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.

Announced at Japan’s Championship tournament, as reported by PokeBeach, 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. It will release on August 1, 2025, in Japan, and September 26 in English markets (with preorders also supposedly taking place on September 13).

Warhammer 40,000: Darktide developer Fatshark has released the Battle for Tertium update, with the new Adeptus Arbites class DLC also set to go live. Patch notes are below.

The Adeptus Arbites, Darktide’s first class DLC, goes live around 7am PDT / 4pm CEST time today, June 23, priced $11.99 / €11.99 across all platforms.

This comes alongside the free Battle for Tertium update. This reworks the core player experience “to provide a new clearer narrative focus, following the conflict of the Battle for Tertium,” Fatshark said.

Players will now experience a linear campaign with new mission debriefs and embedded cinematics. This new progression path is designed to “ease in new players and gradually unlock features that were previously gated by character level,” the studio added.

While previously each new player’s experience was completely random, the Battle for Tertium narrative presents maps, enemies, and characters in a specific order. This, Fatshark hopes, means players will discover all aspects of the game at a much better pace.

The story missions play the same as regular missions, except they have a tighter control over which enemies spawn. You might also hear some new VO lines during missions, Fatshark teased, and some brand new mission debrief cinematics when completing each mission.

Existing players with characters at level 10 or higher can choose to skip the story or play it from the beginning. Players who change their minds about playing the campaign can opt out by using the Personality Scourge at the Barber-Chirurgeon.

It’s worth noting that if you skip the story when you first log-in with this update, you cannot revert this decision. The only way to play the story after choosing to skip it is to create a new character. The option to replay story missions at any time is still in progress, Fatshark clarified.

Story wise, the Arbites’ arrival takes place after the events of the Battle for Tertium, so while you can absolutely play as an Arbites through the new campaign, some of the story scenes will not be addressed to your type of character. Fatshark suggests playing the Battle for Tertium for the first time with one of the core characters.

Elsewhere, there’s a new mission board system, which changes how you engage with missions and difficulties. Missions are no longer tied to a specific difficulty, allowing you to select a mission and then choose the difficulty you want. This will effectively increase the amount of mission options available for players of all difficulty levels.

Tied into this, the difficulty system has been overhauled. You now unlock new difficulties by completing missions rather than leveling up your characters. “You must prove your skills at your current maximum difficulty to unlock access to the next one,” Fatshark explained. “We intend to create a motivation for new players to master the game step by step, and for veteran players to feel assured that their teammates have earned the right to be there.”

You will make progress by playing missions at your current maximum difficulty. Completing missions advances your progress. Mission Failures reduce your progress slightly but you will never be demoted to a lower difficulty. Higher difficulties will require you to complete more missions to unlock them. For existing characters, your difficulty progression will be migrated based on their character level and completed missions.

Battle for Tertium is one of the most significant updates for Darktide yet, and comes as the co-op first-person Warhammer 40,000 game nears its third birthday. After a troubled launch, Fatshark has improved Darktide significantly, to the point now where it has a ‘mostly positive’ Steam user review rating.

Warhammer 40,000: Darktide Battle for Tertium update patch notes:

Quality of Life Changes

• Increased maximum number of operatives to 8.
• Increased maximum number of weapon loadouts to 8.
• Added a total of ~900 new banter conversations, both between the original cast and Arbites.

Weapon Balance Changes & Tweaks

Catachan “Devil’s Claw” Swords

This batch of changes for the Devil’s Claw swords aims at further reinforcing the crowd control and reliability of the family.

We increased the offensive properties of the Light attack profiles, while also significantly increasing the armour damage modifiers (“adm” from now on) of the Heavy Strikedown and Special Riposte profiles against specific armour types.

We improved the base Stamina statistic, reduced the minimum Block time (the amount of time that the Block stance must be maintained after performing the input) and allowed for most attacks and attack starts to be performed while sprinting. This will make the weapon snappier and more responsive in different situations.

Finally, we took a pass on all attacks to tweak active windows, ranges and hitboxes to be better aligned with their animations.

For the Mk I, we added a new Heavy Strikedown attack, only reached from Light 3. In turn, the Light 3 attack is now reachable also from the Push action, and has an increased baseline power multiplier.

These additions will grant additional options to a mark which was lacking in single target attacks.

For the Mk IV, we raised the power level multiplier of the Light 4 attack as it was very far into the attack chain and not particularly enticing.

For the Mk VII, we increased the power level multiplier of the Pushfollow and Light 3 attacks while also changing the possible combos after a Riposte attack.

Now after a successful Special Parry, the combo will chain into the Pushfollow attack instead of Light 3; as the Pushfollow attack still chains into Light 3, this will give the mark a new unique chain.

Detailed Changes – Catachan “Devil’s Claw” Swords

Damage profiles

• Light Vanguard
  • 1st target damage from {40, 80} to {60, 100}.

Dev Note: The change will also affect the Turtolsky Heavy Swords Special followup Light attacks.

• Light Strikedown / Light Strikedown Stab
  • 1st target adm vs Maniac from 1 to 1.25.
  • 1st target damage from {100, 200} to {115, 230}.
  • 2nd target damage from {25,60} to {40,80}.

Dev Note: The changes will also affect the Turtolsky Heavy Swords Pushfollow attacks and the Maccabian Mk V Duelling Sword Light 3 attack.

• Heavy Strikedown
  • 1st target adm vs Unarmoured from 1 to 1.1.
  • 1st target adm vs Unyielding from 0.75 to 1.25.
• Riposte
  • 1st target adm vs Unarmoured from 1 to 1.25.
  • 1st target adm vs Unyielding from 1 to 1.25.
  • 1st target adm vs Carapace armour from 0.25 to 0.5.

All marks

• Added Allowed during sprint to most attacks and attack starts.
• Block minimum time from 0.3 to 0.225.
• Stamina template update:
  • Base Stamina from 4 to 4.5.
• Tweaked damage windows, hitboxes and ranges for several attacks.
• Updated Inspect screen to correct some attack gestalt icons (visual only change).

Mk I

• Added a new Heavy Strikedown attack with 540 power level multiplier .
  • This attack will chain only from Light 3.
• Light 3 chains now to Light 2 / new Heavy Strikedown instead of Light 1 / Heavy 1.
• Push chains now to Light 3 / Heavy 1 instead of Light 1 / Heavy 1.
• Heavy 2 chain time to Start attack from 0.55 to 0.5.
• Push chain time to Start attack from 0.35 to 0.3.
• Added 545 power level multiplier to Light 3 (from default 500).
• Added 535 power level multiplier to Pushfollow attack (from default 500).

Mk IV

• Heavy 1 windup from secondary start from 0.56 to 0.46.
• Added 550 power level multiplier to Light 4 (from default 500).

Mk VII

• Pushfollow damage profile from Light Strikedown to Light Strikedown Stab.
• Riposte chains now to Pushfollow / Heavy 1 instead of Light 3 / Heavy 1.
• Added 535 power level multiplier to Light 3 (from default 500).
• Added 525 power level multiplier to Pushfollow attack (from default 500).

Atrox Tactical Axes

While sporting overall good mobility, the Tactical Axes had only average Sprint values.

We significantly improved their Sprint profile, while also allowing for most attacks and attack starts to be performed while sprinting.

We also significantly raised the damage of the Special attacks and added a new profile for the Heavy Strikedowns with a vertical or uppercut direction, with increased damage and Carapace armour modifier.

Finally, we took a pass on all attacks to tweak active windows, ranges and hitboxes to be better aligned with their animations.

For the Mk II, we added a power level boost to the Light 3 attack, as it is further into the attack chain, and to both Special attacks, as they are slower compared to the other two marks.

For the Mk IV, we upgraded the damage profile for both Heavy attacks and slightly lowered their chain timings, as they are both performed in a vertical or uppercut direction.

For the Mk VII, we added a power level boost to all Light attacks, as they inflict a higher movement speed penalty compared to the Lights of the other marks, and changed the Heavy 2 profile to the new Heavy Strikedown.

Detailed Changes – Atrox Tactical Axes

Damage profiles

• Light Assassin
  • Added 3rd target.
• Heavy Strikedown (diagonal)
  • Adm vs Carapace armour from 0.25 to 0.3.
• Added a new Heavy Strikedown profile for vertical and uppercut attacks, with the same. properties as Heavy Strikedown (diagonal) aside from:
  • 1st target damage from {100,200} to {115,230}.
  • 1st target adm vs Carapace armour from 0.3 to 0.5.
• Special Stab
  • 1st target damage from {25,50} to {70,140}.
  • Removed Crit Chance bonus.
• Special Strikedown
  • 1st target damage from {25,50} to {60,120}.
  • 1st target impact from {8,16} to {10,20}.
  • Removed Crit Chance bonus.

All marks

• Sprint template from “default” to “assault”.
  • Forward acceleration from {0.15, 0.4} to {0.4, 0.8}.
  • Forward deceleration from 1.25 to 2.1.
  • Sprint speed modifier from {-0.5, 0.5} to {-0.25, 0.85}.
• Increased action total time for most Heavy attacks.
  • This will make continuing the combo chain after the attacks more forgiving.
• Added Allowed during sprint to most attacks and attack starts.
• Tweaked damage windows, hitboxes and ranges for most attacks.
• Buffer time for the Special input from 0.2 to 0.4.

Mk II

• Added power level multiplier 515 to Light 3 (from default 500).
• Added power level multiplier 550 to Special 1 and Special 2 (from default 500).

Mk IV

• Changed damage profile of Heavy 1 and Heavy 2 from Heavy Strikedown (diagonal) to the new Heavy Strikedown (vertical/uppercut).
• Lowered chain times to Start Attack and Special Attack from Heavy 1 and Heavy 2 from 0.5 to 0.4.
• Added power level multiplier 515 to Heavy 2 (from default 500).

Mk VII

• Changed damage profile of Heavy 2 from Heavy Strikedown (diagonal) to the new Heavy Strikedown (vertical/uppercut).
• Added power level multiplier 550 to Light 1, Light 2, Light 3 (from default 500).

Shock Mauls

The Shock Mauls, while being dependable in inflicting stagger, were also below average in damage output and overall not very exciting.

We increased the damage against the 1st target on most profiles, with a particularly large bonus to the Heavy Strikedown and Special attacks.

We also enhanced the base Stamina and Dodge templates, and tweaked hitboxes and active windows of some attacks to better align with their animations.

For the attacks with an uppercut direction (Light 3 on the Mk Ia / Light 4 on the Mk III) we slightly delayed the start of the attack active window to make it easier to connect with weakspots.

Finally, for the Mk Ia, we added power level multipliers to the Light 3 and Light 4 attacks, to make them a more enticing combo alternative to just returning to Heavy 1.

Detailed Changes – Shock Mauls

Damage profiles

• Light Strikedown
  • 1st target damage from {100,200} to {115,210}.
• Light Vanguard
  • Cleave from “light” to “medium”.
    • From {3.0,6.0} to {4.0,9.0}.
  • 1st target damage from {100,150} to {110,165}.
• Heavy Relentless
  • 1st target damage from {110,260} to {120,270}.
• Heavy Strikedown
  • Cleave from “big” to “light”.
    • From {8.5,12.5} to {3.0,6.0}.
  • 1st target damage from {140,350} to {160,390}.
  • 4th target damage override removed (from 0 to {30,50}).
• Light Relentless
  • adm vs Maniac from 0.8 to 0.75.
  • adm vs Carapace armour from 0.75 to 0.4.
  • 1st target damage from {80,150} to {90,165}.
• Special attack
  • Sticky damage tick from {10,70} to {30,80}.
  • Stun damage tick from {40,50} to {50,65}.

All marks

• Stamina template update:
  • Base Stamina from 4 to 4.5.
  • Sprint cost per second from {1.5, 0.5} to {1.25, 0.75}.
  • Inner angle Block cost from {1.5, 0.5} to {1.0, 0.5}.
• Dodge template update:
  • Effective dodges limit from {3, 4}, to {3, 5}.
    • From 4 to 5 maximum effective dodges at high Mobility stat.
  • Dodge distance from {0.85, 1.0} to {0.9, 1.1}.
  • Dodge speed from {1.0, 1.2} to 1.0.

Mk Ia

• Light 1 damage profile from Light Relentless to Light Vanguard.
• Added power level multiplier 530 to Light 3 (from default 500).
• Added power level multiplier 550 to Light 4 (from default 500).
• Tweaked hitboxes for Light 3 and Light 4.
• Tweaked damage windows for Light 4 to make it easier to connect with weak spots.

Mk III

• Tweaked hitboxes and damage windows for Light 1 and Light 2.
• Tweaked damage windows for Light 3 to make it easier to connect with weakspots.

Tigrus Heavy Eviscerators

The Eviscerator’s thunder was in part stolen by the Relic Blades, which have overall better cleave properties while also being no slouch in the single target department.

To give these iconic Zealot weapons a deserved bump, we tweaked most of the attack profiles: we removed the damage caps on secondary targets for the sweeping Vanguard/Relentless attacks, but also increased several armour modifier values, significantly improved the damage on the Heavy profiles and normalised most of the Special active profiles.

For the Mk III, we changed the chain times to key actions after the Heavy 1 attack to make it more responsive but less spammable with swap cancelling, slightly increased the speed of the Light 2 attack and added a power level multiplier to the Light 3 and Heavy 2 attacks.

Detailed Changes – Tigrus Heavy Eviscerators

Damage profiles

• Light Strikedown
  • adm vs Maniac from 0.5 to 0.9.
  • adm vs Infested from 0.75 to 1.
  • Removed adm reduction on 1st target vs Carapace armour; from 0.1 to 0.25.
• Light Vanguard/Relentless
  • Upped damage on secondary targets.
  • Removed damage cap after 4th target.
• Heavy Vanguard
  • 1st target damage from {150,300} to {165,345}.
  • 1st target finesse multiplier from 0.5 to {0.4,1.0}.
  • Upped damage on secondary targets.
• Heavy Strikedown
  • 1st target damage from {150,300} to {175,350}.
  • 1st target adm vs Carapace armour from 0.25 to 0.5.
  • 1st target finesse multiplier from 0.5 to {0.5, 1.0}.
• Light Strikedown (Special active)
  • Removed damage overrides.
  • Removed finesse multiplier override.
• Light Vanguard/Heavy Strikedown/Pushfollow (Special active)
  • Removed damage overrides.

All marks

• Added 0.4s buffer time to the Unwield input.

Mk III

• Heavy 1 chain to Unwield from 0 to 0.45.
• Heavy 1 chain to Start attack from 0.6 to 0.45.
• Heavy 1 chain to Block from 0.7 to 0.6.
• Light 2 time scale from 0.85 to 0.9 (sped up).
• Added power level multiplier 525 to Heavy 2 and Light 3 (from default 500).
• Updated Heavy 2 and Pushfollow attack damage profiles on Special abort.

Mk XV

• Updated Pushfollow attack damage profiles on Special active and Special abort.

Lucius Helbore Lasguns

The Helbore Lasguns suffered from a very long Wield action duration, making it hard to quickly swap to priority targets (especially accounting also for the charging shots).

While this behaviour was intended, it also became increasingly punishing as the enemy numbers grew in higher difficulties.

In this balancing pass we sped up the Wield action, walking the line of maintaining the cumbersome feeling while also allowing for the weapons to be easier to swap into.

Alongside this change, we improved some of the armour and Finesse modifiers for ranged shots, and extended the hitscan radius of the las projectiles*, to make it easier for the weapon to shine as a marksman tool.

* This will make the hitscan detection more generous and allow for shots that would have slightly missed the target to still be considered a hit.

For the Mk V, we slightly increased the camera zoom in ADS mode.

For the Mk IV, we increased the camera zoom in ADS mode to be equivalent as the Mk IIIa.

We also improved the speed and offensive properties of the Special Slash attack, to be more in line with the Special Stab used in the other marks.

Detailed Changes – Lucius Helbore Lasguns

Damage profiles

• Near charged shot
  • adm vs Unarmoured from 1 to 1.1.
  • adm vs Maniac from 1 to 1.25.
  • adm vs Infested from 1 to 1.1.
• Far charged shot
  • adm vs Unarmoured from 1 to 1.25.
  • adm vs Infested from 1 to 1.25.
• All shots Finesse Boost
  • vs Carapace armour from 0.1 to 0.2.
  • vs Maniac from 0.25 to 0.35.
  • vs Unyielding from 0.25 to 0.3.
• Special Slash
  • Added Ignore stagger reduction.
  • 1st target finesse multiplier from 0.75 to 1.

All Marks

• Added time scale 1.5 to Wield action (sped up).
• Added 0.05 radius to hitscan templates.
• Buffer time for the Special input from 0.2 to 0.4.

Mk V

• ADS Vertical Field of View from 65 to 55.

Mk IV

• Chain from Special start to Special attack from 0.3 to 0.25.
• Chain from Special attack to Special start from 0.7 to 0.645.
• Tweaked Special attack hitbox and damage window.
• ADS Vertical Field of View from 65 to 45.

Combat Shotguns

The Combat Shotguns have been in a spot where they are mostly used for their Special shells, while the normal shots felt underwhelming in most circumstances. They also suffered from long reload times relative to other weapons.

With this update we are trying to improve the overall usability without relying solely on the Special mechanic.

Along with increased base damage and reload speed, the Combat Shotgun family gets updated Sprint and Stamina templates, to enable a more mobile, close-range playstyle and not rely only on precision weak-spot shots.

We also significantly increased the ammo reserves for all marks.

Finally, we slightly increased the Cleave and Impact values to allow it to punch through lesser enemies.

For the Mk VII, we aligned the Finesse boost curve between hipfire and ADS modes.

For the Mk IX, we slightly extended the Near and Far effective ranges.

Detailed Changes – Combat Shotguns

All Marks

• Sprint template from “killshot” to “assault”.
  • Sprint forward acceleration from {0.15, 0.4} to {0.4, 0.8}.
  • Sprint forward deceleration from 1.25 to 2.1.
  • Sprint sideway acceleration/deceleration from 5 to 7.
  • Sprint speed modifier from {0.5, 0.5} to {0.25, 0.85}.
• Updated Stamina template
  • Stamina modifier from 2 to 4.
  • Sprint cost per second from {2, 1.5} to {1.5, 0.5}.
• Increased Reload speed by around 10%
  • Affecting both regular and special shells.

Damage profiles

• Zarona MK VI
  • Damage from {250, 500} to {300, 600}.
  • Cleave
    • Cleave attack From 0.01 to {2, 4}.
    • Cleave impact from 0.01 to {2, 4}.
  • Ammo reserve from {60, 80} to {70, 95}.
• Agripinaa Mk VII
  • Damage from {200, 400} to {250, 480}.
  • Cleave
    • Cleave attack From 1.3 to 2.5.
    • Cleave impact from 1.3 to 2.5.
  • Ammo reserve from {75, 95} to {80, 105}.
  • Finesse boost curve shooting from HipFire increased to match ADS.
    • {0.6,1.2} to {1.25,2.5}.
• Accatran Mk IX
  • Damage from {450, 700} to {550, 740}.
  • Cleave
    • Cleave attack From 2 to 3.5.
    • Cleave impact from 1 to 3.
  • Ranges
    • Close range from {6, 8} to {6, 11}.
    • Long range from {12, 16} to {12, 17}.
  • Ammo reserve from {45, 65} to {55, 85}.

Double-barreled Shotgun

To increase the reliability of the weapon against bigger targets, we increased the armour damage modifier against the Unyielding type at both Near and Far ranges.

Additionally, we slightly raised the ammo reserves to allow for more aggressive approaches.

Detailed Changes – Double-barreled Shotgun

Damage profiles

• adm vs Unyielding
  • Near from 1.0 to 1.1.
  • Far from 0.5 to 0.65.
• Ammo reserve increased from {40, 80} to {50, 90}.

Bug Fixes & Changes

Weapons and Blessings

• Fixed an issue where the description for the ‘Run n Gun’ blessing was displaying incorrect prefixes.

Classes

Psyker

• Fixed an issue where the Disrupt Destiny keystone sometimes failed to show stacks in the HUD.

Missions

Inter-Zone Void Sector Omega-12

Clandestium Gloriana

• Fixed several places in Clandestium Gloriana where players could get out of bounds.
• Rotated the door after the mid event in Clandestium Gloriana to avoid players getting trapped behind it when it opens.

UI/UX and Animation

• Fixed an issue where an “additional objectives” string in the Penance menu would not localize correctly.

Miscellaneous

• Deadzone options now apply to both sticks when playing on controller.

Cosmetics

• Fixed clipping issue on the Zealot “Stygian Kantrael MK IVG Flak Helm” headgear.
• Fixed clipping issue behind the arms on the Veteran “Stygian MK lll Flak vest” upper body.
• Fixed longer hairstyles clipping issue with the Psyker “Stygian MK IV Psykana Collar with Rebreather” headgear.
• Fixed an issue where the Psyker “Illius Pattern Battleshoud with Psykana Collar (Burn Sulphur)” headgear would remove the operative’s eyebrows.
• Fixed issues with the Veteran “Militarum Field Jacket” upper body clipping with “Militarum Type 47” lower body.
• Fixed issues where the following Veteran headgear cosmetics would clip certain hairstyles
  • Ock’s Blood Goggles
  • Tinker Zard’s Superior High-vis Goggles
  • Chasm Railer Goggles
• Fixed corrupted texture on Veteran “Vostroyan Hat with Tox Guard Face Mask (Mountain Snow)” headgear.
• Fixed clipping issue on the Veteran “Stygian Mk I Armoured Fatigues” lowerbody.

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.

Peak, a co-op climbing game from the team behind Another Crab’s Treasure, is taking Steam by storm, selling 1 million copies in just six days.

According to Steam’s official top-selling games chart, which sorts games by revenue on Valve’s platform, Peak is ahead of the likes of Dune: Awakening, Stellar Blade, and Elden Ring Nightreign, albeit at a significantly lower price.

Peak hit an impressive… peak concurrent player figure of 102,799 yesterday, June 23, which was enough to make it one of the most-played games on Steam over the weekend.

“Why did this stupid jam game sell more copies than Another Crab’s Treasure?” posited a facetious post by developer Aggo Crab on Bluesky. “I’m gonna crash out.” A follow up tweet, however, thanked players with a heart emoji.

why did this stupid jam game sell more copies than another crabs treasure im gonna crash out pic.twitter.com/n7KJ7RPLl8

— AGGRO CRAB 💥 (@AggroCrabGames) June 22, 2025

Perhaps unsurprisingly, then, Aggro Crab team spent the weekend working on a patch for the newly released game, including a better lobby, a reminder to sprint when almost out of stamina, as well as addressing a crash on AMD hardware.

“It was the stupid grass,” the team revealed after it rolled out the fix. “We got rid of it. Turns out touching grass is BAD.”

Peak is a co-op climbing game where “the slightest mistake can spell your doom.” Either solo or as a group of lost nature scouts, your only hope of rescue from a mysterious island is to scale the mountain at its center.

We had a good time with Aggro Crab’s prior game, Another Crab’s Treasure, awarding it 8/10 in our review, writing: “Another Crab’s Treasure throws out dark themes and gratuitous violence in favor of talking cartoon crabs, and I love it.”

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.

Nintendo looks set to keep Mario Kart World’s focus firmly on the Mushroom Kingdom — so don’t expect the return of cameos from Zelda, Splatoon or Animal Crossing.

Whereas Mario Kart 8 welcomed Link, Zelda, Isabelle and the Inklings to its character roster, the even longer cast list found in Mario Kart World lacks any faces from outside the Mario universe. Even the ability to race as your Mii, a staple since Mario Kart Wii, is also gone.

Now, Nintendo has addressed its U-turn on characters from beyond the Mushroom Kingdom’s borders, and noted that it was a deliberate choice to keep Mario Kart World’s, er, world, from feeling “incongruous”.

“As developers, it would have seemed incongruous to us to add characters from other games to this universe,” Mario Kart World producer Kosuke Yabuki told Ouest-France. “And it didn’t seem necessary to us, given everything we could already do with Mario.”

When asked specifically whether Yabuki had considered adding characters from another of one of his Nintendo projects, Arms, the producer replied: “Absolutely not!”

“We inevitably wonder how the players will perceive this casting,” Yabuki concluded. “But there are so many characters and so many costumes that every player is sure to find what they are looking for.”

While the lack of characters from other Nintendo games might seem like a backstep for the franchise, it’s perhaps not a surprise to see Mario Kart World take this route considering its firm foundation as an open-world rendition of the Mushroom Kingdom.

From Peach’s Castle to Bowser’s Fortress, Mario Kart World’s open map is designed to make you feel like you’re on a roadtrip through Mario’s backyard. Explaining why Samus or Tom Nook was suddenly there in this scenario becomes more difficult.

Likewise with tracks focused on non-Mario areas. Mario Kart 8 offered areas themed around Hyrule, and courses that paid tribute to F-Zero and Excitebike. It’s hard to see how something similar could work in Mario Kart World.

And then there’s the wider focus for Nintendo — which through its Super Nintendo Land theme park and Super Mario Bros. Movie is creating a more discrete identity for its beloved and lucrative Mario characters to stand apart from other franchises.

Take, for instance, the example of the company’s movie efforts, with an animated Mario sequel in development that’s not expected to relate in any way to its live-action film plans to adapt The Legend of Zelda.

Nintendo fans hoping for a big Switch 2 crossover title still have the hope of a new Super Smash Bros. — though creator Masahiro Sakurai is currently busy building a new Kirby game instead.

Check out our Mario Kart World guide and learn how to unlock every hidden Mario Kart World character, plus how Kamek Unlocks work – you’ll need them to unlock NPC Drivers. We’ve also got a guide to all the Mario Kart World food scattered across the open world and where to find it, which will help you get all the Mario Kart World outfits and costumes permanently.

Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social

Whoops — Sony just leaked Monster Hunter Wilds‘ Title Update 2 via the official PlayStation website.

The changes have been rolled back now, naturally, but for a brief while the Monster Hunter Wilds page on the PlayStation Store revealed the update is set to release on June 30.

As well as a firm release date, Sony’s website also confirmed we’ll be getting more events, layered weapons, the Leviathan Arch-Tempered Uth Duna, and two “fan-favorite” monsters — one is definitely Lagiacrus, the underwater leviathan, with the other widely speculated to be Seregios, based on datamine sources.

Oh, and this cosmetic armor set has also been discovered, too:

Capcom had told us to expect the “latest news” on the company’s upcoming games, as well as interviews with the developers, at its showcase later this week, so that’s likely when this information will be officially unveiled. The Capcom Spotlight livestream is set for 3pm PT/ 11pm UK time on Thursday, June 25.

The latest in Capcom’s long-running monster-fighting series brought in some big numbers with its launch, selling 8 million copies in just three days. That’s enough to make it the fastest-selling Capcom game of all time, well above the 5 million copies 2018’s Monster Hunter World shipped in 2018 and the 4 million Monster Hunter Rise shipped in 2021.

We gave Monster Hunters Wilds an 8 in our review, writing: “Monster Hunter Wilds continues to smooth off the rougher corners of the series in smart ways, making for some extremely fun fights but also lacking any real challenge.”

To help get your Monster Hunter Wilds adventure started, take a look at what Monster Hunter Wilds doesn’t tell you, and a guide to all 14 weapon types in the game. We’ve also got a detailed MH Wilds walkthrough in progress, a MH Wilds multiplayer guide to explain how to play with friends, and if you’ve played one of the open betas, here’s how to transfer your MH Wilds Beta character over.

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.

Earlier this month, Sega confirmed Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds guest characters such as Hatsune Miku, Ichiban Kasuga (Yakuza), Joker (Persona 5), and even Steve, Alex, and Creeper from Minecraft. But the guest characters do not stop there. Sega has now announced a Nickelodeon collaboration that brings SpongeBob SquarePants to the track — and teased Avatar and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles characters down the line.

Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is a kart racer packed with Sega characters and as such celebrates the company’s history. In addition, big-name guest characters are helping to flesh out the roster of racers. As part of that, those who buy the Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds Digital Deluxe Edition get the Season Pass, which includes the Nickelodeon content as well as the recently announced Minecraft characters, vehicles, and tracks, characters from the Netflix series, Sonic Prime, and two more yet-to-be-announced collaborations.

The trailer below shows off SpongeBob SquarePants and Patrick Star racing the Patty Wagon, a vehicle shaped like a Krabby Patty from the SpongeBob SquarePants series, across the Bikini Bottom track (Bikini Bottom is the main setting in the SpongeBob SquarePants series).

Sega has said CrossWorlds will feature a huge roster of over playable characters, if you include DLC. Characters you’d expect to see, such as Sonic, Dr. Eggman, Knuckles, Shadow, and Tails are present and correct, but now you can add the likes of SpongeBob SquarePants into the mix.

CrossWorlds is of course going up against Switch 2 exclusive kart game Mario Kart World, which has so far resisted adding guest characters from outside the Nintendo pantheon. Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is set for release on both the Switch and the Switch 2, so it looks like we’ll be set for some old-fashioned Mario vs. Sonic kart racing rivalry when Sega’s effort launches in September.

IGN recently went hands-on with Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds and came away impressed. “It’s a vibe,” we said, “and one that I’ve enjoyed and will look forward to drifting through.”

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.

We’ve rounded up the best deals for Sunday, June 22, below, so don’t miss out on these limited-time offers.

Monster Hunter Wilds for $55.99

I’ve said it a ton over the last few weeks, but interest in Magic: The Gathering is at what feels like an all-time high. With the recently released Final Fantasy Universes Beyond crossover set, new players that may have never picked up a card are now inching ever so slowly towards one of the most addicting and time-consuming hobbies around. If you’re one of these people, or someone looking to dip your toes into the wonderful world of hundred-dollar cardboard, IGN has you covered with our Magic: The Gathering beginner’s guide.

Where to Start Playing in Person

For newcomers, the best place to start playing in person is with what we call “kitchen table” Magic. No formats, no banlist, no meta, just good old fashioned vibes. Find a starter kit you like, grab a friend, sleeve them up, and jump in. These starter decks are great ways to learn the rules. I’d also highly recommend picking up MTG Foundations, as this set is specifically designed with brand new players in mind.

MTG Formats

Every store is different, and not everybody enjoys playing the same formats all the time. Here’s a quick breakdown of some of the most popular formats:

• Standard: This is the most entry-level 60-card, best-of-three format in Magic. You can use cards from the last two years, and cards will rotate out every Fall.
• Limited: Limited formats are 40-card events where you don’t show up with your own preconstructed decks. The two options are Booster Draft, where pods of eight players will open booster packs and pick a card one by one, passing their pack to the next player until three packs have been drafted. Sealed is where you get six booster packs, open them, and build your deck from this pool.
• Pioneer: Pioneer is the next step up in terms of power level from Standard. This format is non-rotating, and only cards from Return to Ravnica to current sets are legal. No supplementary sets are allowed, like Commander decks or sets like Modern Horizons.
• Modern: Easily the most popular format among competitive players, Modern allows you to use cards from Mirrodin onward, save for Commander deck cards. Direct-to-Modern sets like Modern Horizons are legal, and are big contributors to the format’s current meta.
• Legacy: Every Magic set is legal in Legacy, including Commander decks. This means it has some of the most powerful decks in the game, the most expensive, and is the most difficult to learn. If you’re starting out, you likely will not touch Legacy any time soon, if ever.
• Pauper: One of my personal favorite formats, Pauper is essentially Legacy Lite. Every set is fair game, but you can only use common rarity cards. Many of Legacy’s strongest cards are common, like Brainstorm and Ponder, so Pauper is a great format to learn when you’re curious about these interactions.
• Commander: Commander is the format most new and casual players are familiar with. Commander is a format where up to four players battle it out with 100-card decks, where each deck is built around their Commander (a Legendary creature of their choice). You can only build your deck using your Commander’s colors.

TCGPlayer Is a Great Place to Buy Cards

Where to Start Playing Magic Online

MTG: Online

Magic: The Gathering Accessories and Supplies

Myles Obenza is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Bluesky @mylesobenza.bsky.social.

We’ve rounded up the best deals for Saturday, June 21, below, so don’t miss out on these limited-time offers.

Donkey Kong Bananza Now Available to Pre-Order

Splitgate 2 developer 1047 Games has confirmed an undisclosed number of layoffs, with the co-founders of the studio opting not to take salaries as they bid to turn things around.

The free-to-play ‘Halo with portals’ shooter launched under a cloud after co-founder and director Ian Proulx took to the Summer Game Fest stage wearing a hat that read ‘Make FPS Great Again.’ During his speech, Proulx called out Call of Duty in what was considered a marketing gaffe.

When Splitgate 2 launched, it did so with a battle royale mode and a heavily criticized $145 microtransaction bundle. Splitgate 2 saw a peak concurrent player count of 25,785 on Steam, well below Splitgate’s 67,724 peak concurrent player count. Steam user reviews remain on ‘mixed.’

Steam stats do not paint the whole picture, of course, given Splitgate 2 launched across consoles as well as PC. Indeed, 1047 Games has said Splitgate 2 has had over 2.5 million players. But clearly, things have not gone as well as the studio had hoped. In an interview with IGN shortly after launch, Proulx said he was “surprised” by the reaction, admitting “we didn’t expect this to be nearly as controversial as it was and we didn’t intend for it to be.”

Now, 1047 Games has suffered a round of layoffs, which it characterized as “a small group” of staff in a post on LinkedIn. Also in the post came confirmation that co-founders Ian Proulx and Nicholas Bagamian have opted not to take salaries, as the studio aims to improve the game.

Here’s the statement in full:

Today we parted ways with a small group of valued 1047 Games team members. We’re still perfecting the Splitgate 2 gameplay experience in response to community feedback, and we are redirecting resources to build the best game for our players. We are sad to see our teammates go, and we are actively working to help them secure new opportunities. Further, our co-founders Ian Proulx and Nicholas Bagamian have opted not to take salaries as we lock in to deliver the next phase of the project. Thank you to those who’ve built alongside us — we are sad to say goodbye and would not be here without you.

To everyone who’s playing Splitgate 2, we’re continuing to work hard to deliver more things we know you’ll love. We are committed to building this game for the long haul.

While 1047 did not specify how many were let go, or who exactly, a number of key staff have announced their departures across social media platforms. Meanwhile, Splitgate 2 had a 24-hour peak concurrent player count of 10,059 on Steam, with 4,437 players on Valve’s platform at the time of this article’s publication.

Splitgate 2 secured a 7/10 in IGN’s review. We said: “Splitgate 2 is a decent successor to the original that expands on it, but never really surpasses it.”

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.