Author: Game Infliction

Jennifer Hale Would ‘Love to Play Bayonetta Again,’ But Admits ‘It Was Not Fun Getting Thrown Under the Bus’ After She Replaced Original Voice Actor

Jennifer Hale has opened up on PlatinumGames’ controversial decision to hire her and replace original voice actor Hellena Taylor for Bayonetta 3, admitting, “I definitely got thrown under the bus by that whole thing.”

Just ahead of the third instalment of Hideki Kamiya’s stylish action game series, PlatinumGames revealed that Taylor — who voiced Bayonetta in the first two games — wouldn’t return, and would instead be portrayed by Hale.

“Various overlapping circumstances made it difficult for Hellena Taylor to reprise her role,” Platinum said at the time. “We held auditions to cast the new voice of Bayonetta and offered the role to Jennifer Hale, whom we felt was a good match for the character.”

In 2022, Taylor released a thread of videos on Twitter claiming she was offered only $4,000 in total to reprise the role for Bayonetta 3. In addition, Taylor asked fans to boycott the game and instead donate the money they would have spent on it to charity.

A subsequent report from Bloomberg (and later corroborated by VGC) revealed that Platinum allegedly attempted to hire Taylor for five four-hour sessions at a rate between $3,000 and $4,000 apiece. This would have put Taylor’s total compensation for Bayonetta 3 at $15,000, much higher than the amount she claimed she was offered. Taylor then released a new statement, saying she was in fact offered $15,000 for the role, but she denied aspects of the reports.

Hale also released a statement amid increased scrutiny and social media harassment over the situation, although it was vague due to non-disclosure limitations.

Now, considering whether or not she’d reprise her role as the titular witch, Hale was cautious but candid, admitting that while she’d “love to play Bayonetta again,” “it was not fun getting thrown under the bus like I had.”

“I definitely got thrown under the bus by that whole thing, and I was unable to speak on my own behalf because I was under not one but two NDAs. Eventually, I was allowed to make a statement, which I appreciated, and I was able to present the facts,” Hale told GAMINGbible.

“There were some things said [that were] presented as facts, but were false. I would have never taken a role otherwise. Before I accepted the audition, I checked everything thoroughly, and I trust the director. Thankfully, playing Bayonetta was so much fun, and the community was so welcoming to me, especially after the fiasco had passed and the facts came out. But it was not fun getting thrown under the bus like I had, but I was happy to come out on the other side.”

The iconic voice behind Commander Shepard would also love to return for Mass Effect 5, saying she “would be there before they finish the sentence” if asked. Hale, the actress who gave life to “FemShep” spoke to IGN recently and expressed her desire to return to perhaps her most beloved character.

It turns out she wouldn’t even need to reprise her role as Commander Shepard — just being able to step back into that world again in any form would make her happy.

Cyber Monday is your last chance to secure the best offers of the year before the holidays. If you’re on the hunt for some last minute deals, we’re actively rounding up the strongest Cyber Monday discounts, and you can all our top picks and price drops in IGN’s comprehensive Cyber Monday hub.

Photo by Roy Rochlin/Getty Images for ReedPop.

Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, as well as a critic, columnist, and consultant with 15+ years experience working with some of the world’s biggest gaming sites and publications. She’s also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.

Wonder of Blue is a very pretty, startlingly hard Alice in Wonderland dungeon crawler, with zero American McGees

I’m still a little burned-out on Carrollian adaptations after Nightingale, but I will not let that tarnish my enjoyment of Wonder of Blue, a fey 2D labyrinth roguelite based on fiction’s most famous Alice after Alice Bee (RPS in peace). It features a lovely selection of pixelart colour palettes, and some pleasingly tricksy enemies. You play Liddell – yes, I too had forgotten Alice’s second name isn’t “in Wonderland” – and you are trying to navigate a series of procedurally generated dungeons made up of single-screen rooms. At the end of the journey waits the Red Queen.

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CD Projekt Still Plans to Launch All 3 Games in the New Ciri-fronted The Witcher Trilogy Within a 6-Year Period

CD Projekt is sticking to its ambitious plan to release all three video games in the new Ciri-fronted The Witcher trilogy within a six-year period.

Speaking during a recent financial call, joint CEO Michał Nowakowski said that future The Witcher video games “should be delivered in a shorter period of time.” That’s because CD Projekt has switched to Unreal Engine 5 for the full production of not only The Witcher 4, but The Witcher 5 and 6.

Here’s Nowakowski’s quote in full:

“We’ve been using UE5 for The Witcher 4 for almost four years now, and we’re very happy with what we’ve achieved. I think you could have seen some of that with your own eyes with our tech demo reveal at Unreal Fest couple of months ago, and we’re very happy with the results of that as well – we’ve already said that, but I’m always happy to say it again – and we’re happy with how the engine is evolving through the Epic team’s efforts, and how we are learning how to make it work within a huge open-world game, as TW4 is meant to be.

“In a way, yes, I do believe that further games should be delivered in a shorter period of time — as we had stated before, our plan still is to launch the whole trilogy within a six-year period, so yes, that would mean we would plan to have a shorter development time between TW4 and TW5, between TW5 and TW6 and so on.”

That’s a hugely ambitious release plan that comes across as all the more surprising given The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt was originally released on May 19, 2015 — four years after The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings. Based on Nowakowski’s comment, CD Projekt plans to release The Witcher 5 three years after The Witcher 4, then The Witcher 6 three years after that, assuming it wants to spread each release out equally.

As we’ve seen, AAA video game development can be a difficult endeavor that takes years to complete. Bethesda is still beavering away on The Elder Scrolls 6, which it announced in 2018. Microsoft’s new Fable game, due out in 2026, was announced in 2020, but development began before then. And there was a five-year gap between Sony’s release of Ghost of Tsushima and Ghost of Yotei.

So, the idea that CD Projekt will release three new The Witcher games in six years is certainly ambitious, and it remains to be seen if this plan holds when all is said and done. But assuming it does, when can we expect the games to actually come out?

CD Projekt has indicated The Witcher 4 won’t be out in 2026, which means 2027 at the earliest. According to CD Projekt’s latest financial report, 447 people are currently working on The Witcher 4, up slightly from the number reported at the end of July. Clearly, it is CD Projekt’s focus right now, and production is in full swing. Let’s say The Witcher 4 comes out in November 2027. That would mean The Witcher 5 in 2030, and The Witcher 6 in 2033.

There are multiple spanners that may end up being thrown in the works. CD Projekt will no doubt have to manage a console transition, which may or may not occur before The Witcher 4 comes out. And who knows where the world, generally, will be in just a year’s time, let alone four or five? The video game industry, already struggling through perhaps the most transformative, disruptive time in its history, could be in a very different place in just a couple years. It’s just impossible to predict much of anything right now.

Meanwhile, CD Projekt has Cyberpunk 2 in the works, although that’s further behind The Witcher 4. Will Cyberpunk 2 come out in between one of these new The Witcher games, or will CD Projekt wait until the new trilogy is out before pulling the trigger? And let’s not forget The Witcher 1 remake CD Projekt is working on in some fashion. Will that launch amid the new trilogy? There are other projects too at various stages of development at the Polish company, as well as non-video game projects involving its IP. In short, CD Projekt has a lot going on. A hell of a lot.

CD Projekt recently ruled out The Witcher 4 from this month’s The Game Awards, so don’t expect any new trailer there. Our last look at the game came via the hugely impressive Unreal Engine 5 tech demo in June, which Nowakowski mentioned in his comment. So, don’t hold your breath for The Witcher 4, but when it finally comes out — assuming everything goes according to CD Projekt’s plan — fans are potentially in for an incredible six years.

Cyber Monday is your last chance to secure the best offers of the year before the holidays. If you’re on the hunt for some last minute deals, we’re actively rounding up the strongest Cyber Monday discounts, and you can all our top picks and price drops in IGN’s comprehensive Cyber Monday hub.

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.

GTA 6’s wholesome Boris Bike docking revealed in alleged WIP Rockstar portfolio video

Over the weekend, Grand Theft Auto 6’s legions of fan weather-watchers spotted an animation portfolio reel that includes what appears to be some WIP stuff from GTA 6. Assuming the leak is legitimate, this isn’t nearly an eruption on the scale of the 2022 GTA 6 leaks: it contains a couple of extremely non-final animations from Rockstar’s forthcoming open world game.

One is of deuteragonist Lucia Caminos jumping out of a pick-up truck, which seems like a thing she’d do, though official GTA 6 trailers suggest she’d do it with a lot more bum jiggle than this. Another is of a placeholder baldy man – let’s christen him as something appropriately generic, like Jean-Luc Picard – undocking a bike from a public bicycle hire station. Yes, GTA 6 has Boris Bikes.

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Anniversary: Monolith Soft Celebrates Xenoblade Chronicles 2 With A Post, But We’re Desperate For A Switch 2 Revamp

Happy birthday, but also why?

Has it really been eight entire years? Yes, it really actually has, so sit up and pay attention at the back.

Xenoblade Chronicles 2, which as every Xenoblade nerd worth their salt knows is actually the third game released in the series, dropped into existence on this very day back in 2017, and it’s a bit good. We gave it a well-deserved 9/10 in our review, so it’s a bona fide banger as officially ordained by the bona fide banger squad™.

Read the full article on nintendolife.com

“We feel we’re reaching a new level”: Cyberpunk 2077’s multiplayer mod just completed its “most stable and successful test” yet

So, an ambitious Cyberpunk 2077 multiplayer mod called CyberMP has been in development for a little while now, and the folks behind it have just concluded its “most stable and successful” closed beta test yet. Tweaks to key elements like vehicle and player synchronisation, as well as a new interface and custom lobbies went down well with testers, while technical gremlins were minimal.

If this is your first time hearing about CyberMP, it’s a project that’s currently being worked on by a team of 10, having first come to prominence last summer. Its goal is to offer multi-person deathmatches and races to Cyberpunkers, rather than full GTA Online-style co-op missioning or gigging.

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Pokémon TCG: Phantasmal Flames Booster Box at Lowest Price Ever for Cyber Monday

Phantasmal Flames is arguably the best first expansion for a new era of Pokémon cards ever, and Mega Evolution was really good for a start. Mega Charizard X heading up this set is such a win, as Charizard is arguably the real mascot of Pokémon over Pikachu (I love them both, don’t hurt me)

For Cyber Monday, Amazon has dropped the price on its Phantasmal Flames Booster Box from $279.99 to its lowest price yet, $254.99, which is also $15 cheaper than TCGPlayer’s lowest listing right now. Bargain, catch it before it runs away.

Phantasmal Flames Booster Box

36 booster backs are inside, which is the best feeling in the world when you’re ripping everything open in one go. Surprisingly, there seem to be quite a few Mega Charizard X ex SIRs and Hyper Gold Rares floating around.

I don’t have numbers or anything to back this up, but there are a lot more posts in Pokémon TCG community groups finding these over previous sets. Maybe that’s just due to more stock being available thanks to increased print runs starting to finally surface?

Who knows, but it’s awesome for collectors and players alike.

There’s more bangers to pull in this set too, such as Dawn – 129/094 for some Diamond and Pearl Nostalgia, Mega Sharpedo ex – 127/094 with some amazing comicbook color use, and even the Alt Ultra Rare Mega Charizard X ex looks amazing with that classy use of neon green and pink to make Mega Zard x stand out.

More Phantasmal Flames Sealed Product

Cyber Monday is a great time to buy up Phantasmal Flames sealed product thanks to the last day of TCGPlayer’s Cyber Weekend 10% cashback event.

Just buy what you want then get 10% back as store credit. You can rack up to 16% cashback today just by signing up for the $8.99 TCGPlayer Subscription, which also get your free delivery and a flat 1% cashback on purchases year-round.

Christian Wait is a contributing freelancer for IGN covering everything collectable and deals. Christian has over 7 years of experience in the Gaming and Tech industry with bylines at Mashable and Pocket-Tactics. Christian also makes hand-painted collectibles for Saber Miniatures. Christian is also the author of “Pokemon Ultimate Unofficial Gaming Guide by GamesWarrior”. Find Christian on X @ChrisReggieWait.

Geoff Keighley Reportedly Teasing a Diablo 4 Expansion for The Game Awards 2025

Geoff Keighley has kicked off his annual The Game Awards tease with social media posts that reportedly relate to a Diablo 4 expansion.

Host Keighley took to social media to show a picture of a monolith located in the Mojave Desert alongside location details.

The caption of the tweet leads to the monolith above, alongside its real-world location in the Mojave Desert. As you’d expect, people tracked it down and uploaded footage to social media.

Overnight, the monolith lit up, giving off hellish Diablo vibes.

Amid all that, Windows Central reporter Jez Corden took to social media to say the tease related to an expansion for Blizzard’s action role-playing game, Diablo 4. Blizzard had said Diablo 4 was set to get an expansion in 2026 (alongside a new ranking system and leaderboards), so an appearance at The Game Awards later this month would make sense.

There’s no detail yet on what this expansion will contain, although earlier this year Diablo 4 fans suggested Blizzard had leaked the Paladin class, perhaps the most-requested by fans since Diablo 4’s June 2023 release. The Paladin is one of the most popular classes from Diablo 2, so its arrival in Diablo 4, should it happen, would be celebrated by the game’s community. The game’s first expansion, Vessel of Hatred, added the Spiritborn class.

Corden’s “more” could relate to a Nintendo Switch 2 version of Diablo 4 — a shadowdrop perhaps? Or it could be to do with something else entirely.

With The Game Awards less than two weeks away, we’re starting to get an idea of what to expect. CD Projekt has ruled out more of The Witcher 4, but we do know that Exodus, the new sci-fi RPG in development at Archetype Entertainment, a studio founded by former BioWare developers James Ohlen, Chad Robertson, and Drew Karpyshyn, and published by Wizards of the Coast, will get a new trailer at the show.

The Game Awards is set for December 11, 2025. Check out all the nominations for The Game Awards 2025.

Cyber Monday is your last chance to secure the best offers of the year before the holidays. If you’re on the hunt for some last minute deals, we’re actively rounding up the strongest Cyber Monday discounts, and you can all our top picks and price drops in IGN’s comprehensive Cyber Monday hub.

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.

The snazzy and sumptuous RPS Advent Calendar 2025

Dastardly December has done it again. Here I was having a nice time with November, joking about the time February tried to explain leap years to August, and the wintry month snuck up in my blindspot. Now December’s in the house, kicking back on the sofa with its feet up on the table. At least it’s brought a gift: the RPS Advent Calendar 2025, the list of our favourite games of the year.

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Elden Ring Is Oly $15 for Cyber Monday, and Nightreign Still Has A Big Discount Too

FromSoftware just doesn’t miss, eh? It’s hard to believe that it’s been over three years since Elden Ring landed on consoles and PC, and it somehow lived up to all of the expectations fans had placed on it.

A game we awarded a 10 out of 10 review score to, the joy of Elden Ring’s age now is that discounts are more plentiful, and the epic action RPG is now at its lowest price of $15 in Walmart’s Cyber Monday sale – and it’s not alone.

Elden Ring And Nightreign Score Big Cyber Monday Discounts

Whether you’re on PlayStation or Xbox, you can pick up the open-world fantasy epic for $19.99 – a 60% drop from the MSRP.

Given that it’s IGN’s Game of the Year 2022, it’s a must-play, especially for under twenty bucks.

“Elden Ring is a massive iteration on what FromSoftware began with the Souls series, bringing its relentlessly challenging combat to an incredible open world that gives us the freedom to choose our own path,” Mitchell Saltzman said in his review, and we stand by it.

It’s worth noting that this version doesn’t include the huge expansion Shadow of the Erdtree, which is large enough to be its own game – and even more challenging. We awarded it a 10 out of 10 score in our review, too. Unfortunately, the Shadow of the Erdtree version of Elden Ring is no longer discounted anywhere..

If you’re looking for something to play with friends, then Nightreign is well worth checking out. It condenses Elden Ring’s combat into a three-player hybrid between roguelite and battle royale as you’re pushed ever closer to challenging bosses.

It’s getting a 36% discount, bringing it down to just $34.99 on PS5 and Xbox.

Mitchell gave Nightreign a 7 out of 10 in his review, saying, “When Elden Ring Nightreign is played exactly as it was designed to be played, it’s one of the finest examples of a three-player co-op game around – but that’s harder to do than it should be, and playing solo is poorly balanced.”

Subsequent patches have smoothed out those jagged edges, but it’s still best played with a couple of buds.

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