Tech Desk 
Dec 09, 2024
This week in gaming brought exciting updates across multiple platforms. Fortnite announced its new tactical mode, Ballistic, alongside significant XP boosts to address fan feedback in its latest season.
Amazon Prime Gaming revealed a lineup of free December games, offering titles for every type of player, while PlayStation celebrated its 30th anniversary with major discounts on games and hardware.
These updates continue to show how platforms are evolving to keep gamers engaged and entertained. Gadinsider has compiled the details of all this news; here’s what you should know.
Fortnite’s Ballistic update
Fortnite creators are introducing Ballistic, a tactical FPS mode inspired by Counter-Strike and Valorant. This adrenaline-fuelled 5v5 competitive mode involves bomb-planting and defence strategies, with teams switching sides after six rounds. Ballistic will launch in early access on December 11, 2024, at 9am ET.
Alongside this, Fortnite boosted XP rewards following fan backlash during Chapter 6, Season 1, with eliminations, chest openings, and survival milestones now offering substantially higher XP.
Amazon Prime gaming’s free games for December
Amazon Prime Gaming announced its December 2024 lineup of 18 free games, starting with titles like Quake II and Disney-Pixar’s WALL-E. More games, such as Planet of Lana and The Town of Light, will be released throughout the month.
Members can enjoy these games as DRM-free GOG codes, while new users can access them with a free 30-day trial.
PlayStation’s 30th anniversary sale
PlayStation celebrated its 30th anniversary with a massive sale running from December 2 to December 20, featuring discounts on nearly 500 games, including The Last of Us series, Gran Turismo 7, and Rockstar titles like GTA V.
The event also includes themed PS5 consoles and classic PS2 platformers like Jak and Daxter coming to PlayStation Plus Premium on December 10.
Ubisoft shuts down XDefiant
Ubisoft announced the closure of XDefiant, its free-to-play FPS, due to declining popularity. Servers will remain active until June 3, 2025, with all scheduled Season 3 content released beforehand. Refunds for recent purchases will be provided.
Snake returns with Nothing’s Widgets
The nostalgic Snake game, originally from Nokia phones, made a comeback through Nothing Community Widgets on Android.
This updated version, co-developed by the community, retains its classic gameplay with swipe controls and a modern glow-in-the-dark design.
