A UK court has ruled that the unauthorized stealing of in-game currency can be legally classified as criminal theft.

Former Jagex developer Andrew Lakeman was charged with allegedly stealing 705 billion Gold from almost 70 RuneScape players, with a real-world value of over half a million pounds, equivalent to around $750,000. He then sold this currency online for Bitcoin.

Although Lakeman had no access to player accounts in his position at Jagex as a content developer, he allegedly accessed them by "hacking and/or using credentials of members of the account recovery team." In all, 68 players allegedly lost gold to Lakeman, starting around 2018.

Here comes the science bit: the defendant's defence claimed that the in-game currency could not be classed as property under the definition of the UK's Theft Act, and initially, the court agreed, concluding that as RuneScape gold is not real — or "pure information" or "knowledge" as it's legally defined — it could not technically be stealable.

The judge at the time also deemed RuneScape's supply of Gold as being infinite, and it wasn't "rivalrous" given that having a piece of Gold doesn't deprive another player of getting Gold, too. The Court of Appeal, however, disagreed and last week handed down a judgment while explaining its reasoning.

"We differ from the Judge in his reasoning for reaching the contrary conclusion on rivalrousness. The two reasons which the Judge gave in his ruling do not, with respect, bear analysis," Judge Popplewell wrote. "The first was that 'one gold piece is like any other, and their supply is infinite.' This does not, however, distinguish them from many other forms of rivalrous property. One paper clip from a given manufacturer is like any other; and the manufacture and supply of them infinite, in the sense that is not capped at any finite number. Yet each paper clip constitutes property. The same is equally true of gold pieces."

"[RuneScape's gold is] properly described as something which can be stolen as a matter of normal use of language," the judgment added. "They do not fall within any of the established exceptions. They are not 'pure knowledge:' functionally, they exist as identifiable assets distinct from the code which gives rise to them and outside the minds of people. There is no good policy reason for excepting them from the category of property which can be stolen."

The judgment concluded: "On the contrary, they are assets which have an ascertainable monetary value and which may be traded for that value both in the game and outside the game. Within the rules of the game they represent money’s worth as the product of purchase of a bond. Outside the game they are regularly traded for money’s worth. They are capable of being subject to dishonest dealing which deprives their possessor of their use and value. It would be surprising and unsatisfactory if such dishonest dealing did not amount to the offence of theft."

It's a judgment that could have profound implications for the games industry, as up until now, vendors that sell (or re-sell) in-game currency have existed in a grey market wherein technically, no theft has occurred if the digital asset stolen did not meet the definition of an intangible item under the definitions of theft in that country. The dubious line of when ownership of any such in-game currency transfers from the developer to the player — if at all — further compounds an already complex issue, too.

With the issue of whether removing gold from player accounts constituted theft now settled, the case against Lakeman can proceed.

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.

The developer of Highguard has confirmed streamer Dr Disrespect did not attend a preview event after he created a fake badge and pretended to have been invited to play the game early.

On January 24, Dr Disrespect (real name Guy Beahm), tweeted to say: “Last week we took the Lambo to LA to check out #Highguard. Monday, January 26th at 10am PST, we enter another dimension! Yayayaya.”

Last week we took the Lambo to LA to check out #Highguard.

Monday, January 26th at 10am PST, we enter another dimension!

Yayayaya pic.twitter.com/kQ56GEfonB

— Dr Disrespect (@DrDisrespect) January 24, 2026

That comment, which pointed to Highguard’s confirmed release date, came alongside an image of a supposed Highguard event badge, which some have speculated may have been generated by AI.

Following Highguard’s launch, questions were raised about the validity of Dr Disrespect’s post. Then, Wildlight Entertainment creator manager Chin Pua took to X / Twitter to confirm Dr Disrespect had not attended the event, and that the badge was not official. "I can confirm DDR was not invited to any Highguard event past or present," Pua said, "and the badge was not an official badge."

So why did Dr Disrespect post the tweet and its image? In a stream playing Highguard yesterday, he laughed the post off as a joke, and expressed disbelief at the social media controversy it had generated.

LEGO has announced another five Star Wars sets infused with Smart Brick capabilities, doubling down on its freshly-announced interactive technology.

Fresh versions of the iconic Millenium Falcon, Luke Skywalker's Landspeeder, the Mos Eisley Cantina, Yoda's Dagobah hut and an AT-ST will all feature Smart Play elements designed to interact with the technology-packed LEGO Smart Brick, such as Smart Tags and Smart Minifigures.

LEGO Smart Play Star Wars Sets

LEGO revealed its big push into interactive bricks last month alongside three other Star Wars sets, all of which will launch on March 1. These include an X-Wing, TIE-Fighter, and a Death Star duel between Luke and Emperor Palpatine. You'll need a Smart Brick from one of these sets to unlock the Smart Play found in today's new wave.

This further wave of sets are headlined by a new 885-piece Millennium Falcon ($99.99), which features Smart Han Solo, Smart Chewbacca, Smart C-3PO and Smart Luke Skywalker minifigures. Smart tags allow fans to experience the lights and sounds of heading into hyperspace, firing lasers, playing holochess, or practicing lightsaber duels.

The smaller 215-piece Luke's Landspeeder set ($39.99) features Smart Luke, plus a Jawa and Gonk Droid. Smart tags allow for interactive refuelling and repairing of the speeder when you add a Smart Brick in.

The 440-piece Yoda's Hut and Jedi Training set ($69.99) features Smart Yoda and Smart Luke and is based on the Jedi master's Dagobah digs. Add a Smart Brick and the set provides interactive Force training and sleeping. Yes, it sounds like we're about to hear Yoda snore.

Another small set, the 347-piece AT-ST Attack on Endor ($49.99), features a Smart Wicket the Ewok, as well as two regular AT-ST Driver and Scout Trooper minifigures so you can recreate the diminuitive creatures' attack on Imperial forces. Paired with a Smart Brick, this set will add AT-ST walking and firing sounds.

Last but not least is the Mos Eisley Cantina ($79.99), which lets Smart Obi-Wan Kenobi and Smart Greedo minifigurines sing karaoke, slurp drinks, ride on the included Dewback and more. The set features 666 pieces, including a Sandtrooper and Cantina band members.

"Though he was never a fan of adventures himself, I have always loved C-3PO as a LEGO Star Wars minifigure but Smart Play takes it to a whole new level," said veteran C-3PO actor Anthony Daniels, who was on hand at the Nuremberg Toy Fair to help unveil the range. "Fans will get to experience my friend and other beloved characters in a thrilling new way. It makes me happy and proud that 3PO will now be part of endless SMART Play adventures."

Speaking to IGN earlier this month, LEGO said that its Smart Brick technology was "here to stay" and would become a core part of its offering going forwards — though would not replace its non-Smart ranges, which will of course still be offered.

"It's a big part of the future," LEGO exec Federico Begher, SVP of Product, New Business told IGN. "[But] I mean, it's very important to be clear that this does not mean that we're leaving our core proposition behind, which is some of the questions and concerns I've heard, like, 'are you leaving what's been successful in the massive move into this?'

"Sometimes we compare it with the Minifigure," he continued. "Back in the day, the Minifigure started small, it was in a few things, and then wherever there was roleplay, it made sense to have the Minifigure. And in that sense, we see that in a similar way where we say, wherever there's opportunity for this type of dimensional play, we will probably explore it. And that's kind of the thinking."

Image credit: LEGO.

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

A former Lara Croft actress has been spotted filming for Amazon Prime's new Tomb Raider series starring Sophie Turner.

Keeley Hawes, who voiced Lara Croft over a decade of video games, was snapped in a set photo published online this week by British tabloid The Sun. The image shows Hawes on Amazon's Tomb Raider TV series set, wearing a trenchcoat and flanked by two odd-looking masked figures.

The Sun speculates that Keeley could be playing the mother of Lara Croft — Lady Amelia Croft, Countess of Abbingdon — in what would be a neat passing of the torch moment. In the video games, Lady Amelia is shown disappearing in mysterious circumstances following a plane crash. The plot of Tomb Raider: Underworld later involves a search for her — a game that Hawes voiced Lara in.

Keeley Hawes spotted filming new Tomb Raider series for Prime Video

According to The Sun, onlookers were speculating that Keeley could play the mother of Lara Croft, but there has been no official announcement news of her casting yet.#tombraider #keeleyhawes #sophieturner pic.twitter.com/A5Awa5ZQfl

— All Things Keeley Hawes (@allthingshawes) January 26, 2026

A veteran British actress, Hawes has appeared in dozens of UK series including Line of Duty, Bodyguard, Ashes to Ashes, and It's a Sin. In the world of video games, Hawes leant her voice to Lara Croft beginning with 2006's Tomb Raider: Legend. Other titles to include her vocal performance notably include Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light and its sequel Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris, Tomb Raider: Underworld and 2021's Tomb Raider Reloaded.

Amazon revealed a first look at former Game of Thrones star Sophie Turner as Lara Croft earlier this month, via a photo that revealed the actress wearing Croft's iconic green tank top and red shades. Other cast members include Sigourney Weaver, Jason Isaacs, Martin Bobb-Semple, Jack Bannon, John Heffernan, Bill Paterson, Paterson Joseph, Sasha Luss, Juliette Motamed, Celia Imrie, and August Wittgenstein. Amazon has previously made no mention of Hawes' involvement, likely to keep the surprise under wraps.

Weaver plays Evelyn Wallis, a new character not featured in the original games who is described by Amazon as a "mysterious, high-flying woman who is keen to exploit Lara's talents." Other actors play more familiar roles, with Isaacs portraying Croft’s uncle, Atlas DeMornay, Paterson her butler Winston, and Bobb-Semple her tech support Zip.

Amazon previously pitched the series as part of an interconnected "unified storytelling universe" that spans the franchise's video games as well as this new TV series, which is created and written by Fleabag's Phoebe Waller-Bridge. The games themselves are getting something of a reboot, with the first in the franchise reimagined later this year for PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and S as Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis. A brand new game is also on the way in the shape of Tomb Raider: Catalyst, due at some point in 2027. Alix Wilton Regan has now been cast to voice Lara Croft going forward, following Camilla Luddington's turn during the Survivor Trilogy — and Keeley Hawes before that.

Image credit: Tristan Fewings/Getty Images.

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

Return to Silent Hill debuted to a lukewarm reception last week, with just $3.2 million coming in from North American theaters.

Faring a little better outside the domestic market, director Christophe Gans' take on the revered Silent Hill 2 storyline was the fifth-biggest movie of the week internationally, making $16 million. $9.3 million of that came from China, where Return to Silent Hill has started strong. Overall, the global opening weekend box office amounted to $19.3 million.

That domestic tally of just $3.2 million will be of particular concern, though. Despite Konami resurrecting its horror franchise with two well-received games, Silent Hill 2 Remake and Silent Hill f (as well as the divisive Silent Hill: Ascension and upcoming Silent Hill Townfall), Return to Silent Hill had the lowest domestic box office opening of all three Silent Hill movies; 2006's Silent Hill generated $20.2 million, and the painfully poor follow-up Silent Hill: Revelation just $8 million — which is still more than twice Return to Silent Hill's domestic opening.

Even taking into account the snowstorms blowing across North America, over at Rotten Tomatoes, Return to Silent Hill sits on an abysmal 18% on the Tomatometer, and 29% on the user-driven Popcommenter, making it the worst-reviewed movie of the year so far (although, in fairness, we're still in January!).

Gans recently said that despite receiving death threats over adapting the horror series for the big screen, he would be open to bringing another instalment to life, insisting: "I will adapt another chapter because there are some that are extremely good, something very different from the first film, and now Return to Silent Hill. I like this world, and I can see that plenty of people are thinking I’m doing a pretty good job."

The question is, will he get the chance to make another Silent Hill movie? Perhaps working in Gans' favor is the fact Return to Silent Hill carries a modest production budget of $23 million.

IGN's Return to Silent Hill review returned a 5/10. We said: "Return to Silent Hill isn’t completely without merit. It’s certainly a better follow-up to Cristophe Gans’ original 2006 film than 2012’s Silent Hill: Revelation, one that finds some success drawing on the creepy imagery and sound design of the games. But it’s ultimately an adaptation that fails to improve upon the source material or do anything particularly new and interesting. Those craving a truly great psychological horror experience are better off booting up a version of Silent Hill 2."

You can find out more about what was and wasn't changed in the Silent Hill 2 movie adaptation right here. We also have a handy list of all the video game movies and TV shows coming in 2026 and beyond.

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.

Highguard launched last night as planned, and met with big Steam concurrents but also a flood of negative user reviews.

The free-to-play “PvP raid shooter” was the big new game reveal at the end of last month’s The Game Awards, but developer Wildlight then went dark until the game’s January 26 release date. Highguard hit a peak of 97,249 concurrent users on Steam — a significant number for any new game launch on Valve’s platform — but Wildlight will be particularly concerned by its “mostly negative” user review rating.

Currently, just 32% of the 14,500 user reviews are positive. While some of the negative reviews revolve around PC performance problems, most criticize Highguard’s game design, and question some of the decisions made by the developers.

Chief among the criticisms is that the size of the map feels too big and empty for a 3v3 competitive shooter. You’re able to summon a mount to get about faster (the mounts are one aspect of Highguard that players seem to universally like), but some players believe a 4v4, 5v5, or even 3v3v3 mode would have been a better fit.

There are complaints about the resource-gathering phase of each map, too, which involves what some are calling boring mining and loot farming. The gist here is there is too much downtime and a lack of excitement, although players seem to be enjoying the raid phase of each match, where combat is concentrated. There is also criticism of the playable characters, which are differentiated only by two abilities each on a cooldown. Some are calling Highguard’s visuals bland, too.

Indeed, the top post on the Highguard subreddit reinforces this sentiment. “I’m sorry but this is boring as f**k,” it reads. “Gathering is boring as f**k, looting is boring as f**k, 3v3 with short TTK is boring as f**k. No PVE is boring as f**k. The only good thing in this game is the f***ing horse mount. What were they thinking?”

The Steam portion of Highguard’s release doesn’t tell the whole story, of course. It also launched as a free download on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and S, but neither Sony nor Microsoft make player numbers public.

Here’s how Highguard works. You play a Warden in a team of three, and select a base to fortify. You then ride out into the map to loot and harvest resources, upgrading your gear along the way.

Teams end up fighting over what’s called the Shieldbreaker, which can be used to trigger a raid of the enemy base. This phase — certainly the most exciting in the match — forces teams to attack and defend. Usually, one raid isn’t enough to destroy the enemy base, which triggers a new loot phase, a new Shieldbreaker to spawn, and the potential for a new raid to finally end the match. Check out IGN’s Highguard review-in-progress to find out what we think.

Yesterday, Wildlight talked about Highguard’s first year of content already being in the works, and outlined its roadmap for updates. It’s making all the right noises about being in this for the long haul. As a free-to-play game, Highguard’s success will rest on its ability to get as many people as possible to continue to play the game, fueling revenue from its live service. As we’ve seen, live service is a particularly brutal space to be in right now, so it will be interesting to see if Highguard can improve this launch sentiment and maintain interest in the months ahead.

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.

Walmart is advertising Nintendo Switch Online with a poster that includes several GameCube classics yet to be made available via the service.

An image visible now on Walmart.com shows a library of Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack titles including the brilliant Pikmin 2 and Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, neither of which are currently playable on Switch 2.

Metroid Prime 2 is of particular interest to fans, as some had speculated its release was deliberately being held back so Nintendo could sell a full remake of the game instead. The company launched a full Metroid Prime 1 remake back in 2023, but has since made no comment about continuing to relaunch the rest of the classic trilogy.

A former Ubisoft Osaka staff member has spoken out against persistent "online conspiracy theories" that the publisher's performance is being impacted by a focus on DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) initiatives, rather than the company instead suffering from "Big Business Syndrome."

Last week's major company reshuffle that saw Ubisoft cancel six games, close two studios and confirm layoffs at three more locations has led to a fresh wave of criticism online, and some commentators suggesting that Ubisoft was now suffering following a directive to increase DEI within its games.

Last year's Assassin's Creed Shadows became a lightning rod for controversy surrounding the inclusion of its Black samurai protagonist Yasuke, a real-world historical figure whose prominence sparked a backlash against staff members working on the project — something that Assassin's Creed's former boss Marc-Alexis Côté was forced to fiercely condemn.

Now, a staff member previously employed at the recently-closed Ubisoft Osaka has offered their perspective, and suggested that the firm's DEI advocates wielded limited influence, while "beneficial" initiatives saw "improvements to the workplace environment, market expansion into South America and the Middle East, etc."

Writing on X, and translated by Automaton, the former staff member blamed Ubisoft's current troubles on "Big Business Syndrome" — essentially a stagnation in new ideas due to risk-averse staff in senior positions.

"The decline in marketing/creative departments stemmed from Big Business Syndrome – something that can happen to any large company," ex-Ubisoft Osaka developer Kensuke Shimoda wrote. "One example of this was the excessively low turnover rate, leading to a clear lack of senior/lead-level staff with experience developing online/mobile/F2P games.

"Additionally, as a French-first company establishing branches outside French-speaking regions to build a global development structure, they faced management issues unique to non-English global corporations."

When contacted by IGN for a response, Ubisoft declined to comment.

Ubisoft Osaka was shut down a year ago, impacting 134 staff, including Shimoda. Previously, the team had worked as a support studio, and had contributed to Shadows' development.

Less than a week after announcing its sweeping company reorganization, Ubisoft has proposed a reduction in headcount of around 200 people based at its headquarters in Paris. After the cancelation of Prince of Persia: Sands of Time Remake, one actress said she has lost three years of work - and found out via the internet.

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

A recent analyst report has suggested that Sony may push the launch of the PlayStation 6 beyond 2028 and lengthen the PlayStation 5 lifecycle.

Ahead of Sony's third quarter financial report due on February 5, 2026, David Gibson, senior analyst at MST international who focuses on game and tech companies, published a Japanese language report giving insights into the Sony Group's current performance and potential next moves.

According to Gibson, Sony’s earnings for the third quarter are expected to exceed forecasts, with strong sales of first and third-party games driving growth. He also noted that game and network services (including PSN subscriptions) are set to remain strong. Q3 sales are predicted to total around 1.8 trillion yen (approx. $11.6 billion), with operating income at 160 billion yen (approx. $1 billion).

“Sony expects the PS5 lifecycle to be longer than that of previous console generations,” Gibson said, adding that this is likely to push the PS6 launch back beyond previous predictions. “There’s a high likelihood that the PS6 launch will occur after 2028.” If Gibson is right, we won't see the PS6 until 2029 at the earliest.

Hints that Sony aims to extend the PS5 lifecycle can be seen in recent moves made by the company. In a bid to make the PS5 more affordable to domestic players, Sony launched a reduced-price Japan-only PS5 console model in November. It also implemented planned price cuts to PS5 consoles for Black Friday in the U.S. and elsewhere. ThIs suggests Sony is trying to attract more users to its five-year-old console and expand its audience.

However Gibson suggested that Sony is more focused on existing PS5 users than boosting console sales. Regarding PlayStation Network services and active PS5 users, Gibson observed that “PS5 user activity continues to set all-time record highs according to usage data. Sony is focusing more on retaining active users than expanding hardware sales.”

One problem that is facing console makers this year is the rising costs of components. Memory is in high demand because companies like Nvidia and Google require so much of it for their AI chips, with a CNBC report pointing out that these companies "are the first ones in line for the components." This will likely push up RAM prices and have a knock-on impact on both console retail prices and availability. Over at Sony rival Nintendo, president Shuntaro Furukawa failed to rule out future price increases for the Switch 2, commenting that "we must monitor the situation closely."

It’s likely that Sony is also keeping a close eye on this situation with regard to both PS5 hardware and the timing of the PS6 launch. Gibson predicted that “rising memory prices will not impact short-term performance thanks to Sony’s existing inventory.” However, he noted that increased memory costs could become an issue for Sony in the next fiscal year (ending in March 2027), saying “Sony might pass future cost increases onto consumers.”

The timing of a console’s launch can make or break its success, as seen with the Sega Dreamcast. At the moment, Sony seems to be sticking with the PS5 and PS5 Pro thanks to strong network service profits, healthy game sales, and growing active user numbers. And let's remember that the console-exclusive Grand Theft Auto 6, due out later this year, is sure to spark a surge in console sales all on its own. However, Gibson warned that if Sony waits too long to launch the PS6, “it could create long-term risks.”

Back in October, Sony’s tech wizard Mark Cerny teased a number of new video game graphics features in a video published to the official PlayStation YouTube channel titled ‘From Project Amethyst to the Future of Play: AMD and Sony Interactive Entertainment’s Shared Vision.’ Almost all of the near nine minute chat was about advances in graphics technology Sony and AMD have been working on over the past two years.

But then, at the end of the video, a rather innocuous line from Cerny himself mentioned a "future console" coming in "a few years' time." Most took that to suggest Sony planned to release the PS6 late 2028. Could Sony's next-gen console plans include a new PlayStation handheld, too? In August last year, PlayStation 6 handheld rumors ramped up, alongside claims the device would be dockable.

Photo by Stanislav Kogiku/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images.

Verity Townsend is a Japan-based freelance writer who previously served as editor, contributor and translator for the game news site Automaton West. She has also written about Japanese culture and movies for various publications.