The Final Fantasy Universes Beyond crossover is already proving to be a massive hit. After breaking preorder records, the set is now flying off shelves and selling out everywhere, with collectors and Commander fans alike scrambling to pick up iconic characters in card form.

Whether you’re opening boosters, sorting through prerelease pulls, or keeping tabs on the market for trade value, it’s clear this set is drawing serious attention.

If you’re curious which cards are in highest demand right now, either to cash in or just to see what the hype is all about, we’ve broken down the top 12 best-selling Final Fantasy cards based on data from trusted marketplace TCGPlayer.

We’ve simplified the list for clarity, grouping some variants, like Borderless and Surge Foils, with their base versions, while also noting the specific card number that’s proving most popular (i.e, Aerith Gainsborough – 519). Not every slot is a Mythic Rare either. This list includes a bit of variety to reflect what’s actually trending, while still focusing on the standout cards from the set. Let’s dive in.

12. Aerith Gainsborough – 519

Aerith Gainsborough is a deceptively powerful engine for life gain and +1/+1 counter strategies. With lifelink built in, she can start growing immediately,every time you gain life, Aerith picks up a +1/+1 counter.

And when she dies, she passes that strength on, putting X +1/+1 counters on each legendary creature you control, where X is the number of counters she had. In the right deck, that can be a game-ending swing.

The card’s popularity is reflected in its pricing. The standard print is just $1.83, while the foil version goes for $16.81. For collectors or premium deckbuilders, the borderless version is around $39, but the rare borderless surge foil sits at a much steeper $140+.

11. Starting Town – 289

Starting Town is an early-game powerhouse, especially in multicolor decks. If you can play it on turn one, two, or three, it enters untapped, giving you immediate access to mana without slowing your tempo. Beyond that, it taps for colorless, or you can pay 1 life to generate one mana of any color, making it a flexible piece in almost any deck.

That versatility comes at a price. The regular version is currently going for around $14, while the foil will set you back just under $17. Still, for decks that care about fast, reliable mana across multiple colors, it’s proving to be well worth the cost.

10. Summon: Knights of Round – 359

Summon: Knights of the Round is one of the hottest cards from the Final Fantasy crossover right now, and it’s not hard to see why. For just five mana, you create three 2/2 white Knight creature tokens, instantly building a board.

But it gets even better with its [V] ability, Ultimate End, which gives all your other creatures +2/+2 until end of turn and puts an indestructible counter on each of them. Combined with the card’s own indestructible keyword, it turns even a modest board into a nearly unstoppable force.

The borderless version is currently going for $35.99, which marks a 25% drop in market price this month. The standard print is more budget-friendly at $21.88. Either way, it’s a powerful pickup for Knight, token, or white-based Commander decks, and one that’s likely to remain popular.

9. Traveling Chocobo – 210

The chase card of all chase cards, there are just 77 gold foil Traveling Chocobos out there, available. There are other versions, including Neon Ink versions going for well over $1000, but if you manage to find the gold foil, it is the one you’ll want to find when you’re cracking open Collector Boosters.

Considering how much the ink versions are already going for, I can’t imagine how much the Gold Foil variant would actually be valued at, maybe you just win at money and never have to pay for Magic cards again, now that would be nice. But, that being said, one did recently sell for around $30K on eBay.

8. Summon: Bahamut – 1

I love a big ol’ dragon in my Magic collection, and Bahamut certainly fits that bill.

Not only does this Summon create a 9/9, but it can remove permanents, trigger card draw, and use Mega Flare to essentially finish a game of Commander.

All yours for around $93 in the borderless variant, or around $30 for the standard print right now at TCGPlayer.

7. Lightning, Army of One – 545

How many card variants do you NEED? Apparently, Final Fantasy 13’s protagonist, Lightning, needs at least five. To be fair, that makes sense considering how many spin off games she got.

Army of One is all about the Stagger mechanic, teeing your foes up for double damage while also offering lifelink, first strike, and trample in a three-cost card.

Market price is already up to around $256.50 for the most popular Borderless Surge Foil version, while my personal favorite is seemingly the cheapest (but still just as popular), normal print for $20.58.

6. Yuna, Hope of Spira – 549

Yuna’s an interesting one, as it’s just her 549 Borderless Surge Foil that have drawn the most interest from eager buyers in the secondary market.

Yet, her standard variant is also going through much more of geniune surge in value over the past couple of weeks, rising +143.65% in value, jumping from a low of $5.68 to around $20.15 most recently. It’s a big jump in such a short space of time.

5. Tifa Lockhart – 536

Tifa Lockhart continues to be a main stay of the best selling Final Fantasy cards, and even featured as one of the most popular during the presale period just before the Universes Beyond set launched.

Tifa has a Landfall trigger that doubles her power alongside her existing Trample keyword. As TCGPlayer points out, you can grow her attack power with something like Titanic Growth and then use Fabled Passage to double it again.

She’ll set you back between $9.10 for the standard version, and all the way up to $187.60 for the Borderless Surge Foil variant. Otherwise, and quite surprisingly, the non-foil Borderless version is pretty good value for money at around $25.

4. Buster Sword – 255

What’s Cloud without the Buster Sword? Thankfully, this iconic weapon gets the treatment it deserves in Magic’s Final Fantasy set, with a stunning borderless version illustrated by Karuta Shiki. It’s more than just a collector’s piece too, it’s a powerful piece of equipment in its own right.

Buster Sword gives the equipped creature +3/+2, making it a serious threat in combat. But the real payoff comes when that creature connects with a player. Not only do you draw a card, but you can immediately cast a spell from your hand with mana value equal to or less than the damage dealt, without paying its cost.

Of course, a card this flashy doesn’t come cheap. While current listings on TCGPlayer hover around $66 for the standard issue, it has already sold for as much as $208.30 this month for its fantastic borderless version.

If you’re a fan of Cloud or just love flashy, high-impact equipment, this is one to watch, and anything under triple digits is looking like a bargain right now.

3. Vivi Ornitier – 248

Final Fantasy 9 spellcaster Vivi Ornitier, by Toshiyuki Itahana (character designer on the game), might just be one of the best cards in the game right now. So, it’s hardly surprising that it’s standard card is up there as the third most popular in the set currently. Market price isn’t too bad either (at least compared to the rest of this list), if you’re looking to buy one standalone.

The Borderless version is also the absolute definition of a collector’s item if I’ve ever seen one, and proving to have plenty of interest as well. Both of these can also be considered a top 10 card for collectors, also demanding a rather mighty price at around $72.13 for the former, and $232.71 for the later in the market right now.

2. Cloud, Midgar Mercenary – 520

Cloud, Midgar Mercenary is, unsurprisingly, by far one of the most popular cards from the Final Fantasy x MTG Universes Beyond set. Low mana cost and double equipment triggers make Cloud very close to Stoneforge Mystic, but with some striking new anime art from Kazto Furuya.

Not only is the Borderless Surge Foil variant one of the priciest cards from the new set (sitting at around $466 market), the Borderless, Extended Art, and Normal print all also fetch a pretty penny right now.

In terms of popularity, the Borderless Surge Foil is shoulders above the rest, but the Normal print is also exceedingly popular right now according to TCGPlayer, and still one of the top 20 cards players have been chasing since the new set released. Finding any of these, or deciding to buy them out right standalone, are good reasons to get excited.

1. Sephiroth, Fabled Soldier – 527

Sephiroth, Fabled Soldier – 0527 (Borderless) (Surge Foil) is the most popular card in the game right now, and has surged to a market price of $701.55 this week, up +74.09% just this month.

But it’s not the only version that’s proving popular either, with the 382 and 317 Borderless, alongside the 115 Normal print also proving to increasingly sought after right now, which is unsurprisingly reflected in the market prices right now as well.

Where to Buy Magic: The Gathering – Final Fantasy Cards

I’m going to give it to you straight right from the off. It’s painfully hard to get hold of any of these sets from major retailers right now. While we saw some big restocks over the past month, pretty much everywhere is sold out of Final Fantasy MTG at the time of writing.

I can provide some handy links to bookmark so you can check back in, but for now, your best chance of securing anything will be via the most trusted third-party resellers like TCGPlayer.

Or perhaps, collectors will instead be most interested in the new Final Fantasy x Secret Lair drops, instead. It’s been a busy year for Wizards of the Coast’s limited-time mini-sets, and while the company sold out of all three Final Fantasy drops in record time (leaving many disappointed), you can still get them via third-party sellers… if you’re willing to pay the inflated costs, that is.

There are a trio of Final Fantasy Secret Lair sets, Weapons, Grimoire, and Game Over, each offering unique art and names for Magic: The Gathering cards. Everything is available in standard and foil, alongside the Japanese variants as well.

But, since they’ve sold out, you won’t find Secret Lair drops at the same price as you’d find them directly from Wizards of the Coast (standard $30 nonfoil, $40 rainbow foil), with most being listed anywhere between $80-$150 or above.

This is a huge markup, so if you’re looking to buy, be sure you’re 100% informed of what you’re paying for. You can buy them from eBay, but we’ve always found TCGPlayer, while still eBay-owned, to be the most secure and trustworthy way to nab Secret Lair drops post-release.

Lloyd Coombes is Gaming Editor @ Daily Star. He’s a big fan of Magic: The Gathering and other collectible card games, much to his wife’s dismay. He’s also a tech, gaming, and fitness freelancer seen at Polygon, Eurogamer, Macworld, TechRadar, Tom’s Guide, IGN, and more.

This article also includes contributions from Lloyd Coombes. Thanks to TCGPlayer for the data and information that informed this article.

Dying Light: The Beast lead producer Szymon Strauss shares five tips for helping you survive the zombie apocalypse in Dying Light: The Beast, the upcoming new standalone entry in the first-person, melee-plus-parkour action-adventure series.

This is the final exclusive piece of our month-long IGN First coverage on Dying Light: The Beast. If you missed any of our other content, get caught up on our hands-on preview, our 30-minute extended gameplay video, the deep dive on the Chimera boss battles you’ll fight, the weapons overview, and a closer look at the Castor Woods setting.

Dying Light: The Beast will be released on August 22 for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S. Wishlist it on Steam if you’re interested.

Ryan McCaffrey is IGN’s executive editor of previews and host of both IGN’s weekly Xbox show, Podcast Unlocked, as well as our monthly(-ish) interview show, IGN Unfiltered. He’s a North Jersey guy, so it’s “Taylor ham,” not “pork roll.” Debate it with him on Twitter at @DMC_Ryan.

Ubisoft’s next big patch for Assassin’s Creed Shadows arrives tomorrow, June 25, 2025, and the publisher has now detailed everything included.

As we knew already, Title Update 1.0.6 includes the game’s next story pack, which introduces a new Ally character for Naoe and Yasuke played by Critical Role’s Robbie Daymond. Players will meet Rufino, Daymond’s character, and get to hang out with him at their hideout — though whether you can also romance him is unconfirmed.

Another big addition that was previously announced is a new Nightmare Difficulty option. Today brings further detail on what this will comprise, with perfect parries required to deflect hits without taking any damage, fewer combat resources, plus smarter enemies able to see and hear Naoe’s movement even while crouched or in the shadows.

For a slightly more difficult challenge generally, Ubisoft has added an Open World Alarm system that extends the stomping grounds of Shadows’ fearsome Guardian warriors outside of castles and enemy camps. Now, Naoe and Yasuke can earn Wanted status in the open world, should you repeatedly be naughty and attack civilians or military units.

Ubisoft is set to continue adding small dollops of extra story missions, alongside other fixes and feature additions, through the rest of 2025, as fans await Shadow’s first major expansion Claws of Awaji, due at some point before the end of this year.

The full list of additions, and a long rundown of the update’s bug fixes, lie below in full.

PATCH HIGHLIGHTS

New Free Story Pack: “A Critical Encounter”

• Reward: New Ally based on Critical Role’s Assassin’s Creed Shadows One-Shot campaign character, Rufino, played by Robbie Daymond. You will also get a banner in the hideout with the Critical Role logo.
• New Trophy/Achievement: “A Critical Encounter”, received upon completion of the questline.

New Nightmare Difficulty Setting

• Player defensive options are less effective, and enemies deal greater damage at all levels.
  • E.g., Parries now require perfect timing to deflect the hit – imperfect parries will only partially block incoming damage.
• Enemy AI is smarter, faster, and more aggressive in a variety of circumstances, including detection.
  • E.g., Even while crouching, Naoe now generates some sound! And even while in the shadows, she can be seen while moving!
  • E.g., Enemies will no longer become vulnerable from dodges or parries – only abilities can put them into a vulnerable state.
• Combat resources (like adrenaline, rations, and shinobi items) are harder to come by, making their use even more vital.

Toggle Headgear in Cutscenes

• Note that headgear will not be displayed in cinematics or in some specific instances where a rule overrides this setting (romance-specific cutscenes).

VFX Toggles

• Players can now disable/enable specific VFX to further customize their experience. These include the ability to hide or show the loot on dead bodies, the last known position of the player, the special attacks indicators of the enemies, and more. All will be accessible in the Interface option menu.

Open World Alarm

• We have expanded the Regional Alert System available in Castles to the whole Province. Now by repetitively attacking Civilians or Military units outside Castles, the alarm can be triggered, and a group of Guardians will hunt you in the world.

Horse Camera Presets

• You can now toggle between 3 different camera presets while riding on your mount (hold the down button on controller/’X’ key on keyboard while riding) allowing for a more cinematic experience to take in the full beauty of Japan.

Ultra Low Specs for PC

• We are adding a new visual quality level, the Ultra Low mode. This will allow PC players with a limited GPU configuration to experience the game in better framerate conditions.

LIST OF BUG FIXES

General

• Fixed an issue where the Onryo Mask remained visible despite selecting the option to hide gear.
• Fixed an issue where players were unable to earn Mastery Points.
• Fixed an issue where Mastery Points were not returned after resetting the Mastery Tree.
• Fixed an issue where players could not switch characters anymore even without gameplay context restrictions.
• Fixed an issue where allies could be trained to veteran rank without upgrading the dojo to level 3.
• Fixed an issue where Gennojo did not immediately appear in the hideout after recruitment. He was busy washing his hair!
• Fixed an issue where sometimes a player remains stuck in a Red Zone, without being able to fast travel anywhere, by allowing them to fast travel to the hideout.
• Fixed an issue where the Oni Drawing remains stuck on screen after completing the “Vision of the Realms” quest.
• Fixed various localization issues.

Quests

• Fixed an issue where players could not progress in the “A Chance Encounter” quest when following Fuyu.
• Fixed an issue where players could not complete the quest after defeating all Kabukimono.
• Fixed an issue where Lady Oichi’s letter became unavailable after the Fuji-maru cutscene.
• Fixed an issue where players were unable to talk to Katsuhime in the crop field when she was sitting on the ground. She just wanted some peace and quiet!
• Fixed an issue where tracking the “Temple Stories” quest only showed a progress bar with no text.
• Fixed an issue where Genzaburo’s Teppo Master was missing from the Kaya Shrine.
• Fixed an issue where Yagyu Munetoshi revealed a later plot point too early in the “Nobutsuna’s Students” quest.
• Fixed an issue where players could not assassinate the Godai of Void because the NPC was missing. He took his name too seriously.
• Fixed an issue where players could not complete the “Diary of Lady Rokkaku” quest after dodge rolling and dropping Katsuhime.
• Fixed an issue where players could not complete the “Diary of Lady Rokkaku” quest when there was no immediate option to carry Katsuhime.
• Fixed an issue where players glitched through an anomaly in the “Heads Will Roll” quest, making Animus activities unavailable.
• Fixed an issue where players could not progress in the “Lost Honor” quest because the game failed to switch to Naoe.
• Fixed an issue where players could not progress through the Tournament after dying.

Visuals & Graphics

• Fixed some minor visual issues.
• Fixed misplaced visual elements with the Dark Woods Kusarigama.
• Fixed an issue where all NPC horses appeared as identical.
• Fixed a clipping issue with Naoe’s Sekiryu outfit.
• Fixed an issue with the “Bloodshade Katana” being visible out of the sheath when transmogged.
• Fixed a movement physics issue with the Dead by Daylight Oni’s armor.

Audio

• Fixed an issue where footstep audio occasionally ceased when opening the map while moving.

Elden Ring Nightreign is adding its next enhanced Everdark Sovereign boss into the game. Fulghor, Champion of the Nightglow will be the next Nightlord to get an enhanced version, arriving on June 26.

The update goes live at 7am PDT / 4pm CEST / 11pm JST on June 26, as a new target for a Nightfarer expedition. If the big guy is anything like the previous Everdark Sovereign, you’ll have to successfully take down the base version of the Nightlord at least once to challenge its more difficult variant.

Developer FromSoftware started rolling these Everdark Sovereigns out in a surprise drop last week, with the addition of a souped-up Gaping Jaw challenge. These enhanced bosses can throw a lot at the player. Adel, Baron of the Night’s upgraded form was terrifying, zipping around the arena and, at one point, making a giant storm inside the arena.

Fulghor, who reigns under the Darkdrift Knight banner, has already been a bit of a challenge for players in Elden Ring Nightreign in his base form. The centaur can cause some serious damage fast and leaves little room to get in and hit him. The area-of-effect attacks especially cause some problems, if you’re not ready.

So, naturally, the enhanced version of Fulghor could pose some real challenge. Replies to the announcement tweet are gearing up for the prospect of tackling this warrior’s even-more powerful version.

More Everdark Sovereigns are planned to roll out, as FromSoftware has confirmed each week will host a new upgraded boss. As Darkdrift Knight rotates in, it looks like the Gaping Jaw challenge will rotate out. Sentient Pest is the next on the docket, and should pose a fairly interesting challenge, especially with the phase shifts.

We’ve got plenty of Nightreign tips and tricks to help you take down all the eight Nightlord Bosses, and if you’re wondering how to unlock the two locked Nightfarer Classes, check out How to Unlock the Revenant and How to Unlock the Duchess, plus How to Change Characters.

Eric is a freelance writer for IGN.

Nintendo has once again used its Today! app to announce news, this time a release date for Switch 2 exclusive Drag x Drive.

Drag x Drive launches exclusively on the eShop for Switch 2 on August 14, 2025. That confirms no physical release for the game is planned.

Nintendo has so far failed to confirm a price for Drag x Drive, which was announced in April as part of Nintendo’s Switch 2 reveal Direct.

The Nintendo-developed exclusive uses the Joy-Con 2 for 3v3 basketball-style matches where you control wheelchair-using characters. You can use the controllers in mouse mode at the same time to simulate the act of pushing the wheels, speed up, and perform tricks.

With the announcement of Drag x Drive’s release date, we’re starting to get a clearer idea of what’s coming exclusively to Switch 2 during the second half of 2025. On July 17, Donkey Kong Bananza comes out (it just got an eye-catching Nintendo Direct all to itself), then there’s Drag x Drive a month later. Super Mario Party Jamboree – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Jamboree TV launches on July 24, with Kirby and the Forgotten Land – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Star-Crossed World due out August 28. Switch 2 exclusives down for 2025 but without a release date include Kirby Air Riders, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment, and Splatoon Raiders. FromSoftware’s definitely not Bloodborne 2, The Duskbloods, is due out at some point in 2026.

Of course, Nintendo has a number of other big games set for both Switch and Switch 2 later this year, but they’re worth mentioning here as there will be plenty of Switch 2 owners interested in playing them on their new console. These include the long-awaited Metroid Prime 4 and Pokémon Legends: Z-A.

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.

Firaxis and 2K are committed to reversing the fortunes of Civilization 7 with an all-new update, much of which has been “influenced by the community.”

This month’s “hefty” Update 1.2.2 brings a raft of long-awaited features like Large and Huge Maps, expanded Advanced Game Options, and a community favorite: Steam Workshop support. There’s also new Town Specializations, City-State Bonuses, Beliefs, balance changes, UI improvements, and — best of all, of course — “a very pettable Scout dog.”

Players can also finish their current save under a previous version by using the legacy Steam beta branch. Backwards compatibility for existing saves is also available, although you should note that “some new abilities or effects may not appear until you start a new game or advance to the next Age in your current campaign.”

“For the best experience, we recommend starting a new game, or continuing your current game into the next Age,” Firaxis said.

Large and Huge map sizes — which I’m afraid aren’t available on Switch, along with Standard — default to 10 players, but multiplayer campaigns max out at eight people, inclusive of AI companions. The team hopes to expand Huge to accommodate 12 players eventually, but right now it “needs a bit more time to make sure increased player counts won’t compromise game stability or performance.” That said, because of the size, these maps have been spruced up with Pantheons (and two new ones have been added to Antiquity), Religious Beliefs, Discoveries, and City-State bonuses to “ensure there’s enough content for all the players in a game.”

“One of the best things about Civilization is how many ways there are to play,” the update added. “Some players are happy to peacefully build the biggest, best Cities while others want to ignore all that and go conquer the world (‘Yes, your amazing City does look great in my empire’). With 1.2.2, we’ve added several new advanced game setup options to give you even more control over how you play.”

This means you can now decide whether to enable, disable (or turn off entirely) Legacy Paths per Page, specific Crises, as well as disable Score Victory. AI difficulty can be amended, too, and you can bypass Civ Unlocks On Age Transitions now.

“We’ve had a lot of fun playing with different Legacy Paths on or off in each Age. While Legacy Paths that don’t lead to a Victory are always optional, sometimes it’s nice to just tune them out entirely and focus on playing into the unique strengths of your leader and civ,” Firaxis added. “For a fun sandbox game we’ve been playing in the office, try turning off Legacy Paths for Antiquity and Exploration, and setting the game to Abbreviated Ages. If you want to lean into the sandbox feel even more, try turning off Legacy Paths in Modern and the Score Victory, too.”

Feedback from fans about Religion has necessitated changes, too, with the team now adding new Beliefs and updating existing ones to give bonus incentives for converting your own Settlements. There are “bigger and bolder changes” also on the horizon for Religion, but we’ll find out more about those at a later date. You can also expect Town focus bonuses to help them feel more “impactful.”

“Urban Centers in particular have received a glow-up, and now gain access to many of the Buildings that were otherwise only available in Cities (like Libraries and Monuments in Antiquity),” the update explained. “Fort Towns gain the ability to purchase multiple walls so they can really lock down strategic chokepoints. We also introduced a new type of Town Focus: the Resort Town. These relaxing scenic retreats gain extra Gold and Happiness on Rural tiles with Happiness and increased Yields on Natural Wonders.

“Lastly, we felt massed Hub Towns were overshadowing some of the other options and gave them a slight nerf from +2 Influence per connected Settlement to +1 Influence. We’re going to keep our eye on them to see how they compare against the other newly buffed Towns.”

Players will also now be able to find and install mods from Steam Workshop. Oh, and there’s even a new loading screen, with rewritten and re-recorded narration from Gwendoline Christie.

There’s also an absolute smorgasbord of tweaks and fixes, but if I wrote all those out here, we’d be here until Christmas. You can head on over to the official website to see it.

Civilization 7 has had a rough launch on Steam — that much is clear. The strategy sequel has struggled for players on Valve’s platform ever since its launch in February. Despite a number of patches issued by developer Firaxis to reverse things, Civilization 7 finds itself in the unenviable situation of having fewer players on Steam than Civilization 6 and even the 15-year-old Civilization 5. According to Steam user reviews the game is ‘mixed,’ although the last 1,500 or so reviews has it falling to a ‘mostly negative’ rating.

Update 1.2.2 is out now, although Switch and Nintendo Switch 2 players will have to wait a little longer as the team works “diligently to get these updates through the additional Switch submission requirements.” Players still experiencing issues or bugs are encouraged to disable mods and make the team aware.

We thought Civilization 7 was ‘good,’ awarding it a fitting 7/10, writing: “Civilization 7’s improved warfare and added bits of narrative flair give me reasons to keep clicking one more turn late into the night, but the desire to streamline and simplify this legendary 4X series feels like it has also gone a bit too far, particularly when it comes to the interface.”

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.

Back in March this year, game industry veteran Masahiro Sakurai received a lifetime achievement award at the 30th AMD awards. In an interview by ITMedia Business Online conducted at the time (recently republished on Yahoo Japan), Sakurai revealed why he doesn’t hire people, reflected on how the games industry has changed, and touched on the potential use of generative AI in development.

Sakurai is best known as the creator behind two of Nintendo’s big franchises, Kirby and Smash Bros. After working at game dev studio Hal Laboratories from 1989 to 2003, Sakurai became a freelance game creator, founding his own company Sora Ltd. in 2005. In 2022, he created the award-winning YouTube channel “Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games,” in which he shared insight and advice on all aspects of making a game.

Sakurai’s approach differs from that of many game creators who have gone on to form their own companies. “When a game creator becomes the president of a company, it is difficult for them to fully engage in creative activities,” explained Sakurai. “There was a conflict between making interesting games and making management decisions — the problem was that being overwhelmed by the duties of being a president made it hard to focus on the vital part, game creation.”

This led Sakurai to his current approach, which involves creating games without directly hiring or managing any employees. “Basically I work together with other game companies to avoid having to manage a company,” Sakurai explained. “This method has worked well so far. I am able to continue being creative and concentrate on making things without becoming extremely busy running a company.”

However, Sakurai noted that his method is not without its challenges. Working with different game devs means that Sakurai has to “build up trusting relationships and working styles from scratch every time. So, I think it is necessary to have a certain degree of flexibility.”

According to Sakurai, one of the most important elements when working with a team on a new project for the first time is to make sure everyone is on the same page and has a clear, shared vision of the game. “I make sure that many members of staff can share the same information at the same time, regardless of their job or whether they are designer or programmer.” Although this takes more time and planning, Sakurai said that in his experience, this approach “reduces the risk of information gaps” and misunderstandings. “Conversely, if I just conveyed my ideas to the producer, and then they assign work to various other people, then some kind of misunderstanding would occur, or even a 180 degree difference (in what was intended).”

However, when asked whether his approach would be the best for the game industry as a whole, Sakurai was hesitant. “It depends on the person. As for me, I had built up a track record and trust through working on Kirby and Smash Bros. titles in the past. If you don’t have this, if you don’t have any track record at all, then the work won’t come to you. This is a way of working that becomes possible through gaining more allies by continuing to make good games, and it is not a style of working that works well for everyone.”

Hytale, the Minecraft competitor announced in 2018, is canceled and its developer is shutting down.

Hypixel Studios announced that the ambitious, Riot Games-backed Minecraft-style game had ended development, and the studio itself was in the process of winding down.

Hytale was announced in December 2018 with a trailer that has an incredible 61 million views on YouTube. Here’s the official blurb, as it was back then:

Hytale combines the scope of a sandbox with the depth of a roleplaying game, immersing players in a procedurally generated world where teetering towers and deep dungeons promise rich rewards throughout their adventures. Hytale supports everything from block-by-block construction to scripting and minigame creation, delivered using easy to use and powerful tools.

Excitement around Hytale was fueled by the experience of the developers themselves, who co-founded Hypixel, one of the most influential Minecraft servers in the world. Riot Games, maker of League of Legends, invested in the project and eventually bought the studio.

However, the Hytale dream is now over. “This is not the outcome any of us — at Hypixel or at Riot — wanted,” a statement attributed to co-founder Noxy published to the Hytale website reads. “But after years of pushing forward, adapting, and exploring every possible path, it became clear we couldn’t bring Hytale to life in a way that truly delivered on its promise.”

So, what went wrong? According to Noxy, Hytale’s technical ambitions grew more complex, and even after a reboot of the game engine, the team “found that Hytale still wasn’t as far along as it needed to be.”

“It became clear we’d need a lot more time to get it to a place where it could support the ambitious vision for the game,” Noxy continued.

Options such as reducing scope and pushing the game back were rejected as they “would have meant compromising on what made Hytale special in the first place.” “It wouldn’t have been the game we set out to make,” Noxy explained. “And it wouldn’t have been the game you deserve.”

As for Riot, it tried to find investors to save the project, but it sounds like those efforts failed to go anywhere. The affected staff are getting “generous severance and resources to help them find what’s next.”

Confirmation of the cancelation comes just a few months after Hypixel issued a spring 2025 development update, where the studio revealed some of the progress it had made in the first few months of the year. It even finally revealed a new character that it had teased at the end of 2023. New engine progress was called out, with improvements highlighted.

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.

Dune: Awakening developer Funcom said it is aware that “players are reporting being cut out of the endgame due to the extremely competitive nature of the Deep Desert.”

Last week, Funcom assured players in an AMA it was already “formulating a plan” to improve PvP in the Deep Desert, which players have previously branded as “toxic” due to griefing even after patching out the ability for players to squish other people with their Ornithopter.

In a candid letter from the creative director, Joel Bylos said: “So let me start by stating this unequivocally — we want PvE players to be able to play the endgame and have access to the content of the endgame. Our goal is not to force PvE players to interact with a PvP system that they may have no interest in.

“We still believe in the core concept of the Deep Desert — an endlessly renewing location that resets every week and creates an activity loop for great rewards. The tension of heading out there, head on a swivel, eyes peeled for foes as you enter the most dangerous part of the most dangerous planet in the universe, Our wish was that players would embrace this loop, forming guilds to work together to overcome the bleakness of the Deep Desert. But as Stephen King says, ‘Wish in one hand, sh*t in the other, see which one fills up first.’ One of my hands is overflowing right now and sadly not with wishes.”

Bylos admitted that the “extremely competitive nature” of the Deep Desert was forcing players to engage when they may prefer PvP, and consequently, some areas of the Deep Desert will now be flagged as “Partial Warfare (PvE)” where players can grab rare resources without getting ambushed. The largest spice fields, shipwrecks and Landsraad control points will remain “War of Assassins (PvP)” as “high reward, high risk” areas.

That said, the whole game is balanced around guilds and groups, so if you prefer to be a lone wolf, you can expect it to be “grindy if [you] play solo.”

As for the Orni griefing? “Thopters will always be incredibly important for crossing the desert, but they shouldn’t also be the dominant force in actual battles,” Bylos said, adding that the following will be implemented “shortly”:

• Scout Ornithopters with rocket launchers attached will have their speed maneuverability reduced
• Rockets fired from Scout Ornithopters will have increased heat generation
• Thrusters will provide a max speed bonus regardless of wings, ensuring that thruster equipped scouts will be the fastest vehicles in the game
• A new T5 infantry rocket launcher will be added to help improve the dynamics of vehicle/ground combat

Finally, the Landsraad. Bylos defines it as “an umbrella for all endgame activities,” such as dungeons, contracts, and “more specialized delivery tasks.”

“As a system it is an activity driver that is designed to promote the conflict between the factions, internal politics between the guilds, while providing goal thresholds for individuals and groups to work towards getting personal rewards,” the director explained. “And the Landsraad should be doing that for everyone who wants to participate in the elder game, be they PvEer or PvPer. The Landsraad should be giving you things to do every day and every week.

“It’s nothing new, from a design perspective, we’ve seen daily/weekly quest systems in games for a long time. Our approach was to try and frame this system around the greater politics of the Dune universe, by having players engage in activities to earn the votes of the various Landsraad houses.” Consequently, Funcom will shortly be addressing “key flaws” in the Landsraad design, too, including stockpiling, which is currently rewarded but was not designed to be that way.

“Once a live game launches, it becomes a collaborative effort between the developers and the players to make it something amazing,” Bylos concluded. “We appreciate your feedback on what we hope is the beginning of a long journey together.

“Bear with us — our intention is to be clear and open in our communications and to make Dune: Awakening a game that everybody can enjoy.”

We gave Dune: Awakening a Great 8/10 in our review, writing: “Dune: Awakening is an excellent survival MMO that captures Frank Herbet’s sci-fi world incredibly well, mostly to its advantage and occasionally to its detriment. The survival climb from dehydrated peasant to powerful warlord of Arrakis is a joy almost every step of the way, and the story and worldbuilding filled this nerd with absolute joy. There’s still plenty for Awakening to work on though, as its combat never really hits its stride, the endgame is a bit of a chaotic mess not worth the effort.”

If all that’s got you interested, make sure to check out all the Dune: Awakening classes you can choose from, and keep an eye on our in-progress Dune: Awakening walkthrough for a step-by-step guide to the story. To help you survive on Arrakis, we’ve got Dune: Awakening resource guides that’ll help you find iron, steel, aluminium, and a Dune: Awakening Trainers locations guide.

Dune: Awakening has enjoyed a superb launch, with a ‘very positive’ user review rating on Steam. Within hours of going live on June 10, Funcom’s survival MMO had clocked up over 142,000 concurrent players on Valve’s platform, and hit a new high earlier this month of 189,333 players. And it’s already clocked up over 1 million players, too, making it Funcom’s fastest-selling game ever.

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.

Update: The Pokémon Company has officially announced its new series for its popular trading card game, Mega Evolution. Its first expansion will be titled “Pokémon TCG: Mega Evolution.” More information will be revealed on July 10, 2025.

It’s expected to launch in September this year, while Japan’s equivalents, “Mega Brave” and “Mega Symphonia”, will launch in August. The original story continues below.

Just when you thought the Pokémon TCG had enough going on with Destined Rivals and Black Bolt and White Flare, in comes a brand new series altogether with the Mega Brave and Mega Symphonia sets (Update: Mega Evolution for English markets).

Originally announced at Japan’s Championship tournament, as reported by PokeBeach and later confirmed by The Pokémon Company, the two new sets featuring Mega Lucario ex and Mega Gardevoir ex mark the popular trading card game stepping away from its Scarlet and Violet era.

Mega Brave and Mega Symphonia will release on August 1, 2025, in Japan, and in September for English markets as “Mega Evolution”.