The weekend is officially here, and we’ve rounded up the best deals you can find! Discover the best deals for May 3 below:
Monster Hunter Wilds for $54.99
Monster Hunter Wilds is still one of the biggest games of 2025, and you can save $15 off the PS5 version for a limited time at Woot. This is by far the most beginner-friendly Monster Hunter to date, with new features like Focus Mode that allow you to approach fights in new ways. In our 8/10 review, we wrote, “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.”
11th Gen iPad for $299
First up, you can save $50 off the newest iPad. Powered by the A16, the newest 11th-generation iPad is an exceptional addition to any workspace. You can use this device with both Apple Pencil and Magic Keyboard Folio to make the most out of it without having to go for the iPad Air or iPad Pro.
Pre-Order Ghost of Yotei Now
Ghost of Yotei is finally up for pre-order at Amazon. Set in the Hokkaido region in 1603, you’ll play as Atsu to gain revenge on those who killed your family. While not much has been revealed for this game yet, we can expect Yotei to play very similarly to its predecessor, Ghost of Tsushima.
Visions of Mana for $34.99
Visions of Mana released at the end of August, and it’s available on sale for the first time this weekend. This is the first new Mana game in almost two decades, starring a cast of characters on a quest to save the world. In our 8/10 review, we stated, “Visions of Mana finally brings the long-dormant classic RPG series into the modern age, looking great and playing even better thanks to multi-layered class and skill systems that interact in clever ways.”
Xbox Series X for $479.99
Xbox announced this week that the Xbox Series X will increase in price by $100 in the United States. This puts the almost five-year-old console at $599.99, but you can still score an Xbox Series X for under its previous MSRP at Amazon right now. At $479.99, you’re saving $120 off the new price of Xbox Series X, and there’s no telling when or if we will see it this low again soon.
LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga for $10
LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga is by far the biggest LEGO game available, with hundreds of characters to collect across numerous planets. You can pick up the game for just $10 at Amazon right now for PS4, making this a deal you won’t want to pass on. All nine films are included in this game, with characters from newer Disney+ Star Wars series as well.
OK, that statement isn’t always true, but it usually is. Delayed projects sometimes result in bad games (looking at you, Duke Nukem 3D), but much more often taking more time produces good stuff. Spending meticulous weeks to get something just right matters in art, as does finding the bravery to throw out ideas that seemed wise in concept but never panned out. Think about how many half-finished games you’ve ever bought and played and then wished the publisher had just delayed until it was right and ready. Got that thought in your head? OK, hold onto it.
GTA 6 is delayed, and that’s good, because it will probably be better for the delay.
Rockstar has a long history of delaying games to make sure they’re ready for market, a strikingly consistent bit of discipline that places them alongside Nintendo in an elite fraternity of studios that wait until the casserole is fully cooked before serving. And boy, is it always delicious.
I’ve been playing GTA games as long as they’ve been around, starting with four-player PC GTA LAN parties. I’ve played the most obscure (London 1969), the best (GTA V), and the true best (Chinatown Wars for DS). I’ve ransacked and crashed and shot my way through these goofy, wonderful worlds for decades. And thankfully, these games are practically always late… and not coincidentally, always great. Here’s every delay in GTA history (and some Red Dead too).
Grand Theft Auto III
Rockstar’s New York offices were located only a few blocks from the World Trade Center, and Take Two didn’t waste any time briefly delaying GTA III following the September 11 attacks. . Marketing VP Terry Donovan announced the delay only days after the tragedy:
“Our decision is based on two factors, firstly it has been a little difficult to get work done in downtown Manhattan in the last week since basic communications infrastructure has been intermittent at best, and secondly we felt that a full content review of all our titles and the marketing materials we use to represent them was absolutely necessary for us in light of the horrifying event we all witnessed in the United States last week.”
He continued: “As for Grand Theft Auto, since the game is so huge the review is no short process. So far we have come across certain small contextual references that we were no longer comfortable with, as well as a couple of very rare gameplay instances that no longer felt appropriate to us. We apologize to you and all the people waiting for this game to ship for the delays that have now ensued, but I’m sure you can understand our reasoning. Rest assured the game will be phenomenal…and you can expect it to hit shelves in late October.”
Even with only minimal content changes, the delay was a wise decision for Rockstar and players alike. Blasting cops and ambulances in Liberty City so soon after the violent deaths of thousands wouldn’t have been appealing to anybody.
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
The co-prize for shortest delay is shared between Vice City and San Andreas. Back in the olden days before downloadable game stores and day-one patches, manufacturers guessed ahead of time just how much of a physical product they’d need to produce for a given shelf date, and sometimes they guessed wrong. Rockstar delayed Vice City by seven days to give them time to manufacture more discs (and thus meet the tremendous day-one demand for a GTA III follow-up).
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories and Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars
Okay, so real talk: The GTA handheld games go hard… hard enough that it’s worth dusting off your ancient PlayStation Portable or DS to try them. GTA’s excellent forays onto portables usually arrive on time, but Vice City Stories for PSP was delayed for two weeks in North America, and longer in parts of Europe.
The best GTA of them all (fight me!) didn’t arrive precisely on time. The incredibly creative and intricate DS gamechit shelves two months later than expected. When it did finally arrive, it blew the socks off of critics, and it’s one of gaming’s great tragedies that nobody bought it… we might be playing Chinatown Wars 3 on our new Switch 2s right now if they had.
Grand Theft Auto IV
After GTA III changed the landscape of video games, anticipation for GTA IV was palpable. With clunky RenderWare left behind and a brand new console generation to work with, Rockstar Leeds was aiming for the stratosphere. Bringing their vision to reality ultimately demanded several months of delay.
As Rockstar’s Sam Hause explained, “The new consoles [PS3 and 360] are allowing us to create the Grand Theft Auto game we always dreamed about. Every aspect of the game and its design has been completely transformed. The game is huge and is pushing the hardware platforms to their absolute limits. The top engineers from Sony and Microsoft are working closely with the team in Edinburgh right now, helping us to fully leverage the power of both platforms. As always, our goal is to surpass even the wildest expectations of the game’s fans, and to create the ultimate high definition video game experience.”
Grand Theft Auto V
The biggest console game of all time was a long time coming. GTA V finally landed in September 2013, but was originally anticipated to arrive in the spring of that same year. But in late January 2013, Rockstar released the following message:
“We know this is about four months later than originally planned and we know that this short delay will come as a disappointment to many of you, but, trust us, it will be worth the extra time. GTAV is a massively ambitious and complex game and it simply needs a little more polish to be of the standard we and, more importantly, you require. ‘To all Grand Theft Auto fans, please accept our apologies for the delay, and our promise that the entire team here is working very hard to make the game all it can be. We are doing all we can to help ensure it will meet if not exceed your expectations come September – we thank you for your support and patience.’”
They weren’t wrong. GTA V went on to become the most successful console game of all time, and alongside RDR2, it’s a true jewel in Rockstar’s crown.
Red Dead Redemption 2
Speaking of RDR2… it’s not a part of the GTA series, but it is Rockstar’s best game and I love talking about it. In keeping with the tradition of Rockstar quality-based delays, we’re adding a bit of an appendix by mentioning Red Dead Redemption 2, which was delayed twice, first in spring 2017 for quality assurance purposes. The second delay came in February 2018, pushing RDR2 to late October. The statement from Rockstar explained that, again, this was a quality issue.
“We are excited to announce that Red Dead Redemption 2 will be released on October 26th 2018. We apologize to everyone disappointed by this delay. While we had hoped to have the game out sooner, we require a little extra time for polish.
“We sincerely thank you for your patience and hope that when you get to play the game, you will agree the wait will have been worth it. In the meantime, please check out these screenshots from the game. We look forward to sharing a lot more information with you in the coming weeks.”
That delay, like all the others here, worked out swimmingly, delivering a true work of art still unparalleled in adventure gaming.
So friends, don’t despair. GTA 6 will come, and when it comes, it will almost certainly be very, very good. See you in Vice City.
Jared Petty is a former IGN editor who likes writing about how wonderful and silly video games are. You can find him at Bluesky as pettycommajared.
IGN’s Blue Prince map is here! Our interactive map tracks essential locations across Mount Holly, including Clues and Puzzles, so you always know where to go next.
Other miscellaneous map markers, including Upgrade Disks and Allowance Tokens.
Blue Prince Guides
There are many puzzles in Blue Prince, and it’s more than likely you’ll find yourself getting stuck more than once. IGN’s Blue Prince Game Help is here to assist, with guides for complicated puzzles, how to find certain items, and more.
Meg Koepp is a Guides Editor on the IGN Guides team, with a focus on trends. When she’s not working, you can find her playing an RPG or spending time with her corgi.
Solving puzzles may happen in your daily life from various word puzzle games like Wordle, or through strategy-based games and puzzle books, but piecing together a physical puzzle is a great way to focus your brain, relax and unwind. As a hobby for all ages, there are hundreds of jigsaw puzzles to choose from these days. However, as avid puzzlers ourselves, we put together a list focuses on what we’ve found as the most challenging yet rewarding puzzles with adults in mind, and even included some 3D gems in the mix. Many of our picks below would make for great Mother’s day gifts, but you can buy them for yourself too.
TLDR: These are the Best Puzzles for Adults
What’s even better is they come in a variety of different styles and designs once put together. Whether you want the finished product to reflect your favorite franchise, game, artwork, or a piece of beautiful scenery, there are puzzles for everyone to enjoy. The below list includes a nice range of sizes as well, from 1,000 pieces to a whopping 3,000 pieces, so you’ll still have quite the challenge when putting them together.
The Legend of Zelda Hyrule Map Jigsaw Puzzle
If The Legend of Zelda games are right up your alley, this is an excellent jigsaw puzzle to have in your collection. Coming in at 1,000 pieces, you can piece together a full map of Hyrule to have in your home. It has a fantastic antique style that’ll be great for showing off once it’s all put together. Frame it and keep it, or pass it on to the next puzzler in your life to do next.
If you do purchase this puzzle with the goal of framing it and displaying it on your wall, we recommend purchasing some puzzle glue to help you preserve the finished product. We recommend RoseArt Jigsaw Puzzle Glue, which works great and dries quickly.
The Mystic Maze Jigsaw Puzzle
Puzzles from the Magic Puzzle Company truly are magical, and one of the best puzzle brands. Not only does this puzzle, called The Mystic Maze, feature over 50 easter eggs for you to find, but it even has a surprise ending for after you’ve finished putting it together. It’s an exciting twist on the usual puzzle, and well worth picking up for your puzzle and games collection.
The main reason this theory11 puzzle is featured here is because it just flat out looks awesome, but the second obvious reason is that it’s a Lord of the Rings jigsaw puzzle. The design of this 1,000-piece puzzle has a similar look and feel to some of the original illustrations from J.R.R Tolkien himself. The green and gold colors also go really well together with the illustrated style.
If you like the look and feel of illustrated Lord of the Rings books, you’ll like how this puzzle comes together. It’s a great option if you are looking for something to frame and display once it’s completed. We’ve even included it on our guide to the best LotR gifts for fans of the franchise.
’80s Game Room Pop Culture Jigsaw Puzzle
Feeling nostalgic? This puzzle is ready to transport you back to the ’80s and ’90s, thanks to its retro style and assortment of pop culture references that you’ll be just as busy pointing out even after you’ve pieced it all together. It also comes with 1,000 pieces, so you’ll be able to spend plenty of time immersed in it.
Harry Potter Marauder’s Map Puzzle
There are quite a few really cool Harry Potter jigsaw puzzles out there and all of them make for great gifts for Potter fans. Our overall top pick within this franchise is The Marauder’s Map puzzle. From Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs, this puzzle looks like the full map from the movies once it’s been assembled. The puzzle itself is from The Noble Collection, which is known for making some of the highest quality officially licensed wand and Harry Potter prop replicas.
Marvel Mjolnir 3D Puzzle
If you’re looking for another unique puzzle, this 3D puzzle of Thor’s hammer, Mjolnir, is a great twist on a usual puzzle. This model kit comes with 8 sheets of 87 pieces for you to use in order to put this iconic hammer together. It even comes with a stand so you can set it up and show it off once it’s all done, making it a great addition to any superhero collection.
Marvel Infinity Gauntlet 3D Puzzle
This is another 3D puzzle from the same company listed above and features another memorable Marvel item: The Infinity Gauntlet. This puzzle comes with a few more pieces than Mjolnir – 14 sheets with 142 pieces – but comes with a stand as well so you can set it up for display afterward. If you’re a Marvel fan, this is a great investment to have, especially if you enjoy collectibles. Interested in other models? Check out our roundup of the 10 best LEGO alternatives or see more model kits for adults.
Star Wars: Galactic Child Jigsaw Puzzle
This Star Wars jigsaw puzzle is absolutely worth picking up if you’re a fan of the franchise. Coming in at 1,000 pieces, it features Grogu front and center in his little pod with a gorgeous cosmic background behind him. It also comes with a full-color bonus poster to help you with piecing together this Grogu puzzle perfectly. Other Star Wars fans in your life will want to borrow this puzzle when you’re done; unless of course, you want to keep it and frame it!
Marvel Spider-Verse Jigsaw Puzzle
Venture into the Spider-Verse with this excellent jigsaw puzzle from Buffalo Games. This 1,000 piece puzzle is a sight to behold, featuring Peter Parker, Miles Morales, Spider-Gwen, Spider-Man Noir, Spider-Man 2099, Spider-Ham, and many more Spideys. It even features some of his greatest enemies lurking around if you take a closer look. This Silver Select puzzle also comes in a giftable box with silver foil accents.
Phoenix Wooden Jigsaw Puzzle
Not only does this wooden puzzle look great once it’s all put together, but the pieces themselves also have unique shapes. You’ll find shapes of animals and nature items which are fun to spot as you admire the final pieced-together product. Our pick for this Phoenix jigsaw puzzle above comes with 200 pieces, but you can also grab a large version (290 pieces) or x-large version (680 pieces).
Stained Glass Flower Puzzle
This is another puzzle that’s well worth displaying after you’ve put it together. With 1,000 pieces in the box, this puzzle features a vibrant stained glass design with flowers blooming at the center. It’s a great one to work at slowly and appreciate the beautiful result once you’re all finished.
How to Choose a Jigsaw Puzzle
As an adult, choosing the right puzzle for you requires a bit more thought than it did as a kid. There’s more to it than just finding a picture you like and making a purchase. If you’re new to the puzzle game, here are some key things to consider before you buy:
How Many Pieces?
The difficulty of a puzzle can almost always be directly attributed to how many pieces there are. For most adults a 100-piece puzzle will likely be too easy, but a 1000-piece puzzle might cause you to get frustrated and lose interest. Because of this, you need to consider how much time you’re willing to dedicate before you choose a piece count. If you want something you can finish in a single afternoon, a 500-piece puzzle is likely enough of a challenge.
How Big Is It?
Another thing to consider when purchasing a jigsaw puzzle is how big it is once its completed. If you purchase a massive puzzle that won’t fit on your table, you may have trouble ever finishing it. Make sure you have enough room available that you’ll be able to slowly piece your puzzle together over multiple days. You can also buy yourself a good puzzle table or board if you need extra space.
Do You Plan on Displaying It?
Perhaps the most important factor in your puzzle purchase is what you plan on doing with your puzzle once you’re done. If you are looking for something that’s just fun to put together, you will want to focus more on the number of pieces and how the colors fit together in the image. However, if you’re looking for something to display when you’re done, you’ll want something that looks more like a work of art. You’ll also likely need to purchase puzzle glue and a frame, depending on what type of puzzle it is.
I check Pokémon TCG prices daily, and I spend way too much of my paycheck on singles—some for the kids, most for me. I even risked my marriage for an LED-lit Pokémon card wall. Worth it.
So, I figured it’s time to put that obsession to good use. Every week, I’ll break down the biggest risers and fallers in the Pokémon card market—what’s crashing, what’s climbing, and what’s actually worth your money right now.
As of May 2, prices on cards like Magikarp 203/193 and Pikachu ex 238/191 have nosedived by over 30%, while Rayquaza VMAX and Pikachu with Grey Felt Hat are making moves in the opposite direction. Whether you’re hunting bargains or watching the next big spike, here’s what to buy and what to keep an eye on this week.
Pokémon Card Crashes
Magikarp 203/193 blew the lid off valuable cards from the Scarlet and Violet era, specifically Paldea Evolved, heading just over $200 back in March. The good news is that this giddy kipper has dropped to $159.99, which is a solid time to bite for me.
Pikachu ex 238/191 kicked off a massive boom in the Pokémon TCG community, with prices going North of $450 in March (are you seeing a trend here, yet?) As more sealed stock rolls in and investor bros not getting the same inflated returns from their scalps, it’s deflating the market. This card has dropped 37% to $289.76 as of right now.
I love stamped cards, they remind me of my Fossil pre-release stamped 1st edition Aerodactyl back when I was a kid. So when I realised N’s Reshiram was getting a stamped box topper release for Journey Together booster boxes, I was all in on the hype. Now I didn’t pay the $69 going rate on release, not even half of that, but $10.94 at a devistating 84% crash is my kind of deal. Snap one up.
Charmander 044 Promo from the Obsidian Flames ETB is the best in-box promo in the Scarlet and Violet era, even more so if you can grab a Pokémon Center stamped one. I’m all about affordability, so we’ll stick to the standard promo, which has dropped by 18% in the past couple of weeks from $21.54 to $17.65. In Japanese sets, this card released alongside the Stellar Crown Bulbasaur and Squirtle, so grab the whole set.
If I said the words “Prismatic Evolution bargain” at any other time, i’d probably loose my job. But the Eevee 173 promo from the ETB has crashed by 51% over the past few days, and a bigger 69% from mid-March. Trainers can pick one up right now for $6, and it’s beautiful so buy one.
Pokémon Card Climbers
I thought I’d focus on some chase cards here that are below the $500 mark and try to avoid some obvious cards because everyone’s watching them who cares anyway.
Umbreon GX has always been a lovely card, featuring the best shiny Eeveelution form (fight me), and it’s slowly creeping up in 2025. An 11% rise from $196.49 in January to $221.96 doesn’t sound like a lot, but that’s an extra $25 and change in value in five months.
Lugia V 186/195 is the best Lugia card in the TCG for me, the detail and atmosphere in this card is stunning. It’s holding it’s value at $225, a 5% steady climb since Feburary and one to watch for people who have one and plan on having this in their collection until grey hair fully takes hold.
Pikachu with Grey Felt Hat promo is responsible for absolute carnage at the Van Gogh exhibit a while back, which is why TPC distributed more as freebies on Pokémon Center owners. No one saw the price jump on this card comming, which is awesome because I have one. An insane 52% climb has pushed this bad boy to $325 today and it’s steady. This same card was going for $155.80 back in Feburary, and that was a jump from around $70-80 last year.
I can’t wait for Trainer Gallery cards to come back (I hope they do anyway), they’re stunning. Rayquaza VMAX TG20/TG30 is one of my favorite cards in my family collection. I can’t help but imagine what it would be like looking up at Rayquazza like this, such an awesome card. It’s gone up by 14% since mid-Feburary from $55/77 to $65, And I have a good feeling this will go into the $100 range over the next year as the last bits of Silver Tempest sealed stock dries up. Grab one and thank me later.
Mew ex 053 Promo is one of the best Mew cards around. It’s been hovering around the $30 since the start of this year, but what get’s me is the cards climb in value from November 2024 at $11.26. It’s going to be a slow burner, and sales data shows peaks and troughs in 2025, but I have a feeling we’ll be seeing this card shoot up in value next year as content from the 151 Ultra Premium Collection become rarer.
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.
The thing we all knew was going to happen has finally happened: GTA 6 has been delayed. Originally scheduled for release during 2025, what is almost certainly the most anticipated game of all time is now due to arrive on May 26, 2026.
But that doesn’t mean that 2025 is going to go down in history as a disappointing year for games. Far from it! Already this year we’ve had some phenomenal releases in the form of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, Blue Prince, and Split Fiction, and there are plenty more in the pipeline. Dozens of them, in fact. There’s Ghost of Yotei if you need a second samurai fix this year, Borderlands 4 for your co-op chaos needs, and even a brand new console and accompanying games from a little company called Nintendo.
Here’s everything you have to look forward to in the rest of 2025 that doesn’t have the words “Grand Theft Auto 6” in the title.
What’s next?
With GTA 6 originally scheduled for later in the year, you almost certainly hadn’t made any space in your gaming calendar over the next couple of months. But just in case you did, there are some massive drops imminent. Doom: The Dark Ages arrives on Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC on May 15, and looks to be an incredible goth reimagining of the shooter we know and love. Following not long after is something for all the Souls fans, as Elden Ring Nightreign drops on May 30 for Xbox, PlayStation, and PC. This one’s a co-op roguelike, so brand new territory for FromSoft, but if you’ve been looking for a faster take on the studio’s core formula, then it could be the mainstay of your multiplayer nights for the foreseeable future.
Skip forward a month into June and you can strap in for Hideo Kojima’s next wild adventure inDeath Stranding 2: On the Beach. Arriving on June 26 exclusively for PS5, its trailers are already packed to the brim with wild and weird ideas, so we’re expecting this one to push the envelope much further than its FedEx simulator predecessor. Talking of games where its difficult to walk over large surfaces without things going horribly wrong, Dune: Awakening lands on PC on June 10. Watch out for the sandworms and drink plenty of water, please.
June is just the start, though, as just a few weeks later Donkey Kong Bananza will arrive on July 17 to ensure the Switch 2 isn’t without its mandatory 3D platformer. And from what we’ve seen so far, it looks worth going bananas for. Later in the year, you can also look forward to Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, Pokemon Legends: Z-A and Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment. Oh, and a little game called Hollow Knight: Silksong, which apparently really will arrive on Switch 2 and everything else this year.
Big Hitters
It wouldn’t be the end of the year without a three or four months of big hitters leading into the Christmas holiday. While not formally announced yet, we’re sure to get a new Call of Duty as well as EA Sports FC 26 around that time.
September will see the launch of two massive shooters: Borderlands 4 on the 12th, and Marathon on the 23rd. You know what kooky violent fun to expect from Borderlands, but this time the gun drops are promised to be even better. Marathon is more of an unknown, but an extraction shooter from the minds behind Destiny is surely something to keep an eye on.
PlayStation’s long-awaited Tsushima follow-up, Ghost of Yotei, will arrive on October 2, and bring with it a tale of vengeance against a group of shadowy masked samurai – hopefully this year’s Assassin’s Creed Shadows only left you wanting even more of that plotline.
There will likely be a few others to get excited about, too. While we have no confirmed dates, we’d expect highly anticipated games scheduled for 2025, like The Outer Worlds 2 and Crimson Desert, to also arrive in the last section of the year.
2025 Release Timeline
That’s far from everything on the horizon. For a larger list of things coming this year, take a look at our timeline of the biggest games confirmed to be coming in the year’s remaining months.
Doom the Dark Ages – May 15
Blades of Fire – May 22
Elden Ring Nightreign – May 30
F1 25 – May 30
Mario Kart World – June 5
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition – June 5
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition – June 5
Deltarune: Chapter 3 + 4 – June 5
Dune Awakening – June 10
FBC: Firebreak – June 17
Death Stranding 2: On the Beach – June 26
Tamagotchi Plaza – June 27
EA Sports College Football 26 – July 10
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4 – July 11
Donkey Kong Bananza – July 17
Shadow Labyrinth – July 18
Wuchang: Fallen Feathers – July 24
Tales of the Shire: A Lord of the Rings Game – July 29
Mafia: The Old Country – August 8
Madden NFL 26 – August 14
Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater – August 28
Lost Soul Aside – August 29
Hell Is Us – September 4
Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion – September 5
Terminator 2D: No Fate – September 5
Borderlands 4 – September 12
Marathon – September 23
Ghost of Yotei – October 2
Directive 8020 – October 2
Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 – October 2025
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment – Winter 2025
Crimson Desert – Q4 2025
Pokémon Legends: Z-A – Late 2025
Little Nightmares 3 – 2025
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond – 2025
Kirby Air Ride – 2025
Dying Light: The Beast – 2025
Hollow Knight Silksong – 2025
Ninja Gaiden 4 – 2025
The Outer Worlds 2 – 2025
Cronos: The New Dawn – 2025
Professor Layton and the New World of Steam – 2025
Last Epoch sports a whopping 15 Mastery classes. Masteries are essentially a subclass that allows you to lean in on one aspect of your build. They range from traditional roles like Sorcerer to more out-there options like Falconer (which sees you flying around the map using your bird friend for damage). It can be difficult to choose which ones to focus on with so many options, but this Last Epoch Mastery tier list will help.
How We Ranked the Best and Worst Masteries in Last Epoch
What makes a Mastery strong, weak, or somewhere in between depends on how many key checkboxes it ticks for potential builds. Every build has a long list of things it can use to make its clear (i.e. mapping) and bossing (i.e. single target), and defense as strong as it can be, but some are stronger than others, or have stronger synergies than others.
For example, ‘more’ damage multipliers are stronger than increased damage multipliers, so if a Mastery offers more of the former, it’s more likely to be higher up on this list. Be sure to read passives closely to determine how they scale damage — they will tell you! There are also stats like critical hit chance, critical hit multiplier, flat damage, armour shred chance, armour shred effect, and plenty more that pull a lot of weight.
Defensively, critical hit damage reduction or critical damage avoidance are, well, critical for most builds, as random damage spikes are a great way to die, and these let you avoid them entirely. Resists are also important — while you can always get them on gear and idols, having the option to get them on the Mastery passive tree gives you flexibility. Meanwhile, damage reduction is arguably the best way to survive in the game, so of course it’s a fairly rare stat to find. You also have recovery (leech, health regeneration, health/ward on hit, etc.) and eHP (Ward and/or Health) to worry about, and a ton of other things. All that is to say, any Mastery that offers these in a manner that’s point efficient is more likely to be toward the top of this list.
As for Mastery skills, these are evaluated largely based on their numbers and damage potential for both bossing and clearing, with a little consideration given to how they feel to play. A skill may be S-Tier but if it feels clunky to play, that may contribute to a Mastery ranking a bit lower than it could. Of course, if you’re not the type to mind mechanics like snapshotting, you’re welcome to rank a given Mastery higher.
Last Epoch Season 2 Masteries Tier List
S-Tier: Paladin, Void Knight
Best overall clear, bossing, and defense, with no significant weaknesses
A-Tier: Falconer, Bladedancer, Shaman, Druid
Strong clear, bossing, and/or defense. Lacking significantly in one area
B-Tier: Marksman, Lich, Beastmaster
Good clear, bossing, and/or defense. Lacking significantly in one or more areas
C-Tier: Necromancer, Forge Guard, Runemaster
Decent to good clear, bossing, and/or defense. Lacking significantly in one or more areas
D-Tier: Spellblade, Warlock, Sorcerer
Poor to good clear, bossing, and/or defense. Lacking significantly in multiple areas
S-Tier Last Epoch Masteries
S-Tier: Void Knight
If you want to delete screens with a giant purple sword and never die, Void Knight (and Erasing Strike) is for you. It scales well too when it transitions into the World Splitter version. A Warpath version is also just as viable, and happens to be both top tier and new player/casual friendly.
Void Knight has more mobility and effective HP (eHP) than it used to, and sports the same huge clear and very respectable bossing damage. It also has the distinct benefit of being able to move and do damage simultaneously, which is always a huge boon for damage per second (DPS), while feeling very smooth to play.
In terms of numbers, it sports 200% added damage effectiveness on all skills (and 600 on Erasing Strike), which is very much where you want to be.
The passive tree offers resistance to and penetration for Physical and Void damage, leech and leech rate, damage reduction, increased health, slow and chill resist, mana solutions, attack speed, and plenty more. Standout nodes include Sorrow & Steel (damage, armor, and area of effect in one tidy package), Void Corruption (a huge amount of critical hit chance and multiplier), and Mortal Cleave (culling, damage, and critical hit chance all in one). There’s even more to mention, but you get the idea: Void Knight has it all.
S-Tier: Paladin
Developer Eleventh Hour Games (EHG) admitted it overdid it with the Sentinel rework, which is why Judgement Paladin took four of the top 5 spots in the Terminate Uber Abberoth race. So, there should be no doubt whatsoever this Mastery deserves S-Tier.
As with Void Knight, Paladin has extremely potent skills, doesn’t die, and does massive damage. Judgement alone is obscene, offering 350% damage effectiveness and 200% critical multiplier against 15 mana cost and 4s cooldown, paired together in one-two healing and damage punch. The thing is, every single one of its other skills are about as potent, which can’t be said for any other Mastery. Symbols of Hope and Holy Aura both follow the damage and defense in one theme, while Healing Hands just offers a metric ton of healing (primarily for those extra tough bosses).
The passive tree offers the most resistances in the game, plus plenty of recovery and damage reduction, mana, attack and cast speed, block, armor, penetration, and more. Standout nodes include Covenant of Light (which buffs Healing Hands and Holy Aura simultaneously), Covenant of Protection, and Reverence of Duality and Convenant of Dominion, which collectively offer ridiculous amounts of damage, sustain, damage over time mitigation, and defense (sometimes all at once).
Though Judgement steals the show, Bleed Hammerdin and Smite are strong build options as well if you want to go a little off-meta.
A-Tier Last Epoch Masteries
A-Tier: Falconer
EHG has stated its goal when nerfing overpowered (OP) builds is to make them “just under OP”, and that’s exactly what happened with the Falconer Mastery and its popular builds. Outrageously powerful when it launched, it’s now simply silly good (the horror!).
Movement speed on this one is unrivaled, and damage is top tier, thanks in part to easy access to critical hit multipliers and Dexterity scaling options. Even better, it has the option to employ both simultaneously thanks to Aerial Assault: just grab your bird and it’s bombs away.
Its only real weakness is defense. You’ll need to use Dodge alongside Silver/Dusk Shrouds and/or Glancing Blows to avoid damage, keeping you on your toes. An almost complete lack of resistance options on the tree is a factor as well, as this puts a lot of pressure to get resistance on your Blessings, idols, and gear when you might prefer other options.
You can lean into the Falconer’s lack of defense with a Zero HP Ballista Falconer build that hits incredibly hard, but requires you to cheese incoming damage using Silver Shrouds and Dodge. Safe to say we won’t be using this in hardcore.
Apart from Ballista, Umbral Blades is one of the top Falconer builds, which can be built using Shadow Daggers before you swap over to a Dexterity stacking version with Talons of Valor bow and Razorfall boots. If you like the idea of slicing enemies up and dashing all over the place while flying around on your feathered friend, you’ll find it a joy to play. It is button intensive, however, especially if you insist on maximizing DPS.
A-Tier: Bladedancer
While Falconer is more popular, Bladedancer is about as strong and well-rounded. Clear, single target, and defense are all where you’d want them to be, thanks to the suite of high-DPS skills, powerful passive support, and useful iframes from Lethal Mirage. If you want a strong but fast melee class, this is the one.
Standout nodes on the passive tree include Pursuit (efficient damage and movement speed), Argent Veil (makes dodge a lot more reliable), and Death’s Door (damage reduction for low life builds). More broadly, Glancing Blows, Dusk Shrouds, and Dodge form a powerful defensive layer, and Dexterity stacking, crit, leech, Frailty, armour shred and armour shred effect are all on offer. In short, you have everything you need to succeed. The only thing really holding Bladedancer back is that it’s not quite as over the top numerically as things like Judgment Paladin.
In terms of builds, you can go with Shadow Daggers, Shadow Cascade, Chakrams (take the Chakram node on the Shurikens tree), or Lethal Mirage using Black Blade of Chaos (requires a 2H sword of the same name). The Chakram version at least should be Uber Abberoth viable.
A-Tier: Beastmaster
The summoner Mastery. It’s not as tanky as Void Knight or Paladin, but Beastmaster still took 2nd place in the Uber Abberoth race. Granted it’s partly due to Storm Crows, which has top tier DPS due to snapshotting which isn’t Beastmaster exclusive, though the Summon Wolf companion buffs surely helped. In any case, Beastmaster Summons is a proven archetype, though they take some time to get going.
You can go heavier on the Beastmaster skills by building around Poison Nova Scorpion (check out CookBook’s version). It’s well-rounded in terms of damage and clear but usually suffers from low movement speed, so if you’re coming from something like Rogue, it’ll be a shock. There are options to alleviate it—Haste via The Scavenger belt and increased Haste effect on idols, for example—but it will never be a fast build.
The passive tree offers ever-important damage reduction, health, healing, health regeneration, endurance for companions, crit support, and stun. There is a lack of damage, but you can grab this elsewhere.
A-Tier: Shaman
A melee and/or elemental Mastery, Shaman is one of the highest Arena pushing builds: it can reach Wave 500-700+. The clear is quite fast, albeit not top tier, with a similar story on defense.
Tornado is a lot more damage than it seems, and the vacuum effect is great, making it the star of the show. Earthquake and Avalanche see little play due to high mana costs and/or requiring Spriggan Form which is clunky. However, using Aftershock idols can be welcome for some extra damage (so you’re essentially using Earthquake without suffering the problems of Earthquake). Summon Storm Totem is fairly popular, as well. If nothing else, it’s a nice decoy with decent damage.
As for the passive tree, you get a lot of Penetration (though you have to go through the defensively weak Attunement to get much of it), cooldown reduction, mana, auto trigger skills, attack and cast speed, elemental damage packaged with resists, Haste, and a lot more. The highlight skills include Fist of Stone (stun, Endurance, and health regen all in one), Lagon’s Answer and Conflux (auto and double cast Storm Bolt alongside area of effect (AoE) and damage reduction is efficient, to say the least), and Swirling Maelstrom (more auto casting fun, with health, mana, and Endurance Threshold on top). There’s even more to rave about, but you get the jist.
A-Tier: Druid
The shapeshifting Mastery, Storm Werebear is top of the pile here. Boasting great DPS, it can kill Abberoth (possibly even the Uber version), do 1000 corruption (the most you ever want to push due to severely diminishing returns), and around 300 Wave Arena (and as much as ~700). The eHP is very nice, to boot. If you like a combo playstyle and the idea of mauling enemies to death while filling the screen with tornadoes, this is a well-rounded, engaging Mastery to go for. Its primary weakness is that it’s not very fast at farming, though, so if you want to progress fast, Druid may not be the right fit.
Taking Werebear replaces four of your skills with new ones more fitting for a bear. Rampage and Maul sport the always appreciated package of movement and competitive damage, while adding in Knockback for good measure. Roar meanwhile offers Knockback and Stun, and can be configured to sustain Rage (basically bear mana). Its skill tree sports a no cooldown version of Rampage (yes please), can make Rampage trigger Storm Bolt, and supports Stun, Rage and Health on hit (via Invigoration), and reduces the cooldown of Maul, among other standouts.
Spriggan Form is very strong as well, bringing a ton of defense to the table, but is better supported by Druid/Beastmaster, and so won’t be discussed further here. Swarmblade is no slouch either (just not with Locusts), while Entangling Roots falls by the wayside. It’s not a terrible skill, but it’s mostly a buff skill for totems, which proves clunky as you can’t use it reasonably from Spriggan Form.
As with everything in the top tiers, the passive tree here offers more strong nodes than we have room to go into. There’s Spirit Warden for health, mana, and sustain, Focused Wrath for damage coupled with Rage decay rate buffs, Bush Stalker (crit and leech on crit), Fetid Resilience (multiplicative damage over time), Primal Shifter/Tiger Spirit (armour, damage, crit chance, and crit multiplier, all of which can be made to apply to minions as well), and Impervious (which grants damage reduction for doing melee damage). There’s plenty more, but the point stands: Shaman is clearly here to play.
B-Tier Last Epoch Masteries
B-Tier: Lich
The classic ‘sacrifice your life for bonuses’ archetype, Lich can hang with the better Masteries thanks to potent skills like Reaper Form and a meaty passive tree.
Drain Life has underwhelming stats, but can be useful with the Hecatomb node to convert your minions into mana. Aura of Decay is an appealing skill for the poison archetype (which gets a lot of support on the passive trees), but unfortunately is very weak in practice, because scaling applies to damage received and there are no great ways to mitigate it or turn it into an upside. Death Seal on the other hand is excellent, providing a huge 300% damage effectiveness boost and reducing damage taken to half. As with most things Lich, it’s slightly risky but well worth it.
As for Reaper Form, it’s only 100% damage effectiveness but this increases a lot via the passive tree. Additionally, it’s a movement skill, and it’s AoE damage that gains you health, making for a strong all-rounder. Again, it drains you, but you can overcome this with recovery options.
The passive tree provides options for Intelligence stacking, mana, health, ward, recovery, and more. The standouts here include Dance With Death, Hollow Lich, Unclosing Wounds, and Ageless Plagues, all of which offer terribly efficient damage buffs. There’s also automatic minion generation (Harvested Legions), critical strike chance and attack/cast speed buffs (Clairvoyant Insight), and Ageless Ascetic for buffs to movement, attack, and cast speed as well as leech. Not the best, but also not bad at all.
B-Tier: Marksman
Your classic Archer subclass. Hail of Arrows and Heartseeker are the popular builds. While not required, the former really wants the Sanguine Hoard unique quiver, but it shouldn’t be hard to pick up. If you like the idea of setting up a big bleed combo, it’s worth playing. Meanwhile, Heartseeker is pretty great if you like the idea of auto targeting projectiles. Just be sure to go with Bleed or Poison very early, before transitioning into the Icicle version once your gear is ready.
One of the strengths of Marksman is it offers tons of HP on hit, and because you tend to be shooting out a ton of projectiles, it can hit a lot. Multishot is a bit weak on base with 120% damage effectiveness and base 6 phys, though this improves greatly with all the multiplicative damage nodes on the passive tree, as well as some flat damage. Plus, it has a low mana cost. Meanwhile, Hail is nice because it doesn’t care about crit and sports 325% damage effectiveness by default. Detonating Arrow is simply underwhelming numerically, so it’s no surprise it’s not played.
On the passive tree you’ll find support for dodge, crit, movement speed, additional arrows, damage, recovery, and heaps more. Some of the best nodes among them include Heightened Senses (crit avoidance and crit multiplier), Thief’s Quiver (health and leech), and Death From Afar (stun and armour shred). As is typical for Rogue Masteries, it’s not going to win awards for defense, but you’ll never have to worry about damage or clear if you play your cards right.
C-Tier Last Epoch Masteries
C-Tier: Necromancer
Another summoner Mastery, this time with undead flavour. With a reasonably strong suite of skills and a passive tree that covers a lot of bases, it’s fitting that Necromancer can often hit 200-400 Waves in Arena.
Summon Skeletal Mage is a nifty skill in that it reduces enemy health regeneration by 20% (most useful against bosses) and can be converted to a Traversal skill; you’ll be focusing on a single powerful minion rather than an undead army, however. On the tree, you’ll find lots of support for Poison, Necrotic, Cold, and Fire, so there’s something for almost everyone.
Sacrifice sees little to no play because the Mastery has terrible personal damage support — it’s playable, but minions do the same thing for you but better.
Dread Shade offers a huge flat and increased percentage damage boost temporarily (at the cost of health), and can be made to explode your minions for big Necrotic damage (Doom Brand) or enhance Infernal Shade. There’s also the option to convert all Necrotic investment into Poison if that’s your jam. And then there’s the Beyond Death node which turns minions into exploding Zombies, Duskheart which converts Shade into a damage over time skill, and Symbiotic Apparition which grants you Shade’s buffs.
Assemble Abomination, meanwhile, summons a powerful tanky minion. To make the most of it you’ll need to employ snapshotting (basically gear and skill swapping, which many players despise), but it’s still reasonable without.
Finally, Summon Wraith has respectable damage thanks to Dread Shade and Wraith’s many critical strike passives. As usual, there’s lots of support here on the tree for Fire, Necrotic, or Poison variations, but also a Bleed one. And like Shade, it can convert into a damage over time skill (Spectre of Death).
Notable notables on the Necromancer tree include Elixir of Hunger for health, increased percentage health, health on hit, and attack/cast speed, and Rite of Undeath for 120 total resistances on top of a nice damage boost. More broadly, you won’t find yourself short on recovery damage, minion support, armour and resistance shred, ward or ward retention, or crit in both its forms. There’s not much in the way of defense here outside of recovery and minion tanking, which holds it back some.
C-Tier: Runemaster
Runemaster is a rarely-seen-in-RPGs caster archetype that lets you combine spells together to make unique spells (any Gauntlet fans in the house?). While you don’t have to play it this way, Rune of Invocation — the skill that enables this — is the reason to play Runemaster, offering extreme versatility via invocations, many with very impressive damage numbers.
Hydrahedron is one of the highlights — casting this spell via Rune of Invocation is part of what makes the Mastery and build 1000 corruption viable. Defense is still a serious concern, but if you keep on the move, you should stay alive. For those with a bigger budget, there’s Focus Autobomber, which uses the Brand of Deception and Runic Fortress passives to strong effect. The DPS isn’t anything special, but it’s very tanky. The idea here is to stack Strength, Intelligence, and Ward for armor and shock. As a bonus, it’s easy to play.
Flame Rush is a movement skill with legitimate damage numbers paired with damage reduction, and can serve as a respectable damage skill when desired. Frost Wall, meanwhile, can brag about a very high 400% damage effectiveness, 100% chance to chill, and Freeze chance. Plus, it’s a damage over time skill, so it has less gearing requirements, and it’s a strong bosser thanks to Decree of the Burning Wind (on the Runemaster passive tree).
Runebolt is no slouch either, offering a 200% crit multiplier and mana regeneration while getting around resistances with Decree of the Bountiful Ocean. Lastly, Glyph of Dominion measures up well numerically, while providing guaranteed slow. There’s also an interesting interaction there with Decree of Eternal Tundra for lots of ward per second.
As for the passive tree, there’s all kinds of support for Ward, mana, elemental debuffs, cast and movement speed, reduced critical strike damage, cooldown recovery, and armour and damage for Fire builds and Freeze multiplier and damage for Lightning builds, among other things. It’s not outrageous like you see with the higher tier Masteries, but it’s still competitive.
C-Tier: Forge Guard
Forge Guard can hold its own as a Mastery, just not as well as the big boys. To put it another way, they do much of what it does but better. Still, there are some unique build options here that are great if you’re looking for something different.
Skill-wise, Manifest Armor is nice as a decoy and rewards STR/armor stacking (the primary unique build option). Shield Throw offers high added damage effectiveness, while Ring of Shields brings great defense to the table (especially with the Shield Crafter passive). Still, comparing it to Symbols of Hope, it comes up short, as it’s situational and purely defensive.
Smelter’s Wrath has a lot of potential as it scales offense and defense and boasts 600% damage effectiveness. Unfortunately, it’s a channeling skill with no option to change that, so it’ll slow you down and leave you a bit vulnerable. Next, you have Forge Weapon with a beefy 600% damage effectiveness, alongside summons for defense which scale off your weapon. Not bad at all.
In terms of passives, the only really standout one is Guardian for a lovely combination of health, stun chance, and regen. Steel Aegis, Iron Attunement, Walls of Solarum, and Osprixbane are certainly no slouches, but when evaluating the best nodes in other Masteries, Forge Guard leaves something to be desired. Apart from that, you can find efficient damage scaling throughout the tree.
D-Tier Last Epoch Masteries
D-Tier: Spellblade
It may be D-Tier, but even D-Tier still means viable. Spellblade is not lacking in DPS at all and is pretty speedy, but can struggle a great deal with defenses. The better your positioning, the less you’ll get one-tapped, but it’s still going to happen occasionally. If you don’t mind that and like the idea of combining magic with melee, it’s worth a go.
Flame Reave is playable but underwhelming. The base stats are strong enough, but damage cuts in half at a distance, AoE is limited, and the mana cost is fairly high. Worse, it only hits once per cast, which is a big no-no when compared to skills like Frost Claw that hit 20 times per cast (and for a lot more total damage), or Judgment on Sentinel—mind you, just about everything comes up short there!
On top of that, it lacks unique buffs and debuffs, and its crowd control node proves ineffective in practice. Too many of the nodes require downsides that aren’t worth it, as well. It can still get you to the mid-game or so (around 500 Corruption), but not nearly as efficiently as other skills, and unlike those, it will hit a wall.
Enchant Weapon is a potent DPS boost (65% situationally and 15% permanently), and if going the Ignite route, allows you to trigger Ignites instantly; always a powerful method of damage delivery. There’s also some ever-potent Leech for Lightning or Fire variations, and Chill for Cold. Surprisingly, there is no Freeze support.
Firebrand is similar to Reave in that it can hit 300 Corruption but not do much beyond that. It doesn’t have all the drawbacks of Reave and is quite enjoyable to play—imagine rapidly shooting fire beams at enemies up to mid-range—but unfortunately the damage isn’t quite there compared to top skills, so you’ll have a harder time than you need to when progressing, and will eventually fall on hard times. Still, if you’re looking for something off-meta and don’t need the best of the best, this is a good skill to go for.
Surge offers mobility, damage, tons of crit, and debuffs (including Stun), as well all all kinds of elemental and Ward support. Meanwhile, Shatter Strike loves crit while also providing some defense and offense in the form of cold debuffs, culling, Knockback, armor, Ward, and more. All in all, you absolutely will not have issues scaling damage, and it won’t even require much gearing, though obviously, better gear will take it even farther.
As for the passive tree, it provides ward support in every form, and intriguing nodes like Flame Walker for some mobile fire damage and fire resistance shred, and Arcane Shielding and Shattered Aegis for damage reduction and armour (worth the 10 points). Apart from those, you’ll find resistances, damage, health, and mana available. Unluckily, there’s little support for Parry. It’s a decent tree for sure, but there’s nothing outrageous to help it keep up with the top tiers.
D-Tier: Warlock
Warlock builds are focused on damage over time, which makes them easy to gear and in that sense, very new player and casual friendly. Curses are also a major element, amplifying damage by debuffing enemies. While builds like Witchfire are viable, they don’t do much better than other Masteries, and so rarely push far on the ladder.
Cthonic Fissure, Profane Veil, and Chaos Bolts are your star skills, all slotting into both the popular Bleed and Witchfire (Fire/Necrotic damage) variations. The damage they bring is what keeps Warlock at all competitive; Profane Veil even offers some defensive utility by making you invincible to everything but damage over time temporarily while granting damage over time itself.
Defense is where it all kind of falls apart. While you have access to high eHP and recovery (and Profane Veil) thanks to nodes like Spiteful Decay and Spirit Leech, that’s about it, which is a far cry from the better Masteries.
Fire/Necrotic focus builds will find The Ashen One passive is a must-grab for Witchfire, while Crimson Favours and Cauldron of Blood serves Bleed builds well.
D-Tier: Sorcerer
The classic caster class, Sorcerer is very much viable, but unfortunately doesn’t do a lot to stand out. Frostbite Frostclaw is one of the better builds available, proving itself as an all-rounder, but suffering from mana issues and lacking speed.
Skill-wise, you have some strong stats on Static Orb, and as always vacuum skills like this (and Black Hole) hold their own. It gets more interesting with skill nodes like Static Armor that grant a situational 25% less damage taken, and Overwhelming Barrage which dramatically increases stun chance. There are also options to convert it into a cold and Freeze skill for yet another defensive layer.
Ice Barrage sports some respectable numbers as well, and its 40 Freeze rate is competitive with Frost Claw — even better, it auto targets enemies, and has the option to creating a Chill effect AoE or a shield that blocks projectiles.
Arcane Ascendance is powerful but prohibitive, due to its high mana cost (somewhat offset on the tree), lack of crit, and lacking secondary damage. Still, its tree makes it quite versatile, providing access to Knockback, Slow, Haste, auto casting, and more.
As for Black Hole, this is a potent single skill with 600% damage effectiveness and some vacuum utility. It’s arguably best used as single target, but can be customized for clear. On the tree you’ll find even more utility in Knockback and Blind, and options to convert into Fire or Cold for builds focused on those elements.
Lastly, Meteor has huge base stats (190 fire + 950% damage effectiveness), but at a high mana cost, demanding you build around it with mana stacking and Archmage, whjch aren’t in a great spot.
On the passive tree you get lots of ward support in all its forms, substantial damage buffs, and cast speed, elemental debuffs, leech, and penetration. It’s certainly not the whole package, but it’s not nothing, either. The Mana Bulwark node — which deals damage to mana before health — is tempting, but unfortunately this is an ineffective mechanic in practice.
Sean Ridgeley is a freelance contributor for IGN and lives for all things RPG, FPS, horror, and fighting. When he’s not grinding Last Epoch, Path of Exile, or Overwatch, he can be found headbanging in moshpits.
Ghost of Yotei, a follow-up to Ghost of Tsushima, is set to release exclusively for PS5 on October 2. It’s not exactly a sequel, in that the story is unrelated to the first game, but Yotei is a similar game that follows Atsu on a quest for vengeance against a gang of outlaws called the Yotei Six. Read on for the details about what comes in each edition, how much they cost, and more.
The PS Direct-exclusive collector’s edition comes with a digital copy of the base game, plus the following extras:
Physical Items
Ghost mask
Papercraft ginkgo tree
Zeni haiki coin game & pouch
Tsuba
Sash
Art cards
In-Game Digital Items
The Snake armor
Digital deluxe armor dye
Digital deluxe horse and saddle
Sword kit
Charm
Traveler’s Maps (early unlock)
Ghost of Yotei Preorder Bonus
Preorder Ghost of Yotei, and you’ll receive the following digital extras:
7 PSN avatars: Atsu and the Yotei Six
In-game mask
What Is Ghost of Yotei?
Ghost of Yotei follows a character named Atsu, after a gang called the Yotei Six has killed her family and left her for dead. Your job, as Atsu, is to find and kill all members of the Yotei Six. It’s all very Kill Bill of course, but that movie was inspired by older marital arts action movies, so Ghost of Yotei fits in a long tradition of revenge stories.
Along the way, Atsu will meet various allies and find new weapons. It’s an open-world game, and it’s up to you to decide which way you want to go, which leads to follow, and in what order you want to dispatch the Yotei Six.
Other Preorder Guides
Chris Reed is a deals expert and commerce editor for IGN. You can follow him on Bluesky @chrislreed.com.
It was, perhaps, inevitable: Rockstar has delayed GTA 6 to May 2026. Confirmation comes from an unceremonious statement that was devoid of launch platforms or any new trailer. Not even a new screenshot accompanied the news.
Fans of Rockstar games have been here before, of course. The legendary developer has form when it comes to delaying its games, so this delay to GTA 6 perhaps comes as little surprise. Still, those fans have reacted with a mix of disappointment, relief, and a realization that the internet is now set for another 12 months of rampant, often nonsensical speculation about all things GTA 6.
The GTA 6 subreddit, which has been the source of so many of the wild conspiracy theories surrounding the game, its trailers, and when it might come out, has exploded following the news.
“Ffs, Fuck Rockstar, at least give us screenshots,” MyNameIsToFuOG said, reflecting a general disappointment that Rockstar failed to soften the blow of GTA 6’s delay without any fresh look at the game.
“At least give us a screenshot, this is ridiculous even for R*,” added Abvk0. “1.5 years of silence just to drop a delay news without even showing us bread crumbs of the game?”
“At least we have a date now, I don’t mind a delay if it means the game is gonna be good,” said the more philosophical bl00nded.
“It’s Rockstar bro. What did you expect? Also, I really doubt it will release on May 26, they will delay it more,” said a somewhat concerned Puzzleheaded-Hunt731.
There is also speculation Rockstar may release GTA 6 on PC at the same time as on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and S, now the game has been delayed to 2026. “I hope that means that a PC version is also coming in 2026 and not 2027,” said Kiwibom.
“2026 console release, late 2027 PC release, 2028 new-gen console release,” predicted Velkoadmiral.
IGN’s own commenters had plenty to say about the GTA 6 delay, too, with user BSideleau slamming the console generation thus far in a scathing post:
“Surprising no one. It will be a final game of this tepid generation. What a let down. I have never felt more grifted than by Microsoft and Sony this generation. Both consoles are more 0.5 updates from the previous generation than true next gen consoles, yet they expected us to pay MORE for them. Quit letting them get away with it. Demand better.”
There’s also plenty of talk about how much GTA 6 will cost. With both Nintendo and Microsoft going to $80 for some of their games, fans are bracing themselves for an $80 GTA 6. Some believe it could cost even more, going up to $100 perhaps, if the new GTA Online is included.
In its statement, Rockstar said “we look forward to sharing more information with you soon.” Could this mean Trailer 2 isn’t far off? Fans certainly hope so.
GTA 6 isn’t just expected to be the biggest entertainment launch of all time, fans expect it to be one of the greatest games ever made. Under that enormous pressure, the developers at Rockstar and parent company Take-Two will be desperate to ensure the game launches at the highest possible quality level. With that in mind, this delay feels like it was always going to happen.
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.
PlayStation is seemingly pulling its one-time poster child, Sackboy, from its marketing materials.
As noted by Realradec, Sackboy was notably absent from the PlayStation Productions banner at the start of the Until Dawn movie, although most of his peers, like Astro Bot, Uncharted‘s Nathan Drake, and Horizon Zero Dawn‘s Aloy, still have a place.
“Can confirm after seeing Until Dawn that Sackboy is not in the PlayStation Productions intro anymore (picture below is the 2023 version from Gran Turismo),” wrote Realradec. “I don’t like this era of Sackboy erasure,” (thanks, PlayStationLifestyle).
Oh yeah I forgot to mention, I can confirm after seeing Until Dawn that Sackboy is not in the PlayStation Productions intro anymore (picture below is the 2023 version from Gran Turismo)
Once upon a time, Sackboy was the golden child of PlayStation, becoming a mascot for the PlayStation brand in much the same way Sonic is associated with Sega, and Mario represents all things Nintendo. Now, however, as Sackboy hasn’t starred in a PlayStation game since 2020’s delightful Sackboy: A Big Adventure, it seems he’s being sidelined to make room for more contemporary faces.
“They are removing the Sack, they can’t just put him out on the street like that,” commented one unhappy Twitter user, while another asked: “They took out my boy? But he was just in that Secret Level episode!”
“He is not Sackboy anymore… he is Sadboy now,” teased another.
While others lamented, “why can’t Astro Bot and Sackboy coexist?”, others had a more measured reaction.
“Sackboy being erased from the PS Productions logo does not mean anything, DreamWorks also swaps out characters in their logo montage sometimes,” said another.
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.
