If you're shopping for Pokémon or Magic: The Gathering cards, tech, and books this week, there's plenty worth checking out. Prime members aged 18 to 24 can claim six months of Amazon Prime for free, which includes fast shipping, streaming, and monthly gaming perks. Pokémon collectors can find better prices on sealed products at TCG Player, including blisters and premium collections that beat Amazon by a few dollars. Japanese booster boxes are also a smart buy if you're after clean pulls, less bulk, and more Pokécoins in your pocket.

TL;DR: Deals For Today

Magic: The Gathering fans should look to TCG Player for most sealed product deals, especially with Amazon pricing above MSRP in several cases. Preorders for MTG's Marvel Spider-Man and Edge of Eternities sets are live, with TCG Player often offering the lowest prices. There are also solid deals on essentials like a 10ft power strip and a retractable 67W USB-C charger from Baseus. If you're catching up on The Silo Saga or The Witcher series, boxed sets are discounted and worth adding to your shelf.

Nintendo Switch 2 Mario Kart World Tour Bundle for $498.95

6 Months Free Amazon Prime For Young Adults

Pokémon TCG Sealed Products

TCG Player is showing Amazon up this week with cheaper deals on the Prismatic Evolutions Super Premium Collection undercutting the big box retailer by a few dollars. It's also the cheapest place to grab 3-pack blisters for Destined Rivals too. I've also included eBay links with the products, as it's always worth seeing if one can pick up a cheeky bargain before going all in.

Pokémon TCG Japan Sealed Products

Japanese Pokémon TCG booster boxes have far better odds at pulling chase cards, have far less bulk and are often half the price of English booster boxes. This also mean said chase cards are worth significantly less, but Japanese cards are far easier to get perfect grades in given they're always busting out of booster packs in perfect condition. Want a Pokémon card collection on a budget? Go for Japanese cards.

This Weeks Crashers and Climbers

The Pokémon TCG market is currently experiencing a split trend: Surging Sparks cards are undergoing a steep price correction due to increased supply, with notable drops such as Pikachu ex (247/191) falling 51% to $56, and Hydreigon ex dropping 34% to $49.60—creating a buying opportunity for collectors. Meanwhile, Crown Zenith cards are rising in value, with key VSTAR Secret Rares like Giratina and Dialga seeing double-digit gains, driven by strong demand and the set’s transition into “legacy” status as the Sword and Shield era ends.

Magic: The Gathering Sealed Products

We're seeing TCG Player destory Amazon pricing on sealed Magic: The Gathering product at the moment too. This is great for us, but perhaps Amazon should use their weight to look after their customers with predatory over MRSP pricing? Atleast with TCG Player you're getting market value, with some product scating very close to the recommended retail price.

Where To Preorder MTG: Marvel's Spider-Man

It's hard work trying to get a preorder in for anything MTG Spider-Man related at big box stores outside of a Play Booster Box, but TCG Player have the stock, and in most cases, the cheapest pricing for preorders. There's every chance Amazon will get more stock allocation before release, but if you don't want to miss out on launch, I'd highly reccomend securing preorders with a reputable seller on TCG Player. If this set is anything like MTG: Final Fantasy, launch day stock is going to be none existent.

Where To Preorder MTG: Edge Of Eternities

MTG: Edge of Eternities preorders are the exception to the rule in this weeks MTG deals round-up. Amazon comes in cheaper on most preorders, with TCG Player taking the cheapest spot on the Play Booster Box and Commander Deck bundles. I've included eBay links too, which is always a wise choice to check for cheap preorders before putting your money on the table.

The Witcher Boxed Set

28 Years Later 4K Steelbook

Baseus Enercore CJ11 Retractable USB C Charger

The Silo Series Boxed Set

Power Strip Surge Protector, 10FT

Amazon Prime Day might not officially start until Tuesday, July 8, but a couple of outstanding Prime Day TV deals have started earlier than expected. Right now you can get a 65" LG Evo C4 4K OLED TV for just $1,196.99 or a 77" LG Evo C4 4K OLED TV for just $1,784.99. Both TVs include free delivery. The LG Evo OLED TV has been our favorite TV for PlayStation for three years running thanks to its outstanding image quality, low input lag, and high refresh rate. Although the C4 is last year's model, it's still our top pick over the newer 2025 C5, mainly because the C5 costs $500 to $1,000 more without any kind of improvement to justify the price difference.

Amazon Prime Day Deals on LG OLED TVs Start Today

Wicked and In the Heights director Jon M. Chu is partnering with Mattel and Warner Bros. to direct the Hot Wheels movie.

Details on Mattel’s next stop in film come from Deadline, which reported the musical moviemaker has signed on to direct an action movie based on the company’s enormous line of collectible toy cars. No release date, cast, or plot details have been announced.

The MCU is full of breadwinners, folks — and Scarlett Johansson is now at the top of that list. Following the release of her latest film Jurassic World Rebirth, Johansson has been crowned the highest grossing lead actor of all time.

With Jurassic World Rebirth grossing a whopping $316 million globally at just six days into its theatrical run, Johansson was able to shoot up from third place on the highest-grossing lead actor list all the way to first. In the process, she surpassed two of her longtime Marvel costars, Robert Downey Jr. and Samuel L. Jackson, according to The Numbers.

Jackson’s lifetime box office number — a staggering $14.6 billion — kept him in the top spot before ScarJo swooped in, and Downey was a very close second at $14.3 billion. But the Black Widow star has officially usurped them both, relegating Jackson to second place and Downey to third with an incredible $14.8 billion.

Interestingly enough, Johansson was able to reach such a feat with noticeably fewer films on her resume than either of her costars. To date, she has starred in 36 films, while Jackson hit first place with 71 and RDJ reached second with 45.

All three actors have their Marvel work to thank for their undeniable box office success. For ScarJo’s part, her MCU outputs — which include Avengers: Endgame, Avengers: Infinity War, The Avengers, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Captain America: Civil War, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Iron Man 2, and her 2021 solo film Black Widow — make up nearly $10.5 billion of her lifetime earnings.

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

Amazon Prime Day doesn't start until midnight tonight, but early deals on Amazon devices have already arrived. Although not every Kindle is on sale just yet (more deals start tomorrow), the two most expensive e-reader models have gotten some pretty significant discounts. The Kindle Scribe and Kindle Colorsoft have both received rare price cuts that finally make them more affordable.

These particular Kindle models are more expensive because they go beyond the usual reading tablet capabilities of the standard Kindle. The Scribe is essentially a digital notebook with some cool AI tools and the Colorsoft is the only model that lets you read comics and graphic novels in color. With the early Prime Day deals, these are the lowest prices we've ever seen.

Early Prime Day Kindle Deals

The Birdman is back, and he’s once again 540° Christ Airing his way into my house and into my heart, like some kind of majestic, Motörhead-fueled, messiah of manuals, methods, and madonnas. As the follow-up 2020’s absolutely delightful remake of the first two Pro Skater games, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4 may lack the outright initial novelty of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 – and it definitely colours outside the lines a bit more while bringing these classics back to life – but it’s also impossible for me to deny how infectiously fun it is being transported back to 2001 for some authentically old school, arcade skating action. “The pleasure is to play,” barks Lemmy Kilmister in the iconic speed metal masterpiece Ace of Spades, which was the high-energy opener for the original THPS3 more than two decades ago and returns to do the same job in THPS3+4.

You’re damn right it is, Lemmy.

Five years ago developer Vicarious Visions achieved the improbable with Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2. Despite the stench of Robomodo’s disastrous Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5 still lingering in the air like a swampy pair of SB Dunks, Vicarious Visions produced one of the most pitch-perfect and essential remakes of the modern era – one that would go on to record the highest first month of sales for any game in the long-running Tony Hawk’s series. For its valiant efforts, Vicarious Visions was promptly… shut down, and Hawk himself confirmed plans to produce Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4 were subsequently kickflipped to the kerb. Fortunately, this decision was reversed and the project landed at Iron Galaxy.

Despite having a different developer at the helm, THPS3+4 remains mostly in sync with the look and structure of THPS 1+2. That is, the graphics are similarly crisp and colourful, and the performance is robust and reliable. The skate roster is a mix of returning pros from the original games, the new additions from THPS1+2, and some fresh faces debuting in the series (including Chloe Covell, Yuto Horigome, Rayssa Leal, and Zion Wright amongst others). Yes, Bam Margera is here, too. He may be absent from the intro sizzle but you’ll be able to find him in the unlockable secrets.

Both games in the package are again represented as two separate strings of levels but, beyond that, everything is unified. Moves and tricks are common across both games (including things like, say, spine transfers – which were only originally introduced in THPS4.) On top of that, the stat points you collect playing one game will improve your skater in the other, and any currency you gather goes to one central kitty to spend on kit for your custom skater (or secret skaters, fancy effects, or special visual filters). Basically, if you’ve played THPS 1+2 you’ll know what to expect. But even if you haven’t, I anticipate you’ll catch on quickly to the neat and tidy, two-for-one philosophy at work.

Kick, Push, Kick, Push, Coast

The magic of THPS3+4 lives in its levels and, despite a couple of apparent absences, the marvelously remade maps are the stars of the show. As was the case with THPS1+2, it’s just so charming to be carving and combo-ing my way through such familiar geometry, only with a slick and modern overhaul. From feeling the heat of the molten metal in Foundry to ascending the levels of Alcatraz, unlocking and arriving in each returning map has been a huge highlight. Airport is still an impeccable string of skate lines. Cruise Ship is still a wonderfully moreish challenge to score crazy combos without cannonballing into the Caribbean. It’s great stuff.

Kona still suffers from parts of its real world-inspired layout being a bit of a plain space for the zany, arcade skating of a Tony Hawk’s game – and London’s shift to night seems to make it a little more boring to look at – but there aren’t really any complete duds here aside from THPS4’s Zoo, which has been turned into a tournament level. The Zoo is now abandoned, so it’s now lifeless and lonely (and the night setting is once again dull on the eyes).

While there’s no sign of THPS4’s Chicago or Carnival maps, there are three brand-new ones Iron Galaxy has added to the THPS4 campaign. I’m not sure how I feel about it in purist terms, although Waterpark and Pinball are both seriously excellent levels. An abandoned waterpark full of empty pools and crusty old waterslides is such a perfect environment for a Pro Skater game it’s almost hard to believe it didn’t already exist, and Pinball is seriously eye-catching – from the chrome sheen of the shiny metal ball to the gigantic Tony Hawk looming over the machine itself.

Level goals are mostly drawn from the original games – Iron Galaxy hasn’t arbitrarily moved the hidden tapes somewhere else – but there are a few new or amended ones throughout. These generally work (for instance, the incredibly easy ‘Trash the Museum’ on Cruise Ship has been replaced with a far more satisfyingly complex trick gauntlet you need to complete in order to produce the same slapstick result) but there are a couple of misses (switching out London’s Stompy the Elephant for a weird bloke in his undies is an odd pivot).

Most of the liberties have been taken in THPS4’s levels, where there’s been some significant pruning. Essentially, THPS4’s levels have all been streamlined to function under the classic two-minute timer, so this means you won’t be freely skating around speaking with fellow pro skaters and receiving verbal goals from them as you encounter each one. Those conversations are gone, and so too are a bunch of goals. I will note that some that I thought were missing appeared as one of the five extra ‘Pro Goals’ that become available after getting every initial goal in all parks. For instance, the parade floats that are parked teasingly out of reach in College do start moving down the street once Pro Goals are unlocked, but you won't be, say, startling an elephant or hardflipping over Kenny the Koala at Zoo this time around. It’s neat that we eventually get C-O-M-B-O goals for THPS3 levels that never previously had them, but there’s give and take. Either way, the THPS4 campaign generally only feels like a remake in brief bursts; most of the time it’s really a reimagining. You can change the timer to be up to 60 minutes as a new gameplay mod (joining the list of cheats returning from THPS 1 + 2) but, while it reduces friction, it doesn’t really make it any more like classic THPS4.

On the topic of goals, however, elsewhere there’s been some well-considered evolution to the park editor, which now features a ‘create-a-goal’ function. This is a huge plus. Now user levels don’t have to exclusively be places for you to cruise around until you get bored and decide to move on; they can be a whole new pillar of your THPS 3 + 4 playtime, tackling new challenges and collecting S-K-A-T-E letters, C-O-M-B-O lines, and hitting smashables in fresh maps every time you boot up. I think this has massive promise. You can also add turbo boost pads, friendly and aggressive NPCs, and death pits (that will kick skaters back to a spawn point), so it’s a great evolution of the park creator tools in THPS 1 + 2.

Not the Same

While I’m certain the reimagining of THPS4’s campaign mode will be a bona fide bugbear for some purists, personally I’m far more disappointed in the total about-face on display when it comes to THPS 3 + 4’s soundtrack. It’s actually a genuinely baffling situation.

The importance of soundtracks to the Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater series is a well-established fact. They’ve achieved legendary status in the business, and multiple oral histories have charted the stories behind their creation over the years. In 2020, the philosophy was abundantly clear when it came to THPS 1 + 2: the soundtracks were a critical part of the equation, and it was a central priority. 22 out of the 25 songs that made up the original soundtracks to the first two games were re-secured for the remake, and only three could not be licensed again at that time. With 22 returning songs and 37 fresh ones (59 songs in total), the soundtrack to THPS 1 + 2 is more or less spot-on.

Unfortunately, THPS 3 + 4 is a different story altogether.

Whether it’s a coincidence or otherwise, THPS 3 + 4 has also arrived with 59 songs in total – but the balance is all wrong. Yes, it’s certainly true that both THPS3 and THPS4 had significantly larger soundtracks than the original pair of games (20 for THPS3, and 35 for THPS4). And yes, hypothetically re-securing every single song probably wouldn’t have left much scope to augment the soundtrack with new music released since the heyday of the original Pro Skater games. Therefore, I would’ve been content to concede that a fair compromise would have been half-and-half – or at least a similar mix to THPS 1 + 2. Say, 20-or-so classic songs, and the remainder new.

We didn’t get close to that. Bafflingly, we got just six out of 20 from THPS3, and a mere four out of 35 from THPS4. That’s 10 total; less than 20% of the originals’ songs, and less than half the number of returning songs THPS 1 + 2 has. In actual fact, there are bands that weren’t even asked, and are as surprised as their fans to be absent from the THPS 3 + 4 soundtrack.

Apologists may badger me about using Spotify instead but, despite the presence of Bodyjar, it’s simply not the same as having the music baked into the game where it belongs. That is, I count myself lucky that Bodyjar’s Not the Same made the cut; depending on the day of the week you ask me it’s near enough my favourite song of all time. But my fellow old fans may not be as fortunate. After all, even the title track for THPS4 was brushed aside.

Simply put, this is a fumble for any remake, but it’s a particularly disappointing one for a pair of games in which the music is a key pillar of what makes them special and memorable. Don’t get me wrong, there are some genuinely great new tracks on THPS 3 + 4 that have instantly worked their way from the game to my daily playlists. Dog Years by Urethane, hollywood sucks// by KennyHoopla, Boys in the Better Land by Fontaines D.C., Roller by The Saint Cecilia, and Better Off by Common Perry are all total bangers and I wasn’t previously familiar with a single one of them. Rescuing Lupe Fiasco’s skateboarding anthem Kick, Push from being forever marooned in 2006’s Tony Hawk’s Downhill Jam was also a commendable decision. However, I just cannot ignore the casual indifference shown to the original soundtracks.

Microsoft raised the prices of its consoles, games, and accessories back in May, but if you’ve been waiting for the chance to snag a new Xbox controller, your patience has been rewarded over at Walmart as it aims to rival Prime Day 2025 with its own sales event.

The retailer has some of the cheapest Xbox pads around, but they’re selling fast. There are options in multiple colors, too, with the cheapest being the rather eye-catching Shock Blue, which is just $46.50, while there are discounts to be had on the standard black, Robot White, and special edition Pulse Cipher option, too.

You can even save on the Elite Series 2 Core Wireless controller, which will set you back $124.90 instead of $139.99, the full-fat Elite Series 2, and the recently released DOOM: The Dark Ages pad.

As we mentioned above, the cheapest option is the Shock Blue, but you can save over $5 on the standard Black version and almost $10 on the Robot White colorway.

The Pulse Cipher has a discount of $10, too, while the Elite Series 2 Core adds extra buttons, adjustable triggers, and the option to store three presets. The Elite Series 2 (non-Core) adds additional accessories and a carry case with a charging cradle inside.

Still, collectors will want the DOOM Limited Edition option. Not only is it heavily discounted here (37% off), but there aren’t many controllers with blood-spatter on them.

As a reminder, all of these controllers will work great with your Xbox, but they’re ideal for PC gamers too. And, with Walmart's own sales hitting tomorrow for all customers, there's every chance there are fresh discounts coming both there, and at Amazon very soon.

Lloyd Coombes is an experienced freelancer in tech, gaming and fitness seen at Polygon, Eurogamer, Macworld, TechRadar and many more. He's a big fan of Magic: The Gathering and other collectible card games, much to his wife's dismay.

One of the co-founders of Subnautica 2 studio, Unknown Worlds, has released a statement about last week's "shock" decision to replace the leadership team, saying the decision to oust them "stings."

In a heartfelt post, Charlie Cleveland revealed on Reddit that while he and his colleagues believed Subnautica 2 was "ready for early release," "that decision is in Krafton's hands." A recent statement from the publisher, however, intimated a release was not imminent as an update about the release schedule, including an "Early Access timeline," would be "coming soon."

Though not an explicit comment, the discrepency perhaps shows a disconnect between Krafton and the studio's original management.

Krafton's statement also addressed other community concerns, such as the potential introduction of microtransactions, writing: "Nothing has changed with how the game is structured. It will remain a single-player first experience, with optional co-operative multiplayer. No subscriptions. No loot boxes. No battle pass. No microtransactions."

Krafton acquired Unknown Worlds in October 2021 and at the time, said the Sabnautica studio would continue to operate as an independent outfit. Last week, however, former Striking Distance CEO, Steve Papoutsis, joined Subnautica 2 developer Unknown Worlds as CEO. The shock announcement confirmed that the previous leadership team — Ted Gill, Charlie Cleveland, and Max McGuire — were replaced "effective immediately."

Cleveland didn't explain what led to the team being removed, nor commented on Papoutsis' appointment as CEO.

"[Y]ou can see why for Max, Ted, myself, the Unknown Worlds team, and for our community, the events of this week have been quite a shock," Cleveland wrote on Reddit. "We know that the game is ready for early access release and we know you’re ready to play it. And while we thought this was going to be our decision to make, at least for now, that decision is in Krafton’s hands. And after all these years, to find that I’m no longer able to work at the company I started stings.

"I want you to know that whatever happens to the founders, to the team and to the game, our priority is, and has always been, to make the best damned game we can for the best community in the world. With your Gorge plushies and your hand-drawn fish fan-art, and yes, your hard-earned dollars, you’ve supported us in every way, in every season, cold and warm, since Half-Life modding was even a thing."

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.

The iconic 1975 film One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest may become a television series, according to producer Saul Zaentz’ nephew Paul Zaentz, who helped bring the original adaptation of Ken Kesey’s 1962 novel to Hollywood.

"I just signed an agreement with Ken Kesey's widow and family to develop a television series, where we will do it through the point of view of Chief for the first season," Zaentz recently revealed on the CK Cafe podcast. "After the first season will be what happens to Chief after he escapes [from the hospital]."

He also noted that the TV show version of the story would come at the project "from a totally different point of view" than the film. The producer also revealed on the podcast that the show would allow for "more character development, introducing more characters, and more subplots."

He also confirmed the show’s development to Entertainment Weekly, however no showrunners or writers are attached to the show as of yet.

The original film starred Jack Nicholson as a convict sent to a psychiatric facility for tests and observation who encourages his peers to stand up to the ward’s terrifying head nurse, Louise Fletcher’s Nurse Ratched.

Though the movie won a whopping five Oscars — Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Screenplay, as well as Best Actor and Best Actress for Nicholson and Fletcher, respectively — Kesey was unhappy with the film because it tweaked his original work and made Nicholson’s R.P. McMurphy the central character rather than being told from the perspective of Chief Bromden, played by Will Sampson.

Alienware's Black Friday in July Sale has officially kicked off, and one of the best deals I've seen so far is this Alienware Aurora R16 RTX 5080 gaming PC for just $1,999.99 shipped. This deal started over the July 4 weekend and is probably going to be cheaper than any RTX 5080 prebuilt you'll find on Amazon during Prime Day. The Alienware Aurora R16 is a well-engineered and compact gaming rig with 240mm AIO water cooling, sensible airflow design, and a generous 1,000W 80Plus Platinum rated power supply. In the current market, buying a prebuilt gaming PC is the only way to score an RTX 5080 GPU without paying an exorbitant markup. If you were to try to find a 5080 GPU for your do-it-yourself PC build, you'll probably spend $1,400 for the graphics card alone.

Alienware Aurora RTX 5080 Gaming PC From $1,999.99

Fan-favorite Baldur's Gate 3 character Karlach is almost universally beloved for a number of reasons — chief among them, her cheery, sweet, and playful personality. But according to her voice actor Samantha Béart, that upbeat exterior belies something far, far darker, shaped by time spent in the bowels of Hell itself.

In an interview with The Gamer, Béart spoke about their time playing Karlach, including the recording process and some very specific plot points. Béart specifically goes in deep on one of Karlach's late-game monologues, delivered after a character who has essentially ruined Karlach's entire life and future is finally dealt with.

Warning! Spoilers for Baldur's Gate 3 lie ahead. Read on at your own risk.

Those who have played Baldur's Gate 3 and seen Karlach's story through know where this is going. Karlach is a tiefling who, prior to the events of the game, has spent a decade in Hell thanks to a fellow named Gortash, who sold her to an archdevil and replaced her heart with what amounts to a bomb that will eventually, inevitably kill her sooner rather than later.

That time in hell will really mess with a person, Béart says. So while most of the player's interactions with Karlach are jovial, that's Karlach making a choice to become someone better — it's not who she's always been.

“For me, [Karlach's story is] a redemption arc,” Béart said. “I think she was a piece of work in hell. She would have had to be [...] It was life in prison. That's where I was in my head with that, because otherwise, it's quite hard to relate it to something realistic. You just think about how people behave in those very small communities. Essentially, I think you can completely change to survive.”

When the player finally slays Gortash, Béart as Karlach delivers an incredible monologue unleashing all the pent-up rage, sorrow, and fear that Karlach has felt from spending all that time in Hell and facing her own inevitable demise. It's a really fantastic scene, and according to Béart, that monologue is at the center of who Karlach is:

“That's the core of her. That's the bit of her she's been hiding until she can't anymore,” Béart explained. “It's a piece I auditioned with, so I always knew it was coming. When it did happen, all the gates were off. All the ugliness can come out. It was a very satisfying and cathartic experience to film."

Béart added that this side of Karlach is absolutely something they discussed with Larian during recording, so even during Karlach's most upbeat moments, that undercurrent of pain still exists, which is perhaps why Béart's performance throughout is so effective.

In fact, it's in no small part thanks to performances like Béart's that we gave Baldur's Gate 3 a 10/10. "With crunchy, tactical RPG combat, a memorable story with complex characters, highly polished cinematic presentation, and a world that always rewards exploration and creativity, Baldur's Gate 3 is the new high-water mark for CRPGs," we wrote. Sadly, Larian recently said goodbye to active development on the game with its final major patch in April, as the studio moves onto new projects.

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.

Fromage is a worker placement board game where players assume the role of French cheesemakers, tasked with making, aging, and selling their cheeses. Players take their turns simultaneously, thanks to an innovative rotating game board. Each turn, players focus on the quadrant facing them, placing workers to craft aged cheeses and gather resources, all aiming to rack up the highest score by the end of the game.

Every quadrant offers distinct scoring opportunities and decisions in its minigame-style setup, keeping each turn fresh and engaging. With only a limited number of workers available, players must carefully balance the choice between going all-in on a single quadrant for big points or strategically placing workers across multiple areas to snag easy points.

What's in the Box

Fromage's box is on the larger side when it comes to board games, but it does manage to pack some pretty interesting components inside. The main gimmick of Fromage is its rotating Lazy Susan-style board that features four distinct quadrants for players to interact with. The game board does require some assembly with its interlocking parts, but it's not too difficult to configure. The four quadrants are linked together in no particular order with a resource tile placed in the middle of the board in any orientation, which creates a randomized game board each time you play.

Depending on the player count, there are double-sided inserts that are slotted into the bottom of each quadrant of the rotating game board, modifying the scoring and spaces available to suit the number of players.

Like most modern board games, there are punchboards containing the game's various tokens that you'll need to punch out and separate before playing. Thankfully, Fromage includes two wedge-shaped resource trays with labeled compartments for the groups of tokens, as well as plastic lids to make cleanup a breeze when you're done playing. The side of the game box even provides a visual aid for fitting all the components neatly back into the box, something that I wish more games did.

There are four double-sided player boards featuring rustic farm artwork on one side, and information about the solo mode on the opposite side. Each player receives a set of components that include 15 colored wooden cheese tokens, three workers, and three worker bases – in Hard, Soft, and Bleu cheese varieties.

While not used during the first game, there's an additional 32 structure tiles that can be drafted before each game and placed on each player's board that adds more strategy and variety for those looking for an even greater challenge.

Rules and How It Plays

Gameplay consists of placing workers on your quadrant of the rotating board each turn to score points and generate resources while strategically blocking your opponents from doing the same. The player with the most points at the end of the game is the winner.

After assembling the rotating game board with inserts corresponding to your player count, each player selects a random player board, and a matching set of cheese tokens, workers, and worker bases. All players start with two resources depending on which player board they have. Resources include structures, livestock, fruit, and orders to fulfill.

Players assume the role of French cheesemakers, tasked with making, aging, and selling their cheeses.

Each turn in Fromage is played simultaneously by all players, which not only keeps everyone engaged, but also allows the game to keep moving forward at a brisk pace. During your turn, you'll use your available workers to make one cheese and/or gather one resource in the quadrant facing you.

Every quadrant features a different venue, each with its own minigame-style objective and scoring opportunity. For example, the Fromagerie requires you to display your cheese on as many shelves as possible to score points and potentially gain bonus resources, while the Bistro has you pairing specific cheeses together for restaurantgoers in order to score. The Villes venue tasks you with distributing your cheese throughout the regions of France to expand your customer base and score points, while the Festival requires you to show off your cheeses by placing them near each other to score. Despite performing the same core actions, each quadrant feels distinct from one another and requires you to constantly adjust your strategy for each one.

Where you place your cheese token each turn is very important. Each of your three workers specializes in a different type of cheese: Hard, Soft, or Bleu. The spaces within each quadrant are represented by one of the three cheese types, as well as its required age, indicated by a gold, silver, or bronze color on the space. Cheeses that are aged longer are generally more valuable, but require you to leave your worker on that space for one to three turns while the cheese ages.

This risk/reward mechanic is what makes Fromage so delectable. Do you play it safe and get fewer points and resources, or double down on a specific quadrant and lose one of your valuable workers for a bit? You'll need to weigh these decisions carefully or you may find yourself twiddling your thumbs while everyone else takes their turn.

This is also where Fromage's rotating game board design really shines. When placing your worker on a space, it's oriented in a specific direction depending on the cheese's age. Gold aged cheese (the best) makes your worker face left, while silver faces upwards, and bronze to the right. Once all players have made their moves, the board is rotated clockwise 90-degrees to symbolize the cheese aging, and causing your workers to face a new direction in the process. At the start of each turn, players retrieve any of their workers facing them and continue making cheese until someone runs out of cheese tokens.

But, making and selling cheese isn't the only way to score points. The various resources you collect during Fromage are also key to your success. Collecting structure tokens allows you to build structures on your player board that grant you unique abilities, like gaining a resource when placing your cheese in a specific quadrant, or increasing your overall score if certain criteria is met. The default player board structures offer some interesting strategies, but once you get a feel for the game you can draft new structure tiles to replace the default options before you start. This allows you to create some interesting (and sometimes broken) strategies if you get the right tiles.

Order cards task you with making a specific type and age of cheese and grant you an escalating number of points depending on how many orders you complete during the game. This resource is particularly useful, since it often rewards you just for playing aged cheeses. My only complaint is that there's not really an incentive to complete the more valuable cheese orders unless it aligns with your strategy, as they aren't worth any extra points, despite potentially tying your worker up for multiple turns.

Certain spaces require you to make fruited cheese or jam, which can only be done if you have fruit on hand. Like the other resources, this can be totally ignored, but not collecting fruit effectively blocks you from being able to place your cheese on many of the spaces. This creates an interesting dilemma where you always want to try and have at least one fruit on hand to ensure you can make cheese during your turn, or you may fall behind the other players. At the end of the game, the number of fruited cheese and jams you made are multiplied together for bonus points.

The final resource, livestock, can be collected and exchanged for a specific type of aged cheese during your turn. This allows you to bypass the standard rules by making additional cheese on your turn, and potentially catching your opponents off guard by ending the game sooner.

While Fromage offers plenty of interesting decisions throughout the game between its four quadrants, I found that there wasn't as much player interaction as I would have liked from a worker placement game. You can almost entirely ignore your opponents and still come out on top as there are many different paths to victory. It's also somewhat difficult to determine who's ahead at any given moment with points coming from so many sources, so you're never really sure if you're actually getting in your opponent's way or just wasting your own resources.

There wasn't as much player interaction as I would have liked from a worker placement game.

As much as I love Fromage's rotating game board as a concept, in practice I had multiple situations where the quadrants separated while rotating it. Thankfully, a slightly updated design is in the works that includes a central locking axle to keep everything in place that will debut in 2026 alongside the standalone expansion, Formaggio.

Fromage also includes a solo mode, complete with an automa called the Corporation that's hell-bent on running your small cheese operation out of business. Instead of playing in different quadrants, the Corporation plays in your quadrant. At the start of each turn, the Corporation draws an order card and places a cheese token on the matching space, if possible. This creates an interesting dynamic as you can't effectively plan ahead since the Corporation can easily disrupt your strategy. The game ends when you or the Corporation runs out of cheese tokens, and the highest score wins. Overall, I found the solo mode to be a fun score-chasing opportunity and and its adjustable difficulty levels make it a rewarding challenge for players eager to test their cheese-making prowess solo.

Where to Buy Fromage

• Get it at Amazon
• Get it at Allplay

More Worker Placement Board Games We Recommend

Marvel's Mahershala Ali-starring Blade reboot got so close to going before cameras that it had a warehouse full of costumes ready to go.

But as Marvel's attempts to move forward with Blade stalled, the wardrobe items were instead sold — and were instead worn by background actors in Ryan Coogler's acclaimed Sinners.

The surprising detail, revealed by Sinners producer Sev Ohanian in an interview with ScreenCrush, sheds fresh daylight on the pre-production work that went into mounting the MCU's long-awaited and now in-limbo MCU Blade project. And also, perhaps, it suggests just how firmly parked that project is now — with no need for those costumes for the forseeable future.

"[Costume designer] Ruth Carter was working on the Blade movie that ended up not shooting," Ohanian said. "At one point that movie was going to deal with, and she's talked about this before, but at one point that film was going to deal with the past around the same era as Sinners.

"She happened to have a warehouse full of period-appropriate clothes, and it was like, 'Yo, we got to shoot this movie like tomorrow.' And Marvel was generous enough and kind enough to let us basically purchase it at price."

It's been no secret that Marvel's Blade plans were — at one point, at least — for a period piece. Indeed, Carter previously confirmed during an appearance on The John Campea show that she had been working on costumes for a story set in the 1920s.

Exactly why the project then fell apart at a relatively late stage has never been publicly stated, though it was reported that director Yann Demange had left the project in June 2024, and Marvel finally pulled the film from its release schedule last October.

Blade was initially announced at San Diego Comic Con in 2019, and was even teased during the post-credits scene of Eternals in 2021, where Ali has a voice cameo. But Marvel has said very little about its plans for the character since.

"We are committed to Blade," Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige insisted in November 2024. "We love the character, we love Mahershala's take on him. And rest assured: whenever we change direction with a project, or are still figuring out how it fits into our schedule, we let the audience know.

"You're all up to date on what's happening," Feige continued, referencing the project no longer being on Marvel's release schedule. "But I can tell you that the character will indeed make it to the MCU."

Asked for an update on the project just last month, Ali seemed as in the dark as everyone else. "Call Marvel," the actor said. "I’m ready. Let them know I'm ready."

Is Marvel ready? For now, the company is heads down on getting its next tentpole Avengers films out the door, after a string of disappointing box office returns and mixed reviews. The Fantastic Four: First Steps arrives later this month, ready to introduce Marvel's first family just in time to see them reprise their roles in next year's Avengers: Doomsday. The only other character with a movie slot right now? Tom Holland's hugely popular Spider-Man, who is set to reprise his role in 2026's Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

Maybe, after all of that is said and done, Marvel might want those costumes back?

Image credit: Cindy Ord/WireImage via Getty.

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

If you've already shopped the Steam Summer Sale and are searching for more PC gaming deals this July, a new Humble Choice bundle is live and packs in some amazing games! This month, you can take home popular games like Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader, Daemon X Machina, Wizard with a Gun, and more, all for only $14.99. Don't miss your chance to grab eight games for your Steam library, in addition to one month of IGN Plus, and save hundreds of dollars!

Crunchyroll took the stage at Anime Expo 2025 in Los Angeles over the weekend to talk about updates for shows like Black Clover, Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World-, and a new anime from the mind behind Fullmetal Alchemist.

News from some of the anime giant’s most anticipated series was revealed during its panel July 5. The end of Black Clover’s four-year hiatus and an adaptation of Fullmetal Alchemist creator Hiromu Arakawa’s Daemons of the Shadow Realm were two of the most exciting announcements. Other highlights included a first look at Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation Season 3 and a January 2026 release window for Crunchyroll’s upcoming rom-com anime, You and I Are Polar Opposites.

The Crunchyroll Anime Expo 2025 panel also featured guest appearances from a few anime figureheads as well. You can see who showed up and everything else announced at the show in the list we’ve gathered below.

Daemons of the Shadow Realm Anime On the Way

From the creator of Fullmetal Alchemist: Daemons of the Shadow Realm, an original story from Hiromu Arakawa, is coming soon to Crunchyroll. pic.twitter.com/AQlJP0PZum

— Crunchyroll (@Crunchyroll) July 6, 2025

Fullmetal Alchemist is one of the most beloved stories in anime history, so it should be no surprise to learn that anime fans are already getting excited about an adaptation of Arakawa’s 2021 manga, Daemons of the Shadow Realm. Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood and My Hero Academia animation studio, bones film, is handling the show for Crunchyroll.

Company President Masahiko Minami showed up to help roll out the red carpet ahead of the series’ release date, which has yet to be announced. More will be revealed in the future, but for now, we know that the Daemons of the Shadow Realm anime will be directed by Masahiro Ando (Sword of the Stranger). A short teaser trailer (above) revealed a few seconds of footage.

Crunchyroll shared a brief description for Daemons of the Shadow Realm: “In a world where certain humans command mighty supernatural duos called Daemons, it is the birthright of "the children who sunder day and night"—twins Yuru and Asa—to rule over these powerful entities. Separated from a young age and unaware of the truth of their birth, brother and sister must fight to make their way back to each other, claim their birthright, and save the world...”

Black Clover Is Coming Back

Witness a new legend. Black Clover is coming soon to Crunchyroll 🍀 pic.twitter.com/WAgCiajtdY

— Crunchyroll (@Crunchyroll) July 6, 2025

Following the conclusion of Black Clover Season 4 in 2021, Crunchyroll has announced that Studio Pierrot is back to produce the series for Season 5. Creator Yuki Tabata took the stage to talk about the long-awaited continuation and the manga it’s based on. No release date has been announced, but you can see a teaser video for the upcoming season above.

“The production of the long-awaited new anime season of Black Clover has been confirmed,” Tabata said. “I'm beyond ecstatic going into the new anime season after the super-passionate movie that came out! Thanks to all of you, Black Clover is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year! I definitely plan to keep this hype going! I want fans from Japan and all around the world to enjoy the powered-up anime that's going to be brought to you by the most awesome anime production staff! Thank you so much for supporting Black Clover!”

Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World- Season 4 Streams on Crunchyroll in 2026

See what's ahead for Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World- Season 4 in this brand new trailer, arriving on Crunchyroll in 2026 ✨ pic.twitter.com/yERBS1xRNa

— Crunchyroll (@Crunchyroll) July 6, 2025

Natsuki Subaru’s Japanese voice actor Yusuke Kobayashi took the stage of Crunchyroll’s Anime Expo 2025 panel to share that Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World Season 4 will premiere in 2026. It’s produced by White Fox, with Season 3 director Masahiro Shinohara back to helm the next batch of episodes.

A teaser for the new season featuring Natsuki Subaru and Emilia was revealed to attendees, and you can see it for yourself above.

Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation Season 3 Trailer Revealed

The return of Rudeus! Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation Season 3 will stream on Crunchyroll next year.

🔥 READ: https://t.co/COlcBE8Er6 pic.twitter.com/dD9DazPPqf

— Crunchyroll (@Crunchyroll) July 6, 2025

Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation Season 3 still needs more time in the oven, so Crunchyroll did its best to help with the wait by premiering a new teaser (above). Additionally, Ryosuke Shibuya is back as director, with the show set to feature music from Apocalypse Hotel composer Yoshiaki Fujisawa, with character designs from Sanae Shimada and Ryota Furukawa. Studio Bind still plans to bring more episodes to the anime streaming service sometime in 2026.

You and I Are Polar Opposites Brings Rom-Com Story to Crunchyroll in Early 2026

It's tough falling in love with someone so different than you 💕

You and I Are Polar Opposites comes to Crunchyroll this January! pic.twitter.com/jHCQ5D3wuu

— Crunchyroll (@Crunchyroll) July 6, 2025

Kocha Agasawa’s You and I Are Polar Opposites is officially set to show audiences how Suzuki and Tani’s stories will mix when its anime adaptation starts streaming January 2026. Lapin Track is producing, with Takayoshi Nagatomo directing.

Crunchyroll Goes All in on Classroom of the Elite

Get ready for school! 📝

Classroom of the Elite 2nd Year is coming soon to Crunchyroll. pic.twitter.com/XTOCgIl7dW

— Crunchyroll (@Crunchyroll) July 6, 2025

Classroom of the Elite 2nd Year is now officially set to continue the saga following the conclusion of Classroom of the Elite Season 3 last year. Assassination Classroom company Lerche’s follow-up is certainly exciting, but fans of the series can also check out the Classroom of the Elite – Merge Puzzle Special Exam – video game via the Crunchyroll Game Vault starting today. Its inclusion marks the first time it’ll be available outside of Japan, with Crunchyroll adding that it is “free of microtransactions, ads, and in-app purchases.”

Tojima Wants to Be a Kamen Rider Rides onto Crunchyroll This Fall

Do you want to be a Kamen Rider?

Tojima Wants to Be a Kamen Rider begins this October on Crunchyroll 🔥 pic.twitter.com/liROVhgMQ3

— Crunchyroll (@Crunchyroll) July 6, 2025

While so many exciting Crunchyroll titles are set to premiere in 2026, Tojima Wants to Be a Kamen Rider will help viewers with the wait when it premieres October 2025. Lidenfilms is handling the project, with Takahiro Ikezoe in the directing spot. You can check out a trailer (above) and then read a brief description of the show ahead of its release in a few months, below.

“Based on the original manga by Yokusaru Shibata, the series composition is written by Toko Machida (Life Lessons with Uramichi-Oniisan) and follows the story of a 40-year-old man who almost gives up on his dream of becoming a Kamen Rider until a robbery changes his fortune. TeddyLoid (Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt) will be composing the music.”

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).

Say it ain’t so — or that it’s just a prank, because honestly? It might be. The Office alum Craig Robinson, who has been a mainstay in the comedy scene for years, has revealed he’s embarking on a major milestone: quitting comedy in favor of “something huge.”

“Life update: I’m officially quitting comedy to focus on my true calling,” Robinson explained via the caption on an Instagram video post made last week. “Stay tuned. I’m working on something huge.”

His selfie video gave slightly more context, but mostly left fans in the dark about what’s next. “Hey, everybody! Just wanted you to hear it from me: I am quitting comedy,” the actor explained in the clip. “But not for nothing. It’s been an amazing run, and y’all have been amazing and wonderful, but I’m following something bigger. So, thank you so much, I love you and stay tuned.”

In the comments on the post, fans shared a mix of shock, sadness, and a whole hell of a lot of disbelief — and to be fair, a comic like Robinson is probably right to be questioned here. After all, this definitely could be a joke in and of itself, or even promotion for something.

That said, the actor did make a follow-up post which hinted at starting a small business. “Turns out having a dream and building a business with your friends are two VERY different things,” he captioned the post. “I can’t go into detail just yet, but for real though any help would be huge.”

But ultimately, when it comes to what this actually means, we simply don’t know yet. Color us curious, though.

Robinson is most famous for playing warehouse foreman Darryl Philbin across 118 episodes of The Office, but he's also well-known for roles in Mr. Robot, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and The Bad Guys.

Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images.

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

Capcom has canceled a lecture on the optimization of Monster Hunter Wilds at the upcoming CEDEC 2025 conference in Japan, amid concerns over harassment and threats its staff has been facing over Monster Hunter Wilds.

Per Automaton, Capcom was set to host a talk at Japan's Computer Entertainment Developers Conference, which would have covered performance optimization through the lens of Monster Hunter Wilds. The developers would have explored the angles of CPU and GPU load, as well as memory usage.

No reason was given for the cancellation, but speculation has swirled around whether this is related to harassment the developers have faced over Monster Hunter Wilds. The PC version of Wilds, specifically, has garnered criticism since launch, prompting commitments to improvements and updates from the team at Capcom.

Following the release of Title Update 2, planned adjustments were hoped to have fixed the problem. Results seemed varied, however, and Capcom released a statement addressing several major bugs and issues on Twitter/X.

Amid all this, though, Capcom also put out a statement on its official site, responding to what sounds like a more extreme degree of feedback. Per Automaton, Capcom said its staff have faced harassment through social media and customer support channels, including targeted threats against individuals. The company reportedly warned that it will take legal action in severe cases of harassment against employees.

So while no official reason was given for the lecture's cancellation, the alignment of these events certainly suggests that concerns over harassment played a role. And it should go without saying that critique and feedback are worthwhile, but these extremes do worse than nothing, and certainly won't assist in tuning Monster Hunter Wilds.

As for Wilds itself, Title Update 2 recently went live, and players do seem to be enjoying the addition of several new hunts, especially the bout with Lagiacrus.

Eric is a freelance writer for IGN.

We’re coming up on Amazon Prime Day, which, in spite of the name, will actually be a four-day sales event. Prime Day 2025 is taking place from July 8-11, with most of the deals centered around Amazon’s own site.

Most of us are looking for any opportunity to cut down on subscription costs. As someone who’s been covering streaming deals for quite some time now, I thought I’d break down what kind of discounts to expect during Amazon’s sale. Spoiler: Not a lot! But media fans still have plenty of deals to look forward to.

Amazon's Already Rolled Out New Prime Discounts

Amazon Prime memberships are, as you’d expect, a big part of the Prime Day festivities. A membership gets you access to exclusive deals and the infamous benefit of free shipping. More importantly, on the streaming side, the membership also comes with Prime Video.

The 3D platformer is quintessentially Nintendo. As famous as games like Crash Bandicoot, Spyro, and Astro Bot are, they all live in the shadow of (and often owe a debt of gratitude to) the big N. However, since launching the genre to mass popularity with Super Mario 64 back in 1996, the realm of three dimensions isn’t one Nintendo returns to a whole lot. A 3D platformer featuring a Nintendo character is a special, rare thing. They’re games that showcase the very best the company, and the industry, has to offer; a massive pool of creative ideas, collected and refined over years of development, that can go on to define an entire console’s identity.

July 2025 will go down as a special month in Nintendo history because we are finally getting another addition to the company’s small-but-mighty 3D platforming library – Donkey Kong: Bananza. It’ll slot into a collection that contains some of the most celebrated games in Nintendo history (as well as a couple of rare misses). Now’s a great time to look back on these games and analyse which ones still feel great to control, and which have been aged out of the pantheon of Nintendo’s greatest hits.

Here’s every Nintendo 3D platformer, ranked.

11. Donkey Kong 64

Despite some glowing reviews at the time of its release, Donkey Kong 64 has become Nintendo’s default ‘bad platformer.’ In theory, the barrage of ideas the game throws at you are pretty cool, and it’s easy to see how reviewers at the time were impressed by DK 64’s size – it infamously contains almost 4,000 items to collect. Some can only be picked up by specific characters, some are only accessible by using specific items, and others are hard-earned rewards for completing mini games. A game having this much variety is usually good.

However, in practice, Donkey Kong 64 is just tedious. The levels aren’t interesting enough to keep backtracking through with different characters, which quickly erodes the novelty of switching between Kongs. It also runs into the key problem many games of this era do – eclipsing King K. Rool, the camera is the toughest enemy you’ll come across. It constantly battles your attempts to see the landscape clearly. Great platformers are satisfying to play, and DK64 is the antithesis of that.

10. Super Mario 3D Land

In contrast to DK64, Super Mario 3D Land is a really smooth, breezy platformer… but maybe too breezy to be memorable. Much of the satisfaction you extract from a good platformer is the result of overcoming seemingly impossible challenges. You truly do feel like a god after perfecting your timing making the perfect jump. But you could beat 3D Land within a weekend and 100% it over a week without much strain or focus. It’s a fun, pocket-sized platformer that uses the 3DS’ gimmick really well, but it sadly fails to make a lasting impact.

But as mentioned earlier, 3D Land is beautifully smooth. It hails from an era when Nintendo had character movement in platformers down to a supremely satisfying science. It feels great to move Mario around, even without any power-ups, and when combined with the great sense of momentum and fantastic world design, it ensures the levels are a joy to fly through.

9. Bowser’s Fury

Though packaged in with the Switch port of Super Mario 3D World, Bowser’s Fury is far from being ‘bonus content’ or even an expansion. Despite its short length, it has enough unique and fun ideas to be considered its own game. Rather than being made up of many separate levels as so many Mario adventures are, Bowser’s Fury features one big open world that evolves over time. It’s the most open a 3D Mario has ever been, which not only feels freeing, but is also a great proof of concept for how sandbox Mario games can push above and beyond the classic but unquestionably old-school models of Mario 64 and Odyssey.

Bowser’s Fury also introduced immediately iconic imagery to the franchise, with kaiju versions of Bowser and Cat Suit Mario going blow for blow multiple times throughout the game. This super-sized mechanic keeps things fresh, banks on your knowledge of the open world (which you now navigate from a very different perspective), and has a wonderful ‘out-of-control’ cool factor. It’s difficult to place this one higher because, ultimately, it’s not much more than a short proof of concept. But Bowser’s Fury could prove to be the building blocks of Nintendo’s next 3D platforming classic.

8. Super Mario Sunshine

Keeping the Mario series fresh has been a delicate balancing act for Nintendo – each game has to introduce a new mechanic that helpfully changes the way you play, but not so much that the basics of Mario platforming are lost. The FLUDD water backpack might be the most innovative platforming aid Nintendo has ever introduced. Its many different nozzles turn it into a H20 swiss army knife that evolves throughout the game, allowing you to be creative in how you choose to reach the next ledge.

Isle Delfino stands out as an iconic Mario location to this day, and Shine Sprites are way cooler than Stars and Moons, but there are some issues, including some uninspiring challenge levels and a few game-breaking glitches. Ultimately, though, the way Mario Sunshine splits the difference between free-roaming sandbox design and linear progression is frustrating – it would be better for nailing just one of them.

7. Kirby and the Forgotten Land

It took Kirby 30 years to make the transition to 3D, but what a transition it was. Adapting the formerly 2D pink sphere's moveset, where the whole deal is sucking in enemies and spitting projectiles, could have been a disaster (afterall, aiming is easier when you only have two dimensions to worry about.) But developer HAL Laboratory made it work better than ever.

With the ability to take on the abilities of his enemies, variety has always been at Kirby’s core. Forgotten Land takes this further than ever before with Mouthful Mode, which allows Kirby to take on the form of inanimate objects like vending machines, which throw out tin cans as a form of attack, and cars, which speed you through levels. Through this system you’re always being thrown new methods of traversal and combat, which can all be enhanced to bring Kirby’s powers up to frightening levels.

6. Super Mario 3D World

Super Mario 3D World was a very good Wii U game that became excellent on the Nintendo Switch. All it took was a faster running speed for the incredible level design to truly shine. Outside of the Galaxy series, this is as good as Nintendo gets for linear 3D platforming, using a fun pool of power ups and platform types to push the series’ classic mechanics to their absolute limits. All this comes together to create one of the most famous levels in Mario history – Champion’s Road, a staggeringly difficult culmination of everything obtained across your 3D World adventure.

Despite the great level design, movement in 3D World is a little stilted due to the lack of full analogue control. This means Mario and the crew are just not as satisfying to move around as they are in games higher up on this list. It’s also unremarkable visually, coming from an era of Mario where everything was a bit too inert and vanilla. It’s a winner when it comes to really fun and challenging levels, but unspectacular in other (arguably less important) departments.

5. Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker

Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker is unique not just among Nintendo’s library, but the entire 3D platforming space. Rather than focusing on the satisfaction of movement, it goes all in on the satisfaction of solving puzzles. Crucially, though, it never gives up its platformer credentials – Treasure Tracker is all about navigation, even if it trades precision jumps for a brain workout.

Captain Toad features diorama-like levels that you rotate in order to guide your little explorer Mushroom towards a Power Star. With no ability to jump, it’s all down to the power of perception. We were introduced to the concept through bonus levels in Super Mario 3D World, but Nintendo took that small idea and expanded it to its widest reaches, designing puzzles so intricate and challenging that you can’t help but be charmed. Such a feeling is only emphasised by Captain Toad’s adorable presence – he’s such a fun character to have at the centre of a game, and it's great that he finally got to headline a game with such its own identity. Treasure Tracker is a short and sweet gem in both the Wii U and Switch libraries.

4. Super Mario 64

Mario 64 being so high on this list isn’t just an acknowledgement of the game that practically invented the genre, but a testament to how well it still plays. The hub world of Peach’s Castle remains enchanting. The first moment you take flight never fails to raise the hairs on your arms. Accessing different worlds by jumping into paintings is still a phenomenal idea. The soundtrack is breathtaking. The level design is always reinventing itself. And, right at the very core of it all, is Mario’s basic moveset – run, jump, and punch has rarely felt so versatile and satisfying.

You can quibble with a few aspects, like the camera, which isn’t always the most agreeable (though still more usable than other 3D games of this era), and some of the now very-dated visuals. But the slightly underwhelming DS remake of Mario 64, which unsuccessfully tampered with the control scheme, shows how hard it is to improve upon perfection.

3. Super Mario Galaxy

Super Mario Galaxy was Nintendo’s first attempt at making a game that felt cinematic. The scale is massive, and not just because of the outer-space setting. Each galaxy feels worthy of that name, being sprawling, multi-faceted areas filled with creative challenges. You’re given time to appreciate each star system’s grandeur as you soar through them, boosted by launch stars or floating while holding onto flower stems. The orchestral soundtrack supercharges these moments and infuses Galaxy with the greatest feeling of adventure the series had ever had to this point. It’s safe to say that Nintendo nailed its ‘bigger and bolder’ ambitions.

Galaxy’s biggest innovation, though, is its gravity mechanics, which add another layer of satisfaction and difficulty to the impeccable level design. Attempting an ambitious jump and making it thanks to juuust about being caught by a planet’s gravity feels incredible. And that’s what great platforming is all about: giving you the confidence to try the craziest jumps. Also contributing to Galaxy’s uniqueness is a truly memorable story (a rarity among this list) with Rosalina’s history slowly revealed as you complete each area. All in all, Mario Galaxy is a terrific game with a lot of seemingly unbeatable ideas… but somehow, Nintendo had more in the tank.

2. Super Mario Galaxy 2

By opening with a 2D platformer storybook-style sequence, Mario Galaxy 2 gives you the warm, fuzzy feeling of being back in a beloved world. It’s something Nintendo had never done in a 3D platformer before, nor has it since – Galaxy 2 remains Mario’s lone 3D direct sequel. And from your first flick of the Wiimote in Sky Garden Galaxy, you can see exactly why Nintendo had to return; you’re reminded of how smooth and intuitive the controls are and how beautiful the world is.

More Mario Galaxy would have sufficed, but Galaxy 2 introduces something Nintendo could stand to add to many other sequels – Yoshi. Riding around on the green dinosaur’s back adds so much depth thanks to his unique abilities. This expanded toolset gives Galaxy 2 a whole new identity of its own, allowing you to rediscover the charm of Galaxy through a new lens. For example, his flutter jump is a wonderfully practical platforming aid, providing another tool to pull off crazier jumps. Without Yoshi, Galaxy 2 wouldn’t feel anywhere near as fresh. But his addition, along with many new items, only enhance what was already one of the greatest platformers ever made.

1. Super Mario Odyssey

After playing Super Mario Odyssey, it’s hard to go back to any of the other (very, very good) games in the series. It really is that strong. Mario feels incredible to control, so much so that it can feel like you’re cheating. His throwable hat, Cappy, who can be used to extend your jumps, represents the core Nintendo principle of being easy to play but difficult to master. Once you master everything Cappy can do (as a platforming aid, not even counting his enemy capturing abilities that unlock a whole host of new skills), you’re able to reach places that feel genuinely forbidden. Throwing Cappy out and jumping on him before diving onto a ledge feels so natural and smooth, and yet it’s a move far more complex than anything featured in any other Mario game.

One of the reasons why Mario Odyssey’s movement feels so great is how wide-reaching the world is. Its extensiveness encourages exploration. There isn’t a ledge you can’t reach. Nothing is just for show. And when you do reach a ‘forbidden’ area, there’s a pile of coins waiting as congratulations for your feat. Odyssey is also a return to the old-school collectathon, and so that perfected platforming ensures each Moon you collect is a dopamine hit, rather than feeling like a burden.

A constantly stunning-looking adventure filled with wonderfully bonkers abilities, a banging soundtrack, and the best controls Mario has ever had, Mario Odyssey is unquestionably the best 3D platformer in Nintendo history.

And that’s our ranking for all of Nintendo’s 3D platformers. Do you agree with our choices, or would you have had something else in the top spot? Let us know in the comments.

Amazon’s brand new 3 for 2 sale is live right now, landing just ahead of Prime Day 2025 and likely sticking around through the full event from July 8 to 11.

It’s one of the best opportunities this year to stock up on physical media, especially if you're looking to expand your 4K UHD Blu-ray collection without spending a fortune.

4K UHD Blu-rays: Buy 2, Get 1 Free Sale

This time around, the movie selection is particularly strong. You’ve got brand-new releases like Warfare in 4K, the Jaws 50th Anniversary Edition, and exclusive steelbooks for recent standouts like Longlegs.

There’s also a solid range of all-time classics available in 4K, including The Thing, The Shining, Jurassic Park, Blade Runner, and more. The deal also comes along at the same time as a massive sale on The Criterion Collection. Whether you’re collecting new releases or plugging gaps in your shelf, there’s something here worth picking up.

As always, the wording on Amazon’s end is a bit misleading. It’s called a 3 for 2 deal, which, when translated, means you need to add three qualifying items to your basket, and the cheapest one will automatically be free at checkout. So buy two, get an additional one free!

Target also has a very similar 3 for 2 sale on right now as well, if Amazon hasn't got exactly what you're looking for right now

The deal scales with your cart, so if you add six eligible items, you’ll get two of them for free, and so on. There’s no code required, and it works across a mix of categories, including books, board games, and puzzles, alongside movies and TV box sets.

Even better, you can mix and match across formats. Want to grab two Blu-rays and a book like Sunrise on the Reaping or Project Hail Mary? Go for it. Prefer two limited edition steelbooks and a vinyl record? That works too.

The only real hurdle is Amazon’s outdated filtering system, which still lumps every film or TV show under “DVD” regardless of format. But once you’re in the sale page, it’s easy enough to narrow things down or browse our curated picks above.

If you still care about owning movies outright instead of relying on streaming rights and rotating libraries, this is the kind of sale worth jumping on. It’s live now and will run through the entirety of Prime Day, so there’s plenty of time to fill your cart.

Should I Wait for Prime Day?

For these deals? No, you don't need to wait. In fact, you don't even need a Prime membership to access the 3 for 2 sale, it's just running concurrently to the Prime Day discounts, and is just as good as any other offers available this week.

Amazon has announced that its Prime Day sale will start on July 8 and run through July 11 this year (this week). This is a break from tradition as Amazon has made the switch from a two-day event to a four-day event. It's the longest Prime Day Amazon has ever had, and there's already a slew of freebies you can grab if you're a Prime member right now.

In addition to the Amazon sale, both Walmart, Target, and Best Buy have announced competing events in July. The dates are slightly different and include varying start times depending on each retailer's membership plan.

Robert Anderson is a deals expert and Senior Commerce Editor for IGN. You can follow him @robertliam21 on Twitter/X or Bluesky.

Despite its rapidly approaching August 8 release date for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S, not much has been seen from Mafia: The Old Country, the upcoming prequel – and fourth mainline entry – in the popular mafioso action-adventure series. That changes today. Mafia: The Old Country is our IGN First "cover story" for the month of July, meaning we'll have exclusive content all month long – specifically on Mafia Mondays!

We kick things off today with nine minutes of exclusive gameplay from the Villa section in Chapter 5 of the story. Note that this footage has been edited for length and to avoid some story/character spoilers.

Next Monday we'll have our exclusive hands-on preview after playing three hours of the campaign. In the meantime, check out our chat with game director Alex Cox and Hangar 13 studio president Nick Baynes as well as Baynes and 2K president David Ismailer discussing the decision to price The Old Country at $50 and go back to Mafia's narrative-driven, linear roots.

Ryan McCaffrey is IGN's executive editor of previews and host of both IGN's weekly Xbox show, Podcast Unlocked, as well as our monthly(-ish) interview show, IGN Unfiltered. He's a North Jersey guy, so it's "Taylor ham," not "pork roll." Debate it with him on Twitter at @DMC_Ryan.

We’ve all heard the spiel about Superman before. He’s faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, and able to leap tall buildings in a single bound. In short, he’s one of the most powerful fictional characters ever conceived, able to break the laws of physics and bend time itself with impunity.

That said, Superman’s powers are nothing if not evolving. They’ve ebbed and flowed a lot over the decades, with the character evolving from super-strong defender of the downtrodden to all-powerful, godlike superhero to the more well-rounded character he is today. The only constant with Superman is his inconsistency.

With actor David Corenswet introducing moviegoers to the latest cinematic incarnation of the Man of Steel, let’s take a step back to examine how Superman’s powers have evolved and changed over the years, from the earliest Superman comics to the campy excesses of the Silver Age and right on into the modern era.

Superman’s Original Powers

When Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster originally created Superman for 1938’s Action Comics #1, they couldn’t have envisioned the scope his adventures would eventually take. Superman began life as a power fantasy for two obscure Jewish comic book creators. He had super-strength, but the kind that allowed him to bend steel bars and lift cars, not shatter mountains and hoist skyscrapers. In the beginning, Superman was more interested in battling corrupt landlords and mad scientists, and his powers were relatively grounded to match that level of antagonist. This early Superman also had a degree of invulnerability, but nowhere near the level he would display later.

Superman also had super-speed from day one, but notably, he didn’t have the power to fly yet. That’s where “able to leap tall buildings in a single bound” comes in. In his earliest appearances, Superman simply used his incredible strength to jump over obstacles, much like The Hulk does. It wasn’t until the Man of Steel spun out into a serialized radio drama that flight was introduced to his growing repertoire of powers.

In fact, a lot of elements we commonly associate with the character were introduced in the radio drama The Adventures of Superman and later adopted by the comics. That includes characters like Perry White and Jimmy Olsen. The radio drama is also where Superman first crossed paths with Batman and Robin.

Perhaps most importantly, The Adventures of Superman introduced Superman’s Achilles' heel in the form of Kryptonite. The inclusion of a mysterious mineral that saps Superman’s powers served a practical purpose, as it gave the writers excuses to temporarily remove Superman from the picture and give actor Bud Collyer a break from recording.

Superman may have been a relatively grounded character starting out, but it wasn’t long before Siegel, Shuster, and other creators began to embellish and expand his list of abilities. Over time, he gained powers like enhanced senses, X-ray and heat vision, and even goofier additions like the ability to rearrange his facial features or telepathically influence others.

Activision has pulled Call of Duty: WWII on Xbox PC offline just days after it was added to Game Pass, amid reports of hacking via Remote Code Execution (RCE).

This isn't about PC players cheating in-game via wall hacks and aim bots. Rather this is about unsuspecting Game Pass players losing control of their PCs through a security exploit.

According to Cloudflare, a remote code execution (RCE) attack is where an attacker runs malicious code on an organization’s computers or network: "The ability to execute attacker-controlled code can be used for various purposes, including deploying additional malware or stealing sensitive data."

Activision failed to provide any further details in its brief statement, below, instead simply confirming Sledgehammer's 2017 shooter was "brought offline" on PC while it investigates reports of "an issue." However, players in the comments of the message, published on July 5, are reporting that their computers were accessed due to a security vulnerability that lets hackers take control of remote PCs, suggesting these reports and Activision's action are linked.

📢 Call of Duty: WWII

Call of Duty: WWII on PC Microsoft Store was brought offline while we investigate reports of an issue

— Call of Duty Updates (@CODUpdates) July 5, 2025

That was two days ago now, and there's been no update since. IGN has asked Activision for comment.

The issue hit the headlines after X / Twitter user @wrioh75753 published a viral clip, below, appearing to show their game of Call of Duty: WWII suffering from a hack during a livestream. The post has so-far been viewed 2.3 million times.

I JUST GOT HACKED PLAYING WW2! EVERYONE DO NOT PLAY WW2 ON GAMEPASS! @Xbox @XboxSupport @Activision @charlieINTEL @CODUpdates @FaZeScope @Mobbing pic.twitter.com/I5pehK1kHK

— Wrioh (@wrioh75753) July 3, 2025

The reports emerged in the wake of Microsoft's sweeping layoffs, which hit its gaming business hard last week. Call of Duty developers were among the many Microsoft-owned studios to suffer job cuts, although Microsoft has so-far failed to detail exactly how many employees were affected. Black Ops 7 is due out later this year.

Last month, Activision pulled controversial adverts placed inside Black Ops 6 and Warzone loadouts, insisting they were a “feature test” published “in error.”

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.

Nintendo fans are poring over an official video advertising the Nintendo Switch Online catalogue (the one that revealed its Switch 2-exclusive CRT filter), and believe they can see blurry box art for N64 game Super Smash Bros.

This, fans say, suggests the classic brawler will be revived through backwards compatibility in the near future — and now the hunt is on to analyse other obscured artwork.

A fan effort led by X/Twitter user ImakuniVT has seen others attempting to blur N64 boxes to match the level of blur seen in Nintendo's official video, before comparing the two versions in the hope of a match. Is it scientific? Not really. But have fans posted evidence of other N64 classics they believe are now coming anyway? You bet.

Alongside Super Smash Bros., other potential matches for upcoming N64 games include Donkey Kong 64 (hey, that'd be a good tie-in for the upcoming Donkey Kong Bananza!), Ubisoft platformer Ratman 2, retro first-person shooter Forsaken, and bizarre platformer Glover.

I edited the images, arranged them, and made this video, and they fit perfectly. pic.twitter.com/Bu1tvx0Sxq

— Bet (@Betonoguau) July 7, 2025

The suggestion that Super Smash Bros. might be revived on Switch brings with it the exciting possibility of multiplayer capabilities — could Nintendo even rope up some kind of online play? Regardless, as fans wait for news on Switch 2's inevitable Smash Bros. incarnation (and series boss Masahiro Sakurai busies himself making a new Kirby game), it's something to keep us all occupied.

Last week, the Switch 2-exclusive Nintendo Switch Online catalogue of GameCube titles added Super Mario Strikers, adding to its launch roster of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, F-Zero GX, and Soulcalibur 2. Other titles already confirmed as joining the service include Super Mario Sunshine, Luigi's Mansion and Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness.

Image credit: X/Twitter @Betonoguau

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

Harry Potter film star Jason Isaacs has hit out at "rude" criticism surrounding the casting of Black actor Paapa Essiedu as Severus Snape in HBO's upcoming Harry Potter TV adaptation.

Essiedu, previously seen in Black Mirror and HBO's own I May Destroy You, was confirmed as playing the franchise's key role of Snape back in April, taking on the baton from the late Alan Rickman in the original film series.

SteelSeries is a jack of all trades these days, and I'd argue it’s a master of many of them. One of our favorite gaming headsets, the SteelSeries Arctis Nova 4X Wireless, has seen a steep discount ahead of Prime Day 2025.

Ready to feel old? Today marks the 25th(!) anniversary of Final Fantasy 9, and Square Enix is going all out by… uh, launching a fan art project.

If that falls a little short of your remake-shaped expectations, you're not alone. There was a lot of excitement about the much-discussed Final Fantasy 9 remake after Square Enix launched an official Final Fantasy 9 25th Anniversary website earlier this year, and while the publisher has at least acknowledged Final Fantasy 9's special day with an "anniversary special movie" and a request to collect special memories from fans, that's pretty much it.

"Celebrating 25 years of Final Fantasy 9 today," said a tweet posted to the game's official X/Twitter account yesterday, July 6. "When a theatre troupe set out for a royal kidnapping, Zidane and Princess Garnet are thrown into an emotional adventure that's never left the hearts of those who've played it. What does FFIX mean to you?"

Then, in a follow-up message posted today (July 7), Square Enix invited players aged 13 and up in selected countries to submit their FF9 fan art between now and the end of October. If selected, it will then be used on the Final Fantasy portal site, as well as official social network accounts.

Help us celebrate the 25th anniversary of Final Fantasy IX: https://t.co/D9bh3mIWB1

From now until the end of October, we're accepting fan submissions commemorating the game, and we'd love to see your creations!

Submit them via the link above and post with #FFIX25FanArt! pic.twitter.com/jsQWlhT0K5

— FINAL FANTASY (@FinalFantasy) July 7, 2025

The X/Twitter account of passion project Final Fantasy 9: Memoria Project further stoked speculation earlier today by quote-tweeting Square's post, adding: "When are we going to tell them, Square Enix?"

When are we going to tell them, @SquareEnix? https://t.co/yLt8EQuWOD

— Final Fantasy IX: Memoria Project (@MemoriaProject) July 7, 2025

It's a far cry from what some fans had hoped for, not least because last year, Final Fantasy 14 producer Naoki 'Yoshi-P' Yoshida talked a bit about what a Final Fantasy 9 remake might look like, warning it may not all fit in one game and so go in the direction of Final Fantasy 7 Remake. Earlier in 2024, Yoshi-P also announced Final Fantasy 9-themed extras for the Collector’s Edition and Digital Collector’s Edition of Final Fantasy 14 expansion Dawntrail.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, then, the game's social media and Reddit communities have been full of shocked players commenting on the lack of news. "This CANNOT be it bro," said one. "The remake. Announce the remake," while another said: "At least confirm or deny the remake rumors plz."

"The 25th anniversary is a big milestone and announcing it would be the best right now. My hopes are gone," added another disappointed fan. Interestingly, though, some fans have taken this lack of announcement as a sign there may still be news to come.

"October is the month, boys," said this excited player, while another added: "Cutoff date is the end of October because y'all will reveal the FF9 Remake in November, right?"

In a Reddit thread entitled, "You've reached a checkpoint. How are you doing given the so far disappointment of no announcement?", one fan replied: "At this point I've played myself more than I've played the actual game. Just call me Zorn & Thorn 'cause I'm a certified resident of Clown Town."

Even Domino's Pizza can't believe we haven't had an announcement yet…

Did @dominos just become the coolest pizza company? pic.twitter.com/VmK8KLTtj1

— Wickid 🇺🇸 (@PirateHunterWik) July 6, 2025

Final Fantasy 9 remake rumors have swirled around Square Enix ever since the unannounced game emerged as part of a 2021 Nvidia leak of upcoming titles. The list, confirmed legit by Nvidia but potentially outdated, includes a number of Square Enix games the company has either announced or released since, such as the Chrono Cross remaster, Kingdom Hearts 4, the Final Fantasy Tactics remake, and of course the Final Fantasy 7 remake for PC. However, Final Fantasy 9 remake has yet to materialize. Just a few months before the Nvidia leak, in June 2021, a Final Fantasy 9 animated series was reported to be in development, although we haven’t heard anything about it in the years since, either.

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.

The James Gunn and Zack Snyder fandoms may be at war online, but the two DC figureheads joined forces for a surprise cameo on the latest episode of Rick and Morty to jokingly mock each others’ takes on Superman.

Warning! Spoilers for Rick and Morty Season 8, Episode 7, Ricker Than Fiction, which aired Sunday, July 6 on Adult Swim, follow.

In the episode, Gunn and a beefy Snyder meet in a Warner Bros. cafeteria and discuss the upcoming DC Universe reboot kickstarter Superman.

“Just saw your new cut of Superman,” Snyder begins. “And word of advice, he’s the ‘Man of Steel,’ not the ‘Man of Conversation.’ Do more shots of him punching!”

“And here’s a secret move," Snyder continues, "start the punch at regular speed and then you’re gonna ramp it down.”

“It’s not a f***ing secret!” Gunn responds, angrily, before he apologizes. “I’m sorry Zack Snyder, I shouldn’t be lashing out at you, your biceps are the size of my head.”

“Yes, but so is my heart.”

The pair then talk about a "fan" called Rick Sanchez, who used a portal to sneak under the lot. Gunn wonders if Hollywood is losing touch with the audience. Snyder then offers words of reassurance. “That’s the guy that sealed Nolan in the giant bookcase to quote unquote ‘punish’ him for Interstellar,” Snyder says. “He doesn’t represent real fans. He’s just the smartest man in the universe. Don’t sweat it. He can’t do what we do. Probably.”

it's actually them dude i'm cryingggg😭😭😭 pic.twitter.com/8kmoxtYTz9

— *leslie (@LE5B0B0MB) July 7, 2025

Snyder’s gentle ribbing of Gunn’s Superman (“Man of Conversation”) is a nod to a 10-minute scene in which Clark and Lois talk about geopolitics and whether Superman should have stopped a war on foreign soil.

In a recent interview with The Times, Gunn admitted the scene “is definitely the most unusual thing that we put in the movie.”

“Yes, it’s about politics,” Gunn said. “But on another level it’s about morality. Do you never kill no matter what — which is what Superman believes — or do you have some balance, as Lois believes? It’s really about their relationship and the way different opinions on basic moral beliefs can tear two people apart.

“But, there is also a flying dog in the film who wears a cape. And come on, Clark has glasses and people don’t know who he is. He can hold up a building. He’s wearing a costume. If I flew around saving people I wouldn’t make myself a costume I had to change into every time. There’s something peculiar about a person who makes a costume. Clark is a peculiar guy.”

Meanwhile, Snyder’s Rick and Morty cameo sees him in a self-deprecating mood, highlighting his tendency to overdo it with dramatic slow-motion in his action sequences. Snyder was of course the steward of the DCEU, starring Henry Cavill as Superman, before Warner Bros. handed DC Studios over to Gunn and co-CEO Peter Safran to reboot the entire universe with David Corenswet in the leading role.

Gunn and Snyder's Rick and Morty cameo, which we now know was behind the viral photo of the pair from February, disarms the ongoing online war between the two sets of fandoms: those who support the ‘Snyderverse’ and want to see it return, and those who are happy to see Gunn’s rebooted DC Universe take shape.

The internet has at times taken this virtual battle too far. Last month, mods looking after the SnyderCut subreddit deleted a post calling on fans to review bomb the Superman movie and issued a statement to their community members.

Gunn had responded to the post, which issued a call to arms to “stand up and fight for SnyderVerse on July 11” (the release date of Superman). “Gunn fired the first shot and killed the Snyderverse and here is our chance to take the fight back to him,” the post said.

After a Threads user brought the post to Gunn’s attention, he replied to dismiss its impact on Superman’s potential success. “Lol I think we'll survive,” he said. “I'm not sure the eight people that listen to that guy (I'm going to go out on a limb and guess it's a guy) are going to impact the course of events.”

Always a pleasure catching up with my friend @ZackSnyder, consummate filmmaker (and a doubly consummate storyteller!) pic.twitter.com/kkl1qZtNup

— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) February 20, 2025

This wasn’t the first time the infamous Snyder fandom hit the headlines. Snyderverse fans played a part in Warner Bros.' 2021 release of the Snyder Cut of Justice League, and, last year, Suicide Squad 2016 director David Ayer was forced to respond to an online backlash against his support for Gunn’s Superman and its debut trailer.

Ayer, whose widely panned Suicide Squad movie formed a part of Snyder's now defunct DCEU, had initially taken to X/Twitter to ask fans not to launch the latest ‘Ayer Cut’ campaign at the same time as the Superman trailer release date. Ayer, clearly exacerbated by what he'd witnessed on social media as a result, announced he was taking a “step back” from the discourse.

Gunn touched briefly on the subject of some within the Snyderverse fandom rooting for Superman and his new DCU to fail in a recent interview with Rolling Stone.

“I don’t mind it,” he said. “I think it’s good. I think you don’t wanna have everybody root for you. And I have an actor who reads everything online. I won’t say who it is, but he’ll read this article, and he’ll know who it is. It’s one of the top five in Superman. And this actor gets so upset over things that people say. I said, ‘First of all, you realize that the trailer came out and [reaction] was 97, 98% positive. These people help us, because you don’t want everything to seem 100% positive.'

“It’s all right to have an opposing force every once in a while. Some of the things get ridiculous — I just know that every time something comes out, it doesn’t matter how positively received, there’s gonna be something that is of great controversy. It was great controversy that the sun caused Superman pain.”

Indeed, in 2023, Gunn shared that Snyder had reached out to him to "express his support" about his choices regarding the new DCU.

Also in The Times profile, Gunn said he's well aware some people will take offense at his new Superman movie "just because it is about kindness."

Image credit: Adult Swim.

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.

Pokémon Go has teased the arrival of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet's Paradox creatures within the hit smartphone game.

Paradox Pokémon are new versions of familiar creatures from alternate past and future realities, and debuted in the series' most recent mainline games, Pokémon Scarlet and Violet for Nintendo Switch.

Artwork for Pokémon Go's 9th anniversary shows the primordial Great Tusk, which looks like it's wandered off the set of Jurassic World Rebirth, and the neon-coated Iron Treads, which could have rolled straight out of Cyberpunk 2077. Both are versions of the classic Pokémon Donphan — and now fans are debating how Paradox Pokémon will debut.

In Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, players can encounter Paradox Pokémon in the wild — though in Pokémon Go, there's an expectation that these powerful creatures will likely pop up in raids, similar to how the Ultra Beasts from Pokémon Sun and Moon debuted.

Paradox Pokémon originally being spotted in Scarlet/Violet's "Area Zero" crater has meanwhile led some fans to suggest the species would be a good fit for this year's Pokémon Go Wild Area event, which is designed to feel like something of a safari.

22 Paradox Pokémon species exist, with a selection of more common and Legendary Pokémon remixed. Jigglypuff gets a billion-year-old variant named Scream Tail, for example, while the Legendary Terrakion gets a new variant, Iron Boulder, that looks like an anime robot. Regardless of how some of the Paradox species are introduced, these new versions of Legendary creatures seem most likely to be found in raids.

Hot on the heels of the layoffs that have swept through Xbox, the founder of Microsoft-owned Arkane Studios has hit out at Game Pass, whose subscription model he called “unsustainable.”

Raphael Colantonio, who founded the Dishonored and Prey developer and served as its president before leaving in 2017 to start Weird West maker WolfEye Studios, took to social media to ask: “Why is no-one talking about the elephant in the room? Cough cough (Gamepass).”

When asked to expand on his thoughts on Game Pass, which Weird West launched straight into as a day one title in March 2022, Colantonio said: “I think Gamepass is an unsustainable model that has been increasingly damaging the industry for a decade, subsidized by MS’s ‘infinite money,’ but at some point reality has to hit. I don’t think GP can co-exist with other models, they’ll either kill everyone else, or give up.”

Colantonio’s comment sparked a vociferous debate about the pros and cons of Game Pass in industry terms as well as for the customer. Microsoft's subscription service has been called many things over the years: the death of the video game industry; the savior of smaller developers who benefit greatly from payments made by Microsoft to secure their games; and everything in between. During the great Xbox FTC trial to decide the fate of Microsoft's $69 billion aquisition of Call of Duty maker Activision Blizzard, then PlayStation boss Jim Ryan claimed that he had talked to "all the publishers" and that, unanimously, they all hated Game Pass "because it is value destructive." He also said Microsoft "appears to be losing a lot of money on it."

Back in 2021, Xbox boss Phil Spencer countered Game Pass doomsayers, saying: "I know there's a lot of people that like to write [that] we're burning cash right now for some future pot of gold at the end. No. Game Pass is very, very sustainable right now as it sits. And it continues to grow."

That was four years ago. What about now, in the wake of cuts that have seen Rare's Everwild, the Perfect Dark reboot, and an unannounced MMO in the works at developer behind The Elder Scrolls Online all canceled?

Colantonio’s comments were backed by a number of industry peers, including the former VP of biz dev at Epic Games. Michael Douse, publishing director at Baldur’s Gate 3 developer Larian, said that the biggest concern right now revolves around what happens when all that money runs out. This, Douse added, is “one of the main economic reasons people I know haven't shifted to its business model. The infinite money thing never made any sense.”

(It’s worth noting that Baldur’s Gate 3 has so far not launched in Game Pass or PlayStation Plus.)

Colantonio then ridiculed Microsoft’s insistence that launching games into Game Pass did not impact sales, only to later admit the contrary.

Douse responded to to say he prefers the Sony way of doing things. Sony’s PlayStation Plus policy is to keep first-party games off the subscription service at launch, only adding them some time later. That’s why you won’t see this year’s Sony’s Ghost of Yotei launch straight into PS Plus, but you will see Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 as a day one Game Pass launch.

“The economics never made sense, but at the same time I do recognize that for smaller teams with new or riskier IPs it helped derisk,” Douse said. “Much prefer Sony's 'lifecycle management' strategy.”

"Yeah, the only way GP can co-exist without hurting everyone is for the back catalogue," Colantonio concluded.

Reports have indicated that Microsoft’s layoffs were more about the company’s high-profile push into AI than any failing with the gaming business, but Colantonio suggested this was “a bs excuse.”

He then went on to insist that “the maths don’t work for most publishers/devs nor for Xbox once they stop investing.”

Colantonio was also asked why Microsoft would continue to push Game Pass if it were unsustainable, even now, eight years after it launched. He responded to say that Game Pass isn’t profitable, Microsoft is still in the "customer acquisition phase", and the company hopes that one day, subscription revenue will make its significant investment pay off.

Colantonio explained that Game Pass on its own cannot be considered profitable because you need to factor in the billions of dollars Microsoft has spent acquiring content for the subscription service, and he includes Bethesda owner ZeniMax and Activision Blizzard in that equation. “It’s a spreadsheet trick where they don’t put that detail in a profit and loss section, but instead in the amortization over time,” he claimed.

Game Pass is of course an incredible deal for the gamer that lets subscribers dip in and out of a long list of games for a fraction of the cost of buying those games standalone. Game Pass is often said to be too good to be true because of how cheap it is relative to what it offers. When you throw in every game Microsoft has on its books as a day one Game Pass launch (Call of Duty included), the deal feels even better.

For Colantonio, though, the Game Pass deal is “too good.”

“What *might* happen once MS has won: the games will start to suck and your sub will go up,” he added. “Why? Because the current amazing deal you have is subsided by MS bleeding money into it with the hope they’ll kill the competition, but once they manage to do it, things will get real.”

He added: “... it’s a long game that involves throwing a tsunami at the entire ecosystem of the industry. Only the gamers like it because the offer is too good to be true, but eventually even gamers will hate it when they realize the effects on the games.”

Microsoft does not report on the success of Game Pass either way in financial terms. Indeed, its reporting on its gaming business is vague at best. In its last financial report (for the quarter ending March 31, 2025), Microsoft said Xbox content and services grew 8% year-over-year, which was in part due to growth in Xbox Game Pass. PC Game Pass revenue increased 45% year-over-year. But we don’t have an updated figure for how many subscribers Game Pass has, nor how much money it brings in.

In an April interview with Variety, Microsoft gaming boss Phil Spencer was asked how he views Game Pass’s ongoing role in the larger Xbox business. Spencer replied to say he thinks about Game Pass as “a healthy option for certain people,” but admitted “it’s not for everybody.”

“Our biggest areas of growth right now are PC and Cloud, which makes sense, since consoles, all up, are a good business, they’re an established business, but they’re not really a growing segment in gaming," he said.

"So we’ve got good growth on PC, we’ve got growth on Cloud, in terms of users and hours. And console continues to be a really healthy part of Game Pass. But there isn’t a unique need for Game Pass to be the only way for people to play. If everybody who’s a Game Pass subscriber instead decided to buy their games, that’s good for the business as well.

“For me, I look at Game Pass as a healthy option for certain people. It’s not for everybody. If you play one or two games a year, Game Pass probably isn’t the right business model for you, you should just buy those two games, and that would make total sense. But I want you to have the choice. So we remain focused on everything that’s on Game Pass is also available to buy. We’re making those games available to buy in more places.

“And I look at the overall hours of people who are playing on Xbox, playing our games, and that’s a number that continues to grow fairly substantially, and that’s really the metric I think about for success. And Game Pass has been an important part of that, but I don’t try to solve for Game Pass specifically on its own. It’s kind of part of the equation for Xbox finding new players.”

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.

James Gunn has said he's well aware some people will take offense at his new Superman movie "just because it is about kindness."

Superman, which launches July 11 and kickstarts the rebooted DC Universe, is coming out "at a particular time when people are feeling a loss of hope in other people's goodness," Gunn told The Times in a new profile.

"I'm telling a story about a guy who is uniquely good, and that feels needed now because there is a meanness that has emerged due to cultural figures being mean online."

He added: "And I include myself in this. It is ad infinitum, millions of people having tantrums online. How are we supposed to get anywhere as a culture? We don't know what's real, and that is a really difficult place for the human brain to be. If I could press a button to make the internet disappear I'd consider it. And, no, I don't make films to change the world, but if a few people could be just a bit nicer after this it would make me happy."

The story of Superman the world famous superhero character is "the story of America," Gunn told the publication.

"An immigrant that came from other places and populated the country, but for me it is mostly a story that says basic human kindness is a value and is something we have lost."

Gunn then admitted his new Superman movie "plays differently" in different parts of the United States (The Times interviewer wondered how different it will play in New York and Kansas, for example). Gunn then said he expects some people will find his new Superman offensive, but he dismissed that reaction.

"But it's about human kindness and obviously there will be jerks out there who are just not kind and will take it as offensive just because it is about kindness. But screw them."

Gunn went on to say he's already seen a degree of backlash against his take on Superman, played by David Corenswet.

"We posted footage of David with a bunch of kids who were extras on set," Gunn said. "Kids love Superman — it's like when they see Santa. And David is high-fiving them, it was so beautiful, such a cute video. And then I saw people saying, 'Oh, great, we've got a Superman who's a pussy.' Are you kidding me? That's something you're going to attack? That little kids like this guy and he's kind?"

Gunn's comments here echo those he made in December last year, when he expressed hope that Superman would help "unify" fans amid an increasingly polarizing internet.

In a Q&A session attended by IGN at the time, Gunn touched on the message Superman, with "the simplicity of the morals and goodness and love" the character embodies, can convey upon its release.

"Listen, I do think that things have become really polarizing, and my life is just not that," Gunn said. "I also think that the internet has become polarizing and it's much more polarizing than life is. I live in rural Georgia and I have friends of all different political persuasions. I'm not a person that believes in cutting someone out because their politics are different than mine. And I think at the end of the day, most of us are trying to do our best, and most of us are making the best choices we can for ourselves and trying to do things compassionately.

"I know that's hard to believe in this time when everything is so black and white on the internet in terms of what's good and what's bad, what choices are good and what choices are bad.

"But I would hope that Superman does unify us a little bit because he is just about those core values that I think everyone believes in. Not everyone, but almost everyone believes in. And so hopefully this is outside of that realm of political discourse in that respect.

"And yeah, I do think that if we can focus on our humanity, which is what Superman is about as a character and as a movie, and focus on doing the best we can day-to-day, then it's a little bit healing, but not a lot."

The debut Superman trailer revealed Superman lying prone, battered, bruised, and bleeding after a battle with an unknown foe. Superman calls out to Krypto the Superdog for help, and upon his arrival asks him to take him home.

This sequence, Gunn said in last December's Q&A, reflects his desire for the Superman movie to act as a place "we can all go home" to.

"At the beginning of this trailer, Superman wants Krypto to take him home," Gunn said. "And I think that this is a place where we can all go home, to a character that we love, to the simplicity of the morals and goodness and love that Superman embodies as a character, and that we can all go home this summer to Superman. I think it's something that could be a good thing for us."

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.

Jurassic World Rebirth crossed the $300 million mark at the global box office with the close of the Fourth of July holiday weekend.

The Gareth Edwards-directed summer blockbuster starring Scarlett Johansson and Mahershala Ali, has a global tally of $318.318 million after five days on the market (it opened on Wednesday), with $147.3 million coming from North American theaters. That’s comfortably enough for Jurassic World Rebirth to be the number one film in the world right now, but its domestic box office is down compared to recent entries in the long-running franchise.

For example, 2015’s Jurassic World made a huge $258 million domestically during its first five days, 2018’s Jurassic World Fallen Kingdom did $181 million during the same period, and 2022’s Jurassic World Dominion took $172 million. However, putting a more positive spin on Jurassic World Rebirth, it enjoyed the second biggest international opening in the Jurassic franchise, behind only Jurassic World. The question is whether Rebirth will hit a billion dollars, as each film in the prior trilogy managed, and enjoys a big enough commercial success to convince Universal to power on with this intended new trilogy.

IGN’s Jurassic World Rebirth review returned a 5/10. We said: “For a movie that promises a “Rebirth,” the latest Jurassic World plays it frustratingly safe, falling back on the blueprint of the original film, but not shedding any of the problems with the more recent movies.”

If you’re wondering how Jurassic World Rebirth sets up a new trilogy, check out our Jurassic World Rebirth Ending Explained feature.

Meanwhile, F1: The Movie brought home another $82.4 million for a global total to date of $293.6 million. That makes it Apple’s highest-grossing movie ever after just two weekends, speeding ahead of Ridley Scott’s Napoleon, which managed $221.3 million in 2023.

If you’re wondering how Apple’s other movies have fared at the box office, Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon made $158 million, Argylle settled on a disappointing $96 million, and Fly Me to the Moon hit $42 million.

How To Train Your Dragon crossed $500 million at the global box office this weekend to hit $516.94 million. Disney’s Lilo & Stitch has inched closer to the one billion dollar mark with, and is now up to $972.7 million globally ($408.5 million domestic and $564.2 million international) after seven weekends in theaters. Pixar’s Elio, however, has grossed just $96.8 million globally after three weekends, cementing its launch disaster status.

Speaking of launch disasters, Blumhouse’s M3GAN 2.0’s shockingly bad performance continues, with just $30.687 million after two weekends. Earlier this week, Blumhouse boss Jason Blum opened up on what went wrong with M3GAN 2.0, admitting to a number of failings.

On the other side of the horror spectrum, 28 Years Later now has a global total of $125.8 million. Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning hit $576.184 million after seven weeks, and Final Destination Bloodlines has a global tally of $284.8 million.

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.

We've rounded up the best deals for Saturday, July 5, below, so don't miss out on these limited-time offers.

Sony WH-1000XM4 Wireless Headphones for $185.24

Celebrated TV series composer Mark Snow has died aged 78.

Snow, who grew up in Brooklyn, New York, is best-known for composing the iconic The X-Files theme tune, which became the soundtrack to the conspiracy theory-obsessed Nineties. With its spooky whistle that played alongside a title sequence that contained a number of creepy images, such as a stretchy face series creator Chris Carter specifically requested, Snow’s The X-Files is among the most recognisable in TV theme history.

But Snow also composed the entire series’ initial nine-season run from 1993 to 2001, returning for the revival in 2015. Six of Snow's 15 Emmy nominations were for the The X-Files episodes he scored.

Away from The X-Files, Snow composed for the likes of Smallville, Blue Bloods, The Twilight Zone, and Carter’s The X-Files follow-up Millennium. Snow returned to The X-Files for the revival in 2015. He passed away on Friday, July 4, at his home in Connecticut, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Snow also worked on a number of video games, including 1998’s Urban Assault and The X-Files Game, and Sony Bend’s 2004 PlayStation 2 exclusive Syphon Filter: The Omega Strain. His final project was the 2020 X-Men film The New Mutants.

The instrumental The X Files was a hit single in the United Kingdom and peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart in 1996. According to Variety, this amused Snow, who said: "Nothing really big happens in the song. It stays in A-minor, there’s no singing, drums or guitars, and it was a smash hit. That’s pretty wild."

We've rounded up the best deals for Saturday, July 5, below, so don't miss out on these limited-time offers.

Save Big on Samsung Gaming Monitors

UPDATE: CD Projekt has now released the first teaser video for Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 2. Check it out below:

David is dead. 💀 But Night City lives on. 🌆

Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 2 is in production. Coming to @Netflix when it’s ready. pic.twitter.com/n5GKc9pej8

— Cyberpunk: Edgerunners (@edgerunners) July 5, 2025

ORIGINAL STORY: CD Projekt has announced Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 2, a new Netflix anime series set in the world of its Cyberpunk 2077 video game.

The developer has reunited with studio Trigger, which created the first Edgerunners anime, for this follow-up, with Kai Ikarashi confirmed as director. Writer Bartosz Sztybor is showrunner, story writer, and producer.

There’s no trailer yet, but we do have a logo and poster art for Edgerunners 2, below. Expect a standalone 10-episode story described as “a raw chronicle of redemption and revenge.”

If you're looking for DTI codes, IGN's got you covered! In this article, you'll find a list of all the active and working Dress to Impress codes in July 2025 that you can redeem for free rewards and bonuses in DTI, including outfits and accessories like hats, bags, and jewelry.

Active Dress to Impress Codes (July 2025)

Here are all the active Dress to Impress codes in July 2025 and the free rewards you get for redeeming them:

• PIXIIUWU - Dress (NEW!)
• Your unique Twitch Cyberpunk Wings code - Head to our How to Get the Twitch Cyberpunk Wings Code guide for more details
• ANGELT4NKED - Helmet
• 3NCHANTEDD1ZZY - Wand
• ELLA - Skirt
• 1CON1CF4TMA - Sweater dress
• B3APL4YS_D0L1E - Doll accessory
• MEGANPLAYSBOOTS - Boots
• CH00P1E_1S_B4CK: Streetwear outfit set
• S3M_0W3N_Y4Y: Axe
• KREEK: Bear hat
• LANA: White shorts, shirt, and legwarmers
• LANABOW: White bow
• BELALASLAY: Black jacket with pink halter top
• LANATUTU: White dress
• IBELLASLAY: Red, green, and blonde hairstyle
• M3RM4ID: Orange mermaid set
• TEKKYOOZ: White handbag
• LABOOTS: Black boots
• ITSJUSTNICHOLAS: Black jacket
• ASHLEYBUNNI: Bunny slippers
• LEAHASHE: Sweatshirt and sweatpants
• KITTYUUHH: Black cat
• C4LLMEHH4LEY: Puffy dress and bear headband
• SUBM15CY: Necklace and eyelashes
• D1ORST4R: Bag and bow

All Expired Dress to Impress Codes

Below, you'll find a list of expired DTI codes that no longer work and can't be redeemed as of July 2025:

• LNY2025
• HAPPYNEWYEAR
• Your unique Easter 2025 Easter Bunny Set code
• UMOYAE
• FASHION
• BADDIE4LIFE
• Your unique April Fools' Day 2025 Flamethrower code
• M0T0PRINCESSWAV
• CUPIDSCLOUD
• SWEETHEART (was only redeemable between February 15 and February 16, 2025 at 8AM PT)
• YEAROFTHESNAKE
• NY2025
• WINTERUPDATE (was only redeemable between 8 AM - 11 AM PT on Saturday, 14 December!)
• 4BILLION
• CHOOPIE10K
• THEGAMES
• EYELASHES
• REWARD4CLASS1C

How to Redeem Dress to Impress Codes

Follow the steps below to redeem Dress to Impress codes and claim free rewards in DTI:

1. Open the Dress to Impress Roblox Experience.
2. Click on the handbag icon on the left-hand side to open the DTI Codes menu.
3. Enter your code in the "Type here..." field.
4. Check for any spelling mistakes or errors.
5. Click the checkmark icon to redeem the code.

Why Isn't My Dress to Impress Code Working?

If the code you're trying to redeem in DTI isn't working, it's likely because of one of two reasons:

• The Dress to Impress code is expired
• There's a spelling mistake in the code

When inputting a DTI code in Roblox, make sure it's spelled correctly (for example, a capital I isn't a lowercase l, 0 and not O, and vice versa) and that there are no spaces before or after the code. We'd recommend copying and pasting codes straight from our article to ensure they're correct as we've tested and verified that the codes on this page are working ourselves.

If your DTI code still isn't working after checking for typos, it's more than likely expired and can no longer be redeemed in Dress to Impress.

How to Get More DTI Codes

To get more Dress to Impress codes, the best way is to join the official DTI Discord server. While we check for new codes daily, the quickest way to know about new Dress to Impress codes is to follow the Roblox experience's official Discord server where updates are posted in real time.

You can also check the Dress to Impress X account and the official DTI Roblox Group page.

Are There Any Upcoming DTI Codes?

Part two of the Dress to Impress Summer Update is set for July 5, 2025, so it's possible we'll see new DTI codes then. As always, we'll keep you updated as soon as any new codes drop, so bookmark this page!

What is Dress to Impress in Roblox?

Dress to Impress is a popular dress-up Roblox Experience available on PC, console, and iOS and Android mobile devices. In it, you put on your best outfit to complete a specific theme and walk the runway in a bid to earn votes from other players and become a top model. As you gain votes, you gain ranks and can access more clothing and accessories, so make sure you're truly dressed to impress! Also, for toy lovers and collectors, you can now pre-order a mystery pack of 2 Dress to Impress minifigures right now for $30 at Walmart.

Australian-born actor Julian McMahon – best known for his roles in Nip/Tuck and the 2000s Fantastic Four movies – died in Clearwater, Florida, on July 2nd at age 56 from cancer.

“With an open heart, I wish to share with the world that my beloved husband, Julian McMahon, died peacefully this week after a valiant effort to overcome cancer,” McMahon’s wife, Kelly McMahon, informed Deadline.

“Julian loved life. He loved his family. He loved his friends. He loved his work, and he loved his fans. His deepest wish was to bring joy into as many lives as possible. We ask for support during this time to allow our family to grieve in privacy. And we wish for all of those to whom Julian brought joy, to continue to find joy in life. We are grateful for the memories.”

A Sydney native, McMahon was born on July 27, 1968 and was the son of former Australian Prime Minister Billy McMahon. (Ironically, McMahon’s final role was as the Australian Prime Minister on the Netflix series The Residence.)

If you're seeking the absolute best of the best in PC gaming performance, look no further. For 4th of July (and as part of its greater Black Friday in July Sale), Dell has just dropped the price of its flagship Alienware Area-51 prebuilt gaming PC, equipped with the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 graphics card starting at $4,449.99 with free shipping. This is an outstanding price for a prebuilt RTX 5090 gaming PC compared to the similar off-the-shelf prebuilts on Amazon, especially since the Alienware brand normally has a high markup. The RTX 5090 is undisputedly the most powerful graphics card on the market and is pretty much impossible to find for under $3,000 by itself.

Alienware Area-51 RTX 5090 Gaming PC From $4,449.99

The RTX 5090 Is the Most Powerful Graphics Card Ever

The Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 has emerged as the most powerful consumer GPU on the market. Although Nvidia has prioritized software updates, AI features, and DLSS 4 technology to improve gameplay performance, the 5090 still boasts an impressive 25%-30% uplift over the RTX 4090 in terms of pure hardware-based raster performance. The 5090 also has more (32GB vs. 24GB) and faster (GDDR7 vs. GDDR6) VRAM compared to the 4090. This GPU is extremely difficult to find at retail price and is currently selling for $3,500-$4,000 on eBay.

Check out more of the best Alienware deals

Check out our Best Alienware Deals article with all of Dell's currently ongoing deals on gaming laptops and desktop PCs. Not everyone is the DIY type. If you're in the market for a prebuilt gaming PC, Dell is one of the best brands we'd recommend. Alienware desktops and laptops feature solid build quality, top-of-the-line gaming performance, excellent cooling (further improved on the newer models), aggressive styling, and pricing that is very competitive with other pre-built options. Best of all, there are plenty of sales that happen throughout the year, so it's not difficult to grab one of these computers at considerably less than their retail price.

Eric Song is the IGN commerce manager in charge of finding the best gaming and tech deals every day. When Eric isn't hunting for deals for other people at work, he's hunting for deals for himself during his free time.

Baseus recently released a new line of Enercore wall chargers that is designed to be the ultimate travel friendly accessory while delivering enough power output to quickly charge your portable electronics. Even better, you can take advantage of some early Amazon Prime Day discounts. Currently the 67W model is on sale for Amazon Prime members for just $36.99 after you apply an additional 5% off coupon code "GOHTHZJQ". The most unique feature of this charger is the built-in retractable USB-C cable, which saves you from bringing along yet another travel accessory.

Baseus Enercore Wall Chargers with Built-In Cable