Malaysia’s Independence Day -or Hari Merdeka- is upon us this weekend. Before we talk about the top gaming news prior to the celebration of independence, we should bring up a heartwarming community drive being put onto a currently hot title in Southeast Asia. 

The Big Picture

(image credit: Ryukku-K on X.com)

The horse racing scene in Malaysia is getting a huge uptick thanks to a video game featuring anime horse girls called Umamusume: Pretty Derby. 

The mobile and PC title has you managing and training a chosen horse girl (think anime girl but with horse ears, tail, and strong horse strength) to win championship races in the Twinkle Derby. Each of them have different personalities and ambitions, ranging from main character material Special Week and Tokai Teio to outrageous characters like Gold Ship and Agnes Tachyon. 

The game has been a huge money-maker for both its developer/publisher Cygames and the Japanese horse-racing industry. Now with its recent global push mid-2025, Malaysian gaming fans are enamoured by this new anime game that is similar to spreadsheet sims like Football Manager. But with anime horse girls. 

Malaysia’s Selangor Turf Club are on top of this by welcoming new horse racing fans with open arms via the upcoming Merdeka Cup horse race on 31st August, with the region’s top cosplayers planning to attend in their Umamusume gear. There’s even an unofficial guide and etiquette list if you happen to be visiting the STC for the first time. 

We honestly feel that this is one of the more effective ways for gaming to transcend beyond the screens and digital realms; make its fandom get out there and support the local activity and industry it’s representing. It worked well in Japan for many years, and it can work in Southeast Asia with enough push from both Cygames and its growing player base. With any luck, some of the STC’s best horses might end up being Umamusumes in the game in the future! 

Short Beats

HoYoverse has announced the closed beta test recruitment for its upcoming creature collection title Honkai Nexus Anima. 

Music-savvy puzzle game Lumines Arise will be out on 11 November for PC and PlayStation consoles; a demo for both versions is out right now. 

A number of publishers like Capcom and Sony Interactive Entertainment have announced their playable games lineup for September’s Tokyo Game Show 2025 in Japan. 

Bandai Namco Asia will be making an appearance with game demos at Cos-Mic 2025, an anime convention hosted by Comic Fiesta at Sunway Pyramid Convention Centre, Malaysia. 

Sega and developer Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio will be hosting an RGG Summit 2025 on 24 September, which may be focused on their upcoming game Stranger Than Heaven. 

A number of indie games have delayed their release dates due to Hollow Knight: Silksong dropping in on 4th September:

-Isometric title Little Witch in the Woods is delayed to 15 September.
-Slot machine roguelite Cloverpit is delayed to 26 September.
-Puzzle walking sim title Baby Steps is delayed to 23 September.
-Strategy RPG title Demonschool is delayed to 19 November.
-Search action title Aeterna Noctis is delayed to 2026.
-Stomp and the Sword of Miracles’ demo is delayed indefinitely. 

CD Projekt’s headcount has expanded to nearly 800. 

Op-Ed

We reviewed the Sega action title Shinobi: Art of Vengeance ahead of its 29 August release date. 

We also talked about the video games present at this year’s Animangaki anime expo and the best video game announcements at this year’s Gamescom 2025. 

Games Out This Week

Shinobi: Art of Vengeance is Sega’s latest attempt at revitalizing the 2D arcade action franchise, featuring ninja killing machine Joe Musashi, epic challenging levels, and tough bosses. This new entry is made by Lizardcube, who are responsible for the successful Streets of Rage 4 a while back. 

Gears of War: Reloaded is a new remaster of the first Gears of War Xbox title back in 2006. This version will be the first time the third-person shooter series is on PlayStation consoles. 

Helldivers 2 is finally out for Xbox Series X and S. 

Space Adventure Cobra: The Awakening is a 2D action platformer based on the first 12 episodes of the 80s scifi anime series.

Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar is the latest farming simulation title from the original Harvest Moon developers. Players now get to build their dream farm, bazaar, and community in the new town of Zephyr. 

Destiny: Rising is new portable iteration of the mass multiplayer first-person shooter from Bungie. This version is made by NetEase Games and is for iOS and Android devices. 

Recommended Viewing

Last Week Tonight host John Oliver talks about the dangers of A.I. slop on social media, which also has some ties to gaming as loads of people in the business are relying on generative AI to take artistic shortcuts.  

For a more specific talk about the dangers of AI in making games, here’s a thought piece from Ben “Yahtzee” Croshaw.