Of all games ever to capture the hearts of outcasts, misfits, and ne’er-do-wells around the world, none has had an impact as powerful as “the world’s greatest role-playing game”: Dungeons & Dragons. An iconic game featured in numerous shows, popular podcasts, and movies, including the recent star-studded blockbuster, Honor Among Thieves, Dungeons & Dragons celebrates its 50th birthday this year. To celebrate, miniature maker Wizkids has announced their biggest booster set so far, slated for release this July, with 60 figures featured throughout Dungeons & Dragons’ 50 years of history.
The D&D Icons of the Realms: 50th Anniversary Booster Set includes modern pre-painted 5e versions of various D&D monsters alongside their classic 1e versions, the latter of which features monsters never before recreated as minis or even in color. You can pre-order booster packs, each containing one large mini and 3 medium or small minis, here, or even supercharge your collection with the $200 booster bricks, which contain 8 booster packs with random minis.
Among the iconic characters to be featured are 1e and 5e versions of the resurgent Vecna, who recently regained his popularity owing to his appearance as the central villain in the fourth season of Stranger Things. You can also collect multiple versions of the spider queen herself, Lolth, who comes in her spider 5e incarnation and her 1e drow form. And there’s the 1e Eidolon from the iconic cover art of the 1e Player’s Handbook.
Check out side-by-sides of these retro and modern incarnations here:
“The 50th Anniversary Booster Set has become a passion project for the entire D&D community to enjoy,” said Joseph Nuzzo, senior product producer at Wizkids. “Whether you have been playing D&D for 50 years or you just had your first session, there is a miniature in this set for everyone to get excited about.”
Alongside the booster set, Wizkids will also debut the Classic Red Dragon Boxed Miniature for $29.99, which can be pre-ordered on IGN Store. This classic D&D monster, featured on the cover of the original 1977 Dungeons & Dragons: Basic Set has all the same cartoonish goodness from the days of your basement-dweling youth, and stands nearly 5 inches tall with a 75 millimeter base, covered in the creature’s coveted loot. Booster Sets are also available for preorder on DNDMini.com and at local game stores.
There are 10 secret rare figures in the 50th Anniversary Booster Set. IGN is thrilled to announce two of these figures: the Green Knight and Blue Wizard. Along with the Classic Red Dragon, fans can use these two figures to recreate the iconic cover of the 1977 basic set.
When cute crafting RPG Bandle Tale: A League Of Legends Story was first announced at the end of last year, I don’t think I really appreciated the fact it was going to be the next game from the devs behind mortuary farming-me-do Graveyard Keeper. I keep turning this fact over in my head as I watch Lazy Bear Games’ associate producer Vlada Redko play a portion of Bandle Tale over Discord for me, with creative director Nikita Kulaga and Riot Forge’s creative director Rowan Parker telling me about what’s happening onscreen in front of me. As Redko explores the whimsical, knitting-themed city of Bandle as one of League Of Legends’ tiny fluffy Yordle creatures, it is, to put it lightly, quite the tonal shift from their previous work. But don’t let its cute looks fool you.
This is a crafting RPG with a ferociously long set of skill trees to master, with 40-60 hours’ worth of new abilities to learn, objects to construct, errands to run, friends to enlist and – crucially – parties to throw. For in the Bandle woods of Runeterra, life’s problems are solved by having a good old fashioned boogie, including the rather urgent issue of fixing the world’s portal network, which has collapsed in a mysterious accident. It may have a softer, fluffier-looking surface than Graveyard Keeper, but underneath it looks as though there’s just as much to dig into here, so here’s what I’ve learned so far ahead of its release on February 21st.
2023 and 2024 have shown that 2TB PS5 SSD upgrades are actually worth the price. In 2022, prices for 1TB PS5 SSDs averaged around $150, whereas 2TB SSDs hovered closer to $300. Now, we’re seeing 1TB SSDs trickle below the $70 price point and 2TB SSDs can drop to around $100 or sometimes even lower if there’s a good sale. It’s worth noting, though, that you can’t use any old SSD and expect it to perform well on the PS5 console. You’ll want to pick up a PCIe Gen4 x4 M.2 solid-state drive with at least a 5,500MB/s read speed to match the PS5’s internal drive.
TL;DR – The Best PS5 SSD Deals Right Now
Note that Sony recommends a heatsink attached to your SSD and not all SSDs listed here have pre-installed heatsinks. For the ones that do, we’ll be sure to mention it. For the ones that don’t, all you have to do is purchase your own heatsink (like this one for $9) and install it yourself. For our top recommended picks for 2023, check out our full breakdown for the Best PS5 SSDs.
Today Only: Pick Up the Samsung 980 Pro 2TB SSD with Heatsink at Best Buy for $149.99
As part of Best Buy’s Deal of the Day, you can save $80 on the Samsung 980 Pro 2TB SSD with heatsink, bringing it down to $149.99. This is an excellent pickup for your PS5, and only lasts today so act fast!
Seagate Game Drive 1TB PCIe Gen4 NVMe 1.4 SSD with Heatsink for PS5 for $104.00
This is an excellent deal for getting 1TB of storage, saving you around $20 off its MSRP of $124.99. This Seagate SSD is officially licensed and built with the PS5 in mind. It even has a built-in heatsink so you don’t need to worry about spending extra cash on one. On top of all that, it features 7300MB/s read speeds and 6000MB/s write speeds.
If you’re looking to up your storage on PS5 even further, you can’t go wrong with this excellent deal on a 2TB SSD from XPG. Its price has dropped 33%, from $209.99 to $139.99, but you’ll have to grab a heatsink to go with it (which you can do here for $9). This SSD also has read and write speeds of 7400/6800MB/s.
Lexar NM790 2TB PCIe Gen4 NVMe M.2 2280 SSD with Heatsink for $151.70
For those wanting a 2TB SSD with the included heatsink, Lexar has their 2TB NM790 SSD with heatsink discounted at the moment to $151.70. This saves you around 11% off its MSRP of $169.99 and is well worth the investment for its incredible performance (7400MB/s read speeds and 6500MB/s write speeds).
WD Black SN850p 2TB PS5 SSD with Heatsink for $179.99
WD is the only brand that sells an officially licensed PS5 SSD. The SN850P is physically the same SSD as the SN850X, which is the latest generation of WD’s flagship Black series M.2 SSDs. The SN850P’s upgrades over the SN850 include newer flash chips (BiCS5 vs BiCS4) and an updated firmware, both of which offer improved sequential and random read/write speeds. It’s easily one of the fastest SSDs on the market.
Samsung 990 Pro 2TB PCIe Gen4 x4 M.2 SSD for $184.99
The Samsung 990 Pro is an excellentSSD for your PS5. From a purely performance perspective, it’s overkill; the stock SSD in your PS5 will be the limiting factor. You’ll want to pick up an PCIe Gen4 x4 M.2 solid state drive with a rated 5,500MB/s read speed to match the PS5’s internal drive and the 990 Pro is much faster. This one does not come with a heatsink, though, so you’ll need to invest in one.
What if the SSD Doesn’t Include a Heatsink?
Sony recommends you install an SSD that has an attached heatsink. If the SSD you purchase doesn’t include one, it’s simple enough to buy one for $9 on Amazon and add it yourself. Most of these heatsinks are just attached using an adhesive like thermal tape.
Budget to Best: PS5 SSDs
There may be other SSD deals out there, but these are the PS5 SSDs we’ve tried ourselves and highly recommend. They also double up as outstanding boot drives for your gaming PC, in case you don’t need additional storage for your PS5 console.
How To Install a New PS5 SSD
It’s extremely easy! Removing the case cover is completely toolless. In fact, the only screw you have to remove is the one that keeps the cover for the SSD bay in place. You don’t even put it back when you’re done. Sony has a quick and easy YouTube video guide.
I enjoy Games Done Quick, an organisation that raises money for charity (this year is the Prevent Cancer Foundation) by playing games at peak efficiency. If you’ve never watched it before, I recommend loading up the Twitch stream at about 1am and sort of gently dissociating while someone plays an 80s NES game you’ve never heard of. Speaking of, one of the headline acts for this year’s stream – which is running through to this Sunday 21st – was Peanut Butter, a shiba inu trained to press buttons on command, “playing” a NES game that came out in 1985. Although Peanut Butter obeyed his training, some technical issues colluded to snatch a world best time from him – but he raised many thousands of dollars, so good for him.
Peanut Butter is the latest high tide line in the efforts to put more weird and difficult hurdles between you and the controls of games when speedrunning or streaming them. And I must ask: where next? A cat? A snapping turtle biting pressure sensors? A Grey parrot to play a game without any input from you at all? Where will this madness end!?
When it comes to picking up new games, hardware, or accessories for your Xbox, it feels good when you can find those items at a discounted price. Here, we’ll keep you updated on all of the latest deals for Xbox, from games to controllers and so much more. Below, you can find a wide range of items on sale, including some console bundles and controllers.
Though the holidays have passed, you can still enjoy a nice discount on some console bundles for both the Series X and S. One of our favorite deals is on the Diablo IV Xbox Series X bundle, which you can get for $448.80 at Walmart. Grab it quick before the price goes back up, and check out some other console bundle deals below.
Enjoy Discounts On Select Xbox Controllers
In need of another Xbox controller? Well, you’re in luck, as there are quite a few discounted right now at Amazon. In my opinion, you can never have too many controllers. You never know when someone will pop on by and want to play Overcooked or It Takes Two, or any local multiplayer game.
Buying new items for your Xbox doesn’t have to make a massive dent in your wallet, either. Here, we’ll feature a variety of excellent games, accessories, and hardware that are available at more affordable prices regularly or are the just option available when gaming on Xbox.
Assassin’s Creed Mirage Launch Edition is Down to $39.49 and More Xbox Game Deals
There are several Xbox games on sale right now that are worth adding to your collection. One of our favorite deals at the moment is on Assassin’s Creed Mirage’s Launch Edition, which is down to $39.49 from its MSRP of $49.99. That saves you 21%! To see even more Xbox game deals, check out the links below.
Does your family complain when you stay up playing loud shooters late into the night? They’ll stop complaining if you pick up anXbox headset that lets no one but you hear the delightful explosions you cause on the screen. Right now, you can get 10% off the Official Xbox Wireless Headset, bringing the price down to $89.99 from $99.99.
How to Avoid Xbox Game Pass Price Hike ($44.99 for 3-Months of Ultimate)
By securing 3-months of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate for $44.99, you can actually avoid the Game Pass price hike. We recommend securing your current subscription for as long as possible. You can stack up to a maximum of 36 months of Game Pass, meaning you have the option to accumulate 3-month subscriptions up to 12 times.
Admittedly, this approach might put a strain on your wallet, totaling $539.88 if you purchase the 3-month package from the link above. However, when you compare it to the new cost of Game Pass Ultimate for 36 months at $16.99 per month, amounting to $611.64, you’ll realize you’re saving $71.76 on your subscription for the next three years. Otherwise, secure your membership for at least a year to lock in at least some savings overall.
In general, it is advisable to keep an eye out for sales and restocks throughout the year, as availability has improved since the initial launch of the console. Unlike the Nintendo Switch, there is no specific recommendation to wait for a sale regardless of the time of year. Instead, it’s a good idea to monitor various retailers and online platforms for restock announcements and promotional offers.
However, certain events like Black Friday or other holiday seasons may bring about unique bundles, discounts, or promotional deals specifically for the Xbox Series X. These bundles may include additional games, accessories, or exclusive limited editions. While quantities for such promotions might be limited, they can provide an opportunity to get more value for your purchase. See our guide to Xbox Series X prices for more info.
Xbox Series X or Xbox Series S?
Choosing between the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S ultimately depends on your gaming preferences, budget, and specific requirements. Let’s compare the two consoles to help you make an informed decision:
1. Performance: The Xbox Series X is the more powerful option, offering native 4K gaming, higher graphical fidelity, and faster loading times. It has more advanced hardware, including a larger storage capacity. On the other hand, the Xbox Series S targets a lower price point and offers a less powerful performance, targeting 1440p resolution gaming and upscaling to 4K.
2. Price: The Xbox Series S is more affordable compared to the Xbox Series X. If budget is a significant factor for you, the Xbox Series S provides a cost-effective option while still delivering a next-generation gaming experience. For example, the Series S can play Starfield at 1440p 30fps (vs 4K 30fps on Series X).
3. Storage: The Xbox Series X comes with a larger internal storage capacity, allowing you to store more games directly on the console. The Xbox Series S, however, has a smaller storage capacity, which means you may need to manage your game library more actively or rely on external storage solutions.
4. Disc Drive: The Xbox Series X includes a disc drive, enabling you to play physical game discs and enjoy a wider range of media options, including Blu-ray and DVD playback. The Xbox Series S, in contrast, is a digital-only console, meaning you can only play games downloaded from the digital store.
5. Graphics and Performance: While both consoles support ray tracing, the Xbox Series X provides a more immersive and visually impressive experience due to its superior hardware capabilities. If you prioritize cutting-edge graphics and want the best performance available, the Xbox Series X is the preferable choice.
Consider your gaming preferences, budget, and whether you prioritize top-of-the-line performance or cost-effectiveness. If you have a 4K TV, want the most powerful console, and are willing to invest more, the Xbox Series X is the recommended option. If you have a lower budget, a 1080p or 1440p TV, and don’t mind sacrificing some performance, the Xbox Series S offers excellent value for money.
With how expensive gaming is getting in 2023, we’re trying to save you as much money as possible on the games and other tech you actually want to buy. We’ve got great deal roundups available for all major platforms such as Switch and Xbox, and keep these updated daily with brand new offers. If you’re trying to keep costs down while maintaining your favorite hobby, stay tuned for more incredible discounts.
Robert Anderson is a deals expert and Commerce Editor for IGN. You can follow him @robertliam21 on Twitter.
Publisher Atari and developer Dreams Uncorporated have revealed a brand-new narrative trailer for the upcoming Lunar Lander Beyond, a revival of the classic 1979 arcade title.
It’s all very dramatic stuff, with distress calls, rescue missions, and mass evacuations, but at its core, the gameplay itself looks to retain the classic mechanics from the original. Let’s just hope our heroic pilots don’t stumble across some mysterious alien pods, hm?
Welcome to Stygia! Stroll along the tranquil corridors of this once luxurious resort planet, serenaded by the sweet sounds of explosions and gunfire. Sit back and take in the vivid colors of the sunset – the secret ingredient is gamma radiation! Why not make some new friends? Our friendly cannibal gangs would kill to meet you.
Bulletstorm VR invites you to a blood-soaked and adrenaline-fuelled story with guns, gore, and gruesome enemies. Playing as Grayson Hunt, former elite mercenary and current space pirate, you are marooned on a hell planet and the only way out is through – through a hail of bullets, that is. You and your squad must survive not only the horrors of the planet’s inhabitants but also exact vengeance on the man who put you there – your ex-commander, General Victor Sarrano.
The secret to any good vacation is packing smart, and your trip to Stygia would be incomplete without a kick-ass arsenal you can wield with your own two hands. Yes, two – give it to your enemies with both hands with Bulletstorm VR’s exclusive and full support for dual-wielding weapons. Like everyone else, you too must have wondered, in moments of quiet reflection, what does it feel like to lasso a bloodthirsty mutant with an energy leash and sling them into a razor sharp cactus? Well, wonder no more! The energy leash in Bulletstorm VR is a dynamic weapon that lets you pull, push, trap, and even explode enemies up close and far away.
A resort getaway is the perfect place to explore a different side of yourself. Who are you when you’re not a space pirate, grinding away at your day job, shooting up skull-faced goons? Maybe you’re a baddie with an attitude and brand new energy blades. Bulletstorm VR lets you play two brand new levels as Trishka Novak and dual-wield energy blade weapons as sharp as her tongue.
Of course, you always need familiar favorites on holiday, just in case you start feeling homesick. And what’s more familiar than the comforting heft of a good old-fashioned gun? Nothing quite like a rifle with a 100-round magazine to help you lie back in peace (and your enemies in pieces). We have rocket-launching revolvers, multitasking high-speed drill blasters, and bazookas with exploding footballs. Or, how about a four-barrelled shotgun? After all, if you can’t go a little overboard on holiday, when can you?
Sounds like a dream vacation? With the PS VR2, dreams become a virtual reality – or as real as cutting-edge haptics and visuals allow. A 110-degree field of vision lets you take in Bulletstorm’s next-generation visuals – and keep an eye on enemies and traps. The 2000 x 2040 resolution rate per eye brings the grit of Stygia’s badlands and terrordomes to life while the six-axis motion sensing system lets you embody Grayson Hunt as he shoots, punches, kicks, and drinks his way through the planet’s underbelly.
With the PS VR2 Sense controllers, each action immerses you deeper into the world of Bulletstorm. Explosions reverberate not only in your ears but also in your hands. Each weapon in your arsenal feels different in your hands – letting you instinctively know when to reload and how to adjust your aim.
So join us this January 18 for the trip of your dreams – and your enemies’ nightmares. See you in Stygia, boners!
Game publisher Ravensburger announced new details about upcoming competitive events for the popular Disney Lorcana Trading Card Game, including the first-ever World Championship in 2025.
“As we move into 2024, we will continue to support our growing and diverse community through new discoveries for collectors, organized play and competitive events for players and new products that help beginning fans take their first steps into trading card games,” said Ravensbuger’s Global Head of Games Filip Francke in a press release. “We’re only just getting started, but consumer feedback and industry data supports our belief that this game will be around for a very long time.”
Lorcana launched in September 2023 with a hobby store program but no official competitive events. The highly-anticipated competitive circuit begins in May 2024 for North America and Europe. There will be regional-level tournaments called Disney Lorcana Challenges, where the top four competitors earn invites to the North American or European Championship, respectively. The North American and European Championships will be held in Q4 2024. Top players from those Championships will earn invites to the World Championship 2025. Even though the Disney Lorcana World Championship is invite-only, there will be a larger competition open to other players at the event.
Ravensburger promised details on event dates, prizing, and more in March 2024.
In the meantime, there will be new competitive events for the local scene called Set Championships. The first of these will be the Into the Inklands Championship, named after the upcoming set releasing in February. These organized play events are hosted by local hobby stores and award a new Enchanted Stitch – Rock Star Promo card as the first place prize, with the first and second place players receiving a playmat also featuring Stitch – Rock Star (both prizes shown below). Details on how stores can host these events will be announced in late February 2024.
In other Lorcana news, a new product designed to teach beginners the game was announced called Disney Lorcana TCG Gateway. It’s a two-player game that starts both players out with basic 30-card decks and then progressively adds different card types and mechanics until they have a full 60-card deck. Expect Disney Lorcana TCG Gateway to hit stores August 9, 2024 with a retail price of $24.99.
Ravensburger also unveiled the release dates for 2024’s four expansions.
Into the Inklands will be released in hobby shops and Disney parks February 23, 2024, with mass retail stores and shopDisney getting it on March 8, 2024. Into the Inklands is the third set of Disney Lorcana.
The next three sets of the year haven’t had their titles revealed yet, but the release dates will be as follows:
Disney Lorcana Set 4: May 17, 2024/May 31, 2024
Disney Lorcana Set 5: August 9, 2024/August 23, 2024
Disney Lorcana Set 6: November 15, 2024/November 29, 2024
Hey! How would you like to contribute to the downfall of society? I do so by regularly tuning into Love Island and/or Married At First Sight. For those of you who’d like to do your part in videogame form, dev_hell looks to be the answer. It’s a first-person deckbuilding roguelike where you play as a software developer employed by a shady corporation to “reshape the future”, and it’s giving off strong whiffs of Inscryption. As much as I know dev_hell will be incredibly unsettling… I’m in.
Bandai Namco is putting the Nintendo Switch on the highway to the danger zone, announcing that Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown Deluxe Edition will be coming to Nintendo’s hybrid console on July 11.
According to the official release, the Switch version will include “all original content and faithfully recreates the fast-paced action of the original.” It will also include the original release’s 2-8 player multiplayer gameplay, and will bring with it six DLC packs and bonuses from the original game.
In addition to the base game, the full list of content available for Nintendo Switch includes:
Three original aircraft sets + three single-player missions
Part 3 “ACE COMBAT 7: SKIES UNKNOWN – ADFX-01 Morgan Set”
Part 4 “ACE COMBAT 7: SKIES UNKNOWN – Unexpected Visitor”
Part 5 “ACE COMBAT 7: SKIES UNKNOWN – Anchorhead Raid”
Part 6 “ACE COMBAT 7: SKIES UNKNOWN – Ten Million Relief Plan”
Bonus Music Player Mode
Playable Aircraft F-104C – Avril
Playable Aircraft F-4E Phantom II
Three aircraft skins from past entries
8 emblems from past entries
Originally released back in 2020, Ace Combat 7 is the latest entry in the acclaimed aerial combat series. We awarded it a 7 in our original review, writing, “Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown is a great-looking arcade flight combat game, and zipping over high-quality terrain trying to establish missile locks and evade pursuers can be a lot of fun. But the experience often gets weighed down by its weird and convoluted but persistent story and poor communication of objectives. It’s enough to prove that there’s room for the series to make a comeback, though this game will be not the one to jumpstart it.”
Nintendo Switch ports have proven problematic at times due to the platform’s aging hardware, which in many ways struggles to live up to the standards of even the PS4. To allay concerns, Bandai Namco released a trailer featuring side-by-side comparisons of the Switch and PS4 versions. It doesn’t look too far off from other versions of the game, minus a handful of environmental details, but we’ll see when it’s released in July.
Ace Combat 7 is currently available on PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC via Steam, and has sold more than 5 million units to date. There have been no updates on the next entry in the series, but Bandai Namco said that “additional DLC not included in the Deluxe Edition is planned to be available to purchase after launch” on July 11.
Kat Bailey is IGN’s News Director as well as co-host of Nintendo Voice Chat. Have a tip? Send her a DM at @the_katbot.
