Just how different will Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag Resynced look on PS5 compared to how the previous version looked on PS4? Will Dragon Ball Xenoverse 3 be any easier to parse than its predecessor? And will Pragmata prove to be a beacon of hope, or the last gasp of an old way of making and selling games?
It’s your Morning Checkpoint for April 20, 2026, where we are excited to reveal our newest hire: Rebekah Valentine, formerly senior reporter at IGN. You might have already read her first post on the site covering the Elden Ring movie news earlier today. I think Kotaku is good, but it’s about to get even better.
It’s nice to see Capcom’s new sci-fi, not a “sad dad” shooter being successful, if for no other reason than it proves big publishers can still take chances on new franchises with novel gameplay twists and unconventional premises and not get utterly clobbered by the grim hellscape that is the current video game market.
It’s not the outcome you’d expect for a game that didn’t click during its original reveal and was subsequently delayed “into oblivion.” It proves Capcom is on a hot streak at the moment, but also that you don’t have to be a gravity-distorting AAA blockbuster to have a chance at success, especially when publisher expectations are calibrated accordingly.
It no doubt helps that Pragmata came to every console platform and had a stellar Steam launch, and that it’s not a full-priced game. Whether Capcom chipped $10 off the box price because it’s a shorter linear adventure or to juice sales after so many years of development hell is anyone’s guess. But the result definitely reminded me of the PS2 days.
Bandai Namco’s secret new Dragon Ball game is Dragon Ball Xenoverse 3
The publisher made a bunch of announcements during the Battle Hour esports event in Los Angeles over the weekend, including that its next DBZ game is a sequel to the franchise, where players create their own character and explore a new variation of the traditional DBZ world/timeline. It’s sort of like an MMO that revolves around fighting-game-style 3D arena battles.
If you’re wondering why Bandai Namco keeps going back to this well, it’s probably because there are more microtransactions than you can shake a Power Pole at. The publisher even released a little guide earlier this year to help players figure out what they need to buy in what order to get the full experience.
Square Enix takes legal action against a fan’s videos
The company shared a notice on April 20 that it had taken legal action against someone posting videos harassing people involved in the making of Final Fantasy XIV. It claimed the user had published content which harmed the reputation of the company and employees involved in the MMO. Automaton reports an “amicable settlement with the user” has been reached.
Ubisoft reveals a tease for an announcement of a remake of a 13-year-old game
We’ll finally get our first good look at Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced during a World Premiere Showcase on April 23 at 12:00 p.m. ET. It’s likely to be Ubisoft’s biggest release of 2026, and potentially the only major one, as games like the Splinter Cell remake and next Ghost Recon keep reportedly slipping internal milestones.
There’s also an ID@Xbox showcase this week
It’ll air on April 23 at 1:00 p.m. ET, immediately after the Ubisoft event. The showcase, which is hosted by IGN, promises updates on Mistfall Hunter, There Are No Ghosts at the Grand, Aphelion, Solo Leveling Arise Overdrive, and more.
Take-Two’s CEO takes a shot at AI and Elon Musk
Asked about the technology during a recent Semafor World Economy 2026 panel, Strauss Zelnick quipped that if AI was going to immediately take anyone’s job, it would probably be Musk’s. “He has unlimited financial resources and he has unlimited human resources and he has, apparently, an unlimited amount of ideas; he also knows his way around AI,” the executive in charge of Rockstar Games’ parent company said.
He continued, “The man works 20 hours a day, if AI were going to take anyone’s job wouldn’t it take his job, the richest guy on Earth? Wouldn’t that be like job number one for AI to take? Why is he so busy?” Before that, Zelnick made the point that people once predicted digital technology would remove all paper from office work. Instead, he pointed out, office jobs now use more paper in aggregate than ever before.
Here’s the teaser for the Unreal Engine Rogue Trooper movie
It’s directed by Duncan Jones, who directed the Warcraft movie, and stars Hayley Atwell, Aneurin Barnard, Jack Lowden, Jemaine Clement, Matt Berry, and Sean Bean. It’s based on the 2000 A.D. comic about genetic soldiers with minds uploaded into their gear and it was made entirely in Epic’s Unreal Engine 5.
Age verification comes to PlayStation
Insider Gaming reports that Sony plans to lock underage users out of messaging and chat features moving forward. It’s not yet clear how the new requirements will be implemented, but it follows similar rollouts in Fortnite and Roblox as regulators around the world double down on online child safety.
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