iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Yeah, I'm so hyped for Fire Emblem but still don't think I can pick it up for a few more weeks.

Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

A little surprised at the backlash to my Capcom AI story as I very intentionally did not say generative AI was part of it in the headline, description, or article. I get how the DLSS 5-related featured image can cause confusion, though, so I changed that on-site!

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

There's no Remastered today, and its schedule will be different than usual this month. Right now, the plan is to have newsletters on October 8, 14, 20, and 29!

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Incredibly abhorrent allegations here. It consistently infuriates and saddens me how so many men can not treat others with even a basic level of human decency, let alone what this alleges. We need to do a better job of ensuring both online and offline game industry spaces are safer for women.

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

A lot of well-earned criticism of that NYT Xbox article, but on the news front this comment really stood out to me. It really seems like Xbox wants to embrace playbor and UGC rather than developer made games next-gen. Don't think "do the work for us after we laid off thousands" is a good strategy.

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Reposted by Tomas Franzese

Andy Robinson @andyrobinson.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Games media cuts have felt unending for a while, but the mood feels especially grim among indie outlets with the latest wave of layoffs. More than ever, if the game industry values its media, it needs to support them. Buy some advertising, sponsor content, purchase subs. It makes a big difference.

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

This sucks Ashley. Sorry to hear this happened to you. I hope you can land on your feet somewhere, you're an excellent writer!

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

He is three times as good as Drake right now

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

While my career as a journalist hasn't gone exactly as I planned over the last two-or-so years, doing this has been a goal of mine during the most tumultuous times. It's a career-defining moment for me, so I really want to thank @brianpshea.bsky.social for the opportunity to review this game!

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

I'm very excited to share that I reviewed Minecraft Dungeons II for @gameinformer.com ! This is a very big deal for me. Game Informer was the gaming magazine I read growing up, and I've always wanted to be published there. gameinformer.com/review/minec...

gameinformer.com

Minecraft Dungeons II Review: Built Better Than Before

Minecraft Dungeons II (Xbox Series X/S) Review – 7.25/10: Minecraft Dungeons II is a straightforward, entry-level action-RPG that proves this spin-off franchise can stand on its own and improve with s...

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

One final BlizzCon story from me on @polygon.com. I asked CD Projekt Red if it'd ever add Diablo-themed content to a Witcher game, and got a surprisingly thoughtful response as to why the studio doesn't like crossover/collab content in its own games: www.polygon.com/the-witcher-...

polygon.com

Witcher Dev Reveals Why CD Projekt Red Doesn't Do Crossovers In Its Own Games

A Geralt-inspired skin is coming to Diablo 4, but don't expect Diablo characters in The Witcher 3 Remastered

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

I've written about this a couple of times. "Retro" usually applies to things about 20+ years old, and the PS3/Wii/360 generation is just hitting that now. For gaming, "retro" is also an aesthetic and game design/feel term, which I think is why it feels harder to call games from this century retro.

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

I also share my thoughts on The Viking Sagas DLC for Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition in the context of the World's Edge and Xbox restructuring news that broke earlier this week.

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

A good Remastered this week! First, a Q&A with Commodore and Antstream about Alien Breed 35th Anniversary Collection, which launches today. I learned more about why neo-Commodore is getting into game publishing and confirmed no AI was used in the collection. www.remastered.blog/commodore-sa...

remastered.blog

Commodore Says Publishing Alien Breed 35th Anniversary Collection Wasn't About The Money

Jim Squires revealed why the newly revived Commodore got back into game publishing with Alien Breed 35th Anniversary Collecton.

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

Capcom didn't even develop it, they just licensed it to another studio.

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Reposted by Tomas Franzese

CJ Fogler @cjzero.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

holy shit Caleb, that stop on the sideline was hilarious

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Yeah, very curious to see if it's really an issue I have at all once I get around to playing it. Terminally online gamers always get loud about that kind of stuff, though.

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Surprised the game doesn't get funkier with the anti gravity stuff, feels like you could do so cool shit with that.

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

I do feel bad for this and Wolverine having to launch after Onimusha, which arguably has some of the best combat game feel of the decade.

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

I haven't been able to stop thinking about @amphibiangame.bsky.social since it was unveiled at Gamescom, so I interviewed its developer for Remastered! It was a great conversation that touched on both how "frog-accurate" the game is and its retro inspirations! www.remastered.blog/amphibian-in...

remastered.blog

This "Frog-Accurate" RPG Pays Tribute To Final Fantasy, Fire Emblem, And More

Amphibian developer Greg Alexandropoulos reveals what makes his "frog-accurate" game special in a sea of retro-inspired RPGs.

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

My last big story from BlizzCon: A feature about Heroes of the Storm's return, and how a small team at Blizzard has quietly been working towards this moment since 2022: www.polygon.com/heroes-of-th...

polygon.com

How Blizzard Quietly Revived Heroes of the Storm

Blizzard breaks down the 4-year road of development that led to Heroes of the Storm’s grand BlizzCon return

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

My latest BlizzCon story is about Diablo 5's procedural generation! The devs were pretty open about the fact that Diablo 4's static open world missed the mark and don't seem concerned that going back to procedural generation will make the game too repetitive: www.polygon.com/diablo-5-no-...

polygon.com

Blizzard Explains How Diablo 5 Avoids Diablo 4's Open-World Problem

Overlay maps will also be in Diablo 5 from day one

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Now shout out to the pilot a gate over from me trying to rizz this woman who's scared to fly with plane and turbulence facts.

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Shout out to the guy at the Denver airport that is mad he got served ramen at the ramen restaurant there.

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

I spoke to CDPR about their upcoming Diablo and Overwatch collaborations, getting into the weeds about why certain choices, like making the D4 Geralt skin just for Barbarian class, were made: www.polygon.com/cd-projekt-r...

polygon.com

Diablo 4’s Witcher Collab Could Literally Only Work for One Class, Says CDPR

Developers also reveal why Overwatch is collaborating with Cyberpunk: Edgerunners and not Cyberpunk 2077

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Also, Cyberpunk 2077 and The Witcher 3 may be coming to Battlenet, but Blizzard has no ambitions to take on Steam or the Epic Games Store: www.polygon.com/blizzcon-int...

polygon.com

Blizzard Has No Plans To Turn Battle.net Into A Steam Competitor

Even after The Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk 2077 launch, Blizzard will still be very picky about bringing third-party games to Battle.net

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

More BlizzCon stuff from me on @polygon.com! Did you know that a writer that helped shape the original Dragon Age trilogy is working on Diablo 5 as its narrative director, and that her work on Dragon Age is influencing the new game? www.polygon.com/diablo-5-int...

polygon.com

Diablo 5 Has A Surprising Connection To Dragon Age

"My experience with traditional RPGs has definitely been a strength" during Diablo 5's development, Jennifer Hepler told Polygon

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

Blizzard has since clarified with us that the Switch 2 port will support USB mouse and keyboard controls, but not Joy-Con 2 controller mouse controls.

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

I'm covering BlizzCon for @polygon.com, and we confirmed that the switch support of Diablo 4 will have mouse controls! Revealed that and generally preview the port here: www.polygon.com/diablo-4-nin...

polygon.com

Diablo 4 On Switch 2: A Very Impressive Port That Supports Mouse Controls

Blizzard confirmed to Polygon that the Switch 2 port we played at BlizzCon will support mouse controls

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

Since you didn't find it funny the first time on Slack: Talk about some Cloud strife!

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

For Remastered this week, I used all the discourse around The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time for Switch 2 to explore how there's now a spectrum of what video game remakes can be, and that there's no wrong way to do one (except for generative AI, I guess): www.remastered.blog/what-does-re...

remastered.blog

What Does "Remake" Mean In 2026?

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time for Nintendo Switch 2 highlights how every remake approaches revitalizing a classic differently.

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

Gaming fandom made a lot more sense when I understood it was basically sports fandom over childrens' toys that also happen to be art.

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

I just think you won't like Metroid my guy

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

I wrote about everything that shadow-dropped during the Direct today for @gamespot.com. Also just want to say I impressed @jasonfanelli.com with how much I correctly predicted. www.gamespot.com/articles/eve...

gamespot.com

Every Nintendo Direct Game That You Can Play Right Now

Crisis Core, Meccha Chameleon, and more games shadow-dropped during the September 2026 Nintendo Direct.

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

I got to check out Valheim's 1.0 update early for @polygon.com! It cemented Valheim as an all-time survival game for me, not just a pandemic gaming-era fad. www.polygon.com/valheim-laun...

polygon.com

Valheim 1.0 Is Finally The Game It Was Always Meant To Be

If you still haven’t played Valheim, now’s the time to do so

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

Just beat Zero Company, and it truly is a wonderful game. I hope the impacted devs who made it so amazing have the opportunity to land on their feet and make more great games in the future.

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Advance Wars is also worth checking out if you haven't played that!

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Yeah, I remember SGF 2025 feeling like that for me. It's a very odd feeling, but try to focus on the good and how you got to see people you don't normally get to in-person!

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

To help kick off @polygon.com's Fall Preview, I published an exclusive release date reveal and Q&A with the developers of Food Devils! www.polygon.com/food-devils-...

polygon.com

This Sexy Fire Emblem-Inspired RPG Mixes Roguelikes, Dating Sims, and Hot Devils

Polygon can exclusively reveal the release date of Studio Daimon's Food Devils

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

For sure. I think that's part of why the series never really found itself in the west until the 3DS

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

It's like when people get insufferable over the canon of old DCEU stuff in James Gunn's DCU. Like, why do we care about that so much? If something's relevant, the show/movie will bring it up, and above all it simply matters that they're just making something good.

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

Also just a knock-on effect of this kind of nerdy adaptation and how fandoms and media handle discussing it. We're all obsessed with canon and lore to the point where we question anything that breaks from convention and can overlook something that's simply thematically fitting for the character/IP.

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

Next weekend, I'm going to be covering BlizzCon in-person for @polygon.com! Don't hesitate to say hi if you see me there.

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Tomas Franzese @tomasfranzese.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

Looking at Nintendo's recent track record with remakes, I unfortunately doubt it. At most it'll have some random new mode addition.

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