In a rather unusual merging of two completely separate reported stories from last year, the former staff of Annapurna Interactive are seemingly preparing to take over the portfolio of shuttered indie label Private Division. At least some of the remaining Private Division employees are expected to be laid off in the process.
The portfolio includes both current and upcoming Private Division titles, such as Tales of the Shire, which releases March 25. It also includes Project Bloom, a AAA action-adventure game developed by Game Freak that was announced back in 2023 with nothing more than a concept art teaser.
As Bloomberg reports, Haveli’s purchase of Private Division included not just the portfolio, but 20 employees who remained with the label following Take-Two-implemented layoffs last spring. Remaining employees have reportedly been told to explore other employment options, with the expectation that at least some of them will be laid off as part of the deal with the unnamed new publisher.
Private Division was formerly Take-Two’s publishing label, which the company founded back in 2017. It was intended to support independent games that were smaller than the fare typically supported by the Grand Theft Auto publisher. Over the years, Private Division produced titles such as The Outer Worlds, OlliOlli World, and Kerbal Space Program 2, but game sales repeatedly fell short of Take-Two expectations. Early last year, we reported that Take-Two was slowly shuttering operations at Private Division, first by winding down operations at its supported studios and then by selling off the label.
The new owners of Private Division’s portfolio are a group of former employees of Annapurna Interactive that collectively resigned last year following a leadership dispute at Annapurna. We reported last fall on the messy circumstances, which left Annapurna seeking to restaff an entire publishing team to cover its numerous obligations and roughly 25 individuals seeking new employment.
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.
Sony has debuted conceptual technology at CES 2025 that would essentially allow gamers to enter the worlds of PlayStation games such as The Last of Us and see, shoot, and even smell the baddies.
Footage of the Future Immersive Entertainment Concept was shared on YouTube and shows a giant cube players enter similar to the multi-person virtual reality experiences currently available. This isn’t VR, however, as the cube is instead made of incredibly high definition screens that present the game world around the player.
Looking to boost the immersion further, players are also delivered “engaging audio” and even “scent and atmospherics with interactive PlayStation game content.” The players in the video also had imitation weapons and would shoot at the screens as clickers appeared, presumably getting a whiff of rotten fungus and other offenses as they did so.
The demo was made using gameplay pulled from The Last of Us but obviously adapted to work for the Future Immersive Entertainment Concept, so unfortunately for fans is not a further look into the beloved world.
Even if it was, of course, this technology is still years away and presumably incredibly expensive, so there are myriad limitations to actually getting it into the public’s hands (or getting the public into it). Sony may showcase it with other franchises in the future too, such as God of War, Horizon, and so on.
The folks at Future Press have crafted another (presumably gorgeous) strategy guide for gamers, this time for IGN’s Game of the Year 2024, Metaphor: ReFantazio. The hardcover Metaphor: ReFantazio Official Strategy Guide (see here at Amazon) is set to release on February 28 this year with a price tag of $49.49 at Amazon, a nice little 10% discount from its $54.99 list price. Preorders are officially live, so give it a look at the link below.
Preorder Metaphor: ReFantazio Official Strategy Guide
Featuring 592 pages, the Metaphor: ReFantazio strategy guide comes complete with a walkthrough and full breakdowns of enemies, items, skills, and conversations so you can master the entire game. It even comes with a bonus poster that’s a full map of the world of Euchronia, which is perfect for plotting your playthrough.
As mentioned earlier, Metaphor: ReFantazio was IGN’s pick for 2024 Game of the Year, if you’ve yet to play it and are interested. In our Metaphor: ReFantazio review, IGN’s Michael Higham said “There’s a certain familiarity in Metaphor: ReFantazio, but Atlus takes the principles of its already excellent RPGs and refines them in a way that effortlessly ushers you through its brutal, and sometimes beautiful, new fantasy world.”
Outside of preorders, there are some great gaming deals worth checking out right now, too. If you’re looking to pick up some new games to start out the year, it’s worth having a look at Best Buy. The retailer currently has a sale on Ubisoft games right now, so you can save on everything from Star Wars Outlaws to Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown to Far Cry 6. In our Daily Deals roundup you can see even more gaming discounts, including deals on Space Marine 2 and Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics.
Hannah Hoolihan is a freelancer who writes with the guides and commerce teams here at IGN.
Microsoft has announced wave one of its January 2025 Xbox Game Pass lineup.
First up, today, January 7, Road 96 (Cloud, Console, and PC) returns to Game Pass via Game Pass Ultimate, PC Game Pass, Game Pass Standard. “Road 96 is a crazy, beautiful road-trip,” reads the official blurb. “On this risky road trip to the border, you’ll meet incredible characters and discover their intertwined stories and secrets in an ever-evolving adventure. But every mile opens a choice to make. Your decisions will change your adventure, change the people you meet, and maybe even change the world.”
Tomorrow, January 8, Lightyear Frontier (Game Preview) (Xbox Series X|S) launches into Game Pass Standard. “Start your interstellar homestead in this peaceful open-world farming adventure! Build your sustainable exofarm, grow alien crops, customize your mech, and explore a new world full of mystery with up to three friends!”
Also on January 8, My Time at Sandrock (Console) is available on Game Pass Standard. “Just like My Time at Portia, My Time at Sandrock takes place in a wholesome post-apocalyptic world 300 years after the Day of Calamity destroyed most modern technologies. Gather resources to build machines, befriend locals, and defend Sandrock from monsters — all while saving the town from economic ruin!”
Sticking with January 8, Robin Hood – Sherwood Builders (Xbox Series X|S) hits Game Pass Standard. “Join Robin Hood and his unwavering band of outlaws in 12th-century England on their mission to free Nottingham. Travel across various regions, build up a secret hideout village and help the denizens of the surrounding lands. Complete quests, construct various builds, craft a broad range of items, and freely explore locations inspired by both myth and history in this open-world RPG with base-building features.”
Rounding out a packed January 8 is Rolling Hills (Console) on Game Pass Standard. “Serve sushi as a robot chef in Rolling Hills, a life sim about running your own restaurant in a cozy village. Make new friends, purchase ingredients, enhance your shop, and improve the lives of your neighbors as you perfect your craft!”
Moving on to January 14, Game Pass Ultimate subscribers get EA Sports UFC 5 (Cloud and Xbox Series X|S) via EA Play. “Unleash your fury and get unlimited access to EA Sports UFC 5, coming to Game Pass Ultimate via EA Play. Plus, members can score the Bruce Lee Bundle and play as alter egos of the father of mixed martial arts, available at no additional cost in the Perks section from January 14 to February 11.”
Here’s a big one: Blizzard action RPG classic Diablo (PC) hits Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass on January 14. “Return to the legendary town of Tristram in Diablo, the groundbreaking action-RPG that defined the genre, coming to Game Pass on January 14! With its satisfying progression, deep character customization, and intense battles, Diablo delivers an unforgettable journey through a dark gothic fantasy world.”
Xbox Game Pass Wave 1 January 2025 lineup:
Road 96 (Cloud, Console, and PC) – January 7 Game Pass Ultimate, PC Game Pass, Game Pass Standard
Lightyear Frontier (Game Preview) (Xbox Series X|S) – January 8 Now with Game Pass Standard
Rolling Hills (Console) – January 8 Now with Game Pass Standard
EA Sports UFC 5 (Cloud and Xbox Series X|S) EA Play – January 14 Game Pass Ultimate
Diablo (PC) – January 14 Game Pass Ultimate, PC Game Pass
As always, a number of games leave Game Pass as new games arrive.
Leaving Xbox Game Pass on January 15:
Common’Hood (Cloud, Console, and PC)
Escape Academy (Cloud, Console, and PC)
Exoprimal (Cloud, Console, and PC)
Figment (Cloud, Console, and PC)
Insurgency Sandstorm (Cloud, Console, and PC)
Those Who Remain (Cloud, Console, and PC)
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.
PUBG and inZoi are getting AI companions described as Co-Playable Characters (CPCs).
Krafton, the South Korean company behind both games, announced it was working with Nvidia to bring these AI teammates into each title.
A CPC is an AI companion that can interact with gamers, enabled by an on-device SLM (Small Language Model) built with Nvidia’s Avatar Cloud Engine (ACE) technology, Krafton said.
“Unlike traditional NPCs (non-player characters), CPCs are equipped with the ability to interact and cooperate with users, as they understand and respond to game situations in a human-like manner,” the company continued.
Krafton said they can be instructed to coordinate and cooperate with players by using the language model built with ACE. Specifically in PUBG, CPCs will introduce a new SLM-powered companion called “Ally” that can communicate verbally and team up with the player. “Players can converse and strategize with their AI-powered CPC companion just like they would a human teammate, greatly enhancing gameplay,” Krafton said.
In a video showing off the tech, the PUBG player uses voice comms to ask their Ally to keep an eye out for a vest and ammo. The Ally finds both and lets their human teammate know via voiced dialogue and a ping. The Ally also tells their human teammate that they’ve spotted an enemy and are providing covering fire. Later, the player asks if there’s a vehicle nearby, and the Ally announces they’ve found one and will “come to you.” The player asks their Ally to flank in a firefight and they oblige, again using voice comms to communicate. The Ally will even engage in a spot of banter upon victory.
Transform solo gameplay into a seamless team experience with PUBG Ally.
The idea, clearly, is to replicate a human teammate as realistically as possible with AI speech, fuelled by the SLM. We’ve seen AI teammates help humans out in many video games in the past, and they’ll do similar things to what’s on show here. The difference now is you get some slightly stilted speech from your companion to simulate in-game voice comms.
It works different in inZoi, Krafton’s The Sims competitor. Here, citizens, known as “Zois,” interact and make choices based on their “free will and life experiences” in real-time. “Zois will follow fashion trends, spread rumors, develop reputations and more, powered by the SLM,” Krafton said.
These developments come as little surprise given Krafton established a Deep Learning Division of its own in 2022, and has secured various core AI technologies in recent years. It’s going all-in on AI when it comes to video game development amid the various ethical and environmental concerns around the tech and its well-documented impact on jobs.
But it’s far from alone in this. Microsoft, EA, and Ubisoft have all invested heavily in generative AI, with the latter showing off its “Neo NPCs,” a prototype for player-facing generative AI that essentially makes it so you can talk to NPCs in a video game, last year.
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.
Warning: Spoilers for The Last of Us Part 2 follow
HBO has just given us a brand new look at The Last of Us Season 2, which will be arriving on our television screens in April of this year. It’s only a short teaser, clocking in at just under a minute, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t any shots, scenes, and characters that are worth taking a closer look at. From a grief-ridden hospital corridor to an anger-harbouring, red-drenched hospital corridor, we’ve got you covered (as well as some other non-corridor-related details).
In case you missed it, we already did a full in-depth breakdown of the first Season Two trailer back in 2024, so you can read more about some of our theories about how the show might deviate from The Last of Us Part 2 game there. And we even had a go at predicting how this upcoming HBO season will play out if you’re in the mood for pure (educated) guesswork. But stay here if you want to check out the five new details, as well as comparisons between the show and Naughty Dog’s original game that we’ve picked out from the brand-new trailer.
1. Abby’s Hospital Corridor
As the teaser opens we get our first glimpse at the aftermath of The Last of Us’ most pivotal scene. An abandoned hallway, bathed by a flashing red light, is soundtracked by an alarm sound that will no doubt send shivers down the spine of anyone who has played the game. Chronologically, this takes place moments after Joel’s fateful decision to rescue Ellie from the Fireflies at the end of season one. We see a panicked Abby – portrayed here by Kaitlyn Dever – walk down the corridor leading to the operating theater of St Louis’ fictional St Mary’s Hospital. In that room, she’ll find the body of her dad, the surgeon whom Joel murdered to save Ellie. It’s the action that sets the wheel in motion for Part 2’s and (we assume) Season 2’s story of spiraling revenge and violence.
2. Ellie’s Hospital Corridor
Speaking of revenge and violence, that is exactly what is taking place in this scene just before the trailer ends, which shows Bella Ramsey’s Ellie bathed in red light in a corridor at Lakehill Seattle Hospital. This is almost certainly a replication of the moment in The Last of Us Part 2 when, having cornered one of Abby’s accomplices, Nora, Ellie proceeds to unleash what can only be described as a ferocious assault on her pleading victim. It’s a real turning point for Ellie in the game’s story as we really see for the first time how unstable she has become, and the uncomfortable lengths she’ll go in search of vengeance.
3. Sickle Sneak Peek
The Last of Us Part 2 is consistently incredibly violent, even by its predecessor’s standards, and 20 seconds into the teaser we get our first look at a bladed sickle weapon, which presumably belongs to one of the Seraphites. Also known as Scars, this cult-like faction from the game favors more workman-like weaponry such as hammers, machetes, bows, and, in this case, sickles. This may seem like a really tenuous detail, but this specific tool of destruction (or harvesting if that’s more your speed) plays a key role late in The Last of Us Part 2’s story. In a brutal showdown with a pickaxe-wielding Seraphite heavy, Abby achieves bloody victory with a Sickle, tearing apart the Seraphite’s face in a sequence that’s frequently harrowing.
4. A Better Look at Isaac
At the 21 second mark we get a lovely close-up of Jeffrey Wright, who plays Isaac Dixon, the leader of the Washington Liberation Front; a paramilitary organisation that Abby works with. Following in the footsteps of Season 1 actor Merle Dandridge (who played Marlene), Wright actually reprises his role from the game, where he provided voice and motion-capture for Dixon in The Last of Us Part 2.
A complicated character consumed by conflict (as many in this story are), Dixon doesn’t get a ton of screen time in the game. Here’s hoping we get a bit more of him in the show, as well as more of that fetching beard and knitwear combo.
5. The Last Dance
And finally, at 24 seconds in, we get a look at one of the most memorable scenes from across both The Last of Us games – the Jackson dance. Dina, played in the HBO show by Alien Romulus’ Isabela Merced, can be seen embracing Ellie in a scene that will spark their romance. It’s a real warm moment of tenderness amongst the cold hopelessness that the rest of the story projects, which is likely why it endures as such a memorable moment.
It will be interesting to see if the chronology of events is being played around with here. In The Last of Us Part Two, the dance occurs right at the end of the story in flashback form, but we already know that Season 2 of the show is not going to reach that far into the timeline. The fact that we’re seeing it here in the trailer suggests that Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin might be tweaking the order we see these scenes, perhaps to help cement the emotional stakes of Ellie’s journey.
We won’t have to wait long to see what changes, if any, have been made to The Last of Us Part Two’s story, though, with Season 2 of the show only a few months away now. What are you most excited to see in the upcoming episodes? Let us know in the comments below.
Pokémon Trading Card Game Pocket kicks off a new Wonder Pick event today, January 7, but strangely hasn’t announced it, added missions with rewards, or items to the shop.
Dataminers have already uncovered everything coming to the digital TCG in the near future, however, so details on what’s coming and when are already available.
The Wonder Picking portion of the Charmander and Squirtle Wonder Pick Event is the only aspect currently available, but as reported by Pokémon Zone, datamining confirms the rest will arrive tomorrow, January 8. This is the first time developer Creatures Inc. has staggered an event’s release.
Everything else is relatively standard, however. The Wonder Pick event will let players access free bonus picks for a chance at picking up Wonder Hourglasses, Blastoise Event Shop Tickets, and Charmander and Squirtle cards including two new Promo versions.
Missions will encourage players to do all of the above, awarding players with Event Shop Tickets for Wonder Picking three, four, and five times and for collecting one Squirtle and one Charmander.
Part 2 of the Wonder Pick Event will launch a week later on January 15, offering Event Shop Tickets for Wonder Picking one through six times, and for collecting five and 10 Fire cards and five and 10 Water cards.
These Blastoise Event Shop Tickets can, unsurprisingly, be used to purchase Blastoise themed items in the shop. Part 1 of the event will see a cover featuring Blue and Blastoise released, a backdrop featuring Blue released, and a Tiny Temple backdrop released.
Part 2 of the event will expand these offerings with a Blue and Blastoise card sleeves and playmat, a Blastoise coin, a Blastoise icon, and presumably ten lots of 50 Shinedust.
This huge amount of money comes as Pokémon TCG Pocket follows the standard mobile and free to play game model, flooding players with rewards in the first few days before soon drying up, with spending real world money the only real way to re-experience that early thrill outside of the occasional set drop like Mythical Island.
The astronomical development budgets of the Call of Duty games were revealed for the first time after a court document confirmed Activision pumped $700 million into Black Ops Cold War alone.
First reported by Game File, a court filing submitted by publisher Activision as part of a lawsuit regarding the 2022 school shooting at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas, included official word on the development budgets of 2015’s Black Ops 3, 2019’s Modern Warfare, and 2020’s Black Ops Cold War.
The court filing also includes updated sales figures for each game, showing the huge revenue Call of Duty brings in through sales alone and before its post-launch monetization.
First, some caveats. The figures detailed below include pre and post-launch development. That is, the cost to develop each game for launch, then the subsequent post-launch development costs associated with feeding the ongoing live service, meaning the development lifecycle of the game.
Call of Duty games offer a range of free content following release, including new maps, new weapons, and new cosmetics for use across Multiplayer and Zombies. Activision monetizes Call of Duty post-launch by selling battle passes, store bundles, and, most recently with Black Ops 6, premium event passes, released in the traditional live service seasonal model in the year each game has to itself before the next Call of Duty comes around.
The development of this relentless conveyor belt of content, which often includes high-profile crossovers with popular intellectual property such as Warhammer 40,000 and Squid Game, does not come cheap.
Now, onto the figures themselves:
Black Ops 3 (2015): $450 million in development costs across the game’s lifecycle, 43 million copies sold
Modern Warfare (2019): $640 million in development costs across the game’s lifecycle, 41 million copies sold
Black Ops Cold War (2020): $700 million in development costs over the game’s life cycle, 30 million copies sold
As Game File noted, these development costs do not include marketing spend, which for Call of Duty will be significant. So the true cost of bringing Call of Duty to market and operating it as a live service will be even higher.
While ever increasing triple-A development budgets are a hot topic within the industry, and have caused some experts to question the viability of these sorts of games, Call of Duty operates on a different level to most of its peers. Black Ops Cold War’s 30 million copies sold will in of itself have generated well over $1 billion in revenue for Activision, then there’s the live service revenue generated by the game during the 12 months before 2021’s Call of Duty: Vanguard launched. Even with $700 million spent on development and more on marketing, Black Ops Cold War will have been hugely profitable for Activision. You can see why Microsoft forked out $69 billion to buy the company.
Speaking of Microsoft, the math is now muddled by Call of Duty’s day-one launch on Game Pass, which some analysts had predicted would impact sales of Black Ops 6 but boost subscription numbers. Microsoft itself sounds delighted with the performance of last year’s game, saying sales of Black Ops 6 on PlayStation and PC were 60% higher compared to the 2023 release of Modern Warfare 3.
Microsoft has yet to say exactly how many new subscribers Black Ops 6 brought through the door, although CEO Satya Nadella has confirmed that Game Pass set a record for new subs on launch day.
However, Microsoft’s gaming business has suffered devastating layoffs, and Activision has taken a significant hit as part of that. Microsoft has cut an eye-watering 2,550 staff from its gaming business since acquiring Activision Blizzard for $69 billion in 2023. Xbox boss Phil Spencer has indicated the cuts were related to the acquisition of the Call of Duty maker.
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.
The collaboration between PlayStation Studios and Columbia Pictures was announced during Sony’s CES 2025 press conference. Columbia Pictures produced the successful 2022 Uncharted movie starring Tom Holland as Nathan Drake and Mark Wahlberg as Victor Sullivan.
Horizon Zero Dawn is Guerrilla Games’ hugely popular post-apocalyptic adventure starring machine hunter Aloy. No timeframe for the film’s release was announced.
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.
The US Department of Defense has classified Tencent, a major investor in several big video game companies, as a Chinese military company.
The report from Bloomberg states that Tencent alongside battery maker CATL have been added to a list that classifies them as Chinese military companies. The designation itself does not carry any legal consequences such as sanctions, but inclusion on the list is not ideal for companies looking to conduct business in the United States.
As a result, while there is no immediate impact to what this designation means for Tencent, this is still a company that owns Riot Games, and has heavy investments in a variety of other game companies including Epic Games, Larian Studios, and FromSoftware. There are also reports that say Tencent is in negotiations with investing more into companies like Ubisoft.
Tencent has told Bloomberg that this designation is “clearly a mistake” and both Tencent and CATL will be pushing to remove their names from the Department of Defense’s list. Previously, Chinese phone manufacturer Xiaomi was added to the same list in 2021 and then removed from it a few months later.
In a statement to The Verge, Tencent’s Danny Marti says that the designation “has no impact on our business” but will still be working to remove themselves from the classification.
In a one pager published by the Department of Defense, the US government cites Military Civil Fusion, or MCF, a startegy it says the Chinese government uses to combine civilian research and commercial success to further advance its military, hence why the US government has a list of Chinese companies it suspects as working with the Chinese military, something companies like Tencent and Xiaomi deny.
Matt Kim is IGN’s Senior Features Editor. You can reach him @lawoftd.
