Category: IGN

Marvel Rivals Season 1 introduced Invisible Woman and Mister Fantastic to the rapidly growing Hero roster, debuted two new Maps alongside a new game mode, and promised to shake up the meta with a massive slate of Hero Balance Adjustments. Now that the dust has settled a little on the new season, the meta is finally beginning to solidify as players adapt to the changes and continue to learn how to min-max their favorite Marvel Heroes.

While some S-Tier Season 0 standouts like Doctor Strange, Hela, and Luna Snow have refused to give up ground to their counterparts despite receiving nerfs, other Heroes like Storm, Moon Knight, and Wolverine have seen a noticeable upgrade to their competitive viability.

Without further ado, let’s get to our Marvel Rivals Season 1 tier list:

• S-Tier
  • Hulk, Doctor Strange, Luna Snow, Cloak and Dagger, Hela, Magneto, Invisible Woman, Storm, Mantis
• A-Tier
  • Groot, Namor, Loki, Star-Lord, Psylocke, Iron Man, Winter Soldier, Hawkeye, Moon Knight, Wolverine
• B-Tier
  • Thor, The Punisher, Venom, Adam Warlock, Magik, Black Panther, Rocket Raccoon, Squirrel Girl
• C-Tier
  • Captain America, Peni Parker, Jeff the Land Shark, Mister Fantastic, Spider-Man, Iron Fist
• D-Tier
  • Black Widow, Scarlet Witch

S-Tier

Hulk

• When he makes it past the ban phase, when paired with competent Strategists Hulk can be nearly impossible to eliminate, despite his gamma shield losing 50 HP in the recent patch. His mobility allows him to create space and pressure the enemy support line, but one of Hulk’s biggest strengths is inarguably his Gamma Charge Team-Up with Doctor Strange and Iron Man. The Gamma Charge Team-Up boosts the damage and radius of Strange’s Maelstrom of Madness ability and substantially increases the damage of Iron Man’s Repulsor Blast and Unibeam.

Doctor Strange

• Despite receiving a noticeable nerf to his Maelstrom of Madness and Gamma Maelstrom, Doctor Strange is still one of the best Vanguards in Marvel Rivals. With an impressive damage output, an 800 HP shield that can block or dampen many fight-winning ultimates, and a TP that allows your team to take engagements on your terms, Doctor Strange is a jack-of-all-trades. If you can manage it without bans, pair Strange with Hulk to take advantage of the Gamma Charge Team-Up buffs.

Luna Snow

• Like Doctor Strange, Luna Snow was nerfed and can no longer spam healing and damage boost during her ultimate, but this has had little to no impact on her viability. Luna Snow remains arguably the best and most versatile Strategist in the game thanks to her high damage and healing output, easy-to-land freeze, and ultimate which all but makes your team unkillable for 12 seconds.

Cloak and Dagger

• With the recent balance updates, Cloak and Dagger received a buff to their Dagger Storm Cooldown and their ultimate ability gained an additional dash. This only further cements Cloak and Dagger in the meta, as the sustain and damage provided by this two-in-one Hero cannot be overstated. Just look out for the Magnetos that will surely look to solo ult you after you pop your own ultimate ability.

Hela

• This season, Hela’s base health was reduced by 25 HP and her season bonus was reduced from 20% to 15%. These nerfs have failed to knock her off her throne as the best Duelist in Marvel Rivals and elite Hela players continue to act as server admins when uncontested. Though she continues to dominate, Hela’s nerfs have changed several breakpoints, so you’ll need to be more precise with your hitscan aim to continue having a similar impact as you did in Season 0.

Magneto

• The only balance update Magneto received this season is a buff to the father-daughter Team-Up of Metallic Chaos. Yet, Magneto has steadily risen through the ranks to contest for the spot of top Vanguard in Season 1. Because of the impenetrable sustain provided by some of the most OP support ultimates in the game, Magneto’s ultimate has emerged as a reliable solution. The immense damage of Magneto’s ultimate can one-shot ulting Strategists such as Cloak and Dagger, Mantis, and even Luna Snow in ideal situations. Magneto’s bubble or Metal Bulwark ability also stands out because it allows you to temporarily save allies kidnapped by Wolverine or Winter Soldier, or protect a teammate using an ultimate that leaves them vulnerable.

Invisible Woman

• Marvel Rival’s newest Strategist is arguably the Hero that most resembles the support archetype because of her top-notch healing output, insane utility, and fight-saving ultimate. Because of her cleaving primary fire, Invisible Woman thrives in stacked team compositions or on maps with tight chokes. While she’s undoubtedly more of a team-based Strategist, using her pull to hinder disengaging dive tanks or knock enemies off high ground will differentiate a good Invisible Woman from a great one.

Storm

• Storm is undoubtedly the biggest winner of Season 1 after receiving four buffs. Her damage has been augmented, increasing her pick potential, and her ultimate allows Storm to briefly retain her 450 bonus health after the ability has ended. This enables the Omega-level mutant to be far more aggressive when casting her ultimate.

Mantis

• With Luna Snow and Cloak and Dagger often being subject to bans, Mantis continues to be a top-tier Strategist because of her high damage output and potent defensive ultimate that simultaneously provides healing over time and movement boosts for nearby allies. Mantis took a small hit from a movement speed nerf in this patch, but her reliable sleep and Allied Inspiration DPS boost allow her to excel when you land critical hits to generate Life Orbs instantly.

A Tier

Groot

• In Season 1, Groot’s value has increased despite receiving no balance updates. This is due to the prevalence of three support compositions, plus his sustain. Pair Groot with a Namor or Moon Knight, then combo your ultimates for a near-guaranteed fight win. Even stacking support ultimates can’t heal through the overwhelming amount of damage. Groot’s Ironwood Wall ability is another highlight of his kit because hitting enemies within 10 meters of the wall grants Bonus Health that can balloon Groot’s HP up to 1100. Of course, Groot’s walls are always a threat because of the potential to wall off supports, trap enemies out of position, or prevent your enemies from reaching the objective.

Namor

• Namor is the bane of all flanking Duelists. His primary fire can two-tap most of the squishy Heroes in the game, and his summons can rack up damage as they autofire on enemies across the map. As mentioned above, pairing Namor’s ultimate with stuns such as Groot or Doctor Strange’s ult makes for sure-fire fight wins, though Moon Knight’s ult packs more punch.

Loki

• Because Loki is one of the most complex Strategists, his full potential has yet to be unlocked. In the meantime, his Regeneration Domain immortality field is incredible and his ultimate allows him to copy supports with overpowered ultimates such as Luna Snow. Alternatively, you can copy Heroes with game-changing offensive ults such as Magneto to instakill an enemy, but remember that you do not need to cast your copied ultimate right away.

Star-Lord

• Star-Lord is a reliable Duelist whose incredible mobility enables him to function on any map or game mode. Star-Lord’s ultimate continues to be a near-guaranteed kill regardless of your rank, and the reloads provided by his Stellar Shift make him a threat in just about every 1v1 duel. Pair Star-Lord with an Adam Warlock to unlock the Leader’s Soul passive which allows you to resurrect yourself every 120 seconds.

Psylocke

• Like Star-Lord, Psylocke is a versatile Hero who can work in almost any composition, but she thrives when off-angling in line of sight of her supports. Though Psylocke is one of the greatest threats to companionless supports, she can also play wide of her team to help cut through solo Vanguards. The prevalence of triple support compositions makes all flankers slightly less viable, but Psylocke remains one of the best, especially when sharing the battlefield with Magik to unlock a recall ability.

Iron Man

• Because Iron Man’s biggest threat Hela often doesn’t make it through the ban phase, Iron Man gets to rain down damage from the skies while remaining relatively safe. Though Iron Man’s ultimate can be fairly telegraphed, its burst damage in a triple support meta heightens its value. Lastly, when paired with Hulk, Iron Man’s Repulsor Blast and Unibeam receive substantial damage increases.

Winter Soldier

• Winter Soldier was already a relatively popular pick in Season 0 and he received buffs to his base HP and the bonus health earned when using Bionic Hook and Tainted Voltage. Now tankier, Winter Soldier provides consistent mid-range damage and Bionic Hook allows him to pull enemies away from their team for a free pick. Bucky’s ultimate continues to be impactful, and combining him with Rocket’s Ammo Invention Team-Up temporarily grants the Winter Soldier infinite ammo.

Hawkeye

• After spending Season 0 as one of the best Duelists alongside Hela, the nerf to Hawkeye’s medium to long effective range has made him slightly less of a consistent threat. Still, Hawkeye remains the only Duelist with a ranged one-shot, and the pick potential alone places the archer in A-Tier.

Moon Knight

• At the launch of Season 1, Moon Knight received two ultimate buffs that have drastically increased his usage, especially when paired with Groot. When your Groot pops his ultimate to imprison your enemies, quickly use your Hand of Khonshu ult on top of them to decimate your foes. When well-timed, this ult combo is nearly impossible to survive even if your enemy stacks support ultimates.

Wolverine

• At the start of Season 0, Wolverine was seen as one of the worst Duelists in Marvel Rivals, but this communal opinion has shifted as players continue to familiarize themselves with this iconic Hero. Toward the end of Season 0, Wolverine was well-known for preying on, hunting down, and eating tanks alive. Yet, he still received buffs to his base health to further cement his place amongst the elite DPS.

B-Tier

Thor

• In Season 1, Thor’s base HP increased by 25, and his ultimate gained crowd control immunity to prevent Luna, Peni, and others from canceling it. As the rest of the Vanguards continue to get banned in high ranks, Thor players have adapted to use their Storm Surge ability to displace tanks and boop them into the waiting arms of their allies. Thor’s ultimate is also one of the few tanks with an ultimate that can reliably one-shot most non-Vanguard Heroes.

The Punisher

• The Punished is Mr. Reliable. Both of The Punisher’s primary attacks received a spread decrease buff in the Season 1 patch, and his easily understandable kit makes him a great character to select if you’re new to hero shooters. Still, he doesn’t provide as much mid-fight pressure as some of the other Duelists on this list, and his ult is difficult to get value from in higher elo because your enemy will typically kite and retreat behind natural cover.

Venom

• Venom is a solid Vanguard with high mobility that he uses to disrupt enemy backlines before disengaging with his sizeable health pool. Venom is likely in need of a minor damage buff to secure one of the top spots in this meta, but for now, he’s a perfectly acceptable pick on most Maps.

Adam Warlock

• Adam Warlock is a damage-heavy support who’s all about second chances. His Regenerative Cocoon passive lets him resurrect himself every 105 seconds, his Team-Up grants Star-Lord and Mantis the ability to rez themselves, and his ultimate can respawn all allies within range. When using his ult, remember that the resurrection range is centered on Adam, so you can cast your ultimate from a safe area, then walk out toward your fallen teammates to bring them back into the fight.

Magik

• Magik is amongst the best brawl Duelists in the game and she can singlehandedly carry your games when expertly handled. Magik’s first passive, Limbo’s Might, converts damage inflicted into Bonus Health. Meanwhile, her Team-Up ability is also fantastic, as it grants Black Panther and Psylocke the ability to rewind to return to their previous position and gain missing health like the dual-pistol-wielding mascot of another well-known hero shooter. Magik also received an ultimate buff this patch which increased Umbral Incursion damage in Darkchild form from 115 to 135.

Black Panther

• Black Panther is a menace in the backline when he stacks his dashes with his Vibranium Mark and passes back and forth through your enemies. In addition to the overwhelming sustain provided by triple support comps, Black Panther is only hindered by his recent nerfs which reduced the additional health earned when refreshing Vibranium Marks.

Rocket Raccoon

• Rocket Raccoon is a shifty Strategist with significant healing and the ability to resurrect an enemy that has fallen early in a team fight. This can be a game-changer when tanks or supports die first, because not only will your teammate quickly rejoin the fight, but your enemy likely invested lots of resources to eliminate your ally. Rocket is a perfectly capable Strategist but his ultimate is lacking compared to top-notch supports like Luna Snow and Invisible Woman.

Squirrel Girl

• In this patch, Squirrel Girl’s ultimate was adjusted and the Squirrel Tsunami now tracks enemies at the cost of 300 HP. This makes the ultimate more lethal in most ranks, and her burst damage makes her one of the few Heroes who can burst through the massive amounts of sustain provided by supports. Unfortunately, she still falls short of her fellow Duelists because she has less sure-fire kill potential than Heroes like Hela or Psylocke.

C-Tier

Captain America

• Captain America sits somewhere between B and C, but he’s been placed in C-Tier because of his lack of solo carry potential. Though he’s a great disruptor, Cap is not as much of an offensive threat as his fellow Vanguards and many players have yet to learn how to play alongside him. Captain America has the potential to rise through the ranks as the community continues to solve him, but for now, the buffs he received this patch don’t seem potent enough to grant him a seat alongside Hulk, Doctor Strange, and the other elite tanks.

Peni Parker

• Though Peni Parker is the lowest-ranked Vanguard in this tierlist, she remains a solid choice in lower elo and can control narrow chokepoints when defending on Convoy and Convergence maps. Peni’s defensive playstyle is heavily reliant on her Bionic Spider-Nest which decreases her viability in higher ranks, but her Team-Up with Venom grants her 50% damage reduction and dishes out 50 damage on release, followed by 50 damage per second for 4 seconds.

Jeff the Land Shark

• The adorable, fan-favorite Jeff the Land Shark is the worst Strategist in the game. Though you may have encountered some slippery Jeffs who are seemingly immortal because of the land shark’s best-in-class self-heal, Jeff is unfortunately nowhere near as competitive as top-tier supports like Luna, Cloak and Dagger, or Invisible Woman. While we’ve placed him in C-Tier, Jeff’s viability immediately increases on Maps where he can use his ultimate to spit enemies to their death.

Mister Fantastic

• Mister Fantastic is a Duelist and Vanguard hybrid, but unfortunately, he doesn’t excel in either category enough to justify selecting him over the first-class DPS or Tank Heroes in the cast. Mister Fantastic’s incredible survivability ensures he’s difficult to take down, but he poses little threat against mobile DPS or supports with peel, and his ultimate leaves a lot to be desired. This doesn’t mean Mister Fantastic is a throw pick since he can work well alongside two other Vanguards, but other Duelists simply provide more for your team.

Spider-Man

• Spider-Man, like Iron Fist below him, is looking to pressure and eliminate backlines, but with the prevalence of triple support compositions, they’re simply outmatched. Great Spider-Man players will be able to get value from the friendly neighborhood hero by maximizing combos and quickly disengaging after securing eliminations, but if you hope to climb out of Silver with Spidey, you may be in for a grind.

Iron Fist

• Iron Fist is arguably the worst flanking Duelist in the roster because he lacks the speed or stealth of Heroes like Psylocke, Black Panther, and Spider-Man. Even worse, the triple support meta will make killing Strategists near impossible, so it may be best to shelf Iron Fist unless you’re an expert on this Hero.

D Tier

Scarlet Witch

• Scarlet Witch may terrorize lower-tier lobbies with her auto-aim primary fire and team-wiping Ultimate, but her value will steadily decline as you climb the ranks. Her primary fire damage is unimpressive even when leeching off enemies with high Max Health, and she’s simply outclassed by the damage, versatility, or utility provided by the rest of the DPS cast.

Black Widow

• Though Black Widow can be viable on maps with long sightlines or when protected by peeling supports, it’s hard to rationalize picking her over the other Duelists in Marvel Rivals. Use Black Widow to pub stomp in Quick Match, but switch to Hela or Hawkeye in Competitive if you want to flex your aim.

As the Marvel Rivals community continues to learn and master the roster of over 30 Heroes, the meta will evolve and get shaken up by the imminent mid-season patch. Until then, who do you think are the S-Tier Heroes in Marvel Rivals Season 1? Which Heroes would you like to see nerfed or buffed? Let us know in the comments before queuing up your next comp match.

Fans of the super-soccer Roblox experience Blue Lock: Rivals have scored another update in the form of the Lunar New Year event patch.

This update aims to usher in the new year with themed cosmetics and additional content for players to unlock. Most of the offerings are neatly wrapped up in a short event pass that asks competitors to complete challenges, such as playing matches and racking up assists, to earn XP, and, of course, some rewards.

The Blue Lock: Rivals Lunar New Year event pass itself comes with a rideable dragon and Styles, with the real prize being a stylish Dragon Cape to wear into each match. Other limited rewards include the Lantern Goal Effect, a fire-breathing Roar emote, a Lanterns cosmetic, and the red-and-gold Lunar player card. It’s all available from today through January 31, so make sure to start scoring goals now if you want to nab everything before it’s gone.

Grand Theft Auto 5 actor Steven Ogg wants co-protagonist Trevor to be killed off in the opening of GTA 6 in a full circle moment for the character.

Ogg told ScreenRant he wanted a moment similar to Trevor’s own murdering of GTA 4: The Lost and the Damned protagonist Johnny Klebitz, who appeared not long after Trevor’s own introduction in GTA 5 only to be killed off by him.

“It would be fun if Trevor appeared in it just to be killed at the beginning,” Ogg said. “I think that would be cool, because it also acknowledges the fans of like, ‘Hey, thank you.’ Pass the torch, stomp Trevor’s head in, and sort of put an end to that and allow a new generation to take over.”

This act would have to be carried out by one of GTA 6’s dual protagonists, Lucia or Jason, though neither has been portrayed to be as wild as Trevor was in GTA 5. Only a single trailer for GTA 6 has been released, however, and Grand Theft Auto has few limits when it comes to violence.

The debut footage — which reintroduced fans to Rockstar’s take on Miami, Vice City — featured a ton of intricate details (like 99 things IGN spotted) and plenty of references to wild and wacky real life events too.

Fans have since been theorising when another trailer might drop but, more than a year later, developer Rockstar hasn’t said a word. They’ve also turned to recreating the game themselves, like one fan who’s building the GTA 6 map in GTA 5.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.

A Grand Theft Auto superfan is recreating the GTA 6 map in GTA 5 based on the snippets of information released by Rockstar so far.

YouTuber Dark Space is chronicling the work on their channel and on X/Twitter, showing how Vice Beach and the Venetian Islands are inside GTA 5 as fully detailed maps.

Despite the fact Rockstar has so far only released one trailer for GTA 6, fans have mapped out the playable area they expect to see in the game, which is due out fall 2025 on PS5 and Xbox Series X and S.

For my next video, I’ve been working hard at making the GTA 6 community map real. Here’s a look at my progress so far: pic.twitter.com/ejPu3EWKqa

— Dark Space (@Dark_SpaceYT) January 25, 2025

Speaking to IGN, Dark Space expects to release the GTA 5 modification in the next two weeks.

Rockstar owner Take-Two has a history of taking down fan projects, most recently the YouTube channel belonging to the makers of the ‘GTA Vice City Nextgen Edition,’ which ports the world, cutscenes, and missions from 2002’s Vice City into 2008’s GTA 4.

Take-Two may take an even dimmer view of Dark Space’s work, given it attempts to recreate the map from the upcoming GTA 6. Dark Space admitted to IGN that he was “always worried” about a reprisal from Take-Two, but pointed out some key differences between his work and others that have suffered setbacks, such as the GTA Vice City Nextgen Edition project.

“This is a bit different from what I’ve been told by people who also make content like this for FiveM servers,” Dark Space said.

“Vice City mod is a whole game remade in GTA 4. Not good for Rockstar. Also makes them look bad. Liberty City Preservation project ripped a whole game map from 4 to 5 eliminating the need for Rockstar to ever do that.

“This is just me making my own fan-made map myself. All within GTA 5 itself. Any assets are from GTA 5 itself. A typical practice.”

pic.twitter.com/MNejkdrsxn

— Dark Space (@Dark_SpaceYT) January 27, 2025

Dark Space said the lack of GTA 6 news from Rockstar is fueling fan interest in projects such as his. Depending on how things go, he may expand the map to completion.

One former Rockstar developer has defended the company’s actions here, saying both Take-Two and Rockstar are protecting their business interests.

“Take2/R* are a commercial company,” former Rockstar Games technical director Obbe Vermeij tweeted. “They will take down mods that interfere with their business interests.

“The VC NextGen Edition mod for GTA4 directly competes with the Definitive Edition. The Liberty City preservation project (GTA4 in GTA5 engine) would interfere with a possible GTA4 remaster. (No idea whether they’re working on that. I think they should.)

“There’s no point getting angry about it. This is what companies are supposed to do. The best we can hope for is that they allow mods that don’t interfere with their business. Such as DCA3 (GTA3 for Dreamcast). Afaik they have recently been decent about letting these projects continue.”

As for GTA 6 itself, the latest fan theory suggests an imminent announcement of a new trailer, the game’s release date, and potentially more. While you wait to find out, IGN has much more on GTA 6 to check out, including an ex-Rockstar dev who says the studio probably won’t be able to decide whether GTA 6 is delayed until May 2025, the boss of Take-Two’s coy response on whether GTA 6 is coming to PC, and the expert opinion on whether the PS5 Pro will run GTA 6 at 60 frames per second.

Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.

Nintendo is going all in on the Donkey Kong redesign spotted by fans in the Mario Kart 9 gameplay debuted during the Nintendo Switch 2 reveal event.

Donkey Kong has had the same design for years now, even decades, and has appeared as such in the likes of Mario Kart 8, Mario Tennis, Donkey Kong Country Returns, and more, but Nintendo is now pivoting to a look many think is similar to the incredibly successful The Super Mario Bros. Movie.

While Donkey Kong’s video game revamp had only been seen in Mario Kart 9 so far, Nintendo has now revealed a range of Donkey Kong merchandise that also includes the redesign. As spotted by Nintendo Life, cookiemaster221 shared the products on Reddit. “History is being rewritten in front of our very eyes,” they said.

The handful of products show Donkey Kong with perhaps a friendlier look headlined by his once furrowed brow being rounded out. “They’re giving him the Kirby treatment, but backwards,” SmallBlueSlime said in the comments. “Instead of making him angry, they’re making him chill.”

“They really are dead set on redesigning DK,” said another user. “I’m gonna miss that eyebrow looking down. Always made DK seem both kind and strong,” added someone else. “It’s alright in my opinion,” added a fan in favor of the new look. “They probably did it to make him look more goofy and less angry.”

This is the best look fans have had at the redesign since the glimpse at Mario Kart 9, where Donkey Kong only appeared in a few scenes himself and not particularly clearly. An extended look at Donkey Kong in action will likely come in April when Nintendo hosts a Switch 2 focused Nintendo Direct.

In anticipation of this event, the console reveal trailer included just a few hints of the Switch 2, focusing mostly on how it looks. It did confirm the hardware is mostly backwards compatible, the Joy-Cons feature a mysterious new button, and that a theory about using the controller as a mouse appears spot on.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.

The Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Season 2 update is available to download ahead of today’s launch, with patch notes live now.

The 1.068.000 update, which weighs in at 19.907 GB on PlayStation 5, can be downloaded now ahead of the launch of Season 2 later today, January 28.

Season 2 brings weapon tuning, spawn logic improvements, a bullet penetration update, much-needed challenge tracker details, improvements to camo challenges, equipment, perk, field upgrade, and wildcard updates, new ranked cross-play options on consoles, ranked play SR gain/loss adjustments, HUD preset updates, and Zombies bug fixes and improvements.

There’s also the promise of improved anti-cheat amid growing frustration and cheating across Black Ops 6 and Warzone, particularly in ranked. Updates include enhanced detection models for behaviors like aim botting, stricter account trust and hardware identification to target repeat offenders, and new tools to combat dishonest behavior such as playing with cheaters or attempting to spam report innocent players.

“We are also focusing on more precise tools, including major upgrades to the kernel-level anti-cheat driver and server-side systems starting this season and continuing into Season 03,” Activision said in a blog post. “These measures, combined with ongoing improvements and legal actions against cheat sellers, aim to deliver a more secure and enjoyable experience for everyone.”

Helldivers 2 creative director Johan Pilestedt has announced he has gone on sabbatical leave and, when he returns, will start work on developer Arrowhead’s next game.

In a tweet, Pilestedt said he’s spent 11 years working “around the clock” on the Helldivers intellectual property, starting with the first Helldivers game in 2013 and Helldivers 2 since early 2016.

“Eleven years of working around the clock on the same IP has made me set aside family, friends, and my lovely wife… and myself,” Pilestedt said. “I am going to take some time now to redeem what was lost from all of those that supported me for over a decade.

“I am sure my friends at Arrowhead will do their utmost in the meantime to deliver amazing stuff to Helldivers 2. When I’m back I will start working on the next Arrowhead game.”

Pilestedt was thrust into the headlines following Helldivers 2’s explosive launch in February 2024. Despite a raft of issues the cooperative shooter became PlayStation Studios’ fastest-selling game of all time, shifting 12 million copies in just 12 weeks. Helldivers 2 is so successful that Sony is turning it into a movie.

Pilestedt himself became the face of Helldivers 2, often wading into discussion about the game’s qualities and failings across social media, Reddit threads, and Discord. In May last year, Pilestedt revealed that Helldivers 2’s enormous success had caused a problem for the studio: more community toxicity than it had ever had to deal with before.

Prior to the release of Helldivers 2, Arrowhead had enjoyed big hits with the first Helldivers game and Magicka, but the success of Helldivers 2 raised the game and the studio’s profile. “The big difference now, which is horrifying, is the amount of threats and rude behavior that people in the studio are getting from some really shitty individuals within the community,” Pilestedt told G.biz. “That’s something new we have to deal with.”

When Helldivers 2 launched it faced significant server issues that made the game unplayable for many, sparking an initial backlash. Since then, Arrowhead has faced complaints about everything from weapon balance to low impact Premium Warbonds. But by far the biggest backlash was sparked by Sony’s controversial decision to force PC gamers to link to a PlayStation Network account to play. Sony eventually reversed its decision, but not before a review-bombing campaign savaged Helldivers 2 on Steam. Arrowhead community managers have said the PSN backlash caused staff to lose a week simply having to deal with the fallout.

Amid Helldivers 2’s success, Pilestedt changed his position from Arrowhead CEO to chief creative officer so he could focus more on the studio’s games as well as its community. Replacing Pilestedt as Arrowhead CEO was Shams Jorjani, former executive at fellow Swedish games company Paradox and publisher of Magicka.

There’s no word on Helldivers 2’s next game, but it seems likely we won’t see it for some time. Meanwhile, Arrowhead continues to update Helldivers 2, with the recent addition of third enemy faction the Illuminate breathing new life into the game.

Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.

After a strong Xbox Developer Direct to kick 2025 off, things are looking good for Microsoft and its strong stable of first-party studios. But, which Xbox game series get you most excited? Which gave you more enjoyment than any other in the glory days of the 360? Or if you’ve never owned an Xbox console, which are you most looking forward to coming to other platforms like PlayStation, as Microsoft seemingly continues its plans to share its library with the world.

There are many legendary game series to choose from (especially since Microsoft’s acquisitions of both Bethesda and Activision Blizzard. That means this tier list can include any series associated with Xbox, Bethesda, and Activision Blizzard, as long as there has been more than one entry into it so far – sorry to MachineGames and Indiana Jones! Give us a sequel, please, and then you can make the cut. Just a reminder that this isn’t an all Xbox Game Series list, so we haven’t involved every single Xbox game series here, but have tried to cover the bases of current relevance and historical impact. Take a look at my personal tier list, based completely on what I’ve enjoyed playing the most over the years, here:

Poland-based game studio People Can Fly has been announced as the co-developer of the upcoming Gears of War: E-Day alongside The Coalition.

In a press release People Can Fly says it is “honored to return to the world of Gears of War[.]” The studio previously served as the lead developer of Gears of War: Judgment after co-developing Gears of War 1-3. “Returning to collaborate on the next chapter of this ligendary saga is both a privilege and an exciting opportunity to build upon the intense, visceral action and rich storytelling that fans have come to love.”

Gears of War: E-Day was announced at last year’s Xbox Showcase and is set to be a prequel to the original trilogy starring younger versions of characters like Marcus Fenix and Dom Santiago. And yes, the original actors will be returning to reprise their roles.

The game will cover the origins of the Locust invasion on Emergence Day. In a sit down with IGN, Brand Director Nicole Fawcette and Creative Director Matt Searcy said that the goal is to focus on the horror elements from the original trilogy. “What if the ground opened up and monsters came out? Yeah, it’s set on a fictional, other planet, but there are very human reactions and stories we get to tell,” Searcy tells IGN. “To do that, we need to be able to tell a story that feels like a horror story.”

People Can Fly was founded in 2002 and became known for games like Bullestorm and Painkiller. Epic Games acquired the studio in 2007, briefly renaming the studio Epic Games Poland, before the company spun off independently under its old name and logo.

Gears of War: E-Day will be the studio’s next major game after the launch of Outriders in 2021. Be sure to check out our op-ed on why Gears of War needs to rediscover its blockbuster levels of entertainment again with E-Day.

Matt Kim is IGN’s Senior Features Editor.

Warner Bros. Games and Avalanche Software have confirmed plans to launch Hogwarts Legacy mod support for PC, opening the floodgates for players to add whatever their hearts desire to the Harry Potter video game.

The team announced the addition with a special video presentation, below, revealing a release date of January 30, 2025 for a free update that includes the highly requested feature. It’ll only be for PC for now, with the team sharing no news about when or if players can expect to see modding come to consoles.

“We’ve made it easy for everyone. It’s all simplified with official tools provided by us,” Avalanche community manager Chandler Wood said. “For mod creators, you’ll be able to get the official Hogwarts Legacy creator kit, free on the Epic Games Store. The creator kit provides powerful tools right at your fingertips, allowing you to flex your inner developer like the ones here at Avalanche and conjure the magic with custom mods that other players can enjoy, too.”

Hogwarts Legacy mods will almost certainly devolve into chaos immediately as players rush to add Shrek, Thomas the Tank Engine, and more nonsense to the open-world Harry Potter game. Thankfully, Avalanche is here to help fans get a head start. The studio said it’s been working with members of the community to make a few mods available on day one, including creative broom options like dragons and a vacuum cleaner as well as unique cosmetics, an endless dungeon experience to test your combat skills, and a magical creature fetch quest. More community-generated content will no doubt appear in the months ahead, giving players more than enough content to keep them busy as Avalanche looks ahead.

Hogwarts Legacy launched for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X and S in February 2023, with PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions following in May and the Nintendo Switch version following in November. That means it’ll celebrate its two-year anniversary next month with full-on mod support, but the free update is far from the only post-launch support the project has received since it arrived.

Last year alone saw previously PlayStation-exclusive content coming to other platforms as part of a summer update that also added photo mode, new cosmetics, and more. Hogwarts Legacy has sold an incredible 30 million units as of November 2024.

While we wait for mod support to drop, you can read up on why Avalanche says Hogwarts Legacy 2 is one of its “biggest priorities.” You can also see how the sequel may share a few elements with the upcoming Harry Potter TV show.

Michael Cripe is a freelance contributor with IGN. He’s best known for his work at sites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP.

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