Good morning!

Just when you thought the gaming world might slow down for a second—boom—Assassin’s Creed Shadows leaks a month early, WB locks the Nemesis system in a vault until 2036, and Activision gets caught red-handed using AI for CoD assets. Oh, and Fable? Delayed. Because of course it is.

In this edition, we’ve got:

• Ubisoft’s worst nightmare—AC Shadows is out in the wild.

• Warner Bros. does what Warner Bros. does best—wastes potential.

• Twitch trends—is Path of Exile having a renaissance?

Here’s everything you need to know this week in the world of gaming.

TOP STORY

Warner Bros Just Buried the Nemesis System Until 2036

Ah, Warner Bros—always keeping us on our toes, but not in the good way. This time, they’ve shut down Monolith Productions, the studio behind Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor and its sequel, Shadow of War. That’s bad enough, but the real kicker? The brilliant Nemesis system, arguably one of the coolest game mechanics ever, is now sitting in a corporate vault collecting dust until at least 2036—thanks to a patent.

For those who missed Shadow of Mordor back in the day, the Nemesis system made enemy orcs actually remember you—turning battles into personal vendettas. You’d take down a captain, only for him to come back, scarred and angrier than ever. It was a stroke of genius, the kind of feature that should have spread across the industry. But no—WB patented it in 2021, meaning no other game can use it without their say-so. And what’s WB doing with it now? Absolutely nothing.

Monolith’s upcoming Wonder Woman game was supposed to feature the Nemesis system, but with the studio now shut down, that project is dead too. And just to rub salt in the wound, Warner Bros also closed Player First Games (MultiVersus devs) and Warner Bros Games San Diego. The industry reaction? A mix of rage, sadness, and a lot of sighing.

Even God of War composer Bear McCreary called it a “tragic waste.”

This all comes after a string of WB gaming flops—Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, Gotham Knights, and MultiVersus all failed to impress. And with WB Interactive’s president stepping down last month, things aren’t looking great for the company’s gaming division.

So, to recap:

• Monolith? Gone.

• Wonder Woman? Canceled.

• Nemesis system? Locked away until 2036, because… reasons.

Nice one, WB.

LATEST NEWS

GENERAL

• Bad news, Fable fans—you're gonna have to wait a little longer. Microsoft just pushed the Fable reboot to 2026, because apparently, 2025 wasn’t enough time. Xbox’s Craig Duncan swears it’ll be worth the wait, promising polished gameplay, stunning visuals, and that classic British humor. Let’s just hope Albion isn’t under construction forever. (TwistedVoxel)

• Turns out those weird-looking CoD graphics weren’t just bad design—Activision finally admitted to using AI for in-game assets. After dodging accusations for years, a new Steam policy forced them to fess up. Fans aren’t thrilled, especially since nobody wants to pay real money for AI-generated six-fingered zombies. (GameRant)

QUICK LINKS

• 40% PC Gamers Spend Less than 5 Hours a Week Playing.

• Cyberpunk 2077’s sequel is aiming for ‘the most realistic crowds in any game’.

• Xbox Pushes Ahead With New Generative AI. Developers Say ‘Nobody Will Want This’.

• Streamer ‘Dinossindgeil’ Finishes All Seven FromSoftware Soulslike Games in a Row Without Taking Damage or Leveling Up.

With more studios incorporating AI into game development—whether for NPC interactions, artwork, or even in-game assets—it's sparking a heated debate.

Some see it as a tool for innovation, while others worry about soulless, machine-generated content replacing human creativity. Where do you stand? 👇

LATEST VIDEO

Assassin’s Creed Shadows Just Leaked… Like, the Whole Thing

Well, folks, Ubisoft just can’t catch a break. Assassin’s Creed Shadows has suffered yet another disaster, and this time, it’s a full-blown leak—not just a cutscene or some blurry screenshots, but actual physical copies of the game floating around a month before release.

Apparently, copies are being sold online (shoutout to Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist, the black markets of bad decisions), and some lucky players have already booted it up on their PS5s. Ubisoft has acknowledged the leak, but let’s be real—they’re probably screaming into a pillow somewhere.

So, how did this happen? Bad warehouse security? A cursed marketing cycle? Ubisoft forgetting to cancel February’s shipment after the last-minute delay? Who knows.

But what we do know is that spoilers are already out there, so if you’re trying to go in fresh on March 20th, stay off the internet.

Want all the spicy details? Check out my full breakdown in the latest video—because this mess is one for the gaming history books. Watch here:

WHAT’S TRENDING?

MOST POPULAR:

The Twitch throne still belongs to Just Chatting, climbing 3.5% in hours watched this week. Meanwhile, the top games remain steady, with League of Legends and GTA V keeping their spots despite slight dips.

🥇 Just Chatting – 66.5M hours watched (📈 +3.5%)
🥈 League of Legends – 22.5M hours watched (📉 -5.6%)
🥉 Grand Theft Auto V – 21.0M hours watched (📉 -1.9%)
🎯 Counter-Strike – 15.8M hours watched (📈 +2.4%)
💥 VALORANT – 15.4M hours watched (📈 +13.4%) (huge jump this week!)

TRENDING:

Some games are absolutely blowing up on Twitch right now—Path of Exile is skyrocketing with a +377.2% surge in hours watched, and Overwatch 2 is making a 61.4% comeback.

🔥 Path of Exile – +377.2% hours watched (Is this the biggest PoE resurgence ever?)
🔥 Overwatch 2 – +61.4% hours watched (Somehow, still alive!)
🔥 Marvel Rivals – +40.1% hours watched (Superhero FPS hype is real!)
🔥 VALORANT – +13.4% hours watched (Consistently growing!)
🔥 Dota 2 – +9.8% hours watched (The MOBA grind never stops!)