Hello and welcome to the latest edition of the Giant Bomb Community Spotlight and I, ZombiePie, am once again honored to be your host as we look back at the site-related news and best user-created works from the previous week! With Monday being a holiday and Chuck out, you'd assume that it would be an uneventful week for Giant Bomb, but not so!
As mentioned, Chuck was out for the week, but they will return by the 26th. Nonetheless, the Giant Bomb Wiki continues to inch along. And to echo what was said last week, many wiki pages are now usable and even mobile friendly! The wiki still has a long way to go before it gets to where it was before the new site, but you can check out how pages are planned to look and what new things are in store for the future. Also, if you want to help with designing and formatting wiki pages, throw your hat into the "Wiki-Street-Team" channel on the Giant Bomb Discord. So, have a go and see what breaks, but if you do encounter any issues, please keep the Wiki Street Team updated!
For example, check out the franchise page for Metroid! There's still plenty of work to do, but these pages are looking pretty snazzy!
And to echo an incredibly important point from last week, if you have Giant Bomb Premium the Grubbsnax Question Thread is pinned on the Premium board and is the go-to place for people to share questions they'd like Grubb to investigate for upcoming editions Grubbsnax.
Speaking of Grubbsnax, Grubbsnax Premium has a couple of episodes and its own RSS feed on the site over here! Even if you don't have Giant Bomb Premium, check out those feeds and see if anything is missing.
Finally, The wonderful team over at MinnMax did a fundraiser the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota, and while their donation matching promise is over, you can still join them in spirit by directly donating to this charity. If you can't chip in, don't worry, spreading the word to friends and family that might be interested is equally important.
Videos & Art
Tolkoto's Nine Sols Boss Supercut Banner Art (By: PickleGiraffe)
So, the latest edition of Blight Club is here and PickleGiraffe is girding their loins for a new Blight Club Animated series. To satiate everyone's desire for a new series, they posted the following "teaser" image for what to expect in the future.
Also, with the Nine Sols boss supercut banner art, consider clicking the link above because it is to an incredible timelapse video that shows you how PickleGiraffe made the magic happen!
The Tolkoto Nine Sols Boss Supercut! (By: Tolkoto VODs)
You've seen the banner, so, why not give the video the banner is for a watch? On Twitch, Mike played and finished Nine Sols and if you want a supercut of every boss, click this link! Which bosses gave them the hardest time? Watch to find out!
Additionally, you have seen the now that Mike is a full-fledged member of the Giant Bomb staff, it felt appropriate to inform everyone about the Tolkoto VODs account on YouTube. If you have found yourself missing Mike's non-Giant Bomb livestreams, consider following this account.
Soundbite Of The Century: "A Half A Coconut... Bitch" (By: creakylegs)
If you missed the Voicemail Dump Truck where Mike retorts Jan by calling him "bitch," then give the clip above a watch and understand why Bakalar is so confident in calling this the "Soundbite of the Century."
Grubb Knuckles Coffee Art (By: Sir 5000)
It's been a while since Sir 5000 last graced us with their incredible coffee foam art but with the Giant Bomb staff, but this time, they did not disappoint with a distressed Grubb dressed as Knuckles gracing their incredible Giant Bomb coffee mug.
Community Articles
RetroPiece Theater: The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past +
Indie Game of the Week 451: Laika: Aged Through Blood (By: Mento)
Moderator Mento returns to the wonderful world of Retro Achievements with a User Article looking at the achievements for A Link to the Past! What are the trickiest ones? Read all about their adventures with this highly nostalgic write-up.
Second, Mento's "Indie Game of the Week" feature this time around looks at Laika: Aged Through Blood! Is this Mad Max-inspired vehicle navigation game any fun? Read their exhaustive write-up about the game to find out.
Emulation Has Come for Me (By: ford_dent)
ford_dent has been playing around with RetroArch and shares some things they have learned as part of their retro gaming journey as well as their overall impressions of where emulation and modern game preservation stands.
Properly Christening My Membership On The New GB Site With An Extremely Timely, Punctual GOTY 2025 List With All The Games That Everyone Definitely Expects (By: bludgeonparagon)
bludgeonparagon inaugurates their essay writing on the new Giant Bomb site with a User Article listing all of the games on their GOTY 2025 list and why they made the cut!
Invis's Favorite Games of 2025 [PART 2] (By: lnvis)
Invis wraps up their GOTY 2025 coverage on Giant Bomb with the second and FINAL part of their GOTY list over here! See which games managed to top their list and remember to drop a kind and supportive comment in their article!
Forum Posts Worth Checking Out
Announcements
Giant Bomb Dot Com - Site Update 01 (By: chucktowski)
In case you missed it last week, here's an unlisted video from Chuck that you can watch that details how the site is progressing, bugs they are aware of, and what the next big objectives for them are in the future.
Video API Is Being Tested Now (By: chucktowski)
Whether you yourself are an app developer or maybe the fan of an app that used the Giant Bomb video API like Bomb Cyclone, feel free to drop a comment in this thread to get an update about the Giant Bomb API.
General Discussion
Forza Horizon 6 Gameplay Teaser Trailer Is Here (By: GTxForza)
So, what's everyone's "vibe check" about Forza Horizon 6? Do you think the gameplay, cars, and setting look solid? Do you have any early concerns about this game based on the trailer from the Xbox Developer Direct recently?
Nioh 3 Discussion & Hype Thread (By: atheistpreacher)
Nioh 3 is releasing on February 6 and a demo is set to drop near the end of the month. So, are any of you hyped for the game? Do you have any "wishlist" items you hope to see in the third game based on your experiences with the previous games? If so, join the conversation in this thread!
Who Do You Want Making A Souls-like? (By: adamwparker)
Inspired by a question posed by Mike on stream recently, what are the non-From studios or developers you trust to make a good to great Souls-like? Can you think of a studio that has turned out more than one banger?
Deadlock. I Think Valve Has Something Here. (By: toysoda)
User toysoda has been playing and following Deadlock since its stealth launch a few years back, and they want to share in this thread that they think the game has "the juice." Do any of you agree or disagree? Also, have you been following how the game has transformed and changed the past few years?
The Joys Of Having A "Default" Game And The Irritation Of Not Being Able To Find A Groove With A New One. (By: bigsocrates)
Going into 2026, what is your designated "comfort game" or the game you boot up by default to calm your nerves and you tend to go "auto-pilot" when playing? Share your game picks over in this thread!
Resident Evil Requiem. How We Feeling? (By: dkbomber13)
So, how do you think Resident Evil Requiem is shaping up? Are you excited for the game? Do you have gameplay or narrative concerns? Have the recent trailers given you confidence or do they have you concerned? Share away here!
Games That Randomly Pop Into Your Head (By: styx971)
Here's a fun discussion thread on the forums everyone can relate to! What is a random game that keeps popping into your head unprompted or without warning? Is it an old game or something completely random?
Ubisoft Cancelled 6 Games Including The Sands Of Time Remake (By: bigsocrates)
As many of you now know, Ubisoft has cancelled six games and is reorganizing its many studios into five "Creative Houses." Share your gut reaction to the news and if you think Ubisoft is long for this world.
What Are You Playing/Finishing/Abandoning This Week? (January 18th, 2026 Edition?) (By: laughingman)
It's a new week so that means for a new edition of the "What Are You Playing This Week?" thread on the Giant Bomb forums! Are there any notable drops or re-plays this week? did you pick up a new game? Share away here!
Doug Bowser Joins Hasbro Board (By: baltmatrix)
Doug Bowser is joining Hasbro! Is this a sign Hasbro is still bullish about games? Do you have any reactions to the news? To be generous, with Hasbro still gun-ho about their investments in gaming, Bowser seems like a highly qualified candidate to fill the role.
Premium-Only
Grubbsnax Question Thread (By: jeffgrubb)
For those of you with Premium subs, you can head on over to the Premium-Only board and possibly get a question answered during Grubbsnax if you write and post it in this thread. Huge props to Grubb for taking the time to engage with the forums to whip up some community engagement!
Suggestions & Bug Box
Ability To Embiggen The Videos [Open Discussion/More Input Encouraged] (By: retris)
Videos In Desktop Firefox Are Choppy [Active Discussion/More Input Encouraged] (By: csl316)
As mentioned earlier, due to Chuck being out, all non-critical bugs and issues were held until his return. That said, if you have been experiencing issues embiggening videos on the site, drop a comment in the thread I linked above.
Also, for those of you that use Firefox, user csl316 is having issues playing videos on the browser and could use help trying to figure out what the culprit might be. Chuck and others have confirmed it is not the site, but any additional input would be appreciated.
Lists
List Of Upcoming Games I'll Probably Play. (By: MooseyMcMan)
Like many of you, MooseyMcMan is optimistic about a lot of the games set to come out in 2026. The known-knowns and known-unknowns and even unknown-unknowns all have them hoping that there are some great video games to look forward to this year.
GOTY 2025 (By: tminusvitali)
User tminusvitali finally sat down and made a GOTY 2025 list on the site and they really struggled to limit themselves to just ten games! Also, if you have Giant Bomb Premium, don't forget to join the fun! There's no such thing as a "late" GOTY list.
Games Played That Came Out In 2025 (By: mrbubbles)
To make up for the fact that their GOTY 2025 list is a bit late, user mrbubbles went ahead and ranked ALL of the games they played in 2025 from best to worst!
Game Of The Year 2025 (By: gravitypenguin)
gravitypenguin also got their act together and made a GOTY 2025 list on the site and it covers all of the gaming bases so to speak. It has big AAA titles as well as a handful of notable indie games from 2025.
User Reviews
Nine Sols review by infantpipoc
infantpipoc completed Nine Sols on a Steam Deck and uses their review for the game on the site to share why they think it is one of the finest gaming "balancing acts" they have seen in a long time! Also, read how the game runs on the Steam Deck.