When Earth's mightiest heroes finally unite to take on Doctor Doom, who will lead the charge? Well, according to The Fantastic Four: The First Steps director Matt Shakman, it'll be Pedro Pascal's Reed Richards — an answer that has surprised many Marvel fans.

Cast your mind back to the last Avengers film, Endgame, and the superhero team's previous leaders then. Robert Downey Jr's Iron Man and Chris Evans' Captain America may no longer be with us, but Anthony Mackie's Sam Wilson has taken up the latter's mantle — and he was last seen in Captain America: Brave New World establishing a new Avengers team once more.

Brave New World did not name Wilson's Captain America as the team's leader specifically, but this was certainly implied — especially as Marvel's next film, Thunderbolts* / The New Avengers, then referenced a rivalry between Wilson's Avengers and the Thunderbolts' "New Avengers" team.

Now, despite Marvel already having two Avengers squads on its books, it sounds like the team's true leader in Avengers: Doomsday will end up being someone else entirely — and someone who is still yet to make their MCU debut, rather than a character fans have seen previously.

"He goes from being the nerdy scientist who's locked away in the lab, to the husband and the father who'd do anything to protect his family, to the guy who's leading the Avengers," Shakman said of Reed Richards, discussing the character in an interview with Variety.

It's a slightly odd thing to hear — especially as surviving OG Avengers veterans such as Mark Ruffalo's Bruce Banner and Chris Hemsworth's Thor are also still around. Why aren't either of these higher up the pecking order? What about Captain Marvel, even? And why not Sam Wilson?

Perhaps this is about star power — with Pedro Pascal seen as a bigger draw. Perhaps this is about the middling box office performance of Captain America: Brave New World, and a desire not to remind audiences of a film that is not beloved. Or perhaps this is simply about the film's story — with Reed Richards and Doctor Doom positioned as mortal enemies in the Marvel comics, after all.

Pedro Pascal's Reed Richards will make his big-screen Marvel debut in just a matter of days, when The Fantastic Four: First Steps opens in theaters on July 25. The character — along with the rest of Marvel's first family — will then return next year for Avengers: Doomsday, currently due to launch on December 1, 2026.

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

Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds will be sold as a physical Nintendo Switch game with the "full base game" included on a 64GB cartridge.

Switch 2 Game-Key Cards are physical cards that contain a key to download your chosen game. That means there’s no actual game data on the card you insert into your Switch 2, and you’ll instead need to download the full game once the card is inserted. Every Game-Key Card case should be appropriately labeled on the front of the box, but the practice has been troubling some gamers, especially those who prefer to physically own their games, not just license them digitally.

This is particularly good news for Sonic fans because there had been confusion and conflicting reports about CrossWorlds in particular. Now, however, Sega has removed all doubt, confirming in a new FAQ that "the physical version will feature the full base game on a 64GB cartridge."

The FAQ also confirmed that crossplay will be available for Nintendo Switch 2 players, progress will carry over from the original Switch to the newer edition, and yes, there will be a $10 upgrade pack for anyone hoping to upgrade to the Switch 2 version in the future.

By contrast, Square Enix was criticised by fans earlier this week for confirming there would be "no upgrade path" for its Dragon Quest 1 & 2 HD-2D Remake on Switch 2, and that its save files would not be compatible across platforms.

Sega has said CrossWorlds will feature a huge roster of over playable characters, if you include DLC. Characters you’d expect to see, such as Sonic, Dr. Eggman, Knuckles, Shadow, and Tails are present and correct, but now you can add the likes of SpongeBob SquarePants, Avatar, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles into the mix.

CrossWorlds is, of course, going up against Switch 2 exclusive kart game Mario Kart World, which has so far resisted adding guest characters from outside Nintendo's portfolio. Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is set for release on both the Switch and the Switch 2, so it looks like we’ll be set for some old-fashioned Mario vs. Sonic kart racing rivalry when Sega's effort launches in September.

IGN recently went hands-on with Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds and came away impressed. “It’s a vibe,” we said, “and one that I’ve enjoyed and will look forward to drifting through.”

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.

Roblox has announced a new range of safety features directed specifically at teenagers ages 13-17, including a new age estimation technology that uses AI to guess a user's age based on a video selfie they submit.

Today's announcement reveals several new features being implemented in Roblox that the company claims will improve teen and child safety on its platform. At the core of the announcement are new features specifically for teens ages 13-17, giving them more freedom on the platform than younger children but still less than adults. Teens will be able to designate "trusted connections" on Roblox, with whom they will be able to chat on the platform without filters. Per Roblox, the goal is to better monitor conversations teens are having on Roblox rather than having them lured to third-party platforms where unmonitored conversations could become inappropriate.

Trusted connections are intended to be set between users who know one another well, and if a teen intends to set someone 18+ as a trusted connection, they can only do so using a QR code scanner or a contact importer.

In the past, Roblox has relied on the submission of a government ID verifying that users are 13+ or 18+ to unlock certain platform chat features. However, it is now implementing an alternative verification method. Individuals can submit a "video selfie" to Roblox, and an AI will determine if it believes the person in question is 13+ by analyzing it against "a large, diverse dataset." Google began testing a similar feature earlier this year, as did Meta the year prior.

In addition to these changes, Roblox is also adding new tools such as online status controls, a do not disturb mode, and parental controls for parents who have linked their accounts to a teenage's account.

Roblox has long been in an uncomfortable spotlight regarding its handling of children's safety. In 2018, it made headlines when a mother reported her seven-year-old daughter's Roblox character was violently sexually assaulted by other players in-game, and separately a six-year-old girl playing Roblox was reportedly invited into a "sex room". In 2021, People Make Games published a report on the ways in which Roblox's business model allegedly exploits child labor. In 2022, Roblox faced a San Francisco lawsuit accusing it of enabling the financial and sexual exploitation of a 10-year-old girl. In 2023, it was sued both for allegedly facilitating "an illegal gambling ecosystem" and more generally for having lax child safety protocols that allegedly led to financial loss and children's exposure to adult content. Just last year, Bloomberg published a damning report highlighting the prevalence of child predators on the platform. That same year, the platform claimed it reported over 13,000 incidents of child exploitation to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in the year 2023, resulting in the arrest of 24 individuals who allegedly preyed on children through the game.

"Safety has always been foundational to everything we do at Roblox," said Roblox chief safety officer Matt Kaufman in a statement alongside today's new feature news. "Our goal is to lead the world in safety and civility for online gaming. We are dedicated to supporting experiences that are both deeply engaging, and empowering for players of all ages, while continuously innovating how users connect and interact."

Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. You can find her posting on BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.

It’s that time of the year again and EA has revealed the cover stars of its next soccer game, FC 26. But this go around there’s concern that the infamous 'Madden curse' has spread to EA’s soccer series, after joint cover stars Jude Bellingham and Jamal Musiala suffered significant injuries that left them facing lengthy spells on the sidelines.

“It’s really nice to share this moment with Jamal, as a reflection of how far we’ve come,” said Real Madrid and England midfield star Bellingham in a comment accompanying the announcement.

“I remember our times rooming together in the England Youth team, we’d play the game all the time. Where I’m from, everyone knows the game, everyone plays it and talks about it so much. I’m grateful to be given the opportunity to be on the cover again.”

And here’s a comment from Bayern Munich and Germany forward Musiala: “When I found out I’d be on the cover of FC, it was such a crazy feeling. I thought, how could I tell my little brother? He’s a big fan of the game, so this will be a nice surprise for him. It’s something I always wanted growing up and it’s such a big part of football culture. Who knows, maybe I can still beat Jude at FC.”

The problem is, both players are injured and are set to miss a significant chunk of the next season. Let’s start with Bellingham. The 22-year-old just had surgery on a long-standing shoulder injury that’s set to keep him out of the game for up to four months. That means he’s going to miss the start of next season and may not return until November.

It’s worse for Musiala, though. He suffered a horrible injury playing at the Club World Cup that rules him out for between four and five months. After breaking his leg and dislocating his ankle in the same incident, the 22-year-old is set for a long absence.

All this means FC 26 launches in September with both its cover stars unable to play the game. One potentially won’t play again until 2026. Hardly ideal for the marketers at EA Sports, who must be wondering whether they are now cursed.

The alleged risk of using a well-known Pokémon Go exploit is causing widespread confusion among the game's community, fuelled by a dire warning from a senior player that supposedly originates from the app's own development team.

Said warning states that Pokémon Go's developers are aware of the exploit in question — which allows users to interact with in-game locations from further away than normally possible — and consider it "a violation of the Terms of Service of the game."

Continued use of the exploit is detectable by the developer's anti-cheat teams, the warning goes on to claim, and risks users' accounts being flagged for cheating — an offense that can eventually result in a permanent account ban.

The appearance of this message, and the claim it is being passed on from Pokémon Go's makers, has sparked a firestorm of debate, primarily over the rights and (mostly) wrongs of this exploit being viewed as cheating in the same vein as more nefarious tactics.

Many players have said that this "trick" simply makes use of a unintended bug in how the game functions, and is not comparable to the tools some players use to actively break the game, such as by using third-party apps and hacks to spoof their location.

There's also a debate over the veracity of the message itself — both over its origins, which appear to be from a senior player marked as a Community Ambassador who has spoken to the game's developers, and over the likely intent behind what was said.

To understand the nuances here, it's worth taking a look at the issue in more detail. At a base level, the exploit allows players to access a raid lobby slightly beyond their normal interaction radius via a Daily or Premium Raid Pass, rather than by using a more expensive Remote Raid Pass.

Performing the exploit — referred to locally among players as "flying," "floating," or "tricking" — is clearly not intended behavior, but can hardly be considered game-breaking. Accessing a raid lobby that's less than 100m away but slightly out of your normal range is considered by many players to simply be a convenience — and potentially an aid to taking part in more raids overall, even if this is done so without the top-tier Remote Raid Pass.

That said, a simple glance at the game's Terms of Service (TOS) shows that, according to the letter of the law, this could indeed fall under the game's description of cheating as it stands.

IGN contacted the Pokémon Go development team to ask about the origins of the warning, whether the exploit was indeed considered cheating, and what actions players might expect if they continued to use it. In response, a spokesperson pointed us back to the game's TOS document, and specifically its section on cheating, which we'll quote below.

Now, it's entirely possible to see how this exploit could fall under the TOS' definition of using "techniques to alter or falsify a device's location" and therefore — again, according to the letter of the law — is something that could be considered cheating.

But by pointing IGN back to its TOS, the Pokémon Go development team is also — deliberately or not — highlighting something potentially crucial around this issue's enforcement. And that's the fact that, once again, according to the letter of the law, playing with multiple accounts is also considered cheating — despite it being something that a percentage of the game's playerbase does, with absolutely zero infraction.

What this may all ultimately boil down to is someone purportedly asking the Pokémon Go development team for its view on an issue that the game's makers would obviously never sanction, but which seems unlikely to suddenly result in waves of players being banned. And yet, because of the murky origins of the warning, and because nuance can be difficult when messages get passed over the internet, players have now been left aggrieved and concerned.

Will the exploit stick around in the game forever? It seems unlikely. Will players suddenly find themselves banned for using it while it's still possible? This seems unlikely too. But, we should state, this is just one reading of the situation, in lieu of any formal statement being provided — something which, if formalised, would likely only prompt the need for actual enforecement, which the majority of players seem to be against.

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

Donkey Kong Bananza is out today, and the game's credits have now confirmed Nintendo's main new voice actor behind Donkey Kong.

Unusually for a Nintendo game, Bananza's credits list out each of the game's voice actors with their specific roles — and right at the top is Kouji Takeda, credited as Donkey Kong in all of the game's various language options.

Takeda, who voiced Donkey Kong in the Japanese dub of the Super Mario Bros. Movie, now appears to have taken over as the video game voice of Donkey Kong as well, unifying the ape's grunts across mediums. This was something that was previously speculated — though not confirmed — when his name popped up in the credits of Switch 2 launch title Mario Kart World, while DK's previous veteran voice actor did not.

Eagled-eyed Nintendo fans noted that Takashi Nagasako, who previously voiced Donkey Kong for 21 years, was no longer credited for the character as of Mario Kart World. At the time, this was discussed as likely yet another change by Nintendo of its long-term voice acting cast, following the replacement of Princess Peach and Toad actress Samantha Kelly after 18 years and more than 70 games, and the retirement of Charles Martinet as the voice of Mario, Luigi, Wario and Waluigi after almost 30 years.

Bananza's credits also reveal a new voice for Pauline, with actress and musician Jenny Kidd now voicing the character for its English dub.

In Super Mario Odyssey, Pauline is voiced by Kate Higgins, who also sings the game's theme song Jump Up, Super Star! But perhaps this change is to be expected — after all, Bananza's Pauline is now a younger, 13-year-old incarnation.

Fans have some interesting theories around this version of Pauline being a precursor to the character we see in Odyssey, something that would make Bananza a prequel — and we even asked the game's development team for their take. But to say more, for now, would venture into spoiler territory — something that's best left avoided until you play the game for yourself.

Intrigued? We dubbed the game as a "a brilliant successor to Super Mario Odyssey and a smashing return for a classic Nintendo character" in IGN's Donkey Kong Bananza review. "Every element comes together in complete harmony to create Nintendo’s first Switch 2 masterpiece."

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

Silent Hill and Slitterhead creator Keiichiro Toyama is working on a brand new game.

Talking to Famitsu at an exhibition celebrating Slitterhead's wild concept art, Toyama discussed the horror game's reception, what it's like to run his own studio, and hinted that he's already working on another unannounced project.

While Toyama stressed the studio wasn't overly concerned about making a commercial game, he did acknowledge Bokeh Studios had expected the game to sell better, despite it becoming a cult classic. He also suggested that there was a little confusion about whether Slitterhead was a horror or action game, which muddied the message, but was proud of the work Bokeh developers did to make Slitterhead such an unusual game.

"As for how long we’ll be able to continue, it becomes a difficult topic, especially if we take my age into consideration," Toyama admitted, as translated by Automaton. "However, I believe that moving forward, I also have to pass the baton to the next generation. As a studio, we’re still midway to reaching our goal."

As for what his next game will be?

“I can’t reveal the exact details, but we have started working on our next title. In the beginning, we wanted this to be a studio where we could do many different things, like implementing the ideas of younger generations and even working on more light-hearted projects," he said, admitting that even though Bokeh's indie status allows it to try creative ideas, it's a long way from being able to do whatever it wants.

"Once again, we have to pour in all our efforts as a studio and prove that we are up to the task. We are currently working towards that goal. However, we’re still in the beginning phase, so I believe we’ll be able to reveal more details [about the new game] somewhere in the future."

Interestingly, Toyama did stress that he did not conclude Slitterhead with "a sequel in mind," suggesting his next game will not be Slitterhead 2, although it's possible we'll get one in the future.

We thought Slitterhead was mediocre, securing a 5 in IGN's review: "Like a bloody blade worn down by a few too many battles, Slitterhead grows increasingly dull over time and ultimately just doesn’t cut it."

As for the Silent Hill franchise itself? Well, Silent Hill f is next. While the series' J-horror roots have shriveled with each release, Silent Hill f looking to change all that, complete with a firmer emphasis on combat. Watch IGN’s Nick Limon, Matt Kim, and John Davison talk about what this Japanaese-based Silent Hill means for the future of the franchise.

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.

Good news, ‘80s action fans: Blasting bad guys’ brains out and balls off is still RoboCop’s business, and business is… unfinished. A standalone expansion to 2023’s entertainingly authentic RoboCop: Rogue City, RoboCop: Rogue City - Unfinished Business takes Robo’s relentless rampage off the scum-riddled streets of Old Detroit and up through the heavily guarded heights of OMNI Tower in an all-new, 10-hour killing spree. The bad news is that with precious few new weapons and enemy types, the action of Unfinished Business never really elevates enough to match the skyward trajectory of its setting or distinguish itself as little more than a replay of the original. There’s still plenty of ultra violence to indulge in here, but it’s a form of mindless fun that’s as familiar as it is ferocious.

Not unlike the 2012 sci-fi splatterfest movie Dredd, the action of Unfinished Business is contained almost entirely within the one highrise building and sees RoboCop making his way from the ground floor to its upper reaches in search of some stolen OCP equipment. It borrows a bit of BioShock as well, since Robo is initially led along by an anonymous assistant on the other end of a two-way radio, and that helps to lend a welcome air of mystery to the story’s opening half – even if it doesn’t eventually pay off with any shocking plot twists like Irrational Games’ underwater classic.

As was the case with the previous game, the success of Unfinished Business’ storytelling largely hinges on the often hilarious deadpan delivery of original RoboCop actor Peter Weller in the main role. Whether he’s repeating iconic lines from the movies or making subtle mockery of almost everyone he meets, Weller’s performance is a noticeable cut above the rest. Admittedly, that’s not a super high bar to clear since the supporting cast often sound like they’re voiced by hastily dashed-out placeholder recordings someone forgot to fill in with the real ones, and each seem to draw from the same shallow pool of character heads, making it tough to really distinguish one from the other. In the end, I was happy to go along for the ride all the way to Unfinished Business’ bullet-riddled gore-gasm of a climax, in spite of the fact that I didn’t particularly feel compelled to focus on anyone other than the scumbags standing squarely in front of my ironsights.

Business As Usual

Beyond the story, though, Unfinished Business is a fairly flat 10 hours because while it increases the amount of bad guys you have to shoot, it doesn’t do nearly enough to expand the variety of ways you do it. If you’ve played 2023’s Rogue City, then you’ve already experienced the bulk of what Unfinished Business’ combat has to offer. Once again, you’re able to ricochet bullets off walls to stylishly snipe enemies hidden behind cover, perform breach-and-clears on almost every door you come across in bloodsplattered slow-motion, and shoot explosive barrel after explosive barrel as you RoboStop and RoboDrop absolutely every criminal you come across. It’s all presented with the same fan-pleasing flair, from the green Apple IIe-like graphics of Robo’s heads-up display to the iconic theme music that swells along with the increasing enemy numbers, and that certainly still goes a long way. It’s just a shame to see the skill and Auto 9 upgrade systems copied across seemingly unchanged. You unlock the exact same perks like armour-piercing rounds and the ability to automatically deflect incoming enemy fire, just a little faster this time thanks to the story’s shorter runtime.

There are a handful of new mechanical enemy types to contend with at least, though none of them really shake things up to a dramatic degree. I did find myself making more consistent use of Robo’s returning slow-mo skill in order to combat the fast-moving robobombs that rapidly roll towards you, as well as the swarms of flying security drones that dart unpredictably through the air above. But while the nimble killbots that cartwheel around the place seem threatening at first blush, they quickly prove to be about as resilient as a jar of baby food as I either shattered their robot skulls with a quick burst of bullets or simply picked them up and disposed of them like katana-wielding Kleenexes, even on the hardest difficulty setting.

OMNI Tower itself does offer the occasional interesting space to host the slaughter in, from the vibrant video arcade and cinema found in the relaxation zone to the trashbag-strewn underbelly of waste management (complete with a Star Wars-style trash compactor to frantically blast your way out of). Those are the exception, though, and most of the carnage takes place in the charmless concrete corridors in between. That’s to be expected from a tour through a corporate dystopia, sure, but it doesn’t make for a lot of fun surprises. Despite the striking gallery of gore and particle effects that shower over each firefight, there were times that Unfinished Business’ drab interiors made it feel less like a thrilling action adventure and more like wandering in circles through a shopping mall carpark trying to work out where I left my 6000 SUX.

Still, the biggest problem I had with Unfinished Business’ gunplay was the same one I found with 2023’s Rogue City. That is, Robo’s signature Auto 9 – blessed as it is with unlimited ammo, easily upgradeable attributes, and an undeniable cool factor – makes the dozens of other firearms found throughout the campaign almost entirely redundant. It’s just so overequipped to deal with everything that’s thrown your way that I never found a good enough reason to holster it. It would be akin to a Star Wars adventure in which you default to the use of a lightsaber – you’re probably not ever going to clip it to your belt and pick up a Tusken Raider’s gaffi stick to crack heads with instead.

There is one exception: the cryo cannon that’s introduced in the second half proved to be worth a few charged-up trigger squeezes, especially since its sub-zero rounds turn your targets into instant ice sculptures that can be subsequently shattered like the T-1000. That’s a time-honored video game tradition that dates back to Duke Nukem 3D. But otherwise I almost never felt the need to bend over and grab any other dropped firearms – and not just because Robo appears to have the knee joints of an 80-year-old man (as well as the voice of a 78-year-old). In fact, the only time I felt forced to employ enemy uzis and shotguns was during an especially violent rescue mission late in the story – and that’s only because the thing I was trying to rescue was, funnily enough, my stolen Auto 9.

Murphy’s Law

Unfinished Business’ structure is effectively built around a cycle of using your Auto 9 to deep-six hordes of mercenaries, pausing to settle disputes between citizens in side missions that veer from moderately humorous to completely banal, and then flicking some switches and turning valves in its basic puzzle sections to open the path ahead before resuming the unrelenting blaze of glorious gore. There are only a handful of detours along the way that at least try to mix up the otherwise predictable pacing, with varying degrees of success.

In one flashback mission we get to pull on the kevlar-lined vest of Alex Murphy in his pre-RoboCop days, as he and his fellow officers are dispatched to investigate the whereabouts of some known perps. I enjoyed this small glimpse of Murphy’s origins in the Metro South precinct even if the stilted banter between his squad was more than a little wide of the mark, and there were some fun Easter eggs to find here including a memo that referenced the ominous rise of a new criminal on the scene that I won't spoil here.

However, the setting of this sequence lacks imagination given that its abandoned mill surroundings are a bit too similar to the site of Murphy’s infamous ‘crucifixion’ scene witnessed in the first film, and its combat feels somewhat topsy turvy. Where RoboCop must scramble to find OCP charges in order to replenish his rapidly depleting health, regular flesh-and-bone Murphy somehow magically regains it in between shootouts. That’s typical for a lot of first-person shooters, but it’s less of a contrast to playing as a walking tank than I’d been expecting. On the flipside, Murphy can only wield his boring old service pistol, which is frustrating because this was one of the few times I actually wanted to pick up a gun I found but couldn’t. It all makes for a diversion that’s important to the plot, but not particularly compelling to play.

Thankfully, the same can’t be said for the late-game level where you get to pilot an ED-209 mech. This fabulously frenetic stretch of fan service allows you to use twin arm cannons to shred through each hapless human like they’re that one poor bastard executive that probably should have hid in the bathroom during the original ED-209 demonstration, blast through concrete walls with rocket barrages, and even trample over a model of Old Detroit’s skyline while battling rival robots like you’re revelling in a small-scale clash of Kaiju. Sure, it’s perhaps not as cathartic as it could have been given that by that point I’d already very efficiently turned hundreds of mercenaries into mincemeat with Robo’s Auto 9. But I can’t pretend I wasn’t grinning like an idiot through the entire sequence, which ratchets up the carnage to ludicrous levels and doesn’t linger long enough to outstay the welcome of playing as a near-invincible killing machine.

I never got tired of seeing RoboCop himself onscreen either. As was the case with the previous game, his polished steel armour looks absolutely spot-on and he always seems to be lit with ambient neon lights like he’s emerging out of the driver’s side of a Ford Taurus on the poster for the 1987 film. That said, outside of the smooth lines of Robo’s movie-accurate character model there’s a noticeable roughness to Unfinished Business, at least on the PlayStation 5 version that I played. During my time with it I suffered frame rate dips, audio dropouts, animation glitches, dodgy lip syncing, ridiculous moon physics during slow-motion breaches, characters disappearing completely during finishing moves and story cutscenes, and even the occasional crash to the home screen. After a while I started to wonder if the “Unfinished Business” title was a nod to RoboCop’s everlasting quest for justice or merely a reference to the launch state of the game itself.

Games Workshop has added a Black Library logo to its official Big Summer Warhammer Preview showcase, sparking speculation the company may announce new novels that finally move the overarching Warhammer 40,000 narrative forward.

Big Summer Warhammer Preview, set for this Friday, July 18, will contain reveals for Games Workshop’s main tabletop games, including Age of Sigmar, The Horus Heresy, and of course Warhammer 40,000. Its initially released digital poster for the event did not feature the logo for Black Library, Games Workshop’s in-house book publishing division. However, on July 16, it released a new version of this poster with the Black Library logo added, sparking speculation that fans will get new novel announcements as well.

Quality gaming chairs don’t usually come cheap, especially if you prefer shopping with big, well-known brands – the Razer Iskur V2 X aims to change that. Coming in at a base price of $300, it blends comfort and style at around half the price of the higher-end flagship Iskur V2, with a few compromises to take note of. It’s not necessarily the cheapest option, but it’s a quality and comfortable offering that’s definitely worth considering if you’re looking for a brand name budget-level gaming chair.

Razer Iskur V2 X – Design and Features

The Razer Iskur V2 X doesn’t break the mold in gaming chair designs and doesn’t aim to. If you’re seen the previous iteration of the Iskur we reviewed a while back, or most other racing style gaming chairs, then you’ll have a good idea of what to expect here. It sports a typical bucket seat-inspired design when it comes to its overall shape and design. It has a tall back and wide seat with ample padding for your bottom and back. The backrest is tall, extending all the way behind your head, and both it and the seat have stylized bolsters to guide you toward their center. Unlike most gaming chairs of this type and price range, these bolsters aren’t overly pronounced and there’s no sense of being cramped or hugged into place.

There’s a recline lever on the right that allows you to lean back up to 152 degrees if you want to take a quick nap or kick back with your feet up. The armrests are adjustable, but only in two dimensions (height and rotation). You can rock in place or lock the chair at a certain angle using a lever below the chair or adjust its resistance with a large knob on the bottom, and the height is also adjustable by around four inches. It’s all standard stuff when it comes to typical racing-style chairs.

What you don’t get is any kind of adjustable lumbar support, and there are no pillows in the box to fill in any gap you might have in the lower back area. Instead, it comes with an integrated lumbar curve and a contoured backrest that helps position you properly without needing to think about it, at least for me. I’m 5-foot 8-inches and found that it was well positioned for me, so I didn’t miss having a lumbar pillow. Razer recommends the chair for people up to 6-foot 2-inches, but without any kind of adjustability, it won’t be a match for everyone.

Its lack of pillows is disappointing; at $300, it’s “budget” compared to Razer’s higher-end chairs, but it’s not necessarily cheap and you’ll be stuck paying extra for pillows if you need them. This is especially noteworthy since the original Iskur was so well known for its lumbar support.

Thankfully, in most other respects the Iskur V2 X impresses, especially with its build quality. It’s available in black and green or grey and black fabric, which is what I had in for testing. The quality of the weave and embroidery was excellent and includes stylized touches such as the snake-like diamond scales on the back and seat. Aesthetically, it’s a good match against the full Iskur V2, so if you like its looks, this is a much cheaper way to add it to your setup.

Razer also did a nice job making sure it nails the basics for durability and comfort. The wheel base is made of aluminum instead of plastic, which is a nice upgrade at this price and eliminates a common point of failure. I also appreciate that the tilt base, while definitely simpler than the full-fledged Iskur V2, operates smoothly and quietly and still includes key adjustments like tilt tension and angle lock. It also uses a steel frame to support long-term daily use, which isn’t always the case with more affordable chairs.

The cushioning is thick enough and soft enough to be comfortable straight out of the box and the fabric hits the midpoint between softness and robustness. It’s not quite as thick as the Iskur V2, but it’s as thick as it needs to be for a decent seating experience long-term. The armrests are also topped with a dense foam padding that’s soft enough to stave off elbow pain.

There are definitely some trade-offs here, as mentioned above – the biggest ones being the non-adjustable lumbar, lack of pillows, and 2D armrests. Apart from the backrest, the others really aren’t as impactful, and if you mesh with the backrest, it’s not that big of a deal. The overwhelming impression is that, for the most part, this is a chair that makes reasonable compromises on accommodating a range of needs in order to keep its price down.

Razer Iskur V2 X – Assembly

Assembling the Iskur V2 X is straightforward, so if you’ve assembled a gaming chair before, you’ll already know what to do. If not, Razer includes detailed instructions and everything you’ll need to get started. Everything comes separate in the box, which means lots of packaging material, but you don’t need to be especially handy to get it put together within about 20 minutes.

If it is your first time, I recommend getting everything set out ahead of time. With the parts in front of you, it’s pretty easy to intuit the assembly process. You’ll start by getting the casters inserted into the wheelbase, which is a toolless friction-fit. Then, you insert the gas piston into the center hole, cover it with the plastic shroud and wheel it to the side.

From there, I recommend attaching the backrest if you’re by yourself. This is a simple two screws on their side, but lining the threaded holes up with the side brackets can be awkward due to the size of the backrest. With that done, you cover each with their own shroud and then tip the whole setup forward for easy access to the bottom of the chair.

The tilt base attaches with four screws and Razer uses channels for each, so you can easily line them up and move the whole unit as needed before tightening it down. After that, you simply take the wheel assembly you put together before and slide the top of the gas piston into the hole in the base– tip the chair upright and you’re done.

Razer Iskur V2 X – Performance

I was able to spend about a month with the Iskur V2 X and over that time I truly put it through its paces. It lived at my home gaming PC setup for the first half of the review period and then I moved it into my office to see how it would hold up to long hours throughout normal workdays. Like I alluded to in the beginning of this review, the V2 X’s lumbar support was a good match for my back, so across my entire test period, I never got up sore or felt like I was paying a price for using it for too long – well, with one exception near the upper body.

The lack of a neck pillow turned out to be a big omission. Such a small accessory may not seem like it means a lot but it truly does, at least on the Iskur V2 X. The back contours in such a way that it leaves a larger gap behind your head. Leaning back feels immediately awkward unless you’re also reclining and shifting away from a normal seating posture. I eventually harvested a pillow from another gaming chair, but you should probably plan on getting one alongside this chair if you don’t also have a spare, because it really needs it.

With that problem addressed, the chair comes into its own and begins to demonstrate its value through looks and overall comfort. The fabric stands up to more expensive fabric chairs I’ve tested, including those from Secretlab that cost around double the price of the Iskur V2 X. And, if you care about looks, you can rest assured that it doesn’t look budget at all.

I was worried that the 2D armrests would be an issue when swapping between a controller and mouse and keyboard, but they offered just enough to accommodate either, at least by adjusting the width using the fasteners under the seat. Technically, 2D armrests aren’t width adjustable, but since each armrest runs on a track, you have an inch or two of give/movement to better accommodate the natural lay of your arms. It’s a middle ground that may not be elegant, but it gets you there.

And that’s really the story of this chair. There are sacrifices in adjustability, but the core is very good and is made to be more durable and rougher-wearing for the kind of rigorous use whether it be for a gaming setup or office setting. Although it is the “budget” option in the Iskur lineup, It’s not the cheapest, but those extra dollars get you that build quality and fabric finish you should expect. Whether that’s a worthy exchange is up to you.

There’s something oddly satisfying about scooping up post-sale scraps that should be gone by now. The Prime Day rush is done and dusted, yet a slew of cracking offers have somehow avoided the discount bin cull. I’ve been trawling the dregs so you don’t have to, and what’s still kicking around is honestly worth your time and wallet.

This Day in Gaming 🎂

In retro news, I’m lighting a 17-candle cake for Secret Agent Clank using the low-heat blast of a Tie-A-Rang (that tuxedo-grade gadget that slices through henchmen and decorum with equal style). I fondly recall this offbeat PSP spin-off from the Ratchet & Clank universe as a genre-jumper, swapping the series’ traditional bombastic platforming for a stealth-lite spy parody, all deployed to smooth jazz riffs.

While it never hit the highs of the mainline series, Secret Agent Clank did something admirable: it gave the sidekick his moment. With Ratchet framed for a crime he didn’t commit, Clank stepped out of his buddy’s shadow and into a tux, creating a rare handheld experience that mixed rhythm games, QTE spy action, and mini stealth sequences with Bond-level puns. It wasn’t a revolution, but it showed how Insomniac’s world was elastic enough to stretch into spin-offs without snapping.

Aussie birthdays for notable games.

- Gran Turismo Concept (PS2) 2002. eBay

- Secret Agent Clank (PSP) 2008. eBay

- Echochrome (PSP) 2008. eBay

- Sonic Mania Plus (NS,PC,PS4,XO) 2018. eBay

Contents

• Nintendo
• Xbox
• PlayStation
• PC
• PC Gear
• LEGO
• Headphones
• TVs

Nice Savings for Nintendo Switch

• Super Mario RPG (-29%) – A$57
• Donkey Kong Bananza [Target] - $89
• EA Sports FC 25 (-62%) – A$34
• Sonic Frontiers (-35%) – A$65
• Bioshock: The Col. (-80%) – A$17.90
• Dead Cells (-50%) – A$18.70
• Red Dead Redemption (-40%) – A$41.90

Expiring Recent Deals

• Donkey Kong Bananza (-11%) - A$98
• Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled (-33%) - A$46.70
• Expeditions: A MudRunner Game (-42%) - A$49
• Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (-14%) - A$69
• Pokémon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! (-14%) - A$69

Or gift a Nintendo eShop Card.

Back to top

Exciting Bargains for Xbox

• EA Sports FC 25 (-62%) – A$34
• Red Dead Redemption (-40%) – A$41.90
• Undisputed (-45%) – A$47
• Cyberpunk 2077 (-65%) – A$31.40
• Alan Wake 2 (-60%) – A$36.30

Xbox One

• Little Nightmares II (-90%) – A$4.40
• Octopath Traveler II (-60%) – A$33.90
• Ori and the Blind Forest: Def. Ed. (-75%) – A$7.40

Expiring Recent Deals

• Sniper Elite 5 (-75%) - A$22.40
• PGA Tour 2K25 (-51%) - A$59
• SpellForce III Reforced (-51%) - A$31.40
• Grand Theft Auto V (-53%) - A$28
• Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom (-75%) - A$14.70
• Inside (-90%) - A$2.90
• Panzer Dragoon: Rem. (-90%) - A$3.70
• Metal Slug XX (-80%) - A$2.90
• The Crew Motorfest (-53%) - A$46.60

Or just invest in an Xbox Card.

Back to top

Pure Scores for PlayStation

• Silent Hill F (-16%) – A$109
• Sonic Frontiers (-40%) – A$59
• Stranger of Paradise FF Origin (-61%) – A$38.60
• Epic Mickey: Rebrushed (-61%) – A$39
• Gran Turismo 7 (-29%) – A$88.80

PS4

• Streets of Rage 4 (-65%) – A$13.20
• God of War Ragnarök (-58%) – A$46.10
• Metaphor: ReFantazio (-40%) – A$68.90
• Ghost of Tsushima Dir. Cut (-58%) – A$46.10

Expiring Recent Deals

• Dead Space (-75%) - A$28
• Hogwarts Legacy (-75%) - A$27.40
• Dragon Age: The Veilguard (-60%) - A$44
• Expeditions: A MudRunner Game (-42%) - A$49
• Overcooked! All You Can Eat (-33%) - A$36.90
• Secret of Mana (-57%) - A$25.60
• Tekken 7 (-71%) - A$19.90
• Red Dead Redemption 2 (-74%) - A$23

PS+ Monthly Freebies
Yours to keep from Jul 1 with this subscription

• Diablo 4 (PS5/PS4)
• The King of Fighers XV (PS5/PS4)
• Jusant (PS5)

Or purchase a PS Store Card.

Back to top

Purchase Cheap for PC

• Pacific Drive (-50%) – A$21.90
• Moonlighter (-88%) – A$3.30
• Control: Ult. Ed. (-85%) – A$7.40
• The Ascent (-76%) – A$10.70
• Lego DC Super-Villains (-85%) – A$8.50
• Hotshot Racing (-84%) – A$4.60

Expiring Recent Deals

• Assassin's Creed Mirage (-60%) - A$31.90
• Alan Wake (-90%) - A$2.10
• Disco Elysium - The Final Cut (-75%) - A$14.20
• Huntdown (-80%) - A$6
• Worms Armageddon (-80%) - A$4.20
• Icewind Dale: Enhanced (-50%) - A$14.40

Or just get a Steam Wallet Card

Laptop Deals

• Apple 2024 MacBook Air 15-inch (-12%) – A$2,197
• HP Laptop 15.6" 15-fd0233TU (-20%) – A$799
• Lenovo ThinkPad E14 Gen 5 (-36%) – A$849
• Lenovo Yoga 7i 2-in-1 14", Gen 9 (-41%) – A$1,229

Desktop Deals

• Lenovo neo 50a G5 27" AIO (-47%) – A$1,379
• Lenovo neo 50q G4 Tiny (-35%) – A$639
• Lenovo neo 50t G5 Tower (-20%) – A$871.20
• Legion Tower 5i G8 (-29%) – A$1,899

Monitor Deals

• Samsung QE50T 50" (-31%) – A$596
• ARZOPA 16.1" 144Hz (-55%) – A$159.99
• Z-Edge 27" 240Hz (-15%) – A$237.99
• Gawfolk 34" WQHD (-28%) – A$359
• LG 27" Ultragear (-42%) – A$349

Component Deals

• MSI PRO B650M-A WiFi Motherboard (-41%) – A$229
• AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D (-7%) – A$876
• Corsair Vengeance 32GB (-35%) – A$82
• Kingston FURY Beast 16GB (-30%) – A$48

Storage Deals

• Seagate One Touch Portable HDD (-24%) – A$228
• Kingston 1TB USB 3.2 SSD (-17%) – A$115
• SanDisk 128GB Extreme PRO (-63%) – A$29
• SanDisk 32GB Ultra SDHC (-53%) – A$9.90

Back to top

Legit LEGO Deals

• Da Vinci’s Flying Machine (-40%) – A$59.90
• Star Wars Millenium Falcon (-33%) – A$99.90
• Jango Fett Helmet (-32%) – A$87.90
• Red Maple Bonsai Tree (-31%) – A$69

Expiring Recent Deals

• R2-D2 Model Kit (-36%) - A$127
• Fire Rescue Motorcycle (-36%) - A$9.60
• Mario Kart Donkey Kong (-35%) - A$39.20
• JP World Baby Dinosaur Dolores (-34%) - A$23

Back to top

Hot Headphones Deals

Audiophilia for less

• Bose QuietComfort Ultra Wireless (-38%) – A$399.95
• Soundcore by Anker Q20i (-43%) – A$68.79
• Sony MDR7506 Professional (-30%) – A$169
• Technics Premium (-46%) – A$299
• Bose SoundLink Flex (-31%) – A$171
• JBL Charge 5 - Portable Speaker (-28%) – A$144
• JBL Flip Essential 2 Waterproof Speaker (-26%) – A$96
• Sony SRS-XB100 Travel Speaker (-41%) – A$84.15
• Ultimate Ears Boom 3 Portable Speaker (-41%) – A$134.95
• Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro (-26%) – A$259.29
• Sennheiser Momentum 4 Wireless (-46%) – A$275

Back to top

Terrific TV Deals

Do right by your console, upgrade your telly

• LG 43" UT80 4K (-24%) – A$635
• Kogan 65" QLED 4K (-50%) – A$699
• Kogan 55" QLED 4K (-45%) – A$549
• LG 55" UT80 4K (-28%) – A$866
• Prism+ Q75 Ultra 75" 4K QLED (-47%) – A$1,229
• Gaimoo Mini Projector 1080p w/ 4K (-33%) – A$119.99
• GooDee 4K Projector (-58%) – A$169.99
• VOPLLS Mini Projector 4K (-19%) – A$168.99
• XuanPad Mini Projector (-36%) – A$128.99
• LG S70TY Q Series Sound Barn*-22%) – A$546
• Sony HTG700 Atmos Soundbar (-15%) – A$594
• Yamaha NS-SW050 Subwoofer (-13%) – A$270

Smart Home Deals

• Arlo Video Doorbell 2K (-53%) – A$107.76
• Google Nest Doorbell (-44%) – A$183
• Ring Battery Video Doorbell Plus (-40%) – A$149
• TP-Link Tapo Smart Doorbell (-20%) – A$183
• XTU Doorbell Camera Doorbell (-40%) – A$59.99
• D-Link DCS-8302LH Wi-Fi Cam (-62%) – A$75
• Google Nest Cam (-25%) – A$247
• Ring Spotlight Cam Pro Battery (-43%) – A$187
• Swann 4 Channel DVR with 4 x 4K Cams (-34%) – A$399
• WUUK 2K Outdoor Cam (-32%) – A$249.99
• PS VR2 PC adapter - $94.95
• TP Link Bluetooth 5.0 adapter - $12
• UGREEN Display Port 1.4 2m (-17%) - $19.94

Back to top

There’s an old idea called the sophomore slump that says second efforts generally aren’t as good as the first. Sophomore students don't care as much as freshmen; bands have less time to make a second album than the “out of nowhere” breakout hit they worked on for years; athletes who have exceptional rookie years regress to the mean; and so on. There’s no denying the power of new car smell, and part of the reason College Football 25 popped off as hard as it did (and trust me if you’re unsure: it popped off) was because it’d been more than a decade since NCAA 14. People really, really wanted a new game based on college football. It didn’t hurt that it was also a good one, but the annual “it’s the same game as last year” fatigue of the sports genre hadn’t set in yet. College Football 26 doesn’t benefit from new car smell anymore, but it’s not a game suffering from the sophomore slump, either. This season is better than last year’s; it’s just more focused on steady improvement than breakout success.

Here’s the secret, y’all: once a sports series “solves” the gameplay, it’s never really going to be bad. And College Football 26 (and frankly, Madden, too) has largely solved the “make the football video game play good” part of the football video game. At worst, it’s going to feel samey from year to year, like you’re stuck in football-themed purgatory at a party that’s never quite bad enough to leave. That’s not College Football 26; this is good-ass barbeque, and I’m happy to be here. But like a good-but-not-great QB working on his footwork and release, the devil is in the details. Improvements here are more evolution, less revolution, but this is an annual sports game. You kinda knew that going in.

Part of that is because College Football 26 is built on a really firm foundation. College Football 25 was a good game, and it still has that infectious spirit and sense of tradition that made it a nice change of pace from the more straight-laced Madden. This year’s iteration expands on that in good ways. One of the things I appreciate most is the Trophy Room, which tracks the real world trophies you’ll accumulate across your entire career, no matter what mode you’re in. It’s cool to see stuff like the Heisman Trophy, the Unitas Golden Arm Award, and the Orange Bowl Trophy collected in one place, and be able to learn about them, too. There’s a lot of history to college football, and I appreciate that EA has tried to capture that.

Aside from the addition of the Trophy Room, though, there are no new modes in College Football 26. The options are the exact same as last year, so I am going to copy and paste last year’s paragraph breaking down the modes. Fair’s fair, right?

“You’ve got Play Now, Road to the College Football playoffs, which is a quickfire online ranked mode where you’ll pick a team and try to guide them to a National Championship; Road to Glory, which lets you create your own player and pilot them through their college career; the flagship Dynasty mode, where you’ll helm one of College Football 25 26’s 136(!) [Delaware and Mississippi State are new additions] teams as either a head coach or an offensive or defensive coordinator; Practice and Minigames; and finally, College Ultimate Team (CUT), the college version of Madden Ultimate Team. Just like its big brother, CUT is a slot machine masquerading as a trading card game that will almost assuredly make EA hundreds of millions of dollars and eventually earn the ire of the community as it gets more updates per year than every other mode combined.”

I was kinda hoping that College Football 26 would move its tutorials out of Ultimate Team, but no such luck. This is still a bad system and it’s still a deeply cynical move on EA’s part. Again, I quote from last year’s review:

“The only reason to do it this way is to corral new players into CUT so they can fall down the money hole – of course, it’s somewhat self-defeating that they have to figure out that the tutorials are in CUT in the first place, which is something College Football 25 26 doesn’t actually tell you. As someone who doesn’t play Ultimate Team beyond my obligations as a critic for obvious reasons [and presuming I hadn’t played College Football 25], I would’ve just assumed that there were no tutorials at all and EA simply wanted college football-curious folk who didn’t already play their football to wander around aimlessly until they figured it out for themselves. In actuality, EA wants all of us to get hooked on CUT and spend lots and lots of money. I’m not sure which is worse.”

That’s all still true, but the College Football team has at least made some really nice quality of life updates to Ultimate Team. I’m going to single out two I appreciated in particular: One is the Pack Helper, which will immediately tell you if a player is better than someone in your current lineup and let you equip them on the spot without entering another menu. The other major one is that you can now see your challenges from the play call screen and bring them up at any time pre-snap, no more pausing required. These, as well as some other changes, are very nice tweaks. That said, I functionally believe, deep in my soul, that these modes are predatory, more than a little evil, and designed to trigger the dopamine-producing parts of our brain that gambling stimulates in the hopes that you will continue to spend money for a chance at a good outcome, which is what gambling is, and I cannot endorse anything about them. Yes, you can build a team without spending money, but it is designed to take much longer than just opening your wallet, and given that doing so can literally make your team better, it is pay to win. These are unremarkable and verifiable truths. Do with them what you will. I say we move on to greener pastures.

The mode that has seen the most meaningful changes in my eyes is Road to Glory, where you’ll create a player and begin your college journey. Notably, you can now (kind of) play through your high school phase, which determines how colleges view you. Last year, my very own Joe Throw was a five-star recruit because I work hard enough already. This year, I said “f*** it, we ball,” and legendary QB Joe Throw started down the more challenging path of a two-star prospect because why not? You have more customization options this year – I could select my throwing style, shotgun stance, running animation, line up look, and so on – that is really cool, and once I got Joe Throw all prettied up and ready for the dance and selected my archetype (I opted for Backfield Creator), it was time to step out onto the floor. There are six preset teams to play for (I played for the Rattlers), but you can build your own in the Team Builder if you’re so inclined.

After a brief interview with a local reporter allowed me to talk about what I was looking for in a college program, I set up my recruiting board, which showed me what potential schools thought of Joe. You might think you’d play full high school games, but the reality is you’ll select up to four of five possible goals and play through drives based around them, whether that means throwing a play action pass while avoiding a ball-hawking safety, leading your team on a late drive to win the game, or converting an important third down.

How well you do will determine what you put on tape, which is how colleges will evaluate you. Each school has its own criteria and is looking for different things in its players, so some will jive with certain goals (and player archetypes) more than others. Navy is probably more interested in a mobile QB who can run the option than a pocket passer, and will evaluate you accordingly, while a school that runs a pro style offense probably wants a cat who can sling it.

It’s a solid system, even if I wish we were playing full games instead of regular drives. That said, I do like it overall, and it’s a big improvement over last year. I also like that you get a limited number of retries per game depending on your difficulty, and that teams will give you special challenges you can undertake to improve your tape score with them, or tell you that they’re just not that into you thanks to their current lineup or because they’ve just secured a commitment from another player at your position. That doesn’t mean they won’t give you a scholarship or you can’t try out for them as a walk on; it’ll just be harder.

As a two-star recruit, my path was really difficult. I essentially had to play perfectly to get an offer from my preferred school (Virginia), but I liked the challenge. I also like the little touches EA has added: Senior Night, how the camera trails your player during run outs, and a hat ceremony where you can fake people out before you select your school. I started off as a third string QB at Virginia, but it wasn’t long before Joe Throw was in a position battle for the backup spot. Once I won that, he was soon promoted to starter.

Otherwise, stuff is more or less the same as last year, and the same problems persist. It takes too long to get access to things like audibles and hot routes, your coach will make boneheaded play calls (why are we constantly running play action when we never run the ball, coach?) with limited options for you to change them, and your coach will blame you for “stalled drives” when your receivers drop the ball or your running back gets stuffed. You know, things that are not your fault, reducing his trust in you. Some of these restrictions don’t even make sense. Why am I allowed to call timeouts and not audibles? Why can I flip the play on the play call screen but not after I come to the line? It’s maddening until you earn the ability to do basic things. I get that this is meant to simulate earning your coach’s trust and serve as progress in what is essentially a sports RPG, but it can also be frustrating to deal with.

Outside of the games, Road to Glory is largely the same. You’ll manage your time between studying, resting to restore your health, upping your leadership skills, training, and managing your brand. There are occasional extras, like NIL deals and the opportunity to study for or cheat on tests, and so on, all of which mostly boil down to text exchanges that offer their own risks and rewards. You now have to manage Coach Happiness and Career Health, which are nice additions, though the former is very easy if you’re smart (and don’t get caught cheating). The latter requires making sure your Season Health stays as high as it can, otherwise it reduces your career health pool in the subsequent season. These are good additions, if still a little easy to manage. Joe Throw is once again almighty, and Road to Glory is still the same as it was: solid, but not great.

Dynasty is where most people will spend their time, and it’s got the same highs and lows as it did last year, though there are some great upgrades. Over 300 real world coaches are in College Football 26, complete with their own playbooks, tendencies, and skills. Custom coaches have more customization options, from their clothing to how they behave on the sidelines, and they all now have a level cap of 100 up from College Football 25’s 50. Jack-of-all-trades builds are harder than specializing, though you can compensate for this by hiring coordinators who supplement your weaknesses.

There have also been an enormous number of quality of life changes here. I won’t go into all of them because we’d be here forever and EA has a blog explaining all of that anyway, but I dig many of them, like how bringing in a player close to your school costs fewer recruiting hours than flying in someone from across the country, and that you can always see your team needs when you’re on the recruiting menu because they’re now pinned to the top of the page. Oh, and now every player has a dealbreaker (some of which change over time), so there’s more players in the Transfer Portal at the end of any given year, and how much they progress between seasons (or how much weight they gain) is based on how good your school’s training facilities are. Better still, you can finally level them up manually. It’s great stuff, and I saw how much harder it is to recruit at a school like UConn (my online dynasty) and Boise State (my solo world). All very good, very welcome changes, among many, many others.

However, many of Dynasty’s improvements are largely still around the edges, under the hood kind of stuff. This is the same engine and the same car, and you have to love the act of recruiting, leveling up your coach, and playing games because, beyond that, there isn’t much else to do. Dynasty is still good, but it’s very much “more of the same, just better.” If you liked it last year, you’ll like it this year. If, like me, you wish there was more to do, that hasn’t changed. I’m going to try to stick with my Online Dynasty longer than I did last year, but it still doesn’t compel me the way Franchise does in Madden.

The best stuff might be the on-the-field tweaks. The little change I’m happiest about is to how defenders play the football when it’s in the air. If you’ve played College Football or Madden in the last few years, you’ve probably noticed defenders intercepting passes that they couldn’t have seen without turning around. They essentially had eyes in the back of their heads, and it could be very frustrating. EA has said they’ve changed that, and in my testing, it’s proven true. Now a defender has to see the ball to pick it off, and you’ll notice defenders turning their heads (or not) before the ball arrives. If they don’t, however, it doesn’t mean that defender can’t make a play on the ball. They can still swat it. It’s a good change because it’s two-fold: you now actually have a reason to swat the ball down instead of going for the pick every time, and better defenders can now make plays average ones can’t.

I’m also a big fan of dynamic subs and custom zones for defenders. The former allows you to swap players on the field and not just on the playcall screen (thank God), though you have to wait a play for the substitution to take effect, and the latter is the defensive version of last year’s custom stems for routes on offense. I enjoy the defensive game more than the offensive one, so being able to set where I want my zones to be on the field in real-time and not in a menu is welcome. I’m enjoying playing around with this stuff, and I imagine I’ll be using it quite a bit. And man, being able to sub on the field is a godsend, even if it’s not immediate. Maybe one day we’ll get to the point where players are running on and off the field in real time. That would be neat, but this is a good first step to that (hopefully possible) future.

Ahead of San Diego Comic-Con, DC continues to reveal big plans for Fall 2025. Hot on the heels of the reveal of Absolute Evil, DC is shedding light on DC K.O., the publisher's next big crossover event.

Overseen by Absolute Batman writer Scott Snyder and Superman writer Joshua Williamson and building on the foundation of 2024's DC All In, DC K.O. explores what happens when the fate of the entire DC Universe hinges on a Mortal Kombat-style death tournament. 36 fighters will enter the tournament, with only one standing the chance of rising through the ranks and building up enough Omega Energy to challenge Darkseid himself.

“DC K.O. is a knock-down, drag-out fight between all your favorite DC Super Heroes in a cosmic tournament to save the universe from Darkseid,” said Snyder in DC's press release. “Darkseid has evolved into something bigger and stronger than ever.”

“He’s destroyed the future,” added Williamson. “There’s no future for the DC Universe because of what he’s done—the heroes’ only shot is to stop him in the present.”

DC is teasing that readers will be greatly surprised at which heroes enter the tournament and, especially, which ones make it through the early battles. However, the core of DC K.O. is built around Superman.

“Metal was a Batman story, Death Metal was a Wonder Woman story—and DC K.O. is a Superman story,” said Williamson.

“I wanted to tell a story about Superman looking into his own heart of darkness,” said Snyder. “It’s a very personal story wrapped in nine layers of candy exploding in your face.”

The core, five-issue DC K.O. miniseries will be written by Snyder and illustrated by Javi Fernández (Batman & Robin). Williamson, meanwhile, will write several tie-in books spinning out of the main series. Other ongoing DC books like Justice League Unlimited and Titans will also tie into DC K.O.

DC K.O. kicks off with the prologue issue Justice League: The Omega Act #1 on October 1, 2025, followed by DC K.O. #1 on October 8.

For more on Snyder's current DC work, find out what happens when Absolute Batman meets Absolute Joker.

Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on BlueSky.

While nowhere near as popular as Mario games, Donkey Kong has continuously released some of the best 2D platformers in the entire market. The Donkey Kong Country series, which started on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, has released two remasters on Nintendo Switch specifically. One of these is Donkey Kong Country Returns HD, launched earlier this year for Nintendo Switch, and if you're a fan of 2D platformers, this is easily a must-own game. Then there's also Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, which is on sale for the same price at Woot as well.

These deals are part of an ongoing video game sale at Woot, which lasts until August 1 and includes a ton of other Switch games.

Donkey Kong Switch Games Are on Sale at Woot

Donkey Kong Country Returns HD features over 80 levels across nine different worlds. This version of the game brings the new features found in the 3DS release, in addition to a new Modern Mode that increases the number of hearts per level. Some of the levels you'll come across will be incredibly challenging, but the platforming is very fair and exceptionally fun, whether playing alone or with a friend.

DKC Returns initially launched on the Wii in 2010, but even 15 years later, the game still holds up. We gave the game an 8/10 in our review, stating, "Donkey Kong Country Returns HD is a passable remaster of an amazing platformer – more modern improvements and a larger graphical update would have been nice, but this is still one of the greatest 2D platformers Nintendo has released this century."

The other deal worth mentioning in this sale is Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, which was originally released for the Wii U. We gave that game a 9/10 in our review, stating, "Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze is a fun and challenging platformer that isn’t afraid to make you work hard."

Now is the perfect time to jump into DK's previous adventures, as Donkey Kong Bananza (out tomorrow!) is set to feature numerous references to older games in the series. If you're excited for Donkey Kong's big debut on Nintendo Switch 2, be sure to check out our 10/10 review of the game.

The plot continues to thicken in the ongoing battle between the former leadership of Subnautica 2 studio Unknown Worlds, and parent company Krafton, now with the studio's founders alleging in a lawsuit that Krafton went out of its way to hinder Subnautica 2's development, delay the game, and ultimately fire them from the studio after it learned it may have to pay out a $250 million bonus to employees if the game were to be released on time.

In a newly-unsealed complaint reported by Bloomberg and shared by Aftermath, former Unknown Worlds CEO Ted Gill, and fellow co-founders Charlie Cleveland and Max McGuire claim their relationship with Krafton, as well as the development of the game, was all going well up until early 2025, when the leaders presented Krafton with new revenue projections that suggested Subnautica 2 would do better than they initially anticipated. They also say they tried to negotiate for developers who had joined the team later and were not currently eligible for bonuses to receive them.

The former leaders claim that upon learning this, Krafton began to suggest the game be delayed, allegedly combing through contracts to determine if they had a legal standing to force a delay, despite the contract saying the decision lay with Unknown Worlds. They say that Krafton even went so far as to take action to make it difficult or impossible for it to release on time. Krafton began offering feedback that the game was not ready for its early access launch, pulled marketing materials, and refusing to follow through on certain pre-launch commitments. Ultimately, the founders say this culminated in Krafton letting the three of them go earlier this month and officially delaying Subnautica 2.

While Krafton has since extended the bonus period for the remaining employees to receive their earnout if targets are hit, notably Krafton has claimed that the former leadership was eligible for 90% of the bonuses, meaning Krafton would only have to pay a maximum of $25 million if targets are met, not $250 million.

The founders' lawsuit accuses Krafton of breach of contract and demands payout of the full bonus promised as well as damages and other costs.

The drama around Subnautica 2 kicked off earlier this month when Krafton announced suddenly that it was replacing the three founders with former Striking Distance CEO Steve Papoutsis effectively immediately, which Gill, Cleveland, and McGuire claimed was a "shock" to them. In the following weeks, reports have emerged regarding the $250 million bonus promised to staff, and Krafton has made statements accusing the former leaders of neglecting their duties and saying that Subnautica 2 was not in an acceptable state for launch. In particular, Krafton alleged that Cleveland was told to stop devoting time to a personal project and focus on his duties at the studio. The lawsuit, filed last week, counters that this personal project was a Subnautica film, and was worked on at the explicit request of Krafton.

The readiness of Subnautica 2 remains an open question. Leaked documents since verified by Krafton confirm that Unknown Worlds was receiving feedback from the publisher that the game was not ready for early access launch. However, a report from Bloomberg that sources developers on the project, as well as the lawsuit from the founders, suggest it was in good shape.

Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. You can find her posting on BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.

Prime Day may be over, but there are still countless great deals on books at Amazon. The Legend of Zelda books are great deep-dives into the history and lore of Nintendo's legendary action-adventure games, and the Deluxe Edition of the official encyclopedia is at its lowest price we've seen all year. It's currently sitting at $44.66, which is a nice 50% off of its original list price, $89.99. At this price, I'm real close to picking one up for myself even though I don't have any more room on my shelf. This is a great gift for any Zelda fans out there.

The Legend of Zelda Encyclopedia Deluxe Edition Is at its Lowest Price in 2025

Leviathan is now streaming on Netflix.

With its exceptional storytelling, characters, worldbuilding, and animation, Netflix’s Leviathan has the trappings of a modern classic. In this clever alternate history of World War I – adapted by Studio Orange (Trigun Stampede, Beastars) from a trilogy of novels by Scott Westerfeld – alliances are determined by technology. The Austro-Hungarians and Germans are “Clankers,” relying on machines and other electrical phenomena. On the other side, the “Darwinist” Brits use genetically engineered animals as both weaponry and smaller-scale technology. There’s a genuine inventiveness to these concepts – and the coming of age saga that they surround – that gives all 12 episodes of Leviathan a refreshing air.

To wit: The morning after the Austrian archduke and his wife are assassinated in 1914, their son Aleksandar is whisked away to a safe house in the Swiss Alps. In a mech. Meanwhile, in the U.K., young Deryn Sharp dreams of becoming an aviator (despite it being a male-only profession). She cuts her hair, adopts the first name Dylan, enlists in the British Air Service, and then gets whisked away on a giant flying jellyfish. The Clankers’ steampunk mechs feel period-appropriate, but the Darwinists’ technology is far more enthralling, and Leviathan knows it – after all, it’s named for a whale that serves as an airship. There are smoke-screening birds, bats that drop missiles, and funny little lizards who can record short messages and play them back.

Leviathan’s preference for showing rather than telling is one of its greatest strengths – and one of the ways in which it authentically draws favorable comparisons to Studio Ghibli (and merits the participation of its go-to composer, Joe Hisaishi). Similar to a Ghibli film, some key turns are communicated through facial expressions and other visual cues. This leaves Leviathan open to interpretation, giving it a depth and richness that lingers long after the finale.

The art direction helps amplify this – and the Ghibli-ness, too. In the second episode, Aleksandar and his entourage go to a town that, from the color choices to camera and character blocking, feels right out of Porco Rosso or Kiki’s Delivery Service. It’s impressive that Studio Orange is able to evoke the atmosphere of these hand-drawn classics within a computer-animated series. Sometimes the “slowness” of the CG feels manufactured, or a character can’t quite reach the levels of expressiveness the animators are going for. But given the sheer number of incredibly complex machines in Leviathan, CG is the sensible choice. Every country represented onscreen has its own style of technology, and Studio Orange makes them all look pristine.

All this openness gives Leviathan a critical gray space to move around in, which allows its story and characters to flourish. When the Leviathan crashes in the Alps, Aleksandar – going by the comically weak pseudonym Alek – and crew are forced aboard on a globetrotting journey. “The development of a friendship from opposite sides of a war” and “teens travel the world” are both tried-and-true story structures that settle Leviathan into the cozy, classic feeling of the generations of YA stories that inspired it. Yet the well-formed characters play with those conventions, and give us plenty of reasons to care about them.

Both Alek and Sharp (as most everyone in Leviathan refers to the character) are immediately likable, due in large part to the spirited work of their voice actors, Ayumu Murase and Natsumi Fujiwara. Alek has all the trappings of a sheltered noble without ever seeming too pompous, stuffy, or flat. The growth he demonstrates as he’s thrown into the wider world for the first time is a robust, relatable depiction of a kid emerging from a sheltered upbringing. Sharp, on the other hand, has an infectious eagerness that never lets up.

Their relationship gets an added layer of intrigue because both teens keep their true identities a secret from each other. Leviathan has an opinion on whose secret is the most dangerous, but again, shows us rather than telling us: Whereas Alek risks endangering his life, Sharp risks endangering everything in his life. Leviathan makes us feel the brunt of not only the limitations aligned against women, but how merely identifying someone as “female” changes peoples’ perceptions of them. Leviathan even uses sympathetic characters like Alek to show how widespread these prejudices are. It’s tricky subject matter, but Leviathan handles it with remarkable deftness and care.

Another sign of that care is how Sharp is treated as far more than some archetypal cross-dressing woman. Once the truth is out, Leviathan doesn’t pigeonhole Sharp’s queerness and gender identity. Where Sharp lies on the artificial spectrum between “Deryn” and “Dylan” is not only left to interpretation, but beyond the point. The complexities of how Leviathan portrays this are vast, and more than a review can do justice to. But this much can be definitively said: It’s wonderful that Sharp is allowed to be Sharp.

Once more, Leviathan’s commitment to showing instead of telling pays off. When presented with the choice of three gowns to wear to a gala event in a later episode, a panicked Sharp runs from the room. Cut to: A hotel lobby, where a dashing Sharp makes a grand entrance in a suit and tie – a marvelous affirmation of Sharp’s character that cleverly reworks the type of traditional glamour shot another series might’ve gone with. Leviathan’s deeply refreshing stance is that it does not matter if Sharp – or any character – is male or female or somewhere in between. Any person can have any characteristic. A good character is a good character.

Providing some of the accompaniment to these dynamic characters bursting with feelings: Joe Hisaishi, a master of sentimental musical themes. Both of Hisaishi’s contributions to Leviathan are soaring, emotional, and beautiful. The main theme, “Paths Combine,” initially appears as a solo piano arrangement during the opening, but slowly seeps into the rest of the show. By the time you finally hear the lyrics, your heart’s ready to melt – another reward of Leviathan’s willingness to slowly, deliberately grow its characters. The full instrumental score, meanwhile, was composed by the Suzume duo of Nobuko Toda and Kazuma Jinnouchi, who more than live up to Hisaishi’s example.

All that globetrotting means that Leviathan’s story is briskly paced. As much as it allows for space, the series also crams three books into twelve episodes. You’d expect such breakneck speed to stunt the characters’ growth, but it doesn’t. Even though there are occasionally odd cuts or scenes I wish would stick around longer, the pacing somehow works. Each 25-ish-minute episode feels like it contains 40 minutes’ worth of story and passes by in the blink of an eye.

Finding ways to improve ergonomics when playing the Nintendo Switch 2 in handheld mode is tricky with so many options already available – Genki’s Attack Vector grip is one such Switch 2 accessory. Despite a few cool perks like a MagSafe point to conveniently hold portable chargers and swappable grip sizes, the Attack Vector comfort grip comes up short in a few key ways. Even though the grips themselves have a great texture for long sessions, the loose fit, frustrating application and swapping process, and general shape just weren’t quite right.

I’ve had a repetitive-use wrist condition for over three years, which has been spurred on by frequent, sustained writing and gaming sessions, and working as a cook. So, I’m always on the hunt for ergonomic solutions for everything from your garden variety kitchen knife to keyboards to grips for my Switch – and now my Switch 2. While I generally prefer to stick to docked mode and use Nintendo’s first-party Pro Controllers for this exact reason, sometimes I want to play in bed or on the couch without being tethered to a TV. That’s where Genki, alongside just about every other Switch 2 hardware manufacturer, comes in with their attempts at a comfort grip.

Clocking in at a retail price of $49.99, Genki’s Attack Vector runs a premium price. That price is somewhat justified by a convenient MagSafe-style magnetic ring, swappable grips of different shapes and sizes, and a slim wrap for the system itself (that's also dock compatible). But in my experience, that price hasn’t fully justified itself during my hours of hands-on time with its various configurations.

It all starts with applying the case itself: the part that covers the Switch itself featuring the magnetic ring snaps on like a charm, with rubber padding on the inside to prevent the case from slipping out of place. Unfortunately, the case partially obscures some important stuff, like the power and volume buttons. They’re significantly harder to press because the case has a decidedly higher profile, making you reach around for the power and volume buttons. I regularly found myself needing to turn the console over in my hands, having trouble fitting my finger into the divot, and unsatisfyingly just barely pressing the power button.

Oddly, this is really the only place where the Attack Vector’s profile is an issue, as it’s still fully dockable. It feels a little unnatural when you’re slotting the Switch 2 into the dock on your first go, but that’s only because of how smooth the naked Switch 2 is. This frees you from needing to rely on the awkward docking solutions you might find with other, undockable grips.

The grips themselves latch onto the shells you attach to each Joy-Con 2. Each shell has rails for the swappable comfort grips to slide in and out, and the three options can accommodate hand size, portability, and general ergonomic preference. The smallest of the three doesn’t register much in my larger hands, but it’s the only setup that doesn’t add any width to the already pretty big Switch 2, making it the most portable option. The second-biggest option feels comfortable in my hands, adding a nice rounded edge where my hands would normally hover awkwardly around the console. And the biggest adds proper ergonomic grips, adding a little extra anchor for the pinky and grooves that feel closer to an actual controller.

For my hand size, I definitely preferred the biggest one with the extra grip, though the mid-size and biggest options both have a critical issue: they don’t fit in most standard Switch 2 cases, including Genki’s Sleeper Case. Genki doesn’t offer a screen-covering solution to this issue, unlike other manufacturers, such as DBrand. It also doesn’t help that swapping in a new set of grips (like switching to the smallest option if you’re hoping to take your grip on the go) is kind of awkward, and more trouble than its worth since you have a wrestle with the grips a bit to remove them – so is removing the shells from your Joy-Con 2 altogether.

Looking for a Switch 2 case?

The list of retired LEGO sets grows each month, and while you may feel like you missed out on sets that have already retired or are retiring soon, retailers like Amazon have some of these still on sale. Of course, there are other ways to buy LEGO, but I've found Amazon to be the most reliable when it comes to hard to find or recently retired kits. For our July update, we've listed out some of these sets you can still buy (some with extremely low quantities available), and removed the ones that are gone completely.

Retired LEGO Sets Still Available at Amazon

Amazon still has dozens of retired LEGO sets for sale, although at limited available quantities depending on the set. The large-scale R2-D2 is one of the best ones you can still buy, and the 2,314-piece model is one of the most detailed recreations of our favorite astromech droid we've seen in LEGO form. The Technic Porsche 911 RSR is the perfect display set for both LEGO and car lovers. The Technic line has some of the most complex, accurate, and impressive scaled-down LEGO versions of their real-life counterparts. If I were more of a car guy, this is one I'd definitely add to my collection. And then there's the BrickHeadz, cute Chibi-like buildable statues featuring tons of characters from decades of iconic pop culture properties like Lord of the Rings, Disney, Star Wars, and Harry Potter.

For Marvel fans, there is currently only really one recently retired set still available, but it's a really cool one. The LEGO Art Amazing Spider-Man set was officially retired back in December 2024, but Amazon still has it available for its original MSRP. Prices on this set have continued to fluctuate over the last few months as stock is becoming more limited. Star Wars fans have quite a few more options available in July as the the N-1 Starfighter and Spider Tank from the Mandalorian are available again at normal prices.

Which LEGO Sets Are Retiring Soon?

LEGO's official site has a full breakdown on their "Retiring Soon" page. Notable updates this month include the Super Mario Goombas' Playground set, Disney Snow White's Jewelry Box, and the Marvel Rocket's Warbird vs. Ronan sets. For an even more extensive list, Brick Economy has a great breakdown of dates and statistics for retiring LEGO sets. Finally, there are plenty of third party brick and mortar brick shops around that may have backstock of retired sets you might have missed, so I'd definitely give those a browse if you're near one.

Myles Obenza is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Bluesky @mylesobenza.bsky.social.

IGN has partnered with Warner Bros. and IMAX to launch the first trailer for Mortal Kombat II. Join us across our platforms – including IGN.com, YouTube, Twitch, and our socials – beginning July 17 at 8:05am PT and counting down to the Official Trailer debut at 9am PT.

You can also bookmark this page where you will be able to view the Mortal Kombat II Trailer Event Kountdown stream via the player above or the embed below.

During the Mortal Kombat II Trailer Event Kountdown, fans will be treated with surprise guests and get the chance to unlock exclusive content from the movie.

IGN will also have an exclusive cover story featuring Johnny Cage himself, actor Karl Urban, director Simon McQuoid, and producer Todd Garner going live with the trailer.

In our report, the star and filmmakers provide an in-depth behind-the-scenes account of the making of Mortal Kombat II and the casting of Urban as Johnny Cage.

In the meantime, get over here and check out the faux movie trailer for Johnny Cage’s Uncaged Fury.

Mortal Kombat II opens in theaters on October 24, 2025.

We’re a few weeks into the Magic: The Gathering Final Fantasy Universes Beyond set, and things are starting to settle down as we head into (you guessed it) another set.

That’s right, Edge of Eternities is right around the corner, but before the space-themed set arrives, there have been yet more price fluctuations in the world of Magic: The Gathering.

Crashers: Vivi Drops Again

Vivi Ornitier was around $70 a week or two ago, but is now at around $45. He’s still incredibly popular, but he is dropping off.

Vivi’s synergies are also dropping. Harmonic Prodigy reached $13 but has started to roll downward, closing in on the $10 mark.

Perch Protection from Bloomburrow is also down, now as low as $8 for all you Chocobo lovers. It’s still up, but it’s lower than it has been.

Remember when Tifa, Martial Artist was absolutely flying at around the $50 mark? She’s seen a steep drop, likely because she’s included in the FF7 Commander precon.

She’s down to under $4 now, when just a few weeks ago she’d have set you back $50 (although she’s great fun to use in a game).

Climbers: Cloud Nine

For the first few weeks of the Final Fantasy set, a big focus was on counters thanks to Tidus’ Final Fantasy X deck, but now Cloud is our spiky-haired boy of the week.

His focus on Equipment cards is seeing a series of synergies bounce into the limelight, notably Sigarda’s Aid, Sword of the Animist, and Panharmonicon.

The former lets you cast equipment as if it had Flash (and is up to over $20 from $3 in the last 3 months), while Sword of the Animist is up to $14 and lets you rack up land like there’s no tomorrow.

Finally, Panharmonicon gives you extra triggers, meaning you could build an absolutely savage board state very quickly indeed. Interestingly, Pnaharmonicon is sitting at around $5 still. I might have to invest.

Sticking with Cloud, the Kaldheim set’s Halvar, God of Battle is up to around $30 It gives equipped (and enchanted) creatures Double Strike, lets you mix and match equipment, and turns into the Sword of the Realms which can power up a card and protect it from death by sending it back to your hand. Not bad, Halvar.

Finally, another clash of Universes sees the RMS Titanic from the Doctor Who set rising in prominence. Why? Because the now $5 card is likely to be a big winner for the new rules in Edge of Eternities, which will see vehicles become more important since they can be used as Commanders.

MTG Sealed Sets

Everything else Final Fantasy is pretty hot right now, so if you manage to find anything in stock, it might be worth picking up ASAP to avoid disapointment.

Looking for more TCG discussion and market watch? Check out the full MTG release schedule for 2025, last week's MTG price movers and shakers, or, on the Pokemon side of things, our latest crashers and climbers for Pokemon TCG and the most expensive 151 cards going right now for Pokemon trainers

Lloyd Coombes is an experienced freelancer in tech, gaming and fitness seen at Polygon, Eurogamer, Macworld, TechRadar and many more. He's a big fan of Magic: The Gathering and other collectible card games, much to his wife's dismay.

If you're thinking of jumping on the AMD bandwagon for your next upgrade, now is certainly the right time to do so. Right now, AMD's most popular Zen 5 "X3D" processors - the AMD Ryzen 9 9800X3D and the AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D - are available and shipping from Amazon. They're also on sale by about $25-$30 off, which is better than what we saw during Prime Day. These are collectively the best gaming CPUs from AMD; from a performance to cost standpoint, the 9800X3D is the CPU of choice for pure gaming builds, but the 9950X3D pulls ahead when it comes to creator workloads.

The Gamer's Choice: AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D CPU

As far as game pitches go, an endless Persona 5 spin-off sounds like a pretty solid idea. What’s not to love about turn-based RPG battles, complex villains, and a plethora of sumptuous social links? Enter Atlus’s latest genre-flipping addition to the series, Persona5: The Phantom X, a gacha-fied adventure that boasts all the hallmarks of its iconic source material, from beautifully animated cutscenes to goosebump-inducing needle drops. What’s the catch? Oh, just a boatload of confusing currencies to juggle and a grind-heavy gameplay loop once you escape its inviting early game. It’s a shame, because if you look past the persistently lurking gacha baggage, The Phantom X is a peachy pastiche. But after 35 hours, its charms have more than worn thin as a result of this framework, leaving behind a flattering but deeply compromised imitation of Persona 5.

The Phantom X might be a Persona 5 spin-off, but that doesn’t mean you’ll be playing as Joker and the crew. Instead, you embody a Nagisa Kamisiro (though you can still pick your own name) in an alternate timeline version of Persona 5’s story. A seemingly average student, Kamasiro’s life changes when an adorable owl called Lufel calls on them to fight back against the misery and hopelessness enveloping the world, and to turn the tables against the great despair that clouds the hearts of the public. Unable to refuse, Kamasiro learns to wield their inner Persona and travels to the shadow world to help clear out the collective unconscious, one monster at a time. As with Kamisiro, there are more Tokyoites to meet and awaken as you progress, with each new character’s arc nestled nicely into the overarching story. If you’ve played Persona 5, you’ll quickly notice that The Phantom X is following its formula to a tee.

To fight off the aforementioned evil, you’ll bounce between a handful of beautifully recreated Tokyo neighborhoods and the monster-filled Metaverse – though what you do in either place is now limited by various time- or money-gated resources rather than a rigid calendar marching ever forward. As The Phantom Thieves, you’ll eek out misbehaving fiends and infiltrate their minds while learning to master the series’ trademark turn-based combat that centres around elemental weaknesses. And because Kamisiro is a teen, you’ll also have to balance studying, part-time work, and a social life, too. With all of its obvious derivations, The Phantom X struggles to conjure fresh ideas or immediate excitement in the shadow of a nearly decade-old masterpiece, but it at least manages to clone the Persona formula fairly well, and that will be enough for some.

No matter how familiar the core gameplay mechanics feel, a diverse cast of supporting characters provides much-needed levity and heart to the world. I’ve fallen in love with Anderson, a gym rat with a heart of gold, Yaoling Li, an energetic foreign exchange student struggling with her studies, a cautious nurse-to-be named Minami Mitashita, and plenty more. With energetic voice acting to back up their emotive and often humorous dialogue, it’s clear there’s been an effort to give the NPCs a sense of self, and, similar to Persona 5, the more time you invest in them, the more you can unravel their heartfelt stories.

Helping out the locals doesn’t just reward you with some juicy plotlines to pull at, it can lead to benefits in combat and day-to-day tasks, too. For example, if you choose to keep helping Yaoling Li acclimate to her new life in Japan, you’ll learn key recipes that you can cook to buff your stats in battle. Alternatively, completing small side missions for characters like Minami will reward you with upgrade currencies and special items for your home. These social interactions also expand the variety of Kamisiro’s day-to-day tasks and provide bespoke options like working out at the gym alongside the carousel of regular activities, such as studying for school in local cafes, working at the Konbini for cash, or buying seeds that you can plant in your garden at home. How you spend your time will also feed into your Social Stats (Guts, Knowledge, Proficiency, Kindness, and Charm), which can impact how friendly you can get with certain NPCs, as well as what items are available to buy at the local stores. The healthy combination of social endeavours and solo tasks feed into each other nicely and creates an approachable system that enriches Kamasiro’s initially quiet life (while buffing their skills in the process).

Unlike Persona 5, how you choose to spend your time in The Phantom X is governed by recoupable Action Points instead of a limited daily schedule. This means you don’t really have to fret over spending time with one NPC or another because you can just wait for those points to add back up naturally and not miss out on either. I can appreciate that this system is much more forgiving than the rigid structure the Persona series is known for. However, without that all-important time pressure, The Phantom X fails to hit on how profound these decisions could and should feel. It makes sense in the context of the Gacha setting, but this free-for-all approach makes it a little too easy to flit between NPCs without fully investing in their well-written backstory and considering how they might help you if you choose them instead of some other character.

It’s not all errands and acquaintances, though, and when you’re finished playing above ground, you’ll eventually move on to combat expeditions, which you can launch any time from the Metaverse app located on Kamisiro’s phone. Similar to the system used to govern social activities, your time in combat is partially ruled by an auto-refreshing currency, this time called Stamina. And as you battle, you’ll need to spend it to reap the rewards. The Phantom X bases its combat system on Persona 5, meaning it's turn-based with engaging reactive elements like chaining together One Mores to be as efficient as possible. When you roll up on a baddie, you’ll cycle through your party one member at a time, choosing between melee attacks, ranged attacks, and special Persona abilities. Similar to Pokémon, the enemies you’ll face and the Personas you deploy, all have elemental strengths and weaknesses (like fire or ice) that can be exploited for extra damage.

It’s a tried-and-tested system with enough diversity in its moveset to keep battles fresh, and even if you are starting to tire of it, the imagination-stoking enemy designs pull a good amount of weight throughout. What makes Persona combat truly unique, though, is the series’ bold interface design and legendary battle themes, which have been lovingly recreated here. I promise, no matter how many times you’ve already heard Persona 5’s Last Surprise, it just doesn’t get old.

Sadly, no amount of vocal flair from singer Lyn Inaizumi or introspective dialogue makes up for the sizable array of gacha systems and currencies you need to balance in The Phantom X. Within the first 20 hours or so, there aren’t many barriers in the way of progression, letting you clear out baddies and jump between main and side stories with relative ease. Inevitably, though, as you get deeper in, level barriers paint a clearer picture of what progression actually feels like long term. Once you run out of side quests and main story content to fuel your climb (which can happen fairly quickly), the next best way to earn the XP needed to unlock more is doing random fights in the Metaverse… but in order to do that, you need to spend Stamina. If you’re out of Stamina, you have two choices: purchase boosting supplements with real cash or wait a painstaking amount of time for it to reload on its own. I’m not opposed to grinding out materials, especially when The Phantom X’s combat is so moreish and the stories attached are compelling. It’s rather that this credit card-shaped conclusion was a totally expected but utterly disappointing roadblock to smash into. It was particularly painful to be reminded that I could simply pay via the in-game shop pop-ups every few minutes, too.

Thankfully, not all the Gacha systems in The Phantom X are so frustrating. While there are characters and Personas you can unlock through the story, the quickest way to bolster your team is to engage in the lucky dip Contracts menu. In line with most other Gacha games on the market, you can earn the currencies you need to pull by grinding, or cut to the chase and pay to get an instant boost. Thankfully, it didn’t take me too long to invest my hard-earned Gacha currency and unlock my beloved Persona 5 fave Ann Takamaki without having to reach for my wallet. A ton of new characters are introduced via this system, and Shigenori Soejima’s striking character designs just don’t quit, which sweetens the pot somewhat. While I love all my Gacha children equally, I was particularly enamoured with the icy-haired Kotone Montagne, whose visual style landed somewhere between Joan of Arc and Swan Lake.

Outside of the inclusion of the premium currencies, perhaps my biggest gripe with The Phantom X so far is that it feels more like an uncanny reflection of Persona 5, rather than a unique take on its established lore. Other spin-offs like Persona 5 Tactica or Persona 5 Strikers feel like strong additions to the series that come at or expand upon it from a different angle, whereas The Phantom X is more of a well-executed imitation. It’s not that I’m bored, as I’ve thoroughly enjoyed both its combat and getting to know the wide array of quirky characters I’ve met. Plus, the 35 hours of missions I’ve played so far are well-written, appropriately shocking, and do well to frame the villains as complex, fractured souls. But The Phantom X’s “do-over” take on the story of The Phantom Thieves, isn’t a new enough experience to warrant the amount of time (or possibly money) I’ll need to invest if I want to see it through to its lengthy end (the specific details of which are yet to even be revealed) – especially when Persona 5 and its predecessors are readily available and feel far more curated and engaging.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps will finally introduce a handful of big names to the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), but director Matt Shakman says John Malkovich’s Red Ghost won’t be one of them.

Details regarding Malkovich’s removal from the final cut of the new Fantastic Four movie come from an interview Variety conducted with Shakman ahead of the Marvel film’s premiere later this month. He says moments centered on Malkovich’s villain character were some of the many scenes that “ultimately ended up hitting the cutting room floor.”

“When we were building a ’60s retro-future world, introducing all of these villains, introducing these four main characters as a group, as well as individually, introducing the idea of a child — there was a lot of stuff to balance in this movie and some things had to go ultimately in terms of shaping the film for its final version,” Shakman said.

Malkovich’s presence as Red Ghost has remained shrouded in mystery for months, but the role wasn’t exactly kept a secret. While fans weren’t quite sure how much screen time the Burn After Reading actor would get in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, he at least appeared sporting long, white hair and a scraggly beard in its first teaser trailer in February. He’s been absent from most promotional material since, though, leading to rumors that Marvel may have moved to cut Malkovich and Red Ghost from the film entirely. Now, we know that this is indeed the case.

“It was heartbreaking not to include him in the final version of the movie because he’s one of my very favorite humans and one of my biggest inspirations,” Shakman added. “As a person who walks the line between theater and film and television, there’s no one who is more inspiring than the founder of Steppenwolf Theater Company. What he’s done on stage as an actor and what he’s done as a director in theater as well as in film, and as just a film actor of incredible ability — I was honored he came to play.”

Shakman says fans would have been able to catch Malkovich in The Fantastic Four: First Steps during a sequence detailing the early days for Marvel’s First Family. Specifically, the moment involved a battle between the superpowered group as they fought against Red Ghost and his Super-Apes. It’s unclear if we’ll ever get to see how Malkovich almost fit into the MCU, but for now, Shakman at least says that he “was brilliant in it, and gave it his all.”

The Fantastic Four: First Steps has a July 25, 2025, release date and features Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic, Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm/Invisible Woman, Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm/Human Torch, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm/The Thing. Other names set to appear in the film include Julia Garner, Ralph Ineson, Sarah Niles, Natasha Lyonne, and Paul Walter Hauser.

For more, you can read up on why Tom Holland Spider-Man director Jon Watts ultimately decided to leave the project early on. You can also check out everything we know about Sam Raimi's canceled Spider-Man 4 movie, which also would have featured Malkovich as an iconic Marvel villain.

Michael Cripe is a freelance contributor 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).