Valentine's Day is still a few weeks away, but Amazon is already breaking out the LEGO deals for anyone searching for a unique gift idea. One such discount is on one of the silliest builds that's been released in recent years. The Looney Tunes Sweetheart Tweety Bird set has dropped to its lowest price ever on Amazon. At just $23.99 after the discount is applied, it's really quite affordable (by LEGO standards). This set was first released back in January 2025, but this is the first time its ever been discounted on Amazon.

LEGO Tweety Bird Deal at Amazon Today

The idea of an anime-style soulslike releases plenty of good chemicals in my brain, but the first Code Vein back in 2019 turned out to be just okay in my book. Like a number of Bandai Namco's original IP, I was intrigued to see that idea get another shot, which made me optimistic for Code Vein 2. However, with a middling execution of its open world and inconsistent gameplay qualities, this sequel doesn't necessarily improve upon its predecessor, and instead struggles to stand out in a somewhat saturated genre. Its story still compelled me through the 50 hours I spent to finish the main quest and all of the side content at least, but that time came with a lot of ups and downs.

Coming off of From Software's Elden Ring (which Bandai Namco published) not too long ago, pulling up the map of Code Vein 2 had me intimidated and enticed in equal measure. A few hours past its opening act, I was able to grasp its cadence and scale, which thankfully wasn't as overwhelming as I initially thought. A big part of what pulled me in was its concept: a time travel story where you repair a post-apocalyptic present by going to the past to change the outcomes of pivotal moments in its history. Having an open world that subtly changes between timelines drives home a sense of place and the feeling that your character's actions have an impact, even if you're simply following your quest objectives.

Looking out to the horizon from the tower on Magmell Island (the starting region) as your leader Lady Lavinia lays down some exposition, you see the land itself transform upon completing the prologue's quest; it's a strong moment that shows promise for the road ahead. You're then asked to go back in time to aid the three heroes of the world's past in their respective regions to alter their fate, and I enjoyed the fact that you get to take part in shifting the conflicts that led to the present day's destruction.

However, its storytelling style sells itself short at times, with key moments for its major characters relegated to barren dream-like visions – vague dialogue gets overlaid as you stand there waiting for the next set of static character models to appear. It's hard to get a real gauge of what's happening or feel the gravity of the situations the story is trying to portray. It's evident in other dialogue sequences that the writing in Code Vein 2 is rather generic and missing some of the personality that would draw me in to care about the world I'm supposed to be fighting for. In the rare fully animated cutscenes that tee up certain battles, however, Code Vein 2 shows great potential and had me hyped for the moment, but like its many parts, the momentum ends just as quickly as it starts.

I do like a handful of the star characters – for example, Lou being the frail girl who has the time traveling power is an extension of your created silent protagonist, and she carries a convincing sense of sorrow. The three heroes have fitting backgrounds and are nice to team up with, too; Holly is a standout for her story as a gifted doctor put in tragic situations because it's one of the few times Code Vein 2 hits a genuine emotional note. As a whole, though, I wanted to care more about the broader struggle between revenants and humans, and the dynamics that led to so much conflict and the monsters that roam the land, but the plot threads run shallow and the way they're delivered feels underdeveloped. As a consequence, I came away from its conclusion fairly underwhelmed even as it tried to pull on my heart strings since I wasn't quite invested as it seemed to hope I would be.

I do think the open world serves its purpose as a vehicle for giving the story some impact. It struck a chord with me to visit a particular location in the before-times, seeing where people struggled to eke out an existence and then that same place dilapidated in the present. The Undead Forest's lush greenery turning to a cold barren wasteland is one of the starkest examples of this; the differences aren't drastic from a gameplay standpoint, but it's visually effective for showing the lifelessness of the present day.

Navigating the open world is sometimes a pain, though. You get a motorbike to drive around, and it controls like a flimsy RC car – you can glide in the air by deploying its wings, only to be met with a few invisible walls blocking you from entering parts of the map that are clearly accessible (you just have to enter from where you're supposed to). And certain falls that just don't seem like a problem result in automatic death. These seem like minor inconveniences, but they compound with several other ways that Code Vein 2 seems sloppy.

Some of the vistas are quite impressive on a macro level, but the closer you get to the details, the more you see how muddy everything looks. It's quite jarring, especially as nearly every cutscene would constantly load textures in and out every time the camera cuts to a different angle. And even playing on a PS5 Pro with performance priority mode on, the frame rate fluctuates wildly and oftentimes not even when the action gets hot.

There isn't much mystery or intrinsic reward to exploration, although once you understand what certain landmarks entail, you'll find critical upgrades to your healing item, materials for weapon upgrades, and persistent stat buffs for specific regions. You're not left completely empty-handed, just don't expect to stumble upon interesting dungeons, bosses, or rabbit holes that evoke your curiosity. I am glad that the open world is rather trim rather than being padded out with a bunch of checklist objectives, and important side quests are clearly delineated in the quest log.

Much like my sentiments about the story and open world, Code Vein 2's combat bounces around wildly in quality. It uses the design principles of the Souls-style games – experience points and currency that disappear upon death (and must be recovered), enemies respawning after hitting save points, and punishing combat that moves at a deliberate pace, among other typical mechanics. While I've experienced a bit of fatigue from games in this realm, I still lock in once I pick up what it's putting down and begin to understand its systems. There were times in Code Vein 2 where I felt close to the highs I got from others in the genre (although I wouldn't compare them to my favorites like Bloodborne or Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice).

A couple of bosses feature creative mechanics that are super tough but fair, conquerable by fully focusing on reading their attack patterns and seizing the rare opportunities you get to attack. But more often, you get bosses who are either pushovers or annoyingly frustrating in ways that bring out the worst in Code Vein 2's faults. Having played so many soulslikes at this point, I'm familiar with how the best games in the genre really nail the tough-but-fair design philosophy; Code Vein 2 is not one of them. Part of that comes from when it doesn't play by its own rules, like being hittable while recovering as your invincibility window is just a few frames shorter than when you're able to actually move again, leading to deaths that felt unfair. Or how a damage-over-time attack sometimes stops if you get hit even when the ability has been fully deployed. Or how the camera just doesn't know what to do when you're smothered and shoved into a corner by a boss that's 10 times your size. There are ways around these things as I was eventually able to defeat every optional and main boss I encountered by adjusting my approach, but it's dejecting when a game betrays the tenets that've made its contemporaries great.

While I think some of its systems seem incomprehensible or convoluted upon first impression, it's much simpler than it presents itself to be. Instead of pumping points into stats, Blood Codes dictate your build and what you're capable of in combat. Each important character you meet offers an equippable Blood Code, and you can think of these as a way to respec whenever you want as they offer emphasis on certain stats that will then modify the effectiveness of the weapons and gear you use. You're not locked into a specific build, but the progression path of Blood Codes is tricky since they level up the more you use them – you get pigeon-holed in a way, but with some experimentation, I was quick to understand which ones worked best alongside my favorite weapon types. And using new Blood Codes for long enough will get you back to where you want to be in due time.

You have quite a few tools to work with as well. Through most of the journey, you can summon one of the story characters to join you, and it's effective for tougher battles since their attacks can draw aggro to give you room to breathe or go for a big hit. You can even fuse with them for some noticeable buffs, with the trade-off of being solo in combat. They also temporarily sacrifice themselves to revive you if you die, which is clutch for alleviating frustrating deaths. Alternatively, Ichor is the mana of Code Vein that lets you cast spells and use abilities that are necessary to diversifying your combat approach. The way Ichor feeds back to you when using your superweapon (called a Jail) forced me into cycling through all my capabilities over the course of harder fights rather than relying on a single tactic or cheese. Once I found a setup that worked for me, and some alternatives in case I needed to switch gears for different kinds of fights, I got into a comfortable groove with Code Vein 2's own brand of RPG mechanics and action combat.

The foundation for great combat is clearly here, I just don't think it offers enough interesting opportunities to make the most of its systems. The dungeons throughout the world get woefully repetitive and enemies can be a real cakewalk; you'll be punished if you're not careful, of course, but the imbalance is felt when you go for long stretches of mowing through fodder mindlessly. You'll also come across a lot of repeat bosses, which feels like being thrown something harder for the sake of it, and at a certain point, they too can be conquered with ease.

There are at least cases where harder versions of previous bosses show up in the critical sidequests, and a few of those do up the ante, remixing familiar attack patterns and throwing in new, demanding phases. To which I was internally saying, "Hell yeah, this is that good stuff." However, once I burned through the final dungeon, it was clear to me that it had played the hits a few too many times, reminding me of how the campaign just didn't have enough tricks up its sleeve to sustain itself in a consistently engaging way.

I come away from Code Vein 2 impressed with the timeline shifting side quests more than anything else, because those are more compelling than large swathes of the main story. As they explore the more interesting parts of the lore, they also take a few more risks and let characters shine a bit brighter. You're drawn a little closer to the struggle that led them to their fate, and they share a few bittersweet moments with your own character. Not all of it is super inventive, but I saw it breaking away from the predictable cadence at times, and I just wish Code Vein 2 did more of that.

Code Vein as a series has a lot of good ideas I still want to see iterated upon, and this sequel touched on them in several ways. I've felt similarly about Scarlet Nexus and God Eater, both of which are clearly plays on established styles of games with an anime-inspired twist – fantastic ideas on paper with great potential that are met with room to grow. This isn't a genre that's sacred to From Software's catalogue, either – Lies of P and Nioh 2 come to mind as fantastic takes on the formula from other developers. I'd hoped Code Vein 2 would join the ranks of them, but it's missing some of the fundamentals necessary to do so.

I have reached the stage of my gaming life where I am deeply suspicious of anything that does not respect my time. These deals pass the test. This list is full of games that know exactly what they are, so let's just get to the good stuff quickly. End: preamble. Begin: mad savings.

Contents

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

This Day in Gaming 🎂

In retro news, I'm using the explosion from a red canister tumbling by in zero-G to light a 15-candle cake baked for Dead Space 2. Saying I was excited for this sequel is an understatement (I adored the first so much, I 1000 Gamerscored it on McStupid 'Impossible' difficulty). That said, I did have some reservations about EA's decision to up the action and unmute our protagonist, Isaac Clarke, mere engineer/dissector of Cronenbergian E.T.s.

Fortunately, those minor fears were superseded by a wealth of worthier white-knuckle moments in-game. Expanding the mayhem from the pokey Ishimura to "The Sprawl" delivered some great setpiece horror moments in addition to some desperate, on-the-back-boot firefights (which benefitted from streamlined gunplay and inventory handling). The part of DS2 that still lives rent-free in my head, though? That "stick a needle in your own iris" mini-game. The failure animation still makes me wince.

Aussie birthdays for notable games.

- Disney's Aladdin (SNES) 1994.

- Mass Effect 2 (PS3) 2011.

- Dead Space 2 (PC,PS3,X360) 2011.

- Resident Evil: Revelations (3DS) 2012.

Nice Savings for Nintendo Switch

• Pokemon Pokopia (-19%) A$89 A gentler Pokemon that will trade edge for vibes, but is still looking to bring that dangerous just one more catch momentum.
• Metroid Prime 4: Beyond (-23%) A$69 Retro Studios doing what it does best, trusting atmosphere, silence, and level design more than constant noise.
• Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance (-60%) A$40.30 The most confident version of SMT V, where every demon negotiation feels like a hostage situation you chose willingly.
• Dragon Ball FighterZ (-50%) A$44.90 Still absurdly pretty and still brutally honest, mash early and you will be taught a lesson immediately.
• Cult of the Lamb (-60%) A$14.90 Equal parts cute and unhinged, like Animal Crossing after a bad podcast recommendation.

Or gift a Nintendo eShop Card.

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Exciting Bargains for Xbox

• Sonic Frontiers (-76%) A$24.40 Wild ideas, uneven execution, but enough genuine sparks that you start rooting for Sonic again.
• Like a Dragon: Ishin! (-67%) A$32.70 Historical drama one minute, karaoke adjacent nonsense the next, which is exactly why it works.
• Prince of Persia The Lost Crown (-51%) A$24 Tight platforming and clean combat that politely reminds you Ubisoft can still cook when it wants to.
• Hogwarts Legacy (-65%) A$39 The fantasy of being at Hogwarts finally delivered, homework optional, exploration encouraged.
• Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 (-55%) A$49 Slick, familiar, and ruthlessly efficient, like muscle memory in game form.

Xbox One

• Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 (-55%) A$31.60 A reminder that perfect controls never go out of fashion.
• Assassin's Creed Origins (-59%) A$40.70 The moment Assassin's Creed stopped flailing and found a new identity.
• Forza Horizon 5 (-50%) A$49.90 Driving perfection disguised as a road trip playlist.

Or just invest in an Xbox Card.

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Pure Scores for PlayStation

• Gran Turismo 7 (-40%) A$74.90 Obsessive car love rendered with the seriousness of a documentary.
• Street Fighter 6 (-44%) A$56.10 Shockingly welcoming, quietly deep, and still happy to humble you online.
• Star Wars Outlaws (-68%) A$34.90 The Star Wars fantasy that skips destiny and leans into being a professional mess.
• Final Fantasy XVI (-42%) A$49.20 Maximalist boss fights and earnest melodrama, completely unafraid of going too hard.
• NBA 2K26 (-59%) A$49 Still the basketball sim that ruins your standards for everything else.

PS4

• Dead Island 2 (-60%) A$27.90 Way better than its development story suggests, with gloriously dumb melee combat.
• Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 2.5 ReMIX (-53%) A$33.10 An emotional rollercoaster powered entirely by friendship speeches and keyblades.
• Red Dead Redemption 2 (-68%) A$29 Slow, deliberate, and devastating in the way only Rockstar can manage.

Or purchase a PS Store Card.

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Purchase Cheap for PC

• Octopath Traveler (-60%) A$35.90 A gorgeous throwback that quietly asks you to care about eight different lives.
• Kingdom Come Deliverance: Royal Ed. (-81%) A$11.30 A medieval RPG that assumes you will fail first and learn later.
• Final Fantasy VII Rebirth (-50%) A$52.40 Nostalgia with ambition, refusing to play it safe at any point.
• Red Dead Redemption (-50%) A$34.90 A classic western finally freed from console constraints.
• Streets of Rage 4 (-65%) A$12.50 A revival that understands exactly what needed changing and what absolutely did not.

Or just get a Steam Wallet Card

Legit LEGO Deals

• Retro Gaming Console (-37%) A$19 A tiny dopamine hit for anyone who grew up blowing into cartridges.
• One Piece The Baratie (-27%) A$363.40 A commitment piece that basically demands shelf space and respect.
• Minecraft Chicken Farm (-27%) A$22 Small, silly, and instantly readable from across the room.
• One Piece The Going Merry (-25%) A$149 Pure Straw Hat nostalgia rendered in brick form.

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Don't miss this rare opportunity to score a well-regarded pair of noise canceling headphones for an outstanding price. For a limited time, Woot (owned by Amazon) is offering the certified refurbished Bose QuietComfort wireless noise canceling headphones for just $129.99. Amazon Prime members get free shipping, otherwise it will add on an extra $5.

This is one of the best deals I've seen for Bose headphones (better than any deal during last Black Friday, at least), especially since it's refurbished by Bose directly and comes with a 1-year manufacturer's warranty.

Bose QuietComfort Headphones for $129.99 (was $350)

Certified refurbished with 1-year Bose warranty

If you've collected any of the Harry Potter books illustrated by Jim Kay over the years, you've likely experienced the pain of an unfinished collection. The last book to get the illustrated treatment was Order of the Phoenix, which was released all the way back in 2022. Jim Kay stepped down from the project shortly after that book was released, and as someone who has slowly been buying up these books for my brother over the years, I was afraid that I'd never actually be able to finish building his collection.

Thankfully, just last year the publisher announced that Levi Pinfold would be taking up the project and finally finish up the illustrated series. According to new product listings, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince: The Illustrated Edition is now officially set to release on October 6, 2026. A cover has yet to be revealed, but you can already get your preorder in at any of the major online bookstores.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince: The Illustrated Edition

The Planet of the Apes franchise is one with a rich history and sci-fi lore all its own, which makes it a natural choice to be adapted into a tabletop role-playing game. That's exactly what Magnetic Press aims to do with The Role-Playing Game of the Planet of the Apes.

IGN can exclusively debut a new preview of The Role-Playing Game of the Planet of the Apes: Core Rulebook. Check it out in the slideshow gallery below:

The Role-Playing Game of the Planet of the Apes consists of three volumes. Along with the aforementioned Core Rulebook, there's also Planet of the Apes RPG: The Ansa Files Sourcebook and Planet of the Apes RPG: Into the Forbidden Zone. The former focuses on iconic movie characters like Caesar, Taylor, Zira, Hasslein, and Dr. Zaius. The latter features a guided campaign that includes two map posters, 64 reference cards, seven preprinted character sheets, a Game Master screen, punch-out map markers and tokens, 12 dice, and a 96-page campaign adventure module.

The creative team on The Role-Playing Game of the Planet of the Apes: Core Rulebook includes writers Andrew E.C. Gaska and E.L. Thomas and artists Runa I. Rosenberger, Chris Scalf, Shane Molina, and Chandra Free, while Bill Sienkiewicz provided the cover art.

“As you play you can become an intellectual Chimpanzee who seeks to better apekind through science and exploration. Choose an Orangutan statesape whose weapons are philosophical debate, political savvy, and the power of the Sacred Scrolls themselves. Perhaps a Gorilla soldier is more your style—honor-bound to protect Ape City and lead aggressive expansions into new territories. What else, if not an ape? Be a time-lost astronaut struggling to grasp a world gone insane. Become a mute tribal human forced to scavenge for resources as you are hunted by murderous gorillas on horseback. The rules even allow you to play mutant survivors who use the power of their minds to turn their enemies against each other,” said Magnetic Press Founder and Publisher Mike Kennedy in a statement.

Kennedy continued, “Your adventures in this world of madness will take you to the ruins of a world destroyed—see what remains of the Statue of Liberty, the ostentatious Ape City, the foreboding Forbidden Zone, and the mysterious mutant undercity. It is a world defined by the stark contrasts of brutality and civility. Are you ape enough to handle the truth about the world you live in or will you lose your mind to it?”

The Role-Playing Game of the Planet of the Apes: Core Rulebook is priced at $49.99 and will be released on February 3. You can preorder a copy on Amazon.

For more on the Apes franchise, find out how to watch the Planet of the Apes movies in order.

Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on BlueSky.

Andaseat, a popular gaming chair brand - is offering a limited time deal on one of its higher end chair. The Kaiser 3 Pro, specifically the Weiboo Limited Edition model, is on sale for $359.10 after you apply a 10% off coupon code "AndaIGN". This is a lot less expensive than the standard Kaiser 3 Pro, which retails for $490, plus it includes a bonus lumbar pillow. In fact, with this price it's even lower than the Kaiser 3 non-Pro. This chairs are stocked in US warehouses and are usually delivered within a week.

Kaiser 3 Pro Gaming Chair for $359.10