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Assassin’s Creed: Shadows Update 1.1.6 Releases Today – Full Patch Notes

Ubisoft announced that Title Update 1.1.6 for Assassin’s Creed: Shadows will come out later today and shared its full patch notes. So, let’s see what this new update brings to the table. Patch 1.1.6 adds a new story quest, called “A Puzzlement”. In this quest, Naoe and Yasuke encounter two old acquaintances having a loud … Continue reading Assassin’s Creed: Shadows Update 1.1.6 Releases Today – Full Patch Notes

The post Assassin’s Creed: Shadows Update 1.1.6 Releases Today – Full Patch Notes appeared first on DSOGaming.

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Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 11.0 Update Adds New Content, Increases Netcode Damage Cap Despite Devs Knowing It Will 'Open a Huge Can of Worms for Gameplay Balancing'

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 has its big 11.0 patch, which adds a long list of new features to the explosive action game.

New features include a new PvE map set on an Imperial cruiser (Reclamation), a new piece of PvE equipment (Sanctified Wrath), and six new heroic weapons and eight armor pieces to unlock with accolades.

Meanwhile, 11.0 adds the Blood Angels Champion pack (Tactical Champion + Jump Pack for Assault + Signature Chainsword Skin), a Salamanders Cosmetic Pack, and Chaos Customisation in PvP.

As for balance changes, Assault has a new feature: a set of Jump Pack Dash attacks that are much quicker and responsive than normal sprint attacks. In the patch notes, publisher Focus Entertainment said the developers at Saber Interactive plan to continue expanding and improving sandbox gameplay for all classes, with Tactical and Vanguard coming next. However, they won’t make Patch 12 because the focus there is the new class, the Techmarine.

And here’s an interesting one: the developers have increased the netcode damage cap, knowing full well it will “open a huge can of worms for gameplay balancing.” “But it has to be done,” they continued. “The game damage numbers should not be restricted by net code and should be accurate all of the time. We will be monitoring which builds and perks combinations will become problematic. It's pretty clear that some damage buffs combinations from multiple sources are already insane (looking at you Blocking Power Fist). For now, have fun.”

Updates continue for Space Marine 2 even as development on its follow-up, Space Marine 3, is in full swing. Saber has insisted the games are not competing for resources internally, and in August revealed Space Marine 2’s second year of DLC, confirming patches 10 all the way up to 15.

Patch 15 takes players up to the end of the second quarter of next year (June 2026). Highlights include the new Techmarine class, now set for release during the first quarter of 2026, a new Battle Barge expansion during the same period, and a new Siege map coming Q2 2026.

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 Patch Notes 11.0:

NEW FEATURES

New PvE map: Reclamation

  • Operation Reclamation takes place in orbit above the planet Avarax.
  • A squad of Space Marines is deployed to a critically damaged Imperial cruiser to purge it of Tyranid infestation. However, as the mission unfolds, the objectives begin to shift.

New PvE Equipment: Sanctified Wrath

Upon use, the player's melee damage is increased by 25% for 15 seconds, and the player is immune to knockbacks. When used, enemies within a small radius are pushed back.

🟡 Change from PTS: Increased amount of charges from 1 to 2

💬 It's not the last equipment that we are going to add.

New Battlefield Conditions

More than 40 new Battlefield Conditions have been added.

New Heroic Items

Added 6 Heroic Weapons and 8 Armour Pieces to unlock with Accolades.

Weapons:

  • Retribution's Bequest (Heavy Bolt Pistol)
  • Chains of Duty (Heavy Bolter)
  • Wrapped (Instigator Bolt Carbine)
  • Wrapped (Bolt Sniper Rifle)
  • Death's Grasp (Power Fist)
  • Storm's Dominion (Thunder Hammer)

Armour Pieces:

  • Mark VII Helm
  • Artificer Mark X Helm
  • Black Templars Artificer Mark X Helm
  • Mark VI Corvus Veteran Helm
  • Veteran Molecular Bonding Studs R. Pauldron
  • Honourific Gem R. Pauldron
  • Cameleoline Shroud R. Pauldron
  • Veteran’s Shroud R. Pauldron

New Season Pass Content

  • Blood Angels Champion pack added (Tactical Champion + Jump Pack for Assault + Signature Chainsword Skin)
  • Salamanders Cosmetic Pack added.

Chaos Customisation (PvP)

Customisation of Chaos classes is now available using armour parts from sets.

GAMEPLAY AND BALANCING TWEAKS

Assault - New Feature

Added a set of Jump Pack Dash attacks for Assault, that are much quicker and responsive than normal sprint attacks. Dash attacks should be affected by all perks that affect Sprint attacks as well.

🟡 Change from PTS: Jump Dash attacks deal 50% more damage

💬 We are going to continue expanding and improving sandbox gameplay for all classes. After Assault, it's going to be Tactical's and Vanguard's turn, however those changes will not be in Patch 12 as we would like to focus on Tech Marine.

Melee

Power Axe:

  • Chained Whirl Slash now can be performed after Overhead Strike.
  • Overhead Strike damage is increased by 50%.
  • Perk "Riposte" became a default behaviour - After performing a Power Backstep, hold attack to perform an Overhead Strike.
  • Perk "Riposte" is changed - Overhead strike damage after Backstep is doubled.
  • Blocking versions can now enter Power Stance.

Heroic Double Edge Relic (Chainsword):

  • "Trampling Stride" Perk now works with a Heroic Perk Combo.
  • Double Heavy Combo now can be performed after a Whirl Slash sprint attack.

Heroic Power Gladius (Power Knife):

  • Damage buff now lasts for 1 second after the first instance of damage instead of being wasted on a single enemy.

🟡 Change from PTS: Fixed issue where damage buff lasted indefinitely.

Firearms

Heavy Bolt Rifle: Base damage increased by 13%.

Heroic Combi-Melta (Bolt Rifle): Increase damage by 15% for both Bolter and Melta firing modes.

Multi-Melta: The change allowing the player to shoot from the standing position immediately after firing from the blind (removing the previous delay) has been reverted. The interval between shots is now enforced when transitioning to the standing position.

🟡 Bolt Pistol: Base damage increased by 13.5%.

🟡 Volkite Pistol: Base damage and volkite explosion damage increased by 10%.

🟡 Patch 11 Heroic Weapon Changes from PTS

🟡 Heroic Heavy Bolt Pistol:

  • Increase Gun Strike damage by 20%.
  • Add 6 ammo to max capacity.
  • Heroic perk will now instantly kill enemy enemies that are calling for reinforcement.

🟡 Heroic Sniper Bolt Rifle: All ammo restore perks will not trigger when using this weapon.

💬 While it was clear that its a very powerful weapon in PTS, we don't want to reduce its effectiveness, but we do want to raise its skill cap.

🟡 Heroic Thunder Hammer: Assault's Ground Pound will also spawn a shock zone.

🟡 Heroic Power Fist:

  • Damage bonus for light attacks is increased to 200%.
  • Increase radius for heroic perk activation to 15 meters.
  • Issue Fixed: Sometimes perk didn't activate properly.

🟡 Heroic Heavy Bolter:

  • Works like a fencing weapon as originally intended.
  • Fixed UI display of accuracy value.

Classes

Tactical

  • Signal Jammer: The perk has been reworked.

Old: “Enemies marked by Auspex Scan cannot call for reinforcements and automatically explode upon attempting to do so.”

New: “After marking an enemy with Auspex Scan, other enemies cannot call for reinforcement and automatically explode upon attempting to do so for 90 seconds.”

Sniper

  • Precision Targeting: Now perk works against Extremis and Terminus-level enemies.
  • Guardian Protocol: Removed cooldown.
  • Ambush: Now also slows down nearby enemies for 10 sec.

Bulwark

  • Emergency Countermeasure: Cooldown is decreased from 90 to 45 seconds.

Vanguard

💬 For too long, Vanguard's role was to be a vessel for the squad's healing perks. With these changes, we want to reinforce ranged/melee hybrid playstyle for him. But we are not entirely done with Vanguard changes. We would like to take a closer look at his ability.

  • Grapnel Launcher damage now scales based on difficulty.
  • 🟡 Retribution: The perk has been reworked.

Old: “After you are grabbed or knocked back, you deal 30% more Melee Damage for 20 seconds.”

New: “When your Ranged weapon’s magazine is empty, Melee Damage increases by 25%.”

🟡 Change from PTS: Damage buff increased from 20 to 25%.

  • Moving Target: The perk has been reworked.

Old: “Each Melee Attack you land reduces the Ranged Damage you take by 5% (up to 30%). If you do not land a Melee Attack for 5 seconds, the effect ends.”

New: “Killing an enemy at a range of 30m or more restores Ability Charge by 5%.”

  • 🟡 Tenacity: The perk has been reworked.

Old: “After killing 10 enemies within 5 seconds, Diving Kick's Damage increases by 40% for 15 seconds.”

New: “After a Ranged kill Majoris-level or higher enemy, Diving Kick's Damage increases by 130%. Cooldown 15 seconds.”

🟡 Change from PTS: Fix interaction between Shock Wave perk and Tenacity caused by double damage scaling.

  • Collateral Damage: Increase damage by Diving Kick to 50%.
  • 🟡 Inner Fire: Now works according to description.

Assault

  • Act of Attrition: The perk has been reworked.

Old: “Enemies hit by Melee Attacks take 15% more Damage for 3 seconds.”

New: “Enemies hit by Damage from Melee Attacks executed while sprinting or dashing Melee Attacks take 25% more Damage for 5 seconds.“

Battlefield Conditions

  • Great Responsibility: Increased HP bonus from 100% to 150%.
  • Retirement Barge: Reduced HP debuff from 66% to 50%.
  • Poorly Fit Suit: Reduced damage by 33%.
  • Equipment Malfunction: restricted from appearing on the Exfiltration mission.
  • Surgical Strike: Buffed damage by 15%.
  • Extreme Challenge: Increased Extremis enemies spawn cooldown.

Gameplay QoL

  • Increased netcode damage cap.

💬 This change is going to open a huge can of worms for gameplay balancing, but it has to be done. The game damage numbers should not be restricted by net code and should be accurate all of the time. We will be monitoring which builds and perks combinations will become problematic. It's pretty clear that some damage buffs combinations from multiple sources are already insane (looking at you Blocking Power Fist). For now, have fun.

  • Sniper damage buff from Cloak Ability lasts a little bit longer to fully affect entire burst and full auto weapons.
  • Improved sound indication for unparriable attacks.
  • Pyrecannon Heavy Stance behavior with sprint now matches other heavy weapons.

AI

  • Chaos Spawn: Fixed headshots not registering for client side hit detection weapons.
  • Vortex Beast: Added headshot area.
  • Lots of minor fixes with animations.

CUSTOMISATION

  • Bots use player class customisation.
  • Added sorting armour parts by rarity.
  • Fixed: Black Templar Champion now chains his Power Sword properly.
  • Lots of minor customisation fixes.

LEVELS

  • Lots of minor fixes with level geometry.

GENERAL FIXES

  • Fixed: Vanguard - The ‘Restless Fortitude’ perk does not activate when finishing off an enemy with the Grapnel Launcher.
  • Fixed: Sniper ability stops recharging and working completely until the end of the match after getting hit during its activation in rare cases.
  • Fixed: Player can't use gun strike on Lictor after perfect dodge in some rare cases.
  • Fixed: Assault's class perk "Overcharge" does not increase the damage of charged attacks for any weapon except Thunder Hammer.
  • Fixed: Combat Knife - "Combined Onslaught" and "Heavy Onslaught" perks do not apply to dash attacks.
  • Fixed: Combat Knife - "Shadow Stab" is affected by the "Combined Onslaught" perk instead of "Heavy Onslaught" despite being a heavy attack.
  • Fixed: Combat Knife - "Combined Onslaught" and "Heavy Onslaught" perks do not apply to dash attacks.
  • Fixed: Power Sword - With Speed Restoration perk equipped, contested health restoration values are swapped between power and speed mode's second hits in a combo.
  • Fixed: Power Sword - Power restoration does not apply the restoration bonus to the 4th attack from Slashing Blade perk.
  • Fixed: Power sword - The 3rd attack in the light combo misses in some cases.
  • Fixed: Thunder Hammer - Assault's class perk Overcharge doesn't buff second ground slam attack when Seismic Chain weapon perk is picked.
  • Fixed: Thunder Hammer - Assault's class perk Overcharge doesn't give a 25 percent buff for aftershock attack when Aftershock Improved weapon perk is picked.
  • Fixed: Thunder Hammer perk After Aftershock doesn't give a 10 percent melee damage buff when Aftershock Improved perk is picked.
  • Lots of minor bug fixes.
  • Lots of minor localisation bug fixes.
  • Lots of minor UI and sound fixes.

TECH

  • Memory optimizations.
  • Crash fixes and general stability improvements.
  • General connectivity improvements.

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.

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These Fantastic Games Are Getting Huge Discounts in Steam's First-Ever Steam Black Friday Sale

Surprise! Steam's running its first-ever Black Friday sale.

If, like me, that comes as a shock — I presumed, like every other retailer on the planet, Valve had always offered Black Friday treats — turns out that despite the many, many themed sales the company runs each year, Black Friday was never one of them. Until now, of course.

"What a week!" Valve declared. ''Tis the season in many areas of the world for the 'holiday' known as Black Friday, a time-honored tradition of deals on all sorts of things. We're celebrating this 'holiday' all week long with a one-stop landing page for all of the games developers are offering on discount throughout the week."

There is a fantastic range of games getting discounted, too, including 50% off EA Sports FC 26, 15% off Battlefield 6, a whopping 67% (6 7!) off Risk of Rain 2, 20% off Helldivers 2, 34% off the glorious Blue Prince, and 8% Dead by Daylight.

You can also grab Ghost of Tsushima for 40% off the recommended retail price, a huge 75% off the wonderful Red Dead Redemption 2, and an even bigger 95% on Warhammer: Vermintide 2.

That's not all, either. From now until December 1, 10am PT (1pm ET), you can also save 20% on the Steam Deck LCD 256GV model — that's the original model, not the fancy OLED one — and nominate your favorite games of 2025 in this year's Steam Awards.

Sadly, no, there's no pre-order discounts for Valve's recently revealed Steam Machine, nor the new controller or Steam Frame, a VR headset that itself runs on SteamOS. We’ve got plenty more on all Valve’s recent hardware announcements, and have a handy roundup so you don’t miss a thing. We went hands-on with Steam Machine and Steam Controller, and if you’re wondering about Steam Deck 2, we asked Valve about that as well.

To see everything up for grabs with a discount head on over to Steam. If you're hunting for the best offers this week, we're actively rounding up the strongest Black Friday deals on video games, tech, and more. You can find all our top picks and price drops in our full Black Friday hub, or check out our relevant pages for PlayStation, Nintendo, and Xbox deals.

Photographer: Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg via Getty Images.

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.

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Fallout 4 Now Has A Free AMD FSR 3 Frame Gen Mod

Now here is something that passed under my radar. Earlier this month, modder ‘doodlum’ released a mod for Fallout 4 that adds support for AMD FSR 3 Frame Generation. For those who did not know, Fallout 4 already had an AMD FSR 3.0 Frame Gen Mod. However, that was a paid mod. As such, a … Continue reading Fallout 4 Now Has A Free AMD FSR 3 Frame Gen Mod

The post Fallout 4 Now Has A Free AMD FSR 3 Frame Gen Mod appeared first on DSOGaming.

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Nintendo Switch and Switch 2 System Update 21.0.1 Available — Here Are the Patch Notes

Nintendo has issued a fresh system software update for the Switch and Switch 2, bringing both consoles' firmware up to Version 21.0.1.

The latest patch arrives just two weeks after Nintendo's last major update to its console firmware, which was also widely criticized for appearing to break compatibility with a range of third-party Switch 2 docks. Nintendo, for its part, said in a subsequent statement to IGN that it had no "intention to hinder or invalidate legal third-party dock compatibility."

Today's update is only just landing now, and there are numerous third-party dock options out there to test. But, so far, there's been no immediate suggestion from fans that this update has made further changes to third-party dock compatibility — for better or worse. Still, we'll keep an eye and update if we spot anything of note.

In terms of what is included in the update, Nintendo has stated that it's fixed an error with the Switch's system transfer feature, which previously impacted users' ability to move smoothly over onto Switch 2. There's also a fix for a common Bluetooth issue, which previously stopped wireless devices such as controllers and headsets from connecting.

Nintendo's full patch notes for the update lie below:

Switch 2 Update Version 21.0.1 (Released November 24, 2025)

  • Fixed an issue where Error Code: 2011-0301 or Error Code: 2168-0002 would repeatedly occur on a Nintendo Switch when attempting a system transfer using local communication from a Nintendo Switch system to a Nintendo Switch 2 system.
  • Fixed an issue where sometimes, after waking up the system from Sleep Mode or turning off Airplane Mode, wireless controllers or Bluetooth audio devices were unable to connect.
  • General system stability improvements to enhance the user's experience.

Switch Update Ver. 21.0.1 (Released November 24, 2025)

  • Fixed an issue where Error Code: 2011-0301 or Error Code: 2168-0002 would repeatedly occur on a Nintendo Switch when attempting a system transfer using local communication from a Nintendo Switch system to a Nintendo Switch 2 system.
  • General system stability improvements to enhance the user's experience.

Earlier this month, Nintendo revealed that Switch 2 had sold an astonishing 10.36 million units between June 5 and September 30, a record-breaking amount that doubles the launch sales of the original Switch, and sees the new platform continue its run as the biggest console launch ever.

Mario Kart World, the Switch 2's flagship launch game, has now sold 9.57 million copies, while, Donkey Kong Bananza, has notched up 3.49 million sales since July. Pokémon Legends Z-A, meanwhile, sold 5.8 million copies just during its first week.

Next up for Switch 2 is the impending launch of Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, a game some fans have been waiting a decade to play. Recent Metroid Prime 4 previews have criticised the game's first chatty NPC, but will the full experience get a more positive impression? It's not long until we find out, as the game releases on December 4.

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

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PlayStation Just Added a Load More PS5 Games to Its Incredible 2025 Black Friday Sale

PlayStation's 2025 Black Friday sale is well underway, running right through to December 1, and a fresh wave of newly added games has just dropped into the mix.

A stack of strong PS5 titles are already discounted across every major retailer, including standouts like Astro Bot at $39.99, Battlefield 6 at $52.99, and Spider-Man 2 at $29.99.

To keep things straight, I've broken out my top picks into two buckets: the newest heavy hitters of 2025 and the rest of the must-play releases from the PS5's nearly five-year run.

2025 PS5 Games on Sale for Black Friday

For the uninitiated, Black Friday deals tend to go live a week early these days, so while Black Friday isn't until Nov. 28, we've already got all the best discounts on PS5 games to check out.

Standout offers for 2025 PS5 games include a few of my personal favorites, Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds and Assassin's Creed Shadows for just $30 - even better deals now Walmart's Black Friday sale is live.

That also applies to Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, which was down to $50 earlier this week, but now only $30 at Walmart. I can see that one selling out fast!

I also love to sing the praises of Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 as well, and that's just hit its lowest price ever as part of the Black Friday sales. Again, it's just $30 at Amazon right now, a huge $40 in savings.

More PS5 Game Deals for Black Friday

The first party PlayStation cuts are genuinely worth a look this time, particularly the newer stuff.

Astro Bot, the reigning Game of the Year 2024 winner, sits at $39.99 and it earns every cent. If you want more, Helldivers 2, Spider-Man 2, and both The Last of Us titles are holding steady at $29.99. Stellar Blade drops to $39.99, and Horizon Forbidden West hits a frankly silly $19.99.

Walmart has also thrown Elden Ring and Star Wars Outlaws into the mix for $15 each in a fresh batch of deals that just went live. Both feature in our top games under $20 roundup for a reason, because $15 for either is a no brainer.

PS5 Digital Game Deals and More

I've barely scratched the surface across the sales as well, as there's even more games to check out between now and Black Friday, including a 2025 Game of the Year nominee, Death Stranding 2, for $49.69. That's $20 off, and matches the best deal on the game so far this year.

There's also $20 discounts on big Konami hits like Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, and Silent Hill f, both also down to $48.99 from $69.99. Both of these can be found in Best Buy's Black Friday sales, or via the PlayStation Store's digital storefront.

That's alongside new all time low prices on physical copies of Battlefield 6, down to $52.99, EA Sports FC 26 for $29.99, Borderlands 4 for $47.99, and more. These are cheaper than buying digitally, small differences for some, while bigger for others.

For example, Battlefield 6 is a significally better deal when buying a physical copy ($52.99 vs $59.49), while where as some games like Death Stranding 2 are just a tiny bit cheaper digitally ($49.69 vs $49.99). So, sometimes it comes in handy to have a disc drive (I'm looking at you, PS5 Pro owners).

Other standout offers in the PlayStation 2025 Black Friday sale include $100 off PS5 consoles and PlayStation VR2 bundles, $20 off DualSense Controllers and PlayStation Portal, and up to 33% off PlayStation Plus memberships.

There are plenty more games on sale that we haven't mentioned either, so be sure to check out the full PS5 sales pages at retailers like Amazon as well.

Should You Wait for Black Friday on November 28?

Black Friday deals are a bit of a mess these days. Retailers spend the whole of November dangling so called limited time offers, but the truth is simple, the real discounts always land about a week before what I call "Black Friday proper". And we're already in the endgame now.

After over six years of tracking PlayStation pricing, one pattern never breaks, once a PlayStation deal goes live, it barely moves. So the prices you're seeing right now on consoles, controllers, and games are almost certainly the prices you'll be looking at through to early December.

If you've been sitting on your hands waiting for something better, stop. This is as good as it's getting. Grab what you've been eyeing up, because the only thing you're risking at this point is missing out.

Planning to grab anything in PlayStation's Black Friday sale? Drop a comment, and keep an eye on IGN for daily updates as we track the best deals of 2025.

Robert Anderson is Senior Commerce Editor and IGN's resident deals expert on games, collectibles, trading card games, and more. You can follow him @robertliam21 on Twitter/X or Bluesky.

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Save 40% Off Govee Outdoor Lights Pro RGB LEDs for Black Friday, Just in Time for the Holidays

Now's the time to get in on some great deals on RGB home lighting in preparation for the holidays. For Black Friday, Amazon is offering up to 40% off Govee's popular lineup of Outdoor Lights Pro string lights. These lights can be installed year round as accent lighting, but they will really stand during the holidays when it's time to deck your house in festive RGB bling. If you have other Govee smart lights, then they can be synced together to create an extravagant light show.

Up to 40% Off Govee Outdoor Lights Pro RGB LEDs

The Govee Outdoor Lights Pro string lights are available in 100ft, 150ft, and 200ft lengths with 60, 90, and 120 total puck lights, respectively. Each puck consists of an array of RGBICWW LEDs, which is the best type of RGB LED because they include dedicated "warm white" diodes for more realistic white and warm white tones (2700K-6500K), as well as integrated circuit chips so that each light can display colors independently. Each puck delivers 50 lumens, and the lens array focuses the light downward in a pleasant triangular cone shape that looks great cast upon the walls of your house.

The lights install easily with included VHB adhesive clips. If you need a more secure mounting solution, Govee does sell screw-in clips as well. The Outdoor Lights Pro can also be spliced and re-attached for a more customized fit depending on the size of your house. The lights are controlled via the Govee smart app on your mobile device, with hundreds of different preset light combinations and patterns you can choose from as well as scheduling options. You can also sync it with other Govee lights you might own, all through a single unified app. There are a ton of RGB light brands out there nowadays, but Govee has so far been my favorite in terms of lighting innovation, variety, and ease of use.

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

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Next-Generation Robotic Figure of Olaf Revealed for World of Frozen at Disneyland Paris and Hong Kong Disneyland

Disney has revealed a next-generation robotic figure of Frozen's Olaf that will literally walk, talk, and interact with guests around the World of Frozen lands at Disneyland Paris and Hong Kong Disneyland in early 2026.

Disney shared the exciting details about this Olaf robotic figure alongside its announcement of the opening date of Disney Adventure World and World of Frozen at Disneyland Paris and in the latest episode of We Call It Imagineering.

To ensure Olaf was as authentic and "real" as possible, the team at Imagineering used a branch of artificial intelligence called reinforcement learning, which allows the robot to "learn" how to walk and perform "graceful motions" in a fraction of the time it would take a human to.

The team also noted that, since Olaf is made of "snow," which is much softer than the harder shell of other robotic characters, they are able to allow him to "fully articulate his mouth, eyes, and removable carrot nose and arms." Yes, guests will get to playfully remove Olaf's nose and arms for a fun and memorable interaction. He will also be able to speak and engage in conversations, and his believability will be further heightened by his expressive eyes that fully move.

The rest of this latest episode of We Call It Imagineering touched upon a ton of other exciting projects currently underway at Imagineering, including Fantastic Four's H.E.R.B.I.E., the BDX Droids from that galaxy far, far away, and even truly impressive aquatic robots that make us think of the possibilities for a space like the upcoming Avatar land at Disneyland.

We also got a few more details on the upcoming new mission for Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run that is inspired by The Mandalorian and Grogu. This new experience will debut on May 22, 2026, at Walt Disney World and Disneyland, and will allow guests to visit Bespin, the wreckage of the second Death Star around Endor, and Coruscant.

In this new story, Hondo Ohnaka found out about a deal on Tatooine between ex-Imperial officers and a band of pirates and wants to capitalize on their large bounty. To ensure the mission's success, Mando and Grogu will join the fun.

Bruce Vaughn, President and Chief Creative Officer, Walt Disney Imagineering, said this new mission will "actually be better quality. Real time. So, that the interactivity and agency of the guests can actually be greatly improved but include scenes, characters, places that will come out with this new movie."

Lastly, we were given a glimpse at the future of Audio-Animatronics technology, and it combines real-time front projection with simplified mechanical heads to allow for more realistic faces than ever before. These faces can cry, blush, bleed, and even transform in real-time thanks to this technology, and even fewer mechanical parts are needed. This last part is important becasue that means less wear-and-tear and maintenance needs. Disney also teased this would allow for certain characters that are tough to bring to life, including Mike Wazowski, Lightning McQueen, or Hades. That last mention surely would make a visit to Magic Kingdom's Villains Land pretty exciting, wouldn't it?!

For more Disney, check out our preview of the Disney Destiny, what it's really like inside Disney's exclusive Cotino community in Palm Springs, and our look at the incredible tale of Toy Story for its 30th anniversary.

Adam Bankhurst is a writer for IGN. You can follow him on X/Twitter @AdamBankhurst, Instagram, and TikTok, and listen to his show, Talking Disney Magic.

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Disney Adventure World and World of Frozen Opening Date Revealed at Disneyland Paris

On March 29, 2026, Disneyland Paris' Walt Disney Studios Park will officially become Disney Adventure World, and World of Frozen will open within this reimagined park and welcome guests into the Kingdom of Arendelle.

The transformation of Walt Disney Studios Park into Disney Adventure World is a big one, as it will mark a change of more than 90% of the park's offerings since 2002. Alongside World of Frozen, Disney Adventure World will also be home to the currently open Worlds of Pixar, Marvel Avengers Campus, and World Premiere Plaza, and the currently under-construction Lion King area that will include a "major attraction combining water-based thrills with next-generation Audio-Animatronics figures."

World of Frozen Is an Exciting Invitation to the Kingdom of Arendelle

World of Frozen, which first debuted at Hong Kong Disneyland, will be one of the biggest draws of Disney Adventure World. This land will welcome guests to participate in the Sunflower Festival and step into the beloved story themselves.

One of the most striking additions will be the 118-foot-tall North Mountain, crowned by Elsa's Ice Palace. It will overlook the village of Arendelle, which includes Arendelle Bay, the Fountain of Friendship, and Arendelle Castle.

Below the Clock Tower in the village will be the Frozen Ever After attraction that guests of EPCOT will be familiar with, and Imagineers are currently hard at work at bringing this to a new audience with upgrades like state-of-the-art Audio-Animatronics figures and "new immersive projection technologies."

Outside of the attraction, guests will be able to meet Anna and Elsa during a Royal Encounter in Arendelle Castle, which will culminate with "personal interaction and photo opportunities to create memories that last a lifetime."

Anna and Elsa will also join Olaf, Kristoff, and the other villagers in Arendelle Bay with A Celebration in Arendelle, a 15-minute show that takes place aboard three majestic Viking longships. And yes, they will be singing such songs as "Let It Go" and "Show Yourself." Frozen's Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez have also composed new music for this show, which is a very exciting thing indeed.

Speaking of Olaf, the other biggest piece of news from Disney Parks was the unveiling of a next-generation robotic character of the beloved snowman that will walk around the park and speak and more. It's a very impressive piece of tech from Walt Disney Imagineering and it will appear at Disney Adventure World and Hong Kong Disneyland.

Lastly, it was revealed that World of Frozen will have a Nordic-inspired quick-service restaurant called Nordic Crowns Tavern, a shop called Arendelle Boutique with exclusive Frozen merch, and even a Fjord View Shop that will allow guests to befriend/purchase a baby troll named Rúna, who will react to touch, blink its eyes, communicate with other trolls, and interact with locations around Arendelle.

Worlds of Pixar, Marvel Avengers Campus, Adventure Bay, Adventure Way, and More

Once guests leave the World of Frozen, they can chose to go visit one of the other lands, including Worlds of Pixar. This themed land features Crush’s Coaster, RC Racer, Ratatouille: L’Aventure Totalement Toquée de Rémy, and more. It also has an incredibly-themed Bistrot Chez Rémy restaurant that will be sure to delight fans of Ratatouille as it "shrinks" them down to the size of a rat.

Marvel Avengers Campus has such attractions as Spider-Man: W.E.B. Adventure and Avengers Assemble: Flight Force, heroic encounters with fan-favorite MCU characters, live-action stunts, and dining options at Pym Kitchen and Stark Factory.

All of these lands will be connected to Adventure Bay, a 7.5-acre lake that will be the home of Disney Cascade of Lights at night. This new nighttime spectacular is an "emotional journey" and an "invitation for every guest to believe in their own strength, to embrace wonder, and to feel the power of storytelling in a way only Disney can deliver."

The show is designed to be viewed all around Adventure Bay, and it will feature the world's first integration of an aquatic drone system with next-generation aerial drones. It will also include moments from Mulan, Hercules, Moana, Zootopia, Up, the Marvel Universe, and more.

Also connected to Adventure Bay is Adventure Way, an avenue that will connect World Premiere Plaza and the rest of the lands in Disney Adventure World. It will host Raiponce Tangled Spin, which brings to life the Lantern Festival from Tangled.

Guests will sit in gondolas and whirl around a space adorned with floating lanterns, frescoes depicting Rapunzel's adventures, and more. Mandy Moore, who voiced Rapunzel in the film, has even recorded new audio announcements for the attraction.

Alongside Raiponce Tangled Spin, Adventure Way will have character interactions, 14 culinary experiences, lush green spaces to relax, and more. One of the restaurants will be the Disney Princess-themed Regal View Restaurant & Lounge that will be an elegant place to eat and meet Disney Princesses from a variety of films. The Regal View Lounge will will also call this walkway home and will be the first bar located at Disneyland Paris.

Lastly, we have to mention that a new attraction inspired by Up will join Adventure Way in the future, and it will be a "flying carousel" that will "add motion and energy to the promenade."

There will be plenty more to cover for World of Frozen and Disney Adventure World at Disneyland Paris, and we'll be here to make sure you don't miss a thing.

For more Disney, check out our preview of the Disney Destiny, what it's really like inside Disney's exclusive Cotino community in Palm Springs, and our look at the incredible tale of Toy Story for its 30th anniversary.

Adam Bankhurst is a writer for IGN. You can follow him on X/Twitter @AdamBankhurst, Instagram, and TikTok, and listen to his show, Talking Disney Magic.

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Save Up to $500 on Narwal’s Top Robot Vacuums During Its Epic Black Friday Sale

Give, or better yet, treat yourself to the gift of clean floors this holiday season with a brand-new robot vacuum. These machines have come a long way from bumping into furniture and suctioning up socks while attempting to vacuum up your space. Now, you’ll find options that navigate your home with ease, mop, self-empty, and more for a truly hands-free clean. The brand Narwal is an innovator in the space, developing some incredible robot vacuums, some of which I’ve even been lucky enough to test out myself.

If you or someone you love has been eager to get a robot vacuum or upgrade an older model, Narwal has brilliant options for a range of needs, and it’s the best time of year to buy. Narwal’s Black Friday sale is running now until December 1st, and with it comes some absolutely incredible discounts. Everything from its wildly capable, full-of-all-the-bells-and-whistles flagship Flow model to the feature-rich value alternative, the Freo X10 Pro, is 33% off or more for a limited time. That’s up to $500 in potential savings.

Save Up to $500 on Narwal’s Top Robot Vacuums

Narwal's Vacuum Lineup

For a robot vacuum that does it all, the brand-new Narwal Flow is what you want, and it’s $500 off for Black Friday. Not only does it offer impressive 22,000 Pa suction, reliable AI obstacle avoidance, and a self-emptying base station, but the Flow also comes with a track mop. While cleaning, that mop cleans itself in real-time with hot, fresh water. As someone who has tested numerous robot vacuums, it’s a truly unique feature that’s sure to deliver a better clean.

While you might not get the real-time, self-cleaning mop, the Narwal Freo Z10 Ultra still delivers a top-notch clean thanks to ample smart features and powerful suction. Dual RGB cameras ensure it navigates your house with ease, avoiding anything that might cross its path. Mopping is still available with dual spinning heads that can reach edges and corners. There’s even hot water mop washing and drying in the base station. Best of all, this Freo Z10 Ultra is 36% off for Black Friday, giving you all these features for just $799.99

The Narwal Freo X10 Pro is more affordable, a mid-range robot vacuum costing under $500, its lowest price all year. It offers everything that Freo Z10 Ultra has, albeit in a more toned-down way. Still, the base station, which self empties and cleans the mops, makes for a hands-free clean, and an anti-tangle brush is ideal for combating pet hair.

Now, those are just a sprinkling of Narwal’s robot vacuum models, and there are plenty of others discounted for Black Friday.

Narwal offers more than just robot vacuums; it has a lineup of awesome wet-dry vacuums that simultaneously mop and vacuum the floor. These are also on sale for the biggest savings holiday of the year. If you or someone on your list is after the cleanest floors out there, now's the time to buy a vacuum; chances are good you won't see savings this big again.

For more Black Friday deals on tech, check out Amazon's biggest deals so far during Black Friday Week.

Danielle is a Tech freelance writer based in Los Angeles who spends her free time creating videos and geeking out over music history.

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