Queen’s Blood fans, it's time to celebrate. The addictive Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth card game is making a “powered-up” comeback for the final chapter in Square Enix’s remake trilogy.

Polygon spoke with director Naoki Hamaguchi about the progress of development on Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 3 and touched on the topic of one of the more popular virtual pastimes of 2024. He says he plans to double down on the card game when its next installment finally launches, promising to “expand” what was seen with its Rebirth launch.

“Queen’s Blood is a very popular and beloved minigame, and I believe a lot of people are still wanting something like that,” Hamaguchi said. “I want to expand on Queen’s Blood so that we are enhancing it, and giving you a more powered-up version of it when you see that third installment… Queen’s Blood is still going to be available in the third installment. We just want to expand on it.”

The director declines to share exactly what a spruced-up version of Queen’s Blood will look like, but it’s easy to imagine an expansion of new cards and new side-quests shaking up the gameplay. However, Hamaguchi’s comments suggest players may be in for a somewhat substantial upgrade.

Hamaguchi adds that the original Final Fantasy 7 mini-game featuring snowboarding is also coming back for Remake Part 3. He teases that “it’s not going to be just a simple snowboarding minigame,” adding that it will be incorporated into the story and its themes, but stops short of providing more details.

The Final Fantasy 7 remake trilogy is jam-packed with a variety of mini-games to keep Cloud and company’s fight against Sephiroth from getting too serious, but most fans are just looking forward to seeing how the retelling will finally finish its story. Hamaguchi and the rest of the Square Enix team is far from ready to share a release date, but he says development is at least “coming along very smoothly.”

“We have set a schedule for ourselves, and I believe we are tracking on time for the milestones we have set,” Hamaguchi adds. “So I’m really thankful for the development team and I have so much respect for them working on this project. I believe that at this point the game is playable, technically, but we are still trying to polish it so it is at a quality where we can deliver it to our players.”

It’s a round of positive updates for Final Fantasy Remake Part 3, which arrives just shy of the two-year anniversary of the launch of Rebirth. Released February 29, 2024, for PlayStation 5, we placed the RPG sequel at number two on our list of the 15 best video game remakes of all time. Although its sales may not have met expectations, Hamaguchi told fans in the past that the trilogy will get a proper finale.

Square Enix has had a lot of luck when it comes to Final Fantasy cards in recent history. Despite the overwhelming number of mini-games present in Rebirth, Final Fantasy 7 fans largely took to Queen’s Blood, all 145 of its collectible cards, and the strategy is added to the overall experience. In the real world, Magic: The Gathering fans spent 2025 obsessing about its Final Fantasy-themed set, which included dozens of references to not only Final Fantasy 7 but all 16 mainline entries, too.

For more on Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 3, you can read about how Square Enix nearly resized Cloud’s iconic Buster Sword for the remake. You can also see why fans shouldn’t worry about any story content being cut for the future entry while fans pass the time with the recently released Nintendo Switch 2 version of Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade.

Michael Cripe is a freelance writer 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).

Prebuilt gaming PC prices are on the rise for 2026, but iBuyPower - one of the more popular and well known system builders on the market - is softening the blow by offering a month end Clearance Sale which takes up to $400 off select systems along with a coupon code "CLEARANCE" that stacks on these tiered discounts:

• 5% OFF Custom Desktops over $999
• $100 OFF Ready to Ship Prebuilt PCs over $1999 Code
• $50 OFF Ready to Ship Prebuilt PCs over $999 Code

This sale runs through this weekend only and ends on January 26. iBuypower offers free standard shipping on all configs, however can also get a slight discount by choosing a slower shipping service. All systems are covered by a three year labor and two year parts warranty. Below are the best deals sorted by GPU.

iBuypower Radeon RX 9070 XT Gaming PC for $1,899

iBuypower RTX 5060 Gaming PC

Highguard has reemerged after going dark following its much-discussed reveal at the end of The Game Awards last month, with a launch showcase that reaffirms it really is coming out next week.

Due out January 26, Highguard ended The Game Awards 2025 with its reveal trailer, and it gave fans a look at the new free-to-play PvP raid shooter from some of the creators of Respawn's Apex Legends and Titanfall. Players will "ride, fight, and raid as Wardens, arcane gunslingers sent to fight for control of a mythic continent."

Some had wondered what was happening with Highguard given developer Wildlight Entertainment failed to follow up its The Game Awards reveal with any new trailers or even more detailed information about how it works. It’s fair to say that some felt Highguard did not warrant the coveted big finish slot at The Game Awards — the biggest video game reveal show in the world — and it has suffered from a degree of negativity online since. With the likes of Sony's disastrous live-service PvP shooter Concord still fresh in the memory, some have even declared Highguard "dead on arrival."

Here’s the official blurb on the launch showcase:

Tune in on Monday, January 26 at 10am PT for an in-depth look at Highguard direct from the studio, featuring a full gameplay deep dive, year one plans, and much more.

It looks like Wildlight is trying to replicate the hugely successful launch of Apex Legends, which publisher EA released in 2019 with little pre-release marketing but heavy involvement from streamers on its actual release date. Highguard is set to launch across PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X and S.

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

The Switch 2 library is growing this year, and the Super Mario Bros. Wonder Nintendo Switch 2 Edition is joining the party soon. This upgraded version of the 2023 Switch game includes some fresh enhancements alongside a new expansion called "Meetup in Bellabel Park" and some new characters joining the fun. It's quite the upgrade, and it's still a couple of months away (mark your calendars for March 26), but preorders are already live at select retailers.

Similar to other Switch 2 Editions that have released, there's a digital upgrade pack for those who already have the original Switch version, alongside a standard, complete version of the game's Switch 2 version for those who don't currently own the original. We've included where you can preorder a full physical copy of the game (for $79.99) and this upgrade pack (for $19.99) below.

Preorder Super Mario Bros. Wonder for the Switch 2 (Physical)

Magic: The Gathering’s Lorwyn Eclipsed set is here to kick off 2026, and marks our first ‘Universes Within’ set since Edge of Eternities back in August.

Early signs suggest it’s a welcome return to a much-beloved Plane, too, having been delayed from 2025. Lorwyn has been part of Magic’s locations since 2007, and there are some great cards in the set - including some that are already spiking in value.

The Most Expensive Cards From Lorwyn Eclipsed

We’ve got the most valuable Lorwyn Eclipsed cards you can find right now listed below, with the caveat that this is based on pre-launch pricing taken as close to release as we can, courtesy of data from the lovely folks at TCGplayer.

We'll ensure this list is updated next week as well, so bookmark this page and check back in again soon. For now, let's check out what's hot on release weekend for Magic's latest set, Lorwyn Eclipsed.

10 - Glen Elendra Guardian (Showcase) - From $33.55

We finally have our first look at Jason Momoa’s Lobo in a fresh teaser for DC Universe movie Supergirl.

DC Studios co-CEO James Gun took to social media to reveal the clip, below, which sees Momoa set up a glimpse at Lobo as he will appear in the film.

Finally. pic.twitter.com/BD1tmIPGdo

— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) January 23, 2026

Lobo is an alien interstellar mercenary and bounty hunter with superhuman strength and immortality who hails from the planet Czarnia. Like Superman, he's the last survivor of that dead world. Lobo was created by Roger Slifer and Keith Giffen and first appeared in Omega Men #3 in 1983.

In the teaser, we see Lobo make a dramatic entrance on his interstellar, flying motorcycle, often called the "Spacehog." There’s little to go on here, but from what we can see from this teaser, Momoa is perfectly cast as Lobo — cigar included.

Momoa, who played Aquaman in the now-discarded DC Extended Universe (DCEU), has said Lobo is his favorite comic book character and has always wanted to play him, pointing to aesthetic similarities between the two.

Speaking to ScreenRant last year, Momoa suggested we’ll get a good look at the character in the movie, but also a fleeting one.

“Well, this is the role I've always wanted to play,” Momoa said. “That’s the comic I loved, so I'm really nervous about it. It’s kind of a no-brainer to play this character. It's pretty big. I don't want to give away too much, but I mean, we look pretty dead on, exactly like the character, and he’s pretty rough and gruff and… I'll say the bike’s really cool.”

Momoa was then asked to give an indication of how much on-screen time Lobo will get. He replied to say: “It’s her movie, so it's great. I just come in for a little bit.”

Supergirl itself is due out June 26, 2026. It stars House of the Dragon star Milly Alcock in the title role, and another appearance from Krypto the Superdog — last seen causing havoc in Superman. Speaking of Superman, Supergirl is a very different movie from the outset, and Supergirl herself is nothing like her cousin.

IGN attended a press conference last year in which Gunn, Alcock, and director Craig Gillespie talked enthusiastically about Supergirl. During the conference, Gunn insisted Supergirl was a completely different move than Superman, before Gillespie confirmed it takes place entirely in space.

“They are so different in tone,” Gillespie said. “And to be able to really lean into it and embrace it… and plus… are we allowed to say this? The whole movie takes place in outer space.”

Gunn added: “The outer space thing's a big part of it because it is a space fantasy.”

Supergirl is heavily inspired by Tom King and Bilquis Evely's comic, Woman of Tomorrow, which features a very different Supergirl than audiences are perhaps accustomed to. In July, Gunn said the DC Universe version of Supergirl is “a total mess.”

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

Forza Horizon 6 will launch with a $59.99 Premium Upgrade Bundle that unlocks four days of early access — albeit at almost the same cost as buying the game again.

Last night, Xbox gave its upcoming Japan-set open world racer a stunning full gameplay reveal during its Xbox Developer Direct livestream, though didn't go into detail on the game's pricing.

When it arrives on May 19 for PC and Xbox Series X/S, Forza Horizon 6's Standard Edition will cost $69.99, while its Premium Edition is priced at $119.99. Alternatively — and of note for those planning to play the game via Xbox Game Pass Ultimate — you can purchase that $59.99 Premium Upgrade Bundle, and play starting May 15.

The game's Premium Edition / Premium Upgrade include other benefits too, of course, though not all of them are available on day one. Effectively, this option lets you pre-order the game's two upcoming, unannounced expansions, as well as the Italian Passion Car Park, which also does not have a release date. You'll also get the Time Attack Car Pack, Car Pass (which adds 30 more cars to your game, one per week), plus VIP Membership and a Welcome Pack.

This offering is nothing new for the Forza Horizon series, though is $10 more than the $49.99 Premium Upgrade offered for Forza Horizon 5 — an increase that has not gone unnoticed among the franchise's fanbase on social media and reddit.

The pricing is even more remarkable in other territories, too — in the UK, the Premium Upgrade is £59.99, the exact same cost as the game itself. In Australia, the Premium Edition is AU $190, up from AU $150 for the Premium Edition of Forza Horizon 5.

"Yeah that's absolutely cooked," wrote Aussie Forza fan Pretty_Leather4803 on reddit. "$40 more for basically the same content as last time? Microsoft really thinks we're made of money down here. At this point I'm just gonna wait for it to hit Game Pass and skip all the fancy extras."

"Inflation is a real thing," countered another fan, BrokenClays, in yet another reddit thread. "In November 2021 FH5 Premium was $99.99. Adjusted for inflation, that's $116.58 in December 2025 dollars. They are charging $119.99. In the UK in 2021 FH5 cost £84.99. Adjusted for inflation, it would be £106.58. They are charging £109.99. I know a lot of people are feeling sticker shock, but the price increase is just a hair over inflation. The world we live in is more expensive."

Finally, just to cover all bases, there's the Deluxe Edition of the game — which is less deluxe than the Premium Edition. For $99.99, you'll get the base game, Car Pass and Welcome Pack, but not the early access, expansions, or anything else included in the Premium Edition / Upgrade.

It's worth pointing out that last year, a report alleged that Microsoft had pushed Xbox studios to deliver a 30% profit margin — much higher than the industry average. Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier said that Microsoft’s 30% profit margin goal had led to the gaming division’s huge layoffs, canceled projects, controversial price rises, and multiplatform push.

Bloomberg said the average profit margin in the video game industry is 17-22%. Over the past six years, Xbox has hit 10-20%. To put that 30% target into more context, Sony's PlayStation division achieved a 16% profit margin in the first quarter of its 2025 financial year. Bloomberg said Microsoft Chief Financial Officer Amy Hood enforced the new target in fall 2023 — amid Microsoft’s $69 billion acquisition of Call of Duty maker Activision Blizzard.

You can find full details about what comes in each edition in our Forza Horizon 6 preorder guide. Which Forza Horizon 6 edition of the game are you buying?

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

Developer Embark Studios has laid out its new Arc Raiders roadmap, revealing that a new map, Expedition Windows, Arc threats, a new Raider Deck, and more will launch between now and April 2026.

The four-month plan, shared in a blog post and dubbed Escalation, comes with details about how the company plans to expand its explosive multiplayer extraction shooter with content all the way to spring. It all comes with what Embark teases will be a steady flow of new quests, trials, items, cosmetics, and quality-of-life features, priming Arc Raiders with a content-filled start to its first new year in players’ hands.

Warning: This article contains spoilers for Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees: Rite of Spring #5!

It's safe to say that Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees is one of the biggest indie comics success stories of the past few years. There's just something about the combination of the adorable anthropomorphic animal characters and the grisly horror premise that resonates with readers. IDW is currently wrapping up the sequel series, Rite of Spring, and IGN can exclusively debut a preview of the final issue.

The series definitely took a sharp turn in issue #5. Clandestine serial killer Samantha finally broke her cover and burned down her store in order to kill the police who were hunting her. With her identity exposed, where does this mild-mannered bear go from here? Find out in the slideshow gallery below:

As with previous issues in the series, Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees: Rite of Spring #6 is written and illustrated by Patrick Horvath and lettered by Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou.

"As I write this, the paint is drying on the very last page. It's bittersweet bringing Rite of Spring to a close," Horvath tells IGN. "It was a bit of an undertaking trying to thread the needle of putting together a second installment that felt true to the world that we set up in the first book while also shifting gears to allow all the growth that felt necessary. I couldn't be happier with how it's come together, even though it felt a little scary to go through with it. A huge thank you to all of the readers, critics, and retailers who have continued to support the book and come along for the ride. I'm still blown away by all of the love this little book has gathered. And a huge thank you as well to IDW for giving me the room to get as wild as we needed to with it. As gnarly as it is, I've had the idea for this whole arc for a while, and they've been behind me the whole way. I'm thrilled I've been able to include everything I'd hoped for in this one."

As dire as things are looking for Samantha right now, this isn't the end of her journey. Horvath has already confirmed he's working on the third volume of his Beneath the Trees trilogy. Plus, you can see Samantha take a detour to the DC Universe as part of the DC K.O. crossover.

Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees: Rite of Spring #6 will be released on March 4. You can preorder a copy at your local comic shop. You can also pick up the original series on Amazon.

In other comic book news, find out which series was selected as IGN's best comic book of 2025, and see which comics we're most excited for in 2026.

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

Audible's first sale of 2026 was supposed to expire on January 21, but it has just been extended through the end of the month. Now through January 29, new and returning Audible subscribers can sign up for three months of Audible Premium Plus for just $0.99 per month, or £0.99 in the UK. This time around it doesn't look like you need to be an Amazon Prime member either. After the three months is up, your subscription will convert to the standard $14.95/mo, so make sure to cancel beforehand if you don't want to continue with the service. You also get a free audiobook of your choice for each of those three months that you get to keep indefinitely.

Note that if you recently signed up for an Audible Premium Plus promotion, you may not be eligible even if your subscription has ended. There's usually a wait period (about 3-6 months) before you are re-eligible.

3 Free Months of Audible Premium Plus

Palworld developer Pocketpair has an interesting way of screening job candidates. The Japanese game studio requires those applying for game designer positions to submit screenshots of their Steam libraries as part of the hiring process.

In a recent tweet on X / Twitter, CEO Takuro Mizobe shed some light on how Pocketpair hires new game designer talent (as spotted by Automaton). Mizobe explained that Pocketpair has prospective game designers submit screenshots of their Steam play history. Furthermore, Mizobe noted that applicants who don’t use Valve’s game platform don’t get considered for interviews: “Those who haven't played anything on Steam don’t pass the document screening stage.”

There is a reason why Pocketpair wants to see what their job applicants are playing though. As Mizobe explained: “in the interview, we question candidates about the top most-played titles in their Steam libraries, for example, we ask them to explain the game mechanics, to say why they think specific mechanics were adopted, and what makes the game stand out against others in the same genre. Pocketpair is recruiting game creators who are true Steam players!”

In a follow-up post, Mitobe said that while applicants who are prolific console players are also encouraged to submit their Playstation, Xbox, or Nintendo Switch play data, Steam is still the priority. “We basically turn down those who have played zero Steam games,” Mitobe explained. “We want our colleagues to be playing indie games that are only available on Steam.”

This makes sense considering Pocketpair’s background as an indie developer whose main distribution platform so far has been Steam. The developer’s biggest hit Palworld, as well as its previous game Craftopia, have their main playerbase on Valve’s platform.

In a post on social media, Pocketpair Head of Publishing and Communications John “Bucky” Buckley weighed in on the CEO’s comments: “So hilariously true. When I first joined, I was grilled if I knew games like Slay the Spire. Pocketpair is a company that truly is built by gamers, and our CEO is very adamant to keep it that way.”

Launching in open access on Steam and Xbox back in January 2024, Palworld skyrocketed in popularity, selling over 8 million copies in just six days and amassing over 25 million players in its first month. It wasn’t long before Pocketpair teamed up with Sony to launch Palworld Entertainment with the aim of expanding the new IP.

Pocketpair is continuing to build upon Palworld’s success. As well as updates to the game, it is currently developing Palworld: Palfarm, an upcoming online co-op farming sim set in the same universe. In a surprise announcement last week, it revealed that Palworld is also getting its own physical Trading Card game, which is set to drop this June.

At the same time, Palworld is the subject of an ongoing lawsuit between Pocketpair and Nintendo/The Pokemon Company. Since the dispute kicked off in September 2024, there have been numerous developments, such as Nintendo rewriting a patent mid-lawsuit, arguing that mods should not count as prior art, and getting their monster-capture patent rejected. The case is expected to continue this year even as Pocketpair works towards the 1.0 release of Palworld.

Verity Townsend is a Japan-based freelance writer who previously served as editor, contributor and translator for the game news site Automaton West. She has also written about Japanese culture and movies for various publications.

Baboo! Are you looking for Heartopia codes? You've come to the right place. Here you'll find all the codes that we've collected for the cozy sim. Redeeming these will give you currency, resources, and extra Gold to help you settle into your new home.

Working Codes for Heartopia (January 2026)

• heartopia10m - Wishing Star x10 - (NEW!) (Valid Until: 31 March 2026)
• lifewithline - Wishing Star x10 - (NEW!) (Valid Until: 31 March 2026)
• happy2026 - Moonlight Crystal x10, 8,888 Gold - (Valid Until: 31 March 2026)
• k7m9q2a8l5 - Wishing Star x5, Mermaid Fish Attractor x3, Fertilizer x10 (Valid Until: 31 March 2026)
• true5mthks - Quality Timber x10, Chef's Special Salad x2, Branches x20 (Valid Until: 31 March 2026)
• heartopia5m - Wishing Star x5 (Valid Until: 31 March 2026)
• r4a8x2n - Wishing Star x5, Growth Booster x10, Orange x10 (Valid Until: 31 March 2026)
• top1thanks - Wishing Star x5, Mermaid Perfum x2, Mandarin x10 (Valid Until: 31 March 2026)
• b8n2k5l - Flawless Fluorite x2, Rare Timber x6, Stone x10 (Valid Until: 31 March 2026)
• letsparty - Wishing Star x15, 5,000 Gold, Repair Kit x3 (Valid Until: 31 March 2026)
• dcthx4u - Wishing Star x10 (Valid Until: 29 June 2026)
• m7r9q4a - Mermaid Perfumex2, 10,000 Gold, Egg x10 (Valid Until: 31 March 2026)
• x2l8k6p - Wishing Star x5, Fertilizer x10, Apple x10 (Valid Until: 31 March 2026)
• h9q3a7m5 - Roaming Oak Timber x2, Milk x10, Timber x10 (Valid Until: 31 March 2026)
• z4p6n8r2 - Quality Timber x10, Chef's Special Salad x2, Branches x20 (Valid Until: 31 March 2026)
• letsdressup - Wishing Star x15, 5,000 Gold, Growth Booster x10 (Valid Until: 31 March 2026)
• letsbuild - Wishing Star x 15, 5,000 Gold, Fertilizer x10 (Valid Until: 31 March 2026)
• a7k9m2q8l - Wishing Star x5, Repair Kit x3, Blueberries x10 (Valid Until: 31 March 2026)
• mylittlepony - Moonlight Crystals x100 (Valid Until: 7 February 2026)
• heartopia0108 - Moonlight Crystals x100 (Valid Until: 7 February 2026)
• specialgift0103 - Moonlight Crystals x100 (Valid Until: 7 February 2026)

Expired Codes for Heartopia

There are currently no expired codes for Heartopia, so you've got lots of goodies to redeem above!

How to Use Heartopia Codes

Looking to play Heartopia and want to know how to redeem codes? Follow these steps:

1. Launch Heartopia on your phone or PC
2. Create your character and select "complete"
3. Press Tab on PC or tap the watch in the top-right corner
4. Click Setting
5. On the General Tab, look for the Redeem Code bubble button in the bottom right
6. Copy the code from this article and paste it into the bar that reads "Case Insensitive"
7. Click Redeem and if the code has been successful, it will say "Redeemed! Please check the mailbox for rewards."

FAQs for Heartopia

Have a particular question about Heartopia and codes? See our answers to frequently asked questions below.

How to Collect Heartopia Rewards

Rewards are automatically sent to your Mailbox once you've redeemed codes. To find your Mailbox, press Tab or tap the watch in the top-right corner. Click Mailbox. All of the gifts you've received can be then be claimed. You can do this individually by opening each mail, or by pressing Claim All in the bottom left corner.

Why Isn't My Code for Heartopia Working?

When a code doesn't work for Heartopia it's usually because of two reasons:

• The code for Heartopia has expired
• There's a spelling mistake or an additional space in the code

Codes for Heartopia are not case-sensitive, but they are often a series of letters and numbers. The best way to ensure you've got a working code is to directly copy it from this article. We check all codes before we upload them, so you can guarantee they're working. Just double-check that you haven't copied over an extra space!

How Do I Get More Codes for Heartopia?

We regularly check and test new codes, so the best way to get more codes for Heartopia is to visit this article. But if you want to mine for codes yourself, then the Discord server for Heartopia is the best place to go.

Lauren Harper is an Associate Guides Editor. She loves a variety of games but is especially fond of puzzles, horrors, and point-and-click adventures.

Ever since I first got my silver Game Boy Advance SP for my birthday back in 2003, I have adored the clamshell design for my portable gaming devices. What the GBA SP started, the DS Lite later solidified for me: two screens and a clamshell case is far and away my favorite handheld design. Fast-forward more than two decades, and I can't remember the last time I fell in love with a device as fast as the Thor, an Android-based clamshell powerhouse from Ayn.

The Ayn Thor is available in four different variants, three of which are identical except for increasing amounts of onboard memory and RAM, while the fourth is the “Lite” version, featuring a different CPU. Regardless of which model you pick, you can expect a 6000mAh battery, drift-less Hall effect joysticks, active cooling, a DisplayPort for video out, and what blew me away, two beautiful AMOLED screens – the top being a 6-inch 1080×1920 screen at 120Hz and the bottom a 3.92-inch 1080×1240 at 60Hz. Every game, video, and webpage I viewed on the Thor looked amazing, as one would expect from such displays. Admittedly, I kept the top screen at a locked 60Hz refresh rate most of the time, in order to improve battery life, but a quick press of the Ayn button pulled up the custom Ayn settings menu, wherein I could toggle to 120Hz at any time.

The Base, Pro, and Max versions all feature the more powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 CPU, Adreno 740 GPU, and DDR5 memory, while the Lite features a Snapdragon 865 CPU, Adreno 650 GPU, and DDR4 memory. The non-Lite options also feature additional improvements, including Wi-Fi and the ability to output 4K 60fps video.

I opted for the Max version to future-proof my storage capability, though there is a Micro SD port for you to expand your storage regardless of model. I was looking at the Thor as a potential replacement for my Steam Deck, so having the best specs I could would help me in that pursuit. Regardless of what model you choose, you can pick from a Clear Purple, Rainbow (warm grey plastic with SFC-color inspired buttons and joysticks), Black (which I have heard is an absolute fingerprint magnet), and White. Reminding me of my beloved white DS Lite, that’s what I went with.

Coming in at 380g (just under a pound – the New 3DS XL weighs 326g for comparison) and nearly the same size as the New 3DS XL, the Thor features layers of glass over the entirety of the top and bottom screens, minus the holes cut in for the buttons and joysticks. I was concerned that this much glass would lead to excessive reflections or picking up fingerprints, both of which could risk obscuring gameplay. Thankfully, on the white model that I went with, neither of these concerns proved to be a problem. While I haven’t done much playing outside with it, being winter in the Midwest, I did make a point to play while sitting near a window in bright sun, and was pleasantly surprised by how clear everything still is. The gorgeous OLED screens and 550 nits of brightness did their jobs with aplomb.

Even with its flat bottom, using the Thor for longer stretches was still pretty comfortable. The device has a good weight to it, and the plastic feels sturdy and high-quality. Even under heavier loads, the Thor never got hot, remaining a reasonable temperature thanks to its surprisingly quiet fans. As nostalgic as the clamshell is, there are some aspects of the Thor that I have some criticism of, first – and the one I take most issue with – is the flat-edged shape of the L2 and R2 trigger buttons. A more rounded design, better aligned with the curve of the finger along its side, would make this device even more comfortable to play.

The front-facing speakers on the Thor do an adequate job, but they certainly didn’t blow me away, and I quickly paired my wireless earbuds instead of playing sound out loud. Another issue is that there is a small gap between the two halves when the device is closed, with the top screen resting on two small pads. I liked to keep the piece of foam that came with the device in there just for some added stability, and while I’m not too worried about it leading to damage, this gap is still something I would love to see addressed in a second-generation Thor. I’d be happy with a slight overhang on the topscreen to cover it, and Ayn does offer a shell that you can buy that covers the gap. But, considering the Thor’s dimensions are so close to those of the 3DS XL, if you happen to have some old cases for that lying around, just throw it in there. My Thor is right at home in my Persona Q 3DS case.

If you plan to spend much of your time playing games that require both joysticks, I did find it a little awkward and cramped working the right stick. I occasionally would be forced to maneuver it with the middle of my thumb instead of how I normally would with my thumb pad, just to keep my hand in a comfortable range of the shoulder buttons. Ayn does offer a grip accessory you can buy that may help in that regard, but I haven’t tested it myself.

Booting up the Thor for the first time, you’re greeted with a familiar-looking Android UI with a pleasantly surprising amount of clutter or bloat to contend with. Utilizing Android 13 as its base OS, the Thor doesn’t come with much beyond your typical Android stock software, requiring you to install whatever games or apps you want yourself. Downloading games and apps from the Play Store is as easy as it ever is, simply requiring you to log in with your account, find what you want, and click download. For other gaming pursuits, the process is a bit more fiddly, but luckily, Android 13 is a known quantity at this point, and there are plenty of resources and setup guides available if you go looking.

Compact Power

Over these past few weeks of testing, I’ve found myself using the Thor identically to how I have utilized my Steam Deck, streaming my PlayStation 5 to it using the Chiyaki app, playing retro games (especially those that I can enjoy more faithfully due to the Thor’s two screens), and yes, even playing PC games thanks to apps like Gamehub Lite and Winlator that let me install and play my Steam library natively on the device. This was where the extra memory and internal storage of the Max model really helped out.

Nearly every indie game I have thrown at it, from new hotness like Ball x Pit to games like Hades II and Gundam Breaker 4, has been fine to play. While you shouldn’t expect to bust out Cyberpunk 2077 on it (natively anyway), I was able to get mid-2010s shooters like Deus Ex: Human Revolution and the BioShock games running and playable. It can take a little fiddling around at times, and the drain these heavier 3D games have on the battery means that I won’t be playing them tons, but this ability is really neat and makes the Thor a fantastic indie machine.

The Thor has also managed to do something I previously thought impossible: make me interested in mobile games. With the Play Store coming preinstalled, it was a quick and easy process to sign in and start downloading games like Persona 5X that I’ve always shied away from, since using onscreen controls for games has never been my thing. With the great and clicky (but not too clicky) buttons and smooth Hall-effect joysticks, I was able to check out Persona and a couple of other games, and had a pretty good time. Every Play Store app I tried ran great, and for games like Pokémon Unite that don’t have native controller support, the Thor lets you quickly screen map the various keys and joysticks to areas on the screen to simulate controller support.

On the software side, built on Android 13, the Thor makes using both screens incredibly easy. Tapping the top or bottom screen will set that one as the active screen, just like you would with windows on PC, and any application you boot up will load on the active screen. Both screens, by default, show the same typical Android menu, and switching an application to the other screen is as simple as tapping its associated icon on that screen, instantly switching.

The fact that both screens can act independently also provides the Thor with some nice multitasking functionality. Can’t get past that tough part in the game you’re playing? Load up YouTube with a walkthrough on the other screen to help you out. Or play a game while you wait for another one to download and install on the other screen. A handy little button just under the bottom screen, the Ayn button, will open up a stats screen where you can see the temperature, fan speed, adjust the performance modes, turn on the direct power supply option, and other handy tweaks.

For a long time, I’ve felt that breaking the dual-screen ceiling was the last big hurdle for the Android handheld market, and as I have sat in my chair playing my Thor, I think that’s still the case. While not the first through the finish line, the Thor manages to deliver a sensational product for a pretty reasonable price, starting out at $249 for the Lite or $299 for the Base (honestly, I would just avoid the Lite). If you are more interested in playing PC games off the device or other more resource-intensive tasks, then the Pro at $349 and Max at $429 are the way to go. All of which are cheaper than the cheapest Steam Deck, with the exception of the Max, which is $20 more (worth it). Now, it will be all about refining it all and improving specs in the generations to come.

Warning: Spoilers follow for Return to Silent Hill and Silent Hill 2.

Silent Hill has been having something of a renaissance lately. After many years of fans being worried that Konami’s survival horror franchise would be relegated to the dustbins of history, Silent Hill has made a welcome comeback with the much-acclaimed Silent Hill 2 remake and Silent Hill f. Given that both games have sold well, it appears that the iconic horror series is here to stay, and that trend continues with a new film based on the franchise, Return to Silent Hill.

Directed by Christophe Gans – who previously helmed the underrated 2006 film, Silent Hill – Return to Silent Hill is a direct adaptation of Silent Hill 2. Commonly considered the best game in the franchise, a film version of James Sunderland’s story felt like an inevitability, but it will also certainly be scrutinized by fans for how closely it sticks to the source material. For his part, Gans has affirmed his love for the original game, calling the new film “an adaptation created out of deep respect for a true masterpiece of a game, Konami’s iconic Silent Hill 2.”

But now that the fog’s cleared and the movie is out in the wild, we have to ask: Does Return to Silent Hill really understand Silent Hill 2? Let’s take a look!

I See That Town

Silent Hill 2 and its 2024 remake both tell the story of James Sunderland, a man who goes to the eponymous town because of a letter he receives from his late wife Mary, who apparently died of an unspecified illness years earlier. Uncertain if Mary is somehow still alive, James traverses the town searching for her, encountering a handful of other characters and numerous monsters along the way. In the end, James has to face the truth: He killed Mary, and has been in denial ever since. Unlike most of the other games in the series, Silent Hill 2 doesn’t involve the mythology of the Order, the town’s resident evil (hah) cult, and instead focuses squarely on the personal story of one man’s journey through his guilt and torment. It’s not only one of the best survival horror games of all time, but also one of the finest examples of a video game telling an emotionally mature narrative.

Return to Silent Hill is a faithful rendition of that same core premise. Jeremy Irvine plays James Sunderland, Hannah Emily Anderson plays Mary (and a few other characters, but we’ll get to that), and the movie does indeed feature James going to Silent Hill to look for her. Many of the game’s locations, such as the opening parking lot overlooking the woods outside Toluca Lake, Brookhaven Hospital, the Heaven’s Night strip club, and the Lakeview Hotel are present and serve similar functions in the narrative. And many of the game’s monsters, such as the Lying Figures, Bubble Head Nurses, the Abstract Daddy, and Pyramid Head himself, are all ripped right from the game. Series composer Akira Yamaoka even returned to write the film’s musical score. If you’re looking for fidelity to the sights and sounds of Silent Hill 2, Return to Silent Hill has you covered.

But there’s more to a story than visuals and music. There are also characters and themes, and this is where Return to Silent Hill makes some serious changes. There's nothing inherently wrong with altering things when adapting to a new medium; a film probably shouldn’t include James wandering through Wood Side Apartments for an hour trying to solve puzzles. The first Silent Hill movie took many elements from Silent Hill 1, but also invented new characters out of whole cloth, like main protagonist Rose Da Silva (Radha Mitchell), and heavily reimagined others like Dahlia Gillespie (Deborah Kara Unger). That worked fine, because that movie was more of a sibling to the games rather than a direct translation of any particular entry in the series. Return to Silent Hill is genuinely trying to be a new version of Silent Hill 2, but not every change it makes is for the better.

There’s Something About Mary

In the original game, players encounter Maria, a doppelgänger of Mary, shortly into the adventure. She’s dressed provocatively and is flirtatious towards James, tempting him to stray from his search for Mary to be with her instead. The player is even tasked with keeping her safe during certain sections of the game. Maria is not a separate character from Mary so much as a manifestation of James’ sexual frustration after losing his wife, and how the player treats Maria affects how the ending plays out. Maria appears in Return to Silent Hill, also played by Hannah Emily Anderson; however, not only is Maria’s role in the film much smaller than you might expect if you’ve played the game, but Anderson also plays another character that Silent Hill fans will recognize, and this is where things start to fall apart.

Anderson doesn’t just play Mary and Maria, but also Angela, who in the original game is not the same character as Mary. Angela is one of a handful of supporting characters James runs into during his quest, and she has her own subplot that runs parallel to the main story. Conflating Angela with Mary doesn’t just remove the purpose that Angela served in the game, but it also leads into one of the movie’s more problematic choices, which is working the Order back in as part of the plot. In the film, Mary gets a new backstory: She is the daughter of a high-ranking member of the Order, and her unseen father groomed her to be some kind of vessel for the cult’s shady ceremonies. Mary’s terminal illness is a result of her being “poisoned” by the cult, and we meet other members who present themselves to James as Mary’s friends, but are actually using her for their nebulously villainous ends.

While flashbacks with James and Mary before her death make sense for a film adaptation, these additions subtract from the personal narrative Silent Hill 2 is supposed to represent. Making Mary a victim of her father and the Order clashes with James’ journey deriving from his guilt over killing Mary. Mary even asks him to kill her in this version so that she can be free of the suffering caused by the cult’s abuse, which basically gives James a pass on the main emotional obstacle he’s supposed to be reckoning with. In the game, James killing Mary was a selfish act; he resented Mary for keeping his life locked in stasis through her illness, and wanted to be free of her even if he loved her. In the movie, James killing Mary is something she requests, making it – if not necessarily a “heroic” act – at least a more justified one. But this also blunts James’ character, which is something that happens to the rest of the cast as well.

It Doesn’t Matter Who I Am

As discussed previously, James runs into a few other characters while searching for Mary. We’ve already mentioned Maria and Angela, but there’s also Eddie and Laura. All four characters are technically in Return to Silent Hill, but their importance has been severely downplayed. Maria is only a companion to James for the film’s second act, and is killed by Pyramid Head in the Labyrinth. Instead of coming back to life later like she does in the game, Maria is gone from the film after that, with James never really acting like he's even interested in her at any point. Angela’s subplot about being sexually abused by her father is consolidated into Mary’s backstory of being used by the Order, although whether her father also abused her in the same way isn’t made clear, despite the brief appearance of the Abstract Daddy monster that’s supposed to symbolize it.

Former Game of Thrones star Sophie Turner has said that she won't be watching the franchise's latest spin-off series A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, as even hearing the original show's theme tune now gives her "crazy anxiety."

Speaking on the red carpet for the premiere of her new Amazon Prime thriller Steal, Turner was asked if she would be tuning in to watch the just-launched A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, having previously been a central part of the Thrones universe.

Perhaps surprisingly, Turner said she couldn't watch anything connected to Game of Thrones despite having the "best" time on the show itself — and agreed it had been a different chapter of her life.

The latest entry in the hugely popular Arknights universe is out now, expanding the IP beyond mobile and introducing cross platform progression. Arknights: Endfield – a free-to-play RPG that builds on the strategic depth of 2019’s Arknights – made an impact with its presence at Japan Expo, Anime Expo and gamescom last year, and had over 35 million sign-ups in its pre-registration phase.

To celebrate the release on PlayStation 5, PC and mobile, publisher GRYPHLINE has announced an array of rewards players can claim, including sign-in bonuses and milestone rewards equivalent to at least 135 pulls across different banners.

The game introduces a 3D world built around exploration, real-time combat and base-building objectives to the original 2D offering, with a new frontier storyline driving the action. Players control squads of up to four characters (Operators), combining their skills, elemental abilities and coordinated tactics in a series of fast-paced enemy encounters.

At the heart of the narrative is the player-character the Endministrator, or Endmin, a legendary guardian who has been roused from a decade-long hibernation. The Endmin has been tasked with protecting the inhabitants of Talos II from catastrophic threats, and, with the assistance of Endfield Industries, has utilised their mastery of advanced energy transmission and the planet’s most valuable resource: an element called Originium. Together, they have developed a variety of industrial technologies including the Automated Industrial Complex (AIC), a backbone of production networks and power grids stretching across the wilderness, in order to forge a future and expand the Civilization Band across Talos II.

But as well as driving innovation and progress, the Civilization Band also faces threats posed by raider clans, hostile entities the Aggeloi, and The Blight – a mysterious dimensional anomaly that infects and taints any matter it comes into contact with.

Arknights: Endfield’s expansion beyond mobile means that exploration, AIC mastery, squad combat and management of Endfield Industries’ orbital HQ can all be enjoyed with native 120 FPS support, realistic snow-stepping, environmental puddle reflections and more. Players can also toggle NVIDIA DLSS Super Resolution and Frame Generation independently, to further bring the expansive landscapes of Talos II to life.

In addition, there is plug-and-play support on both mobile and PC for DualSense, DualShock and Xbox controllers with haptic feedback, providing a premium tactile as well as visual experience.

Arknights: Endfield is available now on PlayStation5, PC via the official launcher and Epic Games Store, and mobile devices via Apple App Store and Google Play Store. Check out our review so far for a comprehensive breakdown of the game’s mechanics and the opening hours of gameplay.