This article contains spoilers for the finale of Ironheart.
They say the devil is in the details, but it turns out that the devil is also finally in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). As of the season (series?) finale of Disney+’s Ironheart, “The Past is the Past,” Mephisto has finally, officially arrived in the form of actor Sacha Baron Cohen… Thankfully, not giant and red, wearing only his underwear, as per Marvel Comics’ depiction of the bad guy. Though we wouldn’t put the Borat actor past that.
That said? The reveal of Mephisto is just the tip of the iceberg in hell that Ironheart dropped in its closing hour, including a wild twist cliffhanger, a mid-credits scene that sets up some potentially big things for the MCU, and a general, even bigger question as to whether given the circumstances surrounding Ironheart if any of this will be followed up, ever.
Ironheart Ending Explained
For context, the episode starts off as we discover how Parker Robbins (Anthony Ramos) got his demonically powered hood. After trying to rob his own father, he escaped thanks to some help from a mysterious stranger (that would be Mephisto), munching pizza in Desperito’s Pizza. We’ll ignore that the pizza is decidedly not Chicago style, which is either Mephisto playing a classic trick in the Windy City, or a missed opportunity to tie deep dish pizza to the devil. This leads to the present, where Parker is losing control of his powers and becoming more demonic by the minute.
Enter Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne), who now has magic armor, but as a cost, has lost N.A.T.A.L.I.E. (Lyric Ross), the AI modeled after her dead best friend. Undeterred, she heads to Desperito’s to confront Parker before he can attack her family, and discovers Ezekiel Stane (Alden Ehrenreich) is there, desperate to escape from Parker’s control over his biological implants. Riri knees him in the groin, resets his controls, and Zeke thanks her but assures her that in the future they won’t be friends. “Just know you and I aren’t done,” Zeke says, still salty after Riri ruined his life and landed him in jail.
Anyway, that’s a series wrap on Zeke, and it’s on to the final battle with Parker. The Hood loses it, literally and figuratively, with Riri beating him up, taking his hood and leaving him, to paraphrase the immortal words of Natalie Imbruglia, cold and shamed, lying hoodless on the floor. That’s when Riri heads to the seating area of the pizza place and discovers Mephisto is once again eating non-Chicago style pizza. This guy won’t quit it! He loves pizza!
In case you’ve lived through the whole Mephisto saga online for the past half a decade: yes, it is 100% definitely Mephisto, he even says it out loud. Speculation that Marvel’s devil could show up stretches all the way back to the beginning of the Disney+ era and WandaVision in 2021, continued through 2022 when Cohen was cast on Ironheart, and was fired up big-time when they dropped the name of the baddie on Agatha All Along. And now, here he is in the flesh, tempting Riri Williams alongside a slice of pizza… Even if the pregnant pause Cohen adds delivering his character’s name lands like a thud with Riri. “Oh,” she says, nonplussed. “Is that supposed to mean something to me?”
…Well, it definitely means something to the viewing audience at home. And it also quickly means something to Riri, as – shocker – she makes a deal with the devil. While not explicitly stated, she clearly asks for Mephisto to bring N.A.T.A.L.I.E. back. But the twist is that Mephisto doesn’t bring the AI back… He brings the real Natalie back to life, after being gunned down prior to the events of the series. And the stinger at the end as Riri hugs her confused friend? The same devilish veins that grew all over Parker Robbins the more he used his hood have begun to snake their way up Riri’s arm. Yuh-oh!
What does this all mean? And what about that mid-credits scene?
Ironheart’s Cliffhanger Teases Projects That May Never Happen
So, here’s the deal: Ironheart was announced in 2020, mostly filmed in 2022, and then there was reportedly some added production in 2024. There was clearly some retooling of the series last year, but this is also a project that comes from a version of the Marvel Studios overall plan that doesn’t quite exist the same way in 2025. From a slowing down of the release of movies and TV shows, to a rethinking of how Marvel Television approaches the small screen in general, a project like Ironheart that is “more of a six-episode movie” is – at least as Marvel has explained – not how they’re doing projects anymore.
And while we won’t know whether the stingers on Ironheart will be continued or not until they are (or are not), there are plenty of plans that have been either announced or denounced in the half a decade that Ironheart has been in the works.
Armor Wars is the first that comes to mind, formerly a Disney+ series starring Don Cheadle as War Machine, spinning off the end of Secret Invasion. That was “upgraded” to a movie in 2022, but perhaps due to the less-than-enthusiastic response to Secret Invasion, or the tightening behind the scenes, we haven’t heard much since. Thorne was reportedly going to reprise her role as Ironheart in the Disney+ version; the film, TBD.
Similarly, it would make sense that a rivalry between Ezekiel Stane and Riri Williams could have (and could still) continue in a movie that’s all about various Iron Man-related characters fighting. But again, with that movie in doubt, it’s up in the air whether Enrenreich is building a one-and-done franchise curse between this and Solo: A Star Wars Story.
How about the mid-credits, though? This is pure speculation, but educated speculation as to what this could have been leading up to. In the mid-credits scene, Parker goes to Stanton’s, the combo candy store/magic store that is home to Zelma Stanton (Regan Aliyah). He wants help and is interested in Zelma’s magic, but she’s dubious (as she should be). But Parker won’t quit, he wants to see the real magic stuff in the back of the store. “I know you don’t know me, at least not yet. But if you’re up for it, how about a little abracadabra?” Parker says as we cut to black.
While never officially greenlit, back in February Marvel paused development on a TV show version of the comic Strange Academy. Per the title, it’s a magic school set up by Doctor Strange, and it was expected that the TV show version would be run by Wong (Benedict Wong). In the books, Zelma Stanton is a key character and works as the school’s librarian. On Ironheart, she’s probably a little young for that, but repeatedly mentions how interested she is to study magic at Kamar-Taj, the monastery where Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) trains in the first titular movie, and later America Chavez (Xochitl Gomez) in Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness.
It’s not too much of a stretch to think that a potential Strange Academy series could feature both Zelma and The Hood – or whatever Parker becomes without said demonic hood. At the very least, this is the most likely suspect for what this mid-credits scene was leading up to… Another possibility that doesn’t seem very likely to happen any time soon.
The other possibilities for following up on some of these characters could include Black Panther 3, given Riri debuted in the second Black Panther movie. That movie has at least been announced and is in the works from director Ryan Coogler, though we don’t have a timeline on when that will appear on screen… Nor any announced cast members, other than Denzel Washington in a mystery role.
Less sure but leaning into the magical aspects of Ironheart is Doctor Strange 3, something rumored given the blockbuster status of the previous movies, and a cliffhanger at the end of the second film. But that hasn’t been confirmed other than in the rumor mill, nor is it clear if it was greenlit that it would follow up on any of these plotlines, what with it being a Doctor Strange movie and not Ironheart 2 (feat. Doctor Strange).
And in terms of projects that are definitely in motion, the entire MCU seems to be set to appear in either Avengers: Doomsday and/or Avengers: Secret Wars. It seems unlikely that either movie would have the room to deal with the weird veins growing on Riri’s arm, given the scale, but stranger things have happened.
But what of Mephisto? He’s a Thanos-level villain in Marvel Comics, and fans have been anticipating his debut for years now. It seems a little crazy to think they’d leave him on the shelf. A Doctor Strange movie could be the likeliest possibility for Mephisto’s next pizza date, as the hero and villain have tangled multiple times in the comics. But again, we just don’t know where he’ll be seen next.
And in fact, it’s unfortunately likely that none of this will be followed up on in any significant way. Times have changed for Marvel, strategy has changed, and the company that greenlit Ironheart way back in 2020 is not the same Marvel that we see today. Things could change again, of course. Most likely, what you see on screen in this finale is the end of the road for these characters, for the moment. Like Riri and Parker’s deals, we got what we wanted when it comes to Mephisto… But at what cost?
Mecha Break speaks to a very specific kind of sicko: the kind of person who plays multiplayer games looking for perfection. Not overall – there’s no such thing as a “perfect” piece of art. But perfect moments? The perfect shot, the clutch dodge, confirming the last kill that wins you the match? They’re out there, in that things come together just the way you need them to. I’ve only gotten to play a couple hours of Mecha Break ahead of launch (which, if you’re reading this, has just happened) so I have a lot more to see, do, and unlock in this robot-themed hero shooter, but I can already say it’s a game that lets you build your own stories.
Over the course of a two-hour preview event (playing on PC) I got to play five matches and try out five of the 15 different mechs available (with the free-to-play model Mecha Break is using several of the ones I tested will need to be unlocked once it goes live, but we had free reign for our preview). One of the things I appreciated most was how much variety there is, both in mechs and match types. Mecha Break has every kind of mech you could want: heavies like the Stego with the ability to plant itself in the ground, sit behind a shield, and launch a massive missile barrage; the Falcon, which transforms into a plane, Starscream-style, making it an ideal choice for folks who like to zoom across the expansive battlefield and rain death from above; and my personal favorite, the Alysnes: a medium-weight, more traditional mech that becomes smaller and more agile after its armor is blown off. Survive long enough in this form and you can reapply your armor, like some kind of mech-flavored Magical Girl. Everyone has different armaments to manage, and I had to tailor my playstyle to the mech I tried. Picking the right one is important, because once you’re locked in and the match starts, you’re stuck with it.
This list catalogues a small amount of what’s available, and since the mode we were playing kept our six-person team from having duplicate mechs, it led to some really great fights. I had a particularly tense rivalry in one game where my Alysnes faced off against another player’s camo-enabled, melee-focused Stellaris. We clashed several times, and they were long, drawn-out duels that tested everything from our overall map awareness and positioning to when we decided to attack. We were building rivalries in real time, and it made for some memorable moments. Some I lost, others I clutched out, but the fights were all exciting.
Some I lost, others I clutched out, but the fights were all exciting.
Other matches showcased that there’s a ton of variety when it comes to modes, even if none of them is anything too far out of the box. We started in a traditional deathmatch (first to eight kills wins), but we also played King of the Hill, another mode where you have to destroy points that appear on the map, one that asked us to capture launch keys and deliver them to a launch facility, and good ol’ fashioned payload escorts. I had fun no matter what the objective was, and I appreciated that Mecha Break let me contribute no matter what I was doing. Even keeping another mech distracted while your team hits the objective (or killing them outright) can swing a game, especially because respawns take a hot second longer than they do in most comparable games. If you can take a piece off the board for a bit, that matters. For example, while piloting a Stego against another player in the same heavy-hitting mech on the opposite team, keeping him out of the fight long enough for us to secure the last objective helped decide that match.
The maps themselves are a smorgasbord of interesting locations. One is a combination mountain range with a valley and a destroyed city. I could set up and snipe at other mechs from the high ground with the Stego, but to get the objectives (and stay in the fights over them) I needed to head down where I was more vulnerable. Another is at a missile launch facility where you can choose between fighting outside with limited cover, or getting up close and personal in the tight corridors of the facility itself. There’s even one set on the moon that includes both open skies and large craters and small canyons just big enough to squeeze through, ideal for dodging enemy fire or moving around out of sight. The real trick there is the pulse storms, which damage your mech unless you take cover.
Each map felt distinct and forced me to approach situations in different ways depending on where I was and what mech I was piloting. A Stego’s long-ranged firepower is amazing in open space, but its slow speed makes it a liability in areas with less elbow room. The Alysnes’s versatility, on the other hand, means it’s right at home in both but never hits quite as hard as a Stego in the right conditions. You’ll probably just make use of its melee weapon less when you’re fighting across open ground.
Naturally, two hours isn’t nearly enough to wrap up a review of a game like this, so I have a lot left to see in Mecha Break: I want to get a feel for more of the mechs and the other modes, and see what progression feels like. But so far it’s made a good first impression. I’ve come away liking the little moments, and the stories I’ve already been a part of in a short session. Now we just have to figure out if Mecha Break has the juice to keep telling them for the long haul. If you’re jumping in to play at launch, let us know if anything cool has happened to you thus far.
Summer has arrived and neck fans are once again increasing in popularity. These portable fans wrap around your head and are a simple and effective way to keep your noggin cool and breezy. If you're not sure whether a neck fan is worth it for you, at least you can give it a try with minimal risk with this early Amazon Prime Day deal. Amazon is currently offering 50% off the FrSara Rechargeable Portable Neck Fan with coupon code "CWE2O6ER". For Amazon Prime members, prices start at just $13.50 after the code is applied. To be honest, most of these inexpensive neck fans on Amazon look like they came from the same factory, so it really just comes down to finding the lowest price. Also, if you don't like it, Amazon offers an easy 30 day return policy.
FrSara Rechargeable Portable Neck Fan for $13.49
The FrSara portable neck fan features brushless motors that spin a pair of tiny fans built into each earcup and keeps your neck area cool. The 5,200mAh rechargeable battery is bigger than what I generally see in other cheap neck fans and lasts from four to sixteen hours on a single charge depending on which of the three fan speeds you select. The tradeoff is that this neck fan is also a little heavier than most. FrSara advertises its neck fan as "whisper quiet" although that would probably depend on the speed setting.
A portable neck fan has plenty of practical uses, especially if you're going somewhere hot and humid (like Disney World Orlando in the summer). For gamers, it makes a lot of sense because your room can get pretty toasty on a hot day, especially with your gaming console or PC working overtime and exhausting tons of hot air. Additionally, if you're like me and you get sweaty whenever you wear a gaming headset, a neck fan could be the perfect solution for that too. Keep in mind though that any neck fan will have one limitation; if the air is warm, the wind blowing through will also be warm (although if you're already sweating, evaporative cooling makes up for this). That isn't a fault of this neck fan, just a limitation for any fan that simply moves air instead of lowering temperature.
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.
On July 9, Samsung will host its third and final Galaxy Unpacked Event of 2025. Samsung hasn't revealed much beforehand other than its tagline "Ultra Unfolds," however the company is widely expected to release new foldable variants in its Galaxy smartphone lineup. In advance of the event, you can place a reservation online in order to get some early bird perks if you end up placing a preorder. These include:
A bonus $50 Samsung credit
Up to $1,150+ in additional savings (most likely from trade-ins)
A chance to enter the sweepstakes for $5,000 in Samsung credit
If you're even slightly interested in getting your hands on the new smartphones, there's no reason not to reserve. Since this isn't a pre-order, you don't have to place any kind of deposit, and there's no commitment to buy.
Samsung Galaxy Unpacked July 9, 2025: Reserve Now
Although Samsung is tight-lipped about the details, we can infer that the next generation Galaxy Z Flip 7 and Galaxy Z Fold 7 smartphones will be officially announced and go up for preorder shortly therafter.
Last year's Galaxy Z Flip 6 was one of our favorite foldable phones of 2024. In our Galaxy Z Flip 6 review, Jacqueline Thomas wrote that "Despite its size, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 is an extremely potent smartphone, making it perfect for anyone that doesn’t want to haul around a larger device without losing any of the performance."
The bigger Galaxy Z Fold 6 was also a solid winner in our books. In our Galaxy Z Fold 6 review, Jacqueline Thomas wrote that "The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 is an extremely powerful smartphone, thanks to the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 that powers it. That chipset allows this complicated phone to keep up with other Android flagships, while also allowing it to quickly swap between folded and unfolded modes without missing a beat. However, the weird aspect ratios of each screen mode can be divisive, and can be a turn-off for anyone that doesn’t like fiddling with their phone settings."
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.
Alienware's Black Friday in July Sale has officially kicked off, and one of the best deals I've seen so far is this Alienware Aurora R16 RTX 5080 gaming PC for just $2,099.99 shipped. This is $250 less than the previous best deal I've seen on the same configuration, and one of the best prices you can get for any prebuilt RTX 5080 gaming PC. The Alienware Aurora R16 is a well-engineered and compact gaming rig with 240mm AIO water cooling, sensible airflow design, and a generous 1,000W 80Plus Platinum rated power supply. In the current market, buying a prebuilt gaming PC is the only way to score an RTX 5080 GPU without paying an exorbitant markup. If you were to try to find a 5080 GPU for your do-it-yourself PC build, you'll probably spend $1,400 for the graphics card alone.
Alienware Aurora RTX 5080 Gaming PC From $2,099.99
This system is equipped with an Intel Core Ultra 7 265F processor, GeForce RTX 5080 graphics card, 16GB of DDR5-5600MHz RAM, and a 1TB M.2 SSD. Note that this is a customizable configuration so you can upgrade the CPU and GPU or increase your memory or storage capacity. It's pre-configured with a 240mm all-in-one liquid cooling solution.
The Core Ultra 7 265F is part of Intel's newest Arrow Lake-S lineup released earlier this year and boasts a max turbo frequency of 5.3GHz with 20 cores and a 36MB L2 cache. This is an excellent all-around CPU for gaming, multi-tasking, and general workstation performance. For gaming, you won't see any improvement upgrading to a Core Ultra 9.
The GeForce RTX 5080 GPU will run any game in 4K
The RTX 5080 is the second best Blackwell graphics card, surpassed only by the $2,000 RTX 5090. It's about 5%-10% faster than the previous generation RTX 4080 Super, which is discontinued and no longer available. In games that support the new DLSS 4 with multi-frame generation exclusive to Blackwell cards, the gap widens. This is an outstanding card for playing even the latest games at 4K resolution with high settings and ray tracing enabled.
Check out more Alienware Black Friday in July deals
Check out our Best Alienware Deals article with all of Dell's currently ongoing deals on gaming laptops and desktop PCs. Not everyone is the DIY type. If you're in the market for a prebuilt gaming PC, Dell is one of the best brands we'd recommend. Alienware desktops and laptops feature solid build quality, top-of-the-line gaming performance, excellent cooling (further improved on the newer models), aggressive styling, and pricing that is very competitive with other pre-built options. Best of all, there are plenty of sales that happen throughout the year, so it's not difficult to grab one of these computers at considerably less than their retail price.
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.
Feeling the pinch but still itching for the best in pixels and/or polygons? My daily haul of discounted gaming delights has something for every playstyle, whether you're a trophy fiend, a couch co-op junkie, or just overdue for a solo narrative binge. The price drops are deep, the genres are varied, and the digital shelves are practically begging for your thumb.
This Day in Gaming 🎂
In retro news, I've made a big cake with a 26 on it for Ape Escape, the first game to explicitly require a DualShock controller. In these modern times where the dpad is a vestigial limb, it's difficult to explain just how exciting it was to transition from that clunky cross to twin analog sticks. Cameras could be controlled like we were Spielberg. Platforming through a 3D space could be done with a finer degree of accuracy. Using the right stick to swing our weapons was...er, way less intuitive than just pressing a button.
Nintendo fans can enjoy a brutal brawler history lesson with Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection, a pack that includes the ultra-rare Red Earth arcade release from 1996. Or revisit Sonic Frontiers, a divisive but ambitious open-world experiment that drew design inspiration from Breath of the Wild. Yes, really.
Xbox Series X users might pounce on Monster Hunter Wilds, where Capcom’s RE Engine gets another workout in lush new biomes set for 2025. Meanwhile, Death’s Door is a stylish indie gem that channels old-school Zelda vibes with a touch of Studio Ghibli weirdness.
PlayStation 5 owners can whip out the fedora for Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, which ropes in Wolfenstein dev MachineGames for its Nazi-thumping campaign. Or explore the new Elden Ring expansion, Shadow of the Erdtree, which was so jam-packed that FromSoftware had to raise the game’s file size by over 20 GB.
Over on PC, Ghost of Tsushima Director’s Cut makes its platform debut complete with unlocked framerates and ultrawide support. And for sheer value, it’s hard to beat Gris, a mesmerising emotional platformer that started life as a sketchbook by artist Conrad Roset.
Halloween has come and gone, but horror movies have no limit on enjoyment. As one of the most prolific and profitable subgenres in cinema, audiences are always in the mood for some spooky scaries. Fortunately, thanks to the accessibility of streaming services, places like Netflix are home to a plethora of chilling choices. Between original offerings and licensed titles, there’s a horror movie for anyone and everyone. To get you started, we’ve tracked down some of the must-see horror titles currently available to stream on Netflix.
Those original offerings are becoming more important. Netflix's horror section has eliminated many titles released before 2000, except maybe around Halloween. The platform is all-in on exclusives and international titles, which often get added with little fanfare. Netflix is letting other streamers keep their Conjurverse entries and familiar classics. We're here to try everything and let you know what's worthwhile.
Please note: This list pertains to U.S. Netflix subscribers. Some titles may not currently be available on international platforms. This article is frequently amended to remove films no longer on Netflix and to include more horror movies that are now available on the service.
Psycho (1960)
What’s there to say about Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho that hasn’t been written by eleventy-billion film scholars already? It’s a masterpiece of tension and suspense, as Marion Crane checks into the Bates Motel … but never checks out. Anthony Perkins’ charming mamma’s boy of a psychopath is the definition of creepy, all while Hitchcock toys with our minds. We hear Norman’s mother, see Norman’s mother kill a few victims—or so we believe. There’s a reason movies are described as “Hitchcockian,” because so few filmmakers have done it better.
47 Meters Down (2017)
I’ve reviewed quite a few shark movies for IGN over the years. Not to be too negative, but it’s been choppy waters to say the least. That’s why when I say 47 Meters Down is one of the better shark-based horror films of the last decade, you know I mean it. Mandy Moore and Claire Holt are divers stranded on the sea’s floor, trying to survive as sharks continually thwart their escape attempts. Filmmaker Johannes Roberts excels at tracking action underwater and delivers some expertly horrifying shark encounters, whether in almost complete darkness or lit by red flares. You better believe this fin flick has bite.
Barbarian (2022)
One of the wildest horror movies of 2022 hit Netflix this month. Zach Cregger’s Barbarian opens as a riff on Airbnb horrors, but quickly proves — again and again — to be something incredibly uncontainable. What begins as tense banter between renters, played by Georgina Campbell and Bill Skarsgård, evolves into a no-holds-barred genre buffet that’s better experienced without any reveals. Justin Long interjects as Barbarian dares to express the meanest of streaks, as Cregger explores decades of evil without any safeguards. You can check my full review for more, but I’d suggest hitting play blind to details.
Smile (2022)
Smile is a textbook definition horror movie that is scary enough, composed enough, and does pretty much everything just enough. Sosie Bacon stars in a film where haunting grins signal that you're about to become the next victim of an evil entity. Storytelling lacks a tightness as characters come and go from the absurd scenario, but the scares are all aces. Writer and director Parker Finn understands the bread and butter of most horror experiences comes down to primetime chills. Finn's movie exists to make you scream and scream you shall. I'm not sure everything about the ending works for me personally? But it's still worth the stream for the adrenaline spikes alone.
Dawn of the Dead (2004)
When I say Zack Snyder does best when directing someone else's script, I'm talking about Dawn of the Dead. It's one of the best modern zombie movies (the 2000s are still modern, right?), living up to the prestige of George A. Romero's original Dawn of the Dead. But it's also a unique take with fast-moving zombies that bring a viciousness to the subgenre. Snyder's eye for horror is cutthroat as a cast of survivors—including Sarah Polley, Ving Rhames, Mekhi Phifer, and Ty Burrell—try to survive zombie hordes outside their locked-down mall fortress. It's the perfect formula for a remake, standing on its own merits while respecting Romero's source material.
Dead Talent's Society (2024)
I've said it before and I'll say it again: John Hsu's Dead Talents Society is a cutesy and buoyant Taiwanese horror-comedy guaranteed to put a smile on your face. Expect shades of Monsters Inc. and Beetlejuice, as the dead compete in afterlife competitions as scare celebrities. It's partially a sports comedy as Gingle Wang's rookie specter strives to become a legendary scare master, but there are also creepy paranormal thrills and hilarious gore moments. Dead Talents Society is a bit of everything as a horror-comedy, and always for the better. Be sure to give this import a shot.
Talk To Me (2022)
The Philippou brothers made the jump from YouTube maniacs to feature-film directors with A24's efficiently creepy Talk to Me. It's a spin on traumatic horror themes told using a party game mechanic. Teens make bad decisions and allow dead souls to inhabit their bodies so they can record viral videos, which takes an appropriately devastating turn. The Philippous bring that social media energy to Talk to Me, but impress more as horror filmmakers who can nail a solid scare. It's their feature debut but hardly feels like one — Talk to Me summons the genre goods.
Death Note (2017)
Adam Wingard’s Death Note adaptation failed to start a franchise for Netflix, but I think the overall reception was a bit harsh. I don’t mind Death Note, Willem Dafoe’s Ryuk, or Wingard’s translation of manga pages to screen. Lakeith Stanfield ends up stealing the show as prodigy detective “L,” but that’s not to dismiss a cast that includes Margaret Qualley and Shea Whigham. Sure, it’s uneven when considering how gory some scenes are followed by something oddly neutered, but the overall experience is worth a watch if you’ve been avoiding Death Note since its less-than-glowing debut.
Shadow in the Cloud (2020)
So have you seen the World War II gremlin movie starring Chloë Grace Moretz yet? Why not? The majority duration takes place in a B-17 bomber, where Moretz and her co-stars must thwart a pesky gremlin from disassembling their craft. It’s a play on old wartime stories about mischievous creatures on flights, turned into a chamber piece about a crew’s best efforts to face the unexpected while flying through the sky. Moretz is the anchor here, really selling the B-Movie elements in a story that can be a little turbulent, but due to its audacity, I can’t help but urge others to give this zany thriller a shot.
Grave Torture (2024)
Joko Anwar’s been busily putting modern Indonesian horror on the map with titles like Satan’s Slaves and Impetigore (streamable on Shudder). Now he’s taking over Netflix with his latest feature film, Grave Torture. Anwar’s style blends cultural touchstones with universal horror vibes, in this case depicting Siksa Kubur (aka grave torture), a punishment inflicted on sinners after death. It’s a religiously coded nightmare complete with frightening visuals and harrowing death sequences, confronting beliefs and traditions with grim tones. It’s what Anwar does best, and while I’d rate Grave Torture on the lower end of the filmmaker’s catalog, that’s only to emphasize the quality of his other works.
Till Death (2021)
"A woman finds herself shackled to a corpse as part of a revenge plot." Megan Fox plays the previously mentioned woman handcuffed to her stone-cold dead ex in one of her recent indie horror ventures. It's not that Till Death is revolutionary; more how Fox carries a gimmick film through engaging thrills as she drags her co-star's lifeless body around a house and away from killers. Till Death knows it's only ever trying to be a chilly Friday night stream at barely ninety minutes, and that's the proper mindset. Fox's "comeback tour" raises eyebrows with Till Death, a movie worth a gamble based on the premise's better-than-expected execution.
It’s What’s Inside (2024)
I’m a sucker for “party horror” movies like Talk to Me or Bodies Bodies Bodies, where gameplay becomes a nightmare for characters. Greg Jardin’s It’s What’s Inside is the latest example, blending sci-fi ambitions with parlor entertainment for pre-wedding festivities. It’s a story that relies on twists and turns, which won’t spoiled here, so trust my praise when I say it’s one of the year’s most thrilling and addictive mysteries. Expect an existential, out-of-body whodunit, playing blame games versus pursuing bloodcurdling frights. Put this one on with a group and have a blast — those are the vibes.
Under Paris (2024)
Xavier Gens’ Under Paris reverses the curse on a recent drought of good shark horror movies. It’s a ridiculous hybrid that somehow stays afloat between Jaws themes and a Geostorm-bonkersdisaster scope. A mako shark gets loose in the Seine River just before a massive triathlon that Paris’ leadership refuses to reschedule. It’s not an all-out action flick until about two-thirds through, but that doesn’t sink the experience. For those who love Dick Maas movies like Uncaged or Amsterdamned, Under Paris flows with the same vibes. Early patience is rewarded with a high-intensity third act filled with bloody waters, frantic swimmers, and enough governmental incompetence to make Mayor Larry Vaughn blush.
Ouija: Origin of Evil (2016)
It’s wild to think how a prequel as good as Mike Flanagan’s Ouija: Origin of Evil could follow something as forgettable as 2014’s Ouija. Flanagan goes back to basics with Habro’s Ouija board storytelling, stepping in as a fixer who brings legitimate terror and tension to the series. A cast including Flanagan regulars like Kate Siegel and Henry Thomas execute a possession tale influenced by The Changeling that delivers solid 1960s genre vibes. It’s Flanagan operating within his wheelhouse - what more of a recommendation do you need?
Thanksgiving (2023)
If I’m being honest, part of me thought we’d never see a feature-length version of Eli Roth’s Thanksgiving. Kudos to the slasher filmmaker for pressing studios to make Thanksgiving until Spyglass Media Group finally caved, rewarding patient fans with a Massachusetts massacre that carves with the best of ‘em. Roth sells every delicious Thanksgiving detail and indulges holiday horror accents, utilizing everything from pilgrim costumes to corn cob holders to parade floats at ramming speed. It’s a hybrid slasher that updates the subgenre for modern tastes while remaining dedicated to the splattery golden age of horror violence, finding that sweet spot between storytelling and grotesqueries. I’ll be in line for seconds, thirds, and more if allowed.
The Conference (2023)
Work sucks, but luckily The Conference doesn’t. It’s a furious “Worksploitation” slasher that puts a knife to the throat of scummy corporate culture. Kills all have a taste of the great outdoors since the film takes place at a woodland work retreat, from machetes through hammocks to a splashy jacuzzi death. The Swedish commentary on greedy business folk comes with a nasty savageness and cheeky workplace satires, comparable to other winning work retreat horror tales like Severance.
Circle (2015)
Clever indie filmmakers can make something out of nothing. Aaron Hann and Mario Miscione’s Circle is an excellent representation of that idea, about 50 people who wake up in a dark room arranged in a circular formation. The premise is simple: someone has to die every two minutes. That’s it. Hann and Miscione turn social experimentation into a thriller about characters arguing their point about why they should be the one who lives another round, relying on dialogue to sell the existential dread at the script’s core. Minimalism is the film’s secret ingredient: getting straight to the point and keeping a quick pace in a way that never loses our attention.
Eli (2019)
Eli can feel like a horror movie Mad Libs as the story keeps evolving, but that becomes the film’s ultimate charm. It’s about a boy suffering from an auto-immune disease trapped in a quarantine environment who begins to ponder his imprisonment. The “Bubble Boy” beginning turns into a haunted house thriller that becomes an even crazier third act that I won’t spoil for you now. I’m not saying every big swing is successful, but I’ll go to bat for Eli as a horror film that loves to prove expectations wrong. Give me weird and wild over conventional any day — especially when you have the freedom of streaming releases over theatrical constraints.
Nobody Sleeps In The Woods Tonight (2020)
In the mood for a 2020s Polish slasher created by lovers of 80s American horror trends? Bartosz M. Kowalski uses the campground massacre template to execute a contemporary slasher that feels as throwback as rereleases of Crystal Pepsi. It's a familiar brand of campers meeting gruesome fates one by one with a massive emphasis on practical effects, the goriest and most obscene of which become an overall saving grace. Kowalski aims to prove that Polish slashers can hack 'em up with the best of them, even if there's not much else to praise with the same enthusiasm. If you want blood, you've got it by the truckload.
Girls With Balls (2018)
It’s killer rednecks versus a championship volleyball squad in Girls With Balls. Expect a horror comedy with exploding heads and a musical cowboy acting as a narrator who sings about the gratuitous violence on screen. Don’t expect a brilliant subversion of gender tropes in slasher movies — Girls With Balls is an effects-heavy slaughter spree that doesn’t try to be anything else. International approaches to comedy make some jokes harder to laugh at stateside, so as long as you can focus on the balls-out aggression on screen, you should find entertainment in another bloody backwoods fight for survival.
The Block Island Sound (2020)
Kevin McManus and Matthew McManus summon a creepy coastal caper from the depths of Rhode Island waters. It’s more eerie than aggressive as multiple subgenres swirl together in this unsettling waterlogged mystery. You can expect psychological horror, eco-horror, aquatic horror, even possession horror as Block Island community members try to understand the unexplainable events washing upon their shores. The Block Island Sound weaponizes the idea of "siren songs," toys with out-of-body nightmares, and mixes a spoonful of grief into the batter as storytelling churns like a storm that won’t pass.
Before I Wake (2016)
It’s the Mike Flanagan movie that gets talked about the least — in my experience — yet deserves the world. Flanagan does what he does best: tell a powerfully emotional story using fear, family, and creatures. Jacob Tremblay plays an adopted child who’s terrified of falling asleep because of a ghoulish figure known as “The Canker Man.” Butterflies and fantasy worlds don’t detail the scariest horror experience, as Flanagan leans on childhood imaginations that turn traumatic memories into inescapable boogeymen. Maybe it’s that softness of scare volumes — coupled with unfortunate studio bankruptcies that forced an unceremonious Netflix dump premiere — that caused such comparatively little fanfare over the years (considering Flanagan’s hype elsewhere). Hopefully my recommendation can help Before I Wake find new streaming life.
Under The Shadow (2016)
Babak Anvari’s Under the Shadow is a phenomenal cross section of national trauma invaded by nightmare demons. A family in war-torn Iran is plagued by visits from djinns as if exploding bombs outside and military threats weren’t enough. Anvari manipulates shadows and creates haunted architectures under Iraq-Iran conflict conditions, highlighting the terrors of both. There are some extremely effective scares and fresh deliveries of otherwise common fright-flick molds because, when in doubt, turn to international flavors for something original.
Incantation (2022)
Kevin Ko’s Taiwanese found footage flick Incantation speaks in clichés, but that doesn’t make them any less frightening. You’ll get a few good jolts as a mother must protect her daughter from evils she called upon by breaking religious taboos. Translation: foolish viral video ghost hunters defy the unknown and pay consequences both then and later. The script is murky on the camera’s rules regarding who is filming from a found footage sense and taboo happenings around the entity’s curse. Nevertheless, there’s an interesting concept around interactive found footage horror that smacks of the Ring franchise in its social media focuses, and you’ll yip a few scared noises — you could do way worse on Netflix.
Patrick Brice’s slasher adaptation accomplishes two massive feats for modern horror flicks: keeps us guessing and slaughters without restraint. It’s another film about teenagers getting sliced and diced by a masked killer, but it’s stylish and fierce enough to carve its own path. Situational misdirects keep audiences guessing who could be guilty of mass murder as characters point fingers while blood runneth everywhere from church confessional booths to aflame corn mazes. Don’t expect the next Scream or anything, just a solid contemporary slasher that succeeds when it matters most.
Cargo (2017)
One of Netflix's first original horror films is still one of my favorites. Ben Howling and Yolanda Ramke's Cargo stars Martin Freeman as a father traversing the Australian outback with his daughter — also, there are zombies. Think The Walking Dead as an undead film that's more about its human characters facing survival drama than zombie action, except this one packs sturdy emotional stakes. Freeman's traveler encounters psychos, ferocious walkers, and weather elements that add thrills to Cargo, but what's unexpected is how a baby doesn't weigh the narrative down. Child subplots in horror are a tricky formula to crack that Cargo gets right, as the fears of protective parents translate into a hearty zombie experience.
Does The Babysitter indulge McG’s tendencies as a director who loves popular needle drops and quotes pop culture like a middle schooler who discovered HBO? Yes. Is it also written by Brian Duffield of Spontaneous fame — a magnificent young adult dark comedy – and does it star modern scream queen in the making, Samara Weaving? Thankfully, these saving graces play into McG’s bounce-about take on horrific humor as a child realizes his babysitter is performing a cult ritual while mom and dad are out for the night. A supporting cast including Robbie Amell, Bella Thorne, Hana Mae Lee, and Andrew Bachelor all have their moments subverting specific “hunted home alone” tropes — still, The Babysitter is Samara Weaving’s showcase. Tune in, share some laughs, soak in a devilish Weaving performance, and check out Netflix’s funniest spooky original so far.
Netflix's original horror game rose to another level with The Ritual, David Bruckner's directorial debut outside segments in The Signal, V/H/S, and Southbound. Four friends take a northern Swedish hiking trip in memory of their deceased fifth, only to become victims of a woodland nightmare. Visions begin by layering psychological horror as the characters confront fears or guilt, then cultism adds communal dread, and lastly, Bruckner delivers on creature-feature goods. One source of terror feeds into the next and provokes future traumas, all interconnected as Bruckner weaves in and out of multiple horror subgenres with ease. There's so much to enjoy as Swedish forestation becomes an isolated outdoor prison, and then all hell breaks loose. Bruckner flaunts his filmmaking chops in a significant way.
Blood Red Sky (2021)
Peter Thorwarth’s Blood Red Sky boils down to vampires on a plane — but not like the SYFY channel throwaway such a title suggests. Nadja (Peri Baumeister) is a bloodsucking mother whose only motivation is to keep her son alive from hijackers who want to crash a commercial flight. It’s far tenser and emotionally comprehensive than expected, staying far away from being another Snakes on a Plane knockoff. Performances are substantial, whether gruff terrorists or ferocious mothers, while intensity drives home an action-horror experience like airliner blockbuster Non-Stop but with more sucked blood. It's a solid vampire movie worth your time.
Apostle (2018)
Director Gareth Evans did not come to play with the gorgeous and gory Apostle. While the Netflix original is several years old at this point, it still feels like this one never got the attention it quite deserved. Before the era where Netflix original films were super prevalent, Apostle follows Thomas Richardson (played by none other than Dan Stephens) as he seeks out to rescue his sister from a strange, secluded cult.
#Alive (2020)
No one does a zombie movie quite like South Korea, and #Alive is one of the absolute best. A video game streamer decides to lock himself in his apartment while a zombie outbreak destroys the surrounding city of Seoul, but just as he’s losing all hope, he discovers that his neighbor in the apartment across from him is also still alive. The two create a zipline to share food, and share walkie-talkies to communicate with one another, while zombies terrorize the world outside of their walls. It’s a film as much about the human need for interaction as it is about survival, and the constant threat of zombies keeps keeps every moment filled with exhilarating tension.
Creep (2014)
Fans of POV/found footage horror films, rejoice, because Creep is one of the best in this style. In Patrick Brice’s directorial debut, Creep follows a filmmaker named Aaron who answers a strange man named Josef’s online ad to film him for the day, the final request of a man claiming to be dying of cancer hoping to make a video for his unborn child. Upon arrival, Aaron realizes that there’s something super weird about Josef and with the camera constantly rolling, we witness the absurdity and danger in store for Aaron. Come for the wild as hell Mark Duplass performance, stay for the Peachfuzz mask. If you love it, Netflix also has the sequel — Creep 2.
The Fear Street Trilogy
Leigh Janiak was the talk of the summer when Netflix dropped the cinematic trilogy based on the popular book series by “Goosebumps” author R.L. Stine, Fear Street. The Fear Street trilogy brought three separate movies to tell one cohesive story about the cursed town of Shadyside and the inhabitants impacted by generational horror. Each film is predominantly set in a different time period, delivering a little treat for fans of slashers, hauntings, teen horror, queer horror, and folk horror. The three films work best when watched all together, but each film can successfully stand on its own, making it a must-see trilogy.
Gerald’s Game (2017)
Stephen King’s Gerald’s Game was considered to be his “unfilmable” work, but if anyone is capable of proving King wrong, it’s Mike Flanagan. The man behind The Haunting of Hill House, The Haunting of Bly Manor, Midnight Mass, Hush, Doctor Sleep, and others successfully tackled Gerald’s Game and provided one of Netflix’s best original horror releases. Gerald’s Game is a terrifying descent into madness and home to a dynamite leading performance by Carla Gugino.
His House (2020)
Remi Weekes truly made something special with His House, arguably one of the scariest films on the Netflix roster. A haunted house story on the surface, His House centers on a refugee couple escaping war-torn Sudan only to find that the English town they’ve fled to may be just as harrowing as the land they left. The source of the film’s horror lies not just with the supernatural elements, but also with themes of grief, guilt, abandonment, xenophobia, and assimilation. It’s a powerful haunt that will linger with you long after the credits roll.
May The Devil Take You (2018)
If there’s one area where Netflix thrives with their horror offerings, it’s with their international selection of scares. Genre fans have been praising the work of Timo Tjahjanto for years with his standout shorts in The ABCs of Death and V/H/S/2, but his feature film work in Indonesia is arguably his best, and Netflix’ acquisition has brought his work to mainstream Western audiences. In May The Devil Take You, a young woman visits her father’s former home trying to find the answer regarding his mysterious illness, only to discover the horrifying truth about his past.
The Perfection (2018)
Go into The Perfection as clueless as possible (but be aware of some triggering rape stuff), because half the fun of this psychological horror film is trying (and failing) to guess just what happens next. Allison Wiliams plays a former cello prodigy who returns to her prestigious music school to find that she’s been replaced by the new star student, Lizzie played by Logan Browning. The Perfection plays with exploitation film conventions and completely subverts them on their head in absolutely unpredictable ways. It’s a wild thrill ride and truly, perfection.
Vampires Vs. The Bronx (2020)
Vampires have been used as metaphors for a variety of othering, but Vampires Vs. The Bronx highlights humanity’s true villain –gentrification. After a trio of young best friends discover a brood of vampires are preparing to destroy The Bronx, they take matters into their own hands and get the community together to fight back against the monsters invading their home. Calling it The Lost Boys for a new generation feels too easy, but the Frog Brothers would be proud do see how Miguel, Bobby, Luis, Gloria, Lil Mayor, and the rest of the gang tackle the aptly named Murnau real estate film. Leave the stake, take the adobo.
A good night's sleep is essential for a healthy and productive day. If you're having trouble sleeping, especially when you're travelling and bedded in unfamiliar accomodations, then you might when to check out this early Amazon Prime Day deal. Amazon is offering the diminutive Dreamegg portable white noise machine for just $9.49 after you apply 50% off coupon code "6TVMPOMB" during checkout. I bought one the last time this went on sale and it has worked as intended in a nursery, keeping the baby soundly asleep.
Dreamegg Portable White Noise Machine for $9.49
The Dreamegg measures less than 2" cubed and weighs in at under 2oz, making it easy to carry along with you on your travels. You don't need to bring along a power brick or spare batteries either; the internal 1,000mAh battery (doubled in capacity compared to its gen 1 model) lasts all night long and the recharges over the universal USB Type-C standard.
In terms of its features, the Dreamegg sound machine offers 16 soothing nature sounds, including ocean waves, rain, birds, fan sounds, and, of course, white noise. Since it's supposed to be placed next to you on a beside table, it doesn't need to have oversized speakers, but the Dreamegg is still loud enough to help drown out other ambient noises that might otherwise keep you awake, like late night conversations, urban fauna their groove on, or music blaring outside.
For travellers with babies, this is a near essential device. In my experience, a white noise machine is one of the best ways to keep a baby sleeping, even in noisier environments, and a surefire way to maintain your sanity.
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.
The paperback box set of the core five Witcher books is on sale at Amazon, which has a surprising amount of book deals ahead of its Prime Day sales. You can pick up the full collection for $35.40, which is 61% off the original list price of $89.99.
The collection doesn't include the two prequel short stories, The Last Wish and Sword of Destiny, or the standalone prequel Season of Storms, but you can pick those up individually or in their own box set. These all share the same red spine design as the main box set, so displaying them on a shelf won't drive you insane as it would for me if they didn't match.
Get the Entire Witcher Series on Sale
The Witcher centers around Geralt of Rivia, a monster-killing, bounty-hunting Witcher with magic powers and a penchant for toxic relationships. Throughout the saga you'll meet a colorful cast of characters like Princess Cirilla, who Geralt is tied to in a twist of destiny, Dandelion, Geralt's close friend and wandering bard, and Yennefer of Vengerberg, a sorceress and subject of Geralt's aforementioned complicated love life.
If you're new to the Witcher series, the reading order can be a bit complicated with jumping timelines, the prequel, and the short story collections. Here's a quick TL; DR on how to read the Witcher books in order:
The Last Wish (short stories)
Sword of Destiny (short stories)
Season of Storms (you can also read this last)
Blood of Elves
The Time of Contempt
Baptism of Fire
The Towers of Swallows
The Lady of the Lake
I'd highly recommend these books to anyone who enjoys CD Projekt Red's loose adaptation of them in the form of The Witcher games. As we wait (probably quite a long time) for The Witcher 4, what better opportunity is there to dive into the original lore?
When Will The Witcher Return on Netflix?
Aside from the games, The Witcher books have also been adapted by Netflix... relatively faithfully. Henry Cavill played the titular character for seasons 1-3, with Liam Hemsworth replacing him for season 4 onward. The new season is likely arriving in the second half of 2025.
In our review of season 3, volume 2, we said "[it] closes out its most compromised season yet by once again losing Henry Cavill in the clunky, plot-heavy shuffle", and gave it a five overall.
Let's make this easy. You want to know if there are any post-credits or mid-credits scenes in Jurassic World Rebirth. Well, we'll tell you right here:
There are not.
But read on about the new movie all the same!
Life finds a way, and so does the Jurassic franchise, thanks to the seventh film in the series, Jurassic World Rebirth. But with the adventure on Ile Saint-Hubert in the rearview mirror, is this film setting up a new trilogy, or is it a standalone movie? The answer is “maybe” to the first question, and “maybe” to the second one. A lot, you may not be surprised to hear, depends on how well the movie does this week/weekend at the box office.
Directed by Gareth Edwards (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Godzilla) and starring franchise newcomers Scarlett Johansson as Zora Bennett, Mahershala Ali as Duncan Kincaid, and Jonathan Bailey as Dr. Henry Loomis, Rebirth received a 5 out of 10 score from IGN's Clint Gage. "For a movie that promises a 'Rebirth,' the latest Jurassic World plays it frustratingly safe, falling back on the blueprint of the original film, but not shedding any of the problems with the more recent movies," reads the review.
Still, if you’re looking for an explanation of the ending of the movie, and how it could set up a sequel – or even a new trilogy – then be sure to check this space on Friday when we update this page with full spoilers.
Does Jurassic World Rebirth Have A Mid- or End-Credits Scene?
Nope! As stated above, after the final shot, there are just credits for the movie. You should always hang out to pay tribute to the awesome folks who worked on a film, but if you’re wondering whether Blue pops up for a last-second surprise, or Mr. D.N.A. is back for revenge, you’ll have to wait for Jurassic World Rebirth 2: Reborn Again.
Check back on this page on Friday for all the Jurassic spoilers you could ask for!
Sonos is offering a fantastic deal on one of its most popular speakers. I think it's going to beat any Sonos deal we'll see during Amazon Prime Day. The Sonos Era 100 retails for $200. Normally, you could purchase a certified refurbished model for $159, but Sonos has jut discounted it even further to $119, or 40% off compared to the price of buying new. This is the lowest price I've seen for an Era 100 speaker. Sonos refurbished products are like new, include pristine packaging and all original accessories, and come with the same one year warranty as a brand new product.
Sonos Era 100 Smart Speaker for $119
Certified refurbished with 1 year Sonos warranty
The Sonos Era 100 is a direct improvement over the now discontinued Sonos One. This is a small standalone powered speaker that pumps out great sound for its small footprint. Unlike the Sonos Move or Roam, this is not a portable speaker with a built-in battery, so you'll need to leave it plugged in. Sound quality is equivalent to a Sonos Move, which isn't surprising considering they have similar internal components: two tweeters, a mid-woofer, and three class-D digital amps. The Era 100 also supports Dolby Atmos when it is paired with an Arc or Beam soundbar. It has a built-in microphone and can be voice controlled; it can also be used as a smart speaker for both Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant.
Why is Sonos so popular?
Sonos is always on our list of best bookshelf speakers and best soundbars because they offer good sound, pleasing aesthetics, and easy setup in a reasonably priced package.
Sound quality vs size
Despite the fact that Sonos products are compact and don't take up much space in your house, they offer surprisingly loud and distortion-free audio. They're definitely pricier than budget options, but the sound quality is more akin to audio products that cost hundreds more or take up much more space.
Easy setup
Sonos devices are usually simple plug and play. All you have to do is plug in a power cable (if even that's necessary) and one connection to your TV (if even that's necessary), download the Sonos app, and you're done. Generally a receiver isn't required; the soundbars are designed to plug right into your TV and the speakers are designed to work wirelessly. For something like a 5.1ch home theater setup, you don't have to deal with a mess of cables. Individual Sonos speakers can pair with your soundbar and be used as rear satellites, and the subwoofer is also wireless so it can be positioned virtually anywhere in your room.
Communication between devices
Practically all Sonos speakers can communicate with each other. That means you can pair different Sonos speakers in different rooms for multi-room capability. Or you can pair two speakers for stereo output. Or you can pair speakers to your soundbar to be used as a 5.1ch setup. It's all seamlessly done through the app.
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.
The new AMC and AMC+ series Nautilus revisits the iconic antihero Captain Nemo from Jules Vernes’ classic sci-fi adventure novels Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea and The Mysterious Island, chronicling the submarine commander’s quest for revenge against the ruthless East India Mercantile Company.
Star Trek: Discovery and Penny Dreadful actor Shazad Latif plays Nemo, and IGN was recently able to chat with him about the series, the first two episodes of which have now debuted. (This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.)
IGN: How much does this version of Captain Nemo stick with what Jules Verne eventually revealed about that character and how much of it is just a necessary reinvention for this show?
Shazad Latif: It's [in] The Mysterious Island where we learn that he might have an Indian background, because of a prince called Dakkar. So the book takes that element and we run with that. And we still run that his wife and child have been killed and his hell-bent revenge on the East India Company, which sort of plays into what Verne was still talking about.
But then we have 10 episodes of exploration, so we have a lot of free rein to follow this guy's story and eventually find out how the Nemo we meet in the books and how we get there, really. There's free rein, but we also stick quite true to it. … Xavier [Marchand], our producer, was obsessed with Jules Verne himself.
IGN: One of the inventions of the show that I liked, I thought it was really smart, is the idea of the development of the Nautilus itself. In the books Nemo just basically makes it on his own. But you would think, if you don't have any money left, that's a lot of work for one guy.
Shazad Latif: Yeah. No, exactly. It's good to see in the first episode, that that's what they're doing, I really like that touch, and how they escape with it. And then it's not his ship then, but it becomes his ship, and he sticks his daughter's shell on it later in the series. It's nice, the emotional connection he has to this ship, which seemingly is just this big piece of metal in the junkyard.
IGN: Nemo’s fellow prisoners become his crew. What do they think of him? Do they trust him?
Shazad Latif: Well, I think at first it's like, "Who the hell is this guy telling us what to do?" And suddenly he's just become captain and taken charge. And you need someone to take the lead. Yeah, it becomes a bit of a poison, because he's just ordering people about and not really explaining his reasons. So I think that we see that come to a head in the series, I think, around episode seven or eight, and it builds throughout.
But there's a moment where he realizes you can't really do that. And if he needs and wants this team to help him on his revenge mission, then he has to be truthful with them, and the truth will set you free. And then being vulnerable around the people you need is a good lesson, I think, in life in general, especially for hot-headed dudes like Nemo. It is a great thing, and it's necessary in his journey.
IGN: He seems morally dubious at times, at least in the first episode.
Shazad Latif: I think the morally dubious stuff, he's almost willing to do that because he's seen as a prisoner anyway. And also, revenge is clouding his judgment, so he's like, "I'm going to kill these guys, I'm going to kill everyone, and they killed my wife and child." So that's where we start, with the seething anger. And he slowly dissipates that by realizing that's not the only way to do it and you need other people. But yeah, that is the starting point, where he's willing to do anything, and that includes breaking the law, as it were, which he doesn't respect anyway, especially if the law has been made by the East India Company or the British Empire.
IGN: What was the actual production like? Because it looks really good and really expensive. How much of this was actually shot on the water? Or was it all green screen?
Shazad Latif: No, I think it was a great mix of everything. We were on the [water] tank and three sound stages, which had all the interiors and the submarine. But then there was the tank which had the exteriors, and we'd do water scenes there, underwater scenes there, submarine on top, and then the CGI surrounding all of that. I think they had to do layers of CGI on top of the water. It was a whole mix and blend of everything. And we did locations and everything.
IGN: What's the thing about that character that has stayed with you or maybe something surprising that you discovered about him as you were mining that material?
Shazad Latif: The 210-day shoot and playing someone who's so angry, you carry these emotions with you, whether they're small or big. But I think that thing of learning to be vulnerable was a nice lesson which I could take into my own life as well. And then on the outside of that, just getting a chance to play representation of a South Asian character on screen in this way, an action hero. I loved all the action movies and stuff I watched growing up. But it's Harrison Ford, it's Brendan Fraser, it's all those characters. So if there's even one little brown kid or kid who watches this and sees me jumping around a ship, and enjoys it, then that reminds me of when I was young and felt the same thing. So it's a nice thing to be part of.
IGN: Is there an intention to do another season or was this meant to be a one and done?
Shazad Latif: I have no idea. That's a producer question, I guess. I'm just an actor, so I don't get let into those meetings. But we'll see. We'll see.
New episodes of Nautilus premiere Sundays on AMC and AMC+, leading up to the two-episode season finale on Sunday, August 17. Read IGN's Nautilus, Season One review.
As part of its 4th of July Sale, Best Buy is slashing 40% off the price of the GameSir Super Nova Wireless Controller. It's normally $50, but right now the red and white model is down to just $29.99. This is a an excellent price for a controller packed with a plethora of practical features like Hall-Effect joysticks and triggers, tri-mode connectivity, button mapping, included charging dock, and more. This is a PC gaming controller at its core, but it's also compatible with the Nintendo Switch and Switch 2 consoles. The red and white color scheme that complements the Switch is a Best Buy exclusive.
40% Off GameSir Super Nova Wireless Gaming Controller
The GameSir Super Nova gaming controller is compatible with your PC, Nintendo Switch, and iOS or Android smartphone or tablet. It connects in one of three ways: wireless Bluetooth, wireless 2.4GHz, and wired via USB Type-C. For the best performance, stick with wired or wireless 2.4GHz, which both boast ultra-low latency with 1000Hz polling rate.
Unlike most standard controllers (including first party ones), the GameSir Super Nova is equipped with Hall Effect joysticks and triggers to eliminate the dreaded stick drift. The thumbsticks also include anti-friction rings and the triggers offer two choices of travel length (short and long) with the flick of a switch. The back buttons are programmable and the ABXY layout can be swapped around to your liking. The controller contains a 1,000mAh battery (although no battery life estimate is given). The included dock has pogo pins so you don't need to fumble around to plug in the controller.
Other features include silent membrane buttons so you can play late at night without waking anyone, rubberized grips, detachable faceplates, RGB lighting, adjustable dual vibration motors, 6-axis gyroscope, and dead zone adjustments.
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.
The latest in an incredibly long line of LEGO Star Wars sets is the Battle Droid with STAP. This is a big, impressive build that can be used for play (as suggested by its 12+ age rating) or for display (as suggested by the included stand and placard). As such, it’s one of those LEGO releases that works just as well as a set for kids as it does for adults.
The droid in question is one of the B1-series battle droids that pop up all over the place in the prequel trilogy. They look seriously cool, even if they might fall in battle at the mere suggestion of a blaster bolt or a lightsaber swing. This LEGO battle droid is a bit stockier than the ones in the movies, but that’s probably because a droid this size with thinner limbs might fall apart under its own weight.
This set comes with 10 bags of LEGO blocks, plus a full-color instruction manual and a sticker sheet of decals. First you build the bot’s torso, followed by its legs, feet, arms, and head. Its hands are particularly neat, as they’re comprised of two fingers and a thumb, all of which can move independently (the better for gripping a blaster, or the STAP's handlebars).
Its legs, arms, and feet are all attached using ball joints, so you can pose them in all kinds of ways. This comes in handy when you want to stand it up, because it lets you find the center of gravity for the pose you want to use.
With my son, I’ve built a number of the LEGO action figure sets, like Iron Spider-Man and New Captain America. This battle droid is similar to those, but it looks way better. Its limbs are too thick to look movie-accurate, but unless you’re comparing them side-by-side, you likely won’t notice. The gears on the knees and the thin rods connecting the forearms to the elbows are a nice touch. It’s just a great looking droid overall.
While most of the detail on the droid comes from how the LEGO pieces fit together, you’ll need to affix decals on some of the pieces. As with all stickers, you need to place them carefully, or else your droid may look a little wonky and amateurish.
After building the battle droid in full, you assemble its weapon, the E-5 blaster rifle. Next up is the minifigure version, which is like an artfully shrunken-down clone of the whole set. It looks terrific.
Lastly, you assemblie the STAP speeder and stand (the acronym stands for Single Trooper Aerial Platform). In Star Wars lore, a STAP is a repulsorcraft used by the Trade Federation, most famously in the Invasion of Naboo, as depicted in The Phantom Menace.
The STAP is a pretty standard build that starts with the skeleton of the structure, using various colored bricks that will later be hidden by the brown exterior of the vehicle. I love it when LEGO sets have colorful bricks hidden within them. First, the colors break up the visual tedium of what may otherwise be a bland build. Second, the colorful bricks make it easier to see which brick goes where in the instruction manual.
Once the inside of the vehicle is assembled, you add the exterior bricks, which are all a uniform brown color in this case. The end result is an exterior that’s satisfyingly smooth and curvy. The STAP has handles you can clamp the droid’s hands onto and foot rests you can secure its feet to. It’s a big, sturdy set, with a base that’s just wide enough to hold it up. The end result is really impressive. I’d easily recommend this set to any fans of the Star Wars prequel trilogy.
More New LEGO Releases
Chris Reed is a commerce editor and deals expert for IGN. He also runs IGN's board game and LEGO coverage. You can follow him on Bluesky.
Postapocalyptic open-world survival game Once Human is launching its Annual Version 2.0: Dreamveil, and developer Starry Studio is hosting a special program to mark the occasion. There will be a celebration of all the game has achieved so far, as well as news and updates about what’s coming in the future. IGN will carry a livestream of the full program, so here’s all the details for how you can watch and what to expect as part of the show.
Once Human Special Program Date, Time, and How to Watch
If you’re in the United States, the program will be streaming at night. It’ll begin on Wednesday, July 2 at 9 p.m. Pacific, which means it’ll be at midnight that night in the Eastern time zone. You can watch it live on any of these IGN channels:
If you can’t stay up late to watch it live, don’t worry. We’ll save the show in its entirety on our YouTube page, so it’ll be waiting for you the next morning.
What to Expect from the Once Human Special Program
This being the game’s annual version, there’s sure to be a look back at the past year and what’s happened in the Once Human universe since release. That includes the game’s four scenarios so far: the PVE-focused Manibus and The Way of Winter, and the PVP-focused Evolution’s Call and Prismverse’s Clash. It also includes the game’s mobile version that was released in April. There have been rumblings of a console version also being in the works, but nothing official has been confirmed so far. Could that be part of this show?
There have been trailers and dev logs that have given some sense of new content that’s on the horizon, but the special program will go into more detail. We know a nightmare-themed scenario called Endless Dream is already in Early Access, but if you haven’t played it for yourself, expect a deep dive into the new story and deviants you’ll face and new content and locations being added.
We also know a new class system is being introduced with three classes available: Chef, Gardener, and Beastmaster. Expect a breakdown of each of the classes and what makes them unique. There also will be announcements of new events, in-game rewards, and other updates to celebrate the new annual version. Plus, the developers are likely to reveal a roadmap of future content. If you haven’t played Once Human yet and want to give it a try before seeing the updates, you can play it for free right now on PC and mobile.
The Secretlab 4th of July Sale has officially commenced and runs through July 10. Save up to $139 off Secretlab's popular Titan line of gaming chairs, Magnus gaming desks (including the Magnus Pro electric standing desk model), and accessories like the Secretlab Skins upholstery covers, desk mats, cable management, and more. Newer releases like the Titan Evo Nanogen chair and the recliner add-on are exempt from this sale.
It's no secret that we love our Secretlab gaming chairs. Three of the eight chairs in our best gaming chair roundup are Secretlab models. Of all the gaming chairs we covered in our "Budget to Best" roundup video earlier this year, my colleague Akeem Lawanson considered the Secretlab Titan Evo to be the most comfortable. No good chair comes cheap and Secretlab chairs definitely cost a premium, but we think the craftsmanship, materials, and customizability are worth it.
TL;DR - The 7 Best Secretlab Deals
You can quickly browse through all of the listed products on sale above. For more information on each product and why they are worth your consideration, read through below.
Secretlab Titan Evo
The Titan Evo starts at $499 during the sale. This is Secretlab's flagship chair and it's available in small, medium, and large sizes. Upholstery options include Neo Hybrid leatherette, SoftWeave Plus fabric, or premium Napa leather. The chair features cold-cure foam upholstery for the seat, a supportive four-way lumbar system, full length backrest with 165 degrees of recline, full metal 4D armrests with magnetically attached PU cushions, and a memory foam headrest pillow.
Aside from the build quality, the Titan Evo also stands out thanks to the sheer number of officially licensed designs from popular video games, TV shows, and more. Some of the more popular examples include Star Wars, The Witcher, Overwatch, Attack on Titan, League of Legends, World of Warcraft, and Game of Thrones. They generally cost more than the standard colors, but they're worth it if you're looking for that extra personal touch.
In our Secretlab Titan Evo review, Chris Coke wrote that "after two years of daily use, the Secretlab Titan Evo has proven that it can stand the test of time and still be one of the best gaming chairs you can buy. Meaningful ergonomics paired with Secretlab’s wide selection of designs, it remains a fantastic option, especially for fans of bright colors or designs."
Secretlab Titan Evo Lite
Among the Titan chairs, the Evo Lite is definitely the best value with its starting price tag of $419, which is $80 less than the base model Titan Evo. It's built upon the same frame as the Titan Evo and has the same core features like the cold-cure foam cushioning, lumbar, 165 degrees of recline, and 4D armrests. What it compromises on is customization, with "only" two upholstery options, two sizes, and five colors, a non-adjustable lumbar system, simpler arm rests, and no included head rest. If none of these tradeoffs bother you, then you'll be saving quite a bit of money.
Secretlab Titan 2020
The prior model Titan 2020 gaming chair is still available for $474, although there aren't too many options available. The Titan 2020 is still an excellent chair and not much different than the current Evo model. In fact, outside of an upholstery change (the PU leather has been updated with Neo Hybrid Leatherette), the changes are mostly cosmetic. You are limited to fewer design options, so if you want to build out something that's truly unique, you might want to splurge a bit extra for the current generation Titan Evo model.
Secretlab Titan Evo Nanogen Edition
Although the Titan Evo Nanogen Edition isn't on sale, it deserves mention simply because this is our top pick for the best gaming chair. In our Titan Evo Nanogen Edition review, Chris Coke wrote that "the Secretlab Titan Evo Nanogen Edition deserves every bit of the overwhelming praise I’ve given. Granted, at $799 it’s significantly more expensive than the original and not far off from an entry-level Herman-Miller. But the return it offers in comfortable, supportive gaming is well worth the extra cost thanks to dramatically improved materials in both the fabric and multi-layered padding. The Titan Evo Nanogen Edition is class-leading, and is hands-down the most comfortable gaming chair I’ve ever used."
Secretlab Titan Recliner Add-On
Secretlab also announced a new recliner add-on to anyone who already owns the Titan Evo chair. It's so new that not only will this recliner ship out sometime next year, it's not even available for preorder yet. We have received a unit for testing, however, and it has turned out to be a very practical addition.
In our recliner add-on review, Chris Coke wrote that "while both comfort and value are subjective things, the recliner is able to take the Titan Evo and transform it from one of the best racing style gaming chairs to standing head and shoulders above the competition at its price point. It’s novel enough that I wouldn’t be surprised to see other brands following suit in the near future. If you don’t mind paying for it, it’s an absolutely killer upgrade for your gaming chair."
Secretlab Magnus and Magnus Pro
The Magnus and Magnus Pro are also on sale for July 4. The Magnus is a traditional fixed-frame gaming desk while the Magnus Pro ups the ante with a custom designed electric standing desk frame for an additional $250. Both desks feature an all-metal desktop surface, solid steel legs and cleverly thought out areas for cable management, but the Magnus Pro has some really unique features including a power cable that runs internally inside one of the telescoping legs and an in-line control panel that you won't bump into.
In our Secretlab Magnus Pro review. Mark Knapp writes that "the Secretlab Magnus Pro is a fantastic desk, bringing the brilliant cable management solutions of the original Magnus to a fast, quiet, and wide-ranging motorized standing desk. The desk is built well and proves an excellent platform for work and play alike. It’s an expensive desk though, and for the money, it would have been nice to see a smarter safety mechanism for the motors and the desk mat included. Still, the overall quality you get is a big step up from cheaper standing desks, and the optional accessories truly enhance the experience. Anyone who’s not committed to a standing desk should save their money and go for the standard Magnus if everything else about this model sounds good, but for gamers who love a tidy desk and want the flexibility of a standing desk, the Magnus Pro should be the first they consider."
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.
It’s the week of Independence Day, which means tons of retailers are running major sales. You can save money on just about everything in this year's Fourth of July sales, from desks and mattresses to gaming PCs and handhelds. If you’ve had your eye on something, this might be the time to pick it up.
To help you out, we’ve scoured the internet and gathered all the biggest sales in one handy list below. Or, if you want to see a selection of the best deals, you can take a look at our Fourth of July sale page. Let’s take a look.
The Best Fourth of July Sales Live Now
Mega-outlets like Amazon, Target, and Walmart have sales going, as do more specialized retailers like Dell, Home Depot, and Old Navy. Basically, if it's a well-known retailer, it's having a Fourth of July sale.
When Do Fourth of July Sales End?
The sales listed above end at a variety of times. Target's Fourth of July sale ends on July 5, so you don't even get the full weekend to grab your deals. Best Buy's sale ends on Sunday, July 6, when the new weekly sale begins. Home Depot's sale ends on July 9. So it's really a toss-up when it comes to end points, which most of the sites above have listed. And as long as you make your purchases by the end of July 4, you're definitely in the clear.
Should You Wait for Prime Day?
With Amazon’s annual Prime Day sale event coming right up (it runs July 8 - 11 this year), you might be wondering if it’s better to buy the items on your list now or wait for Prime Day. As with most things, it kind of depends.
For starters, you have to be a Prime member to take advantage of the best Prime Day deals. So if you’re not a Prime member and you’re not interested in becoming one, you can certainly buy whatever you want in the Fourth of July sales.
However, some other retailers are also planning their own sales events to compete with Prime Day. Walmart's Deals sale is set to run July 8 - 13 (with Walmart+ members getting one day early access). And Target's Circle Week runs July 8 - 11 - though you do need to be a Target Circle member to take advantage of those deals (you can sign up here for free). Those sales will likely have similar discounts to what we're seeing now in the Fourth of July sales.
All that said, if you're a Prime member and you can wait for Prime Day, it doesn't hurt to hold off and see what kinds of deals are available starting July 8. Prime Day deals are typically quite good, and even if the items you're after aren't on sale for low prices, one of the other retailers will may have it for cheaper than you'll find it now during the Independence Day sales. Or you can just wait for one of the other upcoming sales. Your call.
Chris Reed is a commerce editor and deals expert for IGN. He also runs IGN's board game and LEGO coverage. You can follow him on Bluesky.
The first teaser trailer for Oscar winner Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey is playing in theaters, paired with fellow Universal release Jurassic World Rebirth, but if the director and the studio were hoping to keep the first look video as an exclusively theatrical experience that’s now how it’s playing out. Cell phone recordings of people watching it in cinemas are popping up all over social media and on YouTube (IGN doesn’t link out to pirated material).
We’ve inquired with Universal Pictures about whether they plan on officially releasing the teaser trailer for The Odyssey online.
The trailer opens with what seems to be voiceover from Eumaeus, who was Odysseus’ slave and friend as the character refers to him as “my master.” It’s not clear who is voicing the role.
The teaser shows quick shots of the Mediterranean Sea and the Trojan Horse on a beach before cutting to Telemachus, Odysseus's son played by Tom Holland, meeting with Jon Bernthal’s King Menelaus.
Telemachus seeks information on the fate of his long-missing father Odysseus (Matt Damon), who fought alongside Menelaus in the Trojan War.
Menelaus tells Telemachus of the different rumors about what happened to his father and when imprisonment is mentioned, Menelaus scoffs at that notion, saying, “What prison could hold a man like that?”
Odysseus himself is only glimpsed from a distance or from behind, playing on the mystique of a man who has become a legend.
There’s also a quick glimpse of Lupita N’yongo who appears to be playing Menelaus’ wife, Helen of Troy, whose beauty launched a thousand ships and sparked the Trojan War.
LEGO has a handful of free gifts with qualifying purchases for a limited time. Depending on how much you spend, you can pick up a couple of free sets, and can even grab multiple if you spend enough. Some of these used to be available for purchase, but are now included as fun little gifts and incentives to shop at LEGO directly. Keep in mind, you have to buy sets that are already out; preordering sets don't qualify you for a free gift with purchase, even if it meets the spending requirements. So you can't pick up the recently announced castle setand get the free gifts.
Gifts with purchase are only available to LEGO Insiders members, which is free to join.
LEGO Celebration: Ferris Wheel with Fireworks Free Gift With Purchase
This fun 230-piece Ferris wheel is a gift for any purchase of $85 or more. It stands over 8.5" high and the translucent bricks for fireworks add a fun level of detail. The Ferris wheel itself actually rotates, with the gondola cabins functioning as they would in real life. LEGO Creator sets are typically modular and come with instructions for other bespoke configurations with the included pieces, but that doesn't seem to be the case here. But if you're creative enough, I'm sure you'll be able to find fun ways to utilize these colorful bricks. Available between July 1-7.
LEGO Ideas Friendly Snails Free Gift With Purchase
The Friendly Snails set is available as a free gift with purchases of $160 or more, and makes a great bookshelf or side table display. At 264 pieces, it's another bite-sized build perfect for a session with an episode of your favorite show on in the background. The snails sport a whimsical, cartoony look and the display base has detailed foliage, a mushroom, and even a bee brick to capture the front yard feel of the set. Available July 1-6.
Can You Get Both Gifts With One Purchase?
As far as we can tell, if you spend $160 or more on available LEGO sets, you'll be able to claim both of these free gifts with purchases. So in theory, if you purchase something like the LEGO Mario & Standard Kart, you'd essentially be getting three sets for the price of one. Not a bad deal!
There are also a handful of awesome new LEGO sets available now that it's the first of the month. Sets like the LEGO Icons How to Train Your Dragon: Toothless (#10375) and the Star Wars Battle Droid with STAP (75428) are available for purchase now, the latter of which qualifies you for the free Ferris wheel gift. Additionally, some previously-release sets are now available to purchase on Amazon for the first time, such as the LEGO Icons Lord of the Rings: The Shire (#10354). Remember, the gifts with purchase are only available directly through LEGO and for LEGO Insiders members.
If you're looking for a new gaming monitor but you're on a tight budget, then this early Amazon Prime Day deal is right up your alley. For today only, Amazon is offering a 27" KTC gaming monitor for just $98.59 shipped as part of a limited time Lightning Deal. This item has over 1,000 reviews on Amazon with an average 4.4/5 star rating. It has plenty of premium features you don't expect to see in a monitor at this price point, like a QHD resolution, 100Hz refresh rate, G-Sync compatibility, and a good quality IPS panel.
Update: This deal is now expired.
27" KTC QHD 100Hz G-Sync IPS Gaming Monitor for $98
The KTC H27T13 is a 27" monitor with a 2560x1440 resolution, which averages out to a sharp 109ppi pixel density. It's equipped with a pre-calibrated IPS panel with good color reproduction and wide viewing angles. It's decently fast with a refresh rate up to 100Hz and G-Sync compatibility. KTC includes a 3 year warranty.
If you're considering this monitor, chances are you're pairing it with a budget gaming PC setup. You probably don't need an expensive monitor with a 4K resolution that will overly tax your PC or 240Hz refresh rate that will be hard to achieve. G-Sync technology, however, is especially useful for these budget builds, since your fps is more likely to fluctuate than higher-end builds and adaptive sync helps provide a smoother and tear-free experience. This is a good monitor to pair with something like an RTX 4060, 4070, 5070, or the new Radeon RX 9070 GPU.
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.
We may take it for granted today, but imagine telling a younger version of yourself that one day there will be a magical app that will gather everything Disney, Pixar, Star Wars, Marvel, and National Geographic in one place you can watch whenever and wherever you want for a relatively low monthly price.
That is what Disney+ is thanks to all of the companies Disney owns, and it’s obviously one of the leading streaming platforms as it offers a wide collection of classics and original programming featuring some of the most beloved characters and stories ever told. However, there are so many streaming services out there and it can be tough to keep them all, no matter how much they claim to offer.
That being said, if you are considering signing up for Disney+ for the first time or feel the time is right to jump back into the vault as Scrooge McDuck would dive into his money bin, this guide will provide you with everything you need to know about the current Disney+ subscription plans, bundles, and more.
As of July 2025, Disney+ offers two main plans - Disney+ Basic and Disney+ Premium - and the main differences between the two are whether you get ads, if you are able to download content to watch on the go, and if you get Dolby Atmos. One thing you may not know, however, is that there are various Disney bundles that can get you multiple streaming services for a much lower price than you’d be able to get each individually. The newest streaming bundle includes Disney+, Max, and Hulu, but you can also bundle Disney+ with ESPN. You’ll be able to see all the options below, and we hope it helps make the decision of joining or not an even easier one!
All Disney+ plans increased in price on October 17, 2024. The following information has been updated to reflect these changes. Below is the most up-to-date information we've found from the Disney+ help page.
Disney+ Basic - $9.99/month
Steam Disney+ with ads
No downloads
Supports up to 5.1 audio
Up to 4K UHD video quality
Watch on four screens at once at no extra cost
Over 300 titles in 4K UHD and HDR
This is the cheapest Disney+ option and is excellent for those who don’t mind watching a few ads and don’t feel the need to have movies and shows ready for those times when no Wi-Fi or cellular service is available. If you travel a ton or have kids and want to load up some episodes of Bluey or Spidey and His Amazing Friends on a tablet for a vacation, you may want to consider an upgrade to the premium plan.
It’s also important to note that, while Disney+ Basic does offer over 300 titles in 4K UHD and HDR, it does not offer Dolby Atmos like Disney+ Premium does.
Disney+ Premium - $15.99/month or $159.99/year
Stream Disney+ with no ads
Unlimited downloads on up to 10 devices
Watch on four screens at once at no extra cost
Over 300 titles in 4K UHD and HDR
Dolby Atmos
There are only two tiers of Disney+ and this is the top one. With the increase in price, you get everything Disney+ Basic offers, but you also don’t have to sit through ads and can download as much as you want on up to 10 devices.
Another big benefit you get from upgrading to Disney+ Premium is the addition of Dolby Atmos, which is one of the leading surround sound technologies on the market. In addition to having sound enveloping your room, Dolby Atmos features spatial audio that allows creators to place sounds in specific places and fully immerse you in your favorite stories.
Disney+ Bundle Pricing
Disney+, Hulu Bundle Basic - $10.99/month
Disney+ with ads
Hulu with ads
No downloads
Watch on four screens at once at no extra cost
Over 300 titles in 4K UHD and HDR
This bundle is for those who want to watch everything Disney+ and Hulu have to offer, but don’t mind watching ads and don’t need to download content to their devices.
Disney+, Hulu Bundle Premium - $19.99/month
Disney+ with no ads
Hulu with no ads
Unlimited downloads on up to 10 devices
Watch on four screens at once at no extra cost
Over 300 titles in 4K UHD and HDR
Dolby Atmos
This bundle is for those who want all the benefits of Disney+ Premium, including unlimited downloads on up to 10 devices, Dolby Atmos, and no ads, in addition to the full ad-free Hulu library.
Disney+, Hulu, ESPN+ Basic - $16.99/month
Disney+ with ads
Hulu with ads
ESPN+ with ads
No downloads
If ESPN+ is something you’d like to add to Hulu and Disney+, this bundle or the one below it are for you. For those unfamiliar, ESPN+ allows you to stream live sports from across the world, purchase UFC PPV events, and enjoy a ton of on-demand content including the entire 30 for 30 library, select ESPN films, game replays, and more. You also unlock exclusive fantasy sports tools and premium articles on ESPN.
Both of these trio bundles get you the same content on ESPN, you just have to decide if you want ads on Disney+ and Hulu, if you want to download content, and if Dolby Atmos is worth it to you!
Disney+, Hulu, ESPN+ Bundle Premium - $26.99/month
Disney+ with no ads
Hulu with no ads
ESPN+ with ads
Unlimited downloads on up to 10 devices
Watch on four screens at once at no extra cost
Over 300 titles in 4K UHD and HDR
Dolby Atmos
Legacy Disney Bundle - $21.99/month
Disney+ with no ads
Hulu with ads
ESPN+ with ads
No downloads
This plan is no longer available for purchase but existing subscribers can keep it as long as they don’t cancel or change it
This plan is a legacy one that is only available to those who are already subscribed to it, meaning no new account can take advantage of it. If you are a member of this bundle, just know you can keep it as long as you want if you don’t cancel or change it!
Disney +, Hulu, and Max Bundle Pricing
Disney+, Hulu, Max Bundle (With Ads) - $16.99/month
Disney+ with ads, including Disney+ Basic features
Hulu with ads
Max with ads
Disney+, Hulu, Max Bundle (No Ads) - $29.99/month
Disney+ with no ads, including Disney+ Premium features
Hulu with no ads
Max with no ads
What's New on Disney+?
The July 2025 lineup for Disney+ has a little bit of everything. Well, except Star Wars. Several programs from the Disney Channel are making their way to streaming, including StuGo and the latest season of Miraculous Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir. On the MCU side, the Ironheart series is wrapping up. From Nat Geo, we'll be getting tons of new shark-themed series in celebration of "Sharkfest." For whatever reason, the service is also getting tons of reality shows, including a BBQ-themed competition series and several seasons of Project Runway.
Disney Plus Subscriptions FAQ
What If I Already Have Disney+, Hulu, and/or ESPN+? How Do I Get Bundle Pricing?
While bundling to save money is a wonderful thing, it can be a bit confusing how to get the best pricing if you are already subscribed to Disney+, Hulu, and/or ESPN+. Luckily, it’s not too tricky once you know where to look! To help, here are the instructions right from Disney to ensure you get the best deal!
Existing Disney+ Subscriber
Log in to yourDisney+ account through a mobile or web browser
Select your PROFILE
Select ACCOUNT
Under the SUBSCRIPTION section, select the subscription that you want to change
Select CHANGE next to the name of your subscription
For more, check out our review of Disney+, in which we said, “For what is essentially a streaming service dedicated to the output and archives of a single company – albeit a company that now commands a vast swath of the entertainment landscape – Disney+ is doing a good job at widening its scope with documentaries, programming from its other banners, and, interestingly, concert films.”
Thunderbolts* (The New Avengers, if you will) seems to be one of those movies everyone talked about, but not a lot of people ended up going to see in theaters. Almost two months after its opening weekend, it’s safe to say the movie hasn’t had the best performance at the box office, at least compared to the rest of the MCU.
On the plus side, if you’ve just been waiting to watch the latest Marvel movie at home, you’re in luck. About two months after the movie’s initial release in theaters, Thunderbolts* is available on digital.
Thunderbolts* Arrives on Digital
Thunderbolts* has grossed around $380 million globally on a reported budget of $170 million. While that's certainly a big number, Variety has reported that, when taking into account theater costs, Thunderbolts* needed to gross over $450 million to fully break even. In other words, the movie may or may not have lost money, at least at the box office.
On the other hand, Thunderbolts* was arguably one of the best-received MCU flicks in quite some time. It currently holds a 68/100 Critic's Score on Metacritic, which is actually the highest for any MCU movie since 2021’s Spider-Man: No Way Home. IGN’s Thunderbolts* review describes the movie as "the most solid the sacred timeline has felt in a little while, providing an adventure befitting its overlooked title characters."
While it might not have been an Avengers-level money maker, the movie struck me as an effort to restore some faith in the MCU. I guess we’ll have to see how that attempt pans out. Next up for Marvel is The Fantastic Four: First Steps, which appears to have broader appeal for families. As Pixar’s Elio struggles at the box office, Disney could certainly use a win, preferably outside of live-action remakes.
When Will It Stream on Disney+
Thunderbolts* will join the rest of the MCU on Disney+ sooner or later, but we don’t have any official word on the streaming release date. Both Captain America: Brave New World and Deadpool & Wolverine arrived on Disney+ a little over three months after arriving in theaters, so Thunderbolts*, which released on May 2, should arrive on Disney+ by the end of August.
Thunderbolts* 4K Steelbook and Blu-ray Releasing July 29
Aside from the digital release, Marvel has also confirmed that several physical editions of Thunderbolts* are coming out on July 29. You can pick up a 4K steelbook, available with two different covers, or stick to a Blu-ray or standard DVD.
David Dastmalchian is set to play M. Bison in the upcoming live-action Street Fighter movie.
Deadline reports that Dastmalchian, who played Thomas Schiff in The Dark Knight, Kurt and Veb in the Ant-Man franchise, Abra Kadabra in the CW's The Flash, and Polka-Dot Man in The Suicide Squad, has secured his biggest role to date, playing Street Fighter’s veteran dictator bad guy.
M. Bison was of course played by the late Raúl Juliá in the infamous 1994 Street Fighter film, which also starred Jean-Claude Van Damme as Colonel Guile and Kylie Minogue as Cammy.
Legendary declined to comment.
In Capcom's Street Fighter video games, M. Bison runs Shadaloo, the criminal organization behind most of the bad things that happen in the ongoing storyline. M. Bison himself is typically an ultra powerful final boss character who wields Psycho Power to destroy any who get in his way. He was rock hard in Street Fighter 2, although has calmed down a bit in the years since.
The Street Fighter movie cast is starting to take shape, with many of the key roles now announced. Rapper Curtis Jackson, aka 50 Cent, is set to play boxer Balrog, Aquaman star Jason Momoa is Blanka, Noah Centineo is Ken, WWE superstar Roman Reigns is Akuma, and Andrew Koji is Ryu. Callina Liang is Chun-Li. Guile is yet to be cast (perhaps the hair is proving to be a sticking point). The movie itself is set for launch on March 20, 2026.
Hollywood’s pursuit of video game adaptations has seen enormous success, with the likes of A Minecraft Movie and The Super Mario Bros. Movie bringing in hundreds of millions of dollars at the box office, so it's no surprise to see Legendary take Street Fighter on. The hope is it outperforms the 1994 effort, which is considered by many to be among the worst video game films of all time.
Photo by Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty Images.
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.
With Amazon Prime Day 2025 officially locked in for July 8–11, most of us are eyeing tech deals and early access offers, but the new Prime for Young Adults membership feels like the ultimate deal. Honestly, I wish I still qualified for it.
Prime for Young Adults is Amazon’s refreshed membership tier for anyone aged 18 to 24, or a student. At just $7.49/month or $69/year, 50% off the standard $14.99 Prime price, it delivers everything you'd expect from a full Prime membership with no concessions. It's also $0 for the first six months.
That includes Prime Video with all its movies, shows, and Amazon Originals (Reacher, Fallout, The Boys, etc), its superfast free delivery (same-day, one-day, two-day), and Prime Gaming featuring monthly games, and even a complimentary Twitch Channel subscription.
There’s also ad-free music through Amazon Music, thousands of eBooks and comics via Prime Reading, unlimited photo storage with Amazon Photos, and access to exclusive sales and early product drops.
One underrated perk is the inclusion of Grubhub+, giving members $0 delivery fees on eligible orders from local restaurants, a $120/year value bundled in at no extra cost. And if you’re travelling or commuting this summer, fuel savings of $0.10 per gallon (or $1 off per gallon during select promo periods) are available at BP and Amoco stations nationwide.
The second big hidden bonus is on cashback. As standard in Prime memberships, subscribers can get 5% cashback on particular categories like tech, beauty, healthcare, and clothing. During Prime Day, however, that cashback amount is doubled to a whopping 10%.
Signing up is straightforward: if you’re in school, a .edu email works. If you’re not, just verify your age with a government-issued ID. Either way, you’ll start with a generous six-month trial, no strings attached. Free stuff? Now that's a proper Prime Day deal.
Ben Williams – IGN freelance contributor with over 10 years of experience covering gaming, tech, film, TV, and anime. Follow him on Twitter/X @BenLevelTen.
Amazon kicked off many of its device deals early this year, but there has been one significant exclusion in the lead-up to Prime Day: Kindles. The good news is that the retailer has released a sneak peek for the upcoming sale and confirmed that both the latest Kindle and Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition will be up to 25% off.
While that doesn't necessarily mean that both the Kindle and Kindle Paperwhite will be 25% off, we can assume that at least one of those devices will be. Amazon doesn't offer Kindle deals very often, so any confirmation that a price cut will be coming is good news for anyone looking to pick up a new reading tablet at a discount.
Kindle Deals to Expect on Prime Day 2025
As mentioned, Amazon confirmed that at least two Kindle models will be discounted during Prime Day by up to 25%. Considering neither of these devices have ever dropped by this big of a margin before, I'd guess that it will be the standard Kindle that getting the full 25% off rather than the Kindle Paperwhite.
The lowest price the Kindle Paperwhite has ever been was $130 during Black Friday 2024. So if the 25% discount is applied to that, it would be a new low price at $120. The standard Kindle has dropped all the way down to $85 before, so a full 25% discount would only drop that price another $3 and seems much more likely.
While Amazon has only called out two Kindle devices, it's possible that there will be additional deals when the sale actually starts. We've seen a few different discounts on these reading tablets in 2025 so far that seem likely. First, there's the Kindle Paperwhite Colorsoft, which received its first major discount during the Amazon book sale in April. There's also the Kindle Paperwhite Kids Edition, which has had a few ongoing promotions throughout the year so far.
Amazon already has early book deals
If you don't want to wait for Prime Day to start browsing book deals, the good news is that there are already quite a few early discounts worth shopping right now. In addition to some popular box sets hitting new all-time lows, Amazon is also running its usual promo on both Audible and Kindle Unlimited. Here's a look at some of the deals available right now.
Amazon just gave a glimpse about what to expect from Prime Day 2025, but with few details of actual products and prices. While we can't really discern how the deals will be this year based on this press release, what Amazon didn't include is very telling: There's absolutely no mention of discounts on video games or gaming accessories on this list.
That doesn't necessarily mean there won't be deals on games and accessories, but it definitely isn't a good sign going into the sale. We've generally come to expect that Prime Day is a good time for gamers to find savings on physical games, hardware, and peripherals, so it's a pretty big letdown to see almost every category except gaming featured in Prime Day's best deals teaser post.
Will Amazon Have Gaming Deals on Prime Day?
Although it's true that Amazon doesn't feature a single category that mentions video games, consoles, or accessories, it did include a product image that features at least some hope that price cuts will appear. Under the Devices and Tech deals section, the photo above is included with a controller and a Switch Lite. This is potentially misleading due to Amazon's ongoing issues with Nintendo products, but it could still be a sign that we will see some discounts during the shopping event.
With higher tariffs set to resume in August, Prime Day is potentially the last big sales event where shoppers will be able to acquire gaming accessories for reasonable prices. If Amazon decides to completely ignore the category, it's possible that the best time to buy things like controllers, headsets, and consoles has already passed us by.
The lack of any mention of any video game discounts whatsoever is also concerning. Video game prices have already been on the rise and sales events like these are usually when people look to buy at a discount. With major companies like Nintendo and Xbox already raising prices, a lack of video game deals on Prime is potentially a precursor of what's to come later in the year for Black Friday.
The Nintendo and Steam Summer Sales Are Live Now
Despite Amazon's omission of gaming discounts, two other big sales are going on right now that are worth mentioning. Both the Steam Summer Sale and the Nintendo Summer Sale are live with some of the biggest discounts of the year so far. These sales run right up against Prime Day this year, so there's still some time to take advantage of the savings before they end.
If you're an anime fan, Crunchyroll is the best streaming platform out there. With just one subscription, you can instantly gain access to over 1,000 different anime series. In a time when anime has never been more popular, Crunchyroll allows you to catch new and popular shows like Solo Leveling while also keeping up with the biggest anime in the world like One Piece. Check out our full rundown of Crunchyroll as of July 2025, in addition to a free trial that allows you to try out the service for one week.
Does Crunchyroll Have a Free Trial?
Yes, Crunchyroll does offer a free streaming service trial. When you are ready to sign up for a plan, you can head over to the Crunchyroll Premium page and score a free seven-day trial on any of the three premium subscription options. This includes the Fan, Mega Fan, and Ultimate Fan tiers. Once your one week free trial ends, your subscription will automatically begin for the monthly price of your plan.
What Is Crunchyroll? The Anime Streaming Service, Explained
The service is available for free with ads on select series and episodes, but Crunchyroll has slowly rolled back the number of anime you can watch without a Premium subscription. Just recently, almost all episodes of One Piece were made exclusive to Premium members only. Still, some months have a decent selection of free options.
How Much Does Crunchyroll Cost?
Each Crunchyroll Premium tier is priced $4 apart. The Fan tier is set at $7.99/month, the Mega Fan tier is $11.99/month, and the Ultimate Fan tier is set at $15.99/month. The last time Crunchyroll increased prices was in May 2024, with only the Mega Fan and Ultimate Fan tiers affected.
What Crunchyroll Premium Tiers Are There?
Once again, Crunchyroll has three different pricing options for Premium members: Fan, Mega Fan, and Ultimate Fan. All anime is available across each of the tiers, so you won't need to worry about missing out on certain series if you do not subscribe to the highest tier.
Fan Subscription - $7.99 per month
To break down the tiers, Fan is the standard Crunchyroll Premium membership, offering the entire Crunchyroll anime library ad-free. You can actively stream on one device at a time, and you'll also recieve a 5% discount off select products at the Crunchyroll Store.
Mega Fan - $11.99 per month
Mega Fan is the most popular tier, with support for up to four different streams concurrently. This tier also unlocks offline viewing, so you can download episodes of any anime and watch them even if you do not have access to the internet. Mega Fan also gives you the Crunchyroll Game Vault, a selection of free games you can download to your mobile device. You'll also recieve a 10% discount at the Crunchyroll Store, up from the Fan tier's 5% discount, with free shipping on orders over $50.
Ultimate Fan - $15.99 per month
Finally, Ultimate Fan is the last tier Crunchyroll offers. All perks from the Mega Fan plan carry over, except you can now stream on up to six different devices at a time. Additionally, your Crunchyroll Store discount is moved to 15%, with early access to deals like Manga Madness and free US shipping on orders. Lastly, active subscribers will receive an exclusive swag bag after 12 consecutive months of subscription.
What's New on Crunchyroll - Spring 2025 Simulcasts
One of the best features of Crunchyroll's Premium Tier is same-day simulcasts. New anime episodes that otherwise air exclusively on local Japanese stations promptly make their way to Crunchyroll for global audiences. While some of these simulcasts are available for free, the vast majority of new releases are behind that Premium paywall.
So, what's airing now? The summer 2025 anime season is kicking off this month, with upcoming higlights like Dan Da Dan Season 2, Kaiju No. 8 Season 2, and Nyaight of the Living Cat. Other anime airing right now include Anne Shirley and, of course, One Piece, which returned after a six-month hiatus. You can check out the full release calendar on the Crunchyroll site.
How to Watch Crunchyroll - Available Platforms
Crunchyroll is available on almost every platform out there. You can watch anime on the official website, or on your mobile device with official apps for iOS, Android, Amazon Fire, and Samsung Galaxy. Additionally, the streaming service is available on gaming consoles like Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. You can also use any media player like Apple TV, Google TV, Roku TV, and more to access the service.
Some deals just hit right, and today’s picks are genuinely worth a look. Assassin’s Creed: Shadows is down to $49.99 in its Limited Edition, M3GAN 2.0’s steelbook bundle is up for pre-order, and the WOWBOX drawer organizers are just $15.99 for a 32-piece set. Add in a reliable Coke Zero 12-pack deal and a surprisingly good rechargeable neck fan for $13.49, and it’s shaping up to be a smart day to grab a few things you’ll actually use.
TL;DR: Deals For Today
There’s more, too. The Silmarillion deluxe illustrated edition is back in stock for under $83, and some early Prime Day offers are already rolling out. Audible Premium Plus is just $0.99 for three months, Kindle Unlimited is free if you’ve got Prime, and young adults can still claim six months of Amazon Prime at no cost. If you’ve been holding off, these are the kinds of practical, high-value deals that make it worth jumping in early.
Coke Zero Sugar 12 Pack
Even if you change your mind and don't want to subscribe and save, you can still get this great deal on Coke Zero when you purchase. It's Coke with zero sugar, and there's 12 cans that you can drink out of and recycle (thumbs up).
Assassin's Creed: Shadows Limited Edition (PS5)
Assassin’s Creed Shadows finally delivers the long-awaited leap into feudal Japan, and it doesn’t waste the opportunity. This Amazon-exclusive Limited Edition includes the full game plus the Sekiryu Character Pack, and it's now down to $49.99—29% off the original $69.99 price. You’ll switch between Naoe, a nimble shinobi, and Yasuke, a powerhouse samurai, across a moody and expansive Sengoku-era Japan. We praised the game’s dynamic environments, more focused pacing, and demanding combat. It doesn’t reinvent the series, but it smartly trims the bloat while offering rich stealth and action-driven storytelling. At this price, it’s a sharp buy for any AC fan.
M3GAN 2.0 - Limited Edition Steelbook (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital)
M3GAN 2.0 dials up the chaos and trades in some of the original’s horror flair for a louder sci-fi action vibe. The Limited Edition Steelbook packs in 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, and Digital formats for $37.99, with a pre-order guarantee that locks in the best price. While we noted the sequel stumbles trying to balance satire and spectacle, M3GAN still steals the spotlight with her savage wit and unpredictable presence. It may not reinvent the killer robot genre, but if you’re in for stylish carnage and sharp-edged commentary, this edition delivers plenty of polished personality for the price.
WOWBOX 32 PCS Clear Plastic Drawer Organizer Set
For $15.99, this 32-piece WOWBOX drawer organizer set is an easy win for cutting clutter across any room. You get four sizes of clear black bins, perfect for separating everything from office supplies to cosmetics and kitchen tools. The plastic is sturdy enough to handle daily use without cracking, and the stackable design lets you double your storage without taking up more space.
Tunise Rechargeable Portable Neck Fan
It's a fan that you don't have to hold because it sits comfortably around your neck. This is such a cool and handy product for under $15, especially if you're like me and get warm at the thought of some sunshine.
The Silmarillion Deluxe Illustrated by the Author
I can't describe how much I need this work of art. This edition of the Silmarillion arrives in a deluxe stamped clothbound hardcover edition housed in a custom slipcase and lavishly illustrated with over 50 color pieces by J.R.R. Tolkien himself. This collector's version presents the complete text in two-color print and includes exclusive extras like two fold-out maps of Beleriand, a booklet on the making of The Silmarillion by Christopher Tolkien, and a collectible art card. From the crafting of the Silmarils and Morgoth’s theft, to the fall of Númenor and the forging of the Rings of Power, this volume captures the vast mythological backdrop of The Lord of the Rings. Beautifully quarterbound with foil-stamped black cloth boards, silver-edged pages, and a ribbon marker, it’s a definitive edition for Tolkien devotees.
Amazon Prime Day Is Coming
We're all over Prime Days 2025, and some deals are going live now. For more information about the event and an inside scoop on hot deals and top tips, check out our Prime Day hub.
6 Months Free Amazon Prime For Young Adults
This one is a no-brainer. If your 18-24, snap up this 6-months free deal for Amazon Prime. It includes the free and fast delivery Amazon is known for alongside unlimited streaming, free delivery on GrubHub+, free Prime games every month and loads more.
3 Months for $0.99 Audible Deal
Audible’s doing that 99c a month deal again for Premium Plus, and it’s a steal. Amazon Prime Members get three months free, so make sure to check for an active subscription before looking for this deal. You get three audiobooks to keep, full access to the big library, and it works even if you’ve had a sub before as long as it’s not active now. I just logged in, saw the banner, and grabbed it. Sunrise on the Reaping is already in my library, and I’m eyeing that massive new Sanderson one next. Less than three bucks for all that? Easy win.
3 Months Free Kindle Unlimited
I’ve never really stuck with audiobooks before, but this Kindle Unlimited deal finally got me into them properly. Right now you can get three months free if you’ve got Prime, and it works on your phone or tablet, not just a Kindle. I gave it a go, downloaded a couple of books, and now I’ve actually started finishing them while I’m out walking or doing stuff around the house. It’s made getting through my backlog way easier and I didn’t have to pay a thing to try it. If you’ve been on the fence, this is a solid excuse to dive in.
Pokémon TCG Price Comparison
Some of the pricing here by Amazon is insane, but there's some deals to be had when comparing these products to TCG Player. For example, Prismatic Evolutions Super-Premium Collection is a massive 56% below market value, so go with Amazon on that one. On the other end of the scale, TCG Player has Cynthia’s Garchomp ex Premium Collection at a massive 48% below Amazon's current price, which is very close to MSRP. I've compared all the prices in the carousel above, but another pro tip is clicking through to eBay to see if there's any new bargains to be had.
This Weeks Pokémon Card Crashers and Climbers
I’ve been keeping a close eye on the Pokémon TCG market this month, and we’re seeing two very different stories unfold. On one side, Surging Sparks cards are going through a steep correction.
On the other hand, Crown Zenith cards are showing early signs of what could be a long-term value surge. The bottom line? If you're a collector or investor, now is the time to buy into both.
I’m picking up what I can from both sets. The current dip in Sparks is a glimmer of hope for long-suffering 2024-2025 collectors. And Crown Zenith is a train I want to be on before it leaves the station.
Pokémon TCG Classic
The Sam's Club Pokémon TCG Classic deal is back, and it's massively undercutting other big box retailers and the secondary market. Just for comparrison, the top four cards from this set, Charizard, Blastoise, Venusaur and Mewtwo, are worth the same price as this discounted offer. This deal is well worth it and should be snapped up as soon as possible.
Mega Evolution Pokémon Cards Are Climbing
I can't believe the X Y era of Pokémon cards came out 12 years ago, but it was an amazing era for the TCG introducing the Mega Evolution mechanic. Mega's will be returning later this year with the start of the Mega Evolutions era and the end of Scarlet and Violet, so snapping up these top Mega cards before prices go even higher is a wise move. We know how it'll play out, no one will be able to grab the new sets at launch, then the nostalgia will kick in and these cards will skyrocket. Just the Charizards and Rayquazzas alone are worth a look.
Magic: The Gathering Price Comparison
MTG doesn't seem to be struggling to keep up with demand despite it being one of the biggest trading card games on earth, but that doesn't stop big box retailers getting cheeky when they notice a peak in demand. Like with Pokémon TCG, i've gone through the majority of MTG stock on Amazon and compared their pricing to market values on TCG Player. The Theros Beyond Death booster made me spit out my tea. Amazon is listing a single booster for $378.08, but these can be picked up any day of the week for $5.59 on TCG Player. Go figure. Another big difference is Marvel's Spider-Man - Play Booster Box. Amazon has their preorder price guarantee on this, but it's still 17% cheaper to preorder on TCG Player.
This Weeks MTG Crashers and Climbers
As we covered in our recent synergies feature, Harmonic Prodigy gives double Wizard triggers – nice! That means it's gone up by 118.70% in the past month (246.76% in three) – not so nice!
That's good for those that own the card, not so good for those who are looking to pick it up standalone. Still, market is still just $12.75 right now, so it could be a lot worse.
Moving away from Vivi, Tifa’s getting some love from Bristly Bill, Spine Sower. This Outlaws of Thunder Junction card can help power up our martial artist heroine, but at a cost of almost $40 now.
Another nifty synergy that's climbing is Perch Protection. This Instant has climbed from a dollar to almost $6, since it handily ties into Chocobo decks.
If you’re sensitive to light while sleeping, this 3D contoured eye mask from WAOAW might be worth trying. It’s designed with deeper eye cavities so there’s no pressure on your lids, and the wide, adjustable strap helps it stay put without pulling at your hair. The material is soft and breathable, and it comes with earplugs and a travel pouch, which makes it a handy option for travel or quick naps.
Christian Wait is a contributing freelancer for IGN covering everything collectable and deals. Christian has over 7 years of experience in the Gaming and Tech industry with bylines at Mashable and Pocket-Tactics. Christian also makes hand-painted collectibles for Saber Miniatures. Christian is also the author of "Pokemon Ultimate Unofficial Gaming Guide by GamesWarrior". Find Christian on X @ChrisReggieWait.
You probably don't think of Pokémon when asked to name notoriously challenging games. Despite having a complex competitive meta, the campaigns of Pokémon games have been accused of being too easy for years now, especially in more recent games. As a result, fan communities have come up with various voluntary, restrictive challenges to make the game more difficult, such as the many variations of the Nuzlocke challenge.
But there's one fan-created challenge mode that's so difficult it had never been beaten... until now. It's the Super Kaizo Ironmon challenge, and it's just been defeated after over a year and thousands of attempts by hundreds of community members.
The Super Kaizo IronMon challenge was created by streamer iateyourpie, who came up with it in 2024. It builds off of the IronMon challenge and its past variations, which iateyourpie created a few years before that, and which was already a difficult way to play Pokémon.
The standard IronMon challenge includes rules such as required use of a randomizer, all enemy trainer and wild Pokémon levels increased by 50%, a requirement that if a Pokémon faints, it cannot be used anymore, and a rule that you can only catch OR kill one Pokémon per route — no grinding wild encounters for EXP.
Then, there's the Ultimate IronMon rules, which add more restrictions such as only allowing six Pokémon to be obtained during the run total, not letting you leave a Gym once you enter until you've beaten it, and only allowing players to enter a dungeon one time.
And then on top of that there's Kaizo IronMon, which adds rules like only one Pokémon being allowed to be used at a time, only allowing players to catch Pokémon up to four levels higher than the highest Pokémon on their team, prevents killing any wild Pokémon at all, and bans all sorts of helpful items, abilities, moves, and Pokémon.
Super Kaizo IronMon takes literally all of those rules, and for some unhinged reason, adds even more. It require a ROM patch to give trainers smart AI and held items, and gives Gym Leaders full teams of six, making them far more difficult than normal. It forces players to "pivot" to a new Pokémon midway through the game, and has restrictions as to how that Pokémon can be chosen. It bans even more moves and items, and has various requirements for different versions of Pokémon that restrict certain areas such as the Trick House in Pokemon Emerald, the S.S. Anne in FireRed and LeafGreen, and Amity Square in Pokémon Platinum.
So, yeah, maybe no shocker that this took so long to beat, huh? But streamer Reimi has finally managed to do it after an eye-popping 8,502 attempts. The winning run, which concluded this past Friday, took place on Pokémon FireRed. Because it's a randomizer, any Pokémon can appear anywhere, so Reimi's starter Pokémon choice was between a Krabby, a Weedle, and a Blissey. Unshockingly, Reimi went with the Blissey, which became his main fighter for the whole first half of the run.
But because of the pivot rule, Reimi had to swap main Pokémon halfway through the game. He was allowed to catch three different Pokémon from one specific area to choose from, and ultimately settled on a Crobat nicknamed Heskey that evolved from... Ivysaur (it's a randomizer!). Reimi's initial reaction to the evolution on screen was, "That's at least something," but that something turned into a whole heck of a lot as the run continued.
It all culminated in a nervewracking final battle against Blue with Heskey at level 90 and equipped with Earthquake, Sludge, Aerial Ace, and Thunderbolt. In this randomized version, Heskey took out Blue's Camerupt easily with a one-shot Earthquake, and a Parasect with Aerial Ace. Parasect left a nasty partying gift in the form of Flame Body burning Heskey, only for Blue to send out a second Parasect with Acid Armor. Heskey still managed to take it out a single shot with Sludge after healing the burn, and Blue sent out his ace next: a level 95 Quagsire. But Heskey dispatched THAT in one shot too, with a critical hit Earthquake.
Next up was a level 86 Rayquaza, of all things, which proved trickier. Heskey had to slowly chop its health down with Sludge, and while he managed to poison it, Blue kept using Full Restores and Rayquaza kept using Refresh to negate Heskey's efforts. At one point, Reimi had to use the one Full Restore in his bag just to keep Heskey alive, despite wanting to save it for a potential Dynamic Punch later in the fight. Eventually, Rayquaza dropped, leaving Poliwrath. Three attacks later, Heskey finished the job, and Reimi became the first person ever to finish Super Kaizo IronMon.
So what's Reimi doing now that Super Kaizo IronMon has been conquered? He's... still playing it. At the time this piece was written, Reimi was just outside of Viridian City with a level 39 Tentacruel named Squidward.
Reimi's victory will likely pave the way for more wins down the road, but iateyourpie's disclaimer on the Super Kaizo IronMon rules page, "This is not meant for everyone," certainly rings true given how ridiculous it was just to get one person to reach the end of the challenge exactly one time.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. You can find her posting on BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.
Summer has arrived, and what better way to enjoy it than staying in an air conditioned room to check out new anime? Some shows, like One Piece, will continue airing through the next months, but most standard-length shows, like My Hero Academia: Vigilantes, have wrapped up to make way for the summer anime season.
I subscribe to Crunchyroll, which streams most new anime almost immediately after it airs live in Japan. Most other streaming services, aside from occasionally Hulu, can't say the same. As we head into a new season, I’ve broken down every anime the site will simulcast in July.
New Anime Simulcasts in July: Highlights on Crunchyroll
Dan Da Dan Season 2
Premieres July 3
The alien- and demon-hunting duo returns for a new season on July 3. Like the first season, the first three episodes of Dan Da Dan Season 2 were shown in theaters earlier in June as “Dan Da Dan: Evil Eye,” but the full season will run for 12 episodes. Expect an unbelievable amount of innuendos and, hopefully, an opening theme as catchy as Season 1.
My Dress-Up Darling Season 2
Premieres July 5
There’s a lot of action on this list, so here’s something a little more lighthearted to look forward to. My Dress-Up Darling is returning for Season 2 three afters after it originally aired and off the heels of the manga’s final chapter. IGN’s review of the first season highlights the sweetness of the series' “fledgling romance,” but also highlights how the show “runs through the difficulties and joys of constructing a costume from scratch.”
Gachiakuta
Premieres July 6
Bones Studio stays busy. Before the final season of My Hero Academia, we’re getting a new anime from the studio based on Kei Urano’s dark fantasy manga. Directly translated as “legit trash,” Gachiakuta takes place in a world where the wealthy literally float above the masses. The story follows Rudo, a young boy whose wrongful conviction for murder leads him to “The Pit.”
Nyaight of the Living Cat
Premieres July 6
OLM, the studio behind most of the Pokémon anime and the 1997 version of Berserk, is animating one of the more unique manga from the past decade. Nyaight of the Living Cat takes place in an apocalyptic world where people get turned into… you guessed it, cats. The comedy-horror series will also be featured in a Dead By Daylight collab, with some quirky cosmetics releasing on the same day as the anime's premiere.
Dr. Stone Season 4, Part 2
Premieres July 10
Dr. Stone is returning for the second part of its final season. Season 4, also known as Science Future, is planned to wrap up in three parts, making this essentially “Act 2” of a three-act season. Unlike, say, Attack on Titan, Dr. Stone’s final season will air pretty much back-to-back, with each “part” containing a full 12 episodes. You’re basically getting three full seasons.
Kaiju No. 8 Season 2
Premieres July 19
Another breakout anime from 2024, Kaiju No. 8 follows a man who, after giving up his dream of joining humanity's Defense Force, accidentally becomes the type of demon he dreamed of fighting. IGN’s review describes how the first season “delivers a consistent flow of sci-fi monster-fighting splendor while taking ample time to capture the contours of its main cast, raising the stakes for Season 2.” Well, that Season 2 is almost here, premiering on July 20.
Apocalypse Bringer Mynoghra: World Conquest Starts with the Civilization of Ruin
Arknights: RISE FROM EMBER
Betrothed to My Sister's Ex
Clevatess
Cultural Exchange with a Game Centre Girl
DAN DA DAN Season 2
Dealing with Mikadono Sisters Is a Breeze
Dekin no Mogura: The Earthbound Mole
Detectives These Days Are Crazy!
Dr. STONE SCIENCE FUTURE Cour 2
Gachiakuta
Grand Blue Dreaming Season 2
Hotel Inhumans
I Was Reincarnated as the 7th Prince So I Can Take My Time Perfecting My Magical Ability Season 2
Kaiju No. 8 Season 2
KAMITSUBAKI CITY UNDER PRODUCTION
Let's Go Karaoke!
Lord of Mysteries
My Dress-Up Darling Season 2
Necronomico and the Cosmic Horror Show
New Saga
Nyaight of the Living Cat
Onmyo Kaiten Re:Birth Verse
Private Tutor to the Duke's Daughter
Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus
Reborn as a Vending Machine, I Now Wander the Dungeon Season 2
Rent-a-Girlfriend Season 4
Ruri Rocks
Scooped Up By an S-Ranked Adventurer
See You Tomorrow at the Food Court
Secrets of the Silent Witch
Solo Camping for Two
Takopi's Original Sin
The Rising of the Shield Hero Season 4
The Shy Hero and the Assassin Princesses
The Water Magician
Toilet-bound Hanako-kun Season 2
Turkey! Time to Strike
Watari-kun's ****** Is About to Collapse
Welcome to the Outcast's Restaurant!
With You and the Rain
More Anime Will Go Straight to Streaming Elsewhere
While Crunchyroll may be the go-to site for simulcasts, more and more streaming services are producing and licensing their own anime. As such, plenty of new series will be heading straight to streaming on other services.
In July, Netflix is getting Sakamoto Days Part 2 as well as Leviathan, an anime adaptation of the Scott Westerfeld novel. Meanwhile, Prime Video will be streaming City the Animation, from the studio behind Violet Evergarden and Fullmetal Alchemist.
Alienware released a new flagship gaming laptop this year - the Area-51 - and it brings to the table a host of upgrades over the m-series laptops including a sleeker redesign, current generation components, and better cooling potential. As part of the Alienware Black Friday in July Sale that kicks off now, select Area-51 gaming laptops have dropped to the lowest prices I've seen this year. They're all equipped with the newest Intel Core Ultra 9 processors and Nvidia RTX 5000 series Blackwell graphics cards. Check out all of the deals below.
Alienware Area-51 Laptops on Sale for 4th of July
The Area-51: New Style, More Power, Better Cooling
New for 2025, the Alienware Area-51 gaming laptop features a magnesium alloy chassis with upgraded cooling to tackle the latest and greatest heat generating components. This includes more fans and bigger cutouts enabling greater airflow, more generous use of copper, and a new thermal interface material to better transfer heat away from the core components. Dell claims that the laptop can handle a higher power ceiling of up to 240W TDP without raising acoustics.
Design-wise, the Area 51 accentuates its smooth contours, with rounded edges and soft corners replacing the squared off design you'd see in most other laptops. The hinges are also mostly internally positioned so that they're near invisible. As befits an Alienware laptop, there are ample customization options for RGB LED lighting.
The Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX is a top performing CPU
The Area-51 laptop is also equipped with a very powerful CPU as well. The Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX boasts a max turbo frequency of 5.4GHz with a whopping 24 cores and 40MB total L2 cache. According to Passmark, this is the second most powerful Intel mobile CPU available right now and goes head to head with AMD's Ryzen 9 7945HX3D.
The RTX 5070 Ti and RTX 5080 mobile offer the best performance for your dollar
As expensive as these laptops are, you don't want to spend even more on trivial upgrades. The RTX 5070 Ti mobile GPU boasts performance on par with the RTX 4080 but with the added benefit of faster GDDR7 RAM and DLSS 4.0. The RTX 5080 mobile GPU represents a healthy improvement over the RTX 5070 Ti for a nominal price bump; it's about 15%-20% more powerful than the RTX 5070 Ti and the RTX 4080 that it replaces. It also happens to be about 5% more powerful than the RTX 4090 and has the same amount of memory (16GB). Unfortunately, the RTX 5090 only appears to be just 5% more powerful than the RTX 5080, and its only real benefit is the 24GB of memory, which isn't that useful for gaming (but is an attraction option for professionals who work with AI applications).
Check Out More Alienware Black Friday in July Deals
Check out our Best Alienware Deals article with all of Dell's currently ongoing deals on gaming laptops and desktop PCs. Not everyone is the DIY type. If you're in the market for a prebuilt gaming PC, Dell is one of the best brands we'd recommend. Alienware desktops and laptops feature solid build quality, top-of-the-line gaming performance, excellent cooling (further improved on the newer models), aggressive styling, and pricing that is very competitive with other pre-built options. Best of all, there are plenty of sales that happen throughout the year, so it's not difficult to grab one of these computers at considerably less than their retail price.
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.
As part of its 4th of July Sale, HP is offering its newest and most powerful gaming laptop at a pretty hefty discount. The Omen Max 16 RTX 5090 Gaming Laptop drops to just $2,399.99 with free shipping when you apply 20% off coupon code "LEVELUP20". That is easily best price for an RTX 5090 gaming laptop anywhere by well over $1,000. In fact, I would place this deal squarely in the too good to be true territory and I'd be surprised if your order even gets shipped out. That said, fortune favors the bold, and worst case scenario your order will just be cancelled. The RTX 5090 is currently the most powerful mobile GPU available with tons of VRAM and DLSS 4 support.
Update #1: Price has gone up from $2,319.99 to $2,399.99, still a fantastic deal.
Update #2: Added a similar RTX 5080 laptop for a lower price (and a better value)
HP Omen Max 16" RTX 5090 Gaming Laptop for $2,399.99
This HP Omen Max 16 laptop is configured with a 16" 1920x1200 display, Intel Core Ultra 9 275HX processor, GeForce RTX 5090 graphics, 21GB of RAM, and a 1TB SSD. I would strongly recommend upgrading to the 16" 2560x1600 OLED display for an additional $190 (minus 20% off with code). The GPU can easily handle the increased resolution and the OLED panel makes for a much better looking display that complements the other premium hardware.
The Core Ultra 9 275HX boasts a max turbo frequency of 5.4GHz with 24 cores and 40MB total L2 cache. According to Passmark, this is one of the fastest laptop processor on the market, going toe to toe with the AMD Ryzen 9 7945HX3D. The Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 is likewise the most powerful mobile graphics card on the market. In terms of raw performance, it's actually only about a 10% improvement over the RTX 5080. However, it does have considerably more VRAM (24GB vs 16GB), which is useful for creative professionals and anyone who uses generative AI.
HP Omen Max 16" RTX 5080 Gaming Laptop for $1,879.99
Another 4th of July deal that just popped up is a similar HP Omen Max 16" configuration but featuring an RTX 5080 mobile graphics card. The RTX 5080 mobile GPU is more powerful than the RTX 4080 mobile GPU that it replaces. In fact, it's even about 5% more powerful than the RTX 4090, which was the previous generation's flagship card. This GPU should be able to run new and upcoming games at high framerates even on the display's 2560x1600 native resolution.
The Omen Max is new for 2025
The Omen Max is essentially a "premium" Omen 16 with better materials - like an aluminum-magnesium alloy chassis and lid - and a beefier cooling system to accommodate current generation hardware.
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.
As part of its 4th of July Sale, Best Buy has discounted both Lenovo Legion Go S SteamOS gaming PC handheld models for the first time ever. The more powerful Lenovo Legion Go S AMD Z1 Extreme SteamOS model is down to $779.99 (normally $830) and the Legion Go S AMD Ryzen Z2 Go SteamOS model is down to $549.99 (normally $600). I strongly recommend you opt for the Z1 Extreme edition; it's hands down the best gaming handheld PC so far in 2025. The new Lenovo Legion Go S was released in February of 2025, but only the Windows edition; the Steam OS edition was released later in May. This is the first SteamOS gaming handheld that isn't made by Valve.
Lenovo Legion Go S Steam OS Gaming Handheld PC
If you can afford the $230 price premium, I would strongly recommend going with the $780 model. The AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme is a significantly more powerful processor than the Ryzen Z2 Go (which we didn't like very much at all) and also includes double the RAM and double the storage. The Ryzen Z1 Extreme model is also more powerful than the Steam Deck. Since it runs on the same SteamOS client it outperforms the Steam Deck in most games. Games look better with more fluid movement as well, thanks to a bigger 8" screen with a higher 120Hz refresh rate. Battery life remains roughly equivalent, however the Legion Go S has the benefit of a much faster maximum charging rate.
The SteamOS model is better than the Windows model
There's a third Legion Go S model on sale. This model has the same specs as the more powerful SteamOS variant, but it runs off Windows 11. The optimized SteamOS client is more user intuitive and better performing than Windows, which is a general purpose operating system that wasn't inherently built to focus on controller-based gaming by default.
If you end up getting this deal, we'd recommend picking up a portable power bank for extended travels and a Micro SD card, which you might be able to find in ongoing Fourth of July sales. We've compared the Steam Deck to the ROG Ally and although the Legion Go S isn't mentioned, the article gives you a good idea of the major differences between a Steam-based and Windows-based gaming handheld.
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.
Alienware's Black Friday in July Sale has officially commenced. So far it's the best sale I've seen from Dell this year, and that's great news for gamers looking to upgrade their rigs. What many people might not realize is that traditionally the Black Friday in July deals are as good as or better than the deals we see on Black Friday proper. Score some outstanding deals on Alienware's gaming PCs, laptops, monitors, electronics, and accessories, including 2025 releases like the new flagship Area-51 systems. I'll keep updating the page with new deals as they come in.
Alienware Black Friday in July Gaming PC Deals
Alienware Black Friday in July Gaming Laptop Deals
You can quickly browse through all of the listed products on sale above. See below for our favorite picks.
Alienware Aurora R16 RTX 5080 Gaming PC
Alienware's Black Friday in July Sale has officially kicked off, and one of the best deals I've seen so far is this Alienware Aurora R16 RTX 5080 gaming PC for just $2,099.99 shipped. This is $250 less than the previous best deal I've seen on the same configuration, and one of the best prices you can get for any prebuilt RTX 5080 gaming PC. If you were to try to find a 5080 GPU for your do-it-yourself PC build, you'll probably spend $1,400 for the graphics card alone.
Alienware Aurora R16 RTX 5070 Ti Gaming PC
Dell is offering a competitive price on an Alienware Aurora R16 gaming PC equipped with the excellent GeForce RTX 5070 Ti graphics card. Right now you can get a base configuration paired with the latest Intel Core Ultra 7 processor for just $1,849.99. This CPU/GPU duo can comfortably handle even the latest and most demanding games in 4K resolution like Black Myth Wukong, Clair Obscur, or Kingdom Come: Deliverance, and it's $250 cheaper than jumping to the 5080.
Alienware Area-51 RTX 5090 Gaming PC
If you're seeking the absolute best of the best in PC gaming performance, look no further. Dell has just dropped the price of its flagship Alienware Area-51 prebuilt gaming PC, equipped with the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 graphics card starting at $4,574.99 with free shipping. The RTX 5090 is undisputedly the most powerful graphics card on the market. It's the best consumer card for both high-resolution gaming and AI work thanks to its whopping 32GB of GDDR7 VRAM. It's also pretty much impossible to find a standalone graphics card for your diy build for under $3,000.
New Alienware Aurora 16X and 16 Gaming Laptops
Alienware's new mainstream gaming laptop for 2025 is dubbed the "Alienware Aurora" and comes in two 16" models: the 16 and 16X. The 16X is the superior of the two variants and it is on sale right now. For its Black Friday in July Sale, Dell is offering the best prices I've seen on both models.
Area-51 Gaming Laptops: New Style, More Power, Better Cooling
New for 2025, the Alienware Area-51 gaming laptop features a magnesium alloy chassis with upgraded cooling to tackle the latest and greatest heat generating components. This includes more fans and bigger cutouts enabling greater airflow, more generous use of copper, and a new thermal interface material to better transfer heat away from the core components. Dell claims that the laptop can handle a higher power ceiling of up to 240W TDP without raising acoustics.
Design-wise, the Area 51 accentuates its smooth contours, with rounded edges and soft corners replacing the squared off design you'd see in most other laptops. The hinges are also mostly internally positioned so that they're near invisible. As befits an Alienware laptop, there are ample customization options for RGB LED lighting.
32" Alienware AW3225QF 4K OLED Monitor
The best Alienware high-end gaming monitor deal is also on sale for Black Friday in July. The 32" Alienware AW3225QF 4K QD OLED gaming monitor has just dropped to $849.99 with free shipping after a $300 off instant discount. If you're looking for the best 4K gaming monitor, this should definitely be on your short list. This is a rare monitor that combines a native 4K resolution with an OLED panel. This monitor incorporates Samsung's QD OLED technology; QD OLED panels are brighter than traditional OLED panels while maintaining near infinite response time, contrast ratio, and black levels that OLEDs are generally known for. The Alienware AW3225QF is HDR True Black 400 certified with up to 1,000 nits of peak brightness. It also boasts a factory calibrated 99.3% DCI-P3 color range, 1700R curve, 240Hz refresh rate, and G-Sync certification. Dell backs this monitor up with a three-year warranty that includes burn-in protection.
27" Alienware AW2725DF 360Hz QHD OLED Monitor
The Alienware AW2725DF 27" QD OLED gaming monitor normally retails for $899.99, but right now you can get it at Dell for just $619.99. The AW2725DF is Dell's first (and only) monitor with both an OLED panel and blazing fast 360Hz refresh rate. This is easily one of the best 27" QHD gaming monitors you can get right now, especially if you're aiming for the highest frame rates possible in your FPS games.
34" Alienware AW3425DW QD OLED Gaming Monitor
Right now you can pick up an Alienware AW3425DW 34" QD-OLED gaming monitor for $769.99. The Alienware AW3425DW is a curved 34" with a 3440x1440 WQHD resolution, 0.03ms response time, and 165Hz refresh rate. It also uses a Samsung quantum dot OLED panel. If you're not looking for a true 4K monitor, this is one of the best monitors out there. The ultrawide WQHD resolution of this monitor measures out to a respectable 109ppi. You can get something like an RTX 4060 Ti or RTX 4070 GPU and achieve perfectly playable framerates. A true 4K monitor, on the other hand, would require a more powerful and pricier GPU.
Why pick a Dell or Alienware gaming PC?
If you're in the market for a prebuilt gaming PC, Dell is one of best gaming brands we'd recommend. The Alienware gaming desktops offer a staggering array of options, all built into a custom chassis that's both easy on the eyes and easy on the wallet. Alienware gaming laptops in recent years have been redesigned to be thinner and lighter while still offering the same immense power under the hood. Consistent build quality, available inventory, frequent sales, and solid customer service are the main reasons why Dell is at the top of our buying list for gaming laptops and PCs.
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.
Amazon Prime Day is one of the biggest sales of the year, second to only Black Friday. Although this shopping holiday was created by Amazon, it has ballooned into a much wider event throughout the years. Most major retailers have already announced some sort of rival sale in 2025, and July is shaping up to be a great time to find savings this year.
I've been browsing Amazon Prime Day deals since the very first one back in 2015 and I always try to make at least one major purchase. This year, however, I'm planning on spending a lot more if the deals are actually good. The uncertainty around tariffs that are supposed to resume in August has me thinking it's probably better to buy now rather than wait for prices to go up later.
If you're hoping to plan your shopping ahead of time, we already know quite a few things about Prime Day 2025. Unfortunately, there are also still a lot of unknowns as the start date approaches.
When Does Amazon Prime Day Start in 2025?
The first thing you need to know are the actual dates for Prime Day. Amazon has announced that its Prime Day sale will start on July 8 and run through July 11 this year (next week). This is a break from tradition as Amazon has made the switch from a two-day event to a four-day event. It's the longest Prime Day Amazon has ever had.
In addition to the Amazon sale, both Walmart and Target have announced competing events in July. The dates are slightly different and include varying start times depending on each retailer's membership plan. I'll break down those start dates for you below:
Walmart Deals Start Date - July 8-13
Walmart announced its Deals sale that starts the same day as Prime Day. However, Walmart+ members will be able to access the sale a day early on July 7. A Walmart+ membership is free to try, but early access usually requires paying the monthly subscription fee to activate.
Target Circle Week - July 6-12
Target also announced Circle Week, which starts a little bit earlier than Amazon's sale and runs a little bit longer. Similar to Prime Day, Circle Week is only available to those with a Target Circle membership. It's free to sign up, but the paid Target Circle 360 subscription will get you access to the sale on July 5, a whole day earlier.
Best Buy Fourth of July Sale - Now-July 6
Best Buy seems to have taken an alternate route by offering a Fourth of July sale rather than compete directly with Amazon. The Best Buy Fourth of July sale is live now and features discounts on TVs, gaming accessories, and major appliances. These discounts will end on Sunday, July 6.
Does Amazon Have New Deals Every Day of the Sale?
A lot of Prime Day deals will be available for the entirety of the sale, but some are more limited to specific windows of time. Amazon announced that Prime Day 2025 will be offering something new called 'Today's Big Deals' which will feature brand-specific sales that will launch at midnight each day. Amazon has stated these themed drops will come from brands like Samsung, Kiehl's, and Levi's and only last the duration of the day or until the deal runs out. This new type of sale is separate from the usual lightning deals available during Prime Day.
Which Early Deals Are Worth Shopping Today?
Amazon has already kicked off early Prime Day deals, and they are pretty much the same discounts we see every year. The best offers are on a mix of Amazon's own subscription services and devices. Examples include Audible and Kindle Unlimited subscription with extended free trials, as well as price cuts on select Amazon devices. On such deal of note is the Luna Wireless controller deal that includes a Luna+ free trial. I've gathered up some of the best early promotions going on right now above and will update the list as new official Prime Day deals arrive. While I don't expect Amazon to have a Fourth of July sale this year, other retailers like Best Buy are having one and that is helping to bring in new early deals this week.
Do you have to be a Prime Member to shop Prime Day deals?
Amazon Prime Day is a sale meant exclusively for those with an Amazon Prime membership. That being said, there are still discounts that non-Prime members will be able to access during the event. These will be discounts on the products that Walmart, Target, and Best Buy will likely also have discounts on, so you won't necessarily need a membership to still find worthwhile savings. Though you will be locked out of any lightning deals Amazon has during the sale.
What Deals to Expect on Prime Day
Amazon has officially revealed a sneak peek of Prime Day deals for 2025, but it doesn't really reveal anything beyond broad strokes of what you can expect. That being said, I've covered the sale enough that I can make an educated guess about what's in store for 2025. Outside of the Amazon device deals that are already live ahead of the event, here's a snapshot of what categories are most likely to get discounts.
Video Games
There a quite a few great times to buy video games throughout the year, and Prime Day is usually one of them. Although you may have to shop around a bit to find the best price outside of Amazon, you'll be able to find plenty of deals on popular games for the Nintendo Switch, PS5, and Xbox Series X. For PC games specifically, you'll want to look for the Steam Summer sale, which runs from now until July 10 this year.
I'd expect to see prices on popular games from last year and early 2025 drop under $30, with even older games under $20. Amazon recently started offering first-party Switch games again, but most of the deals on Nintendo exclusives will still probably be at other retailers.
Subscriptions
Although Amazon is most known as an online retailer, it also has a variety of subscription services. Prime Day is usually a great time to find discounts on streaming services via Prime Video, or even just longer free trials of Audible and Kindle subscriptions. Amazon is already offering a few extended free trials to Prime members before Prime Day even begins. This includes a new Prime for Young Adults promotion that will get you a subscription for free for six months.
In addition to services like Audible and Kindle Unlimited, Amazon also has free games for Prime members you can already take advantage of. These deals will stick around throughout the sale.
VR Headset Deals
Although you shouldn't expect any discounts on the new Xbox edition of the Quest 3S, you can for sure expect some sort of discount on the standard Meta Quest 3 and 3S this year. These deals were some of the most popular discounts on Amazon for Black Friday last year and we expect to see similar pricing for Prime Day this year.
The most recent Meta Quest 3 deal we saw dropped the price of the 3S by $50, and that same deal will likely return. It's also possible we'll see the same discount on the PSVR2 headset from Days of Play sale earlier this year, but it's not as likely as the Quest 3 deal.
Gaming Accessories
While Black Friday is usually a better time to find discounts on popular gaming accessory brands, Prime Day is likely going to be the best time to find those discounts this year. That's largely because tariffs have already caused some major players to increase prices (Microsoft, for example). With harsher tariffs still set to resume in August, gaming accessory brands are almost certainly going to be affected.
In terms of deals you can potentially expect this year, it will likely be very similar to the PlayStation Days of Play sale for PS5 controllers and headsets. Xbox controllers will also probably get some sort of discount, though maybe not as low as earlier this year. Third-party accessories will most likely have the lowest prices, so keep an eye out for those brands when looking for Nintendo Switch 2 accessories.
TVs
Last year, Amazon discounted multiple quality OLED TVs for Prime Day. We expect to see similar deals this year, alongside great deals for anyone looking for a new gaming TV. You can expect to see TVs of all sizes on sale, from as small as 32 inches to as large as 85 inches. With Prime's free two-day shipping, your brand-new discounted TV can arrive just days after you buy it. All in all, it's one of the very best times to buy a TV outside of Black Friday and Super Bowl season.
As to what specific deals to expect, it's worth highlighting the popular LG C4 has already dropped to its lowest price for 2025. This $300 discount is a good example of what type of price reductions we'll see on last year's models for brands like LG, Sony, and Samsung.
Kitchen Applicances
Any appliances for the kitchen are always a safe bet for Prime Day sales. This includes stand mixers, air fryers, microwaves, and more. In prior years, Prime Day has also had fantastic deals on coffee makers, with hundreds of dollars worth of savings at times. Overall, if you're in need of new kitchen equipment, Prime Day is one of the best days of the year to save some cash.
Price wise, you can most likely expect roughly a 30-50% markdown on these types of smaller appliances. This varies by brand of course, so don't expect some of the higher-end products to have the same level of discounts. You'll most likely be able to get a Keurig for under $40 though.
Apple Products
Apple products are pretty much a given for Prime Day. We expect to see AirPods Pro discounted, alongside AirPods Max and other Apple headphones. Additionally, it's likely Amazon will discount a few iPad models, which makes Prime Day a perfect time to pick up a new device before Apple's big hardware event in the fall.
The newest iPad generations have already been discounted by $50 since they've been released, so you can expect that same pricing or slightly lower for Prime Day. The same goes for the latest AirPods models, which were recently heavily discounted. Major retailers tend to compete with Apple pricing during the event, so it's good to shop around to see who as the lowest prices on any given day.
Vacuums
Vacuums are a hot item every Prime Day. This includes both stick vacuums and robot vacuums, which are great for any household. Big name brands like Dyson and iRobot tend to show out for Prime Day, so we expect to see some quality deals from notable brands this July.
In the past, we've seen some older iRobot Roomba vacuums drop under $100 and that will likely be the case once again. Bissell will also usually have more niche options, like an upholstery cleaner for $90 or less, which are always best-selling items during these types of sales.
LEGO Sets
Amazon is one of the best places to buy LEGO online, and Prime Day is one of the best times to buy LEGO sets every year. There will most likely be some massive discounts on some of the most expensive LEGO sets on the market, and you can even expect some of the cheaper LEGO sets to get discounts during that time, though it won't always be listed as a Prime Day deal.
Amazon also tends to have a lot of excess stock in recently retired sets it's trying to unload. So some of the less popular sets from previous years can sometimes get a discount before they start going up in value again. We're already starting to see some early LEGO deals arrive at Amazon, like the Pixar Up House set that just dropped in price for the first time this year.
School Supplies
Considering it takes place during the middle of summer break, Prime Day is undoubtedly a great time to find discounts on back-to-school supplies. Things like clothing, writing utensils, and backpacks will all receive discounts during this time. If you're hoping to find a cheap Pokémon backpack for your kids, this is the time to do it.
It's worth noting that Target has set it sights on being the main destination for back-to-school discounts this year by claiming it will be offering "2024 prices" on things like notebooks, colored pencils, crayons, and more. Amazon will most likely match these prices.
Gaming Consoles
I don't think video game console deals will be as good as Black Friday last year, but I do think there will be at least some discounts on PS5 and Xbox consoles for Prime Day. It's consistently one of the best times to buy a PS5, a Nintendo Switch, or an Xbox console.
As for what discounts to expect, I'd guess something close to a modest $50 off on the main consoles. The PS5 Pro got its first discount during the Days of Play sale this year and it was right in that range. I'd expect to see some deals on the Switch now that the Nintendo Switch 2 is here, but those will probably be outside of Amazon.
Gaming PCs
The summer is arguably one of the best times of the year to buy a gaming PC or build one yourself. Black Friday tends to have better prices on the PC components themselves, but retailers like Amazon and Walmart will always have solid discounts on budget gaming PCs during the summer months. This is especially true during Prime Day when Amazon tends to discount brands like CyberPower and Asus.
Don't expect to find any real discounts on newer PCs with the latest and greatest Nvidia GPUs, but you should definitely be able to find something less powerful for under $1,000. I'd also expect to see price cuts on some of the more popular gaming handhelds now that the market has grown. The Legion Go, for example, recently got its biggest price cut.
4K and Blu-ray Movies
Amazon has become one of the last places you can find physical media at good prices, and Prime Day is one of the best times to buy. Last year we saw a ton of popular Blu-rays get discounts and Amazon has only increased the frequency of sales in 2025. The most recent buy one, get one 50% off sale for Father's Day is a good example of that.
As for what deals you can expect on Prime Day, it really depends on what you're looking for. Movie collections will likely see the biggest discounts, so things like The Lord of the Rings collection or the Dune franchise will likely be at or near their lowest prices. The only thing that isn't likely to be on sale are preorders for newer 4K releases like Thunderbolts* or The Minecraft Movie.
Amazon also has a tendency to price-match any movie sales that happen outside of Prime Day. One such example is the Criterion Collection sale at Barnes & Noble that has already started.
Books and Comics
It shouldn't be too much of a surprise that Amazon is one of the best places to buy books online in 2025. The retail giant got its start as an online bookstore, after all. In addition to discounts on services like Kindle Unlimited and Audible, Amazon will also have some of the best deals on actual physical copies of book during Prime Day. Though if digital books is what you're looking for, Amazon has thankfully confirmed there will be Kindle deals this year.
With Prime Day less than a month away, it's a good time to start making a plan for what you want to get out of it this year. Here are a few Prime Day tips I'd suggest you consider ahead of the event:
Set a Budget - Keeping track of how much money you can actually spend is important to avoid overspending. When everything is on sale, it can be easy to buy more than you really should just because things are at their lowest price of the year.
Make a Shopping List - Knowing exactly what you're trying to find discounts on is a great way to avoid making unnecessary purchases. This can also make it easier for you to compare prices between retailers or set price drop alerts ahead of time.
Compare Prices - Although Amazon tends to automatically price match on most things, it's still good to compare prices to other retailers before you buy. You can also use the website CamelCamelCamel to compare prices against Amazon's historical pricing.
Find Unbiased Reviews - Amazon reviews have gotten somewhat better in recent years, but you should still do research outside of the site before making a decision. Seek out unbiased reviews on expensive purchases before you buy.
Be Wary of Sponsored Products - Search results in Amazon include sponsored sales that may not be what you're looking for. Look for the little 'sponsored' tag before you click. You may want to scroll past those.
Make Sure to Clip Coupons - One of the easiest ways to save money on Amazon that many folks seem to miss is coupon clipping. There are a ton of coupons available for Prime Members, and all you need to do is check a box on the product page for additional savings.
Jacob Kienlen is a Senior SEO Strategist and Writer for IGN. Born and raised in Portland, Oregon, he has considered the Northwest his home for his entire life. With a bachelor's degree in communication and over 8 years of professional writing experience, his expertise is spread across a variety of different topics -- from TV series to indie games and popular book series.
The seasonal Audible deal has returned. Starting now and running through July 31 (including Amazon Prime Day), you can sign up for three months of Audible Premium Plus for just $0.99 per month. Premium Plus is Audible's highest tier plan and normally costs $14.95/mo. As a additional subscription perk, you get a free audiobook of your choice for each of those three months and you get to keep them indefinitely.
Both new and currently expired Audible customers are eligible
Anyone who doesn't currently have an active Audible membership should be eligible. That includes new subscribers as well as existing members whose subscriptions have since expired. There's always a small your-mileage-may-vary disclaimer with these types of promotions, but fortunately it's easy to check if you qualify: log into your account, and if you see the $0.99/mo banner right on Amazon's Audible page then you're eligible for this promotion.
3 Months of Audible Premium Plus for $0.99 per Month
Audible is a subscription service that gives you access to hundreds of thousands of the best audiobooks without ever having to purchase them. There are two paid membership plans: the lower tier Audible Plus ($7.95/mo) and the higher tier Audible Premium Plus ($14.95/mo). The biggest difference between the two is the size of the audiobook library. Whereas Audible Plus only lets you listen to a selection of about 10,000 audiobooks, the Audible Premium Plus plan gives you access to a whopping 500,000 audiobooks.
Although the seriously expanded library is the main draw of the Audible Premium Plus membership, there are some other nice perks as well. Every month Premium Plus members get to pick one audiobook to keep in their library indefinitely, even after the membership expires. Also, Premium Plus members can get 30% off any additional audiobooks they wish to purchase in addition to exclusive limited-time discounts.
If you were already planning to purchase a couple of audiobooks, then it makes more sense to pay less than $3 to get three audiobooks you get to keep indefinitely and enjoy all the benefits of Audible Premium Plus for three months. This deal only pops up a few times per year, so don't waste your "first-time subscriber" eligibility status on a short 30-day trial.
Catch up the the latest novel releases, audiobook style
Several best-selling new and recent releases are available in an audiobook format and part of Audible's Premium Plus subscription plan. Sunrise on the Reaping, the latest Hunger Games novel, is narrated by Jefferson White, who you may already know from Yellowstone where he played Jimmy Hudstrom. The audiobook has a listening time of about 12 hours and 48 minutes. Stephen King released his Never Flinch crime novel in May 27 and it's also available as a nearly 15 hour long audiobook narrated by veteran Jessie Mueller. If you're a fan of Brandon Sanderson, check out Wind and Truth, book five of the popular The Stormlight Archive series. It was released in December of 2024 and runs an epic 63 hours long.
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.
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