Classic Rugrats Comic Strip for June 6, 2026 | Nickelodeon
Stream the classic Rugrats series on Paramount+! Try it at ParamountPlus.com!
Rugrats, provided to Creators Syndicate by Nickelodeon, based off the popular animated television series has been created for children and family's to laugh and enjoy together.
Follow these comics and their take on real episodes of the show and their own spin on hilarious adventures.
Avatar Legends: The Fighting Game is being delayed by three weeks so the developers can add new content it hadn't planned for launch.
Gameplay Group International and PM Studios’ 1v1 2D fighting game based on the phenomenally popular animated series, Avatar: The Last Airbender and its sequel, The Legend of Korra, is priced $29.99, and will feature crossplay at launch. It’s described as being “rooted in the spirit of elemental mastery.” Its official blurb continues: “Designed for both newcomers and veterans, it channels the energy of classic fighting games while breaking new ground in movement, style, and combat expression. Built with a focus on fluidity, responsiveness, and online integrity, the game invites players to discover what it truly means to fight with purpose. Hand-drawn in 2D, it is crafted to preserve the style and expressive animation of the original series.”
Gameplay Group had planned to launch Avatar Legends: The Fighting Game on Thursday, July 2, but it will now release on Thursday, July 23. In a statement, the publisher said: "To ensure Avatar Legends: The Fighting Game delivers the best possible experience at launch, we wanted to let you know that we’re taking a little extra time to cook up an exceptional Avatar adventure, including brand new content previously unplanned!”
Gameplay Group didn’t say what this new content is, but beta access runs July 2-5 for those who pre-order on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and S, and PC via Steam.
“We can't wait for you to master the elements and see how the Four Nations have come to life,” Gameplay Group added. “Thank you for your patience and continued support!”
12 playable characters are expected at launch, with “many more” released via a seasonal model. There are selectable support characters who “influence your fighting style and grant special moves.” The unique “Flow System” provides “movement centric” gameplay. There’s a single-player “campaign” with an original narrative, combo trials, a gallery mode, and “best in class” netcode.
Gameplay Group was founded by Victor Lugo, who was for a time lead designer at Iron Galaxy working on Killer Instinct, and Philip Mayes, who was managing director of Australian games company Mighty Kingdom, which has a number of licensed games under its belt. Avatar Legends: The Fighting Game was in the works at Swedish firm Maximum Entertainment for some time before it was quietly canceled in 2024, according to a financial report. The company never responded to IGN's request for comment. Gameplay Group picked up the Avatar fighting game Maximum Entertainment was working on to try to revive it.
You might remember Maximum Entertainment for its publishing label, Modus Games, abruptly ceasing development on 2D fighting game Them's Fightin' Herds, sparking a backlash from players. Maximum Entertainment has suffered financial problems, executive resignations, and legal action against former board members.
Gameplay Group is now the publisher of Them's Fightin' Herds, as well as Avatar Legends: The Fighting Game.
Paramount is getting serious about video games, and this is its first big announcement.
Paramount has made a significant move in the world of video games, and announced its first major project, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin from Bayonetta developer PlatinumGames.
The newly set up Paramount Games Studio includes all Paramount and Skydance gaming studios, including Skydance Interactive and Skydance New Media, in a major push into the triple-A space. As well as the Turtles game from Platinum, Paramount Games Studio is now publishing the recently delayed Avatar Legends: The Fighting Game.
But let’s start with Turtles. Revealed during the Summer Game Fest showcase, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin is described as a “AAA action-adventure game” that is, as you’d expect from the name, based on the hugely popular comic book series. The Last Ronin follows the last surviving Ninja Turtle as he embarks on a desperate mission for vengeance. It’s early days, but expect a release on consoles and PC.
And if you’re slightly confused by this announcement given a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin game was already announced as in development at Embracer-owned studio Black Forest Games, that project is no more, Paramount confirmed to IGN. The Last Ronin was in development at Black Forest and publisher THQ Nordic, but at some point before Skydance merged with Paramount in August last year development had stopped. Paramount Games decided to continue development and opted to go with Platinum.
Ahead of today's announcement, IGN interviewed Shawn Kittelsen, senior vice president (SVP), head of creative and production at Paramount Games Studio, to find out as much as possible not only about the Turtles game, but what Paramount is trying to achieve here. He compared the ambition of the Turtles game to Nier: Automata, which Platinum also worked on, and said fans of Paramount’s fast vault of franchises can start to get excited for more big video games based upon them.
IGN: Why is the formation of Paramount Games Studio important for our readers? What changes as a result of what you're doing here that they'll actually feel the effect of?
Shawn Kittelsen: If you are a fan of Star Trek or Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles or SpongeBob or any of the franchises that live at Paramount, then this is a sea change in how Paramount approaches games, where previously games were strictly something that was licensed out and Paramount didn't have an investment in. Now Paramount is treating games as a content pillar alongside film and TV, and we're investing in games and we're publishing games. We're taking a stronger hand in the quality and creative control of those games. So we are elevating games in a big way. And that means if you've been a fan of these franchises and you're like, where are the triple-A TMNT games? Where's the love for Avatar: The Last Airbender? We're going to bring those games that you've been waiting for to the platforms that you play on.
IGN: Do you now have a significant first-party development resource you can draw upon to actually build games yourselves? Turtles is with Platinum, which is an external developer. Will you be developing games yourself?
Shawn Kittelsen: Yes. So we have Skydance game studios: Skydance New Media, which was co-founded by Amy Hennig, that's working on Marvel 1943, and then Skydance Interactive, which is the team that had worked in VR on titles like The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners and Behemoth. Both of those teams are in the future going to be publishing games under the Paramount banner. We're going to be making games for the franchises that we own. We're going to be making games for original IP. We believe that games is a place where IP and new franchises can originate. So we want to take some calculated bets there.
And then there's going to be emerging IP as we develop new franchises within Paramount. Those might also start in games as they make their way across all media. So the plan is to do a mix of first-party development, third-party development or co-development, and then still some licensing where it makes sense. If there is a franchise or a genre or a platform that we're not prepared to invest in and really give our best attention, then that's a great opportunity to find the right partner and license with them.
But because we're also publishing and making our own games, we can be a bit more selective about where we license to make sure that we're curating the maximum quality for each IP. We don't want to just shotgun things out there and flood the market. We really want to make sure that when people see a Turtles game or a SpongeBob game or whatever, that they see that and they associate quality with it. And that means that over time we will want to grow our first-party development. But I think if there's anything that the 2020s has taught us, it's don't get over your skis by being too acquisitive in this industry and just building up a giant war chest of studios without being prepared to manage them effectively, to guide them towards the right projects and make sure that you can bring those projects to market. So we're taking the mixed approach and then building very, very conscientiously.
Paramount Games Studio's Shawn Kittelsen is working on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin's story.
IGN: Let's talk about Turtles. Platinum has a fantastic reputation for action games. It does feel like the perfect match, really. So it'd be great to get some insight into how this project began and why you thought Platinum was the right fit.
Shawn Kittelsen: From the jump, the idea of PlatinumGames and The Last Ronin seemed like peanut butter and chocolate. They went together very, very well. It was the kind of no-brainer pitch in terms of, could this work? Absolutely. When we started Paramount Games at the end of last year, building out the division and the team and looking at the slate, there wasn't a Last Ronin game in development at the time. There were some previous partnerships that had gone away. So we were very, very excited to say, "Well, let's get going on this. Let's make that the first thing that we focus on." And Platinum had some really awesome creatives who were excited about The Last Ronin and had a pitch. And when we saw their pitch, it was about so much more than what we expected.
I expected to hear a lot about combat and action and we did, but we also heard a lot about the heart of this story and what The Last Ronin means to Turtles fans who grew up with TMNT and now can look back on their lives and see that things have changed, and they're more complicated, and they live in a different world, and they want the next generation to be able to enjoy the things that we all enjoyed when we were younger. So when they came in and they're like, "It's about the seasons of life and how we all love this thing and how it changes as we grow older but we still love it, but it's not the same," that hit different for me because okay, these guys not only understand the action component very well and obviously have those chops, but they understand this story and the work that Kevin Eastman [co-creator of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles] and Tom Waltz, the Escorza Brothers and Peter Laird and everyone else who contributed to The Last Ronin, they will honor the source material with an adaptation that really gets into the heart of the characters and the themes.
So that's the first big AAA project that we greenlit and that we've been working on. I think it represents everything that we want Paramount Games to be: the right fit between the team and the IP. They're fans of it. We don't want people who are non-fans being forced into making a game just for a paycheck. We want people who would bleed for these characters with or without the job. Like, they would be out there making fanfic. So we've got all the right ingredients to say, "Okay, this is exactly what we want to make as a company and this is a great game to represent the best of what we can do with our characters and with our future."
And then I'm personally invested in The Last Ronin because I'm working on the story for it. I haven't written a full game since Mortal Kombat 11 and the Aftermath content. I was a narrative lead on MK11 and Injustice II. So I have actually written for Turtles before, because we had the Turtles in Injustice 2 as guest characters. So it's nice to come back to the Turtles.
But Yohei Shimbori, who's the director at PlatinumGames working on The Last Ronin, he also comes from fighting games. He was a producer on Tekken 8. He was on the Dead or Alive series for a number of years. And when we met, we got along. It was very much peanut butter and chocolate. And when we talked about what his ambitions for the story for the game were, one of the things that he talked about was how he really wanted to marry Japanese action with Western storytelling, and make an adaptation that really challenged what Platinum has done in the past with stories, and try to meet the bar set by things like Nier: Automata, when you think of the best stories in PlatinumGames.
And we talked about, "Hey, well, we'll get some Western writers." And he said, "Well, I really love Injustice 2 and MK11 and your work. We could work on this together." If you throw that out there to me and it's like, "Oh, you mean I don't have to... Oh, I could do that?" That was an irresistible opportunity. So I've got a narrative director, Mike Rogers, on our team who we're working with as well on the story. Mike just worked on the Invincible VS fighting game with Robert Kirkman. I guess we're a bunch of old fighting game hands who are coming together to make the ultimate Turtles action adventure now.
IGN: It sounds like it’s early on.
Shawn Kittelsen: It's early on, but the terms of the deal are fully executed. We're already multiple milestones deep and getting into prototyping and building our way to all of the pieces that we need to go scale full production. So it's early days.
IGN: You mentioned Nier: Automata as a point of comparison. That's a masterpiece in many people's eyes. You’re shooting high!
Shawn Kittelsen: That's the trick. I started my career working on the Arkham games at DC Comics. That's how I got connected to NetherRealm and WB Games in the first place. I think we don't want to treat any of these as just opportunities to bring something that people know to games. It's cultural stewardship for us. It's, what's the best way to bring this to an audience? I think The Last Ronin comics are some of the best books of the last five, 10 years, but even so there's only an audience that's so big for comics. And when we bring the story to games, I hope that it drives a lot more people back to the comics and go back and rediscover that story in the comics, because we're going to be pushing towards such a big global audience. So we're very excited about what we can do with this one.
And like I said, it's a passion project. I've already got enough of other jobs, so it takes a lot to convince me and my wife that I should be spending nights and weekends working on a game personally!
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In October 2024, Paramount Game Studios revealed plans for the first Avatar: The Last Airbender AAA RPG, which was set for development at Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 maker Saber Interactive with a 2027/2028 release window. Details were thin on the ground, but we were told the Avatar RPG was going to be "the biggest video game in franchise history," and it would tell a new story in the Avatar universe developed in "close collaboration" with Avatar Studios.
With a working title of Ice Wars, the new Avatar RPG would have put players in the role of an "all-new, never-before-seen Avatar," with a story taking place thousands of years in the past. At the time, Avatar owner Paramount and Saber said players "can expect to be immersed in a vibrant world, master all four elements, engage in dynamic combat alongside companions, and experience the challenges and decisions that come with being the keeper of balance in the world.”
“Saber Interactive has a proven track record in bringing IP-based games to life, and we are excited to co-fund this AAA title alongside them and let fans experience this world first-hand,” Paramount said at the time.
Unfortunately, we didn’t hear anything more of the project. And now, two years later, we have confirmation it’s fallen by the wayside. Shawn Kittelsen, senior vice president, head of creative and production at Paramount Games Studio, told IGN that the Avatar RPG wasn’t in production when Paramount Games Studio, which unifies all Paramount and Skydance gaming studios including Skydance Interactive and Skydance New Media, was set up last fall after the Paramount Skydance merger.
It’s a similar situation to Embracer-owned studio Black Forest Games' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin, which ceased development at some point before Skydance merged with Paramount. But the big difference here is Paramount Games decided to continue development of TMNT, opting to go with PlatinumGames. For the Avatar RPG, Paramount Games decided against continuing the project. It is, however, publishing the recently delayed Avatar Legends: The Fighting Game.
“That's a project that wasn't in production when we came in,” Kittelsen told IGN of the Avatar RPG. “We didn't start this iteration of Paramount Games until last fall, after the Paramount Skydance merger. So that game was not in production.”
“There were a lot of aspirations previously at Paramount, but there wasn't necessarily the conviction or the support, and it wasn't a separate division,” Kittelsen continued. “Games was a sub-department within consumer products. Now we are a business unit and we're accountable for driving revenue and building games, and we have a larger team and more support behind us including the fact that Skydance came with two game studios ready to play.
“So we're taking a different approach to games and wanting to see things through and make sure that anything that we announce we're prepared to launch. Even with something like The Last Ronin that's earlier on, there is a deeper conviction and a larger investment being made in that title that we are going to ensure that we drive to launch. We are fully publishing that game and control all aspects of it alongside Platinum, and we've made sure that Platinum's as committed as we are to making it a reality.
“So doesn't mean you won't get a AAA Avatar game at some point, but it might come in a different iteration.”
Side by side of Aang from the cartoon and live-action "Avatar: The Last Airbender" (Photo Credit: Nickelodeon, Netflix, TheWrap)
Greg Baldwin, who voiced Uncle Iroh in season three of Nickelodeon’s “Avatar: The Last Airbender,” came out swinging against the “slippery and clueless bunch” at Paramount.
“Hard truth…,” the actor began a post shared Saturday on X. “I can speak freely because I’m 65 years old and my pocketful of f–ks is seriously depleted. Working as a paralegal at various studios in LA for thirty years…I had the opportunity to observe studio executives closely.”
He continued, “They’re generally a slippery and clueless bunch who shouldn’t be allowed near anything remotely creative…but the new regime at Paramount is straight up evil. I assure you. These soulless b–tards have nothing but contempt for a show about grace and redemption and the struggle against fascism.”
“ATLA is a mystery to them,” he warned. “They. Do. Not. Value. The. Franchise.”
Baldwin’s message appearted to be a reference to news that a planned RPG game based on the beloved series has been cancelled. IGN reported the game was announced in 2024 and set to be released during the 2027/28 window. IGN also reported the game was planned to be “the biggest video game in franchise history.”
Shawn Kittelsen, senior vice president, head of creative and production at Paramount Games Studio, told the outlet the game was no longer on the docket after the formation of Paramount Games Studio last fall.
“That’s a project that wasn’t in production when we came in,” Kittelsen told IGN. “We didn’t start this iteration of Paramount Games until last fall, after the Paramount Skydance merger. So that game was not in production.”
Bloomberg also reported Saturday that Paramount may be considering selling the rights to the franchise to another studio. While specific rights were not detailed, it’s believed Paramount is considering selling its “children’s assets,” including Viacom and Nickelodeon.
Paramount is reconstituting its video game operation, launching a new game studio and setting a leadership team for the division.
Paramount Games Studio
Like its media peers, the company has deployed various strategies over the years in the sector, which has historically not been a straightforward process for Hollywood despite all of its established IP. Ramping up in gaming is considered a priority as the company looks to close its pending merger with Warner Bros. Discovery, which has had an up-and-down journey in gaming but remains committed to the space.
Paramount Games Studio encompasses all Paramount and Skydance gaming studios, including Skydance Interactive and Skydance New Media. Last August, Paramount and Skydance closed their $8.4 billion merger.
Leading the newly created unit is President Tony Driscoll, a former executive with Epic Games, Warner Bros., AT&T, and Disney. Driscoll will serve concurrently as Executive Vice President (EVP) and head of corporate strategy and development, and will continue to lead integration planning efforts for the WBD transaction. Paramount has said the $110 billion deal will close by the end of September. It still needs approval from a handful of key regulatory agencies and has also drawn scrutiny from lawmakers, activist groups and an industry coalition that includes some prominent actors.
Other key execs in the gaming unit include Dan Prigg, EVP and head of games; Shawn Kittelsen, Senior Vice President (SVP), head of creative and production; Andrea Silvers, SVP, marketing and communications; Kara Bilkiss, SVP, business development and licensing; and Ray Davis, SVP of engineering.
“This division launch marks a meaningful evolution in how we think about games – not as an extension of our business, but as a core pillar of our content strategy alongside film, television, and streaming,” Driscoll said in a statement. “We are committed to creating exceptional games for every type of player, from casual to AAA, and building enduring experiences across our beloved Paramount IP and original worlds that deepen fan engagement and drive long-term growth.”
Paramount Skydance Launches New Video Game Studio as ‘Core Pillar’ of Content Strategy Alongside TV, Films and Streaming (EXCLUSIVE)
David Ellison has been moving pieces around the board in reshaping the new Paramount Skydance over the past year. But one key division remained out of play in his master media plan — until now.
On Friday, Paramount Skydance unveiled Paramount Games Studio, a unified gaming studio that combines Skydance’s two existing game studios, Skydance Interactive and Skydance New Media, with Paramount’s intellectual property, as Paramount’s gaming business has largely consisted of licensing IP to third parties.
Variety has confirmed that both of Skydance New Media’s in development projects, “Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra” and an untitled Star Wars game made in collaboration with Lucasfilm, are still in the works. As for its new slate, Paramount Games Studio will make the announcement of its first game, a AAA title, during Summer Game Fest at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles Friday.
To lead its new gaming efforts, Paramount has named Tony Driscoll, the company’s head of corporate strategy and development, as president of Paramount Games Studio. Driscoll is intended to service in both roles concurrently “and will continue to lead our integration planning effort for the Warner Bros. Discovery transaction,” per Paramount.
Paramount Games Studio launches as Paramount Skydance is awaiting regulatory approval on its pending acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. WBD has its own in-house video game studio, which produces titles based on Harry Potter, “Game of Thrones,” the DC Universe and more WBD IP.
Along with Driscoll, the leadership team at Paramount Games Studio includes two top Skydance Games vets: Dan Prigg, who was previously head of Skydance Interactive, is now executive vice president, head of games for Paramount, while Shawn Kittelsen has been set as senior vice president, head of creative & production.
Skydance New Media’s previous leadership team is also experiencing a shakeup with Amy Hennig moving from her role as co-president of Skydance New Media to become Paramount Games Studio’s studio creative director. Julian Beak, who served alongside Hennig as co-president of New Media, has exited the company amid the changes.
Other key roles include Andrea Silvers as Senior Vice President, Marketing and Communications; Kara Bilkiss, Senior Vice President, Business Development & Licensing; and Ray Davis, Senior Vice President of Engineering.
“This division launch marks a meaningful evolution in how we think about games – not as an extension of our business, but as a core pillar of our content strategy alongside film, television, and streaming,” Driscoll said. “We are committed to creating exceptional games for every type of player, from casual to AAA, and building enduring experiences across our beloved Paramount IP and original worlds that deepen fan engagement and drive long-term growth.”
Stalled Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin video game officially rides again but with a new team
After development was stalled, the newly launched Paramount Games Studio is bringing back the long-anticipated AAA title.
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin video game is officially back on track.
After development stopped, the game reemerges with the Japanese developers at PlatinumGames.
The game will be published by the newly launched Paramount Games Studio.
The much-hyped video game adaptation of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin has officially re-emerged from obscurity and appears to be fully back on track— with a few key differences.
The so-called "Roninverse" introduced a dark alternate future, loosely inspired by Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns, in which Michelangelo is the last surviving member of the Turtles. He returns to avenge the deaths of his brothers Leonardo, Raphael, and Donatello by seeking out the new leader of the Foot Clan, Shredder's grandson.
In March 2023, word broke that the beloved comic book from Kevin Eastman, Peter Laird, and Tom Waltz would be getting a gaming adaptation from the developers at Black Forest, to be published by THQ Nordic. Development stopped before Skydance merged with Paramount, the owners of the IP.
In this new era for the company, updated plans are in the works to finally bring the AAA action-adventure game to the hands of players.
With the launch of Paramount Games Studio — a fresh banner that now encompasses all Paramount and Skydance gaming studios and franchises, including Skydance Interactive and Skydance New Media — comes the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin. Knowing how much fans were anticipating this project, the powers that be revitalized development under PlatinumGames, the Japanese developers behind Ninja Gaiden 4 and the Bayonetta entries.
A teaser accompanied the announcement, which broke out of Summer Games Fest in Los Angeles on Friday. BossLogic also designed art for a limited-edition merchandise collection.
Beyond the game, the Roninverse continues to expand. This past February, Entertainment Weekly revealed the Training Day prequel to the main comics saga, which will eventually continue with a formal TMNT: The Last Ronin — Part 3. Paramount Games is giving fans an early look at the prequel via sign-ups for email alerts on thelastronin.com.
Plans were originally in the works to make an R-rated movie based on the property, as well, but that project was stalled. Eastman is confident that, too, will return at some point.
"Speaking with all the folks at Viacom and Paramount and Nickelodeon who love the Turtles and really have done a fantastic job, whether it be the 2012 series to Mutant Mayhem, I don't think it will not happen," he told EW. "I think it will happen. One of the things that anybody I've talked to at the companies, they know the fans love and support all things Last Ronin, as much as another group of fans love everything Point Grey [Pictures, production company], Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, and everybody has done with the whole Mutant Mayhem series. We're not disheartened at all."
The Paramount Games Studio announcements on Friday also brought an update on Avatar Legends: The Fighting Game.
Described as a "fast-paced, 1v1 fighter" set within the world of Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra, the game will feature "an original canon Story Mode and an emphasis on fluidity, responsiveness, and online integrity," according to a press release.
Hailing from Gameplay Group International and PM Studios, in collaboration with Paramount and Avatar Studios, that title will officially launch this July 23.
"This division launch marks a meaningful evolution in how we think about games — not as an extension of our business, but as a core pillar of our content strategy alongside film, television, and streaming," Tony Driscoll, President of Paramount Games Studio, said in a statement about the new gaming division. "We are committed to creating exceptional games for every type of player, from casual to AAA, and building enduring experiences across our beloved Paramount IP and original worlds that deepen fan engagement and drive long-term growth."
