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Logitech G Heavy Equipment Bundle: One-minute review

The Farming Simulator crowd is a pretty diehard one, but unlike the sim racing community they aren’t blessed with a world of choice when it comes to dedicated peripherals and accessories. The Logitech G Heavy Equipment Bundle is one of the few options available with a combination of a wheel, pedals, and input-rich side panel.

The wheel and pedals are pretty stock standard, bordering on being a little underwhelming. Both are made entirely of plastic with a real hollow feeling and no reassuring weight to them. There’s no force feedback on offer here either, instead the wheel relies on a tightly sprung return mechanism to recentre the wheel in a pretty aggressive and haphazard way. The pedals also lack any kind of resistance, both the accelerator and brake feel the same under foot with an identical size and travel. It all has a very arcade vibe but at least it gets the job done.

The control panel is a different story altogether, so much so it almost feels at odds with the rest of the Logitech G Heavy Equipment Bundle. Once again it’s all plastic, but it’s much more solid and each of the 24 buttons are snappy and responsive. The front loader joystick is the highlight on the entire bundle, it feels premium and offers a great level of control.

I fired up Farming Simulator 25 and was delighted to see how well the Logitech G Heavy Equipment Bundle was pre-mapped. Not only was the entire setup recognized immediately, it was truly plug and play with every in-game control for every machine I tried already configured out of the box. It made the experience far more welcoming than the Thrustmaster FarmStick X which required almost entirely manual setup before I could begin working the fields.

The lack of force feedback meant it wasn’t exactly a realistic experience, the entire time I spent behind the wheel I was fully aware it was essentially a toy, but it made me enjoy my farming a trailer-load more than when I’ve played with a controller or keyboard and mouse.

(Image credit: Future)Logitech G Heavy Equipment Bundle: Price and availability

• List price: $329.99 / £229.99 / €289.99
• Side panel also available separately as a standalone device
• Previously sold as the Saitek Heavy Equipment Bundle

Just like a scarecrow standing alone in a field, the Logitech G Heavy Equipment Bundle seems to cast a pretty lonely figure in the category of farming simulation gear.

Racers are blessed with an abundant range of wheels but it's rare to see such a focused piece of tech. Much like that experienced, old scarecrow, the Logitech G Heavy Equipment Bundle is somewhat of a veteran at this stage too. Celebrating its 10th birthday in 2025, this wheel and button box combo was originally released by sim hardware manufacturer Saitek shortly before its acquisition by Logitech back in 2016.

Logi then rebadged and re-released the Heavy Equipment Bundle under its Logitech G brand a couple of years later and it remains as one of the only dedicated farming sim rigs in the market. Little has changed since the original, you’ll still get a three-piece bundle of a wheel, pedals and side panel, and the price remains close to what it was at a reasonably steep $329.99 / £229.99 / €289.99. If you’ve already got a wheel and pedals, the side panel is available on its own for $169.99 / £139.99 / €169.99.

This sees the Logitech G Heavy Equipment bundle come in a chunk cheaper than its only major competitor, the Hori Farming Vehicle Control System, which will set you back just shy of $400. It also keeps it in-line with the sim racing staple Logitech G920, which does away with the side panel in favor of a higher-quality wheel. If you play more than just Farming Simulator it may be worth looking at that standalone option and spending a little more to pick up a higher quality wheel.

(Image credit: Future)Logitech G Heavy Equipment Bundle: Specs

Dimensions

Wheel: 13.98 x 10.83 x 12.60in / 355 x 275 x 320mm (HxWxD)

Pedals: 5.43 x 9.17 x 7.09in / 138 x 233 x 180mm (HxWxD)

Side Panel: 7.56 x 6.61 x 13.27in / 192 x 168 x 337mm (HxWxD)

Weight

Wheel: 4.19lb / 1902g

Pedals: 1.26lb / 572g

Side Panel: 2.56lb / 1160g

Mappable Buttons

Wheel: 10

Side Panel: 24

Sticks

Wheel: 2

Side Panel: 1

Pedals

2

Throttle Controls

1

Platform Compatibility

PC (Windows 11/10, MacOS)

Box Contents

Heavy equipment wheel with 6.6ft/2m USB connector cable, Gas and brake pedal set with 6ft/1.8m USB connector cable, Side panel control deck with 6.6ft/2m USB connector cable

(Image credit: Future)Logitech G Heavy Equipment Bundle: Design and features

• 900° rotating steering wheel with spinner knob
• More than 30 mappable buttons plus throttle control wheel
• Dual-mode joystick

While it may have arrived in a large box featuring Logitech’s slick, modern G branding, the Heavy Equipment Bundle itself is distinctly old school. This combo is now a decade old and it shows every bit of that age. There’s an instant giveaway too, the product photo on the box is noticeably low resolution and I wouldn’t be surprised if it was the same one that Saitek was using all those years ago. First impressions certainly weren’t excellent.

This experience wasn’t quickly improved when opening the box either. Call me a packaging snob but I’m a sucker for a slick unboxing experience and I wasn’t granted that here. There’s not much going on in there and it was all flanked by basic, thin brown cardboard. I know Logitech isn’t pitching this as a premium device but if I’d invested more than $300 on it I’d feel a little short changed.

It’s a simple bundle but has everything you need to get going, no extra gear required. You’ll also often find it bundled with a copy of Farming Simulator too which is a nice touch. In the box is an 11” wheel with an integrated table clamp, built-in USB-A cable and a fixed spinner knob.

A two-pedal accelerator and brake pedal set connects to the wheelbase with an included cable, while the side panel also includes an attached clamp and its own USB-A cable. It means needing to offer up two ports on your PC, though also allows the side panel to be used independently from the wheel as your PC will see them as two entirely separate devices. That’s mainly a blessing but also a slight curse, more on why later.

Build quality is disappointingly average across most of the Heavy Equipment Bundle. For something with ‘heavy’ in its name the whole thing is unbelievably light and rather cheap feeling. It’s plastic everywhere you look and I constantly found myself wanting for the smallest smidgen of rubberisation, upholstery or even just a little embossed texture.

The Logitech G Heavy Equipment Bundle wheel features a mirrored layout with four buttons and two thumb sticks on each side. These are nicely positioned and reasonably sized and I had no problem reaching and accurately using them while working the farm. Around the back of the wheel are two further buttons that while well placed, are irritatingly loose and loud. I streamed my Farming Simulator 25 gameplay on Twitch and had multiple comments from viewers about just how intrusive those rear button clacks were.

The side panel is much better in this regard and almost feels at odds with the wheel and pedal set. While not mechanical, each button is much more solid with no rattle or wobble, and they’re nearly arranged with plenty of space between each. Presses are firm but responsive with a gentle tactile bump and audible click. It’s all very pleasant. The dual-mode joystick is a nice size and has enough resistance to offer fine control without feeling like a workout. I’d have liked a little more strength to the resistance of the throttle wheel, but for how often it’s used it’s perfectly passable too.

(Image credit: Future)Logitech G Heavy Equipment Bundle: Performance

• Plug and play for Farming Simulator titles
• Centre-sprung wheel has no force feedback
• Loads of customization potential

It may not actually mention farming anywhere in its official title, but the Logitech G Heavy Equipment Bundle’s intentions are clear—all it really wants to do is help you plough, sow, and harvest. This is a dedicated farming wheel in all but name.

You’ll need to be establishing your homestead on a computer though because the Logitech G Heavy Equipment Bundle offers no console support whatsoever. The good news is there’s compatibility with both Windows and MacOS, somewhat of a rarity in the gaming world. It’s also impressively plug and play, so much so it wasn’t even recognized by Logitech’s G Hub, so there isn’t even an app to install before you can hop in the game.

Logitech has worked in partnership with developer Giants Software on the Heavy Equipment Bundle so it’s in the natively supported Farming Simulator 25 where I spent most of my time behind the wheel. Firing the game up for the first time I was delighted to immediately be greeted by not only a fully–pre-configured wheel and side panel, but the game also showing me correctly labelled inputs alongside menu items.

I was able to navigate straight through menus and into a new save without ever touching my keyboard or mouse, relying mainly on the thumb stick and button set on the wheel itself.

Arriving on the farm I jumped straight into the nearest truck to test out the most basic driving controls. They worked just fine, but as someone used to using pretty high-spec sim racing gear I found the Logitech G Heavy Equipment Bundle wheel to be incredibly toylike.

There’s no force feedback or even basic rumble effect, just an overly keen centre spring that offers a tiny amount of resistance when steering but sends the wheel rubber-banding back to a default position like a cartoon saloon door. It’s not exactly immersive but I’ll concede it’s far more fun than using a controller or keyboard and I’d still rather use this wheel than no wheel at all.

(Image credit: Future)

Jumping over to some more complicated agricultural machinery is where things got more confusing. Every button was bound and they were all labelled in game, that was good, but the problem was both the Heavy Equipment Bundle wheel and side panel use the same input numbers and the game rarely told me which it was referring to. It seemed as if it only wanted to show me wheel labels rather than side panel numbers, a slight problem given it has some three times more inputs to remember. It meant blindly pressing just about every button to work out what did what and then needing to memorize them.

There is an incredible amount of customisation potential here though and even just using the default button maps I had a blast. I can imagine experienced digital farmers getting a huge amount of value from the Logitech G Heavy Equipment Bundle side panel, particularly if you took the time to refine the input layout to something a little more memorable.

In my testing it was the dual-mode joystick that proved the standout addition. Controlling the intricate movements of an excavator arm felt natural, and more importantly, incredibly fun. I did need to go in and rebind a couple of movements here to gain full control, but once I did you’d have a hard time dragging me out of the driver’s seat.

The fundamental gameplay improvements brought about by the joystick made me long for a little more input variety because beyond this (and the basic throttle wheel) the Heavy Equipment Bundle side panel is just an array of simple buttons. There are four of what appear initially to be two-state switches, but are actually just buttons in costume with a switch-style keycap.

Given how many farming systems are two-state, think raising and lowering a harvester head or extending and retracting an auger, this functionality would have been very welcome as it’s not always immediately obvious in game whether you’ve got your gear in the right position and having some real world visual feedback would have helped.

While a majority of my time with the Logitech G Heavy Equipment Bundle was spent in Farming Simulator 25, I also tried jumping over to a couple of other similar titles to see how it fared. Results were mixed. In Euro Truck Simulator 2 I had to manually configure every input, even down to simple left and right turn controls, though this was simple enough and the game recognized each input.

Motorway driving is rather dull without any level of force feedback however, so I probably wouldn’t recommend it. Roadcraft offered no functionality at all, though this is true of a lot of wheels so I’m inclined to lay blame more on the software side than the wheel itself.

(Image credit: Future)Should you buy the Logitech G Heavy Equipment Bundle?Buy it if...

You’re playing Farming Simulator with a controller or Keyboard
It may not be the best wheel and pedal set going, but I found the game considerably more enjoyable to play than with the Logitech G Heavy Equipment Bundle than without it.

You’re willing to dial it in
While there is plug-and-play button mapping for Farming Simulator titles, you’ll have a better overall experience if you take the time to manually configure button layouts to your liking. And more importantly, keep track of what’s bound to what.

Don't buy it if...

You’re looking for true realism
With its rather mediocre build quality and no force feedback whatsoever, I didn’t find the Heavy Equipment Bundle particularly immersive. It’s a good arcade toy but it’s far from a detailed piece of simulation hardware.

You’re looking to play more than just Farming Simulator
Some other titles will recognize the different components of the Heavy Simulator Bundle but plug-and-play compatible with other games is lacking and I found some wouldn’t work with the wheel at all.

Also consider...

Not sure if the Logitech G Heavy Equipment Bundle is the right choice?

Here are a couple of other flight stick options you might consider instead.

Logitech G Heavy Equipment Bundle

Thrustmaster SimTask FarmStick X

Thrustmaster Sol-R Flight Stick

Dimensions (HxWxD)

Wheel: 13.98 x 10.83 x 12.60in / 355 x 275 x 320mm

Pedals: 5.43 x 9.17 x 7.09in / 138 x 233 x 180mm

Side Panel: 7.56 x 6.61 x 13.27in / 192 x 168 x 337mm

9.1 x 7.5 x 7.3in / 230 x 190 x 185mm

9.72 x 7.71 x 7.71in / 247 x 196 x 196mm

Weight

Wheel: 4.19lb / 1902g

Pedals: 1.26lb / 572g

Side Panel: 2.56lb / 1160g

1.9 lb / 858g

2.79lb / 1270g

Mappable Buttons

25

33

21

Joystick Axis

3

3

6

Triggers

0

2

2

Throttle Controls

2

1

1

Platform Compatibility

PC

Xbox and PC (limited games on console)

PC

Box Contents

Heavy equipment wheel with 6.6ft/2m USB connector cable, Gas and brake pedal set with 6ft/1.8m USB connector cable, Side panel control deck with 6.6ft/2m USB connector cable

FarmStick X, Warranty flyer, USB-C to USB-A cable, Additional trigger cap

Sol-R base, Sol-R grip, Removable wrist rest, Thumb rest (+ 1 cover) for left-handed configuration, Stability supports, Detachable USB-C cable, Warranty information

Also consider Thrustmaster SimTask FarmStick X
If it’s the extra functionality of the side panel that interests you most, the Thrustmaster SimTask FarmStick X might be worth a look. Taking its cues from flight simulators, it compresses all those extra buttons into a tighter layout and wraps them around a large joystick. This grants efficiency at the expense of more traditional farm styling, and you’ll still need to grab a separate wheel, but we had a blast using it in Farming Simulator 25.

For more information, check out our full Thrumaster SimTask FarmStick X review

Also consider Thrustmaster Sol-R Flight Stick

Designed primarily for flying games, the Thrustmaster Sol-R flight stick can still do a handy job on the farm. It offers a range of programmable buttons around a large hall effect joystick and is available in a dual pack too. It could be a good choice if you’re looking to play more than just Farming Simulator 25, but you’ll still need to source a wheel and pedals.

For more information, check out our full Thrumaster Sol-R Flight Stick review.

(Image credit: Future)How I tested the Logitech G Heavy Equipment Bundle

• I clamped the bundle to my desk and spent hours playing Farming Simulator 25 on PC
• I tried a range of farmyard machinery and general controls
• I also checked performance in other, non-officially supported games

I added the Logitech G Heavy Equipment Bundle to my PC gaming setup featuring an Intel Core i9 14900k CPU and AMD Radeon 9070XT graphics card.

Setup was simple with integrated screw clamp mounts on both the wheel and side panel attaching firmly to my desk, with the pedals just resting on the floor. Both the wheel and side panel need their own USB connection, though both performed just fine when connected to either a USB hub or directly into my motherboard.

Most of my testing was focused on Farming Simulator 25 through Xbox GamePass where I tested the out-of-the-box button mappings of a range of vehicles for the first couple of hours. I then jumped into the in-game menus and made a few manual tweaks to check how simple things were to re-configure to my personal preference.

After ploughing a few fields I swapped over to RoadCraft and Euro Truck Simulator 2 to check performance in titles it’s not officially designed for.

First reviewed April 2025

Read more about how we test

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• Max, a Russia-developed messaging app, must be pre-installed on every new device from September 1
• The domestic RuStore app store is also to be forced onto Apple devices, after already being mandatory on Android
• Authorities are reportedly considering blocking WhatsApp, today's most popular messaging app in Russia

A Russia-developed messaging app must be pre-installed on every new smartphone and tablet sold in Russia starting from September 1, 2025 – the government confirmed on Thursday, August 21.

So-called Max, the WhatsApp rival, is also integrated with government services and has already reached 18 million registered users, according to Interfax.

Privacy experts have been raising the alarm, arguing that Max could spy on its users. Something that the Kremlin strongly denies, arguing that "it has fewer permissions to access user data than rivals WhatsApp and Telegram," Reuters reported.

As per the government announcement, on September 1, the domestic RuStore app store will also become mandatory on all Apple devices, having been forced only on Android gadgets so far.

Can people in Russia still use WhatsApp?

(Image credit: Shutterstock / Tada Images )

WhatsApp is currently the most popular messaging service across Russia, and the only Meta-owned app not blocked in the country.

This could soon change, however, as authorities have recently confirmed their intention to ban WhatsApp in Russia.

Talking to Reuters on Friday, July 18, Deputy Head of the Russian parliament's Information Technology Committee, Anton Gorelkin, said that "it's time for WhatsApp to prepare to leave the Russian market," while reminding that Meta has been designated as an extremist organization in Russia.

Two more government sources have then confirmed to Meduza, a Russian Independent media outlet, that "there’s a 99-percent chance" the WhatsApp block will happen.

Fast-forward to August 13, Interfax confirmed that authorities partially restrict calls on both Telegram and WhatsApp, allegedly as a measure to combat criminal and terrorist activities.

The looming WhatsApp ban comes as the Kremlin also recently passed a law to punish online searches for so-called 'extremist' content, while adding new penalties to those using VPN services.

This means that using one of the best VPN services to bypass a potential ban on WhatsApp, or any other app for that matter, has suddenly become ever more challenging.

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• Max, a Russia-developed messaging app, must be pre-installed on every new device from September 1
• The domestic RuStore app store is also to be forced onto Apple devices, after already being mandatory on Android
• Authorities are reportedly considering blocking WhatsApp, today's most popular messaging app in Russia

A Russia-developed messaging app must be pre-installed on every new smartphone and tablet sold in Russia starting from September 1, 2025 – the government confirmed on Thursday, August 21.

So-called Max, the WhatsApp rival, is also integrated with government services and has already reached 18 million registered users, according to Interfax.

Privacy experts have been raising the alarm, arguing that Max could spy on its users. Something that the Kremlin strongly denies, arguing that "it has fewer permissions to access user data than rivals WhatsApp and Telegram," Reuters reported.

As per the government announcement, on September 1, the domestic RuStore app store will also become mandatory on all Apple devices, having been forced only on Android gadgets so far.

Can people in Russia still use WhatsApp?

(Image credit: Shutterstock / Tada Images )

WhatsApp is currently the most popular messaging service across Russia, and the only Meta-owned app not blocked in the country.

This could soon change, however, as authorities have recently confirmed their intention to ban WhatsApp in Russia.

Talking to Reuters on Friday, July 18, Deputy Head of the Russian parliament's Information Technology Committee, Anton Gorelkin, said that "it's time for WhatsApp to prepare to leave the Russian market," while reminding that Meta has been designated as an extremist organization in Russia.

Two more government sources have then confirmed to Meduza, a Russian Independent media outlet, that "there’s a 99-percent chance" the WhatsApp block will happen.

Fast-forward to August 13, Interfax confirmed that authorities partially restrict calls on both Telegram and WhatsApp, allegedly as a measure to combat criminal and terrorist activities.

The looming WhatsApp ban comes as the Kremlin also recently passed a law to punish online searches for so-called 'extremist' content, while adding new penalties to those using VPN services.

This means that using one of the best VPN services to bypass a potential ban on WhatsApp, or any other app for that matter, has suddenly become ever more challenging.

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• Russia to invest over half a billion US dollars in its battle against VPN usage
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• One of Final Fantasy 14's most popular mods, Mare Synchronos, has shut down
• The plug-in's creator blamed a "legal enquiry"
• The game has since been review-bombed on Steam

Following a "legal enquiry", a popular third-party tool used for Final Fantasy 14 has shut down and now players are furious.

The tool, Mare Synchronos, was a plug-in that allowed users to sync and view other players' mods in-game, such as character customization, hair, clothing, and more, and had over 20,000 users.

Modding in Final Fantasy 14 has always been against the game's terms of service, though it is well-known in the community that it's best not to advertise the use of them if you want to avoid the ban hammer.

Unfortunately, it seems one of the most popular mods wasn't able to escape Square Enix's legal team.

The mod's creator announced the shutdown on their Discord (in a message that was posted to Reddit), saying, "See the sun set, the day is ending. With a heavy heart, I have to announce the end of Mare Synchronos as you know it. I've received a legal inquiry concerning the project. After reviewing my options with counsel, I'm winding down" (via GamesRadar).

The modder has explained that, effective immediately, registration to download the mod will be closed and bot services will be shut down, repositories for client, server, and api will be removed, and all Patreon/Ko-Fi memberships will be removed.

Since Mare was used by many players who mod the game, particularly those in the role-playing community, the announcement hasn't gone down well.

"Square Enix messing with their freaky fanbase is a bold strategy, let's see if it pays off," said one user in the Reddit thread.

"More reasons to never come back," another wrote. "People say mare was just for the ERPers, which sure lotsa people used it for that. But lemme say this... mare legit made it so I could get my character to actually present how I wanted him for my friends to see... warmer more diverse skin tones, hair editing, better hair colors, personally altering face bones and height etc and having that show up."

Mare's shut down has also resulted in Final Fantasy 14 being review-bombed on Steam. As of writing, the game is now sitting at "Mixed" reviews, with plenty of angry posts relating to the mod's takedown.

"I never messed with mods, but i had no issue with people using them because people really enjoyed their character creation mod options," one player said. "Square never had a problem with it before and now suddenly they rip this away from people. wont be coming back. if square wants to burn their game to the ground then let them."

"RIP Moon [Mare Synchronos], canceled my sub I've been paying for," said another. "Without Moon, it's not worth it for me personally."

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• One of Final Fantasy 14's most popular mods, Mare Synchronos, has shut down
• The plug-in's creator blamed a "legal enquiry"
• The game has since been review-bombed on Steam

Following a "legal enquiry", a popular third-party tool used for Final Fantasy 14 has shut down and now players are furious.

The tool, Mare Synchronos, was a plug-in that allowed users to sync and view other players' mods in-game, such as character customization, hair, clothing, and more, and had over 20,000 users.

Modding in Final Fantasy 14 has always been against the game's terms of service, though it is well-known in the community that it's best not to advertise the use of them if you want to avoid the ban hammer.

Unfortunately, it seems one of the most popular mods wasn't able to escape Square Enix's legal team.

The mod's creator announced the shutdown on their Discord (in a message that was posted to Reddit), saying, "See the sun set, the day is ending. With a heavy heart, I have to announce the end of Mare Synchronos as you know it. I've received a legal inquiry concerning the project. After reviewing my options with counsel, I'm winding down" (via GamesRadar).

The modder has explained that, effective immediately, registration to download the mod will be closed and bot services will be shut down, repositories for client, server, and api will be removed, and all Patreon/Ko-Fi memberships will be removed.

Since Mare was used by many players who mod the game, particularly those in the role-playing community, the announcement hasn't gone down well.

"Square Enix messing with their freaky fanbase is a bold strategy, let's see if it pays off," said one user in the Reddit thread.

"More reasons to never come back," another wrote. "People say mare was just for the ERPers, which sure lotsa people used it for that. But lemme say this... mare legit made it so I could get my character to actually present how I wanted him for my friends to see... warmer more diverse skin tones, hair editing, better hair colors, personally altering face bones and height etc and having that show up."

Mare's shut down has also resulted in Final Fantasy 14 being review-bombed on Steam. As of writing, the game is now sitting at "Mixed" reviews, with plenty of angry posts relating to the mod's takedown.

"I never messed with mods, but i had no issue with people using them because people really enjoyed their character creation mod options," one player said. "Square never had a problem with it before and now suddenly they rip this away from people. wont be coming back. if square wants to burn their game to the ground then let them."

"RIP Moon [Mare Synchronos], canceled my sub I've been paying for," said another. "Without Moon, it's not worth it for me personally."

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• Australian CommBank announced 45 workers would be replaced with AI
• However the decision has now been reversed after the AI failed to live up to humans
• Workers have received an apology from CommBank

Australia’s Commonwealth Bank has provided a useful example of how not to introduce AI tools after being forced into an embarassing clim-down.

The bank had recently announced 45 customer service workers would be cut and replaced with an AI-powered 'voice bot' in an effort to reduce call volumes and automate less complex replies - leaving a small number of employees to handle the remaining more complex enquiries.

As it turns out, these bots were not capable of handling the tasks that the workers could - and now, those cut employees will now be rehired.

The ‘backflip’

The bank claimed the ‘voice-bot’ led to a reduction in calls, but Australia's Finance Sector Union disputes this claim, noting, “Members told us this was an outright lie and did not reflect the reality of what was happening in Direct Banking. Call volumes were in fact increasing and CBA was scrambling to manage the situation by offering staff overtime and directing Team Leaders to answer calls."

The bank issued an apology to the staff who were affected by the proposed job cuts and reversed the decision. A spokesperson from the bank told TechRadar Pro that it's initial assessment 'did not adequately consider all relevant business considerations and this error meant the roles were not redundant.'

"We have apologised to the employees concerned and acknowledge we should have been more thorough in our assessment of the roles required. We are currently supporting affected employees and have provided them with choice regarding continuing in their current roles, pursuing redeployment within CBA or to proceed with leaving the organisation."

That being said, CommBank is not denouncing the tech entirely, having recently announced a partnership with OpenAI to develop scam and fraud detection solutions, as well as ‘deliver more personalized services’ for its customers.

For months, concerns about job losses at the hands of AI were dismissed, with companies assuring that only the most basic and mundane admin tasks would be handled by bots, leaving workers to focus on the more creative aspects of their roles.

Those in administrative positions who handle almost exclusively mundane tasks have warned that these models, although sometimes useful, cannot replace human experience and understanding.

It’s undeniable that AI is replacing workers, with hundreds of jobs at firms like IBM and Crowdstrike disappearing as humans have been made more dispensable thanks to the tech.

But, not all of these cost-cutting decisions are working out. In the UK, over half of all businesses who replaced workers with AI already regret their decision, and are not less likely to believe that AI will replace human workers.

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• Australian CommBank announced 45 workers would be replaced with AI
• However the decision has now been reversed after the AI failed to live up to humans
• Workers have received an apology from CommBank

Australia’s Commonwealth Bank has provided a useful example of how not to introduce AI tools after being forced into an embarassing clim-down.

The bank had recently announced 45 customer service workers would be cut and replaced with an AI-powered 'voice bot' in an effort to reduce call volumes and automate less complex replies - leaving a small number of employees to handle the remaining more complex enquiries.

As it turns out, these bots were not capable of handling the tasks that the workers could - and now, those cut employees will now be rehired.

The ‘backflip’

The bank claimed the ‘voice-bot’ led to a reduction in calls, but Australia's Finance Sector Union disputes this claim, noting, “Members told us this was an outright lie and did not reflect the reality of what was happening in Direct Banking. Call volumes were in fact increasing and CBA was scrambling to manage the situation by offering staff overtime and directing Team Leaders to answer calls."

The bank issued an apology to the staff who were affected by the proposed job cuts and reversed the decision. A spokesperson from the bank told TechRadar Pro that it's initial assessment 'did not adequately consider all relevant business considerations and this error meant the roles were not redundant.'

"We have apologised to the employees concerned and acknowledge we should have been more thorough in our assessment of the roles required. We are currently supporting affected employees and have provided them with choice regarding continuing in their current roles, pursuing redeployment within CBA or to proceed with leaving the organisation."

That being said, CommBank is not denouncing the tech entirely, having recently announced a partnership with OpenAI to develop scam and fraud detection solutions, as well as ‘deliver more personalized services’ for its customers.

For months, concerns about job losses at the hands of AI were dismissed, with companies assuring that only the most basic and mundane admin tasks would be handled by bots, leaving workers to focus on the more creative aspects of their roles.

Those in administrative positions who handle almost exclusively mundane tasks have warned that these models, although sometimes useful, cannot replace human experience and understanding.

It’s undeniable that AI is replacing workers, with hundreds of jobs at firms like IBM and Crowdstrike disappearing as humans have been made more dispensable thanks to the tech.

But, not all of these cost-cutting decisions are working out. In the UK, over half of all businesses who replaced workers with AI already regret their decision, and are not less likely to believe that AI will replace human workers.

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The Blues look to turn up the heat on Graham Potter's under-pressure Hammers.

It's been three and a half years since Peacemaker took the world by storm.

The Suicide Squad spin-off series, which saw John Cena reprise his role as the jingoistic anti-hero from that 2021 flick in the character's self-titled TV show, was a big hit. Armed with the usual trappings of a James Gunn project, the arrival of the season 1 finale in February 2022 broke the at-the-time record for the highest single day viewership of an HBO Max original episode. Not bad going for a show starring a C-list tier metahuman from DC Comics.

But Peacemaker's first season had a trick up its sleeve that supercharged its success weeks prior to the launch of its last episode: a dance number-inspired title sequence. The 80-second long intro, which saw its full cast amusingly perform a highly-polished, choreographed routine set to Wig Wam track 'Do You Wanna Taste It?', was surprising as it was delightful. Four billion views on TikTok later, and writer/director James Gunn, Cena, and company had an unexpected viral sensation on their hands.

With a second season – one set in the rebooted DC Universe (DCU) overseen by Gunn and fellow DC Studios co-CEO Peter Safran, rather than the now-defunct DC Extended Universe (DCEU) – greenlit not long after its forebear's finale, one question dominated fans' minds. Well, the one that has nothing to do with whether events from Peacemaker season 1 would be deemed canon in season 2 and the wider DCU, anyway: would the show's sophomore outing have its own similarly dance-infused intro?

The short answer is: yes. And, with the first episode of Peacemaker season 2, titled 'The Ties That Grind' out now, viewers can finally watch it in all of its glory.

What many fans won't realize and/or potentially underappreciate, though, is the amount of time, effort, and energy that went into this season's more intricate and more ambitious opener. And, after three gruelling years of putting said sequence together, Gunn and the show's ensemble are finally ready to reveal all.

'Julian, it's a hungry world...'

John Cena and company dance along to 'Oh Lord' by Foxy Shazam during this season's intro sequence (Image credit: HBO Max)

Last season's intro owed much to Gunn's uncanny knack – nay, superpower – to select the right track for any given scene or sequence in projects he writes, directs, and/or produces. A self-confessed music nerd, almost every one of Gunn's works, such as the Guardians of the Galaxy film trilogy he wrote and directed for Marvel, are full of catchy yet underrated songs who've become part of the cultural zeitgeist following their use in said productions.

The pressure to select the perfect ditty to set season 2's dance opener to, then, was certainly on. And, while Gunn tells me this season's song of choice – 'Oh Lord' by glam-rock outfit Foxy Shazam – was eventually settled on because its lyrics tie into the themes of season 2, it wasn't the only option he umm-ed and arr-ed about.

"I don't know if any other songs came close [to being chosen]," Gunn admits. "[But] there were a couple of others I considered. There was another Foxy Shazam track and I also thought about using 'Do You Wanna Taste It?' again. But, at the end of the day, I picked 'Oh Lord' because it was the best fit for this season's tone, much like 'Do You Wanna Taste It?' was the right fit for season 1."

"You think hearing the same song over and over for 10 hours straight would get old, but it never did for me," Steve Agee, who plays John Economos, reveals with a laugh. "I really like the song, and some of the guys from Foxy Shazam came over while we were shooting the actual thing, so it was a lot of fun."

Going again from the top

The show's cast spent weeks preparing to film this season's opening sequence (Image credit: HBO Max)

With its title track locked in, work soon began on the actual dance that the cast would need to perform on the day (or, as you'll learn later, days).

Just as he did for one of the best HBO Max shows' first season, Gunn teamed up with Charissa Barton to create a completely new, multi-tiered sequence. Workshopping it with her husband Alan Tudyk, who's voiced various characters in the first two DCU Chapter One projects Superman and Creature Commandos, Barton soon settled on the movements that this season's near-20-strong cast would need to master.

An incredible amount of effort was put into the opening dance sequence of #Peacemaker this season. They made everyone, even Frank Grillo, look great. pic.twitter.com/oAAdye7rTwAugust 22, 2025

"Charissa worked it out ahead of time before getting approval from James," Agee explains. "Then, she meets with us one-on-one, or in groups of two or three, because there are sections to the dance. So, we'd go in with her to rehearse it, she'd record it, and then send the file to you so you can practise at home."

"We had a lot of individual and group rehearsal," Frank Grillo, who reprises his role as Rick Flag Sr from Gunn's Superman movie and Creature Commandos season 1, adds. "We were given plenty of homework to do, and I'm glad I got to work on it at home because the idea of being on stage with so many people, and being in sync, was something I didn't think I'd be comfortable with."

I've had the time of my liiiiiife! (Image credit: HBO Max)

Peacemaker 2's opening credits are certainly more complex than its predecessor's. Indeed, more people are involved this time around and, with the first season's dance sequence being so well received, there's an inevitable demand to make it bigger, bolder, and better than what's come before.

For Jennifer Holland, the gymnast-turned-actor who returns to play Emilia Harcourt, season 2's routine provided some particularly tricky moves for her to get right. Indeed, with this season further examining Harcourt and the titular character's 'will they, won't they' dynamic, Barton felt it was crucial to lean into this aspect of the story with a Dirty Dancing-inspired lift.

"There's a piece where I get to go on wires and do this little spin in the air, which was like a little Cirque du Soleil moment," Holland tells me, "But that lift was the most challenging thing I had to do. I didn't get to rehearse that much with John because he's so busy – you never know if you'll get to practise with him from one day to the next! But, his stunt double, Spencer Thomas, was so amazing. He made sure I was prepared so, by the time I got on set with John, I knew exactly what was expected of me."

Dance like everybody's watching

Peacemaker season 2's dance routine asked a lot of some of its cast (Image credit: HBO Max)

That prep work – "we rehearsed for weeks", Sol Rodríguez, who plays Sasha Bordeaux, admits – was, as the cast alludes to, was critical when it came to shooting the actual thing.

Unlike last season's single day shoot, the cast and crew were given two full days to get the new title sequence in the can. However, even with the extra time afforded to them, everyone involved faced some sort of challenge.

"We have many more bad dancers this season," Gunn says with a laugh. "Robert Patrick [who plays Auggie Smith] was the only one we had last time, so shout out to Frank, Tim Meadows [who plays Langston Fleury], and Michael Rooker [who portrays Red St. Wild] for stepping up and doing their best!"

"I had to dance in the Captain Triumph costume," David Denman, who plays Keith Smith, reveals. "That was a big challenge, but thankfully I didn't have to do much in it, especially with the helmet on."

"Dancing in a mask is trickier than you think," Freddie Stroma, who reprises his role as Adrian Chase/Vigilante, adds. "You can't really see, so most of the time you're worried you'll bump into someone or, if you're about to head off stage where it's really dark, you're trying to figure out where the edge is so you don't fall off.

The saying goes that "practise makes perfect", though, and it certainly pays off here. Well, unless you're Rooker, Gunn says a grin. "Re-watch it enough and you'll see what I mean," he teases.

Rooker's issues with staying in sync with his fellow actors aside, there's little doubt that season 2's title sequence is as wonderfully entertaining as last season's was – indeed, I said as much in my Peacemaker season 2 review. Despite its cast having to wear serious looks on their faces as part of the routine, it's evident they all enjoyed themselves, too.

"It was my last two days on set," Stroma explains. "I didn't get to do it last season, either, so I had nothing to compare it to. But, it was really fun to drop the accent I use in the show, relax, and just have a great time dancing."

"The whole shoot was amazing," Rodríguez says. "Having the full cast and James there, and all of these big personalities who love having a laugh, filming on a big soundstage and having music blasting away – I've never experienced anything like it."

"It's a full production," Danielle Brooks, who plays Leota Adebayo, adds. "James takes it all very seriously, but we had a blast. I can't wait to see all of our fans learning it."

Peacemaker season 2 episode 1 is out now on HBO Max and more of the world's best streaming services. Read my Peacemaker season 2 release schedule guide to see when new episodes will air.

It's been three and a half years since Peacemaker took the world by storm.

The Suicide Squad spin-off series, which saw John Cena reprise his role as the jingoistic anti-hero from that 2021 flick in the character's self-titled TV show, was a big hit. Armed with the usual trappings of a James Gunn project, the arrival of the season 1 finale in February 2022 broke the at-the-time record for the highest single day viewership of an HBO Max original episode. Not bad going for a show starring a C-list tier metahuman from DC Comics.

But Peacemaker's first season had a trick up its sleeve that supercharged its success weeks prior to the launch of its last episode: a dance number-inspired title sequence. The 80-second long intro, which saw its full cast amusingly perform a highly-polished, choreographed routine set to Wig Wam track 'Do You Wanna Taste It?', was surprising as it was delightful. Four billion views on TikTok later, and writer/director James Gunn, Cena, and company had an unexpected viral sensation on their hands.

With a second season – one set in the rebooted DC Universe (DCU) overseen by Gunn and fellow DC Studios co-CEO Peter Safran, rather than the now-defunct DC Extended Universe (DCEU) – greenlit not long after its forebear's finale, one question dominated fans' minds. Well, the one that has nothing to do with whether events from Peacemaker season 1 would be deemed canon in season 2 and the wider DCU, anyway: would the show's sophomore outing have its own similarly dance-infused intro?

The short answer is: yes. And, with the first episode of Peacemaker season 2, titled 'The Ties That Grind' out now, viewers can finally watch it in all of its glory.

What many fans won't realize and/or potentially underappreciate, though, is the amount of time, effort, and energy that went into this season's more intricate and more ambitious opener. And, after three gruelling years of putting said sequence together, Gunn and the show's ensemble are finally ready to reveal all.

'Julian, it's a hungry world...'

John Cena and company dance along to 'Oh Lord' by Foxy Shazam during this season's intro sequence (Image credit: HBO Max)

Last season's intro owed much to Gunn's uncanny knack – nay, superpower – to select the right track for any given scene or sequence in projects he writes, directs, and/or produces. A self-confessed music nerd, almost every one of Gunn's works, such as the Guardians of the Galaxy film trilogy he wrote and directed for Marvel, are full of catchy yet underrated songs who've become part of the cultural zeitgeist following their use in said productions.

The pressure to select the perfect ditty to set season 2's dance opener to, then, was certainly on. And, while Gunn tells me this season's song of choice – 'Oh Lord' by glam-rock outfit Foxy Shazam – was eventually settled on because its lyrics tie into the themes of season 2, it wasn't the only option he umm-ed and arr-ed about.

"I don't know if any other songs came close [to being chosen]," Gunn admits. "[But] there were a couple of others I considered. There was another Foxy Shazam track and I also thought about using 'Do You Wanna Taste It?' again. But, at the end of the day, I picked 'Oh Lord' because it was the best fit for this season's tone, much like 'Do You Wanna Taste It?' was the right fit for season 1."

"You think hearing the same song over and over for 10 hours straight would get old, but it never did for me," Steve Agee, who plays John Economos, reveals with a laugh. "I really like the song, and some of the guys from Foxy Shazam came over while we were shooting the actual thing, so it was a lot of fun."

Going again from the top

The show's cast spent weeks preparing to film this season's opening sequence (Image credit: HBO Max)

With its title track locked in, work soon began on the actual dance that the cast would need to perform on the day (or, as you'll learn later, days).

Just as he did for one of the best HBO Max shows' first season, Gunn teamed up with Charissa Barton to create a completely new, multi-tiered sequence. Workshopping it with her husband Alan Tudyk, who's voiced various characters in the first two DCU Chapter One projects Superman and Creature Commandos, Barton soon settled on the movements that this season's near-20-strong cast would need to master.

An incredible amount of effort was put into the opening dance sequence of #Peacemaker this season. They made everyone, even Frank Grillo, look great. pic.twitter.com/oAAdye7rTwAugust 22, 2025

"Charissa worked it out ahead of time before getting approval from James," Agee explains. "Then, she meets with us one-on-one, or in groups of two or three, because there are sections to the dance. So, we'd go in with her to rehearse it, she'd record it, and then send the file to you so you can practise at home."

"We had a lot of individual and group rehearsal," Frank Grillo, who reprises his role as Rick Flag Sr from Gunn's Superman movie and Creature Commandos season 1, adds. "We were given plenty of homework to do, and I'm glad I got to work on it at home because the idea of being on stage with so many people, and being in sync, was something I didn't think I'd be comfortable with."

I've had the time of my liiiiiife! (Image credit: HBO Max)

Peacemaker 2's opening credits are certainly more complex than its predecessor's. Indeed, more people are involved this time around and, with the first season's dance sequence being so well received, there's an inevitable demand to make it bigger, bolder, and better than what's come before.

For Jennifer Holland, the gymnast-turned-actor who returns to play Emilia Harcourt, season 2's routine provided some particularly tricky moves for her to get right. Indeed, with this season further examining Harcourt and the titular character's 'will they, won't they' dynamic, Barton felt it was crucial to lean into this aspect of the story with a Dirty Dancing-inspired lift.

"There's a piece where I get to go on wires and do this little spin in the air, which was like a little Cirque du Soleil moment," Holland tells me, "But that lift was the most challenging thing I had to do. I didn't get to rehearse that much with John because he's so busy – you never know if you'll get to practise with him from one day to the next! But, his stunt double, Spencer Thomas, was so amazing. He made sure I was prepared so, by the time I got on set with John, I knew exactly what was expected of me."

Dance like everybody's watching

Peacemaker season 2's dance routine asked a lot of some of its cast (Image credit: HBO Max)

That prep work – "we rehearsed for weeks", Sol Rodríguez, who plays Sasha Bordeaux, admits – was, as the cast alludes to, was critical when it came to shooting the actual thing.

Unlike last season's single day shoot, the cast and crew were given two full days to get the new title sequence in the can. However, even with the extra time afforded to them, everyone involved faced some sort of challenge.

"We have many more bad dancers this season," Gunn says with a laugh. "Robert Patrick [who plays Auggie Smith] was the only one we had last time, so shout out to Frank, Tim Meadows [who plays Langston Fleury], and Michael Rooker [who portrays Red St. Wild] for stepping up and doing their best!"

"I had to dance in the Captain Triumph costume," David Denman, who plays Keith Smith, reveals. "That was a big challenge, but thankfully I didn't have to do much in it, especially with the helmet on."

"Dancing in a mask is trickier than you think," Freddie Stroma, who reprises his role as Adrian Chase/Vigilante, adds. "You can't really see, so most of the time you're worried you'll bump into someone or, if you're about to head off stage where it's really dark, you're trying to figure out where the edge is so you don't fall off.

The saying goes that "practise makes perfect", though, and it certainly pays off here. Well, unless you're Rooker, Gunn says a grin. "Re-watch it enough and you'll see what I mean," he teases.

Rooker's issues with staying in sync with his fellow actors aside, there's little doubt that season 2's title sequence is as wonderfully entertaining as last season's was – indeed, I said as much in my Peacemaker season 2 review. Despite its cast having to wear serious looks on their faces as part of the routine, it's evident they all enjoyed themselves, too.

"It was my last two days on set," Stroma explains. "I didn't get to do it last season, either, so I had nothing to compare it to. But, it was really fun to drop the accent I use in the show, relax, and just have a great time dancing."

"The whole shoot was amazing," Rodríguez says. "Having the full cast and James there, and all of these big personalities who love having a laugh, filming on a big soundstage and having music blasting away – I've never experienced anything like it."

"It's a full production," Danielle Brooks, who plays Leota Adebayo, adds. "James takes it all very seriously, but we had a blast. I can't wait to see all of our fans learning it."

Peacemaker season 2 episode 1 is out now on HBO Max and more of the world's best streaming services. Read my Peacemaker season 2 release schedule guide to see when new episodes will air.

• Gamescom congress broke its attendance record this year
• The conference featured over 1000 guests and over 180 expert speakers
• This year's event focused on three topics: Games and WellBeing, The Next Level of Immersion, and Games and Responsibility

Gamescom congress, Europe's leading conference on the potential of computer and video games for society and the economy, has broken its attendance record this year.

Gamescom 2025 is almost at an end and was filled with plenty of new game announcements, trailers, and updates. Meanwhile, the annual Gamescom congress conference has broken record attendance with over 1,000 guests and featuring over 180 experts in business, science, politics, and media who gave talks and panel discussions on how games promote social and technological progress.

This year's conference focused on three topics: Games and WellBeing, The Next Level of Immersion, and Games and Responsibility. To highlight these subjects, Gamescom congress 2025 offered a diverse program of talks and panel discussions on the role of games across the entire social spectrum.

Renowned names such as the founder and former CEO of Unity and climate activist David Helgason, CEO of ThrivePal Y-Lan Boureau, Celia Hodent, PhD in game UX, Soihtu DTx CEO Jukka Laakso, and others revealed the potential of computer and video games in a wide variety of areas, such as serving as technological and economic drivers, educating people about migration and democracy, enhancing well-being, and promoting environmental and climate protection.

"Games are perfect entertainment, and it is precisely thanks to this unique power that they also have a positive impact in numerous other areas – whether in political education, medicine, industry, or science," said Felix Falk, managing director of game – the German games industry association, co-organizer of the Gamescom congress.

"With record participation among speakers and visitors, as well as numerous high-profile keynotes and panels, the Gamescom congress once again impressively highlighted the strength of games with international appeal."

In addition, a panel called "Get ready, get set, go! How Germany wants to compete at the top worldwide" was also held in an effort to debate how Germany can benefit from games.

"The Gamescom congress definitely demonstrated how diverse and socially relevant the debates surrounding games are," said Gerald Böse, CEO of Koelnmesse GmbH. "It brings together players from a wide variety of fields and makes Cologne an international meeting place for forward-looking ideas in computer and video games. The congress has once again proven its role as a bridge between industry, business, and society."

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• Gamescom congress broke its attendance record this year
• The conference featured over 1000 guests and over 180 expert speakers
• This year's event focused on three topics: Games and WellBeing, The Next Level of Immersion, and Games and Responsibility

Gamescom congress, Europe's leading conference on the potential of computer and video games for society and the economy, has broken its attendance record this year.

Gamescom 2025 is almost at an end and was filled with plenty of new game announcements, trailers, and updates. Meanwhile, the annual Gamescom congress conference has broken record attendance with over 1,000 guests and featuring over 180 experts in business, science, politics, and media who gave talks and panel discussions on how games promote social and technological progress.

This year's conference focused on three topics: Games and WellBeing, The Next Level of Immersion, and Games and Responsibility. To highlight these subjects, Gamescom congress 2025 offered a diverse program of talks and panel discussions on the role of games across the entire social spectrum.

Renowned names such as the founder and former CEO of Unity and climate activist David Helgason, CEO of ThrivePal Y-Lan Boureau, Celia Hodent, PhD in game UX, Soihtu DTx CEO Jukka Laakso, and others revealed the potential of computer and video games in a wide variety of areas, such as serving as technological and economic drivers, educating people about migration and democracy, enhancing well-being, and promoting environmental and climate protection.

"Games are perfect entertainment, and it is precisely thanks to this unique power that they also have a positive impact in numerous other areas – whether in political education, medicine, industry, or science," said Felix Falk, managing director of game – the German games industry association, co-organizer of the Gamescom congress.

"With record participation among speakers and visitors, as well as numerous high-profile keynotes and panels, the Gamescom congress once again impressively highlighted the strength of games with international appeal."

In addition, a panel called "Get ready, get set, go! How Germany wants to compete at the top worldwide" was also held in an effort to debate how Germany can benefit from games.

"The Gamescom congress definitely demonstrated how diverse and socially relevant the debates surrounding games are," said Gerald Böse, CEO of Koelnmesse GmbH. "It brings together players from a wide variety of fields and makes Cologne an international meeting place for forward-looking ideas in computer and video games. The congress has once again proven its role as a bridge between industry, business, and society."

You might also like...

• Here are the three biggest things we learned from the Hollow Knight: Silksong release date trailer
• Everything announced at Gamescom Opening Night Live 2025 from the Sekiro anime to the new Ghost of Yotei mode
• New Resident Evil Requiem gameplay teaser solidifies it as my most anticipated game of 2026 so far

• Post-launch DLC is planned for Hollow Knight: Silksong
• Now that Silksong has a release date, Team Cherry said it's planning on adding new content, some of which is "ambitious"
• Silksong releases on September 4 this year

Team Cherry has confirmed it has plans to add new content to Hollow Knight: Silksong post-launch.

Speaking in an interview with Bloomberg following the long-awaited release date announcement, studio co-founders Ari Gibson and William Pellen teased plans to release downloadable content (DLC) in the months and years ahead.

"Launching it is obviously quite exciting," said Pellen. "What comes after for us is equally as exciting."

Gibson added, "The most interesting thing now is what can we add to it next. We got a plan. Admittedly, some of the plans for that stuff are kind of ambitious as well, but hopefully we can achieve some of it."

The first Hollow Knight also received a number of post-launch updates in the form of four free DLC packs, Hidden Dreams, The Grimm Troupe, Lifeblood, and Godmaster, so hopefully, Silksong is in for the same treatment.

In case you missed it, Hollow Knight: Silksong will officially launch on September 4, 2025, for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X and Series S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC, the Asus ROG Xbox Ally, and ROG Xbox Ally X.

The announcement was made during a special broadcast where Team Cherry also released a full-length gameplay trailer showcasing all-new features, like a crafting system, and confirmed that the game will have over 40 legendary boss encounters.

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• Here are the three biggest things we learned from the Hollow Knight: Silksong release date trailer
• Everything announced at Gamescom Opening Night Live 2025 from the Sekiro anime to the new Ghost of Yotei mode
• New Resident Evil Requiem gameplay teaser solidifies it as my most anticipated game of 2026 so far

• Post-launch DLC is planned for Hollow Knight: Silksong
• Now that Silksong has a release date, Team Cherry said it's planning on adding new content, some of which is "ambitious"
• Silksong releases on September 4 this year

Team Cherry has confirmed it has plans to add new content to Hollow Knight: Silksong post-launch.

Speaking in an interview with Bloomberg following the long-awaited release date announcement, studio co-founders Ari Gibson and William Pellen teased plans to release downloadable content (DLC) in the months and years ahead.

"Launching it is obviously quite exciting," said Pellen. "What comes after for us is equally as exciting."

Gibson added, "The most interesting thing now is what can we add to it next. We got a plan. Admittedly, some of the plans for that stuff are kind of ambitious as well, but hopefully we can achieve some of it."

The first Hollow Knight also received a number of post-launch updates in the form of four free DLC packs, Hidden Dreams, The Grimm Troupe, Lifeblood, and Godmaster, so hopefully, Silksong is in for the same treatment.

In case you missed it, Hollow Knight: Silksong will officially launch on September 4, 2025, for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X and Series S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC, the Asus ROG Xbox Ally, and ROG Xbox Ally X.

The announcement was made during a special broadcast where Team Cherry also released a full-length gameplay trailer showcasing all-new features, like a crafting system, and confirmed that the game will have over 40 legendary boss encounters.

You might also like...

• Here are the three biggest things we learned from the Hollow Knight: Silksong release date trailer
• Everything announced at Gamescom Opening Night Live 2025 from the Sekiro anime to the new Ghost of Yotei mode
• New Resident Evil Requiem gameplay teaser solidifies it as my most anticipated game of 2026 so far

According to Bloomberg, Meta will pay at least $10 billion over six years to use Google Cloud servers and storage to expand its AI capabilities.

Raiding retirement savings. Pondering job changes or even marriage. People who buy their own health insurance are strategizing ahead of major price hikes in 2026. Open enrollment starts Nov. 1.

(Image credit: Ellen Allen)

• Noah Urban was arrested in January 2024, and pleaded guilty in April 2025
• He is believed to be a key member of Scattered Spider
• Urban was sentenced to 120 months in prison

For the first time, a member of the notorious Scattered Spider cybercrime gang was sentenced to prison for wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, and more.

Noah Michael Urban will be spending the next 10 years behind bars, the US Department of Justice (DoJ) has said.

Urban, known in the cybercriminal underworld as King Bob, Sosa, Elijah, or Gustavo Fring, will also have to forfeit roughly $4.8 million in assets such as cryptocurrency and other property, and pay $13 million in restitution to victims.

More Scattered Spider attacks

Urban was arrested in January 2024, and pleaded guilty on April 4, 2025. As per court documents, between August 2022 and March 2023 he stole cryptocurrency from at least 59 victims across the States employing, among other things, SIM-swap attacks to obtain personal information. He then used that information to access his victims’ wallets and transfer out the funds.

Urban is believed to be a “key figure” in the infamous Scattered Spider organization, CyberInsider reports.

His sentencing, the publication argues, is just one of many moves law enforcement has made against the group in recent times, including charging four other members for similar crimes: Ahmed Hossam Eldin Elbadawy (TX), Evans Onyeaka Osiebo (TX), Joel Martin Evans (NC), and Tyler Robert Buchanan (UK).

Unlike most hacking collectives, which are tightly knit and well-organized, Scattered Spider is a rather “loose” organization, researchers are saying. Still, the group managed to even draw the attention of the FBI, after wreaking havoc among different industries, from retail, to airline, to critical infrastructure.

Less than a month ago (while the five suspects were already in custody), the FBI issued a warning that Scattered Spider was only getting warmed up with its cyberattacks, urging businesses to be on their guard.

Together with the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), and a handful of other security agencies in Canada, the UK, and Australia, the FBI warned Scattered Spider evolved to use more advanced social engineering - mostly impersonating employees to trick IT help desks into resetting passwords and transferring MFA tokens to attacker-controlled devices.

The hackers have also added new malware such as RattyRAT for stealthy access and DragonForce ransomware to encrypt systems and demand payment - especially targeting VMware ESXi servers.

Via BleepingComputer

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