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Xbox Developer_Direct January 2024: How to Watch and What to Expect

For the first time since January 2023, Xbox is bringing back its Developer_Direct show that promises to give fans a glimpse at such upcoming titles as MachineGames’ Indiana Jones, Obsidian’s Avowed, Oxide Games’ Ara: History Untold, and Ninja Theory’s Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II.

The Developer_Direct will kick off on January 18 and this watch guide will provide you with everything you need to know to watch the show, including start times, a list of places you can watch it with us, and what you can expect from the event.

Xbox Developer_Direct January 2024 Start Time

January 2024’s Xbox Developer_Direct will take place on Thursday, January 18 at 12pm PT/3pm ET/8pm GMT.

As if that wasn’t enough, ZeniMax Online Studios will be hosting The Elder Scrolls Online 2024 Global Reveal at 1pm PT/4pm ET/9pm GMT to “preview 2024’s biggest update” for the MMO.

After the show, be sure to stay tuned to IGN’s channels as a special episode of Podcast Unlocked will take place that will serve as a post-show to the Developer_Direct. We will break down all the big announcements and share our thoughts on what was shown!

Where to Watch the Xbox Developer_Direct January 2024

If you’re interested in watching the Xbox Developer_Direct, we’ll be hosting it here and across our many channels on platforms, including YouTube, Twitch, Twitter, Facebook, and more. Here’s the full list of places you can watch the show with us:

What to Expect From the Xbox Developer_Direct 2024

As previously mentioned, this upcoming Developer Direct will feature an in-depth look at upcoming Xbox games, including MachineGames’ Indiana Jones, Obsidian’s Avowed, Oxide Games’ Ara: History Untold, and Ninja Theory’s Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II. The show will be presented by the developers themselves, and it looks to give fans a glimpse into the creation of these exciting titles.

Xbox actually provided a pretty detailed description of what fans can expect from the show, and we’re including it below:

  • Indiana Jones game: MachineGames, the award-winning studio behind the recent Wolfenstein series, will reveal their upcoming Indiana Jones game, an action-adventure that puts players in the leather jacket of the legendary archaeologist. Developer_Direct will showcase more than 10 minutes of game and developer insights, including details about the game’s setting and story, how fans will actually play as Indy, additional details from his next globe-trotting adventure, and the premiere of the first gameplay trailer.
  • Avowed: The team at Obsidian will share the first deep dive into the gameplay experience fans can expect in Avowed, their upcoming fantasy action RPG, set in the fantastical, vibrant Living Lands. Learn more about how Obsidian’s expertise in building worlds with deep themes, dynamic gameplay, and thoughtful reactivity come to life in Avowed where players will have agency to make choices to shape every step of their adventure.
  • Ara: History Untold: Hear from the leads at Oxide Games – a studio founded by veterans of the strategy genre and the creators behind classic strategy titles including Civilization V – as they unveil exclusive new gameplay and share more details about the inspiration, key features, and road ahead for their upcoming historical grand strategy game.
  • Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II: Ninja Theory take us behind the scenes at their studio in Cambridge to give us some insight on how they are crafting Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II. The team will speak to the ambition and meticulous care involved in creating Senua’s journey of survival.

While these four games are being highlighted prior to the show, there’s always a chance Xbox has a surprise or two in store for us. In January 2023’s Developer_Direct, Tango Gameworks’ Hi-Fi Rush was announced and released that day with no prior warning.

What most surely won’t be there, however, is updates on games from Activision Blizzard as Xbox said “you can look forward to news from those teams later this year.”

As for The Elder Scrolls Online 2024 Global Reveal, this standalone presentation will “unveil the game’s next major Chapter, including the new zone, storyline, and other major features coming in the game’s biggest update this year.”

For more, check out what we expect from Xbox in 2024 and the news that fans think they’ve discovered the full name of MachineGames’ Indiana Jones game.

Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

T-Pain Confirms He’s Working on GTA 6, Says He Can’t Role-Play in GTA 5 Anymore as a Result

Faheem Rashad Najm, better-known as singer-songrwriter T-Pain, is living the dream: he gets to work on Grand Theft Auto VI alongside Rockstar Games. However, it seems like T-Pain’s new job is having unintended consequences.

In a livestream clip circulated on social media, T-Pain confirmed that he’s contributing to Rockstar’s anticipated sequel, which was finally revealed in 2023. In the course of bringing T-Pain aboard, though, it seems that Rockstar requested that he stop role-playing on NoPixel — a popular GTA 5 role-play server that runs on third-party servers.

At least one fan noticed that T-Pain was no longer on the server and asked what happened.

“I used to be on NoPixel, then I started working on GTA VI, and they told me I couldn’t do RP anymore because it kind of goes against… they had this whole speech, like, ‘What if somebody took your album and re-recorded it, and more people were listening to that,’ and I’m like, ‘Okay, I kind of get that, but I was having a good time. Alright that’s fine,'” T-Pain said.

Amusingly, Rockstar went on to hire the modding team behind role-play servers including FiveM and RedM, which was an irony that wasn’t lost on T-Pain.

“Then I started working on the game with them and then they teamed up with the people that make the RP sh*t, and I’m like, ‘Wait a minute, what? What the f**ck?…Y’all tell me I can’t do this sh*t and then you team up with the people that enable the RP?” T-Pain said, laughing.

T-Pain didn’t elaborate on how exactly he’s contributing to GTA VI. IGN has reached out to Rockstar Games for comment.

…They had this whole speech, like, ‘What if somebody took your album and re-recorded it, and more people were listening to that’

T-Pain had been role-playing on NoPixel since at least 2021, when fans noticed that he had been whitelisted. According the server’s wiki, the idea behind NoPixel is to “talk, act, and proceed as the character you are playing.” The idea is to “create an immersive experience where players and viewers alike can experience stories and situations, in what is essentially another world.” GTA RP has been described as “essentially a gigantic long-running improv show,” making it a popular way to play among certain fans.

Elsewhere, not much is known about GTA VI right now, but it seems as if RP might have a significant (ahem) role to play in the upcoming sequel. For now, though, Rockstar Games is choosing to focus on the single-player story, which it showcased in its first trailer.

We’re sure to learn plenty more ahead of GTA VI’s 2025 release date. But in the meantime, plenty of fans are still playing on GTA V’s role-playing servers, just not T-Pain. For more, check out GTFM, our show in which we share theories about GTA VI and talk to former Rockstar developers about what to expect, as well as our ranking of every GTA to date.

Photo by Prince Williams/WireImage

Kat Bailey is IGN’s News Director as well as co-host of Nintendo Voice Chat. Have a tip? Send her a DM at @the_katbot.

CoD: Warzone’s Controversial Covert Exfil Feature Delayed After Community Backlash

Activision and Raven Software are altering their plans to include the new Covert Exfil feature in Call of Duty: Warzone Season 1 Reloaded.

Raven made the announcement on X (formerly Twitter), promising to rework the Warzone gameplay tweak after announcing it only a few days ago. The team says the decision arrived after seeing fan feedback about Covert Exfil’s inclusion.

However, Raven still feels strongly about the potential the addition could add and isn’t ready to give up on it yet.

“We believe that Covert Exfil and the gameplay loop it provides, paired with the Weapons Case, will make for an exciting addition to #Warzone,” the post explains. “That said, we’ll instead launch both of these features in an upcoming dedicated mode.”

Information on how Covert Exfil will be reintroduced is being kept under wraps for now. Raven adds, “We’re looking forward to the new challenges that these features will provide and to your continued feedback once the mode is available.”

Covert Exfil was revealed as a feature that essentially allows players to leave a Warzone game early by purchasing one of only a few available exfil opportunities available to players each match. In other words, if you pool your money quickly enough and make it to a Buy Station, you can have a successful game without being the last team standing.

With the added possibility of exfiling with a Weapons Case full of goodies, many players worried that Warzone was becoming less of a Battle Royale and more like Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2’s DMZ mode. Players are relieved to see Covert Exfil plans reversed, but they might be even happier to see that Raven is listening to its fans.

“This reactivity is amazing!” Warzone Loadout said on X. “Good compromise to first test it in a dedicated mode.”

“This is why I love Raven Software,” CPreds said. “Community feedback is welcomed and listened to. Keep up the great work!”

Warzone is meant to be an ever-evolving mode, so time will tell if and when Covert Exfil will make a comeback. Until then, Modern Warfare 3 and Warzone Season 1 Reloaded is set to launch on January 17.

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.

Suicide Squad Planning ‘Hundreds’ of Possible Build Combinations Along With Major Post-Launch Support

Rocksteady Studios is teasing major post-launch support for Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League while explaining how its RPG gameplay works in greater detail.

Information on the game’s core elements comes from Game Director Axel Rydby, who clarified the project’s features and offerings in a post in its Discord server. When one fan asked about build possibilities for Task Force X team members like Harley Quinn, Captain Boomerang, Deadshot, and King Shark, Rocksteady teased “hundreds” of possible build combinations.

“Well, first of all, when we designed the game, player choice and player freedom was one of our core design philosophies,” Rydby said. “We really want you to feel like you can make each character your own, and build it to suit your playstyle. But if you take the leap and really play into the gear, you can find truly crazy powerful combinations.”

Rydby continued, explaining that, while players will start with enough possible combinations to kill a superhero, post-launch content will help shake things up even more.

“At launch, we’re looking at hundreds of possible combinations and permutations for builds across our four characters, and this is something we’re adding A LOT to in post launch. We’re not supposed to talk about that today though, but I’m really excited for you all to see the cool stuff we’ve got cooking.”

Rocksteady names a few “core parts” of builds that will allow players to customize their playstyle, including things like gear and eight loadout slots. Things like Afflictions, meanwhile, can then be applied to melee weapons and grenades, creating effects, such as Deep Freeze and Diablo Blaze, based on other DC characters.

Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League players can also toy with Talent Trees and traversal mechanics, which allow players to make the most of their villain’s abilities. Rocksteady seems confident that fans will have plenty of options when it comes to how they choose to build each character. Rydby’s entire explanation can be seen below:

Though it seems Rocksteady isn’t interested in referring to Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League as a live-service game, the team has at least confirmed that players can expect post-launch offerings to include seasonal updates, new playable characters, new story content, cosmetic items, and more. The Batman: Arkham Asylum studio’s latest won’t arrive for a few more weeks, though a few select players did get their hands on it late last year. Rocksteady recently lifted an NDA tied to that experience, allowing players to openly share their thoughts.

Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League launches for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X | S on February 2. We published our Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League preview earlier this week but did not enjoy our time with what it offered. At the time, we said, “Not only is Rocksteady one of my favorite developers, but this genre is one I’ve spent far too much time in across Destiny, Anthem, and yes… even Marvel’s Avengers. But while there is a story here that makes me wonder where the heck all this is going, I left the preview event less optimistic than when I came in.”

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.

Capcom Quickly Rolls Back Resident Evil Revelations DRM Update After Steam Review Bombing

Capcom has quickly rolled back a Resident Evil Revelations update which added digital rights management (DRM) after it was review bombed on Steam.

As reported by Eurogamer, the addition of DRM — which essentially looks to stop piracy but allegedly causes performance issues and mod malfunctions too — arrived on January 10 and slammed by Steam users who brought Revelations’ rating down to “mostly negative”.

It didn’t take long for Capcom to hear the outcry and revert Revelations to its former state, though it did say DRM would return once the associated issues were resolved

“Due to an issue observed with the latest update released, we have reverted the corresponding update,” Capcom said in a Steam update. “We apologise for the inconvenience caused, and once the issue is resolved, we will re-release the update. Thank you very much for your patience and cooperation.”

Fans complained the DRM update had stopped mods working for the 2012 single player game. “Added DRM to an 11 year old game,” nyenye said on Steam. “F**k you Capcom. This is the second downgrade in recent years.” GigaDesu said simply: “Capcom killed modding.”

Revelations was originally a Nintendo 3DS game that soon saw itself ported to just about every other platform. It starred Resident Evil mainstays Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine investigate a deadly threat aboard a stranded cruise liner.

In our 8/10 review of the original, IGN said: “Resident Evil Revelations is a great handheld game, one that not only pushes the boundaries and standards of the Nintendo 3DS but one that recaptures a long-forgotten spirit of a classic franchise.”

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

Smite 2 Announced, Alpha Playtest Coming Spring 2024

The third-person multiplayer online battle arena Smite is getting a shiny new standalone sequel: Smite 2 has been officially announced at the 2024 Smite World Championship. The sequel will retain the same core gameplay Smite players are familiar with, but the game itself is being rebuilt from the ground up for the next generation. Check out the announcement trailer above and our first-look preview video below.

In case you’re unfamiliar, Smite is a MOBA like League of Legends or Dota 2 – two teams of five players battle for control of a three-lane map, each team growing stronger throughout the match until one is able to destroy their enemy’s base. Unlike other MOBAs, though, Smite is played from a third-person perspective, so you’re right in the heat of battle clashing with powerful gods, instead of strategizing from a top-down overview. It’s also designed to be console-friendly, and easily played using a controller.

The original game was released in 2014 and runs on Unreal Engine 3, so Smite 2 – built using Unreal Engine 5 – represents a significant leap in technology. Travis Brown, General Manager at Titan Forge Games, describes Smite 2 as a “chance to go back, take all the learnings from 10 years of making Smite into one of the most successful multiplayer games of all time, and do it all strictly better.”

Alongside visual upgrades and new animations and effects for Smite’s pantheon of playable Gods, Smite 2 will also include several gameplay improvements: new abilities for certain characters, a brand new backend and matchmaking system, new map features, and new UI.

5 new Gods are also planned for Smite 2, starting with Hecate, the Greek goddess of sorcery, who will be available to play as part of the Smite 2 alpha playtest, planned for Spring 2024.

The original Smite will still continue to run as a standalone game.

Since they’re rebuilding Smite 2 from scratch, the development team at Titan Forge Games are also taking the opportunity to make some more fundamental adjustments to the game, in an effort to introduce more strategic depth.

In Smite 1, Gods use either Physical or Magical Power, and can’t use items that don’t belong to their power type. Smite 2 will eliminate these restrictions, allowing all Gods to build all items, and scaling individual abilities based on new Strength and Intelligence stats. Relics are being removed entirely, and the item store will be restructured to make it easier for players to dynamically adapt their builds during a match.

Creating a brand new version of the game after 10 years of continual updates is a huge undertaking – there are 130 Gods in Smite 1, and they won’t all be available to play in Smite 2 right away, though the developers plan to eventually bring every God over to the sequel.

Not all Smite content is going to make it over to Smite 2, however. In-game Skins released before Year 11 won’t carry over, as the team state it simply isn’t feasible to recreate the vast amount of content released over the past 10 years, although there is a Legacy system planned to reflect the investment veteran Smite players have made.

Fortunately, for those who’d prefer to stick with the original, Smite 2 won’t be replacing Smite 1. The original will still continue to run as a standalone game, and will receive regular updates for the foreseeable future.

Smite 2 will be released on PC, Steam Deck, Xbox Series X and S, and PlayStation 5 with full crossplay, and signups for the alpha playtest are live now.

The Last of Us Part 2 Composer Is a Playable Character in Remastered’s Guitar Mode

The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered includes a Guitar Free Play mode where the series’ composer Gustavo Santaolalla is a playable character.

A post on X/Twitter from developer Naughty Dog revealed the “familiar face” while announcing the option to play the banjo in Guitar Free Play, too. Santaolalla composed the soundtrack for both The Last of Us games, and actually leaked the remastered second game back in July 2023 by referencing this cameo.

“In the new editions you can make me play certain themes and well, I can’t tell you anything else,” he said at the time, before any new editions or musical modes had been revealed.

It wasn’t to be the only leak for the game, however, as the PlayStation Store posted details of the remaster’s existence before its official announcement. Naughty Dog confirmed it soon after, revealing The Last of Us Part 2: Remastered would arrive on January 19 with a roguelike mode called No Return, Lost Levels with developer commentary, graphical enhancements, DualSense integration, and the Guitar Free Play mode.

The Lost Levels — which were cut from the original game but are being included as bonus content for the PlayStation 5 upgrade — are called Jackson Dance, Boar Hunt, and Sewers, the last of which has fans particularly worried.

In our 10/10 review of the original game, IGN said: “The Last of Us Part 2 is a masterpiece that evolves the gameplay, cinematic storytelling, and rich world design of the original in nearly every way.”

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

IGN UK Podcast 731: The Big 2024 Preview

It’s time to look ahead and get excited about all of the new games, films, and TV shows coming in 2024. Cardy, Matt, and Dale are here to go through an extensive list of the things we’re scheduled to watch and play over the next 12 months. From Star Wars Outlaws and Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth to Dune: Part Two and True Detective: Night Country, there’s plenty to delve into.

What are you most excited about watching or playing in 2024? Get in touch at ign_ukfeedback@ign.com.

IGN UK Podcast 731: The Big 2024 Preview

Classic Konami Games Like Felix the Cat and Rocket Knight Being Re-Released

Classic Konami collections of games including Felix the Cat and Rocket Knight Adventures will be re-released in 2024, both physically and digitally.

As reported by Polygon, the Felix the Cat collection will include both the NES game and the Game Boy game, while what’s dubbed Rocket Knight Adventures: Re-Sparked will include Rocket Knight Adventures, Sparkster: Rocket Knight Adventures 2, and Sparkster. No release dates for either game were announced, though they’ll come to PlayStation 4 and 5 plus Nintendo Switch.

Physical editions will be released through Limited Run Games. Standard and Classic editions of Felix the Cat will be available (priced at $34.99 and $64.99 respectively), with the latter including a CD soundtrack, reversible poster, and NES-inspired packaging alongside the standard disc.

Rocket Knight Adventures: Re-Sparked will come in Standard, Classic, and Ultimate editions, priced at $34.99, $64.99, and $134.99 respectively. The Classic includes a CD soundtrack, reversible poster, steel book, and retro inspired packaging, while the Ultimate includes all this plus a Sparkster statuette, comic, design document collection, mini cartridge display case, and certificate of authenticity.

Further collections will be announced too, with another being revealed on February 24. Konami is also making various quality of life upgrades and other improvements.

“This release includes both the classic Nintendo Entertainment System title and the Game Boy title that was released a year later,” it said of the Felix the Cat collection. “Through Carbon Engine, and some help from Felix’s Magic Bag of Tricks, new features for the titles, including save states and other quality-of-life fixes, bring them into the modern era of gaming.”

Rocket Knight Adventures: Re-Sparked will also include a new animated intro from Studio Meala, a rewind feature, Boss Rush mode, and Museum mode featuring never before seen content.

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

Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League Dev Rocksteady Lifts NDA ‘Now There Is More News Out on the Game’

After a round of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League previews from media went live this week, developer Rocksteady has lifted its non-disclosure agreement (NDA) on the recently held closed alpha, allowing players to talk freely about their time with the game.

IGN was among a number of publications that published impressions of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League earlier this week. “Rocksteady’s first large-scale game in almost nine years is not clicking with us yet,” we said.

Warner Bros.-owned Rocksteady has now lifted a portion of the NDA on the closed alpha, letting players talk about the game but not publish assets like videos and screenshots.

“Now that there is more news out on the game and players are asking, we’re no longer enforcing a portion of the NDA,” Rocksteady said in a statement. “And we’re allowing players to talk about their experience from the Closed Alpha Test. We’ve heard the community requests and want to give players an opportunity to discuss what it’s like to explore Metropolis as Harley Quinn, Deadshot, Captain Boomerang, and King Shark.

“To the amazing players who tested the game, please feel free to talk and write about your gameplay experience.”

As mentioned, other terms of the NDA remain in place. “Players may not post imagery or videos from the Closed Alpha Test,” Rocksteady said.

In Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League you play as one of four supervillains who take on members of the Justice League. You can play solo or co-op with friends in the open-world city of Metropolis. Suicide Squad follows Rocksteady’s critically acclaimed Batman Arkham series, which includes a number of single-player and story-focused games.

Suicide Squad, on the other hand, is very much a live service, with a battle pass to work through and gear score to increase as you pick up incrementally more powerful loot. But Rocksteady really does not want to call Suicide Squad a live service, perhaps to avoid the negative connotations the phrase now has.

Indeed, Rocksteady has faced an uphill challenge bringing its fans on-side following the announcement of Suicide Squad and the revelations about its live service elements, with many hoping for a return to the developer’s roots with a Batman Arkham-style game in the future.

Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League comes out February 2, 2024 on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and S, and PC.

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