After eight years, the Nintendo Switch is approaching its final days, and from its ashes will rise the Switch 2. But before you put away your Switch in the closet for one last time, you should make sure you haven’t missed your chance to play some overlooked gems.

While everyone with a Switch has probably played The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Super Mario Odyssey, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and, of course, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, there are dozens of other Switch games that still shine bright on Nintendo’s hybrid console that you may have heard of, but didn’t get around to play.

We get it, time is limited, budgets might be tight, and there are too many games. But go back and check out these Switch games before the Switch 2. You won’t regret it.

20. Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon

An origin story for everyone’s favorite demon-slaying witch, Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon is a gorgeous puzzle platformer presented in a beautiful storybook art style. But fans of Bayonetta’s action combat will still find classic, button-mashing combos here too. Ultimately, Bayonetta Origins is a worthy addition to the series that may have been overlooked given its prequel nature and drastically different art style.

19. Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity

The Dynasty Warriors/musou-genre is a perfect template for all manner of crossovers, including The Legend of Zelda. While The Age of Calamity might not be considered canon to the events of the beloved Breath of the Wild, there’s something incredibly gratifying about taking on the role of either Link or any of the other Breath of the Wild Champions and defending Hyrule from thousands of invading enemies. If you’re a fan of Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom but haven’t ventured into Age of Calamity, it’s worth a trip back in time.

18. New Pokemon Snap

For years fans have dreamed of a long-awaited sequel to the Nintendo 64 title Pokemon Snap. And they got their wish in 2021 with the New Pokemon Snap for the Nintendo Switch. It’s very much a situation where New Pokemon Snap gives you more of everything you loved in the original, from more Pokemon to take snapshots of to plenty of secrets hidden throughout the various biomes you’ll traverse. While the original N64 Pokemon Snap game has its diehard fans who no doubt eagerly played the sequel, new fans deserve to check out one of the most beloved and unique Pokemon spinoffs ever.

17. Kirby and the Forgotten Land

After 13 games, Kirby and the Forgotten Land is the first fully 3D Kirby game in the entire series, and it takes full advantage of the additional dimension. While Kirby is still able to suck in enemies and objects to gain their powers, the new 3D environments are fully explorable, letting Kirby roam free for the first time. This makes new abilities like turning into a straight-up car especially useful for exploration. While Kirby has always been a reliable mainstay in the Nintendo stable, it’d be a shame to let the Switch era pass without playing one of the best Kirby games in the series.

16. Paper Mario: The Origami King

There’s a reason why the Paper Mario sub-series is so beloved. Between the charming art style and the puzzle RPG style gameplay that departs from the platformer action of the mainline Mario games, the Paper Mario series is for anyone who has a soft spot for unique aesthetics. And thanks to a fully explorable open world, The Origami King might be one of the most beautiful Paper Mario games in the whole series. While combat isn’t as satisfying as past games, The Origami King makes up for it with visual splendor.

15. Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze

We’ll scream it from the treetops until everyone finally listens – Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze is one of the best 2D platformers of all time, and more people need to play it! It’s not for the faint of heart though, as Tropical Freeze’s fast-paced platforming challenges will test even the most hardened Super Mario players. You’ll frantically climb up crumbling icebergs, bounce across jiggly cubes of jello, and do so much more on DK’s quest to retake his home island. It’s rare – and extremely fun – to face this much difficulty in a Nintendo game, and Tropical Freeze makes it worth your effort by pairing its challenge with gorgeous graphics, an amazing soundtrack, and incredibly tight controls. All platformer fans owe it to themselves to try out this modern run-and-jump masterpiece.

14. Fire Emblem Engage

The most successful Fire Emblem game of the Nintendo era was Fire Emblem: Three Houses, but you shouldn't overlook the second Switch game, Fire Emblem Engage. Narratively, Engage isn’t as cohesive as Three Houses, but it makes up for it by bringing back fan-favorite characters from past Fire Emblem games through “the multiverse.” What’s more, tactics RPG fans will likely find Engage is actually more of a throwback to old-school SRPGs, with smaller maps for tighter combat situations and a difficulty that can ramp up to punishing levels if you’re feeling like you want to really test your strategic acumen.

13. Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE Encore

A Shin Megami Tensei and Fire Emblem crossover but set in the backdrop of Japan’s idol music culture? Sign me up. While this might not be what anyone might have expected when it was announced Atlus would develop a Fire Emblem SMT crossover, the poppy, colorful mashup that we got deserves your time thanks to a breezy mix of Fire Emblem and SMT RPG combat and a bubblegum art style that’s worth the trip, despite the localization toning down some of the heavier themes around fame and fan culture.

12. Astral Chain

Astral Chain is one of those experiences that you need to play to truly understand its greatness, though anyone who has played any of Platinum's other action games will at least have an idea of what to expect. The combat is fluid and flashy and has enough variance when swapping between the summonable living weapons (called “Legion”) to keep things interesting from start to finish. Meanwhile, the bosses are challenging enough to test your mastery over each of these unique Familiars. Outside of the high-octane combat, you’ll be exploring the cyberfuturistic world and investigating incidents and solving cases. And then there is a whole Astral Plane to explore that is filled with platforming, battles, and puzzle challenges to overcome, and which feel almost like old-school dungeons from other Nintendo franchises. The only thing keeping Astral Chain from being more widely recognized is its exclusivity to the Switch.

11. Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope

While Rabbid Peach might have turned heads as a funny meme, Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope is no joke. This strategy RPG that combines the world of Mario and Ubisoft’s Rabbids is pure fun thanks to the action-focused combat that lets you combine different characters and upgrades for some massive combos. Whether you’re a Mario fan who’s never played a Rabbids game, or more rare, the Rabbids fan who never played a Mario game, these two unlikely flavors turn out to be pretty great together.

10. Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door

Unlike Paper Mario: The Origami King, The Thousand Year Door is a ground-up remake of the beloved GameCube release. But as it’s one of the most beloved Paper Mario games in the whole series, its redone visuals, music, and gameplay improvements mean it’s now one of the best Paper Mario games of all time. Come for Mario’s swashbuckling treasure hunt to save Peach and the town of Rogueport, but stay for all the charm and gameplay excellence the Paper Mario franchise is known for. If you’ve never tried out one of Mario’s paper-based spinoffs, this is where to begin hands down.

9. F-Zero 99

F-Zero fans weren’t sure how to feel when the series’ long-awaited return after 20 years of dormancy was a 99-player battle royale, but F-Zero 99 surprised us all and – thanks to a healthy amount of post-launch content updates – has turned into a top-tier entry. Racing against 98 players is exhilarating, and even though some of F-Zero’s trademark precision is gone, it’s replaced by the thrill of slamming into your opponents to devastate their health bar while taking careful precautions to preserve your own. And strategically planning when to use the faster – but limited – Skyway can lead to incredible comeback finishes that get your blood pumping. F-Zero 99 wasn’t the game anyone was asking for, but it was somehow the one we needed to get the series back on track.

8. Pikmin 3 Deluxe

Pikmin 3 was such a delight when it was released; it had been nine years since Pikmin 2 and many fans wondered when the franchise would make a return. Thankfully it did and though it wasn’t the massive upgrade like we eventually got in Pikmin 4, the game looked great and was a fun addition to the franchise that expanded it in important ways. Pikmin 3 introduced two new Pikmin types (Rock and Winged), better controls of your non-Pikmin protagonists (all of which were new to the franchise), and a solid amount of extra content to sink our teeth into. This was all made even better with Pikmin 3 Deluxe on Switch, which added even more content, co-op for the story mode, and the Piklopedia, which was notably absent in the original release. Pikmin 3 in general is also one of the funnier entries in the franchise as the three leaders you control all have distinct personalities, and it was always a treat to see how they would describe Citrus Lumps (Oranges) or Cupid’s Grenade (Cherries). Pikmin 3 Deluxe may not be at the top of most Pikmin fans lists but it is still worth exploring to collect fruit and make that sweet sweet juice. No Pikmin collection would be complete without it.

7. Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker

It makes sense that Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker was one of the first games Nintendo brought over to the Switch from the Wii U. This is a delightful, ingenious little puzzle platformer where Captain Toad must reach the end of the level without being able to jump. The reason? His backpack is too heavy. It’s not the most complex platformer, but every level is a delightful brain teaser, and great to play in short bursts and on the go. A perfect Switch game, basically. While the Wii U was full of overlooked gems in its own right, this is one of its biggest treasures that made its way to the far more popular Switch, and where it deserves its own recognition.

6. Game Builder Garage

No one talks about Game Builder Garage and it's such a damn shame. If something like this had existed when I was a kid, I would have devoured it, throwing myself fully into its interface and creating gobs and gobs of bespoke games to play and show off. Nintendo basically built a simplified game engine to teach people, well, how to build games. It's right there in the name! But it's not a coding tutorial, nor is it a simple level-editor like Super Mario Maker. You progress through Game Builder Garage by completing charming lessons on building different types of games and what those types of games involve, basically building algorithms with the charm of a Nintendo-created interface. If you've ever installed a game engine on your computer only to throw your hands in the air after a few YouTube tutorials, buy this game. Play it through. Build a few games in it. Then move onto something bigger. You'll be ready.

5. Xenoblade Chronicles Series

Across four games, Monolith Soft has created some of the biggest, most beautiful open worlds ever realized on the Nintendo Switch. Xenoblade Chronicles 1, 2, and 3, as well as the spinoff Xenoblade Chronicles X, are what happens when you take old-school Japanese RPG sensibilities and marry them to modern-ish technology. The results are sweeping, operatic stories about warring civilizations, ancient gods, cool robots, and cooler swords, with a breathtaking open world to explore fully. Combined, the Xenoblade games will likely take hundreds of hours to finish… and it’ll be worth every minute.

4. Kirby’s Return to Dreamland Deluxe

Kirby’s Return to Dreamland Deluxe is the perfect counterpart to The Forgotten Land, which we already celebrated on this list. While The Forgotten Land is a 3D adventure primarily focused on single player, Return to Dreamland Deluxe is one of the pink puffball’s strongest 2D outings, with the best multiplayer the series has ever seen. Tearing through levels and enemies with four Kirbys on screen is a blast, and Return to Dreamland’s huge amount of levels and collectibles to find will keep you and your friends entertained for a long time. It might be the best way to introduce new gamers to platformers too, as you only fail if player 1 dies and players 2-4 can seamlessly drop in and out at any time. The Deluxe Switch version also adds an entirely new epilogue and a wide selection of returning subgames from across Kirby’s history, complete with achievements to chase and costumes to unlock.

3. Ring Fit Adventure

Unlike some of the other games on this list, Ring Fit Adventure was a best-seller for Nintendo. The question though is how many of you stuck with it through the very end and not just until you forgot about your New Year’s resolution? Well you better get back to it, because while it’s an ingenious way to get active, the actual RPG-element of Ring Fit Adventure is no joke. Using the fitness ring to venture forth and defeat a “bootilicious” evil dragon sounds absurd, but Ring Fit Adventure does its absolute best to keep you engaged every literal step of the way. Power up your character and your body in Ring Fit Adventure if you haven’t already.

2. Metroid Dread

The Nintendo Switch has quietly become the home to Metroid games. Between older Metroid games available on Nintendo Switch Online and a splendid remaster (more on that in a moment), Samus rules the Switch. Nothing showcases this more than the Switch’s original Metroid game, Metroid Dread. A throwback to the older, 2D Metroid games, this 2.5D search-action game breathed new life into the series by reminding fans just how scary these games can be, thanks to the terrifying E.M.M.I. machines that hunt Samus relentlessly through the claustrophobic corridors of Dread, earning the name and more. While Metroid might not immediately come to mind as an overlooked franchise, consider that Metroid Dread — while one of the best-selling Metroid games in the series — has only sold 3 million copies, which is less than games like 1-2-Switch.

1. Metroid Prime Remastered

With Metroid Prime 4 looking increasingly likely to be Nintendo Switch’s swan song (and maybe even a Switch 2 launch title), what better time to check out where it all started? But make no mistake, Metroid Prime Remastered on Switch isn’t just a simple re-release. The graphical overhaul needs to be seen to be believed.

Metroid Prime is one of the best video games of all time. Anyone who says different is just trying to get a rise out of you. Locked away on GameCube (and eventually the Nintendo Wii), this absolute classic seemed like it was destined to live on only in our fondest GameCube memories. But then one day, out of the blue, Nintendo said to us all "friends, today you can play a remastered version of one of our most incredible and important games, and you can play it on your Nintendo Switch." And wow, did they ever hit it out of the park with this one. It's not just some up-res version of the GameCube version, or even the Wii version. It's a proper remake, graphically upgraded to modern standards with tweaks to the controls and gameplay to make it feel right at home on the Nintendo Switch. Better still, unlike so many modern remakes, it was only $39.99! Unheard of in an era where games from the last generation get a shiny coat of paint and a $70 price tag. Everything that made the original special made its way to the modern era expertly. The sense of isolation, exploration, and tension all made the leap to HD brilliantly. And yet Metroid Prime Remastered was by all accounts a sales disappointment. Really, I'm just disappointed in you for not having played it. Yes, you.

These are our favorite Switch games that we think more people should check out before the coming of the Switch 2. Heck, with the Switch 2’s backward compatibility, it’s probably the best time to try them now and pick up the journey when the Switch 2 is released.

Last year, IGN got an exclusive first look at Dark Horse's The Last of Us: Ellie bust, based on the iconic character's appearance in the original game. But where Ellie goes, her protector Joel usually isn't far behind. Now we can exclusively reveal Dark Horse's companion piece, The Last of Us: Joel with Brick Bust.

Check out the slideshow gallery below for a closer look at this detailed The Last of Us collectible:

This bust is based on Joel's appearance in the original game, as he wields his trusty brick as a makeshift weapon in the postapocalyptic wasteland. Sculpting, prototyping, and paint were handled by Substance Model Works. Here's Dark Horse's official description of the bust:

Clutching the ever-reliable brick, Joel stands battle-worn yet determined, clad in his signature green flannel and weathered backpack. Whether used as a weapon or a well-timed distraction, the brick is an essential tool in Joel’s fight for survival. Joel stands 8.5” tall atop a concrete base riddled with bullet holes, cracks, and moss.

The Joel with Brick Bust is designed to pair with the now-sold-out Ellie with Switchblade Bust. Joel is limited to 1000 units worldwide and will be sold exclusively on the Dark Horse Direct website. He's priced at $149.99 and is slated for release between October and December 2025.

In other The Last of Us news, we've got a spoiler-free review of Season 2 of the HBO series. Reviewer Simon Cardy writes, "It was always going to be a challenge to adapt The Last of Us Part 2’s sprawling, twisting story into a television show across multiple seasons, and at the halfway point, the jury is still out on whether it will ultimately work. Season 2 of HBO’s Naughty Dog adaptation is not bad television, far from it. It’s incredibly well-made, often looks gorgeous, and is packed full of stellar performances. But the storytelling devices and choices made in terms of pace and placement for key events bump up against what works, ultimately not delivering the striking effect this story’s undeniable shocking events should. It’s good, just not a patch on its stellar source material (or its first season) so far."

Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on BlueSky.

If you’re reading this, you’ve probably also told yourself this would be the month you don’t buy more Pokémon cards. Same. And yet here we are, staring down another lineup of Elite Trainer Boxes and tins like they’re life choices we already regret but will definitely make again.

Scarlet & Violet sets keep dropping bangers, both visually and competitively, and unfortunately for our wallets, some of these boxes are actually worth ripping open.

Pokémon TCG: Azure Legends Tin - 5 Packs

Argos is back with a fresh round of Switch 2 preorders back in stock today, April 8, in the UK, including not just the console, but games and accessories too. If you missed out last time, now’s your chance to lock one in without the faff.

Amazon UK has also confirmed it’s dropping the invitation system entirely—listings are expected to go live for purchase soon, or even later today, so it’s worth keeping an eye out. Nintendo’s own store is also expected to follow suit and will be sending out invites to buy today as well.

• See at Argos (BACK IN STOCK)
• See at EE (BACK IN STOCK)
• See at Amazon (LIVE SOON)
• See at Currys (LIVE SOON

Unlike in the US, UK preorders are still smooth sailing—no price hikes, no delays. For instant alerts on new drops, bundles, and restocks, follow @IGNUKDeals on Twitter/X or Bluesky and stay ahead of the pack.

Nintendo’s official UK preorders for the Switch 2 kick off today, but the console’s already proving tough to pin down. Retailers like EE, GAME, and Smyths have gone live early—only to sell out almost instantly. Scalpers are already circling too, with listings popping up on eBay well above RRP.

Things are even messier in the US, where delays and tariff concerns are adding to the chaos. Back in the UK, Amazon has dropped its invite-only system and will make stock available to buy soon. The upside? There’s no upfront payment—Amazon only charges when your order ships, so it’s a low-risk way to secure your console. Some users have seen a June 7 delivery estimate, but Amazon support says that’s just a glitch. Launch day delivery on June 5 is still the plan.

35% Off NSO Expansion Pack Memberships

GameCube games coming exclusively to the Switch 2's exclusive online library is one of the best features of the new console. To make those membership costs just that little bit easier, UK retailer ShopTo has NSO at 35% off right now, and there's an extra 5% when you use code SPRING at checkout. As you get your Nintendo Switch 2 preorders in, this is an absolute bonus bargain to consider.

While some Nintendo Classics catalogues are unlocked with the base online subscription, you'll also need the Expansion Pack to play GameCube titles on Nintendo Switch 2. What's more, while you can subscribe to a monthly model for just Nintendo Switch Online, the Expansion Pack is only available on the 12-month plan, so make a note when purchasing. So, if you're the only Nintendo Switch players in your household, you can buy the individual Online + Expansion Pack plan for £24.55 or the Family Membership for £43.55 with the promo code SPRING.

No need to dig through digital shelves this week; some sick deals have landed across all major platforms, with prices low enough to make your backlog quake in fear. Whether you're into lightsabers, loot, or just causing utter chaos as a goat, there’s something here to tempt all types of bargain hunters.

This Day in Gaming 🎂

In retro news, I'm celebrating S.W.A.T. 4's 20th birthday. My lasting memories of this Irrational Games shooter are of no checkpoints, having to abide by strict "baddies have to draw first" rules, and the randomisation of hostages and enemies (skill, numbers, arsenal, and morale). The spiritual successor to this, Ready or Not, is well worth targeting.

• Switch Lite Console Hyrule Ed. (-12%) - A$299
• FC 25 (-62%) - A$35
• Mortal Kombat 1 (-60%) - A$24
• Goat Simulator 3 (-24%) - A$35
• Mysims: Cozy Bundle (-35%) - A$40
• Darkest Dungeon Ii (-20%) - A$48
• Bluey: The Videogame (-35%) - A$40
• GTA Trilogy Def. (-60%) - A$32

Expiring Recent Deals

• Bravely Default II (-35%) - A$52
• Persona 5 Royal (-35%) - A$66
• Persona 5 Tactica (-45%) - A$53
• Kingdom Come Deliverance: Royal Ed. (-41%) - A$48
• Sonic X Shadow Gen (-39%) - A$49
• Looney Tunes: Wacky World of Sports (-49%) - A$36

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Spoilers of course follow for The White Lotus Season 3 finale, “Amor Fati.”

Man, of course it wound up being Chelsea.

It’s become a tradition at this point for fans of Mike White’s HBO/Max series, The White Lotus. You spend the whole season trying to puzzle out who’s going to die, hoping certain characters won’t be the one(s) to get it, but in the end it’s the people who definitely didn’t deserve to go… who wind up going.

That’s not to say that any of the characters on The White Lotus actually deserve death. (Although some certainly need to face justice.) Sure, someone like Parker Posey’s Victoria Ratliff is hilarious but also awful, but often creator-writer-director White manages to evoke sympathy in us for even the seemingly most loathsome characters. (Patrick Schwarzenegger’s Saxon, the protein-shake-guzzling son of Victoria, is almost tragic in his final scene with Chelsea here, for example.)

But then there are the characters you love because they’re so, well, nice compared to most everyone else. And that’s where Aimee Lou Wood’s Chelsea came in this season. As the always smiling girlfriend of Walton Goggins’ troubled Rick Hatchett, Chelsea, in all her astrology reading, chipper chattering, and undefatigable love for Rick, seemed to have figured out something about the universe that evaded most of the other characters on the show. The episode title sums it up: “Amor Fati,” which as Chelsea describes it, means “you have to embrace your fate, good or bad. Whatever will be will be.”

Of course, Chelsea absolutely should not have been the one to take a stray bullet in the White Lotus finale, and of course that’s exactly what happened to her. Just as Murray Bartlett’s Armond was accidentally stabbed in Season 1 because of a dumb feud and Jennifer Coolidge’s Tanya died in Season 2 in a ridiculous fall after she managed to take out all of her would-be assassins, Chelsea didn’t deserve to die. But she did. “Amor Fati.”

Anyway, while the big mystery of the season is always “who’s going to be murdered,” White basically showed his hand this time in the scene where Rick finally returns from Bangkok. He had headed there to try to put his inner demons to rest by confronting the man (Scott Glenn) who he thought had killed his father. Meanwhile, Chelsea had waited for him the past couple of episodes, fending off the advances of Saxon – despite being tempted otherwise at one point – because she loved him. The messed-up, kind of an a-hole (but not, and I quote Star-Lord, “100% a dick”) Rick seemed to barely notice her half the time in their relationship. But as Chelsea spotted him and ran to Rick on the beach, there was no denying that they were fated to be together. “At this point we’re linked,” Chelsea would later say, also during that Amor Fati chat. “If a bad thing happens to you, it happens to me.”

There’s something about the way White shoots that moment of Chelsea rejoining Rick on the beach. It’s just the one shot, which lasts about one second, of Aimee Lou Wood running towards the camera, but her joy at seeing him and his reaction to her cinched for me that she (and probably they) were doomed. She’s too pure to make it out of this place.

The actress telegraphed her fate a bit when IGN’s Michael Peyton spoke to her and The White Lotus cast at the start of the season: “Chelsea gone wrong could be Tanya. There is that overtrust. But she's got more robustness, so I feel like she wouldn't go down that route hopefully.” Uh, sorry Aimee…

By the climactic scene where the shoot-out teased in Episode 1 finally happens, we learn that Rick and Chelsea indeed are both killed. Chelsea catches that stray bullet – we don’t even see it happen, just her lying thereafterwards, and as Rick carries her body away, he’s shot from behind and falls into the surrounding pond. Both of their bodies float on the surface of the water, side by side, and yep, they’re together forever. Somehow, I think Chelsea would have wanted it that way.

Chec kout Best Buy's best gaming laptop deal of the week. Right now the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 RTX 4060 gaming laptop is on sale for just $1,199.99 shipped after a $400 off instant discount. This is a great price for a 14" gaming laptop that weighs in at about 3 pounds, boasts a gorgeous high-resolution OLED display, and features premium build quality.

$400 Off Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 RTX 4060 Gaming Laptop

I’m not entirely convinced Dogubomb didn’t develop Blue Prince as a personal gift to me, specifically. This exceedingly clever puzzler mixes together a shortlist of my top game genres and concepts: First-person puzzling with a straightforward facade that hides a seemingly bottomless pit of secrets, roguelite runs that perfectly balance permanent improvements with the growth of your own skills, drafting mechanics that capitalize on the best parts of deckbuilders without the baggage that comes with actually being one, and even tile-based map building reminiscent of my favorite board game, Carcassone. Even if there are things in that pile of Tom Stuff that don’t excite you as much as they do me, the combination comes together beautifully. I’m still rabidly peeling back the layers of this onion after dozens of hours, but I’m already certain Blue Prince has secured its place as an all-time puzzle great.

You play as Simon, a teenage boy who has inherited the stately mansion of his well-respected and somewhat eccentric great uncle, but may only claim that inheritance if he can figure out how to navigate the ever-shifting halls of the estate in order to find a hidden 46th room. It’s a fairly simple setup at the start (apart from the whole M.C. Escher shifting house thing), and while there are plenty of helpful tips scattered around for you to find, you are largely just set loose to see what you can piece together for yourself. It’s a great foundation, because while you don’t always know what the next step may be, your goals are always clear enough that I never felt like I was just wandering around in the dark.

You probably will feel like you are wandering around in circles from time to time, though. The meat of Blue Prince is the drafting mechanic you use to explore the house: You start each day with a limited number of “steps” that are spent whenever you go through a door, and each time you open a new one you are given three options for which of the mansion’s many unique rooms will be on the other side. That means you are filling out the nine-by-five room floorplan differently every single time, connecting doorways and trying not to hit dead ends as you find helpful items and invaluable clues along the way. It may sound like nothing too outside the box, but it’s a real delight to slowly gain mastery over this system.

Some rooms are just simple hallways, while others play more varied roles that are split into colored categories based on type. For example, purple bedrooms often give you additional steps when entered, yellow shops can sell helpful items if you’ve picked up enough coins to buy them, and red rooms have negative effects (like obscuring your draft options) that could throw a wrench in your plans. Certain rooms may only appear when specific conditions are met, too, such as when you are drafting on the edges of the house or once you get deep enough in. It was fun to figure out which should be my go-to rooms early on in order to set myself up for success later, gathering items like keys to unlock doors or gems that can be spent to draft special rooms, and then using that prep work to make targeted dives toward a room or lead I was eager to hunt down.

The actual “puzzles” take on a variety of different forms within those rooms, but all of them are as entertaining as they are devilish to solve. Some have very straightforward math or logic problems, there are a few literal puzzle boxes to find, and others require a slightly more complicated combination of button pushes or lever pulls to solve whatever that room is doing. But fully self-contained challenges like that are side dishes to what Blue Prince truly has to offer, and the most interesting stuff feels closer to incredible first-person puzzle games like Return of the Obra Dinn or Outer Wilds. It asks you to really look at the world around you, take notes on what you find, and then use that knowledge to make connections where you can – and it does so in that expert way where something can feel completely cryptic at the outset and then brilliantly achievable when you finally crack it. That might mean looking through documents to find the combination to a safe, decoding why certain objects are where they are, or using the function of a specific room to get past an obstacle somewhere else.

That last part can lead to the only real point of frustration I found with Blue Prince, however, which is that the best-laid floorplans of house mice and men can come crashing down with a few bad draws. Don’t get me wrong, there are very real and effective ways to help mitigate the randomness of which rooms are offered to you – both in terms of learning what to prioritize and when you should or shouldn’t take risks, as well as in permanent upgrades I won’t spoil that can make future runs more consistent. But, plain and simple, sometimes you will need a room that lets you turn left, do everything in your power to set yourself up to get it (including collecting dice that let you reroll the rooms you draw), and still be as stuck as Zoolander when you’re ultimately given your options. Those bad breaks are infrequent, but it still stings when an otherwise-good run ends because you just never saw the room you were looking for.

(Tangentially, I also really wish you could save and quit mid-run without having to cut your progress short by ending your current day entirely, or at the very least that opening the menu stopped the in-game clock from ticking. Runs can often stretch over an hour, which makes dipping in and out of Blue Prince a hard proposition – though this is only really a problem since I was playing on a desktop PC, as consoles and even the Steam Deck would let you suspend it if you need to go do something else.)

Thankfully, any pain from that randomness is mitigated by the fact that there is just so much to discover here that a given run is rarely a waste of time. You may not have been able to draft that specific combination of rooms you were after or reach that certain square you wanted to, but odds are you still entered some new rooms along the way, and doing so almost always added to the growing list of mysteries I have jotted down across a pile of handwritten notes. “Beating” Blue Prince took me about 15 hours, and getting to that 46th room is absolutely a satisfying puzzle to solve on its own, but I also have far more goals now than I did when I first set out. There are safes to open, doors to unlock, books and letters to read, clues to decipher, and loads of lore to uncover.

It’s impressive how all of these optional puzzles are woven into and around the path of the “main” one – some are hiding in plain sight from the first minute, just waiting for you to realize they are important, while others drop an unassuming string of crumbs in your way that lead down a deep and unexpected rabbit hole when followed.

Blue Prince was an incredibly difficult game to talk about with friends who were also playing because the randomness of the drafting mechanic, combined with your own personal sense of curiosity, can send two players down very different paths. One time when I was around five hours in, I excitedly mentioned I’d unlocked something to a friend who had already played 40, only to learn they hadn’t even found that thing yet. And yet, this fractal abode doesn’t frustrate by randomly withholding things either, because clues can often be found in multiple forms or places; Once again, you’re always making progress toward something.

As you do get deeper, Blue Prince’s initially light-touch story also begins to shift more directly into the spotlight. Discovering more about both your character’s great uncle and the larger history of their family starts off as a little fun set dressing, but it eventually becomes as rich and compelling a reason to keep playing as any puzzle. The worldbuilding here is doled out with a patience I’m not used to seeing, with tons to learn about your relatives, the manor, and the nation it’s located in, but none of that is ever forced down your throat. That made anything I could glean about important historical events or complex geopolitics feel like a win that would almost always help me solve future mysteries, not just some “lore” to read about in books or letters and then move on from.

Still avoiding spoilers like laser tripwires in a Mission Impossible trap, that story and its themes smartly tie into your actions in a way few games are able to pull off so successfully. Piecing together the messy history of an extended and sometimes estranged family is rarely a linear process - Simon wanders through the house he has suddenly inherited finding bits of information told from conflicting points of view, and often in the entirely wrong order. Trying to make all of the right connections as he goes from a boy simply solving a fun puzzle so he can win a prize to one who understands the real reward this mansion holds reflected my own journey with Blue Prince, which is the sort of subtle brilliance you don’t see in many games.

Looing to upgrade your audiophile setup without investing too much money? For a limited time, Best Buy is offering a pair of the excellent KEF Q1 Meta Bookshelf Speakers for only $399.99 shipped. All three color options - white, black, and walnut finish - are discounted. These speakers normally retail for $600 and don't go on sale very often.

KEF Q1 Meta Bookshelf Speakers for $399.99

In the mid-2010s, three seasons of Daredevil introduced audiences to the underbelly of Hell's Kitchen for one of the best-reviewed Marvel series of all time, which why it was such a shock when Daredevil was cancelled by Netflix in 2018.

While Charlie Cox's Daredevil has made brief appearances in more recent, lighter MCU projects, namely She-Hulk and Spider-Man: No Way Home, few people expected the supe to get another instalment of his own solo show. Well, we were wrong. The hero has, in fact, been born again, and while he may returning be on the relatively chaste Disney+, Marvel has promised more grit and action than ever.

If you're wondering where to stream Daredevil: Born Again online or want a full look at the episode release schedule, check out the details below.

Where to Stream Daredevil: Born Again

Looking to upgrade the storage capacity of your Nintendo Switch, Steam Deck, or ASUS ROG Ally? Here's a great deal on a very well-rated SanDisk memory card. Walmart is offering a 512GB Samsung ImageMate Pro Micro SDXC Card for just $21.53. An SD card adapter is also included. Despite the low price tag, this is actually one of the faster Micro SD cards we've seen. It's compatible with most gaming handhelds including the Nintendo Switch, Steam Deck, and ROG Ally.

Note: Availability is based on region. Some zip codes might have more in stock than others.

512GB SanDisk ImageMate Pro Micro SDXC Card for $21.53

A monitor is the best gaming accessory to make the most of the stunning graphics and speedy refresh rates your gaming PC is capable of. What’s the point of investing in a rig with a top-tier graphics card and CPU if your display can’t keep up? That’s why we’ve found the best gaming monitors with crisp pictures and motion fidelity to play all the best PC games as intended.

TL;DR – These Are the Best Gaming Monitors:

Your gaming monitor should offer specs that match up with your PC; there’s no point in grabbing one of the best 4K monitors if games will be virtually unplayable with a GeForce RTX 4060 at that resolution. Likewise, pairing a Radeon RX 7900 XTX with a 1080p display is a waste. The best gaming monitors will show off all the capabilities of the rig you’ve invested in, delivering solid picture quality, speedy response times, and a host of gaming features. Of course, high refresh rates help frames remain silky smooth and those extra milliseconds could mean life or death for competitive gamers.

Whether you’re after a beastly future-proof option with a sharp 4K picture, OLED panel, and wild 240Hz refresh rate – like our top pick, the Gigabyte FO32U2 Pro – or you have a more modest setup that's better suited for a great budget monitor, we’ve got you covered. All our favorite gaming monitors have been thoroughly vetted by me and my colleagues and are ready to suit just about any need.

Looking for savings? Be sure to check out the best gaming monitor deals happening right now.

1. Gigabyte FO32U2 Pro

Best Gaming Monitor

If you want proof that OLED is the new mainstream for the best gaming monitors, just take a look at my thorough review of the Gigabyte FO32U2 Pro. This is a gorgeous 32-inch 4K gaming monitor with an extremely thin panel and one of the brightest displays I've ever had the pleasure of using. And while it is a bit on the pricey side, the best is never the cheapest option, and you'll be well rewarded for the money you invest in this gorgeous piece of kit.

This gaming monitor is extremely forward-facing, too. While most of the best graphics cards aren't really able to drive a 4K gaming monitor at 240Hz, the Gigabyte Aorus FO32U2 supports that high refresh rate anyways. That means even after upgrading your PC a few times over the next few years, you won't really need to buy an all-new gaming monitor for a very long time. Hell, this monitor supports DisplayPort 2.1 technology, which isn't even in most current-generation gaming PCs right now.

But even in the current day, the gorgeous OLED panel is extremely color accurate. Supporting up to 99% of the DCI-P3 color gamut, you'd be hard pressed to find any screen with better color representation, at least without forking over the cash for a display meant for creative professionals. Combine that with a peak brightness of 1,000 nits and a contrast ratio of 1.5M:1 and this will make any game, movie, or even your desktop seem like it's popping off of your screen.

Of course, because it's a flagship gaming monitor in 2024, it also comes with quality-of-life features like picture-in-picture and an automatic black equalizer that'll help you tune how your monitor looks. You can even download the Gigabyte Control Center, plug the monitor into an open USB port (in addition to your standard HDMI/DP port, obviously), and control image settings on your desktop rather than fiddling with an OSD.

This is a dream gaming monitor, and while it's a bit expensive, you're genuinely getting what you pay for.

2. AOC Q27G3XMN Mini-LED

Best Budget Gaming Monitor

The AOC Q27G3XMN Gaming Monitor offers true HDR gaming at a fraction of the usual price. That's because it uses a mini LED backlight to offer localized brightness and contrast all the way up to 1,000 nits. That means that you can enjoy gaming in HDR knowing that you're receiving a full-fledged experience and not the typical "HDR 400" or "HDR compatible" experience found elsewhere.

This monitor uses a VA panel for improved contrast even when you turn local dimming off. You could be forgiven for leaving it on, however, as it's the gateway to more vivid colors and deeper blacks, no matter what you happen to be doing. With 336 local dimming zones, it's able to pinpoint shadows and blacks far better than a traditional edge-lit gaming monitor. In fact, this is the reason why the technology has largely cost two, three, or even four times as much as this monitor.

Even without the mini-LED backlight, however, this would be a great monitor to choose for anyone on a limited budget. Its 27-inch frame is perfectly matched to its 1440p resolution, allowing it to offer crisp visuals and smooth, responsive gameplay. It's lacking some amenities like built-in speakers or a USB hub, but that can be forgiven for its generously priced panel and gaming experience.

With all of that in mind, AOC did make a sacrifice to get the price so low: local dimming zones. While 336 sounds like a lot on paper, flagship mini-LED monitors usually feature over 1,100. Its reduced zone count leads to noticeable blooming (glowing around bright objects on dark backgrounds). While this isn't always noticeable, especially when you're playing games, it's also not something you can ignore when it's there. You'll notice it every time, though many people do get used to it and find it doesn't bother them over time.

Even with some blooming to contend with, the AOC Q27G3XMN mini-LED gaming monitor is still a great pick that offers some truly impressive visuals its biggest competitors simply can't compete with. This monitor stands apart because of it and is well worth your consideration.

3. Acer Predator X34 OLED

Best Ultrawide Gaming Monitor

4. Dell Alienware AW2725Q

Best 4K Gaming Monitor

5. Asus ROG Swift PG27AQDP

Best 1440p Gaming Monitor

People might be clamoring over 4K displays and 1440p has a home in the hearts of many gamers trying to balance visual quality with value, but 1080p monitors still have their place. The Asus TUF Gaming VG279QM is a prime example where FHD fits in because, for less than $300, you get a screen that delivers an overclockable 240Hz refresh rate, a one-millisecond response time, and low input lag, which will see your games run as smooth as hot butter. FreeSync support and G-Sync compatibility also ensure your monitor and GPU are on the same team for visuals that look great without tearing.

The Asus TUF Gaming VG279QM stretches its 1080p picture across a 27-inch screen, which is reasonable for the resolution. Although, you may do some pixel peeping in exchange for a more immersive viewing experience. Its IPS panel offers decent viewing angles and color reproduction, while the 400-nit brightness means you can use it in brighter spaces. It's been DisplayHDR 400 certified, but given a mediocre contrast ratio and no local dimming, HDR support shouldn’t be why you buy this monitor.

Some other quality-of-life boxes can get ticked off, too, with a height-adjustable pivoting stand, two HDMI ports, and one DisplayPort for ample connectivity opportunities. It's a monitor I consider a good value for the price. Its high refresh rate, ample size, and engaging picture make it a great pick for gamers on more limited budgets.

The Straw Hat Pirates’ sprawling adventure across the Grand Line has been a staple of anime ever since the late 90s, and with more than 1000 episodes, it’s fair to say that One Piece has had more than a few unforgettable moments. Narrowing down this list to just 10 of the best moments from One Piece was an extraordinarily difficult task, and some tough cuts had to be made, but regardless, here are our picks for the top 10 One Piece moments, as of episode 1088 of the anime.

Note of course that by the very nature of this feature, there are going to be major spoilers for One Piece. We are holding nothing back here, but we will inform you before each entry what episode the spoiler covers so you can skip the ones you haven’t come across yet.

10. Luffy’s Pain (Episode 377)

This moment is what solidified Zoro as the badass of the Straw Hat crew. With Luffy exhausted from his battle with Pirate Warlord Moria and the Straw Hats taken out by Warlord Kuma, Zoro is the only one left standing. Realizing he can’t win against Kuma, Zoro offers his life in exchange for Luffy’s. Kuma agrees, but only if Zoro can take on Luffy’s injuries as his own. This emotional moment is when Zoro’s bond with his crewmates solidified, proving that despite being a pirate hunter, he was willing to give up his life to spare theirs.

9. Red Leg’s Leg (Episode 26)

Sanji has one of the saddest backstories in all of One Piece. He just can’t catch a break. Young Sanji could care less about pirates, especially Zeff, who was stranded on a deserted island with him. Nonetheless, the subtlety of Zeff’s actions made for a heartwarming moment when Sanji finds out that Zeff sacrificed his leg so he could live. The fact that Sanji thought Zeff was a rotten, no-good pirate the entire time, only to find out that he’s one of the most selfless people he’s ever met is one of One Piece’s most memorable moments.

8. Arrival of the Worst (Episode 1015)

“Roof Piece!” It’s the term fans were throwing around leading up to the end of the epic Wano story arc. It was only a matter of time before this confrontation happened and, oh boy, did the anime step it up! Knowing fan expectations were high, Toei clearly went above and beyond for the episode. From the entrance of the Worst Generation to Luffy’s stroll past the Emperors and Kin’emon’s heartfelt plea, the emotions build in an incredible dramatic crescendo, accented with quick flashes of their journey up to that point as far back as Raizo’s safety and Pedro’s sacrifice. Finally, we see Luffy’s vibrant Red Roc punch with “We Are” booming in the background to accompany one of the biggest smackdowns in all of anime. In only about five minutes, the sequence makes us appreciate the long and winding journey Luffy has been on, and why it’s so special.

7. Ultimate Defeat (Episode 405)

The Saboady arc is jam-packed full of game-changing moments, but there’s one moment that helped define who the Straw Hats are that came at the hands of the stoic, overpowered Kuma. Up until this point, Luffy and the crew were able to overcome even the most difficult of challenges, but there was no escape from the utter devastation that took place on the archipelago. Even Luffy knew they didn’t have a chance, and he’s not one to give up so easily. As he watches his friends begin to disappear, he yells out in desperation to escape, not knowing it was futile. When he’s finally the last one standing, Luffy can’t help but cry in agony for not being strong enough to save his friends. It’s the first time we’ve seen our plucky protagonist so vulnerable. With the final disappearance of the Straw Hats, we were left in shock, and it was clear from this point on the crew would never be the same after suffering such a dreadful defeat.

6. Don’t Be Mad…(Episode 396)

We can’t talk about the previous moment without also mentioning the inciting incident that led to it. If there was a list for best, or at the very least, most cathartic singular punch in all of anime, this punch would be at the top. There isn’t a single person with a beating heart who watched Episode 396 that wasn’t begging Luffy to beat the heck out of Saint Charlos at Sabaody, and when he finally did, man did Luffy make it count. What makes this so special is the build-up and payoff. After spending the last few episodes learning why the Celestial Dragons are basically untouchable, and the serious consequences that come with laying a hand on them, it’s all the more shocking when Luffy strikes him down anyway without a second thought.

5. The Punch That Changed the World (Episode 483)

The battle between the Navy and the Whitebeard Pirates rages on as Luffy and Ace finally begin their escape. In a brief moment of desperation, everything changed. The sound of crying fills the air as Akainu’s magma fist plunges through the back of Ace, taking his life in front of Luffy. In Ace’s last heartfelt words, he thanks everyone for loving him as he dies on the battlefield. We feel the weight behind Ace’s death as we are stuck watching Luffy in disbelief, realizing that his life has forever changed.

4. A Funeral (Episode 312)

It may seem odd to be emotionally invested in an inanimate object like a pirate ship, but One Piece fans are built different. The “funeral” of the Going Merry had us shedding actual tears over a dying boat. The way the focus shifts from each crew member as they relive their own introduction to the Merry while somber music plays in the background is just so beautifully done. Then there’s the one-two emotional gutpunch of hearing the Merry’s disembodied voice saying, “I’m sorry, I wish I could have taken you farther.” followed by Luffy breaking down and apologizing for every little thing he ever did to the ship. It all adds up to one of the most heart wrenching moments in all of One Piece.

3. Luffy… Help Me… (Episode 37)

The scene featuring Luffy and Nami during the Arlong Park arc is one of the most defining moments for the Straw Hat crew. At this point, we’ve known Nami as a scheming, confident woman who can take care of herself, but her dire situation with the Arlong Pirates brings her to tears as her family and friends prepare to fight to the death. Seeing Nami drop to the ground in despair, screaming in anger as she attempts to cut her despised Arlong tattoo from her own flesh is as brutal as it is sad. It's at this moment that we see a different side of Luffy that’s calm and serious. With the last ounce of Nami’s stubbornness whittling away, she finally says to Luffy, “Help me”. With Nami at her lowest point, Luffy gifts her his treasured straw hat and exclaims, “Of course I will!” This moment has become one of the most iconic in the series because it encapsulates what makes it great and shows why it’s so beloved amongst fans.

2. The Return of a Legend (Episode 1071)

Though its place on this list might be controversial, Gear 5 was an event so big that it nearly broke the internet. It’s the perfect culmination of Luffy’s journey thus far. His delightful romp around Onigashima in Gear 5 was not only a joy to behold from an animation standpoint, but one that also marks Luffy’s all-important ascension into the fabled Joyboy – a moment that both tastefully encapsulates all that has occurred as well as foreshadows the coming epic of Luffy’s final steps in becoming the King of Pirates.

1. I Want to Live! (Episode 278)

This moment of payoff was a hundred episodes in the making. Ever since she left the Straw Hats without saying a word out of fear of losing her friends like she lost her family on Ohara, we had been waiting for Robin to do something, anything, to show some sort of resistance to the ruthless and weasley Spandam. That moment finally comes in episode 278, where, upon gazing at her captain and crewmates on the other side of Enies Lobby, and seeing that they’re willing to go to war even with the World Government if it means having her in their lives, Robin finally responds to Luffy in one clear voice. And that’s all that Luffy needed.

What were some of your favorite moments in One Piece? Let us know in the comments, and if you want more anime, check out our list of the top 10 anime of all time, along with our list of the biggest anime coming in 2024. And for everything else, keep it here on IGN.

Note: This ranking was updated on April 7, 2025. It was originally published on Feb. 27, 2020.

This list was written by Mitchell Saltzman, Mike Mamon, Jay Park, and Rosie Knight, a few of the biggest One Piece fans at IGN. Thanks for checking it out, and let us know in the comments which moments would make your top moments in One Piece list!

Path of Exile 2’s largest update yet, Dawn of the Hunt, adds a ton of new content and changes the game in many ways. IGN and Maxroll have teamed up to bring you lots of new, helpful guides and builds to take on the daunting swatch of new stuff that we will do our best to summarize here: Patch 0.2.0 brings more ways to play with the all-new Huntress Class along with 5 Ascendancies, Azmeri Wisps to chase, shiny new Uniques to hunt for, and a revamped endgame experience.

The Huntress

A new class joins Path of Exile 2’s roster of characters, the Huntress. This Azmeri lost everything when she used a Virtue Gem to defend her home. So now she wields new skills in addition to her trusty Spear. The Huntress is a Dexterity class that shares a starting area with the Ranger in the lower-right portion of the Passive Skill Tree. Spears have a mix of close-range melee strikes and long range projectiles with bonuses that incentivize the use of both. Create an elemental surface with Frostbolt, drop a Whirling Slash, and unleash a flurry of Twisters, before leaping back in to do it all again. Another new item class is Bucklers, a special shield with the ability to Parry regular attacks. When you Parry an enemy you put them off balance increasing the attack damage they take. Unlike Souls games, there is no Parry window and you can use the Parry to animation cancel other skills making it quite agile. However, each time you Parry your stun meter increases and when the bar is full you are heavy stunned for 2.5 seconds, which is likely to result in your untimely demise.

Dive deeper with Maxroll’s Dawn of the Hunt Megapost, or read on for more information.

New Ascendancies

In addition to the new Huntress class, Dawn of the Hunt adds 5 new Ascendancies to Path of Exile 2. After completing a Trial of Ascension, your Ascendancy further specializes your class by unlocking new synergies and catering to unique playstyles. The Huntress has 2 Ascendancies to choose from, Ritualist and Amazon, and the Warrior, Witch, and Mercenary each get one new option.

Ritualist

The Ritualist learned in the depths of the Wildwoods, that power is achieved through sacrifice. You can steal bonuses from Rare monsters, or sacrifice a portion of your own health for a random bonus. With Corrupted Life Force, you gain a skill causing nearby enemies to grow Volatile Blood Boils, slay them to infect surrounding foes with Corrupted Blood a powerful degenerative effect that deals Physical Damage. The Unfurled Finger Notable grants a third ring slot, this is especially potent when paired with Mystic Attunement and a high-end ring. Lastly, the Ritualist has a variety of charming bonuses making it easier to combat dangerous elemental effects.

Amazon

An Amazon strikes swiftly. Elemental Infusion consumes charges to add elemental damage to your Attacks, and Infused Avatar gives a chance for your projectiles to benefit from the infusion without consuming it. Critical Strike and Penetrate further scale damage, based on accuracy rating, which is particularly notable because Dexterity classes have easy access to accuracy. Defensively, Mystic Harvest opens up access to leech, a recovery layer usually limited to Physical damage, and Azmeri Brew makes Flasks far more versatile. Lastly, her Predatory Instinct and In for the Kill Notables grant massive bonuses against Wraeclast’s most dangerous foes.

Smith of Kitava

The Smith of Kitava wields the Devourer’s power to his own ends. This ascendancy is harder to nail down, as many of the bonuses like Temper Weapon, Maifest Weapon, and Fire Spell on Hit are the sort of thing you need to play with to truly understand. However, Coal Stoker and Forged in Flame provide some of the most powerful defenses in the game. With Coal Stoaker, you need to dedicate less of your suffixes to resistances, meaning there’s more of them to use for damage. Maximum resistance is incredibly potent, with even as little as +5% Maximum Resistance mitigating around 20% of the elemental damage you take. Lastly, there’s Smith’s Masterwork, the ability to forge yourself a custom chest piece at the cost of some Ascendancy points. How useful this is depends on where Living Weapon, Against the Anvil, and Heat of the Forge fall as you only get 8 Ascendancy points to distribute amongst all the passives. With that said many of the passives including, Dedication to Kitava, Support Straps, Flowing Metal, Molten Symbol, and Kitavan Engraving all have potential.

Lich

A Lich wields forbidden power, even at the cost of her soul. First, there are some fan-favorite nodes from the original Path of Exile in Rupture the Soul and Dominion Over Flesh. Being able to curse enemies to make them explode into piles of loot is always a good time. Soulless Form provides a unique way to solve mana by increasing your maximum life. It also splits damage between your life and energy shield which is useful when you have easy ways to recover both. Eternal Life further enhances this effect, because your life cannot change while you have energy shield any damage split to your life is ignored so long as you have energy shield active. Atziri’s Distain splits damage to your life allowing you to ignore even more damage. Then there’s Necromantic Conduit and Blackened Heart, a way to provide a significant damage buff to yourself or allies, and what better allies exist than the mindless dead bound to your command? Lastly, Crystalline Phylactery, Price of Power, and Eldrich Empowerment offer solid bonuses to a variety of builds.

Note: there is a slight error in the graphic, Blackened Heart should be the node after Necromantic Conduit and Dominion Over Flesh should be the node after Rupture the Soul.

Tactician

The Tactician never works alone. This is a support-focused Ascendancy for the Mercenary class. It provides a variety of bonuses focused on Auras and buffs. A Solid Plan is particularly noteworthy as it’s normally difficult to scale your Spirit without using Sceptres. With Suppressing Fire and Right Where We Want Them, you can Pin foes to prevent them from acting, adding another crowd control effect to your party’s toolkit. Unleash Hell! Is a unique skill that gives you personal artillery, summon them to unleash a barrage of withering fire onto the battlefield.

Azmeri Wisps

With each new league, comes a new league mechanic, and for Dawn of the Hunt it’s Azmeri Wisps. Follow the lights and slay any monsters they empower. Each Wisp enhances the rewards of any monsters it empowers while giving them a variety of lethal bonuses. For example, a Cat Wisp gives empowered monsters Critical Hit Chance, whereas a Sacred Wisp upgrades the monster’s tier, turning Rares into Unique Bosses! Each time you encounter a Wisp it seeks out a Rare or Unique monster to infuse, greatly increasing the creature’s strength and its rewards.

Rogue Exiles

You can encounter Rogue Exiles, NPC invaders who fight like players and even wield powerful items. If you’re able to slay them, you get all the items they’re wearing, but be warned, if they slay you they escape and take their riches with them. Rogue Exiles provide a different kind of challenge since their builds work like a player’s, with a wide variety of skill combinations on offer. These foes tend to be more agile than most bosses, but aren’t as tanky. Keep an eye on their Unique items as these can be extremely valuable, and may make the encounter much more difficult!

Endgame Revamp

Dawn of the Hunt brings sweeping changes to Path of Exile 2’s endgame experience. The goal is to make mapping more exciting by providing players with more random encounters while reducing tedious busy work. You can now use up to 3 tablets in each Tower, this reduces the amount of busy work needed to enhance the nearby maps and maximize your loot. To balance this, fewer Towers spawn and they have been revamped to be more rewarding. Mechanics can spawn in Towers and they are guarded by a Unique Boss.

The Corruption mechanic has also been changed, you now choose between clearing each corrupted map, or rushing to the center to purify the cluster, changing the rewards, and unlocking the new purified map type. You can choose to farm the corrupted zones, slaying additional enemies in hopes of gaining currency and rare items. Alternatively, you could rush to the nexus to purify the zone in hopes of obtaining more Fraturing Orbs. This is a crafting currency that locks an affix on an item with 4 modifiers, making it unmodifiable by any means.

There’s a wealth of content to explore. In addition, Unique Maps present special challenges, each is difficult but rewarding. The Fractured Lake (pictured above) rewards you with exclusive base types that have more Prefixes or Suffixes than are normally possible. A Crystalline Cavern presents you with a room full of Essences to claim. Each one you defeat further empowers the boss, making the challenge at the end both more lethal and rewarding. Or you could explore the Feral Megaliths, a 10-round boss gauntlet that drops tons of loot and exclusive Runes.

Beyond just endgame content, crafting also got numerous changes. You can use Corrupted Essences to craft items with special effects. When encountering Rituals to the King in the Mists you’re now guaranteed an Omen, and Omen rewards are more common. If you explore Expedition you can now use your currencies to Recombinate items, merging 2 bases in hopes of keeping desirable affixes.

Patch Notes

It’s almost easier to talk about what didn’t change than it is to list everything that got tweaked, adjusted, or reworked for Dawn of the Hunt. When GGG said to forget everything you already knew about Path of Exile 2, they weren’t kidding. In particular, outlier builds like Archmage Spark Stormweaver and Attribute Stacking Hand of Wisdom and Action Monk saw heavy nerfs.

If you want to know more about the changes in patch 0.2.0 and have a strong constitution, check out the Patch 0.2.0 Patch Notes.

Path of Exile 2 Beginner’s Guide / Leveling Walkthrough

Whether you’re a veteran looking to improve or a new player trying to get into Path of Exile 2, Maxroll’s Comprehensive League Start Leveling Guide holds your hand with step-by-step instructions throughout the leveling process. This covers an efficient leveling path, how to get good gear, tips to increase your damage and defense, and how to solve common problems.

Maxroll Planner

Maxroll’s PoE2Planner is updated for Dawn of the Hunt and better than ever. You can now import your characters directly into the planner and share your build in just a couple of clicks. The PoE2Planner lets you quickly assemble the passives, items, and skills used in your build. You can also add more details like which bonuses to take from the campaign, outline a skill rotation or link to a custom loot filter on FilterBlade.

Start theorycrafting your own build on the Maxroll PoE2Planner!

On the other hand, if you’re looking for something to play, check out the Maxroll Builds section for planners made by the experts on Maxroll’s Path of Exile 2 team, or browse Community Planners for more builds put together by the community.

Builds

Dawn of the Hunt has brought a huge shakeup to the build meta! The increased difficulty nerfs to meta builds, and buffs to underperformers have resulted in a lot of changes. The Amazon, Lich, and Smith of Kitava have been absolutely dominating the meta during the first few days of the league. Here are a few of the builds being cooked up by the experts at Maxroll.

Amazon

Rake is a travel skill that easily rips through packs of monsters when combined with Stomping Grounds, with this planner from ZiggyD you can unleash carnage across Wraeclast. Rake has great mobility, decent single target damage and satisfying bleed pops thanks to Herald of Blood. As you keep progressing, you can continue scaling your build using Goratha's endgame Bleed/Rake Amazon.

The Amazon is also adept at using Crossbows, combine Glacial Bolt with Artillery Ballista to clear easily while also doing high single target damage. Because your Ballistae can attack enemies while you’re dodging mechanics this build is easy to use against bosses. Check out this planner from Palsteron on how to build a Crossbow Amazon.

If you’re looking for something different, grab a bow and bring winter to your enemies with Aer0’s Ice Shot Amazon! This build uses Ice Shot to clear and Freezing Salvo to unleash icy devastation on more difficult enemies.

Then there’s the good old explosive Gas Arrow. This was one of the most popular builds for bow leveling at the start of early access and it’s a great way to get your Amazon to maps. Check out Tenkiei’s Explosive Gas Arrow Amazon planner for some inspiration!

Lastly a more endgame build, Crouchung_Tuna’s Lighting Spear Amazon! This build captures the feel of a Diablo 2 Javazon by blasting everything on the screen with lightning. As an endgame build you need to be in maps to start playing it, so use one of the earlier planners through the campaign and then respec to this.

Lich

Chaos DoT, or damage over time skills like Essence Drain and Contagion excel at clearing the screen while providing consistent damage. This makes them the perfect choice to pair with the excellent defenses provided by the Lich Ascendancy. Check out this planner from CaptainLance9 to play your own Chaos DoT Lich.

Why fight alone when you can bring your own personal army to each battle? If that’s your preferred playstyle then HelmBreaker’s Minion Army Lich is the build for you. You get excellent defenses from Eternal Life and new Spectres provide you even more mindlessly loyal dead for your army. If you prefer infernal flame you can play a similar build on Infernalist.

Other Builds

Here are a few more builds on existing ascendancies:

• If you’re looking for a hand holdy Mercenary Grenade Leveling Guide. ZiggyD’s planner takes you through the campaign and into early maps.
• Stormweaver was one of the most popular builds in 0.1 and if you enjoy freezing your way through the campaign you can do so with this build from ZenM: Frost Bolt Cold Snap Stormweaver Leveling.
• Monk is fast and fluid, filling the screen with particle effects while dashing to the next pack to do the same. This build from Milkybk_ helps you find your center as you progress: Invoker Monk Leveling.
• The Smith of Kitava is Wraeclast’s ultimate tank, so if you’re looking to play hardcore this is one of your best bets. The Endgame HC Artillery Ballista Smith of Kitava build from Zizaran goes over everything you need to know to play this tanky artillerist.

With that said, Dawn of the Hunt is brand new and there’s still a lot to explore in the buildcrafting space so keep a close eye on Maxroll’s Builds for more ways to play.

On the Hunt

Dawn of the Hunt adds a lot of content and streamlines the mapping experience but the campaign is slower than it was before. The best players are already blasting maps and juicing towers but a lot of people are still making their way through the campaign.

It’s going to take some time for the dust to settle and for the meta to stabilize in Path of Exile 2 0.2.0 Dawn of the Hunt. If you want to know more about the best builds and most profitable currency strategies keep an eye on Maxroll’s Meta Section. Their Path of Exile 2 team is hard at work writing new Build Guides and sharing their Planners with the community!

This article was created by IGN Staff with help from the Maxroll Path of Exile 2 Team.

LEGO has a seemingly endless amount of sets. The toy company has collaborated with practically every major franchise and puts out a number of new builds each month. Unfortunately, LEGO doesn't just continue making every new set forever. Alongside every addition to the LEGO family comes the departure of several others. Sets get retired just as fast as new sets arrive to replace them. If there's a LEGO build you love, it could potentially disappear forever within a year if you don't pick it up before its expiration date.

While there are still ways to buy LEGO sets that have long been retired, your best bet is to pick them up while they are still available at major retailers and haven't been marked-up by resellers. Depending on the popularity of the set, you can sometimes find them at Amazon even months after LEGO removes them from its website. I've gathered some of those options right here to give you a chance to pick them up before they're gone forever.

Retired LEGO Sets Still Available at Amazon

Some really cool sets were retired near the beginning of 2025, including builds that have been consistently popular but have just outlived their shelf life. The LEGO Taj Mahal for example is one of the best LEGO Architecture sets we've ever seen come out of that line, depicting one of the seven wonders of the world. There's also the Sonic Green Hill Zone set that IGN actually had the chance to build back in 2022 when it first came out. It's a fun tribute to the iconic video game level from the series. It is one of our favorite Sonic the Hedgehog LEGO sets and is great for any fan of the franchise.

If you want to keep better track of what LEGO sets are retiring, I'd recommend checking out the Brick Economy website, which includes the full list. This is a great resource for collectors so they can keep tabs on any of the more expensive sets they have their eye on. One of the best times to buy a LEGO set at a discount is right before it gets retired.

Which LEGO Sets Are Retiring Soon?

It's fairly easy to find out what LEGO sets are retiring soon thanks to LEGO's "Last Chance to Buy" page that features all of them. Unfortunately, LEGO does not put the actual date that a set will be retired on this page, so it's hard to decipher when exactly each option will be officially removed. The safe assumption is that if it's on this page, it could be gone by the beginning of the month as the new sets become available.

Below I've gathered some of the most intriguing sets that are getting retired. There is a slew of Nintendo LEGO sets as well as some Star Wars and Marvel options worth a final look.