State Champ Radio video games
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The Game Awards, which celebrates achievements in the video game industry, revealed its 2025 nominees on Monday (Nov. 17). Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 leads the way with 12 nominations, making it the most nominated game in the show’s 12-year history.
This year’s game of the year nominees are Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 from Sandfall Interactive; Death Stranding 2: On the Beach from Kojima Productions; Donkey Kong Bananza from Nintendo; Hades II from Supergiant Games; Hollow Knight: Silksong from Team Cherry; and Kingdom Come: Deliverance II from Warhorse Studios.
Over the past year, several popular video games and franchises have crossed over into television and film. The following films and streaming shows are nominated for best adaptation: A Minecraft Movie, Devil May Cry, The Last of Us: Season 2, Splinter Cell: Deathwatch and Until Dawn.
Sony Interactive Entertainment is The Game Awards’ most nominated publisher in 2025 with 19 nominations across its combined portfolio, followed by Kepler Interactive with 13 nods, and Electronic Arts and Microsoft, each with 10. The nominees for The Game Awards are selected by a global jury of more than 150 media publications and creator outlets.
From today through Dec. 10 at 6 p.m. PT, fans will be able to help choose the winners in all categories via authenticated online voting on the Game Awards site. In China, fans can vote for their favorites on a variety of platforms including Bilibili.
The Game Awards will air live from the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on Thursday, Dec. 11, with awards, world premiere new game announcements, and musical performances by The Game Awards Orchestra, conducted by Lorne Balfe. The Scottish composer, 49, won a Grammy three years ago for best compilation soundtrack for visual media for Top Gun: Maverick and has been nominated for two Primetime Emmys.
Tickets to attend The Game Awards in-person can be purchased on the AXS site. At press time, available tickets ranged from $251 in the upper mezzanine to $1,506 for loge seats.
This year’s show will stream live on Prime Video for the first time and will once again stream for free across more than 30 digital video platforms including Twitch, YouTube, Steam, X (formerly known as Twitter), Facebook and TikTok Live. The Game Awards 2024 broke viewership records with an reported 154 million global livestreams, up 31% over 2023’s record-setting showcase, which reached 118 million livestreams. In addition, more than 15,000 individual content creators and online influencers co-streamed the show to their audiences, according to show organizers.
The Game Awards is executive produced by Geoff Keighley and Kimmie Kim. Richard Preuss is the director, LeRoy Bennett is the creative director, and Michael E. Peter is co-executive producer.
Here are nominees in seven key categories for the 2025 Game Awards. For the full list of nominees, visit the Game Awards site.
Game of the Year
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (Sandfall Interactive/Kepler Interactive)
Death Stranding 2: On The Beach (Kojima Productions/Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Donkey Kong Bananza (Nintendo EPD/Nintendo)
Hades II (Supergiant Games)
Hollow Knight: Silksong (Team Cherry)
Kingdom Come: Deliverance II (Warhorse Studios/Deep Silver)
Best Score and Music
Christopher Larkin, Hollow Knight: Silksong
Darren Korb, Hades II
Lorien Testard, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Toma Otowa, Ghost of Yōtei
Woodkid and Ludvig Forssell, Death Stranding 2: On The Beach
Best Audio Design
Battlefield 6 (Battlefield Studios/EA)
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (Sandfall Interactive/Kepler Interactive)
Death Stranding 2: On the Beach (Kojima Productions/Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Ghost of Yōtei (Sucker Punch Productions/Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Silent Hill f (NeoBards Entertainment/KONAMI)
Best Performance
Ben Starr, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Charlie Cox, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Erika Ishii, Ghost of Yōtei
Jennifer English, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Konatsu Kato, Silent Hill f
Troy Baker, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
Best Family
Donkey Kong Bananza (Nintendo EPD/Nintendo)
LEGO Party! (SMG Studio/Fictions)
LEGO Voyagers (Light Brick Studios/Annapurna Interactive)
Mario Kart World (Nintendo EPD/Nintendo)
Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds (Sonic Team/Sega)
Split Fiction (Hazelight Studios/EA)
Best Adaptation
A Minecraft Movie (Legendary Pictures/Mojang/Warner Bros)
Devil May Cry (Studio Mir/Capcom/Netflix)
The Last of Us: Season 2 (HBO/PlayStation Productions)
Splinter Cell: Deathwatch (FOST Studio/Ubisoft/Netflix)
Until Dawn (Screen Gems/PlayStation Productions)
Content Creator of the Year
Caedrel
Kai Cenat
MoistCr1TiKaL
Sakura Miko
The Burnt Peanut
Netflix / Netflix Game Night
Netflix has shifted its strategy for its gaming venture and is now meeting its subscribers where they are, in hopes of letting them play games on the streaming service.
It’s been four years since Netflix mightily stumbled into the gaming space, but the streaming giant hasn’t given up on its video game ambitions.
The streamer’s new strategy is to bring games to its millions of subscribers so they don’t have to download a separate app, making them playable in the Netflix app on your televisions and turning your smartphones into controllers.
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“Starting today (Thursday), you can play games on your TV, using your phone as a controller — no setup needed, it’s as easy as streaming your favorite shows,” said Alain Tascan, President of Games at Netflix. “You can now go from watching KPop Demon Hunters to playing Pictionary: Game Night without ever leaving Netflix. And for those who love to play anywhere and everywhere, we’re bringing even more games to your phone with our own special Netflix touch.”
You and your friends can play games like Dead Man’s Party: A Knives Out Game, LEGO Party!, Boggle Party, Party Crashers, Pictionary: Game Night, and Tetris Time Warp, allowing you to put on the ultimate game night.
Game Night’s other goal is to keep subscribers logged into the service longer while showcasing smartphone interaction, which the company plans to use for live television events like Star Search, a reboot of the classic television series hosted by Ed McMahon, coming to Netflix sometime next year.
So, are you excited to jump into Netflix Game Night? It definitely sounds like it has some legit staying power.
PlayStation/PlayStation 27″ Gaming Monitor
During yesterday’s Japan-focused State of Play, Sony unveiled its new PlayStation gaming monitor, which you can connect to your PC or PS5.
Along with a refreshed Japanese-only PS5 Digital Edition, Sony announced a new monitor featuring a 27-inch QHD display with a 240Hz refresh rate, HDR support, and variable refresh rate. Still, it caps at 120Hz when used with a PS5.
But that’s not the only feature it has. Sony always loves to add features to its peripherals to help them stand out, so the new monitor includes a charging hook for your DualSense controller.
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The hook conveniently folds down from the rear of the monitor, allowing you to jump into gaming mode when you get that itch quickly.
Source: PlayStation / PlayStation 27″ Gaming Monitor
The PlayStation 27″ Gaming Monitor will be available in both the US and Japan markets, but as of right now, it does not have a price and will hit shelves sometime next year.
The monitor announcement further highlights PlayStation’s foray into PC gaming, following the Pulse Elevate portable speakers unveiled back in September.
The Pulse Elevate portable speakers will also work with PC, Mac, PS5, and PS Portal and will arrive in 2026.
We are intrigued to see what else Sony is cooking to further cement its footprint in PC gaming.
Trending on Billboard Daft Punk is making contact. As part of the new collaboration with Fortnite, the French duo has released a new video for track “Contact,” the epic closer of its 2013 Grammy-winning album, Random Access Memories. The new animated clip finds the robots careening through space and borrows imagery from Interstella 5555: The 5tory […]
Bernard Smalls / iOne Digital / HHW Gaming
PlayStation continues to make the PS Portal an excellent companion device to the PlayStation 5.
When the PS Portal was first released, it was nothing more than a competent device capable of remote playing titles on your PS5. It was eventually unlocked, allowing cloud streaming.
Following the latest update, PlayStation is bringing a boatload of features that PS Portal owners have been screaming for, making the device even more attractive, especially for people still on the fence.
Most notably, following the latest system update, PS Portal owners with PlayStation Plus Premium accounts can now purchase and stream games without a PS5.
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They can also stream select titles like Astro Bot, Borderlands 4, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, and the recently released PS5 exclusive Ghost of Yotei, effectively untethering your PS Portal, with the only requirements being a Premium subscription and a strong internet connection.
To see the complete list of streamable games, you can head here.
Here are the other new features coming to the PS Portal thanks to the PlayStation system update, as announced on the PlayStation Blog.
Redesigned UI
A refreshed home screen***** now features three tabs: Remote Play, Cloud Streaming, and Search.
Remote Play home screen: Connect to a PS5 console paired with the PS Portal to enjoy games installed on that console. A PlayStation Plus membership is not required for Remote Play.
Cloud Streaming home screen: A new dedicated home screen for Cloud Streaming allows PlayStation Plus Premium members to instantly stream a range of compatible PS5 games without waiting for downloads.
Search screen: Quickly look up any game that supports Cloud Streaming. If you don’t have the entitlement to stream a game, a QR code will be displayed to direct you to the PlayStation App or to a web browser on another device.
Enhancing Gameplay Experience
This update also introduces several new features designed to make playing on PS Portal more immersive and convenient.
New Features for Remote Play and Cloud Streaming
3D Audio Support: 3D Audio is now available during Remote Play and Cloud Streaming on supported games, when using a compatible audio device. Immerse yourself in spatial sound with wired headphones or a compatible PlayStation Link wireless audio device such as the Pulse Explore wireless earbuds and Pulse Elite wireless headset.
Passcode Lock: Protect your device by setting a passcode on your PS Portal.
To set a passcode, go to Settings > System > Passcode.
Network Status Screen: A stable internet connection is essential to ensure the best experience on PS Portal. You can now quickly check your connection quality with an easy-to-access status view.
During Cloud Streaming or Remote Play, open the Quick menu and go to Troubleshoot > Show Network Status.
New Features for Cloud Streaming
In-Game Store: In-game purchases are now supported during Cloud Streaming. You can purchase add-on items and in-game currencies without leaving your game session, and receive benefits instantly.
Just like before, you can also make in-game purchases during a Remote Play session.
Accessibility Options: Enable new accessibility options during Cloud Streaming, such as screen reader and adjustable text size.
Go to Settings > Cloud Streaming > Accessibility Settings for Cloud Streaming.
These settings will only apply to select screens during Cloud Streaming. You can continue to access the PS5 console’s settings menu to adjust accessibility settings during Remote Play.
Game Invitations: Receive game invites from friends that are playing the same game during Cloud Streaming, and join a multiplayer session directly from the Quick menu.
Getty Images / NBA 2K League
The NBA 2K League, the eSports organization tied to the NBA 2K video game franchise, is back—but this time, it’s boasting significant changes.
NBA Take-Two Media announced the relaunch of the NBA 2K League, which will now focus on entertainment and online content.
The new NBA 2K League will highlight creators and NBA players who will battle it out on the sticks throughout the season.
NBA 2K players, don’t worry, you haven’t been forgotten. There will also be an open ladder competition for fans.
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NBA players will now be able to be involved in the NBA 2K League because of NBA Take-Two Media’s new multi-year partnership with the National Basketball Players Association.
NBA Take-Two Media, an entertainment company formed earlier this year by the professional basketball league and Take-Two, focuses on eSports and online social content.
Sticking to that focus, you can expect to see various creators throughout the season, including honorary commissioner Jess’ Jesser’ Riedel, a popular sports YouTube creator with over 35 million followers.
The 2K League Will Feature Six Teams
The new season will feature six teams: Boston Celtics, Detroit Pistons, Memphis Grizzlies, Toronto Raptors, Utah Jazz, and Washington Wizards.
Each team will be represented by duos featuring content creators and NBA players who participate in various challenges throughout the year.
The league’s revamp was first teased by the NBA 2K League back in July. The decision to switch things didn’t come without some bad news: a significant number of staff lost their jobs, according to Dexterto.
“With the new 2K League, we’re building an entirely new type of entertainment universe that blends competition with content,” said Andrew Perlmutter, CEO of NBA Take-Two Media.
“Filled with wild, wacky, unpredictable and emotionally resonant moments, we’re extending the immensely popular world of NBA2K beyond competitive gaming and will show fans who their favourite athletes and creators are off the court.”
Lookout For These 2K League Events
The new season of the NBA 2K League will start with a new reality series called MyPlayer Mayhem that will be a combination of competitiveness and entertainment.
You can catch the first episode on November 5 on the NBA 2K League’s YouTube channel, with new episodes dropping every week.
MyPlayer Mayhem will conclude with two live tournaments on Twitch from November 8 to 9th and November 15 to 16th, 2025.
Next Fan Up, the 2K League tournament, begins on November 16 and will offer NBA 2K players who think they are good enough to compete with creators and NBA players.
Those participating in Next Fan Up will have the opportunity to represent an NBA team of their choice by climbing the online ranks through gameplay and social media challenges.
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Global gaming powerhouse Honor of Kings has dropped its 10th-anniversary theme song “Atlas of Tomorrow,” now streaming across major platforms including Tencent Music Entertainment’s QQ Music, Kugou and Kuwo, alongside Apple Music, Spotify and KKBOX. The track shot to No. 1 across multiple charts upon release, cementing itself as the latest blockbuster crossover between Mandopop and globally influential game IPs.
“Atlas of Tomorrow” boasts composition and vocals by JJ Lin, brand ambassador of Honor of Kings, Mandopop heavyweight and two-time Golden Melody Awards winner for best male singer, and lyrics by Kevin Yi, hitmaker and senior music planner. JJ Lin describes the track as “dedicated to every dreamer still writing their future chapters, letting music guide you to the stories we’re meant to live.” The track shot to No. 1 on QQ Music, Kugou and other major Chinese streaming charts upon its release. As of publication, it has racked up more than 2 million saves across platforms, generated 70-plus trending topics on social media, and amassed more than 600 million views, shattering multiple records for gaming music.
Notably, the impact of “Atlas of Tomorrow” has expanded from the realms of music and gaming into an online cultural co-creation movement spanning multiple regions. Over 280 tourism boards across mainland China, from Beijing to Guizhou to Zhejiang, have spontaneously paired the track as a soundtrack with local landmarks and cityscapes for videos, triggering a viral relay across short-video platforms.
“Atlas of Tomorrow” centers on the theme of “Gathering for Journey.” The profound resonance of its melody and lyrics stems from its ability to encapsulate a decade’s worth of emotional memories and energy accumulated within Honor of Kings, a beloved national IP. Therefore, the work transcends mere melody, becoming players’ response to their youth and stories. The track’s overwhelming reception among gamers and music fans worldwide following its release reflects both the song’s exceptional craftsmanship and emotional depth, as well as the formidable cultural influence and crossover appeal that Honor of Kings commands.
Through this partnership, TME empowers the gaming IP to achieve multidimensional expression across visuals, gameplay and audio via content co-creation and integrated campaigns. The collaboration underscores music’s expanding cultural role and reach within gaming ecosystems. Moving forward, TME remains committed to deepening strategic alliances with globally influential cultural IPs, promoting music’s unique power across diverse cultural content ecosystems and helping high-quality original voices reach a wider international audience.
Getty Images / Soulja Boy / SouljaGame Flip
Soulja Boy is back with his console-copying shenanigans. The rapper is being accused of stealing Retroid’s flow, bar-for-bar, with his newly released SouljaGame Flip console.
We at HHW Gaming are always rooting for everyone Black, especially for significant accomplishments like releasing your own gaming console.
However, we can’t get behind jacking another company’s whole design and then partaking in price-gouging by selling that same fugazi console for a ridiculous price.
That’s precisely what DeAndre “SouljaBoy” Cortez did with his SouljaGame Flip console, which is a blatant ripoff of Retroid’s Retroid Pocket Flip 2.
Aside from ripping off the Pocket Flip 2’s design, what sets Soulja Boy’s retro handheld apart from Retroid’s device is the ridiculous $435 price tag, which is double the Pocket Flip 2’s $210. In the comment section of Soulja Boy’s post, one person said, “Not a single gamer buying this. Especially at that price.”
Another commenter wrote, “Play some games on it. Where’s the gameplay? Is it an emulator??? Rather get a Steam Deck for less that does more.”
The “Turn My Swag On” crafter did share videos in his story of him playing 50 Cent’s Blood In The Sand video game on the device, and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas while doing other things like “making beats.”
Still doesn’t justify the price he was charging for the device, and he has since marked the console down to $200, Kotaku reports.
Retroid Immediately Responded Regarding Soulja Boy’s Fugazi Handheld
Soulja Boy’s grift was first reported on by Retro Dodo, which quickly reached out to Retroid about the console. A representative for the company responded, “I didn’t know about this,” the site reported. “This is not any kind of official licensing deal. He does not have permission to rebrand our products and sell them as his own. The Retroid Pocket Flip 2 is patented in the U.S by ourselves.”
So that means he can be swiftly sued if Retroid wants to apply pressure.
It wouldn’t be the first time Soulja Boy gets pressed by a gaming company. Nintendo, which is infamous for suing people for ripping off its property, went after the rapper for selling a Soulja Boy-branded emulation console preloaded with Nintendo ROMs.
After hilariously saying Nintendo wouldn’t sue, he changed his tune, telling his followers on X (formerly Twitter), “I had to boss up, I didn’t have a choice,” after Nintendo threatened him with legal action.
Soulja Boy needs to chill, unless he wants to be the first rapper sued by a video game company.
You can see more reactions below.
Rockstar Games / Grand Theft Auto
Rockstar Games, the developer of the highly anticipated game Grand Theft Auto 6, is being called out following the firing of 30 employees at its UK and Canadian offices.
Bloomberg reports that after Take-Two, the parent company of Rockstar Games, stood behind the firings, claiming the former employees were “for gross misconduct,” the Independent Workers’ Union of Great Britain (IWGB) is singing a different tune, accusing the game developer of “union busting.”
According to Bloomberg’s report, the fired employees were all either current union members or working to organize at Rockstar, and were also members of the same private Discord group.
IWGB is calling CAP on Take-Two’s Claims
The IWGB reacted to the latest developments, writing on X:
“This is the most ruthless act of union busting in the history of the UK games industry. Yesterday, @RockstarGames fired over 30 employees for union activity. We won’t back down, and we’re not scared – we will fight for every member to be reinstated.”
In a statement sent to Bloomberg’s Jason Schreirer, IWGB president Alex Marshall categorizes described Rockstar’s firings as “flagrant contempt for the law and for the lives of the workers who bring in their billions is an insult to their fans and the global industry.”
Take-Two Fully Supports Rockstar Games’ Decision
Take-Two company spokesperson Alan Lewis issued a statement on the matter:
“We strive to make the world’s best entertainment properties by giving our best-in-class creative teams positive work environments and ongoing career opportunities. Our culture is focused on teamwork, excellence, and kindness. Rockstar Games terminated a small number of individuals for gross misconduct, and for no other reason. As always, we fully support Rockstar’s ambitions and approach.”
Well, the news isn’t sitting well with the gamer social media. We don’t expect this to kill the hype surrounding GTA 6. However, people are still not feeling that Rockstar Games can allegedly fire employees who are trying to unionize during some trying times in the gaming industry.
You can see those reactions below.
JUNG YEON-JE / Xbox
Given recent news about the state of the Xbox Series S and X consoles, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that Xbox’s hardware sales continue to nosedive.
Microsoft shared its Q1 2026 earnings, revealing that Xbox hardware revenue was down 29 percent year over year.
This latest financial news paints a bleak picture for the hardware division, as the numbers keep getting worse rather than better. Last quarter, hardware sales were down 22 percent, down 29 percent for the first two quarters of 2025, and down 42 percent in Q4 of 2024.
Things will only get more challenging as the company also has to contend with Donald Trump and his blatant abuse of tariffs, which have forced Microsoft ot make some unpopular decisions like raising the price of the Series X console to $599.
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The company has also implemented a new strategy with its “Xbox everywhere” initiative, which promotes the idea that any device that can play its games in the cloud is an Xbox.
Microsoft’s gaming division has also begun ditching the idea of exclusive games and, basically, conceded the “console wars” when it announced that Halo: Campaign Evolved, a remake of the first game in the franchise, is coming to the PlayStation 5.
Despite all the dire news about hardware sales, Microsoft is not out of the console business yet. The company just released two new handheld devices in partnership with ASUS, the ROG Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X.
Company heads like Xbox President Sarah Bond and CEO Satya Nadella have also begun teasing the next Xbox console, sharing that it will be a premium, high-powered PC/gaming console experience that will most likely include multiple storefronts, like Steam.
We shall see what the future holds for the company.
