Category: IGN

When Pokemon TCG Pocket first launched, the meta quickly came to be dominated by a very small handful of decks. One of those, centered around Misty and water-type Pokemon, came to be hated early on due to its potential to overpower opponents early on based entirely on how well some coin flips went.

Now, three expansions later, you would think other cards would have swooped in to replace or counter Misty decks. But instead, Pokemon TCG Pocket’s latest expansion just added a new card that makes Misty decks stronger than ever, and a lot of players are kind of over it.

For context, it’s not that Misty decks are necessarily the most powerful in the game. It’s that the luck-based nature of Misty makes losing to them feel very, very bad. Misty is a Supporter card, with the unique ability to allow the user to pick a water-type Pokemon, and flip a coin until they land on tails. They then attach a water-type energy to that Pokemon for every heads they flipped. This could result in a player attaching 0 water-type energy, effectively wasting a deck spot on the card and a supporter card play. Or they could attach 1, 2, 3, 5, 10 energy, or more, if luck is on their side that day. A well-flipped Misty could allow a player to win on turn one in certain situations, before the opponent even has a chance to make a move. Or, in more common scenarios, the user gets enough bonus energy to bring extremely powerful cards online before their opponent can build a meaningful defense.

All that’s fine and dandy, but what’s made Misty worse are the numerous cards in subsequent expansions that have made it even more powerful. Mythical Island added Vaporean, which has an ability allowing players to essentially move all that bonus energy freely around between their water-types. Space-Time Smackdown brought Manaphy in, which adds even more water energy to the board. Both expansions saw new, powerful water-type Pokemon that can make use of that energy, such as Palkia ex and Gyarados ex. As a result, water decks have been at the top of the meta consistently for multiple expansions in a row.

And now, with Triumphant Light, there’s another card out there making Misty decks even more hellish: Irida. Irida, like Misty, is a Supporter card, but its effect is that it can heal 40 damage from each Pokemon that has any water-type energy attached. Up to this point, grass-type decks have been the healing experts. But with Irida, water-type decks can make significant comebacks as long as they’ve collected and spread out enough energy…and between Misty, Manaphy, and Vaporeon, they’re very likely to do so.

For what it’s worth, some Pokemon TCG experts are offering a pretty logical explanation for Irida. In TCG Pocket, decks are limited to 20 cards That means if you want to add something like Irida, you need to take something else out. Water decks are simply swimming in good cards – at a certain point, players must weigh whether or not it’s actually worth removing Misty for a card like Irida. Some players are speculating that developer DeNA added Irida in an effort to crowd Misty out and force players to make tough choices about which Supporters to include. But that doesn’t mean plenty of wise deckbuilders haven’t found ways to include both.

As the player above points out, Pokemon TCG Pocket is gearing up for a regularly-scheduled event, where rewards will be doled out for going on win streaks in the game’s online competitive mode. The best reward, a gold profile badge, will be given out for winning five matches in a row. This is surprisingly difficult to do, and even moreso when many decks you’ll be facing can sweep you away within the first few turns if they flip coins correctly, and have backups like Irida to save them even if the flips go bad for them.

Expect to see a lot of water decks during this event and for a long time to come. In fact, at this point, it may just be worth playing one yourself if you’re not already.

Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. You can find her posting on BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.

Since launch, PC players of Monster Hunter Wilds have been tinkering with the game, working to optimize their performance and settings. As it turns out, some even dug all the way into the config files and found a typo, which they subsequently tested to see if that could bump up their numbers.

As discovered on Steam over the weekend (thanks, Kotaku), inside the config file of Monster Hunter Wilds, there’s a line where “Resolution” is spelled “Resoltuion”. According to the original Steam poster, fixing the misspelled word gave them a “perfomance boost,” though they also said it made their processor temperature “jump significantly,” from 50 degrees Celsius to 70.

A Reddit thread spun up too, where the original poster claimed to get a mild performance bump from around 120 FPS with Frame Gen to around 140. “Again, maybe a coincidence but I have no idea,” the OP said. “Needs more testing. I’m just happy to gain FPS somehow.”

Now, several repliers have commented with some words of caution and reason: adjusting this variable could be doing something completely different. “Renaming could just be setting whatever it is to a default which is lower than whatever it was, hence the perfomance increase,” one Reddit commenter said.

Another user said it’s a placebo. The executable contains the same typo, so it actually refers to a specific node. “By ‘fixing’ the typo, that makes the game not find this one specific config key/value, so perhaps [its] defaulting to some other value,” the responder said.

There are, of course, posts disputing the placebo effect. Without official confirmation from Capcom, this does seem like a red herring. And it’s best to advise caution when diving into the config files or other parts of the critical game files.

Players’ avid search for what fixing the typo does, however, indicates the fervor with which Monster Hunter Wilds players are hunting for performance bumps. The PC optimization has been a point of discussion for Monster Hunter Wilds players, up to the point that even social posts about an upcoming fix for a progression-breaking bug are garnering responses asking for optimization fixes.

PC players continue to flood into Monster Hunter Wilds though, as Capcom’s latest has been a record-breaking entry for both the series and the Steam storefront. With this much popularity, hopefully we see some fine-tuning in the weeks and months ahead, typo or not. A title update for Monster Hunter Wilds is expected in April, which is due to add a new endgame area to gather, as well as more monster hunting action for players to embark on.

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 Monster Hunter Wilds walkthrough in progress, a Monster Hunter 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 Monster Hunter Wilds Beta character over.

IGN’s Monster Hunter Wilds review returned an 8/10. We said: “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.”

Eric is a freelance writer for IGN.

Monster Hunter Wilds has a patch arriving soon, addressing a known but fairly important issue with its story progression.

As noted over the weekend by the Monster Hunter Status account on X/Twitter, players encountered an issue where a certain NPC didn’t appear. Without the NPC there, this disabled story progression for Main Mission: Chapter 5-2 “A World Turned Upside Down.”

The main Monster Hunter account followed up with an update this morning, and confirmed a patch addressing the known progression blcokers will be deployed tomorrow morning, March 4. The update will briefly drop players from their online sessions when it goes live, but they will be able to jump back in after updating.

It’s a fast turnaround for a very frustrating bug, which is good to see. Hopefully anyone stalled out by the random disappearing NPC will be able to find them now.

Repliers and commenters are still clamoring on social media for performance and optimization updates though. PC players have been voicing concern over Monster Hunter Wilds’ performance on their set-ups, and joining together in various communities to try and find settings to help optimize play.

A title update for Monster Hunter Wilds is expected in April, which is due to add a new endgame area to gather, as well as more monster hunting action for players to embark on. We’ll see if the update takes aim at PC performance and optimization. In the meantime, though, it doesn’t seem to have affected player counts: Monster Hunter Wilds has been shattering records for both its own series and the PC storefront Steam.

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 Monster Hunter Wilds walkthrough in progress, a Monster Hunter 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 Monster Hunter Wilds Beta character over.

IGN’s Monster Hunter Wilds review returned an 8/10. We said: “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.”

Eric is a freelance writer for IGN.

Monster Hunter Wilds players have likely spent the weekend diving into the many hunts and activities. PC modders have also been busy, addressing one of the early frustrations with Wilds: Character Edit Vouchers.

Both Character Edit Vouchers and Palico Edit Vouchers returned in Monster Hunter Wilds, much to the chagrin of both new and longtime players. But sure enough, PC modders have already built a workaround to get past the system and unlock unlimited character and Palico edits.

It’s a community fix that PC players would have seen coming, since modders have also tinkered with the same particular point of frustration in past Monster Hunter games. It’s a fairly straightforward mod, simply allowing the player to not have to worry about having edit vouchers on-hand before heading back to the character creation screen. While minor edits like hair and makeup are freely available, anything extensive does usually require a paid Voucher, and this mod sidesteps the requirement.

Judging by past games, Monster Hunter Wilds will likely see some popularity in the modding scene. Most of the time, modders take aim at cosmetics, user interface, drop rates, or performance, and the latter will probably be a key point.

Capcom has already responded to player issues with performance on PC, and released a troubleshooting guide for those having problems. Discussions have continued throughout launch weekend on the Monster Hunter subreddit’s Performance Megathread, as users continue to help each other tinker with the game’s settings.

Players keep hopping on to play Monster Hunter Wilds, though. Capcom’s newest Monster Hunter helped Steam crack a new concurrent player count record, as Wilds has become a record-setting game for the series. We’ll see what players continue to do with it, as the days turn to weeks and months post-launch.

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 Monster Hunter Wilds walkthrough in progress, a Monster Hunter 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 Monster Hunter Wilds Beta character over.

IGN’s Monster Hunter Wilds review returned an 8/10. We said: “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.”

Eric is a freelance writer for IGN.

Call of Duty cheat provider, Phantom Overlay, is reportedly shutting down.

In a statement posted to Telegram, the cheat provider declined to comment on why it was closing down “immediately,” adding: “This is not an exit scam and no external entity could ever compel me to exit scam my customers. I’ll keep everything updated, safe, and online for 32 days longer.”

The reason Phantom Overlay is committed to staying online for 32 days is to ensure people with a 30-day key “get their full money’s worth.” The cheat creator also said they would partially refund lifetime keys, too.

Crucially, many other cheat providers piggyback off Phantom Overlay’s systems, so this shock closure could have a broader impact on the cheating ecosystem.

“I can’t believe it!!” commented one gamer on X, formerly known as Twitter (thanks, Dexerto). “Does this mean the Season 3 cheat update is really gonna work?!”

Other commenters were less convinced, with one stating: “They’re just rebranding. They have the same provider under multiple names/brands. The cheaters won’t stop.”

Activision recently admitted its Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 anti-cheat efforts “did not hit the mark” at the Launch of Season 1, particularly for Ranked Play after initially pledging to kick cheaters out of the game within one hour of them being in their first match.

It did, however, assure players it now routinely bans cheaters due to increased “velocity” from several Ricochet Anti-Cheat systems, in addition to the over 19,000 accounts it recently removed.

The apparent prevalence of cheaters is considered by some to be ruining competitive multiplayer, and Activision had come under fire for failing to address the problem. Things got so bad that last month, with the release of Season 2, Activision let console Ranked players disable crossplay with PC players.

Cheating is not unique to Call of Duty, of course, but it has become more problematic for Activision ever since it released free-to-download battle royale Warzone in 2020. But despite investing millions of dollars developing its anti-cheat technology — as well as pursuing cheat makers in the courts, with a number of recent high-profile successes — fans remain sceptical of the Ricochet system.

In related news, earlier today, we reported it looks like we’ll finally find out more about the return of Call of Duty Warzone‘s much-loved Verdansk map on March 10.

Vikki Blake is a reporter, critic, columnist, and consultant. She’s also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.

Rockstar has acquired Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition developer Video Games Deluxe and renamed it Rockstar Australia.

Video Games Deluxe has a history of working with Rockstar on a number of games, including the 2017 re-releases of L.A. Noire, L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files, and most recently on upgrades to Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition for iOS and Android, Netflix, and modern consoles.

It’s not to be confused with Grove Street Games, which came under fire for the poor quality of the original Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition in 2021, and whose boss said it was a “d**k move” to have been removed from the game’s credits after the recent, long-awaited update went live.

“After working together closely over many years, we are excited to have Video Games Deluxe join the team as Rockstar Australia,” said Rockstar Games Head of Publishing, Jennifer Kolbe.

Video Games Deluxe was founded by Brendan McNamara, the founder of L.A. Noire developer Team Bondi. Back in 2011, allegations of horrendous working conditions at Team Bondi during the development of L.A. Noire hit the internet. The studio later closed down, and McNamara kept a relatively low profile ever since.

“It’s been an honor to work closely with Rockstar Games this past decade,” McNamara said in a comment issued as part of the acquisition announcement.

“We are thrilled to be a part of Rockstar Games and to continue our efforts to make the best games possible.”

The establishment of Rockstar Australia comes ahead of the launch of Grand Theft Auto 6, which is still set for release fall 2025.

In December 2023, a former developer at Rockstar attempted to explain why GTA 6 is coming to PC after it hits PS5 and Xbox Series X and S, and called on PC gamers to give the studio the “benefit of the doubt” over its controversial launch plans.

We’ve got plenty more on GTA 6, including Take-Two boss Strauss Zelnick’s response to concern about the fate of GTA Online once GTA 6 comes out.

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.

It looks like we’ll finally find out more about the return of Call of Duty Warzone‘s much-loved Verdansk map on March 10.

Activision first confirmed Verdansk would be making a return to Warzone last August, but at the time the publisher would only commit to a vague “spring 2025” window and not a specific date.

Now, however, players visiting the Call of Duty shop get a pop-up that reads: “The Verdansk Collection,” and a countdown that looks set to explore a week today, on March 10, 2025 (thanks, InsiderGaming).

You know your video game has made it when it gets a Thomas the Tank engine mod. Skyrim, Resident Evil 2, Fallout 4, Elden Ring… the list of blockbuster games blessed with the terrifying sight and sound of Thomas is legend. Now, add Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 to the list.

It’s the latest work of Tom, aka Warhammer Workshop, the modder behind Space Marine 2’s excellent Astartes Overhaul. He’s added Thomas the Tank engine to the Ballistic Engine PvE mission, which is a perfect fit given it features an Imperial train station in which the Space Marines must escort a fusion battery that comes under attack from waves of Tyranids.

Space Marine 2’s Thomas the Tank Engine mod is a work-in-progress, and still needs the audio effects fans have grown to love, but it’s available to download from the Space Marine 2 Modding Hub Discord now if you fancy giving it a shot.

Check out how it looks in-game in the clip below:

Tom created some very Warhammer 40,000 flavor text to go along with the release of this mod, which fans of the franchise will enjoy:

Many of you are aware of the tribulations that have beset our sacred modding efforts.

In the face of these trials, I — reckless and desperate — made certain unwise vows to the dark and unknowable Saber Gods.

For a time, I faltered, my obligations left unmet, my soul teetering on the brink of damnation.

But no longer.

Through toil and sacrifice, through the wailing of machine spirits and the lamentations of my own sanity,

I have done what must be done.

THOMAS. HAS. COME.

A daemon-engine of unspeakable horror, an abomination of iron and heresy, a thing that should not be, and yet — here it is.

The warp has opened, and it has delivered unto us something far worse than any Black Crusade.

🔥🚂 THOMAS THE TANK ENGINE IS READY FOR WAR. 🚂🔥

His whistle drowns out the cries of the fallen.

His smile is an unblinking omen of annihilation.

The Emperor weeps. The Omnissiah recoils.

And yet, it is we who must bear witness.

Steel yourselves, warriors. Once you see him, you can never unsee him.

This train has no brakes.

Speaking to IGN (as a human from this reality), Tom said he’s also got a few other fun mods in the works, hinting at “a certain green ogre and a particularly mischievous goose.”

“As far as Thomas goes, while Saber obviously loves Warhammer, I think they were also excited to see some of the more meme-worthy mods — the kind of thing that’s fun to share around the office,” Tom added.

“There may or may not have been an unofficial understanding that modding tools wouldn’t be released until Thomas made his grand arrival.”

Saber has had an up and down relationship with Space Marine 2 modders ever since the game’s massive launch last year, but official tools are set to be released to the community further down the line, and the developer has shown a willingness to work with modders and enable them in-game in certain situations.

Meanwhile, Saber has released early Update 7 patch notes, teased Horde mode, and stamped out live service game talk amid a backlash to ‘FOMO’ Community Events. Earlier this year, Saber addressed growing frustration over a lack of content and outlined what players can expect from Space Marine 2 in the coming months.

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.

Steam, the most popular digital game distributor for PC players, has once again broken its own concurrent user record, breaching 40 million players for the first time.

Over the weekend — which just so happened to coincide with Monster Hunter Wilds‘ launch on Friday, February 28 — Steam logged 40,270,997 simultaneous players, breaking its previous record of 39.9 million players set in February 2025.

In fact, according to SteamDB, Steam’s concurrent record, seen by some as a way of measuring the success of Valve’s digital platform, has been broken almost every single month since May 2024, with the concurrent peak rising from 35.5 million users to 40.2 million in a little more than six months.

And while that number includes idle players — that is, players with Steam open but not necessarily using it — the number of users actively in a game has hit a new record, too, jumping from 12.5 million to 12.8 million.

Steam saw a surge in player peaks across most of 2024, breaking its record twice in March and then again in July. This new peak is likely due to the release of Monster Hunter Wilds, which saw a 24-hour concurrent use peak of 1.38 million players, although 1.7 million also people logged onto Counter-Strike 2, too, with PUBG, Dota 2, and Marve Rivals also clocking up impressive 24-hour user peaks of 819,541, 657,780, and 268,283, respectively.

However, Monster Hunter Wilds has a ‘mixed’ user review rating on Steam, which has led to Capcom publishing official guidance for PC performance issues. Meanwhile, Capcom has announced early details for Monster Hunter Wilds Title Update 1, which is set to add an endgame social hub for players.

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 Monster Hunter Wilds walkthrough in progress, a Monster Hunter 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 Monster Hunter Wilds Beta character over.

IGN’s Monster Hunter Wilds review returned an 8/10. We said: “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.”

Vikki Blake is a reporter, critic, columnist, and consultant. She’s also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.

The weekend is officially here, and we’ve rounded up the best deals you can find! Discover the best deals for Sunday, March 2, below:

Nintendo Switch OLED for $269.99