Minecraft was never designed with visuals as its key selling point. With an endless sandbox landscape and unlimited customisation, Mojang’s now-familiar pixellated graphics were never the main focus.
Today, however, that all changes, with the launch of Minecraft’s long-awaited Vibrant Visuals update on PC and a range of compatible consoles and smartphones. But not all platforms will get the upgrade, and the game’s classic Minecraft: Java Edition will also be left without.
Still, if you’re playing the main Minecraft: Bedrock Edition on PC, PlayStation 4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S or certain Android and iOS devices, Vibrant Visuals is available now, as part of the game’s wider Chase the Skies update.
Chase the Skies adds ridable Happy Ghast creatures to the game’s overworld, following years of stress caused by their meaner cousins who spit fireballs in the Nether. You can also now leash a chain of camels together to create a resource-transporting caravan, and track down your friends faster with the Player Locator HUD bar.
If you play Minecraft on an older console, such as PlayStation 4 or Xbox One, or if you play on an older Android phone, you’ll need to manually switch on the Vibrant Visuals option via the game’s video settings menu. Mojang warns that “performance may degrade for these devices”.
On PC or smartphone, you’ll need the following tech specs:
• Android: Adreno 640, Mali-G68, Mali-G77, or Xclipse 530 or higher
• iOS: A12 or M1 or higher
• PC: Running Minecraft on DX12
Splitscreen multiplayer, custom Worlds and Texture Packs are not currently supported by Vibrant Visuals, either.
And what of Nintendo Switch — or Switch 2? No mention is made of Nintendo’s console platforms in today’s Vibrant Visuals launch blog, leaving fans in the dark about compatibility there.
However, on a brighter note, Minecraft is now at last listed as Xbox Series X/S optimised, some five years after Microsoft’s current console generation launched.
Vibrant Visuals finally makes good on Microsoft’s promise to launch a proper graphical upgrade for Minecraft, first mentioned back in 2017 when a fancy trailer was released for the later-cancelled Super Duper Graphics Pack. At the time, Mojang said this upgrade would arrive for Xbox One and “Project Scopio” — what became Xbox One X. Now, finally, something similar has arrived.
Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
Pik-Sen Lim, an actress known for roles across British and Malaysian television, has died at age 80.
Per Malay Mail, the Penang-born actress appeared in numerous roles over the years, including appearing on Doctor Who as Chin Lee in The Mind of Evil. Lim also gained international fame for her role as Chung Su-Lee in Mind Your Language, a British comedy from the 1970s.
She also appeared in series like Coronation Street and Spearhead, as well as American TV shows like Vampire Academy and The Nevers. On the film side, Lim played the Killer Cleaner in Johnny English Reborn.
Lim also played an important role in video games, as the narrator for the opening cinematics of Dark Souls 1 and Dark Souls 3. These cinematics laid the groundwork for the story ahead, and are often remembered and quoted in the Souls and FromSoftware fandom.
Actor Daniel York Loh posted a fond remembrance on Instagram, recalling seeing Lim on Mind Your Language before eventually working with her on stage plays, readings, and workshops.
“She was so affectionate, so witty, so brilliantly scabrous and absolutely honest about the rubbish this industry deals actors of our heritage – unlike a fair few others who actually try and cape it,” said Loh. “We’ll miss you so much but thank you, Pixi, for blessing our lives with your unique presence.”
Preorders for the upcoming Pokémon TCG: Scarlet & Violet expansions, Black Bolt and White Flare, are starting to roll out at major US retailers ahead of the release next month on July 18.
Walmart has confirmed its listings will go live on June 18 at 6 PM PT / 9 PM ET. Amazon and Target are also expected to follow up with wider availability soon, potentially even around the same time, so keep an eye out and bookmark the following links if you’re looking to secure early stock.
Amazon’s listings are up but not live yet, so bookmark each so you’re ready to lock in your preorder ASAP when each set goes live.
You can also see our full list of trusted retailers just below that will likely host preorders between now and release on July 18.
Best Buy is also putting restrictions in place for those looking to preorder, so make sure to check the following on your Best Buy account, as well as every other retailer:
Make sure you have an account set up and logged in.
Confirm your location and address for store pickup or shipping.
Add the item to your cart as soon as you can for account verification and inventory checks.
Make sure to follow on-screen prompts and not refresh or close your browser window.
Don’t try and use multiple devices to secure stock, retailers usually track your IP Address (Sometimes bypassing VPNS).
Complete the purchase as soon as possible when adding to basket.
Where To Preorder: Pokémon TCG Black Bolt
Like previous sets, Black Bolt and White Flare will likely sell out incredibly quickly, so it’ll be a massive task to find the expansions in stock.
I’ll be keeping track on retailers and updating this article as preorders go live, as I’ll be looking to pick up a few sealed boosters myself.
The everything below also be found at The Pokémon Center, although its currently out of stock, and its queue system when new stock is added can take a rather long time with no guarantees.
Pokémon TCG’s release schedule is looking chock full over the next few months, alongside the split explansion set Black Bolt and White Flare, there’s also Destined Rivals that recently released at the end of May.
Black Bolt and White Flare will have a staggered release between July 18 – August 22, and you can find all the relevant dates to note down just below.
Available July 18, 2025:
Scarlet & Violet: Black Bolt or White Flare Elite Trainer Box, each containing nine booster packs, an illustration rare promo card featuring Thundurus or Tornadus, and gameplay accessories
Binder Collection, including five booster packs and a nine-pocket album featuring Zekrom or Reshiram
Unova Poster Collection, with two booster packs from each expansion, three promo cards featuring Snivy, Tepig, and Oshawott, and a full-size double-sided poster
Unova Mini Tin, including one booster pack from each expansion, one art card, and one sticker card
Available August 1, 2025:
Tech Sticker Collection, with three booster packs, a promo card featuring Reuniclus or Gothitelle, and a themed sticker sheet
Unova Victini Illustration Collection, with four booster packs, a foil promo card featuring Victini, a premium parallel Poké Ball version of Victini, and an oversized foil card
Available August 22, 2025:
Booster Bundle, including six booster packs from either Black Bolt or White Flare
Key Features: Black Bolt and White Flare
Six Pokémon ex
Eight ultra rare Pokémon and Supporter cards
One illustration rare or special illustration rare card for each Unova Pokémon
One special illustration rare Supporter card
A new card style, called Black White rare, will also debut. These cards will feature full artwork in either black or white monochrome, depending on the expansion.
Players will also be able to access Scarlet & Violet: Black Bolt and White Flare digitally starting July 17, 2025, through the Pokémon TCG Live app on iOS, Android, macOS, and Windows. The digital release allows players to collect and battle with new Unova-region cards and earn in-game login bonuses.
Pokémon TCG: Best Deals Today
Checking these prices against TCG Player secondary market values, a lot of these products aren’t far off the mark. Make no mistake, they’re still way off MSRP, but finding Pokémon products on shelves that haven’t been marked up past the point of anyone caring is a positive.
Still refusing to pay over MSRP for new sets? Well played, I’m proud of you. Here’s some single card highlights for you to shuffle through instead. Spoiler, there’s plenty of deals to be had.
Destined Rivals Singles Are On The Rise (Again)
It’s hard to stick a pin on Destined Rivals single card values right now, and the dips in value seem to match the little bits of stock distributors release to stores.
Looking at the tracking charts for each of these cards, we can see mostly plummets from day one, then either upticks or cards for sale that exceed the original value at launch.
It’s crazy, but we now know how low these cards can go. Sure there’s always attempts at market manipulation, but I wouldn’t buy any cards on the rise right now.
Journey Together Singles Are Settling In Value
Having keeping an eye on the market since launch, Journey Together singles are now more affordable than ever.
Many of these cards have stabilized, with the main chase card – Lillie’s Clefairy ex SIR, settling at around $150.
If you were planning on getting into Journey Together at some point to collect the illustration rares and SIRs, now is a great time to jump in.
Epic Primastic Evolutions Cards That Aren’t Umbreon
There’s so many great cards in this set that aren’t Umbreon ex SIR, all of which are a damn sight more affordable right now.
Because I hate anything popular (Yes, I know I’m a massive fan of the most popular IP on earth), my two favorite cards are Dragapult ex SIR and Roaring Moon ex SIR.
The former is now down to a respectable $125, with the latter holding it’s value well since launch, floating towards the $200 mark. These prices and below are great deals for these cards, so don’t miss out.
Christian Wait is a contributing freelancer for IGN covering everything collectable and deals. Christian has over 7 years of experience in the Gaming and Tech industry with bylines at Mashable and Pocket-Tactics. Christian also makes hand-painted collectibles for Saber Miniatures. Christian is also the author of “Pokemon Ultimate Unofficial Gaming Guide by GamesWarrior”. Find Christian on X @ChrisReggieWait.
Additional contributions included by Robert Anderson.
It’s easy to get drawn in by the unmistakable chrome and neon look of the Tron movies. It definitely made Tron: Catalyst, a top-down action game set in a different virtual world than those we’ve seen in the films, catch my eye. But in this case, those aesthetics only carried me so far. It doesn’t make any critical system errors, but almost every part of it seems like it could have used a little more compute time.
Catalyst focuses on a determined and likeable courier program, Exo, who gets mixed up in a sweeping conspiracy relating to a potential hard reset of the server she and her fellow digital consciousnesses reside on. This Arq Grid was created by Kevin Flynn, AKA Jeff Bridges from the films, and is currently the stage for an interesting political struggle between the authoritarian organization Core and their free-thinking opponents, Automata. Getting to explore this world held my attention, but a lot about it felt two-dimensional.
Most of the life it has is injected by occasional dialogue scenes with fairly respectable but somewhat inconsistent voice acting, and I’m not sure the cartoon character art hit quite the right tone. It almost reminds me of the animated kids’ shows Disney often does these days to follow up many of their popular, live-action blockbusters. And that doesn’t quite fit the gloomy, noir vibes of apocalyptic intrigue. I did like the character designs conceptually, though. Every major player is certainly distinct and imaginative.
Catalyst really is the picture of a game that is merely pretty good and rarely ever great.
The plot is also just alright. At the risk of repeating myself, Catalyst really is the picture of a game that is merely pretty good and rarely ever great, in just about every arena. I was interested in the various factions and sub-factions, but they never got fleshed out enough to matter. I was intrigued by the central mystery and the looming threat of the server ending, but I rarely felt a strong urgency to unravel those threads. The writing at least does what it needs to do to move things, but frequently relies on what feel like deliberate leaps of logic to avoid breaking up the flow of a level.
The best example of this is the Glitch, a condition affecting Exo that allows her to reset the server to an earlier state. This is essentially a way to start the current chapter over from the beginning, but retaining any knowledge you’ve gained, abilities you’ve earned, and shortcuts you’ve unlocked remaining open. It’s a very clever idea, but I feel like this mechanic had a lot more potential than what it ends up being used for.
The Glitch mechanic had a lot more potential than what it ends up being used for.
Most of the time, I simply pressed the reset button when the quest objective told me to, or when I’d goofed up big time by getting too much heat from the Core enforcers. There weren’t enough instances in which I felt like I could use it in a clever or dynamic way to open up optional paths or gain an advantage I wouldn’t have had simply by following the main quest rigidly. It’s a time loop story without a lot of opportunities to exploit the fact that you know what’s going to happen. Time travel is always tricky to work with, and Tron: Catalyst mostly plays it safe in that regard.
Combat is also, and I’m sorry again for sounding like a broken record, but… it’s fine. The controls are very responsive and the animations are kinetic and snappy. It looks cool as hell to dance back and forth through a pack of cyber cops, bouncing the light disc off walls and slashing away with stylish violence. But it started to feel fairly repetitive and never really got my blood pumping or my neurons firing in the way a better action game might because its attempts to keep me on my toes never succeeded at breaking me out of the same basic hack and slash routine.
There’s a respectable difficulty curve, introducing new mechanics along the way like the ability to steal an enemy’s code to copy their fighting style, or bosses that can only be damaged by parrying one of their attacks first. But too many fights can still be concluded swiftly and with token effort by spamming dodge and melee attacks. Eventually Catalyst introduces a stealth system, but I didn’t use it except when I was forced to because it’s pretty dull, and fighting through a level the loud way seemed so risk-free that it didn’t even offer a meaningful advantage.
There’s a respectable difficulty curve, introducing new mechanics along the way.
The key problem with combat is that it usually doesn’t feel necessary to think very tactically to progress on the default difficulty. This is the entire skill tree right here, and it’s possible to fill it out completely long before the end of the journey if you’re meticulous about looking for secrets like I am, so there aren’t a lot of either/or choices to make. Even stolen enemy abilities that can power up your attacks like this blade module didn’t end up feeling all that impactful for me, to the point that I wasn’t bothering with them in the majority of fights. To be clear, it’s not bad. It’s fun enough. But that’s all it ever is.
Of course, a Tron game without light cycles would be very odd indeed, so Catalyst gives you one pretty early on that makes it quick and enjoyable to navigate some of its larger areas. Many outdoor zones still ended up being a bit cramped for how fast this thing is, though. And the few instances of light cycle combat or chases highlighted how clunky it can feel in certain circumstances. There’s even a light jet you get to pilot later, but this felt even more like a minigame and less like a well-thought-out mechanic.
Maybe the aspect I was most underwhelmed by, though, was the music. At this point, I associate the Tron universe with the likes of Daft Punk and Trent Reznor. And that’s a high bar, I’ll admit. I doubt any of those guys are available to create bespoke music for a project of this modest scale. But Tron: Catalyst’s subdued, understated, overly safe blend of orchestral and electronic never gave me the chills I was looking for, even when I put my nice headphones on and turned the volume way up.
The score often fades into the background because it’s too repetitive, and it doesn’t vary enough in intensity between stretches of low-key exploration and the biggest plot reveals or action sequences. Sure, it does the job. But if there’s one aspect where I would expect a Tron tie-in to go above and beyond, it would be the music. So it was harder to accept “merely acceptable” on that front.
While it might sound like damning with faint praise, I honestly think one of the aspects of Tron: Catalyst that works best is its restrained scope and length. It didn’t even take me 12 hours to finish, playing pretty meticulously, and that’s just about exactly how much attention I had to give its digital world. It would have been really easy to overstay its welcome, especially with the meager trickle of new mechanics it doles out, so it was definitely a smart decision to not pad this out. Playtime isn’t directly correlated with quality, and I respect how much this adventure respected my time.
Donkey Kong Bananza is set to release exclusively for Nintendo Switch 2 on July 17. It’s a big 3D platformer that’s possibly made my the team behind Super Mario Odyssey; we’ll have to wait until it comes out to know for sure. In any case, it finds our simian hero running, climbing, rolling, and digging through a variety of wide-open environments that look to be almost entirely destructable. It’s available to preorder now (see it at Amazon). Read on for the details.
There are no special editions or anything like that for Donkey Kong Bananza. The only choice you have to make is whether to buy it in physical or digital format.
Yes, the MSRP Is $69.99
While Nintendo is deploying a horrible new $79.99 price point for some Switch 2 games (looking at you, Mario Kart World) and even some upgraded and expanded original Switch games (looking at you, Super Mario Party Jamboree and Kirby and the Forgotten Land), it’s sticking with $69.99 for Donkey Kong Bananza. That’s $10 more than the standard Nintendo kept for most original Switch games, but I’m glad it’s not $79.99.
What Is Donkey Kong Bananza?
Donkey Kong Bananza is the first new 3D Donkey Kong game since the 1999 N64 platformer Donkey Kong 64. The main gameplay mechanic here seems to be a digging ability that has Donkey Kong pounding and smashing his way down into the ground or through the sides of cliffs. And based on the trailer, there appear to be plenty of secrets and treasure to be found.
While most of the levels do appear to take place underground, you’ll get to play through a variety of environments, including forests, canyons, lagoons, and frozen tundras. True to the series history, there are also side-scrolling and mine cart rail-riding sections. It looks like fun. Check out our Donkey Kong Bananza hands-on preview for more information.
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Chris Reed is a deals expert and commerce editor for IGN. You can follow him on Bluesky @chrislreed.com.
For as long as there have been video games, there have also been bad movie tie-ins. And with the exception of the Nintendo 64 classic GoldenEye, the ‘90s was arguably the worst decade for turning movie gold into video game slop. Independence Day? Stinker. Cliffhanger? Utter bollocks. Men In Black: The Game? We all needed neuralising after that one.
Despite its smash hit success at the movie box office, 1991’s Terminator 2 wasn’t immune from this curse. It also experienced a less-than-stellar video game treatment, published by Ocean Software on the ZX Spectrum, Amiga, and other platforms, and not one of the many versions was even close to being worthy of the film’s classic status.
“I remember playing the Ocean T2 game from way back,” recalls Mike Tucker, designer and programmer at developer Bitmap Bureau. “I think they went all-out with the blend of game designs in there, including one where you had to rewire the Terminator’s arm. And then there’s a sliding block puzzle [to reconfigure the Terminator’s face].”
Tucker’s colleague, pixel artist Henk Nieborg, also remembers the Probe Software Terminator game, based on the first film and released for the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive. “It was just a very simple use of the license,” he says.
“If you look at the Mega Drive and Super Nintendo versions of Terminator 2, [they’re] pretty woeful really,” Tucker concludes.
Since the ‘90s, though, games like Spider-Man 2, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, and Alien: Isolation have proved that the tide has somewhat turned. Making a game based on a movie is no longer the instant critical failure it once was. And with no movie studio demands to launch alongside a brand new film’s opening weekend, any developer tackling The Terminator 2 now would have as much time as needed to revisit the 34 year-old classic. With that in mind, the opportunity to potentially right the wrongs of many previous failed Terminator 2 attempts wasn’t just something that the team at Bitmap Bureau thought would be fun to do… it was something they felt they needed to do.
“I got an email from Reef Entertainment asking me if I would be interested in doing a project with them, and it would be a licensed project,” Nieborg recalls.
“Terminator was on the table,” says Tucker. “And when it was offered to us, being huge Terminator fans, especially myself and Henk, it was just too good an opportunity to turn it down.”
“Having quite a big license attached to an indie game, that’s quite an unusual situation,” Nieborg adds.
It was an unexpected offer, but a welcome one. Bitmap Bureau’s specialty is retro-style games, with a back catalogue including the top-down shooter Xeno Crisis and side-scroller Final Vendetta. And so when a retro film license arrived in their laps, the team jumped at the chance to use their skills to develop what could be the ultimate Terminator 2 video game. And so Terminator 2D: No Fate was born.
The first step towards Bitmap Bureau’s goal was plotting out exactly what a Terminator 2 game would look like, down to the finest details. Afterall, with 34 years of legacy and expectations, anything less than a fully realised, ultimate Terminator 2 experience wouldn’t be good enough.
“It’s been a lot of fun adapting the various scenes of the movie into pixel form,” says Tucker. “Usually, when you make your own game, you can just do what you want. But within the confines of a license, you have to be very careful. You have to make sure you get all those iconic scenes in the movie and translate them into some kind of game.”
One of those iconic scenes was the movie’s opening sequence. Director James Cameron offered a small, unforgettable glimpse of the future war awaiting beyond Judgement Day, with a grizzled John Connor leading the resistance against Skynet. But while this sequence is visually impactful, it’s only a fleeting moment of the movie with no obvious gameplay translation.
“You don’t actually see that much of the future war in the first two Terminator movies,” says Tucker. “So yeah, we had to get creative.”
“We actually got a new boss in there,” says Nieborg, referring to the level’s main adversary. “I had to make that myself [and] get it approved by [movie production company] Studio Canal.”
“Luckily there was a lot of concept art flying around that we were able to make use of,” explains Tucker. “And there’s one boss in particular called Centurion, [a huge mech tank] which appears on the Terminator 2 pinball table, bizarrely.”
Expanding on small scenes from the movie is only one step towards creating the perfect Terminator 2 game, though. To make the ultimate experience, Bitmap Bureau set out to represent as many of the movies’ classic scenes as they could.
“I think the most contentious scene was the bar fight, which has the Terminator in naked form walking around, beating up bikers,” recalls Tucker. “I think we were trying to put that off for some time. We thought there’s no way we could do this. But we found a way, and I think it’s great. It’s a nice distraction from the rest of the game as well, which is largely run and gun. We had to be very careful what we could show below the waistline, of course. We did include some ‘creative shading’, let’s say.”
Another scene that initially didn’t translate well to the studio’s side-scrolling arcade game format was Sarah Connor’s prison escape. To create an authentic adaptation, the team had to develop and incorporate stealth mechanics and have them sit alongside the beat-em-up action. For instance, Sarah can duck into shadowy cells to avoid patrolling wardens.
“You can play [the level] as a stealth sequence, or you can just go around hitting the enemies with a nightstick,” explains Tucker. “But if you want to get an S-rank on that level, then you have to sneak through without getting seen.”
“You’ve got the T-1000 walking around as well,” he adds. “So if you bump into him, you’re as good as dead. So yeah, you really do need to find the right time and place to hide.”
34 years later is a long time after the event itself for a developer to revisit a movie to make a tie-in videogame. But how about 41 years later? Terminator 2 may be the most beloved of the legendary series, but it’s also (as the number suggests) a sequel. What stopped Bitmap Bureau going back to the 1984 original instead?
“I don’t think that was ever on the table,” Tucker says. “But maybe it will be in the future.”
“I think it’s probably easier to translate Terminator 2 to a game than the original Terminator, because [in T1] you just have one invincible enemy,” he explains. “Game design-wise, that’s quite tricky. I know Alien: Isolation did a good job with that, but translating that into a side-scrolling arcade game, I think would be tricky. But you never know. Perhaps we’ll get to translate that [one day].”
“Maybe if you play as the Terminator, then it would be fun,” Nieborg suggests.
In March 2025, Bitmap Bureau finally revealed their surprising project to the world. Despite initial fears of rejection, the team couldn’t be happier with the overwhelming positive response Terminator 2D: No Fate has received so far.
“It’s gone down really well,” says a relieved Tucker. “I’m always really anxious when we release a game because I’m just never sure how it’s going to go down. So yeah, that’s made us all feel really positive, and it’s given us that drive to get over the finish line and just polish the game up, get the bugs fixed, and get [it] out there.”
“It was incredible to see that reception,” agrees Nieborg. “I watched every hour to see how many views there were on YouTube. It just blew up and that was absolutely amazing to experience.”
Although the game isn’t in the hands of players (the true quality deciders) just yet, Judgement Day is fast approaching: Terminator 2D: No Fate launches on September 5. Early signs are pointing to the game finally providing the Terminator 2 experience we always wanted, though. If that’s the case, there will no doubt be demand for Bitmap Bureau to revisit other well-known action classics from the ‘90s that never got their big video game moment.
“I know a few licenses which I would love to take on,” teases Nieborg. “We’ll just see and let ’em come.”
“We do have other things in development, which I can’t talk about,” adds Tucker. “They might be in the same ballpark, let’s say. We’ve really loved working on T2, and I’m sure we’ll work on other licensed games again.
“But at the same time, we’re creative people and we like to create our own stuff as well. So luckily Reef Entertainment gives us that balance of working on license stuff and our own [original ideas]. So yeah, we’re going to continue in that vein for some time, hopefully.”
Dale Driver is an Executive Producer of Video Programming at IGN. Be thoroughly bored by following him on Bluesky at @daledriver.bsky.social
All the major studios and publishers have now revealed their biggest announcements through the numerous summer showcases. But IGN’s Summer of Gaming continues! We’ve already run down the biggest and best trailers of the season, but now we move on to bigger issues. Which games have us the most excited and counting down the days until they’re eventually released?
That’s why we’re here today to highlight our most anticipated games… and decide which one we’re hyped for the most. Our top pick has been chosen from a pool that includes every reveal from across the various shows we’ve seen, as well as the games that we’ve been able to go hands-ons with. We’ve also considered the enthusiasm that you, our readers and viewers, have shown for the many newly-announced titles – and so we’ve weighed up comments and trailer viewcounts along with our own personal excitement.
But before we get to our top pick, let’s take a bit of time to reflect on some of the other amazing games we’ve seen and played over the past couple of weeks. Here are some of our other favourites:
5. Ninja Gaiden 4
Soulslikes may have dominated the last decade of action-RPGs but the hack-and-slash renaissance is in full swing thanks to games like Ninja Gaiden 4. Team Ninja and PlatinumGames, two of the best character action developers in Japan, are teaming up for this direct sequel to 2012’s Ninja Gaiden 3.
The high-speed actioner jumped onto the scene in style thanks to a stylish new trailer, but our 25-minute hands-on with the game left us wanting to play much, much more. Super-fast and hyper-bloody, it will make you feel like the ultimate killing machine, provided you have the dexterity to juggle your enemies and pull off the right combos, of course. Luckily, we won’t have to wait too long, as Ninja Gaiden 4 will be out on all platforms on October 21, 2025.
The first Silent Hill kicked off one of the most horrifying and beloved video game franchises in history, but while it was ahead of its time in many respects when it came out in 1998, it certainly hasn’t kept up with the times. A remake crafted with the same care and consideration Bloober gave to its sequel is certainly an exciting prospect.
3. Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls
Move aside Marvel vs. Capcom, there’s a new superhero fighting game in town. The big surprise of PlayStation’s latest State of Play was Arc System Works’ Marvel Tokon, a 4v4 tag team fighting game featuring Marvel heroes like Iron Man and Captain America reimagined through a Japanese lens. Arc System Works is already lauded for their visually striking and deeply competitive fighting games like Guilty Gear and Dragon Ball FighterZ, but Marvel Tokon could take this beloved-but-niche developer to new heights thanks to the power of Disney. The detail and depth of mechanics showcased in the lengthy reveal means Marvel Tokon just inches past our excitement for another superheroic fighting game announced over the Summer of Gaming – Invincible VS. Plus, Fighting Souls is 4v4 rather than 3v3, so that extra couple of heroes only helps push our anticipation up further.
2. 007 First Light
IO Interactive finally unveiled its long-awaited 007 game and – surprise! – it looks fun as hell. While the developer’s usual suited assassin, Agent 47, might be an emotionless killing machine, young James Bond here in 007 First Light looks to be having the time of his life as he sets out on the path to become one of the most famous secret agents in the world (a mission that, admittedly, seems something of a contradiction).
The trailer has everything a good James Bond game should have: exotic locales, sports cars, laser wrist watches, a little light flirting, and plenty of explosions. Pair that with the knowledge that IOI has said we should expect the same level of freedom as available in the Hitman: World of Assassination trilogy, and 007 First Light is one game we just can’t wait for (plus, with a 2026 release window, this is likely going to be our first big Bond outing since Daniel Craig bowed out). Perhaps the only reason it’s not our overall most anticipated game of the event is that we sadly haven’t had a chance to play it yet, and therefore can’t definitively speak to its quality. We’ll keep our fingers crossed for gamescom 2025…
So, that’s four reveals of varying sizes that have us hyped for future games. But the big one – our most anticipated game – is something coming pretty soon, and something we’ve already been able to play. And, based on how much we love its predecessors, we’re hoping it continues the series’ legacy and offers up one of the finest survival horror experiences of the generation. Our most anticipated game from the Summer of Gaming is…
1. Resident Evil Requiem
Capcom delivered an epic bait-and-switch during Summer Game Fest 2025, suggesting that there would be no official Resident Evil 9 announcement as part of the show, only to formally reveal Resident Evil Requiem a few minutes later. I guess delayed jump scares are part of the Resi recipe, after all.
Grace seems like a compelling new character, too, given her background as an FBI analyst who’s more comfortable behind a computer than with a gun. This’ll make her (and us) even more afraid when we come face to face with Requiem’s new stalker monster, a hulking figure whose grotesque frame fills up entire hallways.
All this, plus Capcom’s ongoing winning streak of great games, means we’re incredibly excited to play the next mainline Resi game when Resident Evil Requiem is released on consoles and PC on February 27, 2026.
Resident Evil Requiem is our most anticipated game from the Summer of Gaming, but what’s yours? You can let us know in the comments below, or join us tomorrow when we’ll be ranking the biggest announcements in an IGN community tier list.
As the wait continues for news of Ubisoft’s long-delayed Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time remake, the publisher has reassured fans it is still persevering with the project, and instead recommended something else to play while you wait.
Now, with no sign of the game during any of this month’s various announcement shows — Sony’s PlayStation State of Play, Microsoft’s Xbox Games Showcase, or Summer Game Fest — Ubisoft has spoken out to confirm its Sands of Time remake is now “deep” in development, as the game’s current vague 2026 launch window edges ever closer.
“Yep, we’re still deep in the game — exploring, building, and ensuring the sands move with purpose,” Ubisoft wrote on the official Prince of Persia social media account.
“This game is being crafted by a team that truly cares, and they’re pouring their hearts (and a lot of coffee) into every step. Thank you for sticking with us.”
Yep, we’re still deep in the game — exploring, building, and ensuring the sands move with purpose. 🗡️⏳
This game is being crafted by a team that truly cares, and they’re pouring their hearts (and a lot of coffee) into every step.
While there’s still a long wait ahead for Prince of Persia fans, Ubisoft noted that there was another entry in the series that’s well worth a try: The Rogue Prince of Persia, developed by Dead Cells studio Evil Empire, which is currently set to leave early access in August.
“While development continues behind the scenes, there’s another adventure waiting for you right now: The Rogue Prince of Persia — fast, stylish, and built with the same dedication,” the publisher added.
Ubisoft is currently in something of a quiet patch for new game launches, following the launch of Assassin’s Creed Shadows back in March this year. The game’s first expansion, Claws of Awaji, is due before the end of 2025, but new games in the publisher’s other big franchises are further off.
As the company restructures itself with the help of €1.16 billion investment from Chinese giant Tencent, it has also delayed a number of its upcoming big budget releases in order to afford them extra development time — likely meaning a longer wait for the return of Far Cry.
Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
Elden Ring Nightreign has some pretty sick gear drops. And sometimes, you might even want to let other people try out that gear, even though you want to also use them. Well, a gear duplication glitch makes it easy to share the loot, for as long as it’s around.
I first saw this thanks to the folks at PC Gamer, who put together a quick guide on just how to tackle the duplication. It’s actually fairly simple to execute; if two players try to pick up the same weapon, at the same time, they both pick it up. So now you have the original, and a duplicate. (Don’t ask which is which, it’ll freak everyone out.)
Not only is this fairly simple, it’s easy to repeat and there isn’t really a downside to “failing” it. If the pick-up gets messed up, you can just try again. In fact, the only danger is that you’re basically stopping in one place and coordinating this drop-and-pick-up strategy, and in Nightreign, standing still is rarely advisable. The brief respite between days, or the alabaster alcove before the big Nightlord showdown, is probably the best time to do this.
As PC Gamer noted though, they’re not the first to stumble onto this trick. Various YouTubers and Reddit users have posted about the easy duplication, too. The proverbial lid is off on this particular exploit.
Whether FromSoftware will take any aim at changing it is anyone’s guess. It is somewhat niche-use. There’s no voice chat or anything to coordinate with random players online, so it’s not exactly feasible to start dropping your best equipment and hope everyone’s on the same page.
Even for teamed-up players using Discord or some other method to chat, you’d still want to have equipment that other characters would want. Not only is Elden Ring Nightreign fairly generous in drops, at least in my experience, but each character tends to have their own wants and needs for weaponry. Unless you’re rolling three Ironeyes, I suppose.
The duplication glitch is nice for characters who want to double-up on specific weapons, like the Executor, but it’s not some instant-win trick. For some fun and maybe sharing the wealth around if someone didn’t manage to get any solid weapons by the final day, though, it might not be the worst trick to keep in your back pocket.
To celebrate the release of Nintendo Switch 2 – and the 19(!) different Zelda games that are now playable on the system – the IGN Guides team has made a few upgrades to ensure you’ll have a helping hand when you most need it. Not everyone needs a walkthrough to get to the end, but we hope these new features and upgrades can inspire even the most seasoned Zelda player to return and discover something they may have missed or skipped on a previous playthrough.
Speaking of smooth sailing, we hope you’re as excited as we are to revisit one of GameCube’s best games, The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker in its original form. Yes, that means the slow-sailing and long Triforce Chart/Shard quest found in the OG version are back – and you may want to use our guide to make sure you don’t head in the wrong direction. Our Wind Waker guide was originally written in 2002, but we’ve worked on some big upgrades to make it nice and new for Switch 2! Here’s what you can expect:
The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker Guide and Map
We have overhauled our guide and walkthrough with new high-resolution screenshots, added in-page tracking, checklists, new videos, and radically upgraded our interactive map. Instead of just showing you a desktop or mobile version of the in-game map, we have redone it from the ground up and you can now zoom in all the way and see every island, enemy platform, and submarine up close. Track which Pieces of Heart, charts, and items you’ve collected and start chasing all 135 Nintendo Gallery images to finally get that 100% completion. If you prefer video, you can even track every Treasure Chart via in-video checklists (or jump to the exact spot in the video from the guide). The guide and videos of course also address the Wii U HD vs GameCube/Switch 2 version differences so that it all works for both versions.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Guide and Map
Nintendo’s biggest-ever series reboot arrived on Switch 2 with upgraded framerate and resolution. If you’re like us and you’re itching to go back and see how it plays after sinking hundreds of hours into Tears of the Kingdom, we’ve got you. As a thank you to our returning IGN Guides users, our tracking experience will be completely free for the next three months, giving you enough time to finally find and check off every Korok Seed. Each seed location comes with brief hints for those who want to figure out things on their own – or you can click through to the guide for detailed tips if you’re stumped.
Here are the most popular pages for people trying to 100% the game:
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Guide and Map
We’ve updated our Tears of the Kingdom guide and map to get ready for the Switch 2 re-release as well. While Nintendo hasn’t changed a ton over the original Switch release, there are some updates we’ve detailed in our guide. If you’re jumping back in to finally complete the main quest, you can start with our detailed walkthrough, or embark on the never-ending Korok hunt and track everything on our Interactive Map.
If you’re wondering what changed and need some pointers for the new Switch 2-specific features, check out these links:
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past Guide and Map
Surprise! We quietly snuck out an update to our classic A Link to the Past guide a few weeks ago – if you’ve never played or finished this 2D openworld gem, you could do worse than playing it via Nintendo Switch Online on either Switch console. It might not have the hundreds of collectibles of its 3D successors, but there are plenty of things to discover on Link to the Past ’s dual map.
We may be a little LTTP (sorry) – but we figured “better late than never” and rolled out a complete interactive map that lets you track every Piece of Heart and discover every cave and secret hidden in the 1991 classic. We also added checklists and all-new screenshots throughout the guide to make it all shiny and new!
The Legend of Zelda: Links Awakening Guide and Map
Launched on Nintendo Switch in 2019, Link’s Awakening has finally gotten the update we’ve all been asking for: a smooth framerate. Play it on Switch 2 and you’ll be able to experience Link’s most-charming adventure in a dreamy 60fps at 4K resolution. Our guide helps you get to 100% completion, including all Pieces of Heart. If you used our guide way back when, check out this cool upgrade we made to the videos featured in the guide:
You can check off the collectible figures you’ve collected via the on-screen checklist trackers while watching the video in embed mode.
You can also bring up the in-video checklist by clicking on the button in the lower-right corner.
The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom Guide and Map
Players have made extensive use of our Echoes checklists — and we can tell you that the Rock, the Table, and the Zol Echo are the most collected Echoes overall. But we were also shocked that so many players who played Echoes of Wisdom outright skipped Dampe’s Automaton side quest! With the upgraded resolution and framerate on Switch 2, you may want to take another look and get all six mechanical helpers. We made it easy by providing a handy table that you can sort and filter.
Beyond these select Zelda games and guides that received upgrades this month, there is of course plenty more Zelda to be found on Nintendo Switch 2. Whether it’s the Hyrule Warriors spin-offs, Skyward Sword, the NES, Game Boy Color, and Advance classics, or our two 64-bit favorites, IGN Guides has you covered. And if enough people find our Link to the Past and Wind Waker maps helpful, maybe we’ll give some of those guides some upgrades as well.
Peer Schneider originally launched IGN Guides in 1999 and is now heading up IGN Entertainment’s guides, tools, and game assist teams across IGN, Map Genie, Maxroll, and Gamer Network.
