It’s a big week for updates. Splatoon 3, Kirby Air Riders, and Helldivers 2 all have new content coming. Unfortunately, none of those patches include physical trading cards with energy drink inside. It’s another edition of Morning Checkpoint, Kotaku‘s daily roundup of gaming news, rumors, and culture. Meet Spout, the newest AI robot getting “snatched up” by Disney and others because it can dance and clean up toys. I can’t wait for it to visit Philly.
Street Fighter 6 gets drinkable trading cards
＼UHA味覚糖×近畿大学 共同開発／
「カード型」ノンカフェ濃縮エナジー補給【ENERGY ARTS】STREET FIGHTER 6コラボ🔥
⚔️勝負の一瞬を新たな“切り札”と共に🎮Makuake開始まで
⚡️あと1️⃣日‼️
詳細👉https://t.co/AOiTrM5cMy#エナジーアーツ #UHA味覚糖 #ストリートファイター6 #スト6 #Makuake pic.twitter.com/auxpadSggN
— UHA味覚糖【公式】 (@UMikakuto) January 22, 2026
New energy drink trading cards will let Ryu, Chun-Li, and others restore your real-life HP with sweet flavors and strange chemicals. They were crowdfunded and target competitive esports players. They’re only available in Japan (for now) and function as loot boxes so you won’t know which one you’re getting until you open the packaging. That way you can collect them all and bestow them to your great grandkids as proof of our 21st century decadence. Finally, an easier way to consume energy drinks!
“When playing games, taking an exam, in a meeting, or driving a car—in situations that require concentration, many people face the challenge of refueling, which equates to a break in concentration. ENERGY ARTS addresses this issue by thoroughly pursuing the goal of ‘an effortless way to replenish energy,’” the announcement claims. “Simply pick it up, snap it open with one hand, and suck it up. The series of actions of ‘opening, holding, drinking, putting it away’ has been eliminated as much as possible. Energy charging is completed in just 0.5 seconds, achieving a ‘transparent’ UX (user experience) that makes the act of refueling unconscious.”
Kirby Air Riders gets another big update
Ver. 1.3.0 adds support for GameShare, a new Grand Prix game mode, and a bunch of other tweaks, including some character balancing and a bunch of bug fixes. Director Masahiro Sakurai said the goal is to get the Switch 2 exclusive to a solid place and then leave it be.
A refresh of Splatoon 3 is coming this month as well
A free 11.0.0 update goes live on January 29. It adds a new Flow Aura state that spreads extra ink for a short time after players get a kill streak. It also brings changes to hit detection, opponent health bar notifications, and a new Stealth Jump gear ability to prevent the enemy team from seeing where players land.
Helldivers 2‘s new Warbond hints at the return of Cyborgs
They were an enemy faction back in the first game. There are also a bunch of new weapons coming February 3 including a Trident shotgun, grenade machine gun, and a breaching hammer that blows things up.
The Stop Killing Games movement hits a new milestone
The campaign to encourage game makers to explore more options for keeping games alive after launch has surpassed the 1 million verified signatures needed to trigger a regulatory response in the European Union. “The Commission has until 27 July 2026 to present its official reply, outlining the actions it intends to take, if any,” a press release announced this week. “The Commission will meet the organizers to discuss the initiative in detail in the coming weeks. A public hearing will then be organized by the European Parliament.”
The Dynasty Warriors 3 remaster is indefinitely delayed
The PS2 classic won’t return on March 19 as previously planned. Publisher Koei Tecmo says it needs more time to “improve the quality” of the game.
The Switch 2 could be a JRPG powerhouse
Leaker NateTheHate claimed on his latest podcast that Final Fantasy XVI, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, and Metaphor: Refantazio are all slated to get Switch 2 ports. If the console can run it, I’m sure companies will put their games there. And so far at least, the Switch 2 is looking very capable.
