Disney's CinemaCon presentation was filled with footage showcasing some of the upcoming films from Disney, Marvel, and more.

While the studios have yet to release most of the clips, we were in attendance and are here to break down the biggest moments for you from The Fantasic Four: First Steps to Thunderbolts* to Avatar: Fire and Ash and more.

New Fantastic Four Footage Reveals a Major Plot Point... and the Female Silver Surfer

The Fantastic Four took center stage at CinemaCon and we got a look at brand-new footage of the long-awaited film that will be released in theaters on July 25, 2025.

The footage begins with Mark Gatiss' Ted Gilbert hosting his 1960s Ed Sullivan Show-style talk show and recapping the story of the Fantastic Four. We get to see the space trip that transformed them, their popularity amongst the people, and their powers, minus the stretching abilities belonging to Pedro Pascal's Reed Richards.

We then cut to a look at the Fantastic Four's home life and see more of our favorite robot, H.E.R.B.I.E., who is cooking with Ebon Moss Bachrach's Ben. The big reveal here is... SPOILER WARNING... Vanessa Kirby's Sue Storm is pregnant.

It doesn't end there as we were then treated to the first shots of Julia Garner's Shalla-Bal, the Silver Surfer. She says, "your planet is now marked for death," and that is followed by shots of Galactus' shadow over New York.

Lastly, Reed is seen getting ready for a mission and questioning whether or not they are safe. We also saw a large crowd running through the city and a little girl finding a The Thing action figure before being enveloped in Galactus' shadow herself. The final shot is off the SIlver Surfer flying towards the camera on her surfboard.

Thunderbolts: New Footage Revealed the Sad Outcome of Bucky’s Political Career

To help with the wait until Thunderbolts* is unleashed into theaters on May 2, Marvel has revealed new footage of the upcoming MCU film.

It all begins with the team driving to Jefferson Starship's 'Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now,' and we hear Bucky (Sebastian Stan) and Red Guardian (David Harbour) talking about the Super Soldier Serum and Hydra. In the back, Yelena (Florence Pugh) is talking about her Widow's Bite bracelets with Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen) and John Walker (Wyatt Russell).

The vehicle our heroes are in then smashes through glass walls and a fight breaks out where we see some of the unique skills and powers of these Thunderbolts in action. The fight is interrupted by Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), who tells them to come upstairs in what is revealed as the building once known as Avengers Tower.

Valentina talks about purchasing Avengers Tower and then addresses the team one by one, all before mocking Bucky's brief time as a congressman as he couldn't even make it half a term. Bucky lunges at Valentina, but he is stopped by an unseen force that we soon learn is caused by the Sentry. His reign of terror doesn't end there either as the footage ends with him taking out our favorite new team with ease.

Avatar: Fire and Ash Footage Introduced New Na'vi Allies and Adversaries

Ahead of its December 19 release date, Avatar: Fire and Ash was given an introduction by director James Cameron before the first-ever footage was shown to the audience.

“The Sully family are really put through the ringer on this one as they face not only the human invaders, but new adversaries: the Ash People,” Cameron said in his introduction.

We got to see about five minutes of the film in 3D, and it featured two new groups of Na'vi - the Tlalim clan, a.k.a. the Windtraders, and the Mangkwan clan, a.k.a. the Ash People. The former are nomads who "sail" the skies and the latter have rejected their diety and the ways of the Na'vi after a volcano destoryed their homeland and left nothing but ash.

The next sequence starred Jak Sully, Neytiri, Lo'ak, Tuk, Kiri, and Spider living amongst the Windtraders and sailing high above the sky in their membrane-like sails that look like jellyfish. All is well until they are attacked by the Ash People.

First Predator: Badlands Trailer Shown at CinemaCon

Elle Fanning took the stage at CinemaCon to unveil the first trailer for Predator: Badlands, where the Predator is a... good guy?! This new Predator is a younger warrior who has been cast out from his tribe and chooses to work with Fanning's character.

"Something unprecedented happens in this movie," Fanning said. "My character is not the one being chased. My character actually teams up with the Predator. And you get to see him in a completley new light. And... I'll stop there!"

As for the trailer, it kicks off with Predator relics on a ship and then a Predator standing on the shore of a planet that is not Earth. He also isn't wearing his helmet. Alongside glimpses of the Predator being surrounded by giant deadly monsters and Fanning's character saying, "You're somthing that cannot be killed," the footage ends with a bang as the Predator roars and faces down another massive creature with no fear.

Predator: Badlands will be released in theaters on November 7, 2025.

Tron: Ares Footage Gives Us a Tease of the Digital and Real Worlds Colliding

Program initiated. #CinemaCon pic.twitter.com/QUan8n66ma

— Walt Disney Studios (@DisneyStudios) April 3, 2025

Tron: Ares will be released in theaters on October 10, 2025, and CinemaCon gave us a tease of this new adventure that will see the digital and real worlds collide. The footage begins with a highly sophisticated program, Jared Leto's Area, entering the real world from his digital home. This momentous occasion marks the first time humanity has encountered these AI beings in their world.

Ares can be seen speeding through a city on his red-tinged light cycle, leaving police cars in his wake that have no hope of catching him. A Recognizer can also be seen hovering over the city with terrified citizens looking on.

Gillian Anderson's character, who appears to be a business executive, makes an appearance alongside Jeff Bridges' Kevin Flynn, who can be heard saying, "Are you ready? Because there's no going back." And yes, the footage was accompanied by music by Nine Inch Nails.

Lilo & Stitch Clip Shows Stitch Causing Chaos at Jimmy's Luau

The live-action remake of Lilo & Stitch is set to be released in theaters on May 23, 2025, and CinemaCon presented us with a clip that fans of the original should be familiar with. The footage takes place at Jimmy's Luau, where Nani works, and sees Lilo and Stitch joining her. People still think Stitch is some weird dog, even David, but he doesn't behave like a good boy as he escapes his leash and has a western showdown with Lilo with a soda gun.

Zootopia 2 and Elio Steal Our Hearts With New Footage, Adorable Animals, and More

Zootopia 2 and Elio both got new looks at CinemaCon, wit helio getting roughly 10 minutes of showtime with footage we've seen in the trailers ane beyond.

For Zootopia 2, Ke Huy Quan, who plays Gary De'Snake, took the stage to share new details about the much-anticipated sequel, including that Quinta Brunson will be playing an adorable quokka therapist named Dr. Fuzzby.

🚨NEW ANIMAL JUST DROPPED🚨 Meet the newest addition to Zootopia 2 with Quinta Brunson as the quokka therapist Dr. Fuzzby! pic.twitter.com/0iIk8hEvET

— Disney Animation (@DisneyAnimation) April 3, 2025

Nick and Judy are seen chasing after Gary De'Snake and are searching for clues as to his wherabouts. Alongside the way, they stop at therapy and meet the wonderful Dr. Fuzzby.

Lindsay Lohan Flirts With Chad Michael Murray Even Though She's Really Jamie Lee Curtis in New Freakier Friday Footage

Did you feel that? Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis reunite at #CinemaCon to celebrate Freakier Friday coming to theaters August 8. pic.twitter.com/3Hv3djwG5G

— Walt Disney Studios (@DisneyStudios) April 3, 2025

After Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis took the stage at CinemaCon, footage was shown of Lindsay's Anna, who is actually housing Curtis' Tess in her body after they swap, flirting with Chad Michael Murray's Jake. Jake then asks if Tess' husband is still alive and she confirms she is and that he's very old.

Freakier Friday will be released in theaters on August 8, 2025.

With the release of Thunderbolts just a month away, some new footage was shown from the film today at CinemaCon in Las Vegas, introduced by stars Florence Pugh (“Yelena Belova”), David Harbour (“Alexei Shostakov / Red Guardian”), Hannah John-Kamen (“Ava Starr / Ghost”), Wyatt Russell (“John Walker / U.S. Agent”) and Julia Louis-Dreyfus (“Valentina Allegra de Fontaine”) - with Pugh saying how much she loved getting to jump from the second highest building in the world in the film.

In the footage, we see the team driving, making small talk, as Jefferson Starship’s “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” (used prominently in the film’s recent trailer) plays on the radio. Up front, Bucky (Sebastian Stan) and Red Guardian talk about the super soldier serum and Hydra, while in the back, Yelena is discussing her Widow’s Bite bracelets with Ghost and John Walker, and asking John about the helmet he wears in battle.

They then pull up to their destination, smashing their vehicle through the glass walls of the bottom floor. The minute they get out, we get the quick juxtaposition from the laid back vibe on the drive to how all-business they can be in fight, with them all doing fairly brutal takedowns of the soldiers attacking them, as Ghost, the most notably superpowered of the bunch, uses her phasing abilities.

The fight is then interrupted by the voice of Valentina, who tells them to come upstairs - though Bucky still punches out the guy he was fighting. It turns out they’re in what was once Avengers Tower!

In the top floor where Tony Stark once declared “We have a Hulk,” Valentina talks about how expensive it was to buy the building, and then laughs about the unlikely group in front of her - as she and Yelena face off about Valentina pitting them all against each other, only for them to become a team. Valentina goes through the group one-by-one, throwing out insults, calling John Walker “Jr. Varsity Captain America.”

However, she doesn’t recognize Red Guardian at all, asking who “Santa” is, infuriating him. On the flip side, Valentina seems to know Ghost quite well, casually calling her “Ava.” She then mocks Bucky’s brief time as a congressman (he was running for office in Captain America: Brave New World), saying it’s embarrassing he only served less than half a term.

Bucky lunges at Valentina when an unseen force stops him in his tracks, making him unable to move. That’s when we see boots coming down the stairs, clearly belonging to the Sentry, and get glimpses of him wiping the floor with the team (though we still don’t see him fully in the shots included).

For more CinemaCon coverage, here’s we learned about The Fantastic Four: First Steps, Avatar: Fire and Ash, Predator: Badlands, Superman, Mortal Kombat II, Resident Evil, Spider-Man: Brave New Day, Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse, John Wick 5, Jurassic World Rebirth, Now You See Me: Now You Don’t, Masters of the Universe, The Beatles, The Legend of Aang: The Last Airbender, TRON: Ares, and Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning.

At CinemaCon today, Edgar Wright and cast members Glen Powell, Josh Brolin and Colman Domingo debuted the first footage from the filmmaker's new take on The Running Man. Like the 1987 Arnold Schwarzenegger film, Wright’s movie is adapted from the Stephen King book of the same name (written under his Richard Bachman pseudonym) about a dystopian game show where trained killers hunt you to the death - though there’s a huge cash prize if you can somehow survive. Wright said that while he enjoyed the 1987 movie, he always wanted to see the book – one of his favorites as a teenager – more properly adapted, which is where his version comes in.

The footage shown today indicates many of the details from the book discarded in the earlier film are put back in, starting with Ben Richards (Glen Powell) now much more of an everyman who volunteers for the games, thanks to financial desperation, rather than Schwarzenegger’s framed police officer who was forced to play them. Wright noted that Ben initially wants to play one of the other, less lethal games, only to end up in “the big one.”

With the wide release of the five-minute Superman sneak peek that was first shown at CinemaCon earlier this week, one thing stands out even more than Krypto’s lovable (if painful for Superman) hijinks: It’s the fact that James Gunn understands the most important thing he can do for his reboot of not just the Man of Steel, but the entire DC universe, is to make us care about the characters. All of the characters, great and small, Kryptonian and human, canine and, yes, even robot. Giggling robots.

The extended preview features footage from the film that we’ve seen before, including of course Kal-El’s incredibly cute super dog arriving on the icy scene when his master is at a real low point. But it expands on that sequence from the film’s first trailer, showing us that Krypto is very much the troublemaker Gunn has described him to be. Yes, Superman is bloodied and beaten, pleading with Krypto to take him “home,” but all the pup wants to do is play. And he makes this point by jumping on the hurt Supes with all of his super-dog strength, and even dragging Kal-El’s leg up into an extremely awkward yet entirely believable pose. “Play with me, Dad!” he’s saying, in deeds if not words. It’s all very funny and it makes you love Krypto even more than you already did. Oh yes, you will believe that a super-powered dog can fly – and be lovable.

But Superman is hurt, and Krypto finally gets it, bringing Kal to the Fortress of Solitude. And that’s where we meet that giggling robot, who is one of the keys to understanding why James Gunn is so good at what he does. But before we get to that, consider that the first time we ever saw Gunn’s version of the Last Son of Krypton in action, he was in bad shape – beaten up, bleeding, needing his dog to save him. And we don’t yet know who dished out this punishment either, so this first image of Gunn’s version of Superman battered and broken is not for the benefit of getting a villain over. There’s no “look how scary this antagonist is because they beat the hell out of the Man of Steel.” The purpose of beginning the entire marketing push for this film is to show Superman in dire straits and in need of help. It’s a far cry from the typical introduction of any superhero, let alone the superhero, and yet it makes perfect sense coming from Gunn.

It’s the Harrison Ford Syndrome. Which isn’t so much a syndrome as it is a legitimate strength of Ford’s on screen persona. Either way, think about how badly Indiana Jones gets roughed up. We don’t love him because he’s so good at fighting; it’s because he’s tired and in pain just like the rest of us. Think about the scared-as-shit look on Ford’s face when he was on the run in The Fugitive, the desperate man leaping off of a dam en route to prove his innocence. Think about the hurt on Han Solo’s face, the fully bruised ego when he thought Leia was into Luke and not him at the start of Empire. It’s an everyman appeal that few actors have ever really been able to pull off. Honestly, it might just be Ford and Sigourney Weaver as Ellen Ripley that do it completely right. The point is, seeing your heroes beat up a little bit kind of makes you love them even more, especially when they rise to the occasion later to be, you know, heroes, despite everything they’ve been through.

Gunn knows this, and he has a track record of putting his characters through the ringer. Think back to the first time we met the Guardians of the Galaxy. The first trailer for that film shows that nobody knows Star-Lord’s name and that it stings a little. And yes, Star-Lord was a little known character from the depths of Marvel’s roster, and Superman is… well, it’s almost apples to oranges, but Gunn’s approach is exactly the same here. Let’s put some dents in our main character as quickly as we can. Let’s meet a protagonist at a moment when they’re not heroic, not saving the day, when they don’t even have the upper hand – that’s part of what makes Gunn’s superhero work resonate as well as anybody’s ever been able to.

So giving us a Superman who right off the bat has broken ribs, a jacked-up bladder, and is in awful pain even when/because his robots are healing him… it’s a very Gunn choice, and it goes a long way to getting us invested in his version of a character who, let’s not forget, has had like 10 movies and 15 TV shows or something at this point and is older than your grandparents. Superman and all his pals have been around forever, so why should we care about yet another version of his story?

And not for nothing, it’s important to remember that a significant criticism has been lobbed at Superman over the years saying his invulnerability and squeaky clean boy scout-ness are just plain boring. He was, after all, created to be the best of us, but crafting interesting narratives around an overpowered alien with only a single weakness can start to get hard after a century. So how do you make this familiar story engaging? Opening on a shot of a damaged Kal-El is a great start, but we still need to fall for the supporting cast.

And that brings us back to the giggling robot. Once Krypto gets his dad into the Fortress (which is a cool re-thinking of the classic Richard Donner ice-crystal Fortress of Solitude, only in this case one that grows out of the snowy landscape on command), the robots take custody of Superman as they carry the injured hero in to treat his wounds. In the comics we know that the ‘bot known as Kelex is usually the main caretaker of the Fortress, although here we see the main robot has the simple designation of “4” on the Superman-shield on his chest.

As they tend to Superman, 4 (voiced by Alan Tudyk) introduces the newest robot of the group: “Meet 12. She’s new.” Superman nods to her weakly, and 12 practically blushes, despite being made of metal, as she giggles and says “Oh, he looked at me!”

12 has just that one line of dialogue (we're not sure who’s voicing the character but it’s gotta be someone we know, right?), but we're already so invested in her and these other robots that we're a little embarrassed to admit it. 4 also tells Kal-El that there’s no need to thank them for their service because they have “no consciousness whatsoever. Merely automatons here to serve.” But you know what? We're calling bullshit on that right now, because you can be guaranteed that half of us are going to be crying when we see the movie and one of these robots gets killed (something that in fact has already been teased in the first trailer). There’s also something about Tudyk’s delivery of those lines, like he’s dripping with sarcasm. No consciousness my red-briefs-clad-butt.

So even while comics fans can dig in and try to figure out if 4 is Kelex or how Superman’s biology works (he has intestines!) or whatever other lore or Easter egg stuff comes to mind, Gunn isn’t actually that concerned with that stuff. At minimum, we feel comfortable saying it doesn’t seem like his first priority. Yes, he understands the geeky things, he’s a fan himself and he’s read the comics – and loves them, no doubt – but what he’s doing here is building out little character moments and beats that will make us actually care about these people. And robots. And dogs!

This isn’t gonna be a Superman movie as much as it is a James Gunn movie, and we can’t wait.

New footage from TRON: Ares was unveiled today at Disney’s CinemaCon presentation by two of its stars, Oscar winners Jared Leto and Jeff Bridges.

The footage revealed the havoc unleashed when the highly sophisticated Program, Ares, enters the real world from the digital world. It’s humanity’s first encounter with AI beings and judging from this footage, it’s not the most cordial of meetings.

Leto plays Ares, who is on a dangerous mission to our world which brings him into contact with Bridges’ Kevin Flynn, the protagonist of the prior two TRON films.

The footage showed Ares on his red-tinged light cycle zooming through a real-world city pursued by police cars who are no match to catch him. The overwhelmed citizens are terrified by the sight of a giant hovering Recognizer looming over them. There was a quick shot of Gillian Anderson’s character, who appears to be a business executive.

The emphasis of the footage -- which boasted music by Nine Inch Nails -- was on wild video game elements invading the real-world and the sort of terror and destruction they can yield.

At one point, we hear Flynn say, “Are you ready? Because there’s no going back.” And then we see Ares suiting up for action.

The cast also includes Greta Lee, Evan Peters, Hasan Minhaj, Jodie Turner-Smith, Arturo Castro, and Cameron Monaghan.

Directed by Joachim Rønning, TRON: Ares zooms into theaters on October 10, 2025.

For more CinemaCon coverage, find out what we learned about The Fantastic Four: First Steps, Avatar: Fire and Ash, Predator: Badlands, Superman, Mortal Kombat II, Resident Evil, Spider-Man: Brave New Day, Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse, John Wick 5, Jurassic World Rebirth, Now You See Me: Now You Don’t, Masters of the Universe, The Beatles, The Legend of Aang: The Last Airbender, and Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning.

At CinemaCon in Las Vegas today, the Marvel Studios portion of Disney’s presentation featured the debut of brand new footage from The Fantastic Four: First Steps, including the first look anywhere of the Silver Surfer and a notable reveal about Sue Storm.

The start of the footage shows a talk show, The Ted Gilbert Show, clearly modeled after a 1960s Ed Sullivan Show style series, with Mark Gatiss (Sherlock, Game of Thrones) as the host. Ted Gilbert recaps the story of the Fantastic Four – with more glimpses of the footage we’ve seen previously of the space trip that transformed them – as we get footage showing their widespread popularity amongst the public, with cheering crowds, children included. We see Ben (Ebon Moss-Bachrach), Johnny (Joseph Quinn) and Sue (Vanessa Kirby) in action, using their powers - though, amusingly, we still weren’t given any shots of Reed’s stretching power in action. Gilbert then introduces the foursome onstage, and they stand together, in costume, in the shot we saw ending the first trailer.

Glimpses of the FF’s home life find more of the robot H.E.R.B.I.E. and Ben cooking together and Johnny chastising Reed (Pedro Pascal) and Sue for being late for dinner, leading to the big reveal about Sue, as Johnny is told his sister is pregnant. He then tells Sue she’ll be a great mom while teasing Reed he’ll be a terrible father.

We then got our first shots of Shalla-Bal, the Silver Surfer (Julia Garner), in all her gleaming, metallic glory, announcing “Your planet is now marked for death.” We then see more shots of Galactus’ shadow over New York, like in the teaser (though not a full reveal of the character yet).

Reed is seen readying for a mission, walking away from camera in a 4-logo labeled space suit as someone asks him “Are we safe?” He turns back towards them and grimly responds, “I don’t know.”

Shots of crowds running in panic across the city include a little girl stopping to retrieve an action figure of The Thing she’s dropped, but when she goes to pick it up, the giant shadow of Galactus falls over her.

The final shot of the footage then shows the Silver Surfer flying towards the camera on her surfboard.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps will be released on July 25, 2025!

In a pre-recorded message to CinemaCon from his post-production facility in New Zealand, James Cameron introduced Zoe Saldaña to present the first-ever footage from Avatar: Fire and Ash, in theaters December 19th.

“The Sully family are really put through the ringer on this one as they face not only the human invaders, but new adversaries: the Ash People,” Cameron said in his introduction.

Roughly five minutes from the film were presented in 3D, two sequences followed by a sizzle reel. The focus of the footage presented to an audience of theater execs and press was to show an expanded look at new corners and cultures in the world of Pandora.

Two new groups of Na’vi are introduced in this third Avatar film: the Tlalim clan, aka the Windtraders, and the Mangkwan Clan, aka the Ash People. The former are nomads who “sail” the skies like sailors from the Golden Age of Sail, while the latter are baddies who have rejected their deity and the ways of the Na’vi after a volcano left their homeland a desolate wreck covered in ash.

Zoe Saldaña is back on the #CinemaCon stage to introduce Avatar: Fire and Ash. pic.twitter.com/RS8T21L4O5

— Avatar (@officialavatar) April 3, 2025

David Thewlis plays Peylak, the leader of the Windtraders, while Oona Chaplin plays the Ash People’s sinister leader, Varang. Both are featured in the footage that was shown at CinemaCon, which began with a series of images showing the expanded look at Pandora.

Then a sequence shows Jake Sully, Neytiri, their kids Lo’ak and Tuk, Kiri, and Spider living among the high-flying Windtraders whose sky boats fly with membrane-like sails that look like jellyfish. They’re then attacked from above by a raiding party of Ash People.

It then transitioned into more of an extended trailer featuring lots of action and battles in the air and land, with Varang at one point telling Neytiri that “her God has no dominion here.”

The footage – which was as eye-popping and visceral as viewers have come to expect from the Avatar films – was presented in 3D and in a high frame rate to provide an immersive, sensory experience.

For more CinemaCon coverage, find out what we learned about Superman, Mortal Kombat II, Resident Evil, Spider-Man: Brave New Day, Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse, John Wick 5, Jurassic World Rebirth, Now You See Me: Now You Don’t, Masters of the Universe, and The Beatles.

Elle Fanning took the stage at CinemaCon 2025 in Las Vegas today to tout her upcoming Predator movie, Predator: Badlands, which will feature... a Predator who's a good guy!

Yes, this Predator is a young warrior who has been cast out and comes to work with humans... or at least one human that we know of so far - Fanning! Before unveiling the trailer for the film, which was played exclusively for CinemaCon, the actress teased a bit of the movie's plot.

"Something unprecedented happens in this movie," the A Complete Unknown actress told the assembled crowd of reporters and theater industry folks. "My character is not the one being chased. My character actually teams up with the Predator. And you get to see him in a completley new light. And... I'll stop there!"

The trailer was then unveiled, which showed Predator relices on a ship. “I didn’t think he survived,” someone says. We see the Predator standing on the shore... but this is not Earth. It’s another planet. We also see the Predator isn't wearing his helmet. At another point he’s surrounded by giant deadly monsters. Fanning's character says, “You’re something that cannot be killed."

The trailer features the tagline “The director of Prey welcomes you to a world of hurt,” and ends with the Predator facing down a massive creature running at him, smashing through trees. Standing his ground, the Predator roars at the creature, ready to fight.

Predator: Badlands was directed by Dan Trachtenberg and co-written by Trachtenberg and Patrick Aison. It's designed to be a standalone entry in the franchise even though Trachtenberg also directed 2022's terrific Prey and is working on an as-yet untitled third Predator film as well.

Predator: Badlands will be released on November 7, 2025.

Reporting by Jim Vejvoda and Eric Goldman.

We live in an era of getting things shipped straight to your home, without needing to leave your house. Pretty much anything I could ever want can be sent directly to me in seemingly no time flat. It's an incredible thing, and yet part of me still yearns for the experience of getting something in person. It feels like it's more of an actual event and a memory you'll have forever.

With the Nintendo Switch 2 preorders starting soon, Best Buy has announced that customers will have the option to pick up the new console at their local store at the stroke of midnight EST. It's the earliest possible time fans can get their hands on the Switch 2, with Walmart offering free deliveries before 9 a.m. on June 5. While having it shipped directly to me would be the easiest path, the idea of actually going somewhere to secure the console with my own two hands appeals to me a lot more. If I do end up getting a preorder for the Switch 2, I'm going to choose to wait in line and make a big deal out of it.

Preorders Start at Best Buy on April 9 at Midnight (EST)

Thank your own personal deity—possibly Odin the Aragami—it’s Friday! From sprawling RPGs to cosmic rhythm games, this week’s digital discounts are a goldmine for gamers across every platform. Stock up for your weekend, stay safe, save often, and I’ll catch you Monday!

This Day in Gaming 🎂

In retro news, I'm celebrating the 32nd birthday of Final Fight CD, arguably the best home version of Capcom's touchstone beat 'em up. Way more faithful than the SNES and Mega Drive versions—or the iffy Amiga one I was raised on—this must-own was scarfed by game starved Mega-CD owners, quicker than a free oil drum chicken.

• Bravely Default II (-35%) - A$52
• Kingdom Hearts Melody of Memory (-44%) - A$50
• Dragon Ball Fighterz (-45%) - A$50
• Life Is Strange: Double Exposure (-31%) - A$59
• Outward Def. Ed. (-40%) - A$36
• Hades (-65%) - A$14

Expiring Recent Deals

• Epic Mickey: Rebrushed (-43%) - A$58
• It Takes Two (-40%) - A$37
• Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance (-53%) - A$48
• Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled (-42%) - A$41
• Kingdom Come Deliverance: Royal Ed. (-41%) - A$48
• Burnout Paradise Rem. (-25%) - A$30

Or gift a Nintendo eShop Card.

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The new Minecraft movie has looked interesting from the very virst trailer. With Jack Black and Jason Momoa plopped into the world of Minecraft, it's a video game movie that has the potential to be popular with a massive audience of both kids and adults. Minecraft is one of the best-selling video games of all time that has infiltrated pretty much every medium, so its jump to a feature film was all but a matter of time. In our review of A Minecraft Movie, we found it to be surprisingly funny despite its contraints.

If you're hoping to catch the new live-action Minecraft movie in theaters this weekend, I've gathered all of the details below. For those of you waiting for it to come out on streaming and digital, I've also gathered the latest info I could find about release dates for both.

Where to Watch A Minecraft Movie

A Minecraft Movie, with a wide release date of April 4, is now available in theaters everywhere. To find when and where you can watch the film near you, check the listings featured below for local showtimes.

• Fandango
• Regal Theaters
• AMC Theaters
• Cinemark Theaters
• Alamo Drafthouse

When Will It Come to Streaming?

We don't yet have a streaming release date for A Minecraft Movie, but we know that it will land on Max when it does hit streaming because it's a Warner Bros. project. There is no clear time period when we can expect the movie to make the jump to a streaming service since it depends on how the film does in the box office, but we can make an educated guess based on past Warner Bros. movies. Theatrical windows have shrunk in the last few years, some as short as 14 days before hitting VOD. For a movie with such crossover appeal like this one, we'd bet that it has a longer life in theaters and won't hit streaming for three to four months. That would place the potential streaming release date sometime in June or July 2025.

Crunchyroll’s Anime Awards are a chance to celebrate your favorite shows, characters, and performances from the previous year. While a panel of judges may decide on the nominees themselves, the winners of each category are ultimately decided by fans. Today, the anime streaming service officially announced the nominees for the 9th Anime Awards and opened voting to the public.

At the 2024 Anime Awards, the grand prize (and 10 other awards) went to Jujutsu Kaisen. In 2025, Frieren: Beyond Journey's End leads the charge with 25 nominations, though Dan Da Dan isn't far behind at 22. Here are the nominees for Anime of the Year and how you (yes, you!) can cast your votes.

Nominees for Anime of the Year

For this year's Anime Awards, Crunchyroll announced expanded eligibility requirements. Any series that aired between October 31, 2023 and December 31, 2024, which includes five anime 'seasons,' is eligible. With that in mind, here are the nominees for Anime of the Year:

Dan Da Dan

Dan Da Dan, produced by Science Saru, follows a pair of eccentric teenagers who discover that both aliens and demons are real. Season 2 of Dan Da Dan begins airing this summer, and one can hope they use an opening as catchy as the first season's.

Where to Stream: Crunchyroll, Netflix, or Hulu

Delicious in Dungeon

The only Netflix exclusive anime to make this list, the first season of Delicious in Dungeon ran for 24 episodes. Adapted from the manga by Ryoko Kui, the seinen anime follows a group of adventurers forced to find meal options in the depths of, well, a dungeon.

Where to Stream: Netflix

Frieren: Beyond Journey's End

The Elven mage Frieren once travelled in a party that defeated the Demon King, but her long lifespan means she's outlived all of her friends. As she decides to take a young human mage under her wing, she considers how to find meaning in fleeting lifetimes. Frieren is, in my opinion, the nominee most likely to make you cry or have an existential crisis.

Where to Stream: Crunchyroll or Netflix

Kaiju No. 8

Kaiju No. 8 (occasionally referred to as Monster No. 8 in English) is a play on the "Man Becomes a Monster to Hunt Monsters" trope that's always been popular in anime. Kafka Hibino originally joins a task force to take revenge on the Kaiju who destroyed his town, but a parasite flying into his mouth makes his plan a little more complicated.

Where to Stream: Crunchyroll

Solo Leveling

While every other anime on this list started off as a serialized manga in Japan, Solo Leveling instead started as a Korean web comic on WebToon. A-1 Pictures produces the anime adaptation, which recently surpassed One Piece to become the most reviewed anime of all time on Crunchyroll.

Where to Stream: Crunchyroll

The Apothecary Diaries

The Apothecary Diaries has been adapted into plenty of mediums over the years, including a manga licensed by Square Enix, but the seinen story reached new levels of popularity with its anime adaptation. Set in an alternate version of the Tang Dynasty, The Apothecary Diaries has aired for two seasons so far.

Where to Stream: Crunchyroll, Netflix, or Hulu

How to Vote in the 2025 Anime Awards

Starting today, Dell is offering an Alienware Aurora R16 gaming PC equipped with the new GeForce RTX 5080 GPU for just $2,399.99 shipped. This is one of the best prices you can get right now for an RTX 5080 equipped prebuilt, especially since most other brands seem to be jacking up prices steadily since the RTX 50 series launch in January. The only other prebuilt you can get at Dell with an RTX 5080 GPU costs over $4,000. Good luck trying to find a standalone GPU to build out your own DIY PC; you'll probably spend as much for the GPU as you would this entire system.

Alienware Aurora R16 RTX 5080 Gaming PC for $2,400

LEGO and Minecraft fit together perfectly. The popular game is all about using your imagination to build just about anything out of digital blocks, and LEGO is the ideal medium to bring that into the real world. There are already a ton of LEGO Minecraft sets out there and more are on the way. Now that A Minecraft Movie is in theaters, Amazon is offering some pretty steep discounts on older sets that are actually really cool.

Although there were some newer Minecraft Movie LEGO sets released earlier this year, none of those have gone on sale. If you're a fan of the game itself and not just interested because of the new movie, however, the sets that are on sale are worth a look.

The Best Minecraft LEGO Sets on Sale at Amazon Today

With stylish cinematography and expertly choreographed fight scenes, John Wick has cemented itself as one of the best action film franchises of the last decade. The ongoing series realized its potential with John Wick: Chapter 4, which IGN called "a modern action masterclass" and awarded a rare 10/10 review score.

With confirmation that Keanu Reeves will be returning for John Wick 5, we've compiled a complete list of where you can stream every John Wick movie online in 2025.

Where to Stream the John Wick Movies Online

Unfortunately, the John Wick movies recently got much harder to find online. While the first three movies used to be on Hulu, they got pulled from the library on March 1, 2025. Now, the first three John Wick movies can only streamed with a live TV subscription like Fubo or rented from a digital marketplace like Prime Video. At the very least, John Wick: Chapter 4 is available for free on The Roku Channel.

Here's our full breakdown of how to watch John Wick online in 2025 with links to where you can stream each movie:

John Wick Movies on Blu-ray

If you're more interested in adding to your physical collection (or maybe just less interested in another streaming subscription), every John Wick movie is also available on DVD, in 4K Ultra HD. For what it's worth, no one can take your Blu-ray collection away from you.

Future John Wick Movies

After the mostly unimpressive debut of The Continental, Chad Stahleski was able to strike a deal to have creative oversight of all future John Wick spinoffs (as well as the new Highlander re-boot), so we have some faith that the canon is in good hands from here on out.

Ballerina, a feature-film spinoff starring Ana de Armas's character Ruska Roma, was originally scheduled to hit theaters on June 7, 2024 but has since been delayed to a June 6, 2025 release date.

John Wick 5 is officially a go at Lionsgate after Reeves and Director Stahleski decided over whiskey in Japan, and we know for sure Keanu Reeves will be a part of it. Reeves is also returning for an anime John Wick prequel.

Lastly, there's the yet-to-be-confirmed Sofia Al-Azwar spinoff hinted at by actor Halle Berry. In the meantime, you can also check out our list of movies like John Wick.

Jordan covers games, shows, and movies as a freelance writer for IGN.

I'm sorry to everyone who was in earshot of me when the Mario Kart World trailer dropped at yesterday's Nintendo Switch 2 Direct. Because when I saw this, I screamed:

YOU CAN PLAY AS THE FREAKING COW?!?!!!!! MARIO KART WORLD?!!!!!! pic.twitter.com/6uIZ4A0MVF

— ☆オードリーAudrey☆ (@aitaikimochi) April 2, 2025

Yes, if you somehow haven't heard/didn't notice, Mario Kart World has gone absolutely nuts on what characters are allowed to drive motor vehicles this time around. While Super Smash Bros. has taken the path of adding characters from every Nintendo-adjacent franchise imaginable to its roster, Mario Kart has gone the other way by digging deep into Mario lore and adding every single goofy little guy you've ever seen to the line-up of kart racers. Right down to one of the cows populating Moo Moo Meadows in Mario Kart 8.

THEY REALLY ARE ADDING ANYBODY LMAO https://t.co/UcvrIXxg57 pic.twitter.com/JJdofUopVe

— No Context Super Mario (@SuperMarioOOC85) April 2, 2025

The Moo Moo, or just Cow as they're referred to in the official roster, is getting special attention online from the community. Already, people are drawing up fanart to celebrate this cute, goofy, seemingly random edition to a line-up that, up til now, has largely included the Mario series' most famous and beloved characters.

They're also, predictably, making all sorts of of memes:

Mario Kart players seeing that Cow racing pic.twitter.com/7eAN22LWPd

— SwagKirb (@Swag_K1RBY) April 2, 2025

wanted to let everyone know that this was my first thought upon seeing the moo moo meadows cow in mario kart pic.twitter.com/CCWZA0nqfL

— ticky fraggle ! (@tickyworm) April 2, 2025

The helpful lakitu when the moo moo meadow cow falls off the track in mario kart world pic.twitter.com/7gBgLg5P1u

— Regice (@reg1ce) April 2, 2025

The addition of Cow has also led to some... interesting speculation. For instance, in one shot in the trailer, Mario consumes a burger. Will Cow also consume a burger at some point in the game? What does this mean, philosophically, for Cow?

What's more, does this mean we'll get to see Cow wearing a variety of costumes like the other characters? Can we race as Cow in Moo Moo Meadows? How do all the other cows feel about this? How did a Cow get a driver's license anyway?

We just went hands-on with Mario Kart World at a special Nintendo event, and yes, we did play as Cow. Cow was one of our favorite playable characters, and we're excited to find out more about some of the other unlockable weird little guys we've seen on the courses, and potential funky costumes we might eventually see Cow donning. Hopefully Cow doesn't have to eat a burger first.

We've got everything you need to know about Mario Kart World and the Nintendo Switch 2 here at IGN, from tons of new details about both, to why the hardware and games are so dang expensive.

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.

If you want a gaming PC that can follow wherever you may roam, a gaming laptop is likely your best bet. While desktop parts will usually still beat out a gaming laptop, the best of them offer excellent performance in the latest games. Best of all, some models are able to offer peak performance while still remaining thin and light, like the Razer Blade 16, which is my pick for the all-around best gaming laptop of 2025 so far.

TL;DR – These Are the Best Gaming Laptops:

The first thing I always recommend to people hunting for a new gaming laptop is to consider is what PC games they actually hope to play. The second is what settings they hope to play them at. These two questions can guide your purchase to higher- or lower-end hardware and what trade-offs you're willing to make. Now more than ever, gaming laptops come in every shape and size, from thin and light devices to moderately heavy powerhouses like the Gigabyte Aorus Master 16. Larger performance-driven laptops (like the ones that come with a 4K display) achieve their enhanced performance with more powerful, and power-hungry, components, which means sacrificing on portability, battery life, and fan noise.

There are countless to choose from a ton of different gaming laptop brands, and finding the best for you can be more than a little daunting. I've tested dozens over the years, and I have a deep understanding of what it takes for a laptop to ascend to greatness for different types of gamers and can confidently say: These are the best gaming laptops of 2025 so far.

Looking for discounts on laptops like these? Check out our guide to the best gaming laptop deals.

1. Razer Blade 16 (2025)

Best Overall Gaming Laptop

Let's get this out of the way: The Razer Blade 16 isn't the most powerful RTX 50-series laptop. Instead, this notebook earns my top pick because of sum of its parts. See, the team at Razer understood that a huge crosssection of laptop gamers carry their machines with them every day, and flat-out making it nicer to use while also being powerful can dramatically enhance the use experience. And, as an extra, if you're willing to invest in Razer's laptop cooling pad, you can unlock the full wattage for performance that goes toe-to-toe with other RTX 5090 laptops.

Make no mistake: The Razer Blade 16 is still a gaming beast. In my review, I threw everything and the kitchen sink at it and there was nothing it couldn't run well on its crisp 1600p OLED screen. While running those games and benchmarks, the system stayed surprisingly quiet. This is a gaming laptop you could use in a school library without attracting attention.

It's true that a high-powered RTX 5080 like the Gigabyte Aorus Master 16 also recommended in this guide will get you similar, if not better, performance. What most other laptops can't offer, though, is the Blade 16's level of portability and noise.

Measuring just 0.59 inches at its thinnest point, it's a marked improvement from its predecessor and, well, most gaming laptops with such powerful hardware. It also weighs only 4.7lbs; you won't forget it's there, but it won't leave your back and shoulders sore from lugging it around every day. That portabilty makes it more appealing as a daily carry, so I didn't second guess taking it with me every day even when I might not actually need it.

The Blade 16 does a great job of feeling like the premium product it is. The chassis is milled from a single block of aluminum and feels solid and robust. It also helps with heat dissipation, but solid engineering ensures that the keyboard never gets more than warm while gaming. Its screen is also excellent with impressive factory calibration and multiple professional color modes that allow it to be used for creative applications straight out of the box. It's per-key RGB keyboard is completely programmable, complete with SOCD (Snap Tap) and macro support to better emulate a dedicated gaming keyboard.

On top of that, it also offers great battery life while gaming. Thanks to the new advancements in how the RTX 50-series handles power management, you can play games for around two hours instead of one or less like last generation.

The Razer Blade 16 is an excellent laptop that, while pricey, is something special in this space. If you want a great gaming laptop that will impress you with its portability, look no further.

2. MSI Thin A15 AI

Best Budget Gaming Laptop

3. Gigabyte Aorus Master 16

Best High-End Gaming Laptop

4. Asus Zenbook S 16

Best Work/Gaming Laptop

5. Asus TUF Gaming A14

Best Gaming Laptop for Students

How to Pick the Best Gaming Laptop

Gaming laptops have come a long way in relatively little time. Power, portability, and price have all seen dramatic improvements in just the last five years, and somehow gaming laptops are getting thinner and adding even more features.

Portability and Form Factor

Where will you be taking this gaming laptop? If you'll be taking it out every day, you’ll want something portable, such as a 15-incher or even smaller. Users who just want a laptop to live at home as more of a desktop replacement should go for a 17-inch rig or bigger for the larger screen size and greater power.

Weight is another consideration if you'll be carrying the laptop around all day. Anything more than 5lbs is going to be very noticeable. This can be an issue because gaming laptops have a tendency to be a bit bigger than competing options that don't need larger and more advanced cooling solutions. It's not impossible to find thin and light gaming laptops with great performance, but you should definitely take the time to consider what you're comfortable with and if you're willing to trade performance for portability.

With integrated GPUs, with the integrated graphics on modern processors getting to be so good, it's also possible to find gaming laptops in form factors that just didn't work before. The ROG Flow Z13 is a prime example; it is essentially a 2-in-1 gaming laptop that can double as a tablet for artists and students, but offers impressive gaming performance thanks to its AMD Ryzen AI MAX processor.

The point is, you don't need to limit yourself to bulky clamshell designs in the same way you used to. Depending on your budget and performance needs, there are more options than ever out there.

Power

The newest gaming laptops come equipped with the latest Nvidia RTX or Radeon RX graphics chips. These mobile chips are nearly as capable as their desktop version, plus they support the latest ray tracing, DLSS, and frame generation technologies.

On that front, it can also be important to consider what games you plan on playing, their minimum and recommended specifications, and what advanced features they might support. If the game is equipped with the latest version of Nvidia's DLSS, for example, and supports frame generation, you can probably get away with a lower-powered, lower-cost graphics card since the tech will improve your frame rate even on a cheaper card. As you get into higher tiers of laptop GPUs, prices skyrocket quickly.

Choosing the latest processor isn't quite as necessary, but it's nice to have and can help ensure that it doesn't bottleneck the potential performance of your GPU. If you're looking at a laptop with an Intel processor, be sure that the processor isn't more than a couple generations behind. Both Intel and AMD offer gaming processors with built-in neural processing units for enhanced AI performance. For Intel, these are referred to as Core Ultra processors while AMD dubs its lines AI and AI MAX. Both can offer great gaming performance.

If you only plan to take part in light gaming, a recent Core Ultra or AI Max processor can also take the place of a dedicated graphics card and save you hundreds in the process. Both of these chips feature powerful integrated graphics, and so long as you're willing to adjust settings and resolutions, can deliver playable frame rates. They're also great if you plan on streaming your games through the cloud through services like Xbox Cloud Gaming or GeForce Now.

Price

If you're set on a gaming laptop and just need to decide which one to get under a certain price point, then your choices will be narrowed down based on your maximum budget. If that's you, you'll probably want to explore our full list of cheap gaming laptops we'd recommend instead, but here's our top budget pick right now:

Most gaming laptops are only as portable as the nearest electrical outlet. All that power comes at a price, though. The general rule of thumb about gaming laptops is that their battery life stinks. In general, you should plan on plugging in your laptop before loading a game. Playing on battery power typically lasts an hour or less and also delivers worse performance due to the power limits the laptop imposes on the graphics card and processor. It's just not ideal, but may still be better than lugging around a heavy power brick, depending on what you're playing.

One recent exception to this is Nvidia's RTX 50-series laptop GPUs. These new chips feature enhanced power management features, so you can count on closer to two hours instead of one.

Another consideration when choosing a gaming laptop versus a gaming desktop is its price. It costs quite a bit more to stuff all those components (i.e. the built-in trackpad, keyboard, speakers, and display) into an easy-to-carry shell.

Depending on how tech-savvy you are, You can save some money by choosing a laptop with less memory and storage at checkout and upgrading these components yourself. It's usually much cheaper to do so. However, you'll want to research carefully to ensure that both are upgradable at all and, if so, are easily accessible. Some laptops hide components inside, beneath others, making them especially difficult, if not impossible, for anyone other than an expert to access. Bear in mind, however, that a laptop in general is much less upgradable than a desktop gaming PC. Outside of memory and storage, changing out other components likely means buying a whole new PC.

Gaming Laptop FAQ

Should you buy a gaming laptop or a gaming PC?

When considering a gaming laptop over a gaming desktop, ask yourself: Is the premium price worth it for the luxury of portability? In virtually every case, you'll pay more for a gaming laptop with similar on-paper specs to a well-matched gaming desktop. It doesn't stop with the cost: Just because two graphics cards have the same name doesn't mean that they're the same in all circumstances. Laptop versions of same-name GPUs usually offer reduced performance due to their thermal and power limitations. Gaming desktops provide more bang for your buck, are less expensive to upgrade and repair, and last longer before they go obsolete. See our guide to gaming PCs vs. gaming laptops for a deeper comparison.

Is the CPU or GPU more important in a gaming laptop?

Both are important, but you should consider the graphics card more than the processor. Even though a slow processor can throttle the graphics card and lower your fps, usually this is much less of a concern than simply having an underpowered GPU. Remember, it's the graphics card that renders your games and is the single most influential component to gaming performance.

Do I need a dedicated graphics card in my gaming laptop?

Not always. This depends on what you're hoping to achieve. If you're interested in running the latest games at high graphics settings and resolutions, you definitely need to invest in a laptop with a great graphics card. If you only plan to do light gaming, enjoy older games that aren't very demanding or stream your games from the cloud. A modern processor with integrated graphics can also be a good way to save some money. With that in mind, relying on an integrated graphics card hasn't always been as possible as it is today. As such, I would recommend this only for gaming laptops with AMD Ryzen 7000-series or Intel Core Ultra processors.

Do you need a laptop cooling pad?

Many modern gaming laptops come with ample cooling solutions baked into the chassis. But given their much smaller form factor than traditional desktop gaming PCs, thermal throttling can occasionally be an issue. If you are experiencing a downgrade in performance or your device seems a little too hot to the touch, a laptop cooling pad could be a simple, affordable solution. Laptop cooling pads often feature fans and ventilation slots or mesh for better airflow than when your laptop rests on a gaming desk or your lap, helping to ensure your device is working to its full potential and can even increase its longevity. If you're looking to keep your gaming laptop cool on the cheap, the Havit HV-2056 is an excellent option.

Christopher Coke has been a contributor to IGN since 2019 and has been covering games and technology for more than a decade. He has covered tech ranging from gaming controllers to graphics cards, gaming chairs to gaming monitors, headphones, IEMs, and more for sites such as MMORPG.com, Tom’s Hardware, Popular Science, USA Today’s Reviewed, and Popular Mechanics. Find Chris on Twitter @gamebynight.

Image Credit: Annalee Tsujino is a multi disciplinary designer and illustrator. Check them out on Instagram @antsu_illustrations.

Tom Cruise was at Paramount Pictures’ CinemaCon presentation Thursday to promote his upcoming film Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning, but before he did he paid tribute to his Top Gun co-star Val Kilmer, who died Tuesday, by asking the audience of theater executives and press for a moment of silence to honor him.

“I’d like to honor a dear friend of mine, Val Kilmer. I really can’t tell you how much I admire his work, how much I thought of him as a human being, how honored I was when he joined Top Gun and came back for Top Gun: Maverick,” Cruise said.

“I think it would be great if we could all just take a moment and think about all the wonderful times we had with him. Would you all mind doing that? Let’s just take a moment.”

Several of the new 2025 Samsung TVs that were showcased earlier this year at CES are now available for purchase at Samsung's official online store. Select Samsung Neo QLED and OLED TVs are currently in stock and they ship out immediately for as early as April 9-10 delivery. Alternatively, you can pick up select models at your local Best Buy. Not every TV has been released yet, but I expect more models to become available soon.

The 2025 Samsung TVs That Are Available Starting Today

The Nintendo Switch 2 rollout is somewhat complicated. While most original Switch games are compatible with the Switch 2, some are not. Some original Switch games are getting paid Switch 2 upgrades, which will improve their performance on the upcoming console. Still others are getting free Switch 2 upgrades, available at no additional cost. This last category is especially interesting, because everyone loves free stuff. Let’s see what games qualify.

Games with Free Nintendo Switch 2 Upgrades

• Arms
• Big Brain Academy: Brain vs. Brain
• Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker
• Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics
• Game Builder Garage
• The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
• The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening
• New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe
• Pokemon Scarlet
• Pokemon Violet
• Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury
• Super Mario Odyssey

So what exactly is it about these games that will work better on Switch 2 than on the original hardware? According to Nintendo, these free updates will “improve playability.” You’ll be able to download free updates for these games “may improve performance or add support for features such as GameShare in select games. The contents of these free updates will differ depending on the game.”

That all sounds pretty nice. It’s somewhat odd that the two top-down Zelda games on Switch are getting free Switch 2 upgrades, while Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom will require you to purchase the respective upgrades. It’s unclear what exactly makes Nintendo decide to offer a free upgrade versus a paid upgrade. Is it the amount of work put into it? Is it the level of improvement of the experience over the original Switch? We’ll have to wait until the Switch 2 comes out to see for ourselves.

In the meantime, if you don’t have some of these games and you want to pick them up before the Switch 2 launches, now is a good time to do so. Some games even currently have a discount, like the sale on Pokemon Scarlet and Violet going on right now.

Chris Reed is a deals expert and commerce editor for IGN. You can follow him on Bluesky @chrislreed.com.

NetEase Games is fundamentally changing its Marvel Rivals post-launch roadmap to shorten its seasons and deliver at least one new hero every month as it battles to maintain live service momentum with its players.

It’s a major update to the existing content release schedule that was teased during the new Marvel Rivals Season 2 Dev Vision Vol. 5 video. Included in the 15-minute upload were details about how Season 2 will introduce its new Vanguard, Emma Frost, at launch April 11, as well as Ultron, whose class will be revealed closer to his mid-season launch. Both promise to keep Marvel Rivals fans on their toes with new abilities, but the real changes to how playable heroes will impact matches truly begin in Season 3.

In Marvel Rivals Season 3, which is currently without a release date, NetEase will shift season lengths from being three months long to just two months. It means major content updates will progress rapidly without changing the team’s initial promise to drop at least one new hero every half-season. So, while you’ll have to wait a month and a half to play as Ultron after Emma Frost launches next week, that wait will be cut down significantly after the hero after that drops.

“Since the launch of Season 1, we’ve been deeply contemplating how Marvel Rivals can continuously deliver fun and engaging experience for you all,” Marvel Rivals creative director Guangyun Chen explained in the Dev Vision video. “During this time, several discussions on social media have certainly added some pressure on us to keep the game as exciting as it has been since December. To a certain extent, we agree.”

Chen went on to explain that NetEase wants Marvel Rivals “to fulfill everyone’s fantasies about Marvel Super Heroes,” and that means exploring new modes and flooding the scene with a dense roster of varied characters. Following what he called “extensive internal discussions and thorough evaluations,” NetEase will adjust its systems to account for the increased flow of content. More information on how this will affect players will be revealed before the launch of Season 3.

“With our goal of keeping the audience’s excitement alive just like our opening months, the real adventure with Marvel Rivals is just beginning,” Chen added.

NetEase pulled back the curtain on Marvel Rivals Season 2 just hours ago, revealing that it will soon swap out its vampire takeover theme in favor of a new storyline that focuses on the Hellfire Gala. That means new fancy outfits, maps, and characters are on the way, with more information primed to be revealed in the coming weeks.

Marvel Rivals was a smash hit when it launched in December, securing 10 million players in three days. NetEase’s free-to-play superhero team-based PvP shooter launched on December 6 across PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X and S. On Steam the launch was particularly huge, with 480,990 concurrent players. January's Season 1 then drew an incredible 644,269 concurrent players, making Marvel Rivals the 15th most-played game ever on Valve's platform.

But those concurrents have been on a downward slide ever since, which may have sparked the drastic roadmap change from NetEase. Still, Marvel Rivals remains hugely popular, and is one of Steam's most-played games. The launch of Season 2 will no-doubt prove a shot in the arm, and again with Season 3.

For more on Marvel Rivals, be sure to check out the patch notes for update version 20250327 as well as why Disney decided to scrap an idea for a Marvel Gaming Universe.

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).

I started playing Pokémon Scarlet when it first came to the Switch back in November 2022. I was excited to get back into the usual Pokémon formula again after Legends Arceus mixed it up. The open world gameplay combined with the standard gym battle progression had me feeling like a little kid again.

Unfortunately, when the game first launched it was riddled with problems. In IGN's Pokémon Scarlet and Violet Review, we loved a lot of things about it, but found that it just ran terribly. The game has since received various patches and updates to help resolve the major issues, but it's the free Nintendo Switch 2 upgrade that is likely going to finally bring this game to its full potential.

Nintendo has listed the games that will be receiving free updates to improve performance or add extra features on the Nintendo Switch 2 console, and both Scarlet and Violet are on there. Additionally, Amazon is having a sale on physical copies of these games that brings the price down to well below many of the upcoming Switch 2 editions of older games. If you're a Pokémon fan who has been on the fence about the latest games in the series, now is the time to buy before the new console arrives.

Pokémon Scarlet and Violet Deals at Amazon

Paramount revealed the new title for their upcoming Last Airbender animated feature film coming to theaters January 30, 2026 and it’s The Legend of Aang: The Last Airbender.

The studio made the announcement at their CinemaCon presentation on Thursday. No footage was shown but the film’s logo was revealed.

The Legend of Aang: The Last Airbender’s voice cast includes Eric Nam as Aang, Dave Bautista (as a villain), Dionne Quan, Jessica Matten, Román Zaragoza, and Steven Yeun.

Lauren Montgomery, who worked on Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra, directs what will reportedly be the first of the three Last Airbender films.

For more airbending, read up on Avatar: Seven Havens and the new Last Airbender box set.

For more CinemaCon coverage, find out what we learned about Superman, Mortal Kombat II, Resident Evil, Spider-Man: Brave New Day, Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse, John Wick 5, Jurassic World Rebirth, Now You See Me: Now You Don’t, Masters of the Universe, and The Beatles.

Microsoft will bring Rockstar Games’ Grand Theft Auto 5 to Xbox Game Pass and GTA 5 Enhanced to Game Pass for PC on April 15.

This striking addition to the Wave 1 April 2025 lineup was announced in an Xbox Wire post, revealing that the service’s biggest new title of the month is only a few weeks away from dropping. It’s an especially enticing reveal, as the PC Game Pass version of GTA 5 comes with that all-new Enhanced update Rockstar dropped in early March.

“No matter what version you’re playing, everyone will have access to Oscar Guzman Flies Again, the latest update where you can take to the skies — taking control of the McKenzie Field Hanger in Grapeseed,” an official description from Xbox explained. “Play new arms trafficking missions, fly new aircraft, and more.”

Its arrival in two Tuesdays will mark a triumphant return to Game Pass after Rockstar’s open-world masterpiece was previously removed from the service. However, while the addition will mark the title's first time on PC Game Pass, it’s not all sunshine and rainbows as far as many die-hard GTA fans are concerned.

GTA 5 Enhanced arrived on PC March 4 as a free update, bringing access to all the latest vehicles, performance upgrades in Hao’s Special Works, animal encounters, and visual bumps. It was a promising addition that also resulted in GTA 5 becoming Rockstar’s worst-reviewed title on Steam as players latched onto account migration issues that kept them from bringing their GTA Online profiles over to the new version.

If you’re a newcomer to Los Santos, then you likely won’t have much to worry about. If you’re returning to the world of GTA 5 Online and looking to migrate your account over to that shiny new Enhanced upgrade, you might find yourself out of luck. For now, it appears the issues with account migration are still ongoing.

Meanwhile, we’re still waiting for any news about Grand Theft Auto 6. Our last GTA 6 update ensured that Rockstar intended to deliver its next open-world trend-setter sometime this fall, though we’re still waiting on that elusive release date.

While Rockstar works out the kinks ahead of GTA 5’s return to Game Pass, you can read up on the rest of the Wave 1 April 2025 titles coming to Xbox Game Pass. You can also read up on how Rockstar is supporting the modding community by granting them access to official tools.

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).

Both The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom are getting Nintendo Switch 2 versions for the new console. Alongside the in-game upgrades, Nintendo's adding a number of additional features through the new Zelda Notes option in its Nintendo Switch App, including achievements.

The Nintendo Switch App (formerly known as the Nintendo Switch Online App) will get an update adding Zelda Notes, a game-specific service exclusive to the Nintendo Switch 2 versions of both Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom.

This app was shown off in the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct, allowing players to use GPS-style navigation to reach landmarks in the Zelda games. For achievements, the app will track your play data and allow players to earn in-app medals based on their records. These account for opening chests, earning rupees, and more.

In the Achievements section, Nintendo lists categories such as "Quests and Adventures Cleared," "Shrines of Light Cleared," "Locations Visited," "Lightroots Unlocked," and others. Alongside tracking those numbers, the app will also let you see how you match up with other players on a global scale.

While the achievements seem geared towards completion, it's interesting to see Nintendo experiment with these options. Granted, they exist in a phone app rather than on the Switch 2 console by itself, but I am curious to see whether other games get similar treatments in the future.

Other features of the Zelda Notes app include a Daily Bonus option for helpful resources, a Voice Memories section which adds more story and lore to the world as you explore, and an Autobuild Sharing tool. These do seem like handy tools, and especially geared towards people playing through this Zelda duology for the second time on their Nintendo Switch 2.

The Nintendo Switch 2 has a launch date set for June 5, 2025. Both Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom will have Switch 2 editions at launch, alongside a slew of other games both new and refreshed. Previews dropped this morning for some of the launch window games for the Nintendo Switch 2, including Mario Kart World, Donkey Kong Bananza, and general hands-on impressions of the console.

If you're looking for everything announced at the Direct for this upcoming console, be sure to check out our recap of all the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct news here.

Eric is a freelance writer for IGN.

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