Even though S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Legends of the Zone Trilogy - Enhanced Edition released on May 20 offering free "fully remastered and optimized" upgrades for all owners of the original trilogy, developer GSC Game World has been under siege by a review bomb campaign after players discovered the Russian voice acting and "Soviet-era" landmarks had been quietly removed.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Legends of the Zone Trilogy - Enhanced Edition includes remastered versions of Shadow of Chornobyl (2007), Clear Sky (2008), and Call of Prypiat (2009) with upgraded visuals, next-gen console optimizations, and expanded mod support. However, shortly after release, all games plummeted to a "mostly negative" rating on Steam as players flooded the review section to complain about blurry visuals and register their dismay that the games were now "blurry, censored, and revised, [with] added advertisements."

"So I own the originals and played them to death. If I get an enhanced edition I want to be excited when I boot it up, to see something different that makes we want to re-engage with the game. This isn't it," explained one player. "The graphics aren't upgraded enough to get excited about, I have mixed feelings about stripping out the Russian references - honestly I see the original games as products of their history and although I understand the sensitivities of the developers I'm not sure whats to be gained by retconning them.

"So it's free so I've nothing to complain about, but it's not a huge step up from the original and to be honest, if you want an enhanced edition you can just mod the thing to your hearts content or play anomaly. GSC needed to do much more here and some cosmetic tweaking doesn't really cut it."

GSC Game World is a Ukrainian video game studio based in Kyiv, although some staff are currently working out of Prague after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, temporarily halting the development of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 as a result. At least one former GSC developer, Volodymyr Yezhov, has been killed in action.

While not formally acknowledging the negative reviews, GSC has today posted an update and a patch that it says will fix crashes on unsupported PC hardware and some consoles, address save issues, and repair "missing geometry on several levels."

"Stalkers, we care about your feedback and are working on fixing the most critical issues," the team said. "We really want to make your comeback to the Zone special." It then said it would "continue to work on improving the trilogy."

The "missing geometry," players believe, refers to the missing Soviet relics found across all three games. It's not clear if GSC chose or was compelled to revise Soviet iconography, but PC Gamer was able to confirm that the monument/sign outside Chornobyl itself, which reads "ChAES in the name of VI Lenin," had at least been deleted. All that was left was "the two concrete blocks it used to stand on."

The update made no explicit mention of the missing audio or the blurry textures.

"THEY LISTENED! THEY LISTENED! THEY LISTENED!" cried one delighted player on Reddit. "EE still has some issues but goddamn it, so glad they actually work on fixing the game and do not ignore the feedback."

One player said: "That's a million time[s] better solution than just removing it without a trace. That's both applauding the current decommunization efforts while not censoring anything that existed before it."

"This is a good first step. Hopefully we see some other fixes to notable things like the popular blur issue and items not appearing in marked stashes," added another.

Read more on how S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 has changed everything for the studio amid the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, as well as a critic, columnist, and consultant with 15+ years experience working with some of the world's biggest gaming sites and publications. She's also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.

Tim Miller’s wild animated horror anthology Love, Death and Robots just returned for Season 4 and it is, if we do say so ourselves, bigger and better than ever. In an exclusive behind-the-scenes featurette, director David Fincher discussed working on the season opener, which features the iconic Red Hot Chili Peppers as motion-captured marionettes made with computer-generated effects — and here’s the kicker: the episode takes place at one of their massive concerts, so the entire crowd is marionettes too. That means they had a lot of strings to take care of.

“I always wanted to do super marionation in CG,” the Social Network filmmaker revealed. “So I started talking to Tim about that and he was like, ‘Yeah, it can be done. So it’s just the band members?’ And I said, ‘No, it’s also the crowd.’ He sort of looked at me and said, ‘How many people are in the crowd?’ And I said, ‘12, 13 thousand.’ And he said, ‘How many wires per person?’ And I said, ‘Five [or] six.’ And when he regained consciousness, we decided that was kind of the direction we were gonna go in.”

Fincher also explained that everything about motion-capture and marionette work is a bit at odds, but something they were able to use to their advantage was the very specific way the members of the Chili Peppers — Anthony Kiedis, Flea, Chad Smith, and John Frusciante — move and interact with each other.

“One of the things that’s interesting about mo-capping something that’s supposed to be a marionette is that it behaves very differently,” the director added. “Everything in a marionette is suspension. There’s a lot of that kind of work. Like, well, should this swing or does the hand move in a way that has real determination, or is a byproduct of moving the puppet across the stage? There’s a very specific way that they [the band] move and a very specific way that they interact.”

Ultimately, Fincher just loves the unlimited possibilities of what this show can be, which is basically how this idea — one of his own that he’d been wanting to do for 30 years — was able to come alive. “Part of what’s attractive to me about Love, Death and Robots is the fact that it can be anything,” he said.

Fincher produces on the series, which was created by Miller. It premiered on Netflix in March 2019 after spending a whopping 11 years in development hell, where it started as a reboot of the 1981 sci-fi animated film Heavy Metal and eventually morphed into the show it is today.

Love, Death and Robots Volume 4 is available to stream on Netflix now.

Lex Briscuso is a film and television critic and a freelance entertainment writer for IGN. You can follow her on Twitter at @nikonamerica.

Today's best deals are a solid mix of card collector must-haves and wallet-friendly figures. The Paradox Wisdom Premium Collection has just landed at Magic Madhouse for $67, and while it isn’t cheap, it’s already flying off the shelves thanks to the Iron Leaves ex, Iron Crown ex and Iron Boulder ex promos. Meanwhile, the Lillie Premium Tournament Collection has seen another drop on Amazon to $51.98, which is a price we’ll gladly take for one of the most playable and collectible modern trainer boxes out there.

TL;DR: Deals For Today

Over on Amazon, there’s also a stacked Funko Pop Animation Series sale that’s seriously worth browsing. You can grab fan-favorites like Silva Zoldyck, Gin Ichimaru, Genya (Demon Form), Hinata Hyuga, and Karin from their respective anime series for as little as $3.99. Even the newer Suicide Squad Isekai Pops like Deadshot and Katana are down to $5.49 each. If you’re trying to pad your shelf with a few more vinyl heroes (or villains), this is one of the lowest entry points we’ve seen this month.

MTG: Marvel's Spider-Man Preorders

Spidey is slinging his way to Magic: The Gathering Universes Beyond later this year, completing an epic lineup of licenced sets that are bound to breakdown the entry barrier of MTG for most.

Suprisingly, the Play Booster Box and Spidey's Spectacular Showdown Scene Box are back up for preorder. The Spidey Bundle has also just popped up for preorder again with Amazon's pre-order price guarantee, meaning we shouldn't see the incredibly jacked prices other TCG products have been experiencing with big box retailers.

It's a dream set for Marvel fans, who should get on this set early before prices on single cards goes through the roof.

MTG Final Fantasy Preorders

Meanwhile preorders for Magic the Gathering: Final Fantasy are still up at Walmart and Amazon, specifically the Bundle and Starter Kit for retail pricing.

This is set to be the biggest MTG set in the history of the trading card game, so it's a wise choice to preorder now. You can also preorder single cards at the moment too:

MTG FF Single Card Prices Before Launch

I've focused on some of the more popular character appearances here, but there's plenty more to secure with this set having nearly 700 cards including Extended Art, Boarderless and Surge Foil variants.

The worst thing you can do as a Magic or FF fan is to sleep on this set, it's going to explode. These are the current biggest cards in the set before launch on June 5.

Bear in mind it's mega risky to buy before release day, as prices could plummit in the meantime. Still, it's worth keeping an eye on what's hot, and what's not!

More MTG Sealed Products

Assassin's Creed Shadows Ukombozi Vinyl

Nintendo Switch 2 Accessories Sale

Did you manage to grab a Nintendo Switch 2 preorder in? If so you'll want to protect that tarrif-dodging investment at all costs. Luckily I've got the best cases, screen protectors and thumb grips on the market right now.

TZGZTs case and screen protector bundle is great value for money at $12.84 and is a consistent best seller.

Looking for cases that will fit inside a Switch 2 dock? JSAUX has us all covered with some option alongside some premium cases and hardshells.

I've included JSAUX as i've been hands on with the products above and can't reccomend them enough.

Stomp N' Chomp Bundle

Funko Pop Vinyl Sale

The Funko Pop Animation Series sale on Amazon is going heavy with discounts, with dozens of characters from shows like Hunter x Hunter, Bleach, Demon Slayer, Naruto, and Chainsaw Man dropping to $6.49 or less. Standouts include Silva Zoldyck, Gin Ichimaru, Genya (Demon Form), Hinata Hyuga, and even Suicide Squad Isakai variants like Katana and Deadshot. If you’re collecting or gift-hunting, these prices are the lowest we’ve seen this month for vinyl figures.

AC: Shadows Original Score

INIU Power Bank Sale

Amazon is running a solid range of discounts on INIU power banks, covering everything from ultra-portable 10,000mAh models to heavy-duty bricks that can charge your laptop. The compact 10000mAh 5V/3A model is just $15.98 (was $21.99), and the sleek 22.5W 10000mAh version — marketed as the smallest in its class — is down to $22.99.

For more power, the 22.5W 20000mAh option is $29.99, and the MagSafe-compatible 45W 10000mAh model has dropped to $35.99 from $49.99.

Need something serious? The 27000mAh 140W bank is $71.99 (was $99.99), and the 25000mAh 100W version is $48.58 with an on-site coupon.

There’s also a handy 2-pack of 10000mAh banks for $35.99, or a great mid-range 20000mAh 65W model for $35.99. If your current battery pack is on its last leg, or you want one for every bag, these are easy recommendations.

Xbox Game Studios Bundle

Sabrent SD Card Reader (USB-C)

Paradox Wisdom Premium Collection

Lillie Premium Tournament Collection

Prismatic Evolutions SPC

Amazon is back on top for the worst pricing in Pokémon TCG at the moment, with Prismatic Evolutions Super Premium Collections rocking a price tag around three times the MSRP.

TCG Player is valuing this at around $224.43 right now, saving trainers over $30. That's great, but still a tall order if you're not interested in the Eevee deck box and promo.

There's 15 booster packs in the SPC, which also means you could buy a couple of Prismatic Evolutions Booster Bundles from TCG Player instead for $137.98 to snag 12 booster packs, or 18 booster packs for $206.92. It's still not ideal, but that's the value of them right now.

Buying from a dedicated Pokémon TCG secondary market is cheaper than big box stores these days. Don't want to put that much money down on chance? Prismatic Evolutions single cards are nose diving right now:

Prismatic Evolutions Single Cards Are Crashing

This Weeks Crashers And Climbers

It's becoming abundantly clear that buying up singles on the Pokémon TCG collector market is the way forward for trainers right now.

Some chase cards that have crashed recently are cheaper than some overpriced booster bundles currently.

Some of the prices above look crazy, but some of them we're nearly double just a couple of weeks ago, with the latter 5 cards climbing higher and higher.

If your heart is set on ripping open booster packs, let's get into the best way to do just that without destroying your life savings (much).

More Pokémon TCG Sealed Products

If you're desperate for some big box retailer products, here you go.

Just make sure to be savvy before buying, as 9 times out of 10 TCG Player will be cheaper in this climate.

Assassin's Creed Shadows Soundtrack Collection 4LP Vinyl

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2

Pearson Learn To Program 2025 Bundle

Windone Electric Scooter

4-Burner Propane Gas BBQ Grill

NordicTrack T Series

TP-Link Quad-Band WiFi 7 BE33000

Unlock Pro 3D Modeling Skills With Blender

Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold 256GB

SAMSUNG Galaxy S25 512GB

Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 + Smart Tag

Bose QuietComfort

DOOM: The Dark Ages Limited Edition A3 Art Print

Cooler Master NR2 Pro Mini ITX

Skytech Chronos Gaming PC

ASUS TUF F16

Google Pixel 9 Pro 1TB

Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time is out, and it's already quite popular. In light of this, Level-5 has announced some free DLC is on the way, in recognition of the new Fantasy Life's positive reception.

Announced on the Level-5 site, the developer has confirmed free DLC is coming to Fantasy Life i. While no release date is set yet, the team is teasing some new recipes, as well as new content to "update the world" (via Gematsu). It will also apparently allow players to utilize high-rarity weapons obtained from Treasure Groves and other sources.

Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time went live for early access on May 18, with its full launch on May 21. It quickly climbed the Steam charts and started drawing players in, whether they were on the look-out for a new life-sim game or just eager for a new Fantasy Life game.

Level-5's latest sits at a 'Very Positive' user review rating on Steam at the moment with over 3,000 reviews, and given the early confirmation of free DLC, it seems like the new game has certainly taken off.

It feels like a solid win for Level-5, even after the departure of Keiji Inafune last year to "reassess and restructure" the project. Business operations of Level-5 Comcept were transferred to the parent company after Inafune left. In a post from March 2025, Level-5 boss Akihiro Hino described Inafune's departure as an "unexpected challenge."

Fantasy Life i has taken off though, which hopefully bodes well for the rest of Level-5's roster of upcoming games. The studio announced a slew of games in a February 2023 Nintendo Direct, and while some have released, others are still in development. The yet-to-be-released games include some heavy hitters, like futuristic detective RPG DecaPolice and the next installment in the Professor Layton series, Professor Layton and the New World of Steam.

While we wait to see when and how those games land, at least Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time players have some more chill life updates to look forward to. If you're currently playing Fantasy Life i, make sure to head over to our Fantasy Life i Gift Codes hub, where we're cataloguing all the Gift Codes and how to redeem them for some in-game goodies.

Eric is a freelance writer for IGN.

Have you ever wanted your own life-size cardboard cutout of Darth Vader? Me too. Luckily, Wayfair has us covered. As part of their ongoing Memorial Day sale, you can pick one up for just $49.90 (17% off). If you're reading this, odds are you have at least some sort of Star Wars or other geeky display going on at home, whether it's in a game room or part of your work from home office. Picking up this Darth Vader cutout is a great way to not only spruce that space up, but a good photo op for your next May the 4th-themed party.

Life-Size Darth Vader From Wayfair Is On Sale

Elden Ring Nightreign will soon let players drop into the shifting lands of Limveld, exploring and fighting for survival either solo or in groups of three. For the duos out there though, it sounds like you'll need to be open to a third.

In IGN's interview with Elden Ring Nightreign director Junya Ishizaki, the Nightreign lead discussed the choice to lean on solos and trios as the core experience options. When asked why there's no option for a pair of players to drop in together without a matchmade third player, Ishizaki said it was overlooked.

"The simple answer is that this is simply something that was overlooked during development as just a two-player option, so we're very sorry about that," said Ishizaki. "As we said before, we set out to make this a multiplayer co-op game for three players, balanced for three players, so that was the main focus and it's at the core of Nightreign.

"Of course, I myself as a player understand that and often want times where I'm just playing myself, so this is something that we considered from the start," Ishizaki continued. "And so we did put a lot of effort into creating this experience that was playable for solo players in as much as the rules and new systems allowed. So in putting all our efforts into that aspect, we kind of overlooked and neglected the duos aspect, but this is something that we are looking at and considering for post-launch support as well."

So if you're playing with just your favorite duos partner, be ready to accept a random third into your lives. Who knows? You might match up with someone pretty good at the game.

If you're playing solo, it does sound like Elden Ring Nightreign takes that into account. Ishizaki said the parameters of Elden Ring Nightreign "adjust dynamically depending on the number of players in that session," so lone wolves shouldn't be too overwhelmed in single-player.

You'll have to find and locate some self-revive options, which are incorporated for those opting for single-player. And if you're playing trios, well, that's apparently what Elden Ring Nightreign is built around. Whether duos support shows up or not, having an extra hand around can't hurt against some of the fearsome bosses waiting in Nightreign.

Elden Ring Nightreign is out on May 30, 2025 for PC, PlayStation 4 and 5, and Xbox One and Series X and S.

Eric is a freelance writer for IGN.

The two-part premiere of Librarians: The Next Chapter airs Sunday, May 25 and Monday, May 26 on TNT, before moving to Monday nights for the remainder of season 1.

Who would've guessed, back in 2004, that a cheeky little made-for-TV fantasy movie starring Noah Wyle would lead to multiple sequels, several tie-in novels and comics, and now two TNT series? Premiering 21 years after The Librarian: Quest for the Spear, The Librarians: The Next Chapter keeps the long-running franchise’s core formula intact: light adventure, a dash of magic, and a cast that knows exactly how seriously (or not) to take themselves.

By way of backstory, the Librarians of the title oversee an ancient repository for all manner of magical artifacts from throughout history, ensuring that nothing goes missing or ends up in the hands of potential world-beating baddies. Now joining their ranks: Callum McGowan as Vikram Chamberlain, a 19th-century Librarian stranded in the modern day thanks to a classic "Oops, the spell went sideways" mishap. As embodied by McGowan, Chamberlain is equal parts dashing, disoriented, and disarmingly earnest, all while looking like someone dusted off a character from The Prestige and dropped him into a basic cable show.

Vikram is joined by a capable new trio as he adjusts to life in the 21st century: Olivia Morris as a brainy mathematician who’s also a dead ringer for the ladylove he left in the past, Bluey Robinson as a YouTuber/conspiracy theorist who’s been waiting his whole life to be a part of something like this – and now can’t tell anyone about it! – and Jessica Green as a guardian who could probably punch through a wall if she needs to (and she usually needs to).

If you’re worried this new crew might drift too far afield from the franchise’s roots, rest easy: Christian Kane is on hand in the pilot, stepping back into the boots of fan favorite character Jacob Stone as if The Librarians never ended. It’s a shrewd bit of connective tissue and a quick assurance that, yes, this is still the same magic-tinged universe you remember. (Wyle doesn’t appear, but he is a producer here, so hope springs eternal for a guest spot by his character Flynn Carson.)

Stylistically, The Next Chapter is more throwback than reinvention. While earlier seasons of the previous series flirted with serialization, this one’s more monster-of-the-week – think Buffy the Vampire Slayer in its early years, or those comfort-food hours of Xena: Warrior Princess and Hercules: The Legendary Journeys from mid-’90s syndication. And that’s no accident: Dean Devlin, who’s been steering this ship since the beginning and serves showrunner duties here, knows better than to overthink a formula that already works.

McGowan makes a strong case for himself as the franchise’s new centerpiece, striking the tricky balance between swagger and sincerity. He’s got a bit of that James McAvoy glint – confident, a little broken, and always one sarcastic remark away from defusing a tense situation. The rest of the cast slots into their roles nicely, and it’s fun to watch them jell during the season’s early episodes – but the show knows whose name is on the library card, so to speak.

The Librarians: The Next Chapter isn’t trying to win Emmys. It’s TV with its sleeves rolled up – accessible, affable and proud to be what it is. In an era where genre programming often buckles under the weight of its mythology, there’s something refreshing about a series content to just spin capers with a magical MacGuffin, a plucky team, and the occasional demon. It might not set your social media feed afire, but it may well keep you coming back for a weekly dose of low-stakes, high-fun fantasy. And honestly? That’s a pretty good spell to cast.

Marvel's under-wraps TV project Vision Quest — another spin-off from hit MCU series WandaVision — is being made by a team of veteran Star Trek writers and production staff.

The series, which has quietly been in development now for over a year, was previously announced as having gained Star Trek: Picard writer and later showrunner Terry Matalas.

Matalas took over running Star Trek: Picard for its third (and best) season, and quickly set about reuniting the character with more of his former Star Trek: The Next Generation cast.

Now, Matalas will act as showrunner for the Paul Bettany-starring Vision Quest — and reunite with a number of other Star Trek writers in the process.

As detailed this week by Vision Quest's listing on the Writer's Guild of America website, fellow Picard writers Chris Monfette, Cindy Appel, and Matt Okumura have also joined the new Marvel project.

(It's worth noting that all of these people worked on the latter half of Picard, alongside Matalas, rather than the show's shakier first season.)

Most interesting of all, perhaps, is confirmation that Battlestar Galactica, Star Trek: Deep Space 9, and Star Trek: Voyager writer Michael Taylor is also working on Vision Quest.

Taylor wrote more than a dozen episodes of Voyager and is responsible for some of the very best episodes of DS9, including In the Pale Moonlight and The Visitor, the latter of which featured the late Tony Todd as a grown-up alternate version of Jake Sisko in an alternate timeline.

Filming for Vision Quest began earlier this spring, primarily based at Pinewood Studios in London (though a location shoot in Scotland has also been spotted).

Filming is due to start in our village tomorrow. Sources 🕵️ say it’s Marvel’s Vision series with the working title, “Tin Man”, starring Paul Bettany. The pub’s name has changed to The Old Selkie and a flag of Scotland is flying. #Chilterns 🎥 pic.twitter.com/O7sfMmMxdg

— Jane (@JaneFranklin99) March 31, 2025

Marvel is yet to detail the series' story, though fans expect it will reveal the fate of Paul Bettany's White Vision, last seen flying away at the end of WandaVision.

Curiously, the series is also expected to include the return of James Spader's Ultron (last seen being destroyed at the end of 2015's Avengers: Age of Ultron) and the character of Raza from the original Iron Man, who kidnapped Tony Stark and stuck him in a cave.

Vision Quest is expected to be released on Disney+ at some point in 2026. And, if you're keeping track, that means it'll almost certainly now arrive before the delayed Avengers: Doomsday — although after Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

Tom Phillips is IGN's News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social

We may take it for granted today, but imagine telling a younger version of yourself that one day there will be a magical app that will gather everything Disney, Pixar, Star Wars, Marvel, and National Geographic in one place you can watch whenever and wherever you want for a relatively low monthly price.

That is what Disney+ is thanks to all of the companies Disney owns, and it’s obviously one of the leading streaming platforms as it offers a wide collection of classics and original programming featuring some of the most beloved characters and stories ever told. However, there are so many streaming services out there and it can be tough to keep them all, no matter how much they claim to offer.

That being said, if you are considering signing up for Disney+ for the first time or feel the time is right to jump back into the vault as Scrooge McDuck would dive into his money bin, this guide will provide you with everything you need to know about the current Disney+ subscription plans, bundles, and more.

As of May 2025, Disney+ offers two main plans - Disney+ Basic and Disney+ Premium - and the main differences between the two are whether you get ads, if you are able to download content to watch on the go, and if you get Dolby Atmos. One thing you may not know, however, is that there are various Disney bundles that can get you multiple streaming services for a much lower price than you’d be able to get each individually. The newest streaming bundle includes Disney+, Max, and Hulu, but you can also bundle Disney+ with ESPN. You’ll be able to see all the options below, and we hope it helps make the decision of joining or not an even easier one!

Does Disney+ Have a Free Trial?

Disney+ does not currently offer any sort of free trial for new subscribers. However, there are quite a few other streaming services that do offer a free trial. And one potential work around is to sign up for a Hulu + Live TV free trial, which grants you access to Disney+ as a bonus bundle.

Disney+ Plans and Prices (As of May 2025)

All Disney+ plans increased in price on October 17, 2024. The following information has been updated to reflect these changes. Below is the most up-to-date information we've found from the Disney+ help page as of May 2025.

Disney+ Basic - $9.99/month

• Steam Disney+ with ads
• No downloads
• Supports up to 5.1 audio
• Up to 4K UHD video quality
• Watch on four screens at once at no extra cost
• Over 300 titles in 4K UHD and HDR

This is the cheapest Disney+ option and is excellent for those who don’t mind watching a few ads and don’t feel the need to have movies and shows ready for those times when no Wi-Fi or cellular service is available. If you travel a ton or have kids and want to load up some episodes of Bluey or Spidey and His Amazing Friends on a tablet for a vacation, you may want to consider an upgrade to the premium plan.

It’s also important to note that, while Disney+ Basic does offer over 300 titles in 4K UHD and HDR, it does not offer Dolby Atmos like Disney+ Premium does.

Disney+ Premium - $15.99/month or $159.99/year

• Stream Disney+ with no ads
• Unlimited downloads on up to 10 devices
• Watch on four screens at once at no extra cost
• Over 300 titles in 4K UHD and HDR
• Dolby Atmos

There are only two tiers of Disney+ and this is the top one. With the increase in price, you get everything Disney+ Basic offers, but you also don’t have to sit through ads and can download as much as you want on up to 10 devices.

Another big benefit you get from upgrading to Disney+ Premium is the addition of Dolby Atmos, which is one of the leading surround sound technologies on the market. In addition to having sound enveloping your room, Dolby Atmos features spatial audio that allows creators to place sounds in specific places and fully immerse you in your favorite stories.

Disney+ Bundle Pricing

Disney+, Hulu Bundle Basic - $10.99/month

• Disney+ with ads
• Hulu with ads
• No downloads
• Watch on four screens at once at no extra cost
• Over 300 titles in 4K UHD and HDR

This bundle is for those who want to watch everything Disney+ and Hulu have to offer, but don’t mind watching ads and don’t need to download content to their devices.

Disney +, Hulu, and Max Bundle Pricing

There’s something magical about slicing open the seal on a fresh Pokémon TCG box. That quiet shfffft as the plastic slides away, the weight of a booster box in your hands, and the flicker of hope as each pack crinkles open. And after unboxing everything myself, Pokémon TCG: Scarlet & Violet's latest expansion, Destined Rivals, truly gets it.

After getting my hands on a full spread of Destined Rivals products early, thanks to The Pokémon Company, it was obvious from the start that this isn’t just another Scarlet and Violet set. The nostalgia hits hard, and the artwork is genuinely stunning.

Build and Battle Box

I kicked things off with the Build and Battle Box, which comes with four booster packs, a 40-card semi-constructed deck, and one of four stamped promo cards. Mine came with Team Rocket’s Tyranitar which immediately set the tone. That promo looks fantastic in foil.

From the four booster packs, I managed to pull an Illustration Rare and one ex card. The Tyranitar holo alone had me wishing I could clone it three more times. Putting together a quick deck using the included cards and a few pulls was fun, which says a lot for a product that’s often treated like a warm-up act.

Booster Bundle

This was my favorite product to open. The Booster Bundle packs in six booster packs and no fluff, and I hit gold with my favorite card of the set. I pulled Ethan’s Typhlosion IR from this bundle. Honestly? If I had stopped opening packs here, I’d have been perfectly happy.

Both cards felt like a reminder of how much thought and care has gone into the set’s design. And when you hit cards like that back-to-back, it’s tough not to start scrambling for more bundles just to see what else you might get.

Booster Box

There’s just something satisfying about cracking into a full Booster Box, and this one didn’t disappoint. Inside the 36 packs, I pulled eight ex cards, six Illustration Rares, one Special Illustration Rare, and one Gold Rare. That’s 16 hits that didn’t feel like filler.

Alongside the Ethan pulls mentioned above, I pulled Ethan's Ho-Oh ex Gold rare, Arven’s Mabosstiff ex SIR and Team Rocket’s Crobat ex SR , both of which immediately got me thinking about new deck builds. The Mabosstiff ex artwork alone is enough to make me want to run midrange decks again, and Crobat looks like it was born for a damage spread archetype.

Team Rocket’s Houndoom IR also showed up late in the box, and it felt like the perfect closer. It's aggressive, looks like it could punch a hole through your binder, and made me actually stop and appreciate an Illustration Rare that isn’t trying to be too cute.

Elite Trainer Box

Next was the Elite Trainer Box, with its slick red and black Team Rocket design that looks even better in person. Inside you’ll find nine booster packs, Rocket’s Wobbuffet promo card, a set of sleeves, dice, and all the other trimmings you’d expect.

Unfortunately the pulls were a bust for me. That’s the way it goes sometimes, but I will say the box design might be one of my favorites in recent memory. It feels like it was made for fans who grew up with Gen II and still have their Rocket’s Zapdos somewhere in a binder. Even when the hits don’t come, it still feels like a collector’s piece.

Should You Buy It?

If you are looking to buy Destined Rivals, your best bet right now is via Best Buy, which is dropping Destined Rivals ETBs on May 23 via a special "Best Buy Drops" preorder event on its app, just like the recent Black Bolt and White Flare expansions preorders.

Typically, these drops occur around 8 AM PT / 11 AM ET, so get your Best Buy app ready and signed in, and add the ETB to your wishlist ASAP.

So should you pick it up? In my opinion, yes. If you’re a collector, a deck builder, or just someone who misses the feeling of opening packs that actually feel like they’re worth something, this is the set for you.

Get the Booster Box if you want the full ride. Grab a Booster Bundle if you’re chasing an IR like I was. Even the Build and Battle Box makes a solid case for itself. Just don’t be surprised if one product turns into three. This set has a habit of pulling you in, pack by pack.

Final Thoughts

Square Enix has dropped an update for Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake, improving boat travel speed, critical hit rates and abilities, and introducing a new shortcut button that lets you map spells and abilities to specific buttons.

As detailed on Steam, update Ver. 1.2.0.0 specifically addresses issues with three key areas: traversal, vocations, and battle. For the former, Square Enix said it had increased the movement speed when travelling by boat or using Ramia, as well as ensured that if you open the menu while travelling, you won't see your travel speed continually reset every time.

You'll also find that critical hit rates for the Hero and Martial Artist have been increased, and The Hero's Falcon Slash and Gigaslash abilities, as well as The Warrior's Cutting Edge ability, have been buffed to be "more powerful," too.

Perhaps most notably, battles have been refreshed as well, and a limit placed on the number of times some monsters can keep spamming the same attacks in the same "turn." Defence has been lowered for all monsters bar metal ones, although adjustments have also been made to make it a little trickier for both enemies and your squad to be "successively afflicted" with the same status ailments.

Here's the full list of changes and improvements:

Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake update Ver. 1.2.0.0

Traversal

• The movement speed when travelling by boat or using Ramia has been increased.
• Adjustments have been made to avoid boat travel speed being reset by opening the menu or getting into a battle while travelling by boat.
• A feature has been added whereby pressing the menu button while flying with Ramia allows the player to switch between automatic and manual flight modes.

Vocations

• Critical hit rates for the Hero and Martial Artist have been increased.
• The Hero's Falcon Slash and Gigaslash abilities have been made more powerful.
• The Warrior's Cutting Edge ability has been made more powerful.
• The Priest can now equip the Duplic Hat.
• The Monster Wrangler's Monster Pile-On ability has been changed to have reduced power until all friendly monsters have been found, and to carry out a random number of attacks between 3 and 5.
• The amount of MP used by the Monster Wrangler ability Wild Side has been changed to 30.

Battle

• A limit has been placed on the number of times that some monsters can perform certain actions within one turn.
• Some monsters have been adjusted so that they no longer use Defending Champion in the next turn after they become the last remaining monster.
• The status-ailment resistance of boss monsters has been increased for Draconian Quest difficulty.
• Adjustments have been made to make it more difficult for both enemies and party members to be successively afflicted with the same status ailments.
• Some monsters (Metal Chimaera and Hardy Hand) now yield more experience points when defeated.
• Defence has been lowered for all monsters except for metal monsters.
• Minor adjustments have been made to the way that damage is dealt.

Miscellaneous

• Once the Mini Medal Manor has been visited, it will be added to the list of Zoom destinations.
• A new “short-cut button” feature has been added that allows spells and abilities to be assigned to specific buttons. For more information, please refer to Traveller's Tips in-game.
• In the Temple of Trials, the number of Elfin Elixirs required to be handed over to the guard has been changed to 10.
• A treasure chest has been added to the Temple of Trials, allowing players to acquire one more Gringham Whip.
• Fixed a bug whereby levelling up after using the Seed of Life or Seed of Magic items would cause the status increase value to be calculated twice.
• Adjustments have been made so that if trophies and achievements have not been acquired correctly, selecting Misc. > Info in the menu allows some of them to be reacquired.
• Miscellaneous fixes for minor bugs.

Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake lets you experience the chronological beginning of the Erdrick Trilogy storyline in this remake of the original RPG classic. We enjoyed our time with Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake, awarding it an impressive 9/10 in our review, writing: "Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake is a shining example of how to remake a classic RPG and a brilliant reminder of why the original is an essential work."

Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, as well as a critic, columnist, and consultant with 15+ years experience working with some of the world's biggest gaming sites and publications. She's also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.

One of the most exciting trading card crossovers in years is nearly here. Magic: The Gathering Final Fantasy releases on June 13. The upcoming set has been steadily building in hype since its announcement, and a new trailer has since kicked the excitement up an extra notch.

If you're looking to get your hands on the set, you're in luck. There's a lot out of stock right now, but several of the elusive Final Fantasy MTG sets are now back in stock at Amazon, Walmart, and TCG Player, including the Play Booster Box.

Still, the market price of that booster set has also surged this month. Only a few weeks ago you could pick it up for $164.99 from TCGPlayer; it's now just over $179. Amazon had also restocked at $189.99 again (sold and shipped directly), up from the original listing's $144.99.

There's also the nine-booster Final Fantasy bundle (plus bonus cards) for $89.92, despite still being available to preorder for $70 at Walmart, alongside single sealed boosters that have risen from $7.99 to $9.19 as well.

So, what is "Market Price"? Those collecting Pokémon TCG will be wildly familiar with the concept, but it's where retailers will take liberties with the "recommended" part of an MSRP, and list it for what they think folk will pay. Capitalism at its finest, I know, and for Final Fantasy MTG, "Market Price" is currently around $20-40 over MSRP, depending on what you're buying.

If you can stomach the cost, with the rest of the sets sold out and some singles already going for over $500, you'll want to lock in your preorders before everything vanishes faster than you can say Chocobo.

Prices in the singles market are looking remarkably high as well, with the borderless version of Cloud, Midgar Mercenary, currently sitting at $147.23, and the Surge Foil version is at an almighty $599, the most expensive of the entire FF set.

If you've already preordered, or are just on the hunt for rare singles, there are a few other clear standouts to keep an eye on in the coming weeks.

That includes the gorgeous borderless Kefka, Court Mage card, shown off in the new MTG teaser trailer from PAX East, and featuring longtime Final Fantasy artist, Yoshitaka Amano.

TCG Player is good spot for a wide collection of single cards you can purchase and add to your deck without having to hope for a good pull.

It's also a good resource for figuring out how much your cards are worth once the new set is out, so if you pull any Surge Foil cards in your booster pack preorders, you might suddenly find yourself with quite the nest egg. But, it's also worth noting that prices change all the time, so some cards may change in value closer to release.

Other highlights to look out for when opening boosters, or to consider buying standalone, include the Cloud, Ex-Soldier Commander card, which costs $45.99 at the time of writing. That’s not surprising, given how easy it makes it for equipping other creatures you might have in play on the field.

Then there's also the full-art version of the Yuffie Kisaragi - Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow, currently just under $100. That’s due to both the card’s use as a Commander and its rarity, especially in that classic late 90’s FF7 art style.

It’s when you get to some of the special cards where things get extra expensive, though. Alongside that eye watering $599 Cloud card, the borderless version of the Traveling Chocobo card, costs $169.98, while the standard version stands at a cheaper, but still expensive $114.97.

You can also buy the new Traveling Chocobo cards, which even had their own teaser trailer featuring a limited edition Gold Chocobo.

While it can be expensive when seeking out the rarest cards, quite a number of singles at TCG player can also be bought at a low price.

That includes the likes of Sazh’s Chocobo for $1.96, Tonberry for $2.49, the useful Summon: Shiva for $1.56, or even Gladiolus Amicitia for 33 cents.

Moreover, TCG Player is also hosting preorders for select Final Fantasy booster sets, albeit at over MSRP, but at current market price.

But, for those just preordering the Starter Kit today, it is also worth noting that each deck in the set is preconstructed, and doesn't feature boosters to open (so no surprise $600 cards).

Instead, it includes one traditional foil legendary creature, five brand-new non-foil cards debuting in Magic, and 54 cards from the main set.

The kit also comes with four non-foil double-sided tokens, two MTG Arena code cards (one per deck), and two deck boxes. That’s a lot of value packed into a $20 price tag.

For new Magic: The Gathering players, the Arena code cards are especially useful. You can redeem both decks to play online, giving you a chance to learn the game at your own pace through AI matches or competitive play.

More MTG Preorders and Restocks

Looking for more? There's also plenty of other Magic: The Gathering products to buy now or preorder, such as the highly anticipated Edge of Eternities set. Spider-Man is also back in stock at the moment, with a few sets still up for grabs.

Robert Anderson is a deals expert and Senior Commerce Editor, for IGN. You can follow him @robertliam21 on Twitter/X or Bluesky.

Includes contributions from Ben Williams.

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 developer Saber Interactive has said it has no plans to increase the maximum party size of three players for co-op, despite modders getting 12-player co-op up and running recently.

Space Marine 2 limits squads to three players for PvE Operations, but it was hoped that this might increase for the upcoming horde mode, dubbed Siege.

Not so, Tim Willits, Chief Creative Officer at developer Saber Interactive, told IGN in an exclusive Space Marine 2 interview to discuss the Siege mode. Willits said upping the player count to four for co-op made Operations missions too easy.

“As we’ve mentioned in a past interview, sticking to three players for PvE game modes (including Siege Mode) has to do with the challenge we’re able to provide, and specifically, the enemies we’re able to throw at you and your friends,” Willits said.

“Having four Space Marines together for a PvE mission simply made it too easy, and scaling enemy assaults to justify bringing a fourth player was too great of a challenge.”

Earlier this month, Tom, aka Warhammer Workshop, the modder behind Space Marine 2’s excellent Astartes Overhaul, released a fantastic-looking 12-player co-op mod for the game. Gameplay footage, below, shows multiple players taking on a Tyranid Trygon Prime in a battle reminiscent of an MMO boss fight.

This was something players thought impossible, but the modding team not only broke through the 3-player barrier to hit 12-player co-op — with the support of developer Saber Interactive itself — but set to work improving it.

“Honestly, I’m just kind of in awe of Saber’s support for the modding community,” Tom told IGN. “None of us expected 12-player PvE sessions to be possible this soon — but somehow, here we are. Thanks to their generosity and trust, this huge leap forward is finally here, and it completely changes what we can do.”

As you’d expect, 12-player co-op makes a mockery of Space Marine 2's PvE balance, but it is there working on PC at least. This sparks the inevitable next question for Tim Willits: could Saber expand Siege mode to include more than three players in the future?

Alas, no. “We don’t have such plans at this time,” he replied.

So, it’s down to modders to improve upon Siege mode and the 12-player co-op they have already released. Tom told IGN the team is working on modes such as prop hunt, PvP inside operations, “massive” horde mode updates, and, perhaps most exciting of all, raid-style missions “with bosses that hit like trucks, take proper teamwork to bring down, as well as some other completely new mechanics.”

Siege arrives as part of Patch 8 on June 26, and comes alongside two new DLCs for Ultra Edition, Gold Edition, and Season Pass holders: the White Scars Chapter Pack (a new Champion skin for the Assault class, three exclusive White Scars-inspired weapon skins for the Occulus Bolt Carbine, Stalker Bolt Rifle, and Combat Knife, and a host of cosmetic options and heraldry markings for their Successor Chapters), and the Blood Angels Cosmetic Pack (a number of new armour pieces to be equipped on any of the game’s playable classes, in addition to heraldry markings celebrating eight of the Blood Angels’ Successor Chapters).

Earlier this week, IGN reported on various Space Marine 2 datamines that revealed potential upcoming content, including a new class, a new melee weapon, and a new ranged weapon.

There’s a lot happening in the world of Space Marine 2, despite the surprise announcement that development of Space Marine 3 development had begun. Space Marine 2’s year one roadmap remains in place.

Space Marine 2 Siege mode was revealed during the Warhammer Skulls 2025 broadcast. In case you missed it, check out all the announcements and trailers from the show.

Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.

Nintendo Switch 2's GameChat will require a phone number when setting up the feature.

Nintendo's video calling software comes baked into all Nintendo Switch 2 consoles and is being promoted as a key feature of the new system.

But it's worth being aware that anyone wanting to set up GameChat will need to verify their identity first by providing Nintendo with a phone number (or if you've already linked it, the number already associated with your Nintendo Account).

Nintendo will then send that number a text message, tying your GameChat activity to that phone number. So behave!

If you're under the age of 16, GameChat will be blocked until a parent or guardian using the Parental Controls smart device app allows the use of the feature. They will then be required to add their own phone number for text message verification.

Nintendo's website, upon which Eurogamer spotted the above information, appears to suggest that every user with a Nintendo Account will need to do this when playing on a Switch 2, even if the device is shared. IGN has contacted Nintendo for confirmation of this.

GameChat can be accessed at any point while playing Switch 2 by pressing the console's new 'C' button found on its various controllers. This will then allow up to four people to video chat together, or 24 to join a group audio call.

Within a video call, players can broadcast themselves using a camera peripheral (sold separately), as well as stream whatever they're currently playing. It's the first time the family-friendly Nintendo has offered this kind of service, after previously lagging behind other console makers with online services in the past.

Last week, the tech experts at Digital Foundry revealed the final specs for Nintendo Switch 2, and with it claimed that the GameChat feature has a "significant impact" on system resources to the point where developers are said to be concerned.

Digital Foundry said Nintendo provides developers with a GameChat testing tool that simulates API latency and L3 cache misses that the real world GameChat system incurs on the system. This means developers can test this without needing active GameChat sessions running.

DF was left wondering whether game performance for the end user is impacted by having GameChat on or off. If GameChat resources are within the system allocation, it shouldn't make any difference. However, given Nintendo provides GameChat emulation tools, the suggestion is there is a hit of some description that developers need to test for.

As Digital Foundry put it: "We'll be interested to see how GameChat may (or may not) impact game performance as this does seem to be an area of developer concern." We won’t know for sure until Switch 2 comes out on June 5.

As (another) reminder, GameChat will be free to use for the Switch 2's first 10 months' on sale. After March 31, 2026, GameChat will then require a Nintendo Switch Online membership.

Earlier this week, we got our first proper look at a Switch 2 game cartridge, and also heard word that Samsung was reportedly keen to provide OLED screens for a Switch 2 upgrade.

Tom Phillips is IGN's News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social

Just days after losing its two-year-old objection to Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard, the U.S.'s Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has officially dropped its case.

The FTC’s appeal to block Microsoft’s $69 billion deal to acquire the company behind Call of Duty was denied by San Francisco’s 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on May 7, further cementing the purchase that was originally announced in late 2022. It was a move decided by a three-judge panel that brought an end to the FTC’s questioning of the July 2023 decision to allow Microsoft to finalize its purchase.

As we summarized at the time, Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard has faced scrutiny from across the board for more than three years, both in the U.S. and worldwide, with some parties concerned that an acquisition would see popular franchises like Call of Duty become Xbox exclusives. Microsoft confirmed it had no interest in barring certain franchises behind lengthy exclusivity periods, and sold Activision-Blizzard's cloud gaming rights to Ubisoft to satisfy the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) objections.

While challenges continued to arise throughout 2023, Microsoft was finally able to complete its purchase of Activision Blizzard in October of that same year.

The FTC’s appeal could have presented a late roadblock to continuing. However, as reported by The Verge, the Commission has now dismissed its complaint entirely, stating in a brief filing issued on May 22: "The Commission has determined that the public interest is best served by dismissing the administrative litigation in this case."

"On May 7, 2025, the Ninth Circuit affirmed the decision of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, FTC v. Microsoft Corp. [...] denying the Commission’s application for a preliminary injunction to block the acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Inc. by Microsoft Corp.

"Accordingly, it is hereby ordered that the Complaint in this matter be, and it hereby is, Dismissed."

For a timeline of all of Microsoft’s struggles with finalizing its Activision Blizzard acquisition, you can click here.

Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, as well as a critic, columnist, and consultant with 15+ years experience working with some of the world's biggest gaming sites and publications. She's also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.

Japan may be the birthplace and spiritual hub of drifting culture, but Poland is home to the incredible Bartosz Ostalowski. After losing both arms in an accident, he became a pro drifter and is the only professional sports driver in the world who steers with his foot. So yes, on paper, sure, it’s perhaps a little incongruous that JDM: Japanese Drift Master has been conceived and crafted in Central Europe. But it’s not unprecedented, and a simple matter of geography was clearly not going to stop Warsaw-based developer Gaming Factory putting together this reverential ode to the Japanese art of turning corners sideways, belching white smoke and looking cool while doing it. JDM is a good drift racer, with a weighty and approachable handling model that’s been well-honed for overzealous oversteer. It boasts an excellent map, too – it’s filled with eye-catching and authentic detail. However, it’s also currently undermined by a very poor grip racing mode, wonky AI, and uneven difficulty, and it seems a bit like a project car that’s been pushed out on track before it was quite finished.

JDM is a story-based, open-world racer, set in a fictional slice of Japan and featuring 250 kilometres of roads to drive – from dense city grids and raised freeways to skinny, snaking mountain passes and blossom-lined byways. It’s hard to get an exact comparison of the map size compared to something like Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown, The Crew Motorfest, or Forza Horizon 5, but JDM is definitely smaller than any of those overall.

That said, it doesn't suffer from being more compact than its open-world racing peers. If anything, its map may just be its greatest victory.

Cherry Good

At its prettiest, JDM’s map is a real showstopper. Trees burst with pink, and the quaint little towns on the central lake are brimming with character and charm. Its primary strength, however, is its insistence on far more realistic road widths than we mostly find in other open-world games.

Developers generally opt for wider streets to give us more forgiving ribbons of tarmac to race on, as it makes overtaking and navigating through civilian traffic easier. JDM leans away from this philosophy and toward roads that are narrower and more challenging to navigate, and they regularly remind me much more of rally stages than a traditional open-world racer. Several sequences of linked hairpin corners are a particular highlight; they’re an absolute must for a game like JDM, and Gaming Factory has delivered.

Having the road network more cramped means you need to brake and weave through and around country traffic rather than simply blaze up the centre, like you can in games with luxuriously wide lanes built to keep NPC vehicles far apart. This does technically bring the overall pace of JDM down, but the good news is that there’s actually still a really effective sense of speed. Thanks to the narrow roads, everything whips by extremely quickly based on sheer proximity. JDM is an arcade racer at heart – and definitely not a hardcore drift simulator – but I enjoy the challenge of patiently but assertively cutting up traffic and threading my car through tricky and tight gaps. It’s demanding in a different way and, at a minimum, it helps set JDM apart.

That said, there are times where the traffic feels a little thicker than desirable out in the countryside – particularly considering the main city feels surprisingly dead by comparison, with large, empty streets and very few cars moving about. At night there’s also something amiss with the lighting; NPC headlights are far, far too dull, and it means oncoming cars only appear in view when you’re nearly upon them. And regardless of time of day, AI cars on the highway have an odd quirk that sees all traffic in front of you pulling to the left automatically as you approach from behind, like you’re an ambulance with sirens blazing. I know my GT-R is pretty sick, but that doesn’t mean I’m taking it to the hospital.

There are some other noticeable problems, too. Performance has largely been okay on my system (RTX 4080, Intel Core Ultra 9 185H), but I have had some detectable stuttering on occasion. To the naked eye it seems more dependable with frame generation off and the FPS set to 60.

Even setting that aside, though, after several days of driving these streets I still don’t feel like I’ve quite got a handle on which roadside objects are destructible and which aren’t. There are times I can clatter through large posts, and other times where tiny obstacles bring me to a total halt. You’re better off just trying not to collide with anything, because JDM generally doesn’t handle crashes that well, anyway. Bumping and jostling has a tendency to toss and tilt cars in odd ways.

For clarity, it’s true that some of these problems may soon be addressed, based on a list of known issues supplied by Gaming Factory, but they’re active frustrations for now.

Drift Horse

A bigger problem, however, is JDM’s uneven difficulty – which tends to bubble up any time the story steers away from actual drifting that it does so well. To be clear, the majority of its missions are drift-themed, and that’s definitely for the best, because it’s what the handling feels built for. There are two settings for the handling model: arcade and simcade. Simcade has a bit more of a nuanced feel – and it probably lacks a little of the arcade mode’s soft assistance that I could feel keeping the cars stable and obedient during a drift – but overall the difference between the two doesn’t feel particularly profound.

There’s a mix of drift missions, from participating in sanctioned events on one of the region’s dedicated race tracks to delivering dinners that come with a larger tip depending on how sideways the sushi got en route. Score requirements for drift missions are forgiving and I rarely found myself needing to repeat them. They’re mostly a pretty light challenge, but I’m okay with that.

Frustratingly, any time drifting is not the primary objective, things falter significantly. JDM’s take on grip racing is deeply unsatisfying and proved to be a real bottleneck for a while, with AI opponents that drive directly into (and sometimes under) you and other racers like you’re not even there. Forget about taking a rear-wheel drive car to any of these races; in my case the AI just galloped away like Scalextric cars as I struggled to get any drive out of the corners. Just buy the cheap, front-wheel drive Honda Civic and plonk in whatever upgrades you can. You won't know if it's fast enough until you try, because there’s no real indication of the performance level of your opponents’ cars in these races.

It doesn’t help that JDM is not really a great communicator. There were other occasions where an upcoming task was marked as a drift event, but it was actually a race that required me to catch (or escape) an opponent. That’s a mean bait and switch, because drift builds are just absolutely impractical for these events. Smoking it up may look flashy, but it’s by no means the quickest way from A to B. These events require road-holding; something that shoots out of corners like a stabbed rat. Hinting you should turn up with a drift build is a total waste of time. It’s like asking you to catch Russell Westbrook on a freshly-waxed basketball court, in socks. So instead, I bought an all-wheel drive NSX and never looked back. It outpaces the AI with ease.

But you won’t know you brought a hopeless car to one of these events until you drive there and get fundamentally outclassed. At that point the only thing to do is quit, respawn at your nearest garage, choose a new ride, and drive all the way back (because quick travel in JDM is limited to jumping between garages). I mostly wasn’t bothered by needing to drive to new events because if driving wasn’t fun I wouldn’t be here in the first place, but it did grate in these instances.

As a story-driven racer, JDM stitches all its events together with regular, manga-inspired graphic novel pages (which even read from right to left, as is the case with Japanese manga). It’s not my scene – I have no meaningful history with manga and I very quickly lost track of who all the characters were – but I admire it as a cute and on-brand way of injecting some extra personality into JDM, even if it is extraordinarily cheesy and hilariously horny. The last time I was this surprised by a sex scene in the story of a racing driver I was watching Days of Thunder and Tom Cruise was trying to slingshot a packet of Sweet’n Low into Nicole Kidman’s crotch.

No, I’m here for the cars and, while just over 20 is an admittedly slim selection compared to bigger-budget peers, the garage does hit some key notes. For an indie racer it’s honestly impressive that these are largely licensed; Honda, Nissan, Mazda, and Subaru all make official appearances, and that adds a lot of really crucial credibility to the overall love letter to drift culture that JDM is trying to write here. Performance and interior/exterior customisation is a big feature, and there are a ton of parts to earn and install. It’s impressively Need for Speed-adjacent from such a comparatively small developer. At any rate, I tend to keep my cars more understated – but if you want a katana gearstick, you go right ahead.

After the roughly 10-hour story ends, collecting the remaining cars, dabbling with modifications, and cruising around solo is largely what’s left. There are some sushi delivery side missions and “underground” drift events where you can bet on how many points you’ll think you’ll score, but that’s it. It’s just not compelling me to stick around. Gaming Factory is promising more modes over the next nine months, like an expanded driving school, more missions, a photo mode, and split-screen (which would be a big deal because there’s no online multiplayer). However, the side effect of all these plans is that it leaves JDM feeling like it wasn’t really finished in the first place, and a lot like an early access game that hasn’t actually been identified as such.

Star Wars: Battlefront 2 might be enjoying a player resurgence, but fans shouldn't expect a Battlefront 3 announcement anytime soon.

That's according to a former employee who worked on Star Wars: Battlefront 2's live operations at developer DICE, who has been responding to player questions on reddit.

Star Wars: Battlefront 2, originally released in 2017, has seen its player count rise rapidly since the start of this month, fuelled by the franchise's annual May 4 celebrations and the critically-acclaimed return of Star Wars TV series Andor.

The game's renewed popularity has fans clamouring for more — and to be fair, after eight years, you might expect publisher EA to have something up its sleeve. But, according to former live producer of BF2, Mats Holm, that is unlikely to be the case.

"I don't expect Battlefront 3 to be announced at the end of this rally," Holm wrote, referring to the recent uptick in Battlefield 2 player numbers. "But overall, yeah, I think there are people who are talking about it."

According to Holm, the biggest issue holding up a new game is that the majority of the Battlefront 2 team are no longer at DICE.

"We spread all over," Holm revealed. "A few went to Ubisoft, some went independent, some to King, Avalanche, Star Stables, Paradox, Starbreeze, Mojang to name a few. Some left Stockholm to join game companies abroad as well.

"Embark has a lot of the people who made base game, but the people who made the live game did not leave in a pack. We all slowly drifted after being put on Battlefield."

Asked whether DICE could still make a new Battlefront game without its previous team members, Holm admitted he was "sceptical."

"The live team ended up approaching the game very differently than the original devs," Holm wrote, referring to how the team who continued making Battlefront 2 content post-launch turned around the game's fortunes following a shaky start. "If they went about it the same way as before, they will not get how we brought the game back from the abyss.

"So, if their goal was 'let's learn everything from their work,' perhaps. If they are 'new game, Battlefield but in Star Wars outfits' it won't turn out well."

As of now, only "about three people" are left from Battlefront 2's live team at DICE, the developer continued. There's also the issue that, for now DICE is busy throwing all of its development weight into getting its big new Battlefield game finished.

Still, in a perfect universe, the developer said they would like to see the franchise continue — although they wouldn't make Battlefield 3 next.

"Hear me out — no Battlefront 3 right now, but Battlefront 2 Remaster for whatever future console is arriving in 2027-28," the developer suggested. "Dev time is around 2-3 years. There is a laundry list of improvements that this game could get in my opinion, and getting it updated was always on our wishlist.

"Once that is a success, then start work on 3. You have a team familiar with engine, assets and really could kick off developing a 3 within a much shorter time span, and working on feedback from a fresh Battlefront 2 audience base. This would be a 5-6 year plan, but it's far more likely to be a success."

Improvements for Battlefront 2 would include cross-play, day/night cycles and dynamic weather for all planets, a 1-vs-1 mode and more, the developer concluded.

"List is endless, but [these options] were off the table as we were in live, not [original game] production," the developer concluded.

Tom Phillips is IGN's News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social

As we sneak ever-closer to the August release of Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, Konami has released the stealth game's opening movie.

Though there are some gentle deviations, it should nonetheless both look and sound instantly familiar to fans of the original, from the moment the newspapers appear on screen and the James Bond-esque title song, reprised by original performer Cynthia Harrell, kicks in.

The video teases several moments in the game itself — albeit without the context, of course — including Snake leaping backwards like an Olympic diver off the side of a waterfall, and Snake the Snake Eater eating a snake. So that's nice.

Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater is a remake of Konami's 2004 action espionage game of the same name, sans the "Delta" bit. The publisher recently confirmed Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater releases on August 28, and revealed the Snake vs. Monkey minigame is similarly making a comeback. It'll also include the suggestive and sexual content in Metal Gear Solid 3, including the Peep Demo Theatre, according to an age rating.

"Metal Gear Solid Delta seems more like a very shiny HD remaster than the elegant remake it could have been," IGN said in our Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater preview, which reflects on Snake's new first-person perspective. "It’s an admittedly beautiful nostalgia trip, but almost faithful to a fault." We awarded the original Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater an impressive 9.6.

Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, as well as a critic, columnist, and consultant with 15+ years experience working with some of the world's biggest gaming sites and publications. She's also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.

It's been mere hours since a live-action Elden Ring movie was revealed to be in the works, and already, fans are making their views — both positive and negative — known.

Debates have sprung up on all aspects of the production, from the decision to make a film, not a TV show, the choice of its writer and director — Alex Garland directed Ex Machina and Civil War — and whether the story, which is considerably convoluted, should be focused on the Tarnished, the demigods themselves, or something else entirely. A Song of Ice and Fire writer George R. R. Martin, who wrote Game of Thrones and helped create Elden Ring's world, is attached as a producer on the movie, as is Vince Gerardis.

"Sigh why? No one ask[ed] for this keep FromSoftware away from hollyweird plz," complained one player, while another said: "I was hoping it was just a meme. This movie is going to be a pretty looking mess."

Some are worried about the storyline, given so much of Elden Ring's lore is implied and has chiefly been interpreted by the community.

"This is the the main problem with adapting any of the Fromsoft Souls games into movies, almost all the lore is interpreted by the fan base, very rarely will the games tell you very directly about anything, a movie can't be like that since it'll try to appeal to the majority of people, so things will be spelled out in great detail, ignoring one of the main attractions of these type of games," one player added. Another suggested that while that may be the case if a story was based upon the Tarnished, "a movie around the lore or NPCs? That could work."

That said, plenty of players are relieved that Garland has been selected as director, given his love of the game. Even putting aside his game-writing credentials (he wrote Enslaved: Odyssey to the West and DmC: Devil May Cry), in a Reddit AMA last month, Garland revealed he was currently on an NG+6 run of Shadow of the Erdtree.

"Have you seen [Garland's] films?" asked this player. "They're excellent movies but they're a bit weird and so they cause mixed opinions. They're very 'artistic' in the sense that a lot of people bounce off them for being 'weird'. This, in my opinion, is exactly the guy you want involved in an Elden Ring movie because he can handle weird."

"Garland makes amazing stuff and I was gonna say this is an out-there director choice, but he did make Ex Machina which is all sorts if f***ed up," this player added. "Could be epic."

"Say what you will about the idea of an Elden Ring movie, but at the very least we’re in the best hands possible with Garland," commented this impressed player. "Go watch his video with [Last of Us creator] Neil Druckmann if you need any convincing that he will be as true as possible to the source material."

For now, plot, casting details, and a release date for the Elden Ring movie have yet to be announced, and fans are also speculating on that, too, including a cheeky recommendation for Jack Black to play Godrick — or Torrent; I've seen suggestions for both — and another for Chris Pratt as a Tarnished.

Outside of the movie world, Elden Ring has continued to attract gaming fans with more content in the years since its release. DLC arrived in 2024 in the form of Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree, and next week, players will finally get their hands on a completely separate, multiplayer spinoff called Elden Ring Nightreign.

Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, as well as a critic, columnist, and consultant with 15+ years experience working with some of the world's biggest gaming sites and publications. She's also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.