Category: IGN

Rise of the Ronin version 1.05 is now available and brings some major changes to the game by adding new missions (including the most difficult one so far), applying quality of life improvements, and making a big change to cat collecting.

Detailed in an update on X/Twitter, the extensive patch notes are headlined by the addition of new content, including five new ally missions while playing on the Midnight difficulty. Three missions have the player “team up and improve local security in Unruly Areas”, while one called Path of Chaos presents different enemies on each playthrough.

Hardcore fans may be most interested in Eternal Night, however, which developer Team Ninja called “the most difficult mission thus far.”

Set bonuses have also been added to Ferocious Tiger and Prodigious Dragon, with the former receiving the Blade Flash attack, an upgraded forward dodge, and more. The latter is receiving the Last Ditch Counterspark, Neutral Combat, and more.

Formidable Foes of the Foreigner faction will now have a chance of dropping new glider appearances too, and players can otherwise test their skills against new training opponents such as their Blade Twin and bosses previously only available through bond missions.

Players can now manually reset Unruly Areas too, sync missions that have been completed on Midnight difficulty, equip two of the same weapons individually (allowing for different styles in each hand), and more. Perhaps most importantly, progressing cat collecting will now place cats that can be pet around Usugumo Dayu.

These changes come on top of a wealth of balance updates and bug fixes. The full patch notes can be seen below.

Rise of the Ronin arrived March 22, 2024 as an open-world action role-playing game exclusive to PlayStation 5 where players take on the role of a wandering samurai at the dawn of a new era in Japan. It earned a 7/10 in IGN’s review. “Rise of the Ronin marries a cool setting, Team Ninja’s mastery of tough-but-fair combat, and smart RPG design, even when map clutter and junk loot can get in its way,” we said.

Rise of the Ronin Version 1.05 Patch Notes

NEW CONTENT

• Midnight difficulty: Added new Ally Missions
  • Team up and improve local security in Unruly Areas – Thugs: Honmachi, Thugs Honjo, and Thugs: Honnoji
  • Path of Chaos – Each play through will have different enemies
  • Eternal Night – The most difficult mission thus far
• Added new set bonuses Ferocious Tiger and Prodigious Dragon. Masterwork armor and accessories will now have a chance to drop with these new Set Bonuses separately from other set bonuses
  • Ferocious Tiger set bonuses:
    • Blade Flash Attack
    • Upgraded Forward Dodge
    • Attack ↑ (Martial Skill Swap)
    • Ki Regeneration (Blade Flash)
  • Prodigious Dragon set bonuses:
    • Last Ditch Counterspark
    • Enemy Max Ki ↓ (Grapple Attack)
    • Neutral Combat
    • Upgraded Counterspark
• Added new training opponents, such as your Blade Twin, and bosses that were only available in bond missions
• Added new glider appearances that can be obtained from Formidable Foes of the Foreigner faction: Glorious Crimson, Elegant Brown, and Imperial Blue

NEW FEATURES

• Added feature to manually reset Unruly Areas that is unlocked by completion rate of a chapter on Midnight difficulty
• Added system where you can level sync missions that you have completed on Midnight difficulty
• When equipping the same two main weapon type (for example two katanas), you can now equip different styles for each weapon individually
• Can now register Jizo Statuette for item preset loadouts
• Number of times Martial Skills hit is now added to technical points in Training
• Now shows difficulty in the results screen of Training, as the higher the difficulty, the higher the possible score will be
• Added filtering for Training
• Progressing cat collecting will now place cats that can be pet around Usugumo Dayu in Yokohama, Edo, and Kyoto

WEAPON ADJUSTMENTS

• Adjusted so Violent Gale and Flash attack is easier to do after certain martial skills
• Katana: Yagyu Shinkage-ryu – Follow-up attack after counterspark is now easier to land
• Katana: Nioh-ryu – Adjusted so you are less likely to accidentally trigger Nioh-den: Iai Quickdraw when performing Veiled Arts after Blade Flashing
• Katana: Nioh-ryu – Nioh-den Iai Quickdraw consumes less Ki, and overall increase in damage and Ki damage
• Katana: Aisu Kage-ryu – Crimson Light consumes less ki, and at max blood gauge, damage, and Ki damage is increased
• Saber: British Training – Reduced Ki consumption of throwing knife, and increased damage
• Bayonet: Mumyo-ryu – Bone Shatterer now easier to follow up with critical hits on enemies with depleted Ki
• Bayonet: French Training – Follow-up show after counterspark is now easier to hit
• Oxtail Blade: Mumyo Kaishin-ryu – Midnight Banquet now easier to follow up with critical hit on enemies with depleted
• Great Sword: Mumyo Kaishin-ryu – Midnight Mist is now easier to hit
• Unarmed: Mumyo-ryu – Raging Wolf is now easier to hit

CHARACTER ADJUSTMENTS

• Adjusted player knockback distance on successfully countersparking enemy attacks
• Now possible to switch styles when: Guarding enemy attacks, during some animations of being hit by enemy attacks, and during Flash Attack
• Calling your horse while sprinting will continue the sprint after mounting the horse
• Adjusted and improved stats of unique attacks of Ally characters across the board
• Adjusted so that you will no longer switch lock on targets when controlling the right stick with the combat style UI showing during Critical Hits

ENEMY ADJUSTMENTS

• Shortened flaming area that certain bosses create
• Adjusted and nerfed Bayonet bullet damage and state of certain enemies

OTHER ADJUSTMENTS

• Increased chance of obtaining Masterwork equipment from formidable foes
• A portion of main weapons and sub weapons can now have set bonuses
• Adjusted so that specific equipment that had limited ways of obtaining to now drop from enemies as well
• Can now overwrite set bonuses when bond transferring on Masterwork equipment
• When selecting equipment for bond transferring, equipment that cannot be selected is now filtered to not show
• Items that heal status ailment are now affected by Skill Bolster Duration ↑ and Technology Development Inventory ↑
• Can now obtain the unique accessories by triggering the Veiled Vow dialogue event, and no longer need to commit to the Veiled Vow
• Dialogue lines played after breaking a Veiled Vow now resets after certain conditions
• Fertilizer purchased from Robert Fortune is now cheaper
• Increased the types of material you can purchase from Robert Fortune and Alexandria Moreau
• Increased Red Nuts gain when gardening
• Can now change the time in the Redesign menu
• Midnight difficulty, Edo: Location hubs – Yoshinobu Tokugawa, Taka Murayama, and Hachiro Kiyokawa will now appear in their hubs
• Shintaro Nakaoka will now appear at Choshu Clain Estate in Kyoto when using the Testaments of the Soul
• Adjusted to increase chance of encountering other player’s ronin avatars at towns or roads

BUG FIXES

• Fixed bug where you could transfer despite lacking materials or money through an unconventional method
• Fixed bug where you could not purchase Coal from blacksmiths
• Fixed bug where Blade Twin’s Kimono and Modernizing Vassal’s Kimono – Belt were not shown as selectable pieces
• Fixed bug where each equipment sometimes were shown in different colors each
• Fixed bug where Current Equipment showed default appearance under certain conditions
• Fixed bug where saving and loading before arriving at Kannai disabled Chance Encounters until arriving at Kannai
• Fixed bug where Veiled Arts set for other styles would have different stats compared to the original
• Fixed bug where some Martial Skills would ignore guard
• Fixed bug where you would be forced into swimming when performing certain Martial Skills nearby water
• Fixed bug where while using Martial Skill Blossom Blizzard, if you take damage from certain enemy skills will make you unable to dodge out of it
• Fixed bug where in Niph-ryu, switching to middle stance would sometimes switch to high stance
• Fixed bug where after drop down assassinations, performing certain martial skills would cause you to take fall damage
• Fixed bug where Ki Blaze effect would vibrate excessively
• Fixed bug where when using Ally Alexandria Moreau, her grapple throws were not matching the indicator
• Other minor fixes

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

One of the most high-profile Mortal Kombat 1 modders on YouTube has pulled their content offline after alleging Warner Bros. “threatened to destroy” his channel.

Toasted tweeted to allege Warner Bros. had issued an intellectual property infringement notification that states the Mortal Kombat mods showcased in his videos “infringe” on the company’s IP rights. Toasted claimed that Warner Bros., which owns the Mortal Kombat IP as well as its developer, NetherRealm, requested he delete all Mortal Kombat 1 videos from his channel “or else they will issue copyright strikes and essentially delete my channel in its entirety.”

These are all the videos I’ve had to private, I’m sorry to everyone who enjoyed them but Warner Bros isn’t really giving me a choice pic.twitter.com/AB6fop5ot3

— Toasted (@ToastedShoes) May 23, 2024

IGN has verified the notification, sent by AI-powered brand protection company Tracer. It includes the takedown request, which also extends to Toasted’s Patreon, where the mods in question were made available to download to subscribers. IGN has confirmed Toasted has also pulled the Mortal Kombat 1 mods down from his Patreon. IGN has asked Warner Bros. for comment.

I voiced Rick, Morty, and Meeseeks in another @ToastedShoes mod 🙂 pic.twitter.com/IoI5GgBLhT

— Sean Kelly (@RealMortysays) December 26, 2023

Toasted’s Mortal Kombat 1 mod videos have showcased NetherRealm’s fighting game with various characters from the likes of Disney, Marvel, Pixar, Warner Bros., and Dreamworks properties. In January 2024, IGN reported on how Toasted had replaced the likes of Sub-Zero, Scorpion, and Liu Kang with Woody from Toy Story, Mr. Incredible from The Incredibles, and even Carl Fredricksen from Up for various Mortal Kombat 1 mod videos. Other mod videos showed Rick & Morty and Family Guy in gory Mortal Kombat 1 battles.

I voiced Morty, Rick, and Meeseeks in a ToastedShoes mod 🙂 pic.twitter.com/pftgehu7mS

— Sean Kelly (@RealMortysays) December 25, 2023

Toasted said clips of his mods have more than one billion views across all platforms, and highlighted that NetherRealm development chief Ed Boon has shared clips of mods himself on social media.

“For over six months Warner Bros. have had zero issues with people modding the game and @noobde himself has shared countless mod videos and clips praising them,” Toasted said.

“The clips of my mods have over one billion views across all platforms that have allowed me to bring attention to the game as well as to continue supporting the team of developers I work with. My team of modders work with me on both a part time and full time basis and the revenue from these videos pays their wages.”

Yeah it’s pretty whack. There’s clips of the mods with 50+ million views on the internet. If anything it would make people want to play the game more would it not? I’ve had many people reply saying they are getting the game PURELY for the mods pic.twitter.com/532r85YUyg

— Toasted (@ToastedShoes) May 23, 2024

Toasted also claimed he is unable to reply to the email sent by Warner Bros., which means he has no way of asking follow-up questions. “I also seem to be the only content creator that I know of that has been sent a cease and desist from Warner Bros.,” he added.

Toasted said the cease and desist has “forced” him to remove all the Mortal Kombat 1 mod videos from his channel. “This isn’t what I wanted to do but I feel I have no other option,” he said.

Warner Bros.’ cease and desist comes just a few days before the company’s franchise-combining brawler MultiVersus launches across PC and consoles. MultiVersus, a free-to-play take on Nintendo’s Smash Bros. series, sees characters from across Warner Bros. properties, including Rick & Morty, battle in a distinctly more family friendly setting than NetherRealm’s Mortal Kombat.

This isn’t the first time Toasted has found himself in hot water over his mod videos. In January 2024, Toasted claimed “Nintendo has come for me” after a takedown of a tweet teasing a Palworld mod with a clip showing Pokémon’s Ash Ketchum in place of the player character, as well as famous Pokémon such as Pikachu replacing Palworld’s Pals.

The question now for Toasted is how to respond to the cease and desist beyond taking down the mods and videos. In a statement provided to IGN, Toasted insisted he will contest the decision. “We are currently listening to and abiding by Warners Bros request to remove the videos,” Toasted said. “However we are going to contest their decision. Right now we are waiting for actual communication from Warner Bros so we can resolve the matter.”

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.

Blizzard Entertainment is removing Overwatch 2’s Hero Mastery Gauntlet PvE mode as it felt it “hasn’t resonated” with players.

The developer announced the news on its forums, explaining the reasoning behind its decision in a statement. Starting with Season 11, the Hero Mastery Gauntlet, a round-based tower defense mode that sees players team up against robots, will no longer be accessible.

Hero Mastery Solo Courses will remain available as a single-player offering, with more courses promised to arrive in future seasons. You can see the full statement below:

Hero Mastery Gauntlet launched in March 2024, meaning it will have only been available for around three months before it’s dropped. Although the mode has been criticized by many, some are disappointed not only because it’s leaving so soon, but because it represents another scrapped PvE mode in the history of Overwatch 2.

In May 2023, Blizzard announced it would no longer be adding the long-promised PvE Hero mode to Overwatch 2. It had been touted as one of the biggest changes for the franchise, which was largely known for its PvP content, since Overwatch 2 was originally announced. Director Aaron Keller eventually apologized for the change of course, calling the mode an “exciting but gargantuan vision.”

Overwatch 2 launched in 2022 as a sequel to Blizzard’s original hero shooter. While we enjoyed it upon its release, giving it an 8/10 in our review, the hero shooter follow-up has changed in a few major ways in the last few years.

Following the decision to shutter the Overwatch League late last year, Blizzard announced that it would make new heroes available to all players to enjoy instead of locking them behind a premium battle pass purchase. The company made good on that promise with Season 10, delivering all past playable characters and its newest Damage hero, Venture, available to all.

The current season runs for another 28 days, meaning you have just less than one month to squeeze out that last bit of fun from Hero Mastery Gauntlet before the co-op mode is gone for good. For more on Blizzard’s future, you can read up on the cancelation of BlizzCon 2024 and check out the new Overwatch 2 Porsche crossover event.

Michael Cripe is a freelance contributor with IGN. He started writing in the industry in 2017 and is best known for his work at outlets such as The Pitch, The Escapist, OnlySP, and Gameranx.

Be sure to give him a follow on Twitter @MikeCripe.

Akuma has been in Street Fighter 6 for under a day, but fans have already discovered two secret super moves he can use. The catch? You can only use them after his secret taunt – the one that involves Akuma sitting on the ground, chomping on a rice ball for 30 seconds.

Most characters only have three super moves, but Akuma has a whopping seven, although that includes the two hidden ones that aren’t included on the move list. Despite that secrecy, various fans on social media were quick to discover both the hidden taunt and the supers that come with them, which IGN has verified independently.

As mentioned, it all starts with the secret taunt. To pull that off, perform Akuma’s back taunt by holding back and pressing all six buttons, then mash down on all those buttons. That’ll lead to a taunt that sees Akuma eating a rice ball, and once he’s finished his snack, you can perform the two hidden supers, which you can see below (along with some helpful instructions from my colleague Mitchell Saltzman):

The first is done by doing two quarter circles back and pressing kick. This one is actually a call back to Kage’s V-Trigger 1 in Street Fighter 5, Rikudo Osatsu. The other one is performed by pressing down, down, and all three punch buttons, and it’s essentially his super move from Street Fighter 5.

That’s not all, though! While in this state, he can also unleash his classic double air fireballs by doing quarter circle back and two punches while jumping forward in the air, and it doesn’t even cost meter.

Although, as fans were quick to point out, the moves aren’t super viable when it comes to competitive play, as the taunt literally leaves the warrior sitting with his back turned to his opponent for 30 seconds. Still, it’s a fun Easter Egg – and, as popular fighting game streamer Maximilian Dood notes, it gives Akuma players a way to open Evo matches in the funniest way possible.

If two Akuma players at @Evo start the set with this taunt, the roof will blow off the convention center. https://t.co/w8BDsKG2Ds

— Maximilian Dood (@maximilian_) May 22, 2024

As mentioned, Akuma entered the Street Fighter 6 fray in an update just earlier today, which has led to a spike in interest for the fighting game. According to SteamDB, there were 70k players on Steam just earlier today, quite the jump from the 5k-25k that were playing in the days prior to the update. Akuma’s a bit of a classic boss for the Street Fighter series, having been introduced all the back in Street Fighter II, so it’s little surprise the see fans psyched for his addition.

IGN gave Street Fighter 6 a 9/10 a year ago, with Saltzman writing at the time, “Street Fighter 6 is the most feature-rich a Street Fighter has ever been at launch, but even beyond that, it’s roster of 18 characters is excellent, the new mechanics revitalize the one-on-one fighting formula, and it absolutely nails all of the little things that make for a stellar fighting game.”

Alex Stedman is a Senior News Editor with IGN, overseeing entertainment reporting. When she’s not writing or editing, you can find her reading fantasy novels or playing Dungeons & Dragons.

We’re officially halfway through the week, and new deals have popped up at various retailers. If you know where to look, you can almost always find great deals and save some extra dollars on games, technology, and more. The best deals for Wednesday, May 22, include a 27″ 165Hz QHD Dell Monitor, Super Mario RPG, Super Mario Odyssey, Tekken 8, and more.

Dell 27″ Gaming Monitor for $179.99

This Dell Gaming Monitor is perfect if you’re looking for a new monitor or an upgrade. At QHD, you’ll be able to play titles in 1440p, which looks significantly better than 1080p. Additionally, this monitor supports 165Hz, leaving a smooth and quality visual experience. The G2724D is also FreeSync and G-Sync compatible. At $179.99, it’s hard to find many better deals than this one.

Save 33% Off Nerf LMTD Halo Needler Dart-Firing Blaster

This Nerf Needler Blaster is a perfect replica of the iconic Halo weapon. Fit with a rotating drum, you can hold up to 10 darts to unleash each in a row without compromise! Additionally, the needles on the top of the blaster light up when you shoot off the darts. If you’d rather just display the blaster on a wall, you can turn on display mode, where the lights go in and out on the top.

Super Mario RPG for $42.93

The remake of Super Mario RPG is $42.93 at Amazon right now, which is a great price for this classic title. If you’ve yet to either play the original or check out the remake, this is the perfect time to do so. Composer Yoko Shimimura returned to compose the remake’s original soundtrack, and each boss and environment has been expertly recrafted for the Nintendo Switch. It’s the perfect Mario title to check out if you’re looking for a fun title while awaiting Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door tomorrow!

Elden Ring for $28

Elden Ring is one the greatest RPGs of the past decade, with many praising it as FromSoftware’s greatest title. Right now is the perfect time to pick this one up, as Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree, a major expansion, is due out next month on June 21. This PS4 copy has a free upgrade to PS5, so rest assured you can play either version on your console.

Tekken 8 for $49.99

Tekken 8 is still on sale for $49.99. With Summer approaching, the next DLC fighter is likely not too far away. This title runs on Unreal Engine 5, delivering a massive improvement in visual clarity over Tekken 7. 33 characters are playable as of now, which is the largest roster of any current fighting game. In our 9/10 review, we stated Tekken 8 is “an amazing new entry in the long-running series.”

Super Mario Odyssey for $44.95

Super Mario Odyssey is still one of the best games available on Nintendo Switch. From the stunning Kingdoms to the numerous new gameplay elements, this is a title any Switch owner should have in their collection. Odyssey is best known for its Capture mechanic, which allows Mario to use Cappy and take over different enemies and objects in the environment. This title doesn’t go on sale too often, so pick up a physical copy at a discount this week!

WD_BLACK 2TB SSD for $139.99

Currently, Amazon has the WD_Black 2TB SN850X SSD available for just $139.99. Normally priced at $189.99, this 2TB SSD features speeds up to 7,300MB/s to ensure your games load as fast as possible. This model will work with PlayStation 5, but you will need to purchase an SSD heatsink separately.

Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 for $19.99

If you’ve been holding off on the first Metal Gear Solid collection, now is the time to pick it up. Target has the Nintendo Switch version of Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 for just $19.99 with Target Circle. You can score this deal for a limited time, so be sure to pick it up before it’s gone.

Save on Sony WH-1000MX Series Headphones

Both the Sony WH-1000MX4 and WH-1000MX5 headphones are available on sale. These are two of the best over-ear headphones on the market, especially in the noise-canceling area. Eight microphones are utilized to ensure you have the best listening experience possible. You can instantly silence all of your surroundings with the press of a button, or choose to listen to close sounds like voices, horns honking, etc. Overall, you can’t go wrong with either of these headphones.

Unicorn Overlord for $39.99

Unicorn Overlord is available at Amazon for only $39.99. This title was developed by Vanillaware, most recently known for 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim. Over 60 unique characters are available to choose from within Unicorn Overlord, where you command armies in tactical battle. We gave the game a 9/10 in our review, stating, “Unicorn Overlord is a visual delight that’s brimming with creativity, and an absolute must-play for any fan of strategy RPGs.”

JBL Flip 6 Bluetooth Speaker for $99.99

Target has the JBL Flip 6 on sale this week for only $99. If you’re looking for a fantastic speaker to use throughout the Summer, this is the one for you. The JBL Flip 6 is completely waterproof, which means it is perfect for the beach or pool. With exceptional sound quality and a heavy focus on bass, the Flip 6 will deliver a quality listening experience no matter where you are.

Persona 5 Royal on Switch for $24.99

Persona 5 is one of the most important RPGs of the last ten years for a variety of reasons. It brought millions of new fans into the scene with its exciting combat, gripping story, and interesting characters. Persona 5 Royal is the ultimate version of P5, and it’s now playable portably with Nintendo Switch! This deal was also available at Target but has since sold out. With Persona 6 still a ways out, now is the time to experience this installment. Be sure to pick this one up before it is sold out.

The great appeal of pocket-sized board games is the ability to take them anywhere. A family get-together, office lunch room, or group camping trip–just toss a game in your pocket or bag and everyone is sure to be entertained. The portability of these smaller games allows you to carry them around just in case the opportunity for play arises.

One of the really wonderful things about this hobby is the sheer variety of styles on offer. This quality extends to these tiny boxes. This list is comprised of 10 titles that offer a wide range of mechanisms and playstyles, all while containing those experiences into a modest package. Some may require cargo pants, but all of these offerings are modest in profile and easy to transport.

TL;DR: The Best Pocket-Sized Board Games

• Art Robbery
• Trio
• Love Letter
• Radlands
• Friday
• For Sale
• That’s Not a Hat
• Regicide
• The Mind
• Werewords

Art Robbery

This stylish wonder arrives courtesy of prolific designer Reiner Knizia. The pitch is enticing: in the aftermath of an art heist, players bicker and fight over splitting the loot. This conflict is resolved through card play. You alternate taking turns by playing a single card, with these cards mapping to loot tokens in the center of the table. By playing a card you snatch the corresponding token and place it in front of you. The twist is that you can steal a token from another player instead of taking it from the middle. The second twist is that some of the lower scoring tokens offer alibis. At the end of the game, the player with the fewest amount of alibis is eliminated from play, regardless of their final score. The result is an entertaining back and forth where you gank loot from others yet must balance high scoring options with those that offer protection.

Trio

Everyone is familiar with the classic board games Go Fish and Memory. Trio splices the two, asking players to flip over three cards of the same number. These cards are facedown on the table, but some are also spread among the hands of the players. When flipping a card from a player’s hand, however, you can only ask them to reveal their highest or lowest card. The goal is to claim three of these trios or just the set of sevens. It’s a simple thing, but it’s one that elicits little moments of drama where a player has flipped two of the same number and is trying to remember where the third card is. It features hand management and surprisingly clever play.

Love Letter

When Love Letter hit the market in 2012 it created quite the stir. This little 16-card game has players holding and playing only a single card on their turn. It’s maddeningly simple, but it works, capturing a degree of bluffing and risk management. Love Letter is fun and flexible, but it’s particularly noteworthy as it kicked off the microgame movement that spawned dozens and dozens of offspring. Most of those titles have long since faded, while Love Letter remains a clever and engaging experience. There are now a bevy of different versions of this game, including a Star Wars, Batman, and wedding-themed set. They all play similarly, so you can’t go wrong whichever you choose.

Radlands

Radlands is one of the best head-to-head card games in recent years. Each player draws from a shared deck of mutants, raiders, and weirdos, playing these fighters down into one of three lanes on their side of the table. Each lane corresponds to a base that must be protected. The goal is to vanquish your opponent’s defenders and destroy their bases. The magic is in the multi-use aspect of each card. Beyond using them for the characters depicted, they can also be discarded for a card-specific resource. Performing well requires strong tactical intuition and judicious play you’d use in all the best strategy board games. All of the interlocking abilities and effects collide to produce a swift-playing and tense battler.

Friday

This small box is unique in that it’s for solo board game play only. This card game is based on the story of Robinson Crusoe. You take on the role of his companion Friday, attempting to help Robinson survive and prepare him for the impending pirate attack. This is a deckbuilding game where you add cards to your deck during play. Each turn you confront a jungle hazard and then play fight cards from your hand in order to overcome the challenge. If you do, the hazard is then added to your deck and may be used in a later fight. You must pick your battles wisely, as you can’t win them all and must be careful in how you shape your deck for the big finale. This is a difficult game that offers a tremendous amount of play and strategic depth.

For Sale

For Sale crams the buying and selling of real estate into a brief yet satisfying 30 minutes. In the first phase of the game, players bid on a set of buildings by using a limited pool of personal currency. You must bid higher than all previous bids on each of your turns, or bow out of the round and claim the lowest value property available. Determining how long to hang in the auction depends on the value of the property on offer, as well as how stubborn your opponents are. The second portion of the game reverses the process with money cards worth various amounts flipped faceup in the middle of the table. Players secretly select a property they’ve purchased from their hand in an attempt to secure these monetary bids. You all reveal simultaneously and the money is split. It’s an exceedingly easy game to learn, but it’s one full of subtle play that relies on intuition. It’s paramount to squeeze every ounce of value out of your resources, and the player who manages their assets most judiciously will secure victory.

That’s Not a Hat

This is the type of game that is both maddening and hilarious. Each player is dealt a card that sits out in front of them faceup. Cards depict simple objects with black and white line art. These are common things such as a basketball, lava lamp, or a hat. Once play begins, players take turns flipping their card facedown and passing it to an adjacent player. Soon, all cards are hidden and players are trying to track which is which. When you pass a card to a neighbor, you claim what the object is. The receiver of the card may challenge your claim, creating a confrontation of memory. It’s simple but sparks moments of laughter as it’s surprisingly easy to lose track of what card sits in front of you. Eventually someone messes up and the game begins again. This is a wonderful design that consistently delivers joy.

Regicide

Regicide is a fully cooperative board game where players work together to overthrow the royal line and claim victory. Each of the 12 enemies must be dealt with one at a time. These bosses map to the face cards in a standard set of playing cards. They are shuffled together and one is revealed. Players then take turns placing a single card on the table to attack the enemy and deal damage. The value on the played card is the strength of the attack with the suit triggering a special power. There’s a fairly thoughtful decision point here in weighing the needed attack versus the desired effect that would most help the other players. It’s a fairly intuitive card game where hand management and timing is everything. The strongest trait is that it’s full of tension as the group is constantly on the brink of defeat. Often, it will appear hopeless until another player tosses out the exact card the group needs, allowing everyone to refill their hands and persist. Regicide is an intriguing experience with a distinct feel. It’s a wonderful little pocket game.

The Mind

The Mind is a special game. Players are dealt a hand from a deck of cards numbered 1 to 100, with a portion of the cards left out and unknown. Play then flows in real-time. The player with the lowest card in hand must play it on the table. Then the next lowest card must be played atop the previous, and so on. The enormous twist is that players cannot communicate. You can’t talk or nod or gesture. You can just look into each other’s eyes and try to divine the proper time to play your card. It sounds ridiculous, but I assure you, there is a game here. It’s about pausing and feeling out the situation, eventually playing the proper card when it feels like enough time has passed. If approached with the right attitude it can brush up against a metaphysical element, achieving a playstate with similar vibes to a Ouija board. This may not have universal appeal, but it’s a game that presents a singular vision that is capable of achieving transcendent entertainment.

Werewords

This small box is basically the classic 20 Questions with the inclusion of a traitor. One player receives a word they must get the group to guess, and everyone else is allowed to only throw out “yes or no” questions. At least one person in the group is a werewolf trying to trip up the villagers. They know the word before play begins and can attempt to mislead or stall the group. If everyone fails to figure out the correct word, however, they get to vote as a group to hang a player they suspect to be the werewolf. If they select the villain, the villagers win regardless of failing to land on the proper word. This strongly mimics the structure of social deduction games such as One Night Ultimate Werewolf and The Resistance: Avalon, but it allows for a more simple and streamlined process with a broadly enjoyable classic game at its core. It’s frankly surprising how effective this concoction is, but it manages to offer inspired play with all kinds of players and tastes. This is one of the most reliably fun pocket-sized games ever designed.

Activision’s Call of Duty marketing machine has kicked into gear with the release of the first teaser for Black Ops 6.

The teaser, below, posted by the CharlieIntel X/Twitter account, shows live action footage depicting Mt Rushmore’ being vandalized with the phrase “The Truth Lies”.

BREAKING: The first Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 teaser is here 👀

New website found: https://t.co/8B9C5QIKur pic.twitter.com/JcW4mhTHDh

— CharlieIntel (@charlieINTEL) May 22, 2024

The clip comes as part of a teaser website that features an interactive television with just six channels, referencing the name of the game.

Microsoft will reportedly announce its intention to release Black Ops 6 straight into Game Pass during its June Xbox showcase. Microsoft has so far declined to comment on the reports, but they tally with recent comments from Xbox president Sarah Bond, who indicated all Microsoft’s games, including those developed by the recently acquired Activision, will launch straight into Game Pass.

Activision is reportedly targeting a late October 2024 release for this year’s Call of Duty, which is expected to be called Black Ops 6 after teasers discovered in battle royale Warzone were acknowledged by developer Treyarch. Microsoft is also rumored to be ready to release the Call of Duty back catalog of video games into Game Pass ahead of Black Ops 6’s release.

Developing…

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

After a shakeup at the top of the business and the enormous sales success of Helldivers 2 behind it, developer Arrowhead has said it has a grand ambition to become the next Blizzard or FromSoftware.

In an interview with GamesIndustry.biz, former Arrowhead CEO and now Chief Creative Officer Johan Pilestedt and new CEO Shams Jorjani insisted they have no plans to sell the company, but do want to realize their ambition of taking it to the next level, with the developers behind the critically acclaimed and commercially successful World of Warcraft and Dark Souls games a particular inspiration.

“We pride ourselves on being an independent studio,” Pilestedt said. “We have to see what the future holds, but there’s nothing in the plans where we want to be acquired by somebody. I want to see how high we can fly. And bringing Shams on board, we have a good potential to realize that future of turning into the next From Software or Blizzard.”

Jorjani added: “The goal of the studio is to make really great co-op games. We really want to turn Arrowhead into a flagship studio, where people who want to make these kind-of games say to themselves: ‘I want to work at Arrowhead.’ When we were growing up, we really wanted to work at Blizzard, it was one of the bucket list places to work at. I think Arrowhead has the potential to be that.”

Arrowhead will inevitably grow in size after Helldivers 2 sold 12 million copies in 12 weeks to become the fastest-selling PlayStation game of all time. However, Pilestedt and Jorjani insisted Arrowhead wants to focus on “measured growth”, and has no plans to go public.

“We don’t run the business for monetary gain,” Pilestedt said. “The humbleness and the desire to just make great games is the only reason we exist.”
Meanwhile, Arrowhead has sald Helldivers 2’s success has brought with it a huge amount of toxicity to deal with even as it works to add more content to the game’s live service. To that end, Arrowhead has indicated it plans to take more time with patches in order to get them right.

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.

Helldivers 2 is a smash hit for developer Arrowhead and publisher Sony, but its huge success has caused a problem for the studio: there’s more community toxicity that it’s ever had to deal with before.

The co-op PlayStation 5 and PC shooter has sold an incredible 12 million copies in just 12 weeks, becoming PlayStation’s fastest-selling game of all time ahead of previous record-holder God of War Ragnarok.

Prior to the release of Helldivers 2, Arrowhead had enjoyed big hits with the first Helldivers game and Magicka, but the success of its latest game is on another level. Now, according to former Arrowhead CEO and now Arrowhead Chief Creative Officer Johan Pilestedt, bigger success means bigger toxicity.

“The big difference now, which is horrifying, is the amount of threats and rude behavior that people in the studio are getting from some really shitty individuals within the community,” Pilestedt told GamesIndustry.biz. “That’s something new we have to deal with.”

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

That’s plenty to contend with in just a few months post-launch. But Pilestedt suggested the way Helldivers 2 was designed, with frustration deliberately in place to craft the co-op experience hardcore players fully understand and appreciate, may also fuel toxicity from the wider playerbase. “If you don’t have those lows, you can’t get those highs,” Pilestedt said.

New Arrowhead CEO Shams Jorjani added: “Arrowhead’s philosophy has always been ‘a game for everyone is a game for no-one.’ That is the company slogan. It’s how our games are designed. You can feel it in every feature. I think it’s one of the big reasons that Helldivers 2 has been so successful. It feels fresh because it does a lot of unpopular stuff.

“When you hit this big, much bigger than anyone thought – Sony, us, everyone – what happens is the game finds an audience outside of that niche fan group. So you get this amplification of different voices. Almost all games have a bit of toxicity in the community, but with these big numbers you just get so many, so we need to work with the community to get them to self-moderate, give people the tools to speak with each other in a positive fashion, so we can keep talking to the players openly. The more voices being added to the choir does add complexity.”

Jorjani said that Arrowhead is currently “learning painfully” how to create systems to deal with this level of toxicity, but the work will benefit the studio’s “next thing, whatever that may be.”

Arrowhead isn’t the first developer to call out toxicity within video game communities. Earlier this year, Cities: Skylines 2 developer Colossal Order asked players to help create a more positive environment after noticing “a growing tendency of toxicity” in its community.

As for Helldivers 2, Arrowhead is full steam ahead on adding content to its live service, although it has indicated plans to slow down the frequency of patch releases to make sure it gets them right.

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.