The Sony PSVR2 Headset is the best VR headset for PS5 owners, but it has always been an expensive purchase. Thankfully, Sony announced just yesterday that the company would be dropping the recommended retail price of the headset down to $399.99. This price cut brings it more in line with the Meta Quest 3 competitor, which is currently $499 for the Quest 3 and $299 for the Quest 3S.
If you’re hoping to pick up the PlayStation VR2 headset for yourself at this new price, now you can! Retailers have already started adopting the price cut and you can purchase the PSVR2 Horizon Call of the Mountain Bundle for just $399.99 at Amazon, Target, and Best Buy. The bundle had previously sold out at Amazon, but is now back in stock.
The Best PlayStation VR2 Deal Today
Along with the headset, this bundle also comes with a copy of Horizon Call of the Mountain which we gave a 7 out of 10 in our review. This game is exclusive to PlayStation, but that doesn’t mean you can only use the headset with your PS5. Sony released a PSVR2 PC adapter just last year that allows you to connect the headset to your PC and play SteamVR games. This has elevated the PlayStation VR2 headset to be one of the best VR headsets for PC gamers. You can check out our guide on how to connect it to PC for more info.
Nic: Brendy! Why are you here, in my review? What is this, some kind of Split Fiction? Some kind of co-op adventure by Hazelight? Fine, since you’re here: what’s the best bit of Split Fiction, Brendy?
Brendan: We were escaping sci-fi gunships on the back of a stolen motorcycle. You must have felt cool steering us between missiles and gunfire. I could see none of that. I was too focused on clicking the “accept” box on a Terms and Conditions screen. Our ill-gotten bike’s futuristic security had kicked in, you see, and it was my job to disable its self-destruct protocol by phone. You were driving fast and jumping between skyscrapers while I was wrestling with captcha after captcha to stop us from exploding. I laughed the whole time.
Xbox has just announced a number of indie games dropping on Xbox Game Pass in the first half of March 2025, including Enter the Gungeon, Monster Train, and several more.
Up first is Monster Train, which is out today on Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, PC, and Standard across cloud, console, and PC. Monster Train has been on Game Pass in the past, but returns today. Per Microsoft’s description, “Monster Train brings a new strategic layer to roguelike deckbuilding, with three vertical playing fields to defend. Hell has frozen over and only you can protect the final burning pyre from the forces of heaven and restore the inferno.”
Xbox also lists the ever-popular Balatro in its lineup, which dropped on Xbox Game Pass last week following the ID@Xbox showcase. The release came alongside another “Friends of Jimbo” update adding cosmetic changes based on Bugsnax, Civilization, Assassin’s Creed, Slay the Princess, Dead by Daylight, and Fallout to the game.
More games follow in quick succession. Tomorrow, March 5, we’ll see Galacticare drop on Xbox Series X and S for Game Pass Standard users, having already been available on Ultimate. Then on March 6, we get One Lonely Outpost on Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass for cloud, console, and PC users.
Next week on March 11, we’ll see indie darling Enter the Gungeon return to Game Pass Standard, PC, and Ultimate for cloud, console, and PC. As Xbox describes it, “Enter the Gungeon is a gunfight dungeon crawler following a band of misfits seeking to shoot, loot, dodge, roll and table-flip their way to personal absolution by reaching the legendary Gungeon’s ultimate treasure: the gun that can kill the past.”
Two days later on March 13, Mullet Madjack will join Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass for cloud, PC, and Xbox Series consoles. Then the following week, on March 18, a preview of 33 Immortals will drop on Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass. 33 Immortals “is a co-op action-roguelike for 33 players. Play as a damned soul, and rebel against God’s final judgment. Dive straight into epic, 33-player co-op battles with instant “pick-up and raid” matchmaking. Cooperate with your allies to survive against hordes of monsters and massive, challenging bosses. Expand your arsenal and equip powerful new relics to permanently upgrade your soul.” The full game will be available for purchase.
Game Pass Ultimate, PC Game Pass, Game Pass Standard
Mullet Madjack (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S) – March 13
Game Pass Ultimate, PC Game Pass
33 Immortals (Game Preview) (Cloud, PC, and Xbox Series X|S) – March 18
Game Pass Ultimate, PC Game Pass
As always, as new games hit Game Pass, existing games leave the service. You can save up to 20% off your purchase with your membership to keep these games in your library.
Games leaving Xbox Game Pass on March 15:
Evil West (Cloud, Console, and PC)
Yakuza 5 Remastered (Cloud, Console, and PC)
Yakuza 6: The Song of Life (Cloud, Console, and PC)
Solar Ash (Cloud, Console, and PC)
SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom – Rehydrated (Cloud, Console, and PC)
Lies of P (Cloud, Console, and PC)
No More Heroes 3 (Cloud, Console, and PC)
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. You can find her posting on BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.
When you die in Absolom, you are literally reborn from the glowing womb of a giant pregnant lady. This is not how beat ’em ups normally go. The newly announced left-to-right puncher from the developers of Streets Of Rage 4 plans to inject a bunch of roguelike fungus into the bulging musculature of the classic arcade brawler, then dress it in a big fantasy frog suit that’s been handcrafted by a traditional animation studio. It’s a tight squeeze, but having played an hour of a preview build, it certainly looks the part. Although I order you never to use the term “rogue ’em up” to describe it, an explosively upsetting term publisher Dotemu has cheekily tried to invent.
Will look to “support indie developers and reignite classic franchises”.
Back in the day, Acclaim Entertainment was a pretty formidable force in the games industry. It has dozens upon dozens of games under its belt, including the first two Burnout titles, the Turok series, NBA Jam, and of course, Mary-Kate and Ashley: Sweet 16 – License to Drive. Ahh, good times.
Unfortunately, the company went bankrupt in September 2004, but now, just over 20 years later, Acclaim is making a comeback.
A Cracking Clean-up: Peek Inside The Home of Wallace & Gromit With The PowerWash Simulator Devs
Jess Green, Marketing Manager, FuturLab
Cracking clean Gromit! We hope you’re ready for a grand day out to clean up the world of Aardman’s endlessly inventive duo, in the new PowerWash SimulatorWallace & Gromit Special Pack, available today.
We worked closely with our partners at Aardman Animations to faithfully recreate the world of 62 West Wallaby Street in PowerWash Simulator. In the special pack’s five new levels, you can explore the nooks and crannies of their garden, kitchen and dining room and basement, before blasting into space to clean the Moon Rocket.
Grab the cheese and crackers while FuturLab’s Mark Ginbey, who writes PowerWash Simulator, and Animator Alannah Meek, who works on the game’s charming animations, take us behind-the-scenes of bringing the pack, and the WASH LAD, to life!
Get Cracking!
A key part of designing any PowerWash Special Pack is deciding why everything got so messy in the first place. In the case of the Wallace & Gromit pack, things have gone a bit pear-shaped over at 62 West Wallaby Street following a mechanical malfunction – the biggest disaster since the cracker catastrophe of ’89!
“Creating the story for such beloved creations was quite a daunting prospect, but luckily they’re a mucky pair who effortlessly find themselves in all manner of sticky situations, so ideas flowed as quickly as porridge from a malfunctioning AutoChef,” says Ginbey.
“There was no need for any convoluted over-arching narrative, we just needed to put the pair in a series of familiar environments and ask ourselves ‘what could possibly go wrong here?’ Then it was just a case of letting the dirt tell the story.”
“Incredibly, we were also helped by Aardman’s amazing writer Finbar Hawkins to finesse the script and give authenticity to our ideas.”
Well Done, Lad
The WASH LAD is all charged up and ready to assist you in your cleaning escapades, along with their very own industrial washer.
Based on Wallace’s existing LAD (Labor Assistant Device), that first appeared in Wallace & Gromit’s World of Invention, the WASH LAD has been adapted in a couple of different areas to better suit this niche task. From the original, we changed the arms to hinge at the elbows – crucial to provide the elbow grease needed to slough off the muck in the pack. We switched out the wheels for legs, to give our WASH LAD the full range of motion to reach up, crouch down and clean every crevice.
“We created a brand-new character model for Wallace and Gromit, keeping as many elements from the original LAD character as possible,” says Meek. “This was then skinned to the PowerWash Simulator character rig, and a new set of animations were created to better match the LAD character, mainly focusing on making it feel more robotic than the PWS character.”
As you pilot WASH LAD’s stout and sturdy frame, you’ll notice a distinct height difference from the usual PowerWash Simulator character model, as well as the metallic sounds of the hydraulics powering the small bot. It’s also particularly fun to team up with your friends to tackle the filth as a small robot army.
Level Deep Dive
Before we all settle in front of the TV with some cheese and crackers, let’s take a look at our inventive pals’ cosy home, starting with the Dining Room and Kitchen.
Wallace & Gromit’s Dining Room & Kitchen
You’ll be able to spot references from throughout the brand’s history and interact with moving elements such as the train set to immerse yourself within the action.
“The toy train was a challenge to set up animation for!” says Meek, “Washable objects in PowerWash Simulator can’t use the standard animation set up so we had to devise a new system to animate the train and make sure all the carriages follow the train tracks smoothly with a spline curve. Hopefully players will have fun riding the toy train around the circuit!”
Wallace & Gromit’s House
Soak up the serenity of sleepy British suburbs in this level, where you’ll hose down Wallace & Gromit’s quaint front garden and front façade of their classic two-up-two-down. Here, you’ll also walk in the pawprints of an icon as you stoop your way into Gromit’s kennel and have a snoop through his belongings, all in the name of cleaning, of course!
As well as a couple of iconic inventions, like the Soccamatic and Shopper 13, you can also flip the pond to complete the driveway, just like in A Close Shave.
The Knit-O-Matic
The Knit-O-Matic’s in a bit of a tangle, requiring some TLC (tender-loving-cleaning). Head down to the basement to scrub up the infamous contraption – there’s ‘knot’ a moment to lose!
Power up the goliath machine to give it a thorough service, and don’t forget to check the technical (and-not-so technical) drawings!
Meek adds: “Animating washable items, like the Knit-O-Matic, really breathes life into the scene and adds an extra layer of detail for the players to have fun with!”
This lofty space is one to settle into, with high ceilings, heavy machinery and heaps of basement-dwelling odds and ends. When you’re done, give yourself a round of applause by powering up the auto-wash machine! Pfft, automatic washing is over-rated!
Wallace & Gromit’s Vehicles
A rare rain-free day in the usually drizzly English climate can only mean one thing – time to give the car a hose-down! Not one for normalcy, however, Wallace’s collection of vehicles is far from your average hatch-back.
Everything from the Snomanotron to the Top Bun bakery van is caked in filth, even the iconic Techno Trousers need some soapy assistance – just don’t put them through the wrong spin cycle!
The Moon Rocket
Restore the Moon Rocket to its former brie-lliance in the final level of the pack. Covered in more than just stardust, the duo’s space craft has seen better days. Blast off the muck coating its bodywork, before venturing inside to revive the cosy cockpit.
Oh, and there’s also the aftermath of a certain extra-terrestrial picnic that could do with a quick spritz while you’re up there.
We hope you’ve enjoyed this access-all-areas look at our new Pack. See you at 62 West Wallaby Street for a cracking cleaning adventure – I’ll stick the kettle on!
Xbox Game Pass members can play the base game, PowerWash Simulator, as part of their membership. TheWallace & Gromit Special Pack is available today for a separate purchase on the Xbox Store (a copy of PowerWash Simulator is required to play).
The year is young, but 2025 is already shaping up to be a big year for excellent video games. An increasing list of big games is set to release this year for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, and PC. In March, we’ll see new entries in franchises like Assassin’s Creed, WWE 2K, MLB The Show, and many more. Below, you’ll find release dates for all the biggest games and expansions that have been announced for the rest of the year and beyond. Let’s get right down to it.
If you’re someone who likes to preorder your games, you can click the links on the platform of your choice to make sure it arrives on launch day.
March 2025 – Video Game Release Dates
March finallly sees the release of the often-delayed Assassin’s Creed Shadows, the installment that finally delivers what fans have been pining for for over a decade: an ancient Japan setting. Too bad Ghost of Tsushima got there first, but this game still looks awesome. Also out this month is a remaster of the JRPG Xenoblade Chronicles X, plus MLB The Show 25, remasters of the first two Suikodens, Split Fiction, and more.
Age of Mythology: Retold – March 4 – (PS5)
Carmen Sandiego – March 4 – (PS5, Xbox, Switch, PC)
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 (long inhale) Threads, Bluesky, Mastodon, and the social network formerly known as Twitter.
The developers of workplace comedy Say No! More and anti-establishment roguelike Reignbreaker are closing down, and the news comes just two weeks before their final punky action game is due to come out. Studio Fizbin has been struck by ongoing cuts at their parent company Thunderful, they say, and despite pitching follow-up projects to work on after Reignbreaker’s release, none of those will go ahead. Which means they’ll be winding down at the exact moment you’d hope they’d be celebrating a payoff from years of work.
Nintendo has announced that the French judiciary Court has ruled that DSTORAGE SAS, who operates the sharehoster website ‘1fichier’, is liable for failing to remove or block pirated games from the platform.
Although the Paris Court of Appeals had previously ruled in favour of Nintendo in 2023, this further clarification from the French judiciary Court is considered the final word on the matter, marking “an end to a long lawsuit”.
There comes a time in every cat owner’s life where they must ask themselves: how large would this creature need to be before it attempted to bat me around like a catnip mouse? I suspect the answer is “only as large as it needed to be”, so it’s fortunate that Monster Hunter Wilds‘ Palicoes are apparently bred for helpfulness. Is installing a mod to the action game that makes them tall as humans a form of gene splicing? Don’t worry, hunter. Gene splicing is how nature heals itself.
