If I say the name “Hideo Kojima” what comes to mind? Is it his latest creation, Death Stranding 2: On the Beach (a game we rather enjoyed) or would be it be one of his earlier creations? I would be willing to bet a large portion of folks would immediately think of Metal Gear Solid and the gravely tones of David Hayter.
Thanks to Prime Day, the Nintendo Switch version (which will also run on the Switch 2) of the Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 is the lowest it has ever been at only $16.99 – that’s a whopping 58% discount.
Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol.1 (Switch)
This collection contains a bunch of tactical stealth goodness from the original Metal Gear Solid that first called the PlayStation home, and its PS2 follow-ups, Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty and Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, in addition to plenty of other goodies.
These three games alone are packed with memorable gaming moments, such as the emotional conflict between Boss and Snake in MGS3, to the back-of-the-box Codex number in MGS, that it’s hard to count just how many there are. Even if you are only familiar with Kojima from his newer games, for this sale price, even if you are only slightly interested or intrigued, you can’t go wrong trying this series out. If you are a longtime fan, you already know how good these games are.
Just ask yourself, is having these games with you on the go worth the price of less than it costs to go see a movie and get some popcorn? Heck, even if you already own it on another platform, for 16 bucks, why not get another copy?
As a note only Metal Gear (MSX), Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake, Metal Gear (NES), and Snake’s Revenge are on the cartridge, with the other games requiring a download.
More Prime Day Deals
Prime Day is one of the best times to buy pretty much anything. Even Best Buy’s joined the fun with tons of Switch game discounts. Here are some other deals to check out.
Scott White is a freelance contributor to IGN, assisting with tabletop games and guide coverage. Follow him on X/Twitter or Bluesky.
This week Maxroll has two major updates to share: the launch of Maxroll’s beta Borderlands 4 planner and a massive update to Maxroll’s Elden Ring section with a new, comprehensive database.
Maxroll’s Borderlands 4 Planner
Maxroll has released a beta version of their Borderlands 4 planner, with skill trees for two of the game’s playable characters: Vex and Rafa. This is a work in progress that Maxroll will add to as more information is known about the game, but for now, you can play around with the planner for yourself, check curated builds from Maxroll’s Borderlands 4 Team (Moxsy, AbbyHour, Byrdman & Chadly), or browse community builds.
Vex is the Dark Siren, and her powers focus on summoning companions and enhancing herself. Conjure up dark clones, a large cat named Trouble, or create Eldritch bombs that annihilate the Timekeepers’ forces.
Phase Familiar summons Trouble, a large cat companion who wreaks havoc among Vex’s foes.
The Incarnate tree adds a powerful Eldritch Blast to your toolkit.
Use Dead Ringer to transform Vex into a master of minions, summoning multiple Phase Clones and commanding them against her foes.
Rafa
Rafa is an ex-Tediore soldier on the run from his former employer. He uses his exo-suit to slice and blast his way through the Timekeepers’ minions.
With Peacebreaker Cannons, you gain an auto-firing turret ability.
Rafa swaps his guns for Arc Blades, and he dashes around the battlefield, slashing enemies with Blade Fury. Use the Arc Knives tree to enhance your slashing expertise.
Equip the APOPHIS LANCE cannon to Rafa’s arm and use it to obliterate foes.
Maxroll’s Elden Ring Database
If you’re more of an ARPG enthusiast than a looter-shooter fiend, you might be more interested in Maxroll’s new Elden Ring Database, where you can learn more about the weapons, armor, Ashes of War, spells, Talismans, Spirit Ashes, Great Runes and Goods.
In Maxroll’s Weapon Database you can see attribute scaling, affinities, Guard Absorption and more for each of the game’s weapons. You can also select weapon upgrade levels to see how the damage changes with upgrades. For regular weapons, this info also includes different affinities so you can check whether it’s better to run the weapon as is or swap it over to Heavy on your unga bunga build.
Maxroll also has information on the Armor sets (and pieces), Ashes of War, Spells (including the rather esoteric spell types), Talismans, Spirit Ashes and Great Runes. This is especially helpful for more complex things like Ashes of War, as in the Maxroll database you can see the FP cost and even the default affinity change when adding it to your weapon.
Last but not least there’s Goods, a catch-all category for consumables, crafting materials, key items, Crystal Tears (for the Wondrous Physick), upgrades, maps, lore items and more.
It’s been a month since Magic players were able to dive into the realms of Final Fantasy and its casts of memorable characters, but now it is time to look at the stars and prepare to blast off with the trading card game’s next set, Edge of Eternities. IGN recently had a chance to check out some new cards and get a breakdown of the set’s new mechanics players will get to play around with when the set launches on August 1 (preorders are available now).
Edge of Eternities Important Dates:
July 18: Full Card Image Gallery
July 25-31: Edge of Eternities Prerelease Events
July 29: MTG Arena Release Date
Aug. 1: Worldwide Tabletop Release
From spaceships to alien races, this new release marks a drastic departure from the more high-fantasy aesthetic that Magic is known for, but at its core, this is still very much a Magic: The Gathering set. One thing the team wants to make very clear is that Edge of Eternities is science fantasy, not science fiction, which means you can expect to see both flying space whales and spaceships.
As it is still early days in the spoiler cycle, Wizards is still keeping a vast majority of the set’s contents under wraps, but we do have confirmations that some of Magic’s scariest creatures will be making their appearance around the Blind Eternities. Once again, Eldrazi, residents of the Blind Eternities, will be causing havoc for players with the reveal of ‘Anticausal Vestige’. For six mana reads “When this card leaves the battlefield, draw a card, then you may put a permanent card with mana value less than or equal to the number of lands you control from your hand onto the battlefield tapped” with Warp 4 (more on Warp in a moment). More exciting, however (and I admit I am partially biased towards this next one because I love them and have decks of them), it looks like Slivers are making their return! We got to see a new alternate showcase art version of the Sliver Overlord, and the narrative that Wizards has been releasing for the set also implies the return of these fury-enducing creatures, which I can’t wait for. After all, being a hivemind and all, what good would only a single Sliver do?
Edge of Eternities also sees reprints of the highly requested and sought-after Shock Lands – special dual-colored lands. These lands will allow you to tap for one of two colors of mana, and while similar cards normally come in tapped, by taking a little damage, Shock Lands will enter untapped, meaning you can use them right away!
Compared to some of the more recent sets, Edge of Eternities takes it easy with only four new mechanics – Void, Warp, Station, and Lander Tokens. Station was first revealed during MagicCon Vegas and is similar to Crewing vehicles, whereby tapping creatures grants a benefit; however, Station has some important differences. Firstly, tapping creatures to Station something can only be done on your turn at sorcery speed, doing so will put a counter on that card based on the total power of the creatures you tapped, and once a threshold is met, the card will gain access to new abilities. While we have seen examples of Starships that include the Station mechanic, Wizards has now revealed a new land type, planets, that will also benefit from this mechanic. Each of the five main colors will feature their own speciality planet that when stationed will have some pretty powerful effects, such as blue’s ‘Uthros, Titanic Godcore’ that by default will tap for a single blue but when its Station 12+ requirement is met, for a Blue and tapping Uthros will add a blue mana for each artifact you control.
Next up is Warp, an alternate casting option for the cards with it. By casting a card for its Warp cost, which looks to be less than its normal casting cost, it will enter the battlefield and then get exiled on the next end step. The twist with these cards is that they can then be cast at a later time for their normal cost from exile. From what it looks like, many of these cards with Warp will have “when they enter” trigger effects, allowing you to take advantage of that effect twice. However, being able to play these cards from exile is only available if they are sent to exile due to paying the Warp effect, so if another card exiles them instead, they are gone for good and can’t be played.
Paired with Warp, Void provides players with new options to enhance the effects of the cards it appears on. By playing a card with Void after a non-land permanent has left the battlefield or a card has been played for its Warp cost (referred to as spell warped), then the Void card’s effect will be strengthened. I’m intrigued by the sort of synergistic opportunities that may arise between various Warp and Void cards.
Lastly, there are the Lander tokens that are being introduced in this latest set. By paying two colorless mana and sacrificing the token, you can search your library for a basic land and put it into play tapped. Right off the bat, I can already see how cards that generate these Lander tokens will prove to be powerful additions to any Landfall deck, and coming off of Final Fantasy, cards like ‘Tifa Lockhart’ whose power doubles whenever a land comes into play will be able to easily take advantage of the additional lands dropping in. For even more utility, if you are playing a deck with ‘Wandering Minstrel’, this would make the lands that the Lander tokens bring out, come out untapped instead of tapped, letting you use them right away! Talk about mana ramp!
Outside of the mechanic like Warp, with cards like the newly revealed Cosmogoyf (“This creature’s power is equal to the number of cards you own in exile and its toughness is equal to that number plus 1”) and Sothera, The Supervoid (“Whenever a creature you control dies, each opponent chooses a creature they control and exiles it. At the beginning of your end step, if a player controls no creatures, sacrifice Sothera, then put a creature card exiled with it onto the battlefield under your control with two additional +1/+1 counters on it”) gives me the sense that Wizards is aiming to make your exile zone into a resource all of its own. If that ends up being the case, cards with Flashback or something like Agatha’s Soul Cauldron that let you exile cards from graveyards could easily make a card like Cosmogoyf super scary. We will have to see how much they lean into messing around with exile (hopefully, there won’t be too many “exiled this way” cards so you have to keep track of what cards get exiled with what).
Edge of Eternities continues to push Magic: The Gathering into new dimensions with this space fantasy adventure. Who knows what other mysteries lie in wait out near the Blind Eternities and what horrors await players? This peak at the set has given us a taste of starting to concoct new deck ideas, and over the next month, more and more will be revealed. In the meantime, be sure to enjoy the amazing cards from the recent Final Fantasy set, including keeping your eyes open for the cards everyone seems to want and are chasing after. For a full look at what the rest of the year of Magic is looking like, check out our full release schedule, and for fans of Secret Lair, including the upcoming Sonic The Hedgehog drop, check out our breakdown of every drop so far this year.
Scott White is a freelance contributor to IGN, assisting with tabletop games and guide coverage. Follow him on X/Twitter or Bluesky.
The Last of Us Part 2 developer Naughty Dog has surprised fans by releasing a Chronological Experience option that reorders the game’s storylines into a linear narrative.
The fresh mode, available as part of a free update today on PC and PlayStation 5, shuffles Part 2’s non-linear narrative as a fresh option for season players. Intriguingly, Naughty Dog makes it clear that it sees the new Chronological Exprience option as something extra, rather than a replacement for the game’s original storytelling that was “very intentional and core to how our studio wanted Part 2’s themes and narrative beats to impact players.”
Naughty Dog even goes as far as to say that new players are recommended not to use the Chronological Experience option for their first run through the game, and instead experience Part 2’s story in the way it “was originally developed.”
“Through the new Chronological mode, we believe players will gain even deeper insight into Part 2’s narrative,” Naughty Dog’s Jonathon Dornbush said today.
“Players will be able to see how Ellie being gifted a guitar flows so neatly into her learning to play, for example, while the journey through Seattle will showcase the fascinating parallels between Ellie and Abby’s crisscrossing journeys. You’ll see just how close they come into running into each other, how their actions impact each other, and more.”
Chronological Mode was worked on by Naughty Dog in collaboration with co-development partner Nixxes, and once completed will award new PlayStation trophies, as well as a couple of bonus outfits.
Today’s update adds costumes for Joel dressed as Uncharted hero Nathan Drake and Tommy as, appropriately, his brother Sam Drake. Finally, a smattering of additional bug fixes and performance improvements are also included.
Sony will hold a PlayStation State of Play broadcast this week offering a deep dive into Ghost of Yōtei’s gameplay, the company has announced.
Expect a 20-minute look at the upcoming highly-anticipated sequel to Ghost of Tsushima, from 2pm Pacific / 5pm Eastern time this Thursday, July 10. In Europe, that’s 11pm CEST, or 10pm BST.
The gameplay will be introduced by Sucker Punch’s two Ghost of Yōtei creative directors, Jason Connell and Nate Fox.
Watch the Ghost of Yōtei State of Play gameplay deep dive on Thursday, July 10! Tune in live at 2pm PT / 5pm ET / 10pm BST on PlayStation’s Twitch and YouTube channels.
PlayStation’s description of the showcase teases that fans will see more about main character Atsu’s quest for vengeance, as well as a look at her weaponry, and “new ways to personalize your journey at the edge of Japan, new special modes, and much more.” More to follow…
Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
Is Leon S. Kennedy Resident Evil’s most popular character because he starred in one of the best Resident Evil games of all time? Or did he star in one of the best Resident Evil games of all time because he’s the series’ most popular character? I’ll never know for sure. Nevertheless, ever since his first day on the job at the Raccoon City Police Department back in 1998, Leon’s influence over the Resident Evil series has only grown to the point that his popularity threatens the future of the series… again.
When Resident Evil 4 hit shelves on January 11, 2005, everything we knew about Resident Evil was upended. The series’s famous fixed camera perspective gave way to a fully 3D camera, and the infamous tank controls were replaced with fast-paced action and melee combat. And Leon Kennedy, who was introduced to the series in Resident Evil 2 as a fresh-faced rookie police officer, was promoted to a secret agent action hero tasked with rescuing the U.S. President’s daughter from an evil cult. Leon became more Ethan Hunt and less Ash Williams.
Resident Evil 4’s status as a Hall of Fame video game is undisputed, but the 2005 release also caused Capcom to enter a period of being lost in the wilderness. The overwhelming success of Resident Evil 4 shifted the series towards a more action-focused tone, at the expense of its horror elements. Resident Evil 5 took us to Africa, where Las Plagas-infected militia troops engaged in car chases and gunfights. Resident Evil 6 pushed things to the next level, with Call of Duty-like street battles and explosive plane crashes. But while these games followed the blueprint set by Resident Evil 4 to tremendous financial success, fans weren’t wholly satisfied with the overall direction of the franchise. It increasingly became clear that turning Resi’s former everyday cops into MMA-trained super agents had eroded away the series’ core.
To rediscover the horror at the heart of the franchise, Capcom effectively rebooted Resident Evil in 2017 with Biohazard, the series’ seventh mainline game. It ditched Leon and many of the franchise’s iconic (now incredibly powerful) characters in favor of unknown newcomer Ethan Winters who, despite a surprising resilience to a variety of gnarly hand injuries, was essentially an “everyman”. Resident Evil 7 also adopted a new first-person perspective that not only put players directly face-to-face with the game’s many scares but also restricted Ethan’s moveset — there would be no roundhouse kicks here. This new formula led to sales success and the start of a new storyline focused on the Winters family (with an occasional cameo by legacy character Chris Redfield.)
Leon became more Ethan Hunt and less Ash Williams.
During the era of Resident Evil 7 and Village, there was little demand for Capcom to revisit the more action-prominent design of Resident Evil 4. That’s likely because, while Leon might not have been at the forefront of the series during this time, he was still hanging around thanks to remakes of older games. Resident Evil 2 reinvented the PS1 classic in a guise that more closely resembled the over-the-shoulder, gun-heavy design of Leon’s most famous adventure, while the Resident Evil 4 remake replicated the original’s balance of horror and suplex tackles. But as time has gone on, it’s become clear that fans have been getting antsy to see Leon headline a new adventure, not just retread old territory.
Earlier this year, Capcom finally announced the highly anticipated Resident Evil: Requiem, and once again, the studio debuted a new protagonist: FBI analyst Grace Ashcroft. But if you look around the internet for information on Requiem, you’ll see the name of Leon S. Kennedy brought up so often that you would think he was the main character of the upcoming game. That’s because rumors, both substantial and otherwise, claim that Leon will appear in Requiem in some capacity, whether that’s as a second protagonist, cameo, or even the secret star, depending on who you ask.
Capcom, for its part, seems adamant that Grace Ashcroft is the face of Requiem, and there is enough information about her to believe this. Unlike Ethan Winters, who was a complete unknown when he debuted in Resident Evil 7, Grace Ashcroft is the daughter of journalist Alyssa Ashcroft, a playable character from the Resident Evil Outbreak games. This makes Grace something of a legacy character in her own right, giving her greater importance and stronger ties to the overall canon of the series.
Also, during the Capcom Showcase, Resident Evil: Requiem director Koshi Nakanishi directly addressed some of the online rumors surrounding Leon Kennedy being the game’s secret protagonist, saying, “We always thought about making Leon the protagonist, but making a horror game based around him is difficult… No one wants to see Leon scared by every little thing. So he’s actually quite a bad match for horror.”
Having played a slice of Requiem, I can confirm that Capcom is continuing the revised formula it introduced in Resident Evil 7 and putting a lot of emphasis on horror in the new game. One of the standout details is how Grace audibly reacts to different jump scares throughout the demo, which effectively ratchets up the tension. Nakanishi makes a good point about Leon being a bad match for this type of game: by this point in the series’ timeline, which is 30 years after the events of Resident Evil 2, Leon is a veteran who has no problems facing off against even the scariest monsters.
This makes Grace something of a legacy character in her own right, giving her greater importance and stronger ties to the overall canon of the series.
Even the decision to maintain the series’ real-time timeline feels designed to get fans used to the idea that their beloved characters face a ticking clock. Even if Leon Kennedy does appear in Resident Evil: Requiem, it’d be as a member of the old guard. After all, he will be around 50 years old when the events of Requiem take place, and while I’m sure he can still roundhouse kick a zombie at that age, having him age in real-time since his introduction in 1998 feels like a deliberate attempt to put Leon closer to retirement than in the thick of the action.
I think there’s plenty of room for Leon Kennedy to appear in Requiem as a seasoned veteran helping the new protagonist, similar to Chris’ role in Resident Evil Village. But the problem is how the Leon rumors have sucked up so much of the oxygen around Resident Evil: Requiem, so much so that some fans of the series are outright disregarding Grace as the game’s protagonist. There’s a good chance Leon could appear in Requiem, but Capcom’s attention to detail on Grace tells me that developers are quite passionate about her as a character. It must be a little frustrating to see fans brush her aside for an unconfirmed appearance by Leon.
But Leon and Resident Evil 4’s grip on the newest game isn’t just limited to which characters fans want to see. Resident Evil: Requiem made waves when it announced that, in an attempt to appeal to all Resident Evil fans, there will be the option to play Requiem in both the scarier first-person perspective introduced in Resident Evil 7, or in the iconic third-person perspective.
My concern, and something I noted in my preview, is that switching between first- and third-person perspectives has an immediate impact on how scary the game is. That wider viewing angle reveals threats that would otherwise go unseen, spoiling jump scares and instilling additional fear-conquering confidence. And for a game that’s supposedly focused on horror, as Nakanishi claims, having an option that immediately dampens the terror feels like it undermines the director’s goals.
The last time Capcom chased the ghost of past Resident Evil games, it took years for the franchise to find its way back again.
Just like in the aftermath of Resident Evil 4, Capcom finds itself again in a position of balancing giving fans what they want, between the potential appearance of everyone’s favorite zombie-hunting agent and the choice to play in both first- and third-person, and pushing both the design of Resident Evil and the story of Raccoon City forward through the use of a new protagonist and contemporary timeframe.
If the developers of Requiem believe that the game can be scary and compelling in both first- and third-person, then I look forward to seeing that for myself next year. Similarly, if they feel that Grace Ashcroft can carry the next mainline Resident Evil game as the protagonist, I’m even more excited to find out how she fits into the story of Raccoon City. After successfully reinventing Resident Evil with Ethan Winters’ story and establishing a slower, creepier design that directly opposes the high-octane horror action of Leon’s trip to Spain, fans should extend Capcom the benefit of the doubt about Grace, Leon, and Requiem. And for the developers, I hope they pursue their vision for the Resident Evil franchise without compromise.
Because the last time Capcom chased the ghost of past Resident Evil games, it took years for the franchise to find its way back again.
There’s another new patch available for Dune: Awakening, and more tweaks to improve the endgame experience for players who’d prefer to spend time in PvE activities, including the ability to farm Tier 6 resources and a better chance of getting Unique drops in PvE loot in Deep Desert.
Dune: Awakening’s last big update, 1.1.10.00, introduced a long list of changes, and while it didn’t specifically deal with end-game issues that time, it did make some QoL improvements. But this time, there’s a whole section of the patch notes dedicated to the Deep Desert, end-game, and Landsraad.
The ability to find more T6 resources in PvE areas of the Deep Desert is particularly noteworthy, as even with the rebalancing of PvE and PvP zones, it was still pretty tricky to routinely find T6 minerals without delving into heavy PvP areas. This should make it easier for players needing resources to find what they want without putting their virtual lives on the line.
It’s not all bad for PvP fans, either. One of the changes includes a delay for leaving a PvP security zone from five to 30 seconds to prevent border camping and allow players to better protect their areas.
Here’s the full list…
Dune: Awakening Patch Notes 1.1.15.0
Deep Desert, End Game, and Landsraad
Tier 6 resources can now be collected across wider areas in the PvE part of the Deep Desert.
We added an element of randomization to the respawn timer of unique loot containers in the Deep Desert.
The plastanium tier crafting components were split up to drop based on the content location: Imperial Testing Stations, Caves, or Shipwrecks, with each of them dropping their own selection of components. Fallen Shipwrecks and Buried Treasure can drop components from any location.
Added a chance of a different selection of Uniques drop in PvE loot in Deep Desert.
The spawn rate of medium fields increased from 5 back to 8, and of the small spice fields increased from 22 to 30.
The delay for leaving a PvP security zone increased from 5 to 30 seconds to prevent border camping and allow PvP players to protect their area.
Changed Landsraad tasks to allow for Kill and Delivery Contribution to happen after the task has been completed but awarding only personal contribution. (i.e., which faction won and how many guild votes were awarded are unaffected by contributions made after the task was completed by one faction).
Other:
Improved game stability.
Reduced the cases where the sandworm can push vehicles under terrain.
Added a new audio alert for the PvP zone change.
FIXES
Fixed an issue where the Harkonnen faction recruitment contract “Do you have what it takes?” could sometimes get stuck and couldn’t be completed if you exited the dialogue with Maxim Kazmir before selecting the line “It says here that you’re looking for recruits“ to complete the contract.
Fixed an issue where contract rewards dropped on the ground if your inventory was full, which could lead to situations where you would miss them. Now rewards can only be claimed when there is enough space in your inventory.
Fixed an issue where vehicle modules wouldn’t highlight properly after the player had applied a customization variant.
Fixed an issue where the positioning of a pentashield surface could overlap with an existing pentashield surface.
Fixed an exploit that would allow building a vehicle with items from another player’s inventory.
Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, as well as a critic, columnist, and consultant with 15+ years experience working with some of the world’s biggest gaming sites and publications. She’s also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.
Fans of Animal Crossing and comfortable clogs rejoice — Nintendo’s adorable life-sim series is coming to a pair of feet near you, thanks to a range of officially-licensed Crocs.
The shoes will go on sale later this summer with a platform clog design for adults and a classic kids clog design for children. Each is adorned with an Animal Crossing background, featuring fruit trees and a sandy shoreline.
And, of course, each can be customised with additional character charms, featuring Tom Nook, Isabelle and KK Slider, if you’re willing to pay extra for the privilege.
The Animal Crossing Platform Clog for adults will cost $69.99, while the smaller Kids Animal Crossing Classic Clog will cost $54.99. Both are set to go on sale next month, on August 26.
Two packs of additional “jibbitz” charms will also available, priced at $16.99 — each. The first includes the three fashionable Sable sisters, plus a backpack and shirt. The second includes musuem owner Blathers, stargazing owl Celeste, scallop-loving Pascal, a fossil and a seashell.
Alternatively, you can pick up charms featuring villagers Rosie, Marshall or Bunnie for $4.99 each.
“Animal Crossing lets players enjoy a relaxing, slow-paced life while interacting with a cast of unique animal characters,” Nintendo wrote, describing the introduction of this newly-licensed shoe range. “Since its debut in 2001, the games have been enjoyed by millions of players worldwide becoming a cherished title for fans of all ages. Now, for the first time ever, Crocs is partnering with Nintendo to debut a special collection launching Tuesday, August 26, 2025.
“This new collection features elements inspired by the lush, natural setting from the game. From the green tone that represents the land to the sole and strap inspired by the sea, see if you can discover all the Animal Crossing moments throughout the design of the shoe.”
What next then for Animal Crossing, beyond shoes? Nintendo wound down ongoing support for Switch game Animal Crossing: New Horizons several years ago, despite its huge popularity. But with Switch 2 now released, a further sequel toetally feets inevitable. A shoo-in, if you will?
Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
While Fourth of July discounts just wrapped up, an even better sale has gone live today, in the form of the Best Buy Black Friday in July sale. This sale is set to act as a competitor to Amazon Prime Day, which begins this week as well. If you’re looking to save on the latest electronics, Black Friday in July is a sale you’ll want to check out.
Shop the Best Buy Black Friday in July Sale
Right now, there are deals live across video games, accessories, laptops, Apple products, appliances, cell phones, headphones, and more. The best deals we’ve seen so far mostly fall under video games, with $20 off some major Nintendo Switch games now available. One of our favorites is Splatoon 3 for $39.99, especially considering the game just received a Nintendo Switch 2 patch.
There’s also over $200 in savings on the Lenovo Legion Go S. This handheld PC packs in the Ryzen Z2 Go, 32GB of LPDDR5X memory, 1TB of PCIe Gen4 SSD storage, and room for expansion with a 1TB microSD card slot. That’s not to mention the 8″ screen equipped with VRR, a 120Hz refresh rate, a 500 nit peak brightness, and more.
Finally, a four pack of AirTags is sitting at a new all-time low sale price. These are incredibly helpful for finding your wallet, purse, bag, or even pet! This deal puts each AirTag at $17, which is significantly lower than the $29.99 asking price for a single unit normally.
Should You Wait for Prime Day Tomorrow?
While the Best Buy Black Friday in July sale has some great offers, the longest Prime Day ever is set to begin tomorrow, July 8. If you are looking to save the most money this year, waiting for Prime Day to see what deals are available is likely your best option. This sale from Best Buy is set to be live for the rest of the week, so you can always come back and shop if you don’t find something better at Amazon. It’s expected that we will see some significant discounts on both video games and technology this year, among numerous other products.
As Pokémon TCG collectors race to secure the hottest new cards from Prismatic Evolutions, Journey Together, Destined Rivals, and the upcoming Black Bolt and White Flare sets, the often overlooked Paradox Rift expansion is quietly taking a back seat. That cooling attention is having ripple effects, especially for high-rarity cards. While Special Illustration Rare (SIR) ex cards are seeing a notable drop in value, several Illustration Rares are climbing fast, in part due to shifting collector interest and low inventory levels in my opinion.
I think this shift echoes the rise of Groudon IR from earlier this year, where unexpected demand met low availability. Now other Illustration Rare cards are following suit, gaining ground while their flashier SIR counterparts take a dip. Here’s a look at the top climbers and crashers from Paradox Rift that collectors and players should keep an eye on as we move from the Scarlet and Violet era and toward Mega Evolution.
Pokémon Card Crashers
Altaria ex is down 25% and now sits at $37.13. It’s got some defensive tools and a bit of healing, but I just don’t see it showing up in many decks. Collectors seem to be moving on from it too, which helps explain the drop. Gholdengo ex has fallen 21% to $23.77. I actually really like the discard mechanic on this one, but it’s being overshadowed by newer SIRs that are getting more attention.
Steelixhas dropped 19% to $25.20. It’s a nostalgic pick for sure, but Earthquake hitting your own bench hurts, and the retreat cost makes it clunky to play. Roaring Moon ex is down 16% to $46.98. It still hits hard, but the buzz around it has definitely cooled. Garchomp ex has also taken a hit, falling 19% to $26.64. It’s still useful for energy acceleration and sniping, but with so many new cards dropping, it’s getting left behind.
Pokémon Card Climbers
Groudon is up 13% and now going for $75.99. It hits hard, charges fast, and looks awesome. No surprise it’s still trending up. Morpeko is the biggest climber, up 43% to $31.99. Its ability is pretty niche, but the art is fun and people seem to love it right now.
Plusle has jumped 32% to $29.50. It’s good in damage-stacking builds and pairs perfectly with Minun, which is also on the rise. Minun is up 16% to $22.98. Its Buddy Pulse ability adds some nice pressure, and people clearly want the pair together. Iron Valiant exis up 9% to $20.36. It’s great for decks that focus on spread damage and is the only ex SIR from this set that’s currently climbing.
Last Weeks Crashers and Climbers
I’ve been closely tracking the Pokémon TCG market, and right now we’re seeing a clear split between two major sets. Surging Sparks is going through a sharp correction, with top cards like Pikachu ex – 247/191, Hydreigon ex – 240/191, and Milotic ex – 237/191 dropping 51%, 34%, and 26% respectively. Even chase cards like Pikachu ex – 238/191 and Latias ex – 239/191 are down over 20%. But this isn’t a crash, it’s a natural correction driven by rising supply.
Japanese Pokémon TCG booster boxes have far better odds at pulling chase cards, have far less bulk and are often half the price of English booster boxes. This also mean said chase cards are worth significantly less, but Japanese cards are far easier to get perfect grades in given they’re always busting out of booster packs in perfect condition. Want a Pokémon card collection on a budget? Go for Japanese cards.
The Most Expensive Pokémon Cards In Packs Right Now
While it’s easy to envy those with deep pockets grabbing the priciest Pokémon TCG cards, there’s something way more exciting about pulling a massive hit straight from a booster pack, especially with sets like Destined Rivals, Prismatic Evolutions, Twilight Masquerade, and Surging Sparks still in print. Right now, cards like Umbreon ex – 161/131 are leading the market at over $1,000, followed by heavy hitters like Team Rocket’s Mewtwo ex – 231/182, Greninja ex – 214/167, and Ethan’s Ho-Oh ex – 230/182, all pushing $300+. The iconic Pikachu ex – 238/191 has cooled to around $295 after peaking last year, making it a solid buy.
More fan-favorite chase cards include Cynthia’s Garchomp ex, Roaring Moon ex, Latias ex, and Team Rocket’s Moltres ex, all hovering between $195–$260. And then there’s the Eeveelution invasion. Prismatic Evolutions is packed with top-tier art like Sylveon ex, Espeon ex, Leafeon ex, Vaporeon ex, Jolteon ex, and Glaceon ex, all sitting comfortably above $230. Each card is absolutley stunning, pumped with nostalgia and some competitive utility to boot (Although I’d suggest getting the standard ex cards for you deck). The odds of pulling them are slim, Prismatic Evolution is notoriously unforgiving with pull rates. Buying singles might be the smarter move if you’re after specific cards, but I also don’t like having fun.
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.
