Call of Duty Black Ops 6 starts tomorrow, on July 2, 2025, in Season 4 Reloaded. With the launch, new content will come to the shooter that fans can look forward to. What this content is, you can find out in our short overview.
When does Season 4 Reloaded start? In CoD: Black Ops 6, Season 4 Reloaded starts on July 2, 2025, at 6:00 PM, but to test the new content, you must first download the new update. However, fans can download the update before the new season starts to save themselves the waiting time.
What can I expect in Season 4 Reloaded? The Reloaded updates often have less content than those at the start of a new season. Nevertheless, Activision has prepared some things to keep you occupied until the start of Season 5. You can expect the following things in Season 4 Reloaded:
Multiplayer
Two new maps
Fringe (Remaster)
Core, 6v6, medium
Eclipse (New)
Strike, 6v6/2v2, small
Familiar maps in Cel-Shaded look
Nuketown
Babylon
Skyline
Stakeout
Grind
Party Ops with new modes
Zombie
Zombie map in Cel-Shaded look (Liberty Falls)
New LTM
Starting Space
Leaderboard events to fight for the top of the leaderboards
Warzone
New feature: Supply drops provide players with two new killstreaks
Rebirth Island appears in Cel-Shaded look
New modes
Resurgence Casual
Havoc Royale
Resurgence returns to Ranked Play
World Series of Warzone 2025
Solos and Casual Solos will both run so Activision can check which mode is more desired
New weapons
Olympia (Shotgun)
Pry (Melee Weapon)
New attachments
SVD Full Auto Mod
TR2 CQB Auto Conversion
New event
Beavis & Butt-Head bring new event pass
Start video
The trailer for Season 4 of Call of Duty: Warzone and Black Ops 6 shows what you can expect
When does Season 5 start? After the end of Season 4 Reloaded, there should be a 5th season, which is set to start on August 7, 2025. What time marks the start time is not yet known. To kick off Season 4 Reloaded properly, you should take a look at our tier list for the best weapons: CoD Black Ops 6: Meta – The best weapons in Season 4 with loadouts
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Most professional teams in League of Legends play under a big name like T1 or Fnatic and are sponsored by these organizations. The German team NNO is the exact opposite and has gained many fans over the years.The founder of the team explains how it came about.
What is NNO? The team No Need Orga is one of the most well-known German LoL teams and gained significant attention in 2022 at the Prime League in summer (lol.fandom.com) .
After they barely qualified for the tournament, the “Miracle Run” followed for NNO (primeleague.gg). They had to fight their way through the entire lower bracket to face Hertha BSC in the finals. The best-of-5 series between the two German teams set a viewer record of 91,000 (escharts.com). NNO won the final 3 to 2.
The NNO roster of the Prime League 2022 included the following players and Twitch streamers:
Niklot “Tolkin” Stüber on the top lane
Muhammed “Agurin” Kocak played in the jungle
Frederik “NoWay” Hinteregger as mid laner
Daniel “Broeki” Broekmann took over the ADC role
Lukas “Karni” Steininger supported the team as support
Together, the 5 LoL professionals called themselves the retirement team, as they have been in the scene for many years and are thus considered “retirees”.
In the video, you will see who NNO’s mid laner, NoWay, really is:
Start video
Former German LoL Pro is Now One of the Most Successful Twitch Streamers – This is NoWay
“We’re no longer interested in playing with him” – The founding of NNO
How was NNO founded? On his YouTube channel, former NNO player Broeki talks about the history of the team (YouTube.com). In the early days, when esports for League of Legends was not yet so huge, Broeki played in various tournaments.
With his team ESC Gaming, he won the ESL Pro Series in spring 2013 (lol.fandom.com). The roster of ESC Gaming was then taken over by n!faculty. In the following ESL Pro Series in summer, Broeki and NoWay played together under n!faculty and managed to win the tournament (lol.fandom.com).
After this victory, there was a conversation among the team members and Broeki was kicked due to his behavior. He himself says he was very consumed by ambition back then and ruined the game for some supporters with his attitude.
As the scene in Germany was very small, Broeki’s reputation spread, and as a result, no one wanted to play competitively with him anymore. Broeki eventually founded his own team in September 2013 and named it No Need Orga (lol.fandom.com).
Over the years until 2020, NNO was restructured multiple times or taken over by other organizations like Vengeance eSports or Mysterious Monkeys. Broeki himself says the following about his past with NNO:
Whenever an organization was not willing to pay or give me what I wanted, I founded an NNO roster.
The most famous retirement team in Germany
How did NNO become the team that many German LoL fans know? Broeki, NoWay and Agurin played together until 2019 on the team Euronics Gaming in several B-tier tournaments and managed to win many of them (liquidpedia.net). A year after NoWay and Broeki left the team, NoWay asked if they wanted to play together again.
The most famous roster of NNO, the retirement team, was completed in early 2021. The top laner, caster and analyst Tolkin joined NNO in January, and the former jungle colleague Agurin followed in February.
What has become of the retirement team? In December 2024, Broeki, the founder of NNO, switched to Eintracht Spandau, the team of YouTuber and Twitch streamer HandOfBlood. Agurin left the roster in January 2025 and is continuing his career at CGN Esports. Only mid laner NoWay, top laner Tolkin and supporter Karni remain in the current roster of NNO: A team of 5 German Twitch streamers conquers LoL, now NNO is falling apart and starting anew
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
The second Title Update for Monster Hunter Wilds has recently arrived and is drawing many players back to the game. The content is well-received – nevertheless, there are still negative reviews.
Many players see this as a milestone and share their excitement about the underwater phase on Reddit. They hope this is just the beginning and that more monsters will receive such special scenarios (see Reddit).
But other new features also draw players back and can enthuse (see Reddit):
The battles of Lagiacrus and Seregios are well-received and described as entertaining, balanced, and very well staged.
Players are happy to finally be able to turn off the glowing effect for buffs.
Erik as a selectable field companion instead of Alma is welcomed as a nice change.
The adjustments especially to the hammer are well-received.
The decoration weapons bring fresh wind and great possibilities for personal outfits.
Another aspect that has improved for many is the performance, as TU2 has taken the first major steps to finally solve the players’ major problems. More should follow with hotfixes and updates between the major TUs. Nevertheless, there are still negative reviews.
Start video
Monster Hunter Wilds: Trailer for Title Update 2 shows Lagiacrus in action
Between Underwater Euphoria and Poor Performance
Why are there still new negative reviews? Although TU2 has fixed some major performance issues for many players, this does not seem to be the case for everyone, and for some players, it has even worsened with the update. One aspect at the center of the increasingly negative recent reviews for Monster Hunter Wilds (see Steam).
The new update attracts around 133,033 players and thus multiplies its 24-hour peak on Steam, which was still around 13,069 on June 27, 2025, at 9:40 a.m. (see SteamDB, as of July 1, 2025, at 1:00 p.m.).
However, this seems not to help the ratings, as the trend here continues to decline. The reviews on Steam are becoming increasingly negative. Before the update, only 14% of the recent reviews (over 13,170) on Steam were positive (as of June 27, 2025, 09:40 a.m.).
Today, one day after the update, the numbers show only 12% positive votes from the recent reviews (over 16,491) and is still rated as “very negative” (as of July 1, 2027, 1:00 p.m.).
For the reviews of Monster Hunter Wilds to recover from this area, it is absolutely necessary from the community’s perspective that performance is improved as quickly as possible and as a priority (see Reddit).
By now, almost every DC fan knows Harley Quinn. She is one of the most well-known characters in the Batman universe and is now more of an anti-hero than a classic villain. Harley Quinn even separated from the Joker after a while, but he got a new partner.
What happened to Harley Quinn? Harley Quinn was for a long time a sidekick of the Joker, but over the years she developed a large fanbase and DC separated her from her toxic relationship. She received her own stories, teams, and also a much healthier relationship with Poison Ivy.
But in 2020, a new sidekick was introduced to the Joker. Although Punchline is quite reminiscent of Harley Quinn, she is a little more brutal and ruthless than her predecessor.
Start video
Joker: Folie À Deux – Trailer for the Controversial Sequel of the Popular Villain
A Great Obsession
Who is Punchline? On a school trip with her high school class, Alexis Kaye was captured by the Joker in a TV studio. She was chosen to read a text live, but Batman stopped the whole event and saved Alexis. However, she changed after the incident.
She developed an obsession with the Joker and his actions. Initially, it led to a podcast, but later she began to poison people disguised with her own Joker gas. Her test subjects were initially homeless people who couldn’t defend themselves.
In a special comic called The Joker 80th Anniversary 100-Page Super Spectacular No. 1 (Source: dc.com), you can see how she manages to poison her dean with cigarette smoke during a conversation. There, she explains that she got the recipe from the internet.
She killed him, stated that her name is Punchline, and suddenly the Joker appeared from her closet after she said: There is your proof, I am ready to get serious (via YouTube).
How does Punchline differ from Harley Quinn? In most origin stories of Harley, she was manipulated by the Joker after trying to treat him as a psychologist. This is completely lacking here. Punchline was not manipulated; she is obsessed with the idea of the Joker.
In the comic where she kills her dean, she herself says:
We grew up being whispered to that we can be anything we want to be, but you never recognized the flip side of all that. Some of us do not want to be the good ones.
Punchline in The Joker 80th Anniversary 100-Page Super Spectacular No. 1 (via YouTube)
She is evil, sadistic, and extremely ruthless. So quite fitting for the Joker. Similar to the Joker, she also has a quite pronounced charisma. She can manipulate people and use them for her purposes. After the major event Joker War, she tried during her trial to convince people that she was just manipulated by the Joker and is innocent.
She gained a larger following with that. The most fanatic even ensured that witnesses were killed. During her time in prison, she was not only able to gain new friends but became the leader of the Royal Flush Gang.
While Harley always comes with wit and a certain lightness, Punchline is much closer to the Joker. She has no morality and acts evil simply because it is easy.
However, how this looks in concrete numbers was not clear until now – but Blizzard has finally explained the details.
Start video
WoW player finds his old guild again – but it’s quite sad
What has Blizzard revealed? In a short video on YouTube, Blizzard has now published more concrete numbers for the event, detailing the drop chances for mounts and rare transmog. The video promises:
A clean increase of +5% on all mounts that could drop before “Dragonflight”.
An increase of +5% on selected items (like the Chains of the Windseeker or the War Glaives of Azzinoth).
The double amount of transmog items in dungeons and raids prior to Dragonflight.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UgYZHgt3dyg
Players are confused by math: “How are +5% a tenfold increase?”
The numbers are causing some confusion in the comments, for example on wowhead or in the subreddit. This seems mainly to stem from a misunderstanding or lack of math skills.
Many feel “lied to” because a tenfold increase cannot just be an increase of 5%. However, I am confident that such claims will not arise in our comments.
Most people seem to be happy about this big bonus. Because a +5% increase is ultimately a drastically enhanced chance that should ensure that you are much more likely to obtain some of the most desirable mounts. There is still no guarantee for the super-rare mounts – but it probably won’t be easier than in the coming weeks.
What does this mean in concrete numbers? With a few examples, we want to illustrate how significant the buff is and how much it increases the probabilities.
Mount
Raid
Old Drop Chance
Event Drop Chance
Invincible
Icecrown Citadel 25 Heroic
1 %
6 %
Ashes of Al’ar
Seat of the Triumvirate
2 %
7 %
Mimiron’s Head
Ulduar
1 %
6 %
Riftstalker
Tomb of Sargeras
0.21 %
5.21 %
War Glaives of Azzinoth
The Black Temple
5 %
10 %
So, if anyone needed a few good reasons to revisit old instances and raids, they now have the perfect incentive. Maybe you will also snag a few of the rarest mounts that only a few people in the WoW community possess. It’s a shame that newcomers are currently almost unable to start in WoW.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Street Fighter has had various interesting collaborations in the past. For Street Fighter 6, they are now collaborating with a well-known K-Pop group. Not only is a new skin coming to the fighting game on Steam, but also the voice of a member.
Which band is it? A new trailer announced a new collaboration for Street Fighter 6. Following more logical cross-overs with the anime series Baki and Spy Family, an unusual partnership is now forming.
With the Korean K-Pop group aespa, new content is coming into the game. The band debuted in 2020 with the song Black Mamba and consists of 4 members. The special thing about the band is that they incorporate digital avatars into their concept.
As part of the collaboration, not just simple cosmetics are coming into the game. A whole costume and a voice will be released on July 4th.
Start video
Street Fighter 6 aespa – Trailer for the new collaboration of the fighting game
Small goodies, a new costume, and a new commentator
What content is coming into the game? The main focus of the update is a new costume for the Korean character Juri, styled after the band. She ranks 4th overall in popularity, even being number 1 in lower tiers (Source: streetfighter.com). The costume will cost 350 Fighter Coins. That’s about 6 €, but you can only buy it in a package with 610 coins for 11.99 €.
The skin features the band’s logo on the top and is like a fusion of her old costume and the aespa band. Uncharacteristically for Juri, she even wears shoes this time.
Additionally, a new commentator is coming into the game. In Street Fighter 6, you can enable various commentators during your matches to respond to what’s shown. With this collaboration, naevis enters the game. She is a virtual member in the aespa universe and can respond in Korean, Japanese, and English. Even in the trailer, there are small hints at the band.
The Battle Hub will also be styled like aespa, and there will be cosmetic items like titles, wallpapers, or photo frames that can be unlocked for free.
The collaboration is set to start on July 4th, 2025, and the costume can be purchased until July 4th, 2026.
How is the community reacting? Under the official trailer on YouTube, there is a lot of support, mainly regarding how the collaboration is being implemented. In previous events, many players missed costumes for the fighters.
@Montesama314 writes: To be honest, it looks like an outfit Juri would wear. As if she became a fan and got some band merchandise after a concert.
@akilcharles3473 is even more excited after a Netflix movie: Damn, I just watched Kpop Demon Hunters and now I see this. Juri’s new skin is amazing and suits her so well.
@MalicousMossMuncher is finally glad Juri is wearing shoes: Omg, Juri finally wears shoes. Now I can play her and not look like a dork.
The studio behind The Alters faced significant criticism for secretly using an AI during development. Fans on Steam are upset, but the studio has now commented on the allegations.
However, a few weeks after the release, some fans discovered that the developers must have used an AI to visualize the subtitles of certain sequences and written content on displays without telling the community – they were angry.
Many players were therefore waiting for a statement from 11 Bit Studios, and it has now arrived. The team acknowledges its mistake.
Start video
The Alters shows its gameplay trailer with clones who have made different life choices
Studio apologizes, fans love the game anyway
What does the statement say? On X, the official account of The Alters left a lengthy statement regarding the allegations of using an AI. According to the statement, the team confirms that they used AI for some temporary projects in The Alters. These were supposed to be used only as placeholders and to be replaced before the release date – the team failed to remove these placeholders during their game’s review.
The team also addressed the subtitles of various movies that you can watch in your base. These were also said to have been translated with AI. The statement reads: “Although these videos were produced externally, our team was not involved in the creative process, so additional translations were required at the last minute. Due to extreme time constraints, we opted against involving our translation partners and localized the videos using artificial intelligence to get them ready for launch.”
Both of these points have now been addressed by the team. Regarding the placeholders, they will be replaced, while the AI-generated subtitles are also set to receive an update to ensure better translation.
The team emphasizes again that transparency is important to them. They also recognize that they should have announced the use of AI during development better (Source: x.com).
What do fans say about the statement? They are glad that 11 Bit Studio has been so transparent about the issue and explained how the dilemma came about. Some users are against the use of AI during game development, but for many, it is not a problem if it is just about placeholder content. The following can be heard on Reddit and X:
“Even though I’m generally against AI, I find it completely acceptable to use it as a placeholder during development. That a single placeholder asset is missing during the final approval is also completely understandable. Humans are not perfect.” – mrturret via Reddit
“Honestly, I don’t care if you used AI. The game is phenomenal!” – @chainGUNX via X.com
You explained it very clearly and openly. I appreciate this transparency, which is rare these days. You will receive criticism from both sides on this issue, so good luck and all the best!” – @Good_NewsGaming via X.com
“Basically sounds like a huge nothing. AI for quick prototyping is actually a fantastic use case and should theoretically help speed up early development work.” – AutomateAway via Reddit
Many gamers still associate the use of artificial intelligence with the theft of intellectual property, and when it comes to creating designs, the product of AI is often met with skepticism. That’s why the reaction of various fans is so extreme.
On Steam, the popular survival game Sons of the Forest is cheaper than ever, attracting many new players.
What kind of game is this? Sons of the Forest is a brutal survival horror game with an open world that was released in 2024. In the game, you are stranded on a deserted island with up to seven other players to find a missing billionaire. However, the island is not as deserted as it initially appears.
There are wild and violent cannibals as well as mutated creatures that want to take you down. To ensure your survival, you must gather resources, craft equipment and weapons, and build a secure base that can withstand enemies.
Unlike many other survival games, there is a proper ending that you must discover through exploration and finding clues.
Here you can watch a trailer for the game:
Start video
Sons of the Forest: Release Trailer for the Full Version of the Survival Game on Steam
Big discount attracts many players
Why is the game growing so rapidly? Sons of the Forest is currently heavily discounted in the Steam Summer Sale. The game is currently available for €9.85 on Steam, making it, according to SteamDB, cheaper than ever. Normally, the survival game costs €28.99.
The great discount is attracting many players. While Sons of the Forest had about 7,000 players recently, the survival co-op game now has 49,000 players at peak times according to SteamDB. The 600% growth started simultaneously with the discount campaign, so it can be assumed that many new players are checking out the co-op game.
On Steam, it currently has 87% positive reviews overall and, according to Howlongtobeat.com, offers around 24.5 hours of gameplay content with main and side missions.
How brutal is the survival game? Those looking for a new survival game after Dune: Awakening will have to make quite an adjustment. In Sons of the Forest, horror contributes significantly to the experience and atmosphere.
The cannibal tribes in the game act intelligently and set traps. They can also storm players’ bases and fight in groups against you. Tactically, they can surround you and attack simultaneously, making it difficult for you.
The mutants in the game are even tougher. They are extremely resilient and can deal a lot of damage at the same time. They can also be very agile or large, and it’s best not to confront them alone.
Due to the constant threats in the game and the mysterious island, the survival game demands more than just progress from tier to tier. There are also many brutal scenes to witness visually.
Sons of the Forest is a popular survival game because it breaks the usual gameplay loop with interesting horror elements and exposes the player to real dangers. If you’re not careful, you may soon find yourself in the hands of cannibals. Sons of the Forest was initially released in Early Access, later as a full version on Steam, and it had quite an impact: Steam hit Sons Of The Forest releases full version – Delivers huge update and a new ending
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Back then, the little monster surprised many trainers, today we know it as a popular monster from the Scarlet and Violet games, as well as the pre-evolution to Monetigo.
Gierspenst, Coin Bag, Golden Stops – How to Succeed in the Event?
What new versions of Gierspenst are there? A Gierspenst with an anniversary coin for the 9th birthday now appears in the game.
This anniversary Gierspenst can have a special background, and it can also be shiny. Whether the regular version of Gierspenst can also be shiny is still unclear.
How to get Gierspenst on the 9th birthday: Here are the ways to obtain Gierspenst.
You can lure normal Gierspenst with golden lure modules, but the encounter is not guaranteed
Important: The costumed Gierspenst with the anniversary coin apparently cannot be lured by Gold Stops
An activated coin bag attracts Gierspenst, possibly also with the anniversary coin
You can get Gierspenst with the anniversary coin from field researches
A free limited research will also bring you a Gierspenst with the anniversary coin
The event ticket for 1.99 euros includes, among other bonuses, a Gierspenst with the anniversary coin
The graphic for the birthday event shows the new Gierspenst Image source: pokemongo.com
How to get golden PokéStops? Golden PokéStops bring you more items, Gierspenst coins, and with luck, also Gierspenst spawns. There are the following possibilities:
Golden stops appear randomly during the event.
You can equip normal PokéStops with a gold lure module and thus transform them for a limited time.
How do I get Gierspenst coins? You receive them, if you are lucky, by spinning PokéStops with a gold lure module. During the event, you can get 9, 99, or more coins when spinning.
You need the Gierspenst coins to evolve Gierspenst into Monetigo. You need 999 of them.
How do I get the coin bag? You also get it by connecting Pokémon GO with Scarlet & Violet. You just need to send a postcard to Scarlet & Violet (more about this in the guide linked above for the golden stops).
The coin bag attracts Gierspenst for 30 minutes. When catching, you can also receive Gierspenst coins.
What else is coming up in Pokémon GO? With the birthday event, July has also begun in Pokémon GO. During the month, further exciting dates are approaching, featuring interesting Pokémon. We will show you all the events you should keep an eye on: All events in July 2025 in Pokémon GO.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 celebrates its first birthday in September and promises a big update along with new content for another year.
Is Space Marine 2 a service game? Service games are characterized by the fact that they continue to receive new content for months or years after release, keeping players engaged in the long term.
This is somewhat true for Space Marine 2 as well, since the game has received various updates since its release in September 2024, which have brought new missions and most recently the new Siege mode.
Warhammer 40K: Space Marine 2 receives Siege mode, shows massive hordes of Tyranids and Chaos in the teaser
Another Year with New Content
Here’s what’s next for Space Marine 2: Although Space Marine 2 is not supposed to be a service game, the developers have now announced that the game will continue to receive new content in its second year.
In September, Space Marine 2 will celebrate its first birthday and will receive a big update (Update 10.0), which will include a new melee weapon, the Power Axe.
Additionally, the developers revealed that thanks to the support of players, the game will be expanded in its second year with new PvE missions, enemies, and weapons. They are also working on a new class, the Techmarine.
More information about the upcoming updates is expected in July and August.
However, due to the major birthday update, the release of a new PvP mode, which was supposed to be published with the 9.0 update, has been postponed. This will now also come with update 10.0 for the game’s one-year anniversary.
The new PvP mode is set to take place on a new map where 2 teams will battle against each other. Unlike previous PvP modes, this time the Loyalists will not fight against the followers of Chaos; instead, Chaos will fight against Chaos.
Dune: Awakening is a survival MMO, and the genre itself indicates that it’s about survival. One player, however, has not handled himself well on Arrakis and has made the same mistake twice.
What was that mistake? The player JRPG_Enjoyer shared a video of himself on Reddit. In it, he shows how he loses his sandbike due to the same mistake and then later gets eaten by a worm.
After collecting ores in the Hagga Basin, the player set out through the dunes. Meanwhile, a sandstorm is brewing behind him, which is why JRPG_Enjoyer has to hurry. He doesn’t pay attention to his path, but to the sandstorm, and before he knows it, he drives his sandbike into the quicksand.
He barely manages to pull himself out of the quicksand, but he has to leave his bike there, which gets swallowed by the sand. He returns to the rocky formation where he was before and tries again immediately. This time, the player uses the sprint ability of the Bene Gesserit to quickly get to safety. But he lands again in the quicksand, so deep that he can’t get out anymore. Just before he sinks, the sandworm comes and eats him. Thus, he has lost everything.
You can watch the video here:
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Reddit that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
How does the community react to the incident? The community finds the situation extremely funny. Many find it amusing that the player feels so pressured by the rushing sandstorm that he makes a big mistake twice:
Vit0C0rleone laughs on Reddit: “Sorry for your loss and for laughing so hard.”
Dzov says on Reddit: “Losing all your stuff is a kind of initiation rite. Don’t worry, you’ll get better stuff soon and learn from it.”
Enchrypted says on Reddit: “I’m not lying, the second quicksand moment made me laugh and cry. Thank you for that.”
Further tips can be found here in the video:
Start video
Dune: Awakening: 7 schnelle Tipps, die das Spiel euch nicht verrät
Others want to help and give tips on how to survive in the situation next time. User Timb____ explains on Reddit that in quicksand, you can simply turn around quickly to get out.
SpooN04 asks on Reddit: “Didn’t you have your vehicle support tool in hand? Doesn’t it work in quicksand or something?”
ThePostManEST confirms on Reddit: “Yes, it works.”
Disturbed235 explains on Reddit: “It works, but only if you have nothing in the trunk. OP didn’t have a trunk, so it should have worked. Once you get into quicksand, just turn your motorcycle around, and you won’t have a problem getting it out.”
In addition to player tips, it is also advisable to check the map beforehand, as all quicksand fields are usually marked there. This way you can find a better route to avoid danger altogether.
The best builds in Season 9 of Diablo 4 for all classes in endgame can be found in our tier list. MeinMMO explains the builds and provides links for recreation.
Which is the best class in Season 9? As of the current state at the start of the season, the Spiritborn is the strongest class and is represented with several S-tier builds. In Season 7, the class was nerfed because it was too overpowered. The best builds of the Spiritborn are based on the new unique leg armor “Balazans Maxtlatl”. The Blood Wave Necromancer is also expected to remain strong.
The list is expected to change several times in the coming weeks, especially when it becomes clear how much the new Horadric spells in Season 9 truly affect the builds.
Our tier list includes all endgame activities for Diablo 4, with the Pit serving as a benchmark. For PvP, speed grinds, and level builds, the builds are not always the best fit. Keep in mind that the shown builds include runes from Vessel of Hatred.
What does “S” to “F” mean? In the tier list, the builds are categorized by letters. In this case, “S” represents the best builds, while “F” marks the worst ones.
S-Tier: The best builds in Season 9
The builds in S-Tier are virtually unbeatable and are suitable not only for the Pit but for almost any content in the game. Even with potential weaknesses, they are stronger than all other builds.
About the Balazan builds: With Season 9, the new unique leg armor “Balazans Maxtlatl” is introduced. The strongest builds of the Spiritborn rely on this unique: Each attack inflicts thorn damage to your targets and additionally causes poison damage over time. With the skill “Harmful Resonance,” your critical strikes cause the poison on enemies to explode.
Shadowblight Necromancer: The build relies on the central passive skill “Shadowblight,” which infects enemies with shadow damage. You can play this build early in the endgame as it doesn’t require uniques to function. A unique that is worthwhile for the build is the amulet “Ebenstecher.” This amulet ensures that “Plague” additionally fires 4 smaller projectiles that pierce enemies and cause shadow damage over time.
Blood Wave Necromancer: Blood Wave received new uniques with Season 7 – one of them is Kessime’s Legacy. The leg armor ensures that two blood waves flow towards you from the sides and pull in enemies before exploding for high damage. This damage increases each time an enemy is hit by a wave. You play this build entirely without minions.
Hydra Sorcerer: Because the Sorcerers receive a new unique related to Hydras in Season 9, the build based on this skill is expected to be quite strong according to experts. The unique amulet “Ophidic Iris” makes the Hydra skill the core ability and always summons a three-headed Hydra whose attacks explode upon impact. The Hydra does not gain additional heads, but rather grows larger for each potential head, inflicting multiplicative damage.
A-Tier: Strong builds for endgame in Season 9
A-Tier builds are typically a bit weaker than those in S-Tier but offer a broader range of playstyles that may suit you better. If you’re not trying to dominate the leaderboards, you can’t go wrong here.
Companion Druid: With the Companion build, you will tear apart your opponents as a Druid with an army of animal companions. The wolves are at the center of the build while the ravens impress with strong area damage early in the game. Eventually, you will have around 15 companions. The build is particularly suited against single targets and bosses, but is not suitable for speed farming due to cooldowns and a small radius for area damage.
Pulverize Druid: The Pulverize build is excellent for speed farming as it combines massive area damage with a simple playstyle. The combination of Pulverize and the legendary Shockwave aspect ensures that your damage explodes in a large, cone-shaped area in front of you. You receive and improve this aspect through drops from legendary items.
Meat Grinder Druid: The build is based on the unique 1H mace “Meat Grinder,” which inflicts damage on poisoned enemies nearby when you cast a defensive skill. For every 100 Willpower, damage increases.
Touch of Death Spiritborn: Do you want to poison enemies with a giant centipede and then let them explode? Then this build is perfect for you. Touch of Death focuses on high damage over time (“DoT”), which you can make detonate for multiple times of its damage at once with various skills and legendaries.
Penetrating Shot Rogue: The build was rather an off-meta build in previous seasons but is quite strong again now. You rely on the core ability “Penetrating Shot” and blow everything on your screen into the air with it. With the Trickshot aspect, the arrow splits into multiple ones, causing area damage. With the unique sword “Blue Wrath,” you make your enemies vulnerable and inflict cold damage.
Twisting Blades Rogue: Popular since Season 1: You stick the twisting blades into an enemy and then move away to guide them through as many foes as possible upon your return. Ideal for speed farming as you simply zip across the map at high speed, and everything behind you explodes.
B-Tier: The solid midfield
B-Tier builds are sometimes experimental or have weaknesses in certain content. Often, they are only specialized for certain purposes, such as only for bosses or only for farming.
In C-Tier, you will find builds that can still tackle endgame but quickly fall behind other builds. However, if you are looking for something that suits your playstyle better, you will find great options for relaxed gameplay here.
The builds in this tier are so weak that they struggle with endgame content and it is not worth investing gold and time in them – unless you really want to play them. But don’t expect much success.
Thorns Barbarian
Flay Barbarian
Hurricane Druid
Knife Dance Rogue
Rapid Fire Rogue
Blood Surge Necromancer
In the new season, some builds are based on unique items. The new uniques that come to all classes in the ARPG with Season 9 also play a role in the strongest builds in endgame. You can find out what new uniques are coming and what the unique items can do in our overview: Diablo 4: All new uniques in Season 9 with effects
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
The first Hyperbonus event has been announced in Pokémon GO. And it brings some strong content.
What is the Hyperbonus? Last weekend, the big global GO Fest 2025 took place. This is the biggest event of the year. It was announced beforehand that trainers could unlock a total of 3 subsequent events: the Hyperbonuses.
Whether these events would be unlocked depended on the trainers’ performance at the GO Fest. Various amounts of global challenges had to be completed to unlock the respective Hyperbonuses.
Apparently, the first hurdle was successfully overcome. The first Hyperbonus event has now been announced. And it brings some strong content.
Start video
So sah das Pokémon GO Fest 2025 in Paris aus
All Content of Hyperbonus: Hisui Celebration
When does the event take place? The event will start on Tuesday, July 8, 2025, at 10:00 AM and will run until Sunday, July 13, 2025, at 8:00 PM.
Which Pokémon is making its debut? During the event, you will encounter the Hisui form of Zorua for the first time. You can find the monster in the wild. For 50 candies, you can evolve it into Hisui-Zoroark.
What bonuses are there at the event? There are some strong bonuses active during the first Hyperbonus. These include:
4 times the amount of Stardust when catching Pokémon
4 times the amount of experience points when catching Pokémon
increased chance for the shiny variants of Hisui-Voltorb and Hisui-Baldorfish in the wild
increased chance for shiny Unown U in raid battles
Space-time anomalies can be triggered, temporarily allowing other Pokémon to appear
Collector’s challenge
Event field research
The 4 times bonus on catch Stardust is particularly strong. Since it is active throughout the entire event, there is a great opportunity to collect a lot of Stardust. If you use Star Pieces, you will even get 6 times the amount of catch Stardust for the duration of the item.
What exactly the space-time anomalies will look like, how they will be triggered, and which monsters they will allow to appear is not known in detail.
Which Pokémon are available at the event? During the event, you can encounter the following Pokémon:
In the wild:
Zubat*
Hisui-Voltorb*
Magikarp*
Hisui-Baldorfish*
Staraptor*
Shroomish*
Petilil*
Hisui-Zorua
Gyarados*
Arcanine*
Sneasel* (rare)
Larvitar* (rare)
Deino* (rare)
In 1-Star raids:
Hisui-Eevee*
Unown U*
Hisui-Sneasel*
In 3-Star raids:
Hisui-Scyther*
Hisui-Arcanine*
Shuckle*
Axegon*
All monsters marked with an * can also appear as shiny.
July has begun. And as usual, it brings some events, raids, spotlight hours, and many other contents to Pokémon GO. If you want to know what to expect when in July, feel free to take a look at our overview with all events in July 2025 in Pokémon GO.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
Steam has introduced a new feature: A comprehensive performance display so you can see how your entire PC is utilized directly.
What is the new feature? Valve has added a new feature to its platform Steam: A comprehensive performance display that shows you how the game is rendered and displayed. This function shows you the performance of your PC and how it affects the game’s performance. Steam mentions this in its official blog post.
What does it provide? Thanks to the overlay, you can clearly see how heavily your computer is stressed. If your game is not running smoothly, you might notice that your graphics card is constantly at 100%, or that you forgot to enable DLSS in the settings. This makes troubleshooting much easier.
The new feature from Steam also has the advantage that you no longer need an additional performance overlay, but can simply use the one from Steam.
Start video
A user asks Valve if he can bequeath his many games on Steam – they reply
Steam: Activating Performance Display – Here’s how
The new performance display has four detail levels:
1. Display of the FPS individual value, just like before.
2. Display of the FPS detail level with information about DLSS/FSR.
3. Display of the FPS detail level as well as the CPU and GPU utilization.
4. Display of the FPS detail level as well as complete information about CPU, GPU, and RAM.
The new performance display from Steam can be set up very detailed.
How to activate the feature: Go to the settings in Steam → In-game → and here Overlay Performance Monitoring to activate the new performance overlay, adjust its size and position, and set a hotkey.
What limitations are there? The first version is said to focus only on Windows and the most common graphics cards according to Steam. If you play on Macintosh or Linux or have a very old and rare graphics card, it might be that you do not get to see the complete data.
Where the data comes from: How Valve/Steam calculates your numbers and data and where the data comes from is explained by Steam in a dedicated blog post in the support forum.
Karsten Scholz, editor of MeinMMO, stumbled upon Monster Train 2 a few days ago on Xbox Game Pass (also available on Steam, PS5, and Switch). The whimsical genre mix consumes hours of your life like a hungry hell demon and provides the most entertaining train rides since the privatization of Deutsche Bahn.
What kind of game is Monster Train 2? The name reveals it: There is already a first Monster Train from May 2020. Then, as now, developer Shiny Shoe is responsible for the series. Big Fan Games, or Devolver Digital, serves as the publisher. Monster Train 2 was released on May 21, 2025, and the game is available on Steam, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, and Xbox Game Pass.
In Monster Train 2, you can expect a genre mix of deckbuilder, auto-battler, and roguelike, where your task is to travel through heaven, hell, and the depths with a train and confront powerful titans there. During your journey through the cloudy demon world, battles are always interspersed with phases where you can prepare for the upcoming challenges.
Who is writing here? Karsten Scholz is actually the MMORPG expert at MeinMMO, but he feels comfortable in almost all other genres as well. He started many years ago on the good old NES and C64. He also enjoys card and collectible card games. He spent way too much pocket money on Magic: The Gathering during his school days. Deckbuilders have always pressed the right buttons for him.
Protect the Hellfire
The titular train consists of 4 floors, with your enemies having to fight their way up from the very bottom to the very top. There awaits your so-called Hellfire, which must remain intact for you to continue your journey. If the Hellfire’s hit points drop to zero, the game is over. You will receive the points earned in the most recent round and any achievements and must start over.
So far, so roguelike.
You defend the three floors below the Hellfire with your cards in hand and your chosen hero. You cast spells, summon creatures, activate abilities, equip your fighters, or manipulate floors. You have various options to influence your card deck both before each match and during your journey.
Start video
Monster Train 2: Release-Trailer stellt den Mix aus Deckbuilder, Auto-Battler und Roguelike vor
This starts with the choice of the two factions that define your starting cards. Between battles, there are more options to acquire new cards, sort out unsuitable spells or creatures, or enhance strong options.
So you can work on refining a strategy or synergy of your deck round by round and upgrade by upgrade. Some factions, for example, heavily rely on magic and love making opponents vulnerable to spells. Others stack cute mushroom creatures into a single super-strong entity. And yet others manipulate the positions of units to strengthen or weaken them.
It’s a deckbuilder, after all.
Once all cards are played or you have no resources left to play cards, the actual battle begins. It runs automatically, like in an auto-battler. You can only adjust the speed of the action and must wait until all units on all floors have executed their possible attacks.
After that, there are more cards, another exchange of blows, and so on… until your Hellheart is destroyed or you have managed to defeat the boss of the current fight.
Which track do you wish to follow?Each hero possesses different effects and abilities.First play cards, then watch the battles.After each battle, new cards for your deck will be offered.You can upgrade the cards in your deck if you have enough gold.
A time sink that is hellishly good
How well this mix works in Monster Train 2, I notice especially by how quickly time flies during a match. In just a few days, I clocked 25 to 30 hours on the Xbox Game Pass. I usually don’t even like roguelikes. It has to be quality like Hades for me to have the desire to start over and over again.
However, Monster Train 2 manages wonderfully to entice me for the next match. Through the countless factions, cards, and synergies. But also through the feeling of reward from constant unlocks and upgrades. And by the ability to customize the player experience.
Be it through the special challenges of the dimension portal, daily challenges, or the option to influence the difficulty of a journey through the pack rank or mutators.
It doesn’t surprise me at all that Monster Train 2 has a rating of 95 percent positive reviews on Steam and an average rating of 88 on Metacritic. By the way, part 1 also has 96 percent positive on Steam, and both parts of the series are currently on sale there for 7.35 euros (Monster Train) and 22.49 euros (Monster Train 2).
In Southern Europe, they are found in almost every household: ceiling fans. Especially during the current heatwave in Germany and large parts of Europe, they could be an underestimated remedy against tropical nights.
How severely is the current heatwave really affecting Germany? According to Tagesschau, large parts of Germany are currently struggling with extreme heat – especially in the south. In cities, heat accumulates, and tropical nights (nights where the lowest air temperature does not drop below 20 degrees Celsius) are making sleep impossible for many. The Federal Environment Agency warns of health risks, especially for the elderly and children (via Federal Environment Agency).
The heat not only puts a strain on the circulatory system but can also alter the effects of medications. Generally, a consistently high outdoor temperature presents a significant burden on the body and poses a serious risk that cannot be addressed solely with cold water.
Start video
Slate Auto presents new truck with electric motor
Cooling from the Ceiling
What do ceiling fans do? Who doesn’t know them? The rickety ceiling fan that slowly circles around on the ceiling of a hotel somewhere in Italy, always looking like it could fall off at any moment.
In countries like Spain or Italy, ceiling fans are standard equipment. And there are good reasons for this: they are quiet, energy-efficient, and create a cooling airflow. According to 3Djuegos, this can help regulate the perceived temperature in parts, making the room feel up to two degrees cooler than it is on the thermometer (via 3Djuegos).
Even though the devices do not actually lower the temperature, this effect is worth its weight in gold during hot weather – especially in German houses and apartments, which usually come without air conditioning.
The specific benefits are:
Usable year-round: In winter, they can even circulate warm air better in the room.
Low operating costs: Compared to an air conditioner, a ceiling fan consumes only about 2 cents per hour.
Gentle cooling while sleeping: They operate quietly and do not create disturbing drafts like standing fans.
Sustainable alternative: No climate-damaging refrigerants, no conversion – ideal for retrofitting.
What else can help? A ceiling fan works best when combined with a few simple measures. Ventilate early in the morning and late in the evening, keep windows and curtains closed during the day – this keeps the heat out.
Water can also help in many ways: a damp cloth in front of the fan acts like a mini air conditioner, and lukewarm showers cool the body more gently than ice-cold water. And finally, one must not forget the most obvious: drink plenty – regularly and even when you are not thirsty. Alcohol, on the other hand, should be avoided as it puts additional strain on the circulatory system (via Tagesschau).
MeinMMO author Cedric Holmeier plays Mafia 2 once a year and falls in love with the 15-year-old game all over again. You can now get it for 80% off on Steam.
I have a game that I replay every year and that fascinates me again and again: Mafia 2. The gangster film you play lets you take on the role of Vito Scaletta. A boy from poor circumstances in 1940s New York, who learns early on that life on the right side of the law is rarely fair. One dumb idea later, instead of going to jail, he goes straight into World War II, while the known world continues to evolve around him.
Just escaped from the war and back in his hometown Empire Bay, his best friend Joe Barbaro is already waiting. Joe is the daredevil who takes every opportunity to make quick money – and is also willing to cross the boundaries of legality.
Together, Vito and Joe dive deep into the world of organized crime, driven by the dream of wealth and a better life and the self-commitment to avoid ending up as poor workers like their own parents. But also with the knowledge that the rise can quickly end in a hail of bullets. The game perfectly captures the atmosphere of this era and immediately pulls you into a whirlwind of loyalty, betrayal, and the harsh fight for survival.
Here you can watch the trailer:
Start video
Mafia 2: Definitive Edition – See the remaster of the crime epic in the launch trailer
High-level storytelling despite disappointing open world
What makes Mafia 2 so good is the storytelling. You experience Vito’s journey from an inconspicuous boy to an aspiring gangster up close. Similar to a coming-of-age story, our main character has to relearn and explore many things about the world. Throughout the game, there are also new technical innovations introduced, or we learn from NPCs and the radio what new developments are currently happening. Be it the idea of the first video game or the invention of television – which will definitely not prevail.
Mafia 2 cleverly shifts the perspective from glorified gangsters to a diverse view of the mafia by letting the player rise high before crashing down. Death is simply part of the life of a gangster. This emotional rollercoaster makes the story so gripping and unforgettable. You empathize with Vito, feeling his hopes and fears. Vito Scaletta is not a simple, ruthless killer.
However, the open world has always been disappointing in Mafia 2. It looks nice, but offers barely anything to do apart from some collectibles. More interesting are the original Playboy magazine covers from the era of the game. They can be collected on the sidelines of the main missions.
Outdated technology despite Definitive Edition
Alongside the open world, the driving feel of the cars, the controls, and the graphics are points that feel outdated today. Mafia 2 is already 15 years old in 2025. The Definitive Edition is supposed to help, released in 2020, making the game playable on newer computers. However, there are many complaints that playing the single-player game requires an account with 2K, but this requirement was removed by the publisher at the end of 2024. Mafia 2 still does not feel really modern despite the Definitive Edition.
Replay value without innovations
That I replay Mafia 2 every year is less about the game offering so much variety in the second, third, or fifth playthrough. It is more that the story is so well done that you develop the feeling that you are watching a gripping movie. Thanks to the believable character development and the dramatic twists, I always happily return.
Meanwhile, the DLCs like Joe’s Adventures are also well done and included in the new edition of the game. The main game itself takes about Howlongtobeat.com approximately 16.5 hours to complete. With the DLCs, a few more hours are added on top of that.
Mafia 2 is currently priced at Steam in the summer sale for just €5.99. If you also want parts 1 and 3, you can get the trilogy for €12.03. On August 8, the new installment “Mafia: The Old Country” will also be released, taking you to the origins of the mafia at the beginning of the 20th century in Sicily.
A collector has just paid thousands of euros for a skin in Counter-Strike 2, even though it is not even rare. It is something else that makes it special.
What kind of skin is it? The skin expert and enthusiast “Yikspiks” reported on June 27 on X.com that a collector paid $45,000 (about €39,000) for the “Counter-Strike 2” skin “Tanner” (in English: “Bronzer”) for the MAC-10.
The skin was introduced in March 2025 as part of the “Spring 2025 Skins” update and is from the lowest rarity tier of the game (Consumer grade, White/Gray). It wraps the submachine gun in a brown coating with a few orange accents.
Overall, the skin is neither rare nor particularly beautiful or creative. Therefore, you can already buy a worn version of the skin for 2-4 cents. Even a factory-new version of the skin is only sold for about 98 cents (as of June 30, 4:00 PM, prices variable).
Start video
Counter-Strike 2: Valve once again impresses with the launch trailer
An ordinary skin becomes a special unique item
Why did the collector pay so much money for the skin? The example of the skin that the collector acquired has the lowest float value ever found on a weapon in Counter-Strike.
The float value indicates how worn a skin is. The lower the wear of a skin, the more valuable it is. If a skin has a float value of 0.00 to 0.07, it is considered factory-new. The sold MAC-10 Bronzer has a float value of 0.00000000010431.
The previous lowest float value on a weapon was the skin “Eye of Zapems” for the AUG, which was 0.00000000019395 and has now been undercut.
The price of a skin in Counter-Strike depends on various factors. Besides the condition, i.e. the degree of wear, the rarity tier and the pattern are particularly decisive. Knives with the 387 pattern index are called “Blue Gem” due to their coloration, and fetch high sale prices.
In The Lord of the Rings, there is an Elf whose great power lies mainly in his wisdom. Although he plays quite a significant role in Middle-earth, he hardly appears in the films.
Who is meant? Círdan is one of countless creations by the writer J.R.R. Tolkien. He is an Elf who belonged to the wisest minds in all of Middle-earth and carried the nickname “the Shipwright”.
Throughout his life, the Elf was many things: a companion to important Elves, a Ring-bearer, a member of the White Council, and not least, Lord of the Grey Havens.
Despite his importance, Círdan plays hardly any role in the film adaptations by Peter Jackson. He appears only twice briefly and has a screen time of only 33 seconds. Reason enough to give this character the space he deserves.
Start video
Epic Trailer for The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship
The Story of Círdan
What was the Elf known for? Círdan belonged to the Teleri Elves and was active in Middle-earth since the First Age. During this time, he took on various roles.
From him, Círdan received the Elven Ring Narya in the Second Age, which was also called the “Ring of Fire”. This ring had been secretly forged and was not subject to Sauron’s power. Later, Círdan passed it on to Gandalf. In the prologue of “The Fellowship of the Ring”, Círdan is briefly seen with his ring, but only for about 5 seconds – take a look at the cover image of this article.
The second, brief appearance is at the end of “The Return of the King”. It concerns another important position of Círdan. The Elf was, after all, in the Second and Third Ages the Lord of the Grey Havens. From this Elvish port city, Frodo, Gandalf, Bilbo, Galadriel, and Elrond traveled towards the Undying Lands.
In this scene, Círdan is seen several times in the background. However, he has no lines and does not stand out otherwise. His appearance here lasts 28 seconds. You can see the scene on YouTube.
The film also omits that Círdan was part of the White Council and that he alone had an important role in Middle-earth for that reason. The White Council included only the wisest minds, namely the wizards Gandalf and Saruman, the Elves Elrond and Galadriel, and Círdan. These five deliberated on how to defeat their common enemy Sauron.
The Lord of Mordor met his temporary end in the Battle of the Last Alliance. This battle is shown in the prologue of the films. Although there are rare appearances from Gil-galad or the man Elendil, Círdan is missing – and this is despite the fact that the Elf was indeed present at the battle.
What happened next with Círdan? At the end of the Third Age, Círdan was one of the oldest Elves in all of Middle-earth. His wisdom was well known and he was called upon for help time and again. He willingly gave his ships to those who needed them.
For those whom World of Warcraft HC is not hard enough, they make it even harder. But one warrior breaks all boundaries here.
For those who find the original World of Warcraft too easy and boring, they play the hardcore variant. And for those who still don’t find that exciting enough, they add even more challenges on top. One character takes this to the extreme maximum, as he must succeed as a melee fighter in World of Warcraft – however, naked and without weapons.
A challenge that he has already accomplished up to level 50. Now it’s time for the final sprint.
Start video
WoW player finds his old guild again – but it’s quite sad
What kind of character is this? The character “Onepunchwarr”, named after the anime “One Punch Man”, fights only with his fists. Unlike the anime counterpart, Onepunchwarr must also exist naked – he cannot wear any gear, including rings or jewelry. This is considered the particularly tough “Nudist” challenge, where one is actually allowed to use at least weapons and shields, but Onepunchwarr gives up on that as well.
No group, no clothes – no problem?
In addition to these already tough restrictions, he is also not allowed to accept help from other characters. He must complete quests alone, and there are no dungeons – as group activities are also prohibited.
Recommended editorial content
At this point you will find external content from Reddit that complements the article.
I consent to external content being displayed to me. Personal data can be transmitted to third party platforms.
Read more about our privacy policy.
The only tools the warrior has are his professions – namely alchemy and cooking, which allow him to at least acquire a few buffs to support him in fist fights.
His biggest concern, by the way, is that a sudden disconnect, internet, or power failure could ruin nearly 7 months of work for him. Because that is likely the greatest threat that has already cost many hardcore characters their digital lives.
This is how the community reacts: Reactions from the community vary widely. While some are very impressed by this challenge and the ambition, others are worried. After all, it sounds like a very uncomfortable and lengthy way to enjoy this game in any way.
“Men will really do anything instead of going to therapy.” – David-Hustlehoff
“This is the dumbest shit I’ve ever seen. I love it.” – NoodlyOne
“How do you kill what has no life?” – HayJay58
Whether Onepunchwarr will be able to last his journey to level 60 remains to be seen. But even now, he likely has a big “stone in the board” with many in the Reddit community – because such a challenge outstrips even the worst hardcore plans. Let’s hope he doesn’t become the ultimate villain – just like another WoW player.
This is an AI-powered translation. Some inaccuracies might exist.
