Insights 4 Key Objectives for Leadership Development that Support Transformation Organizational and industry-wide transformation initiatives pose difficulties for Learning and Development in readying leaders to ensure the success of these changes. Our 2024 global survey, which included 1,134 L&D and HR professionals and functional heads across 15 countries, pinpointed four main goals in leadership development that aid in facilitating transformation. To find out more, download the infographic. View the infographic Leadership DevelopmentTransformation Share this resource Share on LinkedIn Share on Facebook Share on X Share on WhatsApp Email this Page Connect with us Change isn’t easy, but we can help. Together we’ll create informed and inspired leaders ready to shape the future of your business. Contact us Latest Insights Strategic Alignment Harvard Business Publishing Unveils Harvard Business Impact as New Brand for Corporate Learning and Education Units Harvard Business Publishing announced the launch of Harvard Business Impact, a new brand identity for… Read more: Harvard Business Publishing Unveils Harvard Business Impact as New Brand for Corporate Learning and Education Units News Digital Intelligence Succeeding in the Digital Age: Why AI-First Leadership Is Essential While AI makes powerful operational efficiencies possible, it cannot yet replace the creativity, adaptability, and… Read more: Succeeding in the Digital Age: Why AI-First Leadership Is Essential Perspectives Digital Intelligence 4 Keys to AI-First Leadership: The New Imperative for Digital Transformation AI has become a defining force in reshaping industries and determining competitive advantage. To support… Read more: 4 Keys to AI-First Leadership: The New Imperative for Digital Transformation Infographic Talent Management Leadership Fitness Behavioral Assessment In our study, “Leadership Fitness: Developing the Capacity to See and Lead Differently Amid Complexity,”… Read more: Leadership Fitness Behavioral Assessment Job Aid The post 4 Key Objectives for Leadership Development that Support Transformation appeared first on Harvard Business Impact.

Wholesome Direct 2025 - everything announced at this year's cosy indie showcase Big hops! Discount shops! Spooky pups! More! Image credit: Eurogamer Feature by Matt Wales News Reporter Published on June 7, 2025 If you're the sort who just can't seem to resist the soothing rhythms of turnip planting and interior design, you've come to the right place. This year's Wholesome Direct - which marks the fifth anniversary of the showcase - has now aired, unleashing a fresh wave of cosy games to stick on your wishlists. We've got vending machine management, adorable puppies on spooking adventures, cheese-based puzzling, geckos, goats, seasonal cemetery exploration, and a whole lot more. So if that sounds like it might help sate your idyllic yearning, read on for all the big announcements from Wholesome Direct 2025. And for more indies, you can check out our round-up of this year's Day of the Devs showcase elsewhere. Leaf Blower Co. Leaf Blower Co. trailer.Watch on YouTube Ever wished your PowerWash Simulator had a little less splosh and a little more whoosh? That seems to be the starting point for developer Lift Games' Leaf Blower Co., a game about making the untidy tidy come rain, snow, or shine, one mechanised gust at a time. It's got a story mode plus a variety to locations waiting to be blown debris-free, and if that appeals, a demo's available now on Steam ahead of its release later this year. Instants Instants trailer.Watch on YouTube Instants is a creativity themed puzzler about the intoxicating pleasures of obsessive scrapbooking. It sees players attempting to sort images into chronological order and then assembling them into a scrapbook to reveal a "heartwarming" story inspired by the way family history can be passed down using pictures. It's developed by Endflame and launches today on PC (via Steam and Epic), and Switch. Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar trailer.Watch on YouTube Stardew Valley might be the face of farming sims these days, but the grandaddy of the genre - Story of Season (formerly Harvest Moon) - never went away, and another entry in the venerable series is looming. Grand Bazaar is actually a remake of 2011 DS game Harvest Moon: Grand Bazaar, and it's got pretty much everything you'd expect from these kind of things - including turnips to fondle, animals to rear, and locals to dazzle with your impressive root vegetable collection. The main twist is you'll be selling all this yourself by setting up shop in the titular bazar. And if that sounds like something you'd enjoy, it launches for Switch, Switch 2, and Steam on 27th August. Gourdlets Together Gourdlets Together trailer.Watch on YouTube Perhaps you're already a fan of last year's Gourdlets or perhaps you're completely new to its vegetable-themed low-stakes thrills. Either way, there'll soon be a new way to play, thanks to developer AuntyGames' Gourdlets Together. Essentially, it takes the laid-back village-building vibes of the original, slings in a bit of a fishing focus - where earnings can be spent on upgrades or accessories to decorate your island home - then lets you do it while hanging out with friends online. Gourdlets Together launches on PC later this year. Luma Island Luma Island trailer.Watch on YouTube Don't think we're done with the farming sims yet - not by a long shot! Luma Island launched last year, offering an attractive mix of crop whispering, profession-specific activities, creature collecting, exploration, and puzzle-y dungeoneering. And come 20th June, it'll be getting just a little be more swashbuckling, thanks to its free Pirates update, introducing a new profession, new Lumas, new outfits, and a pirate cove filled with mini-games, temples, traps, and treasures. It'll also bring a range of different difficulty modes to suit players of all tastes. Is This Seat Taken? Is This Seat Taken? trailer.Watch on YouTube Think you're a dab hand at the old 'awkward family gathering' seating plan challenge? Well then, this might just be the game for you. In Poti Poti Studio's "cosy, silly, and relatable" logic puzzler Is This Seat Taken?, the goal is to satisfy the demands of a particularly fussy group of chair occupiers to find the perfect spot that'll keep everyone happy - be they on the bus, at the park, or in the office. It's coming to Steam, Switch, iOS, and Android this August, and a Steam demo's out now. MakeRoom MakeRoom trailer.Watch on YouTube Here's one for the aesthetic tinkerers and furnishing fetishists out there. MakeRoom, from developer Kenney, sees players decorating a series of miniature dioramas - from cosy indoor retreats to camper vans and even forests - to fulfil the requests of adorable NPCs. You might, for instance, be tasked with creating the perfect room for cats, or a suitably moody hideout for a vampire. Then it's simply a matter of hanging drapes, plopping down plants, and even crafting furniture to bring these spaces to life and satisfy your clients' whims. It all sounds very much like Animal Crossing's weirdly compelling Happy Home Paradise expansion, so if it's more of that sort of thing you want, MakeRoom comes to Steam on 7th August. Ambroise Niflette & the Gleaned Bell Ambroise Niflette & the Gleaned Bell trailer.Watch on YouTube The apple bell - whatever an apple bell is - has been stolen, but luckily for apple bell lovers everywhere, renowned detective Ambroise Niflette is on the case. Over the course of Topotes Studio's investigatory adventure, Ambroise - and players - will roam the village of Touvoir, interrogating its inhabitants and searching for secrets, all while using a notebook of steadily amassing leads to reveal contradictions and unmask the culprit. It all sounds perfectly lovely, but the real draw is the delightful art style, which is heavily inspired by miniatures and stop motion. Ambroise Niflette & the Gleaned Bell is eventually set to launch on Steam, but first there's a Kickstarter, which is underway now. Let's Build a Dungeon Let's Build a Dungeon trailer.Watch on YouTube First there was Let's Build a Zoo, and now comes Let's Build a Dungeon. But while developer Springloaded kept its focus pretty tight for its debut release, Let's Build a Dungeon goes broad; not only is it a playable RPG creator where you can rustle up your own worlds and quests, it's also claiming to be an entire games industry sim too, where you'll need to manage all the malarky around releasing your game - from attracting funding right through to making a profit at the other end of the process. But if all that sounds too stressful, Springloaded has confirmed - as part of its latest showing - there'll be a cosy sandbox Build Mode too. There's still no release date for Let's Build a Dungeon yet, but it's heading to Steam (there's a demo here), Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. Squeakross: Home Squeak Home Squeakross: Home Squeak Home trailer.Watch on YouTube What do you get if you cross adorable mice with classic grid-filling puzzler Picross? Well, this thing, obviously. Squeakross: Home Squeak Home is the work of developer Alblune, and it adds its own twist to the familiar logic-testing formula by introducing a home decorating element. The idea is each puzzle corresponds to an unlockable bit of decor - including furniture, accessories, and stickers - so you'll slowly amass new furnishings and trimmings as you give your brain a work out. Is there an in-game lore reason why puzzles equals furniture? Who knows! We'll soon find out, though, given Squeakross launches for Switch and PC (via Steam and itch.io) today. Monument Valley 3 Monument Valley 3 trailer.Watch on YouTube Ustwo Games' perspective shifting puzzle series Monument Valley has been a big old hit, amassing tens of millions of downloads since its iOS debut back in 2014 - so it wasn't a huge surprise when a third entry showed up on mobile last year. Initially, however, it was locked behind a Netflix subscription, but Monument Valley 3 - which we quite liked despite it offering little meaningful evolution for the series - is finally spreading its wings later this year. As announced during today's Wholesome Direct, it's coming to Steam, Switch, PlayStation 4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S on 22nd July. Big Hops Big Hops trailer.Watch on YouTube If you immediately thought bunnies, you're wrong. Big Hops is, in fact, a frog-themed action platformer, in which players attempt to help the titular Hop find his way home. Each world he visits on his adventure promises its own self-contained story - involving everything from mountain cultists to desert ne'erdowells - all interspersed with plenty of agile platform action. You can grapple across gaps, hoist levers, rotate wheels, even pick locks - all using your tongue - and it's accompanied by some veggie-based gameplay that lets players introduce the likes of climbable vines and mushroom-based bounce pads into levels. Big Hops is currently raising funds via Kickstarter and a Steam demo's out now. Little Kitty, Big City Little Kitty, Big City trailer.Watch on YouTube Here's quicky for you. Little Kitty, Big City - the feline-focused open-world adventure from Double Dagger Studio - is getting a little bigger. That's thanks to a free content update coming to all platforms this "summer", promising new story content, a new neighbourhood to explore, and new oddball characters to befriend. That's alongside a new cat customisation feature for you creative sorts out there. Vending Dokan!: Kozy Kiosk Vending Dokan!: Kozy Kiosk trailer.Watch on YouTube What's in a name? Well, pretty much everything in this case. Aftabi Games' Vending Dokan!: Kozy Kiosk is, just as it sounds, a cosy, laidback game about managing your own vending machine empire. You'll choose where your machines go and what they sell, and hire staff to ensure they stay stocked, clean, and in working order. There's a heavy customisation element too, as you're free to decorate the areas surrounding your vending machines in order to attract new customers. Kozy Kiosk is officially referred to as an "idle simulation", and can be played both actively and passively. And if that appeals, it launches for Steam today. Winter Burrow Winter Burrow trailer.Watch on YouTube Developer Pine Creek Games' "woodland survival game" Winter Burrow was unveiled during December's Wholesome Direct, but it's back to announce it's now coming to Switch. If you missed its original reveal, Winter Burrow casts you as a mouse who's attempting to fix up their burrow and turn it into a toasty retreat from the cold. That requires exploring the snow-covered world outside, gathering resources, crafting tools, building things, making friends, baking pies, and more. Winter Burrow launches next year and will be available for Steam, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Switch. Tales of the Shire: A Lord of the Rings Game Tales of the Shire trailer.Watch on YouTube After multiple delays, cosy hobbit life sim Tales of the Shire is almost upon us, and developer Wētā Workshop is readying for its arrival with a brand-new trailer. It's been described as a game about "finding joy in the small moments", and features all the usual life sim activities - fishing, cooking, gathering, decorating, merrymaking - with a bit of a Lord of the Rings twist. So yes, you CAN decorate your hobbit's hole. Tales of the Shire launches for Switch, PlayStation, Xbox, and PC on 29th July. Haunted Paws Haunted Paws trailer.Watch on YouTube If your interests lie at the intersection of spooky mansions and adorable pups, prepare to have your day made. In developer LazyFlock's supernatural adventure Haunted Paws, players - either solo or with a friend - control two brave (and customisable!) puppies as they explore a creepy old house in search of their human, who's been kidnapped by sinister forces. It promises puzzles, lighthearted spookiness, and even a few emotional bits. There's no release date for Haunted Paws yet, but it's coming to Steam. The Guardian of Nature The Guardian of Nature trailer.Watch on YouTube This wholesome, hand-drawn puzzle adventure from Inlusio Interactive is all about the interconnectedness of nature, and sees players embarking on a botanical journey as the lovably be-hatted Henry. Not only does Henry know his stuff about the natural world, he's also able to change his size, meaning players can explore both above and below ground as they solve puzzles to assist nature. The Guardian of Nature launches into Steam early access today, and it's coming to Switch, Xbox, iOS, and Android too. Everdeep Aurora Everdeep Aurora trailer.Watch on YouTube If you've ever thought Dig Dug would be improved if its protagonist was a cat, Everdeep Aurora might be the game for you. It follows the apocalyptic adventures of a kitten named Shell as she explores subterranean depths in search of her mother. You'll obliterate blocks, do some platforming, play mini-games, and converse with peculiar characters as you investigate the dark secrets buried below, all without a hint of combat. Its limited-colour pixel art looks wonderful, and it's coming to Steam and Switch on 10th July. Seasonala Cemetery Seasonala Cemetery trailer.Watch on YouTube From the creators of A Mortician's Tale, the "meditative" Seasonala Cemetery is a "peaceful but poignant reflection on life and death". It's set in an expansive, living cemetery that changes dynamically based on your system's time and date. The summer, for instance, might see the world bustling with vibrant life, while the winter brings quiet and snow. You can interact with NPCs and animals, rummage through nature, learn the history of the nearby city through its gravestones, or simply relax to its ambient sounds. Seasonala Cemetery is out today on Steam and itch.io, and is completely free. Camper Van: Make it Home Camper Van: Make it Home trailer.Watch on YouTube One of (bizarrely) several camper-van-themed games currently in the works, developer Malpata Studio's Make it Home is a pretty self-explanatory thing. You've got a camper van to make your own as it journey across beautiful, idyllic landscapes. Part of your goal is to solve organisational puzzles, but there's laidback interior design too. Camper Van: Make it Home is available today, alongside a demo, on Steam. Lynked: Banner of the Spark Lynked: Banner of the Spark trailer.Watch on YouTube FuzzyBot's Lynked: Banner of the Spark is a cheerily colourful action-RPG, that's part sci-fi roguelike, part relaxed life sim. At its most peaceful, you'll farm, fish, gather materials, and build your base with help from your robot pals, but that's all in service of its more frenetic hack-and-slash action. When you're ready for some proper adventure, you can brave the wilds, battle evil robot forces with a large arsenal of weapons, and search for helpful bots to bring back home. Lynked is already available on Steam, but it's coming to PS5 and Xbox Series X/S too. Omelet You Cook Omelet You Cook trailer.Watch on YouTube In this chaotic cooking roguelike from SchuBox Games, you're tasked with creating the perfect omelettes to satisfy your customers' increasingly peculiar demands. That involves combining ingredients as they fly by on a conveyor belt, from the relatively mundane to the rather more dubious, in the hope of earning enough money to increase your provisions, add useful relics to your pantry, and, hopefully, please the fearsome Principal Clucker. It all looks wonderfully ridiculous, and it launches on Steam today. Milano's Odd Job Collection Milano's Odd Job Collection trailer.Watch on YouTube Milano's Odd Job Collection (known as Milano no Arubaito Collection in Japan) is coming to the west for the very first time. It follows the adventures of 11-year-old Milano as she's left to her own devices over the summer. Free to do as she pleases, she embarks on a range of odd job - from pizza delivery to milking flying cows - in order to make money and have fun. Milano's Odd Job Collection, from developer Westone, is coming to Switch, PlayStation, Xbox, and PC later this year. Fireseide Feelings Fireseide Feelings trailer.Watch on YouTube If you've got something to get off your chest, what better place to do it than by a roaring fire in a cosy forest glade? Fireside Feelings is described as a "mental wellness experience" promoting empathy, connection, and positivity between players. Situated cosily in your customisable camp, you're able to answer questions on a range of topics, taking part in conversations between people "separated in space and time". Conversations aren't live, and there's no direct interaction with others, but the goal, according to developer Team Empreintes, is to "share experiences, express your emotions, and be a part of a caring community". It launches today on Steam. All Will Rise All Will Rise trailer.Watch on YouTube Well here's something you don't see every day. All Will Rise is a "narrative courtroom deck-builder", in which you and your team take a corrupt billionaire to court, accusing them of a river's murder. That involves accumulating cards and using them to engage in conversation battles, attempting to charm, intimidate and manipulate those you meet around the vibrant city of Muziris. "Obey a dead river god's summons - or defy them," developer Speculative Agency explains. "Pass information to violent ecoterrorists - or maintain your pacifist ideals. Convince a corporate stooge to testify for you - or blackmail him with sensitive information. Your choices will determine the [city's] fate." All Will Rise is currently crowdfunding, but it's aiming to launch on Xbox, PlayStation, Switch, and Steam. Gecko Gods Gecko Gods trailer.Watch on YouTube It's hard to go wrong with a gecko, which immediately gives developer Inresin's Gecko Gods a bit of an advantage. What we've got here is a "serene lizard-sized puzzle-platformer" set on a beautiful archipelago, in which its tiny protagonist clambers across forgotten ruins, solving puzzles as they go. There are secrets of a lost civilisation to uncover, hidden paths, and more, all of which you'll be able to explore for yourself when Gecko Gods launches for Switch, PS5, and Steam later this year. But if you're an impatient sort, a Steam demo is available now. One Move Away One Move Away trailer.Watch on YouTube If you quite fancied the idea of Unpacking, but thought it had far too much 'taking stuff out of things' for its own good, you might enjoy Ramage Games' One Move Away, which is basically the inverse experience. Here, you play as three different characters, starting with a young girl in the 1980s, gradually learning more about them as you pack their belongings away ready for another chapter in their intertwining lives. All this plays out in first-person across 20 levels, and if that takes your fancy, a Steam demo's out now ahead of a full launch on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC. Heidi's Legacy: Mountains Calling Heidi's Legacy trailer.Watch on YouTube As you've probably already guessed, Heidi's Legacy: Mountains Calling takes inspiration from the classic children's stories. Which is why it's something of a surprise to learn its protagonist is called Adèle. Regardless, this is a game of grumpy old men, goat management, and alpine wandering, where you'll explore the beautiful countryside with your bleating pals, foraging for herbs, mushrooms, and more in a bid to help the nearby village. You can unlock abilities that open up more of the world, and chat to the locals in branching conversations'll that impact their lives. And as for those goats, they can provide milk, cheese, and wool. "Will you embrace slow living," asks developer Humble Reeds, "or push for bolder change?". Heidi's Legacy is coming to PC "soon". Hotel Galatic Hotel Galatic trailer.Watch on YouTube In Hotel Galactic, you're responsible for the running of a modular hotel on a strange cosmic island, which you'll customise and optimise in order to provide guests with the perfect stay. There are resources to manage, a workforce to build, and more, as you cater to the demands of your ever-growing colony, all with assistance from your ghostly Grandpa Gustav. There's a bit more to it than that, though, and the whole thing's framed by a tale of love and vengeance that's conveyed through some lovely anime-inspired art and animation. Hotel Galactic launches into Steam early access on 24th July, with consoles to follow, and a demo's available now. Out and About Out and About trailer.Watch on YouTube If it's serene forest meandering you're after, then look no further than Yaldi Games' Out and About. It's a "cosy foraging adventure" focused on exploring nature and identifying real-life plants and fungi. You'll cook recipes, make herbal remedies, and help rebuild your community after a devastating storm, all while hopefully learning a bit of botanical knowledge you can take out into the real-world. Out and About looks to be aiming for a 2025 release on PC, with a console launch to follow. And if it's piqued your curiosity, you can test out a Steam demo now. Discounty Discounty trailer.Watch on YouTube Forget the farm life; how about managing your own discount supermarket in a small harbour town? That's the premise of Discounty from Crinkle Cut Games, which sees you designing and organising your shop, managing stock levels, working the checkout, and striking trade deals. You'll make friends, navigate local drama, and expand your empire, but that doesn't mean you have to play nice. After all, can you really become filthy rich without making a few lifelong enemies along the way? Discounty launches for Switch, PlayStation, Xbox, and PC on 21st August and, yup, a demo's available now on Steam. Islanders: New Shores Islanders: New Shores trailer.Watch on YouTube We're big fans of developer GrizzlyGames' minimalist city builder Islanders around these parts, so news publisher Coatsink was developing a sequel earlier this year came as a pleasant surprise. It is, if you're unfamiliar, a game about attempting to squeeze as much onto a procedurally generated island as possible, maximising building synergies and minimising penalties to get the highest score. New Shores sounds like a gentle finessing of the formula, rather than a radical reinvention - it's got a sandbox mode as well as a high score mode now, alongside new power-ups called "boons" - but that's okay. The big news is it now has a release date and is coming to Switch, PlayStation, Xbox, and Steam on 10th July. Collector's Cove Collector's Cove trailer.Watch on YouTube VoodooDuck's Collector's Cove might be yet another farming game, but it does at least have a unique twist. For starters, your farm is on a boat endlessly sailing the oceans AND it's powered by an adorable sea monster who you'll need to forge a bond with. As you set out on a tranquil adventure across the water, you'll farm, fish, craft, and personalise your surroundings, sometimes stopping off at passing islands to catalogue their unique flora. Collector's Cove doesn't have a release date yet, but it's coming to PC and a Steam demo's available now. Town to City Town to City trailer.Watch on YouTube Fans of minimalist railway game Station to Station might want to pay attention here. Town to City is developer Galaxy Grove's follow-up to that earlier puzzler, sporting a similar voxel art aesthetic and vibe. This time around, you're charged with building quaint picturesque towns by placing shops, houses, amenities, decorations, and more - all in a bid to please your residents and encourage more to move in. Eventually, you'll have multiple towns under your care, helping the whole region grow and thrive. Town to City doesn't have a release date yet, but you can play a demo on Steam. Fishbowl Fishbowl trailer.Watch on YouTube And finally for the big, non-montage reveals, it's Fishbowl, a coming-of-age tale told over the course of a month. Developer imissmyfriends.studio describes it as a "warm and cozy story about living in isolation, nurturing friendships and understanding grief", and it's all focused on 21-year-old video editor Alo as she works from home while mourning her grandmother. As the days tick by, you'll video call loved ones, work to assemble videos, do care tasks, and solve puzzles to unpack your grandmother's belongings - recovering childhood memories as you do. There's no release date for Fishbowl yet, but it's coming to PS5 and Steam.

Switch 2 update when?Although CD Projekt Red is readying up for the release of Cyberpunk 2077 on the Switch 2 next week, it's also currently celebrating the 10th anniversary of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.As part of this, it's announced it will be bringing cross-platform mod support to multiple platforms. Unfortunately, this does not include the Switch version, but hey – with the Switch 2 just around the corner, who knows what might happen. Some Nintendo fans are already making requests.Read the full article on nintendolife.com

For the past few years, Six One Indie has been delivering stellar showcases that highlight an often overlooked category of games: indies. Though these titles might be made by smaller teams working on a much smaller budget compared to their AAA counterparts, you'd be wrong to think they don't contain every bit the charm and artistry of those promoted all across your social media timelines--and the games below serve as irrefutable proof.Though the team at Six One Indie featured nearly 50 games in its May showcase--the entirety of which you can watch here--we decided to round up just a few dozen of our favorites. From cozy titles like Bobo Bay to the hilariously bizarre Dinoblade, these are some of the indie that we immediately added to our Steam wishlist. Shadows of Chroma TowerShadows of Chroma Tower combines stylish, high-contrast art direction with "the best features of dungeon crawlers and ARPGs" to create a frenetic experience you can play by yourself or with friends. You'll be able to join factions, choose from five classes and six professions, upgrade a robust skill tree, and truly tailor your experience as you make your way up the tower in search of the game's big bad. Mouse: P.I. For Hire"Steamboat Willie-meets-John Wick" is probably one of the strangest combination of words I've ever used to describe a game, but when it comes to Mouse: P.I. For Hire, it just makes sense. In it, players take on the role of Jack Pepper, a hyper-violent private investigator with a strong right-hook and an arsenal of weapons at his disposal, one of which is quite literally a ray gun that causes heads to explode. Its gritty, blood-splattering content is in stark contrast to game's visuals, which draw inspiration from 1930s cartoons, making the whole experience even more over-the-top. All that plus some neo-noir vibes and a jazzy soundtrack make this a game all you shooter fans should definitely keep an eye on. LeilaUbik Studio's Leila is one of the handful of games Six One Indie showed off that is available now--and for only $12, I might add. The hand-animated, story-driven puzzle game sees you relive a woman's "fragile memories" as she undergoes a deeply personal and transformative journey. It's worth noting that Leila features strong adult themes and some body horror, so don't go in expecting something "cozy." However, if you're looking for a dark, cerebral experience, this might be a great pick. Muffles' Life SentenceMuffles' Life Sentence is another game that is already available to play on Steam for the low price of $0, so there's really no reason to not give it a lil' whirl. The "darkly quirky" RPG take place in a prison where inmates are "remade" to match their crimes, and features gameplay stylings that are sure to delight fans of Paper Mario or Undertale. DinobladeSometimes, you can come up with an extremely cool idea for a game just by taking two really cool ideas and mashing 'em together. Such is the case with Dinoblade, a new action RPG that sees players take on the role of a young, blade-wielding Spinosaurus who must fight off other dinosaurs in order to prevent an extinction. It's ridiculous, yes, but what's not ridiculous is how much developer Team Spino commits to the bit--the game looks extremely cool and seems like it'll be a blast for fans of over-the-top action titles like Devil May Cry. Bobo BayHave you ever wished you could stay in Sonic the Hedgehog's chao gardens just a bit longer? Bobo Bay might be the game for you. The pet simulation title sees you care for, collect, breed, train, and accessorize adorable little creatures, all while readying them up for fun competitions such as races and wrestling matches. Though the game isn't scheduled to release until next year, those interested can play its alpha build now. Oscuro Blossom's GlowIf you're looking for a delightful-looking puzzle platformer accompanied by gorgeous, 2D, illustrative art, you should check out Oscuro Blossom's Glow. In it you play as Selene, a young girl with the ability to emit light; naturally, this power helps her traverse the lush woodlands she find herself in by creating life, dispelling creatures, and more. The game currently has a demo available to play over on its Steam page. Truth ScrapperInsertdisc5, the studio behind 2023's indie gem In Stars and Time, is back with a new game that looks every bit as lovely as its predecessor. In Truth Scrapper you play as Sosotte, a member of the Truth Scrapper guild who is sent to investigate a mysterious sinkhole that has destroyed the community's "sense of will." The only problem? The vast majority of your memories reset at the end of each day, and you're the one responsible for choosing which ones stay and which ones to abandon. 1000 Deaths1000 Deaths is a "gravity-bending 3D platformer" that features some truly fun visuals and an early 2000s, Adult Swim feel. However, to relegate it to just another platformer is a disservice, as 1000 Deaths also features a unique spin: the ability for players to make choices that completely alter the game's mechanics, story, and level design. This chaotic, hardcore, action game aims to set the stage for some fun speed-running opportunities--if its players can stay alive. Sound interesting? Fortunately, you can check out 1000 Deaths' demo now. Cast n ChillA massive departure from the previous entry on this list, Cast n Chill features a far more relaxing gameplay loop. The cozy idle game sees its players explore serene lakes, rivers, and ocean with their loyal pup, their only goal being to catch some fish. As they play, they'll get the chance to upgrade their gear, granting them the ability to reel in more impressive catches. It's a low stakes experience accompanied by some truly picturesque pixel-art, and best of all, you can play the game's demo right now. Future Vibe CheckEven if you've played automation games before, I can almost guarantee that you've never played one quite like this. In Future Vibe Check, players are tasked with slowly building a factory that doesn't just create products--it creates music, too. As they rebuild the given area, the structures they place create their own unique sounds whenever energy courses through them. Curious as to how that will play out? Fortunately, you can try Future Vibe Check's demo now. Scratch the CatFor all the Spyro, Crash Bandicoot, Sly Cooper, Croc, and other 3D mascot platformer fans out there, here's a new game to keep on your radar. In Scratch the Cat, players take on the role of DJ Scratch, a sleek-looking cat who is on a journey to reclaim his stolen records. The adventure game features some remarkable visuals that are absolutely on par other games in the genre, and seems like it'll be ripe with collectibles, unique bosses, and plenty of ways to traverse and explore. Jump the TrackBilled as an "explosive comedy that blends visual novel with pachinko," Jump the Track looks like an incredibly charming game with plenty of style and humor. When not dishing out some pinball action, the game unfolds in an almost comic book-style way, as it tells the story of Sam, "a young dreamer struggling in the gig economy" whose fortune might just change tonight. Jump the Track currently has a demo available to play on Steam, as well as an extremely close release date: May 28, 2025. Rogue EclipseIn Rogue Eclipse, players get the chance to traverse stunning seas of stars and comets as they take down starfighters, armadas, and otherworldly behemoths. That said, it's not just a flight-based shooter, as Rogue Eclipse features an "epic roguelike campaign" as well. Developer Huskraft calls the game "easy to learn, tricky to master, and impossible to put down," and after this first-look, it's easy to see why. Guilty as Sock!One of the more bizarre games in the showcase, Guilty as Sock! looks incredible and I cannot wait to force my friends play it with me. The multiplayer, court simulator sees you and your pals jump into a chaotic trial where each person plays a sock puppet bound to a specific role--lawyer, judge, etc.--and must then present evidence cards that help support their agenda. While your friends testify, you can choose to throw paper balls and mock them in an attempt to shake them up and sway the verdict in your favor--it'll be up to the judge to call the behavior out, or encourage it. All in all, it's some real Among Us-style nonsense that I will absolutely be playing later this week, thanks to its new demo. Rue ValleyRue Valley is yet another title on this list with a demo I downloaded immediately. The gritty-looking narrative RPG follows a man trapped in a time loop and whose choices are bound by his mental state; if he is introverted, for example, even if you want him to go up and talk to a woman at a bar, he might not be able to muster up the courage. It will then be up to you to figure out how to deal with his various mental hurdles, form relationships with complex characters, and break out of the loop. Carimara: Beneath the Forlorn LimbsThere were a lot of game shown at Six One Indie's May showcase that featured some truly fantastic art direction, and Carimara: Beneath the Forlorn Limbs is absolutely one of them. The bleak, horror-adjacent title sees players take on the role of the Cariamara, a mysterious figure whose mission is to conjure up ghosts and answer their questions using a deck of cards. Described as a "short and creepy fairytale," this one might not be for the easily perturbed--but looks potentially delightful for those of us who love disturbing little creatures and moody, PS1-era visuals. A Week in the Life of Asocial GiraffeHave you ever just wanted to be left alone? That's precisely how this giraffe feels, and is the conceit behind A Week in the Life of Asocial Giraffe. In it, your goal is simple: avoid all social contact. However, the citizens of Friendly City do make things a bit harder thanks to their chatty nature. It is up to you to help our giraffe friend do all his chores and live his best life, all while avoiding people by solving point-and-click puzzles and utilizing stealth. If you're looking to give it a go, the game's demo is now live on Steam. InkshadeAnother visually remarkable entry on this list, Inkshade is turn-based tactics game that sees players take control of strange wooden miniatures that are "wrapped in a web of locked rooms and orchestrated by an otherworldly game master." The end goal of Inkshade is to guide these tokens to a mysterious realm known as the abyss, but they'll first need to conquer the continent, procure an airship, and sail through "cursed skies," and none of that will be easy. However, if you're interested in giving it a shot, you can play the game's demo now. One Way HomeBased on its trailer, One Way Home reminds me a lot of Limbo or Inside, albeit with realistic visuals, more horror, and some cool "choose-your-own" adventure elements. The game follows Jimmy Taylor, a 12-year-old boy who gets involved in a car accident on his walk home from school. When he comes to, Jimmy finds himself thrust into a mysterious version of his world that, while seemingly devoid of humans, is filled to the brim with monstrosities and disturbing visuals. What ensues is a tense-looking puzzle platformer in which player-choice dictates the skills, locations, enemies, and endings Jimmy stumbles upon--and thanks to its new demo, you can get a first glimpse at how this will all play out now. Kabuto ParkWith its playful visuals and adorable premise, Kabuto Park looks perfect for those seeking a game with a bit of whimsy and childlike wonder about it. At its core, the game revolves around bugs: finding them, catching them, training them, and ultimately winning the Summer Beetle Battle Championship with them. As players bug-catch and battle, they'll also gain the ability to upgrade their equipment, allowing them to find even "rarer, stronger, and shinier little friends" to use in the game's card-based competitions. Sounds cute, right? If you think so, I've got great news for you: the game comes out on May 28. Oh and if you're feeling really antsy, you can play the demo right now. Quite a RideIt's just you, your bicycle, a half-charged cellphone, and one very good boy against the world in the upcoming psychological horror game Quite a Ride. In it, you play as someone whose quick trip to their friend's house is derailed by the sudden presence of a dense, oppressive fog filled with eldritch horrors. As such, you have no choice but to keep pedaling--even as the beings following you grow so close you can hear them breathe and the world shifts around you. And though this and the game's beautiful, Pacific Northwest vibes are already enough to make me extremely interested in it, Quite a Ride also has another thing going for it: collective progress. This means that player's collective, global efforts will change the game over time by introducing new characters, locations, and secrets. We'll see if I am actually brave enough to play it, but wow am I eager to try. OddbatOddbat likens itself to Celeste in that it is an extremely challenging platformer filled with secrets and over 700 unique levels. That said, it is immediately obvious that its personality, humor, and style are all its own. In Oddbat, you play as a vampire on a mission to perform an elaborate ritual. However, you'll need to drain the blood of seven bosses and make your way through five unique dungeons to do so. Naturally, you'll need to rely on one of your most iconic vampiric powers--the ability to become a bat--to help you accomplish your goals. With its cheeky tone and monochromatic color scheme, Oddbat looks to be shaping up into a viciously fun and stylish platformer.

An artist’s impression of Earth’s quasi-satellite Kamo`oalewa, the first destination of the Tianwen-2 missionAddy Graham/University of Arizona Final preparations are under way for China to launch an uncrewed craft to visit both an asteroid and a comet, in the hope of learning more about the space rocks in our solar system. The Tianwen-2 mission by the China National Space Administration (CNSA) will collect a 100-gram sample from the asteroid Kamoʻoalewa and return it to Earth. After dropping off the sample, the probe will use our planet’s gravity as a slingshot Advertisement The mission is due to launch from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Sichuan province on 29 May. It won’t be the first to return samples of asteroids to Earth, as both NASA’s OSIRIS-REx and JAXA’s Hayabusa missions have already done that. But it will be China’s first mission to an asteroid involving the return of a rock sample, and it is likely to be the first mission to a unique type of body called a quasi-satellite. Quasi-satellites like Kamoʻoalewa don’t strictly orbit Earth, but travel in a similar orbit to us around the sun, swinging elliptically around our planet as they do so. This unusual situation has led scientists to suspect that this particular one is a chunk of the moon ejected millions of years ago by an asteroid impact. On the other hand, 311P/PanSTARRS has an asteroid-like orbit – spinning around our sun in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter – but with an appearance more like a comet because it has tails. These are suspected of being bits of dust and rubble flung out from its spinning body. Voyage across the galaxy and beyond with our space newsletter every month. Sign up to newsletter The CNSA has previously said that 311P/PanSTARRS is a “living fossil”, making it useful for studying the early material composition, formation process and evolutionary history of the solar system. And Tianwen-2 will provide scientists with a better understanding of both Kamoʻoalewa and 311P/PanSTARRS. However, the results won’t come quickly: the craft is due to reach 311P/PanSTARRS in 2034, and even the Kamoʻoalewa sample is expected to return to Earth only in late 2027. Exactly how much the CNSA will share about the discoveries is also unclear. Leah-Nani Alconcel at the University of Birmingham, UK, says the mission’s outline is known, and one likely goal is to study the differences between the asteroid and the comet to gain a deeper understanding of the range of bodies in our solar system, but precise details haven’t been forthcoming. Alconcel’s previous experience working with the CNSA on the Double Star satellite leads her to suspect that the agency will hold on to the resulting scientific data tightly. “It was extremely difficult to negotiate [with the CNSA],” says Alconcel.
”Once they kind of had some information from us, they were not very keen to reciprocate. There will not be a public repository of this data, I don’t think.” She says that the mission is daring, as Kamoʻoalewa is spinning, which will make landing harder. Navigation algorithms are likely to demand such powerful computers that images and sensor readings will be sent back to Earth for computation. “If we were to always pick lovely, cooperative objects, we wouldn’t learn a lot,” she says. “There’s a lot that could potentially go wrong.” The CNSA didn’t respond to New Scientist‘s request for interview. Topics:

Forward-thinking businesses – and even nations – are upskilling mid-career professionals to help them not only survive but prosper in the era of widespread enterprise artificial intelligence (AI). As businesses and public sector organisations adopt AI at a lightning pace, white-collar professions face huge disruption, not unlike that experienced by nineteenth century blue-collar workers. According to research by OpenAI and the University of Pennsylvania, roles that will be affected include accountants, legal assistants, financial analysts, journalists, translators and public relations professionals. Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs published figures in March 2023 that spoke of 300 million jobs exposed to AI across all sectors. Although it’s a concept dating back decades, the widespread take-up of generative AI (GenAI) began around 2022 with the release of ChatGPT. It was a wake-up call for governments and businesses alike, which must prepare for inevitable disruption. According to Tram Anh Nguyen, co-founder of the centre for finance, technology and entrepreneurship (CFTE), people over the age of 40 in mid-career professional roles are the most at risk of major job disruption as businesses integrate AI into their operations. CFTE is a global education platform that specialises in training in the finance sector, including teaching AI in finance. Nguyen, who is also Global Women in AI chair, spent decades working in the finance sector in business roles, said: “AI is no longer a future concept. It’s here and it’s affecting everyone at every level.” But this does not mean professionals will be replaced if they are re-trained – and this does not just mean technical training. Training on AI for non-technical roles will encompass professionals learning underlying knowledge about AI, the AI tools available to them and the use cases for AI in their roles, said Nguyen. In its whitepaper titled The AI-fication of talents, CFTE said three groups of professionals will emerge. It reported that there will be: “mass displacement” of roles centred on execution which will be increasingly automated; “supercharged professionals” will emerge who use AI to expand scope and scale; while “creative disruptors” will be small group inventing new models, products and systems. Nguyen warned that the UK is behind in readying the workforce for AI. “We are not preparing people in the right way because the focus is not on adult education at scale,” she told Computer Weekly. She cited a project in Singapore which CFTE helped to design. It involves supporting mid-career transitions, particularly focusing on technology and finance sectors, while providing financial support to help people switching careers. All Singaporeans aged 40 and above received funds to refresh their skills, with a large proportion taking up IT-related courses in areas including artificial intelligence. Around 555,000 people participated in programmes supported by SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) in 2024 and 520,000 in 2023, according to Singapore newspaper The Straits Times. These are significant numbers for Singapore, which has a population of around six million, but the same challenge is faced globally. One sector being heavily affected is financial services, which leads the way in AI innovation and investment. For example, Bloomberg Intelligence recently put the number of jobs set to be replaced by AI in the US finance sector – Wall Street specifically – at hundreds of thousands. CIOs questioned by the organisation expected 3% of their workforce to be cut on average. Around a quarter of respondents expect the workforce to be cut by between 5% and 10% as AI takes over roles, with the back and middle offices to be most affected. According to research by banking industry benchmarking firm Evident, AI-related roles could be the only “safe jobs” in the banking sector as financial organisations “relentlessly” press on with AI-led transformation. It’s banking industry report found that recruitment of AI development professionals grew by 6% in the last year, hiring of data engineers increased by 14%, and the number of AI and software implementation experts hired increased by 42%. But while the finance sector finds itself on the front-line of the AI revolution, the technology’s rapid spread goes way beyond. Bloomberg’s head of AI, Amanda Stent, recently told Computer Weekly in an interview that there has been “no revolution in history that has not led to job transformation”. “Some types of job change, some types of job go away,” they added. “But there’s also no revolution in history that hasn’t led to more jobs created overall, I think that is true with AI, which will augment a lot of people.” Stent said all workers, regardless of their roles, will have to learn to use AI: “We can teach people how to be effective users of AI without needing to know all that maths.” The legal sector is an example of a traditional industry adapting to AI. The UK regulator of solicitors, the Solicitors Regulation Authority, recently authorised the first law firm to provide legal services purely through AI. Mark Lewis, a lawyer at Stephenson Hardwood, specialised in technology, said most, “if not virtually all, serious law firms” are deploying AI and GenAI operationally. “Typical use cases include document review, analysis and summarisation, legal research, case research and predicting the outcomes of cases, reviewing and reporting on the application of regulations around the world, and, of course, in law firm back-office operations – for example, in client due diligence and acceptance.” But he added that AI is not “yet” causing “major disruption” in the legal sector: “As with talk of AI disrupting many sectors, including doing away with the work now done by paralegals, junior lawyers, and even senior lawyers, this hasn’t really happened yet in the legal markets here – or, I think, anywhere. “There is a good deal of the usual tech hype about it. No doubt AI will become integral to legal process and lawyering at all levels, but, as in many other sectors, even that is going to take time and the maturing of legal use cases.” He said firms are, however, preparing for the impact of AI: “We, like many firms, have made available to all our lawyers GenAI tools developed specifically for us, to be used within certain parameters and in accordance with our AI/GenAI policies. “We want our lawyers to use these GenAI tools, to become accustomed to the way it processes work, to understand its strengths and limitations, and to become expert in creating and refining prompts. “For me, there is an even more important – existential – point: the single biggest challenge is how we as a society learn to understand, live and work with AI. It should start as early as possible and continue through our lives.” In the IT sector, AI is a huge business opportunity, but the technology is also transforming how suppliers operate. Workers in the IT sector will also have to learn to work with AI. Amrinder Singh, head of EMEA and APAC operations at Indian IT services firm Hexaware, told Computer Weekly that all the company’s staff, around 30,000, will be trained how to harness AI. He put it in startling terms the risks to workers that are not trained up. “We said that there is no future for single-skilled people,” he said. “Unless you are multi-skilled with domain understanding, as well as understanding how to use AI and technology, you will not survive.” Read more about GenAI

Zotac is bringing AMD's game-changing Strix Halo APUs to its mini-PC stack with the Magnus EA, set for reveal at Computex.