EA and DICE have announced a new update for Battlefield 6. Title Update 1.2.1.5 will come out on March 3rd, and the teams have shared its full patch notes. So, let’s see what this new patch brings to the table. Patch 1.2.1.5 implements additional stability improvements to reduce client crashes. It also improves frontend tile … Continue reading Battlefield 6 Title Update 1.2.1.5 Releases on March 3rd – Full Patch Notes→
Let's make this simple: You want to know if there are any mid- or post-credits scenes in Scream 7. The answer is yes! Rather than the credits outright halting, there is a comedic “during-credits” scene (think Principal Rooney on the bus in Ferris Bueller) that runs for a bit alongside the closing credits scroll.
Full spoilers for the movie follow!
It’s been an incredibly bumpy road for Scream 7 to arrive in theaters, with notably controversial and heated events behind the scenes that have included the film’s initial intended star being fired, the resulting fan outrage over that decision, another actor departing, its original director quitting, and the series’ creator and original star then returning to what was now a drastically overhauled story compared to what we would have originally seen.
But with the film now here, how does it all play out? Who’s behind the Ghostface mask this time, and what’s their motive(s)? Let’s break it down!
Is Stu Macher Actually Alive?
Announced early on, Matthew Lillard’s return to the franchise for Scream 7 has been a big deal. His murderous character, Stu Macher, from the first film way back in 1996 remains a fan favorite thanks to Lillard’s endearingly deranged performance. Stu’s potential return is a major plot point in this movie, as Sidney (Neve Campbell) begins to get video calls from the new Ghostface killer which show a taunting Stu on the other end, appropriately aged from when we last saw him, with his face covered in scars thanks to the TV set Sid dropped on his head at the end of the original Scream.
But as many characters in the movie note, we live in the era of deepfakes and AI. So did Stu actually somehow survive all these years and return to get revenge on Sidney, or is this an elaborate hoax by the real killers?
When Sidney goes to rescue her kidnapped daughter, Tatum (Isabel May), in the final act, the messages from Stu escalate to include other deceased faces from Sidney’s past claiming they’re behind all of this, including: Scream 2 killer Nancy Loomis AKA Debbie Salt (Laurie Metcalf); Scream 3 killer Roman Bridger (Scott Foley); and one of Sidney’s closest friends, the late Dewey Riley (David Arquette), in what is clearly meant to add to her anguish.
But while they keep the Stu charade going as long as possible, when Sid finally comes face to Ghostface and learns who the actual killers are, it turns out to just be that – a charade. None of these killers are Stu, who is (presumably) still quite dead and wasn’t somehow in hiding all these years. And it was indeed our greatest modern villain, AI, used to fake those messages to Sidney.
Who’s Really Behind the Mask(s)?
Scream 7 pulls a notable swerve from the usual formula about a third of the way in, when Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox) makes her big entrance into the film by plowing down a Ghostface trying to kill Sidney, Tatum, and Sid’s husband, Mark (Joel McHale), with her van, outright killing the bastard. The mask is whipped off, and it’s…some random dude?
Okay, we did see this guy for all of 20 seconds earlier in the movie, glowering at Sidney at the coffee shop she owns, but that’s literally it, so the reveal is certainly confusing for both the audience and the characters. It turns out he’s an escaped mental patient named Karl who killed three women years before, which leads Sid and Gale to Fallbrook, the facility where Karl was locked up.
There, they meet Marco (Ethan Embry), who works at Fallbrook and has plenty of helpful info – not just about Karl, but also a mysterious, amnesiac John Doe former patient who Marco confirms to be Stu when shown a photo. Per Marco, this John Doe and Karl were close friends, setting up the idea that Stu had manipulated Karl into becoming his accomplice for these new killings.
The most notable reveal fits more of the old school “someone who’s been close to Sid for awhile now” vibe.
It turns out that none of Marco’s story about Stu/John Doe is true, and Marco himself is one of the actual killers. But where Karl's reveal is definitely intentional as far as its “Who the hell is this?” feel, Marco’s unmasking seems like a step too far for a genuine, final showdown Ghostface reveal. That’s because Marco – a character I’m not even sure was named earlier – is literally only in the movie in that one sequence where Sid and Gale visit the mental hospital. It’s the kind of “oh, it’s that guy from that one scene!” reveal that Heart Eyes did in an intentionally jokey way last year, but it feels like there’s meant to be more weight behind it here.
To be fair, the most notable reveal is saved for last in terms of the character who actually had the most screen time and fits more of the old school “someone who’s been close to Sid for awhile now” vibe. The mastermind behind all of this turns out to be Jessica (Anna Camp), Sidney’s neighbor and friend. Even there, though, this feels pretty lackluster since Jessica only appeared a handful of times in the movie, and also because the movie had killed off or terribly wounded nearly every other possible suspect by this point – including the entirety of Tatum’s friend group, all of whom are murdered – leaving Jessica as one of the only viable possibilities…even if it’s an underwhelming one.
So What Was The Motive This Time?
Scream 7 is an entertaining movie with some fun kills, but it has an especially weak reveal when it comes to the killers, both in terms of who they are (and how little audience impact it has to learn their identities) and their motivations. Previous Scream killers have been motivated by revenge – more than once – but also by everything from the desire for a showy trial, to wanting to be famous for fame’s own sake, to nuclear-powered toxic fandom. This is a series that has always maintained its fun, skewed reflection of evolving pop culture and celebrity; unfortunately, Scream 7 feels very muddled in that area when it’s time for the killer to start monologuing.
Karl was apparently just a deranged stooge; he was already a killer, and he may have been a Stab movie superfan (though it’s hard to know if this was part of Marco’s ruse), but he was manipulated by the real killers that just aimed him in the right direction. He never has any unmasked dialogue, and the characters all know he couldn’t have been operating alone once he’s dead, so it feels okay to leave him as more of a cipher.
It’s with ringleader Jessica that things get dicey. She loved Sidney’s book, Out of Darkness (as introduced in Scream 4), about fighting through her traumatic experiences, and it empowered Jessica to do something about her abusive husband by killing him and covering up that murder. But then Jessica’s explanation takes another turn, as Scream 7 uses Sidney not going to New York in Scream VI to help stop that film’s killer – which, in real life, was because Neve Campbell had a pay dispute with the studio – as a plot point in this film’s story and Jessica’s motivation. As Jessica explains, Sid avoiding that fight in New York felt like a betrayal to Jessica, who saw her as someone who never backed down. So she decided she needed to get rid of Sidney for failing to live up to Jessica’s idealized version of her, but also planned to kill her in front of Tatum, who she thinks can then take her mother’s place as the new Sidney…or something?
It’s all very convoluted (obviously), and also feels like too much of an echo of what’s come before in terms of characters like Scream 4’s Jill trying to fashion herself as the “New Sidney” or Scream 5’s Sam finding herself thrust into that role. And while Jessica’s “I’ll solve my problems with a killing spree” approach is not unusual for this series, it just feels like too much crammed in too fast about a character we don’t know that well, especially because one of the victims in all of this was Jessica’s own teenage son, Lucas (Asa Germann)! She explains that she was just fine disposing of him because his interest in true crime and horror had her assuming that he’d turn out like his dad.
And then there’s Marco, who…well, who knows what his deal is. He met Jessica at Fallbrook after she checked herself in there as a patient and, amusingly, we are told he used to work at Google to hand-wave that he has the background to pull off the highly credible fake Stu AI videos. But why is he doing this? I guess because he liked Jessica a whole lot? The movie doesn’t seem too interested in Marco at all to really properly explain it.
Ghostface Loses Face?!
The final confrontation involves not just Tatum held prisoner, but Mark, who is not actually dead as it seemed earlier, but very badly wounded. Mark is able to help Tatum get free from her bonds, and Sid quickly shoots and kills Marco, taking him and his “I guess just because” motivation out quickly. Jessica makes a run for it, leading to a fight between her and Sidney where both women unleash on each other with various stabbings and bashings before Tatum shows up to save the day and shoot Jessica.
Of course, as established since the first Scream, you gotta shoot these suckers in the head to keep them down for the count, and when Jessica tries to jump Sidney and Tatum one last time, the mother and daughter both shoot her and shoot her and shoot her directly in the face, in the process turning that face into a bloody, disgusting pulp. It’s a pretty memorable exit for one of the less impactful Ghostfaces.
Does Scream 7 Have a Mid- or Post-Credits Scene?
As mentioned at the top, Scream 7 does have its own version of a mid-credits scene…or during-credits scene to be accurate.
After the initial primary credits, including the standard Scream main cast titles accompanied by imagery of each cast member alongside their name, the crawl with the rest of the end credits begins, but it’s accompanied by one additional scene running alongside it.
Though their fellow Core Four members Sam and Tara might not be present, Chad (Mason Gooding) and Mindy (Jasmin Savoy Brown) return in Scream 7.
Though their fellow Core Four members Sam and Tara might not be present, the Meeks-Martin twins, Chad (Mason Gooding) and Mindy (Jasmin Savoy Brown), return in Scream 7 and accompany Gale to town. It turns out that with Gale now doing her own true crime journalism show after her morning show ended, she’s using Chad and Mindy as her so-called interns, with Chad serving as her cameraman. Meanwhile, Mindy makes it clear she has her own aspirations as on-air talent, even attempting to sneak in reports away from Gale earlier in the movie only to be cut off by the savvy Ms. Weathers.
As is their lot in life, Chad and Mindy both get cut up by Ghostface along the way – though not nearly as brutally as last time out – and aren’t present for the confrontation with Jessica and Marco. But in the final proper scene of Scream 7, we see Gale telling an elated Mindy that she should be the one to file the report about what happened in the final showdown, as Gale instead goes to accompany Sid and Tatum to the hospital where Mark has been taken.
The closing credits show in-universe outtakes of Mindy and Chad as Mindy attempts to begin her intro, only to nervously and continually botch what she’s saying as Chad mocks his sister for even messing up her own name. Finally, she gets the intro right, presumably going into the full account of what happened as the sequence ends and the credits continue.
It’s an amusing little extra moment, though obviously nothing plot-significant. But it’s worth noting that Scream never had any sort of ending credits scenes at all prior to Scream VI, which had a super jokey, quick post-credit moment where Mindy mocked the very idea of post-credit scenes. So it seems that it’s now Mindy’s role to get increasingly longer, comedic bits for the Scream closing credits…
It sure looks like a Game Boy, only smaller. It also sounds like a Game Boy, and comes with classic-looking cartridges — though these only play tunes from the original Pokémon games' soundtrack.
In a neat touch, the cartridges include images from Pokémon Red and Pokémon Blue that reflect the music on that particular cart. So, pop in a cartridge with the games' title screen on it, and it's the title screen music that you'll hear. Pop in a cartridge with Cycling Road on it and... you get the picture.
Sound on to be transported back to the 90s!
Listen to the same iconic sounds of the Game Boy system with the Game Music Collection. Embark on a nostalgic audio journey with 45 cartridges featuring music from the original Pokémon Red and Pokémon Blue video games that 🎶 pic.twitter.com/A0VXq1bSmM
45 songs are featured, stored on 45 cartridges. (Or are they all stored on the main miniature Game Boy, and these cartridges just tell it which to play? It is unclear.) Priced at $69.99, the Game Boy Jukebox is available to purchase now via PokémonCenter.com in celebration of the Pokémon franchise's 30th anniversary.
"Relive cherished memories of your Pokémon adventures in the Kanto region by embarking on a new journey to listen to the songs and sounds that helped bring it to life!" reads an official blurb. "In this special collection, you'll find Game Boy Jukebox, a sound toy modeled after the original Game Boy system from Nintendo, along with 45 cartridges that you can insert into the device to hear a familiar melody or sound effect from the original Pokémon video games."
Alas, there does not appear to be any headphone jack — so you'll be listening to the tunes out loud.
Gen Z and Gen Alpha have already reshaped culture so much in recent years, some for the better and some for the worse. Such is the lot of every generation in some way, shape, or form. But according to a recent study, they also want to change the way masculinity is portrayed on screen (despite the fact that what they're looking for is out there).
1,500 young adults ages 10-24 were surveyed by the Center for Scholars and Storytellers at UCLA, and their findings claim this demographic is more interested in seeing the male characters of film and television “moving away from isolation and other masculine stereotypes” and “towards vulnerability and connection” than the reliance on masculine stereotypes that have been prevalent throughout the industry for years. The study was conducted by Yalda T. Uhls, who founded the CSS at UCLA.
Her team has determined newer generations “are asking for a reimagining of how men show up in the lives of others,” according to the published study. “Whether it is a father, mentor, coach, or teacher, the message from the audience was the same.”
The study, which is quite literally named “Evolving Masculinity,” showed that this demo — which consists of young people born between 1997 and 2025 — wants to see fathers “enjoying parenting” by “showing love to kids” in films and television, particularly the youngest of this group (of course, with the lowest participant age being 10).
With parenting comes emotional responsibility — especially for yourself. It turns out 46% of the survey participants want to see “men asking for help, including with their mental health” in films and television, which means almost half of those surveyed see this as a fundamental part of storytelling that they aren’t getting enough of.
“There’s not enough nuance or authenticity in the way that these men show the full range of their emotions,” Uhls told The Hollywood Reporter recently. “Young people are going to make fun of it or reject it.”
Unsurprisingly, some folks have been poking fun at and rejecting something online — this study. The Hollywood Reporter used the 1982 action hit First Blood, starring Sylvester Stallone as Rambo, as the face of their coverage of this study, and that has led to some ribbing jokes on Twitter/X.
“First Blood ends with Rambo sobbing over his PTSD from the Vietnam War,” one user wrote, while another added, “Rambo sequel for Zoomers, in which the VA tells him his PTSD isn’t service-connected.”
But on the whole, fans (presumably belonging to older gens, but who's to say) came out to defend the Rambo franchise for having emotional resonance that would actually make it fit this new gen criteria for masculinity after all.
“The climatic scene in First Blood (where Rambo never kills anyone) is Rambo breaking down crying with grief over his dead friends in his surrogate father's arms,” one fan wrote on X/Twitter. “Isolation is basically the villain of the film. But, importantly, he still looks cool and shoots a big machine gun.”
In response specifically to the part of the study that noted the young gens want to see men dealing with their mental health, several users noted that the use of Rambo as a poser child for what the kids don’t want is actually contradictory. “THAT'S WHAT FIRST BLOOD IS ABOUT,” one fan wrote, while another added with wit, “They don't want Rambo, they want Rambo.”
The researchers pointed to TV shows Heated Rivalry and The Pitt as examples of the "better dads" their respondents say they want to see more of. "For decades, media has relied on the 'stoic provider' or the 'distant hero' as the default for adult men," the report says. "Our data shows that by primarily showing men in positions of power or physical strength, we ignore the roles that young people value, defined by empathy, patience, and emotional availability."
Lex Briscuso is a film and television critic and a freelance entertainment writer for IGN. You can follow her on Twitter at @nikonamerica.
Full book and show spoilers ahead for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, Game of Thrones, and House of the Dragon.
The first season of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms was largely fantasy-free and unburdened by lore, allowing the show to serve as an entry point for viewers who might be new to Westeros. But just because the spin-off series lacks dragons and largely stands alone from the overall saga of A Song of Ice and Fire, that doesn’t mean it’s entirely disconnected from it. A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms’ protagonists Dunk and Egg each play their roles in making sure one of the most consequential characters in all of Game of Thrones lore even exists.
Egg is just a kid squire in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, but he eventually grows up to be King Aegon V Targaryen, with Dunk serving as his Lord Commander of the Kingsguard. (Egg is dubbed Aegon the Unlikely given how far down the line of succession he was.) Dunk and Egg’s fates are intertwined, and the fortune teller they encountered in Episode 3 predicted what’s in store for them decades later (in stories as yet to be written by George R.R. Martin).
"You shall be king, and die in a hot fire, and worms shall feed upon your ashes, and all who know you shall rejoice in your passing,” the fortune teller told Egg (who was not yet revealed to be a Targaryen at that point in the show).
Aegon V’s apparent death at Summerhall has ties to one of the enduring mysteries of Game of Thrones: the identity of The Prince That Was Promised who will save the world from the darkness posed by the White Walkers.
So let’s break down what happened at Summerhall, what it meant for the Targaryens, and how Aegon V’s dragon obsession factors into the flagship Game of Thrones TV series.
Dunk and Egg’s Fiery Future: The Tragedy at Summerhall Explained
Summerhall is a Targaryen palace located near the borders of The Reach, Stormlands and Dorne. Egg’s time as Dunk’s squire instills in him a compassion for the smallfolk and an understanding of their needs. As King Aegon V, he sought to improve the lives of the lowborn, and his reforms made him plenty of enemies among the nobility. During his 26-year reign – which is chronicled by George R.R. Martin in his book The World of Ice & Fire: The Untold History of Westeros and the Game of Thrones – Aegon V dealt with several uprisings and political dangers posed by the aristocrats who loathed him for trying to grant freedoms and protections to the smallfolk.
Aegon realized he needed an insurance policy against such threats as well as a way to force the lords to abide by his rulings. He became obsessed with restoring the Targaryen line of dragons (who die off by the conclusion of House of the Dragon). Aegon spent years seeking ancient texts and lost lore about Valyrian dragon breeding, even commissioning expeditions to the port city of Asshai on the continent of Essos, a distant place said to be home of arcane secrets and where magic users can practice openly.
Aegon’s goal of hatching dragon eggs – a ritual that requires fire and a blood sacrifice – results in the tragedy at Summerhall. In 259 AC, Aegon V invited his extended family and allies to Summerhall in what was meant to be a celebration of the birth of his first great-grandchild. But that wasn’t all Aegon had planned while everyone was visiting his summer home.
While many details are lost to history – an ink blot on a maester’s letter chronicling his eyewitness account of the tragedy has kept the event shrouded in mystery – it’s believed that Aegon employed wildfire and sorcery to hatch dragon eggs and that the resulting blaze went horribly awry, killing nearly everyone present and destroying Summerhall.
Among those killed are Egg, Egg’s son Prince Duncan Targaryen, and many more. Dunk is believed to have perished but it's uncertain. (While the Targaryens lost a slew of would-be successors in the lead up to Egg becoming Aegon V, the deaths of so many members of the ruling dynasty at Summerhall only added to why there are so few Targaryens left by the beginning of Game of Thrones.)
While the tragedy at Summerhall is remembered for so much death, it also marked the birth of a pivotal figure in Game of Thrones lore: Prince Rhaegar Targaryen.
The Prince That Was Promised
Rhaegar Targaryen, the son of “The Mad King” Aerys II and his sister-wife Rhaella, was born at Summerhall as it was consumed by flames. It is said that the last heroic deed performed by Dunk – Ser Duncan the Tall, Lord Commander of the Kingsguard – was saving the pregnant Rhaella. If Dunk had failed to rescue Rhaella (and Rhaegar) then neither Daenerys Targaryen nor Jon Snow would have been born. By saving Rhaella, Dunk ensured that Jon Snow is alive to rally humanity against the White Walkers.
The Targaryens have long believed in dreams and prophecies and many of them, including Egg’s brother Daeron the Drunken, have the ability to dream of the future. Egg’s son Jaehaerys II was told by a woods witch that The Prince That Was Promised would be born of Aerys and Rhaella’s line, so he married his two kids to each other to ensure it would happen.
Their firstborn son, Rhaegar, also became obsessed with the prophecy of The Prince That Was Promised and lived his life as if he was the chosen one. He met at least one of the prophecy’s criteria, which is that the savior would be born amidst salt and smoke. Egg’s brother Maester Aemon (the old man at the Wall with Jon Snow) thought Rhaegar being born during the fiery destruction of Summerhall checked those particular boxes, but Rhaegar was not, in fact, the prophesied one. He would die years before the White Walkers showed up, perishing in battle during Robert’s Rebellion.
So perhaps Rhaegar’s son with Lyanna Stark – born Aegon Targaryen but raised by Ned Stark as Jon Snow – is the chosen one instead. However, the Game of Thrones TV series never quite settled the whole Prince That Was Promised prophecy. No character met all the criteria, not even Jon. (Arya Stark, you will remember, is the one who ultimately slew the Night King, not Jon.) Perhaps then the chosen one was a different great-grandchild of Egg’s, namely Rhaegar’s sister and Jon Snow’s aunt, Daenerys Targaryen.
“Remember that Game of Thrones, A Song of Ice and Fire, House of the Dragon in many ways, or Fire & Blood in many ways, are warnings about the perils of power and people in power, and particularly I think in this world, absolute power,” Condal said. “So I will say, we're very interested in how those things play out in this world and how once somebody is given, as we've seen Rhaenyra [Emma D’Arcy’s queen] be given this football to run with that – ‘my father chose me, I was the Prince Who Was Promised, it must be me, this dragon rider was delivered to me’ – and how that's going to see itself manifested over the course of this war."
Condal later added, “We know Rhaenyra is already running with this idea of the Prince Who Was Promised; if Daemon also believes that is Rhaenyra, as we've seen him say to her in High Valyrian in Episode 8, there's a very interesting thing that can be done with his interpretation of that. … We are not trying to make any kind of specific interpretation of a prophecy that has yet to be revealed by its author. And that is George's world and George's space to tell that story. I think we're more interested in playing with the character drama that lives in and around that imagery."
"It would obviously be a huge pisser to see these two beloved characters come to such a bitter end, but it would also be very on brand for Game of Thrones.
Did Egg Try to Sacrifice Rhaegar?
Since hatching dragon eggs requires both fire and a blood sacrifice, there are fan theories – such as those posted by YouTube channels Joe Magician and Alt Shift X – that the dragon-obsessed Aegon V might have been trying to sacrifice either himself or his newborn great-grandson Rhaegar in the fire in the hopes of hatching the dragon eggs.
That would seem especially cruel given the kind nature of Egg’s character, but the Targaryens have shown that they’ll do the damndest things where prophecies are concerned. As Egg’s brother Maester Aemon once observed, “My brothers dreamed of dragons too, and the dreams killed them, every one.”
For Aegon V, dragons are needed to maintain the Targaryens’ hold on the Iron Throne and to protect his family and the smallfolk from his enemies. As Alt Shift X suggested, if Aegon did try to sacrifice Rhaegar, that would put him into direct conflict with Dunk, who is duty-bound as a knight to protect the innocent.
While Daeron’s vision of Dunk standing over a dead dragon seems most likely to refer to Prince Baelor Targaryen’s death in Episode 5, what if it’s actually a vision of Dunk’s final moments with Egg in the distant future?
It would obviously be a huge pisser to see these two beloved characters come to such a bitter end, but it would also be very on brand for Game of Thrones. Of course, it could also be that things turn out very differently for Dunk and Egg than the recorded history of Westeros would have fans believe.
Actor Dexter Sol Ansell recently revealed during a talk show appearance that George R.R. Martin clued him in on the characters’ fates: “We know Dunk survives [Summerhall] but we don't know if Egg survives yet.” (His co-star Peter Claffey, who plays Dunk, interjected that “we don't know if that's exactly what happens.”)
Egg’s adventures with Dunk build his moral character as a future king, but his actual legacy as Aegon V seems like a mixed bag. Sure, he was good to the smallfolk, but his obsession with restoring dragons proved to not only be his undoing, but also caused the death of many innocents and left deep psychological scars on his family for generations to come.
When I reviewed the original ROG Flow Z13 last year, I was impressed at how capable it was. For gaming, its hot new processor, the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395 (a.k.a. Strix Halo), challenged convention for the kind of framerates you should expect using onboard graphics. Its 2-in-1, dedicated graphics-less design ensured that it would be for a niche audience, but if you were a gamer looking for something like a Microsoft Surface that could play games, the ROG Flow Z13 is hard to beat.
Enter the Asus ROG Flow Z13-KJP, a collaboration between Asus and Kojima Productions that celebrates the ten year anniversary of Hideo Kojima’s studio. Artistically designed by Kojima Productions’ Yoji Shinkawa, it’s a version of the 2-in-1 gaming laptop that appears transported directly out of Death Stranding and maybe even the hands of a Porter themself.
Asus ROG Flow Z13 Kojima Edition – Design and Features
The KJP edition makes for a version of the Flow that you don’t need to be a fan of the game to appreciate. The gunmetal greys and black of the standard version have been replaced with muted gold and carbon fiber, the latter of which immediately draws the eye with its uniqueness. There are decals across its surface, labeling the ports and components hidden beneath, styled like schematics. If you had it side by side with the original, you might also notice that this version also has serrations along the sides, bringing to mind the hull of a spaceship.
Around the back are more creative touches. One heat vent is now part of a carbon fiber panel. The other has been laser etched into a pattern of dotted beams. It’s a design element that is easy to look at and take for granted but also makes the overall design stand out even more.
The included keyboard folio case has also received a facelift. The keycaps are now topped white and gold (WASD), as well as normal black for the outer ring of keys. The typeface is also different, now more stencil-like to create a militarized feel. It’s all intentional and cohesive.
The laptop also comes with its own hardshell carrying case, similarly drawn from the game world. Together, the two are very well done and make a great set. If you’ve got cash to burn, Asus is also releasing a trio of peripherals and accessories as a part of the collaboration: the ROG Delta II-KJP gaming headset ($270), the ROG Keris II Origin-KJP gaming mouse ($170), and the ROG Scabbard II-KJP deskmat ($70). It’s enough to complete a full Death Stranding-themed gaming setup.
But as you can probably tell from the price of the peripherals, each set to $35-$40 higher than their non-Kojima counterparts, these limited editions don’t come cheap. That applies to the Flow Z13-KJP especially with a price tag of $3,700, a full $900 more than the regular Z13 with matching specs. That puts it firmly in collector territory, so it’s a good thing that it pulls off the details so well.
Outside of the new skin, what we have here is essentially the same exact Flow Z13 we got last year in its highest configuration. That means the flagship Ryzen AI MAX+ 395 with its powerful Radeon 8060S integrated GPU and a whopping 128GB of high speed memory (LPDDR5X, 8,000 MT/s). It comes with an easily replaceable M.2 storage drive and a 13.4 inch, 1600p, ROG Nebula IPS display that really feels like it should be OLED at this price. Still, it’s a vibrant and fast (180Hz) display, and won’t leave you worrying about burn-in.
Because it’s a 2-in-1, it can also function as a Windows tablet by detaching the keyboard case. It’s easy to do thanks to its magnetic latch and POGO pins, but it also stays securely in place to act as a folio cover. If you’d rather use it as a normal screen, the bottom half of its rear panel folds out on a secure hinge to act as a full-length kick stand. It’s solid. Beneath the hinge, there are more schematic decals and the M.2 SSD bay for easy storage expansion in the future.
The screen is beautiful and doesn’t seem to lag behind traditional gaming laptops in any way. It gets plenty bright at up to 500 nits, can run at 180Hz to reduce motion blur and input lag, and supports stylus, multi-point touch, and gesture control to fit both professional and creative work. It’s remarkably solid for gaming thanks to its high speed and resolution, and its smaller size makes dropping to 1200p for more demanding games less of a downgrade.
There are also plenty of ports, which is a major upgrade from many other 2-in-1s that add a pair of USB Type-Cs and call it a day. Here, Asus has landed the Flow Z13 closer to a traditional gaming laptop with two USB4 ports, a full-size USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A, a full-size HDMI 2.1, a headphone jack, a microSD card reader, and a power for a power adapter. You can connect peripherals directly, be it a controller or USB flash drive, and if you do need to connect a hub, it’s ready to deliver full speeds. And don’t forget eGPU support, if you’re inclined to improve gaming performance, is supported on either of its USB4 ports at full speed.
Of course, all of this is exactly the same as the original. It still supports Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4, it still has a 13MP rear camera and 5MP IR camera in the front for Windows Hello login. It still has the same 70Whr battery that will get you around nine hours of work and an hour or two of gaming, depending on your settings. And Armoury Crate is still where you turn to adjust performance and customization settings.
The only difference outside of looks, then, comes down to the included carrying case and its weight. Thanks to the different design and materials, the Kojima version is slightly heavier at 3.79 pounds when using the keyboard case (2.76 pounds without). The regular version is 3.51 pounds (2.65 without the keyboard), which makes the Z13-KJP about a quarter pound (127g). But then the adapter is 35 grams lighter, so the two are very close in weight too.
The takeaway? This is a top-spec normal Flow Z13, Kojima-fied, and the decision to pick it up is going to come down to how much that resonates with you.
Asus ROG Flow Z13 Kojima Edition – Performance
The performance numbers here shouldn’t be any different than the original and they’re not. I ran the same benchmarks side by side with the original. That sample was 64GB, but didn’t make a big impact on our roster of tests.
Everything I saw while testing the ROG Flow Z13-KJP could fall within margin or error or to a couple of common culprits, like unknown background processes that decide to fire up and run invisibly. Ultimately, though, this is a case of same hardware, same performance.
With the exception of the Kojima model’s 128GB of memory. For most people, this is simply overkill. Even 64GB of memory is overkill for almost every game out there. The GPU being integrated into the CPU gives it the unique ability to offer configurable VRAM. Theoretically, you could configure it to have more VRAM than the highest-tier desktop GPU, but in practice, that doesn’t offer great returns. For the foreseeable future, there won’t be any games that fully take advantage of the maximum VRAM the Z13-KJP can provide — but it is one of the ways the Ryzen AI Max+ 395 can offer better performance than integrated GPUs have been able to in the past. More video memory raises the ceiling on performance so VRAM doesn’t become a bottleneck.
Instead this massive RAM store seems aimed at everything but gaming. If you’re interested in running local LLMs, extra memory can be a major asset. Likewise, if you’re a creative professional, a system like this can take on demanding tasks like 3D modeling and rendering. That much memory also means that multitasking isn’t going to be kneecapped. With that much memory, you’re more likely to max out your processor before running out of RAM.
Since the performance of the systems for gaming and day to day tasks is just about identical, this review presents a unique opportunity for a long-term revisit of a device I’ve used most days of the week for the last nine months. What’s it like to live with the Flow for more than just a few week review window?
Overall, pretty darn great. Even with the keyboard case, it’s light enough to easily carry without feeling weighed down (though I do use a backpack and not the dedicated case that came with the Z13-KJP). That said, while compact, it’s closer to a laptop in thickness than a competitor like the Microsoft Surface. Asus has to make room for extra ports and better cooling and the trade-off is girth. I’ll take the ports any day of the week, but there’s no denying that the Flow feels chunky after a while.
The versatility of the device is its shining feature, though, and what really won me over. As a daily carry, it was just about perfect for someone like me. When I needed to work, the keyboard case worked flawlessly and offered an enjoyably tactile typing experience. The USB-A port is clutch for my one “must have” dongle and if I need more, the USB4 ports provide enough power for my Dockcase 10-in-1 Smart USB hub to power everything else. Either can be used for charging, too, so I often left my adapter at home.
If I need to present to a room, I am able to connect wirelessly to our main display, mirror screens, and then write in OneNote or slide through a presentation using a stylus. Not included, by the way, and like the OLED screen, I really feel like it should be here at this price.
When it comes to gaming, one of the most repeated Z13 facts is that its Radeon 8060S offers Nvidia RTX 4060 mobile levels of performance. That’s true, but adopting this device also means adopting a mindset of maximizing performance, just like you would with a handheld gaming system. Both use integrated graphics, so it makes sense. It’s a constant game of balancing settings, resolution, performance, and battery life.
In apples to apples tests, the Z13 and RTX 4060 mobile trade blows, but that’s only half the story. The Flow can take advantage of all of the major performance enhancers, like FidelityFX Super Resolution and Fluid Motion Frames (frame generation). The same is true of the RTX 4060 with DLSS and Nvidia’s own frame generation solution. But, the point is, it’s possible to play modern games at decent settings and resolutions while also reaping the size and weight benefits of an integrated GPU.
It’s also the ideal system for streaming games from the cloud. I subscribe to Nvidia GeForce Now and the service works impeccably with the Z13-KJP. If I turn the resolution down to 1080p and run high settings, Battlefield 6 hovers right around 60 FPS locally. If I stream it over GeForce Now, I can easily hit triple digits at full 1600p resolution. The screen sometimes became pixelated due to the emphasis on latency over fidelity for a first-person shooter. A slower paced game like Baldur’s Gate 3, though, didn’t have the same issue 99% of the time.
I have spent hundreds of hours with the Flow Z13 and dozens with the Kojima version. I love it, but can also say that it isn’t going to make sense for many people. Even the standard version demanded a premium for its 2-in-1 yet gaming-centered design, but with this version, you’re getting that premium plus a major hike thanks to the Kojima collaboration.
Make no mistake, this is a very cool machine with a unique and appealing design. But are you willing to spend $900 versus the original ($1,500 compared to the 64GB version) for a case and exterior modeled after Death Stranding? I suspect only the biggest fans would say yes, but to them I can also say that this is a really well-done version.
Top Gun is turning 40 this year, and in celebration of that big anniversary, it's getting a limited edition steelbook (see it here at Amazon). If you're hoping to add this release to your physical media collection, the good news is preorders are now live, and it's sitting with a price tag of $29.99. The wait for it isn't too bad, either, as it's set to be released on May 5 this year.
Head to the link below to get your preorder in, and further down you can learn more about what bonus features you'll get to enjoy alongside the film, too.
Preorder Top Gun 40th Anniversary 4K Steelbook
The front cover for this steelbook highlights Tom Cruise's Maverick in the center, with a big waving American flag behind him, while the back of the case focuses on the skies instead, featuring a pair of fighter jets at the center. The inside of the case also features Maverick giving a thumbs up. You can have a closer look at its design below.
Top Gun 4K Steelbook Bonus Features
This 4K steelbook is also packed with great bonus features, including interviews, commentary, and plenty of featurettes. Check them out below:
Disc 1:
4K Ultra HD Feature Film
4K Special Feature
The Legacy of Top Gun
On Your Six - Thirty Years of Top Gun
Commentary by Filmmakers and Naval Experts
Disc 2:
The Legacy of Top Gun
On Your Six - Thirty Years of Top Gun
Danger Zone: The Making of Top Gun (6-Part Documentary)
Commentary by Filmmakers and Naval Experts
Tom Cruise Interviews
Multi-Angle Storyboards
Best of the Best: Inside the Real Top Gun
Behind-the-Scenes Featurette
Survival Training Featurette
And more...
If you've decided to grab Top Gun and are now feeling the need for even more 4Ks for your library, it's also worth perusing our rundown of upcoming 4Ks and Blu-ray releases. Whether you're in the mood for watching something new, or crave catching a classic in upgraded 4K quality, there's plenty to look forward to in the months ahead. Stock up on your favorites and get ready for many more movie nights.
Hannah Hoolihan is a freelancer who writes with the guides and commerce teams here at IGN.
We now have our hands on the Nintendo Switch 2, a new console from one of the biggest names in gaming. Alas, a new console is only as valuable as the library of games you can build on it.
Thankfully, Nintendo hasn't been shy about planned releases over the next year, which include a mix of Switch 2 exclusives, third-party releases, and the benefit of backward compatibility with any games still launching on the original Switch. Without further ado, here are all of the new Switch 2 games we can look forward to in 2026.
Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness (March 2026) - Nintendo Switch Online
Nintendo announced during its 2026 Pokémon Presents event that Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness would be coming to Nintendo Switch Online sometime in March 2026. Since its a GameCube game, it will only be available to Switch 2 users who also have the Switch Online + Expansion pack subscription. Nintendo only gave a broad March 2026 release date, so we don't yet know the exact date it will become available.
Never Grave: The Witch and The Curse (March 5, 2026)
From PocketPair, Never Grave is a new 2D roguelite where you harness magic powers (as a hat, of course) to journey into the deep, working to help a young witch retrieve her soul. You also have a home base you can build and upgrade into your own little village.
Coffee Talk Tokyo (March 5, 2026)
We finally have a release date for the next iteration of Coffee Talk, a cozy cafe series developed by Toge Productions. Manage a new but familiar cafe while learning more about your human and yokai customers.
Bubblegum Galaxy (March 12, 2026)
From the creators of Teacup, Bubblegum Galaxy is a new cozy game that puts you in a position to quite literally build worlds. After a galaxy server gets mysteriously “deleted,” you’re an intern tasked with crafting new planets, completing missions, and befriending a rag-tag group of co-workers back at your interdimensional office.
WWE 2K26 (March 13, 2026)
There may be a surprisingly large amount of sports games on the Switch, but one franchise that is only just starting their relationship with the Nintendo consoles is WWE. Following the Switch 2 Edition of WWE 2K25, WWE 2K26 will be launching on Switch 2 consoles the day of its official release.
We’re getting a third game in the Monster Hunter Stories series, a sub-series of Monster Hunter that we’re pretty big fans of (we gave the first one an 8.9/10, and the second got an 8/10). The next story will follow a civil conflict between Azuria and Vermeil, two nations threatened by a “crystal encroachment.” A demo is available now, with players able to carry over their save data to the full game.
Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun (March 18, 2026)
The real-time tactics game Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun as well as its standalone expansion Aiko’s Choice are both making their way to Switch 2 this March. Originally released back in 2016, our review of the game claims that if you can get past some frustrating camera controls, you’ll find “one of the most punishing and clever top-down stealth games.”
Super Mario Bros. Wonder - Nintendo Switch 2 Edition (March 26, 2026)*
Nintendo knows they have some modern classics, and they’re giving them a lot of love with this Switch 2 release. Following up on last year’s Super Mario Galaxy remaster, Nintendo is releasing a Switch 2 edition of Super Mario Bros. Wonder, which we originally said "establishes a new standard for what 2D Mario platformers should look like" in our 9/10 review. The Switch 2 edition will feature a new area called Bellabel Park, new playable characters, and tons of new mini-games.
Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection (March 27, 2026)
Collections are always solid bang for your buck, especially if you’re nostalgic for a particular franchise or happen to be part of a generation that missed out on one. This Mega Man collection includes seven games, including the emulated versions of every mainline Mega Man Star Force game, that were originally released on the Nintendo DS back in the mid-2000s.
Goat Simulator 3 (April 1, 2026)
A bit of a throwback to the 2010’s and the era of the screaming goats memes, but the latest Goat Simulator release from 2022 will be getting a Switch 2 edition this spring.
Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream (April 16, 2026)*
Tomodachi Life was a particularly unique game under the Nintendo umbrella, and I was pretty darn excited to see the series coming back on the Switch 2. The concept of creating Miis and watching them interact on a little island has more novelty than you can imagine, I promise, especially given the range of customization. Nintendo has also fulfilled their promise to introduce more inclusivity after criticisms of the original 3DS game.
Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream happened to get its own dedicated Nintendo Direct, where you'll find gameplay footage and plenty more information.
Pragmata (April 24, 2026)
After a series of delays dating back to 2021, Capcom finally “re-revealed” Pragmata with a firm release date and confirmation of cross-platform support. Hugh Williams gets injured while exploring a lunar-controlled space station, where he finds Diana, a Pragmata android. The two are classified as intruders, and must combine their hacking and shooting skills to find the truth of the space station. You can learn more about this one in our hands-on preview.
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle (May 12, 2026)
Set between Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Last Crusade, this MachineGames adventure game places Indy on a quest for the secret of the Great Circle. Travel the world, from the Great Pyramids to sunken temples, infiltrate historic areas, and beat up baddies during your daring escapes. We had a lot of love for this one when it originally launched on consoles and PC, calling it “far and away the best Indy story this century” in our 9/10 review.
The second part of the Final Fantasy VII revamp is coming to Switch 2 consoles this summer. After escaping the city of Midgar, Cloud and co. must traverse across a massive beautiful world in pursuit of Sephiroth. IGN’s 9/10 review describes the game as “both a best-in-class action-RPG full of exciting challenge and depth, and as an awe-inspiring recreation of a world that has meant so much to so many for so long.”
Besides the graphics update, Rebirth introduces a new affinity system with allies and, yes, a ridiculous amount of side quests and mini-games.
The Adventures of Elliot: The Millenium Tales (June 18, 2026)*
The Adventures of Elliot is a new HD-2D RPG from the creators of Octopath Traveler and Bravely Default. While exploring ruins near his hometown, Elliot discovers an artifact that lets him traverse space and time. From there, you must travel across four ages, each with unique citizens and scenery, to try and save your home.
Upcoming Switch 2 Games With Unknown Release Dates
There are plenty more Nintendo Switch and Switch 2 games in development that don’t have a solid release date yet. Here are some more games we know are on the way, including the highly-anticipated 10th generation of Pokémon:
Charizard - love it or hate it, there’s no denying that this Pokémon is an icon in its own right. It may be #0006 in the Pokédex, but it’s #1 in the hearts of Trainers across the globe. Since taking place front-and-center on Pokémon Red’s cover art 30 years ago, this Fire-type is iconic in its own right.
Since its debut in the Base Set of the Pokémon Trading Card Game, back in 1996, Charizard has been printed on a whopping 50 unique cards. But which is the most iconic? Let’s settle it, once and for all.
10. Charizard VMAX (Champion's Path 074/073)
Released in 2020 as part of the beloved Champion’s Path expansion in the Sword & Shield era, the stunning "Rainbow Rare" Charizard VMAX is coming in at number 10.
I love how this card’s distinctive rainbow-foil really brings out its looming Gigantimax figure. While the Pokémon Company has moved away from rainbow secret rares in the Scarlet & Violet era, this Zard Card was many players' first chase card when the hobby boomed during the pandemic.
It maintains a fairly pricey market value of $180 on TCGPlayer - not bad for a card that’s nearly 6 years old!
9. Dark Charizard (Team Rocket 1st Edition #4)
The Team Rocket expansion in 2000 introduced the concept of "Dark" Pokémon to the TCG - Pokémon that had been raised by Team Rocket to be as ferocious as possible. These cards typically had a brown and black artwork window, higher attack damage and lower HPs compared to normal Pokémon.
Frightening stuff, and a great tease into Shadow Pokémon we’d eventually get in Pokémon Colosseum, released in 2003. A 1st Edition Holofoil goes for $674.66, proving this card’s premium status.
8. Mega Charizard X ex (Black Star Promo 023)
Designed by artist Saboteri, this SIR card was the headliner of the gorgeous 2025 Mega Evolution Ultra-Premium Collection. The blue flames of Charizard’s Dragon-type Mega X form, contrasted with the red Japanese text, translated as ‘Inferno X’ - this card’s signature move.
This move allows you to discard any amount of Fire energy from among your Pokémon, and do 90 damage for each card you discarded in this way. It’s not the most expensive card going at $38.53 average, but it is one of the most recognizable.
7. Charizard TG03 Full Art (Lost Origin)
Charizard and the Galar Region Champion, Leon - name a more iconic duo! Based on their dominant appearance in the Pokémon Sword & Shield games and the Journeys anime, this full art card shows off the bond between the two. I particularly love how Leon morphs his hands into Charizard’s claws, and how its attack, Royal Blaze, does 50 more damage for each Leon in your discard pile. It doesn’t fetch the highest price - $29.95 - but you can’t put a price on friendship, can you?
6. Charizard ex Special Illustration Rare (Paldean Fates 234/091)
This scrawling illustration by Akira Egawa shows off the Dark-type Tera Charizard. While fans are torn, calling the design ‘lazy’, I couldn’t disagree more. It fetches a tidy $187.09 on TCGPlayer, proving the appetite is still there for this crystalline card.
5. Charizard VSTAR (Black Star Promo SWSH262)
A battle of legends is automatically iconic - this is exactly how it felt on the playground playing the TCG all those years ago. Originally released in the 2022 Charizard Ultra-Premium Collection, this card features a breathtaking action shot by Kiyotaka Oshiyama. Fun fact - this card connects with the Mewtwo VSTAR card from Crown Zenith.
4. Shining Charizard (Neo Destiny #107)
Neo Destiny introduced "Shining" Pokémon, the first set to use a triple-foil process that made the Pokémon shimmer with a metallic texture. Note - this is not a Shiny Charizard! It actually predates "Shiny" as the term for palette-swapped Pokémon. It's one of the most prized Pokémon cards ever printed. A 1st Edition Neo Destiny Shining Charizard remains a holy grail for collectors, fetching $6,165.99 at time of writing on TCGPlayer.
Pokemon Skyridge was one of the final sets produced by Wizards of the Coast, meaning this card only ever saw a single print run. Its "Crystal Type" Poké-Body gimmick allowed it to change types based on Energy attachments, which feels very reminiscent of Generation 9’s Tera mechanic - something we’d only see in Generation 9, 20 years later.
The English Gym Challenge era let Trainers cosplay as four Kanto Gym Leaders - Blaine, Giovanni, Koga, and Sabrina. Blaine’s Charizard was the undisputed king of the set. With gorgeous watercolour art from Ken Sugimori, it captures the fiery intensity of the Cinnabar Island leader and his loyal Charizard. Leon who?
The 1st Edition card mistakenly prints Charizard with a Fighting energy symbol. Later printings corrected it to Fire, but the first instance of the word "energy" remained lowercase in all printings. These errors have made Blaine's Charizard a hot commodity among collectors, with a 1st Edition Holofoil going for as high as $852.01.
1. Charizard - 1999 1st Edition Shadowless Base Set
Without doubt, Mitsuhiro Arita’s original 1999 illustration is the most famous piece of cardboard in history. This Charizard card is the de facto face of Pokémon TCG. This specific "Shadowless" version lacks the drop shadow on the right side of the art frame, identifying it as a first edition copy of the card. With record-breaking auction prices and universal recognition, it remains the gold standard for Pokémon collectibles.
The reveal of Pokémon Winds and Pokémon Waves for Nintendo Switch 2 has given us our first look at the franchise's long-awaited 10th generation of creatures — as well as many returning favorites.
Below, we've rounded up every Pokémon species already confirmed to appear in the series' Gen 10 games — including its three new Starter Pokémon, the lovable Browt, Pombon and Gecqua.
Those three were the only all-new species announced today, alongside a returning cast of several dozen familiar faces that you'll be catching, hatching and trading all over again.
Today's first Pokémon Winds and Pokémon Waves trailer includes at least 28 species, which we've listed below. In brackets, we've also listed their accompanying evolutions (and in Pikachu's case, its baby species) as the inclusion of one Pokémon in a family typically means the inclusion of them all.
If this continues to be the case, the number of species technically confirmed is already around 50 (and likely a few more than that, as each starter creature will almost certainly get two evolutions).
For now, though, here's every Pokémon species we've seen in Pokémon Winds and Pokémon Waves with our own eyes:
Pokémon Winds and Waves confirmed species list
Pikachu (Pichu, Raichu)
Oddish, Gloom (Vileplume, Bellossom)
Krabby (Kingler)
Tangela (Tangrowth)
Ledyba, Ledian
Slugma (Magcargo)
Wingull (Pelipper)
Taillow (Swellow)
Wailmer, Wailord
Duskull (Dusclops, Dusknoir)
Corsola
Mareanie, Toxapex
Sandygast (Palossand)
Tropius
Carnivine
Tympole (Palpitoad, Seismitoad)
Nymble (Lokix)
Sizzlipede (Centiskorch)
Lumineon (Finneon)
Frillish (Jellicent)
Tynamo (Eelektrik, Eelektross)
Browt
Pombon
Gecqua
Of course, Pokémon now has 1028 unique species (including today's new starter confirmations). Recent games have typically featured a large chunk of that in their Pokédex, though it's been some time since the last title that featured every single species.
Add in costumed creatures, gender differences and other alternate forms, and quickly it becomes clear why no game has tried to cram everything in. Already Pokémon Winds and Pokémon Waves have introduced two new unique Pikachu, too, the improbably named Mr. Windychu and Ms. Wavychu. Yes, really.
Why has Pokémon stopped including every species in each game? In a nutshell, The Pokémon Company has suggested that there are now just far too many to feature in every game, and balance against everything else. Add that's not even counting the many regional species variants, Mega Evolutions, Gigantamax forms and more now found throughout the franchise.
Early teasers for a 30th Anniversary Pokémon TCG set were shown during the recent Pokémon Presents livestream. It will feature "an exciting line of products" that will be released later this year, with minimal other details revealed so far.
This has the potential to be similar to the "Celebrations" set that was released in 2021 to commemorate Pokémon's 25th anniversary, and featured reprints of iconic cards like Charizard, Blastoise, and more.
Ring in 30 years of the Pokémon TCG! 🎉
To celebrate, an exciting line of products is set for simultaneous global launch in participating markets in 2026. Stay tuned for more details! #Pokemon30pic.twitter.com/DdCpcpP7DV
13 cards were shown off during the 30th anniversary teaser video, including Pikachu, Arceus, Raikou, Palkia, and several others, all of which could be getting reprints as part of the new set.
Teased with the line "The Future Awaits" were a potential look at new Mew and Mewtwo cards.
Enthusiast Pokémon site Pokebeach has also speculated that the new set will be called "Celebration Collection" that was trademarked back in November last year.
The commemorative Pokémon Day 2026 Collection also dropped not too long alongside Ascended Heroes. It's a small release featuring one confirmed card: a unique stamped foil promo card of Pikachu looking cute as standard, along with a logo’d metallic coin, and a trio of TCG booster packs from different sets.
Designed as a celebration of the bonds between Trainers and their First Partner. Each collection includes 1 Promo Booster Pack, where you can pull three of nine illustration rare-style promo cards.
Robert Anderson is IGN's Senior Commerce Editor and resident deals expert on games, collectibles, trading card games, and more. You can follow him @robertliam21 on Bluesky.
The Pokémon Company has just unveiled the next generation of Pokémon games, Pokémon Winds and Pokémon Waves, and with it the three new starter Pokémon who we'll choose a partner from to accompany us on our journey. Among those starter Pokémon is a cute little Fire-type pomeranian-inspired dog named Pombon, and within seconds of its reveal, fans were begging it to stay on all four legs.
please let pombon remain on all fours, please arceus
If this is confusing to you, you probably have a healthy relationship with how many limbs creatures tend to stand on, but as I'm also in the "please don't stand up, Pombon" camp, allow me to explain. Pokémon starters tend to come in two varieties: two legs (and two arms/wings), and four legs. And often, those Pokémon will change how many limbs they are standing on at some point in their evolutionary lines. As an example, Mudkip starts on four legs, but when it evolves into Swampert, it stands on two, with its two front legs now serving as arms.
What fans are upset about is how in recent generations, most quadrupedal starter Pokémon end up standing up on two legs by the time they fully evolve. For example, Sprigatito, the grass cat from Scarlet and Violet, starts on four legs, ends on two. Sobble and Grooky from Sword and Shield do the same thing. As does Litten from Sun and Moon, Fennekin and Froakie from X and Y, and Tepig from Black and White. If that doesn't sound like too much, note that in almost every single generation, the starter Pokémon I didn't list above are already on two legs when introduced and stay there, so the end evolutionary result is often a trio of bipeds.
There has been one happy recent exception in Fuecoco from Scarlet and Violet, who started on two legs and actually put its arms down and became a quadruped in its final evolution to Skeledirge. And there are other older exceptions as well, like Popplio (two flippers and a tail, admittedly, but it stayed that way all through its evolutionary line), Snivy (started with two legs and two arms, ended with zero limbs, a snake), Oshawott (did the same thing as Fuecoco and became a quadruped), and early Grass-type starters who stayed on all four like Turtwig, Chikorita, and Bulbasaur.
Given all that variety, why do people care so much about this? Look, it's admittedly a little bit silly, but for many fans, a lot of very cute and lovable starter Pokémon have stood up during their evolutions and ended up with weird, unpopular designs. Specifically, fans dislike when animalesque designs get humanoid final evolutions, such as in the cases of Litten, Fennekin, and Tepig. Some of it is just aesthetic preference, but some of it also feels a bit like a bait and switch. Fans buy into a specific starter because they like its themeing (a cat, a fox, a pig) but by the end of the game end up with something seemingly unrelated (a wrestler, a magician, a warrior) and are disappointed, but stuck with their choice.
So in this case, everyone has quickly fallen in love with the little pomeranian fire dog, and would like that pomeranian fire dog to become stronger and cooler without losing its identity as a pomeranian fire dog, a thing that could be accomplished at least in part by it staying on all four legs and not standing up. Given the past history of evolutionary reveals, fans are unlikely to find out what Pombon turns into until launch (unless, as usual, designs end up leaking early). Best of luck to Pombon fans on the dice roll for this guy, I'll be right there with you if the bean bird doesn't steal my heart by then.
As we get closer to the release of The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, a variety of fun tie-in goodies and toys are dropping for fans to check out. Even cereal brands are getting in on the fun. Both Trix and Lucky Charms have released some new variations on their cereals in collaboration with the upcoming movie, with each box offering their own tasty flavor.
If you're a big fan of Trix, this tie-in cereal comes in a blue raspberry flavor. Prefer the magically delicious Lucky Charms? This version is strawberry flavored with some galactic marshmallow shapes thrown in of planets and stars. Head to the links below to order a box if they've caught your eye.
Trix and Lucky Charms Super Mario Galaxy Movie Cereals
For those hoping to have even more Super Mario Galaxy Movie-themed items, there's plenty more to check out right now alongside these cereals. In particular, if you're curious about toys, the adorable Hatchin’ Yoshi toy is also back in stock right now at Walmart. This one has seemed like an incredibly popular pick, so it's worth grabbing now if you're interested before it goes out of stock again.
Jakks Pacific has also revealed some new toys and figures for The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, which are definitely worth checking out as well. These range from 5-inch figures to a deluxe Bowser Castle playset and even posable jumbo plush dolls, so there are plenty of different options to explore if you're shopping for collectibles.
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is set to be released on April 1 this year, so the wait isn't too much longer. If you're curious about what to expect from the upcoming release, have a look back at our breakdown of The Super Mario Galaxy Movie Nintendo Direct to see everything we learned about it back in January.
Hannah Hoolihan is a freelancer who writes with the guides and commerce teams here at IGN.
Connexion
PC Gamer
IGN
