Category: IGN

The Pokémon Company International is supposedly set to reveal the fourth English Mega Evolution set soon, as leaked production schedules suggest that it will be called Chaos Rising – rumored to be the Western release of Japan’s Ninja Spinner set.

If true, Mega Greninja ex will be officially stepping into the spotlight for the next expansion. Here’s everything we know so far, including the release date, expected card lists, and when preorders should go live.

Pokémon TCG Chaos Rising Release Date

Supposedly, Pokémon TCG’s next Mega Evolution expansion, Chaos Rising, will release on May 22, 2026. According to the report at Pokébeach, this also means that pre-releases will take place from 9th to 17th May.

This means that if you attend a local tournament during this window, you can get an early access “Build & Battle Box”. This includes a 40-card ready-to-play deck and four Chaos Rising booster packs. This pre-release window would be the first time we’ll see Mega Greninja ex in the wild as well.

Chaos Rising Card List Expectations

Serebii claims that Ninja Spinner has 83 cards in its main set. While it still doesn’t have an official card list in Japan, we can guess, based on previous sets, it’ll have about 40 secret rares, totalling about 120 cards.

We expect the Ninja Spinner card list to be officially revealed in the next few weeks, which will give us a hint as to what we can expect in the Western release.

We do know that the set includes all the Kalos starter Pokémon – Chespin, Fennekin and Froakie. Unsurprising, given its cover star!

What Impact Will This Have on Pokémon TCG’s Meta?

A Japanese translation of Mega Greninja ex from Bulbapedia talks about a “Mortal Shuriken” ability – “Once per turn, if this Pokémon is Active, you can discard a Water Energy to place 6 damage counters on any 1 of your opponent’s Pokémon.”

This pairs perfectly with its “Ninja Spinner” attack (120+ damage). The card states: “You may return a Water Energy from this Pokémon to your hand to do 80 more damage.”

That’s a total of 260 damage, including the 60 from its ability. Very ninja-like of it.

I’m a little scared about the impact the rumored Supporter card AZ’s Tranquility will have on the meta. This card lets you switch your Active Pokémon and heal 80 damage – a potential life-saver for high-HP Mega Evolutions. It just so happens that Mega Greninja ex has 350 HP, making it one of the highest HP Pokémon cards ever released.

Early rumors from the Japanese printing suggest the artwork features Greninja riding its own water shuriken. Considering the popularity of Greninja and its ridiculous stats, it wouldn’t surprise me to see this chase card reach $500+ on the secondary market.

When Will Chaos Rising Preorders Go Live?

At the moment, preorders for Chaos Rising are not available, as we’re still waiting for an official announcement from The Pokémon Company.

But, once they are available, you’ll be able to find them in all your usual retailers – if you’re quick! We don’t expect these to stick around for long, especially at MSRP.

If you’re in the US, set your alerts for Pokémon Center US, Amazon, Target, Best Buy and Walmart. If you’re in the UK, keep your eyes on Pokémon Center UK, Smyths and Amazon.

There’s also dedicated TCG resellers like TCGPlayer or Magic Madhouse, but, as third party sellers, we can’t predict the prices we’ll see. We expect to learn more information about Chaos Rising in the next few weeks, so check back to see the latest updates, and follow IGN Deals for live stock information.

What’s Next for Pokemon TCG?

Before Chaos Rising lands on May 22, there’s plenty more for fans to get excited about. For starters, Pokémon’s 30th anniversary celebrations are on February 27, but you’ll be able to celebrate early as the commemorative Pokémon Day 2026 Collection dropped on January 30, alongside Ascended Heroes.

Announced back in December 2025, this is a very small release with one confirmed card: a unique stamped foil promo card of Pikachu looking cute as standard, along with a logo’d metallic coin, and a trio of TCG booster packs from different sets.

Pokémon TCG: 2026 Release Calendar – At a Glance

• Ascended Heroes – Jan. 30, 2026 (Out Now)
• Pokémon Day 2026 Collection – Jan. 30, 2026 (Out Now)
• Perfect Order – Mar. 27, 2026 (Preorders Live)
• Chaos Rising – May. 22, 2026

Looking ahead, as Ascended Heroes has already set the foundation of what the Mega Evolution set’s expansions are going to look like, Perfect Order’s going to kick things up a notch.

Just announced earlier this year, and arriving on March 27, 2026, Perfect Order is going to be honing in on many of the Pokémon featured in the Legends: Z-A game.

Among the cards announced from the 120-card set so far, we know we’re going to be seeing many of the game’s starring Mega Pokémon; Mega Zygarde ex, Mega Starmie ex, and Mega Clefable ex; but also some surprising extra additions like Meowth ex.

For the moment, the only place to preorder Perfect Order is via TCGplayer and other resale markets.

For more on celebrating Pokémon’s 30th anniversary this year, I’d also highly recommend checking out the TIME magazine exclusive celebration covers, all of which feature in the top of the best seller Amazon charts this week, and can be bought for just $14.99 each.

Sara Heritage is a freelance contributor at IGN.

Magic: The Gathering packs come in a few shapes and sizes (we covered the excellent Jumpstart Boosters for the Avatar: The Last Airbender set recently), but Collector Boosters are the most expensive.

Now, though, Amazon not only has Avatar Collector Boosters in stock, but it’s selling a box of 12 at a discount with a 16% saving off the list price.

There’s nothing better than a Magic: The Gathering Commander night with friends, and Wizards of the Coast keeps releasing plenty of preconstructed decks so you can jump right in with friends or start to build around a choice card.

They’re pretty regularly discounted, too, which is always appreciated, but right now Amazon has some fantastic deals on Lorwyn Eclipsed’s duo of decks and a huge bundle of Tarkir Dragonstorm decks, too. Here’s why they’re worth a look.

Crimson Desert is an open-world action-adventure game that’s set to release on PS5, Xbox, and PC on March 19. Developed by Pearl Abyss, the company behind Black Desert Online, it looks seriously ambitious in all the best ways. It’s available for preorder now (see it at Amazon) in two editions and includes a preorder bonus, the contents of which are detailed below. Let’s take a look.

Crimson Desert Standard Edition

Crimson Desert Deluxe Edition (Physical)

Physical Copy – $89.99

• PS5: Amazon | Best Buy | GameStop | Walmart
• XSX: Amazon | Best Buy | GameStop | Walmart

Physical copies of the deluxe edition of Crimson Desert come with the game, the preorder bonus, as well as the following items:

Physical Items

• Deluxe Edition Box
• Deluxe Edition Limited Edition Steelbook
• Letter from the Developer
• Greymane Brooch Pin
• 3 Character Photo Cards
• 3 Patches
• Map of Pywel

Digital Items

• Kairos Plate Set: Kairos Plate Helm, Kairos Plate Gloves, Kairos Plate Boots, Kairos Cloak, Kairos Plate Armor
• Balgran Shield
• Exclaire Horse Set: Exclaire Champron, Exclaire Barding, Exclaire Saddle, Exclaire Stirrups

Crimson Desert Deluxe Edition (Digital)

Digital Copy – $79.99

• PS5: PS Store
• Xbox: Xbox Store
• PC: Fanatical ($67.99) | GMG ($67.99) | Steam | Epic

The digital deluxe edition of the game costs $10 less than the physical version, but it lacks the physical goodies. Here are the digital items it includes:

• Kairos Plate Set: Kairos Plate Helm, Kairos Plate Gloves, Kairos Plate Boots, Kairos Cloak, Kairos Plate Armor
• Balgran Shield
• Exclaire Horse Set: Exclaire Champron, Exclaire Barding, Exclaire Saddle, Exclaire Stirrups

Crimson Desert Preorder Bonus

Preorder the game on any platform and in any edition, and you’ll receive the following digital item:

• Khaled Shield

Preorder the PS5 version, and you’ll get the following digital items:

• Grotevant Plate Set: Grotevan Plate Helm, Grotevan Plate Armor, along with Grotevan cloak, gloves, and boots

What Is Crimson Desert?

Crimson Desert is a medieval fantasy-themed game set in the land of Pywel, where you play as Kliff, captain of the Greymanes, as the ruthless Black Bear army executes a brutal attack that leaves the Greymane forces scattered. Your job is to explore the world to reunite with your comrades and rebuild what’s been lost. As you do so, you’ll forge new alliances and discover even more dangerous threats looming over the land.

The journey takes you through all sorts of environments, from plains to deserts to mountains. You can ride mounts ranging from horses to wolves and dragons. You even have a Zelda-style glider that lets you leap from mountain peaks and soar over the land.

Although there’s some debate on social media about whether Crimson Desert is an RPG, developer Pearl Abyss doesn’t label it as such. It calls Crimson Desert “an open-world action-adventure game.” That’s because it doesn’t have character leveling or experience points. You do expand your capabilities, but you do so by finding items in the open world, like in an action-adventure game like Zelda or a Metroid.

Based on the trailers, it does look like a hodgepodge of popular game elements. It has an extensive combat system, an explorable open world, puzzles, giant monsters to fight, and more. Here’s hoping the game is not too good to be true.

Other Preorder Guides

Chris Reed is a commerce editor and deals expert for IGN. He also runs IGN’s board game and LEGO coverage. You can follow him on Bluesky.

Magic: The Gathering is on the verge of a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles set next month, but don’t forget Lorwyn Eclipsed, a fantastic set that deserves plenty of love.

Now, the current set’s Play Booster Box has been discounted again, reaching ever-so-slightly lower than the deal we spotted a few weeks ago. Amazon is currently offering a 22% discount on the box, bringing it to $128.94. That’s close to its lowest-ever price of $125.

Amazon is once again having a sale on Ravensburger puzzles, which means right now is a great time to pick up your next 1000 or 2000-piece project. These sales only come around every few months or so and I always try to take advantage of them to stock up on new puzzles for me or my parents. Ravensburger is one of the best puzzle brands, but you’ll rarely find them on sale at your local toy store unless you’re buying used.

All of the puzzles currently on sale are discounted via Amazon’s Lightning Deal system. There isn’t any sort of timer on the discount, but there is a limited amount of stock available for each puzzle. Once that limit is reached, the discount will disappear and that puzzle will jump back up to whatever it was priced at before. So if you see something you like, don’t hesitate to pick it up before the deal is gone!

Ravensburger Puzzle Sale at Amazon Today

All of the Ravensburger puzzles on sale right now are at least 30% off, with some options discounted by almost 50% right now. That means the more expensive jigsaw puzzles are getting the biggest overall price cuts in the sale. If you’ve got the table space and attention span for a 2000+ piece puzzle, those are the ones I’d recommend grabbing first. There’s even a nice Lord of the Rings puzzle discounted here that I’d recommend to all you Tolkien fans out there.

There are also quite a few 1000 piece puzzles discounted here, which is generally the piece count I’d recommend for adults. It’s still challenging, but a lot more doable in a casual setting. The bigger puzzles, like that 4000-piece Fairy puzzle I’ve featured here are better for folks who have immense amounts of time and patience to dedicate to a single puzzle project. You’ll also likely need a fairly substantial puzzle table for such an undertaking.

Is Ravensburger the best puzzle brand?

Plenty of different brands make puzzles, but Ravensburger is widely considered one of the very best jigsaw puzzle brands out there since it released its first puzzle back in 1964. This is in part due to the quality of each puzzle. The patented “Softclick” technology allows for you to hear an audible click each time you place a piece in the right place. Ravensburger also uses high-quality materials for each puzzle ensuring the pieces won’t be bent or broken when you open the box.

The company also has partnerships with both Disney and Warner Bros. that allows it to make some of the best franchise-specific puzzles around. Star Wars, Frozen, Lord of the Rings, DC comics, and more jigsaw puzzles like those will often come from Ravensburger.

You may also recognize Ravensburger as one of the more popular board game brands out there. They recently got into the trading card game as the official creator and publisher of the Disney Lorcana TCG.

Jacob Kienlen is a Senior Audience Development Strategist and Writer for IGN. Born and raised in Portland, Oregon, he has considered the Northwest his home for his entire life. With a bachelor’s degree in communication and over 8 years of professional writing experience, his expertise is spread across a variety of different pop culture topics — from TV series to indie games, books, and puzzles.

Mouse: P.I. for Hire is one of the most visually striking games we’ve seen in quite some time. We played Mouse last year – and we’ll be doing so again as part of this month’s exclusive IGN First coverage – but the thing is, it’s going to need more than just a unique art style in order to leave a lasting impression on the first-person shooter genre. And so today we’re digging into the people, the city, and the story underneath that rubber hose-animated black-and-white veneer.

By now you might know that the player character is played by the talented Troy Baker. That character is Jack Pepper, a war hero-turned-cop-turned-private investigator. You’ll be assigned three different cases over the course of the single-player campaign (Mouse has no multiplayer mode), sniffing out clues and talking to perps and pedestrians alike (not to mention doing a lot of shooting at gang members and corrupt cops) to try and solve each one as you roll around in the rotting underbelly of the city of Mouseburg.

In the image gallery above, you’ll see gifs of five characters:

• Jack Pepper: our aforementioned hero. He enlisted in the war in his teenage years, serving in the same unit with Cornelius Stilton (see below). They owe each other their lives, along with a third member of their unit, Steve Bandel. Jack joined the police force after the war ended, but struck out on his own as a P.I. after getting fed up with the corruption of too many of his fellow cops. Jack has one major vice: gambling.
• Tammy Tumbler: Born during the war, Tammy lost her mother at a young age and never learned the identity of her father. When her stepfather got busted by the police officer Jack Pepper when she was 13, she went into the foster care system and immediately sought to escape, angry at Jack and the world. She’s street-smart and resourceful, and has worked for Jack as needed for a long time. She trusts Jack as well as one other person: Wanda Fuller (see below).

• John Brown: John can frequently be found hanging outside the bar behind Jack’s office. He’s a shrew (the literal animal kind) from Shrewthicket, a once-thriving town that was destroyed, leavivng John to haunt the surrounding swamps, becoming a cheeselegger (think: bootlegger but for cheese), a hired farming hand and blue cheese dealer. When the stove got too hot, he made his way to Mouseburg and opened a shrew-sized bar called Little & Big. He’s full of old stories and isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty.
• Wanda Fuller: Wanda is a journalist for the Mouseburg Herald who came from similar working-class means as Jack. She uses him as a source on occasion, particularly when he was with the police. They’re not exactly friends, but they share an uneasy trust. She’s a cynic, but she genuinely wants to help people.

• Cornellius Stilton: Finally we have Cornellius, an upper-class resident of Mouseburg who was a commander in the war. After the war, he went into politics, and he’s got a plan he’s been slowly executing. He’s a people pleaser, but to what end? As such, Jack can’t fully trust him.

These are a handful of the key players you’ll meet in Mouse. If you’re interested in learning more, check out our deep-dive on the crazy arsenal at Jack’s disposal. And if you’re eager to play, circle March 19 on your calendar, as that’s when Mouse: P.I. for Hire will be released on PC, PlayStation platforms, Xbox platforms, and Nintendo Switch platforms.

Ryan McCaffrey is IGN’s executive editor of previews and host of both IGN’s weekly Xbox show, Podcast Unlocked, as well as our semi-retired 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.

Last month, New York Pokémon card store The Poké Court was the focus of media attention following a frightening armed burglary that involved its staff and customers being held at gunpoint.

The incident prompted widespread shock and sympathy for the fledgling outlet, which lost $100,000 worth of stock in minutes. But now, the business has said the famously-litigious Nintendo has been in touch — not to offer aid, however, but to share “concerns” over its name and logo.

The Poké Court is now being forced to rebrand, with its storefront, social accounts and online site all being rebranded to “The Trainer Court” over the coming days. The previous design featured a stylized Pokéball logo that is now being replaced by a simple “C” colored in green.

In a statement posted to Instagram, the newly-retitled Trainer Court thanked fans for support “amidst the robbery and beyond” but said it was now having to change its name and logo due to a complaint from Nintendo.

“The short story is Nintendo reached out to us with concerns about our name and logo,” The Trainer Court wrote. “This means we’re evolving! Same team, same ridiculous hit rate, and soon, even greater things coming your way.”

The post has already gained plenty of further support for the outlet, with more than 2000 likes at the time of writing and a comment praising the business from Sarah Natochenny, the voice actress who previously provided the voice of Ash Ketchum in Pokémon’s animated TV series.

Numerous stores selling Pokémon cards have been hit by robberies over the past year, including locations in Boston, Los Angeles and Seattle. In December, $100,000 worth of stock was swiped from a store in Burbank — an incident that Californian cops suspected was linked to “half a dozen” similar thefts within the southern half of the state. Separately, IGN has reported on numerous other examples that have also occured nationwide over the past 12 months.

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

Is Crimson Desert an RPG? Does it even matter? What is an RPG anyway? Those are questions sparked by the hotly anticipated “open-world action-adventure” game as it nears release, and it’s fair to say there is a variety of opinion.

Let’s start with developer Pearl Abyss’ official description of its own game:

Crimson Desert is an open-world action-adventure game set in the beautiful yet brutal continent of Pywel. Embark on a journey as the Greymane Kliff and restore what has been lost. Explore uncharted lands, fight against threats that stand in your way, and discover the wonders the world has in store.

Pearl Abyss does not call Crimson Desert an RPG here. Nor does it call the game a ‘soulslike,’ which I’ve seen some wonder about. It’s an “open-world action-adventure” game, and it’s as simple as that. But why are people wondering if it’s an RPG in the first place?

X / Twitter user Synth Potato kicked things off by posting about how progression works in Crimson Desert, declaring the game not to be an RPG. That’s because it doesn’t have levels or experience points, which we associate with role-playing games. Rather, new abilities are gained by finding artifacts out in the world, and you can buy or craft better gear. This places Crimson Desert firmly in the action-adventure category, according to this analysis, and not in the RPG category.

But does this mean Crimson Desert cannot also be considered an RPG? Some say that playing as a character in an open world who can progress, even in this form, makes Crimson Desert a role-playing game. Levels and XP are not needed for it to be so, they say. But, following that, does that mean all open-world games are RPGs? Is GTA? Is Red Dead Redemption 2? What about The Legend of Zelda? Link doesn’t level up with experience points, but lots of people call The Legend of Zelda an RPG series.

It’s worth noting that, like in The Legend of Zelda games, in Crimson Desert you play a set protagonist (the wonderfully named Kliff) and experience a set story. You’re not making big decisions here that change the course of events, or determine which ending you’ll get. It’s a more fixed experience, although there is freedom of exploration within it.

“I think everyone is aware it’s not marketed as [an RPG],” a fan said. “It’s still got a ton of RPG systems. Gear score, skill points to progress skill trees and stats to increase for builds.” “It absolutely does have RPG elements,” added another. “What makes an RPG has become a very unclear line as well with how many action adventure games are RPGs.” “It’s more akin to Just Cause or Shadow of Mordor, which is just what I wanted,” commented one fan.

I think this is one of the reasons why they’re being really careful to not call it a RPG. That term has expectations from the player that crimson desert doesn’t have. CD definitely strikes me as an open world action adventure with an incredibly fun combat sandbox https://t.co/7guY0AsEE2

— Ms5000Watts (@Ms5000Watts) February 17, 2026

Perhaps the last word should go to Pearl Abyss itself. Will Powers, director of marketing at Pearl Abyss America, recently told fans not to expect RPG elements in terms of decision-making and choice and consequence as it relates to your character in Crimson Desert. The sheer amount of things to do in the world will facilitate the role-playing part of the game instead, which players will form through “head canon.”

“You choose the type of character you want to play as in terms of your progression within the systems in the game,” Powers explained. “And then through head canon you’re having this very different experience than other players because of the scope and scale of the game. You’ll be distracted by something, you’ll go on this quest line, you’ll have an experience that’ll be radically different than someone else, even though they’re playing the same game and the same canonical storyline that you both are going through.”

And after the debate over whether Crimson Desert is an RPG or not went big online, Powers himself explained why Pearl Abyss doesn’t want to call it an RPG, even though it’s perfectly happy for fans to do so.

“Open world questing and action sandbox for sure,” Powers tweeted. Then, in response to someone who said it should be made clear that Crimson Desert is not an RPG to avoid mismanaged expectations, Powers said: “honestly…. it’s not my place to dictate someone else’s experience. If because of good amount of RPG elements in the game, they want to call it an RPG… Sure. I’m just explaining why WE don’t call it one.”

Crimson Desert is due out March 19 priced $69.99. Pearl Abyss recently confirmed it does not contain a cosmetic cash shop nor microtransactions of any kind.

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.