Gaming News

Todd Howard Told Fallout TV Show Makers to Hold Back on Things That Will Be in Fallout 5

Bethesda Game Studios boss Todd Howard asked the producers of the upcoming Fallout TV show not to include certain, secret things because the developer plans to use them in Fallout 5. Speaking to Den of Geek, co-showrunner Graham Wagner joked, “I think we made Fallout 6,” before Westworld creator Jonathan Nolan, who is executive producer on the project as well as director of its first three episodes, teased: “We know all about Fallout 5; we’re not telling anyone.” Howard then said he guided the Fallout TV show’s creators to steer clear of anything that might have clashed with Fallout 5. “Well, there were some things where I said, ‘Don’t do this because we are going to do that in Fallout 5,'” Howard said. The Fallout TV show, while...

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Warner Bros.’ MultiVersus Finally Has a Re-Release Date

Warner Bros.’ free-to-play platform fighter MultiVersus has re-emerged with a new release date and a tease for new characters and stages. Developer Player First Games announced a release date of May 28, 2024 across PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X and S, Xbox One, and PC via Steam and Epic Games Store, with full cross-play and cross-progression support. Player First Games said it had rebuilt the game from the ground up to improve online play and, with a move to Unreal Engine 5, improved visuals. There’s a brand new PvE mode that adds additional ways of playing with unique rewards. Characters are lifted from across Warner Bros. Discovery franchises, with Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Harley Quinn, and Black Adam from...

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Helldivers 2 Dev Says Players Kicking Teammates Who Don’t Have ‘Meta’ Loadouts Is a ‘Hard to Solve’ Problem, Asks Community for Ideas

Helldivers 2 is an early 2024 smash hit, with critical and commercial acclaim following its explosive launch on PlayStation 5 and PC. But there are some aspects of the co-op shooter that can result in a frustrating experience, and one of them has to do with the behavior of your teammates. As IGN reported last month, some Helldivers 2 players are kicking their teammates before games even get going because they’re not bringing so-called "meta" builds to the party. (Check out IGN’s best loadouts guide to see what we think). This has been a problem with Helldivers 2 ever since it came out, particularly on higher difficulties, so nothing new there. But now the boss of developer Arrowhead has taken notice publicly, and asked the game’s...

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PUBG Gets Destructible Environments, a Move to Unreal Engine 5, and More in 2024

PUBG is set to get several new features throughout 2024 that promise to change the game significantly. The free-to-play battle royale, which remains one of the most-played games across console and PC via Steam six years after launch, is getting destructible environments, a move to Unreal Engine 5, user generated content, and more over the course of this year. Developer Krafton also signalled new collaborations (these have become a big part of PUBG recently), improvements to matchmaking, and the promise of increased anti-cheat measures. On destructible environments, Krafton said players will be able to strategically destroy sections of buildings or build defensive barriers, which in turn would open new attack routes or secure areas...

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Contra: Operation Galuga Review

Like returning to a beloved amusement park as an adult, Contra: Operation Galuga instantly reconnected me with the 2D run-and-gunners from the quarter-slinging arcade days of my youth. And just like revisiting a childhood fancy, I quickly remembered why I had so much fun with this series, while also feeling a bit underwhelmed by how little things have evolved in all that time. This reimagining of the original Contra offers a perfectly adequate modernization of a bonafide classic that makes for an enjoyable jaunt alongside your friends, but it’s also perhaps overly faithful to its predecessors, allowing for only the slightest tweaks. I don’t regret the handful of hours it took me and my buds to get through all of Operation Galuga, but...

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Daily Deals: Samsung 990 EVO SSD, Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, PS5 Slim Bundle

Saturday is here, which means it's time to round up the best deals available this weekend across games, technology, and more! This weekend, we're kicking things off with exciting deals on SSDs, new games, and more. The best deals for Saturday, March 9, include the Samsung 990 EVO SSD, Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, God of War Ragnarok, and more. Save On Samsung 990 EVO SSDs Amazon has solid discounts for both the 1TB and 2TB Samsung 990 EVO SSD models. This SSD is compatible with PlayStation 5, so it's perfect if you're looking for a new PS5 accessory to pick up. Additionally, it's great for any gaming PC or other device that supports a full NVME M.2 SSD. Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown for $29.99 Prince of Persia: The Lost...

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Disney Epic Mickey: Rebrushed - Everything We Know About the Remake

On February 21, 2024, Disney and THQ Nordic surprised viewers with the announcement of Epic Mickey: Rebrushed during the Nintendo Partner Direct. The faithful remake to the 2010 Wii-exclusive Disney title is being developed by Purple Lamp, the studio behind SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle For Bikini Bottom - Rehydrated and SpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic Shake. Epic Mickey: Rebrushed will be a throwback for fans who played the original in the last decade and an introduction to the series for new fans, complete with updated graphics woven and a new set of skills for both groups to try in their quest to become an epic hero. Here's everything we know about Epic Mickey: Rebrushed. Jump to: Release Date Speculation Story Details...

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Activision QA Workers Vote to Form Largest US Video Game Worker Union to Date

A group of roughly 600 quality assurance (QA) workers at Activision under Microsoft have successfully voted to unionize with the Communication Workers of America (CWA), becoming Activision Quality Assurance United. Activision Quality Assurance United is the first to unionize at Activision since the company was acquired by Microsoft, and the largest video game worker union in the United States. It incorporates central QA workers at Activision offices in Texas, Minnesota, and California, and is distinct from other recent QA unions under Microsoft such as the Zenimax QA union and groups at Raven Software and Blizzard Albany. The group has organized with the support of a CWA-Microsoft neutrality agreement signed in 2022, wherein...

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Stellar Blade PS5 Demo Published Then Pulled from the PlayStation Store

Korean developer Shift Up just published – and then unpublished – a demo for its upcoming sleek action game, Stellar Blade, ahead of its launch on PlayStation 5 next month. Fans excited to try out the futuristic combat-focused title were surprised to see the offer show up on the PlayStation Store earlier today. They were even more surprised, however, to see the demo removed from the store minutes later. After it was unlisted, the Stellar Blade demo page simply featured a message that said it was “not available for purchase.” Now, as pointed out by Wario64 on X/Twitter, links simply lead to an error page. This short look at Stellar Blade was live on the digital store for around 20 minutes, giving some fans more than enough time to...

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Watch Dogs Live-Action Film Adaptation Is in the Works

As video game adaptations continue to ramp up, it looks like Watch Dogs will be one of the next titles to get the treatment. Deadline reports today that studio New Regency is developing an adaptation of the Ubisoft property. Sophie Wilde, who broke out in A24's hit horror movie Talk to Me, is in talks to star, with French filmmaker Mathieu Turi on board to direct and Christie LeBlanc writing. No plot details were shared beyond the fact that the film "is set within the universe of Ubisoft’s blockbuster video game franchise," per Deadline. Each Watch Dogs game takes place in a fictionalized version of a real city, following a different hacker protagonist who inevitably gets wrapped up in the criminal underworld (and the rival hackers)...

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Everything You Need To Know About Ghost Of Tsushima Director’s Cut On PC

Previously one of the most opulent jewels in a glittering crown of PlayStation exclusives, Ghost Of Tsushima Director’s Cut finally slices its way to PC and brings with it a veritable bounty of improvements and bespoke features that only the PC platform can support. A stunning and mightily visceral open-world action adventure, Ghost of Tsushima […] Continue reading...

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Backpack Battles Turns Inventory Management Into A Moreish PvP Game

I’m not a big fan of inventory management as a general rule of thumb. It tends to be a needless hassle in most games because it doesn’t have a point beyond restricting you. However, when inventory management is the point of the game, instead of an inconvenience, it becomes a fair amount of fun. The […] Continue reading...

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Inkbound: A Fascinating Roguelike With Depth

In the world of roguelikes, Inkbound is one you have probably not heard of and this wouldn’t have been helped with its Early Access teething issues. Despite this, however, it has since proven to be an exceptionally enjoyable game with plenty of both tactical and gameplay depth and it also happens to be lovely to […] Continue reading...

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Someone Staged a Production of Hamlet Inside GTA 5, and Now It's Getting a Documentary

Film company Altitude Media Group has picked up a documentary that takes place entirely inside the world of Grand Theft Auto 5, and it’s called Grand Theft Hamlet, per Deadline. The in-game production will cover the story of Sam Crane and Mark Oosterveen, two players with theatre backgrounds who took COVID-19 lockdowns in the UK as an opportunity to recreate Shakespeare’s Hamlet within Rockstar Games' fifth Grand Theft Auto title. With the future looking grim and lots of time on their hands, they embark on an adventure that sees them facing griefers and learning about the truths of life. You can read the full synopsis below: “January 2021. The UK is in its third lockdown and all entertainment venues remain closed. For theatre actors...

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Hogwarts Legacy Dev Sets Expectations for Incoming Update

A developer at Avalanche Software has taken to X/Twitter to "set expectation" for the incoming Hogwarts Legacy update. Community manager Chandler Wood told fans of the game that Avalanche's original wording was "very intentional" when it promised "additional updates and features" back in January 2024. "We are thrilled that you are all excited for the free update to Hogwarts Legacy this summer," Wood said. "We love seeing all the guesses and hopes for what will be part of this update, and while we are not ready to talk about it yet, I do want to set some expectations for what we are working on. "Our original wording of 'additional updates and features for the game' was very intentional. This update is a small way of showing...

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Dragon's Dogma 2 Fans Are Creating Some Wonderful and Horrific Beings in its Character Creator

Capcom released the incredibly intricate character creator for Dragon's Dogma 2 early and, naturally, players are already creating some wonderful and horrific things. Players can download the character creator now before jumping straight into the action on March 22 when Dragon's Dogma 2 launches proper. It allows the creation of the player character and the first of many pawns, which are the devoted followers of the player and the main mechanic of Dragon's Dogma 2. The character creator in Dragon's Dogma 2 is already being praised as one of the best ever. "This character creator truly feels next gen," wrote TheShiniestHobo on Reddit. "The best I've seen in any game," added EMT-Fields. For as many wonderful and dramatic characters...

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Helldivers 2 Community Unlocks Mechs After Liberating Tien Kwan — but There’s a Catch

The Helldivers 2 community has liberated Tien Kwan just a day after it became available to play, unlocking the use of mechs in the process. But before you log on expecting to stomp on bugs and shoot up bots straight away, there’s something you need to know first. While on your spaceship, check out the stratagems list and scroll to the bottom. There you’ll see the EXO-45 Patriot Exosuit, which comes equipped with a rocket launcher and heavy machine gun. And here’s the catch: it’s only available to buy at level 25. Helldivers 2 is just a month old, which means there will be a lot of players who have yet to hit such a high level. Prior to the exosuit’s arrival, the highest level required for a stratagem was 20. So, most players won’t...

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Indie Dev Hits Out at Warner Bros. Discovery Over ‘Incredibly Disappointing’ Decision to Delist Their Adult Swim Game

There are fresh fears Warner Bros. Discovery plans to delist all Adult Swim games, including the likes of Pool Panic, Duck Game, Rick and Morty: Virtual Rick-ality, and Kingsway, within the next two months. This week, the creator of Small Radios Big Televisions, Owen Deery, tweeted that Warner Bros. Discovery had informed him that his indie game would be retired in the coming weeks. The game, Small Radios Big Televisions, is published by Warner Bros. Discovery subsidiary Adult Swim Games. Deery told Game Developer that Warner Bros. Discovery will pull Small Radios Big Televisions from storefronts in the next 60 days. According to an email sent to Deery, Warner Bros. Discovery said it can no longer support Small Radios Big Televisions...

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The Night Wanderer Is a New Soulslike Based on a Best-Selling Polish Fantasy Novel Series

Developer Mighty Koi Studio announces The Night Wanderer, a new sci-fi/fantasy soulslike with RPG elements based on the Polish book series "Lord of the Ice Garden" by Jarosław Grzędowicz. Mighty Koi, established in 2022 and also at work on the just-announced Thorgal, describes The Night Wanderer as such: "Players will take on the role of Vuko Drakkainen - a mercenary sent to the mysterious planet Midgaard to find a lost scientific expedition. The storyline combines science fiction with traditional fantasy. The gameplay will feature a compelling protagonist, an engaging story, and a vivid, extraordinary world shaped by mysterious forces." Drakkainen is also the main character of the novel, which is a four-volume saga that was first...

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Thorgal Video Game, Based on Polish Comic Book, Announced

Developer Mighty Koi Studio announces Thorgal, a new action-adventure game with RPG elements based on the famous Polish comic series by Grzegorz Rosiński and Jean Van Hamme. According to Mighty Koi, which is also working on the just-announced soulslike The NIght Wanderer, players of Thorgal "will take on the role of the main character and experience many adventures known from the comics, encountering dangerous bandits, formidable monsters, and invincible gods - but also powerful allies." Thorgal was first published in 1977 and has since sold over 20 million copies and been translated into 18 different languages. Ryan McCaffrey is IGN's executive editor of previews and host of both IGN's weekly Xbox show, Podcast Unlocked, as well...

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Balatro Review

There are some games that keep you entertained for a weekend. Some keep you busy for an hour on a weeknight after failing to settle on what new Netflix documentary to watch next. But then, every so often, a game like Balatro turns up and takes hold of your entire life – to the point where you open up your wardrobe and the only four suits your eyes can make out are clubs, spades, diamonds, and hearts. This poker-influenced roguelike may appear straightforward at first, but take the risk of picking it up, and its ludicrously fun gameplay loop won’t let you put it down. Never has the power of placing down a simple pair of kings garnered more delight than in Balatro, where it can suddenly conjure up an 82 x 146 multiplier as you watch the...

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Some Helldivers 2 Players Find Mechs Early as Liberation of Tien Kwan Inches Closer

It looks like some Helldivers 2 players are accessing the hotly anticipated mechs early — and this time it may well be official. This week, Helldivers 2 developer Arrowhead seemingly locked the release of mechs behind the liberation of a planet, sending hundreds of thousands of players off to fight back against the Automatons on Tien Kwan. While the battle to liberate Tien Kwan rages on, some players have provided footage on the Helldivers subreddit and Discord showing what looks like mechs on the planet. They’re able to then jump in and play around with Helldivers 2’s new exosuits, although based on the reports from players who claim to have found the mechs, they are extremely rare. It’s hard to discern what’s legit and what’s...

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Microsoft Will Be Debating Right Now Whether Xbox Consoles Have a Future, Says Peter Moore

It feels like the video game console is at a crossroads. With Xbox Series X and S floundering in the ‘console war’, Sony suggesting PlayStation 5 is approaching the second half of its life after missing sales targets, and uncertainty around the release of the Nintendo Switch 2, there is growing concern that the traditional video game console business could be under threat. Why? There are a number of reasons. Perhaps chief among them is that the console business has failed to grow meaningfully in years, offering a sizable but static customer base that is increasingly playing a handful of enormous games and leaving little room for everything else. After the pandemic boom and huge revenue increases from new types of monetisation like...

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Fortnite Chapter 2 Season 5: Myths and Mortals Introduces Flying Mechanics, Rippley as Poseidon, and More

The battle for Olympus is ready to begin in Fortnite, with Epic revealing details on the map, mythic weapons, the Myths and Mortals Battle Pass, and more. Particularly exciting for Fortnite fans is that Chapter 5 Season 2 introduces flying mechanics via the Wings of Icarus, offering new and interesting ways to traverse the map in service of hunting your foes. The Fortnite community was abuzz on Thursday when Epic released the cinematic trailer for Fortnite Chapter 2 Season 5, which is themed around Greek mythology. Myths and Mortals should be live by the time this article is published. Ares, Cerberus, flying mechanics, and meme skins The official blog offered some of the following details on what Fortnite fans can expect from Myths...

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Helldivers 2 Dev Reveals Plans to Make Heavy Enemies Easier to Deal With After Patch Backlash

It’s been a tumultuous week in the world of Helldivers 2, which saw the game’s first balance patch nerf its best loadout, an associated backlash, and, most recently, a call-to-arms to unlock mechs. Now, developer Arrowhead has addressed the backlash in particular, and signaled plans to change the game as a result. First, some background. This week’s patch 01.000.100 nerfed the Breaker, Railgun, and Shield Generator Backpack, three items considered essential to higher difficulty play and Helldivers 2’s best loadouts. But it also buffed weaker weapons and stratagems, including the Flamethrower, Laser Cannon, Punisher, and the 380mm and 120mm Orbital Barrages. It was the nerfs to the Breaker, Railgun, and Shield Generator Backpack that...

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Akira Toriyama, Creator of Dragon Ball and Manga Pioneer, Dies at 68

Akira Toriyama, the creator of Dragon Ball and the artist behind Dragon Quest, Chrono Trigger, and numerous other works, has died. He was 68. News of Toriyama's passing was made public by the official Dragon Ball Z X (formerly Twitter) account on March 7. According to the statement, Toriyama died due to an acute subdural hematoma. "It's our deep regret that he still had several works in the middle of creation with great enthusiasm. Also, he would have many more things to achieve." Bird Studio and Capsule Corporation Tokyo wrote in the tweet. "However, he has left many manga titles and works of art to this world. Thanks to the support of so many people round the world, he has been able to continue his creative activities over 45...

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Prince of Persia and Dead Island 2 Drop to $49, A Free Fallout, and the Best Deals on Dragon's Dogma 2!

Thank your own personal deity—possibly the titular Dragon's Dogma 2 dragon—it's Friday! This morning, I should like to turn your attention to a sale of some old EA-owned gold that's made its way to Steam for the first time. Chief among them for me is The Saboteur, basically a WWII GTA set in Paris. I'm also all about the dirt cheap tsunami of Command & Conquer games, too. In retro news, I'm celebrating the 22nd birthday of one of the greats, Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty. I have vivid memories of replaying the Tanker demo disc that came affixed to the Official PlayStation Magazine about...oh, forty times. The full game continued to delight with memorable bosses, level detail we'd simply not seen up until that point, plus a...

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Dragon's Dogma 2 Character Creator and Storage Will Be Available Today

Dragon's Dogma fans have been anxiously awaiting a demo for the sequel, and while today's Capcom Highlights stream didn't announced a full-blown demo, it did reveal that the character creator and storage will be available today. If you take advantage of the pre-release character creator, you'll be able to transfer your character to the full game when it releases on March 22. Dragon's Dogma II features a pretty in-depth character creator (which we broke down as part of our IGN First coverage right here), so it's a good opportunity to get a heads-start on your own Arisen ahead of the official release. Developing... Continue reading...

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Starfield's Beta Update 1.10.30 Finally Improves Your Character and Companions' Modeling Abilities

Yesterday, Bethesda released the latest beta update for the Steam version of Starfield. Update 1.10.30 lets players test a list of changes before they're publicly released on all platforms, including new facial expressions and postures in photo mode. As it teased last week, Bethesda is emphasizing quality-of-life improvements. The beta update includes hundreds of changes, from bug fixes to graphical errors. The biggest change, though, may be the addition of new poses and facial expressions for you and your companions, providing players with more creative freedom in photo mode. Some other highlights include removing the penalty of losing a Digipick when you press the "undo" command during the Security mini-game. Several players in...

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Overwatch 2 Is Getting a Cowboy Bebop Collaboration Next Week

Today, Blizzard revealed a stylish trailer for Overwatch 2's next big crossover collaboration event with none other than the fan-favorite 90's anime series, Cowboy Bebop. The special collaboration will launch as a part of Overwatch 2 Season 9 on March 12. In typical Overwatch fashion, the Cowboy Bebop collaboration trailer spoofs animation studio Sunrise anime's iconic opening animated sequence and opening theme song "Tank" by Yoko Kanno. In it, we see Cassidy as the bebop's laissez-faire bounty hunter, Spike Spiegel; Ashe as its femme fatale, Faye Valentine; Mauga as the gruff ex-cop, Jet Black; Wrecking Ball as the super-smart hound, Ein; and Sombra as the crew's rambunctious hacker, Ed. Blizzard first revealed a Cowboy Bebop...

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