Prime Day might be over, but someone clearly forgot to tell the discounts. In a twist that’s as welcome as it is unexpected, a hefty stack of deals has survived the retail storm, with prices still slashed across Switch, Xbox, PlayStation and PC. Whether it’s leftovers from the main sale or publishers riding the hype wave a little longer, there are still some proper gems worth pouncing on.

This Day in Gaming 🎂

In retro news, I'm celebrating the 27th birthday of Point Blank, a PS One lightgun classic that's tied to one of my fondest gaming memories. For those of you unfamiliar with it, Point Blank is basically a collection of carnival target mini-games that's best played competitively with two players. Arguably the trickiest task is a sniper challenge with one bullet and a five second window to blast an object out of a distant figure's hand. I'll never forget the time when a mate of mine went full Billy the Kid and quick-drew a shot from his hip to nail said target in 0.5 of a second. Arsiest gaming feat I've ever witnessed.

• Street Fighter 6 [NS2]. (-26%) – A$69
• Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom (-20%) – A$64
• Zelda: Breath of the Wild (-18%) – A$74
• Pokémon Legends: Arceus (-20%) – A$64
• Disney Illusion Island (-50%) – A$29.90
• Super Mario RPG (-29%) – A$57

Expiring Recent Deals

• Lego Horizon Adventures (-55%) – A$48.50
• EA Sports FC 25 (-43%) – A$34
• Persona 5 Royal (-65%) – A$34.90
• West of Loathing (-69%) – A$4.90
• Unicorn Overlord (-50%) – A$47.40
• Sonic Forces (-32%) – A$40.90

Or gift a Nintendo eShop Card.

Back to top

Samsung already had a lineup of solid phones on its hands with the Galaxy S25 series, and it opted to round out the collection by making an extra-thin model: the Galaxy S25 Edge. Where the other phones can push up to 8mm thick, the S25 Edge trims down to just under 6mm. That sure is thin for a phone, but if a matter of millimeters doesn’t sound like a major difference, you’re already catching on to the biggest issue the S25 Edge faces. The Galaxy S25 Edge may be built like a high-end smartphone, but that pursuit of thinness comes with several key compromises that impact the phone's overall quality.

Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge – Design and Features

Samsung has undeniably managed to trim down the Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge compared to the rest of its recent phones, not to mention most of its competition. The S25 Edge is just 5.8mm thick, down from the Galaxy S25 Ultra’s 8.2mm. The difference is subtle in the pocket but plain to the naked eye. There’s also a tangible weight difference, with the phone weighing 2 ounces less than the S25 Ultra at just 5.7 ounces.

But the S25 Edge still isn’t razor sharp, in part because it has flat edges. After I dug out some old phones for comparison, I found it really doesn’t feel meaningfully thin compared to where smartphones were about nine years ago. My old OnePlus 5 felt about as thin thanks to its curves (even if it’s 7.3mm thick), and the original Moto Z still has the S25 Edge beat by 0.1mm. Of course, the S25 Edge is the only of these phones packing the latest hardware. That comes with caveats of its own, though.

The S25 Edge might look like the S25 Ultra, down to the color scheme, but flipping it over to the back, the simple two-camera setup is markedly lacking next to the quad-camera setup that the Ultra offers. Of course, there’s no S Pen either.

Samsung did opt for a large, 6.7-inch display, giving it more room to squeeze in other crucial internals, like the 3,900mAh battery – albeit a bit small for a phone these days. It is at least a quality LTPO AMOLED display, offering a sharp 1440x3120 resolution that runs smooth at up to 120Hz. It also gets plenty bright for easy visibility in most cases, though doesn’t have the same anti-glare coating of the S25 Ultra either.

While the screen is pretty good, I did notice some odd color shift when viewing it from an angle. It’s warmer straight on, but at angles of even just 10-20 degrees, it gains a cooler tone. It’s most perceptible in large areas with a solid color, though it can otherwise be hard to detect. Thankfully, this means most media isn’t going to be impacted. And with the potent stereo speakers the S25 Edge has on board, movies and TV are still easy enough to enjoy on the phone.

Like its siblings, the S25 Edge offers a fingerprint scanner built into the display along with facial recognition for unlocking the phone. Both have worked quickly and reliably in my testing. Other stowaway features from the S25 Ultra: The S25 Edge kept the titanium frame and 15W wireless charging, though wired charging peaks at 25W. It can survive dips into 1.5-meter deep water for up to 30 minutes. It has some different blends of Gorilla Glass, but it’s still tough stuff. Alas, even that's not immune to blemishes, with the rear of the phone exhibiting unsightly scratches after the couple weeks I spent with it.

Detailing the design and features of the S25 Edge eventually begins to feel a bit like discussing things Samsung packed into the S25 Ultra and gave up for the Edge. And that brings us to a key point: All you’re really getting is a phone that shaves hairs of the size of the phone and its weight, and leaves a lot on the table in the process. Never mind that the camera bump almost doubles the thickness of the phone at its corner. The camera also has a small recess around it that is likely to accumulate dust and gunk over time, and I can only hope it doesn’t pop off as easily as the camera housings on the S25 Ultra, as Zack from JerryRigEverything demonstrated so well.

Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge – Software

The Galaxy S25 Edge comes running Android 15 and will get seven years of OS and security updates. Samsung’s One UI is pretty customizable, even allowing for things like mirror navigation buttons at the bottom of the display for folks who haven’t switched to gesture navigation. I’ve always respected Samsung’s flexibility but been annoyed by its insistence on signing in with a Samsung account in the past. Thankfully, the S25 Edge can be set up with just your Google account. The phone will still come with some of Samsung’s take on various apps though, like Contacts, My Files, Calendar, and its own internet browser.

Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge – Gaming and Performance

Like other flagship Android phones this year, the Galaxy S25 Edge runs on a Snapdragon 8 Elite chip. For other devices, this chip has enabled extreme performance, and the Galaxy S25 Edge is no exception. Here's the thing: Heat has been an issue on just about every device I've tested with the Snapdragon 8 Elite. They pretty much all end up throttling a bit when performing heavy loads for a long time, even if they have active cooling or large vapor chambers. Because of the Galaxy S25 Edge’s size, it has neither of those things and experiences thermal throttling issues much sooner and more severely than other phones.

Though it performed well in single benchmark runs, largely keeping pace with the Galaxy S25 Ultra and other high-end Android phones, its performance throttles quickly in sustained loads. In 3DMark’s Steel Nomad Light Stress Test, which repeats the benchmark 20 times in a row, the phone had one good run and then quickly dropped, losing 16% of its performance after the first run and over 50% by the end of the 20 runs. Another benchmark saw the CPU temps rise from 84.2 degrees Fahrenheit to 105.8 degrees after a single run. Running the same benchmark immediately after, temps rose even further and the performance dropped by 20%.

While this doesn’t prevent the phone from being a speedy device in everyday operation, especially with 12GB of memory keeping frequently accessed apps readily available, it does mean that heavier workloads will prove problematic. Aside from light games, you can expect performance to sag quickly and temperatures to rise just as fast. The heat is largely localized near the camera sensors, so the S25 Edge at least avoids becoming uncomfortable to hold in a one-handed grip.

As mentioned earlier, the slim design comes with a smaller battery than you’d expect in a phone with this big a screen. Thankfully, this hasn’t prevented it from managing a reasonable all-day battery life. But with phones like the OnePlus 13 readily pushing into two-day territory, the S25 Edge’s battery performance certainly doesn’t feel that impressive.

Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge – Cameras

The Galaxy S25 Edge isn’t quite the camera powerhouse that its siblings are. It borrows some of the same sensors, but not some of the best ones. With just two rear sensors, it’s not offering the same kind of versatility that even the base Galaxy S25 provides. Here’s a quick rundown of the cameras onboard the Edge:

• 200MP wide, f/1.7, 1/1.3”, OIS, EIS
• 12MP ultrawide, f/2.2
• 12MP Selfie, f/2.2, 1.12-micron, 1/3.2”

Unsurprisingly, the Galaxy S25 Edge has an excellent main camera sensor, borrowing the same one found on the Galaxy S25 Ultra. The phone snaps sharp photos, though it bins down from 200MP to just 12MP. Samsung’s processing tends to boost color saturation, which can have a fun and lively look to it, but doesn’t always lead to the most lifelike images. The large sensor and wide aperture have good light-gathering potential, allowing the phone to take photos fairly quickly in darker environments. That, combined with the night mode, makes for surprisingly bright photos without as much risk of motion blur.

What the Galaxy S25 Edge especially lacks is quality zoom. Its main sensor can crop in to produce a digital zoom, but the quality drops tremendously further out. At 2X zoom, photos look reasonably close to the quality of the sensor at 1X, and they certainly look sharper than a 1X blown up to 200%. Push to 4X, though, and weird digital zoom artifacts like softer details and bizarre auras around some objects and people in the shot begin to noticeably crop up.

The ultra-wide is a downgrade from the S25 Ultra. It doesn’t have as high a resolution nor as much light-gathering potential, which can result in softer-looking details, especially in dimmer scenarios. Taking photos in the same conditions, the ultra-wide sensor will produce more noise than the main sensor.

Unfortunately, the main sensor struggles to get very close to subjects, so in those tight shots, the phone will try to switch over to a Macro mode that crops in on the ultra-wide sensor. The result is a photo that’s in focus, but with softer details and a greater likelihood of noise.

The selfie camera is the same shared among the S25 family. It produces reasonably crisp photos and offers the same vibrant colors you’ll find from the main sensor. It won’t be as sharp or capable in low-light settings, but it gets the job done otherwise.

As part of its Black Friday in July Sale, Dell has dropped the price of the new 2025 Alienware Aurora 16 gaming laptop equipped with an GeForce RTX 5060 mobile GPU for just $1,099.99 with free delivery. That is a big $400 discount from its official launch price and currently the best deal I can find on an RTX 5060 equipped laptop from any brand and any retailer. If you're specifically looking for a gaming laptop at the $1,100 or below price point, you'd be hard pressed to find a better deal on a "budget" gaming laptop during Amazon Prime Day.

Alienware Aurora 16 RTX 5060 Gaming Laptop for $1,099.99

The Apple Back to School Sale officially kicked off on June 17 and runs through September 30. This sale happens annually, but the promotional details change each year. For 2025, Apple is offering an accessory worth up to $179 - or up to $179 off more expensive accessories - when you purchase an eligible iPad, MacBook, or iMac that qualifies for an Education discount. The Apple Education Store is open to faculty, staff, students, or parents of currently enrolled students and typically offers discounts of up to 10% off standard Apple Store pricing. The promotional items offered during the Back to School Sale can be combined with these discounts.

The Apple Back to School Sale Starts Now

Book nooks are a great way to add some flair to your book collection and pad out some empty space on your shelf. The best part is that they're typically DIY kits made of parts similar to any other miniature model kit. These are the perfect time sink for a rainy day, with podcast or your favorite movie on in the background, or even for a date night. Looking online, there are seemingly endless options when to brands and styles, but I've gathered some of what I think are the very best. Below are my top picks by brand in terms of style, design, and cost.

LEGO Book Nooks

The LEGO book nooks recently released in June, and thet have already been extremely popular. I got the Lord of the Rings: Balrog set, and both the Harry Potter Hogwarts Express and Sherlock Holmes book nooks are already hard to find. Not only do they function well as a typical book nook, but ech one unfolds into classic scene from their respective properties; you have Gandalf facing off against the Balrog in the iconic "you shall not pass" scene, a recreation of Baker Street where Sherlock calls home, and King's Cross Station and Platform 9 3/4 where Harry and Ron are boarding the train back to Hogwarts. These range in cost from $100 up to $130. LEGO prices in 2025, am I right?

Funpola Book Nooks

Funpola book nooks stand out from the rest in that they offer a lot more modern and sci-fi themed nooks than others. The Endless Dimensions kit is a cool neon Cyberpunk-like aesthetic, and the Automobile Shop is a nice addition. The New World kit is my favorite of the bunch; it has all kinds of nautical decor, treasure, dead pirates drinking rum. What's not to like? Funpola does still have the more fantasy-leaning kits, too, if none of these catch your eye. These will set you back $50.

CCCDF Book Nooks

The CCCDF brand book nooks pay homage to some of literature's best works. The Alice Down the Rabbit Hole kit shows off the whimsical setting you'd expect from Lewis Carroll's timeless tale, and the Phantom of the Opera kit is a neat recreation of the novel as well. CCCDF also offers oversized book nooks, like the Beyond Library Max, if you're looking to fill more space or just prefer them like this. They cost a bit more than the regular kits, coming in around $60.

Cutebee Book Nooks

Cutebee book nooks offer a more storybook style, which I like. The Amazing Toys Store kit gives Pleasure Island vibes from Pinocchio, while the Darkness Common Room is surely inspired by the Slytherin common room from Harry Potter. The Rose Detective Agency would look great on the shelf next to any edition of Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes books. These all hover around $40, so you won't break the bank too hard if you go the Cutebee route.

Rolife Book Nooks

Rolife book nooks are a bit more minimalist than the others. The Sakura Densya is a quaint replica of a Japanese train station, and the Sunshine Town reminds me of something you'd see in a Nicholas Sparks novel. They also seem to be a bit narrower than the rest, so you should have no problem fitting these into your bookshelf. The size might also contribute to their $40 price tag.

Where to Buy Book Nooks Online

While Amazon is clearly the best bet to find these book nooks, other retailers offer them as well. Naturally, you can find the three LEGO book nooks directly on LEGO's website (and even earn points towards rewards this way), and Walmart and Target have a handful for sale. But other than Amazon, the best place to buy book nooks online is Book Nook World, a fitting title. This site carries all the other brands mentioned here and then some, so if you're looking for a themed nook not listed here, this is where I'd suggest you go.

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

In today’s world of seemingly endless streaming platforms and bundles, shopping for the right one(s) can be a trying ordeal. Since so many have their own expansive media libraries, it can be hard to commit to a monthly payment for one, or even multiple options. Do you want access to every Transformers movie? Paramount+ would be your best bet for taht. How about all the anime your heart desires? You’ll want to try out Crunchyroll to satisfy that craving. Luckily, most streaming services these days offer a sneak peek via free trials into their cache of goodies. So whatever you’re looking to watch in 2025, these nine free trials are a great way to test the waters of the streaming landscape. They are also a great way to save on your monthly streaming bill if you time them right.

1. Hulu (30-Day Free Trial)

The mecca of popular series both original and classic, Hulu has almost everything a series-binger would need. Adding to its impressive library over the years with some quality, sought-after films as well as TV shows, Hulu also has a wealth of groundbreaking, interesting, original content to dive into. This includes The Bear and Shogun, just to name a few recent hits. After exploring every nook and cranny that Hulu has to offer in this generous 30-day trial, there are a wide range of subscription options to opt into, from $9.99 a month (with ads) all the way up to just over $100 a month – if you want to include live TV or premium add-ons such as Max, ESPN+, Disney+, Cinemax, Paramount+ with Showtime, Starz, and more.

It's worth noting that Disney now offers a bundle that combines Hulu, Disney+, and Max into a single streaming package. While that bundle does not have a free trial, it is arguably the best streaming bundle deal currently available.

Hulu + Live TV Also Has a Free Trial

A lot is changing for DC's lineup of movies and shows in the years ahead. James Gunn and Peter Safran, co-CEOs of DC Studios, have a strategy for a more cohesive and interconnected lineup of content moving forward. It all starts with Chapter 1, dubbed "Gods and Monsters."

It can be very difficult to keep track of all the big changes at DC these days. And Gunn is always dropping updates and news it seems! That's why we've put together this comprehensive list of everything currently in the works, as well as the major projects that have either been officially canceled or gone dormant.

Come join us in the reborn DC Universe. Click on through the slideshow below for a glimpse or read on for even more details...

What Are the Next DC Movies Coming Out? 2025 Release Dates

For those keeping track, here's the full lineup of upcoming DC movies and TV shows:

• The Sandman Season 2 (July 3 and 24, 2025)
• Peacemaker Season 2 (August 21, 2025)
• Supergirl (June 26, 2026)
• Clayface (September 11, 2026)
• The Batman Part II (October 1, 2027)
• Dynamic Duo (Animated Robin Origin Movie) (June 30, 2028)
• Lanterns TV Series (Early 2026)
• Mister Miracle Animated Series (In Production)
• Batman: The Brave and the Bold (In Development)
• Creature Commandos Season 2 (In Development)
• The Authority (In Development)
• Swamp Thing (In Development)
• Teen Titans Movie (In Development)
• Bane/Deathstroke Movie (In Development)
• Wonder Woman Movie (In Development)
• Waller TV Series (In Development)
• Booster Gold TV Series (In Development)
• Paradise Lost TV Series (In Development)
• Blue Beetle Animated Series (In Development)
• Harley Quinn and Other Animated Titles (In Development)
• Constantine 2 (In Development)
• Sgt. Rock (Canceled)
• Gotham PD/Arkham TV Series (Possibly Canceled)

Here are some of the most notable projects that are currently in the works:

The Sandman Season 2 (July 3 and 24, 2025)

Despite widespread critical acclaim and what appears to have been a very successful debut on Netflix, it took several months for the streamer to announce that The Sandman was renewed. Netflix did finally confirm that new episodes are in the works, though they shied away from describing it as "Season 2" initially. That may suggest Netflix plans to release new episodes in smaller batches, similar to how Season 1 was followed up by the surprise release of an eleventh episode.

No matter the case, Season 2 will be the last for the show. Netflix says that was the plan even prior to abuse allegations against creator Neil Gaiman going public.

Peacemaker Season 2 (August 21, 2025)

Not everything is being completely rebooted for the new DCU. James Gunn's Peacemaker is getting an Amanda Waller spinoff series as well as a second season. We don't know much about Season 2 yet, though Gunn did tease a mystery character on social media in October, 2024. We also know that Frank Grillo's Rick Flag, Sr., previously seen in Creature Commandos, will be an antagonist on the show.

Supergirl (June 26, 2026)

The new DCU will also have a new Supergirl. Supergirl (previously titled Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow) is a movie based on Tom King and Bilquis Evely's comic. This Supergirl is one who spent much of her early life living on a fragment of Krypton that was dislodged in the planet's destruction, what Gunn describes as a "horrible situation where she watched everybody around her die." House of the Dragon's Milly Alcock plays Supergirl, and Craig Gillespie (I, Tonya, Cruella) directs the film.

Clayface (September 11, 2026)

A Clayface movie scripted by Mike Flanagan is moving fast at DC. Flanagan (The Haunting of Hill House, Doctor Sleep, etc.) previously voiced a desire to make a Clayface movie as a "horror/thriller/tragedy." However, due to his various TV commitments, he won't direct the film, with Speak No Evil's James Watkins expected to direct for a Fall, 2026, release. Tom Rhys Harries stars as the titular villain. Safran and Gunn promise a body horror picture that is R-rated as well.

Given Deadline's previous report that Clayface is one of the major villains debuting in The Batman Part II, and the fact that the Clayface movie is being produced by Matt Reeves and Lynn Harris' 6th & Idaho Productions, it had been assumed that this movie would be set in The Batman universe rather than the DCU. But Gunn has since said that it is in fact unrelated to The Batman Epic Crime Saga and is definitely part of the DCU. Presumably, those earlier reports of the character being in The Batman Part II will wind up not panning out at this point.

The Batman Part II (October 1, 2027)

Of course The Batman Part II is in the works with Matt Reeves returning to write and direct and Robert Pattinson putting on the cape, cowl, and eyeliner (!) again as the Dark Knight Detective. The film is confirmed to have survived the recent turmoil at Warner Bros. Discovery, and Reeves has even signed a multi-year first-look deal with the studio. There's no word yet on what it will be about, so begin your Joker speculation now. The release date of the film has been pushed a couple of times now, first from October 2025 to October 2026, and then to October 2027.

James Gunn has also confirmed that Pattinson will not be the DCU's version of Batman.

Dynamic Duo (Animated Robin Origin Movie) (June 30, 2028)

According to James Gunn, Dynamic Duo will tell the origin story of not one but two Robins -- Dick Grayson and Jason Todd. The film will be directed by Arthur Mintz, who's making the picture with his new animation studio Swaybox using a mix of animation, puppetry, CGI, and live-action performance. Huh.

Lanterns TV Series (Early 2026)

We're finally getting that oft-promised Green Lantern show. Lanterns is a high-concept detective drama in the vein of True Detective that revolves around Hal Jordan and John Stewart. Kyle Chandler (Friday Night Lights) has been cast as Hal and Aaron Pierre (The Underground Railroad) has been cast as John.

Mister Miracle Animated Series (In Production)

Mister Miracle is the second animated series to be produced under the DC Studios banner, following 2024's Creature Commandos. The series will be helmed by showrunner and producer Tom King, who previously penned 2017's Mister Miracle comic. The animated series looks to be directly based on that comic, which deals with Scott Free's attempts to make sense of his reality during a destructive war between Apokolips and New Genesis.

Batman: The Brave and the Bold (In Development)

DC has confirmed that we'll have two cinematic versions of Batman going forward, as the DCU will get its own Dark Knight alongside the standalone movies of Matt Reeves' The Batman series. The Brave and the Bold looks to deal with the full Bat-family, centering specifically on Bruce Wayne's 10-year-old son Damian. The movie will draw heavily from Grant Morrison's Batman comics. It is unclear how the film will connect to the events of The Flash movie, if at all (probably not?), but that film's director, Andy Muschietti, was at one point confirmed to be directing The Brave and the Bold.

More recently, it seems that Gunn and Safran have put some distance between the project and Muschietti, with Gunn taking point on it. “Everybody knows I love Batman and it’s important to me so I’m working very closely with the writer on Brave and the Bold,” he told a group of reporters in February, 2025. Once the script is completed (it is not currently known who the writer is), Gunn and Safran said they will take it to Muschietti "and see if it's a fit for him."

Creature Commandos Season 2 (In Development)

James Gunn's latest band of misfit superheroes, the Creature Commandos, kicked off the new DCU with the first season of their animated series on Max, and a Season 2 is already in the planning stages. What the new version of the team will look like remains to be seen, though the Creature Commandos Season 1 finale did give us some hints...

The Authority (In Development)

DC's anti-Justice League were a big part of the initial announcement line-up that Gunn and Safran made back in 2023, but it seems like the project has been a tougher script to crack than they expected. The Authority is a group of powerful heroes who take a far more proactive approach to meting out justice, but Gunn said in February, 2025, that it's been “the one that's been the hardest, both because of the shifting overall story and because of getting it right in a world with The Boys and a world with all the things that The Authority influenced that came out after it.” The project is now on the “back burner,” he says.

Swamp Thing (In Development)

Swamp Thing may not have found much success on the short-lived DC Universe app, but DC was betting big on this lumbering monster for their new cinematic universe when they announced their plans for the new movie slate in 2023. The Swamp Thing movie was to explore the dark origins of Alec Holland's monstrous alter ego, with Logan and Indiana Jones 5 director James Mangold writing the script for the film.

However, more recently Gunn and Safran have said that Swamp Thing hasn't had much movement as Mangold was working on his Bob Dylan movie, A Complete Unknown. "We hope that he'll come back to Swamp Thing when he's ready, because again, that was one of those ones that we love him as a filmmaker, so we're happy to wait for him," said Safran. Gunn added that the main reason they pursued the project was because "James came to us with it, frankly."

Teen Titans (In Development)

The Teen Titans are returning to live-action following the conclusion of Max's Titans series. As reported by THR, a new Teen Titans movie is in the works, with the screenplay being penned by Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow writer Ana Nogueira. It's unknown whether the movie is meant to be part of the DCU or a standalone project.

Bane/Deathstroke Movie (In Development)

The Hollywood Reporter broke the news that DC Studios is developing a villain-centric team-up movie featuring Bane and Deathstroke. The film is being written by Matthew Orton (Captain America: Brave New World). It's unclear whether the project is set in James Gunn's DCU, the world of Matt Reeves' The Batman, or an entirely standalone universe a la Joker.

Wonder Woman Movie (In Development)

Gunn recently confirmed to EW that a new Wonder Woman movie is in the works as part of the DCU, saying, "Wonder Woman's being written right now." The movie is a separate project from the previously announced Paradise Lost series. Presumably, Wonder Woman will reboot the franchise with a new lead actress rather than bring back Gal Gadot's Diana.

Waller TV Series (In Development)

This Peacemaker spin-off is intended to feature Viola Davis reprising the Amanda Waller role, with several other Peacemaker alums also returning. However, the series “has had a couple of setbacks" according to Gunn. Safran added that "Waller has been a bumpy road," so it remains unclear where the series stands at the moment.

Booster Gold TV Series (In Development)

The lovably goofy Booster Gold is getting his own series as part of the new DCU. Booster Gold will explore the character's impostor syndrome as he travels back in time and uses the technology of the future to make himself a present-day superhero.

Paradise Lost TV Series (In Development)

While a new Wonder Woman movie isn't on the immediate horizon, DC is moving forward with a TV series set on the island of Themyscira. Paradise Lost will explore the origins and political intrigue of Diana's home. The series is billed as the DC equivalent of Game of Thrones.

Blue Beetle Animated Series (In Development)

A Blue Beetle animated TV show is reportedly in development. Xolo Maridueña, who played the title hero in the live-action movie, says he'll be back to voice Jaime Reyes for the series.

Harley Quinn and Other Animated Titles (In Development)

Warner Bros. has a variety of animated properties in various stages of development as streaming series (in addition to their never-ending DTV animated movie releases). That includes a fifth season of Harley Quinn which debuted in January, 2025, on Max, a possible ninth season of Teen Titans Go!, a third season of Adult Swim/Max's My Adventures With Superman, Season 2 of Amazon Prime's Batman: Caped Crusader (from Bruce Timm, J. J. Abrams, and Matt Reeves), and upcoming series such as Blue Beetle, My Adventures With Green Lantern (featuring the Jessica Cruz Lantern), DC Super Powers, Starfire, and Mister Miracle.

Sgt. Rock (In Development)

After decades in development hell through various studio regimes and stars attached to it, it seemed like Sgt. Rock was finally coming to the big screen. DC Studios co-CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran acknowledged the project was in development with Luca Guadagnino directing. Guadagnino (Queer, Call Me By Your Name, Suspiria, Challengers) isn't exactly the first name you'd expect to hear for a Sgt. Rock movie so it made it an even more exciting prospect.

After rumors of Daniel Craig playing the title role in the WWII movie were shot down by Gunn, it was reported that Colin Farrell was cast instead. The project was to shoot in Summer 2025 for a Fall 2026 release but as soon as Sgt. Rock finally came together, the project fell apart. Still, Gunn has said that the film is still in development, though it remains to be seen who would star or direct if it happens.

Constantine 2 (Status Unknown)

Keanu Reeves was reportedly going to reprise his iconic DC role at one point. A sequel to 2005's Constantine was in the news in 2022, with Reeves set to star and Francis Lawrence returning as director. The screenplay was being written by Akiva Goldsman, and Goldsman was also producing the film alongside Bad Robot’s J.J. Abrams and Hannah Minghella. Lawrence gave IGN an update on the project when we spoke to him in May 2025 for The Long Walk:

"Constantine 2 is a real thing. It is something that we have been working on and trying to crack and figure things out over the years. And with all the various regime changes and things at Warner Brothers and who has rights to DC characters/Vertigo characters and DC Dark and all that, the character of Constantine has kind of changed hands over the years, which became roadblocks for us. We now are past those roadblocks, and so Keanu and Akiva ... who I did Constantine and I Am Legend with, have an idea, and Akiva is actually writing a script. And I'm really excited about the idea, and Keanu is really excited about the idea, but we've all collaborated on it and he is off writing, and so fingers crossed we can really get that going. I think we're all super excited and this is definitely the closest we've been in the 20 years since the movie came out."

DC Movies and TV Shows That Were Released in 2024

• The Penguin (September 19, 2024)
• Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story (September 21, 2024)
• Superman & Lois, Season 4 (October 7, 2024)
• Creature Commandos (December 5, 2024)

Note: This story was updated on 7/14/2025 with the latest DC movie news. It was originally posted on 7/29/2021.

One of the best deals to come out of the LEGO Insiders Days Sale just got extended. LEGO Shop is currently offering the LEGO Milky Way 31212 set for $159.99. This discounted price is available exclusive at LEGO Shop, and the set is currently $200 everywhere else. At this price, you're only paying about 7 cents per brick, which is an outstanding value for a themed LEGO build. You'll need to be a LEGO Insiders member, but fortunately signing up is free. I purchased this set at full price and it was one of my favorite, if not my most favorite, LEGO build of 2024.

20% Off LEGO Milk Way Galaxy 31212

More LEGO Insider Days Deals

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

Bomb Busters was recently awarded the highest honor for board games as it was named the 2025 Spiel des Jahres in Germany, beating out Flip 7 and Krakel Orakel for the top honors this year.

The Spiel des Jahres may not be a household name in the U.S., but it's the most prestigious and influential board game award in the world, similar to winning an Oscar for film. The Spiel des Jahres (literally "Game of the Year") has been awarded to the best overall board game by an independent jury in Germany since 1979.

This year's winner, Bomb Busters, is a strategic cooperative game for up to five players that requires everyone to work together to defuse a bomb by cutting the correct wires. It's basically the tabletop equivalent of the video game Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes.

This is a great game for families as it's not too difficult to learn and includes 66 unique scenarios to conquer together. Typical games take around 30 minutes, making it a quick board game to get to the table and play.

One of my favorite pastimes on the playground growing up was having heated debates with my friends about which of our favorite TV or video game characters would win in a fight. While it’s been a few decades since those days on the swingset, pitting two individuals from different properties against one another in a deathmatch is no less relevant today – just look at games like Fortnite, Call of Duty, and Magic: The Gathering. One trading card game has been doing it far longer. It's called UniVersus, and the team at UVS Games has recently released the final set in their Attack on Titan line – Apocalypse – featuring cards and characters from the final arc of the manga and anime. At last, we can find out if Eren Yeager, in his final form, can take on Godzilla or the various members of Critical Role’s Vox Machina.

For those unfamiliar with UniVersus, previously known as “UFS - Universal Fighting System”, it's a card game akin to games like Magic: The Gathering or Yu-Gi-Oh, but whose identity is based around creating wild cross-over fights. Players construct decks, picking a Character to lead their deck, which also dictates how much life they start with and their maximum hand size. UniVersus’ mechanics are centered around checks that players make to play their various kinds of cards, from attacks to other resources. Each card has a challenge value on it that must be met or exceeded for the card to be successfully played, requiring the player to flip the card on top of their deck and compare its check value against the challenge value of the action to be played.

Successes allow the action to be taken, such as attacking your opponent, while a failure ends your turn. A player’s turn continues until either they pass or fail one of these checks, with each subsequent check increasing the challenge value. It’s an interesting system, and adds an extra element of tension with every check from the top of your deck. However, it can be a bit overwhelming at times, especially when you get to blocking attacks, which have their own set of similar checks to deal with. UniVersus as a whole, I feel, is one of the more complex card games out there on the market today.

This latest set is focused around the final arc of the Attack of Titan series. It continues to build on the previous sets that UVS released – Battle for Humanity and Origins of Power. Much like those other sets, Apocalypse retains the unique manga-esque card art, with most of the artwork framed in manga panels, with brand new artwork done by series creator Hajime Isayama. While his art style may not be everyone’s cup of tea, I personally prefer the art of the anime more, but there is no denying that it is neat to have these unique prints included in the set.

From a gameplay standpoint, not much sets Apocalypse apart from the other AoT sets UVS has released in the past year, but that isn’t really a bad thing, as I’ve enjoyed the previous sets quite a bit. I am especially fond of the double-sided Titan cards that allow characters to shift from their human form into their Titan form during the game, allowing for deeper strategies and tense moments in my games, and it feels just as good here in this final set as it did in the first. I have my fingers crossed that the team will find ways to incorporate this feature in future non-AoT sets.

Coming in at over 180 cards, Apocalypse offers players roughly the same amount of new cards as the previous Origins of Power set did, so unfortunately, if you were hoping for another large set like the titanic (pun intended) Battle for Humanity and its 300+ list, you’re out of luck. It is a bit of a bummer that there aren’t more cards. One feeling, though that I couldn’t escape as I looked through this set, was how it felt more like a set aimed more at collectors than at players. Maybe it’s just my imagination, resulting from the marketing focus on the new Isayama artwork and special chrome cards, but I feel like with the set's release, and even before, I heard more about those parts of this release than specifics on new cards or abilities of the set. To Apocalypse’s credit, the cards are all very neat and the chrome cards are beautiful, but for prospective new players, I don’t know what they could really learn about the set from a quick google search about specifics outside of “look, new art” which leads into the biggest issue that continues to hound UniVersus as a whole – learning resources.

Again, this is a complicated game and on the spectrum of simple to complex card games, I would put UniVersus somewhere around 3 out of 4 mark. Even after dabbling in the game for the past year or two, there are still a number of areas – resource symbols for example – that seemingly make little sense to me. To the team’s credit, they realize the game has an onboarding problem. I’ve played Magic a long time, so the idea of color identity, the idea that a specific color is tied to a style of gameplay, is something that makes sense to me, and symbols are, in essence, the UniVersus version of this idea. But UniVersus has 12 symbols, with abstract things like “All”, “Good”, and “Chaos” as just a few examples. I haven’t progressed far past the idea of just using the same symbols as the character who is leading my deck, but I wish the learning resources available did far more to help explain the systems, or were presented better.

While some resources are available, examples such as the phase breakdown and play-by-play of a turn are walls of text without a single accompanying image to help. The symbols guide features outdated card art and symbol designs, and the currently available basic “How to Play” video that teaches the most basic concepts of the game doesn’t touch on half of the card types that the game uses or even mention those resource symbols. In fact, they are omitted completely even from the art on the cards used in the demonstration. Thankfully, various content creators have published resources that potential new players can watch to learn the game, but the bright side of things is that they know that this is an issue and are working to address it, slowly but surely. I enjoy my time when I play, but finding good information on how to play or build decks in this game is so hard to come by that it makes UniVersus a hard sell to my card-game-playing friends.

Where to Buy

• See it at TCGPlayer
• See it at UVS Games

Alienware's Black Friday in July Sale runs for this month only, and one of the best deals I've seen so far is this Alienware Aurora R16 RTX 5080 gaming PC for just $1,999.99 shipped. Despite the fact that the Alienware brand usually commands a higher price premium, this was less expensive than any RTX 5080 prebuilt we saw on Amazon during Prime Day. The Alienware Aurora R16 is a well-engineered and compact gaming rig with 240mm AIO water cooling, sensible airflow design, and a generous 1,000W 80Plus Platinum rated power supply. In the current market, buying a prebuilt gaming PC is the only way to score an RTX 5080 GPU without paying an exorbitant markup. If you were to try to find a 5080 GPU for your do-it-yourself PC build, you'll probably spend $1,400 for the graphics card alone.

Alienware Aurora RTX 5080 Gaming PC From $1,999.99

Nearly all of the best SSD deals we saw during Prime Day are over, with the exception of one. Right now Amazon is still offering the Samsung 990 Pro 2TB PCIe 4.0 M.2 NVMe solid state drive (SSD) with pre-installed heatsink for the excellent price of $149.99 after a 30% off instant discount. The Samsung 990 Pro is widely considered one of the fastest PCIe 4.0 SSDs on the market. It makes for an outstanding drop-in storage expansion for your PlayStation 5 or gaming rig.

Samsung 990 Pro 2TB PS5 SSD with Heatsink for $149.99

Our first look at HBO's new Harry Potter actor in costume has been released, as filming begins on the series.

A behind-the-scenes production photo, published today, shows 11-year-old actor Dominic McLaughlin dressed in familiar Hogwarts attire, scar visible on his foreheard.

The young actor can be seen holding the first slate for the Harry Potter HBO series that also lists the show's director Mark Mylod and director of photography Adriano Goldman, alongside today's date: July 14, 2025.

If you're still on the hunt for a Switch 2 console, here's an opportunity you might want to consider. AliExpress has the Nintendo Switch 2 Mario Kart World Tour Console Bundle available for $498.95 after you apply a $100 off coupon code "AEUS100" in your shopping cart. This console ships free. At this price, you're not paying any additional markup.

This is a genuine gaming console that has been imported from another country (usually Japan, Hong Kong, Canada, or Mexico). Region locking is determined by your account, not by console, so all of these systems will play in the US without any problems. You'll also be able to select English as your default language just like any console you buy here. Although the console itself is region unlocked, the Mario Kart World Tour game voucher is region locked. In order to redeem the download voucher on a US-based Nintendo account, one of the reviews mentions a workaround:

AliExpress offers a return window but the length varies depending on the item. These consoles all ship locally from the United States and usually arrive within one week.

Nintendo Switch 2 Mario Kart World Tour Bundle for $499

Scarlet and Violet base set prices have been anything but steady lately, with some Illustration Rares climbing fast while SIRs cool off just as quickly. I’ve been tracking a handful of cards that stood out this month, with some pulling in surprising gains and others dropping harder than expected. Here’s a quick look at which Pokémon TCG cards are crashing and climbing ahead of the final Scarlet and Violet sets release in Black Bolt and White Flare.

Pokémon TCG Crashers

The best 4K-ready gaming PC deal during Prime Day wasn't from Amazon, and it has been extended for a few more days. Right now, Walmart is offering this iBuypower Element Pro prebuilt gaming PC equipped with an AMD Ryzen 9 7900X CPU and AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT GPU for only $1499 with free delivery. The Radeon RX 9070 XT is an outstanding graphics card that can stand toe-to-toe with the GeForce RTX 5070 Ti or RTX 4080. If you are keeping your budget to $1,500 or less, you won't find a more powerful gaming PC.

iBuypower Element Pro Radeon RX 9070 XT Gaming PC $1499

Magic: The Gathering's Secret Lair crossover with Sonic the Hedgehog went live this morning, and it was predictably quite popular. Within minutes, people trying to get the special run of cards were met with long queue times and uncertainty.

Secret Lair is Magic's special line of cards, often taking artistic liberties or fresh approaches to classic cards. In the past, these have ranged from re-envisionings and experimental card layouts to full-on franchise crossovers. Final Fantasy, which had its own wildly popular crossover main set, also got its own Secret Lair run that sold out fairly fast.

One would assume that Sonic the Hedgehog, the Blue Blur himself, would garner quite a bit of interest. And as it turns out, he did; those eager to buy the Secret Lair set featuring Sonic and pals flooded in this morning, and queue times shot up.

Waiting yet another hour to find out I can’t buy the sonic secret lair because I was .01 seconds too slow to checkout

(And I once again do not receive an email notification that it’s going live despite signing up to be “notified” about 12 times now)

— Arin Hanson (@egoraptor) July 14, 2025

Complaints flooded social media, as patient Magic and Sonic fans alike waited for their chance to pick up the cards. While some of these are reprints of classic Magic cards—like Unexpected Windfall, Sol Ring, and Lightning Greaves—others are new cards, and potential Commanders for those looking to build a deck around their favorite Sonic character.

Not long after the set went live, the Secret Lair account posted a message saying the pre-order site is currently experiencing "extremely high traffic" and wait times might be longer than usual. Later updates confirmed the team was aware of issues affecting queue times and is working to resolve them.

The Secret Lair website is currently experiencing extremely high traffic and wait times may be longer than usual. Please monitor the queue page for real-time updates, including product availability in your region.

— MTG Secret Lair (@MTGSecretLair) July 14, 2025

In my own anecdotal experience, I went to load up a cart and put some cards in around half an hour after the set went live, and have been watching a queue page sit here with "more than an hour" as the expected wait time. I've been talking to people who have been able to get through, gradually, but it does seem like there's quite a bit of patience necessary to get this set.

Wizards of the Coast did implement a limit on items, at two-per-item, which seems to have helped a bit. There has been some criticism over the model, as Secret Lair went from print-to-order to a limited-print-run model last year.

While I've heard a few stories of frustrated waiting, I've also heard from several people who were patient and managed to get the cards they were after. We'll learn over the coming days how scarce the set winds up being, especially as some product moves onto third-party seller sites.

Meanwhile, the next Magic: The Gathering set Edge of Eternities will drop on August 1, with pre-release beginning on July 25.

Eric is a freelance writer for IGN.

The LEGO Insiders Days Sale just got extended a few more days to July 17, which means one of the best exclusive LEGO Shop deals that I saw during Amazon Prime Day is still available. Right now you can save 20% off the massive LEGO Spider-Man Daily Bugle 76178 set, now only $279.99 (was $350). At this price, you're only paying about 7 cents per brick, which is an outstanding value for an official Marvel themed LEGO build. You'll need to be a LEGO Insiders member to take advantage of this deal, but fortunately signing up is free. The Daily Bugle is LEGO's third-largest Marvel set ever and includes 25 iconic mini-figures from the Spider-Man universe.

20% Off LEGO Marvel Spider-Man Daily Bugle 76178

Danny Elfman, one of the most prominent composers in Hollywood, says that perhaps his most famous work is something he never expected anyone to hear. Having created the scores of blockbusters including Batman, Beetlejuice, and the Fable video game series, Elfman is maybe best known for composing the theme music to The Simpsons.

Speaking exclusively to IGN about his new series Bullet Time, an upcoming animated show from Creator / Director Eddie Alcazar (think Beavis and Butthead but with video games instead of music videos), Elfman says he had no idea The Simpsons would catch on and become the longest running sitcom in American history. “I did that purely for the pleasure and never expected anybody to see it,” Elfman says. “So obviously that wasn't the case, but you never know.”

It’s the same type of sentiment that attracted him to Bullet Time. “I met Eddie and liked him and he sent me this. Every year I try to do a couple of projects that are for love rather than money, and sometimes they pay off in unexpected ways,” Elfman says. “The style was great. The industry has been good to me and provided me with a really good living for four decades. About 20 or 25 years ago, I felt like I had to start giving back a little bit. And so I'd start looking for little things or a documentary or a short project or a strange little film that has a $12 budget. And often those are the most fun things I'll do that year. And so it was just kind of like, yeah, this will just be for the pleasure rather than for the commercial aspect.”

On July 24 at 10am PT, 1pm ET, IGN will exclusively debut the first episode of Bullet Time on IGN.com and IGN’s YouTube channel along with an interview about the series with Elfman, Alcazar, and voice actor Eric Bauza.

The Simpsons, which has been on the air since 1989 recently wrapped its 36th season with a shocking storyline involving the death of a core family member. Bullet Time premieres to a live audience at the Fantasia Film Festival on July 23.

Amazon's Prime Day sale this year was pretty good overall for casual board game and puzzle enthusiasts. There were discounts on quite a few popular games and many popular jigsaw puzzle brands had all-time low prices. But if you happened to have miss all of those deals, Woot is currently having a small sale of its own that gives you a second chance at savings.

There aren't a ton of options in this sale, but there are enough to make it noteworthy. Some of the best deals available here are on 3D puzzles and some lesser known board games, so I'd suggest checking those out first. The popular LEGO board game that was on sale during Prime Day was also included, but has already sold out.

Puzzles and Board Games on Sale Today

Hulu has been around for a while and, for our money, it's one of the absolute best streaming services available. From great movies like Anora and Predator: Killer of Killers to excellent television series like Shogun, The Handmaid's Tale, and The Bear (check out our glowing review of season four here), there is always something awesome to watch. We've also got the highly-anticipated Alien: Earth series on our radar this year, which premieres its first two episodes on August 12.

Below, we've detailed all of the best Hulu deals and bundles so you can get started on your streaming adventures with its library right away. This includes the Hulu, Disney+, and HBO Max streaming bundle, which starts at just $16.99/month and is currently the best value available for the streaming services. To see even more streaming deals, make sure to check out our roundups of the best Disney Plus deals and the best HBO Max deals.

How to Get The Disney Plus, Hulu, and HBO Max Streaming Bundle

The Disney Plus, Hulu, and HBO Max streaming bundle can be purchased on any of the three streaming services and starts at $16.99/month for the ad-supported tier or $29.99/month for ad-free access across all three platforms. If you're looking to cut down on streaming costs and currently own all three of these, this is an excellent bundle to invest in. It'll save you quite a bit compared to what you'd pay for the three of them separately per month - 43% on the ad-supported plan and 42% on the ad-free plan.

Hulu deal for students — Get Hulu (With Ads) for just $1.99/month

If you're a student enrolled in a university (a US Title IV accredited college or university, per Hulu's website), you can sign up for Hulu (With Ads) for $1.99 a month. That's an excellent deal if you're a student, saving you $8 on the usual monthly price.

Hulu subscription tiers

Hulu: Bundle to Best

If you want a more affordable option when it comes to a Hulu subscription, you can't go wrong with a bundle, and Hulu has several to choose from:

• Hulu + Live TV (With Ads) — Hulu + Live TV (With Ads) is $82.99/month and includes Disney+ and ESPN+. It also gives you access to more than 75 channels with live TV and unlimited DVR functionality. The Hulu + Live TV plan also has a three-day free trial to test out the service.
• Hulu + Live TV (Ad-Free) — The ad-free version of Hulu+Live TV is $95.99/month and comes with ad-free versions of Hulu and Disney Plus, although ESPN still shows ads.
• Disney+, Hulu Bundle Basic — This is the most economic bundle. It will set you back $10.99/month and comes with subscriptions to Disney+ and Hulu. It lets you stream on multiple devices at once and comes with ad-supported versions of both Disney+ and Hulu.
• Disney+, Hulu, ESPN+ Bundle Basic — This bundle adds ESPN+ into the mix alongside Disney+ and Hulu, bumping up the price to $16.99/month. You can also download and watch select content on ESPN+ at this level.
• Disney+, Hulu, ESPN+ Bundle Premium — This bundle is $26.99/month and comes with ESPN+ (with ads) and ad-free versions of Disney+ and Hulu. You can also download select content across all three streaming services.

What can you watch on Hulu?

There is a bonkers amount of shows and movies you can watch on Hulu. Let's start at the top and simply talk about the verticals on offer with the base subscription, because if we also talk about what is available via Disney+, ESPN+, or live TV, we'll be here forever. (You can also sync up Hulu with HBO Max to gain access to things like The Last of Us and House of the Dragon.)

Here's what you get:

• Network and Hulu Original television shows (AMC, Adult Swim, ABC, A&E, FX, etc.)
• Movies (HBO, Hulu Originals, anime films, etc.)
• Sports (NHL, Soccer, MLB, Auto Racing, NFL, College Football, PGA, Tennis, etc.)
• News (ABC News Live, Good Morning America, World News Tonight, 20/20, The View, etc.)

Hulu television

Hulu has some amazing shows, both those that are finished and many which are ongoing. For comedy, there are plenty of options to choose from, including New Girl, It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia, What We Do In The Shadows, Modern Family, Cougar Town, Broad City, Abbott Elementary, and so much more.

There are also some big Hulu originals to watch, including The Bear, The Old Man, The Handmaid's Tale, and Only Murders In The Building. With an FX partnership, Hulu is also home to those shows, including Shogun and the upcoming Alien: Earth series.

As far as animated fare, there are modern adult classics like Rick and Morty and Bob's Burgers, as well as Futurama, Family Guy, and King of the Hill. Anime staples like Cowboy Bebop are also available. And if you want to bring more youth-friendly fun, Gravity Falls, Steven Universe, Adventure Time, and Curious George are just a small sample of what Hulu has available.

The future of Hulu

Hulu isn't going anywhere. Beyond it being awarded the best streaming service by us, it also received a 9/10 in our updated Hulu review. Writer Rosie Knight said, "Hulu's ease of use, solid UI, and ever- expanding catalog has moved it ahead of top competitor Netflix to secure our highest score for a streaming service."

Hannah Hoolihan is a freelance writer who works with the Guides and Commerce teams here at IGN.

Original story from Brian Barnett.

Not everyone is the DIY type. If you're in the market for a prebuilt gaming PC, Dell is one of the best brands we'd recommend. Alienware desktops and laptops feature solid build quality, top-of-the-line gaming performance, excellent cooling (further improved on the newer models), aggressive styling, and pricing that is very competitive with other pre-built options. Best of all, there are plenty of sales that happen throughout the year, so it's not difficult to grab one of these computers at considerably less than their retail price. This page includes all of the best deals that are currently available.

Dell and Alienware Coupons

Alienware Gaming PC Deals

Alienware Gaming Laptop Deals

You can quickly browse through all of the listed products on sale above. See below for our favorite picks.

Alienware Aurora R16 RTX 5080 Gaming PC

Alienware Aurora R16 RTX 5070 Ti Gaming PC

Alienware Area-51 RTX 5090 Gaming PC

New Alienware Aurora 16 Laptop

New Alienware Aurora 16X Laptop

Area-51 Gaming Laptops: New Style, More Power, Better Cooling

New for 2025, the Alienware Area-51 gaming laptop features a magnesium alloy chassis with upgraded cooling to tackle the latest and greatest heat generating components. This includes more fans and bigger cutouts enabling greater airflow, more generous use of copper, and a new thermal interface material to better transfer heat away from the core components. Dell claims that the laptop can handle a higher power ceiling of up to 240W TDP without raising acoustics.

Design-wise, the Area 51 accentuates its smooth contours, with rounded edges and soft corners replacing the squared off design you'd see in most other laptops. The hinges are also mostly internally positioned so that they're near invisible. As befits an Alienware laptop, there are ample customization options for RGB LED lighting.

27" Alienware AW2725DF 360Hz QHD OLED Monitor

34" Alienware AW3425DW QD OLED Gaming Monitor

The UK's games industry body has distanced itself from an embarrassing BBC blunder, after an original NES Super Mario Bros. cartridge was shown jammed into an SNES console

In the breakfast TV segment broadcast this morning, UKIE boss Nick Poole introduced hosts Jon Kay and Sally Nugent to a selection of retro systems, including a ZX81, a Nintendo Wii, and an SNES. And despite Nugent's palpable disbelief that her co-host Kay had "spent hours — days" enjoying the original Donkey Kong, it was the incorrect set-up that really got people talking.

"Great to see this content on [a] mainstream channel, but a NES cart on a SNES? And where's the greatest, and UK's biggest selling 16-bit console, the SEGA Mega Drive?" asked one respondent in the comments, while another suggested on Reddit: "They should have gone full mental and added a GameCube controller."

"I want to report a crime," wrote another in a comment that has been upvoted hundreds of times."

This display was either set up by someone who knows nothing about games, or someone who knows a lot about games and wants to screw with this subreddit," posited another respondent, while another simply wrote: "*external screaming*"

Following a wave of mass layoffs that impacted an estimated 9,100 employees at Microsoft, many of whom were in its Xbox gaming division, the union of employees at Xbox subsidiary ZeniMax have responded with a statement explaining the current employment status of its members.

Today, ZeniMax Online Studios United (ZOSU), which represents employees on both The Elder Scrolls Online and the cancelled unannounced MMO, issued a lengthy statement addressing the layoffs and project cancellations. Critically, ZOSU confirmed that as of today, its members are all still employed by Microsoft and receiving pay and benefits, though this is likely not to be the case forever.

Per the statement, worker representatives of the union are currently bargaining with the company over how the workers will move forward following the shuttering of the MMO. While the union acknowledges that layoffs may be in the future for some members, "as a result of our organizing, we are able to ensure that those impacted will be able to depart with dignity."

ZOSU was formed just last December, consisting at the time of its organizing of 461 employees across ZeniMax Online Studios. This number included web developers, designers, engineers, and graphic artists at ZeniMax Online Studios working on The Elder Scrolls Online and the unannounced MMO. While ZOSU still has yet to reach a contract agreement with Microsoft, its sibling union ZeniMax Workers United, which represents ZeniMax QA workers, reached an agreement at the end of May.

ZOSU's statement is published in full below:

Earlier this month, Microsoft indefinitely shelved an unannounced MMORPG at ZeniMax Online Studios, a shock to the 222 ZOSU-CWA developers working on the project. It has been heartening and validating to see our game mentioned in the press and by players that would have loved to see the results of our work.

Undoubtedly, a future has been stolen from many of us and our community will never experience an amazing game. However, despite discussions regarding the status of our employment, the fact is: we have not yet been laid off.

While we understand that for most of us something like a layoff is inevitable, last December both the teams behind The Elder Scrolls Online (ESO) and the unannounced project voted overwhelmingly to form a union and establish ZeniMax Online Studios United-CWA (ZOSU-CWA). Worker-volunteers elected to represent the interests of our union are currently bargaining with Microsoft for the benefit of our impacted teammates.

While Microsoft and ZOSU-CWA bargain over how we move forward following the project closure, the developers behind the unannounced project remain employees of ZeniMax Online Studios with full pay and benefits.

On July 2nd, our lives were upended without prior notice or communication from Microsoft leadership and without clear understanding about the status of our employment. In light of this, our union came together with urgency, gathering and distributing information and resources to our affected members.

Where Microsoft has failed to support the talented craftspeople who have generated billions in revenue, our union has stepped up to provide clarity and support.

It is true that a layoff may be in the future for some of our members. However, as a result of our organizing, we are able to ensure that those impacted will be able to depart with dignity.

More importantly, the work of ZOSU-CWA will continue so that our remaining teammates — the stalwart developers of ESO — can follow in the footsteps of our colleagues across other departments and studios at Microsoft, including our union siblings at ZeniMax Workers United (ZWU-CWA). We look forward to other units who will soon ratify fair contracts that will guarantee the rights we all deserve.

The impact of the massive Microsoft layoffs earlier this month on Xbox specifically was wide, and remains not fully understood. We've since learned that Everwild and Perfect Dark are no longer being developed, and The Initiative has shut down.

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