Starfield has overtaken The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim’s all-time concurrent players record on Steam in its first weekend available after full launch.
Data from SteamDB shows Starfield sitting in 27th place in Steam’s all-time list, while Skyrim is now in 31st. Starfield hit a peak of 330,723 concurrent players on September 10, while Skyrim’s record peaked 12 years ago at 287,411. The space epic fell short of developer Bethesda’s previous release Fallout 4, however, which sits in 16th place overall with 472,962.
While it’s perhaps surprising to some that Starfield hasn’t achieved a higher spot on the list, having topped six million players overall with one million concurrents on launch day, its inclusion on Xbox Game Pass has likely largely convoluted its numbers.
That’s not stopped Starfield from performing well, of course, as overtaking Skyrim is a significant milestone. It also topped the UK boxed chart according to GI.biz head Christopher Bing on X. Its appearance on Game Pass will likely stop Starfield from reaching Steam’s top 10, however, which includes recent releases such as Baldur’s Gate 3 and Hogwart’s Legacy.
In our 7/10 review, IGN said: “Starfield has a lot of forces working against it, but eventually the allure of its expansive roleplaying quests and respectable combat make its gravitational pull difficult to resist.”
Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.
Starfield modders are having their fun with Bethesda’s space role-playing game, making some weird and wonderful concoctions as well as some really useful, quality-of-life improvements. Now, modders are turning their attention to Star Wars.
Perhaps the most impressive Star Wars-related mod for Starfield so far is this Galactic Civil War Conversion, created by kboykboy, which turns the United Colonies cops into Stormtroopers. This fantastic-looking mod replaces the models of the UC police uniform with accurate Stormtrooper armour, so you can continue to interact with the NPCs as if they were UC security.
Kboykboy has some ambitious plans for the mod. They intend to replace all UC armour with Imperial versions, as well as all Freestar armour with Rebel versions, and replace multiple weapons with Star Wars weapons. I guess we know who Kboykboy reckons are the good guys and the bad guys in Starfield!
“And after the Creation Kit is released if I am still super into Starfield then maybe more,” kboykboy added. Achieve all that and Starfield is well on its way to becoming an actual Star Wars video game in disguise.
But that’s not all. There are Starfield mods that add Star Wars spaceships, such as the Millennium Falcon, to the game, and there’s even a mod that adds a Rebel Alliance spacesuit patch, if you fancy showing off your allegiance in-game.
It should come as no surprise to see Starfield modders add a touch of Star Wars to the game. There are loads of Star Wars mods for previous Bethesda games, and Starfield is perhaps the most Star Wars game Bethesda has ever made. I expect it won’t be too long before modders recreate famous Star Wars characters, cities, and perhaps even planets in Starfield, once Bethesda releases proper mod support.
IGN’s review explains the pull to seek out Starfield’s “immense amount of quality roleplaying quests and interesting NPCs” is strong, despite a rough start and some core aggravations.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
Since its initial launch, Cyberpunk 2077 has had quite the turnaround. So much so that it actually gave developer CD Projekt Red its second-best revenue year ever in 2022. And with the game’s brand new expansion, Phantom Liberty, on the horizon, the developer is sure to see even more success. Not only because it cost more to make than The Witcher 3’s massive Blood and Wine expansion, so surely a lot of love has gone into it, but also because of the addition of exciting new faces as Idris Elba jumps into Night City’s action.
And with all of that love for Cyberpunk comes a desire to deck out your space with fun merch and collectibles for it, and we’ve got an excellent selection of gift ideas to choose from. No matter if you got hooked on Cyberpunk 2077 day one or jumped on the bandwagon recently, there’s plenty worth picking up for your collection. Looking for a new gaming chair to explore Night City in? Or how about a figure of Johnny Silverhand to keep watch on your shelf? Whatever you need, we’ve got options for you.
Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty Expansion is Out Soon
As we’ve mentioned, Cyberpunk 2077’s first and only expansion, Phantom Liberty, is out on September 26 for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S. It will cost $29.99 and is set to be one of developer CD Projekt Red’s biggest content expansions ever (possibly even surpassing Blood and Wine for The Witcher 3). If you’re looking for the perfect gift for any Cyberpunk fans, Phantom Liberty is a great shout.
Best Cyberpunk Merch and Gift Ideas
Below, you can see a couple of our favorite Cyberpunk 2077 gift ideas. These range from comic books to collectible figures to excellent Cyberpunk-themed jackets. You can also find the TITAN Evo Cyberpunk 2077 chair from Secretlab in this list, which is a perfect fit for those who want to kick back and relax while cruising through Night City.
Best Cyberpunk 2077 Books and Comics
Among the comic books listed below, it’s worth keeping in mind that two of them are up for pre-order. Cyberpunk 2077: No Coincidence was released on August 8, 2023, and Cyberpunk 2077 Library Edition, Volume 1 comes out on October 17, 2023.
Best Cyberpunk 2077 Collectible Figures
From female V’s character model on a motorcycle to a dual-wielding Jackie Welles, we’ve got a great selection of Cyberpunk 2077 collectible figures for you to pick and choose from.
Best Cyberpunk 2077 T-Shirts and Apparel
Immerse yourself in the world of Cyberpunk with this selection of t-shirts and apparel. Pick up everything from a stylish leather jacket with the Samurai logo on the back to a cozy beanie to represent the Mox.
More Cyberpunk 2077 Merch to Consider
If you’re looking for some smaller pieces of merch to pick up, we have a collection here of pins, stickers, patches, and keychains that you can add to items your already own. They’re an easy way to show off your love for Cyberpunk without breaking the bank.
Hannah Hoolihan is a freelance writer who works with the Guides and Commerce teams here at IGN.
“One of the first things I wrote in machine code was an expanding starfield. Just literally flying through it, and I found it mesmerizing. I thought ‘It has to be a game.’” That was the moment David Braben, co-creator of Elite and founder of Frontier Developments, changed space games forever. It was video games’ equivalent of the Big Bang, the birth of an idea that would eventually go on to shape four decades of space games and, eventually, Starfield.
In the early 1980s, space games were pretty rudimentary and there was little more to them than flying a ship and shooting aliens. David Braben, who at the time was an undergraduate at Cambridge University, had the idea that a game set in space could be so much more.
“We had Space Invaders, we had Galaxian, we had Williams’ Defender, but they all had a very similar format, i.e. three lives, a score that goes up, you get a new life at 10,000 [points], you get a smart bomb or something games-specific at 1,500,” explains Braben. “Pac-Man was there. And I know it sounds silly, but even then they were starting to become a little bit samey.
“I had played some games like Adventure, Colossal Quest, text-based adventures – the sort where you say, ‘go north, pick up key,’ that sort of thing – and I liked those. And it struck me that these are being played on the same machine, so surely you can [do something] more interesting? I found, with Space Invaders, all I really cared about was whether I got slightly further than I did last time.”
It was around this time, frustrated with the state of sci-fi arcade games and tinkering with some home games, that Braben met fellow programmer Ian Bell, and together shared notes on some projects they were working on.
“We talked about it and we thought, ‘Wait a second, if you had a real spaceship, you’d probably be doing something, you’d be traveling between destinations making money,’” Braben remembers. “And it’s that sort of lightbulb moment where you just start thinking, ‘Wait a second, isn’t score just money?’ And it’s terribly sort of capitalist but from a gameplay design point of view it was fantastic.” It makes sense – the points you score for destroying a ship in Galaxian can be equated to the bounty you claim for shooting a pirate in Elite. But the latter, you also have the added benefit of going through the wreckage and selling on what’s left for additional cash.
By rethinking the elements that made up much of the day’s arcade games in simulation terms, Braben and Bell came upon the idea of Elite, a game where the goal wasn’t to shoot down tiny aliens for power-ups, but to travel the galaxy, fight pirates, collect rewards, upgrade your ship, and continue into the vastness beyond.
‘Wait a second, isn’t score just money?’
However, Braben didn’t just want to travel one galaxy, he wanted to fly across eight. And he wanted them to be filled with planets – 256 in each to be precise. But back in 1984, he was working with a computer that had less memory than a modern day calculator.
“We were targeting the 32K BBC micro but actually only really had 20K of available memory because the screen uses up some [memory], the operating system uses up some,” Braben explains. “And I thought, ‘Well how many locations can you travel between?’ And I was thinking 20, 30…
“That’s not very much data on each one because you’ve got to have all the 3D render, which I’d already written – we knew how big that was. You need all the gameplay, the ship models… And how many ship models can we afford to have in the memory? It became one of those sort of cruel things, thinking, ‘Well, I want lots of those, but I also want lots of those.’”
The solution was a technique that studios like Bethesda and Hello Games – and countless others – have since used to create their own star systems: procedural generation. It’s a tool that’s used a lot in modern day video games, but back in the 1980s it was a relatively new idea in game development.
“I thought, ‘Wait a second, I’ll write a program to generate it,’” recalls Braben. “And it generated so quickly I thought, well, ‘We can just generate it every time – we don’t need to store it.’”
By procedurally generating galaxies Braben and Bell were able to save a tremendous amount of space without cutting back on their ambition. However, it wasn’t always quite as simple as they first thought. In 2013, Braben hosted a TED Talk called ‘Rules Can Be Beautiful’, which detailed the idea of saving space by procedurally generating new planets each time you want to explore a galaxy: “Essentially what it’s doing is, you are constraining the rules to make things that make sense. So making sure that the names of the places were pronounceable, making sure the economies were the right sort of ratios, and then just applying a sort of ‘human logic’ to generating lots of galaxies and just looking if it’s right. It’s amazing how something that is genuinely random can appear quite lopsided. You go, ‘Oh, we don’t really want a lopsided galaxy.’ But it comes naturally out of the random nature.”
As such, some galaxies were not quite as intended, with one planet randomly given the name ‘Arse’. But ultimately the system was a game changer, not just for Elite but for space games that followed in its footsteps. It allowed them to do things they would never have been able to before: “It’s the joy of being able to add something which we couldn’t otherwise add,” explains Braben. “But that was how tight it was. The game literally fitted exactly in memory, with not even one spare part.”
But EMI rejected it, saying ‘It hasn’t got three lives, and we want a score.’ They thought people weren’t that dedicated and that they want to play a game in five or 10 minutes. I said, ‘No, they don’t. I don’t. I’m a target market that’s not being satisfied.”
With Elite in hand, Braben and Bell set out to sell the game to the masses. The only problem – a problem they were trying to fix – was that the popular space games were the ones with three lives and missile upgrades, not ones with hundreds of procedurally generated planets to explore.
“Our first disappointment is we went to EMI, the record company. I thought, ‘Oh, they’d be good to sell it.’ […]But EMI rejected it, saying ‘It hasn’t got three lives, and we want a score.’ They thought people weren’t that dedicated and that they want to play a game in five or 10 minutes. I said, ‘No, they don’t. I don’t. I’m a target market that’s not being satisfied.”
The person from EMI asked the pair how long it would take the player to make ‘meaningful progress,’ to get the requisite power-ups and beat the game. Braben and Bell had a simple response: “I said, ‘It doesn’t matter. The aim isn’t getting to the end of the game here. This is a hobby. This is an environment you can live in. This is a world.’ And they really hated that.”
Nowadays games are celebrated for being open-ended or hundreds of hours long. When Elite was being pitched, it was an outlier. “I just thought, ‘Oh my god, what if they’re right? I mean Ian Bell was also… I don’t want to speak for him, but he was keen on this, something that’s just very different,” remembers Braben.
The pair eventually took Elite to Acornsoft and according to Braben, the reaction to seeing Elite was the opposite of what they got at EMI. “The reaction couldn’t have been more different, because they were techie, gamey people like us who were going, ‘Wow, how did you do that? How did you get that working?’” ”
Acorn signed up Elite and released it on September 20, 1984. It went on to sell a million copies across multiple platforms. Back when video games were still an emerging hobby, if you had any kind of game console, chances are Elite was on it.
“I think it was something like 17 platforms that we put the original Elite on? And they all had different CPUs. So the NES for example still had a 6502 variant, as did the Commodore 64. We did a number of Z80 ones, things like the Amstrad, the Sinclair Spectrum. Obviously we did the Apple II and various variants of the Apple II as well, there was an Apple II-C. But it all added up – I think we got a little bit sick of just doing it again and again, so each version typically had a few extra features.”
The different specs of each platform meant Elite was slightly different, and occasionally expanded, with each new release. Among those enhancements is an appropriate musical nod to the film 2001: A Space Odyssey. “We went on to machines like the Commodore 64, which had an unbelievably large memory at 64K. So we added music, we added various other things. There were some extra missions that just added richness to the game basically. But the music [when you dock]; obviously, it has to be Blue Danube when you dock.”
“I think when you look at games like Mass Effect, which is a great game and none of this is [meant] as criticism, we are different. We are doing something different.”
Elite went on to generate numerous sequels, including Frontier: Elite 2, which included even more planets, with advanced physics and realistic chemistry. It also caused an influx of space games that demonstrated the desire to do more than fly and shoot. 1988’s Captain Blood swapped procedurally generated galaxies for fractal landscapes, but it’s clear to see how Elite helped shape its worlds. Similarly, Starlancer and its follow-up Freelancer, which was released in March 2003, were both space trading and combat games, the genre Elite kickstarted almost a decade earlier, but one that continues to this day.
However, 1995 was almost the end for Elite. The third game in the series, Frontier: First Encounters, was released in an unfinished state due to pressures applied by the game’s publisher Game Tek. Its reception was understandably mixed.
“I even offered all the money back to show how bad it was,” Braben explains. “It was very upsetting for me because there was a good game in there, but they did a lot of changes underneath our feet because we were now a company by then.”
Shortly after, Braben decided to take a break from the series. His experience with First Encounters had proved too much. But before long his passion for outer space had reignited and, following a successful Kickstarter campaign in 2012, he was able to re-acquire the rights to Elite and work began on the biggest game in the series, Elite Dangerous.
By the time Elite Dangerous had emerged, the landscape of space games had changed. Narrative-driven RPGs like Mass Effect and shooters such as Halo were the biggest sci-fi games around, though that didn’t matter much to Braben and Frontier during the development of Elite Dangerous.
“I think when you look at games like Mass Effect, which is a great game and none of this is [meant] as criticism, we are different. We are doing something different. And with Starfield, I’m obviously looking forward to seeing how they do it, but I can’t help but think it’s going to be more Mass Effect than Elite Dangerous, because of its nature. It’s possibly more on-foot-focused much like Mass Effect was. They may put in dog fighting, we’ll see. But I think Starfield will be good. The budget is absolutely humongous and I’m sure it’ll be a good game.”
The truth is, Starfield – and Wing Commander, and No Man’s Sky, and countless other space games – likely wouldn’t have existed if it weren’t for Elite. It was the first game that took us to another galaxy from the comfort of our bedroom. It is unquestionably the godfather of space games.
“It sounds arrogant but I think it’s true,” admits Braben, somewhat reluctantly. “It’s certainly the first game to treat that subject matter [properly].There were games in the following years that people remember as well, but before it all there really was were various 3D shooter-type games.”
In 2023, the space genre has never looked so good, but obviously the hardware modern games run on is lightyears beyond the tech Braben and Bell were working with. Despite that, to this day Elite’s primary directive remains the same: to explore and live in the starfield, not just shoot aliens in the sky and collect a new power-up.
“In my heart of hearts, I still genuinely wanted a game where I could go out exploring, a game where I could go anywhere and I could look behind the curtain, and I like to think that’s what we delivered,” says Braben. “Look at all those people who’ve gone out exploring [in Elite Dangerous], and still only a tiny fraction of 1% of the galaxy has been visited by players. Players are discovering thousands of new stars and new planets every day, and that’s even after 10 years. The Galaxy is big – it’s the same size as the real Galaxy and has the same number of stars.”
Space combat in Starfield only gets more challenging as you progress through the main story, but the Frontier isn’t going to get any better unless you invest in it. Instead of upgrading the ship you’ve got buying a new ship, we’d recommend earning ships for free.
One of the best ships you can get in Starfield is called the Razorleaf, and the only way you can get it is by completing a side mission called Mantis. It’s a higher-level mission, but it’s worth strongarming for the rewards. Not only is the Razorleaf fast, equipped with great weapons, and worth over 120,000 credits, but it also comes with a shielded cargo hold if you’re looking to smuggle contraband. Plus you’ll get other great rewards with the ship.
In order to start the Mantis quest you’ll need to find and read a data slate called “Secret Outpost!” which is dropped at random by Spacers and can drop rather early in Starfield. You might already have it!
If you don’t, here are some instances where we’ve seen it dropped:
Below are the original Razorleaf stats we had as soon as we grabbed the ship from the Mantis lair. Upgrading the ship is simple, but even if you don’t upgrade it, the Razorleaf can tear through enemies. Even better, you might get a special encounter in space involving the ship (we won’t spoil that here).
As far as Razorleaf upgrades go, we’d suggest replacing the reactor and add additional lasers that can then be powered by the upgraded reactor. Even if you don’t upgrade the Razorleaf you’ll still have a fast, powerful ship that’ll serve you well.
Miranda Sanchez is the executive editor of guides at IGN and a member of Podcast Unlocked. She’s a big fan of stationery and fountain pens. You can sometimes find her on Twitter.
Space Week is still happening over here at IGN, and today we’re proud to present the winners of our best space game Face-Off! After thousands and thousands of 1v1 battles with matchups like No Man’s Sky vs. the brand-new Starfield and Starcraft vs. Destiny 2, the ultimate space game has been chosen by you.
So, which game claimed the top spot for the best space game and will forever be immortalized in the stars above? Drumroll please…
We’re IGN and Mass Effect 2 is your favorite space game on the Citadel! Yes, with an 89.3% win percentage, Mass Effect 2 and its incredible cast of characters, unforgettable suicide mission, and choices that carried over and mattered from the original have risen above the rest of the pack.
We couldn’t agree more with this pick as we ranked Mass Effect 2 as the sixth-best game of all time, saying, “As Commander Shepard, I traveled the galaxy on the best recruitment trip I could have wished for, and experienced possibly one of the most heart-wrenching stories – but whether or not the game ends in tears is entirely up to you. As you head out for a suicide mission, you’ll meet some of the best-written characters that feel original and have the power to evoke true emotions.”
In fact, all three Mass Effect games placed in the top five, with the original taking third place and Mass Effect 3, despite its controversial ending, following right behind at #4. The still-enjoyable Mass Effect Andromeda fell down to 25, and we hope more than hope that the next Mass Effect brings us back to the heights the original trilogy did.
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, which took home the top prize in our list of the 10 best Star Wars video games, placed second in this Face-Off with a win percentage of 84.8%. Its sequel, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II – The Sith Lords, took fifth place, and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor and Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order took spots six and seven, respectively.
Newcomer Starfield took eighth place and showed it’s ready to fight against these all-time classics, even though its universe has yet to be fully explored.
Rounding out the top 10 were Star Wars: Battlefront II and No Man’s Sky, and they helped make up a top 10 that featured five Star Wars games and three Mass Effect games.
On the other side of the galaxy, RymdResa placed last with a win percentage of 12.3%. Right behind RymdResa was Heat Signature, Duskers, Objects in Space, Avorian, NEBULOUS: Fleet Command, Starflight, Star Traders: Frontiers, Distant Worlds: Universe, and Take On Mars.
Many of these games are either very old or are smaller indie titles, and it’s important to note that their placement shouldn’t necessarily say very much about their quality as we chose these space games because we think they were worthy to battle! It’s just tough when you have to take on juggernauts in more well-known franchises.
Are you wondering where you favorite space video game landed, like maybe Star Wars: Rogue Squadron? (It placed 16th!) For all the rankings, you can check out the full list of where all of the 92 space games that competed in this Face-Off ended up.
Spanning over 16 titles, the Grand Theft Auto series has garnered quite a reputation during its time as one of gaming’s seminal franchises. No matter which entry you visit, you’ll find a sprawling open world filled with high-speed car chases, daring heists, intense gunfights and a huge metropolis to explore. But while carnage and police pursuits are largely Grand Theft Auto’s bread and butter, it’s not the only thing fans rely on Rockstar to provide.
Alongside a fully interactive sandbox, Grand Theft Auto games are lorded for their stories. Across over two decades of releases, the franchise has transformed into a crime saga like no other, telling the tales of an array of ambitious criminals completing seemingly impossible scores, intercepting seedy criminal underworlds and usurping feared crime lords. And as a result, the protagonists of these games have become iconic.
Whether it’s Niko’s silent reflections about the cycle of revenge or Trevor’s uncanny ability to wake up in random places butt naked, GTA’s roster of leading thieves and gangsters have struck a chord with fans, becoming synonymous with both the franchise and the video game space as a whole. So, let’s take a look at the best of the bunch. Below, we’ll rank Grand Theft Auto’s best protagonists, giving you a rundown of the franchise’s most notable playable characters ahead of GTA 6.
10. Vic Vance
A former soldier expelled from the ranks after being framed by his superior officer, shortly after we meet Vic Vance in Vice City Stories, he’s out on the streets with no job or home. Looking for work, he begins to use his skills as a soldier to take the criminal underworld of Vice City by storm, allying with his brother, Lance, and teaming with various crime families to build his empire.
As he does, Vic begins to grow into one of Vice City’s main players, learning to fight for fortune and ascend through the ranks of the metropolis’ various criminal families. A loyal friend and brother, Vic’s sense of morality and honor set him apart from other Grand Theft Auto protagonists. While he understands he has to enter the criminal underworld to survive on the streets of Vice City, he leans heavily on his values as a soldier, helping those around him and remaining faithful to his friends. It makes him a unique Grand Theft Auto protagonist, and one that cares more about doing what’s right than making a quick buck.
9. Luis Lopez
The main character of the Ballad of Gay Tony expansion, Luis Lopez is a former criminal turned bodyguard working for legendary night club owner, Gay Tony. Fiercely loyal and a family man at heart, Luis spends the majority of the Ballad of Gay Tony’s runtime attempting to stop loan sharks from tracking down Tony, who owes a large sum of money to the Ancelotti Crime Family.
Luis is much more than just a bodyguard to his eccentric boss, however, with the pair’s partnership turning into a close friendship. While Tony makes rash, impulsive decisions, Luis grounds his boss, becoming his voice of reason and a key advisor. Although Luis is often overshadowed by Tony’s high-energy persona, his steadfast friendship with his boss and love for his mother and sister make him an endearing lead and a worthy addition to the series’ host of playable characters.
8. Claude
The first protagonist of Grand Theft Auto’s 3D era, Claude may be entirely silent, but his lack of quips or conversation characterize him as an efficient, deadly killer who gets the job done. After his girlfriend, Catalina, leaves him for dead, Claude swears vengeance, teaming with various gangs to track down his former flame and get retribution.
The result is a protagonist that, while not oozing with charisma, has a slick demeanor with a simple goal that’s easy to get behind. Claude is, in many ways, single-mindedly enveloped by his need to get revenge, to the point where he’ll do anything and partner with anyone to track Catalina down. As much as a great performance or a hard-hitting backstory can make a protagonist easy to relate to, that characterisation alone is enough to make Claude one of the best characters in Grand Theft Auto’s roster.
7. Johnny Klebitz
The lead of GTA 4’s The Lost and Damned spin-off, Johnny Klebitz is one of Grand Theft Auto’s best side characters. Driven purely by his oath of brotherhood and loyalty to his gang, the Lost MC, Johnny finds himself in the center of a civil war between the gang’s members after the return of its leader, Billy Grey. Hellbent on recklessly driving the group to destruction, Johnny comes to blows with Billy, stepping up to help his brothers and keep the gang from implosion.
However, Johnny’s sense of unconditional loyalty eventually puts him back in the orbit of his troubled ex-girlfriend, Ashley. Hoping to help his former partner, Johnny’s left in various tricky situations, trying to keep the gang together while getting Ashley the help she so desperately needs. Stretching throughout Grand Theft Auto 4 and into Grand Theft Auto 5, Johnny’s side story is one of Grand Theft Auto’s most tragic, showcasing a deeply loyal leader attempting to hold together a sinking ship before it’s inevitably submerged. His character is proof that GTA is just as good at telling mature, serious side stories as they are silly ones.
6. Franklin Clinton
A street-raised Los Santos repot man with a heart of gold, Franklin is a big fish in a small pond. With ambitions to make a name for himself, he finds himself in the tutelage of Michael De Santa, quickly becoming a career criminal who makes his fortune through everything from petty crime to bank robberies, assassinations and more.
Franklin acts as the more archetypal Grand Theft Auto lead during the events of Grand Theft Auto 5, but that by no means makes him a weaker character. With Michael and Trevor locked in a bitter feud, Franklin often finds himself trapped between both of his tutors, quickly learning that a life of crime comes with consequences. Not only that, but his quick rise to power in the city’s underworld leads to a compelling story about how wealth and influence don’t always give you what you want. In the end, Franklin is one of Grand Theft Auto’s best-written leads and an easy inclusion in the upper echelon of the franchise’s roster of protagonists.
5. Trevor Phillips
The most notorious of Grand Theft Auto 5’s three protagonists, Trevor Phillips is, to put it mildly, an ‘eccentric’ character. A former bank robber and member of Michael De Santa’s crew, Trevor has spent years living in the desert just outside of Los Santos, where he’s formed a small crime syndicate known as Trevor Phillips Enterprises. When we meet Trevor, he decides to head to Los Santos in search of Michael, who he learns faked his death to make a deal with the FIB.
In essence, Trevor is the embodiment of how Grand Theft Auto fans play each game. He’s loud, violent, prone to bursts of destructive rage and acts purely on impulsive instinct. Throughout GTA V’s campaign, his storyline veers from wacky to downright sadistic on a whim, whether he’s eradicating a biker gang because he feels like it or stealing an ambulance full of medicine to appease a hallucination of his mother. But through it all, there’s a strange sentimentality to Trevor. He’ll go out of his way to free an FIB torture victim because he sympathises with him and will move mountains to save his former friend, Brad, out of sheer loyalty.
It all creates one of Grand Theft Auto’s strangest but most intriguing characters, which is quite the achievement for a man that, at one point, can be seen trying to violently flush a dismembered foot down a toilet.
4. Michael De Santa
In a lot of ways, Michael De Santa experiences the standard Grand Theft Auto story in reverse. Living in a luxurious mansion in the Los Santos hills, Michael begins the story enjoying a lavish retirement, spending his days drinking expensive whiskey in a lounger next to his pool. However, after meeting Franklin, his life begins to unravel, reawakening the monster within as he robs banks, murders indiscriminately and quickly becomes a main player in the Los Santos crime scene.
As a result, Michael is one of Grand Theft Auto’s most unique protagonists to date. Whether it’s having to deal with the whims of his spoiled children, appease the special agents threatening to revoke his witness protection deal or use his wealth of knowledge to expertly execute petty crimes, he’s a crook who escaped the criminal world unscathed and is desperate to revisit it. His storyline stands out as Grand Theft Auto 5’s absolute best, especially when taking into account his feud with Trevor and the secrets about his past he’s desperately trying to keep buried.
3. Tommy Vercetti
An old-school gangster through and through, Tommy Vercetti feels like he’s ripped straight from a Scorcese movie. He’s smart, ambitious and has no problem taking down anyone that gets in his way, regardless of how influential or important they are to Vice City’s crime syndicates. In a lot of ways, Vercetti is Rockstar’s take on Scarface’s Tony Montana, earning respect and his place atop the criminal underworld through his ruthless drive to become the most powerful man in Vice City.
Vercetti’s story begins after concluding a fifteen-year prison sentence in Liberty City, making his way to Vice City on the orders of his boss, Sonny Forelli. Sent to oversee a drug deal, Tommy’s life descends into chaos after the deal is ambushed and he’s tasked with reclaiming the money lost during his escape. As he tracks down the cash, we see Tommy’s desire to become more than an attack dog for the mafia, establishing himself with other local crime families and acquiring several businesses around Vice City.
Tommy is a hustler, and his fearless drive to reach the top of the pile makes him one of Grand Theft Auto’s most beloved protagonists. It also doesn’t hurt that he’s voiced by the late, great Ray Liotta, with the Goodfellas actor lending a touch of authenticity to Vercetti’s charming but ruthless persona.
2. Carl ‘CJ’ Johnson
Returning to the streets of Los Santos after his mother is killed in a drive-by shooting, CJ’s story is arguably one of Grand Theft Auto’s absolute best. A street-raised hustler and former member of the Grove Street Families, his story sees him rejoin his brother and attempt to take back the streets from a rival gang known as the Ballas, only to be betrayed and exiled from the city by his former friends.
CJ is not only one of the series’ more charismatic protagonists, but his backstory and motivations in GTA: San Andreas are among the most engaging in the series’ history. Leaving his family and the criminal underworld for good after the death of his younger brother five years prior, CJ enters the story as an outsider, forced to return to street shootouts and aiding corrupt cops to help his family and restore the reputation of his former gang.
Compared to the typical GTA protagonist looking for fortune and fame, CJ’s rise to the top of the Los Santos crime scene is about reputation and a fierce loyalty for his family, making him one of the series’ most likable leads.
1. Niko Bellic
Coming to Liberty City inspired by his cousin’s promise of a land of wealth and opportunity just to sleep on a couch in a tiny, rundown apartment, Niko Bellic is not only the most compelling take on the archetypical rags-to-riches Grand Theft Auto protagonist but the series’ best lead character. An Eastern European immigrant and ex-soldier, he’s haunted by the horrors of war and guided by his determination to seek revenge on those who wronged him by any means necessary.
Niko’s rise through Liberty City’s underworld in Grand Theft Auto 4 is easily the darkest and most morally probing adventure any of the series’ protagonists embark on, acting as a dissection of the American Dream and the constantly revolving cycle of violence. But this more mature story never turns Niko into an atypical, grizzled lead with a single-minded need for revenge. He’s loyal to a fault, witty and introspective, often reflecting on his past and doling out sage wisdom about the futility of violence and conflict.
In a lot of ways, Niko starts out with the insight and clarity most GTA protagonists earn as they conclude their story, and his journey stands as the most unique and gripping of the bunch as a result.
Callum Williams is a freelance media writer with years of experience as a game critic, news reporter, guides writer and features writer.
Hello, IGN Reviewers in training. Welcome to week two of community reviews, in which we give you the opportunity to score your favorite (or not-so-favorite) games that are based on a specific theme. Last week our theme was space, but with so many more games in space that we didn’t include on the initial playlist, we decided to remix it, add some more, and give more games a chance to share in the spotlight.
For those of you who missed the rollout of Community Reviews, you can check it out here. Remember, the biggest and best games, based on User Review scores, will make the leaderboard showcasing what the IGN audience believes to be the best games of all time. So here is your chance to tell the world why you think a game you’ve played is the greatest – or worst – thing ever (or maybe somewhere in between). You can sign up for an IGN account to unlock the ability to create custom playlists, write user reviews, and more by clicking the Register button in the lower left of the page anywhere on IGN.
With our continuation of Space for this week’s theme, and with Starfield fully releasing for everyone, it is a great time to see where you would rank it along with some of the other well-known games that take place in or deal with outer Space. So head to the page for your favorite games and leave your reviews to help them get the attention they deserve. We’ve compiled a slightly more extensive list below, including Halo, Metroid, Ratchet & Clank, and other franchises to get you started, but feel free to leave a review for any of your favorites we may have missed. All you have to do is head to a game’s page and click the Rate Game button to get started.
And for those who managed to roll credits on Starfield since its early access release, leave a review and let us know your thoughts on it. We will have more themes like this in the future, so stay tuned for those as well!
The traveling discount aisle, Xûr, is now live in Destiny 2 for the weekend until next week’s reset. If you’re looking to get you some shiny new Exotic armor or weapons for your Guardian, look no further.
Each week, Xûr has a random assortment of Exotic armor, one for each Guardian class, as well as a random Exotic Weapon and an Exotic Engram available for purchase. In addition to his Exotic wares, he’s got a random collection of Legendary weapons and armor to deck out your Guardians.
We’ve rounded up all the info on Xûr for the week including where to find Xûr, which Exotic weapons and armor are available, as well as which Legendary weapons you should pick up, either for PvE or PvP.
Where Is Xûr Today?
Xûr’s location today can be found at Watcher’s Grave on Nessus on September 8 through September 12. To reach him, travel to the landing point at Watcher’s Grave. When you arrive, make for the red moss-covered tree straight ahead. Climb up the roots and you’ll find Xûr waiting at the top to sell you exotic items and legendary weapons.
What Is Xûr Selling This Weekend?
Exotic Engram
Crimson – Exotic Hand Cannon
Gemini Jester – Exotic Hunter Boots
17 Mobility
2 Resilience
15 Recovery
22 Discipline
2 Intellect
10 Strength
Total: 68
Helm of Saint-14 – Exotic Titan Helmet
2 Mobility
23 Resilience
11 Recovery
2 Discipline
17 Intellect
13 Strength
Total: 68
Crown of the Tempests – Exotic Warlock Helmet
8 Mobility
2 Resilience
25 Recovery
2 Discipline
10 Intellect
20 Strength
Total: 67
Xur came to play this week with one of the best rolls for the Helm of Saint-14 I’ve ever beheld, and the Gemini Jester roll might also work well for especially speedy Hunters. The Warlock helmet is less exciting, but even that is a pretty decent roll. Not bad, Xur! Not bad at all!
Exotic Weapons
Hawkmoon – Exotic Hand Cannon
Paracausal Shot
Corkscrew Rifling
Alloy Magazine
Rangefinder
Textured Grip
The Hawkmoon roll this week is decent enough, but not a God roll. Snap it up if you need it, otherwise you may as well just wait.
Legendary Weapons
Deafening Whisper – Grenade Launcher
Volatile Launch/Confined Launch
High-Velocity Rounds/Implosion Rounds
Moving Target
Auto-Loading Holster
Blast Radius Masterwork
Retrofit Escapade – Machine Gun
Arrowhead Brake/Smallbore
Extended Mag/Steady Rounds
Feeding Frenzy
Frenzy
Ambush
Reload Speed Masterwork
Code Duello – Rocket Launcher
Confined Launch/Linear Compensator
High-Velocity Rounds/Impact Casing
Surplus
Frenzy
Velocity Masterwork
Tears of Contrition – Scout Rifle
Chambered Compensator/Smallbore
Appended Mag/Tactical Mag
Auto-Loading Holster
Mulligan
Extrovert
Handling Masterwork
Tarnished Mettle – Scout Rifle
Arrowhead Brake/Fluted Barrel
Accurized Rounds/Alloy Magazine
Demolitionist
Focused Fury
Right Hook
Stability Masterwork
No Reprieve – Shotgun
Arrowhead Brake/Smallbore
Assault Mag/Steady Rounds
Surplus
Focused Fury
Right Hook
Stability Masterwork
Death Adder – Submachine Gun
Arrowhead Brake/Full Bore
Extended Mag/Flared Magwell
Feeding Frenzy
Disruption Break
Handling Masterwork
My top picks this week are Retrofit Escapade with a double helping of frenzy-related perks and Death Adder which has some decent perks, but is honestly just an all-around good weapon to have in your collection.
Warlock Legendary Armor
For Warlocks, Xûr is selling the Substitutional Alloy set which include:
Substitutional Alloy Gloves
6 Mobility
20 Resilience
7 Recovery
14 Discipline
6 Intellect
12 Strength
Total: 65
Substitutional Alloy Chest Armor
12 Mobility
2 Resilience
18 Recovery
17 Discipline
14 Intellect
2 Strength
Total: 65
Substitutional Alloy Helmet
30 Mobility
2 Resilience
2 Recovery
2 Discipline
21 Intellect
10 Strength
Total: 67
Substitutional Alloy Leg Armor
12 Mobility
18 Resilience
2 Recovery
17 Discipline
2 Intellect
14 Strength
Total: 65
Substitutional Alloy Bond
Dang, Xur woke up with some pep in his step today! Honestly every one of these could be great, but the highlight is the helmet with massive spikiness in Mobility and Intellect.
Titan Legendary Armor
For Titans, Xûr is selling the Substitutional Alloy set which include:
Substitutional Alloy Gauntlets
6 Mobility
7 Resilience
20 Recovery
20 Discipline
2 Intellect
10 Strength
Total: 65
Substitutional Alloy Chest Armor
18 Mobility
2 Resilience
12 Recovery
2 Discipline
10 Intellect
21 Strength
Total: 65
Substitutional Alloy Helmet
2 Mobility
2 Resilience
28 Recovery
16 Discipline
6 Intellect
12 Strength
Total: 66
Substitutional Alloy Leg Armor
2 Mobility
12 Resilience
18 Recovery
2 Discipline
15 Intellect
15 Strength
Total: 64
Substitutional Alloy Mark
Again, Xur is crushing it. The best option this week would be the ultra low Mobility helmet with spiky Recovery, but they’re honestly all not bad at all.
Hunter Legendary Armor
For Hunters, Xûr is selling the Substitutional Alloy set which include:
Substitutional Alloy Grips
2 Mobility
30 Resilience
2 Recovery
17 Discipline
2 Intellect
14 Strength
Total: 67
Substitutional Alloy Chest Armor
10 Mobility
10 Resilience
11 Recovery
6 Discipline
2 Intellect
25 Strength
Total: 64
Substitutional Alloy Helmet
19 Mobility
10 Resilience
2 Recovery
28 Discipline
2 Intellect
2 Strength
Total: 63
Substitutional Alloy Leg Armor
19 Mobility
10 Resilience
2 Recovery
10 Discipline
12 Intellect
10 Strength
Total: 63
Substitutional Alloy Cloak
The best option for Hunters this week (who did a bit worse than the others, but still solid enough) are the gauntlets with sky-high Resilience. Definitely pick them up if you’re a Hunter who’s not all too concerned with Mobility
That’s a wrap on Xûr for this week, Guardians! Did you attempt the recent reprised Crota’s End raid? Did you manage to pull off a clear? Let us know in the comments! You might also want to check out the raid guide we put together to guide guardians through Lightfall’s endgame activity.
If you’re a fan of Spider-Man and are extremely bummed that you were unable to secure one of those limited-edition PS5 faceplates, fear not. For Dbrand has a (third-party) solution for you: its new Arachnoplates.
As the name implies, Dbrand’s latest PS5 faceplates are spider-themed. The Arachanoplates are black with a red design that also takes up a good chunk of the design. If you really want to go all out, Dbrand even made a middle skin to put on the front center of the PS5, along with red light strips. Those two things will cost you extra, though, retailing for $11.95 each.
As shown in the gallery below, the Arachnoplates have a lot more going on design-wise, with almost a comic-book-esque feel to them. A closer examination shows spider webs contrasting with a black goo that is more than likely based on the alien species, the symbiote.
Subjectively, I like these face plates a lot more than the ones PlayStation created. Whereas the officially-licensed face plates feel a bit bland and generic, the Arachanoplates do a good job conveying the conflict that will surely be posed in Insomniac’s upcoming game Spider-Man 2.
This is not the first time Dbrand has made themed skins off officially licensed and limited edition products. The company has previously made skins for the Nintendo Switch, more specifically skins based on Animal Crossing: New Horizons and, more recently, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, both of which received limited-edition-themed Nintendo Switch consoles.
Dbrand is also the same company that decided to make its own faceplates to add some more customization to your PS5. Legal threat aside, Dbrand went on to make its own faceplates by removing the “popped collar” look that is the signature with the official PS5 faceplates. Eventually, PlayStation would go on to make its own officially licensed faceplates, but you have plenty of options on this end.
Dbrand’s Arachnoplates are available now on its official website for $64.98 with options available for both digital and disc editions of the PS5.
Taylor is a Reporter at IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @TayNixster.
