🎮 Daily Gaming Digest — April 13, 2026

Pokémon & Nintendo

Pokémon Pokopia Proves It's No Flash in the Pan on UK Charts Pokémon Pokopia has climbed to the number 2 spot on the UK Charts this week, showing serious staying power as stock finally catches up with demand. It's only being kept from the top by Resident Evil: Requiem — not bad company to keep. If you've been sleeping on Pokopia, the charts are telling you to wake up.

Nintendo Bundles Switch 2 With Super Mario Galaxy 1+2 — But Read the Fine Print Nintendo has officially launched a limited-time Switch 2 bundle featuring Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Galaxy 2, running from April 12 through May 9 with a $20 savings. It's a solid deal on the surface, and a smart promotional push tied to the Galaxy franchise's massive momentum right now. If you've been waiting for a reason to grab a Switch 2, this might be it.

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie Is Now the Highest-Grossing Film of 2026 After a monster opening weekend, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie has officially overtaken Project Hail Mary to become the biggest film of the year so far. Nintendo's cinematic universe continues to be an absolute juggernaut at the box office. The Mario franchise simply cannot miss right now.

Splatoon Raiders and Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave Get PEGI Ratings in Europe Two unannounced Switch 2 first-party titles — Splatoon Raiders and Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave — have popped up with PEGI age ratings in Europe, all but confirming their existence. With Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream and Yoshi and the Mysterious Book filling the near-term calendar, these two could round out a stacked back half of the year. Nintendo's Switch 2 pipeline is looking seriously deep.

Borderlands 4 Physical Switch 2 Copy Spotted in the Wild Despite Gearbox pausing development on the Switch 2 version of Borderlands 4 earlier this year, a physical copy has apparently surfaced out in the wild. There's been zero official communication about the Nintendo port since the pause, making this sighting genuinely surprising. Could a stealth launch or quiet resumption of development be in the cards?

Nintendo Life Celebrates 20 Years With a Look Back at Every 10/10 Score Nintendo Life is marking its 20th anniversary by revisiting every single game it awarded a perfect 10/10 — all 69 of them. It's a fascinating trip through two decades of Nintendo excellence and a great checklist if you're looking for your next masterpiece to play.

Fortnite

Fortnite's Toy Story Collab Has Fans Begging for Woody The Toy Story x Fortnite crossover is in full swing, but the community is buzzing about one glaring omission — Woody. Creative fans are already mocking up cosmetic concepts using in-game assets, and the demand is loud. If Epic doesn't deliver the cowboy in a future wave, there will be a snake in someone's boot.

Today's Mini Event Drops and the Community Is Documenting Everything A new mini event went live in Fortnite today, and players are already sharing video captures across social media. Details are still emerging, but the community engagement around these surprise moments continues to be one of Fortnite's greatest strengths.

Mythic Harpoon Gun? Buried Treasure Buffs? Season Surprises Keep Coming Players are discovering they've been sleeping on some serious loot — including a mythic harpoon gun that apparently flew under the radar for many. Epic also made buried treasure significantly easier to obtain, and the community reactions range from delighted to "wait, that was always there?" Meanwhile, fans are debating Act II and III character picks based on a leaked loading screen showing Jules and Windfrost among the options.

"Shock N Awesome" Concept Art Resurfaces, Reigniting Wasted Potential Debate Concept art from Fortnite's Shock N Awesome season has surfaced from a former employee during the layoffs, and the community is mourning what could have been. The art shows ambitious ideas that never fully made it into the live game, sparking one of the spicier nostalgia debates the subreddit has seen in a while.

Call of Duty

Microsoft Reportedly Considering Pulling Call of Duty From Game Pass Day One This is a big one. According to a new report from Eurogamer, Microsoft is actively considering removing Call of Duty from its Day One Game Pass lineup — a seismic shift from the promise that helped justify the Activision Blizzard acquisition. If true, this could fundamentally change the value proposition of Game Pass and send shockwaves through the subscription gaming landscape.

Pete Hines Opens Up About Bethesda Being "Damaged and Broken Apart" Former Bethesda marketing lead Pete Hines, who retired in 2023, has given a candid interview about watching the studio get "damaged and broken apart" under its current structure. Hines says Bethesda became part of something that isn't "authentic" or "genuine" — strong words from someone who spent decades as one of the company's most visible faces.

Fable Reboot Reaffirms Fall 2026 Window Despite GTA 6 Delay Rumors After a weekend of swirling rumors that Microsoft's Fable reboot might slip to 2027 to dodge GTA 6, the official Fable social media account stepped in to reiterate a fall 2026 release window. Whether Playground Games can actually hold that line remains to be seen, but for now, they're not blinking.

PS3 Nostalgia Alert: COD4 Players Struggle to Find Matches In a bittersweet moment for old-school fans, players dusting off their PS3s for a nostalgia session in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare are finding the servers essentially empty. Meanwhile, EA is shutting down Dragon Age: Inquisition PS3 servers later this month — another reminder that the PS3 era is truly fading into history.

Arc Raiders

Arc Raiders Launches Live Map Conditions Tracker Embark Studios has rolled out a brand-new live Map Conditions tracker for Arc Raiders, giving players real-time intel on what's happening across the map before they drop in. This is a fantastic quality-of-life addition that should help squads plan their runs more strategically. The community response has been overwhelmingly positive.

New Weekly Trial: Destroy ARC Enemies in the Swamp The weekly trials refreshed today (April 13), and one of the featured tasks requires you to destroy ARC enemies specifically in the Swamp biome. This is a location-specific challenge, so you'll need to head to the right zone — Destructoid has a full guide if you need help tracking them down.

Nexon CEO Calls Arc Raiders a "Trojan Horse" for AI Development In a controversial statement making waves on Reddit, Nexon's CEO has called Arc Raiders a "Trojan Horse," claiming it proves that AI-assisted development tools can produce triple-A quality games with smaller teams. The community reaction is... heated, to say the least. This is a conversation that isn't going away anytime soon.

Indie Games

First-Time Dev's Puzzle Game Gets Zero Downloads (But a Perfect Score From Flatmates) In the most relatable indie dev story of the week, a solo developer shared that their 8-month passion project — a puzzle game with a lovingly crafted soundtrack — has been downloaded by exactly nobody outside their flat. If you're looking to support a fellow gamer's dream, head to itch.io and give it some love.

Alien Morgue Lands in Apple's "Indie Games We Love" Section Developer flashag got the surprise of a lifetime when their game Alien Morgue showed up alongside legendary titles in the App Store's coveted "Indie Games We Love" feature. It's the kind of recognition that can be genuinely life-changing for a small studio.

Crossed-Out Cauldron Offers a Clever Twist on Recipe Crafting Here's a fun mechanic: in Crossed-Out Cauldron, you can't add ingredients to recipes — you can only cross things out. It's a simple but brilliant puzzle concept that's generating buzz on the indie gaming scene. Available now on itch.io if you want to check it out.

Steam & PC

This Week on PC: Pragmata, REPLACED, and the Most Wishlisted Game on Steam All Launch It's an absolutely stacked week for PC gaming. Capcom's long-awaited sci-fi shooter Pragmata finally arrives alongside the gorgeous 2.5D action-platformer REPLACED from Sad Cat Studios, and the current most-wishlisted game on Steam enters the ring too. Clear your schedule and your hard drive.

REPLACED Launch Countdown Is On REPLACED is coming to PC and consoles imminently, and the hype is real. The retro-futuristic action-adventure has been one of the most anticipated indie-adjacent titles for years, and the wait is finally almost over. Keep your eyes on the countdown.

Five New Steam Games You Probably Missed This Weekend PC Gamer's weekly roundup highlights five fresh Steam releases that might have slipped past your radar in the chaos of a busy news cycle. If you're the type who loves discovering something new before it blows up, this list is your weekly ritual.

Gaming Roundup

New Metro Sequel Reportedly Being Revealed at Xbox Showcase This Week After a major gameplay leak over the weekend, a brand-new Metro game is reportedly set for an official reveal at an unannounced Microsoft Xbox showcase happening this week. Leaker NateTheHate — who has a strong track record — is behind the report. Metro fans, your patience may finally be rewarded.

Ashes of Creation Drama Continues With Explosive Expense Allegations The Ashes of Creation saga keeps getting wilder. New allegations have surfaced detailing a "troubling picture" of Intrepid Studios' spending, with claims that funds went toward everything from Magic: The Gathering cards to a personal chef. CEO Steven Sharif has disputed the allegations, but the court of public opinion is in full session.

MMO Fashion Debate: Drip or Skip? PC Gamer posed the eternal question to its readers: do you care about fashion in MMOs, or do you just throw on whatever has the best stats? The responses are predictably passionate — because in 2026, glamour is still the true endgame.

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That's your daily dose, gamers. The potential Call of Duty Game Pass shakeup is the story to watch this week — if Microsoft pulls the trigger on that change, the ripple effects will be massive. Stay locked in. 🎮