Gaming News Roundup: GTA 6 Sparks a Launch-Day Time-Off Rush, Warhorse Hit by a Cyberattack, Pokémon Unite Is Shutting Down & More (Oct 27, 2026)
Grand Theft Auto VI (image via IGN / Rockstar Games)
GTA 6 is just over three weeks away, and it's already shaping people's calendars: time-off requests for launch day are way up, while one analyst says other studios are too scared of it. Warhorse, the Kingdom Come studio, has been hit by a cyberattack, Pokémon Unite is shutting down, and the Silent Hill remake is reportedly aiming for 2027. Capcom pulls Street Fighter 5 over a security flaw, Peter Molyneux talks AI, and there's plenty more. Here's the Lanbrew gaming roundup for October 27, 2026.
GTA 6 is driving a spike in November 19 time-off requests, while an analyst says rival devs shouldn't be so scared of it
Plenty of people seem to be planning a day off for GTA 6. HR software company BambooHR told Money.com that time-off requests for Thursday, November 19 are running 9% to 17% above a normal third Thursday in November, IGN reports. Not every request is about Vice City, of course, but the timing is hard to ignore. Economists have also floated a roughly $1 billion hit to US productivity around launch.
Meanwhile, Circana's Mat Piscatella told GamesBeat that studios avoiding GTA 6's window are being "completely overblown" about it, GamesRadar+ reports. His point is that not every one of the roughly 49 million US PS5 and Xbox Series owners will be playing it, and Switch and PC players can't play it at all. He thinks cozy games, life sims and even shooters could still find an audience in November. So many games moved away, he says, that GTA 6 now has a wide-open month. It launches November 19 on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S.
Source: IGN; GamesRadar+
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 (image via PC Gamer / Warhorse Studios)
Warhorse, the Kingdom Come: Deliverance studio, has been hit by a "serious" cyberattack
Warhorse Studios, the Czech team behind Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 and an upcoming open-world Lord of the Rings RPG, says it has been hit by a cyberattack. CEO Martin Frývaldský called it "a serious incident" and said the first job is to lock down the studio's systems and work out how far the breach went. Warhorse is working with security specialists and has contacted the authorities.
The studio isn't giving interviews or more details yet, so it's not clear what the attackers got. PC Gamer points out that early builds of its two upcoming projects, the Middle-earth RPG and a new Kingdom Come game, would be an obvious target for leaks. IGN notes the attack lands during a rough month for game company security, after Capcom's own breach earlier in October.
Pokémon Unite (image via VGC / The Pokémon Company)
Pokémon Unite is shutting down in March 2027
The Pokémon Company is ending Pokémon Unite. The free-to-play 5v5 MOBA will go offline on Switch and mobile on March 23, 2027 at 00:00 UTC, a little more than five and a half years after its July 2021 Switch launch. Sales of Aeos Gems and new Unite Club memberships have already stopped. Gems you already own won't be refunded, but you can keep spending them until the end.
A November 12 update adds a farewell event that hands out licenses and Holowear from across the game's life, plus a "library" feature. If you download the library data before shutdown, you'll still be able to look through your records and some in-game content afterward, but regular online play will end. The Aeos Crown 2027 tournament in Tokyo is still on as the game's final competition.
Silent Hill remake (image via VGC / Konami)
Report: Bloober Team's Silent Hill remake is aiming for 2027, and its first two actors may have been named
The remake of the original Silent Hill is reportedly targeting a 2027 release. MP1st says Bloober Team's project carries the codename "Project Noise" and has been in the works since 2022. The report names UK actors Gabrielle Fritz, whose game credits include Battlefield 2042 and Wolfenstein II, and Jade Matthew as part of the cast. Their roles haven't been revealed, and there's no word yet on who plays Harry Mason.
A 2027 date would fit Konami's plan of putting out a new Silent Hill game every year, after Silent Hill f in 2025 and Silent Hill Townfall last month. Konami hasn't confirmed the date, so treat it as a report for now.
Street Fighter 5 (image via VGC / Capcom)
Capcom pulls Street Fighter 5 from sale and shuts off its servers over the PHP security flaw
The big PHP security scare from last week has reached fighting games. Capcom has taken Street Fighter 5's online features offline on PS4 and Steam and is suspending sales on both stores while it works on security fixes tied to the PHP programming language, VGC reports. Emergency maintenance started last week, and Capcom now says the game will stay delisted until the work is done.
If you already own it, offline modes still work. Capcom hasn't said when online play or store listings will come back.
Source: VGC
Capcom's 2026 lineup (image via Nintendo Life / Capcom)
Capcom's 2026 games keep selling, and nearly all of its sales are now digital
Capcom's latest earnings show this year's releases holding up well. Onimusha: Way of the Sword sold 1.78 million copies in its first month. Resident Evil Requiem added 450,000 to reach 8.51 million, and Pragmata climbed to 2.73 million, Nintendo Life reports. Capcom's old games are doing even better: it posted its best-ever first-half catalog sales, and Push Square notes Devil May Cry 5 outsold Onimusha last quarter while Monster Hunter World outsold Monster Hunter Wilds.
Physical copies are now a tiny slice of the business. Per Push Square, about 92% of Capcom's game sales in the quarter were digital, and the company expects that to pass 95%. Discounted catalog sales on Steam and the PS Store are a big part of why.
Source: Nintendo Life; Push Square
Peter Molyneux (image via PC Gamer)
Peter Molyneux says the game industry is "pretending" it doesn't use AI
In a long PC Gamer interview, Fable and Black & White creator Peter Molyneux said that "it's almost impossible to code now without using AI," since code completion tools are built into everyday workflows. He thinks a lot of studios avoid ticking Steam's AI disclosure box because they worry it will cost them players, and he cited a survey saying 12% of people won't buy a game with any AI in it at all.
Molyneux blames that backlash on early AI image tools that produced what he called slop. He still believes AI, once it matures, will be the biggest creative step forward for studios of every size, and gave the example of concept art loops that once took weeks now taking minutes. Expect plenty of disagreement on that one.
Source: PC Gamer
Modern Warfare 4's Shipment (image via Eurogamer / Activision)
Shipment hits Modern Warfare 4 just four days after launch, a Call of Duty record
Call of Duty's tiniest, busiest map is back early. Shipment arrives in Modern Warfare 4 today, October 27, only four days after the game's October 23 launch. Eurogamer says that's the fastest the map has ever shown up in a new CoD; it usually lands a couple of weeks in, around Season 1. This version keeps the classic container-yard layout with a new harbor setting and Soviet-era concrete blocks in the background.
Shipment is a favorite for leveling guns fast, and it usually gets its own 24/7 playlist, though Infinity Ward hasn't confirmed one yet. Season 1 starts November 6.
Source: Eurogamer
Phantom Blade Zero (image via Eurogamer / S-Game)
Phantom Blade Zero wants 300GB free just to pre-load on PC
Phantom Blade Zero pre-loads are live ahead of its October 29 launch, and you'll need to clear a lot of room. The game takes up about 145GB once installed, but S-Game says you need around 300GB free during pre-load, because temporary files and the full game have to sit side by side while it unlocks and decompresses. You get the extra space back afterward, Eurogamer reports.
An SSD is also required, which stings with storage prices up thanks to the AI-driven memory crunch. It doesn't seem to be hurting sales: estimates put the game past 500,000 copies sold on Steam before launch.
Source: Eurogamer
Emberville (image via PC Gamer / Cygnus Cross)
Emberville's early access gets delayed to January, one day before launch
Pixel-art action RPG Emberville was due in early access today, October 27. Instead, developer Cygnus Cross pushed it to January 7 the day before. The team says feedback from its Steam Next Fest demo asked for system-level changes, like reworking bow combat, that couldn't be finished in time, PC Gamer reports.
The timing is a surprise, since the studio had confirmed the October date just a week earlier. The delay wasn't about GTA 6: the developers only mentioned the demo feedback.
Source: PC Gamer
Auroch Digital (image via Gematsu)
Boltgun II studio Auroch Digital is cutting about a quarter of its staff
Auroch Digital, the UK studio behind Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun II and Starship Troopers: Ultimate Bug War, has started a redundancy consultation that affects around 25% of its roles. In its statement, the studio blamed the same market conditions hitting the rest of the industry and asked other companies to consider hiring its developers, Gematsu reports. Post-launch support for Boltgun II and the upcoming Warhammer Survivors will continue.
Rock Paper Shotgun noticed the original posts on LinkedIn and X were deleted within a day, and has asked Auroch why.
Source: Gematsu; Rock Paper Shotgun
Xbox Game Pass (image via Pure Xbox / Microsoft)
Xbox Game Pass is coming to T-Mobile phone plans
Starting in November, eligible T-Mobile customers on its new "T-Mix" setup will be able to pick Xbox Game Pass Ultimate or Premium as a plan perk. Microsoft says it's the first time Game Pass has been offered through a US wireless plan, Pure Xbox reports. That covers play on Xbox consoles, PC, smart TVs and cloud streaming. It works a lot like a deal Xbox already runs with EE in the UK.
Source: Pure Xbox
Acer Predator Atlas 8 (image via The Verge / Acer)
Acer's Predator Atlas 8 handheld hits the US for $1,299.99
Acer is bringing a Predator gaming handheld to the US for the first time. The Intel Arc G3 Extreme version of the Predator Atlas 8 goes on sale November 1 at Best Buy for $1,299.99, the same price as the Xbox Ally X20, The Verge reports. It packs Arc B390 graphics, 24GB of RAM and an 8-inch 120Hz screen, and it runs Windows 11 with Game Pass support. Best Buy's first batch of preorders has already sold out, and online orders reopen on launch day.
Source: The Verge
Dark Messiah of Might and Magic (image via PC Gamer / Ubisoft)
Dark Messiah's free Community Edition, with co-op and cut content, is coming to Steam
Dark Messiah of Might and Magic is getting a big fan-made upgrade with official backing. WiltOS Technologies moved the 2006 first-person action game to the latest Source engine for a free Community Edition. It adds co-op, restored cut content and maps that used to be console-only, and folds in popular mods. Ubisoft even hosted the team at Ubisoft Montreal to help bring those console extras to PC, PC Gamer reports. The Steam page is now live, and it's due before the end of 2026.
Source: PC Gamer
Vice City Bean's Leonida blend (image via GameSpot / Vice City Bean)
You can now drink official GTA 6 coffee, if you're near Miami
Here's one more piece of GTA 6 merch. Miami roaster Vice City Bean has teamed up with Rockstar on a limited "Leonida" blend, named after the game's version of Florida. It's a medium roast that mixes Colombian and Ethiopian beans, and a 10oz bag costs $23 before shipping, GameSpot reports. The company's three Miami shops have also picked up GTA 6 branding, and GameSpot says officially branded GTA 6 beer looks to be on the way too.
Source: GameSpot
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