In The Sandman’s first season, Lord Morpheus (Tom Sturridge) escaped from 106 years of captivity and immediately got to work rebuilding his realm and reestablishing his place in the grand cosmology of powerful, god-like entities. So what does Morpheus (AKA Dream) do in season 2? He tears it all back down. In the wildly fantastical and wide-ranging six-episode volume 1 of the second and final season, Dream discovers that the only way to atone for past mistakes is to make some devastating choices. Though the story sometimes feels like it’s rushing to the conclusion that’s coming all too soon, the way this show continues to combine the imagination of old fairy tales with stories about deeply broken characters provides a lot to savor.

In season 2, The Sandman develops into a twisted kind of family melodrama as Dream tries to settle some long-standing feuds. In season 1 we met three of the other Endless: the oddly cheery and down-to-earth Death (Kirby Howell-Baptiste), the perpetually miserable Despair (Donna Preston) and the mischievous, manipulative Desire (Mason Alexander Park). Season 2 begins with a family meeting called by the solemn Destiny (Adrian Lester), attended by the flighty youngest sibling Delirium (Esmé Creed-Miles). Absent, as always, is Destruction (Barry Sloane), who abandoned his realm and responsibilities eons ago. These characters are all very different in personality and purpose, and one of the big sources of tension in The Sandman – to its benefit – is the way these various embodiments of human nature struggle to coexist.

Volume 1 (which is made up of six of the 12 episodes of season 2) is itself roughly divided into two halves. The first operates – quite well – in maximalist mode, as Dream plays host to a room full of angry gods and other mythological beings. After his old nemesis Lucifer (Gwendoline Christie) simultaneously blesses and curses him, the show swings between dark comedy and grotesque horror as a series of strange and often hideous-looking creatures arrive in Dream’s realm to make their offers and show off The Sandman’s impressive special effects. There’s a poignant side to all this bedlam too, given that this whole underworld adventure begins with an attempt by Dream to rescue an ex lover, Nada (Deborah Oyelade), the first of many old acquaintances he has to make apologies to in these episodes.

This theme continues in the even more emotionally resonant second half of volume 1, as Dream reckons with the ways he has been unintentionally cruel to the people he believed he loves. When Delirium asks him to help her find Destruction, Dream soon realizes that the only way to find his brother may be reconciliation with another family member. This three-episode arc begins as a mystery, but it becomes more of a deep-dive into Dream’s complicated relationships as it progresses.

Amid these larger stories the show’s primary writer, Allan Heinberg, boldly weaves in fragments of some of the better-known short stories from the comics, usually inserting them as flashbacks. (Want to see how and why Dream inspired Shakespeare to create A Midsummer Night’s Dream? That’s here in season 2.) Collectively, the six episodes of volume 1 are about Dream’s most significant unfinished business, accumulated over thousands of years of him coexisting with humans and deities. That’s what gives volume 1 its drive: The women he wronged, the creatures he irritated, the family members he disappointed… all of these mortals and immortals now expect Dream to atone.

All the while, The Sandman is one of the more visually distinctive TV series on Netflix, with what must’ve been a large chunk of its budget going to creating strange-looking beasties and opulent kingdoms. This first half of season 2 includes a lot of scenes set in Dream’s own magnificent, mercurial castle, which its master can change to suit his moods and whims. Here, the screen is filled with spectacle when a host of supernatural beings – including Norse gods, hideous demons, and angels from the literal Heaven – descend on Dream’s home to make their case for becoming Hell’s new rulers. The images are properly overwhelming, immersing us in a place far removed from the mundane.

The frequent flashback sequences include scenes from the French Revolution and ancient Greece, giving a sense of how long the Endless have been meddling in human affairs. Even more than season 1, season 2’s first half is crammed with incidents, as Heinberg and company introduce all of the relevant characters and history that factor into The Sandman’s ending (which will show up on Netflix later this month). It’s effective, though: Fans of the comics may appreciate getting to see live-action versions of all the oddballs and ogres they remember from the page, while people who only know The Sandman from its first season are getting everything they need to understand the plot.

The way this story is structured is very intentional on the part of the TV series’s creators, who skip about half of creator, executive producer, and accused sexual assailant Neil Gaiman’s comics in order to streamline all of their events into a tighter story that’s focused almost entirely on a simple arc: Dream’s return, Dream’s rebuild, Dream’s regrets, and Dream’s amends. Nevertheless, it is unusual for a show only in its second season to spend so much time setting up a farewell, given that its first only ran for 11 episodes. Given that the graphic novels have plenty of material that the show could’ve adapted into more episodes, it seems like a lot was left on the table.

Sometimes the quickened pace and the abundance of action works well, and sometimes it doesn’t. A point of failure is when The Sandman unreasonably expects us to be deeply invested in some characters – like Nada, or Dream’s chauffeur Wanda (Indya Moore) – who we barely get much of a chance to know. That said, the richness of the world Gaiman created does mean that even the most minor characters – like Destruction’s wryly humorous dog, voiced by Steve Coogan – are uniquely entertaining. Nothing about this show feels bland or generic, so it’s at least making good use of the shortened time it has.

As was the case with season 1, season 2 gets a lot of juice from showing how the Endless aren’t that different from us, lifespans aside. These powerful beings also worry that the world is sliding into chaos and mayhem and feel the need to change with the times, however glacially. Amid all the dazzling fantasy trappings, The Sandman effectively hits its emotional moments, especially when it shows how someone like Dream – a shaper of realities – can feel powerless.

In one of the more touching moments in volume 1, a man who has been alive for over 12,000 years – since the time of the saber-toothed tiger – is killed in a dumb accident. When Death comes to collect him, she’s not that impressed by his longevity. She says he only lived a lifetime, “no more, no less.” The Sandman is at its best in scenes like these, which weave together the supernatural and the everyday, giving all these scattered stories a point. In this case, it’s the fact that whether you’re one of the Endless or an ordinary human mortal, you have to make the best of the time you have.

I’ve always been skeptical of Persona spin-offs. How can you twist such rich games into new shapes while maintaining the intricate details that make the series so beloved? Well, when it comes to the most recent addition to the family, Persona5: The Phantom X, the team at Perfect World appear to have done just that – or, at least, that’s how it seems on the surface. With beautifully animated cutscenes and a goosebump-inducing soundtrack, The Phantom X makes it clear early on that it isn’t keen to shake up the Persona formula. What it does do, however, is infuse that already excellent base with the all too familiar premium currencies of a mobile-focused gacha game. I have a more to play before my final review, but no matter how close it comes to recapturing the magic, there’s already a creeping sensation that this walk down memory lane is going to make way for endless grinding eventually.

Despite being a Persona 5 spin-off, The Phantom X doesn’t centre around Joker and his crew – instead, you’ll be playing as a fresh protagonist, Nagisa Kamisiro (though you can still pick your own name), in an alternate timeline version of that story. A seemingly average student, Kamasiro’s life changes when an adorable owl called Lufel calls on them to fight back against the misery and hopelessness enveloping the world, and to turn the tables against the great despair that clouds the hearts of the public. Unable to refuse, Kamasiro learns to wield their inner Persona and travels to the shadow world to help clear out the collective unconscious, one monster at a time. If you’ve played Persona 5, you’ll quickly notice that The Phantom X is following its formula beat by beat.

To fight off the aforementioned evil, you’ll bounce between beautifully recreated Tokyo neighborhoods and the monster-filled Metaverse, seeking out misbehaving fiends and infiltrating their minds while learning to master the series’ trademark turn-based combat that centers around elemental weaknesses. And because Kamisiro is a teen, you’ll also have to balance studying, part-time work, and home life, too. With all of its obvious derivations, The Phantom X struggles to conjure fresh ideas or immediate excitement in the shadow of a nearly decade-old modus operandi, but it at least manages to successfully clone the Persona formula, and that will be enough for some.

Thankfully, where the gameplay itself feels overfamiliar, the surrounding cast of characters provides enough mystery and warmth to keep things interesting. Alongside Kamisiro, you’ll meet the baseball-loving Motoha Arai, your husband-obsessed neighbour Kayo Tomiyama, and adorable schoolmate Tomoko Noge, to name a few. With energetic voice acting to back up their emotive and often humorous dialogue, it’s clear there’s been an effort to give the NPCs a sense of self, or at least the ones I’ve met so far. It didn’t take me long to forge an emotional attachment to them. Morgana’s anthropomorphic owl counterpart, Lufel, is a particular standout, and I am thoroughly enjoying a running gag about their somewhat archaic vocabulary confusing the school-aged NPCs.

You’ll spend most of your days in Kamisiro’s shoes doing time-progressing tasks like studying for school in local cafes, working at the Konbini for cash, and buying groceries that you can use to cook back at your home. I’m still scratching the surface on how integral these side tasks feel in the scope of saving the world, though I’ve been enjoying making shopping lists and gawking at iconic Tokyo landmarks all the same. Particularly, wandering through the bustle of Shibuya Scramble and spotting its famous puppy mascot amongst the beaming electronic signs felt like a wonderful ode to a city I’ve come to love in both real life and games.

Aside from being a typical teen, much of your time in The Phantom X is spent in battle, and your combat expeditions launch from the Metaverse app located on Kamisiro’s phone. You can access these challenges anytime from the overworld, but you’ll need to use a naturally refreshing currency called Stamina to reap the rewards. Focusing on the mainline story missions will help keep you on track in terms of difficulty, though you can also explore a variety of combat challenges as you please to stockpile loot and earn experience, too. This is where the first hints of grinding come into focus but, mercifully, the combat in The Phantom X is very moreish and easy to sink time into.

The Phantom X bases its combat system on Persona 5, meaning it's turn-based with engaging reactive elements. When you roll up on a baddie, you’ll cycle through your party one member at a time, choosing between melee attacks, ranged attacks, and special Persona abilities. Similar to Pokémon, the enemies you’ll face, as well as the Personas you deploy, all have elemental strengths and weaknesses (like fire or ice) that can be exploited for extra damage. It’s a tried-and-tested system with enough diversity in its moveset to keep battles fresh, and even if you are starting to tire of it, the imagination-stoking enemy designs pull a good amount of weight throughout. What makes Persona combat truly unique, though, is the series’ bold interface design and legendary battle themes. I promise, no matter how many times you’ve already heard Persona 5’s Last Surprise, it just doesn’t get old.

Sadly, no amount of vocal flair from singer Lyn Inaizumi can make up for the sizable array of gacha systems and currencies you need to balance in The Phantom X. While there are characters and Personas you can unlock through the story, the quickest way to bolster your team is to engage in the lucky dip Contracts menu. In line with most other Gacha games on the market, you can earn the currencies you need to pull by grinding, or cut to the chase and pop in your credit card details to get an instant boost. I’m still only about 10 hours into my playthrough, and I’ve not hit any obvious roadblocks, but I can see them coming. At my current level, I have enough cash to buy health items, as well as a plethora of unique currencies to upgrade my Personas, weapons and more. Plus, when it comes to actually engaging with the gacha spins, I don’t feel like the boost they provide are hugely necessary to my success yet. Inevitably, this won’t last, though, and I can see cash-shaped hurdles on the horizon.

Outside of the inclusion of premium currencies, perhaps my biggest issue with The Phantom X so far is that it feels more like an uncanny reflection of Persona 5, rather than a unique take on its established lore. Other spin-offs like Persona 5 Tactica or Persona 5 Strikers feel like strong additions to the series that come at it from a completely different angle, whereas The Phantom X is more of a well-executed imitation. It’s not to say that I’m bored, and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed both its combat and getting to know the characters so far. The first few chapters of its story are well-written, appropriately shocking, and do well to hook you into the world. But The Phantom X’s “do-over” take on the story The Phantom Thieves just isn’t providing a new enough experience to warrant the amount of time (or possibly money) I’ll need to invest to see it through when Persona 5 and its predecessors are readily available and feel far more curated and engaging.

While I’m mostly enjoying my time with Persona5: The Phantom X so far, there’s still so much to explore before delivering my final review, like investigating the depth of the upgrade systems and the long-term impact of premium currencies as you progress. As a fan of the series, it’s hard to look a gift horse in the mouth when it comes to fresh Persona 5-related content. But as of right now, I’m just unsure about how The Phantom X can deviate enough from the core material to compel me to invest in it long term – only time will tell.

Paramount is kicking off its Summer Sale by offering only $0.99 per month for your first two months of Paramount+ Essential or Premium streaming service. I'd definitely suggest going with the Premium tier, which normally costs $12.99 per month, has no ads, and includes all of Showtime. This promotion should be available to both new and previous (currently expired) subscribers, although your mileage may vary depending on how long ago you last signed up.

Paramount+ Premium with Showtime for $0.99/mo

Black Bolt and White Flare are out in Japan, and prices are already settling on the most sought-after cards. I've been following the early market closely on TCGPlayer and eBay, and it's clear which cards are leading the packs... get it?

Zekrom and Reshiram are pulling in the highest numbers, while full-art Trainers and EX cards are also climbing fast. For now, here's a look at the most expensive cards from both sets right now, based on what I've found.

Black Bolt: Japan's Most Expensive Cards

EA has announced it will shut down BioWare's Anthem on January 12, 2026.

Because Anthem's only content is online, this means the game will be unplayable after that date.

Premium in-game currency will stop being sold today, July 3, though existing balances will still be able to be used until Anthem shuts down. The game will be removed from EA Play on August 15, 2025, but will still be available for download if it's already in your library until it officially shuts down.

Anthem launched in February of 2019 to lukewarm reviews, including our own 6.5/10 which criticized the grindiness, lack of polish and variety, and a mismatched story. The game had sold 5 million copies as of December of 2023, which fell short of EA's target of 6 million copies in the first few months. Though EA continued to update and improve Anthem in the months that followed its launch, in February of 2021, EA ceased active development on the game. The following month, its game director departed the company.

In an FAQ, EA stated that no layoffs occurred at the company as the result of Anthem's sunset. This will come as a relief, given that EA has undergone a number of massive staffing cuts in the last few years that have left staff reeling.

In May, EA shut down Cliffhanger Games and canceled its in-development Black Panther game, laying off an unknown number of individuals in the process. That same month, it implemented mandatory return-to-office for all workers.

Just the month before, EA laid off roughly 300 people, and still earlier this year EA restructured Anthem developer BioWare, moving some developers to other projects and laying off others. That was all just in 2025. Last year, EA underwent a massive restructuring that resulted in 670 workers laid off company-wide, and the year before that in 2023, 50 individuals were laid off at BioWare and an unknown number of others were cut at Codemasters.

As for BioWare, it's currently fully focused on Mass Effect 5 after the sales failure of Dragon Age: The Veilguard.

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.

Michael Madsen, who starred in Quentin Tarantino movies Reservoir Dogs and Kill Bill, has died aged 67 from cardiac arrest.

NBC reported that Madsen was found dead at his Malibu home on Thursday morning, according to his manager Ron Smith.

IGN can exclusively reveal the first look at the Shonen Jump Store that is set to host an exclusive pop-up shop near the Los Angeles Convention Center during Anime Expo 2025, and it will feature limited-edition merchandise, brand-new product reveals, immersive photo ops, and much more based on Dandadan, Demon Slayer, Naruto, and more.

The Shonen Jump Store will be setting up shop from July 3-5 and, among many other things, will be the only place to get new themed items from Dandadan and Kagurabachi two weeks before their online debut.

Rare items from the JUMP Shop Japan, BIOWORLD's anime apparel (including Hunter x Hunter and JoJo's Bizarre Adventure basketball jerseys), new figures from Bandai's Figuarts line, and returning favorites from Naruto, Kaiju No. 8, and One Piece will also be available.

Funko fans will also be delighted to know that a fresh Dandadan Pops! Funko POP! collection will be unveiled on July 3 and will be available to preview and pre-order at the Shonen Jump Store.

Alongside all of this, photo ops will include Dandadan and Demon Slayer-themed backdrops, UNION ARENA TCG demos featuring BLEACH and Jujutsu Kaisen, and more. Oh, and attendees will even receive a free demo deck and an exclusive card.

If you'd like to visit the Shonen Jump Store during Anime Expo 2025, it will be open from 11am - 7pm daily and is just around the corner from the convention center at 212 West 12th St. in Los Angeles, California. If you are a Shonen Jump member, you'll even receive priority entry via a special VIP line.

For more in the world of anime, check out the best new anime to watch now and our favorite anime of all time.

Given the current state of the world, it’s only natural that creatives of all stripes should start pondering hypothetical apocalypses. Much like the zombies that tend to inhabit these stories, some artifacts from the last boom a decade or so ago are still clambering along while others – including one currently in theaters – experienced a sudden reanimation. It’s tempting to slot 40 Acres along with the rest of those, but while it does feature a fungal plague and a rural setting, director R.T. Thorne’s debut pivots away from horror and instead into family drama with a tendency towards suspense. The familiar end-of-the-world framework provides much of the expected pleasures of a home-invasion story, but like all good horror or post-apocalyptic films, it’s also got a lot on its mind.

That much is clear from the title, a direct reference to the broken promise of “40 Acres and a Mule” as reparations for American slavery. It also refers to the location where the majority of this movie takes place: a Canadian farm run by the mixed family of Hailey (rising star Daniel Deadwyler) – the latest in a long line of Black farmers emigrating after the Civil War – and her partner Galen (Michael Greyeyes).

Their histories as former soldiers of various stripes emerges in the opening scene, as they and their children execute a defense run against raiders that would put Jake Sully’s family to shame. It’s a close-knit bunch out of necessity: in a future decimated by famines and wars, their ability to grow food has ensured their survival, but it’s also made Hailey an isolationist. Trading is only done at set drops where no one interacts, and her only real contact with the outside world is fellow farmer Augusta (Elizabeth Saunders). As portrayed by Deadwyler, Hailey’s a hard-ass who puts her kids – especially eldest son Emmanuel (Kataem O’Connor) – through rigorous training and lectures on everything from battle to farming. But crucially, she lets glimmers of light slip through, usually when on radio chats with Augusta but also with some of their younger children. It’s hard not to compare it a little to the recently released 28 Years Later in its depiction of parents caught between warmth and coldness. Both also feature genuine danger, here in the form of rumors that a cannibalistic gang has been ransacking farms on their small network.

Emmanuel is a growing teenager, so naturally when he spies a girl in a river he frequents the mind starts to wander, especially once she turns up on the farm. Rest assured, 40 Acres isn’t the kind of movie to spring some wild twist on us. Instead, Thorne and co. use it to probe at the whole disaster-preparation mindset. Surviving the worst is good and all, but what comes next? These conflicts aren’t necessarily new, and neither is the emerging theme of Emmanuel’s need to become his own person rather than the rigid symbol that’s expected of him, but they still resonate thanks to Deadwyler and O’Connor’s performances.

If nothing else, Thorne shows quite the knack at orchestrating tense scenes. An early highlight features a firefight in an abandoned military facility, with a particular event held just to the corner of the frame that provides an excellent jolt. Flashbacks come in like seamless transmissions from another life as a low-key indie drama, giving Hailey precisely the right amount of backstory and layering in the themes of racism and ancestral history.

So skilled is the direction that it almost doesn’t matter that the villains end up kind of weak by comparison. For as much setup as they’re given, by the time they hit the climax and dish out some pretty gnarly violence they can’t help but feel rather nondescript, with a leader who’s more functional than memorable. Even so, Thorne still manages to throw in a fantastic shootout in total darkness lit only by muzzle flashes, and a wonderful callback to a joke about the value of spices. He also gives Deadwyler the chance to throw out some very funny one-liners by the end, just enough to be self-aware without breaking the fourth wall. The ending sends us out on a high note, leaving us with a vision of family unity that suggests a brighter future for all involved. A little sappy to be sure, but it’s hard-won.

Hades 2's next patch could be its last before the game emerges from its early access cocoon.

As spotted by RPS, the roguelike action RPG's latest patch — the Unseen Update — introduces a "number of adjustments to some of the latest additions," but developer Supergiant did tease that this will "likely be [its] final patch before the v1.0 launch"... "whenever that will be."

The team said it will continue to monitor your feedback in the meantime.

The full patch notes are included below, although please note we've removed any notes including spoiler tags, so you'll have to head on over to Steam to read those. Anything in bold has been inspired directly "by community feedback."

Hades 2 Unseen Update Patch 10 patch notes:

General Gameplay

• Reduced further cases of successive attacks causing you to become 'stun-locked'
• Whenever you take damage to Armor, it will reduce any temporary Armor you have from sources such as Security System (Hephaestus), prior to reducing the more-permanent kind

Nocturnal Arms & Abilities

• Sister Blades: Omega Attack can no longer be interrupted by foes
• Umbral Flames: reduced orbit speed of Omega Special projectiles, but increased their damage
• Argent Skull: Omega Special wave projectiles no longer stagger foes
• Black Coat: increased speed of Attack sequence and damage of first strike; slightly increased Omega Attack channel speed, and it can block more types of incoming area-effect damage; increased Special accuracy

Aspects of the Nocturnal Arms

• Witch's Staff (Melinoë): reduced bonus to Magick and Power
• Witch's Staff (Momus): slightly increased how long it takes your serpents to fire successive Omega Moves

Oath of the Unseen

• Vow of Frenzy: now also makes foes enter the battle faster; reduced effect on Vow of Rivals moves
• Vow of Scars: fixed several cases where this was not reducing Life recovery as expected

Boons & Blessings

• Steady Growth (Demeter): now will only Rarify itself if you have no other eligible Boons
• Hestia: Scorch Curse can no longer deal Critical damage or similar, nor is affected by Air Quality (Zeus)
• Flame Strike (Hestia): slightly reduced Scorch damage
• Flame Flourish (Hestia): slightly reduced Scorch damage
• Success Rate (Hermes): no longer affects the passive effect of Raki
• Incandescent Aura (Hera x Hestia): reworked — now deals damage to all Hitch-afflicted foes when you restore Magick
• Natural Selection (Poseidon x Demeter): reworked — now distributes bonus Lv. to your primary Boons
• Scalding Vapor (Poseidon x Hestia): no longer can activate the Froth Curse
• Gigaros Dash (Hades): reduced damage; fixed Scorn amplifying damage other than Attack and Special
• Unseen Ire (Hades): fixed an issue causing the effect duration to last longer than stated
• Crimson Dress (Arachne): fixed an issue causing this to give a high damage bonus right away; increased bonus per Encounter

Daedalus Hammer Upgrades

• Boosted Ignition (Skull): no longer offered while using
• Looming Ignition (Skull): fixed an issue causing this to give its full damage bonus immediately rather than over the duration as described

Hexes & Path of Stars

• 📢 Adjusted Path of Stars layouts to make room especially for Godsent upgrades
• Adjusted when Godsent upgrades are offered during the story for the first time, now later than before
• Twilight Curse: this and other Morph effects now block any on-death attacks when afflicted foes are slain, with the exception of Inferno-Bombs
• Prize of Poseidon (Moon Water): cut from game; replaced with...
• Pride of Poseidon (Moon Water): new! Godsent upgrade gradually restores Life and Magick over time
• Zenith (Sky Fall): cut from game; replaced with Ambition, which deals bonus damage to Guardians
• Lineage: new! Your Hex can be Godsent one more time when used in Guardian Encounters

Keepsakes

• Discordant Bell: effect now persists for the night even after you switch Keepsakes

Resources & Reagents

• Reduced chance of never finding the resource type aligned with your Animal Familiar in shorter regions

Shrine of Hermes

• Fresh Sustenance MAX: reduced Life recovery

Art & Visual FX

• Added alternate textures when using upgraded Tools of the Unseen
• Updated visual FX when Crescent Pick Outcroppings are depleted
• Added visual indicator in Boon Info for when Arcana are disabled due to Barren (Chaos)

Miscellaneous

• Melinoë now can greet Frinos while he is in the Training Grounds, as with the other Animal Familiars
• Gameplay Timer now also pauses automatically when interacting with the Path of Stars
• Heracles no longer sometimes ominously just stands around after his Encounters
• Updated presentation for Icarus fly-by attacks
• Improved feedback on Life and Magick gauges after swapping Keepsakes that modify your totals
• Improved feedback spending resources in the Altar of Ashes, Silver Pool, and Music Maker screens
• Improved contextual feedback on various Boons when affected by Vow of Scars
• Damage from Specials and Omega Specials is now separated for some weapons on the Victory Screen
• Reduced cluttered damage numbers using Argent Skull (Medea)
• Added letterbox to the game intro in some aspect ratios
• Updates and fixes to translations in some languages

Bug Fixes

• Fixed an issue where Melinoë could suddenly take 500 damage using Eruption (Path of Stars) and Night Bloom (Selene) to raise a Tempus in the battle against Chronos...
• Fixed a number of story events that were never playing
• Fixed a number of contextual voice lines that were never playing
• Fixed cases where you would sometimes Dash-Strike unexpectedly using the Moonstone Axe
• Fixed some interactions between and Psychic Whirlwind (Daedalus)
• Fixed Black Coat not interacting with some abilities that improved Channeling speed
• Fixed visual issues where strikes with Hidden Aspects sometimes appeared to be interrupted by foes
• Fixed Wounds from Ares sometimes causing on-hit slowdowns too frequently
• Fixed Sea Star (Poseidon) sometimes doubling items created by Gold Gold Gold (Echo)
• Fixed Personal Loan (Dionysus) giving you nothing back if it got Rarified
• Fixed Heracles sometimes turning invisible while attacking
• Fixed cases where Athena could unexpectedly appear more than once per night
• Fixed cases where using Cast to interrupt Attacks or Specials would pause animations longer than expected
• Fixed Past Deeds screen not showing more than 36 Boons if you had that many
• Fixed Satyr Supplicant Life Bars persisting after they were slain
• Fixed Ares Plasma UI indicator sometimes disappearing unexpectedly
• Fixed several text errors
• Other minor fixes

Hades 2 is the sequel to Supergiant's hit game, mixing engaging storytelling and roguelite action elements for an engaging dungeon-crawling experience. We thought Hades 2 was 'Amazing' when it released in May 2024, slapping it with a 9 in our early access review, writing: "Even in its Early Access state, Hades 2 is just about everything one could ask for in a sequel to one of the best roguelites of all time. Featuring excellent refinements to its roguelite progression, a fantastic new main character in Melinoe, and two unique sets of levels that have you fighting foes on the surface and in the underworld."

ICYMI, yes, Hades 2 is coming to Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2 as a timed console exclusive.

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.

Roblox brought in 1,000 developers to participate in The Hatch, an event the Lego-like game platform says will go down as its biggest Easter Egg hunt ever. While the official experience is propped up as an important moment, thousands of players have already voiced their support for a boycott by using the #BoycottTheHatch across social media.

The Hatch went live earlier today, cracking open its doors for players across the platform to enjoy the work put in by an army of Roblox developers. It’s entirely free-to-play and will no doubt attract millions of players who have been looking forward to the company’s latest Easter Egg hunt experience for the last month. What should be an exciting moment for the community has turned into a controversial stain as players and developers alike band together to opt out of The Hatch in favor of a movement that aims to make the platform safer for all ages forever.

Disappointing #BoycottTheHatch pic.twitter.com/J6lhYkY4j1

— Kakiparks (@CKs_hidingplace) June 20, 2025

Communication from Roblox Corporation has done little to ward off concerns that the gaming giant is failing to protect users from inappropriate content. Though much of the firestorm that’s taken hold of the conversation has subsided, many fear issues surrounding The Hatch are only a symptom of larger issues yet. Community organization opposed to The Hatch could be the start of what players hope will be meaningful change, but they’ve got a long way to go.

What Is The Hatch?

Prominently featured atop the Roblox home page, The Hatch is an Easter Egg hunt-themed umbrella event that runs from July 2–12 and incorporates a variety of Roblox experiences. Joining the event teleports players to an island realm, which itself serves as an in-between area to hang out in before traveling to a more fleshed-out hub world. In this vacation paradise, users can take in the sights across different colorful biomes while completing quests, challenging others for higher leaderboard spots, and purchasing cosmetic items. It all revolves around one goal: collect as many eggs as possible.

Each painted collectible isn’t found in The Hatch itself, though. Instead, players use the official Roblox hub world to transport themselves to other user-created Roblox experiences via portals placed around the map. Each portal features around 40 games that range from Squid Game obstacle courses to anime-inspired fighting simulators. These are where the eggs can be found, and while they’re often not particularly well hidden, The Hatch and Easter Egg hunts in general have proven to be enticing events that get Roblox players engaged with experiences they know and some they don’t.

Hundreds of Roblox games are included in The Hatch, cementing the event as a crucial limited-time mode with official backing from Roblox Corporation. The Hatch’s page had more than 46 million visits at the time of this piece’s publication. It also describes an experience that is “suitable for everyone.”

Roblox Players Take Action Against a Controversial Creator

Roblox pulled back the curtain on The Hatch June 12, marking a return to beloved Easter Egg hunting festivities with more to do and more polish than ever. It was an exciting moment marred by controversy when players caught wind that infamous (and verified) Roblox developer TheOfficiaITeddy had been invited to include his creations.

Roblox is a free-to-play platform that is no doubt used by countless children every day, yet, nearly 20 years into its lifespan, Roblox Corporation still finds itself facing accusations that it’s cultivated a dangerous environment for younger players. TheOfficiaITeddy is one developer at the center of the conversation surrounding these topics thanks to his involvement in what many call “condo” games. These social experiences allow players to mingle with one another, but it’s the allegations that Teddy’s condo experiences have featured romantic, dating, and even sex-themed content that have the community ready to take action.

“This person has gained HUNDREDS of MILLIONS of visits on games that can only be described as s*x games,” one popular post from X/Twitter user @RoCatchers said. “These games feature inappropriate animations disguised as innocent stuff, and people within the games use it for lewd acts. These games also feature private ‘motel rooms’ that you can lock allowing people to be 1 on 1. These games are often a target for predators.”

The creator, whose seemingly harmless light-blue teddy bear avatar has filled social media feeds, is responsible for publishing popular titles like Boys and Girls Club Hangout Roleplay and CNP and Slender Hangout, both of which have since been removed from Roblox’s list of publicly available experiences. Suggestive content is believed to be the cause behind previous bans and content takedowns from Roblox Corporation, but despite numerous reports of action taken against TheOfficiaITeddy in the past, players found that the creator has managed to find his way back to the Roblox spotlight on more than one occasion.

but for whatever reason, he was UNBANNED, and he directly claimed that he received an invite to RDC. Then, Roblox bans him again, and very very recently Roblox UNBANNED him- pic.twitter.com/OLbxDae3Xx

— RoCatchers (@RoCatchers) June 17, 2025

While most Roblox developers invited to participate in The Hatch include names behind popular obstacle courses and action-focused experiences, TheOfficiaITeddy stood out to many as a concerning outlier who has been repeatedly accused of harming the safety of users on the platform. Roblox’s confirmation that Teddy was, along with many others, invited to be officially involved in The Hatch only added fuel to the fire, with his official backing now sitting at the forefront of the issues the #BoycottTheHatch movement seeks to resolve.

What Is #BoycottTheHatch?

The #BoycottTheHatch movement’s sails first caught wind with posts from X users like @RoCatchers and @greenlegocats in mid-June. The goal was clear: spread awareness. Posts covering the topic quickly gained thousands of likes on X alone as users called not only for Teddy’s invitation to be rescinded but for the controversial creator to be banned altogether.

What was a simmer quickly evolved into a full-on boil as Roblox developers involved in The Hatch began to pull out from the event. Popular creations like DOORS, Pressure, Piggy, untitled tag game, LOCOfficial, and many more stepped away not only due to the issues surrounding TheOfficiaITeddy but because of issues regarding how The Hatch has been handled thus far. These include general quality concerns as well as other points of contention such as fears some The Hatch promotional images were generated by artificial intelligence and a concern regarding how developers were selected for participation.

A few days removed from the boycott’s emergence (and weeks before The Hatch would kick off), Roblox addressed the Teddy situation.

“The safety and well-being of the Roblox community is our top priority,” Roblox said. “On top of our community standards, we have additional guidelines to qualify to participate in platform events. TheOfficiaITeddy should not have been invited; we have rescinded their invitation to The Hatch and have taken appropriate action in accordance with our policies. Our team is thoroughly re-examining the invitation list against our community standards and are re-evaluating these processes to ensure an additional level of vetting for our invitees going forward.”

We appreciate their removal from the event, but I please ask that the moderation team reviews their account accordingly. If their game doesn't follow your guidelines, surely their account doesn't either. I want this platform to be a safer place, I know you guys can do better

— MiniToon (@DaRealMiniToon) June 19, 2025

Piggy developer MiniToon was one of the first to respond to Roblox Corporation’s message, explaining that while the sentiment was appreciated, it remained worried that the moderation team would not thoroughly address the situation. It added in a post: “I don't want to have to make these tweets, but it feels like we are just being seen and not heard, witnessed and not understood.”

As the #BoycottTheHatch hashtag continued to fill feeds in the weeks that followed, Roblox finally returned with a lengthy statement June 30, two days before The Hatch would begin. The company explained that, during its absence, it conducted an investigation into Teddy that involved an attempt to alter experiences that complied with its Community Standards. Although these standards were eventually met, Roblox said it was able to confirm “a separate outstanding policy violation that cannot be rectified.” Teddy and all of his creations have since been removed from the platform.

“At Roblox, safety is foundational to everything we do — that’s why we take reports of harmful content or behavior seriously, and we investigate them thoroughly,” Roblox said. “It can take time to investigate properly, and we’re always working to make this process more efficient while maintaining our high standards for fairness.”

Teddy may be banned but we still have a lot of work to do in the fight against online dating, degeneracy, and pedatory behavior on Roblox. This has been a big victory in an even bigger battle. Continue fighting the good fight to make Roblox a safer space for all.

— Lord CowCow (@greenlegocats) July 1, 2025

There’s been no word regarding how the #BoycottTheHatch movement may pivott to address other common complains, but Teddy’s removal stands as a major moment for the movement. For now, the event is scheduled to run for another nine days.

Roblox The Hatch launched July 2 and, at the time of this piece’s publication, sports more than 40K likes and more than 97K dislikes. As players continue to shape their experiences in the coming days, you can read up on Grow a Garden, which has catapulted itself past multiple concurrent player records in its journey to become one of the most popular games of all time.

Michael Cripe is a freelance contributor with IGN. He's best known for his work at sites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP. Be sure to give him a follow on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).

While Squid Game's uneven third season has faced several criticisms, only one can be traced back to the series' excellent first run — its bizarre, English-speaking "VIP" characters played by actors widely judged to be not of the same calibre as the show's Korean stars.

These masked characters are meant to be unlikable — they're depicted as wealthy, inhumane benefactors who view the games' tragedies as sport — but come across as unwatchable for all the wrong reasons, with cringeworthy dialogue and performances that distract from the rest of the show's quality and the main characters that viewers care about.

But why do they sound so bad? Well, an actor who played one of Squid Game Season 3's VIPs has now taken to TikTok to address the matter — and even they don't know why Netflix decided to dub over them in the series' main version, where the voice of different English-language actor is used instead.

In response to a TikTok video titled "How BAD the Squid Game VIP Acting Was", actor Bryan Bucco confirmed that the voice heard in Netflix's main version of the show (Korean language with English subtitles) was not his own.

"Those are the English dubs," Bucco wrote. "I was the actual actor. What's being played here isn't my voice."

"Some of the actors voices are more noticeably changed," Bucco continued. "It seems they did use voice actors to try and sound like us. I don't even want to s**t on my voice actor either because I think he did fine, I'm sure it wasn't easy for him to say his lines either haha."

But why dub over English-speaking actors with English-speaking replacements? Bucco has suggested that the process is not unusual for non-English productions to ensure clarity, with all of that actor's lines presumably then needing to be replaced for consistency.

"I think whoever is contracted to do the dubbing, does ALL of the dubbing," Bucco said. "The Korean version shouldn't have English dubs. If there are some in the Korean version, it would have to be due to specific lines having to be re-recorded for clarity."

@jbstarmax Maybe it was on purpose? 😂 Let me know your take #squidgame #season3 #vip #acting #netflix @Squid Game Netflix ♬ original sound - JB STAR 💫

Still, Bucco has highlighted an odd situation where different versions of the VIP's dialogue are available in different Netflix regions — where some still feature the VIP actors' original English voices.

"Could be Netflix messing s**t up? I watched a bit on a pirated streaming site and didn't hear these voices," Bucco said.

"I've seen different clips floating around where some have my voice, and others that are clearly not me... It doesn't really matter at the end of the day," he continued. "Just... if it sounds dubbed, that's because it probably is. And the ones used in this video above ARE the dubbed voices."

Bucco then provided an example he'd found himself on TikTok, where two English-language versions of the unnamed female VIP's voice can be heard, one with the actor's original voice, and one with a replacement English voice dubbed on top. (To our ears, the original actor's line reading sounds more natural.)

Back in 2021, when Squid Game originally launched, The Guardian tracked down some of the actors behind the first season's VIPs and questioned them as to why their performances felt so jarring with the rest of the show.

"I think the first thing to dispel is this myth that they just pick us up off the street," said John D Michaels, who portrayed the bearded "VIP #1" in Squid Game's first season. "It's different for every show, but non-Korean performers often act with dialogue that is translated by a non-native – sometimes even by Google Translate – so it can sound unnatural. And often we don't have the scripts for the rest of the show. We are only given our scenes, so we have no idea of the tone."

Michaels said his backstory for the VIPs amounted to little more than them being "total idiots" and "dirtbag millionaires", and claimed their delivery had been hobbled by their "very heavy plaster masks" and the fact they were all sat on couches far away from each other. "We all had to yell our lines vaguely into the air, which added to the weird tonality of the delivery," he noted.