28 Years Later fans are divided over the film's bizarre final moments, and the shocking reference to a UK figure that has prompted wider debate.

This finale comes as something of a coda for the movie, which by then has already wrapped up its main story. Indeed, this last sequence introduces a set of new characters due to star in the fim's upcoming sequel, 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple.

While designed to be a set-up for The Bone Temple, which was filmed back-to-back with its predecessor, fans have criticised the ending as having a jarringly different tone to the rest of the movie. It's this shift — from the emotional resolution of a key plotline to the "goofy" appearance of new characters — that has fans particularly split. Meanwhile, clear references to one of Britain's most notorious figures in recent history have raised eyebrows.

Warning! Spoilers for 28 Years Later follow.

28 Years Later ends with young hero Spike alone, about to be attacked by a group of infected. Suddenly, he is saved by the appearance of a bizarre gang of fighters who act like they are in Power Rangers while wearing costumes inspired by the late British DJ and TV presenter Jimmy Savile, a former figurehead in British culture later uncovered as the serial perpetrator of numerous sex crimes.

The leader of this gang, played by Skins star Jack O'Connell, portrays a character named Sir Jimmy Crystal. He is revealed to be the leader of a cult named the "Jimmies," whose followers also name themselves "Jimmy," and dress in tracksuits with platinum blond wigs.

Some fans have criticised the sequence, which introduces the group who fight with ninja-like tactics, as feeling too tonally different, and too abrupt a change after the rest of the film.

"The last scene with the Jimmy gang kinda took me outta the film," one fan wrote on reddit, in a lengthy thread on the film's ending. "It was just too goofy with the insane acrobatics. The rest of the movie feels very 'realistic' but then that shit is so goofy I thought it was gonna be a dream sequence. It definitely killed the tone."

Others, meanwhile, said it fit the theme of the overall series — and set up a dangerous new threat for hero Spike.

"Spike is fortunate to grow up in something of a structured society and when faced with his impending journey of manhood, leaves his toy Power Ranger behind, only to later encounter a gang of people who had society torn from them and never got to experience that journey for themselves," another fan argued. "They worship figures like Jimmy Savile and the Power Rangers because it's all they know of the world and thus have taken that on as their own personas."

On the inclusion of characters dressed like Jimmy Savile, fans have pointed out that the 28 Years Later series of films specifically diverged from real history at a point that Savile had yet to be unmasked as a prolific sex offender. The suggestion, therefore, is that Savile is being referenced as just another lasting memory of Britain's pre-virus culture — just as the film's opening includes classic children's show The Teletubbies.

In an interview with Business Insider, director Danny Boyle and writer Alex Garland both addressed the ending and why Savile was used. Their response, reproduced below in full, suggests that it was a deliberate decision to highlight how the past can be "misremembered" — presumably with Savile becoming a cult-like figure instead of the truth about his life being revealed, while audiences will know otherwise.

@eammonj94 Danny Boyle + Alex Garland explain Jack O’Connell’s spoilery role in 28 Years Later… #28YearsLater #EndingExplained #28YearsLaterEnding #28DaysLater #28WeeksLater #Horror #DannyBoyle #AlexGarland #AaronTaylorJohnson #JodieComer #AlfieWilliams #RalphFiennes #JackOConnell #Sinners #HorrorMovie #HorrorFilm #Film #Films #zombiemovie #FilmInterview #FilmTalk #JimmySavile #Cult #CultMovie #Press #Work #FilmTok #FilmTikTok #MovieTok #MovieTikTok ♬ original sound - Eammon Jacobs

"The whole film, and if we ever get to make it, the whole trilogy, is in some ways about looking back and looking forwards," Garland said, "and the relationship between looking forwards to better worlds or attempting to make better worlds, or trying to construct the world that you're in on the basis of old worlds, so there's sort of constrast or conflict between the two.

"And the thing about looking back is how selective memory is and that it cherry picks and it has amnesia, and crucially it also misremembers — and we are living in a time right now which is absolutely dominated by a misremembered past. And so it's that."

"He's as much to do with pop culture as he is to do with sportswear, to do with cricket, to do with the honors system," added Boyle. "It's all kind of twisting in this partial remembrance, clinging onto things and then recreating them as an image for followers."

"He's a kaleidoscope, isn't he, in a funny way," Garland concluded. "A sort of trippy, f**ked up kaleidoscope."

In other words, O'Connell's cult are the product of a warped sense of British culture and identity that exists almost three decades after the collapse of society as we know it. Exactly what will happen next, however, and how these characters will interact with the returning Cillian Murphy (whose character, of course, is also named Jim) remains to be seen.

Boyle previously told IGN that O'Connell's Sir Jimmy Crystal will play a "hugely significant figure" in next year's 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, which is due to release on January 16, 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

Warhammer 40,000: Darktide developer Fatshark has released the Battle for Tertium update, with the new Adeptus Arbites class DLC also set to go live. Patch notes are below.

The Adeptus Arbites, Darktide’s first class DLC, goes live around 7am PDT / 4pm CEST time today, June 23, priced $11.99 / €11.99 across all platforms.

This comes alongside the free Battle for Tertium update. This reworks the core player experience “to provide a new clearer narrative focus, following the conflict of the Battle for Tertium,” Fatshark said.

Players will now experience a linear campaign with new mission debriefs and embedded cinematics. This new progression path is designed to “ease in new players and gradually unlock features that were previously gated by character level,” the studio added.

While previously each new player’s experience was completely random, the Battle for Tertium narrative presents maps, enemies, and characters in a specific order. This, Fatshark hopes, means players will discover all aspects of the game at a much better pace.

The story missions play the same as regular missions, except they have a tighter control over which enemies spawn. You might also hear some new VO lines during missions, Fatshark teased, and some brand new mission debrief cinematics when completing each mission.

Existing players with characters at level 10 or higher can choose to skip the story or play it from the beginning. Players who change their minds about playing the campaign can opt out by using the Personality Scourge at the Barber-Chirurgeon.

It’s worth noting that if you skip the story when you first log-in with this update, you cannot revert this decision. The only way to play the story after choosing to skip it is to create a new character. The option to replay story missions at any time is still in progress, Fatshark clarified.

Story wise, the Arbites’ arrival takes place after the events of the Battle for Tertium, so while you can absolutely play as an Arbites through the new campaign, some of the story scenes will not be addressed to your type of character. Fatshark suggests playing the Battle for Tertium for the first time with one of the core characters.

Elsewhere, there’s a new mission board system, which changes how you engage with missions and difficulties. Missions are no longer tied to a specific difficulty, allowing you to select a mission and then choose the difficulty you want. This will effectively increase the amount of mission options available for players of all difficulty levels.

Tied into this, the difficulty system has been overhauled. You now unlock new difficulties by completing missions rather than leveling up your characters. “You must prove your skills at your current maximum difficulty to unlock access to the next one,” Fatshark explained. “We intend to create a motivation for new players to master the game step by step, and for veteran players to feel assured that their teammates have earned the right to be there.”

You will make progress by playing missions at your current maximum difficulty. Completing missions advances your progress. Mission Failures reduce your progress slightly but you will never be demoted to a lower difficulty. Higher difficulties will require you to complete more missions to unlock them. For existing characters, your difficulty progression will be migrated based on their character level and completed missions.

Battle for Tertium is one of the most significant updates for Darktide yet, and comes as the co-op first-person Warhammer 40,000 game nears its third birthday. After a troubled launch, Fatshark has improved Darktide significantly, to the point now where it has a ‘mostly positive’ Steam user review rating.

Warhammer 40,000: Darktide Battle for Tertium update patch notes:

Quality of Life Changes

• Increased maximum number of operatives to 8.
• Increased maximum number of weapon loadouts to 8.
• Added a total of ~900 new banter conversations, both between the original cast and Arbites.

Weapon Balance Changes & Tweaks

Catachan "Devil's Claw" Swords

This batch of changes for the Devil’s Claw swords aims at further reinforcing the crowd control and reliability of the family.

We increased the offensive properties of the Light attack profiles, while also significantly increasing the armour damage modifiers (“adm” from now on) of the Heavy Strikedown and Special Riposte profiles against specific armour types.

We improved the base Stamina statistic, reduced the minimum Block time (the amount of time that the Block stance must be maintained after performing the input) and allowed for most attacks and attack starts to be performed while sprinting. This will make the weapon snappier and more responsive in different situations.

Finally, we took a pass on all attacks to tweak active windows, ranges and hitboxes to be better aligned with their animations.

For the Mk I, we added a new Heavy Strikedown attack, only reached from Light 3. In turn, the Light 3 attack is now reachable also from the Push action, and has an increased baseline power multiplier.

These additions will grant additional options to a mark which was lacking in single target attacks.

For the Mk IV, we raised the power level multiplier of the Light 4 attack as it was very far into the attack chain and not particularly enticing.

For the Mk VII, we increased the power level multiplier of the Pushfollow and Light 3 attacks while also changing the possible combos after a Riposte attack.

Now after a successful Special Parry, the combo will chain into the Pushfollow attack instead of Light 3; as the Pushfollow attack still chains into Light 3, this will give the mark a new unique chain.

Detailed Changes - Catachan "Devil's Claw" Swords

Damage profiles

• Light Vanguard
  • 1st target damage from {40, 80} to {60, 100}.

Dev Note: The change will also affect the Turtolsky Heavy Swords Special followup Light attacks.

• Light Strikedown / Light Strikedown Stab
  • 1st target adm vs Maniac from 1 to 1.25.
  • 1st target damage from {100, 200} to {115, 230}.
  • 2nd target damage from {25,60} to {40,80}.

Dev Note: The changes will also affect the Turtolsky Heavy Swords Pushfollow attacks and the Maccabian Mk V Duelling Sword Light 3 attack.

• Heavy Strikedown
  • 1st target adm vs Unarmoured from 1 to 1.1.
  • 1st target adm vs Unyielding from 0.75 to 1.25.
• Riposte
  • 1st target adm vs Unarmoured from 1 to 1.25.
  • 1st target adm vs Unyielding from 1 to 1.25.
  • 1st target adm vs Carapace armour from 0.25 to 0.5.

All marks

• Added Allowed during sprint to most attacks and attack starts.
• Block minimum time from 0.3 to 0.225.
• Stamina template update:
  • Base Stamina from 4 to 4.5.
• Tweaked damage windows, hitboxes and ranges for several attacks.
• Updated Inspect screen to correct some attack gestalt icons (visual only change).

Mk I

• Added a new Heavy Strikedown attack with 540 power level multiplier .
  • This attack will chain only from Light 3.
• Light 3 chains now to Light 2 / new Heavy Strikedown instead of Light 1 / Heavy 1.
• Push chains now to Light 3 / Heavy 1 instead of Light 1 / Heavy 1.
• Heavy 2 chain time to Start attack from 0.55 to 0.5.
• Push chain time to Start attack from 0.35 to 0.3.
• Added 545 power level multiplier to Light 3 (from default 500).
• Added 535 power level multiplier to Pushfollow attack (from default 500).

Mk IV

• Heavy 1 windup from secondary start from 0.56 to 0.46.
• Added 550 power level multiplier to Light 4 (from default 500).

Mk VII

• Pushfollow damage profile from Light Strikedown to Light Strikedown Stab.
• Riposte chains now to Pushfollow / Heavy 1 instead of Light 3 / Heavy 1.
• Added 535 power level multiplier to Light 3 (from default 500).
• Added 525 power level multiplier to Pushfollow attack (from default 500).

Atrox Tactical Axes

While sporting overall good mobility, the Tactical Axes had only average Sprint values.

We significantly improved their Sprint profile, while also allowing for most attacks and attack starts to be performed while sprinting.

We also significantly raised the damage of the Special attacks and added a new profile for the Heavy Strikedowns with a vertical or uppercut direction, with increased damage and Carapace armour modifier.

Finally, we took a pass on all attacks to tweak active windows, ranges and hitboxes to be better aligned with their animations.

For the Mk II, we added a power level boost to the Light 3 attack, as it is further into the attack chain, and to both Special attacks, as they are slower compared to the other two marks.

For the Mk IV, we upgraded the damage profile for both Heavy attacks and slightly lowered their chain timings, as they are both performed in a vertical or uppercut direction.

For the Mk VII, we added a power level boost to all Light attacks, as they inflict a higher movement speed penalty compared to the Lights of the other marks, and changed the Heavy 2 profile to the new Heavy Strikedown.

Detailed Changes - Atrox Tactical Axes

Damage profiles

• Light Assassin
  • Added 3rd target.
• Heavy Strikedown (diagonal)
  • Adm vs Carapace armour from 0.25 to 0.3.
• Added a new Heavy Strikedown profile for vertical and uppercut attacks, with the same. properties as Heavy Strikedown (diagonal) aside from:
  • 1st target damage from {100,200} to {115,230}.
  • 1st target adm vs Carapace armour from 0.3 to 0.5.
• Special Stab
  • 1st target damage from {25,50} to {70,140}.
  • Removed Crit Chance bonus.
• Special Strikedown
  • 1st target damage from {25,50} to {60,120}.
  • 1st target impact from {8,16} to {10,20}.
  • Removed Crit Chance bonus.

All marks

• Sprint template from “default” to “assault”.
  • Forward acceleration from {0.15, 0.4} to {0.4, 0.8}.
  • Forward deceleration from 1.25 to 2.1.
  • Sprint speed modifier from {-0.5, 0.5} to {-0.25, 0.85}.
• Increased action total time for most Heavy attacks.
  • This will make continuing the combo chain after the attacks more forgiving.
• Added Allowed during sprint to most attacks and attack starts.
• Tweaked damage windows, hitboxes and ranges for most attacks.
• Buffer time for the Special input from 0.2 to 0.4.

Mk II

• Added power level multiplier 515 to Light 3 (from default 500).
• Added power level multiplier 550 to Special 1 and Special 2 (from default 500).

Mk IV

• Changed damage profile of Heavy 1 and Heavy 2 from Heavy Strikedown (diagonal) to the new Heavy Strikedown (vertical/uppercut).
• Lowered chain times to Start Attack and Special Attack from Heavy 1 and Heavy 2 from 0.5 to 0.4.
• Added power level multiplier 515 to Heavy 2 (from default 500).

Mk VII

• Changed damage profile of Heavy 2 from Heavy Strikedown (diagonal) to the new Heavy Strikedown (vertical/uppercut).
• Added power level multiplier 550 to Light 1, Light 2, Light 3 (from default 500).

Shock Mauls

The Shock Mauls, while being dependable in inflicting stagger, were also below average in damage output and overall not very exciting.

We increased the damage against the 1st target on most profiles, with a particularly large bonus to the Heavy Strikedown and Special attacks.

We also enhanced the base Stamina and Dodge templates, and tweaked hitboxes and active windows of some attacks to better align with their animations.

For the attacks with an uppercut direction (Light 3 on the Mk Ia / Light 4 on the Mk III) we slightly delayed the start of the attack active window to make it easier to connect with weakspots.

Finally, for the Mk Ia, we added power level multipliers to the Light 3 and Light 4 attacks, to make them a more enticing combo alternative to just returning to Heavy 1.

Detailed Changes - Shock Mauls

Damage profiles

• Light Strikedown
  • 1st target damage from {100,200} to {115,210}.
• Light Vanguard
  • Cleave from “light” to “medium”.
    • From {3.0,6.0} to {4.0,9.0}.
  • 1st target damage from {100,150} to {110,165}.
• Heavy Relentless
  • 1st target damage from {110,260} to {120,270}.
• Heavy Strikedown
  • Cleave from “big” to “light”.
    • From {8.5,12.5} to {3.0,6.0}.
  • 1st target damage from {140,350} to {160,390}.
  • 4th target damage override removed (from 0 to {30,50}).
• Light Relentless
  • adm vs Maniac from 0.8 to 0.75.
  • adm vs Carapace armour from 0.75 to 0.4.
  • 1st target damage from {80,150} to {90,165}.
• Special attack
  • Sticky damage tick from {10,70} to {30,80}.
  • Stun damage tick from {40,50} to {50,65}.

All marks

• Stamina template update:
  • Base Stamina from 4 to 4.5.
  • Sprint cost per second from {1.5, 0.5} to {1.25, 0.75}.
  • Inner angle Block cost from {1.5, 0.5} to {1.0, 0.5}.
• Dodge template update:
  • Effective dodges limit from {3, 4}, to {3, 5}.
    • From 4 to 5 maximum effective dodges at high Mobility stat.
  • Dodge distance from {0.85, 1.0} to {0.9, 1.1}.
  • Dodge speed from {1.0, 1.2} to 1.0.

Mk Ia

• Light 1 damage profile from Light Relentless to Light Vanguard.
• Added power level multiplier 530 to Light 3 (from default 500).
• Added power level multiplier 550 to Light 4 (from default 500).
• Tweaked hitboxes for Light 3 and Light 4.
• Tweaked damage windows for Light 4 to make it easier to connect with weak spots.

Mk III

• Tweaked hitboxes and damage windows for Light 1 and Light 2.
• Tweaked damage windows for Light 3 to make it easier to connect with weakspots.

Tigrus Heavy Eviscerators

The Eviscerator’s thunder was in part stolen by the Relic Blades, which have overall better cleave properties while also being no slouch in the single target department.

To give these iconic Zealot weapons a deserved bump, we tweaked most of the attack profiles: we removed the damage caps on secondary targets for the sweeping Vanguard/Relentless attacks, but also increased several armour modifier values, significantly improved the damage on the Heavy profiles and normalised most of the Special active profiles.

For the Mk III, we changed the chain times to key actions after the Heavy 1 attack to make it more responsive but less spammable with swap cancelling, slightly increased the speed of the Light 2 attack and added a power level multiplier to the Light 3 and Heavy 2 attacks.

Detailed Changes - Tigrus Heavy Eviscerators

Damage profiles

• Light Strikedown
  • adm vs Maniac from 0.5 to 0.9.
  • adm vs Infested from 0.75 to 1.
  • Removed adm reduction on 1st target vs Carapace armour; from 0.1 to 0.25.
• Light Vanguard/Relentless
  • Upped damage on secondary targets.
  • Removed damage cap after 4th target.
• Heavy Vanguard
  • 1st target damage from {150,300} to {165,345}.
  • 1st target finesse multiplier from 0.5 to {0.4,1.0}.
  • Upped damage on secondary targets.
• Heavy Strikedown
  • 1st target damage from {150,300} to {175,350}.
  • 1st target adm vs Carapace armour from 0.25 to 0.5.
  • 1st target finesse multiplier from 0.5 to {0.5, 1.0}.
• Light Strikedown (Special active)
  • Removed damage overrides.
  • Removed finesse multiplier override.
• Light Vanguard/Heavy Strikedown/Pushfollow (Special active)
  • Removed damage overrides.

All marks

• Added 0.4s buffer time to the Unwield input.

Mk III

• Heavy 1 chain to Unwield from 0 to 0.45.
• Heavy 1 chain to Start attack from 0.6 to 0.45.
• Heavy 1 chain to Block from 0.7 to 0.6.
• Light 2 time scale from 0.85 to 0.9 (sped up).
• Added power level multiplier 525 to Heavy 2 and Light 3 (from default 500).
• Updated Heavy 2 and Pushfollow attack damage profiles on Special abort.

Mk XV

• Updated Pushfollow attack damage profiles on Special active and Special abort.

Lucius Helbore Lasguns

The Helbore Lasguns suffered from a very long Wield action duration, making it hard to quickly swap to priority targets (especially accounting also for the charging shots).

While this behaviour was intended, it also became increasingly punishing as the enemy numbers grew in higher difficulties.

In this balancing pass we sped up the Wield action, walking the line of maintaining the cumbersome feeling while also allowing for the weapons to be easier to swap into.

Alongside this change, we improved some of the armour and Finesse modifiers for ranged shots, and extended the hitscan radius of the las projectiles*, to make it easier for the weapon to shine as a marksman tool.

* This will make the hitscan detection more generous and allow for shots that would have slightly missed the target to still be considered a hit.

For the Mk V, we slightly increased the camera zoom in ADS mode.

For the Mk IV, we increased the camera zoom in ADS mode to be equivalent as the Mk IIIa.

We also improved the speed and offensive properties of the Special Slash attack, to be more in line with the Special Stab used in the other marks.

Detailed Changes - Lucius Helbore Lasguns

Damage profiles

• Near charged shot
  • adm vs Unarmoured from 1 to 1.1.
  • adm vs Maniac from 1 to 1.25.
  • adm vs Infested from 1 to 1.1.
• Far charged shot
  • adm vs Unarmoured from 1 to 1.25.
  • adm vs Infested from 1 to 1.25.
• All shots Finesse Boost
  • vs Carapace armour from 0.1 to 0.2.
  • vs Maniac from 0.25 to 0.35.
  • vs Unyielding from 0.25 to 0.3.
• Special Slash
  • Added Ignore stagger reduction.
  • 1st target finesse multiplier from 0.75 to 1.

All Marks

• Added time scale 1.5 to Wield action (sped up).
• Added 0.05 radius to hitscan templates.
• Buffer time for the Special input from 0.2 to 0.4.

Mk V

• ADS Vertical Field of View from 65 to 55.

Mk IV

• Chain from Special start to Special attack from 0.3 to 0.25.
• Chain from Special attack to Special start from 0.7 to 0.645.
• Tweaked Special attack hitbox and damage window.
• ADS Vertical Field of View from 65 to 45.

Combat Shotguns

The Combat Shotguns have been in a spot where they are mostly used for their Special shells, while the normal shots felt underwhelming in most circumstances. They also suffered from long reload times relative to other weapons.

With this update we are trying to improve the overall usability without relying solely on the Special mechanic.

Along with increased base damage and reload speed, the Combat Shotgun family gets updated Sprint and Stamina templates, to enable a more mobile, close-range playstyle and not rely only on precision weak-spot shots.

We also significantly increased the ammo reserves for all marks.

Finally, we slightly increased the Cleave and Impact values to allow it to punch through lesser enemies.

For the Mk VII, we aligned the Finesse boost curve between hipfire and ADS modes.

For the Mk IX, we slightly extended the Near and Far effective ranges.

Detailed Changes - Combat Shotguns

All Marks

• Sprint template from “killshot” to “assault”.
  • Sprint forward acceleration from {0.15, 0.4} to {0.4, 0.8}.
  • Sprint forward deceleration from 1.25 to 2.1.
  • Sprint sideway acceleration/deceleration from 5 to 7.
  • Sprint speed modifier from {0.5, 0.5} to {0.25, 0.85}.
• Updated Stamina template
  • Stamina modifier from 2 to 4.
  • Sprint cost per second from {2, 1.5} to {1.5, 0.5}.
• Increased Reload speed by around 10%
  • Affecting both regular and special shells.

Damage profiles

• Zarona MK VI
  • Damage from {250, 500} to {300, 600}.
  • Cleave
    • Cleave attack From 0.01 to {2, 4}.
    • Cleave impact from 0.01 to {2, 4}.
  • Ammo reserve from {60, 80} to {70, 95}.
• Agripinaa Mk VII
  • Damage from {200, 400} to {250, 480}.
  • Cleave
    • Cleave attack From 1.3 to 2.5.
    • Cleave impact from 1.3 to 2.5.
  • Ammo reserve from {75, 95} to {80, 105}.
  • Finesse boost curve shooting from HipFire increased to match ADS.
    • {0.6,1.2} to {1.25,2.5}.
• Accatran Mk IX
  • Damage from {450, 700} to {550, 740}.
  • Cleave
    • Cleave attack From 2 to 3.5.
    • Cleave impact from 1 to 3.
  • Ranges
    • Close range from {6, 8} to {6, 11}.
    • Long range from {12, 16} to {12, 17}.
  • Ammo reserve from {45, 65} to {55, 85}.

Double-barreled Shotgun

To increase the reliability of the weapon against bigger targets, we increased the armour damage modifier against the Unyielding type at both Near and Far ranges.

Additionally, we slightly raised the ammo reserves to allow for more aggressive approaches.

Detailed Changes - Double-barreled Shotgun

Damage profiles

• adm vs Unyielding
  • Near from 1.0 to 1.1.
  • Far from 0.5 to 0.65.
• Ammo reserve increased from {40, 80} to {50, 90}.

Bug Fixes & Changes

Weapons and Blessings

• Fixed an issue where the description for the 'Run n Gun' blessing was displaying incorrect prefixes.

Classes

Psyker

• Fixed an issue where the Disrupt Destiny keystone sometimes failed to show stacks in the HUD.

Missions

Inter-Zone Void Sector Omega-12

Clandestium Gloriana

• Fixed several places in Clandestium Gloriana where players could get out of bounds.
• Rotated the door after the mid event in Clandestium Gloriana to avoid players getting trapped behind it when it opens.

UI/UX and Animation

• Fixed an issue where an “additional objectives” string in the Penance menu would not localize correctly.

Miscellaneous

• Deadzone options now apply to both sticks when playing on controller.

Cosmetics

• Fixed clipping issue on the Zealot “Stygian Kantrael MK IVG Flak Helm” headgear.
• Fixed clipping issue behind the arms on the Veteran “Stygian MK lll Flak vest” upper body.
• Fixed longer hairstyles clipping issue with the Psyker “Stygian MK IV Psykana Collar with Rebreather” headgear.
• Fixed an issue where the Psyker “Illius Pattern Battleshoud with Psykana Collar (Burn Sulphur)” headgear would remove the operative's eyebrows.
• Fixed issues with the Veteran “Militarum Field Jacket” upper body clipping with “Militarum Type 47” lower body.
• Fixed issues where the following Veteran headgear cosmetics would clip certain hairstyles
  • Ock's Blood Goggles
  • Tinker Zard's Superior High-vis Goggles
  • Chasm Railer Goggles
• Fixed corrupted texture on Veteran “Vostroyan Hat with Tox Guard Face Mask (Mountain Snow)” headgear.
• Fixed clipping issue on the Veteran “Stygian Mk I Armoured Fatigues” lowerbody.

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

Final Fantasy’s Magic: The Gathering set has been a huge success, with fans getting to wield cardboard versions of iconic characters from the series. While the set is home to some fantastic chase cards all of its own, it’s also led to some price increases on cards that play nicely with the new Universes Beyond additions.

Not only that, while there's been a rapid price increase, none of these cards are overly expensive to buy standalone on the secondary market right now (maxing out at $15 at most). From card draw engines to Saga skippers, these are three of the best cards you can snap up right now, and what to use them for.

Harmonic Prodigy - Modern Horizons 2

Charlie Cox’s name and voiceover work are attached to one of the front-runners for 2025 game of the year, but that hasn’t stopped the Daredevil star from feeling like “a total fraud” whenever he receives congratulations for Clair Obscur: Expedition 33’s success.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is the debut title from French studio Sandfall Interactive, and it has outperformed all expectations. It sold an appropriate 3.3 million copies in 33 days, which is a wonderful return for a game everyone thought was going to get crushed by The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered.

Cox, who plays party member Gustave, is among Clair Obscur: Expedition 33’s star-studded cast, which also includes Jennifer English as Maelle, Ben Starr as Verso, and Andy Serkis as Renoir. But his actual work on the game only amounted to a single four-hour recording session, he admitted at 2025 Washington State Summer Con over the weekend.

As captured by the @charliefansite X / Twitter fansite in a post spotted by GamesRadar, Cox revealed that while he is delighted for Sandfall, he can’t take any credit for the game’s success.

“I don’t mean to minimize it in any way, and apparently the game is awesome,” he began. “I’m not a gamer, I have no idea, I haven’t played it. My agent asked me if I wanted to go and do a voiceover. I was in a studio for four hours, maybe. People keep saying how amazing it is and congratulations, and I feel like a total fraud. But I’m so thrilled for the company and that it did really well.”

Charlie Cox talks Clair Obscur Expedition 33! @expedition33

(Shy Charlie also makes an appearance🥹)#CharlieCox #Gustave #Expedition33 #ClairObscur #ClairObscurExpedition33 pic.twitter.com/GSdCvrvV0D

— charlie cox fansite (@charliefansite) June 22, 2025

Last week, Sandfall said it was "currently exploring a wide range of future improvements" to Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. In a social media post, the developer said these improvements — "from accessibility features to new content and all sorts of bits and bobs we're actively assessing" — will also include expanded localization options.

"While we don't have specific timelines or confirmed languages to share just yet," the team added, "we wanted to let you know that it's very much on our radar. Wheee!"

Cox, meanwhile, is busy with Disney+ show Daredevil: Born Again, which will get a Season 2. He played Matt Murdock / Daredevil in seven Marvel Cinematic Universe projects, starting with Netflix’s Daredevil (2015–2018). The question is, will he appear in next year’s Spider-Man: Brand New Day? Given his cameo in Spider-Man: No Way Home, perhaps he will. After all, fellow Netflix Marvel alumnus Jon Bernthal, who plays Punisher, is down to star alongside Tom Holland in the film.

Photo by Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images for Disney.

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

Platypus semen. A giant, oily killer skull. A talking crash test dummy. A puppet soaking in a hot spring. Norman Reedus' nips. No, these aren't straightjacket blabberings due to another vicious bout of temporary madness; instead, they are just 10% of the bizarre things I've seen in Death Stranding 2: On the Beach. But it would be far too easy to dismiss Hideo Kojima's work as acts of weirdness alone. I think we should encourage such wild creativity, and be excited that someone is willing to show us things we'd never even thought of seeing. When viewed this way, Death Stranding 2 stands as an almighty achievement – a triumphant combination of complex sci-fi storytelling and thrillingly evolved stealth-action that impressively builds upon the experimental foundation of its predecessor. It's beautiful, horrific, nuanced, and crucially, a lot of fun. Simply put, it's everything I wanted Death Stranding to be.

I found the original Death Stranding alluring but uneven – an intriguing safe full of possibilities that I couldn't quite crack the code to. So with On the Beach, I couldn’t have been happier to find a sequel that triumphs in what it sets out to achieve, and a blockbuster fulfilment of what Death Stranding can (and should) be. It's more confident in both its storytelling and much-improved gameplay, removing a lot of the friction that previously existed in its systems. It also tells a more focused, affecting story that builds out the mythos of its post-apocalypse setting. If you weren't a fan of the first one, then I'm not sure it rewrites the book to an extent that would make you become one here (even though I’d urge you to give it a go). But if you found yourself, much like me, somewhat teetering on the fence, then you may well find yourself falling in love this time around.

The rhythm will be familiar to those who played the original. Reedus is back as Sam Porter Bridges, once again on a mission to make deliveries across treacherous terrain, often facing human and otherworldly threats along the path. It requires you to be prepared for what faces you on each mission by studying your map and packing accordingly. See a river too deep to walk through in your way? Bring along a ladder or two to cross it with. Spot a warning that BTs (the ghostly threats that stalk certain rainy spots) lurk in the area? Pack a few blood grenades to lob at them. It's this loop of preparation, overcoming both geographical and human/former-human hurdles, and reaching your goal that makes up much of Death Stranding 2's roughly 35-hour runtime when mainlining its story missions.

After a brief tutorial chapter in Mexico, Sam is given the goal of connecting Australia to the Chiral Network (the online system knitting civilization together after a near-world-ending event), much like he did with the USA in the original. Why is he doing that, and who is he doing it for? You'll have to find out yourself. This new continent offers a far greater variety of locations, as it shifts in its appearance and the challenge it presents with regularity. Sandstorms buffet Sam, making keeping balance all the more difficult while also decreasing visibility. Quakes can shift the floor beneath you and send cargo tumbling. And rivers can rise and grow in size if rain comes down with enough force. It further adds to the feeling of combating nature with this future tech, as the Earth itself seems to be fighting back against its increasingly digital future. Should we have connected? It's a resounding "no," it seems, from Mother Nature.

There’s no doubting film’s influence on this world either, and as a fan of “cinematic games”, I frankly can’t get enough of the artistry on show throughout, even when it may veer into overly referential territory. And those references are keenly on display: The stark landscapes and pioneering strides against the turmoil of nature in Nolan’s Interstellar. The tension-laced delivery of Friedkin’s Sorcerer. The unnerving energy of not knowing what digital ghosts lurk in the dark frames of Kiyoshi Kurosawa's Pulse. Screen-projected flickers of all of these bounce around my brain.

None of this is too different from the apparent cinematic influences of the original, but this time, the lens shifts focus more to action. The dangerous desert expanses of The Road Warrior are no doubt an inspiration, and the guest appearance of Mad Max’s creator, George Miller, is more than a mere coincidence. These are not just cinematic influences for the sake of it, as they inform and instruct Kojima’s approach to gameplay, too, and are reflected in an altogether more action-heavy evolution of the original Death Stranding’s template.

Snakes and Ladders

What initially presents itself as a pretty rudimentary style of stealth gameplay, mainly consisting of crouching in tall grass and performing silent takedowns, rapidly reveals its layers as your arsenal grows. For example, there’s the introduction of a game-changing tranquiliser sniper rifle, which is something I found super satisfying to pick bandits off with. It may never truly become the stealth-action playground of creativity that Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain is. But it frequently evokes that same feeling in brief moments, delighting me each time it does. Death Stranding 2 offers a lot more flexibility in your approach compared to the original Death Stranding, making its combat much more engaging as a result. And you’ll need to become accustomed to a variety of approaches as well, because there’s no avoiding confrontation and the many forms it takes this time around.

I never tired of launching my little drone friend Dollman into the air and using him as a portable eye in the sky as I scoped out enemy outposts, marking and identifying my prey. They never notice the small puppet floating above them, which might be a little unbelievable, but also makes me feel like I’m getting away with murder. Enemies develop as you progress, and knowing which are armoured, which have higher mobility, and what ammo type they’re vulnerable to adds variables to encounters, meaning you can't always rely on the same rinse-and-repeat tactics. That being said, if you're a decent enough shot with a sniper rifle, you can clear out most bases before enemies have time to reach you. Crucially, it's just as fun when it goes wrong as when it goes right, though.

There's a satisfaction in a perfectly planned attack going smoothly as you pick off each guard with a tranq dart, but a thrill when one shot goes awry and you're made to scramble, juggling your arsenal as enemies descend upon your position. Shooting the driver of an on-rushing vehicle before stealing it to run over his friend is always fun, as is dancing around them in a machine gun-turreted off-roader of your own design. Overall, there's a playfulness in Death Standing 2’s approach to combat that just wasn't present in the original’s simpler, less imaginative system. It brings a dash of power fantasy to the mix, adding to the fun and making it a wholly more enjoyable game to play.

Enemy AI may still not be the sharpest, but it does enable some of that "playing with your food" energy that's always welcome. I played on the normal difficulty and never really found any fight a challenge until things cranked up a little towards the end. This lack of friction is deliberate, though, with the increased toolset, including many different gun and grenade types of varying loudness, allowing you to get through its story at a good pace. This isn't Sam's first rodeo, so when he’s setting out on a continent-spanning trek this time, Death Stranding 2 reflects that by making you feel like a more powerful Porter Bridges. This is a journey, not something that asks you to replay sections if you do something wrong or walk into “mission failed” screens unless you really, really mess up. In fact, even boss battles can be skipped entirely if that particular challenge isn't what you're here for. This isn’t something I'd recommend, though, as they offer some of the most striking spectacles Death Stranding 2 has to offer – a giant tentacle mech is an early favourite, but there are many more monstrosities following later that I'll keep hidden here.

Your action chops are also firmly put to the test in the sections that have you face off against newcomer Neil, played with a subtle intensity by Italian actor Luca Marinelli. Scrambling around gorgeous architecture to find new weapons in a series of tense shootouts and adding your own flashes and bangs to the fireworks display backdropping these showdowns is a thrill. They're particularly stunning stages full of flame and beauty that made me feel I was briefly being taken away to a different game. But those lashings of cinematic style are painted across each encounter, and the many, many cutscenes that bookend them. Having time slow down after dispatching an enemy is not only very helpful when faced with multiple threats, but adds a slick layer of style to each gunfight. No aspect of Death Stranding 2 is left untouched by its blockbuster aspirations.

But as both elements and entities fight against you with more vigor this time around, you're in turn given new abilities to combat them with. Unlike the first game’s relatively barebones character progression, now skill points can be used to unlock fresh tools and boost your stats sheet. Death Stranding 2 is by no means an RPG, but it does offer greater and much-appreciated variety when it comes to building out how you want your Sam to play. Want to be a sneaky Sam? Invest in the ability to cover your tracks by scrubbing out your footprints. Want to be shooty Sam? Augment his arsenal so it packs a heavier punch. Or perhaps you fancy yourself a budding meteorologist and just want to accurately analyse the weather and know what BT-infested spots to steer clear of. You'll ultimately be treading the same set of missions as every other player, but the ways you can choose to approach each one are far more varied this time around.

These perks can also be freely plugged in and out (reminiscent of how Nier Automata's fantastic chip system functions) and offer great flexibility, further enhancing your freedom when preparing for specific types of missions. Upgrades get unlocked in accordance with how you’ve been playing; if you take a combat-heavy approach, you’ll be rewarded with new skills like a semi-automated lock-on ability for your guns. Find yourself dishing out likes to other players' items you see, such as a helpful cargo catapult? You’ll unlock a perk that increases the number of other people’s online constructions, like bridges and generators, that appear in your world. It’s a nice touch that further makes Death Stranding 2 feel like an experience that is in step with you, and another indication of its formerly rough edges being sanded down for a much more enjoyable time.

On top of perks, there is also no shortage of new gadgetry and weaponry available to Sam. Completing side missions and increasing your star ranking with each of the outposts dotted around the map unlocks these options at a consistently good rhythm, as well as some that open up when you complete certain story events. The blood boomerang is particularly effective against BTs, for example, but comes at the cost of draining your lifeforce with every hurl of it. And the tools get weirder and wilder from there, coming at such a regularity that you'll be moving on from one shiny toy of destruction or subterfuge to the next with each mission. From coffin hoverboards to homing missile mechanical dogs, there really is no shortage of creativity on show.

But it isn’t just in combat that these accessories have their uses either, because no matter how much Death Stranding 2 has cranked up the action this time around, it is still fundamentally about porting cargo from one location to another across Australia. That vast expanse naturally leads to new delivery systems. Yes, turns out there really is nothing on Earth like a genuine, bona fide, electrified six-car monorail. This new structure is a godsend when it comes to a handful of missions that require shipping hundreds of kilos of chemical materials over a rocky coastline, but it does call on quite the combined construction job between you and the online community.

That being said, I did settle on travelling on foot as little as possible quite quickly. On the Beach is very kind in that it gives you a vehicle very early on this time around, especially when compared to the many hours it took to fire up an engine in the original. I therefore made many of my long-haul treks via a custom off-roader equipped with a handy auto-pick-up tool for loose cargo that I nursed for much of my playthrough. It served me incredibly well, and I had a fantastic time treating most of my playtime like a post-apocalyptic rally racer, albeit at slower speeds.

Again, it just feels like some of the original Death Stranding’s friction has been removed, and for the better, with the decision to introduce this helpful equipment early as opposed to it being held hostage for many, many hours. I do still think that managing the cargo on these trips is a bit of a pain, though. Inventory systems and menus have been streamlined a bit but are still fiddly, and I spent a little more time than I'd have liked scrolling through them over my few dozen hours.

The missions themselves are incredibly moreish, though, with that “just one more job” itch that I always had to scratch. There’s a great sense of forward momentum which aids this sensation hugely, with backtracking, thankfully, a rarity in the sequel. Whether it's recovering a lost kangaroo for some Scottish popstars or delivering a pizza to a VTuber, you never quite know what’s around the corner. Varied mission conditions also keep things fresh; these range from having to complete orders within a set time limit or being extra careful with fragile cargo. Again, these parameters force you to adjust how you prepare for each mission and ensure that you can’t just use the same toolset and methods on every run.

It's this consistent drive alongside a drip-feed of new equipment that makes the whole experience more rewarding. The overall structure of Death Stranding 2’s campaign is leaps and bounds above what came before, and whether it's unleashing bullets into a teleporting mech or gently navigating a river, it all feels intertwined beautifully and serves the complex sci-fi story it aims to tell to fantastic effect.

Life's a Beach

Set 11 months after the events of the original, On the Beach’s twisting tale begins with Sam attempting to settle into a quiet life off the grid with baby Lou but, inevitably, that dream is swiftly ended. Where it goes from there, I won’t even dare to spoil, but I guarantee that you won’t see even half of its reveals coming.

I can say, though, that there’s an ongoing trend of viscosity throughout. Tar, sludge, oil, blood – you’ll wade through it all. But it's also thick with intrigue, as the secrets continue to be uncovered in a flurry of ideas so dense I’d struggle to point to its like elsewhere. The themes it tackles are multifold. Some focus on a more personal level, and others are global. The latter is a treatise on modern life and how technology infests every part of it. It’s a strong story of how increased existence in the digital world eats away at our souls as humans, as physical interactions – especially in a post-COVID environment – became all the more precious. I can’t help but feel that Kojima is bristling with thoughts about how art and individual expression can never be replaced by artificial intelligence, no matter how it's forced upon us.

And then there’s commentary on gun culture and our world's obsession with building bigger and better weapons. These are, of course, themes Kojima has been writing about for decades now – all the way back to the original Metal Gear Solid in 1998 – but still remain frustratingly topical and worthy of continued commentary on in a modern context. It's a credit to the storytelling that all of these concepts shine through, without getting too bogged down or obscured by the sci-fi trappings they could so easily sink into.

But Death Stranding 2 doesn’t only look outwards. It’s as introspective as any of Kojima's work to date. Metal Gear Solid always looked at geopolitical and nuclear issues on a wide scale, and the original Death Stranding challenged our ability to truly connect as humans in a digital age – a stark reality when faced with the pandemic it pre-empted by mere months. But On the Beach asks questions about the issues posed in that original text. It's self-analytical, but rarely gazes at its navel, delivering a knockout story that works on many levels.

The theme of connectivity, fittingly, weaves each disparate part together by exploring not only how we connect to each other, but with our own pasts as well. What we choose to hold onto, and what we choose to let go. I don't think it's any coincidence that Neil resembles Solid Snake, a character whom Kojima has had to make peace with cutting ties with ever since his departure from Konami a decade ago. Death Stranding 2 almost feels like a funeral for his beloved bandana operative.

While the cast of characters may be as subtly named as referring to me as Simon Reviewman, they do all possess nuanced personalities that reveal themselves at frequent junctures in the story. Small idiosyncrasies, such as face twitches upon revelations being heard or the faintest of tear drops falling down a cheek, really bring a level of depth to these people that their stunningly realised faces deserve. The motion and performance-capture technology is simply astounding, allowing for every pore and reflex of the actors to make their way onto the screen.

Norman Reedus continues his stoic portrayal of Sam Porter Bridges and anchors the story with a calm, centered approach. I do still find Sam a fairly impenetrable character to connect with on an emotional level, though, as he again serves as a vehicle for the story rather than the personal heart of it. He's given more range to work in this time around, but his not-too-high, not-too-low performance again allows for the supporting cast to shine. Lea Seydoux beguiles as Fragile, a layered character that the French actress elevates even further. Elle Fanning is fantastic as the enigmatic Tomorrow, and the mysterious Red Samurai is dripping with cool. It’s the kind of sleek style we've come to expect from artist Yoji Shinkawa ever since Psyborg Ninja first dashed onto the screen in 1998. He’s a master character designer on top of his game, and Death Stranding 2 really gives him the opportunity to cook again and again.

I also have a soft spot for the aforementioned Dollman, who makes the journey a little less lonely by accompanying you at all times on your utility belt. He’s effectively a version of God of War’s Mimir, but instead of funny retellings of myths and legend, we're treated to high school-level interpretations of the themes of Moby Dick and occasionally telling you that you stink. The standout performer this time around, though, has to be Troy Baker's return as Higgs, who pretty much steals every scene he enters. He’s been given license to bring an even more operatic edge to the character this time around, complete with a chilling mask and crimson electric guitar to match. A Reddie Van Halen, if you will.

It’s a big role in every way, and matches the grandeur of the story being told, but in truth, there’s not a single poor performance to be found within the cast, each being given moments to shine in both loud and quiet pockets. For as much cargo as there is being lugged around this world, it's the emotional baggage of the characters that weighs the heaviest, and that pressure builds and builds until its jaw-dropping final few hours, of which I can safely say I’ve never seen anything quite like before.

While I love how it ends, I do wish it started a little thicker and faster. It's so full of mystery that going a couple of hours of deliveries before finding out the next big nugget of the main plot can feel a little agonising. Multiple hours can go by without seeing key characters, and there are a handful of instances when your home base ship is grounded and you need to complete some deliveries before it can get on the move again. These do hinder momentum at times, but never bring things completely to a halt.

Those parts are quickly forgotten, though, because On the Beach does go to some legitimately batshit places, as well as some classic Kojima fourth-wall-breaking antics – and I frankly couldn’t get enough of that. Its willingness to show us things we simply haven't seen before is something I appreciate so much, because when big creative swings are taken with a budget of equal magnitude behind them, there's nothing else that hits quite the same when they land.

A word of warning that this very much is a sequel, though, and while On the Beach does provide a short story recap, I’d recommend hunting down a more fully fleshed out one if you’re in need of a catch-up or jumping in fresh here. And if it does all ever get a little too confusing, the introduction of Death Stranding 2’s Corpus acts as a handy tool to catch you up on terminology or the story so far. It's effectively a sexy-sounding glossary that works in a similar way to how Final Fantasy 16's Active Time Lore did, and a quick method of reminding yourself what a Stillmother or Extinction Event is when someone casually drops it into conversation like it isn’t from some alien language.

You could be mistaken for thinking that this version of Australia is another planet, though. Whether it be the ludicrously oversized moon seemingly about to engulf you or the red desert conjuring images of Mars, there’s something transcendental about the whole experience. It’s just fundamentally therapeutic driving across the outback as the sun comes up. Few blockbuster-scale games allow for moments of reflection like this, and they really do add up to a journey that begs to be savoured.

Those visual treats are supported by music that is once again arranged to sensational effect throughout – whether it be Woodkid’s haunting vocals hanging over a lonely mountain or Ludvig Forssell’s beautiful BBs Theme playing at precisely the moments it should. One slice of Low Roar particularly moved me near the story's conclusion as it accompanied a long drive towards fate, and is further proof that Death Stranding 2 feels like a delicately curated vision.

But of course, no game of anywhere near this scale is all one man's doing, and credit should go to all of the Kojima Productions team for pulling off such a feat, whether it be in art direction, sound design, or the vastly improved combat mechanics. It also ran flawlessly in performance mode on my PS5 Pro, and Guerrilla Games deserves praise for the Decima Engine that Death Stranding 2 runs on. It’s a technical feat that allows for the artistry to shine through as intended.

Peak, a co-op climbing game from the team behind Another Crab's Treasure, is taking Steam by storm, selling 1 million copies in just six days.

According to Steam's official top-selling games chart, which sorts games by revenue on Valve's platform, Peak is ahead of the likes of Dune: Awakening, Stellar Blade, and Elden Ring Nightreign, albeit at a significantly lower price.

Peak hit an impressive... peak concurrent player figure of 102,799 yesterday, June 23, which was enough to make it one of the most-played games on Steam over the weekend.

"Why did this stupid jam game sell more copies than Another Crab's Treasure?" posited a facetious post by developer Aggo Crab on Bluesky. "I'm gonna crash out." A follow up tweet, however, thanked players with a heart emoji.

why did this stupid jam game sell more copies than another crabs treasure im gonna crash out pic.twitter.com/n7KJ7RPLl8

— AGGRO CRAB 💥 (@AggroCrabGames) June 22, 2025

Perhaps unsurprisingly, then, Aggro Crab team spent the weekend working on a patch for the newly released game, including a better lobby, a reminder to sprint when almost out of stamina, as well as addressing a crash on AMD hardware.

"It was the stupid grass," the team revealed after it rolled out the fix. "We got rid of it. Turns out touching grass is BAD."

Peak is a co-op climbing game where "the slightest mistake can spell your doom." Either solo or as a group of lost nature scouts, your only hope of rescue from a mysterious island is to scale the mountain at its center.

We had a good time with Aggro Crab's prior game, Another Crab's Treasure, awarding it 8/10 in our review, writing: "Another Crab’s Treasure throws out dark themes and gratuitous violence in favor of talking cartoon crabs, and I love it."

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.

Nintendo looks set to keep Mario Kart World's focus firmly on the Mushroom Kingdom — so don't expect the return of cameos from Zelda, Splatoon or Animal Crossing.

Whereas Mario Kart 8 welcomed Link, Zelda, Isabelle and the Inklings to its character roster, the even longer cast list found in Mario Kart World lacks any faces from outside the Mario universe. Even the ability to race as your Mii, a staple since Mario Kart Wii, is also gone.

Now, Nintendo has addressed its U-turn on characters from beyond the Mushroom Kingdom's borders, and noted that it was a deliberate choice to keep Mario Kart World's, er, world, from feeling "incongruous".

"As developers, it would have seemed incongruous to us to add characters from other games to this universe," Mario Kart World producer Kosuke Yabuki told Ouest-France. "And it didn't seem necessary to us, given everything we could already do with Mario."

When asked specifically whether Yabuki had considered adding characters from another of one of his Nintendo projects, Arms, the producer replied: "Absolutely not!"

"We inevitably wonder how the players will perceive this casting," Yabuki concluded. "But there are so many characters and so many costumes that every player is sure to find what they are looking for."

While the lack of characters from other Nintendo games might seem like a backstep for the franchise, it's perhaps not a surprise to see Mario Kart World take this route considering its firm foundation as an open-world rendition of the Mushroom Kingdom.

From Peach's Castle to Bowser's Fortress, Mario Kart World's open map is designed to make you feel like you're on a roadtrip through Mario's backyard. Explaining why Samus or Tom Nook was suddenly there in this scenario becomes more difficult.

Likewise with tracks focused on non-Mario areas. Mario Kart 8 offered areas themed around Hyrule, and courses that paid tribute to F-Zero and Excitebike. It's hard to see how something similar could work in Mario Kart World.

And then there's the wider focus for Nintendo — which through its Super Nintendo Land theme park and Super Mario Bros. Movie is creating a more discrete identity for its beloved and lucrative Mario characters to stand apart from other franchises.

Take, for instance, the example of the company's movie efforts, with an animated Mario sequel in development that's not expected to relate in any way to its live-action film plans to adapt The Legend of Zelda.

Nintendo fans hoping for a big Switch 2 crossover title still have the hope of a new Super Smash Bros. — though creator Masahiro Sakurai is currently busy building a new Kirby game instead.

Check out our Mario Kart World guide and learn how to unlock every hidden Mario Kart World character, plus how Kamek Unlocks work - you’ll need them to unlock NPC Drivers. We’ve also got a guide to all the Mario Kart World food scattered across the open world and where to find it, which will help you get all the Mario Kart World outfits and costumes permanently.

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

Build A Rocket Boy has told staff a redundancy process has begun amid the disastrous launch of MindsEye. The cuts could affect over 100 employees, studio sources have told IGN.

One person, who asked to remain anonymous in order to protect their career, told IGN there’s no word yet on exactly how many staff are affected, but the standard 45-day consultation process starts today, June 23, which according to UK law is triggered when an employer proposes 100 or more redundancies within a 90-day period. IGN understands Build A Rocket Boy currently has around 300 UK employees, with around 200 abroad.

IGN has asked Build A Rocket Boy for comment.

Staff now face an anxious wait to find out whether they will be affected. Meanwhile, there are serious questions over whether Build A Rocket Boy will be able to fulfill its post-launch roadmap for content, including the promised multiplayer mode, on time.

Last week, Build A Rocket Boy said it was “heartbroken” over the issues players had faced with the recently released game, and promised to issue a series of patches to fix the significant performance problems, glitches, and AI behavior issues. Rollout of these patches has begun.

All the while, MindsEye’s troubled launch saw the developer cancel sponsored streams, and reports of players securing refunds, even from the normally stubborn Sony.

On Steam, which does not paint the whole picture of MindsEye’s current popularity, the game hit a peak concurrent player count of 3,302 on launch, but had a 24-hour peak of just 130 players. At the time of this article’s publication, 52 people were playing on Steam, with a mostly negative’ user review rating.

MindsEye was initially a part of Everywhere, the ‘Roblox for adults’ game creation platform led by former Grand Theft Auto design chief Leslie Benzies. Build A Rocket Boy, based in Edinburgh, Scotland, eventually switched to focus on MindsEye, its story-driven action adventure game, but it has so-far failed to do the business for the company.

In an email to staff reviewed by IGN, co-CEO Mark Gerhard insisted the studio remained committed to MindsEye, but pointed to a shift from an intense development and launch phase to a sustainable post-launch support phase.

Gerhard had hit the headlines ahead of MindsEye's launch for claiming there was a "concerted effort" by some to "trash the game and the studio," suggesting people were being paid or using spam bots to post negative comments. The boss of publisher IO Interactive, which makes the Hitman games, subsequently issued a denial.

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

Marvel is reportedly paying King Charles "millions" to shoot Avengers: Doomsday on the grounds of UK royal residence Windsor Castle — where the latest set photos suggest the return of another surprise Marvel character.

Construction work has begun within Windsor's parkland on several Avengers: Doomsday sets, including one named as "Annie Reynolds' House" in planning permission documents submitted to a local council. Annie is the mother of Thunderbolts*/New Avengers' Bob Reynolds, suggesting we'll see more childhood flashbacks to this location, revealing more of Sentry/The Void's childhood.

Now, The Irish Sun reports that a second set is named "Luke Cage's House" — a name Marvel fans haven't heard in a good few years. The bulletproof Harlem hero was last seen in 2018, during the second (and final) season of his Netflix TV series that shared a universe with Daredevil, Jessica Jones, and Iron Fist. Cage crossed over with those other shows for team-up series The Defenders, a small-screen version of The Avengers, before Netflix cancelled all of its Marvel line-up when rival streaming service Disney+ was announced.

Marvel is known for its secrecy, with productions typically listed under codenames and key scenes (such as Avengers Endgame's funeral) shot with even the actors involved sometimes unaware of what is going on. And yet while this could still be some kind of elaborate decoy, fans are trying to work out what's going on, and why Luke Cage might be returning.

Photos of the "Luke Cage's House" location show a classic rural-style U.S. house painted mustard yellow. While the setting does not appear to be Harlem, fans have pointed to the colour as being the same shade associated with the character during his Netflix run.

New look at the 1960s-style ‘Luke Cage’ house on the ‘AVENGERS: DOOMSDAY’ set!

Captain Marvel’s ship will soon be built and attached to the set.

(via: https://t.co/3jACkZkvS3) pic.twitter.com/rs1TzWAHnV

— Avengers Updates (@AvengersUpdated) June 22, 2025

In the past few years, Marvel has begun reintegrating The Defenders back into the MCU, via guest appearances from Charlie Cox as Daredevil in various projects before the launch of Disney+ reboot Daredevil: Born Again, and the reappearance of Jessica Jones (Krysten Ritter) in the show's next season. Daredevil spin-off character The Punisher is also getting a TV special, after which he will then reportedly appear opposite Tom Holland in Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

The exact amount paid to King Charles in order to use Windsor's grounds is unclear, though it is estimated to be in the millions. Windsor's official land owner — Crown Estates — frequently uses money from film productions to help pay for pay for the upkeep of its land, though also pays the King a quarter of its profits each year.

Could Charles himself make a cameo? Sadly, it seems unlikely. The King is understood to be holidaying in Scotland at Balmoral in early August, when the sets are due to be used.

Photo by Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images.

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

Whoops — Sony just leaked Monster Hunter Wilds' Title Update 2 via the official PlayStation website.

The changes have been rolled back now, naturally, but for a brief while the Monster Hunter Wilds page on the PlayStation Store revealed the update is set to release on June 30.

As well as a firm release date, Sony's website also confirmed we'll be getting more events, layered weapons, the Leviathan Arch-Tempered Uth Duna, and two "fan-favorite" monsters — one is definitely Lagiacrus, the underwater leviathan, with the other widely speculated to be Seregios, based on datamine sources.

Oh, and this cosmetic armor set has also been discovered, too:

Capcom had told us to expect the “latest news” on the company’s upcoming games, as well as interviews with the developers, at its showcase later this week, so that's likely when this information will be officially unveiled. The Capcom Spotlight livestream is set for 3pm PT/ 11pm UK time on Thursday, June 25.

The latest in Capcom's long-running monster-fighting series brought in some big numbers with its launch, selling 8 million copies in just three days. That's enough to make it the fastest-selling Capcom game of all time, well above the 5 million copies 2018's Monster Hunter World shipped in 2018 and the 4 million Monster Hunter Rise shipped in 2021.

We gave Monster Hunters Wilds an 8 in our review, writing: "Monster Hunter Wilds continues to smooth off the rougher corners of the series in smart ways, making for some extremely fun fights but also lacking any real challenge."

To help get your Monster Hunter Wilds adventure started, take a look at what Monster Hunter Wilds doesn’t tell you, and a guide to all 14 weapon types in the game. We’ve also got a detailed MH Wilds walkthrough in progress, a MH Wilds multiplayer guide to explain how to play with friends, and if you’ve played one of the open betas, here’s how to transfer your MH Wilds Beta character over.

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.

This week’s digital (and physical) shelves are groaning under the weight of some truly tempting game deals. Whether you're keen to revisit a cult classic, explore bold new IPs, or finally fill in a few of those backlog gaps, there’s never been a better excuse to buy now and play... eventually.

This Day in Gaming 🎂

In retro news, I’m lighting a 31-candle cake for Night Trap, a live-action FMV horror-adventure that dropped onto my Mega-CD in 1993 and quickly became ground zero for one of gaming’s first big moral panics. The premise was simple: switch between surveillance cameras to protect teens from trench-coated “Augers” using elaborate traps. The execution, however, was campy, confusing, and about as scary as a haunted house staffed entirely by local drama students.

Its controversy sparked US Senate hearings that led to the creation of the ESRB, but that ripple effect reached our shores too. At the time, Oz didn’t even have a national classification system for video game; just a film-based workaround that couldn't keep up with new tech. Titles like Night Trap fuelled the push toward formalised ratings here, eventually paving the way for the OFLC's gaming guidelines in the late '90s and, later, the R18+ classification us Gen Xers and Millennials went to war for. You're welcome.

• Super Mario RPG (-18%) - A$65.90
• Persona 5 Royal (-33%) - A$66.80
• Burnout Paradise Rem. (-27%) - A$29
• EA Sports FC 25 (-62%) - A$34
• Expeditions: A MudRunner Game (-48%) - A$44
• What Remains of Edith Finch (-75%) - A$7.40

Expiring Recent Deals

• One Piece Odyssey Del. Ed. (-20%) - A$68
• Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes (-50%) - A$39.70
• Biomutant (-40%) - A$36
• What Remains of Edith Finch (-75%) - A$7.40
• Dead by Daylight (-65%) - A$15.70

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Earlier this month, Sega confirmed Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds guest characters such as Hatsune Miku, Ichiban Kasuga (Yakuza), Joker (Persona 5), and even Steve, Alex, and Creeper from Minecraft. But the guest characters do not stop there. Sega has now announced a Nickelodeon collaboration that brings SpongeBob SquarePants to the track — and teased Avatar and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles characters down the line.

Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is a kart racer packed with Sega characters and as such celebrates the company’s history. In addition, big-name guest characters are helping to flesh out the roster of racers. As part of that, those who buy the Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds Digital Deluxe Edition get the Season Pass, which includes the Nickelodeon content as well as the recently announced Minecraft characters, vehicles, and tracks, characters from the Netflix series, Sonic Prime, and two more yet-to-be-announced collaborations.

The trailer below shows off SpongeBob SquarePants and Patrick Star racing the Patty Wagon, a vehicle shaped like a Krabby Patty from the SpongeBob SquarePants series, across the Bikini Bottom track (Bikini Bottom is the main setting in the SpongeBob SquarePants series).

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 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 the Nintendo pantheon. 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.”

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

Elio has suffered the lowest opening ever for Pixar at the box office, with How to Train Your Dragon continuing to dominate at the box office.

The original animated feature opened to $35 million globally, with $21 million domestic and a worryingly low $14 million internationally. That’s the worst three-day opening in Pixar history, behind even Elemental’s $44.5 million opening weekend haul in back in 2023. To add context, Pixar’s Inside Out 2 launched to a whopping $295 million globally during its opening weekend last year.

But Pixar and parent company Disney will be hoping Elio follows in Elemental’s footsteps, given the latter ended up with just shy of $500 million globally during its theatrical run. In Elio’s favor is that it has yet to release in China, Japan, and Spain, and it will be in theaters as schools break for the summer holidays next month. It’s also well-received. IGN’s Elio review saw a 9/10. We said: “The latest animated feature from Pixar, Elio boasts dazzling animation — and even more striking emotional depth.”

Elio’s opening weekend struggles may have been fueled by the continued success of fellow family movie How to Train Your Dragon, which is up to $350 million worldwide on its second weekend and remains the number one movie in the U.S. A sequel is already in the works.

Elio also has Disney’s own Lilo & Stitch to contend with — the live-action remake is up to $910.3 million globally after just five weekends, and looks on course to become the first movie of 2025 to break the $1 billion barrier.

The other release of note was 28 Years Later, the horror zombie sequel from director Danny Boyle and writer Alex Garland. It got off to a strong start, with $60 million globally. The domestic haul of $30 million is the biggest for a Boyle-directed movie, and the $30 million international launch is higher than Sinners managed.

The question for Boyle will be whether 28 Years Later does well enough to get the green light for the planned third film in the new trilogy to move forward, with the second already filmed. IGN’s 28 Years Later review returned a 9/10. We said: “28 Years Later is as potent and timely an exploration of cultural strife as the original, and Danny Boyle and Alex Garland tug at the heartstrings with bloody, deadly skill.”

And for film fans keeping count, Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning is now on $540.9 million after five weekends, John Wick spinoff Ballerina is up to $104.5 million, Final Destination Bloodlines is on $280.1 million, and Sinners has an impressive $363.8 million worldwide.

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

We've rounded up the best deals for Sunday, June 22, below, so don't miss out on these limited-time offers.

Monster Hunter Wilds for $55.99