The next few days are going to be all about gaming, but this week also didn’t skimp on pop culture news from across the media spectrum. Here are the standout stories that caught our eye over the past few days.

Gaming

We are deep in the former E3 period, which means that gaming announcements and showcases are coming thick and fast. In terms of what we have marked on our calendar, this coming weekend, Saturday, 10 June, there’s the annual Wholesome Direct showcase (9am PT / 12pm ET / 6pm CET) for lovers of cosy, chilled games. Following that, on Sunday, 11 June, is a biggie: the Xbox Games Showcase and Starfield Direct double-up, which kicks off 10am PT / 1pm ET / 7pm CET.

Plus, it now turns out that indie games publishing powerhouse Annapurna Interactive has just announced the return of their Showcase via a teaser trailer. This year’s Showcase will stream on the official Annapurna Interactive Twitch, YouTube, and Twitter channels on 29 June at 2pm PT / 3pm ET / 9pm CET.

That’s what lies ahead, but last night (South African time anyway) was Summer Game Fest 2023. You can watch the full-length recording of the two-hour livestream, which is followed by sister indie games events Day of the Devs and Devolver Direct. Alternatively, visit the official sites of all three showcases for a comprehensive breakdown of everything announced. Or, turn to this nicely unpacked third-party article for all Day of the Devs reveals, and this one here for Summer Games Fest.

Below are our personal highlights from Summer Game Fest, which also included:

  • extended looks at the gameplay of upcoming Mortal Kombat 1 and Alan Wake 2;
  • release date announcements for Spider-Man 2 (20 October 2023), Pinocchio soulslike Lies of Pi (19 September) and contemplative underwater adventure Under the Waves (29 August);
  • a not-so-surprise appearance by Nicolas Cage, who will be in Dead By Daylight;
  • plus information about upcoming crossovers for both Fortnite and Street Fighter 6, with the former’s Fornite Wilds season including the Transformers, and the latter gaining Exoprimal content.

In a very pleasant surprise, though, we’re getting a new Prince of Persia game. Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is coming to PlayStation 5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC on 18 January 2024. More will be revealed about the game at Ubisoft Forward on 12 June, but first impressions are that the action adventure platformer goes back to the franchise’s side-scrolling roots, while throwing in modern sensibilities like a deep, upgradeable combat system and Metroidvania-style gameplay.

As for the plot and setting, from the official press release: “players will embody Sargon, a young, gifted warrior, and member of an elite group called The Immortals. As they are sent to rescue Prince Ghassan, they will explore Mount Qaf, a once wondrous place, now cursed and hostile. Sargon and his brothers-in-arms will soon discover that time itself will be a treacherous foe and that the world balance must be restored.”

Co-op zombie slaughter is nothing new, but this one comes with the name of filmmaking legend John Carpenter attached. From Saber Interactive and Focus Entertainment, John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando is an upcoming FPS promising an ode to overblown 80s action and horror.

The set-up: “In the near future, an experimental attempt to harness the power of the Earth’s core ends in the release of the Sludge God. This eldritch abomination begins terraforming the area, turning soil to scum and the living to undead monsters. Luckily, the genius behind the experiment has a plan to make things right. All he needs is a team of competent, highly trained mercenaries to get the job done. … Unfortunately, they were all too expensive. Which is why he’s hired… The Toxic Commandos.”

The game is coming to Xbox Series X|S, PS5, and PC next year, with applications for beta access now open.

We always pay attention to what Dontnod, the creators of Life is Strange, Tell Me Why and Vampyre, are up to, and it turns out that’s a new action RPG where your decisions come with major repercussions for the story. In Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden, which is set during the 17th Century in an untamed, superstitious North America, you play as a pair of Banishers (one living, one dead), who are dedicated to protecting the living from the threat of lingering ghosts, spectres and other supernatural creatures.

Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden is out at some point in 2023 for PS5, Xbox Series consoles and PC.

Of the indie games that popped up during Day of the Devs and Devolver Direct, we’re probably most excited for Simpler Times, a relaxed Unpacking-esque game “coming soon” to PC from developer Stoneskip and publisher iam8bit. You play as Taina, who relives memories of her life as she packs up her childhood bedroom. The game takes place over ten years with four different moments to explore, each one set in a different season. Here you can listen to music, paint, watch nature, take photos, browse books, read notes and solve puzzles. Each object has a story to tell.

One other piece of notable gaming news this packed week: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge is getting DLC… which, among other things, introduces samurai rabbit Usagi Yojimbo as a playable character. Dimension Shellshock is out at some point this year for Steam, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, as well as Xbox Series X|S.

Series

Summer Game Fest is no longer just about games. The livestream included the official trailer for Netflix’s The Witcher Season 3, following the release of a teaser one month ago. The latest set of episodes adapts the Witcher book The Time of Contempt, in which the freshly reunited “family” unit of Ciri, Geralt, and Yennifer travel to Aretuza to hide from the many factions now hunting for the young royal. Season 3 of The Witcher is notable as Henry Cavill’s last appearance as Geralt of Rivia, with Liam Hemsworth taking over the role from Season 4 onwards.

The eight-episode The Witcher Season 3 begins on 29 June, with the release of its Volume 1 batch of episodes. Volume 2 arrives on 27 July.

The official trailer has landed for Good Omens Season 2. We’re on uncharted ground now, narratively, as Season 1 served as a full adaption of Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman’s collaborative supernatural comedy novel.

However, with the release of the trailer below, we get a better sense of what to expect, beyond the official synopsis of “Having been on Earth since The Beginning and with the Apocalypse thwarted, Aziraphale (Michael Sheen) and Crowley (David Tennant) are getting back to easy living amongst mortals in London’s Soho when an unexpected messenger presents a surprising mystery.” Evidently that mystery centres on Jon Hamm’s Angel Gabriel, who arrives on Earth with no memory of who they are.

Good Omens Season 2 returns to Prime Video on 28 July.

Coming to Paramount+ is espionage action series Special Ops: Lioness, which is inspired by an actual US Military program, where women are utilised to get close to the CIA’s top terrorist targets for assassination. Zoe Saldaña stars as Joe, a top operative who is joined by an aggressive Marine Raider named Cruz (Laysla De Oliveira). Meanwhile, The Lioness Program is overseen by Kaitlyn Meade (Nicole Kidman) and Donald Westfield (Michael Kelly).

Special Ops: Lioness releases globally on Paramount+ on 23 July with its first two episodes, followed by new single episodes on Sundays thereafter.

One other piece of TV news: upcoming Star Wars series Ahsoka has a locked-down release date: 23 August. The eight-episode series stars Rosario Dawson as former Jedi Knight Ahsoka Tano as she investigates an emerging threat to a vulnerable galaxy after the collapse of the Empire. Ahsoka is exclusive to Disney+.

Film

You can’t keep a mega, muscly action franchise down. Expendables 4 (AKA Expend4bles) is coming to cinemas on 22 September, and offers viewers a mix of veteran and emergent action stars in yet another adrenaline (and testosterone)-fueled adventure. The Expendables 4 ensemble features Jason Statham, Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, Megan Fox, Dolph Lundgren, Tony Jaa, Iko Uwais, Randy Couture, Jacob Scipio, Levy Tran, Andy Garcia, and Sylvester Stallone.

Finally, for something wildly different, there’s Poor Things, the latest project from The Favourite filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos. Emma Stone produces and stars in this surreal Frankenstein-esque tale of a young woman brought back to life by a brilliant and unorthodox scientist (Willem Dafoe). Under his protection, our heroine is eager to learn, but lurking in the wings is slick, debauched lawyer Duncan Wedderburn (Mark Ruffalo). Poor Things comes to cinemas on 8 September.