A mega-mod is kicking GTA 5 into 2026 thanks to one hobbyist creator and roughly 20,000 aggressively placed trees and street props
Modder ‘Aynekko’ has released a new major update for one of the best total conversion mods for Half-Life, Diffusion. Diffusion is a mod that aims to push the Half-Life engine to its limits. So, let’s see what its new update brings to the table. Diffusion 1.1 comes with new voiceovers. It appears that previously, the … Continue reading One of the Best TC Mods for Half-Life Got a New Major Update →
The post One of the Best TC Mods for Half-Life Got a New Major Update appeared first on DSOGaming.
Earlier this month, Ubisoft announced the cancellation of the official remake of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. And while this sucks, PC gamers can already enjoy a remastered version of this game thanks to this new mod. For those who did not know, in September 2020, Ubisoft officially announced the remake of Prince of Persia: … Continue reading Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Got a Remastered Mod →
The post Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Got a Remastered Mod appeared first on DSOGaming.
Modder ‘Maidenfan724’ has released a new high-quality grass overhaul mod for The Witcher 3 that covers all regions. This mod is compatible with both old-gen and next-gen versions. As such, every TW3 player can use it and benefit from all its visual improvements. Going into more details, this mod is a full grass overhaul that … Continue reading The Witcher 3 Just Got a High-Quality Grass Overhaul Mod →
The post The Witcher 3 Just Got a High-Quality Grass Overhaul Mod appeared first on DSOGaming.
The boss of HBO has commented on what went down between Game of Thrones author George R.R. Martin and House of the Dragon showrunner Ryan Condal, after Martin described their relationship as "worse than rocky" and "abysmal."
While Martin's displeasure with House of the Dragon's ongoing story development was nothing new, a profile piece published by The Hollywood Reporter revealed eye-opening new detail from Martin on the breakdown of his relationship with Condal — and the extent to which HBO executives had to manage the pair behind the scenes of the show's production.
Martin's unhappiness with Condal appears to have reached its zenith during a contentious Zoom call where the showrunner laid out his vision for House of the Dragon's third season. Martin said he responded to Condal's plan with numerous objections, and ultimately stated: "This is not my story any longer."
"I hired Ryan," Martin said, reflecting on happier times. "I thought Ryan and I were partners. And we were all through the first season. I would read early drafts of the scripts. I would give notes. He would change some things. It was working really well — I thought."
The profile piece noted an initial display of support by Martin for Condal towards the end of Season 1, when the latter had a falling out with his fellow co-showrunner on the series, Miguel Sapochnik. Martin says Condal asked for his support, which he gave, and Sapochnik departed the show shortly afterward.
"Then we got into Season 2, and he basically stopped listening to me," Martin continued, discussing how his relationship with Condal began to deteriorate. "I would give notes, and nothing would happen. Sometimes he would explain why he wasn't doing it. Other times, he would tell me, 'Oh, OK, yeah, I'll think about that.'
"It got worse and worse, and I began to get more and more annoyed. Finally, it got to a point where I was told by HBO that I should submit all my notes to them and they would give Ryan our combined notes."
This then led to the now-infamous and swiftly-deleted blog post penned by Martin in September 2024, which publicly criticized House of the Dragon's direction and said more "toxic" changes from his books were to come. While offering praise for the series' writing, direction and acting, Martin slammed the plot decision to kill off a particular character and went into detail as to why he disagreed with the choice. At the time, Martin also suggested Condal had gone back on a promise to balance the change with another plot point — that had then seemingly been abandoned.
Within hours, the blog post disappeared from Martin's website, and HBO had issued a statement supporting Condal while attempting to lower the temperature. In the profile piece, Martin said the blog post disappeared after HBO contacted Martin's manager, who had Martin's assistant remove the post while Martin himself was asleep.
"I would've put it back up, but then I would've looked like an idiot," Martin said of the incident. "And 80% of it was praise, but that's not what people focused on."
Now, in an interview with Deadline, Casey Bloys, Chairman and CEO of HBO and HBO Max Content, acknowledged the turmoil behind the scenes, waved away its impact, and expressed support for both Martin’s continued involvement in HBO’s Game of Thrones work, and Condal’s work on House of the Dragon.
“Like any good American family, I would prefer that our dysfunction stays behind closed doors,” Bloys began. “But here we are. What I would say is George introduced us to Ryan as the person that he thought would be the best to create House the Dragon. And I will say Ryan has been an excellent showrunner and a really great partner and collaborator, so we embrace his vision and his creative choices, or we wouldn’t have done it.”
Bloys then confirmed that HBO still has an overall deal with Martin, despite his high-profile and very public criticism of House of the Dragon.
“Listen, I consider it great to have George as the architect of this world,” Bloys said. “I mean, think about what he has created, the world, the families, the battles, all of the history, it’s pretty extraordinary. George is a great partner for us to have. The idea that he is going to agree with every creator or showrunner that is either developing or producing, two artists are not always going to agree. So, some of this comes with the territory.”
In November, HBO announced A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Season 2 and House of the Dragon Season 4 as part of a Marvel-style roadmap update for Game of Thrones TV series. House of the Dragon Season 3, meanwhile, debuts in summer 2026, with Season 4 set for 2028. Season 4 will be its last.
Bloys confirmed that Martin “definitely took a step back” in terms of his involvement in Season 3, and has focused on A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms instead. Bloys insisted he was “thrilled” with Season 3 creatively, as he is with Seasons 1 and 2.
“If you remind yourself of the Rotten Tomato stores of the first two seasons, it’s 87%,” he said. “This has been a very successful show for us. So, again, I will say I’m thrilled with what Ryan has done, he’s been a great collaborator with us.”
For his part, Condal has chosen not to comment further on the situation, but has pointed to a previously-reported statement he gave which claimed that Martin had become "unwilling to acknowledge the practical issues at hand in a reasonable way."
With House of the Dragon coming to an end in 2028, thoughts turn to what’s next for HBO and Game of Thrones. A proposed Game of Thrones sequel series starring Arya Stark is reportedly in the early stages of development, seemingly to replace previous plans to develop a spinoff based around Jon Snow. We also have word that animation icon Genndy Tartakovsky (Primal, Samurai Jack, Hotel Transylvania) is attached to the long-gestating Game of Thrones animated spinoff series 9 Voyages, which will follow the adventures of Lord Corlys Velaryon, aka The Sea Snake. The character is played in House of the Dragon by actor Steve Toussaint.
Photo by Tristar Media/WireImage.
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 boss of HBO has indicated The Last of Us will come to an end with Season 3.
Despite the mixed response to Season 2 and subsequent departure of Naughty Dog franchise creator Neil Druckmann, HBO boss Casey Bloys has backed showrunner Craig Mazin's ability to continue on — and to do so successfully despite the series' lead actors changing.
But exactly how long the series would continue had been a topic of debate. In May last year, Mazin indicated a fourth season was pretty much essential for the series. Speaking to Collider, Mazin agreed that in order to wrap up The Last of Us’ story from the two Naughty Dog-developed video games in Season 3 would mean Season 3 itself "would take forever." So, while there was a "decent chance" Season 3 would be longer than Season 2, at the end of the day "there’s no way to complete this narrative in a third season."
He continued: "Hopefully, we’ll earn our keep enough to come back and finish it in a fourth. That’s the most likely outcome."
However, in a new interview with Deadline, Bloys gave a pretty clear indication that Mazin won’t get the chance to make Season 4.
Deadline asked if Bloys could confirm that the upcoming seasons of Hacks and The Last of Us were their final seasons. Bloys responded: “It certainly seems that way, but on decisions like that, we will defer to the showrunners. So you can ask them.” So, not 100% confirmed The Last of Us ends with Season 3, but as close to confirmation as we can get.
Warning! Spoilers for The Last of Us Season 2 follow.
The Season 2 finale teased that, like the game, Season 3 will shift focus to Abby (Kaitlyn Dever) following the death of Joel (Pedro Pascal). It’s unclear exactly how Mazin plans to retell the Seattle section of The Last of Us Part 2 through Abby’s perspective.
Though most of us who played the second game knew what was coming in Season 2, it seems many viewers did not. Mazin has said he still gets bewildered fans asking: "Why did you kill Pedro Pascal?"
"[Game creator and fellow showrunner Neil Druckmann] did a thing. Everyone lost their sh*t, and then I had to do that same thing, because he did the thing. I loved doing the thing, I thought it was great," Mazin said of Joel's death at a Variety panel.
"The big complaint that I've gotten is, 'Why did you kill Pedro Pascal?' And I keep explaining, we didn't kill him! He's a man, he's alive. He's fine. And he's in literally everything else. So I don't know what the problem is!"
“People had very strong reactions to whatever controversial story decision we made,” added Druckmann.
(Check out IGN’s The Last of Us Season 2 finale review to see what we thought of it.)
In August, Ellie actor Bella Ramsey issued a short, sharp message to the louder critics of The Last of Us Season 2, insisting those who hate it can play the video game upon which it is based instead of watching Season 3.
Speaking to The Awardist podcast, Ramsey dismissed the impact of Season 2’s online criticism. "I tried to steer clear as much as I could, to be honest," Ramsey said. “Because there’s nothing I can do about it anyway. The show is out. There’s nothing that can be changed or altered. So I’m like, there’s not really any point in reading or looking at anything.
“People are of course entitled to their opinions. But it doesn’t affect the show, it doesn’t affect how the show continues or anything in any way. They’re very separate things to me. So no, I just don’t really engage.”
Ramsey was then asked what they would tell the “louder critics” of Season 2 going into Season 3. "I would say, you don't have to watch it," Ramsey responded. "If you hate it that much, the game exists. You can just play the game again. You don’t have to watch it, but if you do want to watch it, then I hope you enjoy it."
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.
Game of Thrones spinoff House of the Dragon will end with Season 4, HBO has confirmed.
In November, HBO confirmed A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Season 2 and House of the Dragon Season 4 as part of a Marvel-style roadmap update for Game of Thrones TV series.
In that announcement, HBO extended each series run through 2028. Both series will air on HBO and be available to stream on HBO Max. A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms was renewed for a second season ahead of the Season 1 debut earlier this month, with Season 2 due out in 2027. House of the Dragon Season 3, meanwhile, debuts in summer 2026, with Season 4 set for 2028.
Now, in an interview with Deadline, Casey Bloys, Chairman and CEO of HBO and HBO Max Content, confirmed that Season 4 of House of the Dragon will be its final season.
“Yes, that is the idea,” Bloys said. “The idea has always been to follow the history of the Targaryens. If you know the books, you know how the Targaryens end up. So there is a natural end to this particular history of that House of the Targaryens.”
While Game of Thrones author George R. R. Martin has expressed his enthusiasm for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, he’s been critical of House of the Dragon. Indeed, Martin recently discussed his broken relationship with House of the Dragon showrunner Ryan Condal, which the author candidly described as "worse than rocky" and "abysmal."
While Martin's displeasure with House of the Dragon's ongoing story development is nothing new, a profile piece published by The Hollywood Reporter revealed eye-opening new detail from Martin on the breakdown of his relationship with Condal — and the extent to which HBO executives had to manage the pair behind the scenes of the show's production.
Martin's unhappiness with Condal appears to have reached its zenith during a contentious Zoom call where the showrunner laid out his vision for House of the Dragon's third season. Martin said he responded to Condal's plan with numerous objections, and ultimately stated: "This is not my story any longer."
In March last year, Condal called Martin’s criticisms of House of the Dragon Season 2 “disappointing.”
Deadline asked Bloys if HBO planned a “supersized” final season of House of the Dragon, but he said a decision had yet been made on its episode count. “Ryan is working, like any show like this; he is finishing post on Season 3 and working with the writers on what Season 4 looks like,” Bloys told Deadline. “I don’t know where he’s landed on the episode count yet.”
With House of the Dragon coming to an end in 2028, thoughts turn to what’s next for HBO and Game of Thrones. To that end, a proposed Game of Thrones sequel series starring Arya Stark is reportedly in the early stages of development, seemingly to replace previous plans to develop a spinoff based around Jon Snow. We also have word that animation icon Genndy Tartakovsky (Primal, Samurai Jack, Hotel Transylvania) is attached to the long-gestating Game of Thrones animated spinoff series 9 Voyages, which will follow the adventures of Lord Corlys Velaryon, aka The Sea Snake. The character is played in House of the Dragon by actor Steve Toussaint.
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.
A new Arc Raiders duplication glitch has fans worried about exploits, but others just want to know why it’s being used to spawn mountains of rubber duck trinkets.
The Headwinds update brought new content, alongside fresh gameplay tweaks, when it launched for Arc Raiders players across PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X | S earlier this week. While the 40+ level matchmaking option, Solo vs. Squads, was positioned by developer Embark Studios to be its big selling point, some players are more concerned with the return of an item duplication exploit and how it has affected the in-game (duck) economy.
WHAT THE DUCK IS THIS????? We found two dead raiders with absolutely nothing but full stacks of ducks???
byu/granto inArcRaiders
Although players are no doubt using the dupe glitch to amass piles of rare items like blueprints, it seems a few fans are manipulating the system to make some serious coin – and maybe even a quick joke. The duck has slowly become a bit of a running gag for fans on its own, as the squeaky bath toy is one of a few lightweight trinkets that can be found topside and then sold in Speranza for a decent chunk of Raider Coins. It also happens to be the sillier items in Arc Raiders, so when a recently patched dupe glitched returned in a new form, those looking to exploit the system knew just what to do.
Those who are discovering topside players with hundreds of ducks, however, are just confused.
“Did we come across the duck Santa Clause or something?” one Reddit user said a few days before the launch of Headwinds. “Dupe hacking gone wild? At first we thought it was some joke because the stash was just full of ducks but then we realized they were stacks of 15 ducks each.”
“Okay so I actually came across a guy in blue gate in a random house just spamming ducks on the ground,” another replied. “I assumed he was duping. The floor was littered with them, probably like 100 of them. He wouldn't respond and kinda just stared at me til I walked away.”
A raider caught on fire in Buried City Metro, went down without saying a word, and left behind a mountain of Familiar Ducks. I extracted with $2.8M. Still confused.
byu/endgame2937 inArcRaiders
Arc Raiders’ mallard problem has only gotten bigger in the aftermath of Headwinds, as the January content update also introduced a handful of more valuable (and more vibrant) ducks to collect as part of the new Bird City map condition. It’s resulted in an abundance of ducks across Buried City…and some very awkward moments.
“A raider caught on fire in Buried City Metro, went down without saying a word, and left behind a mountain of Familiar Ducks,” another user shared. “I extracted with $2.8M. Still confused.”
“Was doing the pharmacist quest for Lance, heard the tell tale duck noise...came upon this silent raider,” one person said, sharing a picture of a solo Raider standing alone in a dark attic.
Referencing a recent cyber-attack against Embark and Arc Raiders, someone replied, “This must be what brought down the servers. DDOS (Duck Duplication on Server).”
In a game that constantly sees players backstabbing each other for a small chance to net worthwhile resources, it’s hard to deny the comedy in PvP players only finding stacks upon stacks of little rubber duckies. Still, it’s definitely the kind of thing Embark promised to clean up earlier this month. Players have complained of cheaters and exploiters in Arc Raiders for weeks, so as goofy as these issues are, they are still causing some players to worry that others have an unfair advantage.
It's especially concerning for those who have kept up with Arc Raiders updates since launch. Embark issued update 1.12.0 January 20 and fixed a handful of exploits, including an item duplication glitch. It took less than a week for players to begin reporting what appears to be a new version of the exploit, and it's unclear how long it will take for the developers to publish a new patch or how many other glitches will be discovered in the meantime.
The Arc Raiders cheater crackdown has seen holes plugged in Stella Montis to try and ward off wall explolits, while some players, like streamer Tfue, have found themselves banned (and then unbanned) without notice. As Embark tries to bring cheats to a halt, players are still finding the fun both in and outside of the game. Some have even looked to the real-world Stella Montis hotel to leave positive reviews. Others are just enjoying Headwinds while they wait for everything else promised in the 2026 roadmap.
For more, you can read about why we think the best Arc Raiders loot needs a serious buff. You can also check out why Embark believes players who spawn into a raid late actually benefit more than most.
Comment
byu/Onidge from discussion
inArcRaiders
Image credit: endgame2937 / reddit.
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).
This review is based on a screening from the Sundance Film Festival.
Beth de Araújo’s Josephine — which won both the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance as well as the festival’s Audience Award — is as visceral as it is delicate. The story of an eight-year-old girl who witnesses a violent sexual assault, and her parents who don’t quite know how to help her cope, the movie’s difficult story, and its rough, raw aesthetic approach, create some of the most challenging parameters for a child actress in recent memory. However, the young performance at its center is as miraculous as the film that slowly coheres around it, resulting in a freight train of emotional impact.
Early one morning in San Francisco, when Josephine (Mason Reeves) and her father Damien (Channing Tatum) go running in Golden Gate Park, they’re briefly separated, and the second grader watches from afar as a mysterious assailant in a green t-shirt (Philip Ettinger) overpowers and assaults an unsuspecting jogger (Syra McCarthy). In a horrifying moment, both victim and perpetrator lock eyes with the young girl, before the attack is broken up and the man is chased and arrested. However, neither Damien nor his wife Claire (Gemma Chan) can decide on the right way to explain to Josephine what she saw, leaving her emotionally adrift as she grows more confused, more resentful of authority, and more violent towards her classmates. As the days go by, she even begins picturing the attacker in the spaces around her — even in the safety of her bedroom.
De Araújo’s frank, unflinching approach to this event stems from having witnessed exactly such an attack at a similar age, imbuing Josephine with an autobiographical quality. Its contours are gradually shaped by the parent characters, and their expertly rendered performances, which lean into Tatum and Chan’s broad types in pursuit of unexpected layers. Damien, although playful at times, is a tough-love kind of parent whose words fail him, but who demands a stiff upper lip from Josephine while trying to navigate the event and its legal aftermath (the victim moves away, leaving Josephine as the only eye witness). Tatum’s comedy has often tapped into a meathead, frat boy persona, and de Araújo’s film is no different, only it captures the difficult domestic eventuality of that masculine mode in the form of a father whose solution to helping his daughter understand the world is stern silence and self-defense classes.
Chan’s gracefulness, on the other hand, informs Claire’s approach in discomforting ways as well. A dancer and an artist, she searches for ways to talk Josephine through this trauma, but falls back on platitudes, and can’t find ways to answer her daughter when she inevitably asks if she’s ever been a victim of a similar assault. There’s no prescribed perfect age for sex education, and certainly none for explaining, to a pre-adolescent, the grey areas of human sexuality — the attacker’s defense attorneys claim the encounter was consensual non-consent — let alone the definition of “rape.” There’s certainly no handbook for what to do when the ideal time for this discussion slips into the past, for reasons beyond a parent’s control. But unlike Claire and Damien, who each fall back on their own parents’ imperfect, cyclical approaches to supposedly taboo topics, Josephine has the internet at her disposal, though the explanations she finds online only confuse her further.
Reeves, who de Araújo discovered at a farmer’s market a few months before filming, brings a shocking naturalism to the part. Josephine is the masculine “Jo” to her father, and the cutesy “JoJo” to her mother, roles which the character and the actress alike effortlessly oscillate between, as they try to find a sense of stability while the floor is pulled out from under them. Josephine’s growing unease is reflected in daring fashion by the young newcomer, whose growing uncertainty — surrounding both human sexuality and human morality — seeps into her mood in the form of subdued frustrations. Reeves holds these close to the chest, until they eventually boil over. She’s practically a ticking time bomb; it’s as magnificent a debut performance as you’ll ever see.
These emotional pieces are all fitted into place by de Araújo’s deft and careful hand, yielding a film with a psychological complexity (surrounding issues of childhood sexual trauma) on the level of Gregg Araki’s Mysterious Skin. The director’s conception of San Francisco adds to the imposing nature of the story, between its winding streets and the crisscrossing power lines and metal bridge beams that seem to press down on the characters from above. The camera weaves in and out of Josephine’s point of view as though the young girl were being pulled outside herself before being pushed back in, an emotional whiplash further stoked by the use of space. For the most part, de Araújo and cinematographer Greta Zozula place us at eye level and employ telephoto lenses to blur the details of the larger, more imposing adult world in unbroken takes that build in pressure, as though Josephine’s purview were slowly being enveloped by fog. The color green begins to enter her field of view more and more, and eventually, the filmmakers break from their aforementioned blurry approach — with wide lenses that expand space and warp movement — during brief, imaginative moments when Josephine starts to picture the green-shirted attacker in her bedroom, as a specter of the confusion growing in her mind.
Ettinger plays this imagined version of the character with care and caution. He is, at times, an imposing presence, but he can also be ghostly and melancholic, almost sympathetic. He raises questions of what his eyes meeting with Josephine’s in the park may have done to her, and the ways in which her interpretation of the event — and of what led to it — might be forced to change over time as well, when her parents can’t seem to figure out how to connect with her long enough to comfort her. This moment of primal identification with the rapist causes her to turn inward, and to wonder whether she herself has the capacity for evil. That she begins to wear green nail polish goes unremarked upon, but it’s one of the film’s many stark, unmissable details that might cause you to squirm in your seat.
The movie nestles broad philosophical questions within the perspective of a child, which — in tandem with Miles Ross’ brilliantly breathy and propulsive score — inject a terrifying undercurrent into moments of dramatic simplicity. This is centered around the magic of a young performer guiding us through the story’s silent developments by getting lost in thought and self-loathing, and the adult characters who aren’t emotionally equipped to meet her gaze. All this combined makes Josephine one of the most powerful, shattering works of drama to emerge from the modern American independent scene.
2026 is shaping up to be a big year for UFC with plenty of welcome changes for fans, including an entirely new way to watch the biggest events. For the uninitiated, live UFC fights have shifted away from pay-per-view (PPV) events on ESPN+ and will now be available as part of a Paramount+ subscription. So, instead of paying $80 per fight, you can enjoy all UFC numbered events, Fight Nights, and a variety of other UFC programming for the entire year for roughly the same cost.
If you're looking to catch the big rematch between Volkanovski and Lopes at UFC 325 on Saturday, you've come to the right place. We've got information on how to stream the fight, plan prices, and a breakdown of the scheduled fight cards down below.
With the shift away from ESPN+ (now ESPN Unlimited) for all live UFC matches, you'll need to sign up for a Paramount+ subscription in order to watch UFC 325. While, yes, it's annoying that you have to sign up for yet another streaming service, it beats paying for each PPV event individually, and you can stream some great TV shows, movies, and other live sports while you're at it.
While Paramount+ no longer has a free trial, it's still relatively cheap compared to many other streaming services with plans starting at $8.99 per month. Here's the full breakdown of Paramount+ plans as of January 2026:
Since Paramount+ recently increased its price ahead of hosting UFC events, there are unfortunately very few Paramount+ deals currently available. Your best bet is to opt for the annual subscription to save a bit of cash per month or save 50% off any of the above subscriptions if you're an eligible student.
Although Paramount+ no longer offers a free trial, you can still test out the service for 30 days via a Walmart+ subscription. Walmart offers a free trial for new subscribers, which includes access to either a Paramount+ Essentials plan or Peacock Premium.
Like all numbered UFC fights, UFC 325 is split up into three different fight cards: Early Prelims, Prelims, and the Main Card.
The premier fight of the night is the Featherweight Title bout between Alexander Volkanovski and Diego Lopes, which will round out the evening after the other fights on the main card that begin at 6:00 PM PST. The two previously fought during UFC 314 in April 2024, with Volkanovski taking the champion's belt after a unanimous victory.
But, this time might be different. Lopes is younger, faster, and has a chip on his shoulder. Although Volkanovski is regarded as one of the best featherweight fighers of all-time, he's 37 now, and he may not be able to match Lopes' aggressive fighting style this time around.
Some additional matchups to look out for this weekend include a trio of (what should be) action-packed lightweight bouts between Dan Hooker and Benoit Saint Denis, Rafael Fiziev and Mauricio Ruffy, and Quillan Salkilld and Jamie Mullarkey.
Here's a quick breakdown of the UFC 325 schedule for Saturday, January 31:
Matthew Adler has written for IGN since 2019 covering all things gaming, tech, tabletop games, and more. You can follow him on the site formerly known as Twitter @MatthewAdler and watch him stream on Twitch.
T-Mobile is offering a rare BOGO deal on phone cards for this weekend only. Buy one prepaid phone card and get a second select phone card of equal or lesser value for 10% off. Eligile phone cards include some of the most popular services, including T-Mobile, AT&T Wireless, Verizon, Boost Mobile, Cricket, Tracfone, and Simple Mobile. Phone cards are available in denominations of $10 all the way up to $200. Depending on where you live, local phone fees may apply.
Stacks with Target Circle 5% discount
This deal is even better if you are a Target Circle Cardmember because it stacks with the flat 5% discount you get on Target purchases (prepaid phone cards are eligible). If you combine the two discounts, you're saving nearly 10% off the entire order, which is usually as good as you can get when it comes to prepaid card discounts.
The Circle Card is Target's own branded credit card that gives you 5% back on most of your Target purchases. There's also no annual fee. One advantage that the Target card has compared to other cashback equivalents from Amazon, Best Buy, or Walmart is that this is not a "cashback" or "rewards" offer. You literally get a 5% discount applied to each and every Target purchase on the spot. No further purchase or waiting is necessary.
Eric Song is the IGN commerce manager in charge of finding the best gaming and tech deals every day. When Eric isn't hunting for deals for other people at work, he's hunting for deals for himself during his free time.
A gorgeous new 4K TV upgrade must be paired with great sounding, room filling audio to round out the ultimate home theater experience. You simply shouldn't have one without the other. However, if you're like most people and don't look forward to the task of setting up, positioning, and pairing your speakers, then that's where Sonos comes in. Its products offer excellent sound in a compact package with super easy DIY setup.
To celebrate the big football game on February 8, Sonos is kicking off its own big sitewide sale that takes up to 20% off some its best selling speakers including the Sonos Arc Ultra and Beam soundbars, Era 100 and 300 speakers, and Sub Mini and Sub 4 woofers. Shipping is fast and free and you're getting the full manufacturer's warranty.
The Era 100 is Sonos' most popular and most versatile speaker. Despite its compact size, the Era 100 houses two tweeters, a mid-woofer, and three class-D digital amplifiers to produce precise, distortion-free audio even at high volumes. It has a microphone for voice control. Because of its flexibility, it's often paired with a sound bar or a second Era speaker.
The Arc Ultra is Sonos' best soundbar speaker, replacing last year's Arc model. It is a massive 46" soundbar that houses 14 total speakers, including five tweeters (plus two upward-firing speakers for Dolby Atmos supported height channels), six midwoofers, and a four-motor, dual-membrane Sound Motion woofer. The Arc Ultra uses AI enhancement technology to isolate and boost the clarity of dialogue and voices. It also has a built-in microphone so that it can be controlled using voice commands from the Sonos app or your favorite smart assistant. Check out our own Sonos Arc Ultra review.
The Sonos Beam is a great option for someone who requires a more compact sound bar or simply doesn't want to spend $900 on the Arc Ultra. The Beam (Gen 2) is a 26-inch long, 5.0-channel soundbar with one tweeter and four mid-woofers for natural, balanced sound and four passive radiators to help with the low end. Although the Beam doesn't have physical height channels, it has two virtual height channels for Dolby Atmos support. It has a microphone for voice control.
The Era 300 is a much bigger, better sounding version of the Era 100. It's nearly double the size and weight. The Era 300 is also shaped differently, but there's a reason for that. The hourglass figure is designed to optimally arrange the six speakers so that they fire sound in all directions, enhancing Dolby Atmos and spatial audio effects. The Era 300 consist of four tweeters and two woofers paired with Class-D digital amplifiers and custom waveguides to help project sound to all corners of your room. Like the Era 100, it also has a built-in microphone for voice control.
The audio savvy knows that a single speaker isn't enough to reproduce an entire soundstage. If you could pick only one other speaker to supplement your existing one, then a subwoofer would make the most meaningful impact. If you are space constrained, consider the Sub Mini. Despite its compact size, the Sub Mini can still powerful room-filling bass by way of two inward-facing 6" drivers contained in a sealed (non-ported) enclosure. It features wireless connectivity so you can avoid the hassle of routing a cable back to the rest of your home theater components.
If you aren't space or budget constrained, the Sub 4 is a step up from the Sub Min. The Sub 4 boasts even more power and a better low-end soundstage thanks to two inward-facing 5"x8" woofers and a traditional ported design.
If you're looking for an easy solution to add great sound to your home, then you've probably already heard of Sonos. Sonos speakers are very easy to set up, don't take a large amount of space, and most importantly, offer distortion-free room-filling audio. They're definitely pricier than budget options, but the sound quality is comparable to speakers that cost hundreds more or take up much more space.
Eric Song is the IGN commerce manager in charge of finding the best gaming and tech deals every day. When Eric isn't hunting for deals for other people at work, he's hunting for deals for himself during his free time.
If you’ve been waiting to grab any games or accessories, the Amazon-owned Woot has an absolutely Mega Gaming Sale right now. Already marked-down products are an extra 20% off when you use the coupon code GAMER at checkout, and Prime Members get free shipping. Everything from Pokemon Legends: Z-A to an Atari handheld and a Switch controller is discounted. Beyond that, a bunch of LEGO sets that make for a nice Valentine’s gift are on sale, get an Amazon Fire tablet cheap, and more.
A bunch of popular Switch games are part of Woot’s gaming sale, where you can score 20% off with the coupon code GAMER. Prime Members even get free shipping. Tears of the Kingdom, Super Smash Bros, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and Pokémon Legends: Z-A are all ridiculously great deals, with some hitting the lowest prices ever.
Bring on the nostalgia with the My Arcade Atari Gamestation Go. Rather than new stuff, this gaming handheld is packed with classics. From PAC-MAN and Asteroids to Centipede and Crystal Castles, there are over 200 retro games on this officially licensed Atari console. With a 7-inch display, integrated paddle, D-pad, trackball, and more, it’s ready to play these games with the controls they were designed for. Plus, you can always plug it into your TV via an HDMI for big-screen fun.
If you’ve been considering grabbing the My Arcade Atari Gamestation Go, now’s the time, as it’s at its lowest price ever on Woot during its gaming sale. Just use the code GAMER at checkout, and it’ll bring it down to just $103.99. The same game console is going for $144 on Amazon right now.
Valentine’s Day is fast approaching, which means if you haven’t gotten a gift for the loves in your life, it’s time to hunker down. A bunch of LEGO sets have seen some nice discounts on Amazon. You can skip the fresh flowers and grab a LEGO bundle deal on a bouquet of roses and a botanical bouquet for 83.99. These LEGO sets are going for $55.58 and $48.49 individually, making this an incredible offer. Other lovable LEGO options include a cute Looney Tunes Sweetheart Tweety Bird, a mini bonsai tree set, or the iconic LOVE sculpture. All of these sets are seeing solid discounts today. If you have a Harry Potter fan in your life, the Hogwarts Express Book Nook is also at its lowest price on Amazon.
While Woot’s wild gaming sale is probably the highlight of today’s deals, you can also grab an Amazon refurbished 11th-gen Fire HD 10 Tablet 32GB for $27.99. All you need to do is apply the coupon code FIRE30 at checkout. I use one of these tablets when I’m traveling for streaming shows and doing the basics. Sure, it’s not going to compete with the best iPads, but it gets the job done, and you won’t be heartbroken if something happens to it. There’s even a 90-day limited warranty for some added peace of mind when purchasing a refurbished model.
If you’re looking for a great controller for Switch 2, Woot has dropped the price of a brand new PowerA Enhanced Wireless Controller to just $27.99 when you use the coupon code GAMER. Plus, the Amazon-owned Woot offers free shipping for Prime Members. The controller is available in several different skins, including Zelda Midnight Ride. That same controller is going for $59.99 on Amazon! Now, you won’t get the C button with the PowerA Enhanced Wireless Controller, but it does deliver a comfortable grip, reliable connectivity, and two extra mappable buttons.
The SteelSeries Counter-Strike 2 Dragon Lore Limited Edition Wireless Gaming Mouse received an epic price drop on Amazon. This great gaming mouse has been priced at $150, but now you can get it for just $52.93. That’s 65% off. On this mouse, you’ll get a lightweight design, an 18K DPI optical sensor, and a 2.4GHz dongle for reliable, low-latency wireless connectivity. In fact, it’s essentially a SteelSeries Aerox 3 mouse, which we reviewed and loved. But of course, it’s rocking the AWP Dragon Lore skin, hence the name, and skips its usual honeycomb pattern.
Magic: The Gathering’s Avatar: The Last Airbender Beginner Box has dropped to a new low on Amazon. You can grab it for just $23.08. It’s ideal for those just dipping their toes in the MTG world, as it comes with two 20-card tutorial decks, a guide booklet, playboards, and more essentials. After you’ve mastered the basics, you can combine any of the additional eight 20-card half-decks for some real gaming.
Magic: The Gathering Lorwyn Eclipsed just dropped last Friday, and the Play Booster Box has dropped in price by 16% on Amazon. For just $129.98, you’ll get 30 Play Booster packs, making each about $4.33, which is a solid deal. Each pack even guarantees a foil. Now, MTG: Lorwyn Eclipsed is a nice departure from Spider-Man, Avatar, and Final Fantasy. Instead, you just get fantasy creatures throwing spells.
If you’ve been waiting for the prices to drop on the MTG x TMNT preorder, now is the time to jump. The Booster Box is down to $124.99 on Amazon. In the box are 30 packs, which means each one comes out to about $4.17, which is a great deal. There’s a Bundle Box that includes 9 Play Boosters, 30 Lands, a foil alt-art promo Card, and exclusive accessories that’s on sale for just $60. Or, grab the Turtle Power! Commander Deck and Turtle Team Up Box, as they both have received solid discounts.
While these might be the lowest prices we see for the MTG x TMNT preorder, Amazon even has a nice preorder price guarantee. Whether the price goes up or down, you’re paying the lowest amount. This is the first “Universe Beyond” release of the year, and it’s set to drop on March 6th.
Jumping further into the future, Amazon just dropped the preorder for the MTG x Marvel Super Heroes set that’s coming out on June 26th. Some things have already sold out, but you can still grab the 30-pack Booster Box for $209.70, the Commander Deck Bundle for $299.96, and more. Be sure to secure your preorder now, as this is already proving to be a popular “Universe Beyond” collab.
After you’ve secured the MTG X Marvel Super Heroes preorder, be sure to check out the MTG: Secrets of Strixhaven preorder, which also just became available on Amazon. It’s set to come out on April 24 and is selling fast.
Any Tolkien fan will want this four-book box set illustrated by Alan Lee in their collection. With it, you’ll get hardcover editions of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings Trilogy that feature the stunning watercolor work of Lee, the conceptual designer on Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. Typically priced at $150, you can grab this beautiful box set for nearly half off on Amazon. It makes a wonderful addition to any collection.
It’s a crossover between the greatest superheroes of all time. DC vs. Marvel Omnibus is a fantastic comic collection full of out-of-print stories. Everything from Superman vs. The Amazing Spider-Man to Batman vs. Captain America can be found in the hardcover book. Best of all, you can grab it for 55% off on Amazon, a new low price.
Danielle is a Tech freelance writer based in Los Angeles who spends her free time creating videos and geeking out over music history.
To celebrate the big football game on February 8, Sonos is kicking off its own big sitewide sale that discounts some its best selling speakers including the Arc Ultra soundbar and Sub 4 subwoofer. If you were thinking of getting these two specific speakers for your home theater setup, then you can get actually get an even better price by purchasing them as part of Sonos' Premium Entertainment Set for $1,599. If you were to purchase the two speakers separately during the sale, they would total to $1,659. Without the sale, they'd cost $1,998. Shipping is free.
Less expensive when purchased together
This set includes:
The Arc Ultra is Sonos' best soundbar speaker, replacing last year's Arc model. It is a massive 46" soundbar that houses 14 total speakers, including five tweeters (plus two upward-firing speakers for Dolby Atmos supported height channels), six midwoofers, and a four-motor, dual-membrane Sound Motion woofer. The Arc Ultra uses AI enhancement technology to isolate and boost the clarity of dialogue and voices. It also has a built-in microphone so that it can be controlled using voice commands from the Sonos app or your favorite smart assistant. Check out our own Sonos Arc Ultra review.
The audio savvy knows that a single speaker isn't enough to reproduce an entire soundstage. If you could pick only one other speaker, then a subwoofer would make the most meaningful impact. Given how the Arc Ultra excels at the highs and mids, the subwoofer addition would be a no-brainer. The Sub 4 features dual inward-facing 5"x8" woofers and a traditional ported design that allows for a louder and deeper low-end. It also has much more power than the Sub Mini and can reverberate the walls of any sized room in your house. There's no better complement to the Arc Ultra.
Eric Song is the IGN commerce manager in charge of finding the best gaming and tech deals every day. When Eric isn't hunting for deals for other people at work, he's hunting for deals for himself during his free time.
Animation icon Genndy Tartakovsky (Primal, Samurai Jack, Hotel Transylvania) is reportedly attached to the long-gestating Game of Thrones animated spin-off series 9 Voyages, which will follow the adventures of Lord Corlys Velaryon, aka The Sea Snake. The character is played in the live-action series House of the Dragon by actor Steve Toussaint.
News of Tartakovsky’s attachment comes via Deadline's interview with Casey Bloys, Chairman and CEO of HBO and HBO Max Content.
“HBO has developed a slew of other offshoots, with a number being rumored to be currently in the works, including a Jon Snow and Arya Stark sequel written by Quoc Dang Tran; an animated Sea Snake project Nine Voyages, with Genndy Tartakovsky said to be attached, as well as 10,000 Ships written by Eboni Booth and Aegon’s Conquest penned by Mattson Tomlin,” Deadline reports.
The site added that “Bloys would not comment on any of the alleged GoT development projects but indicated that the success of the smaller-scale, modestly budgeted A Knight of the Seven Kingdom [sic] is informing their development strategy.”
9 Voyages was initially meant to be a live-action show from Rome and Gotham showrunner Bruno Heller, but Game of Thrones creator George R.R. Martin revealed in 2024 that the show had switched to animation due to budget concerns.
"We have moved 9 Voyages, our series about the legendary voyages of the Sea Snake, over from live action to animation, a move I support fully," Martin posted at the time.
"Budgetary constraints would likely have made a live action version prohibitively expensive, what with half the show taking place at sea, and the necessity of creating a different port every week, from Driftmark to Lys to the Basilisk Isles to Volantis to Qarth to… well, on and on and on. There's a whole world out there. And we have a lot better chance of showing it all with animation."
For more coverage of Westeros, read our spoiler-free A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Season 1 review, how they made Ser Arlyn of Pennytree’s formidable prosthetic, and discover why GoT actress Sophie Turner can’t even listen to the theme song now without it triggering anxiety for her.
Lenovo's weekend sale just dropped a great deal on an affordable yet powerful gaming laptop. Through February 1, you can get a Lenovo Legion Pro 5 Gen 10 gaming laptop, equipped with a 16" OLED display and RTX 5070 GPU, for just $1,376.99 after you apply coupon code "LEGIONPOWER26" (may be automatically applied). That's over $500 in savings and an excellent deal considering the build quality of Legion Pro laptops.
The Legion Pro boasts solid build quality, featuring an aluminum top lid and a sturdy plastic bottom chassis. The gorgeous 16" OLED display sports a 2.5K 189ppi resolution, 165Hz refresh rate, HDR 1000 True Black certification, and 100% DCI-P3 color space. This new 2025 model has also been updated with the Wi-Fi 7 standard. Connectivity options include two USB-C 10Gbps ports with DisplayPort 2.1 support (one with 100W of Power Delivery), RJ45 ethernet, and HDMI 2.1.
The rest of the specs include an AMD Ryzen 9 9955HX CPU, RTX 5070 GPU, 32GB of DDR5-5600MHz RAM and a 2TB SSD. The AMD Ryzen 9 9955HX has a max turbo frequency of 5.4GHz with 16 total cores. This is an excellent processor for both gaming and multi-core tasking.
The RTX 5070 is a full powered (unthrottled) mobile model with 115W TGP that performs about 5%-10% better than the RTX 4070 that it replaces. It also supports DLSS 4.5 and multi-frame generation, which widens the performance gap in games that support it. This laptop will able to play most games smoothly even on the enhanced 2.5K resolution, although extremely high demand games like Cyberpunk 2077 will require some graphics settings adjustment to get there.
Eric Song is the IGN commerce manager in charge of finding the best gaming and tech deals every day. When Eric isn't hunting for deals for other people at work, he's hunting for deals for himself during his free time.