Shopping around for a budget PC under $1,000? Best Buy has one deal available right now that matches the best deal I saw during Black Friday. For this week only, the Lenovo LOQ gaming PC with GeForce RTX 5060 graphics card drops to just $799.99 shipped. Despite the low price tag, this PC is still more powerful than the upcoming Steam PC and will get you a consistent 60fps on just about any game at 1080p resolution.

Lenovo LOQ RTX 5060 Gaming PC for $799.99

CES 2026 is in the books, and boy was there a lot to see – new gaming handheld chips, AR glasses for portable big-screen gaming, AI-powered headphones, and a gaming laptop with a rollable expanding screen, just to name a few.

But we're not done yet – join us on January 12 at 3pm PT for an IGN Special Report as we dig into the best stuff we saw at CES and discuss the tech trends that will define 2026.

Hosted by IGN's Tech Reviews Editor Michael Higham, he'll be joined by some of our friends from CNET, PCMag, and Mashable.

Where to Watch IGN and CNET Group's CES Special Report

• IGN.com
• IGN’s YouTube Channel
• IGN's Facebook Channel
• IGN’s Twitter (X)
• IGN's Twitch Channel
• Eurogamer.net
• Eurogamer's YouTube Channel
• VG247.com
• VG247's YouTube Channel
• CNET.com
• Mashable.com
• PCMag's YouTube Channel

What to Expect from IGN and CNET Group’s CES Special Report

Beyond our favorite tech from CES, we'll be looking forward into the trends that will define 2026 for gamers. For example, Valve's Steam Machine is on the horizon – will we see other companies follow suit with their own mini gaming PCs? Or perhaps a wider adoption of SteamOS? Meanwhile, the ongoing RAM shortage continues to cause issues across the industry, so you'll want to hear from our experts the latest word on what that means for the price of consoles and other gaming hardware.

Tune in on Monday, January 12 for the full report. In the meantime, be sure to check out all our favorite announcements from CES 2026.

reMarkable is well regarded for its best-in-class digital notebooks and the reMarkable 2 tablet represents the best value by offering premium build quality and a sensational paper-writing experience for just $399, which is the lowest price in reMarkable's lineup. For even greater savings, you can pick up a refurbished tablet for a lower price of $319. Refurbished products come with the same 1 year warranty as buying new along with a 50-day satisfaction guarantee.

To kick off the new year, reMarkable is doing even one better: for a limited time, you can take an additional $70 off the reMarkable tablet when you bundle it with a marker and folio and that includes refurbished models. With the additional discount applied, you can get a refurbished reMarkable 2 bundled with the Marker and Book Folio ($130-$170 value) for as low as $369 with free delivery. That's 30% off compared to the retail price of the same bundle.

Up to 30% Off reMarkable 2 E-Ink Tablet Bundles

If you're seeking the absolute best of the best in PC gaming performance, look no further than Alienware's flagship Area-51 gaming PC equipped with a GeForce RTX 5090 graphics card. To kick off the new year, Dell has discounted the Ryzen Edition model for the first time ever. More specifically, the Alienware Area-51 gaming PC equipped with an AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D CPU and RTX 5090 GPU is available for $5,099.99 shipped after a $500 instant discount.

Alienware Area-51 Ryzen Edition RTX 5090 Gaming PC

The Alienware Area-51 is Dell's flagship gaming PC. Unveiled during last year's CES, the Area-51 is a super-sized upgrade to the mainstream Aurora R16 system. The significantly larger chassis features more premium build quality and a redesigned cooling system with greater net airflow. In fact, this is the only model that Dell feels comfortable enough to equip with the hot and power hungry GeForce RTX 5090 graphics card. The first wave of Area-51 systems featured Intel CPUs exclusively, with AMD X3D options only available since late November.

This particular configuration is equipped with an AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D CPU, GeForce RTX 5090 graphics card, 32GB or DDR5-6400MHz RAM, and a 1TB SSD. Additional system details include a 360mm all-in-one liquid cooling system for the CPU and a massive 1,500W 80Plus Platinum power supply that allows plenty of headroom for future upgrades.

AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D is the best gaming CPU for most people

The AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D is considered to be the best gaming processor currently on the market and outperforms any Intel or AMD non-X3D chip in games thanks to AMD's 3D-V-Cache technology.

Although the 9800X3D is an absolute speed demon for gaming, it only has eight cores. If you regularly use your PC for non-gaming applications that benefit from as many cores as possible, then you can upgrade to an AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D 16-core processor, which doubles the core count while offering similar gaming performance, for an additional $300.

The RTX 5090 is the most powerful graphics card ever

The Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 has emerged as the most powerful consumer GPU on the market. Although with this generation Nvidia has prioritized software updates, AI features, and DLSS 4 technology to improve gameplay performance, the 5090 still boasts an impressive 25%-30% uplift over the RTX 4090 in hardware-based raster performance. If you want the absolute best performance for your gaming PC, there is literally no other option from any other brand.

Eric Song is the IGN commerce manager in charge of finding the best gaming and tech deals every day. When Eric isn't hunting for deals for other people at work, he's hunting for deals for himself during his free time.

GameStop is closing hundreds of stores just days into the new year as CEO Ryan Cohen aims to take home $35 billion in performance-based stock options.

Reports the gaming and pop-culture retailer would soon close stores started to emerge soon after 2026 began. Some shoppers were able to find and share signage warning their location would soon shut down, offering a 20% trade-in bonus (for a limited time) as compensation.

Been going to this GameStop for over 12 years. Sad to see it go. All the best to the guys Jose, Nick and more. Check them out before they close on the 8th. This is the 18th av location in Bensonhurst Brooklyn. pic.twitter.com/hV8NxgESUO

— Brooklyn Games & Arcade (@ArcadeBrooklyn) January 3, 2026

“This store is closed effective 1/8/26,” a different sign posted to Reddit January 2, 2026, says. “Thank you for being a loyal GameStop customer.”

Signs then instruct customers with game or memorabilia reservations to travel to new stores to pick up their purchases, but the sudden nature and wide reports left GameStop buyers with more questions than answers. With reports of what seemed to be dozens of store closures online, a blog that tracks GameStop activity using employee reports and the company’s store locator claims to have recorded 390 store closures (via Polygon). An additional 10 stores are still in the process of being confirmed to have shut down, which, if accurate, brings the total to 400 shuttered GameStop locations a little more than one week into the year.

It’s another hit to GameStop’s physical presence in the gaming market, with a December 2025 filing from the company noting it had ceased operations at 590 locations in the U.S. in fiscal 2024. Now, the once-titan known for giving “power to the players” seems to be keeping with its future plans, too, with the same document saying it anticipated “closing a significant number of additional stores in fiscal 2025.” For the last ten years, GameStop has closed more stores than it has opened in the U.S. each year, with closures often numbering in the hundreds.

Meanwhile, GameStop announced earlier this week that Cohen, who took over as CEO in September 2023, is up to receive a staggering $35 billion in performance-based stock options. For Cohen to receive the payout, the company’s board of directors states GameStop would need to reach a market capitalization of $100 billion and, before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization, achieve $10 billion in cumulative performance. GameStop’s market cap currently sits at about $9.5 billion.

“The award is designed to incentivize Mr. Cohen to achieve extraordinary growth,” the announcement says.

GameStop has looked to new, bizarre ways to gain traction in recent years as it continues to double down on collectibles and memes. August 2023 saw the company pull out of crypto, moving to shutter its short-lived NFT marketplace just a few months later. More recently (and much to the dismay of its employees), it held its first-ever Trade Anything Day, which saw customers bringing in literally anything for trade-in credit at their local stores. Earlier this week, The New Zealand Herald reported that GameStop’s EB Games branch had made a proposal to close its remaining stores in New Zealand.

Photo by Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images.

Michael Cripe is a freelance writer with IGN. He's best known for his work at sites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP. Be sure to give him a follow on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).

LEGO launched a series of book nooks back in June 2025, but none of them had received any sort of discount until now. Amazon is currently offering the first deal on the LEGO Balrog Book Nook set, dropping the price by 10% for a limited time. This 1,201-piece diorama set depicts Gandalf facing off against the Balrog and is specifically targeted at adult builders.

There are currently only four LEGO Lord of the Rings sets available to buy in 2026 and discounts on them are extremely rare. If you're looking for a good LotR gift, I'd definitely recommend grabbing this while the savings are still available.

LEGO Lord of the Rings Book Nook Sale at Amazon Today

Best Buy has a great deal on an affordable Lenovo Legion 7 laptop, but you better hurry because the sale ends tonight. For just a few more hours, you can pick up a Lenovo Legion 7 RTX 5060 gaming laptop for only $1234.99 after over $600 in savings. This is a high-end model with a full aluminum chassis, gorgeous OLED display, and a generous 32GB of DDR5 RAM. The RTX 5060 is unthrottled (115W TGP) will play any game out there without having to bust your budget.

Lenovo Legion Pro 7 RTX 5060 Gaming Laptop for $1,235

From portable gaming handhelds to smartphones, our lives rely on portable, untethered electronics, and it can't hurt to always have a charger on hand. Fortunately, they don't have to be expensive. Case in point, Amazon is currently offering a Baseus Picogo 67W USB Type-C wall charger for just $16.99 after you apply coupon code "T9TLS56H". This diminutive adapter has plenty of ports and enough power output to fast charge most portable electronics.

Baseus Picogo 67W USB-C Wall Charger for $16.99

ESPN officially launched a new streaming service back in August 2025 that includes the full suite of ESPN Networks in one package. ESPN Unlimited is currently available as a standalone service or as a bundle with Disney+ and Hulu. If you're shopping around for sports streaming service during football season this year, we've gathered everything you need to know about ESPN Unlimited.

The first thing you need to know is that the previous ESPN streaming service, ESPN+, no longer exists. What was once ESPN+ has been replaced with the ESPN Select plan. So if you already had a subscription, this is what you've been moved over to and the content will pretty much be the same.

Does ESPN Unlimited Have a Free Trial?

ESPN Unlimited does not offer any sort of free trial. That being said, there is a way to test out the service for free. If you sign up for a Fubo free trial, you'll also get access to ESPN Unlimited. The trial only last for seven days, but it's a great option if you're looking to test out a live TV alternative to cable or just maintain access to ESPN during the YouTube TV blackout.

Games Workshop has announced plans to build a new Warhammer World in the United States with a late 2027 target for opening its doors.

Warhammer World, in Nottingham, England, is the focal point for Games Workshop’s various tabletop games and a social hub for the hobby. It includes an exhibition centre with dramatic, large-scale dioramas featuring everything from famous battles in the grimdark sci-fi setting Warhammer 40,000 to the fantasy world of Age of Sigmar.

For competitors, a sizeable castle-themed gaming hall lets fans play matches, often in scheduled tournaments. There’s a themed bar and restaurant, areas to paint miniatures, and an in-house store with exclusive products.

In a post on Warhammer Community, Games Workshop confirmed its plans to start work on the new Warhammer World, to be built just outside Washington DC.

“This new Warhammer World will be a flagship venue that celebrates Warhammer in all its forms: gaming, painting, modelling, storytelling, events, and community,” Games Workshop said.

“The original Warhammer World in Nottingham, UK sets a very high bar. We’re not going to replicate it brick-for-brick, but instead build something equally uncompromising on quality and experience, something worthy of Warhammer’s rich settings and of course the title ‘Warhammer World.’ And of course, at the heart of all this is creating something extraordinary for all of you — the Warhammer fans!

“Now, there’s a lot to do – but with a fair wind, and the might of the Emperor and his inexhaustible armies, we hope to open the doors late in 2027.”

With this new Warhammer World, Games Workshop is clearly hoping to reinforce its explosive success and the ever-increasing popularity of Warhammer 40,000 in particular, which in recent years has grown far beyond the confines of a tabletop game. Its loyal fandom fusses over lore, analyzes new novels for fresh insight into the setting, and speculates about future development. The smash hit video game Space Marine 2 boosted interest in all things Warhammer 40,000 — so much so that playable character Titus is now the poster boy of the tabletop game and is even at the heart of its next narrative expansion. And former Superman actor Henry Cavill’s upcoming Warhammer 40,000 Cinematic Universe for Amazon will undoubtedly take it to new heights. It makes a lot of sense to have a Warhammer World in place to capitalize on the army of newcomers Cavill’s Prime Video work will surely rally together. (Cavill once visited Warhammer World in the UK and posted a video of his tour on Instagram.)

In the shorter term, Warhammer 40,000 fans are bracing themselves for an announcement and release of the 11th Edition of the game, accompanying lore developments, and new model releases. And we’re arguably in the golden age of Warhammer 40,000 video games, with Space Marine 2 still receiving updates, Space Marine 3 in the works, and Dawn of War 4 and Total War: Warhammer 40,000 waiting in the wings.

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.

If you need more USB inputs than what's available on your PC or laptop, then here's a deal that will provide an instant solution. For a limited time, Amazon is offering the Sabrent 5-in-1 USB-C Docking Station for a mere $9.75 after you clip the $5 off coupon on the product page and apply coupon code "R2SN6S9M". You're saving 68% off the original retail price. Sabrent's USB hubs have nearly 200,000 user reviews on Amazon with an average 4.6 star rating.

Sabrent 5-in-1 USB-C Docking Station for $9.75

Clip $5 coupon and apply code "R2SN6S9M"

Jujutsu Kaisen Season 3 is streaming on Crunchyroll, with episodes dropping weekly on Thursdays.

The Culling Game arc in Gege Akutami’s Jujutsu Kaisen manga swings on a heavy pendulum, back and forth from drawn-out battles and tedious explanations of its world’s rules to some of its best, most creative chapters across the entire story. For me, from this point until the end, Jujutsu Kaisen was a frustratingly jagged read, and I had reservations that the on-page material would be too wily to make good anime. Then again, one of the advantages of the medium is being able to whittle a story into something newly transmittable, and studio MAPPA once again confidently asserts its grasp and vision of bringing its source material to life in the first two episodes of Jujutsu Kaisen’s Culling Game Part 1. Though there’s still plenty of time to get lost in the sauce, the smart pacing, direction that seems to actively subvert anything that could be easily clipped on TikTok, and sharp animation up top sure all have me hopeful that we’re headed in the right direction.

Off the bat in the first episode “Execution,” the wordless prologue takes a tonal swing in resetting Jujutsu Kaisen after the bloodbath of the Shibuya Incident in Season 2. It opens on our main boy Yuji Itadori, still traumatized from the utter devastation Sukuna caused from his bodily takeover, seemingly alone, living off of energy bars and cleaning up the apocalyptically sparse neighborhood from an influx of cursed spirits. That is until he’s nabbed by an especially big one before being saved by a mysterious slice that crashes him and the spirit through the roof of a building.

Cut to Itadori pinned on his back at sword point by Yuta Okkutsu (watch the movie Jujustu Kaisen 0 if you need a refresher on what that guy’s deal is) on a stage in a transfixing wide shot so long that I almost thought my internet had sputtered had it not been for the specks of gleaming light. That’s interrupted by a deluge of purple blood and a cut to the title sequence – a bop as always, even if it’s not quite the series’ undefeated “Vivid Vice” opening. Just these three-and-a-half minutes are stuffed with bold cinematic choices that hint at how much of the rest of the runtime across 50-ish minutes will go: kinetic and cleverly choreographed battle sequences halt into still moments that let the whole thing – the characters, the sets, the viewers – breathe a bit.

Not long after, we’re plunged into the first new bits of world lore – the Zen’in clan appoints a new head, done in a highly stylized and shadowy back room – which made me nervous before it all played out. The Culling Game Arc will certainly balloon its cast with brand-new characters, jujutsu sorcerers who have just acquired new powers, to make up for all the ones lost in Shibuya. But these episodes show remarkable restraint, keeping the core cast small and story relatively tight before it inevitably lets out the leash.

The show obviously respects the beats of the manga it’s based on and knows how to use just enough explanatory information as is necessary, while holding more space for the darker emotional spots that color this end-game setup and, of course, very sick fights. (Alas, say farewell to most of the joke-y bits from the first season, especially with Gojo Satoru still trapped in that damn Prison Realm box.) Look no further than introducing the rules of the Culling Game itself: In the last third of the second episode “One More Time,” a not-insignificant chunk of text is plastered on the screen, but the cards don’t linger long enough to read it all, instead quickly flashing to key words and phrases. “Blah, blah, blah, you get the gist,” they’re basically saying, “we’ll explain soon.” Lo and behold, Episode 3 is titled “About the Culling Game”; prepare for a talk-y breakdown about what to expect for the rest of the season.

Once again, I’ll mention the fights since badass combat is JJK’s bread and butter, and they’ve truly never looked better than they have here. Unlike the back half of the Shibuya Incident arc, each of these sequences are carefully executed and unrushed, set to JJK’s distinctive synth-y battle score. Whether it’s Yuji and Choso cleaning up the streets in “Execution,” with flashy colors and outstanding cinematography, or Choso vs. Naoya Zen’in, the jerk of a new clan head, with its trippy visualization messing with frame rates and color inversion, the fights shine. If the rest of the season can keep up with this momentum, Jujutsu Kaisen’s Culling Game anime could transform a tricky manga arc into a thrilling televised take that’s been downsized for the better.

Last month, Larian Studios presented console players of Divinity: Original Sin 2 with a special treat: an upgraded version of the game for PS5, Xbox Series, and delightfully, Nintendo Switch 2. But while Original Sin 2 has been on Nintendo's system since 2019, Larian's next game, Baldur's Gate 3, never made it to any Nintendo console. Why not? Well, Larian at least says it wasn't its decision.

In a Reddit AMA today conducted by various members of Larian, CEO Swen Vincke took a moment to answer a question about whether or not Baldur's Gate 3 for Nintendo Switch 2 was "even possible". Sadly, his answer wasn't a happy one: "We would have loved to but it's wasn't our decision to make."

Vincke is speaking in the past tense because officially, Larian is done with Baldur's Gate 3. It's still supporting the game with minor bug fixes, but there's no reason to expect the studio to do a whole new release on a new platform now, especially since it's moved on to a new Divinity game. That leaves Wizards of the Coast in charge of the future of Baldur's Gate 3, meaning a port isn't happening without its blessing.

Which seems to be what Vincke is implying here - that Larian would have done one, but Wizards for whatever reason decided not to. Wizards of the Coast declined to comment.

Which is a shame for Switch owners, because Baldur's Gate is a fantastic game. We gave it a 10/10 at launch, saying that "with crunchy, tactical RPG combat, a memorable story with complex characters, highly polished cinematic presentation, and a world that always rewards exploration and creativity, Baldur's Gate 3 is the new high-water mark for CRPGs."

We covered other topics from Larian's AMA today, such as what happened to Wyll's storyline in Baldur's Gate 3 and how Larian will (or won't) use generative AI for Divinity.

Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.

I wouldn’t be doing what I’m lucky enough to do for a living without Mario games. Heck, I’m not sure I’d even be playing video games if not for Mario. And so, when I reviewed Super Mario Odyssey for IGN in 2017, it checked off a career bucket list item for me. And oh how lucky I was that Odyssey turned out to be – and still very much is – one of the greatest 3D platformers ever made.

It was worth the long wait, as in case you’re too young to remember (which would be perfectly understandable at this point), the last mainline 3D Mario game before Odyssey was Super Mario Galaxy 2…all the way back in 2010. Yes, it was seven long years between headlining 3D entries in Nintendo’s biggest franchise, but fast-forward to 2026 and we’ve already surpassed eight years as we continue to wait for Odyssey’s 3D Mario successor. I thought for sure last Fall was going to be when it finally happened, as what better way for Nintendo to have celebrated the 40th anniversary of the original Super Mario Bros. than with the next mainline 3D Mario game, cementing the Switch 2 as the must-have device for its first Christmas, just as Odyssey did for the Switch 1’s first holiday on the market back in 2017? But that big anniversary came and went with nothing but a questionably priced 4K remaster of Super Mario Galaxy 1 and 2.

However, I think the wait for the true next-gen mainline 3D Mario game is finally almost over. Let’s run through the reasons:

First and foremost – and this is 90% of my argument – is that Nintendo has essentially fired every other bullet (Bill) in its chamber in recent years! What big megafranchise moves do they have left for this year? A mainline 2D Mario game? We just got that in Fall 2023 in the form of the (sensational) Super Mario Bros. Wonder. Mario Kart? After its own incredibly long hiatus, it was the Switch 2’s big day-one launch title. How about 3D Zelda? Tears of the Kingdom was just two-and-a-half short years ago, after we waited six years for it following Breath of the Wild. That means we won’t see Aonuma’s next effort for at least a few more years. What about 2D Zelda? Echoes of Wisdom was in Fall 2024, and though this year is the 40th anniversary of Zelda, last year’s 40th anniversary of Mario suggests you should set your expectation to, at best, a 4K remaster of Twilight Princess or Wind Waker.

Donkey Kong Bananza dropped in the Switch 2’s launch window and is arguably the system’s best game so far. Super Mario Party Jamboree just released in 2024. Animal Crossing is getting a Switch 2 update in just a few days, making it unlikely we see an all-new game anytime soon. Super Smash Bros., barring a miracle, is retired due its director leaving it all on the field with Ultimate. Is Splatoon big enough to really move the needle? Maybe, maybe not. Pokemon is really Nintendo’s best non-Mario bet, but we just had Legends: Z-A last Fall.

Shall I keep going? The last of Nintendo’s “Big Three,” Metroid, has shipped a 2D (Dread, 2021) and 3D (Prime 4, barely a month ago) entry in recent years. And anyway, Nintendo itself admits that Prime 4 wasn’t it. An unnamed senior source revealed to The Game Business that Switch 2 sales fell behind the pace of the Switch 1 in key markets this past holiday in large part due to the “absence of a major Western game.” Ouch – that is some serious Metroid Prime 4 slander!

But back on topic: what would fit the definition of a “major Western game” for Nintendo that hasn’t already shipped in recent years? How about the next major 3D Mario game, which isn’t just a major Western game but a major global game? Odyssey sold nearly 30 million copies – an absolutely staggering amount that could easily be replicated over the life of the Switch 2 if Nintendo delivers it this Fall…or perhaps even sooner?

That brings me to reason number two: The Super Mario Bros. Movie is the highest-grossing video game movie ever, raking in over $1.3 billion dollars at the box office. Its sequel, The Super Mario Bros. Galaxy Movie, is set to debut in theaters on April 3. What better way to capitalize on what’s likely to be another massive Hollywood hit for Nintendo than to feed those moviegoers’ enthusiasm with the next big 3D Mario entry – one that, as we’ve already established, can easily sell another 25 million copies (which, given the likely $80 price point for the next 3D Mario game, would mean $2 billion in revenue, besting the box office take of the first film – and likely the second) – not to mention a whole bunch of Switch 2’s?

Ultimately, though Nintendo is tough to reliably predict (honestly, I would’ve bet money – and lost – on the next big 3D Mario game arriving last Fall for Switch 2’s first holiday and Mario’s 40th anniversary), the planets do seem to be aligning for Mario’s next major 3D platformer to arrive sometime this year. If I’m wrong and Odyssey’s successor debuts in 2027 (or, gulp, later!), it means we’ll be going at least a full decade since the last mainline Mario, which basically means Nintendo is just torturing us.

Whenever it’s finally confirmed, the next question is, of course, what is it? Is it Super Mario Odyssey 2, or an entirely new adventure? Based on Mario’s history, I’d hope for and expect the latter – in Mario’s 3D era, Nintendo has only ever done one sequel in the form of Galaxy 2 (or two if you want to count 3D World as a sequel to 3D Land). But we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. For now, beggars can’t be choosers. We can only hope that 2026 is finally going to be the year. I think it is. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to start replaying Odyssey again, just to experience the sheer joy of New Donk City one more time.

Ryan McCaffrey is IGN's executive editor of previews and host of both IGN's weekly Xbox show, Podcast Unlocked, as well as our old interview show, IGN Unfiltered. Super Mario Bros. 3 is his favorite video game of all time. Debate it with him on Twitter at @DMC_Ryan.