Nintendo has released a wave of patches for many of its biggest Switch games, ahead of Switch 2's arrival. These free updates are now available to download, and include a fresh version of Super Mario 3D All-Stars — the retro game compilation Nintendo controversially only sold for a limted time.

To be clear, these updates are free to download, and separate to the paid Switch 2 Editions of some games that Nintendo is also selling.

As ever, Nintendo has kept the details of many of these patches vague — so it may be that further changes are found in the coming days as fans finally get their hands on Switch 2 and find out for themselves.

In the meantime, the update to Super Mario 3D All-Stars has players wondering whether Nintendo might be planning to put its classic compilation of Super Mario 64, Super Mario Sunshine, and Super Mario Galaxy back on sale. Nintendo only sold the game for a specific window around Mario's 35th anniversary, and now only physical copies are available to buy second hand.

If you own any of the Switch games listed below, it might be a good idea to get your updates downloading as soon as possible, since Nintendo's servers will likely be very busy in the coming days.

Here are all of the Nintendo Switch game updates now available to download:

Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom - Version 1.4.0

The following updates have been made when playing the game on Nintendo Switch 2:

General

• Added support for the Nintendo Switch 2 Edition.
• Added support for the Portuguese (Brazil) system language setting.
  • Because Portuguese is not a supported voice language, the voice content will use the language you select in the in-game options.
• Added support for the Sidon, Tulin, Yunobo, and Riju amiibo.
• Several other issues have been addressed to improve the gameplay experience.

The following updates have been made when playing the game on Nintendo Switch:

General

• Added support for the Portuguese (Brazil) system language setting.
  • Because Portuguese is not a supported voice language, the voice content will use the language you select in the in-game options.
• Added support for the Sidon, Tulin, Yunobo, and Riju amiibo.
• Several other issues have been addressed to improve the gameplay experience.

Zelda: Breath of the Wild - Version 1.8.0

The following updates have been made when playing the game on Nintendo Switch 2:

General

• Added support for the Nintendo Switch 2 Edition.
• Added support for the Portuguese (Brazil) system language setting.
  • Because Portuguese is not a supported voice language, if you select the Match System Settings option in the game, the voice content will use English.
• Several other issues have been addressed to improve the gameplay experience.

The following updates have been made when playing the game on Nintendo Switch:

General

• Added support for the Portuguese (Brazil) system language setting.
  • Because Portuguese is not a supported voice language, if you select the Match System Settings option in the game, the voice content will use English.
• Several other issues have been addressed to improve the gameplay experience.

Pikmin 3 Deluxe - Version 1.1.2

The following updates have been made when playing the game on Nintendo Switch 2:

General

• Partially alleviated an issue that occurs when playing on Nintendo Switch 2 where the entire screen flickers during some scenes in the game, such as when a day starts and ends.
  • We will be releasing an update in the near feature to fix this completely.

Note: An update addressing the problem above has not been distributed for “Pikmin 3 Deluxe Demo ver.” However, we plan to perform the same fix as the full game in a future update.

Super Mario Wonder - Version 1.0.2

The following updates have been made when playing the game on Nintendo Switch 2:

General

• Several adjustments have been made to improve gameplay on Nintendo Switch 2.

Kirby's Dream Buffet - Version 1.0.0a

The following updates have been made when playing the game on Nintendo Switch 2:

General

• Several adjustments have been made to improve gameplay on Nintendo Switch 2.

Note: The version number in the lower right of the software title screen is still Ver. 1.0.0. The version number displayed in the software menu on the HOME Screen will display 1.0.0a if the update is applied.

Kirby Star Allies - Version 4.0.0a

The following updates have been made when playing the game on Nintendo Switch 2:

General

• Several adjustments have been made to improve gameplay on Nintendo Switch 2.

Note: The version number in the lower right of the software title screen is still Ver. 4.0.0. The version number displayed in the software menu on the HOME Screen will display 4.0.0a if the update is applied.

Super Mario 3D All-Stars - Version 1.1.2

The following updates have been made when playing the game on Nintendo Switch 2:

General

• Several adjustments have been made to improve gameplay on Nintendo Switch 2.

Note: The software update is required to play on Nintendo Switch 2.

Xenoblade Chronicles 3 - Version 2.2.1

The following updates have been made when playing the game on Nintendo Switch 2:

General

• Several adjustments have been made to improve gameplay on Nintendo Switch 2.

ARMS - Version 5.51

The following updates have been made when playing the game on Nintendo Switch 2:

General

• Visuals: Optimized for the Nintendo Switch 2 display and high-resolution TVs for improved image quality.
• Frame rate: Optimized for Nintendo Switch 2 for smoother movement (even when playing with 3 or more players).
• Note: HDR-compatible display required when playing in TV mode.

*Compatible with Ver. 5.4.1 for "local communication" and "LAN play". Not compatible with Ver. 5.4.0 or earlier for "local communication" and "LAN play". Please be aware of the versions of each other's update data.

Big Brain Academy: Brain vs. Brain - Version 1.2.0

The following updates have been made when playing the game on Nintendo Switch 2:

General

• Added support for GameShare.
  • Party Mode content can be played with up to 4 users.
  • The user who will host the GameShare session should select “GameShare” on the mode selection screen after launching the software. They can then choose to use GameShare with Local Users or with GameChat members.

Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker - Version 1.4.0

The following updates have been made when playing the game on Nintendo Switch 2:

General

• Visuals: Optimized for the Nintendo Switch 2 display and high-resolution TVs for improved image quality.
• HDR (High Dynamic Range) support for improved image contrast and brightness.
  • Note: HDR-compatible display required when playing in TV mode.
• Added support for GameShare.
  • Two people can play all the courses, and each person can have their own unique display that is easier to see.
  • The person sharing can press the - button on the title screen or course select screen or go to "Partner Adventure" in the pause menu and select "GameShare + Local Play" or "GameShare + GameChat."

Club House Games: 51 Worldwide Classics - Version 2.0.0

The following updates have been made when playing the game on Nintendo Switch 2:

General

• Added Korean as a supported language.
• Added support for GameShare:
  • You can play 34 kinds of games with up to 4 players.
  • The user who will host the GameShare session should select “GameShare” from the main menu, then “Via GameChat” or “Play With Local Users”.

The following updates have been made when playing the game on Nintendo Switch:

General

• Added Korean as a supported language.
• Several other adjustments and revisions have been made to improve the gameplay experience.

Note: Update data with the above content will also be distributed for the demo “Clubhouse Games: Guest Pass” as Ver. 2.0.0d.

Game Builder Garage - Version 1.1.0

The following updates have been made when playing the game on Nintendo Switch 2:

General

• Visuals: Optimized for the Nintendo Switch 2 display and high-resolution TVs for improved image quality.
• Added support for Joy-Con 2 mouse controls. Up to 8 Joy-Con 2 can be used. (As up to now, 1 USB mouse can be used, as well.)
• As a result of improved processing speed, there may be some changes in behavior in games that were made previously on Nintendo Switch.

Note: An update is also available for the Game Builder Garage Demo version to support the content above (Ver. 1.1.0).

New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe - Version 1.2.0

The following updates have been made when playing the game on Nintendo Switch 2:

General

• Visuals: Optimized for the Nintendo Switch 2 display and high-resolution TVs for improved image quality.

Pokémon Scarlet and Violet

To make playing on Nintendo Switch 2 more enjoyable, we have implemented the following features:

• The frame rate has been improved, making the movement smoother.
• Higher resolution makes the graphics clearer.

*Even if you play on Nintendo Switch, you will need to download the latest update data to play online elements.
*Local communication is not compatible with previous versions. Please make sure that you and the people you play with have the same version of the update data.

Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury - Version 1.2.0

The following updates have been made when playing the game on Nintendo Switch 2:

General

• Visuals: Optimized for the Nintendo Switch 2 display and high-resolution TVs for improved image quality.
• Frame rate: Optimized for smoother movement on Nintendo Switch 2 (including Bowser's Fury).
• HDR (High Dynamic Range) support for improved image contrast and brightness (Bowser’s Fury only).
  • Note: HDR-compatible display required when playing in TV mode.
• Added support for GameShare.
  • You can play “Super Mario 3D World” with up to four people. Press R on the course select screen for “Local/Online,” and then choose “GameShare + Local Users” or “GameShare + GameChat.”
  • In “Bowser’s Fury,” two players can play, with one controlling Mario while the other controls Bowser Jr. Once you can control Mario, press the + button to open “Menu,” and then choose “Local/Online,” and then choose “GameShare + Local Users” or “GameShare + GameChat.”

Note: Does have local user compatibility with Ver. 1.1.0. Does not have local user compatibility with Ver. 1.0.0. Please be careful of the update version on each player’s system.

Super Mario Odyssey - Version 1.4.0

The following updates have been made when playing the game on Nintendo Switch 2:

General

• Visuals: Optimized for the Nintendo Switch 2 display and high-resolution TVs for improved image quality.
• HDR (High Dynamic Range) support for improved image contrast and brightness.
  • Note: HDR-compatible display required when playing in TV mode.
• Added support for GameShare.
  • Two players can play, with one controlling Mario while the other controls Cappy.
  • The user who will host the GameShare session should select “Resume 2P” on the title screen or “Two Players” on the Pause menu, then select “GameShare + Local Play” or “GameShare + GameChat”.

Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom - Version 1.1.0

The following updates have been made when playing the game on Nintendo Switch 2:

General

• Added a feature to display only favorited echoes in the list of echoes after 30 or more echoes have been learned.
• Visuals: Optimized for the Nintendo Switch 2 display and high-resolution TVs for improved image quality.
• Note: HDR-compatible display required when playing in TV mode.
• Fixed various issues to create a smoother gaming experience.

The following updates have been made when playing the game on Nintendo Switch:

General

• Added a feature to display only favorited echoes in the list of echoes after 30 or more echoes have been learned.
• Fixed various issues to create a smoother gaming experience.

Zelda: Link's Awakening - Version 1.1.0

The following updates have been made when playing the game on Nintendo Switch 2:

General

• Visuals: Optimized for the Nintendo Switch 2 display and high-resolution TVs for improved image quality.
• Note: HDR-compatible display required when playing in TV mode.

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

Kinetic Games' terrifying ghost investigation game, Phasmophobia, is getting the Hollywood treatment.

Horror specialist Blumhouse — the credits of which include Five Nights at Freddy's, The Conjuring, and M3gan — has partnered with the UK developer to create a feature film adaptation. At the moment, nothing else is known, so we're not yet sure who'll be writing or directing it, let alone starring in the movie.

“It’s a big moment for the whole Kinetic team, and the start of something really exciting,” said Daniel "Dknighter" Knight, director of Kinetic Games. “We never could’ve imagined the incredible heights this game would reach when it launched five years ago, and we’re so thankful to our amazing community for the lasting impact Phasmophobia has had in the gaming space and beyond.

"Working with Blumhouse and Atomic Monster marks an incredible new chapter for the game, and we can’t wait to share more as the project develops.”

Phasmophobia is a four-player online co-op psychological horror where you and your team of paranormal investigators enter haunted locations filled with spooky activity and gather as much evidence of the paranormal as you can. Since it launched in early access in 2020, spawning a new genre of ghost hunting games, it's passed 23 million sales thanks to its blend of co-op horror and investigative gameplay. Later this month, we'll get the Chronicle update, which overhauls evidence, the journal, and levelling and progression.

Phasmophobia even made IGN's 25 best horror games ever made list… do you agree with our placement?

We didn't have a great time with Blumhouse's last big horror game adaptation; we gave Five Nights at Freddy's a 4/10: "This big-screen take on the indie-horror sensation has too much plot and not enough of the game's primal security-cam thrills." A second Freddy's move is out in December 2025.

Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, as well as a critic, columnist, and consultant with 15+ years experience working with some of the world's biggest gaming sites and publications. She's also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps director Matt Shakman has commented on whether Robert Downey Jr's Doctor Doom will make an appearance in the upcoming movie, and seemingly confirmed the character will be absent.

But Shakman's awkwardly-phrased response has left fans doubting the director's words.

When asked about Doom's presence within The Fantastic Four: First Steps by Empire magazine, Shakman stated: "Doom is not a part of my film, and therefore not a part of my purview" (thanks, ComicBookMovie).

On the surface, this response looks pretty definitive. Doom is not part of the film Shakman made, and also therefore not something the director can discuss. But fans have been quick to point towards the post-credit scene added to Thunderbolts*/The New Avengers just weeks before its launch — which wasn't technically a part of the film its director made either.

Indeed, pre-production on the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday (which definitely does feature Downey Jr's Doctor Doom) began with its directors, the Russo brothers, filming Thunderbolts' post-credits scene that links that film with The Fantastic Four.

As the run-up to Avengers: Doomsday continues, fans think the Russo brothers may have done exactly the same thing with The Fantastic Four: First Steps, including a scene revealing Doctor Doom to link it forward into Doomsday.

Fans have also pointed to the fact that, in the Marvel comics, Doom is a key antagonist for the Fantastic Four, and in particular its leader Reed Richards. If Doom was to debut anywhere, the end of First Steps would be fitting.

And then there's the fact that, when faced with otherwise confirming what would be a huge reveal, Shakman is clearly limited in what he can say. Will Doom pop up? Whatever the film's director may be saying, it feels likely we'll have to wait until the film's July 25, 2025 launch date to find out for certain.

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

The Nintendo Switch 2’s launch is imminent, and with it, free Switch 2 updates for more than ten existing games from the original Switch’s library. A pair of these are Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet, which are pretty widely criticized for their relatively poor performance on the Switch. I got to play the newly updated Pokémon Scarlet on the Nintendo Switch 2 for thirty minutes, and the Switch 2 upgrades are incredibly clear.

The official Nintendo website says the free Switch 2 updates for Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet include:

• “Visuals: Optimized for the Nintendo Switch 2 display and high-resolution TVs for improved image quality.”
• “Frame rate: Improved for smoother movement on Nintendo Switch 2.”

The vague description definitely put me off at first, but now I know Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet on the Nintendo Switch 2 run in 4K at 60FPS. Or, at least, those are the settings–I didn’t have the equipment to measure if that 60FPS is indeed steady–but by the naked eye, I can still recognize it as markedly improved. As soon as I loaded into the game, on a huge 4K TV, I was stunned by how nice everything looked. No jagged pixelated edges on blades of grass, or even Pokémon, here.

The Switch 2 updates have also increased the number of Pokémon that can appear on screen, and from a further distance. For instance, flying over Casseroya Lake on the Switch 2 was a drastically different experience compared to on the Switch: I saw numerous Pokémon swim along the surface from a distance and didn’t experience any noticeable stuttering once I began to swim. Even when it began to rain, Pokémon Scarlet on the Switch 2 still didn’t struggle even a little. In fact, it continued playing like normal, as if the weather effects were meant to just… work.

The framerate improvements are especially immediately obvious when viewing faraway moving objects, like the windmills by West Province (Area One) - Central, or distant Pokémon and people. I also didn’t experience stalling or glitches when in a raid battle or when Terastalizing. I didn’t get to play online or co-op, however, so we’ve yet to see if the updates improved those aspects (that desperately need it.)

Visuals are subjective, so there’s only so much I can say to emphasize that the difference is certainly noticeable, but you can watch the comparison video on this page. I can also report on some favorable loading time comparisons that will let you judge for yourself.

These approximate comparisons are between Pokémon Violet running on a V2 Switch (the Monster Hunter Rise special edition, specifically) in 1080p, and Pokémon Scarlet running on a brand new Nintendo Switch 2 in 4K.

Loading from title screen:

• Switch: 19 seconds
• Switch 2: 5 seconds

Fast travel from North Province (Area One) to Casseroya Lake:

• Switch: 9 seconds
• Switch 2: 4 seconds

Fast travel from Blueberry Academy to Paldea:

• Switch: 17 seconds
• Switch 2: 5 seconds

Besides the fast travel loading time improvements, the menus are also so much snappier. Models in menus load in pretty much immediately, a stark contrast to the agonizing seconds you’d have to wait on the original Switch between trying on clothes in the menu; or hairstyles or accessories in stores.

It’s a corker of a week for gaming discounts (and very imminent console launches). Basically, your backlog is about to get even heavier. From experimental indies to sprawling open worlds, the savings this week are spread across all platforms like butter on warm banana bread. And with some of these titles dipping to historic lows, it’s not a bad time to fill in the gaps in your shelf (digital or otherwise).

This Day in Gaming 🎂

In retro news, I'm celebrating the 16th birthday of Infamous, a PS3 exclusive that I refuse to inexplicably capitalise as inFamous or inFAMOUS (no wait, just did...God damn it). My overriding memory of this super sandboxer from Sucker Punch was that it was edgier and more mature than its Sly Cooper stablemate. Also, it went more or less head-to-head against Radical Entertainment's Prototype.

Despite not letting me flying kick gunships like Alex Mercer, I loved Infamous over its more mean-spirited (and morale-system-less) competitor. There was a real joy of movement to zipping about Empire City as Cole, the newly minted Electro super. SP also wove a compelling tale with a decent twist that drew from two absolute money DC Comics, DMZ and Batman: No Man's Land. It's a sin this joy-sparking classic hasn't been remastered properly for modern audiences.

• Monster Hunter Rise (-75%) - A$14.90
• Disco Elysium – The Final Cut (-70%) - A$18
• Dragon Ball FighterZ (-44%) - A$50.20
• Into the Breach (-70%) - A$5.20
• Ni No Kuni: WotWW (-84%) - A$14.30
• Hot Wheels Unleashed 2 (-41%) - A$47

Expiring Recent Deals

• Lego Horizon Adventures (-51%) - A$53.80
• Cyberpunk 2077 Ult. Switch 2 (-5%) - A$114
• MGS: Master Col. Vol. 1 (-51%) - A$44.30
• Bravely Default II (-21%) - A$63.20
• Expeditions: A MudRunner Game (-31%) - A$59
• Biomutant (-20%) - A$48
• NBA 2K25 - A$29

Or gift a Nintendo eShop Card.

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Have you won the battle to secure a Nintendo Switch 2 preorder? Well, now it's time to set your sights on the new Pro Controller, which is also available starting today. It's currently orderable via Target, Walmart, Gamestop, and Best Buy for $84.99 with a release date of June 5. Just like the Switch 2 console itself, we expect this item to become much harder to find and possibly more expensive if tariffs go back up, so this may very well be the best opportunity to secure one.

Preorder the Nintendo Switch 2 Pro Controller

In a huge reveal at this week’s Unreal Fest Orlando, Epic Games and developer CD Projekt Red showcased a technical demonstration of The Witcher 4. Built in Unreal Engine 5 using many of the latest tools and technologies, it offers a window into the future of The Witcher; not just in terms of what Ciri’s saga will (hopefully) look like, but also the people we’ll meet, the places we’ll go, and the general vibe of the game we’ll one day get our hands on.

There was plenty to see in the 14 minutes of demonstration footage, so we’re here to break it down with the help of CD Projekt Red and Epic Games. Here are the 10 most important things we’ve learned about The Witcher 4 and its new tech demo.

1. The Demo is Not Gameplay

The demo we saw was played live on stage by CD Projekt Red’s Cinematic Director, Kajetan Kapuściński. But while Kapuściński was literally moving Ciri around the game world, the studio is keen to emphasise that the demo is not a true slice of the game. While the mountain region, forest, and port town you saw will be part of The Witcher 4, the quest being played and the characters Ciri interacts with may not be featured in the final game.

As Kapuściński explains to me, this “was a demo that [CD Projekt Red and Epic Games] crafted so both companies can work on some technology that will be powering The Witcher 4 in the future. So it's not gameplay of The Witcher 4, per se.”

So if it’s not gameplay, what can we learn from it? “It shows our artistic direction and how we would like to approach some things,” Kapuściński explains. And so everything you see – the scope of the world, the density of the foliage, the way Ciri and NPCs react to each other, and how cinematic cutscenes blend with the interactive parts – is CD Project Red’s ambition. It’s how the studio currently envisions the game and what the team is working towards.

“But everything you saw is subject to be changed, because that is a snippet of what we have now,” Kapuściński says. In short, this is not a full representation of the final version of The Witcher 4.

2. Will The Witcher 4 Look Like That?

The visual quality of this tech demo is astonishing, but we’ve been here before. Many people will remember the first footage of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt or Cyberpunk 2077, which turned out to be more ambitious, at least visually, than the final product. In The Witcher 4’s case, it’s especially easy to be skeptical, as this demonstration was running on a regular PlayStation 5 (not even a PS5 Pro!) at 60 frames per second. I asked Wyeth Johnson, Senior Director of Product Strategy at Epic Games, if this quality was genuinely something players could expect to experience on a base PS5.

“Oh absolutely. We can't lie here,” he says. “I mean the technology that we're making has to be directly relevant for what players expect, and players across the entire hardware spectrum are asking for amazing 60 frames per second gameplay.”

The new advancements in Unreal Engine 5.6 are allowing developers to run complex tech more efficiently. As explained in an Unreal blog post, “The Hardware Ray Tracing (HWRT) system enhancements are designed to deliver even greater performance for Lumen Global Illumination. By eliminating key CPU bottlenecks, you can author more complex scenes while maintaining a smoother 60 FPS frame rate.” The promise of all this is that the experiences that are currently typically locked behind a 30 frames-per-second ‘Quality’ mode will be available at 60fps – all without requiring new hardware.

“The goal that we set at the very beginning, to make this demo and play it live on a standard PlayStation 5 in 60 frames per second, that was a challenge on its own,” says Kapuściński. “And pushing towards that allowed us to achieve these optimizations that allow us to use technology on a bigger scale.”

3. We're Headed North. Very North

The technical demo takes place in Kovir, a region in the very north of The Continent, the world in which The Witcher takes place. It’s situated north-west of the lands of Redania and Temeria, locations you’ll be familiar with from The Witcher 3. Its mountainous terrain is resource-rich, and so mining is one of the kingdom’s key industries. Kovir is the world’s leading exporter of minerals, and among those minerals is salt; you’ll have noticed that Ciri’s quest in this demonstration is to investigate a salt merchant’s missing cargo.

Fans of The Witcher books have waited a long time to visit Kovir, but creating it for a video game is no easy task. As Game Director Sebastian Kalemba explained as part of the demonstration, “So much of The Witcher world is natural, organic, especially Kovir with its dense forests and wild nature.” The Witcher 3 featured some grand woodland environments that remain impressive even 10 years later, but the forest shown in this demo is a league ahead of them. It stretches as far as the eye can see, with detailed pine trees creating a blanket of green through the mountain’s ravine. Both vertically and horizontally, there’s an astonishing amount of foliage detail.

“I think for the Witcher franchise, the forest is definitely the soul of the game,” says Charles Tremblay, VP of Technology at CD Projekt Red. “And this is something that we were struggling [with] since the beginning of the project. How are we going to make the next generation of foliage?” The answer was Nanite Foliage, a new Unreal technology that has a whole new approach to how assets like leaves, flowers, and pine needles are loaded into the environment. It allows for a much more detailed natural world without the need for constant load times and pop-in – and it was that that has helped CD Project Red work on a seamless forest environment that is so richly detailed.

4. A Horse Named Kelpie

For hundreds of hours we travelled around The Continent on a very beloved steed. But Roach was Geralt’s horse. Ciri needs her own mount, and luckily she has one. Kelpie is a black horse and we can see her in action for the first time in this tech demo. While Kelpie is new to the games, this horse has roots in The Witcher books. Originally belonging to a member of the Guild of Merchants named Hotspurn, Ciri took ownership of Kelpie when he died. Recognised as a magnificent horse wherever she goes, Kelpie’s best trick is that she can be summoned by rubbing a magical bracelet (it’s as if she were written to be a video game horse).

In the books, Kelpie is said to be able to jump over seven-foot-tall walls with ease. Anyone who’s played The Witcher 3 will tell you that’s an impossibility with Roach – he’s more likely to disappear and end up on a roof. And so all this begs the question: will Kelpie be easier and more enjoyable to control than Geralt’s old steed?

“No offense to Roach, but when you have this jank it can get you out of the immersion, that's for sure,” admits Tremblay. “We want [players] to explore the world with [Kelpie] as a companion and it has to be close to perfection, for sure.” New tech like Unreal’s multi-character motion matching should hopefully ensure riding Kelpie is a smooth experience.

Like so many of The Witcher’s creatures, Kelpie has a mythological connection. In Scottish folklore, a Kelpie is a shape-shifting water spirit that has the ability to disguise itself as a horse when on dry land. Could this name hint at Kelpie also being able to take Ciri across spans of water? We’ll just have to wait and see.

5. The Quest and The Manticore

As we’ve established, this showcase is a technical demonstration rather than a slice of the game, and so there’s not really a quest to see, at least not in the game sense of the word. But Kalemba wanted to ensure the demo had a sense of narrative running through it – this is CD Projekt Red, after all.

“The big challenge was how to make a tech demo, but in a way that we'll also be able to incorporate story and bits and pieces from this world,” he explains. “I love that narrative layer in this entire piece, [it] actually even helps to boost the technical achievements behind the entire demo.”

In that narrative layer, we see that Ciri has taken on a classic bit of Witcher work. She’s accepted a contract from a salt merchant to find his missing cargo and crew. Unluckily for him, both his salt and men are long gone. Luckily for Ciri, their grisly fate arrived via the blood-soaked jaws of a manticore. And, as we all know, killing monsters is exactly what Witchers are known for.

It’s a pleasant surprise to see a manticore in this demo. Production materials that were leaked during the development of The Witcher 3 suggested that manticores were planned to be part of Wild Hunt, but they were cut from the final game. While this tech demonstration is by no means confirmation of anything appearing in The Witcher 4, we at the very least have been able to see one of the beasts rendered in Unreal Engine 5. Hopefully we’ll get to fight it in the final version of the game.

Including this quest was important to Kalemba. “One of the common denominators between the writing [in the] books and the games is a cocktail of genres. It's a cocktail of experience,” he says. The reveal trailer shown at The Game Awards last year, he explains, was a more “grounded” experience that showed the ugly realities of living in the world of The Witcher. “Here you have this adventurous vibe, you know what I mean?”

6. Welcome to Valdrest, Population: Over 300

As Ciri adventures through Kovir, she returns to Valdrest, the port town that’s home to the trader who gave her the salt contract. It’s also home to over 300 other people, thanks to a whole host of tech optimisations and Unreal Engine’s new animation framework. That means larger, more realistic crowds – Novigrad will hopefully feel primitive in comparison.

Among the town’s population we see men, women, and children, a marketplace full of traders and guards, several dwarves, a few sex workers, entertainers, and a number of different animals, including a tamed bear. Perhaps most impressive is the variety of body types and unique animations on display; it feels like everyone is an individual, something emphasised by unique characteristics, such as a disabled man walking with a crutch, or a mother wrapping her arm around her child. It’s an example of Epic’s metahuman technology bringing ever-increasingly lifelike and varied characters to video games. Something that can also be seen in the way they interact with each other…

7. A Responsive, Living World

The NPCs in Valdrest are interesting for many reasons beyond just their visual variety. As Kalemba explained during the demo, “Notice how responsive the world is. Character actions directly affect what happens around you, sometimes even setting off chain reactions. Everything is working together.” We see this in action as Ciri bumps into a merchant carrying a crate of apples, which causes him to lose balance and drop his fruit all over the floor. The apples, fully rendered with physics, begin to roll down the hill. A nearby chicken, startled by the noise, clucks and flaps away.

We also see how NPCs can react to Ciri – upon spotting her, a guard says “Oh bugger, not her again,” and spits at Ciri as she walks past. It’s reactive behaviour like this that helps sell a Witcher’s shadowy reputation. Many people are prejudiced against these mutated monster hunters. “The idea is that there are physical interactions that when you get poked at, you get a reaction to it in a way that feels plausible to you,” says Johnson. “All of these things keep you in the world.”

There are a number of other cool events we see, such as a man being thrown out of a tavern (apparently for cheating at Gwent – does this mean our beloved card game will be back for another round?). It’s unclear if these behaviours are scripted or dynamic based on schedules or routines à la The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion, and when asked, CD Projekt Red would not say what its ambitions were there. But the goal is a living, breathing world.

“For us, the world words we are creating, it's super important for us to actually make them as vivid and as believable as possible,” says Kapuściński. “Naturally behaving, properly looking NPCs are an important part of it. So yeah, we've proved that with previous games, and we're not aiming any lower than that.”

8. Seamless Cinematics

Because this is a technical demonstration and not actual gameplay, we didn’t see a lot of “game” – you’ll no doubt have noticed how the camera swung away from Ciri’s conversation with the merchant before any kind of dialogue system and UI could be shown. But what we did see is a vision of how dialogue sequences in The Witcher 4 will begin, and it’s completely seamless. The Witcher 3 featured brief loading screens as it transitioned from the gameplay camera to the cinematic camera, but all that’s gone now thanks to Unreal Engine’s tools. Now, as Ciri approaches the geographic trigger point for a dialogue – in this case, a balustrade – the camera automatically ‘unhooks’ itself from its regular game position behind Ciri and begins to frame the scene as required for the cinematic.

CD Projekt Red first achieved seamless game-to-cinematic transitions in Cyberpunk 2077, where it was vital to maintaining the first-person immersion. While things are a little different here, thanks to the third-person perspective, it’s cool to see the studio’s vision for keeping the experience flowing naturally.

9. A Small Gift for All Witcher Fans

Right at the end of the demo, Kalemba said that the demo was going to finish with “a small gift for all Witcher fans.” That gift was a first look at Lan Exeter.

While it is briefly mentioned by characters in both The Witcher 3 and its expansion, Blood and Wine, this is the first time we are seeing this grand city rendered for a video game. Lan Exeter is a port city in Kovir and the kingdom’s winter capital (there is also a summer capital, called Pont Vanis) that features in Andrzej Sapkowski’s Witcher books. With no pedestrian walkways, the only way to navigate Lan Exeter is via its canal network. Unsurprisingly, the city is essentially a wintry, fantasy Venice.

The Great Canal that runs through Lan Exeter leads to a number of important places, but the most important of them all is Ensenada Palace; the residence of the King of Kovir and Poviss. On the boat ride to the palace, a visitor would also be able to see the grand homes of many admirals and business magnates. It seems a sure bet that we’ll be visiting at least one or two of those estates when we visit Lan Exeter in The Witcher 4.

10. The Next Generation of Open World RPGs

As the demo draws to a close, Kalemba says, “I think what we’re doing together [with Epic Games] is going to bring in a new generation of open world RPGs.” But what exactly does that mean?

“For us, story [and] quest is always key,” says Tremblay. “And now with the immersion, we want people to experience this world, but the technology should not be in the way. We want people to feel like they belong to this world, they interact with the world, that they can experience the emotion of the character, feeling that they are connected to the story. With our partnership and all the tools we build and all the technology, I think it'll be yet another level for us going forward.”

“For us, we don't want to get in the way of artistic vision,” says Johnson. “We want everybody who uses Unreal Engine to come at the tools and the technology unburdened by what they imagine and believe that it can't do. We want [them] to come to the technology with a vision of ‘Here's what we want to achieve. We're going to dream big, and we hope that the engine moves out of our way as efficiently and effectively as possible and allows us to achieve it.’”

Matt Purslow is IGN's Senior Features Editor.

Summer officially starts in just a couple of weeks, the Nintendo Switch 2 drops this week, and PlayStation’s Days of Play sale is happening, so there’s a lot to be hyped about. If you’ve been looking to grab a new DualSense controller or want to prep for your Switch 2 pre-order with thumb grips and a screen protector, the discounts are big. Maybe you want to get a fun gift before Father’s Day on the 15th. Well, I found some deals on a LEGO kit, Blackstone Grill, and video game worth checking out.

TL;DR: Best Deals Today

Balmy nights are ahead of us, and there’s a great deal on an outdoor projector to enjoy movies under the stars. For those planning to take fun trips this summer, a security camera system for peace of mind while you're away is on sale, and you can score big savings on a portable charger to ensure you’re never without a charge when out on adventures. That’s not all, as there are plenty of savings to be had on a range of products. Check them out below:

Samsung SSD 9100 PRO 2TB

LEGO Marvel Captain America’s Shield

Arlo Pro 5S 2K Spotlight Camera 4-pack

NISOO Projector with WiFi and Bluetooth

One Beat Power Strip Surge Protector

The Day the Earth Blew Up - A Looney Tunes Movie Blu-ray

Nintendo Switch 2 Accessory Deals

Blackstone ProSeries 2-Burner 22" Griddle

Suikoden I & II HD Remastered

DualSense Controller Deals

PlayStation’s Days of Play sale continues, bringing some killer discounts on games and accessories. So, if you’ve been waiting to grab a new DualSense controller, now’s the time. A wide range of colors are all discounted below $60 for savings of $15 or more. These are the biggest deals we’ve seen this year on this wireless gamepad that’s comfortable to use, compatible with a range of gaming devices, and full of reliable controls.

Anker Zolo USB Power Bank

Modern mobile gaming has been around for nearly 20 years, and in that time we've seen it evolve from simple time-wasters into full-fledged console-quality experiences in the palm of your hand. Today, the mobile landscape is bigger than ever, dominated by free-to-play titles constantly competing for your attention.

When Apple Arcade launched in 2019, it set out to offer a premium alternative, delivering a curated library of games with no in-app purchases or ads. Since then, it has quietly become one of the best gaming subscription services available, with hundreds of high-quality titles included in the monthly fee.

Read on for a full breakdown of Apple Arcade, including standout games, supported devices, and how to activate the free trial.

Does Apple Arcade Have a Free Trial?

HP currently has the best prices on GeForce RTX 5070 Ti and RTX 5080 equipped gaming PCs thanks to a 20% off coupon code that works on a customizable prebuilt desktop configuration. The Omen 35L RTX 5070 Ti gaming PC starts at $1,655.99 shipped after you apply a 20% off coupon code: "LEVELUP20". Alternatively, the Omen 35L RTX 5080 RTX 5080 gaming PC starts at $1,975.99 shipped after you apply the same coupon. Both gaming PCs will be able to run pretty much any game currently released in 4K resolution at framerates of 60fps and beyond.

HP Omen 35L RTX 5070 Ti Gaming PC for $1,655.99

Bowflex isn't the only option when it comes to adjustable dumbbell sets. FitRX is another popular brand at a much lower price point. Right now, you can pick up a pair of FitRx Adjustable Dumbbells for only $196 (or a single dumbbell for $98). A comparable set of Bowflex 551 adjustable dumbbells costs more than double the price. Walmart even offers free shipping, which is great since the package weighs in at well over 100 pounds.

Pair of FitRX Adjustable Dumbbells (52.5lbs Each)

Finding the best gifts for everyone in your life can be tricky. If you're on the hunt for the best gifts for readers, however, it's a little easier. People who love books love book gifts, plain and simple.

Personally, I'm what you may consider a binge reader. I usually go through about three to five books per month, and if I find a new series I really like, that number will shoot up quickly. All of this reading means I can never have too many books and book accessories and I have a decent idea of what gifts readers will love. Below, I've outlined some of the most enticing book gift ideas I've found for 2025, including but not limited to the Kindle Paperwhite, bookends, book lights, and of course, a few books. As a dad myself I can honestly say any of these options would make a good Father's Day gift I would cherish.

Collectible Illustrated Editions

LEGO Book Nook Sets

LEGO just recently released a three new book nook sets that make for wonderful gifts. The concept of the book nook isn't exactly new, but it's a first for LEGO and they are actually really cool builds. So far there is a Lord of the Rings set, a Harry Potter set, and a Sherlock Holmes set available. Each one offers a glimpse into something iconic from those franchises and is specifically made to sit on your shelf among your books. My personal favorite out of all of these is the Hogwarts Express set because it can function as book nook or really cool set of bookends, but all three of them are wonderful in their own ways.

Popular Book Box Sets

A Good E-Reader

A Cool Set of Bookends

Must-Have Book Accessories

Looking for more gift ideas? We've gathered a ton of cool book acessories below. This includes things like bookmarks, reading lights, and other things that can improve the reading experience.

Jacob Kienlen is a Senior SEO Strategist and Writer for IGN. Born and raised in Portland, Oregon, he has considered the Northwest his home for his entire life. His expertise is spread across a variety of different topics -- from TV series to indie games and popular book series.

This year Father's Day lands on June 15. There's still plenty of time to shop around for a great gift for dad, and what better gift than a brand new iPad. Amazon has dropped the prices on a couple of the newest models ahead of this momentous of occasions. The Apple iPad, a March 2025 release, is down to $299 after a $50 off instant discount. Both 11" and 13" Apple iPad Air, also March 2025 releases, are down to $499 and $699, respectively, after a $100 off instant discount. Sizeable discounts on currently model iPads are relatively uncommon, so get in on this deal while it lasts.

$50 Off New 2025 Apple iPad 10.9" (A16) Tablet

For most people, the iPad (not the Air, Mini, or Pro) is the best model to get because it offers all the benefits of iOS as well as snappy performance at an affordable price. The current generation model was released on March 12, 2025, over two years after the previous generation (October 2022). The upgrades include a more powerful processor (A16 vs A14), more RAM (6GB vs 4GB), and more storage (128GB vs 64GB), all. Best of all, the launch price of $349 is actually lower than when the previous generation model was released, which was $399.

The specs that have carried over are the 10.9" Liquid Retina 2360x1640 (264ppi) display, USB Type-C charging, Wi-Fi 6 connectivity, and the same camera. It's also compatible with the Magic Folio keyboard so you can convert it into a mini laptop for better workflow, making it one of the best iPads for students, and the newer Apple Pencil with USB-C.

$100 Off the 2025 iPad Air M3 Tablet

Amazon is offering the 7th generation Apple iPad Air M3 tablets at the lowest prices I've seen so far. The 11" model is down to $499 and the 13" model is down to $699, both after a $100 off instant discount. That's the best price we've seen for this 2025 model with the M3 chip. The 7th gen iPad Pro Air was released in March and is the current generation model. It's only one year newer than the 6th gen model and the only major upgrade is the jump from the M2 to the M3 chip.

A Magnificent Life will open in theaters at a date TBD. This review is based on a screening at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival.

Despite clocking in at a mere 90 minutes, the animated biopic A Magnificent Life captures a lifetime of personal and artistic struggles. Its story of French playwright and film innovator Marcel Pagnol bucks convention not only by taking delightful, hand-drawn form but by producing a pitch-perfect marriage between filmmaker and subject. It’s as much about its director, four-time Oscar nominee Sylvain Chomet, as it is Pagnol – two kindred spirits cutting a winding path back and forth across the decades.

Chomet’s thoughtful framing device introduces us to a 60-year-old Pagnol in 1955, hastily attempting to write an autobiographical essay whose deadline has long passed. Throughout A Magnificent Life, Pagnol is plagued by a challenge familiar to great artists and ordinary people alike: figuring out what he has to say. Fortunately, there’s another great artist in the director’s chair here. The plot Chomet comes up with feels like his own, satisfying answer to this dilemma, which initially takes shape as Pagnol speaking to a ghostly vision of his younger self.

As both Chomet and Pagnol search for ways to fit a rich portrait of a life into a relatively small frame, the young Marcel takes us back to the early 20th century. After the death of his mother, Pagnol leaves his rural hometown near Marseille to pursue his creative dreams in Paris. Chomet shows the bustling metropolis testing both his subject’s artistic mettle and his ability to stay true to his cultural roots, a tug-of-war that takes shape in dialogue about the bumbling hayseed caricatures in Pagnol’s plays retaining or losing their native Marseille accents. At times, Pagnol struggles with his accent too, while trying to fit in with the city’s artistic upper crust.

This might not mean much to non-French speakers, or those unfamiliar with regional French dialects, but the distinction is part of what makes A Magnificent Life unique. Some movies teach you how to watch them, but this one teaches you how to listen to it: Enough of the dialogue focuses on the specific nuances of how people in France speak – for instance, the “springiness” of the Marseille dialect – that your ear might eventually pick up on them. The difference can be heard in the English dub, too, where the Parisian characters speak with posh London accents, while characters from Marseille speak with a more sing-song, Welsh tonality. But even this localization seemingly has some consideration behind it: In the 1980s, Chomet moved from the French suburbs to London to start his animation career. It might be a small thing, but it makes the director’s personal connection to his tale of a transplanted artist even more apparent.

Pagnol’s story makes for a perfect mirror to Chomet’s: The former sought reality and emotional truth through exaggerations of speech and behavior, while the latter does so by exaggerating bodies and gestures. Chomet is perhaps best known for his dazzling 2003 animated feature The Triplets of Belleville, which established his signature, distorted sendups of the human form (including secret agents that would eventually influence the look of the Kingpin in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse). A Magnificent Life is composed of incredibly detailed backdrops painted with light and shadow, a true-to-life environment populated by larger-than-life characters with distinctly-shaped noses – Pagnol’s profile, for instance, is immediately recognizable – and wide, expressive eyes that betray a deep exhaustion and longing. Various locations within the film draw on the imagery of magazines and political cartoons from the time period, and footage from Pagnol’s live-action films play for eager animated audiences – brilliant traces of an unfamiliar world (and unfamiliar proportions) bleeding into the frame.

This contrast yields an intriguing magical realism at times, like when Pagnol reads letters from his late mother – a force of encouragement, long missing from his daily life – and imagines her physical presence within the paper. A Magnificent Life exists along the border separating fact from fiction and Chomet’s life from Pagnol’s, a line as fragile as the one the movie walks by imagining Marcel as the unseen hand behind coincidental, perhaps even fated meetings that influence his older self’s success. The impish, Peter Pan-like figure’s significance diminishes as A Magnificent Life goes on; dismissing this glowing metaphor for pure artistry as a product of naivete is its one major slip-up. Fortunately, none of that detracts from the deeply imaginative and incandescent way Chomet has captured the enduring quest for inspiration.

I don’t think I’ve hungered for a game this year as much as Holstin. This survival-horror immediately caught my eye with its gorgeous pixel art, perspective-shifting gameplay, and eerie Polish setting.

So I felt super lucky to get hands-on with an all-new, two-hour PC demo, sliced right out of Holstin’s ominous beginnings. While the previous Steam demo captured Holstin’s “feel” through mocked-up puzzles and a firing-range weapons tutorial, this new build puts it all together with a meaty (pun intended) story.

My friends, you’ve gotta keep an eye on Holstin – here are a few reasons why.

#1: “Disgusting” Has Never Looked So Good

It’s the first thing you’ll notice – Holstin is really, really good-looking, right from your sudden drop into a dilapidated train station overgrown with some weird, pulsing yellow substance. The art looks already great in screenshots, but you need to see and feel Holstin in motion to truly understand what an accomplishment these graphics are. Even the title screen is amazing.

What looks like 2D top-down pixel art becomes truly impressive 3D once you learn that you can move the camera around, with slick, seamless transitions through eight different angles. Even if you’re aware of this before you begin playing, swinging around for the first time is honestly one of Holstin’s most surprising moments – yes, right up there with enemy encounters!

(As a side note, the top-down movement in Holstin lends itself really well to twin-stick action on a controller, but it plays perfectly on mouse and keyboard as well.)

While most players won't necessarily be choosing Holstin because of its technical proficiency, it’s what really makes this aesthetic work. There’s a reason why graphics like this aren’t manifold in the industry – it’s built on the studio’s custom in-house technology, which makes it likely to cement Holstin as a standout game graphically.

#2: Mind-Blowing Perspectives

Okay, so you can spin that third-person, top-down camera around and view the world from multiple angles – but that’s not just an awesome-looking gimmick. Those angles go hand-in-hand with Holstin’s environmental puzzles. If you’re not looking behind boxes or checking around corners to find alleys, you may – and probably will – miss things that will help you find your path forward in Holstin’s strange world.

But wait! There’s more!

There are aggressive mutated people everywhere. That means you need to shoot them. But unlike other twin-stick shooters, you won’t be staying in that fixed-camera view to ready your sights. Entering aim mode transitions you into an over-the-shoulder third-person view, freeing your camera to enable pinpoint precision for your headshots.

These two very different views really add to the suspense – for instance, while in top-down view, you might miss the enemy lurking quietly around a corner. I found myself constantly on my guard, switching between both viewpoints even out of combat. (And sometimes even that didn’t save me from being pounced on and grappled down by some grisly horror of a human.) The only part of combat that initially confused me was melee, as that isn’t in aim mode – but I got used to it quickly.

Holstin plays with other camera perspectives too, though more for atmosphere than for gameplay reasons. Think: a god’s-eye view in an eerily silent, unpopulated area. Your cursor disappears, suddenly removing your primary sense of defense. You might not be switching into aim mode here, but you’ll sure feel like some ominous force is watching your every move.

#3: Meat, Tentacles, and Gore Galore

Survival horror fans will want to know how gruesome the strange environment can get, but don’t worry – the squelchy mainstays of the genre are definitely represented in Holstin. The overall goal in this demo is to find your way to a slaughterhouse, after all.

The town’s dissolution into its kind of otherworld first emerges in the form of “Plasmodium,” the aforementioned yellow substance. At first, it looks like someone went wild with foam spray – but when you approach, tentacles will rise and wiggle at you. Are they saying hi or taunting you? Either way, it’s suitably icky and adds to a pervading sense of unease.

And then there are the mutant enemies. Imagine glowing orange orbs taking over your body, their tendrils taking the place of your tendons. Imagine those same orbs buried in the Plasmodium, which slowly spreads through streets and parks like an aggressive, menacing fungus.

Something I also found unsettling was the implied gore. While you don’t see the actual slaughterhouse in this demo, you will learn how it figures into the overall narrative through conversational dialogue and scribbled scraps scattered through the world. Something wicked is going on in that place, and you know it’s not going to be pretty when you finally get there.

#4: Adventure Gaming Puzzles That Don’t Suck

As a gamer who grew up with classic point-and-click adventures, I was very impressed by Holstin’s approach to its puzzles. Maybe I’m getting old and crotchety, but I’ve been disappointed in recent years with how linear puzzling has become in adventure-adjacent games. Receive an objective, figure out how to solve the objective, then receive the next objective.

Though Holstin is strongly narrative-driven, it never feels like a linear story with disparate puzzles slapped on top. In fact, I’d almost forgotten how challenging a well-designed puzzle tree can be. In Holstin, you won’t be completing objectives in the order they’re listed. You can work on multiple objectives at once, and figuring out which are solvable in any given moment is almost a puzzle in itself. You might have to retrace your steps, which feels realistic (like searching your house thrice for your car keys).

And as for the puzzles themselves – they make sense (well, as much as something can make sense in this mad world). Survival horror fans are all familiar with some of the genre’s most inane challenges – ranging from the dreaded sliding puzzle through to needing an intimate knowledge of Shakespeare to shelve books correctly in order to obtain a door code (*cough* Silent Hill *cough*).

None of that nonsense here. Holstin’s asks of you are simple: How are you going to get this trapdoor open? What twisting path through town will you need to forge in order to reach the playground? How you solve these problems feels organic, and really encourages you to explore your environs thoroughly.

#5: 1990s Poland Is a Trip

The Polish setting forms the bones of quite a specific – and unique – narrative. It’s not exactly a great tourism ad for Poland, but even covered with the weird tentacled Plasmodium, the town of Jeziorne-Kolonia still feels like a distinctly foreign experience compared to other games set in more vague locations.

This demo only has Polish voiceover, and as an English speaker myself, I found that this added to the believability and atmosphere – like watching a foreign flick. Though I don’t have the context of how the Polish language is structured, the voice acting sounded dead-on.

There’s the suicidal woman, her voice filled with defeat as she hands her gun over to you. The large, childlike man, squealing, talking in riddles, and just one plot twist away from losing it entirely. The cast of weirdos here is a lot wider than your usual survival-horror game – but their convincing creepiness doesn’t detract from the suspense at all. (I sure wished they would help me out in combat, though.)

And while Holstin set in the 1990s, it’s not exactly boy bands and GeoCities. For instance, your save checkpoints are decrepit-looking phone booths – and you’ll need to find physical telephone cards to actually make your save (just like the real-life anachronism of digging for change to do your laundry). Our hero Tomasz definitely does not have a cell phone for tracking objectives. Expect all the inconveniences in the pre-internet era – yet another stumbling block in your strange journey through this horrifying town.

All in all, this demo honestly blew me away – and I say that very rarely of any game. If the rest of Holstin is as polished and carefully crafted, it will be considered a survival horror classic in a decade’s time. I’m that impressed by what I’ve seen and played of it so far.

For a very limited time, HP is offering its newest and most powerful gaming laptop at a pretty hefty discount. The Omen Max 16 GeForce RTX 5090 Gaming Laptop drops to just $2,879.99 with free shipping when you apply 20% off coupon code "LEVELUP20". That's the best price for an RTX 5090 gaming laptop anywhere by at least $700. The RTX 5090 is currently the most powerful mobile GPU available with tons of VRAM and DLSS 4 support.

HP Omen Max 16" RTX 5090 Gaming Laptop for $2,880

Friends, loved ones, and fellow actors have gathered to remember actor Jonathan Joss after he was fatally shot June 1, 2025.

Social media users were sent into shock when it was announced that Joss had been killed Sunday, June 1, following a violent altercation with a neighbor. TMZ reported at the time that a heated argument eventually resulted in the neighbor pulling out a gun and shooting the King of the Hill and True Grit actor several times, resulting in his death. He was 59.

Hermano im hurting bad right now…but to see how much you were loved is 🥲❤️ I’ll always cherish our memories together. I pray you’re at peace. You’ll forever be in my heart Jonathan. I love you man always. I’ll catch up to you on that side later 🫂 #JonathanJoss #JohnRedcorn pic.twitter.com/QR2GMmwSRY

— Frankie (@Frankieee_SVT) June 2, 2025

Cast members from NBC’s Parks and Recreation, a show Joss appeared in multiple episodes of throughout the 2010s, are among those mourning. Included are Chris Pratt and Nick Offerman, who both shared statements regarding the actor’s passing, with Pratt posting his message on Instagram.

“Damn. RIP Jonathan,” Pratt said. “Always such a kind dude. He played Ken Hotate in Parks and was also in [The Magnificent Seven]. Sad to see. Prayers up. Hug your loved ones.”

Offerman, meanwhile, touched on how the Parks and Recreation cast has reacted to the news with a statement sent to People. He says losing Joss was a topic on their minds all day yesterday, June 2.

“The cast has been texting together about it all day and we’re just heartbroken,” Offerman said in his statement. “Jonathan was such a sweet guy and we loved having him as our Chief Ken Hotate. A terrible tragedy.”

Rest in peace, Jonathan Joss pic.twitter.com/ii9JgjKjHZ

— kingofthehill (@kingofthehill) June 3, 2025

Joss’ husband, Tristan Kern de Gonzales, shared a statement on Facebook regarding the incident that led to the actor’s murder. He says he and Joss had been victims of homophobic harassment for two years and that these threats were followed by their former home being burned down. Gonzales says the threats were reported to law enforcement “multiple times and nothing was done.” He adds that the act was carried out by a man who was “yelling violent homophobic slurs” at the couple while they were checking the mail at their former home.

"To everyone who supported him, his fans, his friends, know that he valued you deeply," Gonzales said. "He saw you as family. My focus now is on protecting Jonathan’s legacy and honoring the life we built together."

A suspect in the investigation, Sigfredo Ceja Alvarez, was taken into custody and charged with murder following the altercation. The San Antonio Police Department X/Twitter account has since shared it “has found no evidence to indicate that the Mr. Joss’s murder was related to his sexual orientation.” An investigation is ongoing.

Tributes to Joss continue to fill social media feeds following his passing. While some share memories of brief interactions with the movie and TV star, others are telling stories of his kindness.

Jonathan Joss and I were mutuals (still are) back when he was active here, he was a very kind man! He sent me a signed sexy John Redcorn pic, and threw in a signed Ken Hotate pic just cause that's the kind of cool-loving, giving person he was. A true light in this dark world. 🕯 https://t.co/TfRhsOoGen pic.twitter.com/YX6abiU4wt

— Ghost Host (@TheGhostHost) June 2, 2025

RIP Jonathan Joss pic.twitter.com/QxaVQA43pm

— adult swim (@adultswim) June 2, 2025

The murder of Jonathan Joss is so deeply sad and infuriating, such a wonderful actor cut down just because of who he was. Impossible to deny that the most hateful have been emboldened to do the very worst, terrible country we have built

— Mr. Chau (@Srirachachau) June 2, 2025

Photo by Ben Cohen/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images.

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

Warning: This article contains full spoilers for Doctor Who Season 15.

With the latest season of Doctor Who now complete, we can look back and examine the entirety of the Fifteenth Doctor’s era. You didn’t read that wrong, by the way. Ncuti Gatwa’s time as the Doctor is officially over. Despite earlier comments from Gatwa that indicated he was intending to continue on for a third season, the Season 15 finale, “The Reality War,” ended on Gatwa’s Fifteenth Doctor regenerating into none other than Billie Piper, best known to franchise fans as Rose Tyler, the first companion of the modern era. It was a shocking moment for longtime viewers, but perhaps not in the way the show’s production team intended.

While it’s not entirely clear yet if Piper is actually playing the Sixteenth Doctor–the fact that the end credits don’t refer to Piper as “The Doctor” in accordance with convention has raised many an eyebrow–the reveal has landed with a thud for critics and audiences. In his review of the finale, IGN’s Robert Anderson said Piper’s appearance is a “hastily thrown-together pause button while the future of Doctor Who gets quietly reshuffled.” But it also speaks to how the show ended Gatwa’s tenure far before his time, in what appears to be a knee-jerk response to fandom backlash. Let’s take a look at why Doctor Who gave up on the Fifteenth Doctor too soon.

Lost in Space and Time

To say the last several years of Doctor Who have been a roller coaster would be something of an understatement. Chris Chibnall taking over as the third modern-era showrunner (after Steven Moffat) followed up a divisive run with a total travesty, despite the best efforts of Thirteenth Doctor actress Jodie Whittaker. Russell T. Davies, who launched the modern era, was recruited to return to the role of showrunner after Chibnall, and Ncuti Gatwa was announced as Whittaker’s successor, only for Thirteen to regenerate into yet another incarnation played by David Tennant. Three specials and one lore-questionable bi-generation later, and we finally received the Fifteenth Doctor, only for his run to meet with mixed reception from fans, some of whom felt the new era didn’t live up to Davies’ first tenure.

Opinions on Season 14 vary, but at least for me, I found it to be the return to form the series had desperately needed for years. Gatwa’s take on the Doctor and his dynamic with companion Ruby Sunday led to a mostly solid string of episodes, culminating in climactic fashion with the return of Sutekh, one of the Doctor’s all-time greatest enemies. Sadly, the series’ renewed creative spark rapidly drained away in Season 15, which is largely a collection of ill-conceived adventures missing a sense of focus. This is rather strange since the season has two main throughlines: the Doctor trying to get new companion Belinda Chandra back to an Earth he doesn’t know is destroyed, and the mystery identity of the recurring character Mrs. Flood.

The two wind up being connected, with Mrs. Flood being an incarnation of Classic Who villain The Rani, who is behind the destruction of Earth. Yet although these subplots are threaded through the whole season, the payoff still doesn’t feel like it has enough foundation. The Rani is poorly defined in her appearances here, and is defeated so quickly as to come off utterly ineffectual. Tying in another Classic Who antagonist in Omega also falls flat because he has so little screentime and doesn’t look anything like his old self. Everything about the two-part final story is just off, with every element somehow rushed or shortchanged, adding up to a confused mess of ideas with no fixed point of reference. That goes double for the regeneration, which lacks the gravity such a supposedly giant moment deserves.

A Rushed Regeneration

As it stands, “The Reality War” doesn’t feel like a regeneration story. Although the stakes are appropriately high with the Rani threatening the entire planet, the episode shifts focus in the back half to the Doctor trying to save Poppy, the child of the Doctor and Belinda who was wished into existence as a side effect of the Rani’s plan. Setting aside the weirdness of a familial connection between the Doctor and Belinda (even if it turned out to be fake), setting so much narrative weight on Poppy fails because the audience hasn’t spent enough time with her to be invested in her fate. Poppy is an abstraction, something the story assumes we care about because she’s a kid. So the Doctor shifts reality to save her, at the cost of his own life.

This change in what the episode is about makes the finale feel like two episodes in one. The villains are defeated ridiculously quickly to make room for an excuse for the Doctor to regenerate. Given Gatwa’s previously mentioned comments hinting at a third season, it appears parts of “The Reality War” were reshot to accommodate the regeneration. There’s simply not enough build-up to it, and what felt like the story of the Doctor trying to set Belinda’s life right across the season by getting her home was swept away at the last second for the Doctor trying to rescue Poppy. Belinda barely registers in the finale, with her entire motivation and personality changing into an all-consuming devotion to Poppy, to the point of the Doctor altering reality with his regeneration energy to make Poppy her biological daughter.

The regeneration doesn’t feel motivated either in-universe or out. It’s contrived as a story device, but it also feels unpleasant as a production one. Ncuti Gatwa, the first actor of color to play the Doctor as the show’s lead, is also the first one since Christopher Eccleston to not receive at least three seasons. These are shorter seasons on top of it, with eight episodes and one special apiece, meaning Gatwa’s entire tenure is a mere 18 episodes. Him being rushed out the door so quickly and being replaced by a blonde white woman who has already been extensively featured on the show would come across as comical if the optics weren’t also so cynical. If Billie Piper is indeed our Sixteenth Doctor, then not only is the show engaging in Disney Star Wars-level nostalgia bait, it’s also one foot into some rather murky ethical waters.

Paying the Piper

I say this with nothing but love for Billie Piper and her work as Rose Tyler: her time as part of Doctor Who should have stayed in the past. Rose is a great character, but she had a fairly definitive ending in the Season 2 finale, “Doomsday.” Her forced separation from the Doctor and arrival in an alternate reality where her father is alive but she can’t be with her true love was tragic and emotional in all the right ways. It’s still one of the best season finales the show has ever done. Yet Rose has slipped back into the show several times, from recurring guest appearances in Season 4 that led to her getting a consolation prize in the Meta-Crisis Doctor, her playing The Moment in “The Day of the Doctor,” and now potentially being the Sixteenth Doctor.

Quite frankly, it’s too much. Every subsequent Rose appearance after “Doomsday” dilutes that episode’s power, all for the sake of trying to please fans. And at a moment in time where the fandom is incredibly divided on Davies’ second era as showrunner, having Piper return feels like hitting an emergency button. Davies was already entering questionable territory with the return of David Tennant as the Fourteenth Doctor, although that was largely smoothed over by finally giving his Doctor and Donna Noble the happy ending they deserved in “The Giggle” after the unsatisfying conclusion to their relationship in “Journey’s End.” Bringing back Piper is a clear attempt to recapture the love the audience had for Davies’ first tenure, rather than building something new audiences could love about his current one.

Ncuti Gatwa was an excellent Doctor. He and Jodie Whittaker both gave great performances that elevated some of the shaky scripts they were handed, which is what made their scene together in “The Reality War” such a joy to watch. It’s also a reminder that there was no good reason to not try to rally and give Gatwa a solid third season so he could go out on a high note. Even with all the missed opportunities this season like the dropped idea of Belinda as a hesitant companion, the return of the Rani and Omega, the underuse of Ruby Sunday, and the Fifteenth Doctor never battling the Daleks, Davies and company should have stuck to their guns.

Instead, our next Doctor (barring a massive swerve) looks to be a hollow echo of a great character from decades ago. It’s a crystallization of the existential crisis the show has been in since the Moffat era, which felt like the last time Doctor Who knew what it wanted to be. The future of Doctor Who should always be an exciting new path. Instead, this feels far more like a surrender.

Carlos Morales writes novels, articles and Mass Effect essays. You can follow his fixations on Twitter.

The newest Apple Watch has dropped down to the lowest price we've seen. Well ahead of Father's Day, which lands on June 15 this year, you can pick up a 42mm Apple Watch Series 10 for only $299 - 25% off its $399 list price - or the bigger 46mm model for $329 - 23% off its $429 list price. If you own an iPhone, the Apple Watch is indisputably the best smartwatch for you. It's stylish, boasts excellent build quality, excels as both a fitness tracker and smartwatch, and seamlessly integrates with your iPhone.

Apple Watch Series 10 From $299

PlayStation is gearing up for an over 40-minute State of Play tomorrow, June 4, and it promises to give a glimpse of the future of PS5.

We here at IGN will be carrying the stream, and this guide will fill you in on everything you need to know about the State of Play and what to expect to ensure you don't miss a thing.

PlayStation State of Play June 2025 Start Time

This new State of Play will take place on June 4 at 2pm PT/5pm ET/11pm CEST and will run for over 40 minutes.

We here at IGN will be hosting both a pre-show 30 minutes before the State of Play (1:30pm PT/4:30pm ET/10:30pm CEST) and a post-show following the presentation to recap all the big news, trailers, reveals, and more.

Where to Watch the PlayStation State of Play June 2025

If you’re interested in watching the upcoming PlayStation State of Play, we’ll host the stream here and across our many channels like YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, and more. Here’s the full list of places you can watch the show with us:

• IGN.com (homepage)
• IGN's Facebook Channel
• IGN’s Twitter
• IGN's Twitch Channel
• IGN’s Youtube Channel
• IGN's iOS App
• IGN's Android App
• IGN's PlayStation 4 App
• IGN's Xbox One App
• Roku
• IGN App for Android TV
• IGN for Amazon Fire TV
• Apple TV
• IGN 1 on Samsung TV Plus
• Pluto TV
• Plex Live TV

What to Expect from the PlayStation State of Play 2025

Beyond saying we'll be getting "news and updates on must-play games coming to PS5" from "creators across the globe," Sony has given us no hint as to which titles will be featured in this State of Play. If we look at the upcoming schedule for PS5, however, we can guess as to what big names just may show up.

In 2025, PS5 owners have plenty of games to look forward to, including Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, ARC Raiders, Ghost of Yōtei, Hell Is Us, Lost Soul Aside, Ninja Gaiden 4, Little Nightmares III, Where Winds Meet, Metal Gear Solid Δ: Snake Eater, Borderlands 4, Directive 8020, Forever Skies, Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds, MindsEye, Mafia: The Old Country, and many more.

There are also plenty of chances for new games to surprise us or little-known about games to reappear, including Insomniac's Wolverine game, what's next from God of War's Sony Santa Monica, Days Gone's Bend studio, Horizon Forbidden West's Guerrilla Games, and maybe even the third part of Final Fantasy VII Remake.

Anything is possible, but it's also important to keep expectations in check. While you wait, you can also check out our recap of February's State of Play to potentially get an idea of what to expect, as that show featured the big reveal of Housemarq's Saros, release dates for Metal Gear Solid Δ: Snake Eater and Borderlands 4, a look at Onimusha: Way of the Sword's protagonist, and more.

For more, check out everything else you can expect from this Summer of Gaming that is just getting underway and all the details on IGN Live, which is set to kick off on June 7!

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.

For the past two years, LEGO has been furthering its most ambitious project to date: a minifigure-scaled depiction of Hogwarts Castle, made famous by the Harry Potter franchise. The castle is still a work in progress, and will be made up of a bunch of other stand-alone sets that are sold separately. The first major set, the Great Hall, came out in Fall 2024.

The Main Tower, out now, is the second major set in this interlocking system, which also includes an assortment of ancillary buildings and classrooms sold separately, such as Hogwarts Castle: Potions Class (Set #76431), Hogwarts Castle Owlery (Set #76430), Hogwarts Castle: Flying Lessons (Set #76447), and Hogwarts Castle Boathouse (Set #76426).

But the Main Tower also works as an independent playset, especially if you're a fan of the first book and its movie adaptation, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.

The Main Tower, like the Great Hall before it, opens in the back to reveal a number of rooms and dioramas that depict the movies' events. The bottom-most rooms, which you build first, are underground chambers that lead to the Sorcerer's Stone. From left to right, you have the Devil's Snare room, then the Flying Keys room, and then the massive Chess Set room.

Each room has interactive, movable elements. The Devil's Snare flips up or down from the room's ceiling via a cleverly disguised switch that's built into the rock facade. The Flying Keys rotate on a pedestal to create the impression of flight. And the giant pieces on the Chess Set are independent and movable.

You get LEGO minifigures for Harry, Hermione, and Ron, which is good – these rooms look their best when the trio is directly interacting with them. LEGO did not design this part of the castle with functionality and facility in mind; each room depicts a specific book scene, rather than functioning as a neutral roleplay area for new scenarios. In addition to the trio, the set contains nine more LEGO minifigures for a total of 12: Neville Longbottom, Dean Thomas, Marcus Flint, Percy Weasley, Ernie Macmillan, Lisa Turpin, Professor Dumbledore, Professor Kettleburn, and Nearly Headless Nick.

Directly above the Devil's Snare room is Fluffy, Hagrid's three-headed dog. He's lying on top of a trap door, which opens to reveal the underground chambers. In the back-right corner of Fluffy's room is a harp, which Professor Quirrel plays to put Fluffy to sleep. The harp's design is especially creative; two separate builds come together on hinges to create the instrument's signature shape. A door opens on the right-hand side, which leads into a narrow hallway, which in turn leads to a balcony/vista on the building's exterior.

Above Fluffy's room is the Gryffindor common room, decked out in its signature red and gold trimmings. It includes a bedroom with two beds, and to the right of it, two easy chairs and a fireplace. The floor is uneven, so that the living room appears sunken into a well in the floor, which gives the room a more intimate, cozy feeling.

All of these individual rooms are separate builds with separate instruction booklets, which means that if you want to build with a partner, or a friend, or as one half of a father-son team (as I did), you can easily merge and stack your seperate elements together after they're complete. The rooms are mounted on one another via a handful of connection points, which means they are easily separable from one another. If you need more room to pose scenes or individually play with the set's different components, this gives you easier access. Typically, sets of this complexity and magnitude are 18+ in age range. But the Main Tower and all the other Hogwarts Castle sets are 10+, which means they straddle the line between play and display a bit more evenly.

You build a roof over these elements, and then you build the actual Main Tower. It stacks five rooms. one on top of the other. The first three rooms contain the iconic Hogwarts moving staircases, designed by Rowena Ravenclaw herself. Two of them are mounted onto rotating platforms, allowing them to pivot. Portraits hang on the walls. On the third floor is a gargoyle, which guards the secret entryway to Professor Dumbledore's office.

The aforementioned office is on the fourth floor. It's covered with portraits of former Headmasters, and it's stuffed with the various magical knick knacks that make it so interesting to read about and watch on screen. To the right of Dumbledore's desk is the sword of Godric Gryffindor and the Pensieve. To the left of the desk is the Sorting Hat, complete with a mouth near its brim. Dumbledore's office is probably my favorite part of the set. It's furnished beautifully and it provides an excellent place for Harry and Dumbledore to have their evening lessons together.

Lastly, you build the massive spire that caps the tower, and inside the spire is the fifth and final room containing the Mirror of Erised. The mirror mounts on a rotating platform, which allows you to swap two different images. On one side is Harry with his mother and father. On the other side is Harry holding the Sorcerer's Stone.

The Main Tower's size is impressive; it's over two feet in height, from the bottom of the rock facade to the peak of the tower itself. And when you merge it with the Great Hall, it's even more impressive; the two sets combine to form a seamless exterior facade. The interiors, taken together, are even more impressive – it's a sensory overload to see all these iconic Hogwarts scenes in such a small amount of space.

There's not much more to say, other than this: I want to see more. The last time LEGO created a massive Hogwarts Castle, it felt a bit cobbled together after the fact. There was no "official" way to put it all together, and fans resorted to squinting at promotional materials to figure out the best way to assemble all the sets together.

But this go-around? It feels like there's a master plan; I strongly suspect there's a "complete" Hogwarts Castle somewhere in LEGO headquarters, whether in physical form or on a hard drive. The designers are not 'winging it' – they have a final result, however rough, that they're working towards.

It's going to take them years to get there. But if the LEGO designers maintain this level of detail and see it all the way through? It's going to be an unparalleled achievement. To be continued.

LEGO Hogwarts Castle: The Main Tower, Set #76454, retails for $259.99, and it is composed of 2135 pieces. It is available now.

Interested in more LEGO? Check out our roundup of the best Harry Potter sets. And stay tuned – we'll be publishing a completist's buying guide for the modular LEGO Hogwarts Castle later this week.

Kevin Wong is a contributing freelancer for IGN, specializing in LEGO. He's also been published in Complex, Engadget, Gamespot, Kotaku, and more. Follow him on Twitter at @kevinjameswong.

Ryan Coogler just doesn’t miss. As Eric Goldman’s review for IGN explains: “After proving he’s one of the best there is at directing a boxing film and a superhero movie, Coogler tries his hand at horror with the vampire period piece Sinners. And guess what? It turns out he’s great at that genre too.” Sinners released in theaters on April 18, and has since achieved the killer combination of box-office success and critical acclaim.

While I highly recommend watching Sinners on the largest screen you can find – let Coogler himself explain why – a full trip to the theaters isn’t always in the cards. For those who’ve been waiting to watch the vampire movie in the comfort of their own home, Sinners is now available to rent or buy on digital.

Sinners Arrives on Digital

If you've got a Switch 2 preorder coming in hot and you want to expand the storage capacity right off the bat, then Walmart has a deal that you don't want to miss. For a very limited time, the Onn 256GB Micro SDXC Express Card is back in stock at a rock bottom price of $35.99. This listing went up in May, but I haven't seen it in stock for shipping until today. As a comparison, the official Samsung 256GB MicroSDXC Express card is currently listed for $59.99 at Target.

Update: This deal might not be available for delivery for all zip codes. You can still choose in-store pickup.

Onn 256GB MicroSDXC Express Memory Card for $35.99

Nintendo Switch 2 Compatible

Resolution Games has revealed a debut gameplay trailer for Demeo x Dungeons & Dragons: Battlemarked, and confirmed a late 2025 release window and launch platforms.

Resolution Games, best known for digital fantasy tabletop adventure Demeo, is working with Wizards of the Coast on the first virtual reality game set in the Dungeons & Dragons universe, called Demeo x Dungeons & Dragons: Battlemarked. It’s due out on PC via Steam, and PlayStation 5, with a VR version available on PlayStation VR2, Steam VR, and Meta Quest 3.

Battlemarked adapts D&D classes, actions, and lore to Resolution Games’ Demeo action role-playing system, which is DM-less and focuses on social strategy rather than social roleplay. This, Resolution Games said, encourages group tabletalk focused on tactics and decision-making.

“While the world of Demeo is rich with lore, our previous titles focus primarily on tactical action over motivation and narrative,” said Tommy Palm, founder and CEO of Resolution Games.

Resolution Games is working with story designer Matt Sernett as the project’s narrative lead. Sernett previously worked as a designer of the Dungeons & Dragons tabletop game and contributed to Dungeons & Dragons video games including Baldur’s Gate, Baldur’s Gate 2, and Icewind Dale.

“When Dungeons & Dragons launched fifth edition back in 2014, the first adventure that many players went on ventured into Neverwinter Wood, and I can think of no place better for Battlemarked players to begin their journey,” said Sernett.

“The first adventure in Demeo x Dungeons & Dragons: Battlemarked will take players to familiar locations including Cragmaw Castle and Mount Hotenow. The world of D&D is just as much a part of the story as its characters, and we can’t wait for players to immerse themselves in its dangers and delights.”

Battlemarked’s second adventure, which will be included at launch, will be revealed later this year.

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.

IGN can exclusively reveal that WOW - Women of Wrestling is gearing up to release its first-ever collectible card game, and it will feature such fan-favorite WOW Superheroes as Chainsaw, The Beast, Penelope Pink, Kandi Krush, Gloria Glitter, Tormenta, Ariel Sky, Americana, Princess Aussie, Jessie Jones, and Abilene Maverick.

WOW: The Card Game, which can be pre-ordered now, promises to bring “strategic gameplay, character customization, and head-to-head competition to the tabletop for those who love mind games, big combos, and bold personalities.”

WOW: The Card Game will initially feature over 141 unique cards, which will all be brought to life with custom art and “action-packed scenarios.” Alongside the 11 WOW Superheroes mentioned above, there will also be cards that will serve as Power-Ups, Finishing Moves, and Signature Taunts.

As for the game itself, it is designed for 2-4 players and is intended for players over the age of nine. It aims to recreate the feeling of WOW with “dynamic gameplay mechanics that mirror the drama of the ring - from high-flying comebacks to stunning upsets.”

“Now, fans can feel the thrill of the ring and build their own rivalries right at home,” said David McLane, co-founder of WOW. “This card game celebrates the strength, spirit, and spectacle that our Superheroes bring to the ring every week.”

WOW - Women of Wrestling was started in 2000 and is owned by McLane and Los Angeles Lakers owner/president Jeanie Buss. WOW has live events and is in weekly syndication across the U.S. and on VICE TV. Pluto TV has a dedicated channel with all episodes from the first three seasons. The mission of WOW is “centered 24/7 around empowering and uplifting women and fans around the world.”

Also, If you're a fan of WOW - Women of Wrestling, see some of your favorite wrestlers in person at IGN Live June 7-8 in Los Angeles.

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.

Elden Ring Nightreign shares quite a bit with its predecessor Elden Ring, from its gameplay to its lore and history. It also seems to carry some of its technical nuances, according to a new breakdown from the tech experts at Digital Foundry.

Digital Foundry published an analysis of the tech details behind FromSoftware's latest, and while Nightreign remixes a lot of what Elden Ring was into something new, it sounds like the state of Nightreign's technology is fairly reminiscent of Elden Ring's.

"This is really nothing new to those familiar with FromSoftware's Elden Ring engine, and how it operates on consoles," wrote Digital Foundry's Thomas Morgan.

Digital Foundry characterized the optimization for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series consoles as "disappointing," as Nightreign continues to "often fall short of a target 60 frames per second while exploring." Additionally, the tech analyst noted there's no listed support for PlayStation 5 Pro, which bore out in tests, meaning the PS5 Pro is just running the base PS5 code with no additional modes or optimizations.

I recommend visiting Digital Foundry for the full numbers breakdown, as there's quite a bit to go through, but all of it is best summed-up by Morgan here: "Ultimately, using the quality mode makes no practical sense on any console." The base PS5 typically hovers in a lower 30-45 frames per second range in this mode, compared to a 40-60 range on the framerate mode, and the Xbox consoles mirroring similar gaps.

While the PS5 Pro seems to benefit from having a little extra horsepower to run Nightreign, there are still "lurches" while exploring the world that stuck out to Digital Foundry. The article concludes by saying there's "so much left to be desired on the technical front" when it comes to Elden Ring Nightreign, as 60 frames per second performance on consoles is "all too often out of reach."

In other Elden Ring Nightreign news, FromSoftware has confirmed further updates in the pipeline for the co-op exprience, including tougher versions of existing Nightlords and a Duos mode somewhere down the line. This news arrives alongside confirmation that Elden Ring Nightreign has cleared the 3.5 million sales mark.

We’ve got plenty of Nightreign tips and tricks to help you take down all the eight Nightlord Bosses, and if you’re wondering how to unlock the two locked Nightfarer Classes, check out How to Unlock the Revenant and How to Unlock the Duchess, plus How to Change Characters.

Eric is a freelance writer for IGN.

Marvel had no choice but to spoil the appearance of Red Hulk in trailers for Captain America: Brave New World, the film's director has insisted — despite many fans believing the villain should have been kept under wraps.

Red Hulk, the angry alter ego of Harrison Ford's character President Thaddeus 'Thunderbolt' Ross, only appears late in the film's final act, following a lengthy build-up and moments where it feels like Ross will keep his gamma radiation-fueled temper under control.

Among plenty of other criticsm for Brave New World — widely-considered a pretty bland MCU entry — fans have said Red Hulk's inclusion within trailers not only spoiled the surprise of his appearance, but also oversold the character's presence in the film.

Now, however, Brave New World director Julius Onah said Marvel had to show Red Hulk ahead of the film's release, as the villain's appearance would have leaked regardless.

"When you're making a movie like this, an announcement goes out that Harrison Ford is going to play Thaddeus Ross, and you have a fandom as massive and as passionate as the MCU fandom is, you're toast at that point, you know?" Onah told Empire.

"In a perfect-case scenario, it would have been awesome [if ] that [had been] an in-theatre surprise, but I think it would have been very difficult," he continued. "Somewhere along the way, a toy would have been found, or somebody would have leaked a trailer. It's just so hard to keep anything secret in today’s day and age."

While it's true that Marvel film productions face constant pressure around leaks, and merchandise such as toys have been the source of story spoilers in the past, the reasoning here around the decision to show Red Hulk doesn't necessarily tally with how other Marvel movies have teased villains in the past.

Take, for instance, the upcoming The Fantastic Four: First Steps. We know from trailers that giant-sized baddie Galactus will appear in the film at some point, but Marvel has been cautious to only show a glimpse at the villain, teasing his appearance while keeping the full reveal back for the film itself.

Of course, the full look at Galactus still leaked — via a Snapple promotion, of all things — while another character completely absent from trailers so far has appeared as a Funko Pop toy. But these spoilers will only be seen by a fraction of the film's overall audience. What matters to most fans is what's in official trailers — and what's not.

There's a definite sense among Marvel fans that too much of Red Hulk was shown, perhaps to ramp up excitement around a film that otherwise felt underwhelming.

Next up for Captain America will be an appearance in Avengers: Doomsday, after Thunderbolts*/New Avengers confirmed Sam Wilson had begun rebuilding his own version of Marvel's big team.

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

Amid excitement and disbelief at the quality of The Witcher 4 Unreal Engine 5 tech demo, developer CD Projekt has issued a statement insisting it is not a gameplay showcase and therefore does not represent actual The Witcher 4 gameplay footage.

The tech demo, captured on a PlayStation 5 and running at 60 frames per second, follows Ciri as she explores the never-before-seen region of Kovir in the midst of a monster contract (CD Projekt confirmed Kovir is a playable area in The Witcher 4).

There is a stunning amount of detail in the tech demo, with incredibly fluid animations on a level we have yet to see on the current generation of consoles. Ciri and her horse Kelpie have particularly impressive movement and interactions with each other, NPCs, and the game world as they make their way through the mountains of Kovir to the bustling port town of Valdrest. At one point in the demo, CD Projekt upped the NPC count in the market scene to 300 individually animated characters. The showcase ended with a first look at Lan Exeter, the winter capital and a major port city in Kovir.

The “standalone” tech demo was built to showcase Unreal Engine 5 features, CD Projekt said, and tools it’s using to develop the game’s open world. It is not gameplay footage, the developer stressed.

So, does the tech demo reflect what players can expect from The Witcher 4? CD Projekt said the visuals “reflect the direction we’re taking with The Witcher 4 — but it doesn’t fully represent the final game.”

CD Projekt continued: “Production is still underway, and we have a great deal of work ahead. That said, our goal is ambitious: to create one of the most visually advanced role-playing games to date.”

The developer also explained why it chose PS5 over a high-end PC for the tech demo: “Because optimizing for consoles early helps us future-proof performance across all platforms. Consoles come with tighter constraints, and meeting them pushes us to make smarter, more efficient tech choices — the kind that benefit every version of the game.”

One of the big questions about The Witcher 4 is target launch platforms. With this tech demo on PS5, the suggestion is it will be a cross-gen game that also runs on the next-gen consoles (PS6 and the next-gen Xbox). But if it’s due out on current-gen, does that also mean it will be available on the underpowered Xbox Series S?

It’s worth remembring that Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto VI is, as it stands, also due out on current-gen consoles including the Xbox Series S. So if GTA 6 is possible on Microsoft’s cheaper console, perhaps The Witcher 4 is, too.

CD Projekt has indicated The Witcher 4 won’t be out until 2027 at the earliest, so it may be some time before we find out.

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

If you've been hoping to add them to your physical media collection, all six The Karate Kid films are releasing in a massive 4K collection set, complete with collectibles. The Karate Kid Ultimate Six-Movie Collection is available exclusively at Amazon for $219.99 and includes each film on 4K UHD, Blu-ray, and as a digital copy, including the latest release, Karate Kid: Legends.

The release date is still to be announced, but if you want it, it's worth preordering now just in case it sells out. Head to the link below to get your preorders in for this awesome collection.

Preorder The Karate Kid Ultimate Six-Movie Collection

Alongside the movies, there's plenty for Karate Kid fans to enjoy from this collection. The box itself has a great design, opening up to reveal a pop-up display from the first film with the movies slotted on each side of it.

You'll also get a collection of character cards, three patches, and a Miyagi-Do headband. Bonus features are yet to be announced for it, but we'll be sure to add them in once they're revealed.

Movies Included in the Box Set

Here's a breakdown of what films are included in the set as well:

• The Karate Kid (1984)
• The Karate Kid II (1986)
• The Karate Kid III (1989)
• The Next Karate Kid (1994)
• The Karate Kid (2010)
• Karate Kid Legends

If you're looking for even more movies or shows to add to your physical media collection, there are quite a few releasing over the next few months that are worth keeping on your radar. In our breakdown of upcoming 4K UHD and Blu-ray releases you can see what's coming out soon to start planning ahead. Some of our most-anticipated at the moment include Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning on 4K and a 4K steelbook for season two of The Last of Us.

More Upcoming Physical Releases

Hannah Hoolihan is a freelancer who writes with the guides and commerce teams here at IGN.

Walt Disney World's upcoming Cars land will be called Piston Peak National Park and will be part of the "largest expansion in the history of Magic Kingdom," Disney has announced.

As detailed by the Disney Parks Blog, work on Piston Peak National Park begins this summer, which means the Rivers of America, Tom Sawyer Island, and the Liberty Square Riverboat will close beginning July 7.

As for what will be in this new part of Magic Kingdom's Frontierland, Disney has shared more of its vision and what fans can expect.

"Imagine an awe-inspiring wilderness filled with towering trees, snowcapped mountains, breathtaking waterfalls, roaring rivers and impressive geysers," Disney said. "While fictional, Piston Peak is inspired by the Rocky Mountain area and the history and iconic sights of the American Frontier and its national parks."

Piston Peak also includes places to visit inspired by Disney and Pixar's Cars, including a visitor lodge, Ranger HQ, and trails. In keeping with the theme of being a National Park, Imagineers uses a style of architecture called "Parkitecture," which was actually developed by the National Park Service to "create structures that harmonize with the natural environment."

There are also plenty of trees that provide a natural cover between Piston Peak and the rest of Frontierland and Liberty Square, and "rugged mountains with dramatic peaks will be nestled along a calming waterway across from Grizzly Hall and soaring geysers from the famed Big Thunder Mountain Railroad will stretch into the trails of our off-road rally."

This Cars-themed area was first announced at D23 2024, where it was also revealed it would feature two new attractions. The first is a rally race through the mountains. As Disney puts it: "take on wild terrain as you race across the landscape climbing mountain trails, dodging geysers, and — Mater's favorite — splashing through mudholes." The second ride is geared more towards kids, but it is meant to be "fun for the whole family."

At SXSW 2025, Disney Parks shared a look at the new type of ride vehicle being made for the rally race attraction, noting it needed to invent something new as these cars are meant to convey a "feeling when you ride in it." In line with Cars, each vehicle comes with its own personality, name, and number.

Piston Peak National Park is one part of the big new plan for Magic Kingdom, as it will one day be joined by the first-ever land inspired by the Disney Villains. In the shorter term, guests will be able to look forward to the opening of the Disney Starlight nighttime parade on July 20 as part of Disney World's Cool Kid Summer and the Pirates of the Caribbean-inspired tavern called The Beak and Barrel later this year.

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.

Warner Bros. reportedly wanted Transformers director Michael Bay to make a Man of Steel sequel starring Henry Cavill before the DC Universe was overhauled and James Gunn set about rebooting Superman.

According to TheWrap, execs Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy attempted to pull together a "standalone Henry Cavill-led Superman film going in 2022, with Michael Bay eyed to possibly direct.” This effort was made prior to bringing James Gunn and Peter Safran in as the new co-heads of DC Studios, which was announced in October of the same year Warner Bros.' reported attempt to give Cavill back the cape.

That said, those attempts clearly fell through, which gave way to bringing Gunn and Safran in to reimagine the DCU — which, in turn, quickly led to Cavill’s exit from the Superman franchise in December 2022, just two months after the co-heads were instated.

Obviously, since then, Superman has gone in a completely different direction from the days of Cavill past. David Corenswet, who is perhaps best known at this point for his roles in Ti West’s Pearl and the Ryan Murphy Netflix series Hollywood, is taking over the coveted role in James Gunn’s reinvention of the franchise, with Marvelous Mrs. Masel star Rachel Brosnahan starring as Lois Lane alongside him. Plus, Nicholas Hoult rounds out the core three as Lex Luthor. That said: it’s hard not to imagine what Bay and Cavill would’ve done with one more shot into the sky.

For their parts, though, those two are plenty busy. Cavill is set to appear in several upcoming projects, including a live-action Voltron movie and a live-action reboot of Highlander, while Bay recently put out a parkour documentary called We Are Storror. He’s also said to be doing the Skibidi Toilet movie that we’re all trying to forget was announced, but he took to social media to deny directing that, uh, thing last month.

James Gunn’s Superman arrives in theaters on July 11, 2025.

Lex Briscuso is a film and television critic and a freelance entertainment writer for IGN. You can follow her on Twitter at @nikonamerica.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has praised Nintendo Switch 2, and said the upcoming console realises the vision of the late Nintendo president Satoru Iwata, who worked on the concept for the original Switch platform before he passed away in 2015.

Speaking as part of a Nintendo-published Creator's Voice video, Huang said he had worked personally with Iwata on Nintendo's then-audacious plans for a hybrid console capable of playing home console-quality games while on the go.

Now, after working with Nintendo again on the chip that powers Switch 2, Huang said the new console boasted the "most advanced graphics ever in a mobile device", and offered "a new chapter worthy of Iwata-san's vision."

"We've worked with Nintendo for more than a decade, drawn together by a shared belief — that technology should serve creativity, and that joy is worth engineering for," Huang began.

"I still remember the day Iwata-san shared his dream with us. He wanted to create something no-one had seen before: a console powerful enough for big cinematic games, but small enough to take anywhere. It sounded impossible, but that vision became the original Nintendo Switch.

"We lost Iwata-san before the launch, but his clarity, his purpose, it still inspires our work everyday," Huang continued. "Together, we poured everything into that system. The Nintendo Switch took over 500 engineer years at Nvidia. We rethought the entire stack, chip architecture, OS, APIs, game engines, so the magic could travel with you. The results speak for themselves: over 150 million consoles sold."

With Switch 2, Huang added, Nvidia and Nintendo not only offered the best visuals ever found in a portable gaming device, but hardware that also enabled support for ray tracing and HDR, while maintaining backwards compatibility for most Switch 1 games.

Nintendo is yet to reveal the Switch 2's final technical specifications itself, though our friends at Digital Foundry recently did the job for them. One particular point of interest remains the impact to Switch 2's hardware capability gobbled up by GameChat, which Digital Foundry reported had a "significant impact" on system resources to the point where some developers are said to be concerned.

"Switch 2 is more than a new console," Huang concluded. "It's a new chapter worthy of Iwata-san's vision. To our friends at Nintendo, congratulations. We're honoured to be on this journey with you."

Nintendo Switch 2 launches this week, on Thursday June 5, and is expected to sell out upon launch. Indeed, Nintendo is already shipping 'Out of Stock' signs to some stores to advertise the console's lack of availability amid high demand.

IGN has been hands-on with Switch 2 and reported back today that Mario Kart World's open world isn't what you think it is — so don't go in expecting a Nintendo version of Forza Horizon. We've also played the $10 mini-game collection Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour, and while enjoyable, it should probably have been free.

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

The challenge of playing Elden Ring Nightreign solo has been a hot-button issue since the game's launch, but director Junya Ishizaki has confirmed solo clears are quite doable. He knows, because he's cleared every boss in Nightreign already, by himself.

Speaking to CNET in a recent interview, Ishizaki was asked whether he has beaten every boss, including the final one, himself.

"Yes. I can hopefully give you reassurance to know that I have beaten all of the game's bosses," said Ishizaki. "I've seen everything it has to offer, both in multiplayer and as a solo player. So I want you and players to know that this is very possible, and I want you to have the confidence to give it a try yourself."

CNET followed to clarify that Ishizaki was saying he had soloed every boss in the game. "Yes," Ishizaki confirmed. "And without relics."

While that's a pretty dang impressive accomplishment in and of itself, I do like the notion that Ishizaki's clears are also meant to be encouraging for other players. If he can do it, essentially, then you might be able to as well. I don't know about the "without relics" part, though. You can give yourself a little bit of leeway on that.

There have been other players who have been clearing both individual bosses and the full roster of Nightlords solo as well. Still, the solo experience of Nightreign has been under scrutiny, and not just for its difficulty, but also for how some mechanics (like revival) feel more oriented around teamplay than solo.

It's clear FromSoftware is both hearing and addressing those concerns, too. The most recent patch, 1.01.1, arrived days after Elden Ring Nightreign's launch and took aim directly at the solo mode, increasing the runes gained by lone players and adding one free automatic revival for night bosses.

Even if the difficulty is getting tuned down, though, Ishizaki's clears can still be inspiring for those struggling against the Nightlords in their own runs. When the rains pick up and the storm closes in, you can know someone else has already done it, and so can you.

We’ve got plenty of Nightreign tips and tricks to help you take down all the eight Nightlord Bosses, and if you’re wondering how to unlock the two locked Nightfarer Classes, check out How to Unlock the Revenant and How to Unlock the Duchess, plus How to Change Characters.

Eric is a freelance writer for IGN.

Following the release of AI Darth Vader into Fortnite, Epic has announced plans to let people create their own AI NPCs in the all-encompassing battle royale.

AI Darth Vader hit Fortnite last month. He can serenade you, join and leave squads at will, respond intelligently to the player, issue impromptu dialogue, summarize gameplay events, and warn the player if something's about to go down.

Darth Vader is voiced by the inimitable James Earl Jones, who died in September 2024 at the age of 93. This AI version of his voice, powered by Google's Gemini 2.0 Flash model and ElevenLabs' Flash v2.5, is used with the Jones family's permission.

If you were sad that Squid Game is finally coming to a close, dry those eyes — because we just might be getting a spin-off series of the Netflix hit. That is, if creator Hwang Dong-hyuk has anything to say about it. The series boss recently opened up about what he would do if he was able to make a spin-off show, and honestly, we’re into it.

“If I make [a] spin off, it will be a story happening between Season 1 and 2,” Hwang revealed to Indiewire on the Gotham Awards red carpet recently. “There [was] a three years gap between Season 1 and 2. So, I want to show what they did for those times.”

We also want to know. Hwang also noted that his brain was processing the story as a whole while writing Season 2, so he couldn’t help but come up with Season 3 as well. “After I finished the whole season, the first season,” he explained to the outlet. “... I tried to come up with the idea of Season 2 and 3 at the same time.” In that way, it makes complete sense that he’s already coming up with ideas for a spin-off.

That said, Season 3 is about to be so scary that we’re not even going to be able to focus on the idea that we might be getting a spin-off series.

“In Season 1, we had lots of games like Tug of War that really utilized height and the fear that this height gives, but in the case of Season 2, we didn’t have that element,” Hwang told Entertainment Weekly in a recent interview. “That is why in Season 3, I decided to introduce games that could really infuse fear in people with sheer height.”

He also explained to the outlet that he wanted the characters of Season 3 to have to do things no human being would ever want to do — which certainly ups the stakes for the final season. “In the case of Season 3, I wanted to introduce games that could really show the lowest bottom of human beings, because the series itself is reaching its climax,” he said. “I wanted very intense games to bring out the bottom parts of human nature.”

Squid Game Season 3, which Hwang has confirmed is the last entry for the show, returns to Netflix on June 27, 2025.

Lex Briscuso is a film and television critic and a freelance entertainment writer for IGN. You can follow her on Twitter at @nikonamerica.

Sony's PlayStation Days of Play sale is in full swing, offering big discounts on PS5 consoles, PS VR2s, PlayStation games, DualSense controllers, accessories, and more.

Running from now until the 11th of June, there are not only bargains to be found at PlayStation Direct, but among plenty of retailers getting in on the offers as well:

• Amazon UK
• Currys
• Argos
• HMV
• EE
• ShopTo
• Smyths

While a lot of the products getting price cuts are quite similar across these online stores, some have trimmed off more than others, presumably to undercut the competition. On the other hand, there are some particular gems to find at certain outlets as well.

Although you can click any of the store links above to browse through their full selections yourself, we've scoured them all on your behalf and listed the best deals below.

DualSense Controllers as Low as £44

While a DualSense controller comes with every PS5 console, you usually need around £60 for another to either add a player #2 or add one of the new colourful designs to your set-up.

Every retailer has taken at least £10 off all their DualSense listings, but EE is the big winner here by selling their White and Black controllers for only £44.

Added Discounts on the DualSense Edge

The pro-grade DualSense Edge controller for the PS5 has had at least £10 taken off across listings at multiple retailers, too. In this case, though, Currys and Smyths give you the best value for money, with around £40 taken off to now only be £159.99 each.

Price Drops on PS5 & PS5 Pro

While Xbox has been boosting Series X prices, the PS5 Pro has had 45-£60 taken off its original £699.99 price off at retailers like HMV, ShopTo, Smyths, Argos, and PS Direct.

Smyths currently has the best price at £639.99, but HMV and Currys is your next best bet if it sell out there. If you need a disc drive, many retailers have finally lowered their prices to £69.99, following Sony's announcement earlier this year.

Meanwhile, EE will give you the best price on a standard PS5 Slim (with disc drive) at only £379.99, a whole £100 off.

Deals on the PSVR2

After having already dropped by £130 in March 2025, Days of Play is cutting the price on the PSVR2 even further to now go for as low as £349 at almost all of our mentioned retailers (except EE), with Amazon and Currys giving the best price on the individual system.

PS Direct, however, gives you the best deal overall at £354.99, since it you can buy the bundle including Horizon Call of the Mountain for just over an extra fiver.

The Best Deals on PS5 & PS4 Games

Participating Days of Play retailers have added a lot of deals on PS5 & PS4 games, but the biggest slash is currently almost 50% off The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered. Well-timed for season 2 of the HBO adaptation just ending, this is the perfect opportunity to dive into what's arguably Naughty Dog's best game in recent years.

However, an equally amazing yet surprising deal is £90 off the Marvel's Spider-Man 2 Collector's Edition, including the iconic 'all 19 inches of' Venom statue — dropped from £219.99 to £129.99 at PS Direct.

Price Cuts on PlayStation Accessories

Like in the US Days of Play sale, a good number of pounds have been taken off premium accessories like the PS5 Pulse Earbuds, the accessiblity controller, and console covers.

Money Off a 12-Month PS Plus Membership & Gift Cards

Normally £119.99, PS Direct has taken 33% off its year-long PS Plus Memberships to now only £80.39.

What's more, ShopTo has reduced prices on PlayStation Store gift cards. So, for example, you could buy the £100 gift card for £87.85, buy your 12-month membership, then save the remaining £20.61 to spend on a game in the PS Store's Days of Play digital game sale.

Ben Williams – IGN freelance contributor with over 10 years of experience covering gaming, tech, film, TV, and anime. Follow him on Twitter/X @BenLevelTen.

After spending the last 30 years grazing the fields of Moo Moo Farm and Moo Moo Meadows, Cow has taken the spotlight as the biggest breakout star of Mario Kart World's enormous character roster. So when Nintendo invited us to a roundtable interview with Mario Kart World Producer Kosuke Yabuki, we knew we had to ask him about the beloved bovine.

"Thank you for that question about Cow," Yabuki began, which is one of the best openings I've ever heard in an interview. "The decision to include Cow was something that we considered in terms of if we added that, I think people would be really happy about it. And so we did. But honestly, the reaction to that by the public was much bigger than we possibly could have anticipated. So that was a wonderful surprise. Thank you."

Yabuki's surprise at Cow's popularity matches what we heard from Nintendo of America's Bill Trinen, who told us in an interview that their internal expectations for Cow were "perhaps not as big as the cow has become."

Cow's origin story makes her inclusion even better. In last month's Ask the Developer series about Mario Kart World, Yabuki confirmed that it was a developer's "silly sketch" of Cow driving a truck that convinced him and the rest of the team to add Cow as a playable character. I asked Yabuki about the evolution during development of what they're now calling "NPC Drivers", which grew to include characters like Snowman, Penguin, Swooper, and many others.

"I have to say, adding in Cow really opened the floodgates for us because once you've got a character in like that, you start to think, 'well, maybe we should just add who we can,'" Yabuki continued. "And so that was the point at which the designers got really excited. Once they realized all of these characters were possibly up for grabs, that's when you start to see Penguin come in, Pokey comes in, one after another, these new designs for characters keep coming. And so because all of these characters came in such a rush as the designers were getting kind of carried away, it's actually a little hard for me to remember which specific character would've come immediately next in the sequence after Cow. Sorry about that! Because honestly, I have this memory of approving the concept for Cow, and then maybe the next day I had 10 proposals for other characters on my desk."

There's a potential darker side to this story, too, as one of Mario Kart World's other new additions is Dash Food, which characters pick up from Yoshi's drive-thrus around the open world. Shortly after Mario Kart World was unveiled, IGN's Brian Altano noticed at a preview event that Cow was able to eat products that traditionally include beef, like steak kabobs and hamburgers. So, we asked Yabuki the ultimate question: Are those veggie burgers, or what's going on there?

Yes, Cow CAN eat steak in Mario Kart World. pic.twitter.com/qN5PZ9IIM4

— IGN (@IGN) April 4, 2025

"Sorry, that's top secret," Kabuki said with a laugh. "I can't say."

Well, the mystery remains, as does the question of if Diddy Kong will appear in Mario Kart World sporting his new redesign, to which Yabuki simply said, "I'm afraid I can't say anything at this time." But the rest of Mario Kart World's mysteries will soon be solved, as we're just two days away from the release date of Nintendo Switch 2 and its flagship launch game. For more, check out our final hands-on preview of Mario Kart World, where we were impressed with the racing, but still haven't been sold on Free Roam. And, check out our preview of that $10 launch game, Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour.

Logan Plant is the host of Nintendo Voice Chat and IGN's Database Manager & Playlist Editor. The Legend of Zelda is his favorite video game franchise of all time, and he is patiently awaiting the day Nintendo announces a brand new F-Zero. You can find him online @LoganJPlant.

I may only have played three hours of it, but I’m already starting to get the feeling that Mario Kart World should really be called Mario Kart Knockout Tour. The new last-one-standing race mode, really is the star of the show, adding yet another layer of tension and mayhem to the already chaotic kart racer, and such a new addition deserves to have its name up in lights. And so I find it a curious decision that Nintendo has settled on the Switch 2 launch game’s open world as the main draw. I get it on an optics level – a Mario Kart unbound from the confines of pre-determined tracks has been long desired by fans – but after getting my hands on its free roam offering recently, it sadly left me feeling underwhelmed. Let me explain why.

When thinking of an open-world racing game, it's by no means unfair to make comparisons with Forza Horizon. Developer Playground Games has mastered this specific subgenre, even earning itself an IGN Game of the Year award with its most recent effort. Each game in the series features a delicately sculpted open world that packs in challenge, wonder, and, most importantly, fun. I’d be lying if I said I found much of any of those qualities in the roughly half an hour I spent speeding around Mario Kart World’s sizeable map. It’s largely empty, lacks atmosphere, and feels bizarrely devoid of activities to get stuck into.

Much of my time in free roam consisted of dashing along expanses of flat grassland, desert, or lightly choppy seas, looking for something to do. There are some challenges to get your teeth stuck into, but I found them largely repetitive and little more than trivial distractions. They mainly consist of P Switch challenges which, when activated, create short time trials to complete. I found these fun at first, but quickly realised they’re mostly rinse and repeat efforts involving collecting a certain amount of coins or whizzing through checkpoints within a time limit. And when these rarely take more than 10 or 15 seconds to finish, they soon lose all novelty. It’s not a promising sign to walk away from a demo feeling as if you’ve already exhausted the amount of entertainment you can get from a game’s side activities. And while I do hope that a more in-depth scouring of the world reveals more hidden fun, there’s another factor that has me concerned about how it all plays out.

You do get rewarded with a shiny new sticker to place on your chosen kart when completing these P Switch challenges, but this is pretty much as far as unlockables go. It feels weird that progression is still largely locked behind the series’ long-term tradition of racing in Grand Prixs, as this open world seems the perfect opportunity to hide new characters and karts in secret corners. New outfits can be found by driving through one of Yoshi’s many restaurants on the island, but they’re just as, if not more accessible, in race scenarios.

Barn finds – explorative missions in Forza Horizon that involve hunting down a hidden vehicle within a section of the map like a piece of buried treasure – are some of my favourite things to do in Playground’s series. If there really isn’t anything similar in the final game (and, unfortunately, no signs at my preview event suggest there is), then it feels like a missed opportunity, especially when 3D Mario platformers are so packed with secrets. That sense of wonder you so often feel when discovering something off the beaten track just doesn’t seem to exist here; instead, the closest I ever got in this demo was stumbling across a big green warp pipe that did nothing more than send me 20 metres down the road. Why don’t these lead to hidden areas with challenges of their own to complete?

It’s this apparent lack of any sort of progression or meaningful activities that has me wondering how little time I’ll actually spend in this open world. Yes, there are Peach Medallions to collect, which can prove a fun challenge to reach – you’ll need to demonstrate a mastery of the new rail grinding and wall riding mechanics – but, again, they can only unlock stickers. This in itself isn’t an issue (fun for fun’s sake is largely the name of the game for Nintendo), but I can’t help but feel like I would like something more substantial to use them on, such as how excess moons can be used on cosmetics in one of Super Mario Odyssey’s many stores.

Maybe I’m just a grumpy man disillusioned with the world he lives in now that he’s hit his mid-thirties, though. Because, despite these grumbles, I do need to remind myself that kids big and small will have a great time roaming around this colourful paradise, zooming around and taking in the sights of its sandy beaches and winding city streets. Plus, I’d be lying if the seven-year-old part of my brain didn’t activate when I drove into the back of a massive truck, took over its controls Cappy-style, and wreaked havoc by ploughing into every other vehicle and breakable coin-filled brick in sight. It was a rare moment of wonder and Nintendo creativity that seems worryingly lacking elsewhere. Yes, there’s a dynamic weather system, day/night cycle, and morphing toe-tapping soundtrack that shifts depending on what biome you’re in, but none of these delightful presentation touches truly added to the fun factor.

The open world is crucial to Mario Kart World outside of its free roam mode, though, and that can’t be ignored. The way these open spaces connect tracks together is very clever, and allows for more varied course combinations to be created. Plus, the exciting new Knockout Tour just wouldn’t be the same without it. The way it snakes cross-country through the many different environments is impressive, and I could see this mode being nowhere near as fun if it took place on an extensive number of laps of the same track. This world does have its merits, it’s just not in the exploration of it.

When treated like a toy box, as opposed to an open world on the scale of Forza Horizon or even Burnout Paradise, there is some joy to be found in Free Roam. I just wouldn’t go in expecting that open world to leave a lasting impression – perhaps a hard pill to swallow considering the $80 price tag. The racing is still the highlight of Mario Kart, and the new Knockout Mode makes it feel as exciting as it has in a long time. So much so that it really deserves to be placed front and center, and not buried in its relatively underwhelming world.

Simon Cardy is a Senior Editor at IGN who can mainly be found skulking around open world games, indulging in Korean cinema, or despairing at the state of Tottenham Hotspur and the New York Jets. Follow him on Bluesky at @cardy.bsky.social.

Mario Kart World is just two days away, and fan expectations are rightfully high. It’s the flagship launch game for Nintendo Switch 2, the first open world in the series, the follow-up to the hugely successful Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and on top of all that, it’s Nintendo’s first $80 game since the N64 days, which has caused no shortage of internet discourse. There’s a lot riding on this one, so I’m pleased to report that after spending roughly five hours with unrestricted access to the final build, I’m confident Mario Kart World’s thrilling racing will kick off Nintendo’s eighth generation with a rocket start, even if I’m still not completely sold on its open-world exploration.

My first hands-on preview back in April was very limited. Steering assist was turned on, the demo was locked to 100cc, and we only got to see a couple of modes. But this time, the training wheels came off and I played what appeared to be the version you’ll be able to buy on June 5, complete with an enormous roster of characters (including everyone’s favorite, Cow) and freedom to choose any mode or settings I wanted.

So I first chose to play as Mario (basic, I know) and swapped between multiple karts – including the incredible R.O.B. bike – to try out Free Roam, which is still the biggest question surrounding Mario Kart World. In a series first, Free Roam takes the spotlight off of racing and shines it directly on exploration, allowing players to drive across the wide, interconnected highways. Nintendo promised hundreds of P Switch missions in Free Roam, and while I won’t spoil the final total, I can confirm that it only takes a few seconds of driving in any direction to spot one of these challenges. They are littered everywhere, and after worrying they’d all be too easy based on the footage Nintendo has released so far, I was pleasantly surprised that I failed a couple of the P Switch missions on my first attempt – by either running out of time or missing a key jump – and some of them felt like they demanded mastery of Mario Kart World’s new Tony Hawk-inspired parkour mechanics.

One mission in the Bowser’s Castle area had me driving on walls and flipping off the side at the right moment to transform into an airplane, and the timing was genuinely tricky – but you’re thankfully given the option to retry a challenge immediately after failing rather than having to drive back to the start on your own. P Switch missions can also summon temporary objects and creatures to the terrain, like one where I had to steer my airplane around a few dinosaurs that showed up. I only tried a handful of the hundreds of challenges that await, and I’m not entirely sure the novelty will last through the time required to tackle them all, but I’ve enjoyed what I’ve seen to this point.

Sadly, the rest of Free Roam hasn’t gripped me yet. IGN’s Simon Cardy wrote a feature sharing his concerns about the open-world mode, and while I think I’m a little higher on it than he is so far, I agree with the general sentiment that there’s just not that much to do outside of the P Switches. There are collectibles scattered throughout by way of Peach Medallions and ? Block Panels that unlock one of hundreds of stickers you can slap on the side of your kart, but the ones I found felt neither special nor difficult to discover, and I missed the feeling of surprise and delight that other Nintendo games like Tears of the Kingdom and Super Mario Odyssey completely nailed.

Even driving around itself can feel a bit too slow when you go off road into grass or sand. This limitation makes sense for the racing in Mario Kart where veering off the intended path without a Mushroom has punishing consequences, but the feeling of diminished speed across tougher terrain made me less inclined to explore. I’ve still barely sunk my teeth into Free Roam, so maybe there’s a game-changing discovery waiting to be found, but I’m not counting on it. So far, Free Roam feels decidedly like a side dish rather than the meaty, transformative open-world experience many are hoping for.

And perhaps that’s fair, because the main course of Mario Kart World was always going to be the racing, which felt completely right the second I started my first lap on 150cc. The turning, drifting, and boosting all feels as tight as you’d hope, and the open-world design fully shines in this bold new take on the formula. Knockout Tour remains the star of the show, as driving cross-country against 23 other players while doing everything you can to stay out of the bottom four before the next cutoff point is exhilarating. Every shell I threw felt critically important, and whether I was in the front or the back of the pack, my heart was pounding as I desperately tried to qualify for the next segment.

These six-part races take place almost exclusively on the highways in between Mario Kart World’s dedicated courses, and as I passed through fun reimaginings of returning tracks like Mario Kart 7’s Shy Guy Bazaar and brand-new locations like the adventurous, Uncharted-like Great ? Block Ruins, I began to recognize the impressive amount of alternate paths that I’m excited to perfect once the full game is out. A well-timed Golden Mushroom can catapult you from the back to 1st in the blink of an eye, as some of the shortcuts presented on the highways allow you to cut a huge amount of the track. I can already tell that hardcore players (myself included) are going to have a blast finding the optimal routes and pushing these courses to their limits.

I’ve been concerned that the long stretches of very wide straightaways – present in both Knockout Tour and the revamped Grand Prix – could be boring compared to the twists and turns of the courses, but Nintendo has covered the interstate with cars to avoid, enemies that spew projectiles, and plenty of opportunities to grind on rails and make use of the new Charge Jump technique to reach optional areas. In most straightaway sections, there was always something demanding my attention – although there were a few select times I was just holding A and not doing much else, and the wide road design made things feel a bit slow compared to the close-quarters racing on the dedicated courses. Still, my fears have largely been squashed, and now I’m just waiting to see how these sections will hold up over dozens of repeat play sessions.

For all you Mario Kart purists who just want to do three laps around the 30+ courses in Mario Kart World, that classic option is one of the main draws of VS Race and Time Trials, and I was very satisfied to find that the quality track design fans have come to expect hasn’t been sacrificed in favor of the open-world elements. The reimagined Peach Beach took me through familiar waterfront straight from Double Dash before exploring an entirely new village, while DK Spaceport is a fantastic homage to the arcade game that started it all – complete with final lap music any Donkey Kong fan will feel nostalgic for. If you’ve been worried the courses wouldn’t feel as special as in past Mario Kart games, I think you can breathe a sigh of relief.

Speaking of the music, Mario Kart World might just have one of the greatest soundtracks in Nintendo history. Each course has its own dedicated theme as usual, but beyond that, the remixes that play during Free Roam and Knockout Tour make Mario Kart World feel like a proper celebration of Super Mario’s 40th anniversary. In my short time with the game I heard references to Super Mario Bros., Yoshi’s Island, Donkey Kong Country, Super Mario 3D World, Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker, pretty much every past Mario Kart, and a lot more. Each track I heard was beautifully remixed to fit Mario Kart World’s adventurous road trip vibe, and I can’t wait to hear every tune it has to offer. And I won’t have to wait long, because Mario Kart World and Nintendo Switch 2 will be here in less than 48 hours. Stay tuned later this week for our review in progress followed by our full review of Mario Kart World as we get more laps under our belts.

Logan Plant is the host of Nintendo Voice Chat and IGN's Database Manager & Playlist Editor. The Legend of Zelda is his favorite video game franchise of all time, and he is patiently awaiting the day Nintendo announces a brand new F-Zero. You can find him online @LoganJPlant.

Nacon is taking another jab at the Xbox Elite Wireless Series 2, this time with a wireless option. The $199 Nacon Revolution X Unlimited brings loads of customization potential for both the hardware and the input response. It’s a seriously adaptable controller, and it’s ready for gaming on PC, Xbox, and Android. It stumbles here and there, but never quite lands on its face. The $199 Turtle Beach Stealth Ultra offers similar performance in a cleaner design, but Nacon definitely takes the cake for customization.

Nacon Revolution X Unlimited – Design and Features

Nacon has taken a step in the right direction with the Revolution X Unlimited controller. It has not only upgraded a lot over the Revolution X Pro, but it has rejiggered the design to look a little more refined and classy. It still retains some of the same flair though, with the signature RGB light ring around the right thumbstick still intact.

The new design has a smoother line around the perimeter of the controller. And while it may make little difference for ergonomics, it does give the controller a cleaner silhouette. The grips appear slightly narrowed compared to its predecessor, though. For my large hands, that’s meant slightly less comfortable handling, but not enough to impede lengthy gaming sessions. The grips are also coated with a rubbery, ribbed material to help me get a good hold on the controller. There are some seams between various panels on the controller, and these are guaranteed to accumulate grime and dead skin over time, so the controller will take some maintenance to keep clean.

Like its predecessor, the Revolution X Unlimited goes heavy on customization. The grips still have removable panels on the bottom that let you add or remove small metal weights (included in a carrying case) to adjust the heft of the controller. What functional benefit this offers, I do not know, but sometimes heavier just feels better.

That’s just where the customization begins. Nacon includes tall convex, short convex, and short concave thumbstick options for both joysticks. It has a 4-way and 8-way controller for the D-Pad, as well as extra collar rings for the joysticks – perhaps to limit range of motion, but the purpose again evades me. It has trigger locks to shorten the trigger travel. There’s a switch to disable the start/settings buttons for tournament play. There are also shortcut buttons for cycling through profiles and selecting from Advanced and Classic profiles (more on this later).

And then there’s all the extra buttons. The Revolution X Unlimited includes all the controls for a standard Xbox layout, and they’re right where you’d expect them (except the various menu buttons, which are spaced out to accommodate a screen). But it also includes six custom shortcut controls. Four of the shortcut buttons are on the underside of the controller, similar to where they were on the Revolution X Pro. Two of these are right about where your middle fingers would rest, and that makes them both easily accessible and potentially easy to hit by accident. I had no trouble with this, though. The other two run down the stems of the grips though, and I found these much harder to reliably hit without adjusting my grip on the controller. With my ring fingers already firmly curled around the controller just to hold it, it was tricky to then shift and squeeze a different area to trigger that extra button. Yet another pair of extra buttons sits to the inside of the triggers. You can think of these like extra shoulder buttons, and if your fingers are long enough, you can tap them with your index fingers without having to shift away from the triggers.

Beyond these extra buttons and remapping options, the Revolution X Unlimited supports a bunch of customization to get the controls feeling how you want them. You can adjust joystick sensitivity curves, dead zones, trigger responsiveness, vibration levels, and gyroscope behavior and dead zones. Most of the adjustments require Nacon’s software to tweak, but the controller has a built-in screen that allows you to make some settings and remapping tweaks on the controller itself.

The Revolution X Unlimited includes Bluetooth connectivity for gaming on Android devices or receiving audio from them (not both simultaneously). There’s a headset combo jack on the bottom of the controller for this purpose as well. And Nacon supports various game EQ settings as well as chat-game volume balancing for Xbox. The controller supports wireless audio from Xbox and PC using its dongle, and it (thankfully) doesn’t present to PC as an audio source unless headphones are actually plugged into the controller.

Nacon includes a semi-hard shell for the Revolution X Unlimited, and while it’s great to have (especially to keep from losing the adjustable weights), it gets a few things wrong. For one, making space for the weights makes it about twice as large as it needs to be. That’s a big blow for portability. And though it includes a space for the controllers charging stand inside, Nacon neglected to put a USB-passthrough slot in the case so the charging stand could function inside of the case – something both the Turtle Beach Stealth Ultra and Xbox Elite Wireless Series 2 Controllers offer with their cases.

I’ve also found the Revolution X Unlimited’s stand design tedious to use. It’s much bigger than the stand of the Turtle Beach Steal Ultra controller, and it’s fussy about how the controller gets set into it. Where I can just about drop Turtle Beach’s controller and have it link up with the stand (magnets help line things up), the Nacon controller requires careful lining up. It’s more than possible to set it down on the stand without getting the charging pins to engage.

Nacon Revolution X Unlimited – Software

Nacon’s software for adjusting the settings of the controller is fairly in-depth but somewhat annoying. For one thing, on the PC it only operates in fullscreen. There's no shrinking it down or setting it to running a window. Software also only allows you to customize the controller in wired mode. This can mean unplugging the dongle, finding a cable for the controller, and flipping a couple switches on the underside of the controller (and then of course reversing the process afterward to use the controller and see if you like the changes you’ve made).

Well you can do a lot to change the controls some of the adjustments are not entirely in. The controller comes with a handful of preset profiles for PC and for Xbox (each presents as a discrete mode), and you can't make adjustments to these. You can make new profiles but they won't automatically go on to the controller. Instead once you've made a new profile you have to set it to replace one of the other presets that's already loaded on the device. You can have eight controller profiles loaded onto the Revolution X Unlimited at a time (four for Xbox and four for PC modes). The key difference between the two is that PC settings have the option to use gyroscopic controls, keyboard assignments, and custom “Communication speed” (wired/wireless connection speeds), while the Xbox doesn’t.

Confusingly, the profiles created through the PC software apply only when the controller is set to Advanced mode. So these profiles are separate from the profiles available in Classic mode. Classic mode profiles are also saved on the device, with 12 available (four for Xbox, four for PC, and four for Bluetooth). Nacon’s software also doesn’t always do a great job walking you through things or explaining settings and how they’ll work. Fortunately, the software includes a test area to at least get some sense of how the controller is responding to your changes.

While this may be an edge case, I was frustrated by the fact that the controller allows you to turn off the gyroscope through its built-in menu. While that may seem sensible, it doesn’t allow you to turn the gyroscope back on. To do that, you have to again reconnect to a computer and enable it in the desired profile.

Nacon Revolution X Unlimited – Gaming and Performance

For its missteps, faults, and eccentricities, gaming on the Revolution X Unlimited is quite excellent. The sticks feel great – no grinding, awkward resistance, or discomfort from the caps. Better still are the buttons. The ABXY buttons have a bit of lateral wiggle to them, but they’re nice and large, and the microswitches underneath are delightfully clicky and responsive. They’re easy to press and click with a clear actuation. I’ve enjoyed the Turtle Beach Stealth Ultra’s buttons, and this steps that up with larger buttons. It’s a similar story for the D-Pad, shoulder buttons, and shortcut buttons.

Having the option to switch between short-travel hair triggers and longer trigger pulls is nice, though I found the shorter travel ended up feeling a lot stiffer to use (and wore on my finger over time). While I can’t say it’s affected the experience over the short term, the use of Hall effect sensors in the joysticks and triggers should mean they remain accurate in the long run.

I tend to be a bit lead-thumbed when it comes to aiming on the joysticks, so having the ability to adjust the response curves helps me avoid constantly overshooting my aim. I also enjoyed the option to enable gyroscopic aiming on the fly with a toggle assigned to one of the shortcut keys, so I could make extra aim adjustments that way, though I never found it quite as responsive or reliable as the gyro aiming on Nintendo Switch, particularly because it has a way of ignoring subtle movements no matter how much I messed around with its deadzone settings and joystick response curves.

Between the quick microswitches and the low-latency wireless connection, responsiveness was never an issue. I battled my way through some enemies that were way out of my level in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, such as the Grosse Tete and Chromatic Abbest – two enemies I only managed to beat through the precise timing of dodges and parries, which the controller had no trouble enabling.

Comfort using the controller was largely great. The only real snag was the slightly narrow grips for my large hands and a tighter curve I found pressing into my pinky finger a bit. But it wasn’t uncomfortable enough to stop me from engaging in several-hour gaming sessions. The battery also held up quite well, easily meeting the 10-hour battery life suggested by Nacon, and that’s without making some of the battery-saving adjustments available (like display dimming).

I was surprised not to hear much audio degradation using headphones with the controller. There were occasional artifacts, presumably from the rather extreme RF environments I work in, but listening to music and game audio was largely clean and clear.