One of the original designers of Tomb Raider's iconic Lara Croft has revealed that Core Design's then-Japanese publisher had asked for the character to be given a "Manga" redesign to "appeal" to Japanese players.

Responding to one fan who had unearthed a comment from him a few years ago, Tomb Raider co-creator and programmer Paul Douglas confirmed there had been a little pressure "quite late in Tomb Raider's development" when publisher Victor Interactive Software "faxed over some of their own designs" over fears the western character design wouldn't "go down well" in Japan.

"Victor wanted us to change in-game Lara to appeal more to a Japanese audience," Douglas revealed on BlueSky. "Huge eyes/head etc. They faxed through examples really late in dev. [Co-creator and designer] Toby Gard really didn't want to alter Lara. As a compromise, all that was changed was the manuals [and] guide. Not sure who did that render or illustrations."

The mysterious rendering Douglas is referring to can be seen in the first image appended to this BlueSky post, republished below:

Razer CEO Min-Liang Tan has weighed in on the discussion surrounding generative AI in game development, claiming that the controversial technology has a place in the industry, but gamers just aren’t aware of the art it will produce yet.

“With the amount of slop out there, we’re going to see some level of art rise to the top, and that kind of art may still be created with the same tools that created the slop,” Tan said in an interview with The Verge.

It comes as Razer continues to implement AI technology into its own hardware, following several new product reveals at CES 2026. Among them is a pair of over-ear headphones and a high-powered workstation PC meant for handling demanding AI workloads. Razer also has an open source AI developer kit aimed at coders and other business customers.

“What we do is focus on what the gamers want, what the game developers want, and we see ourselves as the link in between,” claimed Min. “And we keep both as happy as we can.”

Director Zack Snyder has shared the first photo he took of Henry Cavill as Superman, snapped 15 years ago.

Snyder is currently documenting his time spearheading the now defunct DC Extended Universe in a series of Instagram posts, the latest of which shows British actor Cavill in Christopher Reeve’s Superman suit. Cavill wore Reeve’s suit during screen tests for his role in 2013’s Man of Steel, which kickstarted Snyder’s DCEU.

“15 years ago, on this day, I pressed the shutter and met Superman,” Snyder wrote in a post accompanying the picture. “The first photo I ever took of Henry Cavill — moments before he stepped into legend. Shot on my Nikon.”

In recent weeks Snyder released two other early photos of Cavill in Reeve’s suit, showing the look that helped secure the actor’s role as Superman. The first, below, was published alongside the comment: “Henry Cavill. The original Superman suit. This photo. It was undeniable.”

The second, below, accompanied the following from Snyder: “With the last image I shared, and this one we showed WB everyone agreed: Henry Cavill was Superman. That’s where the journey began.”

Cavill went on to reprise his role as Superman in 2016’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, 2017’s Justice League (and the subsequent Snyder Cut), and cameo in 2022’s Black Adam. After James Gunn and Peter Safran assumed control of DC Studios and set out to create a rebooted DCU, Cavill announced on social media that he would indeed return as Superman, but had to walk that back after it emerged Gunn wanted a different actor to play the iconic role.

"I like Henry, I think he’s a great guy," Gunn said in 2023. "I think he’s getting d**ked around by a lot of people, including the former regime at this company. But this Superman is not Henry, for a number of reasons."

David Corenswet then came in as Superman and starred in last year’s movie of the same name. Promoting that movie, Gunn recalled a discussion he had with Cavill to tell him that he wouldn’t return as Superman. “It’s terrible,” Gunn said during Josh Horowitz’s Happy Sad Confused. “Believe it or not, the day we were dealing with trying to figure out if we could take the job at DC Studios, […] the day the deal closed, all of a sudden, they were announcing that Henry was back. And I was like, ‘What is going on? We know what the plan is. The plan was to come in and do Superman.’ It was really unfair to him and a total bummer.”

Gunn explained this was due to some within the studio trying to “force” their vision of the DCU, which, he insisted, was “never part of the equation.”

“That was really unfortunate,” Gunn continued. “So Peter and I [thought] the right thing to do was to sit down with [Cavill] and talk to him. And we sat down and we talked to him. He was an absolute gentleman, a great guy about it. He said, ‘The only thing I ask is that I’m able to reveal it myself as opposed to it coming from you guys.'”

Gunn then said he had talked to Cavill about playing another role in the DCU, and didn’t believe it would be too confusing for audiences. “I would love to put Henry in something,” he said.

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.

Destiny developer Bungie has finally confirmed the previously leaked launch date for Marathon, which is indeed March 5, 2026, and followed up the news with a rundown of who we can expect to hear in the English voice cast.

The bumper cast includes many, many familiar voices, such as Jennifer English (who won Best Performance at 2025's The Game Awards for Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, and has had notable roles in Elden Ring and Baldur's Gate 3, in which she plays Shadowheart), Ben Starr (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Hades II, Final Fantasy 16), Roger Clark (Red Dead Redemption 2), and Neil Newbon (Baldur's Gate 3's Astarion, Resident Evil 3 Remake). As one commenter responded: "That's… stacked lol."

Here's the full list, along with an idea of where you may have heard their voices before:

• Jennifer English (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Elden Ring, Baldur's Gate 3)
• Ben Starr (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Hades II, Final Fantasy 14)
• Roger Clark (Red Dead Redemption 2)
• Elias Toufexis (Deux: Ex: Human Revolution)
• Nika Futterman (Destiny, Doom Eternal, Starcraft)
• Erica Lindbeck (Fortnite, God of War Ragnarok)
• Reina Guthrie (Squid Game)
• Elliot Knight (Call of Duty series)
• JB Tadena (Call of Duty: Vanguard)
• Morla Gorrondona (Destiny 2: The Final Shape)
• Donnla Hughes
• Darin De Paul (Overwatch 2, Doom Eternal)
• Lee Shorten (Ghost of Yotei, Rise of the Ronin)
• Dave Fennoy (The Walking Dead, The Wolf Among Us)
• Tracy Wiles (Baldur's Gate 3, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33)
• Fred Tatasciore (Marvel Rivals, Destiny 2)
• Krizia Bajos (The Outer Worlds 2, Mafia: The Old Country)
• Samantha Beart (Baldur's Gate 3, Demon's Souls)
• Beau Bridgland (Exoprimal)
• Ry Chase (Destiny: Rising, Marvel's Spider-Man 2)
• Keston John (Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, The Outer Worlds 2)
• Sohm Kapila (Dune: Awakening, Hogwarts Legacy)
• Rich Keeble (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Total War: Warhammer III)
• Piotr Michael (Star Trek: Resurgence, Black Ops Cold War, Doom Eternal)
• Brent Mukai (Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, Ghost of Yotei)
• Neil Newbon (Baldur's Gate 3, Resident Evil 3 Remake)
• Ariana Nicole George (Genshin Impact, Dynasty Warriors: Origins)
• Emily O'Brien (League of Legends, Final Fantasy 14: A Realm Reborn, Starfield)
• Jason Spisak (Doom Eternal, Fortnite, Anthem)
• Craig Lee Thomas (Octopath Traveler 0, DC: Dark Legion)
• Oliver Vaquer (Dune: Awakening, Death Stranding)
• Erin Yvette (Oxenfree, The Wolf Among Us, Firewatch)
• Scott Whyte (Marvel Rivals, Halo Infinite, Avowed).

What we don't know yet is what characters the actors will portray, of course, but with the list essentially in alphabetical order besides front-runners English, Starr, Clark, Toufexis, Futterman, Lindbeck, Guthrie, Knight, Tadena, Gorrondona, Hughes, De Paul, Shorten, Fennoy, Wiles, and Tatasciore, that may suggest those particular actors will be portraying the characters we'll get to know best when playing Marathon.

Following various delays, Marathon's launch is now less than two months away — and pre-orders are open now. The pressure is on for Marathon to succeed amid Destiny 2’s high-profile struggles and Marathon's troubled development. At the end of last year, parent company Sony said Bungie had failed to meet its sales and user engagement targets, resulting in a $200 million impairment charge, and Bungie found itself battling yet more accusations of plagiarism back in May after an artist accused the studio of lifting aspects of her artwork for Marathon.

Last June Marathon was delayed into 2026 as Bungie worked to respond to feedback from playtests. Things went dark until Marathon re-emerged in October, when Bungie announced the extraction shooter was ready for a limited, invite-only playtest for players in North America and Europe across PS5, Xbox Series X and S, and Steam.

Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, as well as a critic, columnist, and consultant with 15+ years experience working with some of the world's biggest gaming sites and publications. She's also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.

Last month’s announcement of Divinity has sparked a significant increase in sales of Baldur’s Gate 3 and Divinity: Original Sin 2, developer Larian has said.

Divinity, announced at The Game Awards in December with a much-discussed trailer, is the next role-playing game from Larian following the enormous success of its 2023 Dungeons & Dragons-themed role-playing game. And it’s Baldur’s Gate 3 that has shown remarkable staying power, particularly on Steam where it is still seeing peak concurrent player numbers above 100,000 despite being two-and-a-half years old.

2017's Divinity: Original Sin 2, meanwhile, has also seen an uptick in players following the Divinity announcement, with peak concurrents in the tens of thousands rather than thousands in the weeks since. (If you're wondering what Divinity is, check out IGN's handy explainer.)

According to Larian boss Swen Vincke, it’s not just that people who already own Baldur’s Gate 3 or Divinity: Original Sin 2 are returning to the game. People are buying both games in significant numbers and jumping in for the first time.

“Sales for both BG3 and D:OS2 have been incredible since the announcement of Divinity,” Vincke said. “D:OS2 really surprised us by having its best month since release in 2017. Wish I’d removed the squirrel in time :)”

Typically, multiplayer live service games are expected to retain a large playerbase over the course of years, with revenue generated by the sale of in-game items such as battle passes, cosmetics, and DLC add-ons. Indeed, Steam’s top 10 most-played games are packed with live service games such as Counter-Strike 2, Dota 2, and PUBG.

But there are some single-player games that buck this trend. Bethesda’s single-player RPGs such as Skyrim and Fallout are usually there or thereabouts in terms of Steam popularity. CD Projekt’s The Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk 2077 remain hugely popular even now, years after launch. And Baldur’s Gate 3 is perhaps top of the single-player tree, with renewed interest in all things Larian following the Divinity reveal fueling it further.

Speaking of Divinity, Larian recently held a reddit AMA to answer questions from fans. Here’s everything we learned about Divinity from it.

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

Mike Colter has given a promising update on the likelihood he'll return as Marvel's unbreakable Harlem hero Luke Cage.

Speaking on Shawn Stockman's On That Note podcast, Colter was asked if there was any chance fans might see him back in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, eight years on from Netflix's controversial cancellation of its Luke Cage series and other popular superhero shows.

Without committing to anything concrete, Colter said that "conversations" had indeed taken place about him coming back as Cage and that the results of these chats could "come into fruition faster than we think."

CD Projekt has confirmed it issued a DMCA strike on a paid Cyberpunk 2077 VR mod, after its creator refused to make it free for everyone upon the studio’s request.

The R.E.A.L. VR mod for Cyberpunk 2077 was created by Luke Ross, who, according to a 2022 report by The Verge, makes $20,000 a month modding PC games to run in VR headsets. His mods are locked behind a Patreon, which sparked CD Projekt’s concern.

In a tweet, Jan Rosner, VP, Business Development at CD Projekt Red, said the company issued the DMCA strike because Cyberpunk VR was a paid mod, which violates its fan content guidelines.

“We never allow monetization of our IP without our direct permission and/or an agreement in place,” Rosner said. “We were in touch with Luke last week and informed him that he needs to make it free for everyone (with optional donations) or remove it.

“We are big fans of mods to our games — some of the work out there has been nothing short of amazing, including Luke’s mod for Cyberpunk 2077. We’d be happy to see it return as a free release. However, making a profit from our IP, in any form, always requires permission from CD Projekt Red.”

Ross responded to Rosner’s tweet to take issue with his work being characterized as fan content. Rather, Ross insisted, it is independent software and thus does not infringe on CD Projekt’s IP rights.

“I'm sorry but I don't believe you are within your rights in demanding that my software needs to be free,” Ross said. “It is not ‘derivative work’ or ‘fan content’: it supports a large number of games which were built upon different engines, and it contains absolutely zero code or assets from your IP. Saying that it infringes your IP rights is equivalent to maintaining for example that RivaTuner violates game publishers' copyrights because it intercepts the images the game is drawing on screen and it processes them in order to overlay its statistics.”

Ross went on to say he wants to find a “win-win solution,” and suggested CD Projekt make his Cyberpunk VR mod official, “or at least sanctioned by your company.” He added: “I think the current state of affairs is not the best way to resolve this misunderstanding.”

As it stands, Ross has left his Cyberpunk VR mod behind (in a post on Patreon, Ross said, “So long, and thanks for all the fish,”), and he has pulled support for the game. Ross’ tweet here has sparked a debate about the legal implications of his mod, a point he expanded on in a post on Patreon:

“As usual they stretch the concept of ‘derivative work’ until it's paper-thin, as though a system that allows visualizing 40+ games in fully immersive 3D VR was somehow built making use of their intellectual property,” he said. “And as usual they give absolutely zero f***s about how playing their game in VR made people happy, and they cannot just be grateful about the extra copies of the title they sold because of that — without ever having to pour money into producing an official conversion (no, they're not planning to release their own VR port, in case you were wondering).

“The bottom line is all that matters, and gamers be damned.

“Am I a little bitter about all of this? Yeah, you bet I am. Especially in the same week when Meta pulls the plug on three major VR studios. Especially after four years during which I (together with other modders) spent so much time keeping our mods alive in spite of CDPR's constant breaking updates. Especially when they never even knew or cared during all this time that the VR conversion was there, and are only knee-jerk reacting now because somebody reported to them that it existed and it was not free.”

This is not the first time Ross has been hit by a DMCA strike. In July 2022, Rockstar Games parent company Take-Two issued a DMCA notice against Ross for his GTA 5 and Red Dead Redemption 2 VR mods, among others. He made a similar argument against the decision back then, insisting "none of my modifications are built using software belonging to Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc, and the modifications are not intended to replace their games, nor are they a means of exploiting Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc's proprietary IP or assets."

Cyberpunk is just one of a number of games for which Ross has released VR mods, and he sounds undeterred by CD Projekt’s action here. Ross already has VR mods for the likes of Sony’s Days Gone, FromSoftware’s Elden Ring, and Ubisoft’s Far Cry 5 games. Now he’s turning his attention to Larian’s Baldur’s Gate 3.

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.

Free-to-play dark fantasy action RPG Dark December from developer Needs Games has officially launched on PC, Android, and iOS with crossplay and cross-progression. It marks a return to the world of Undecember, this time with more streamlined gameplay built around three core character classes.

If you’re not already familiar with the series or need a little refresher, Undecember was a quarter-view hack-and-slash game with no classes. It introduced a world created by 12 beings who shared their powers and brought peace and prosperity to the land. In time, they came to be worshipped as gods. But then a 13th being arose, who introduced evil to the world and corrupted mankind.

Dark December brings you back to that world, but many years before the events of Undecember and in an alternate timeline. The camera can now be moved freely, and it also marks a departure from the complex progression systems of its predecessor, instead focusing on timing, skill use, and streamlined growth in three character classes: Berserker, Raven, and Morgana. The system is designed to be more approachable, so players new to the series can feel comfortable jumping into this prequel without missing anything.

Berserker is your classic melee-based physical attacker that uses a two-handed greatsword to unleash powerful strikes. It has very high HP and defense, so it’s meant to rush headlong into enemy hordes and take out large groups with its heavy strikes. Their unique ability sends them into a berserk state, which speeds up their attacks and makes them capable of dishing out big damage very quickly.

Raven is an archer class that can use multiple different arrow types to take advantage of enemy weaknesses. It’s quick and agile, so it’s designed to constantly stay on the move while keeping enemies at arms’ length and picking them off with precise strikes. Where Berserker is meant to soak up damage, Raven is meant to avoid it altogether.

That leaves Morgana, a spellcasting class that wields a staff and can summon spirits. It uses the staff to unleash poison and fire spells, while summons are infused with elemental energy and can be used for a variety of things. Some deal damage matching its elemental type, while others apply debuffs. So Morgana is all about strategy and versatility, combining their abilities to deliver steady, continuous damage.

As you’d expect, each of these classes unlock unique skills as they level up, and these can be further powered up through skill upgrades and the Support Rune system. Each skill has two Support Rune slots, where you can equip Support Runes that provide all kinds of different bonuses. Each skill also has its own type and attribute, and Support Runes can only be equipped in slots that are compatible with that type and attribute.

Offensive runes provide bonuses like increasing damage, crit rate, or expanding AoE range. Defensive runes can do things like shielding you or reducing damage. And utility runes can enhance status effects, reduce cooldowns, or increase skill usage count. These are just a few examples of each type, there are plenty more options to choose from. And you can freely swap out Support Runes at any time, giving you the chance to test out lots of different builds or change things up strategically for particular fights or situations.

While progression has been simplified and combat has been streamlined, that doesn’t mean it’s easy. It’s not about memorizing one ability loop you can simply use over and over to decimate everything. You need to learn what works in what situations, adapt to new things being thrown at you, and use your abilities at the right time.

The central narrative of Dark December will take you through several different locations, and a waypoint system allows you to teleport between those areas quickly as well as return to a central hub area. There are also other gameplay modes you can play if you want to take a break from the main story.

The Abyss of Chaos is a dungeon that allows you to choose what region it’s based on, which alters its level and the rewards you can get from it. It also houses a randomly occurring event called the Realm of Chaos, which spawns powerful bosses that drop rare materials and resources.

The Hall of Oblivion is a challenge mode where you can choose the difficulty level and fight bosses from around the world. And Dimensional Rift: Veles is a defense mode where you and up to three other players can team up to see how long you can survive against neverending waves of enemies.

The monetization system is mostly focused on cosmetic items such as costumes and wings, and the game is designed so players who choose not to spend money are not at a disadvantage. Some stat-increasing items are also available through alternative routes, such as crafting or obtaining them directly through gameplay. This approach is intended to let players who prefer not to spend still enjoy the game without feeling pressured to pay.

Dark December is available to download now on PC, Android, and iOS. To keep up with the latest news and info, you can follow the game on Discord, YouTube, or TikTok.

I spend an unhealthy amount of time playing games so you do not have to gamble your weekend on something mid. This week’s deals list is stacked with games I have finished, bounced off, and in a few cases lost entire evenings to by accident. If you are short on time or money, these are the cuts worth making.

Contents

• Retro
• Nintendo
• Xbox
• PlayStation
• PC
• PC Gear
• LEGO

This Day in Gaming 🎂

In retro news, I'm celebrating the 15th birthday of LittleBigPlanet 2, a sacktacular PS3 classic that elevated 2.5D platforming and user-generated content to new heights. At the shallow end of this pool you had a wonderful, co-optional story campaign for up to four floaty sackpersons. Waiting beyond that, however, was a black hole Create mode whose enhanced logic and Move support delivered mind-boggling community-built gems.

My mates and I sunk way too many hours into the hilaribad physics of Super LBP Fighter II Turbo and the professional indie level Sealed Fate. Truly, LBP2 was a golden age of UGC where innovators (and not shameless copiers and half-arsed memers) were king. It pains me to think that those creations died with server shutdown.

Aussie birthdays for notable games.

- NHL 2K6 (PS2,XB) 2006. eBay

- LittleBigPlanet 2 (PS3) 2011. eBay

- Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective (DS) 2011. eBay

- Back to the Future: The Game (PS3) 2011. eBay

Nice Savings for Nintendo Switch

• Just Dance 2026 Ed. (-68%) - A$44 Ubisoft keeps these annual refreshes tight, and this one is still the easiest way to turn your lounge room into chaos without learning a control scheme.
• Sonic Frontiers (-45%) - A$55.10 Sega finally let Sonic stretch his legs. Open zones feel odd at first, then click hard once the speed tech sinks in.
• Bayonetta 3 (-38%) - A$49.20 Platinum at full throttle. Messy, maximalist, and completely committed to the bit in a way few studios still are.
• Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope (-39%) - A$49 Smart tactics with jokes that mostly land. The Rabbids calm down, the systems deepen, and the soundtrack goes harder than expected.
• Dredge Del. (-60%) - A$15.10 Fishing, but haunted. The slow reveal of its story is the hook, and the expansions round it out nicely.

Or gift a Nintendo eShop Card.

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Exciting Bargains for Xbox

• Dead Space (-57%) - A$47.70 A remake that understands restraint. Familiar scares hit differently thanks to new audio tricks and smarter enemy pacing.
• Cyberpunk 2077 Ult. (-41%) - A$70.60 This is the version CD Projekt meant to ship. Dense quests, sharp writing, and Night City finally feels alive.
• Star Wars Jedi: Survivor (-62%) - A$41.80 Bigger and bolder than Fallen Order, with custom stances that reward experimentation if you stick with it.
• Sonic Frontiers (-76%) - A$24.40 At this price, its rough edges are easy to forgive. There is a genuinely good Sonic game buried in here.
• Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 (-55%) - A$31.60 Still immaculate. Muscle memory comes back instantly, and the soundtrack does half the emotional lifting.

Xbox One

• Mass Effect Leg. Ed. (-67%) - A$32.90 Three all time RPGs, cleaned up just enough. If you missed Shepard the first time, this is the definitive run.
• Dead Island 2 (-43%) - A$39.70 Goofy, gory, and more confident than expected. It knows exactly what kind of dumb fun it wants to be.
• Dishonored 2 (-77%) - A$9.10 One of the best immersive sims ever made. Every level is a puzzle box if you are patient.

Or just invest in an Xbox Card.

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Pure Scores for PlayStation

• Lies of P (-49%) - A$43.50 A Soulslike with personality. Weapon mixing encourages creativity instead of punishing curiosity.
• The Witcher 3 Comp. (-44%) - A$43.60 Still an absurd amount of content. The PS5 upgrade makes an old favourite feel fresh again.
• Returnal (-48%) - A$65 Tough, stylish, and hypnotic. The haptics do real work here, not just novelty buzz.
• Diablo IV (-41%) - A$64.40 Blizzard found its footing post launch. Seasonal updates make this much more compelling now.
• Metaphor: ReFantazio (-50%) - A$57.40 Lavish, weird, and unapologetically Atlus. It trusts players to keep up, which I appreciate.

PS4

• Persona 5 Royal (-51%) - A$48.50 Stylish, long, and still one of the best turn based RPGs of the last decade.
• The Yakuza Rem. Col. (-42%) - A$31.90 Three games of melodrama, street fights, and surprisingly heartfelt side stories.
• Minecraft Legends Del. (-34%) - A$46.20 An odd spin off, but charming if you want something lighter than survival mode.
• Overcooked! All You Can Eat (-75%) - A$13.70 Still the fastest way to stress test friendships. Utter chaos in the best way.

Or purchase a PS Store Card.

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Purchase Cheap for PC

• Dragon's Dogma 2 (-64%) - A$38.60 Systems driven RPG nonsense in the best sense. It refuses to explain itself and I love it for that.
• Dead Island 2 (-78%) - A$16.40 Smooth combat and great gore tech. Perfect podcast game.
• Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch Rem. (-81%) - A$14.20 Studio Ghibli vibes with old school JRPG grind. Comfort food gaming.
• Hogwarts Legacy (-86%) - A$12.50 Setting hard carries this, but exploring Hogwarts never stops being fun.
• Monster Hunter Rise (-83%) - A$10.40 Fast hunts, great mobility, and a friendly on ramp for newcomers.

Or just get a Steam Wallet Card

Legit LEGO Deals

• Ninjago Temple Bounty Ship (-34%) - A$199 Huge build, loads of interior detail, and a display piece that actually looks impressive.
• Ducati Panigale V4 S (-33%) - A$199.90 One of LEGO Technic’s best bikes. The engineering here is genuinely clever.
• City EV Supercar (-33%) - A$10 Cheap, cheerful, and a good desk fidget build.
• Minecraft The Ghast Balloon (-28%) - A$79 Big, silly, and instantly recognisable. Kids love it, adults secretly do too.

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Best Buy just dropped the price of the 4-pack Govee 1,200-Lumen RGBWW A19 Wi-Fi Smart LED Light Bulbs to just $42.99 with free delivery. This set normally retails for $65 and Best Buy easily has the lowest price everywhere: Govee has it for $59 and Amazon has a 2-pack for $40. This is Govee's highest end and brightest A19 light bulb.

4-Pack Govee 1,200-Lumen RGB LED Light Bulbs for $42.99

Best Buy has restocked its inventory of open box Asus ROG Strix Scar gaming laptops equipped with the GeForce RTX 5090 mobile GPU. Here's a chance to get Asus' highest-end and most powerful laptop of 2025 for just 3,257.99 for an "excellent condition" unit. If you were to get it new, it would cost $4,500. Mind you these are pre-owned, but they are Geek Squad verified and sometimes still have all or some of their original warranty.

Note that Open Box availability depends on your location.

Asus ROG Strix Scar 18 RTX 5090 Gaming Laptop for $3,258

Open Box - Excellent Condition

A jump starter is an essential part of car's emergency kit and you don't need to pay a premium for a cordless model that gets the job done reliably. While you're at it, why not get one with additional functionality. For a limited time, Amazon is offering the Wolfbox 4000A Cordless Jump Starter, which doubles as a 24,000mAh 65W USB power bank, for $64.99 with free shipping after you apply 50% off coupon code "T8WLUR5G". You don't need to be an Amazon Prime member to get this deal. Wolfbox is a well-known brand and its products are higher quality than other similarly priced jump starters.

Wolfbox Cordless Jump Starter and 24,000mAh Power Bank

You don't see many 20,000mAh power banks priced under $20, but there is one deal available that just popped up today. Amazon has dropped the price of the CUKTECH 20,000mAh 45W Power Bank for $16.31 after you apply a 20% off coupon code "CUKTECH20". Better yet, you don't need to be an Amazon Prime member to get in on this deal.

The 45W power output makes it an ideal power bank for your Apple iPhone 17, Nintendo Switch, Switch 2, or Steam Deck handheld gaming PC, and the bigger 20,000mAh capacity is perfect for longer airplane flights or when you're away from an outlet for an extended period of time.

CUKTECH 20,000mAh 45W Power Bank for $16.31

If you’ve been putting off making your purchases during Best Buy’s Winter Sale, today is the last day to score some hefty savings on tons of video games and gear. We’re also in the final hours of Amazon’s three for $33 4K UHD movie sale, so be sure to hop on these deals while they’re still live. Of course, there are plenty of other savings to be had, from a major discount on the Beats Studio Pro Noise Canceling Headphones to a deal on a stunning hardcover book on Miyazaki’s animation. The deals are plentiful today. Take a look at all my favorites below:

TL;DR: Today’s Top Deals

3 for $33 4K Movie Sale

Video Game Deals During Best Buy Winter Sale

Today is the final day of Best Buy’s Winter Sale, so you can expect the prices to rise tomorrow on a bunch of the video games and accessories that are currently marked down. While there are plenty of discounts worth considering, a few deals stand out as being better than others. One of our favorite action games of 2025, Ninja Gaiden 4 is $30 off, or you can score Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds for just $45. We gave it an impressive 9/10 in our review. That’s just a sampling of the many titles seeing some significant price drops during the sale.

Save 28% on The Worlds of Hayao Miyazaki Hardcover Book

Beats Studio Pro Noise Canceling Headphones for only $95

The Blue Yeti USB Mic Is Only $83

Save 71% on WWE 2K26 for Switch 2

The Viral Ninja SLUSHi Is Under $200

Save 23% on Magic: The Gathering Avatar: The Last Airbender Beginner Box

Get a 100W GaN USB-C Charger for Only $15

eBay has dropped the price of several LG Evo C5 4K OLED TVs to the lowest prices of the year after you apply 20% off coupon code "FAVEFINDS20". These deals are actually better than the ones from Amazon, Best Buy, or Amazon that I saw during Black Friday. LG is the best selling OLED TV brand globally and the C-series is the most popular model. Electronic Express has 200,000 99.6% feedback. BrandsMart USA has 30,000 99.2% feedback. Both are authorized LG resellers.

LG Evo C5 4K OLED TVs on Sale at eBay

Switch 2 owners, if there's one upgrade you'll absolutely need, it's additional storage. The Switch 2 only has 256GB of onboard storage, and chances are you'll run out of space down the road. Fortunately, Amazon just lowered the price of the 512GB Samsung P9 MicroSD Express card, which will triple your available storage, to just $79.99. This is currently the least expensive 512GB MicroSD Express card we can find right now. We reviewed this model and highly recommend it.

512GB Samsung P9 MicroSD Express Memory Card

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For those looking to stock up on new movies to add to their physical media library, Amazon has kicked off a 'Get any 2 for £26' sale on select 4Ks, so you can pick up something new to watch while saving some money. This sale runs until February 16, so there's plenty of time left to pick up the options that catch your eye.

We've gathered up just a few of our favorite picks from this sale below, but if you're curious to see the whole selection available, check out the full sale here.

There's quite a variety available in this sale as well. If you're on the hunt for some family friendly movies to watch, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, Sonic The Hedgehog 2, and the absolutely delightful Paddington 2 are some of the options available that are certainly worth a look.

On the other hand, adults have quite a selection to look through as well. There's A Quiet Place Part II, Gran Turismo, and for horror fans counting down the days to Scream 7 this year, Scream 5 (otherwise known as just Scream) is also available as part of this sale. Again, this promotion runs until February 16, so if any of these movies catch your, eye now's the time to grab two of your favorites for £26.

If you're not interested in the selection Amazon has here and are curious what new 4Ks are coming out soon instead, our breakdown of upcoming 4K UHD and Blu-ray release dates can help you out. For physical media collectors, this is a great way to plan ahead on which movies and TV shows are worth adding to your library in a physical format over the next few months.

Hannah Hoolihan is a freelancer who writes with the guides and commerce teams here at IGN.

Doctor Who, Daredevil and The Last of Us director Peter Hoar has reflected on Disney+ ditching its lucrative co-funding deal for Doctor Who, and admitted that ultimately "something went wrong."

Hoar originally directed Matt Smith episode A Good Man Goes to War, before returning to the BBC's flagship sci-fi series for Ncuti Gatwa's more recent stories The Robot Revolution and Lucky Day. These formed part of show's most recent season — the second and final set of episodes brought to life with an injection of Disney cash.

Speaking now, months after the BBC was left to confirm Disney had walked away, Hoar suggested the deal hadn't been successful as the show hadn't gotten "better" despite the extra money on screen.

"I don't think anybody would doubt the skills at the front line of that show but something went wrong," Hoar told Deadline. "I think there were lots of areas you could point fingers at but ultimately it wasn't a better show with more money."

Still, Hoar framed this ultimately as a "good thing" — as without Disney+ on board and with other streamers also looking to be more economical with their own investments, "we haven't got the money anymore, nobody has."

Hoar was interviewed as he revealed plans to reboot fellow classic BBC sci-fi show Blake's 7, a project he's undertaking alongside A Good Girl's Guide To Murder and The Witcher producer Matthew Bouch. Discussing why now was a good time to revive the Blake's 7 franchise, Bouch noted that the pair had seen "a gap in the market in the UK – particularly with the well-publicized dropping off of Doctor Who – for genre-based British IP." Ouch.

The BBC's belated confirmation that it would continue Doctor Who without Disney's funding came after months of speculation surrounding the show's future. Current Doctor Who showrunner Russell T Davies had previously talked of writing scripts for a third season in the show's current era. Now, all the BBC has confirmed is that it will fund a single, one-off episode penned by Davies to be shown this Christmas — which many fans expect will be used to wrap up his cliffhanger, before a more permanent future for the show is found.

Deadline previously reported that Disney's Doctor Who deal fell apart due to concerns around the show's budget and shrinking audience — with no suggestion it was likely to break through to a mainstream American audience. Amid criticism of the series' writing and story arcs, even Doctor Who actor, writer and superfan Mark Gatiss recently suggested the show was in need of a rest.

"We’d like to thank Disney+ for being terrific global partners and collaborators over the past two seasons, and for the upcoming The War Between the Land and the Sea," said Lindsay Salt, the BBC's Director of Drama, upon the announcement that Disney had walked away. "The BBC remains fully committed to Doctor Who, which continues to be one of our most loved dramas, and we are delighted that Russell T Davies has agreed to write us another spectacular Christmas special for 2026. We can assure fans, the Doctor is not going anywhere, and we will be announcing plans for the next series in due course which will ensure the TARDIS remains at the heart of the BBC."

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

Rockstar Games has reportedly granted the wish of a terminally-ill fan whose family member asked if they could play Grand Theft Auto 6 ahead of its November launch date.

The unnamed fan was contacted by Rockstar after a LinkedIn post from a relation blew up and apparently caught the attention of Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick (thanks, Insider Gaming).

Anthony Armstrong, a developer at Ubisoft Toronto, originally made the plea on behalf of his family member last month, calling for help from any connections or games industry colleagues in getting the message out.

"A member of my family who has been battling cancer for years just recently got the worst possible news, he was given 6-12 months to live," Armstrong wrote. "The reason I'm reaching out is that they are a huge GTA fan and, with this latest updates [sic], he may not be around long enough to actually get to see GTA6 launch, best case scenario he will be leaving us the same month it does.

"He currently lives only a stones throw from [Rockstar's] Oakville studio, so its my hope that one of you may be able to set up an exclusive playtest, so he can have a chance to experience the game, before passing."

Armstrong later updated his post several times — firstly to confirm it had caught Zelnick's attention, and then lastly to state that Rockstar Games had been in contact with "great news."

"That's all I can really say," Armstrong concluded, "but thank you from the bottom of my heart."

Grand Theft Auto 6 is currently set for launch on November 19, following repeated delays. When announcing the latest change in arrival, Take-Two said it was "confident" the game would arrive then as a more polished experience.

Earlier today, emergency services were called to GTA 6 developer Rockstar North, following a boiler room incident that sparked the need for numerous fire crews. Rockstar has since played down the incident, and confirmed the office is now open again.

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

Peter Hoar, the Emmy-nominated director of The Last of Us, is working on a reboot of the British sci-fi cult classic Blake’s 7.

The new version of the story will be produced by Hoar’s new outlet, Multitude Productions, which he has recently started with West End producer Jason Haigh-Ellery and A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder exec Matthew Bouch. The reboot will soon be shopped around to buyers, and Bouch would “love it to go to the BBC,” according to Deadline, where the project last aired 45 years ago.

The outlet also notes the series, which originally aired for four seasons from 1978 to 1981, will likely seek financial support from American streamers and European studios. Hoar will direct the reboot following his work at the helm of “Long, Long Time,” the critically acclaimed episode of The Last of Us that won him major praise.

The series was originally created by Terry Nation, whose other major claim to fame is his creation of Doctor Who's iconic Daleks. Blake's 7 followed "the exploits of political dissident Roj Blake (Gareth Thomas), who leads a small group of rebels against the forces of the totalitarian Terran Federation that rules the Earth and many colonized planets," Deadline noted.

Hoar compared the reboot to the acclaimed Andor series “because of the integrity, wit and sophistication” both shows have, not the money it takes to bring them to life.

“The Blake’s 7 story is legendary because they were given the [British police show] Softly, Softly slot that was intended for police drama with a budget intended for one big set and a few location shoots,” Hoar explained in a statement. “At the time it felt like it meant something. Those shows got into my veins. I could tell they didn’t have money but I was able to compartmentalize and enjoy the ride knowing that the sets wobbled.”

No word on a release date yet for the reboot, but hopefully we’ll see it crop up in 2027.

Image credit: BBC

Lex Briscuso is a film and television critic and a freelance entertainment writer for IGN. You can follow her on Twitter at @nikonamerica.

Capcom is expected to reveal its all-new Resident Evil: Code Veronica remake this year, according to a fresh report.

Previous reporting had pinned the still-unannounced Code Veronica remake for a 2027 release, following next month's launch of Resident Evil: Requiem.

Now, noted Resident Evil leaker Dusk Golem has said fans should expect a first look at the Code Veronia remake later in 2026. IGN has previously verified that a new version of the game is indeed in development, while MP1st has claimed that the game currently sits with a Q1 2027 launch window.

"No, there is NOT a Resident Evil 5 Remake that's going to be announced this year," Dusk Golem wrote in a post on social media. "Instead, later this year a RE Remake that starts with "(C)" & ends "(ode Veronica)" is going to be announced, I promise you."

Resident Evil: Code Veronica originally launched in 2000 for the Sega Dreamcast, and while not a mainline numbered entry like Resident Evil 2, 3 or 4, it remains beloved by fans and considered a core part of the franchise's story. Its narrative takes place around the same time as Resident Evil 3, but instead features Claire and Chris Redfield on a remote prison island and then in Antarctica.

As for Resident Evil 5, speculation around a remake has bubbled up following a teasing comment by Eva La Dare, the voice actress behind that game's character Sheva Alomar. However, as of yet, Capcom is not believed to have greenlit any new version of the game — which garnered strong sales and a mostly positive reaction from fans back at its original launch in 2009. Whatever Alomar is referring to, it's likely not worth getting your hopes up.

Instead, Capcom will reportedly finish remaking its early Resident Evil entries with a fresh version of Resident Evil Zero, due in 2028 after this year's Requiem and next year's new version of Code Veronica. (And after all that? Well, it would seem time for an all-new Resident Evil entry once again.)

Last year, Capcom's under-wraps Resident Evil Zero remake appeared to pop up on the resume of Far Cry 5 and Guardians of the Galaxy video game actor Jon McLaren, with the suggestion that he will now be playing escaped convict Billy Coen.

Before all of that, of course, Resident Evil Requiem will arrive on February 27. Set to feature new character Grace Ashcroft and returning hero Leon S. Kennedy, the game's mix of survival horror and action looks hugely promising — even if we're all a bit concerned by that nasty-looking bite on Leon's neck.

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

Everyone’s noticing how the industry is shifting — including major A-Listers like Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, who recently opened up about the fact that Netflix wants to change how films are being made.

During a recent appearance on the Joe Rogan Experience podcast promoting their new Netflix film The Rip, Damon revealed that the streamer wants to make it so that action set pieces in films occur during the beginning section of the runtime because audiences give a “very different level of attention” to movies at home versus in theaters.

“The standard way to make an action movie that we learned was, you usually have three set pieces. One in the first act, one in the second, one in the third,” Damon explained on the podcast. “You spend most of your money on that one in the third act. That’s your finale. And now they’re like, ‘Can we get a big one in the first five minutes? We want people to stay. And it wouldn’t be terrible if you reiterated the plot three or four times in the dialogue because people are on their phones while they’re watching.’”

However, Affleck noted that there are still successful projects that don’t adhere to those new rules, projects like the acclaimed miniseries Adolescence, which consists of episodes shot in one continuous take.

“But then you look at Adolescence, and it didn’t do any of that shit,” Affleck said during the appearance. “And it’s f—king great. And it’s dark too. It’s tragic and intense. [It’s about] this guy who finds out his kid is accused of murder. There are long shots of the back of their heads. They get in the car, nobody says anything.”

Damon called this kind of project the “exception” to Netflix’s new way of thinking, while Affleck affirmed that the success of the show “demonstrates you don’t have to do” what Netflix wants in order to draw audiences in and keep them there. Many films prove this theory right every day, and ultimately, it comes down to having a well-crafted, unforgettable story at the center of your project — that’s the only thing that will truly make audiences see the merit in the work, the only foolproof method.

Damon and Affleck’s new film, The Rip, was written and directed by Joe Carnahan and stars Teyana Taylor, Steven Yeun, and Kyle Chandler alongside the Good Will Hunting stars. The movie is now available to stream on Netflix.

Lex Briscuso is a film and television critic and a freelance entertainment writer for IGN. You can follow her on Twitter at @nikonamerica.

DC Universe chief James Gunn has suggested fans won’t get an update on the Brave and the Bold Batman movie until after The Batman 2 comes out next year.

The Batman 2, starring Robert Pattinson in the title role, is set to launch five-and-a-half years after The Batman, on October 1, 2027. Writer-director Matt Reeves has said he set out to make a trilogy of Batman films as part of his Batman Epic Crime Saga, and as of 2024 that plan was still on.

The Batman films exist in a universe separate to the ongoing DCU, and given Gunn has ruled out Pattinson’s Batman crossing over, we’re set for a new actor to play the Caped Crusader for the Brave and the Bold.

It’s a film with a great deal of expectation behind it, but it seems a long way away. Asked on social media when fans can expect to see a Brave and the Bold update, Gunn indicated that nothing will be released until after The Batman 2 is done and dusted.

“I'm dependent on when there's an actionable script ready so there is no way of me guessing this,” he said. “Also, frankly, we're well into Batman 2, and I wouldn't want to cloud the Batsphere until after that.”

Given The Batman 2 comes out October 2027, it looks like we won't get an update on The Brave and the Bold until early 2028 at the earliest.

Gunn then committed to never releasing two Batman movies in the same year. “I think both Batman and WW [Wonder Woman] are incredibly important,” he said in response to another fan. “But I'm also not going to have two Batman movies come out in the same year.”

Gunn finds himself having to navigate two takes on Batman at the same time. If Reeves gets to make his third Batman film, we could see The Brave and The Bold sandwiched between a pair of Robert Pattinson Batman movies, potentially confusing the audience.

While promoting the rebooted DCU kickstarter Superman last year, Gunn admitted: "Batman's my biggest issue in all of DC right now." As of February 2025, The Brave and the Bold was said to be in “very active development,” and the story was “coming together very nicely.” But is The Flash director Andy Muschietti still directing? At the time, Gunn and Safran were said to be developing the script, and planned to show it to Muschietti "when we have it in a place where we think it's ready to go... and see if it's a fit for him.”

As for The Batman 2, in an update last year, Reeves acknowledged how long it was taking to get the sequel in a position to start filming. “It’s been a journey that is taking longer than I would’ve wanted for a lot of reasons, a lot of personal reasons,” Reeves told The Hollywood Reporter. “But [the] most important reason is getting it to a place where I just felt like it was the best script we could possibly write.”

Reeves also spoke about Pattinson’s response to the script — which, believe it or not, was mailed to him in a privacy pouch complete with coded entry (that Pattinson almost couldn’t open, mind you) to keep all of the exciting details completely under wraps.

“He’s Batman, and if he doesn’t like it, not good,” the Cloverfield director said of Pattinson’s feelings on the script. “I was super excited. I thought that he really would [like it] because the things that it does for his character, for Batman and for Bruce, have never been done before in this way. I had a feeling that he would respond in this way, but the fact that he did was incredibly encouraging.”

He added: “Obviously because of what the first movie was and what this movie is, which is so much a detective story, the idea of trying to protect the secrets of the movie is super important because it’s a mystery. It would be an extra level of heartbreak if that part of it started getting out.”

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.

Nintendo allegedly expressed dissatisfaction at Sega during the development of Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games, after seeing Sonic's foot placed ahead of Mario's.

The incident has come to light in an Arcade Attack Retro Gaming Network interview with Sega veteran Ryoichi Hasegawa, who worked on the Wii and Nintendo DS sports minigame classic ahead of its release back in 2007.

According to Hasegawa, Nintendo insisted that Sega change artwork set to be used for the game's cover that depicted Mario's foot placed behind that of Sonic's.