Money Monday Aug. 17th
Money Monday – August 17, 2026
What a goddamn week. PlayStation just dropped a State of Play that has the entire internet losing its mind, Mortal Shell 2 reviews hit this morning and critics are calling it the best Soulslike since Elden Ring, Kingdom Hearts 4 got revealed at D23, and we are now TEN DAYS from the GTA 6 gameplay reveal on Netflix. Oh — and Sony's apparently testing dynamic pricing on the PS Store now. Because why wouldn't they? These people can't help themselves. Let's get into it.
🔥 The Big Story: PlayStation State of Play (TODAY)
Sony dropped a State of Play showcase today and holy hell did they deliver. Here's what came out of it:
God of War Greek Trilogy Remake — Santa Monica Studio is remaking the original Greek trilogy from the ground up. GoW 1, 2, and 3. Kratos before the dad era. Back when he was just an angry Spartan ripping gods apart with his bare hands and bathing in their blood. No release date yet but this is a system seller and I don't care what anybody says.
John Wick Game — A full John Wick video game. Details are thin but the hype is very real. If they nail the gunplay and don't shove microtransactions down our throats, this could be something special.
Marvel's Wolverine — Insomniac's standalone Wolverine game finally got a release date. Liam McIntyre — yeah, Spartacus himself — cast as Logan. That's a hell of a choice.
Phantom Blade Zero — Playable demo teased. Pre-orders went live this week alongside that 11-minute story trailer. This game looks fast, violent, and gorgeous.
Ghost of Yōtei Complete Edition — Coming October 1 to PS5.
Look — Sony's been taking L after L this month with the disc death sticker, the Marvel Tōkon PSN disaster, and now dynamic pricing rumors. But when it comes to first-party games? They still got the goods. Whether that's enough to justify all the anti-consumer bullshit is a whole different conversation.
🎮 New Releases This Week (Aug 17–23)
Mortal Shell 2 – Aug 20 (PS5, Xbox, PC)
Reviews dropped this morning and they are GLOWING. GamesRadar called it "the best Soulslike I've played since Elden Ring." IGN slapped an 8 on it. Shacknews said "ascension to godhood." Cold Symmetry took everything wrong with the first game — the clunky pace, the limited scope — and fixed all of it. Faster combat, 80+ dungeons, a dense compact open world packed with secrets, and creative sidearms like a haunted baby skeleton in a cage that radiates evil. Yes. You read that right. A baby skeleton. In a cage. That radiates evil. And it's a weapon. I'm sold.
It's a standalone sequel — no need to play the first. Devout Edition buyers get early access starting TODAY. If you're a Soulslike fan and you're not paying attention to this, wake up.
The Sinking City 2 – Aug 18 (PS5, Xbox, PC)
Frogwares' Lovecraftian survival horror set in 1920s Arkham. Third-person, resource-lean, puzzle-heavy, creepy as hell. If you liked the first one's atmosphere but wished it played better, this is the pitch. Deliberate pacing, tense exploration, and enough eldritch horror to make your skin crawl.
Backyard Baseball – Aug 18 (Xbox, PC)
The arcade classic is back. New game modes, 11 remastered stadiums, 24 original teams, 30 beloved characters. If you grew up on this in the late '90s and early 2000s, this is pure nostalgia fuel. Pablo Sanchez better still be the GOAT or we riot.
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Cost of Hope (DLC) – Aug 20
Massive non-linear expansion for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl. Dozens of gameplay hours, new stories, twisted characters, faction intrigue where no choice is clean. If you've been waiting for a reason to strap on the gas mask and head back into the Zone, here it is.
Steins;Gate Re:Boot – Aug 20 (PS5, PS4, Switch, Switch 2, PC)
Full remake of the legendary visual novel. Redrawn character art, completely re-recorded voice cast, redone soundtrack by Takeshi Abo, and a brand-new worldline with its own divergent events. This isn't a remaster — it's a ground-up rebuild. Xbox version got delayed to October 29. If you're a VN fan, this is the week's clear highlight alongside Mortal Shell 2. Tutturu.
Also This Week:
Egging On (Aug 18) – Game Pass
Brigador Killers (Aug 20)
🛒 Deals
Best Buy 60th Anniversary Sale – Through Aug 23
Final Fantasy VII Rebirth (Switch 2) – $34.99 (30% off)
Star Wars Outlaws (PS5) – $11.99 (60% off). Twelve bucks. That's less than lunch.
MTG Foundations Starter Collection – $47.99 (20% off)
Not the deepest sale of the summer, but Star Wars Outlaws for twelve dollars is a no-brainer if you haven't played it.
Nintendo eShop Summer Sale – ENDED TODAY
If you missed it, you missed it. I told you two weeks ago. Don't come crying to me now.
📱 Social Media Buzz
Sony Testing Dynamic Pricing on PlayStation Store
Reports are circulating that Sony is testing a dynamic pricing model on the PlayStation Store affecting over 150 games worldwide. If this is real — and it's looking like it is — game prices could fluctuate based on demand, time, region, or whatever algorithm Sony decides to feed that week. This is the same company that killed physical media, slapped a death sticker on their own console boxes, region-locked download codes, and review-bombed their own Marvel fighter with PSN requirements. And now they want to make digital prices unpredictable too? At what point do PlayStation fans say enough is enough? Seriously.
Kingdom Hearts 4 Revealed at D23
Disney's D23 expo dropped a bomb on August 15: Kingdom Hearts 4 is officially confirmed for late 2027 on PS5. Coco world confirmed. A Kingdom Hearts anime series is also in development. Whether you're hyped or exhausted by this franchise probably depends on how many hours you've spent trying to understand the timeline — and whether you've given up yet. I gave up around Dream Drop Distance and I'm not ashamed to admit it.
💥 Fail of the Week
NVIDIA RTX 50-Series Prices Jump 41% Above MSRP
If you were hoping to grab an RTX 5080 or 5090 anywhere near the price NVIDIA advertised, I've got bad news for you. Median prices have jumped up to 41% above MSRP in August, and analysts are warning of another 20–30% hike before year's end. The "suggested" in Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price has never been more of a goddamn joke. NVIDIA doesn't care. Scalpers don't care. And you're left holding the bag.
Meanwhile, Valve is reportedly moving 12–15K Steam Machines per week. Turns out people will actually buy dedicated gaming hardware when it's priced for human beings and not hedge fund managers. Funny how that works.
🎬 Streamer Drama
HasanAbi vs. CNN's Scott Jennings — Defamation Lawsuit
Twitch political streamer HasanAbi — and for the record, I fucking hate that guy — is going at it with CNN analyst Scott Jennings over what Hasan is calling an "egregious lie" and a defamation claim. Details are still developing but it's spilling across social media and into legal filings. Love him or hate him — and I know where most of y'all land on that one — Hasan stays in the news cycle. This one's more political than gaming, but when one of Twitch's biggest streamers is threatening to sue cable news pundits, it's worth a mention.
🎬 Industry Moves
Alibaba Sells Lingxi Games for $2+ Billion
Alibaba Group is offloading its game developer unit Lingxi Games to private equity firm Trustar Capital for over $2 billion. Lingxi was built in collaboration with Koei Tecmo (Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Nobunaga's Ambition). The deal comes after a planned 2023 fundraising round stalled when China proposed tighter gaming regulations. Big money moving in Chinese gaming — and private equity circling the industry like vultures as always.
🃏 Card Game & TCG News
Magic: The Gathering – The Hobbit — OUT NOW
The set officially released August 14 and it's already moving fast. 321 cards total. This is the first Tolkien set legal in Standard — that's a big deal for competitive players, not just collectors.
Money cards to watch:
Smaug (Showcase Surge Foil) — already listed around $230+ on TCGPlayer. That's a mortgage payment in a booster pack.
Gandalf, Goblins' Bane (Borderless Surge Foil) — chase mythic
The Queen of Dale (Showcase Surge Foil) — high-value pull
The Arkenstone and Gollum, Riddle Master — notable rares worth tracking
Gift Bundle drops September 4 with a Collector Booster and surge foil seasonal Hobbit lands. If Lord of the Rings taught us anything, the Tolkien sets hold value long-term. Get your boxes now before prices climb — because they will.
Also worth noting: Wizards already dropped a Banned and Restricted announcement this week. Some cards caught immediate bans following the set's release. Shocking? Not really. Unprecedented for a Standard-legal Universes Beyond set? A little bit. Check the official announcement for specifics if you're in the competitive scene.
Next Monday's post is going to be the biggest Money Monday of the year. I'm not exaggerating.
That's your Money Monday. State of Play delivered, Mortal Shell 2 is the real deal, and we're in the final countdown to GTA 6. Buckle up — next week is going to be absolutely insane. See you then.
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