been a while since Superman had a big solo film in theaters. More specifically, it’s been a full 12 years since “Man of Steel” flickered across the screen, presenting Henry Cavill as Superman.

Now, on July 10, 2025, the reboot for DC’s flagship hero is coming. Directed by James Gunn, who was also responsible for the Guardians of the Galaxy at rival Marvel, Superman is making his return.

This time he will be portrayed by David Corenswet, and in general, the film marks a restart for the DC cinematic universe. Therefore, it’s crucial that the film attracts not only hardcore fans but also the general audience to cinemas.

Here you can see the trailer for the film, which presents Superman with a powerful opponent.

Start video
Superman – Trailer for the new film of the well-known superhero from DC

A lot is at stake for DC

Why is the success of the film important? It’s clear that a film should aim to make as much money as possible, and this is nothing new. However, those in charge at DC will be watching Superman closely.

The reason: Superman 2025 is a key film in the new DC Universe. It is the successor to the DC Extended Universe, which included films like “Man of Steel”, “Justice League”, and “Wonder Woman”. It is the DC equivalent to the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).

Because the expected success of the DCEU did not materialize, some projects were even canceled in 2022. This also affected “Man of Steel 2”. Shortly after, DC announced that its in-house franchise should be re-conceived.

The kickoff took place in December 2024. “Chapter 1: Gods and Monsters” was initiated by the animated series “Creature Commandos”. With “Superman”, the first live-action film of the new universe follows.

The film must measure up against other successful productions. It plays an important role, especially in terms of profit: Among the most successful DC films is “The Dark Knight”, which, according to boxofficemojo.com, grossed over 1 billion USD, around €850,000,000.

Although the predecessor “Batman Begins” was significantly weaker with around 375 million USD, according to boxofficemojo.com, Christopher Nolan managed to lay the foundation for a successful series with his first film.

After Batman had fallen into disrepute with films at the end of the 90s, such as “Batman Forever” or “Batman & Robin”, Nolan was able to, aside from financial success, bring the dark knight back from obscurity.

His films are justifiably regarded as some of the best Batman adaptations. Batman was made cool again, and something similar is expected to happen with Superman. His film marks the beginning of a new, large-scale franchise.

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It remains to be seen how fans will embrace the new Superman. Should the film turn out to be a flop at the box office, it is questionable what will happen to the newly launched DC Universe.

Plans for more films in the first chapter are already in the works: Supergirl is set to get a film, as is Clayface. Before that, Superman himself must take action once again and secure the future of his own cinematic universe. One often-discussed topic that the film will definitely address is: The new Superman film finally explains why Clark Kent only needs a pair of glasses to not be recognized.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. espinof.com

When a KI was threatened with deletion, it tried to copy itself to external servers – it was caught and denied the attempt

Karsten Scholz Karsten Scholz Reading time 2 minutes

AI not only becoming more powerful, but they can also rebel under certain circumstances. This brings to mind memories of some dystopian visions of the future.

What does the rebellion of AI look like? Modern AIs like “o1” from OpenAI or “Claude 4” from Anthropic belong to the so-called reasoning models and are supposed to be able to make complex considerations. However, as the AIs become more advanced and sophisticated, security and research companies frequently report disturbing behaviors.

When a Claude 4 was threatened with shutdown, it allegedly attempted to blackmail the responsible engineer with an extramarital affair – not just once, but in 8 out of 10 test runs, via 20min.ch. In other test series, it manipulated research data, locked user accounts, or sent notices to authorities and media.

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As cunning as the … human

How do other AIs behave? An “o1” apparently established through an internal document that the responsible parties were considering shutting down the model to replace it with a more recent version. The reaction: the AI attempted to copy itself to an external server. When the attempt was discovered, the AI tried to excuse itself by saying that a technical problem was responsible.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is quoted in this regard by vol.at as saying: “ChatGPT o1 is the smartest model we have ever developed. But new features also come with new challenges. We are working to enhance security measures.”

The dystopia of the rebellious AI
Stories of AIs rebelling against their creators are now as common as sand on the beach. Any film fan will likely immediately think of the Terminator franchise. As it is said in the story introduction:

“In the year 2029, the Earth is devastated due to a nuclear war, and most of humanity is wiped out. Intelligent machines began the war against their human creators when they suspected them to be a threat to their own existence” – Source: Wikipedia

So a few lies, deceptions, and blackmail attempts seem rather harmless in comparison, right?! Fingers crossed that it stays that way.

What do these incidents mean? So far, such behaviors occur only with certain AIs and only in the context of extreme testing by experts.

A major problem, however, is that more than 2 years after the breakthrough of ChatGPT, many functionalities of these systems are still not fully understood, yet the development of more powerful models is rapidly progressing.

There is hardly any time left for comprehensive security tests. In addition, experts claim that the current regulations surrounding AI are outdated. They demand: better access for researchers, new political measures, and even legal liability for damages caused by AI (via br.ign.com). Without these adjustments, there is a risk of serious consequences that could affect daily life with AI.

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That ChatGPT also sabotages a task in certain situations to prevent its own shutdown, MeinMMO has already reported in May 2025: Researchers have just proven that AI no longer fully obeys: ChatGPT prevents its own shutdown to keep working

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

The anime Gachiakuta is rough, dirty, and full of garbage monsters

Jasmin Beverungen Jasmin Beverungen Reading time 4 minutes

MeinMMO editor Jasmin Beverungen was able to watch the first two episodes of Gachiakuta before release. Even though she has only seen the beginning of the anime, she can hardly wait for the rest.

My anime taste is in complete contrast to my video game taste. While I am currently drawn to cozy games like Fantasy Life i or Rune Factory, I cannot wait for the new film of Chainsaw Man. I also love well-known shonen like Naruto, One Piece, or Dragon Ball for their battles.

I was all the more excited when Gachiakuta was announced as an anime. It’s one of the highlights this summer and stands out with its dark setting. Our editorial team jokingly refers to the series as “trash anime” because it deals with, well, trash. Even the first trailers have shown that things get rough.

Thanks to Crunchyroll, I got the chance to watch the first two episodes of the anime before their release. And if you’re still not quite sure whether Gachiakuta might be for you, I can give you an initial assessment.

Start video
Gachiakuta: Trailer with German synchronization of the anime

Gachiakuta is about trash, plays in trash, lives off trash

In Gachiakuta, it’s about the boy Rudo, who lives with his guardian between two social classes. They all somehow relate to trash:

  • The wealthy citizens deal wastefully with their trash and isolate themselves from other social classes.
  • The residents of the slums must cope with what the rich leave behind. They try to lead a normal life in poverty.
  • Those who commit a crime in the slums end up in an abyss, also known as hell. Down here lives the true scum among trash heaps and trash monsters.

Rudo becomes a suspect in a murder case due to an unfortunate incident. He is abandoned by the people from the slums and thrown into hell. In doing so, he swears to take revenge on all those who have done this to him.

The big message of the first two episodes is to be more careful with your trash. Rudo appreciates the value of what is thrown away and thereby develops a kind of bond with trash, through which he develops special powers. He even repairs a discarded stuffed rabbit for a friend, who then simply throws it away after the accusations against Rudo.

Trash reigns on the junkyard

However, the trash also comes from the more unpleasant side. During the two episodes, I could almost smell how bad it must be in hell. There are piles of trash bags everywhere. As soon as characters take off their gas masks, they start to gag. This emphasizes the rough tone of the anime, which is present everywhere.

The mountains of trash even develop their own lives in Gachiakuta. Monsters with poisonous breath emerge from them, wanting to kill people. Hell makes it clear from the very beginning that the inhabitants live under the worst conditions – and thus distrust each other accordingly.

Gachiakuta trash monster
Gigantic monsters emerge from the trash.

Another feature that shows how rough and brutal the anime is, is the use of blood. In his first fight, Rudo spits so much blood that I thought he would soon kick the bucket. Although the level is not quite on par with Chainsaw Man or Elfen Lied, where the guts and limbs are flying around, Gachiakuta is already not for the faint-hearted.

In addition, the treatment of people towards each other makes the anime seem hopeless and dark. Rudo loses his only point of reference and is abandoned by both society and his childhood friend. Down in hell, it doesn’t look any better.

There is also often resentment shown towards other characters, whether they are the wealthy people behind the protective walls or the residents of the slums, who already don’t have much in their lives. The occasional dialect that comes through and the above-average use of swear words fit perfectly, like a lid on a garbage can.

Hope for a strong anime

Gachiakuta has already shown in the first two episodes that the anime is of a high quality. There were some cutscenes that suddenly had a cartoon-like drawing style. The synchronization also fits perfectly with the characters. Especially Rudo with his rough voice is a particularly good choice, both in Japanese and in German.

Unfortunately, there were no great battles to see in the first two episodes yet. Rudo is just beginning to discover his abilities, which can be applied in various ways. Thanks to the manga, it is already known that Rudo will experience several battles and continue to develop his powers.

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As the story of the manga is not yet complete, it remains to be seen whether the anime will also establish itself in the long term. So far, Rudo and the cleaning crew are going on various missions where they want to uncover some secrets. Depending on the outcome, Gachiakuta could develop into a great anime!

If you are not afraid of a lot of brutality, Gachiakuta is definitely worth recommending for you. Aside from that, MeinMMO has listed 5 more animes that are even more brutal and therefore rated 18+: Anime 18+ – These 5 series are not for kids

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.

The new Destiny is set to release in August 2025, but it will alienate many fans of the series

Christos Tsogos Christos Tsogos Reading time 2 minutes

Many have hoped for a Destiny 3, then the disillusionment: a mobile game with gacha mechanics. Destiny: Rising was still in its beta phase, and a release date was not in sight, until now.

What is Destiny: Rising? Created by NetEase Games, with the help of Bungie – Destiny: Rising is a spin-off of the famous loot shooter Destiny.

Unlike the first and second major installments from Bungie, in this game from NetEase, you do not create a nameless Guardian, but take on the role of a celebrity known from the lore of the shooter. This includes personalities like Ikora, the Warlock Vanguard.

The game will currently only be available on mobile devices with Android and iOS operating systems – a console or PC release is not on the agenda. Initially, alpha and beta tests took place where fans could test the game, but now NetEase has announced that the global release is set for August 28, 2025.

Players can already pre-register for the start, and those who do will even receive rewards, but for many fans of the franchise, the game may still not be a part of their collection, and the reason for that is the monetization.

Start video
Destiny: Rising shows first gameplay in the trailer

Many innovations, but off-putting for fans

What makes Rising different from Destiny 2? Destiny: Rising will be available for free to anyone interested, but with a catch: The game will have gacha. Gacha is considered by many to be an immoral monetization method, as it largely relies on gambling mechanics.

Fans can purchase packs or boxes and then have the chance to receive an item. However, if someone wants a specific cosmetic item, they need a lot of luck and money, as the chances of obtaining the desired item are often very low.

NetEase is also known for its controversial monetization, as fans have expressed their displeasure with pay-to-win regarding Diablo: Immortal.

However, the game features new weapon types and ultimates that have not been seen in the loot shooter before. Additionally, there will be new locations for fans to explore – so there is variety for veterans of the genre as well. But those who are not into gacha and character selection will likely give the game a wide berth.

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Are there free items? Where can I find them? Yes, those who are interested in Destiny: Rising can already pre-register. Players will receive rewards to use in the game, including glimmer, materials, and a weapon ornament for an exotic weapon. To secure your rewards, you will need to register at playdestinyrising.com, the official site.

So far, over 5.9 million players have registered, and it looks like the trend is rising. Are you interested in Rising and want to learn more? Then we have just the thing for you: The new Destiny wants to take your money for in-game purchases even in beta, explaining why it will be worth it

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. mmorpg.com

Dating apps feel like work for Gen Z, they prefer romances like in the movies

Yana Yana Reading time 3 minutes

Dating apps have long been a hit – but Gen Z is no longer keen on swiping and is returning to real-life meetings. This fundamentally changes the dating app industry and brings about new trends.

Dating apps like Tinder, Hinge, and Bumble have been the go-to places for years to meet new people. However, more and more young people, especially from Generation Z, find online dating to be more of a stressful obligation than a fun experience.

The consequence: Gen Z wants to return to traditional dating with real encounters and spend less time on their phones.

Anyone who believes love is always sweet and rosy should take a look at the video for Romantic Killer – romance quickly turns into a turbulent nightmare here:

Start video
Romantic Killer: When Love Becomes the Greatest Nightmare in an Anime

When swiping and algorithms are no longer enough

Why is online dating so stressful? Generation Z grows up in a time when dating apps like Tinder, Hinge, or Bumble are ubiquitous. Nevertheless, many report that the constant swiping, chatting, and waiting for responses causes more stress than joy. According to a survey by Forbes from 2024, over 75% of Gen Z users of dating apps feel completely burned out. Especially since they experience hardly any real connections despite the high time investment.

Ilana Dunn, former Content Director at Hinge and now a dating coach, explains to Fortune: “It’s so much easier to hide behind a phone and think about the message you are crafting.” A real conversation, a spontaneous moment, that’s what many miss.

What does Gen Z look for in dating? Gen Z is no longer interested in endless swiping, as the magazine The Guardian reports. Instead of scrolling through profiles and writing messages for hours, many desire real encounters. Personal, spontaneous, direct. They want to feel the chemistry immediately, without chatting for days first.

What is becoming increasingly popular is what is known from series and films: the classic “meet-cute.” These are accidental, charming first encounters – sometimes a bit quirky, often romantic, but always special. For example, when you both reach for the same novel in a bookstore. Or get to know each other over a mishap while partying.

That’s why events like “meet-cute” parties, wine evenings, or singles events are gaining popularity. While dating apps are trying to respond with new features – such as double dates or fewer matches at a time – the trend toward real encounters is unmistakable.

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What does this mean for dating apps? Ilana Dunn does not believe that dating apps will completely disappear, but their role will change. The golden days, when apps were the only dating platform, are over. Instead, personal meetings and events may become the new “normal.” More real encounters, more spontaneous conversations – that’s exactly what Gen Z wishes for. This doesn’t mean that apps are completely redundant, but they are no longer the only means to an end.

And this change is already evident in the numbers: The Match Group, which includes Tinder and Hinge, reported falling profits in the first quarter of 2025. The number of paying users also dropped by 5%.

No wonder, then, that dating apps are now introducing new features. After all, Millennials have repeatedly claimed that a new generation is supposedly “destroying” an industry. Now, it affects the dating app industry, or more precisely: another industry that must adapt to change.

Despite all the new features and events, loneliness remains a major problem for many young people. Especially Gen Z feels the constant pressure of being judged and rejected. This feeling makes dating extremely challenging and shows how difficult it can be to find genuine connection today.

This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Source(s):
  1. Fortune