New seasons of Apex Legends always bring with them new plot developments and narrative threads to tug at. In this season, for instance, a new haute couture-themed event has just gone live, and to promote the game’s latest premium cosmetics, Respawn has posted a set of four in-universe magazine covers, each featuring a different playable Legend in their new high-fashion digs. But a closer look reveals that each magazine also...

Console launches are chaotic endeavors, and the Nintendo Switch 2’s launch was exactly that, right up to surprise snacks appearing alongside some new Switches. Chaos was most prevalent, perhaps, at a GameStop in New York City (specifically Staten Island) where dozens of consoles were ruined by staples that pierced the screens. The story goes that employees stapled purchase receipts to the boxes, and customers then learned how poorly protected their...

It’s been three months since Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 launched, and I still can’t stop thinking about and playing it. Clair Obscur’s story is excellent, and developer Sandfall Interactive crafted a combat system that is tremendously layered, with its party members’ abilities easily synergizing, and also tremendously challenging, at times. More than a few times in my 60+ hours with the game, I’ve been humbled, wondering if I should turn...

Donkey Kong Bananza, Nintendo’s Switch 2-exclusive platform game, has received glowing reviews that catapult it to the front of the race for Game of the Year. At the time of writing, shortly after the review embargo lifted, Bananza has a rating of 91 on review aggregation site OpenCritic and 90 on Metacritic. (Sadly, you’ll have to wait a while for Polygon’s own review, as Nintendo did not provide us with...

Don’t call it a comeback. While Nintendo has kept DK’s barrel in the air since his debut in 1981 — reissuing his modern classics, making him playable in multiplayer games, throwing him a supporting role in the Mario movie — his 2025 is more of a Kongaissance ripped from the Matthew McConaughey playbook. Donkey Kong got the final major release of the Switch era. He’s poised to land his own...

We used to play Mario Kart. It was 2003 and the Nintendo GameCube was a full-fledged member of my high school clique. It was at every social gathering, no matter how big or small. I went as far as to buy a carrying case for mine that was big enough to carry a few controllers and all its cords. It rode in the backseat for countless car rides, strapped in...

Coming up with ideas is a funny thing: You never know when inspiration might strike, or what might stoke its embers. But more often than not, it’ll be something totally unexpected. Just look at the brains behind the upcoming Switch 2 exclusive, Donkey Kong Bananza. Some of the things that players will get to experience when the game releases on July 17 have origins that nobody would have ever guessed....

Xbox is back with more new and returning titles to Game Pass for July, headlined by the hotly anticipated Wuchang: Fallen Feathers, Abiotic Factor, and Grounded 2. Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is set to release on Wednesday, July 24, and will be a day one Game Pass title on the Ultimate tier for both console and PC. Wuchang is another addition to the Souls-like action RPG genre, which has exploded over the past...

Donkey Kong Bananza, a 3D platformer developed by the same team behind Super Mario Odyssey, is the second major Nintendo Switch 2 game, swinging onto the platform later this week. In Donkey Kong Bananza, which looks absolutely bananas from early previous, you join Donkey Kong and a young Pauline on a trek to the planet’s core in order to fulfill Pauline’s wish — to go back home. On your way,...

John Wick Hex is being removed from Steam (and all other platforms) this week, according to a statement released by the game’s publisher, Big Fan Games. “John Wick Hex will be removed from sale on all platforms beginning July 17th, 2025,” the statement shared on the game’s Steam page reads. “After July 17th, 2025, existing owners of John Wick Hex will still be able to access the game via their...