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Tomas Franzese

Tomas Franzese

A former Gaming Staff Writer at Digital Trends, Tomas Franzese now reports on and reviews the latest releases and exciting developments within the video game industry in a freelance capacity. Tomas is passionate about sharing game developers' stories, analyzing video game history, and contextualizing those things within the modern video game industry. He attends industry events like Summer Game Fest and appears on podcasts like ComicBook Nation’s Quick Save. Tomas' byline also appears on GameSpot.

Before Digital Trends, he was a Video Game News Writer at Inverse for two years. Prior to that, Tomas honed his skills at DualShockers for nearly four years, working his way up from Staff Writer to News Editor. As News Editor at DualShockers, he supervised and edited the website’s news coverage, and that experience still comes in handy at Digital Trends today. His favorite games include Star Wars: Battlefront II (2005) and Batman: Arkham City.

Based in Virginia, Tomas graduated from Old Dominion University in 2020 with a B.A. in Intercultural & International Communication. He returned to Old Dominion University in 2024 to pursue an M.A. in Lifespan & Digital Communication. Through his communication and media-related research, Tomas can better understand how video games and culture intertwine.

Key art for Clair Obscur: Expedition 33

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 review: A challenging game for challenging times

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is an ambitious new RPG inspired by RPG classics, and most of the risks it takes pay off.
Gaming Reviews
lost records bloom and rage episodic structure opinion lrbr part 2 screenshot 4

Lost Records: Bloom & Rage is great, but shouldn’t have been two parts

Lost Records: Bloom & Rage is a fantastic narrative adventure game, but the way it was released did it a disservice.
Gaming Features
Key art for Sunderfolk

Sunderfolk redefines how to play a strategy game by taking cues from Jackbox

Sunderfolk is redefining how to play a strategy RPG game in the same way that the Jackbox Party Pack games redefined what a party game could be. Ever since it was announced last fall, Sunderfolk’s creative approach to this genre has garnered my attention. It’s a cooperative strategy RPG inspired by tabletop games, but it’s […]
Gaming Features
The shop in Moonlighter 2: The Endless Vault.

Moonlighter 2 is a more ambitious sequel to a fantastic indie game

Digital Sun Games recently outlined all of the ways Moonlighter 2: The Endless Vault improves upon its 2018 indie hidden gem of a predecessor.
Gaming Features
An owl attacks mice in Winter Burrow.

Winter Burrow finds the cozy middle ground between Don’t Starve and Mouse Guard

Winter Burrow is the next cozy crafting-survival game you should be keeping an eye on.
Gaming Features
Bowser in Mario Kart World.

The Switch 2’s higher prices won’t hurt its chances at success, analysts say

Nintendo Switch 2 and its games are more expensive than expected, but analysts don't think that's disastrous for Nintendo.
Gaming Features
GameShare on Switch 2.

This underrated Switch 2 feature demonstrates why Nintendo handhelds thrive

GameShare was one of the most underrated new Nintendo Switch 2 features shown off in the latest Direct.
Gaming Features
The Switch 2 next to a TV with Mario Kart.

Nintendo Switch 2 Direct: Our reaction to everything Nintendo showed off

The Nintendo Switch 2 Direct reveal is happening now, and we're bringing you all the Switch 2 news as it happens, live.
Gaming News
Donkey Kong in Donkey Kong Bananza.

Every Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive game trailer from the latest Nintendo Direct

Check out the trailers for Nintendo Switch 2 exclusives like Mario Kart World, The Duskbloods, and Donkey Kong Bananza.
Gaming Features
A squad shoots down enemies in Den of Wolves.

Den of Wolves understands what made the Payday series special

Den of Wolves is taking the idea of Payday and reinventing it into something fierce. We went hands-on with 10 Chambers' new co-op shooter.
Gaming Features
Profile shot of Samus in the first Metroid Prime 4 Beyond trailer.

Everything announced at the March 2025 Nintendo Direct

We're doing a live recap of everything announced during the March 2025 Nintendo Direct focused solely on Nintendo Switch.
Gaming Features
A screenshot from Tides of Annihilation.

Black Myth: Wukong gave Tides of Annihilation devs the confidence they needed

Tides of Annihilation is part of a wave of Chinese action games appealing to western players, and its developers explained why that gives them confidence.
Gaming Features
The party members of Sunderfolk s tanding around a campfire.

Sunderfolk release date and more announced at Dreamhaven Showcase

The Dreamhaven Showcase hosted by Geoff Keighley included four major reveals, including Sunderfolk's release date and a new sci-fi shooter called Wildgate.
Gaming Features
Best of GDC 2025

The best games of GDC 2025: Blades of Fire, Hotel Barcelona, and more

Games such as Blades of Fire, Hotel Barcelona, and Missile Command Delta stood out as Digital Trends' favorite games of GDC 2025.
Gaming Features
Takumi in The Hundred Line -Last Defense Academy-

The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy feels like something special

We checked out The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy at GDC and already feel like the strategy RPG could be a surprise hit.
Gaming Features
The Prophet Hunter in Steel Hunters.

Steel Hunters is the most approachable extraction shooter I’ve ever played

Based on what we played at GDC 2025, Steel Hunters is shaping up to be one of most approachable extraction shooters out there.
Gaming Features
Subjective art based on Studio ZA/UM's Project C4

ZA/UM explains what sets Project C4 apart from Disco Elysium

While ZA/UM's troubled history can't be ignored, Project C4 is building on the base of Disco Elysium to offer up a intriguing game about espionage.
Gaming Features
Key art for Blades of Fire.

Blades of Fire is the most surprising game I played at GDC 2025

Blades of Fire is the latest game from the developers of Metroid Dread, and it's one of the most innovative action games I've played since For Honor.
Gaming Features
Wuchang in Wuchang: Fallen Feathers

Wuchang: Fallen Feathers may just satiate your Bloodborne appetite

Wuchang: Fallen Feathers is another fast-paced Soulslike to satiate us while we wait for more Bloodborne.
Gaming Features
A tactical battle appears on screen in Missile Command Delta.

Missile Command Delta is Atari’s boldest retro reimagining yet

Missile Command Delta combines Into the Breach and The Witness into one bold retro reimagining.
Gaming Features
Bubsy, an orange cat, standing in a tuxedo like he's James Bond in GoldenEye 007 holding a remote control.

Bubsy in: The Purrfect Collection is no joke. It’s a deserved remaster

Bubsy in: The Purrfect Collection gives one of gaming’s most infamous platformer mascots his due in a thorough, respectful game collection.
Gaming Features
A character shoots a shotgun at a robot in System Shock 2's remaster.

System Shock 2’s remaster took nearly 6 years to make, but for good reason

After nearly six years in development, System Shock 2: 25th Anniversary Remaster is finally giving a foundational shooter its due.
Gaming Features
Punching an NPC in Atomfall.

Atomfall will let you kill every character you meet

Players can kill any NPC they encounter in Atomfall, a new survival RPG set in an England decimated by the Windscale disaster.
Gaming News
A man stands on a rock in Atomfall.

Atomfall flips typical RPG conventions on their head, then nukes them

Atomfall is shaping up to be a memorable, experimental RPG based upon the Windscale Fires disaster in the U.K.
Gaming Features
Gustave in Cliar Obscur: Expedition 33.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is shaping up to be one of 2025’s big sleeper hits

We played a slice of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, and it looks like it has to potential to be a breakout hit for fans of classic turn-based RPGs.
Gaming Features
Characters jump in Splitgate 2 art.

Splitgate 2 might have a little too much variety

Splitgate 2 offers a lot more variety than its predecessor, but that's not always a good thing.
Gaming Features
Kat in Lost Records Bloom and Rage

Lost Records: Bloom & Rage proves that narrative adventures can still innovate

Lost Records: Bloom & Rage brings innovation to a narrative adventure genre in desperate need of new ideas.
Gaming Features
Kai fights a Xaurip in Avowed.

Avowed review: Obsidian’s latest RPG is its best

Avowed embraces what works best about Obsidian's RPGs to offer an unforgettable adventure.
Gaming Reviews
A Zed in Killing Floor 3.

Is Black Ops 6 getting stale? Then you should check out Killing Floor 3

Killing Floor 3 embraces Unreal Engine 5 to create a substantial sequel to a standout co-op shooter.
Gaming Features
An army at the ready in Civilization 7.

Sid Meier’s Civilization VII review: a new age for a classic series

Sid Meier's Civilization VII reimagines fundamental aspects of the series with its new Ages system while retaining the core of what makes Civilization great.
Gaming Reviews
Key art for Exoborne.

I don’t like extraction shooters. Exoborne might be the one to win me over

Exoborne is a new extraction shooter from the developers of Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodhunt and feels like a spiritual successor to The Division.
Gaming Features
Hazel sits cross-legged in South of Midnight.

How to watch January 2025’s Xbox Developer_Direct

Here's a roundup of everything you need to know before you tune into the Xbox Developer_Direct featuring Doom: The Dark Ages this Thursday.
Gaming News
Karl Fairburne in Sniper Elite 5.

3 PS Plus games you should play this weekend (January 17-19)

Get a refresher on some of the series coming back in early 2025 with these PS Plus Extra titles.
Gaming Features
Key art for Diablo 1.

3 new Xbox Game Pass games to play this weekend (January 17-19)

There are three new games that Xbox Game Pass subscribers should check out this weekend if they're looking for something to play.
Gaming Features
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